Improving support for veterans experiencing homelessness in Waterloo Region

Thousands of Canadians who fought and served to protect this country will spend Remembrance Day unhoused, and local experts are looking for ways to break down the barriers that keep veterans from receiving support.

According to Chris McEvoy, manager for housing policy and homelessness prevention at the Region of Waterloo, the last Point in Time count in 2024 showed that there are approximately 2,400 people in Waterloo Region who are experiencing homelessness. McEvoy added that as much as five per cent of that population are veterans.

According to a study from McGill University, veterans are two to three times more likely to experience homelessness compared to the general population, and statistics from the federal government indicate that there are as many as 2,000 Canadian veterans currently experiencing homelessness.

McEvoy said one of the barriers keeping veterans from receiving targeted support is self-identification, as many people who served don’t label themselves as veterans because they didn’t serve in specific conflicts.

“That label and identity are reserved in their community for somebody who has served in WWI, WWII, or the Korean War. That misses a whole section of people who have served in Afghanistan, who have served peace-keeping missions, who have served in other active conflicts throughout the world,” said McEvoy.

He said that his team is working on ways to change the way they reach out to veterans experiencing homelessness to help identify that population.

“We can be doing, as a community, a much better job at identifying who is a veteran, who is somebody that has served,” said McEvoy. “Rather than asking ‘are you a veteran,’ ask ‘have you served’ or ‘have you completed basic training.’ That’s been a really eye-opening experience for us.”

Government supports and staff are placed specifically to support veterans, and resources exist to offer them housing opportunities and addiction support.