But the cozy community gives them
neighbors they can count on, much
as they’d had comrades they could
reach out to during deployments. “It’s
not like a shelter, where you’re around
people you don’t trust,” says Karen
Carter, a resident and Coast Guard
veteran. “I feel protected and free,
which means I can be a better me.”
Stout is no stranger to struggle him-
self. In 2005, when he was an Army
corporal serving in Afghanistan, his leg
was crushed by over 4,000 pounds of
debris. Back at home, he struggled with
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
and a post-traumatic brain injury. He
bounced from one job to the next and
eventually began working at the United
Way of Greater Kansas City, connect-
ing his fellow veterans to organizations
that offered legal aid and housing ser-
vices. But he grew frustrated by the
gaps he saw in the available services,
especially for housing. One day he
used his own money to put a veteranand his family who
had been evicted
from their apart-
ment up in a hotel.
“I thought, I could
do this better,” says
Stout.
In 2015, he and
three veteran bud-
dies started VCP,
quitting their jobs
and using Stout’s
life savings. Five
months later, Stout
used his credit card to pay for the $3,000
worth of supplies to build their first
tiny home model. They also purchased
a building to be an outreach center,
where any vet can get services such as
free bus passes and counseling. Since
the operation began, it has worked
with approximately 10,000 veterans.
Once word got out about VCP’s mis-
sion, donations and volunteers flooded
in. On Christmas Eve 2017, more than
100 volunteers began work on the first
13 tiny homes, each of which includes
a bed, a desk, toiletries, and kitchen
supplies. The plan is to have 49 homes
by this October and then expand to St.
Louis, Denver, Nashville, and Orlando.
Each village will include a community
center that will provide residents with
free legal, medical, and dental care, as
well as job counseling.
A big undertaking? Not in Stout’s
mind. “We all went through basic. We
all served,” Stout told CNN. “This is
just my way to serve them.”Chris Stout (second from left) with VCP cofounders Mark
Solomon, Brandonn Mixon, and Bryan Meyer72 june 2019
thispage:^ courtesy^ veterans^ communityproject.^nextpage:^ courtesy^ coreybrooks