Program Will Help Homeless, Addicted Veterans
Celebrity musician Jon Bon Jovi, one of the many private and public donors concerned with helping homeless veterans, helped raise $3.3 million to start a new Project H.O.M.E. program called the St. Elizabeth's Recovery Residence.
Bon Jovi, whose parents were both veterans, publicly praised the project, calling the investment another "amazing step" in ending the cycle of homelessness. The money raised will go to renovating the program's central building while creating 12 units of housing for homeless veterans. The program will also provide on- site services, including substance abuse treatment, to assist veterans in retaining their housing and moving towards self-sufficiency.
At the groundbreaking ceremony, Peter Dougherty, director of homeless veterans programs for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, said the ranks of homeless veterans are easing as federal and local agencies provide more services for them. Dougherty cited a recent announcement by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to spend $75 million on permanent housing for homeless veterans. Of that, Philadelphia has a commitment to procure funding for 140 units of permanent housing for homeless veterans.
