Document text
Stand Down event will include job offers By Paul Fattig WHITE CITY � Homeless veterans attending the annual Southern Oregon Stand Down will have the opportunity to walk away with a job this year. For the first time since the yearly event began in 1992, several employers will be on hand to offer jobs to qualified veterans. "We want to have jobs ready for underemployed and unemployed veterans," explained event coordinator Madeleine Fabris. A variety of firms will be represented, from a plumbing company to retail companies, she said. "Homelessness is going to continue unless these people can get work," she added. The three-day event, which begins Sept. 22 at the baseball field at the Department of Veterans Affairs Domiciliary, is expected to draw more than 600 homeless veterans from Southern Oregon and Northern California. "Stand Down" is military jargon for a respite from a hostile environment. In addition to jobs, it will offer veterans food, clothing, medical attention, legal help, shelter, dental care, hair cuts, identification issuance, tax assistance and counseling. More than 3,500 veterans and their families have been helped by the Stand Down in the last seven years. Although many of the homeless veterans served their country during the Vietnam War, the event also draws veterans from World War II to the Gulf War. The primary focus is on homeless veterans because they are generally the ones unable to take advantage of veterans� benefits, organizers said. Any veteran needing transportation to the event should contact Joe Fidura at the Domiciliary at 1-800-809-8725, extension 3619. The Oregon Army National Guard donates the olive-drab tents that are used each September. The event is the product of a volunteer effort which cost about $13,000 last year, all of which came from donated funds, organizers said. Any assistance from individuals, groups or businesses to help the effort would be appreciated, said Fabris, owner of four Supercuts salons in the Rogue Valley that have been providing free haircuts at the annual Stand Down for the past seven years. "We�re looking for fresh fruits and vegetables, towels and, of course, money," she said, noting the towels can be used but must be clean. For further information, contact Fabris at 899-1935. Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA