Veterans Forced to Relocate, Remain in Homeless Program

TYLER � Many local veterans were upset Thursday after being forced out of their home in Tyler. The Andrews Center Homeless Veteran Program has been helping vets for the last five years. It’s reported to be a successful program that gives veterans a place to stay for free, feeds them, and helps them find work. According to KETK, the controversy is that a few of the veterans were upset after having to leave one of the homes in Tyler Thursday. They were not kicked out of the program, simply relocated. It was a decision the Andrews Center said it needed to make in order to be able to continue to help the veterans.

The Andrews Center Homeless Veteran program has three properties, two in Tyler and one in Athens. The two in Tyler each have 10 beds, while the home in Athens has 14. Since October, about 10 beds have been consistently open. This has caused the center to struggle financially. “We made the decision to move to two homes,” said Judy Whitaker, Andrews Center director of armed services. “That was a good financial decision. However, it did upset people because they had to move from one house to the other and it was pretty short notice, not nearly as short as what was perceived, but you know, people don’t like change.”

Air Force veteran Frank Cardinell has been through the program, during which he was moved three times. “Sure, it might be a little uncomfortable and uneasy because you get used to being someplace, but you’re not going to be there forever anyhow,” Cardinell said. “It wasn’t like they were throwing you out on the street. You were homeless, now you have a place to stay. You’re there 90 days, 120 days at most if you have an extension and then you’re moving on, you’re going on with your life.”

The Andrews Center does not fill the beds. The Veteran Administration does, and the minute the center gets more vets, Whitaker said the house will re-open. “If we have a need for those 10 beds, we’re ready,” Whitaker said. “But having those 10 beds spread out among three houses was killing us financially.” But, the Andrews Center says it’s trying to accommodate everyone and strategically place each veteran. “Anyone who needs to work who doesn’t have income who’s looking for a job, we prefer if they’re here in Tyler because we have public transit and better job opportunities,” Whitaker said. “If a person already has some income or they’re not someone who can work, then our Athens house is out in the country. It’s a rural setting, it’s a nice big house, and we prefer that they be there.”