For Anita Demps, the decision to volunteer time to help U.S. veterans is partly a personal one. Demps, the wife of New Orleans GM Dell Demps, comes from a military family, with her father, brother and two uncles having served in the armed forces. In addition, Dell's father served in the Navy and currently resides in a veterans hospital in Palo Alto, Calif.
On Saturday morning, Anita and a group of fellow wives and girlfriends of Pelicans players, coaches and front-office staff devoted their time at the brand-new Veterans Affairs Medical Center near downtown New Orleans. Each member of the Pelicans group escorted a local veteran or homeless person – some were both – as they received assistance at the annual “Stand Down” event, which provides a wide range of benefits to attendees. The event name “Stand Down” derives from the military term of taking time to assess a problem, then finding effective solutions before acting to resolve it.
“We wanted to give back to the New Orleans community, and we thought the homeless population was a very needy group,” Demps explained. “Also, there are homeless veterans who really need our help to get acclimated back into society. This hospital is going to be opening soon and provide much-needed services to a very vulnerable population.”
Among the services available to veterans and homeless were clothing, toiletries, food, jackets, flu shots, dental care, podiatry, as well as counseling for substance abuse and post-traumatic stress disorder.
For Demps and millions of Americans, the reality that there are U.S. veterans who sacrificed for our country but now live on the street is a devastating fact. That was also motivation for the group of Pelicans significant others to get involved.
“This is very near and dear to me, coming from a military background,” Demps said. “They've served our country. To give so much of yourself, and then be homeless, it's really sad. Anything we can do to give back to them and be acclimated to society is wonderful.”
Demps also hopes to increase awareness by local veterans and homeless of some of the ways they can rely on the VA to help meet their needs. In some cases, it is difficult for the recipients to receive the information they can use.
“It's very important for people to know that there are benefits available to them,” Demps said. “When you live out on the street, a lot of times you just have no idea that there is help out there. Anything that we can do as a group of wives or significant others of the Pelicans, we are just more than happy to lend our time. You can always lend your time.”
As Anita escorted one veteran through the event, he stopped at an eye-care station and was surprised to learn that he was eligible to receive new glasses, free of charge.
“He has vision problems,” Demps explained. “(Prior to coming) he didn't even know that he could get glasses. That was enough for my entire day, to make (being here) worth it.”
