VA awards nearly $2.1M for Preble Street in Portland

The Department of Veterans Affairs has awarded nearly $2.1 million to Preble Street, a Portland organization that serves individuals, including veterans, who face homelessness, housing issues, hunger and poverty.

Funding was awarded through the VA’s Supportive Services for Veteran Families program. According to the VA, nearly 300 organizations across the country received grants this year. Approximately 95,300 veterans and 31,950 children benefited from the program in 2016.

The award was announced today by U.S. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, chairwoman of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee, and Angus King, I-Maine.

“For more than four decades, Preble Street has provided and expanded crucial services for Maine’s homeless and at-risk population,” Collins and King said in a joint statement. “We commend the staff and volunteers at Preble Street for their hard work assisting individuals of all backgrounds, and we are pleased that this funding will help reduce homelessness among veterans in our state.”

Earlier this year, Collins authored the fiscal year 2018 Transportation and Housing Appropriations Act, which unanimously passed the Senate Appropriations Committee and provides $2.456 billion for homeless assistance programs and an additional $40 million for new HUD-VASH vouchers. These vouchers have been critical to reducing veterans’ homelessness by 47% since 2010.