Thirty years ago, the United States wasn’t adequately prepared to handle the needs of veterans — certainly not homeless veterans.

But lessons learned from Vietnam and World War II have opened up a world of help to those in need, and services continue to improve, a group of service agency representatives discussed this week at the Beckley VA.

David Boothe, a coalition specialist with the Peer Recovery Network, isn’t only one of those representatives, he is a veteran.

“I know how important it is for a person to improve life by having someplace of their own to live and also how important it is to talk,” Boothe said.

His agency, for instance, gives veterans a place to talk with other veterans who may be going through the same things. The drop-in center where he works on Prince Street (929-2314) has filled six apartments above the center, all with veterans in need of a place to call home.

When mental illness and substance abuse are not addressed, veterans are at greater risk to fall into homelessness, Boothe said.

“It’s not that they’re lazy or won’t work, it’s that they have an illness,” Boothe said.

Each year since 1994, Project CHALENG (Community Homelessness Assessment, Local Education and Networking Groups) has assessed the needs of homeless veterans throughout the nation. The guiding principle behind the project is that no single agency can provide the full spectrum of services required to help homeless veterans become productive members of society. So CHALENG enhances coordinated services by bringing the VA together with community agencies that provide services to the homeless.

Last year, in Beckley, participants estimated there were 10 homeless veterans in the region, six who were chronically homeless.

They assess housing, treatment for substance abuse and needs including food, personal hygiene and health care.

Gale E. Brown, a service officer with the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Clay County since 1976, said he has seen many improvements in services for veterans over the years. Still, he sees a need for transportation to VA facilities for veterans in his rural area.

This time, the problem is finding volunteer drivers. Thirty years ago, though, he says, they didn’t even have a VA van.

“Things are a lot better,” he said.

Another one of those improvements has been Volunteers of America, which brought its Homeless Veteran Re-integration Project to West Virginia only two years ago.

Since then, it has helped place 82.9 percent of those it served with full-time employment by providing them with the clothing, equipment, tools, skills and education they need, said Mandel Smith, a Vietnam veteran and Volunteer of America.

His organization works closely with employers and schools to help veterans in need, Smith said. They can be reached at their branch in Ceredo by calling 1-866-900-VETS.

The homeless coordinator at the Beckley VA may be reached at 255-2121, extension 4480, for more information about services available in the community.