Charlie Daniels collecting donations for veterans affected by COVID

Country Music Hall of Fame member Charlie Daniels is standing up for our country’s veterans who may be suffering in silence during the pandemic. 

Daniels has teamed up with The Journey Home Project and Code of Vets to help financially support veterans who have been diagnosed with COVID or financially affected by the social-distancing lock-down, reported News Channel 9.

“Gretchen Smith and the folks at Code of Vets cover the guys below the radar, the ones with immediate needs and no place to turn, with a rapid deployment type response to veterans in desperate circumstances,” says Daniels. “These are the same veterans who put their lives on the line to protect our freedom. Our nation is pretty distracted by the coronavirus pandemic we’re all dealing with, but the need in the veterans world goes on, and the urgent need for funds is truly critical. I would ask you to join The Journey Home Project in supporting Code of Vets in providing for the needs of our most worthy citizens.”

Before the pandemic, Code of Vets was focused on assisting veterans with mental health struggles, unemployment, housing and transportation. Now, in the face of the virus, Code of Vets are shifting their focus to new challenges brought about by the pandemic. 

The organization listed their most pressing issues:

• Unable to pay bills due to layoffs
• Spike in food assistance requests
• Unable to afford basic needs such as: water, electricity, gas
• Increase in veteran suicides
• Unable to afford room or board due to job loss
• No access to rent, mortgage, car payment relief or deferred payment programs
• Unable to reach the VA (by phone/in-person) for necessary mental health appointments

“It is no longer business as usual. The urgency of these needs require all of our resources all of the time, and we need more Americans to step up for our veterans as they did for them,” Code of Vets Founder Gretchen Smith said.