On Sept. 15, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs granted $8.72 million to several R.I. community organizations — Veterans Inc., The Providence Center, YWCA Rhode Island and Operation Stand Down Rhode Island — to help combat veteran homelessness.
The funding came from two VA grant programs: the Supportive Services for Veteran Families program, which prioritizes rapid rehousing for low-income veteran families, and the Grant and Per Diem program, which secures transitional housing for veterans as they look for stable residences.
The SSVF and GPD programs were designed with the idea that individuals at risk of homelessness may encounter community organizations before the VA, Lawrence Connell, director of the VA Providence Healthcare System, wrote in an email to The Herald.
Connell added that community organizations are “essential because they are already embedded in the communities where veterans live.”
OSDRI — a non-profit working with homeless and at-risk veterans — received $2,188,365 from SSVF and $1,016,642 from GPD this year. The Providence Center, YWCA Rhode Island and Veterans Inc. received the remainder of the $8.72 million, but the amount each organization received was not disclosed.
SSVF and GPD grants are used to “fill in the gaps for services that (are) currently provided in Rhode Island,” said Tyrone Smith, OSDRI director of veteran supportive services.
Founded by veterans over 30 years ago, OSDRI has grown to offer a “bevy of services” including workforce development, rental assistance, legal assistance, permanent and transitional housing and a food pantry, Smith said.
“Ultimately, the goal for everybody is a permanent housing situation,” Smith said.
According to a January 2026 Point-in-Time count, homelessness impacts 113 veterans, or about 5% of the total homeless population counted in Rhode Island, Parker Gavigan, strategic planning, policy and communications administrator for the R.I. Office of Veterans Services, wrote in an email to The Herald.
To support homeless veterans, RIVETS has been partnering with federal, state, local and private sector organizations, including OSDRI, according to Gavigan.
“VA Providence remains committed to ensuring veterans have access to safe, stable housing and the supportive services they need to thrive,” Connell wrote.
At the national level, the VA allocated $855 million to the SSVF program and $318 million to the GPD program, totaling a record-high $1.17 billion for fiscal year 2027.
Regardless of the type of concern veterans may have, Connell urged them to reach out to VA Providence as early as possible, noting that “prevention gives us and our community partners more options.”
“Veterans should not wait until they are literally homeless to ask for help,” he added.
Kelly Ding is a senior staff writer for the community and culture beat. She is from College Station, TX and plans to concentrate in IAPA on the policy and governance track. In her free time, she loves to explore new coffee shops, curl up with a good book, and be a gym rat.
