Randy Sargent credits his life to St. Francis Commons, a transitional housing facility for veterans in Scranton.
After 14 years of service and an honorable discharge in 2020, the 37-year-old struggled with finding stability in his life, from housing to substance use to personal relationships.
He lived at St. Francis Commons for nearly eight months, from February to September of this year. While living there, he ran into trouble as his substance use flared up. Instead of getting expelled from the facility, he was given another chance.
Case managers set him up with treatment programs through the Wilkes-Barre VA Medical Center, and he was able to get back on track, focusing his efforts once again on chasing his dreams of getting his commercial driver’s license (CDL).
Now, Sargent has his CDL and spends his days and nights on the road, happier than ever. He struggles to imagine an alternative reality in which he did not get the help offered from St. Francis.
“I'd be homeless or dead,” Sargent said. “One of those two, but I mean, if I went homeless, then that was the end of the road.”
Veterans and homelessness
Homelessness and housing insecurity are huge issues facing the nation’s veterans. According to the U.S. Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, veterans make up 11% of the nation’s adult homeless population. 2021 data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development analyzed by Veteran Data Central estimated that 778 veterans in Pennsylvania are unhoused.
Offering 30 single-capacity occupancy rooms, St. Francis is currently at 29 residents after successfully discharging a resident in October. Residents can stay for up to a year. While there, veterans receive services such as transportation to appointments and assistance in securing more permanent housing and employment.
According to Wilkes-Barre VA’s homeless coordinator Shannon McLafferty, veterans need to be considered homeless or severely at risk of homelessness to be considered for a spot at St. Francis.
McLafferty said the VA defers to the McKinney-Vento definition of homelessness, which the National Center for Homeless Education defines as, “individuals who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence.”
Health struggles
Many St. Francis residents struggle with severe health diagnoses. Both Donnell Sullivan and Darren Hahn are dealing with cancer diagnoses. For Sullivan, being at St. Francis has made dealing with his diagnosis easier.
“A lot of people in here unfortunately (are) diagnosed with some crazy disease or something,” Sullivan said. “We even get an Uber ride to the VA hospital. You can't beat that.”
Sullivan, a U.S. Navy veteran, has been out of the military since 1995. He served in Vietnam. After a recent incarceration, he’s using his release as a chance to start new. He’s been living at St. Francis since the end of August, with hopes of securing a part-time job in the near future. His stay at St. Francis allows him time to save money before finding a more permanent housing situation and starting a new chapter in his life.
“If you really apply yourself to get the things that you need and you [are] trying to progress in life, this place is the best place that you could ever want to start,” Sullivan said.
Hahn has been dealing with his own cancer diagnosis on top of the end of a personal relationship. He is also a U.S. Navy veteran, with 16 years of service under his belt. He served in Operation Desert Storm during the Iraq War. After losing housing due to a difficult divorce, he’s been at St. Francis since March.
“This place has been a godsend,” he said.
Like Sullivan, his cancer diagnosis has become more manageable since his stay at St. Francis. Initially, he stayed away from the services the VA offers because of rumors he heard about the poor quality of service. His personal experiences with the VA have proven those rumors false. He wishes he took advantage of the VA’s help sooner.
“You hear horror stories about the VA,” Hahn said. “It took me a long time to get to the VA and but once I did, they have taken outstanding care of me. I have cancer, other medical issues. I have never had such top notch healthcare in my life.”
Sullivan agreed.
“The misconception that the VA won't help you, far from the truth,” he said.
Finding community
Hahn personally struggles with asking for help. He sees that same reluctance in other veterans.
“It's hard for a veteran to put their pride and ego aside and say, ‘Look, I need help,’” he said.
Sullivan also had difficulty asking for help, but he’s realized his life is better off since he asked the VA for assistance. He wants to advocate for places like St. Francis so other veterans can see how much they can benefit from them.
“I encourage all the veterans and all the people that have things that they need to do, to seek out the veteran help,” he said.
For Hahn, the community support he feels from the other veterans living at St. Francis has been invaluable.
“Veterans, we're different kinds of people,” Hahn said. “A lot of us have seen things that most people wouldn't want them to ever see. We're able to share that stuff and talk to each other about it. So it’s a big help.”
Sargent was also reluctant at first to ask for help and look for transitional housing. Living in a shelter was off the table for him. However, having a veteran community was important to him and made his decision to come to St. Francis an easier one.
“The fact that I knew I was going to be around other veterans made me so much more comfortable to go there,” Sargent said.
At St. Francis, residents are encouraged to spend time in communal spaces, which have televisions, games and books. Residents can also bring animals into the facility, promoting an at-home feel.
Building self confidence
While receiving treatment for his physical conditions, Hahn is also working on recovering his mental health.
“Being here, you get your self esteem back,” he said. “You get pride back in yourself. It picks you back up, you know? It gives you ‘umph’ to go out there and do things.”
Reflecting on the past few months living at St. Francis, he’s proud of how far he’s come.
“When I first got here, I was in a bad place, went through a bad marriage, ended up having cancer, lost a business, lost a lot of things,” he said. “And over the couple months I've been here, I've got my positive attitude back. I'm happy. I'm doing the things I need to do, and I'm trying to pass that along to other veterans, but this place has picked me up and put me back where I need to be.”
Sullivan said he feels the same, and is grateful to the VA and staff at St. Francis for giving him this stepping stone. Regardless of his age, his medical issues and having been incarcerated, he is able to look to the future.
“Even though I'm up there in age, there's plenty of opportunity for me still to carry on,” Sullivan said. “I can do almost anything now, because I got the help.”
In less than three short months, his life has changed.
“I'm very much enhanced in life than I was, I'm gonna say three months ago,” he said. “What it has done is gave me the desire to want to get out there and help people.”
In the facility, staff and residents have a comfortable familiarity. They mill about common spaces. As residents cook in kitchenettes, play games in common spaces or watch television in the lounge, staff check in on residents, assisting them with anything from job interviews to transportation.
Both Sullivan and Hahn thanked staff for their assistance multiple times. The staff said they learn from residents too.
“Everybody needs help in some form, some way, some fashion,” said Ken Matalavy, the program supervisor at St. Francis Commons. “So many people need help, and that's what we're here to do.”
Sargent realizes he had ups and downs, especially while experiencing issues with substances. He understood the urgency of taking the program seriously and committed to changing his life for the better.
“If you want help, they're going to give it to you,” he said. “You just have to want it. You want to be successful, they're going to give you the keys.”
And as for a message to current residents, he wants them to know: “Anyone that goes through that program and does it with the intent to do it correctly, is going to become successful, and they're going to be OK.”
