Veterans Experiencing Homelessness Have New Home in Alexandria

Veterans coming out of homelessness in the Northern Virginia area now have a place to call home in Alexandria. The property, recently purchased by Operation Renewed Hope Foundation (ORHF) with support from Fairfax County Housing and Community Development, officially opened this month with a (socially distanced) dedication and ribbon cutting ceremony.

Originally a 3 bedroom/1.5 bath property, the split-level house was renovated and reconfigured by HomeAid Northern Virginia (HANV) to a 4 bedroom/3 full bath home to enable ORHF to comfortably accommodate 4 individual Veteran residents or a Veteran and his/her family. HomeAid Northern Virginia partners with nonprofits such as ORHF to build and renovate housing facilities and programmatic spaces via the donated expertise, labor and resources of local homebuilders.

Christopher Companies served as HANV’s “builder captain,” leading this project and mobilizing 27 construction trade partners to renovate and upgrade the shared living spaces, kitchen, flooring, electric and plumbing, light fixtures, roof, windows, exterior siding and landscaping.

“Our goal is to get Veterans into housing as quickly as possible so that they can establish themselves, get back on their feet, and regain stability,” said Operation Renewed Hope Foundation’s President and CEO Deborah Snyder, an Army Veteran herself who retired as a Lieutenant Colonel. “When we purchased this property, it was in need of substantial improvement inside and out. With these beautiful, modern renovations, the 1960’s era house feels like a brand new home. It enables us to provide quality housing to even more of our nation’s Veterans and serves as a physical ‘thank you’ for their service to our country. We are grateful to HomeAid and all its building partners who donated expertise, materials and labor to improve the lives of these Veterans and their families.”

This project with HomeAid Northern Virginia allows Operation Renewed Hope Foundation to expand its housing operations and, importantly, enables the organization to invest more of its resources in programs and services for Veterans, rather than in construction costs. ORHF has helped more than 1,000 Veterans find stable, permanent housing since its founding in December 2011.

Operation Renewed Hope Foundation “saved my life,” said twice-decorated Navy Veteran Bryant Smith. He had been living in his car, unable to afford housing with his part-time job. ORHF found him transitional housing, then a permanent home. “Having a roof over my head improved everything about me,” he explained, helping him to “get organized,” polish his resume and sleep through the night. Smith today remains stably housed, has a great job and is completely independent.

Approximately 11% of the adult homeless population in the U.S. are Veterans, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. More than 40,000 Veterans are homeless on any given night and 1.4 million other Veterans are considered at risk of homelessness due to poverty, lack of support networks, and resources and programming to address barriers to housing.

“No Veteran in this country should be without a roof over his or her head. Preventing homelessness requires community solutions and collaborations. HomeAid Northern Virginia is proud to have partnered with Operation Renewed Hope Foundation to expand and improve local housing options for Veterans struggling with housing stability. Secure, quality housing can change lives, enabling people to move forward to stability, healing and self-sufficiency,” said HomeAid Northern Virginia Executive Director and CEO Kristyn Burr.

Of the estimated $150,000 cost of the renovation, a substantial portion was donated by HomeAid, Christopher Companies and the construction trade partners – electricians, plumbers, and a range of other subcontractors – participating on the project. KTGY Architecture & Planning donated architectural design services, Renewal by Andersen donated windows and local staging company Staged Interior fully furnished the home to make it move-in ready. Additional thanks to Bank of America for the $10,000 grant awarded to HomeAid Northern Virginia specifically to fund this project. ORHF is grateful to Dominion Energy, Sandy Spring Bank, NuWave Solutions, and 007 Benefit for substantial contributions toward the operations and maintenance of the home.

Each year, ORHF helps more than 100 Veterans and their families in the DC metro area who are experiencing homelessness. Every client is literally homeless (living in shelter, car, on the street), or on the verge of losing their permanent housing. ORHF uses a “housing first” approach, but also works to coordinate benefits, provide case management, outreach and temporary financial assistance. They enable Veterans and their families to stabilize and begin to rebuild their lives. Together we can end Veteran homelessness in the DC metropolitan region.

Entering its 20th year of service to the Northern Virginia community, HANV brings together local non-profit service providers with the local homebuilder community to build/renovate homeless shelters, housing facilities and community spaces for programs serving those experiencing homelessness. These collaborative partnerships enable homebuilders to do what they do best (build) and service providers to do what they do best (provide housing and critical wraparound services). HANV has completed more than 150 construction projects that together have served as a safe and stable space for more than 196,000 vulnerable individuals in our community.