>> First tonight, more than 350 military veterans are
homeless in Wisconsin. According to the latest
estimates, some are getting a fresh start through the
Veterans Housing and Recovery Program, which
offers job training and support for addiction. But
the program is now at risk after falling short of the
funding it needed in the new state budget. That's a
concern for the veterans who rely on these services
today, and for those who will need them in the
future. But as "Here& Now", reporter Steven Potter tells
us, there are hopes new bipartisan legislation could
restore funding and keep the program running.
>> It's like I developed all these bad habits with my
anger and drinking, and I ended up in a shelter again.
>> Michael Cable is a veteran of the United States
Navy. He's also been homeless many times first as
a child, then as a young adult. And then he became
homeless again after leaving the Navy in 2010.
>> Came back. I was a full blown alcoholic and anger.
Just couldn't deal with my emotions at all.
>> Struggling to deal with life after the military.
>> You come back and it's like your life's gone.
Everything's changed. >> He knew something drastic
needed to happen. And it did.
>> Once I got sober, I felt so much different about
everything. I used to dream about everything all the
time. And now I was actually doing things, working
towards those dreams. >> What changed is that
Michael was accepted into the state's veterans Housing
and Recovery Program at the Chippewa Falls location,
known as Klein Hall. Graduating from that program
in May, he got hired at a local plastics factory. And
then all of his hard work paid off. As this formerly
homeless veteran became a homeowner.
>> I literally bought the first house I seen. I gave
him a full price offer and moved in, and I. Every day
I'm just standing there like, I can't believe it.
It's amazing. >> Since opening in 2007,
Klein Hall has helped roughly 1000 of Wisconsin's
homeless and at risk military veterans find their
footing and eventually secure permanent housing.
And while Michael is one of the success stories, he
could also be one of the last veterans to use the
Transitional housing and Recovery program due to a
lack of funding in the new state budget. Klein Hall in
Chippewa Falls and another similar location in green
Bay are slated to close their doors at the end of
September. >> We were really saddened
and disappointed with the budgetary decisions. It's a
horrible situation. >> The Veterans Housing and
Recovery Program is run by the Wisconsin Department of
Veterans Affairs. Out of three locations. Assistant
Deputy Director Joey Hoey says they now only have
enough money to keep one site open.
>> So we made some very difficult and agonizing
decisions. We've decided that we're going to focus
our efforts on one of the three sites. It's in Union
Grove down by Milwaukee. >> Politically, Democratic
Governor Tony Evers has blasted Republicans in
control of the state budget writing committee. In a
statement, Evers said, quote, there will now be
fewer options for homeless veterans as a result of the
legislature's irresponsible decision to reject the
investments that I proposed. Joint Finance Committee
Chairman Senator Howard Marklein and Representative
Mark Born responded by saying the governor failed
to make this program a funding priority during
budget negotiations. And they added that the governor
was, quote, looking for a scapegoat to blame for his
administration's failure to adequately manage the
changes to the program volume and demands.
>> Who cares? Who cares whose fault it is? That
doesn't help the problem. >> For veterans like Derek
Aune, who first heard about it in prison. This program
is not only transitional, but it can also be
transformative. >> I'm learning all the time
about this mental health stuff is I do not do regular
life well, but I know that if I want to stay out of
prison, then I have to be willing to do stuff like
this because it's the best way for me to keep myself
like in the right frame of mind.
>> Discharged from the Marines 20 years ago.
Derrick has been homeless several times over the years
at Klein Hall. He says he's found stability and he's
been allowed to keep his emotional support animal, a
friendly, attentive, husky mix named Phoenix, with him.
He appreciates that the program here is built
specifically and only for veterans.
>> That makes a big difference. And you'll hear
that from almost every veteran across the board.
With any situation, whether it's treatment or groups or
whatever. There it is a different feeling when
you're amongst other veterans.
>> Randy Withrow is the Klein Hall site director for
Lutheran Social Services, which contracts with
government veterans affairs agencies to manage the
program. >> Nobody's homeless because
they don't have shelter. It is a myriad of things that
occur in their lives, whether it be legal, mental
health, substance abuse, financial that leads them to
homelessness. And part of our job is to make sure that
we shore up those areas so that then when they become
either renters or owners, that they have the skills
and the ability to handle that day to day living that
you and I may take for granted.
>> Veterans stay in the program for a maximum of two
years and participate in employment and education
training. They receive meals and transportation
assistance and are also required to maintain
absolute sobriety. Program staff members are working to
place veterans currently in the program in other housing
initiatives, or to move them to the Union Grove location
that's staying open. But there is concern that if too
much changes, some veterans will end up back on the
streets. >> Change is not something
that they necessarily experience well, and now
they've got to go and meet a new group and interact and
integrate into something that's different.
>> Veterans affairs officials say there is still
hope that the two housing program locations, scheduled
to close in September, could be saved if new funding is
secured soon and there is legislation being circulated
at the state Capitol to do just that.
>> If we were to get funding, we could quickly
restart the program. >> With two of the three
locations closing. The overall program will shrink
considerably from more than 100 beds total to just 40
beds at the Union Grove location, veterans say
keeping the program running is a necessity.
>> These kind of things are pivotal. If you don't want
to have people rolling back through the system over and
over and over again. >> Just having a place where
you can catch your breath and really get back your
sanity doesn't take much. Just a place to stay. Some
food and a counselor. Someone cares. Someone you
talk to, life changing. These guys are grateful for
every bit of it. >> Reporting from Chippewa