HOBART — Waking up in the comfort of his own apartment isn’t something Russell Lipsey has always been accustomed to.
Just one year ago, the 67-year-old military veteran was living and sleeping in his car during some of the coldest nights of the year. His life has dramatically changed since moving into A Safe Haven, a veterans housing complex in Hobart.
“I now have a roof over my head,” said Lipsey of Michigan City. “It’s like I’m living in a condo. I went from a car to a condo. How can you beat that?”
A Safe Haven Foundation provides 40 permanent and supportive housing locations for veterans in Northwest Indiana and around the Chicago area. The foundation’s mission is to assist veterans by providing such services as addiction recovery, education and job training.
Around 19,500 veterans across the U.S. experienced sheltered homelessness in January 2022, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Additionally, 13,500 U.S. veterans experienced unsheltered homelessness in that same month.
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In 2020, the suicide rate for veterans was 57% higher compared with nonveteran U.S. adults, according to the 2022 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report.
Lipsey served in the Marine Corps from October 1975 to April 1976. After the service, he says, he threw his life away by failing to find permanent housing and a steady job. He was living in Indianapolis for a while before returning to his hometown trying to make it on his own, although family members lived nearby.
Through the years, Lipsey kept in contact with a representative from Lake County Veterans Affairs, hoping to someday overcome the difficulties he had faced. In May 2022, Lipsey’s luck changed. He received a call from the VA notifying him about a veterans housing facility that had an apartment available.
Eight months of living in his car had finally come to an end. A Safe Haven lived up to its name.
“Everything here is all about getting your life together,” Lipsey said. “I thank everyone here for helping me get back on my feet. It’s a great place.”
A Safe Haven was founded in 1994 as an addiction-recovery treatment, said Mark Mulroe, the facility’s president and CEO. As the foundation expanded, more services were made available to veterans to assist with mental health, homelessness, education and job training.
Although many services are available to veterans, affordable housing has historically been a missing piece of a larger puzzle, Mulroe said. Veterans battling addiction often struggle with bad credit and the lack of connectivity and support, which hinders the acquisition of housing. A Safe Haven has changed that standard by partnering with KMA Property Management Services to provide housing for more than 400 veterans in this region and the Chicago area.
In 2021, the foundation expanded to Lake County as the demand for veterans housing heightened. The Lake County VA encouraged A Safe Haven to see whether the city of Hobart would be open to having a veterans housing facility.
The partnership with Hobart has since been phenomenal, Mulroe said.
“We had a waiting list before we had built a foundation,” he said. “We had such a need for veteran services in this area. You’re dealing with individuals who’ve protected us, sacrificed their time and suffered many things.”
Plus, it’s an obligation to help veterans who’ve served our nation, he said.
The Hobart location houses veterans ranging in age from their 20s to 90s who have served in recent military conflicts to distant wars. The 550-square-foot apartment is fully furnished; each floor has laundry units and trash rooms.
Residents with emotional support or service animals also have access to a pet-washing station inside the facility. Resident Diana Maceri frequently takes her dog, Mr. Winston, to the washing station for a bath.
“If someone had nothing, they could move right in,” Mulroe said. “One of the most rewarding things is hearing how happy they are and that they’re feeling safe and stable.”
The Lake County VA has offices with personnel on site who visit residents weekly to check on their health and wellness.
“This organization has helped many veterans who aren’t given that second or third chance,” said Darlene Cruz-Herrera, the facility’s property manager. “We’re trying to get them on the right track so they can reconnect with their families and survive within their community.”
Since moving into the complex in August, Lipsey has began learning more about how to work a computer and a Fire Stick, an online streaming device. He said his goal for this year is to get back into drumming and embrace his passion for music.
“This feeling is hard to describe,” he said. “It’s like going to heaven.”