BEGIN:VCALENDAR PRODID;X-RICAL-TZSOURCE=TZINFO:-//com.denhaven2/NONSGML ri_cal gem//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN VERSION:2.0 BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID;X-RICAL-TZSOURCE=TZINFO:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20130310T020000 RDATE:20130310T020000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTEND;TZID=America/New_York;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20130520T170000 DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20130520T080000 DESCRIPTION:Liberty Manor was organized in 2006 as a 501©\;3 non-prof it organization with the objective of promoting the developmental and so cial needs of veterans who have served our country and fought for our in dependence\, but fallen victim to homelessness. It has been determined t hat individuals who make up the homeless veteran population have exhaust ed all reasonable alternatives that will address their immediate financi al or residential needs. This initiative serves the most deserving yet o verlooked individuals of our community - veterans. \; It has been es timated that 7% of the homeless population in America are Veterans and c ontrary to the perceptions that our returning veterans are well-supporte d\, many go without the services they need due to a lack of governmental resources as the Veterans Administration does not provide housing for v eterans. \; The mission of Liberty Manor is to provide transitional\ , supported housing to honorably discharged veterans and establishing lo ng-term objectives designed to attribute to self-sufficiency. \;\nA glimpse into the lives of these brave\,often unsung heroes offers all of us perspective\, as these former servicemen are warriors\, heroes in th eir own right\; they serve as a reminder of how good life is in America and how fortunate we are to be Americans. This initiativeoffers us a gre at opportunity to pay homage in a significant way to those who have unse lfishly answered the call to duty by serving in our United States milita ry.\nAs a result of the implementation of the Liberty Manor initiative\, we have successfully transitioned the following veterans from a homeles s state and prospered them into self-sufficiency:\n&diams\; \; \ ; \; Harold\, an eighty-six year old\, World War II combatveteran\, a survivor of our worlds greatest generation - lived at the Salvation Ar my\, sleeping on a cot with sixty civilians\, many housed at the shelter were still active in their substance abuse addictions. While at the Sal vation Army he was required to vacate every morning at 5am with all of h is belongings until time to line up again for admission the next day in hopes of securing a bed foranother night. \; Harold was victim of ho melessness due to identity fraud when his Social Security checks weresus pended. Not knowing how long this veteran would remain indigent\, no one was willing to help him without the necessary funds to sustain his resi dency.Liberty Manor received a call regarding the veteran&rsquo\;s predi cament when Connie graciously opened her heart and home to this deservin g veteran. \;Harold&rsquo\;s Social Security was reinstated though h e continued to remain at Liberty Manor for another seven months - servin g as Manager. \; Interestingly\, when Harold moved he only moved a h alf a block away from the place he grew to consider hishome - Liberty Ma nor. \;\n&diams\; \; \; \; Arnett\, a Vietnam veteran ca me to Liberty Manor as a result of failing health. Arnett had been shot during his tenure as an Army veteran in Viet Nam\; he received a Purple Heart for his military service. Because Arnett could earn more income by working he declined a VA pension for his disability. However\, Arnett&r squo\;s health degenerated rapidly at fifty years of age and he became i ncapable of maintaining full time gainful employment for the first time.  \;Due to pride\, Arnett continued to preserve without asking for he lp&hellip\;until he became homeless. VA pensions usually require over a year to be approved and in most cases\, the veteran will become homeless before thepension is approved. Liberty Manor offered Arnett quality hou sing until which time he decided to transition into independent living.\ n&diams\; \; \; \; John T. a veteran who suffered four cardi ac surgeriesat forty-seven years old! Many of us would be in the same fi nancial state if our careers came to an abrupt end before retirement age . John remained with Liberty Manor for four years.\n&diams\;  \; Tim T \;is a veteran who served \;in the United States Navy during a tour in Desert Storm. \;While \;serving in a mission\, he was shot down in a \;helicopter that crashed in the Black Sea\, which le ft Tim \;severely disabled. As aresult of the mishap\, Tim sustained permanent back injuries and fifty percent neurological damage. Tim was medically discharged by the United States Navy andreturned back to the U nited States &ndash\; but lacked any means in which to support himself.& nbsp\; This American hero was left to scramble to make ends meet\, livin g under the bridge and on the streets in Tampa with others that were hom eless. It was over a year before Tim was approved for a 100% veteran ser vice connected pension. We are honored that Tim chose to remain at Liber ty which has now been over five years. \;\n&diams\; \; \;&nb sp\; While serving in Vietnam\, Benny was injured as aresult of a land m ine explosion which resulted in considerable injuries to his right leg\, requiring fourteen surgeries. Benny had made the ultimate sacrifice by serving his country\; he gave so much\, only to be returned to the Unite d States broken and disabled. Although Benny had been approved and recei ving a veterans pension check when he arrived at Liberty Manor\, his VA disability checks had not been forwarded for a period of three months af ter he made a move from Kansas to Florida. Benny became homeless because he lacked the necessary funds to sustain a residence until the VA could get his financial affairs in order. Liberty Manor was the only organiza tion that took a chance on Benny byproviding housing\, clothing and food for months. Benny\, like many other disabled veterans should NEVER be h omeless. If not for a place like Liberty Manor\, this highly decorated v eteran would have been HOMELESS!\n&diams\; \; \; \;Steve D. was a Vietnam veteran that arrived atLiberty Manor with little &ldquo\;a mbition&rdquo\; to procure fulltime gainful employment. Before giving up on the resident\, Liberty Manor&rsquo\;s Executive Director\, Jeff Ludd eke agreed to work a day labor ticket with Steve in an effort to inspire the resident to work. This took place during the extreme temperatures d uring the middle of summer in the Florida heat. The day labor ticket con sisted of digging a deep hole over the course of two hot summer days und er the most inhuman conditions. At the time\, Jeff had been diagnosedwit h cancer\; however it was Jeff&rsquo\;s personal conviction that he woul d not request more of our residents than he was willing to perform if as ked. When the task was completed\, Jeff had gained Steve&rsquo\;s confid ence. Steve became relentless in scheduling interviews for employment an d within a short period of time\, Steve procured employment as a City Bu s Driver. Steve gained financial independenceand was able to enjoy the r ewards of a comfortable salary that reaped multiple benefits.\n&diams\;& nbsp\; \; \; Lastly\, former Staff Sergeant Garza who served ten years as a US Army Ranger with four combat tours\, became homeless as a result of injuries that surfaced rather abruptly\; he was depressed\, d owntrodden\, and virtually hopeless. \;Due to the multiple &ldquo\;j umps&rdquo\; he was required to perform as a Ranger he suffered multiple injuries to the extent the VA was administering morphine to him three t imes a day! He had no chance of procuring fulltime gainful employment - primarily because he couldn&rsquo\;t pass a drug screen\, he would be co nsidered a liability in anyone&rsquo\;s estimation. \;Garza was sche duled for multiple surgeries on his shoulders\, hands andknees and has s teel platelets in his neck due to the injuries he sustained while servin g in the military. Liberty Manor assessed Garza for a non-service connec ted disability which he was approved in a mere two months. \; This h ero receives a deserving pension todayas a result of the efforts of Libe rty Manor. Liberty Manor also procured furniture\, an automobile and eve rything necessary to maintain a household when Garza transitioned from L iberty Manor. Fortunately\, today Garza enjoys independence and self-suf ficiency as a result of the efforts by an initiative that began with onl y one individual who today provides four facilities to fifty veterans.\n It is only through partnerships that we are able to strengthen our commu nity by providing these deserving veterans with some of the basic resour ces and services that will make a positive difference in their future.\n Some of the veterans greatest needs are rent sponsorships\, refridgerato r\, trash compactor\, \; bus passes\, gift cards for gas/restaurants \, automobiles\, used/new bikes which would give them the opportunity to go to the VA hospital for medical treatments and electric wheelchairs\, They can also benefit by donated towels\, twin bed linens\, blankets\, canned goods\, tools\, pots/pans\, silverware\, sodas are a real luxury\ , coffee/creamer/sugar\, toilet paper\, paper towels\, dishwashing or la undry detergent\, garbage bags almost anything that comes with establish ing a household! \;\nWe need a Grant writer\, roofer\, Central A/C a nd airhandlers. \; We have an outstanding loan for Fire Suppression Equipment in the amount of $85\,000.00 as a result of a fire code violat ion. Please consider of plea for help by calling Jeff Luddeke (813) 352- 7856\nLet us remember that only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you - Jesus Christ and the American soldier\, one died for your soul\; the other died for your freedom.\nOn behalf of our Board of Dire ctors\, staff and our veterans\, we thank you in advance for your consid eration by assisting us in the delivery of services and needs for these honorable men.\nPO Box 274081\nTampa\,Florida 33688\nFax 813-269-1511\nw ww.LibertyManor.org\nBusiness of the Year FinalistChamber of Commerce 20 11Florida State SenateProclamation 2011\nHillsborough County Veterans Co uncil Award 2011\nMember VFW\, American Legion\, Veterans Advocacy Counc il\,Veterans Affairs Council\,Cambridge Who&rsquo\;s Who Among Executive s\, Professionals and Entrepreneurs\, Tampa Bay Buccaneer Community Quar terback Award 2008\nArthur Young Entrepreneur of the Year Finalist INC. Magazine\nWho's Who in Executives and Businesses and Who&rsquo\;s Who of American Women URL:http://carrollwood.patch.com/events/liberty-manor-for-veterans-inc SUMMARY:Liberty Manor for Veterans\, Inc. LOCATION:10015 N 9th St\, Tampa\, FL 33612: 10015 N 9th St\, Tampa\, FL END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR