Author Blurb:

Felicity Sulham is a senior at Blue Mountain Union School and she is passionate about veteran healthcare and wants to help in any way she can. She believes that veterans should feel appreciated for the sacrifices they made for our country. 

Veterans Struggling in America

Veterans are ignored. 

Having healthcare and proper shelter shouldn’t be only for the fortunate. It’s an essential human condition providing dignity and well being. As the granddaughter of a veteran, I notice that my grandfather is ‘lucky’ enough to be housed and receive decent healthcare. Sadly, not every veteran is as fortunate. They are suffering.

Shockingly, in Vermont, approximately 36,000 out of 331,000 houses are occupied by veterans. There are homes being used as seasonal/vacation homes which could be used to help veterans. It is unfair that people with money are buying all of these houses. During the pandemic, folks wanted to get out of the cities, so people were buying second homes in Vermont. This started driving up the price of real estate, leaving it impossible for our local veterans to afford houses. 

Homelessness is experienced longer by veterans because non-veterans have an easier time getting jobs. This is because veterans tend to have underlying diseases that can limit their physical and mental potential.However, the greatest risk factors for homelessness is lack of support and social isolation which leaves our veterans at a great disadvantage Hence, it is not surprising that more than half of homeless veterans suffer from substance abuse and about half of these heroes suffer from debilitating mental illness.

Veterans healthcare is also lacking. In Vermont, there are three major VA hospitals. They are in the more urban areas like Burlington or White River Junction. Having VAs in more populated areas does not help people like my grandfather who lives in a small town. The VA hospital can be as far as two hours away! He is lucky enough to have his children drive him to his appointments. Some veterans don’t have this support network, and they lack transportation to VA hospitals, resulting in an inadequate response to their healthcare needs.

We, as a country, must help our struggling veterans. For once, we need to step up and put veterans first. We owe it to them, as they fought for our country. The least we can do in return is to offer our assistance. We need to come together as a nation and minimize the struggles these veterans have faced.