ALACHUA COUNTY, FL – the Alachua County Board of County Commissioners together with the City of Gainesville, FloridaWorks of Alachua & Bradford Counties and the North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System are sponsoring the 10th annual Homeless Veterans Stand Down Thursday and Friday, September 8 & 9, 2011, at the Martin Luther King Jr. Multi Purpose Center (1028 NE 14th St., Gainesville).  The event will run from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday and 8 a.m. to noon Friday.  

In addition to the sponsoring organizations, numerous local non-profit organizations and state and federal service agencies will be present to offer services and materials to homeless veterans.  Services will include medical screenings, VA claims assistance, employment services, and SNAP (Food Stamp) enrollment, among other services.  Coffee and light refreshments will be served in the morning of both days, and lunch will be provided on Thursday.  The US Department of Labor has provided $10,000 to support the 2 day event as a means of assisting homeless veterans gain access to services and programs that can help them re-establish the ability to become employed, re-housed, and re-stabilized in their living situations. 

John Skelly, Alachua County Poverty Reduction Program Director said, “This annual event has a great impact on those homeless veterans who attend, not only because it is a ‘front door’ to accessing needed services, but also because the event itself demonstrates to these veterans that the community still values them as human beings who served their nation truly and well, in ways that most of us never have.” 

For more information, contact John Skelly at 352-264-6749 or Theresa Lowe, Director of the Gainesville/Alachua County Office on Homelessness at 352-372-2549.

If any accommodations are needed for persons with disabilities, please contact the Equal Opportunity Office at (352) 374-5275 or (352) 374-5284 TDD.