Local
Colorado Springs veterans’ aid event adds legal consultations Tuesday
The 28th annual El Paso County Homeless Veterans Stand Down will offer help with discharge status, evictions and other legal problems alongside housing, health and winter supplies. Organizers expect to serve about 120 to 130 veterans at Weidner Field.
Veterans facing legal barriers to housing, work or benefits can seek help Tuesday at the 28th annual El Paso County Homeless Veterans Stand Down in Colorado Springs, where Colorado Legal Services will join the event for the first time to offer consultations and arrange follow-up appointments.
The event, hosted by Mt. Carmel Veterans Service Center, runs from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Weidner Field. Legal Services staff expect to speak with veterans about issues including challenging a Department of Veterans Affairs discharge status, legal problems affecting employment and pending evictions.
Some people experiencing homelessness also receive municipal citations for offenses such as camping, trespassing, littering or blocking sidewalks, said Shannon Olin, Mt. Carmel’s director of Military, Veteran and Family Services. Legal assistance may help veterans address such matters and other problems that can complicate efforts to secure work or housing.
“Every year Stand Down gets a little bit bigger with the partners that want to support,” Olin said.
The annual gathering also connects veterans with housing, health care and VA benefits, job-search assistance, haircuts, warm clothing and sleeping bags. Organizers typically prepare for 120 to 130 veterans, Olin said, and housing providers have connected 10 to 20 veterans at past events with 30 days of transitional housing paired with employment support.
The need remains significant even as local counts have fallen. El Paso County’s January point-in-time survey counted 131 homeless veterans, 9% of all people counted as homeless that night. The prior year’s count was about 195 veterans, or 11% of the total.
Nationally, the Department of Veterans Affairs estimated that about 32,500 veterans experienced homelessness in 2025. The VA says that figure has declined 56% since 2010; the overall veteran population is also shrinking as Vietnam-era veterans age.
Colorado Springs has added veteran-focused affordable housing in recent years, including Freedom Springs, which opened 50 units in 2020, and Bentley Springs, which opened 28 units in 2025. Mt. Carmel also provides ongoing services intended to prevent homelessness.
“Our goal is that we are not making them wait for support,” Olin said.
The Stand Down is held in fall to help veterans prepare for cold weather. Olin said parkas, gloves, socks and other gear are meant to help people stay safe as overnight temperatures in Colorado Springs dip into the 30s and 40s. “I think the goal is that they stay safe,” she said.