Incarcerated vets finding help through VA programs
Gerald Strosnider, center, is a U.S. Army veteran who served in the Vietnam War. On Monday, he discussed his experiences upon coming home from the war and his support upon leaving prison earlier this year.
By Jane Bellmyer - Friday, November 16, 2012
Veterans who find themselves behind bars in the Cecil County Detention Center will get additional help thanks to a new partnership with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
The Middle Atlantic States Correctional Association hosted a seminar entitled “Hope and Help for Justice Involved Veterans” this week at Perry Point VA Medical Center.
“The conference brought awareness as far as the resources that help integrate them back into the community,” said Lt. Cathy Langshaw, correctional supervisor with community corrections.
Langshaw was one of more than 200 who attended the seminar, which brought together law enforcement, corrections and service agencies.
Margaret Chippendale, assistant warden with the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, said MASCA is “about training.”
“The whole issue of justice involved veterans is in the front of our minds in corrections,” Chippendale said. “As long as you have the connection between service providers, the VA and public safety … the chances are more likely they’ll be successful rather than recidivate.”
Gerald Strosnider, 62, couldn’t agree more. The Baltimore man was fresh out of the Army and a tour of Vietnam in November 1970.
“I came home with a drug problem,” he said. Strosnider said he appeared functional. “I worked for the railroad, met a girl, and had some kids.”
But he suffered from nightmares and night sweats. That, coupled with the heroin addiction, led to trouble.
“I would leave work and commit a robbery on the way home,” he said. “Eventually, I was caught.”
In May, he got out of Maryland’s prison system after serving nearly 29 years. Before his release, he was connected with those veteran resources, including South Baltimore Station, which is a recovery center.
“When I went up for parole, they paroled me there and give me a second chance to live again,” he said. According to Strosnider, the no-nonsense approach at South Baltimore Station was just what he needed.
“It’s sit down, shut up and follow directions. As stupid as that sounds, it works,” he said. “It gave me time to re-assimilate to society and not do the stupid things I do.”
According to Baylee Crone, vice president of programs for the National Coalition of Homeless Veterans, 92 percent of homeless veterans are men, 52 percent are white and 51 percent are disabled.
“We have seen a market increase in homeless women since 2008,” she said. Crone said there are as many as 3,000 vets considered homeless across the country.
According to the 2010 census, 1.4 million vets are living in poverty, with another 1.4 million at risk. Crone said homeless veterans often have legal barriers keeping them in their situation.
“Common legal needs are discharge upgrades, help with multiple minor offenses, and child support,” she said. Female veterans have the added issue of domestic violence. Some of this is being remedied through newfound partnerships with the American Bar Association. Events such as Stand Down and programs like Homeless Court advocate for veterans in these situations.
“Homeless Court was started by a public defender. It gets court officials familiar with the homeless population,” she said. Stand Down is an event that lines up social service program coordinators for en masse screening for all veterans. The last one in Maryland was held at Fort Howard, according to Margaret Hornberger, spokeswoman for Perry Point.
Langshaw said the detention center already has a process in place to identify veterans among the inmate population. She added that a representative from the Way Station, similar to South Baltimore Station, visits the jail twice a week to interact with veterans.
“The gentleman helps them with housing, workforce, anything they need,” she said. However ,the information she gathered Tuesday will also be put to use at the detention center.
“I think it was really good. Now I can tell the officers that we have more resources,” Langshaw said.
Strosnider credits those resources and the people behind them with his new life as a free man.
“Within an hour of my getting out, I was called by my kids,” he said. He’s enjoying getting to know his nine grandchildren too.
“Hopefully down the road, I’ll leave (South) Baltimore Station … and go into transitional housing for a year,” he said.
That network of support has also made Strosnider realize past mistakes.
“This has been a big effort from a lot of people,” he said. He gave credit to Virginia Warner, a volunteer coordinator who reached out to him at Eastern Correctional Institution in Westover.
“I wasn’t one of those prisoners that went along with things,” Strosnider admitted. Warner got through to him though. “She touches you and lets you know you’re human.”
He said like the old dog, he had learned “if you hold the hoop down low enough, I’ll jump.”
“I hurt a lot of people physically and emotionally. I can’t make up for lost time,” he said. “But every day, I’m aware I’m free and I appreciate it.”
http://www.cecildaily.com/news/local_news/article_7a1bfa38-2f92-11e2-bd7d-001a4bcf887a.html