U.S. Navy Veteran Megan’s life had not been easy for some time. While Megan lived in Mississippi, she could no longer stay with her family due to overcrowding and so they paid for her to live in a hotel. Things started looking up after Megan’s mom referred her a job for the post office in Minnesota. Megan applied, got the job, and started on March 22nd, 2021.
When Megan came to Minnesota from Mississippi to work at the post office in March, she did not have a place to live. But as a single Veteran with no dependents, she decided to live out of her car until she could afford long-term housing. However, this decision had its own impacts. After being late for a couple trainings, Megan was let go from the post office. Without a source of income, she started earning cash by driving a friend to and from work.
Fast forward to April. After MACV Case Manager Amanda Hooper (pictured on the right) secured an initial intake from Megan, MACV encountered difficulty verifying her Veteran status in any system. She turned to Lina at the St. Paul Vet Center, who found Megan’s verification and other information. Lina then brought the Veteran to the MACV office and Amanda helped Megan complete an on-the-spot intake for our hotel program. MACV Case Manager Shelbe Robertson had already completed Megan’s background, so as soon as Megan filled out the paperwork, our team squared away her reservation with one of our hotel partners as a stopgap while figuring out the next steps.
Hooper connected Megan with a couple Veteran assistance programs during her intake and realized that she would be a perfect candidate for the women’s transitional home managed by MACV. So she called MACV Metro Housing Team Leader Dave Nguyen, who immediately added Megan to the queue.
After completing paperwork for the assistance programs for which she was eligible, Megan secured insurance, financial assistance, and moved into transitional housing within one week. The remarkable collaboration between MACV providers and our partners at the Vet Center has resulted in stable housing for a Veteran who thought she would lose everything just a few weeks ago. Today, Megan is looking for jobs, getting medical appointments set up, and has a safe and stable place to stay.
“I want to say a huge THANK YOU to all the moving parts because this was a case that moved so smooth,” relates Ms. Hooper. Teamwork like what came together to support Megan exemplifies MACV’s approach to ending Veteran homelessness. Our team is committed to empowering Megan in her journey to a stable, happy life in Minnesota, and we are honored to walk alongside her.