Steven Potter:
Is there something about veterans that makes them maybe more susceptible to being homeless or struggling when they come back?

Randy Withrow:
Sure. First of all, that transition is not something that just happens seamlessly when you go through the structure of the military to a lack of structure and freedom to do whatever. If you've gotten used to — when you wake up, when you brush your teeth, when you eat, things like that — to do whatever you need to do, well, that freedom sometimes can be very unnerving. So, part of that's the other thing we do here is talk about structure, talk about how do you create your own structure within so it makes sense. Something as simple as, "Do you have plans for the day?" And for them to say, "Yeah, I'm going to do this, this or this." That's a huge step. That's the other thing we really work with is they only see the end game, and we're saying sometimes you have to look where your feet are and look down and take that next step. Don't worry about down the road, worry about this step right here. The other thing is, with veterans, is they struggle with the sense of pride. There's a sense that, well, everybody else has got it worse than me versus the idea of you live in your head and that's where you are. You know, sometimes getting 'em away, because they've had that group mentality to get 'em to start thinking as the individual is quite a challenge. And, getting them to realize that they'd bring baggage into a program like this is one of our biggest things that we do. Sure, we do programming, but part of the challenge is getting them to say, "Okay, I'm going to accept the programming. I'm gonna accept doing these things."

Steven Potter:
What's the benefit of having a veteran-specific facility where it's only veterans?

Randy Withrow:
Brotherhood. Absolutely brotherhood. They have a common experience, even if they're all incredibly uniquely different. They all have that brotherhood of experience together — this is what we've done, this is how we've served, this is what we've given up, this is what we believe in. So, there can be challenges with each other's personalities, but at the end of the day a solid brotherhood.