Stand Down for homeless veterans in Colorado Springs has huge turnout

The Colorado Springs Gazette – October 20, 2015
 

Roughly 235 military veterans – most of them homeless – converged at the Colorado Springs City Auditorium, grabbing backpacks and blankets to help better weather the coming winter.
 
But homeless advocates hope those supplies aren’t needed long.
 
A greater-than-expected turnout inundated Tuesday’s Stand Down – an event to help homeless veterans by offering access to mental health care, job assistance and other services.
 
Meanwhile, organizers of a parallel effort to end veteran homelessness by the end of the year tried to keep up. Those volunteers want to shelter each person within a day, create housing plans within a week and soon place the veterans in more permanent homes.
 
Last year, about 150 veterans sought services at the Stand Down. This year, organizers expected about 175 people – but counted 235.
 
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