SALEM – Congressman Seth Moulton (D-MA) announced that the Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) program through the Department of Veterans Affairs has awarded nearly $12 million in federal grants to help low-income veteran families in Massachusetts prevent homelessness. The funding will be awarded to private, non-profit organizations and consumer cooperatives that provide a range of services to very low-income veteran families, including more than $2 million for the Veterans Northeast Outreach Center, Inc. and $449,645 for the Lynn Housing Authority Development Group, Inc.
“Ending veteran homelessness should be a top priority for every town, city, and state in our country,” said Moulton. “I’m proud of the progress made to date, particularly in Massachusetts, and in places like Lynn, a city which has received a ‘functional zero’ categorization for homeless veterans. This substantial federal investment by the VA will help get us closer to ending veteran homelessness across the nation, and it will ensure that we maintain the progress we’ve made to date in cities like Lynn. By securing stable housing and access to critical services for veterans and their families, we can reach our goal of ending veteran homelessness.”
The Director of Regional Housing & Services for the Lynn Housing Authority and Neighborhood Development (LHAND), Harry MacCabe, noted the impact this funding will have on Lynn. “LHAND is very excited to have the opportunity to continue our Veterans Services. We have served over 150 Veterans from Essex & Middlesex county. This funding enables us to continue serving single Veterans and Families of Veterans to transition from homelessness to permanent housing. Lynn was honored in 2016 to be Certified as a Functional Zero City to end homelessness for Veterans. This could not have been done without the VA funding and support of Congressman Moulton, Mayor Kennedy and the Community Support and resources,” he said.
“We are proud to announce the renewal of our Supportive Services for Veteran Families,” said a representative from the Veterans Northeast Outreach Center. “This grant renewal is for $2,000,000 to assist those seeking housing or in imminent risk of losing housing. Veterans Northeast Outreach Center is dedicated to helping end veterans homelessness.”
The SSVF grant program provides access to crucial services for veterans and their families. SSVF funding supports outreach, case management, and other flexible assistance to prevent veteran homelessness or rapidly re-house veterans who become homeless.
