A returned letter became one Veteran’s pathway home
VA News ·
A follow-up call about returned mail connected a Veteran who was living in his car at the time, with VA and community resources for housing and healthcare.
At the Fort Pierce VA Clinic, attention to a routine piece of returned mail connected a Veteran experiencing homelessness with housing, healthcare and sustained mental health support.
A letter addressed to Veteran Mark Thomas arrived back at the Fort Pierce VA Clinic as undeliverable in late 2024.
Lead Enrollment Specialist Heather Barton didn’t want him to miss an upcoming appointment, so she called to ask whether his address had changed.
Thomas told her he was homeless and living in his vehicle.
That disclosure turned a routine administrative follow-up into a coordinated effort involving the clinic, social workers, VA homeless resources and community partners. It also showed how one conversation at a community clinic can connect a Veteran with a much broader system of support.
Barton is a lead enrollment specialist at the contractor-operated Fort Pierce VA Clinic. The clinic is part of West Palm Beach VA Healthcare System’s network of care and provides primary care, mental healthcare, social work and other services to Veterans along South Florida and the Treasure Coast.
Thomas had been living in his vehicle during Hurricane Milton. When Barton learned about his circumstances, she began contacting VA homeless program staff and local service providers to determine what assistance was available.
Her first priority was helping him find a safe place to stay.
Working across VA and community organizations, Barton helped connect Thomas with a temporary shelter. He stayed there for 30 days while looking for long-term housing.
When an initial housing voucher was insufficient for the available rental market, Thomas returned to Barton for guidance. She connected him with a VA social worker who helped identify an apartment that could work with his housing assistance.
Thomas eventually moved into stable housing in the West Palm Beach area.
Accepting help, however, required him to overcome years of mistrust.
“The hardest part for me was accepting help,” Thomas said. “Heather changed that. She kept her word. She showed up.”
Barton followed through on her commitment to connect him with available resources.
The apartment addressed his immediate housing need, but his conversations with the clinic team revealed other challenges requiring attention. Barton helped connect him with primary care and mental health services at the Fort Pierce clinic.
Thomas engaged with therapy and trauma-recovery care. He also participated in an intensive three-month program focused on mental and behavioral health support.
The clinic team encouraged him throughout the process, but Barton is clear about who carried the recovery forward.
“He went. He showed up for the appointments. He got himself into therapy,” she said. “He’s done so much for himself.”
That distinction matters. VA resources created opportunities for treatment and stability, but Thomas made the decision to use them.
When Barton first began assisting Thomas, she described him as overwhelmed by his circumstances and struggling to manage longstanding trauma. Over time, she saw a significant change.
Thomas remained engaged in treatment, maintained his housing and adopted new wellness practices, including yoga, Pilates and regular exercise. When he recently returned to the clinic, Barton said she barely recognized him.
“He’s in the best shape of his life,” she said. “He’s a totally changed man.”
She also saw a change in how Thomas related to other Veterans. When Barton mentioned that other Veterans might be facing similar challenges, Thomas offered to speak with them.
“Two years earlier,” Barton said, “he likely would not have offered to help.”
His willingness to help other Veterans represented a different stage of recovery: He was no longer only receiving support. He was prepared to offer it.
Thomas continues to receive some of his care through the Fort Pierce clinic despite now living farther south. His connection to the clinic is rooted in the relationships he developed there and the assistance he received when he disclosed that he had nowhere to live. In a letter to Barton’s supervisor, Thomas praised her responsiveness and described her kindness as something he felt in person and on the phone.
“I appreciate her dedication towards me and all the other Veterans she helps,” he wrote.
According to the most recent Point-in-Time Count , 32,495 Veterans were experiencing homelessness on a single night in January 2025. Of those, 13,518 were in places not meant for human habitation, including vehicles, parks, sidewalks and abandoned buildings.
That total represented a 56.1% decline in Veteran homelessness since 2010 and was the lowest number recorded since federal measurement began in 2009. Still, the data represented more than 32,000 individual Veterans whose circumstances required someone to notice, ask and connect them with assistance.
During fiscal year 2025, VA and its partners permanently housed 51,936 Veterans, with 96.2% remaining housed at the end of the fiscal year, according to VA Homeless Programs .
At the Fort Pierce VA Clinic, Thomas’s experience also strengthened coordination among VA staff, contractors and community partners. Barton expanded her outreach work and has since helped connect 30 Veterans experiencing homelessness with housing resources.
The work often begins before a Veteran knows which program to request. A Veteran may first mention a missed appointment, a disconnected phone or a mailing address that is no longer valid.
Clinic team members don’t need to provide every service themselves. They need to recognize the need and connect the Veteran with those who can help.
That is what Barton wants Veterans to understand about VA community clinics.
“We will get you in touch with somebody at VA who can help you, even if we can’t,” she said.
Veterans who are homeless or at imminent risk of homelessness, and family members, friends or providers calling on their behalf, can contact the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans at 877-424-3838. The call is free, confidential and available 24/7.
Veterans experiencing a mental health crisis can call 988 and press 1, text 838255 or visit VeteransCrisisLine.net .