On September 11, 2001, firefighter Stephen Siller had finished his shift when he heard what happened. He drove to the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel, found it closed to traffic, strapped on sixty pounds of gear, and ran through it on foot toward the towers. He did not come back.
The foundation named for him has spent the years since paying that debt forward: mortgage-free homes for catastrophically injured service members and the families of fallen first responders, and housing for veterans who have gone without it.
Neighbors in Service supports the Tunnel to Towers Homeless Veteran Program, and we support it as neighbors.
WHY THIS ONE IS DIFFERENT
The Bradenton Veterans Village is rising in our own community, minutes from where many of us live. Veterans who have gone without stable housing will have a front door here, an address, and people around them.
That is not an abstraction for us. It is down the road.
Most national giving asks you to trust that your dollar lands somewhere you will never see. This one lands where you drive. If you have passed that site and wondered what you could do, this is it.
THE BRADENTON VETERANS VILLAGE
The village is scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2027. It is supportive housing, single-room occupancy, one veteran per unit.
Applications are open now. A veteran who applies this year can be living there when the doors open. A veteran who waits until it opens may find it full.
To qualify, an applicant must be over 18, a veteran with an honorable discharge or a discharge under conditions other than dishonorable, with a minimum of 180 days of service including at least one day of active duty. The veteran must be experiencing homelessness or at risk of becoming homeless, and willing to undergo a background and credit check.
The application asks for a government-issued photo ID, proof of military service such as a DD-214 or VA ID, income verification, and documentation of homelessness or risk of it, which can include a landlord notice or a verification letter from a provider serving the unsheltered.
If you are a veteran in Manatee County in an unstable housing situation, or you know one, start now. Gathering a DD-214 takes time that a deadline will not give back.
WHY THIS PILLAR
Housing looks like Honor, and it is. Answering what a veteran gave with something permanent is exactly what remembrance should mean when the person is still alive to receive it.
It is also Strengthen. A veteran with an address can hold a job, keep an appointment, receive mail from the VA, and be found by the people trying to help. Stable housing is the floor everything else in our work is built on. Financial literacy, career mentoring, and community support all assume a place to sleep.
HOW TO STAND WITH THEM
Give to the Homeless Veteran Program. We maintain a Neighbors in Service giving page directed to this program, with local emphasis on the Bradenton Veterans Village.
Support our Fort Myers team. Members of our community are running the Tunnel to Towers 5K in Fort Myers on Saturday, September 12. Our roster is set, but the giving is open, and every dollar raised goes to the foundation.
Watch for the collection drive. We will be organizing a community collection of pantry items, books, and clothing in support of Tunnel to Towers housing residents. Details are being finalized, and our subscribers will hear first.
WHERE YOUR MONEY GOES
Neighbors in Service does not accept donated funds for its own operations. Every dollar given through our page goes directly to Tunnel to Towers. They process it, they receipt it, and they build with it.
Our role is to bring more neighbors to this effort than any one household, parish, or club could reach on its own.
Stand With Us
If you are a veteran in Manatee County without stable housing, or you are close to losing it, the Veterans Village application is open and the village opens next year. Manatee County Veterans Services can help you assemble what the application asks for. Call them at 941-745-3795, or contact us and we will help you find your way there.
If you are a neighbor, this is the most concrete thing on our list. Give what you can, run with us next year, set aside a bag of pantry goods when the drive opens, and tell someone else about the building going up down the road.
Questions, or want to get involved? Contact Dr. Jack McGourty at drjack@neighborsinservice.org.
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