Home Depot Grant To Help Homeless Vets In Phoenix, Navajo Nation

PHOENIX, AZ — Veteran homelessness increased in 2020 for the first time in years, even before the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic were taken into account, according to a recent report by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

To help combat this troubling trend, the Home Depot Foundation announced Thursday it has invested an additional $6.4 million in 2021 to help veterans nationwide experiencing homelessness and at-risk veterans.

Arizona will benefit from some of that funding. The Home Depot Foundation has granted $300,000 to U.S.VETS – Phoenix to help bring an end to veteran homelessness in Maricopa County. The funds will help U.S.VETS, the nation’s largest nonprofit veteran services provider, renovate a former hotel to provide housing for a minimum of 180 veterans experiencing and at-risk of homelessness.

The facility is projected to open to its first residents in the fall of 2021.

“We’re committed to ensuring every veteran in Maricopa County, the state, and the country has access to a safe, affordable place to call home,” said Michelle Jameson, Executive Director of U.S.VETS – Phoenix. “Through our long-standing partnership with The Home Depot Foundation and this new facility, we’ll be able to get closer to achieving our goal of ending veteran homelessness in Phoenix.”

In Navajo Nation, the Home Depot Foundation is also partnering with CORE to turn COVID-19 shielding shelters into permanent housing for U.S. military veterans. The shelters will provide a sustainable housing solution for 25 veterans and will be renovated entirely by local community members employed by CORE.

To date, the Home Depot Foundation has invested more than $375 million in veteran causes, including making critical home repairs for combat wounded veterans, providing financial assistance and helping senior veterans age independently in their own homes.