Joann Mancuso
A Home For The Holidays
In August 2019, Eggleston Brain Injury Case Manager, Jamie Peed, received a call from Suzette Ebersole, Outreach Coordinator at the Virginia Beach Housing Resource Center. She was looking for resources and case management services for a homeless Navy veteran named Randy, who had suffered a traumatic brain injury many years ago. As a result of that injury, he began to experience seizures. As support and protection for before and during his seizures, Randy enlisted help from a service dog. Randy’s longtime partner, Karen, was also with him.
Suzette arranged a meeting for Jamie to begin brain injury case management services. Eventually, Randy was approved for a housing voucher and began to look for a place to live, with help from a case worker from the VA. Randy contacted Jamie after his case worker told him he would not be able to find a place because of having his dog, more so due to the dog’s size. Jamie explained the laws of having a service dog to the case worker, but he still did not accept them. Jamie instructed Randy to get a letter of need from his doctor, but the doctor told him to get a $100 training certification. Jamie wrote a letter to the doctor, as well as provided her with the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act to prove the laws, which did not include needing a certification. The doctor then wrote Randy’s letter stating his need for a service dog. Randy presented the letter to his case worker at the VA, and was ultimately successful in finding an apartment to fully fit their needs. On December 18, 2019, Randy and Karen signed their lease and began moving into their new place.
The team supporting Randy and Karen included the Homeless Hustle Network, Virginia Beach Housing Resource Center, the VA, and Eggleston Brain Injury Services. Each played a separate role, but came together to achieve a common goal—to give Randy and his family a home for the holidays.