Veteran Success Stories Archives

February 28, 2018

Keith Caldwell: Giving back what HVAF gave him

In 2005, Army veteran Keith Caldwell found himself homeless. He was dealing with addiction and lost everything. Moving from Crawfordsville to Indianapolis, Keith first went to Wheeler Mission, where he was sent to HVAF to get into one of the transitional supportive houses. For two […]

April 30, 2018

Army vet Kevin: “I’m glad HVAF is around”

Last September, Army veteran Kevin E. was homeless, as he was living in his vehicle. That same month, his life was changed. He found out his 12-year-old grandson did not have a place to live anymore, and he would need to gain custody of him. […]

June 30, 2018

From homeless to homeowner: How HVAF helped Ray overcome veteran homelessness

After returning from two years of service in the U.S. Marine Corps, Ray Lay began struggling with service-related mental health issues. Eventually these issues would lead to and be compounded by substance abuse, incarceration, and finally homelessness. Seeking a new start, Ray moved to Indianapolis at […]

August 31, 2018

‘I’m not going through it alone’ How helping Navy homeless veteran was team effort

After graduating from high school, Vincent decided he wanted to fight for our country, and he joined the United States Navy. “I wanted to do something better with my life,” he said. From 2007-2011, Vincent was in active duty. But due to missing his child’s […]

September 30, 2018

‘HVAF gave me hope’ How our case managers housed a homeless veteran in 24 hours

In 2011, Lianna Spencer enlisted in the United States Air Force. After serving for two years, Lianna got out and went back to her home in Arizona, where she went back to school and work. She also spent one year on the reservation taking care […]

January 31, 2019

‘I’m so happy to be with HVAF’ Homeless Navy veteran lands job thanks to HVAF

In 1990, Jimmy Potts joined the United States Navy. Starting at the Naval Station Great Lakes in Illinois for his training and education, Jimmy went on to serve for six years— being a part of Desert Shield and serving for eight months in Iraq for […]

February 28, 2019

‘I don’t know where I would have ended up without HVAF” How HVAF saved homeless veteran

In 1990, 17-year-old Antonio Johnson enlisted in the United States Navy soon after he graduated from high school. During his time in the Navy, he traveled around the world twice, served on two aircraft carriers, and supervised his fellow shipmates. After he got out of […]

March 29, 2019

How HVAF helped Marine veteran overcome addiction

In 1968, Troy Rivers enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and served for four years. When he got out of the military, he said he had zero guidance. This led him to getting mixed up with the wrong crowd. Several times throughout the years […]

May 6, 2019

HVAF is helping Army vet set, accomplish goals

In 1985, right after high school graduation, Pamela Coleman decided to enlist in the U.S. Army. She wanted to follow in her father’s footsteps, and be able to grow as a person. Pamela served for six years as a military police officer. She said her […]