In November 2009 Mr. Joe Sweeney, a Korean War Veteran who has dedicated much of his time to assisting homeless persons in the City of Toronto, wanted to organize a Remembrance Day Ceremony to honour the homeless Veterans. With assistance from The Royal Canadian Legion, Ontario Command it was held at the Scott Mission in Toronto. At the conclusion of the ceremony it quickly became evident that there were a number of homeless Veterans within the city and a team made up of personnel from Veterans Affairs Canada and The Royal Canadian Legion, Ontario Command were determined to see what could be done to assist them.
On September 24th, 2010 a partnership between The Royal Canadian Legion, Ontario Command and Veterans Affairs Canada was announced at the Good Shepherd Ministry in Toronto. With the assistance of Mr. Joe Sweeney, our Homeless Veterans Committee Project Advisor, they have approached other shelters in the downtown core.
When news of the program reached the Ontario Command Legion Branches, they were very eager to assist. A Veterans Assistance Fund was started at the Provincial Headquarters and the Branches responded with generous donations. With funds raised from the Ladies Auxiliary, "comfort bags" were assembled with personal items such as shampoo, shaving cream, shavers, hats, mitts and socks and distributed to Veterans through the Outreach Worker. With assistance from the Homeless Veterans Assistance Fund, we have been able to permanently house Veterans with assistance for their first / last month's rent, furniture and food vouchers. Rental assistance has also been provided to those facing eviction. Medical assistance has been given to other Veterans such as dental treatments, transportation to stress therapy clinics, eyeglasses and much more.
To date the Program has provided assistance in excess of $3 Million to over 1136 Veterans in 197 Communities, 127 females and 52 families.
The Joe Sweeney Fund was created to ensure that these Veterans have suitable housing and/or the support services they require to remain permanently housed and with a stable future. Tax receipts can be issued for this fund.
In late 2012 we distributed a training package to our Branch Service Officers across Ontario. With their assistance the program will soon be known to all communities and their local resources such as the "Out of the Cold" program, Food Banks, Churches, Municipal and Provincial Government Offices, local emergency personnel ( Police, Fire, and Ambulance) all asking the same question: " Have you had military service?". The result of their efforts is already tangible as we are fielding many calls to our office regarding the program.