A Record Number of Homeless Veterans Find Permanent Homes
Veterans from across the area gathered at Tropicana Field for one of James A. Haley’ s outreach events, designed to help people find permanent housing and receive benefits.
With the help of two Tampa-area VA offices, more homeless Veterans than ever were taken off the street this year and given live-changing benefits.
The Department of Veterans Affairs had a record-breaking number of more than 50,000 homeless Veterans housed permanently across the nation this year, about 4,000 more than last year. Bay Pines spokeswoman Medina Ayala-Lo said the VA’ s " Housing Surge Events " help them identify homeless people and connect them with resource services.“( The Housing Surge Events) immediately connect unsheltered Veterans with housing and other crucial services on the same day the event occurs,” Ayala-Lo said. Their next event is tentatively scheduled for Jan. 7, 2026. James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital helped over 750 Veterans receive permanent housing. Haley spokesman Roderick Cunningham said the hospital holds the same event for Veterans.
This is life-changing and in many cases lifesaving work,” Cunningham said in a statement.“ We are proud of the progress( the VA) is making to get Veterans off the streets and are redoubling our efforts to continue this momentum moving forward.