GWFW Huntsville 

Below are some insights into our May 2026 outreach to veterans in Huntsville, AL:

 

Our outreach to veterans in homelessness has had some real highs and deep lows since the last report.

 

The high this month was an Army veteran I have been meeting with weekly at First Stop and helping him to secure housing was approved and moved into a new apartment. He is being helped through Priority Veteran, which supplies him with six months of rent paid. He is overjoyed to be off the street as a man in his 60’s and ready to re-establish himself. We assisted him with food, air mattress and household goods since Priority Veteran does not immediately provide anything other than the access to an apartment. His plan is to get back to work now that he has secured stable housing and the plan is to be ready to maintain his rent after the six months. Please add him to your prayer list and our interaction. I think there may be some substance abuse, but have not felt it was right to bring this issue up yet, but I plan to approach the subject soon.

 

The low was a tough one to accept. The last of the three veterans in our veteran support group that meets weekly at the Downtown Rescue Mission was kicked out of the program. I witnessed a lot of personal growth in his comments and mindset, but he had an altercation with another resident that was deemed to be the last straw for him to be in the program. We talked and prayed before the meeting, where it was going to be decided if he was going to remain in the program or be asked to leave. I gave
him my number and told him to please call me to stay in touch. This 12-year Army veteran, overcoming a drug abuse problem, is back on the street. Please pray for him and that we may get back in touch with him. He was making great progress in his faith and experiencing transformation through engagement with God’s Word.

 

Another interaction stood out to me at First Stop. There was a man in a wheelchair with a Navy Veteran hat on. I asked him if he was in fact a veteran and he said he was. I told him I was a chaplain and if he ever wanted to talk, I would love to hear his story. He was not interested and really did not want to engage. On the one hand he was proud of

his service enough to wear a hat to tell others he served, but on the other hand he did not want to talk about his service. I am hoping through regular presence at First Stop, veterans like this, will slowly open up and let us in.

I was asked by the Chief of Chaplain Accessions at Randolph AFB to serve for three months on a recruiting assignment this summer. This will make me out of pocket from my normal veteran outreach, but I plan to keep the partnerships connected and plan for re-engagement in the fall.