Our forgotten sisters... heroes

Sordid FACT 1: Female veterans are the fastest-growing demographic of homeless veterans in America today. Far from being a well-understood phenomenon, most studies and surveys are hard-pressed to include female veterans in the overall picture of veteran homelessness — or recognize their unique risk factors and survival strategies.

 

Sordid FACT 2: Female veterans are three to four times more likely to become homeless when compared to non-veteran women. The primary causes of homeless female  veterans include unemployment, disability, poor health and lack of treatment for PTSD and/or mental health challenges.

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Sordid FACT 3: There is no solid sense of how many female veterans are homeless because the choices they make when they are experiencing unstable housing, such as sleeping on couches at friends’ and family’s homes until their welcome runs out, leaves them generally out of the Federal count of and excluded from public notice or the resources that they and often their dependent children with them need.

 

The Lace, Grace and Gears rally for women is an official fundraising event for Shamwari Village for Women. Shwamwari has a mission to  build a village for homeless female veterans and young women faced with mental health challenges. This will be a safe and nurturing environment that will provide a holistic, individual treatment plan for these women and their children. Shamwari is in its first phase to acquire 60-80 acres to build a village and community for female veterans. Amernities will include a health center, playgrounds, parks and a chapel for study and shared fellowship and furnished micro-homes providing comfortable and affordable independent living areas supported by common amenities such as walking trails and an amphitheater for Friday night movies. Shamwari's concept is anchored around community kitchens, bathrooms, and laundries. The village is designed to promote healing and independence.