Benefits News: Chrysler Liquidating Trust Commits $750,000 to Support Homeless Veterans

WASHINGTON – The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is partnering with Chrysler Liquidating Trust to provide funds to support VA efforts to end Veteran homelessness. The partnership is part of the MyVA Strategic Partnership Initiative, which works with external organizations to improve the delivery and access of care for Veterans.

Earlier this year, the Chrysler Liquidating Trust committed $750,000 to support VA’s efforts to prevent homelessness in Detroit, Philadelphia and Los Angeles.  Leveraging VA’s existing partnership with the Pentagon Federal Credit Union Foundation, more than $233,000 of these funds have been awarded to cover rent and utility deposits for Veterans.  As of July 2016, approximately 220 grants were distributed to support Veterans and their families.  

The Chrysler Liquidating Trust partnership grew out of discussions between Secretary McDonald and Bob Manzo, Trustee for the Trust on the importance of forging strategic partnerships and the ongoing work to end Veteran homelessness.

“It gives me great pleasure to announce another VA partnership,” said VA Secretary Robert A. McDonald. “VA’s new strategic partnership with the Chrysler Liquidating Trust is a great example of ways VA is opening its doors to new kinds of partners to better serve Veterans. Just this summer, President Obama announced a nearly 50-percent decline in Veteran homelessness.  It’s these kinds of collaborations that are helping us achieve results. Caring for Veterans is a shared responsibility and opportunity.”

“After speaking with Secretary Bob and hearing about VA’s newly invigorated effort to work with external partners, I wanted to find a way to use these funds to support Veterans,” said Trusts’ Manzo.  “There’s no reason VA has to take on issues like homelessness by itself. There are ways that all organizations can step up to the plate to support this important national issue.”

The Chrysler Liquidating Trust was established as part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). During its creation, it was pre-determined any surplus funds would be allocated to a national cause benefiting Americans. Trust officials chose to allocate those surplus funds to Veterans’ issues.

Since the launch of the MyVA, the largest transformation in the history of VA, the Department has entered into new collaborations with dozens of external organizations to combat issues of homelessness, suicide and Veteran unemployment.

For more information about VA’s Homeless Programs, visit http://www.va.gov/homeless.  Information about MyVA transformation efforts may be found at http://www.va.gov/opa/publications/myva_transformation_update_2_2016.asp.

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