{"id":8037,"date":"2024-10-31T18:30:00","date_gmt":"2024-10-31T18:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037"},"modified":"2024-10-31T18:30:00","modified_gmt":"2024-10-31T18:30:00","slug":"standing-up-for-veterans-at-a-stand-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037","title":{"rendered":"Standing up for Veterans at a Stand Down"},"content":{"rendered":"

Originally published:<\/strong> 2024-10-31T18:30:00+00:00. Historical source article: benefits, rules, amounts and deadlines may have changed. Check the official source for current information.<\/p>\n

On a sunny October morning in Houston, hundreds of Veterans stood at attention for the national anthem and the pledge of allegiance during the opening ceremonies of the Houston Stand Down for Veterans.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

As the ceremony came to a close, the air was filled with conversation, laughter and anticipation as the Veterans lined up to enter the Stand Down event.<\/p>\n

More than 100 community, government and Veterans service organizations were set up, ready to offer vital resources and assistance.\u00a0For these Veterans, the Stand Down represents more than a day of services. It symbolizes hope and a chance for a fresh start.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Pictured above, Sandra Posada, director of Houston VA\u2019s Post-9\/11 Military2VA program, fist bumps a Veteran at the Stand Down.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The term \u201cstand down\u201d originated in the military where it referred to a time when soldiers could rest and regain strength after the stresses of combat. Today, it serves a similar purpose for Veterans who find themselves in need of assistance with housing or other services.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s Houston Stand Down, sponsored by Michael E. DeBakey VA<\/a> and the City of Houston, welcomed over 750 Veterans each with their own story and journey.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m amazed by all the support and help available here.\u201d<\/h2>\n

Among them was Navy Veteran Jon Foster, a native Texan who moved to Houston earlier this year after getting out of the military in 2022.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had more than my share of bad luck since I got out of the Navy.\u00a0I lost two civilian jobs and my house before I ended up crashing on friends\u2019 couches for a few months. About a month ago I slept one night on the street when I had nowhere else to go.\u00a0It was a wakeup call,\u201d Foster shared.<\/p>\n

Foster, who spent ten years in the Navy and participated in numerous overseas deployments, says he connected with a VA counselor just weeks ago and is already feeling more optimistic.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy counselor is helping me set goals to get a job that will get me back to being myself. She suggested I come to this Stand Down and I\u2019m amazed by all the support and help available here,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Available assistance and resources at the Houston Stand Down included housing assistance, VA health care, education, employment opportunities, legal assistance, transportation, hygiene products, clothing, food, women Veteran services, dental services, haircuts, furniture, family services and more.<\/p>\n

The Greater Houston area is home to more than 300,000 Veterans, one of the largest Veteran populations in the United States. Houston VA cares for a growing population of more than 131,000 Veterans, with women Veterans the fastest growing population of Veterans served.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have been working hard to support and care for the growing number of Veterans receiving care from our health care system,\u201d said Frank Vazquez, Houston VA director. \u201cVA is committed to ending homelessness among Veterans because it is our nation\u2019s duty to ensure all Veterans have a place to call home.\u00a0The words \u2018homeless\u2019 and \u2018Veteran\u2019 should not exist together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m truly overwhelmed at the amount of help here.\u201d<\/h2>\n

Army Veteran Lakeisha Brooks attended the Houston Stand Down and says she was struck by how many community groups and organizations were there with resources.\u00a0 Brooks, who has a 4-year-old daughter and a 13-year-old son, says her family fell on hard times last year when they were the victims of a robbery.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are working really hard to turn things around after our stuff was stolen.\u00a0I got out of the military 15 years ago so I didn\u2019t even think to go to VA for help at first.\u00a0I\u2019m truly overwhelmed at the amount of help here. I am leaving with a nice outfit I can wear for a job interview I have coming up.\u00a0I appreciate this more than you know,\u201d Brooks said.<\/p>\n

According to social worker Emily Winfield, one of the co-chairs of the Stand Down, it was great to see the camaraderie among the Veterans in attendance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Stand Down is more than just an event. It\u2019s a reminder to our Veterans that the Houston and Texas community stand behind those who serve. When we give them compassion and caring along with the appropriate resources, there is no limit to how far they can go,\u201d Winfield said.<\/p>\n

\n

Source: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs<\/a>. Its Veterans is an independent publication and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. government.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Houston VA\u2019s Stand Down, sponsored by Michael E. DeBakey VA and the City of Houston, welcomed over 750 Veterans.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":151,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8037","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-u-s-veterans-news"],"yoast_head":"\nStanding up for Veterans at a Stand Down - Its Veterans<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Houston VA\u2019s Stand Down, sponsored by Michael E. DeBakey VA and the City of Houston, welcomed over 750 Veterans.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Standing up for Veterans at a Stand Down - Its Veterans\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Houston VA\u2019s Stand Down, sponsored by Michael E. DeBakey VA and the City of Houston, welcomed over 750 Veterans.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Its Veterans\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-10-31T18:30:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/4bf835f8c5375ef33978f3169f311668\"},\"headline\":\"Standing up for Veterans at a Stand Down\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-10-31T18:30:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037\"},\"wordCount\":770,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/vet-456-134.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"News & VA Updates\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037\",\"name\":\"Standing up for Veterans at a Stand Down - Its Veterans\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/vet-456-134.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-10-31T18:30:00+00:00\",\"description\":\"Houston VA\u2019s Stand Down, sponsored by Michael E. DeBakey VA and the City of Houston, welcomed over 750 Veterans.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/vet-456-134.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/vet-456-134.png\",\"width\":803,\"height\":803},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8037#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Standing up for Veterans at a Stand Down\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Its Veterans\",\"description\":\"Veterans news, benefits, health and community resources\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Its Veterans\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/its-veterans-six-service-branches-flag-header-v2-2026-09-18.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/its-veterans-six-service-branches-flag-header-v2-2026-09-18.jpg\",\"width\":2172,\"height\":724,\"caption\":\"Its Veterans\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/4bf835f8c5375ef33978f3169f311668\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Standing up for Veterans at a Stand Down - Its Veterans","description":"Houston VA\u2019s Stand Down, sponsored by Michael E. DeBakey VA and the City of Houston, welcomed over 750 Veterans.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Standing up for Veterans at a Stand Down - Its Veterans","og_description":"Houston VA\u2019s Stand Down, sponsored by Michael E. DeBakey VA and the City of Houston, welcomed over 750 Veterans.","og_url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037","og_site_name":"Its Veterans","article_published_time":"2024-10-31T18:30:00+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#\/schema\/person\/4bf835f8c5375ef33978f3169f311668"},"headline":"Standing up for Veterans at a Stand Down","datePublished":"2024-10-31T18:30:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037"},"wordCount":770,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/vet-456-134.png","articleSection":["News & VA Updates"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037","url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037","name":"Standing up for Veterans at a Stand Down - Its Veterans","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/vet-456-134.png","datePublished":"2024-10-31T18:30:00+00:00","description":"Houston VA\u2019s Stand Down, sponsored by Michael E. DeBakey VA and the City of Houston, welcomed over 750 Veterans.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/vet-456-134.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/vet-456-134.png","width":803,"height":803},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8037#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Standing up for Veterans at a Stand Down"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/","name":"Its Veterans","description":"Veterans news, benefits, health and community resources","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#organization","name":"Its Veterans","url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/its-veterans-six-service-branches-flag-header-v2-2026-09-18.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/its-veterans-six-service-branches-flag-header-v2-2026-09-18.jpg","width":2172,"height":724,"caption":"Its Veterans"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#\/schema\/person\/4bf835f8c5375ef33978f3169f311668","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/itsveterans.com"],"url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8037","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8037"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8037\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/151"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8037"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8037"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8037"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}