{"id":8207,"date":"2024-06-22T20:30:00","date_gmt":"2024-06-22T20:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8207"},"modified":"2024-06-22T20:30:00","modified_gmt":"2024-06-22T20:30:00","slug":"homeless-outreach-team-helps-a-veteran-and-his-family","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8207","title":{"rendered":"Homeless outreach team helps a Veteran and his family"},"content":{"rendered":"

Originally published:<\/strong> 2024-06-22T20:30:00+00:00. Historical source article: benefits, rules, amounts and deadlines may have changed. Check the official source for current information.<\/p>\n

The homeless outreach team was there when Eoighin McGilligan needed it.<\/p>\n

After leaving the Navy, McGilligan\u2019s transition didn\u2019t turn out as he had planned. Problems started piling up, his world started to cave in on him and he had difficulties finding housing for himself and his family of five children.<\/p>\n

\u201cI figured I\u2019d call VA for help,\u201d he shared.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A VA social worker from the Homeless Outreach Team<\/a> helped McGilligan secure housing through the Housing and Urban Development Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program.\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, five months after moving into his new residence, he nearly lost everything after turning back to drugs, falling behind on bills and feeling hopeless again.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the VA social workers who helped me stay in the HUD-VASH program to keep my residence, to include providing me and my family with food stamps, finding child care and helping me get caught up on my bills,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

McGilligan was admitted to the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) program,<\/a> which is one of the Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Programs at Coatesville VA<\/a>. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe social workers went beyond what they needed to do for me and my family. We couldn\u2019t even afford Christmas, and the only reason our kids had a Christmas for the past two years is because of the generosity of VA and social workers,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Social workers cared enough to stay in touch<\/h2>\n

Having been at rock bottom, McGilligan\u2019s life has changed for the better. He found passion and joy again thanks to his social workers Nichole Chalfont and Stephen Raquet. They cared enough to stay in touch with him throughout his difficult times to get him the care he needed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cRebuilding a Veteran\u2019s life takes time, and some Veterans experience setbacks. That\u2019s why the homeless outreach team is here to support the Veteran and their family at every stage of their journey. Seeing Eoighin and his family thrive brings us joy,\u201d said Chalfant, a licensed clinical social worker.<\/p>\n

McGilligan said that Veterans who find themselves in similar despair should, \u201cCall VA right away. There is hope. Lay it all out and you will get the help you need.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you are or know of a military Veteran who is homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, call the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans<\/a> at 1-877-424-3838.<\/em><\/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":"

Eoighin McGilligan\u2019s transition didn\u2019t turn out as planned… he and his five children were nearly homeless, twice.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8207","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-homelessness-housing-support","category-housing-home-loans"],"yoast_head":"\nHomeless outreach team helps a Veteran and his family - Its Veterans<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Eoighin McGilligan\u2019s transition didn\u2019t turn out as planned... he and his five children were nearly homeless, twice.\" \/>\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=8207\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Homeless outreach team helps a Veteran and his family - 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