Flaherty: Veterans deserve generational healing in their own community

This year, thousands of Vietnam War veterans will cross into the 65+ population, a demographic shift that carries both honor and urgency. These men and women served our country decades ago. Today, many need us to serve them.

In Mountain View, 12% of residents are age 65 and older, and more than 1,400 veterans call this 12-square-mile city home. As this population ages and the cost of living in Silicon Valley remains among the highest in the nation, access to stable housing, health care coordination and daily support for veterans becomes increasingly critical.

In 2025, these realities prompted action.

The Palo Alto VA and Nation’s Finest launched a first-of-its-kind pilot program designed to provide around-the-clock, comprehensive care and housing for seven senior veterans at a commercial apartment complex in Mountain View. The goal was simple but ambitious: keep aging veterans from being deemed ineligible for independent living and instead, help them to find stability and support in a community they can call home — finally.

This initiative sought high acuity veterans who the “system” could not otherwise serve. Many of them had been justice-involved or experienced substance use disorders, all of them had been chronically homeless with no other alternatives.

They had been denied through every mainstream and VA housing program such as Section 8 and HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing. When everyone else said no, Nation’s Finest, together with the Palo Alto VA and Santa Clara County Office of Supportive Housing, found a way to yes — keeping these veterans housed while providing them with wraparound services in their own community.

The model required tough love delivered with a welcoming heart. Barriers were identified and removed. Veterans were qualified for additional benefits, and services from community partners like Meals on Wheels were secured. Veterans were visited at 3 a.m. to ensure they took their medications on time and greeted by name in the morning with a cup of coffee and a smile. Staff invested hours to hear their stories and see these veterans for who they are.

In less than a year, the initiative achieved a 90% decrease in emergency room visits, saving tens of thousands of dollars in health care costs. Throughout the pilot program, there was an increase in engagement and follow-up with primary care providers, markedly improving the veterans’ mental health and quality of life.

Perhaps most telling, even though everyone else had given up on them, all but one maintained stable housing — a reality once thought impossible. In fact, one veteran passed away quietly in his own home at peace for the first time in a long time.

That is what matters most. Beyond the measurable outcomes, the program restored something less quantifiable but equally important: dignity.

As one veteran noted, “Sometimes I have a crazy life, but I really respect the fact that the staff is good, caring and they think about me. That’s very special in my heart.”

Too often, aging veterans fall into gaps between housing options, health care systems and social services. They are isolated, forgotten and alone. In high-cost communities like Silicon Valley, these gaps can quickly widen. A missed rent payment, an untreated health issue or the loss of a spouse can spiral into instability. This pilot program demonstrates that proactive, coordinated care can break these cycles and keep veterans stable in a place to call home.

Silicon Valley, with its welcoming communities and some of the most innovative companies in the world, is uniquely positioned to help address these generational wounds. Private citizens, small businesses and global companies can all make meaningful investments in the veterans we have the honor to call neighbors.

We owe veterans more than gratitude. We owe them solutions, so they can heal and age in their communities with the dignity they have earned.

Chris Flaherty, a retired senior naval officer and combat veteran, now serves as chief executive officer with Nation’s Finest.