Thanks for his service: Goodwill’s programs help Navy veteran

In his cozy Albuquerque apartment, 67-year-old Navy veteran James Ward pets his two dogs as they play at his feet, laughing with Ryan Likes and Paul Gallegos. Ward sits across from them, reminiscing about how he came to meet them.

The moment, made possible by Goodwill’s veterans’ services, was a stark contrast to the years that followed Ward’s military service.

Just a few years ago, Ward’s reality was markedly different. After serving in the Navy for four years, he had moved to Oklahoma, where his wife and parents lived. After his parents passed, and later his wife, he decided to move to Raton in 2006. There, he started a new chapter at a job working in medical transportation. However, he soon had to find employment elsewhere.

“When COVID came around, I went from working like, 60 to 70 hours a week, to like six hours a week. I couldn’t pay my bills,” Ward said.

Ward’s situation started to look up when he found another job at a Walmart in Trinidad, Colorado. He would take his van on the 25-mile commute each day, working enough hours to be able to pay his bills again. But things took a turn when Ward’s van broke down.

Without his van or an alternative method of getting to work, he lost his job. Unable to find employment again, he couldn’t keep a roof over his head, and had no choice but to live out of his van.

His turnaround began seven months later in 2021, when a Veteran’s Affairs nurse told him that she would put him in touch with Goodwill. That’s when, by phone, he met Ryan Likes, his case manager along with Paul Gallegos. They placed him in two of Goodwill’s programs — the Homeless Veterans’ Reintegration Program, or HRVP, and the Supportive Services for Veterans Families program, or SSVF. The latter is what placed Ward into emergency housing in Albuquerque, which lasts for up to 60 days. Ward also received financial help through the Shallow Subsidy program services under SSVF, which cover 50% of the rent for two years . Once he got to Albuquerque, the HRVP helped to find him long-term employment.

“The great thing about Mr. Ward,” Gallegos said, “is he took a lot of initiative.”

“They got me into an apartment, and it’s right by this place HHC Supply that had a sign out for work.” Ward said.

There, Ward got a job and started making a stable income again while still receiving rent assistance from Goodwill.

“The cool thing about Shallow Subsidy is it doesn’t have any financial requirements to it, so veterans can start making as much as they want,” said Liana Rivera, the service director at Goodwill.

After that, Ward worked in housekeeping at the VA hospital and now works as a driver for Uber and Lyft after starting last Christmas. He wants to be able to spend money on his five grandchildren, who live in Texas and Oklahoma with his two daughters.

“They’re quite expensive,” he said, laughing.

Along with HVRP and SSVF, Goodwill also provides the Veteran Family Services program. Through this, Goodwill gives employment assistance to adult children of veterans.

Even with children not seeking employment, case managers still take a holistic approach to include their needs rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.

“We had a veteran family with an adult son who had autism, and the shelter was just way too much sensory overload,” said Sesha Lee, Goodwill’s chief services officer.

They were able to cater to the family’s specific clinical needs and find a place to house them outside of a shelter.

Thanks to the dedicated work of Goodwill’s 19 case managers, 110 veterans in New Mexico have successfully transitioned from homelessness to a stable living situation, and 63 more are in the process of doing so.

For veterans like Ward, Goodwill’s Veterans Services are more than a helping hand; they’re a lifeline.

“I have my moments of doubt, but I just keep going,” Ward said, “I’ve made it this far, and I’ve got a long way to go.”