JACKSON, Miss. – Hundreds of very low-income Veteran families in Jackson, Mississippi who are experiencing homelessness or are at risk of becoming homeless, will have access to crucial services from local organizations via grants provided by the G.V. (Sonny) Montgomery VA Medical Center’s (GVMVAMC) Supportive Services for Veteran Families program.

Locally, four organizations in Mississippi received grants totaling more than $2.2 million. A list of grantees is available at www.va.gov/homeless/ssvf.asp. More than 260 organizations nationwide received SSVF grants.

“Supportive Services for Veteran Families is a key tool to promote housing stability among our most economically vulnerable Veterans and their families,” said Kai Mentzer, acting medical center director, GVMVAMC. “This program empowers our community-based partners to provide the mix of services needed to prevent Veterans from becoming homeless and rapidly re-house those who become homeless.”

Nationally, SSVF served 112,070 participants, including 77,590 Veterans and 19,919 children in FY 2020. As a result of these and other efforts, Veteran homelessness is down significantly since the launch of the Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness in 2010.

The SSVF program is authorized by Congress. The funding will support SSVF services from October 1, 2021, until September 30, 2022.

Learn more about the SSVF program.