VA Salt Lake City surge event connects unsheltered Veterans with resources
By Gregory House, Public affairs specialist
Library Square in downtown Salt Lake City was lined with tents and volunteers on Friday, July 18, as Veterans experiencing homelessness and other unsheltered people came from all over the city so they could find the resources they need to survive.
Volunteers from VA Salt Lake City Healthcare System (VASLCHCS) and other community organizations spoke with anyone who attended the event to get them haircuts, food, bus passes and even same-day shelter.
As a part of a determined effort to end Veteran homelessness, VASLCHCS’s Homeless and Justice Clinical Recovery (HJCR) partnered with Salt Lake City to host an event to connect Veterans who are experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness with life-sustaining resources.
“The goal for today is to meet and engage with as many unsheltered Veterans as possible and get them connected to shelter and housing resources immediately today,” said Mitch Harris, deputy director for HJCR at VASLCHCS. “We are sending outreach workers out to various locations to try and locate some of those Veterans and bring them to us.”
The HJCR team and the city held the event at Library Square in downtown Salt Lake City. The location made it easier for unsheltered Veterans to connect to the resources they need, from immediate food and shelter needs to permanent housing needs and health care they have earned for serving in the military.
“The main thing I hope we take away from this event is that it takes a team to address and solve homelessness, especially Veteran homelessness,” said Harris. “The VA is committed to being that team and to reaching out to these Veterans and giving them the opportunity to get access to these resources”
VA Salt Lake City’s HJCR works year-round with unsheltered Veterans to connect them with job training, food and shelter, and more.
“We have medical providers and housing outreach workers that that come to these fairs every month, but there was a national mandate from our homeless program’s office that we start planning more of these events where we have more comprehensive outreach happening all at one event.”
This event represents a new style of outreach for unsheltered Veterans.
“This is not a one-time event for us,” Harris said. “We’ll be doing these more assertive outreach events on an ongoing basis as a way to find every single veteran and get them connected to housing resources.”
If you or someone you know is a Veteran who is homeless, have them reach out to our homeless outreach team at