Joanne Yepsen, one of Saratoga Springs’ two representatives on the county Board of Supervisors spearheaded efforts to establish the area’s first female homeless veterans home and is developing a resource group that is working on helping female veterans integrate back into civilian life.

Q: Tomorrow you are hosting the area’s first Woman Veteran Symposium.  Tell me about it.

A:  We are reaching out to gather ideas on building a coalition for women veteran.  I think it will grow throughout the state.  We are starting in the capital district region in NY State, but people from all over the state are coming in Monday.  I don’t believe anything like this has been done before, but the steering committee includes other agencies and individuals who have an interest in sponsoring this symposium with me.

We are definitely a work in progress and I am hoping to build a relationship with others who share concern about this issue.  I had a very clear vision in planning this, I don’t want to just talk; I want it to be a working session where we actually come out with some working plans.   

My steering committee is hosting a Women Vets Night Out, in spring 2012, where we match services need with actual women veterans. 

Q: What do you hope to accomplish?

A:  The symposium’s  purpose is to bring together private and public agencies and individuals who provide services or programs or who are capable of providing them to women veterans.  There are about 65,000 female veterans in NY state, some of them quite young.  And they are coming back from two wars, needing assistance and don’t have exclusive women-related programs or facilities to go to.  We started raising funds three years ago for homeless female veterans and that has come to fruition.  We opened as a transitional home last week. 

This symposium definitely has national implications.  We hear that NY State has the 4^th largest population of female veterans in the country.  That is my constituents that I am serving.  I am keen to this issue and it is a priority for me, but it is not only my issue, it is a national phenomenon to figure out how to successfully get back into civilian life when they are 22-23 years old and have had life changing experiences.

Q: How did you get involved with women veterans issues?

A:  I had heard of a need [for a place for homeless female veterans], but there was no home quite like this one.  So we put together an advisory committee and worked with the Saratoga County Rural Preservation Committee that administers 14 other programs.  We have had a home for male veterans for 22 years and it has worked so well, that  we immediately were able to raise money for a women’s shelter.

This is a new phenomenon with women coming home from the front line.  They have many of the same problems as male soldiers coming home, but they also have unique problems.  They often have children, so they have to figure out what to do with the kids; they have PTSD; they may be couch surfing with their kids where they stay with a friend or family member for a day or two, but they are not getting the support services that they need to get back on their feet again.

I have been told that a third of our women — 14 percent of all service members are women – a third are claiming sexual harassment or rape while they are serving this country.  That creates unique problems that they are dealing with and were trying to pull together the services so that we can better collaborate and fill the gaps that are not being met.

Q: What brought this to your attention?

A:  I’ve been the county supervisor for Saratoga Springs for six years and have worked closely with the local veterans.  They need  a strong voice to get service and programs they need so that they can get back into civilian life.  I think of myself as an advocate for those in transition.  I am also very interested in women’s issues, so this combines the two.  As a public servant I can be the strong voice for those who feel that they do not have a voice.

Getting the Guardian House to reality was a real learning process for me.  I met many women veterans, and read up on the issues.  I perk up when there is anything written or televised about female veterans.  I attended a very eye opening public hearing held by NY State Association Veterans Community about a year and a half ago in NYC.  I testified about what we are doing in Saratoga and listened to others and they were all adding more information and more stories to the mix.  Over time I’ve become much more familiar with female vets and their issues.

 

Q: What have you found is the greatest problem women veterans face?

A:  They need to know who and where to ask for help where they feel comfortable.  Most VA hospitals are geared towards men with male physicians and male counselors.  That is not going to work for women who have been traumatized and in many cases physically disabled.  We need to build awareness  and more programs that are women helping women.  Even though we say all the VFWs and VAs are open to women veterans, I’m not sure they feel comfortable all the time.  Where do they go to coalesce where they can be with other women who have gone through and are going through the same experiences?

What we are doing, how we are doing it, is asking, “What we can do better?”  “How can we build the coalition to more effectively find and serve our female veterans?”