Last Updated on April 26, 2024 by Luke Feldbrugge
Operation Stand Down Tennessee supports Veteran families with children in helping prevent homelessness or rapidly rehouse after homelessness through professional case management and financial assistance for rent and housing deposits, utilities and related deposits, moving expenses, and other housing-related expenses. The Homes for Heroes Foundation grant will be used to help fund these programs.
Operation Stand Down Tennessee Grant Check Presentation with Jay Flynn
The Homes for Heroes Foundation awarded Operation Stand Down Tennessee a $5,000 hero grant to provide support for veteran families with children to help prevent homelessness or rapidly rehouse after homelessness.
Jay Flynn, Foundation Director with Homes for Heroes, meets with Teri Hererra, from Operation Stand Down Tennessee, and Homes for Heroes Real Estate Specialist, Verlon Snell to briefly discuss Operation Stand Down Tennessee and how the funds received from the Homes for Heroes Foundation grant will assist their initiatives.
You can watch the full interview here or read the transcript of the interview below.
Jay: Hello. And thanks for joining us today. I’m Jay Flynn, Director of the Homes for Heroes Foundation. And I’m joined today by Teri Hererra, Director of Service Centers at Operations Stand Down Tennessee. And also Homes for Heroes real estate specialist, Verlon Snell. It’s my honor to be here with both of you today.
First and foremost, I want to thank both of you for your service to our nation; Verlon in the U.S. Army, and Teri in the U.S. Air Force. Thank you so much.
Teri, as part of the Homes for Heroes Circle of Giving, the Homes for Heroes Foundation provides grants to nonprofits whose missions are to support our heroes who are in dire need. Verlon and I are honored to present this $5,000 Homes for Heroes Foundation grant to Operation Stand Down Tennessee. Congratulations.
Teri: Thank you so much. What a gift. Thank you very much.
Jay: We’re honored to do it. Let’s take a few minutes and talk about Operation Stand Down Tennessee and the wonderful work that you are doing. Teri, I know the organization has been around since 1993. Tell us how Operation Stand Down Tennessee came to be and its mission of service.
Teri: Okay. Well, I’ve been here about six years myself, and retired about eight years ago. And with Operation Stand Down, it started with, couple of employees from the VA who started seeing a very large need to help veterans in our community. And we had the first stand down event in 1993.
We officially became a 501c3 in 1999 for over 30 years now, we have been helping veterans with what we call Crisis, Career and Connection. We do have three locations in Nashville, Columbia and Clarksville that serve 20 locations. We have a Staff Sergeant Fox Grant from the VA, which has helped us to create the Columbia office and has enabled us to get more staffing.
We do a lot of suicide prevention and risk assessment through our process of just getting veterans in to see us. We help with foundational issues of trying to get VA disability claims, perhaps see what their benefits are. Verlon and I were just talking about how veterans don’t know, what they don’t know, and why it’s so important for them to step into our door. We can talk to you, see where you are in your life, what your situation is, and tell you things that are going to help.
We help many people get VA benefits, and the other big one is getting them homes.
We do have Career Recon now, and Career Recon is a huge transitional program. Yes, we help homeless folks and we help them to obtain or maintain their homes, but we also want to get them transitioned successfully so they never have that need.
Jay: That’s huge that you guys are able to assist them back into the market and to be self-sufficient by offering them tools and resources.
Teri: It’s two different languages. It’s your military language, and it’s a civilian language. Many people do not know how their military skills can carry over into civilian skills. We also partner with Belmont and the Nashville Chamber to get them education. We give them opportunities, information, and things that they don’t know.
Jay: Absolutely. That’s wonderful. So Verlon, you’re a big supporter of our heroes like those with Operation Stand Down Tennessee. So as a Homes for Heroes real estate specialist. Tell us a little bit about why this group means so much to you.
Verlon: So back in 2000, I had a family member that had fallen on some hard times, and they needed some assistance and we didn’t really know how or where to get them assistance. This family member is a veteran and they found out about Operation Stand Down.
When we reached out to them, they were eager to help us. I was like, oh my God, this is so phenomenal! Somebody that speaks the language that we speak, and can understand what we’re going through as veterans and how we can get family members back on their feet.
Not only that, they provided counseling, because when you start to go through hard times, the first thing that gets affected is your pride. As veterans, one thing we do not want to do is make you feel weak. When they brought us in, they talked to us. They sat down and they provided assistance.
I was like, you know what? I got to find a way to help this organization continue to move forward and help our veterans.
Jay: Wow. So you had a personal, close experience. And that right there just shows you the meaning of the organization because they were able to help your family member get through their situation. It’s bad they went through that. But, it’s great that it connected you with Operation Stand Down Tennessee. And now we’re sitting here doing this grant.
We’re honored to support Operation Stand Down Tennessee with this $5,000 grant.
So Teri, as you know, this is the Month of the Military Child. Please tell us a bit about how these funds will support what you do.
Teri: So with Homes for Heroes generosity and support, these funds will help with emergency situations that we may not normally have capacity to assist with. We can work with VA approved grants and programs to either help them maintain their homes or gain housing. But, there’s always a little bit of a gap getting from A to B in getting their housing set up. So these funds are going to be invaluable to help keep their stress levels down, and remove some barriers while we get them into the programs that they need.
Jay: Wow. That’s awesome. I’ll tell you from the Homes for Heroes Foundation, being able to step in and help fill that gap to some capacity, that’s the purpose of these funds. That’s why we’re here, and hearing you say that just means so much.
So Teri, where can folks go to learn more about what your organization is doing at Operation Stand Down Tennessee.
Teri: We have our website. We’re also on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
Jay: There you can find many ways to connect. You can also donate online. That’s great. So you are in three locations. You’re doing great things to support our veterans and their families in need. Can folks outside of connecting with you online and donating, are there ways to get engaged and get involved?
Teri: With word of mouth we get many volunteers. Verlon came and helped us fill our food bags for our Operation Commissary. So, yeah, word of mouth is probably the biggest way to figure out what we need. And the website will give you the best start.
Jay: Awesome. We will include the links for everyone. But, if anybody watching wants to get involved, reach out, volunteer your time to put your hands and feet in action.
Teri and Verlon, thank you so much for joining me today. And thank you for everything that both of you are doing to serve our heroes.
I hope everybody has a really great day. But do me one favor and take just a second to say thank you to a hero today.
Homes for Heroes Circle of Giving
Grants from the Homes for Heroes Foundation are made possible by the Homes for Heroes Circle of Giving and its network of real estate and mortgage professionals. Homes for Heroes, Inc. is committed to providing savings to community heroes; such as firefighters, EMS, law enforcement, military (active duty, reserves and veterans), healthcare professionals and teachers.
To expand its Circle of Giving, Homes for Heroes, Inc., donates a portion of its earnings to the Homes for Heroes Foundation. So, every time a hero buys or sells a home using the Homes for Heroes program, they are helping other heroes across the country facing a housing crisis or who are in need of urgent financial assistance.
If you are interested in learning more about how Homes for Heroes can guide you through the home buying, selling or refinancing process AND save you an average of $3,000 after closing, simply sign up to speak with a member of their team. They will follow up with you to answer all of your questions. When you tell them you’re feeling ready to speak with their local specialists in your area about home buying, selling, or refinancing, they will connect you with their local specialists to begin the process.
Simply visit the Homes for Heroes Foundation page if you’re interested in learning more about where it has awarded recent grants to hero organizations throughout the country, how much they’ve awarded to date, and how it all works.
If you’re interested in supporting and donating to the Homes for Heroes Foundation to assist heroes in need, please visit their donation page to submit your contribution via PayPal. And, thank you for your interest and support.
Thank you for watching another Homes for Heroes Foundation grant video about the impact it is making nationally and in local hero communities, along with hero supporting nonprofits who use the grant dollars they receive to assist the heroes they serve.
Don’t forget to subscribe to the Homes for Heroes YouTube channel to get notified of the new hero grants awarded by the Homes for Heroes foundation.
