Standing Up for Veterans
Region 1 Stand Down aids southeast Michigan homeless
Cecil Cantrell reached into the black plastic bag full of clothing and toiletries that each homeless veteran received at the Southeast Michigan Stand Down for Veterans on Oct. 3 on the grounds at UAW Region 1 headquarters.
He fished out a pair of military boots and handed them to one of the other homeless guys who had arrived by bus from Veterans Administration hospitals and homeless shelters in the area.
“Here, you can have these,” said Cantrell. “My feet are size 12, and they didn’t have any big enough for me. I might as well give them to somebody that can use them.”
Cantrell is a big man who wobbles a little as he walks with a cane. He says he served in the Army from 1971 to 1973 doing field communications in Vietnam.
“I was scared when I went in the Army,” he said. “I didn’t know what drugs looked like. I was the all-American boy thinking about cars, sports and girls.”
That changed in Vietnam. And Cantrell admits drugs are the reason he’s homeless. “I’ve been fighting that problem for years,” he said. “I brought that on myself.”
These days, Cantrell says he stays with friends in the Warren area. Most of his seven children are grown up except for one who lives in Alabama. He says he worked for Conrail for several years until that “dried up.”
Right now Cantrell is proud to say that he has been clean and sober long enough to get into a methadone program that doesn’t require as many in-person visits to the VA hospital.
The Stand Down served about 350 homeless veterans. It was sponsored by 36 organizations and agencies, including UAW Regions 1 and 1A. Volunteers from numerous locals administered the event, along with those from federal, state and local government agencies.
Bill Pearson, chair of the Region 1 Veterans Council, credited former chair John Jourdan with building the Stand Down into a notable event. “John really cranked it up,” Pearson said. “He went around to the government departments and got them behind it.”
Attendees received health screenings, haircuts, registration for VA benefits, counseling from chaplains and opportunities for job programs. The clothing bags included boots, underwear, pants, shirts, socks and a coat. Everyone was given a hot meal and a box lunch to go.
“It brightened a few moments for people who don’t have too many bright moments,” said Ken Terry, Region 1 director. “It was our honor to host it.”
Tyrone Chapman, associate executive director of the Michigan Veterans Foundation, oversees an 18-month transitional program for homeless veterans. “We show veterans who have been disenfranchised that we support them,” said Chapman of the Stand Down. “They wore the uniform and served their country. If we can get some of them started to get back on their feet, that’s what it’s all about.”
