Veterans

JFCS supports veterans and their families who reside on the Suncoast who are confronting life’s challenges. We offer case management, financial and employment assistance to low-income veterans and their families who are literally homeless or who are about to become homeless to enable them to obtain or maintain stable, permanent housing.

JFCS’s client-centric approach provides care for Veterans to maintain self-sufficiency and facilitates solutions to living a healthy lifestyle with a support system. Through the Operation Military Assistance Program (OMAP), Veterans are able to gain the assistance needed to obtain or maintain permanent housing, removing the barriers to living a stable, comfortable, and more satisfying life.

Assistance includes:

• Outreach
• Permanent Housing
• Case Management
• Accessing Benefits (Veteran’s Administration benefits, Social Security, TANF, food stamps, limited financial assistance)
• Legal Services, and more
• The Voluntary Interim Placement-Enhanced Recovery
  (VIP-ER) program is a collaboration between several Sarasota County agencies. The primary goal of the program is to assist individuals who are homeless so that they may be productive members of society. While housing is handled by The Salvation Army, First Step provides 10 weeks of substance abuse treatment. Additional partner agencies focus on workforce readiness, mental health and family reunification. To be eligible for the VIP-ER program, one must be at least 18 years of age, a Sarasota County resident and homeless with a substance abuse disorder.