The Veterans Program Its President Says “Shouldn’t Exist”
Photos by Aimee Dilger | Video by Kelly Dessoye | Article by Kelly Dessoye
“Hello, we’re from the FSB initiative...” he bellowed, combat boots crunched dead leaves and twigs near the shores of the Susquehanna River in Wilkes-Barre, PA. “Are there any homeless veterans in these tents...if you want to get out of the street we can help you.”
A blue popup tent lies silent in the thicket.
In 2016 Chaz Kraynak found himself in his own blue pop-up of sorts. “Rock bottom has a basement, and I found that basement,” he says of the months he’d scrounge for provisions and shelter in New Mexico as a homeless veteran. Then he got in touch with a veteran’s outreach program- The New Mexico Veterans Integration Center - and overnight found himself with a roof over his head. A job would follow shortly thereafter. Eight months later he relocated to Delaware to be closer to his family in Northeastern PA. “I saw that [the program in Delaware] was run horribly. I swore then and there that I was going to make a better program.”
In 2018 Chaz threw out the playbook on veteran outreach and started the Forward Support Base (FSB) Initiative - a 501c3 nonprofit aiming to get veterans “off the streets and onto their feet” using a hands on approach that includes combing through the sludge and moss encrusted tree trunks of forest floors with a passionate group of volunteers in the search of their unhoused brothers and sisters in arms. If they’re lucky enough to find a vet in a tent city or on the streets, they supply them with clothing, hygiene, and - if they’ll agree to it - a ride to the VA.
The FSB Initiative was wildly successful in Delaware and Maryland. They’ve handed out over 400 bags stuffed with clothing, food, and hygienic products and got about 24 vets to shelter, registered in the VA benefits system, and set for success as they reintegrate into civilian life.
Chaz sees the program he hatched as a necessity in a veteran outreach system that is flawed and passive, often lacking programmatic education and neglecting the unique psyche that comes with months or years on the front line bearing witness to war. The stuff that makes people recede from society.
Chaz Kraynak President of FSB talks about the program.
“Veterans, we’re proud - we don’t want to admit that we’re homeless or that we have an issue,” Chaz glances left and right as he navigates the FSB Trailer through Wilkes-Barre PA’s Saturday traffic.
President of FSB Chaz Kraynak locks up the trailer he uses during the homeless outreach work he does.
The United States Interagency Council cites that there are 977 homeless veterans in Pennsylvania as of January 2020; however many of them aren’t aware of the benefits tethered to their years of service.
“There are so many programs and benefits available to veterans that none of them know about,” Mike Price says in a huddle near the FSB Initiative trailer. He’s a Veteran Service Officer (VSO) - a savant to the ins and outs of the benefits and resources available to a veteran, whether they are fresh out of service or they’ve been out for decades. Delaware offers free training to become a truck driver while in Maryland a veteran can become an HVAC technician free of charge.
Chaz throws his arms up.
“When somebody’s out-processing from the service they have 30 days to out-process. They’re doing their paperwork, their dental, their CIF - Central Issue Facility - or returning their gear. But nobody’s telling them what’s available once they’re out there [in civilian life] and I think they need to do that. If a prison does that, I think the military should do that. At least then they know what services are available to them.”
Chaz Kraynak looks through a box of clothes he gives to homeless veterans he finds.
“You’re getting barraged with information. The five sentences that may describe [your benefits], maybe you didn’t hear that. Maybe you were too busy writing something down,” says Frank Perkowkski - FSB’s vice president.
Tammy Bergold Wenger - a Navy vet - chimes in. “I don’t even remember being discharged.”
According to Chaz, these benefits are available to every veteran honorably or generally discharged, apart from those that have a record of child abuse or arson.
“You could be a murderer and as long as you’re an honorably discharged vet and you’re done with your probation and parole, you’re allowed to go in.”
Alex rests on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre, PA.
Then again, veterans’ benefits come streaked with red tape. Take Alex - a Wilkes-Barre man whose house was seized in a sheriff’s sale after the toll of the pandemic and mounting taxes left him drowning in debt. He connected with Chaz on social media after seeing Andy Mehalshick’s Veterans Day report on PA Homepage. The next day he, Chaz, and Mike were whipping through traffic en route to a VA drop off, only to find that a change in rules surrounding active duty took him out of the running for the GDP (Grant Per Diem) program. Luckily he’s secured a job and a spot at a shelter while he awaits SSVF (Supportive Services for Veterans Family) benefits. Once those kick in, he can secure a more permanent home.
Vets like Alex shine a light on a gaping hole in the veteran support system. One that the FSB Initiative is looking to fill. Within the next year the organization, which Chaz proudly announces is 100% volunteer staffed -”it’s written into our bylaws,” will seek to open a shelter, where any homeless veteran can get a shower, meal, and have a place to sleep as they sort out their VA benefits.
FSB tries to give homeless veterans new items and boots are important.
Alex and Roberto talk while waiting for the St Vincent kitchen to open.
“The biggest barrier is finding the homeless,”
says Chaz after hours of searching high and low for homeless vets at the likes of Wilkes-Barre’s Nesbitt Park, Kirby Park, and Public Square during the FSB Initiative’s second Luzerne County outreach. In Delaware and Maryland the program built relationships with the homeless community by providing food, water, and clothing from their well stocked trailer to any homeless individual they encountered. As they became more ingrained in the community, the FSB Initiative received tips about homeless vets.
An unoccupied homeless camp.
“The one thing people have to realize about the homeless community is that anybody could become homeless at any time,” says Alex from Wilkes-Barre’s Public Square.
“But everybody comes in for a different reason. There’s no one set thing that’s like ‘if you do this you’ll become homeless.’”
Chaz Kraynak and Frank Perkowski check for homeless Veterans at a campsite in Nesbitt Park.
“He’s [Chaz] hunting down the guys that are out there 24/7, with no provisions - just each other. It’s not that they don’t want help. They’re afraid. They’ve been pushed away. I mean, they’ve had bad experiences. They could have anxiety. There’s mental illness problems; they just prefer to tough it out. The problem is, it’s deadly. February, hypothermia, and a lot of folks out there have some serious pre-existing conditions. And then throw COVID on top of that.”
On December 18, 2021, Chaz and his crew at the FSB Initiative will be scouring the valley in an effort to get every homeless vet they can find housed and warm for winter. The more ground they can cover, the better their chances; and that means they need volunteers. If you’ll be in Northeastern Pennsylvania on December 18 and want to join them, reach out on Facebook at FSB Initiative, email fsbinitiative@gmail.com, or call (302) 397-1126 . To learn more about them visit fsbiniative.org .
“If there’s a homeless person who sees this, you don’t have to contact me. They can go right up to the VA, say ‘I’m homeless. Help me.’ and they will help.” Chaz gestures at the trailer emblazoned with the FSB Initiative logo and information.