By Jennifer ONeil, HVRP Program Manager/Employment/Vocational Specialist
Ivan Gomez is a U.S. Army Veteran who served as a 35G Geospatial Imagery Analyst (G.I.S). He served for four years at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where he met and married his wife. He was deployed for nine months to Nangarhar, Afghanistan, where he helped pick out helicopter landing zones for Blackhawks as well as assisted Apaches with gun tape to ensure everything was done in accordance with the rules of engagement.
While serving overseas, Ivan started college to obtain his associate degree and further his career. During his time in college, he maintained a 3.5 GPA. Even though life was going relatively well for him, he was struggling with challenges he endured during his deployment to Afghanistan, and as a result, he began to self-medicate with marijuana and other substances, which led to a general discharge under honorable conditions. as a result, he began to self-medicate with marijuana and other substances, which led to a general discharge under honorable conditions.
After being discharged, Ivan was diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and other pain issues that he sustained during his military tenure. Despite the many challenges he was facing, he continued striving to do right. Unfortunately, he hit a dead end and felt like he was in a downward spiral with no hope of recovering. As things worsened, his wife left and filed for a divorce. When everything seemed at its bleakest, Ivan got a bottle of valium from his ex-wife and attempted to commit suicide. Fortunately, he was not successful.
In September 2022, Ivan checked into Gales Lodge in Dallas, Oregon, in Polk County. While at Gale’s Lodge, he signed up with the Homeless Veteran Reintegration Program (HVRP) to look for employment. When working on his employment plan, the Employment Specialist, Jennifer, spoke to him about coming to VETcare to have the help of the in-house clinician with his PTSD.
VETcare is comprised of a support team that includes a mental health counselor who was working with Ivan on his PTSD; his case manager, Jim, who helped budget out a plan using Ivan’s short- and long-term goals; and the HVRP Employment Specialist, Jennifer, who helped find employment as well as assisting Ivan on his resume, cover letters, and mock interviews. She also helped purchase things Ivan needed when looking for employment, such as work clothes. Finally, the Housing Manager, Roy, with Critical Time Intervention, was also imperative to Ivan’s success in his future life. The support team at VETcare was available 24 hours a day in case Ivan was experiencing any issues regarding his VA disability claims, mental health issue, or other concerns.
What Ivan himself felt contributed to part of his successes were the weekly and monthly check-ins with his support system, all of which included his mental health counselor, HVRP case manager, and VETcare case manager. This support system helped Ivan establish a routine while at VETcare and was imperative in helping him succeed and move on to the next chapter of his life.
Despite not feeling successful at Gale’s Lodge, Ivan established a positive relationship with the Veteran’s service officers Andrew and Eric, and the case managers helped establish a lifestyle, positive mindset, and self-discipline, which contributed to his success at VETcare.
In Ivan’s own words:
“Facilities like VETcare and Gales Lodge truly saved my life from being dug deeper into an ever-downward spiral and were imperative to my success. It helped teach me routine. It helped teach me to continue to be disciplined in all aspects of my life in what I was searching for. It put me in housing with like-minded individuals. Everyone has a story, so being around people made it easier for me to work on the things I needed to by having the company of people that I could relate to and talk to in some way. I always had something to keep me busy while at these facilities, like having to do chores, having some kind of task and goal list, and a rich and diverse support system that I depended on daily, weekly, and monthly so that I could help accomplish the goals I needed to find gainful employment as well as permanent housing. Having people in my corner like I did at VETcare and Gale’s Lodge, as I did with Jim, Roy, Jennifer, Brittany, Andrew, and Eric, allowed me to be successful.”
