SAN DIEGO, Calif., (KGTV) — San Diego High School has been turned into a camp to benefit homeless veterans this weekend.
“I have a reasonable expectation to hope,” said Justin Davis.
Davis, a veteran, said he was homeless for nearly three years.
According to the Regional Task Force on the Homeless in San Diego County, there are 9,116 homeless people in the city. Of those, 1,054 are veterans.
“People starting writing me off, I mean friends, lifelong friends, because of the way I was, because of my behavior,” said Davis.
Davis said he was able to get off the street because he finally got help from programs like the Veterans Village of San Diego.
“We're talking about socks, clothes, underwear, a roof over your head,” said Davis.
Though he’s just one person, the organization said it’s one less person without a home.
They said the number of homeless veterans has steadily dropped every year and they attribute that to camps like, Stand Down, which serves the homeless population over a three-day period.
“That's a hard thing for us, asking for help,” said Davis.
Though the number of homeless veterans in San Diego has dropped, according to the Regional Task Force on the Homeless in San Diego County, the overall number of homeless has increased. The biggest reason being job loss.
Justin Davis, a former #homelessveteran, says programs like 'Stand Down' has gotten him off the streets. STORY on @10News at 5pm! pic.twitter.com/GDhd16bU0n
— Jessica Chen (@10NewsJessica) July 21, 2017
