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The Smythes share a message about the deeply personal reason that they got involved with Veterans Community Project.
On the day our son would have turned 35 years old, I spent my time helping Veterans in their moments of need at Veterans Community Project.
That birthday turned out to be a happy one.
Let me tell you why.
Over the past three years since we lost Johnny, volunteering our time at VCP has brought healing and joy to our lives. Combined this year, we have spent more than 1,000 hours working with VCP Outreach Services and building homes at VCP Village.
Each and every one of those hours is in honor of our proud National Guardsman son and a fulfillment of a mission he set out on to help fellow Veterans.
Johnny was a lot of things. He was a sociable friend and a loyal protector. An admirable engineer and a talented cook. A kind-hearted person who would tolerate no less from others. Among many other traits and talents. But above all else, I think Johnny likely would have told you he saw himself as a soldier.
There was an immense pride to his service in the National Guard. But, he experienced health challenges that led to him being medically disqualified from deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq. Tragically, later in life, this led to resource groups turning him away when he asked for help as those health challenges worsened and prevented him from sustaining employment. Time and time again, he was told, “You are technically not a Veteran.”
Despite these frustrations, Johnny remained dedicated to helping other Veterans in need, like by establishing an online gaming site and volunteering with a suicide prevention hotline. All the while, he continued to seek answers and treatments for increasingly serious health conditions. He was alone in his hotel room near a cardiac hospital that was monitoring him when his heart, the one that had given so much to others, suddenly stopped beating.
Johnny was 32 years old. It was at his funeral where a family member told us about VCP. Soon after, on a tour, we asked them an important question: “What is a Veteran to you?” The combat Veteran founders told us that VCP would help anyone who raised their hand and took the oath to serve, without exception.
This answer touched our hearts. It is exactly the type of place that would have been there for Johnny. So now, this is our place.
Fixing Veteran homelessness is a deeply personal mission for John and me. We know with certainty that, without our personal support as his parents, Johnny would have been one of the estimated 32,882 Veterans who experience homelessness on any given night in the United States.
It is your personal support, meanwhile, that now arms us and VCP with the tools to tackle this problem and support Veterans like Johnny. Can you help us this holiday season?
Your contribution to VCP is both a tribute to Johnny and an investment in a proven model with a radically effective 85% success rate of transitioning Veterans from experiencing homelessness to achieving permanent housing.
On that day our Johnny would have turned 35, I saw your generosity in action at Outreach Services as we handed out food and hygiene bags while having conversations with Veterans about gaining access to the benefits they earned through their service. And John sees it on the build site as he talks to Veteran residents who are transforming their lives in the Village, from going back to school to getting promoted at their job to, get this, landing a book deal.
This holiday season, you can be a part of these incredible moments. Please, consider getting involved with VCP or deepening your involvement as a donor, volunteer or, like us, both.
Thank you all for taking the time to read our story.
And happy holidays, from our family to yours.
Theresa and John Smythe on behalf of Veterans Community Project