In honor of Veterans Day, we’re sharing the stories of some of the U.S. military veterans who call Plymouth home. Read about other Plymouth veterans: Joseph (here); George (here); and Bruce (here).

Sam served in the Army for seven years during the 1970s.

He performed a number of different duties over the course of his Army career, among them a cook, teletype operator, and paratrooper. He loved it any time he was posted to duty stations in the South, and he fondly recalls the time he got a $3,000 bonus in 1976 for agreeing to serve for three more years.

Before he found a home at Plymouth, Sam describes his life as, “I was homeless, without a job, and it was raining.” Thanks to a veterans agency, he was connected to a home at Plymouth. Now that he’s here, he says he’s thankful that he has “a roof over my head. I can go home at night… and I have my own bed.”

Veteran homelessness has been decreasing thanks to many civic efforts, but there are still around 38,000 veterans experiencing homelessness nationally. In King County, just under 1,000 veterans were counted during the January, 2018 “Point in Time” Count. Plymouth’s Chief Program Officer, Kelli Larsen, said, “I believe we can end veteran homelessness.” We can, particularly with your help.