Dear Next President,

Congratulations on winning the presidential race! I’m Lillian Reischauer and I’m in 10th grade. I’m here to talk to you about homeless veterans and homeless shelters. Homeless shelters need to have more space for homeless veterans so that they are off the streets and are safe.

Throughout history, veterans have come back from wars expecting a nice house and warm bed but instead were forced out onto the streets. This is a major problem that needs to be fixed. This is a horrible thing that is happening all over the United States.

According​ ​to​ ​the​ ​National​ ​Alliance​ ​to​ ​End​ ​Homelessness,​ ​“The​ ​Obama​ ​Administration​ ​committed to​ ​end​ ​veteran​ ​homelessness​ ​in​ ​the​ ​U.S.​ ​by​ ​the​ ​end​ ​of​ ​2015.​ ​Since​ ​then,​ ​there​ ​has​ ​been​ ​a​ ​35% decrease​ ​in​ ​the​ ​number​ ​of​ ​homeless​ ​veterans.” Also, there are currently 49,933 homeless veterans, according to the National Database to End Homelessness. This is a great decrease since 2009 but there are still almost 13,100 sleeping on the streets every single night. According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, approximately 40% of the homeless population are Veterans. That number needs to be changed.

My plan for helping homeless veterans is to get people off the streets and into shelters. We need more beds in the shelters and build bigger VAs. After that I want to increase their benefits so that they have enough where they can start saving up for the future.

In conclusion, 40 percent of the men and women who serve for our country should not be living out in the streets. They need better benefits so that they can take care of themselves. They should be where they can be warm and cared for.

Thank you,

Lillian Reischauer

10th Grade at Henry Sibley

Eagan, Minnesota