Camille Eisenmann recalls hearing about the program to help Broward County homeless Veterans just after Christmas in 2013. Weeks later, after applying for a case manager position on indeed.com, the Bismarck, North Dakota native began actively serving local Veterans facing hard times.

When Eisenmann began work at Operation Sacred Trust, a public private partnership between the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Purpose Built Families Foundation, her son was enlisting in the U.S. Marine Corps. As he trained and deployed overseas, Eisenmann deployed locally, helping distribute $4.3 million in federal aid to disrupt homelessness for thousands of Veterans in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.

Five years later, Eisenmann leaves her agency’s Pembroke Pines headquarters each Tuesday to meet Veterans at the Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care for Homeless Veterans assistance center in Broward County.

Collaboration with VA is important to reaching and helping Veterans when they’re most in need, she says.

Stephanie Berman-Eisenberg is president of Carrfour Supportive Housing in Miami and a co-founder of the Operation Sacred Trust program.

“Collaboration is key,” Berman-Eisenberg says. “It takes partnerships, investments, and concerted action from every level of government to disrupt homelessness.”

Last year, Miami-Dade County was able to declare an end to chronic Veteran homelessness. Berman-Eisenberg hopes Broward isn’t far behind.

“The intentions are there,” she says. “Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s national leadership for Veterans, together with dedicated VA, city, county, state and nonprofit coordination is helping.”

“Florida’s congressional delegation has led the way helping allocate and direct millions of dollars in federal resources to our community,” Berman-Eisenberg says, “It’s up to all of us locally to come together every day until no Veteran is homeless in our community.”

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