Limestone Will Send Volunteers To Upstate Stand Down

For the second straight year, Limestone College will have a large presence at the Veterans Upstate Stand Down scheduled for the Spartanburg Expo & Event Center on October 9.

The event to assist homeless veterans will be held from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Limestone Student Social Work Organization president Mary Carnicle, a 31-year-old Social Work major from Rutherford County, NC, who now lives in Spartanburg, SC, is organizing the volunteer effort from Limestone.

Upstate Stand Down provides a vast array of opportunities and services, so each veteran can muster the energy and initiative needed to renew and rebuild his or her life.

“Seeing so many of our military veterans homeless and in need is tragic,” said Carnicle, an evening student who also serves on the Upstate Stand Down Steering Committee. “I am so happy that our Limestone College Social Work Department and other students are again helping with this wonderful event. We appreciate Limestone College and its administration being so supportive of this project.”

The plight of so many veterans hits especially home to Carnicle, who served in the United States Army for five years at Ft. Hood, TX, from 2004-2009.  As part of her field placement work, Carnicle is now working with “Welcome Home” as part of Operation Restoration, which provides a transitional home for displaced veterans living in Spartanburg County. The program provides shelter and case management for veterans, who can remain in the “Welcome Home” assisted living facility for up to twenty-four months while they begin rebuilding their lives. Each resident is required to develop specific and attainable life goals, seek and secure gainful employment and prepare to reintegrate into society.

On the morning of Oct. 9, dozens of volunteers from Limestone, including students and faculty, will car-pool to Spartanburg where they will assist with medical screenings, clothing, employment opportunities, Veterans Affairs benefits, housing opportunities, haircuts, showers, comfort kits, and much more. Limestone also has several individuals who have received extra training to serve as veteran escorts at the event.

Because of the remarkable success at the second annual Upstate Stand Down that aided 358 veterans a year ago, the goal of the 2014 event is to serve 500 participants, to include all veterans in need, homeless veterans, veterans at risk for homelessness and their families. The previous 11-county area in South Carolina – including Spartanburg, Greenville, Cherokee, Union, Laurens, Abbeville, Greenwood, Newberry, Oconee, Pickens and Anderson – has been expanded this year to also reach into rural North Carolina counties.

Limestone College’s Student Social Work Organization is hoping to find sponsors who will assist in donating hundreds of notebooks for the veterans to use at Upstate Stand Down. Potential sponsors, and people who would like to volunteer, can contact Carnicle at mfcarnicle0527@limestone.edu. She can also be reached by phone at (864) 205-3446.

“This event is for all veterans in need, and those at risk of being homeless,” Carnicle said. “We want to provide services that will help to improve their quality of life. The good news is that the number of homeless veterans has declined in recent years. But our goal is to end veteran homelessness altogether. The sole focus of my career profession is to help veterans. And that includes not only helping veterans in need, but putting programs into place to prevent them from being at-risk of being homeless. We must let our veterans know it’s okay to ask for help.”

For more information, log on to www.upstatestanddown.org.