TULSA, Okla. — One Tulsa nonprofit is being recognized for its work with veterans, and they could possibly get a boost. But first, they need the public’s help.
2 News Oklahoma’s Douglas Braff listened to one of the veterans they’re helping.
Officially created last year by local veterans, Heroes Hope offers housing, financial help, mentoring, and medical care to Tulsa-area veterans who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
So far, they’ve helped over 30 veterans from start to finish.
Co-founder and president Sean Lord explained to us that they provide what they call “no-red-tape solutions” for housing.
“So, if we meet a veteran today, we can offer them a place to live that is safe right now — regardless of what the circumstances are, as long as we can verify that they are actually a veteran,” he said. “We expect nothing from them in the process, other than them being willing to let us work alongside them.”
Three veterans live in the home we visited, with four more living elsewhere. One of those people is Derek Brown.
“I was looking for rooms, and I was making the application,” he recalled. “But they make you go through the red tape."
"That's real 'cause they make you submit all these credit applications. They make you do all this stuff just to get a room," Brown continued. "It— it is like [a] pay-me-money-before-you-even-see-my-room-type situation. That's what was happening.”
After leaving the Army in 1985, he saw highs and lows: from the joys of teaching children and refereeing football — to struggling with addiction and then overcoming those addictions.
In December last year, he left his job teaching health and physical education at a Tulsa middle school. His mother, Rayella Booton-Brown, was declining in health, so he flew to New York to help take care of her.
His life reached another low in April when she died.
“Things happened when she passed," said Brown. "Like, people might call it PTSD. I may have got that, you know, 'cause things shut down inside. I wasn't willing to keep doing certain things."
"So I said I'll sleep in my car before I go back around this mountain,” he added.
His apartment lease came up shortly after that, but he had no income after leaving his teaching job.
For months, he slept in his car, hotels, and Airbnbs — also staying with friends.
That’s until someone connected him with Lord around Labor Day Weekend, something Brown described as coming off the pages of the Bible — a moment of divine intervention.
“When you go for a loan or a rental application, background check — there’s a waiting process," said Lord. "But to be able to tell somebody, like, ‘Hey, I can get a phone call today, and I can get that veteran into a home today,’ it almost sounds too good to be true to some people.”
Brown could hardly believe it.
“I asked him, ‘How much is it gonna cost?' And he said, ‘No money,’" Brown recalled. "Who does this?"
It's "given me a place I feel safe," he added. "I— I literally can feel safe here.”
“What's it mean to not have to worry about paying for housing?” Braff asked.
Brown began to sob and replied, “It takes a lot of pressure off. … I don't have to jump back in the grind, the daily grind, you know. It opens the door to a new opportunity.”
How to help Heroes Hope
Heroes Hope is now a finalist in the Defender Service Awards.
They’ll get $25,000 in grant money if they win the most votes.
That would help them, hopefully, open two more homes in the Tulsa area and eight to 10 more beds. Lord also hopes to eventually expand beyond Green Country.
The winner also gets a vehicle, which Heroes Hope needs because right now they use their personal vehicles to drive veterans to things such as doctor’s appointments and job interviews.
Those who want to vote can click this link. People can cast votes for Heroes Hope in the contest once a day until Thursday, Oct. 17.
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