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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Timothy Pena, Founder of Veterans Justice Project
1:45:27
·
3 min
Timothy Pena, founder of Veterans Justice Project, provided testimony on the effectiveness of the Department of Veterans Services (DVS) and their outreach efforts. He highlighted both positive aspects and areas for improvement in DVS's work, particularly focusing on the methods of veteran outreach and engagement.
- Pena praised DVS for making major advances in outreach despite being underfunded, disagreeing with their C grade in this area.
- He criticized DVS's overemphasis on digital outreach methods, arguing that many veterans, especially homeless ones, lack access to or familiarity with technology.
- Pena shared his personal efforts in reaching out to veterans, including creating a pocket-sized handout and using snail mail for incarcerated veterans, expressing disappointment in the lack of support from city agencies.
- He compared the attendance at a NYC Veterans and Family Summit (460 veterans) to a stand-down event in Phoenix (2,000 veterans), suggesting that more effective outreach methods could significantly increase veteran self-identification and engagement.
Timothy Pena
1:45:27
afternoon.
1:45:28
My name is Timothy Pena.
1:45:30
I own an organization called Veterans Justice Project that assists incarcerated, homeless, and transitioning veterans with resources and referrals to facilitate a successful entry into civilian society.
1:45:47
I myself spent five months at the disaster is that is the grant per diem program at Borden Avenue Shelter in LIC back in 2022.
1:46:00
In a span of eleven days, we had three veterans die there in a VA program, two from overdose and one from a hit and run.
1:46:12
First, I'd like to recognize Department of Veterans Services for their hard work.
1:46:18
Despite being underfunded, they have made major advances in outreach over the past year.
1:46:26
I would and I
Christopher Leon Johnson
1:46:27
would
Timothy Pena
1:46:27
disagree with a grade of c on that point.
1:46:32
I do, however, listening to what we're talking about today, I believe that they have put too much of an emphasis on online, on VetConnect, on Squares, on phones, all of these things where you have a majority of veterans who either have no phone, especially those of us who are in still in the homeless spectrum, And those that do have phones, a lot of us are not tech savvy to be answering a bunch of questions on our phones.
1:47:29
My my experience with incarcerated veterans is snail mail.
1:47:35
And I buy a bunch of stamps, and I mail them newsletters.
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I've started a pocket sized handout here.
1:47:49
I've been working on this for two years.
1:47:53
No one from the city, DVS or otherwise, has ever acknowledged that I put in my own money, my own time.
1:48:07
I'm a 70% disabled veteran.
1:48:11
Nobody has ever come forward and said, how can we help you put this together?
1:48:17
Because we want to be getting in touch with our veterans.
1:48:20
Before my time is up, I'd like to make one observation that in the report, it was stated that the Veterans and Family Summit at Yankee Stadium last year brought in 460 veterans.
1:48:39
I attended a stand down event in Phoenix last month.
1:48:44
We served almost 2,000 veterans in two days.
1:48:49
Two thousand.
1:48:52
Four hundred and sixty and a 15 of them were there for professional capacity.
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The veterans will self identify if you give them a reason to self identify.
1:49:08
If we are going out to the veterans, we're meeting them where they are, we're bringing them in, they'll get engaged.
1:49:19
They'll identify.
1:49:20
Thank you very much.
Robert F. Holden
1:49:21
Thank you, and by the way, it's because if DBS had the ability, the budget to do mailings, I think, you know, like you said, not everyone's online, they're not gonna fill out forms online, but if we did actually send them a letter, send them a flyer, send them some services, send them the booklet, that would go a long way.