Meet Scott

Scott, an Air Force veteran, worked as a machinist for twenty-five years. Then, he was let go from his job. “That was the start of my homelessness right there, once I lost that job,” he shares. He lived in a motel for a while, then in his minivan. After three years of homelessness, Scott heard about Tenfold for the first time in 2019. He reached out for help and was offered a room at TLC/Veterans’ Victory House.
Tenfold’s TLC shelter is a 52-room shelter for individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Every household at TLC has a private hotel-style room and bathroom, allowing families of all types to stay together. A portion of the rooms are reserved for the Veterans’ Victory House program, which serves veterans like Scott.
While at TLC, Scott worked with a case manager to save money and identify a new place to live. Before long, Scott moved out of TLC. However, issues arose with his new living situation. He decided to leave his new place and moved in with a friend, where he continued living for the next five years. Then, his friend sadly passed away, and with nowhere else to go, Scott returned to living out of his van. Although the majority of TLC participants do not re-enter homelessness after exiting the program, sometimes circumstances do result in individuals experiencing homelessness again, as happened with Scott.
Throughout the challenges that Scott faced, he remained determined. “When there’s something going on in my life, I change it. I don’t just let it continue,” he explains. Recognizing that he needed help regaining housing stability, Scott reached out to staff at TLC to see if he could return to the program. He came to TLC for the second time earlier this year.
“TLC, they are a godsend,” Scott says. “Everyone that works there was totally awesome to me. Whenever I asked for help, I got help immediately.”
While in the program, Scott worked multiple jobs, saved money, and focused on finding a sustainable place to live. With the help of his case manager, he also opened a credit card for the first time and worked on raising his credit score. Every TLC participant is assigned a case manager, who helps them identify their specific obstacles to obtaining housing and create an action plan to overcome those obstacles together.
After a little under a year in the program, Scott was able to move out of TLC and into his new apartment. “It’s a brand-new place, I’m the first resident in the whole place,” he says, adding that, “It’s just the best place I’ve ever lived. I’m the happiest I’ve ever been, I’m the healthiest I’ve ever been.” He has also recently retired and is looking forward to spending time on his hobbies, including golfing, playing the guitar, and computer coding.
Today, Scott feels settled into his new place, and looks back on both of his experiences at TLC with gratitude, stating that “Everything’s so good, and I’m so thankful for what’s happening in my life right now.”
Tenfold’s TLC Shelter serves individuals, families, and veterans experiencing homelessness. At any given time, there are approximately 80-100 individuals living at TLC, including 30-45 children and 17-18 veterans. Families are never separated at TLC. To learn more about TLC, click here. To donate to Tenfold, click here.