Operation Welcome Home

VA IS PROVIDING PER DIEM FUNDING TO ASSIST WITH THE OPERATIONAL COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH TRANSITIONAL HOUSING BEDS FOR HOMELESS VETERANS.

VA IS PROVIDING CAPITAL FUNDING TO REDUCE CONGREGRATE LIVING AND CREATE INDIVIDUAL LIVING UNITS FOR HOMELESS VETERANS.

OPERATION WELCOME HOME (OWH) IS A 501(C)3 NON-PROFIT INITIATIVE FOR VETERANS OF THE ARMED FORCES. IT IS A VETERANS JOB PLACEMENT AND SERVICE FACILITY AT MYLAN PARK IN MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA. OWH SERVES AS A COMMUNITY RESOURCE FOR VETERANS AND THEIR DEPENDENTS BY PROVIDING APPLICABLE JOB REINTEGRATION TRAINING, CLASSES, COUNSELING, RESOURCE EVENTS AND FAIRS, REFERRALS, AND LINKAGES TO PROFESSIONALS AND SERVICES WITHIN THE GREATER MORGANTOWN AREA.OWH ALLEVIATES COMMON BARRIERS TO EMPLOYMENT FACED BY VETERANS WHO HAVE SO SELFLESSLY SERVED OUR COUNTRY. THROUGH SERVICES LIKE: RESUME WORKSHOPS, MOCK INTERVIEWS, FINANCIAL PLANNING WORKSHOPS, BENEFITS INFORMATIONAL SESSIONS, AND BUSINESS PLANNING CLASSES, OWH HELPS PREPARE VETERANS AND THEIR DEPENDENTS FOR SUSTAINABLE EMPLOYMENT. OPERATION WELCOME HOME ALSO WORKS CLOSELY WITH EMPLOYERS IN THE COMMUNITY THAT WANT TO HIRE VETERANS BY PROVIDING OPEN INTERVIEWS.OWH WORKS INDIVIDUALLY WITH VETERANS TO DETERMINE THEIR CAREER GOALS. TO DATE, THEORGANIZATION HAS SUCCESSFULLY PLACED OVER 550 VETERANS IN FULL TIME JOBS AND SERVED WELL OVER 3,000 OTHER VETERANS WITH VARIOUS VETERAN-RELATED ISSUES. THESE VETERANS HAVE BEEN REACHED THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA, EMAIL LISTSERV, ATTENDING AND HOSTING JOB FAIRS, HOLDING THE FIRST NORTH CENTRAL WEST VIRGINIA VETERANS AND DEPENDENT RESOURCE FAIR, AND SPEAKING TO MANY LOCAL SCHOOLS AND GROUPS INCLUDING ALL LOCAL HIGH SCHOOLS, EVERY ROTARY CHAPTER IN THE SURROUNDING AREA, ATTENDING ALL HOME AND OUTDOOR SHOWS NEAR OUR HOME LOCATION, AND VARIOUS OTHER MEANS.OPERATION WELCOME HOME WAS GRANTED FUNDS BY THE USDA NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE APPROXIMATELY THREE YEARS AGO AND BEGAN A PARTNERSHIP WITH THE WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY EXTENSION SERVICE TO TEACH VETERANS THE BASICS OF HIGH TUNNEL OPERATION, SITE SELECTION, SETUP, ETC. AND WAS HOLDING AT LEAST TWO CLASSES PER WEEK ASIDE FROM HANDS-ON ACTIVITIES OF CONSTRUCTING A HIGH TUNNEL, WHICH IS LOCATED ACROSS FROM OUR PHYSICAL LOCATION.THE PLANS WERE BROUGHT TO AN ABRUPT HALT IN OPERATIONS WHEN THE PUBLIC-SCHOOL SYSTEM WAS FORCED TO RECLAIM SOME SPACE THEY HAD ALLOWED US TO USE FOR CONSTRUCTION AS THEY NEEDED TO BUILD AN ADDITION TO THEIR CURRENT ALTERNATIVE LEARNING CENTER (ALC). WE HAVE SINCE FOUND ANOTHER SITE LOCATED NEARBY AT MYLAN PARK WHERE OWH IS CO-LOCATED WITH NUMEROUS OTHER THRIVING NON-PROFITS ON A RECLAIMED STRIP MINE, AS WELL AS A NEW COMMUNITY BUILDING THAT HOUSES WEST VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND THE COUNTY EXTENSION SERVICE. IN FACT, OUR HIGH TUNNEL IS LOCATED DIRECTLY ACROSS FROM THAT BUILDING AND STILL WITHIN WALKING DISTANCE OF OUR PHYSICAL ESTABLISHMENT.OPERATION WELCOME HOME'S VETERANS IN AGRICULTURE TRAINING PROGRAM WILL PROVIDE A FULL GAMUT OF CLASSROOM EDUCATION, HANDS-ON WORKSHOPS, FIELD TRIPS, AND INDIVIDUAL NEEDS ASSESSMENT FOR OUR PARTICIPANTS. WE WILL BEGIN THE PROGRAM COURSE WITH CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION ON WHAT PARTICIPANTS CAN EXPECT FROM PARTICIPATING IN THE PROGRAM: FROM LEARNINGWHAT A HIGH TUNNEL IS THROUGH PROGRAM COMPLETION WITH A BLUEPRINT TO SUCCESS IN DEVELOPING ECONOMIC SELF-SUFFICIENCY. PARTICIPANTS WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK IN THE HIGH TUNNEL AS THEIR SCHEDULE PERMITS AND WE WILL SCHEDULE OVERSIGHT OF OPERATIONS APPROPRIATELY. AS PARTICIPANTS BEGIN TO LEARN, WE WILL HOST FIELD TRIPS TO DIFFERENT, SUCCESSFUL, FARMS THROUGHOUT THE STATE AND ALLOW THEM TO SEE VARIOUS OPPORTUNITIES TO ENLIGHTEN THEM TO WHAT ENTERPRISES WITHIN AGRICULTURE THEY MIGHT LIKE TO PURSUE. ESSENTIALLY, THE FIRST YEAR OF THIS PROJECT WILL BE AGRICULTURE 101 FOR OUR VETERANS AND NOT ONLY PROVIDE THEM WITH THE KNOWLEDGE THEY WILL USE AS A FOUNDATION TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THE FIELD (WHETHER IT BE FOR PROFIT OR FOR SOCIAL REASONS), BUT ALSO PROVIDE THEM WITH A TRIED AND TRUE THERAPEUTIC OUTLET AND VENUE.BY SOWING SEEDS AND SEEING THE FRUITING OF THEIR LABOR, VETERANS WILL TAKE PRIDE IN THEIR WORK AND FEEL ACCOMPLISHED WHILE FORMING IMPORTANT BONDS WITH BOTH THEIR VETERAN PEERSAND SOME NON-VETERAN COUNTERPARTS. THE HEALING POWER OF AGRICULTURE HAS BEEN A HIGHLIGHT OF MANY VETERANS' PERSONAL RECOVERY. THIS WILL UNDOUBTEDLY BE A WIN-WIN SITUATION FOR ALL INVOLVED.BASED ON OUR PREVIOUS LEVEL OF INTEREST IN THIS PROJECT, WE FORESEE UP TO 40 VETERANS BEING INVOLVED IN THIS PROJECT FROM THE START AND KNOW THAT THIS INTEREST WILL GROW AS INFORMATION IS SPREAD THROUGH WORD OF MOUTH, SOCIAL MEDIA, EMAILS, FIELD TRIPS, AND REGULAR OUTINGS TO BOTH OUR LOCAL FARMER'S MARKET AND THOSE WITHIN OUR COMMUTABLE AREA. THE FIRST YEAR OF THE PROJECT WILL BE CATERED TO ALL VETERANS AND DEPENDENTS (REGARDLESS OF BRANCH, RANK, SERVICE ERA, ABILITY OR DISABILITY) WITH A FOCUS ON BUSINESS PLANNING AND THE START-UP PHASE OF HIGH TUNNEL OPERATIONS.WEST VIRGINIA HAS THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF SMALL FARMS IN THE U.S. AT OVER 98% ACCORDING TO THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS SERVICE, WHICH ALSO TRANSLATES TO A HIGH PERCENTAGE (62%) OF SINGLEOPERATOR BUSINESSES (USDA NASS, 2016). THERE ARE 38,123 PRODUCERS THAT OPERATE 23,622 FARMS IN WEST VIRGINIA. OF THESE INDIVIDUALS, 5,160 (13.5%) OF THEM ARE PRODUCERS WITH MILITARY SERVICE (USDA NASS, 2019). WITH THE KNOWLEDGE THAT FARMING IN THE STATE IS HIGHLY DIVERSIFIED, THIS WILL BE THE BASIS OF THE EDUCATIONAL SESSIONS FOR PARTICIPANTS AND THIS NETWORK OF EXISTING VETERAN FARMERS WILL BE BUILT UPON BY INTEGRATING A MENTORING PROGRAM.TO AID IN THE PROJECT NETWORKING, THE WEST VIRGINIA CHAPTER OF THE FARMER VETERAN COALITION WILL ENHANCE THE PROJECT OUTREACH ACROSS THE STATE THROUGH THEIR NETWORK OF 450 VETERAN FARMERS LOCATED IN THE STATE. THEIR MEMBERSHIP IS FREE AND AN OPPORTUNITY TO STRENGTHEN THE SUPPORT THAT PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS RECEIVE. THIS PARTNERSHIP WILL ALSO OPEN DOORS FOR ADDITIONAL JOB PLACEMENT OPPORTUNITIES, PEER-TO-PEER NETWORKING, AND SHARING OF SUCCESS AND CHALLENGES ENCOUNTERED WHILE FARMING IN WEST VIRGINIA.

VA IS PROVIDING SPECIAL NEED PER DIEM FUNDING TO ASSIST WITH THE OPERATIONAL COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH TRANSITIONAL HOUSING BEDS FOR HOMELESS VETERANS.