AMVETS Serves St. Louis Veterans, Reaffirms Commitment to Homeless Veterans Cause

Sunday, in advance of the 67th Annual AMVETS National Convention in St. Louis, Mo., AMVETS volunteers joined the St. Louis VA Medical Center and the St. Louis City and County in Eternal Flame Park to deliver critical services to more than 450 homeless American veterans. AMVETS was honored to welcome participation from the Vet Hunters Project riders, whose remarkable, 1,900-mile trek from Los Angeles has served to raise public awareness for veteran homelessness. Regrettably, The Vet Hunters Project did not accept AMVETS’ offer to provide five minutes for brief remarks from a Vet Hunters representative during Wednesday’s opening ceremony, and instead insisted that they be afforded time to present a documentary film and to directly address VA Secretary Eric Shinseki during the ceremony. AMVETS does not exercise control over the Secretary’s schedule and other groups and dignitaries could not be accommodated during the opening ceremony. As evidenced by AMVETS’ participation in Sunday’s stand down for homeless veterans, this organization does actively support the cause to end homelessness in the veterans’ community, and recognizes the importance of the Vet Hunters’ mission. It is truly unfortunate that the Vet Hunters Project has chosen to publicly attack a major leading veterans service organization with an aligned mission, rather than expending their limited resources on their stated cause: serving homeless veterans.