MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Many veterans honorably served our country, but now find themselves living on crime-ridden streets on cold damp nights.

Almost a third of all men homeless are veterans.

According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, nearly 50,000 veterans sleep on the street every night because they’re homeless.

That’s a problem in Memphis too, but thanks to the work of organizations like Alpha Omega Veterans Services, that number is improving.

It’s dropped nearly 20 percent in the past few years.

Veteran Lee Heagwood doesn’t know where he would be without Alpha Omega Veterans Services.

“It was January, I was freezing, I went three days without food and I had nowhere to go. I was at rock bottom,” Heagwood said.

Executive Director Cordell Walker says there’s a high rate of homelessness among veterans because of a variety of issues, many stemming from their service.

“The stress of the military, combat fatigue, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, brain injury, can complicate the reentry process,” Walker said.

Because of this, Alpha Omega provides free housing to homeless veterans in need of help.

There’s no time limit on how long they can stay.

During a veteran’s time there, vets get jobs, go through counseling or alcohol and drug treatment, and they’re surrounded by a support system to help them succeed.

The non-profit group has six housing facilities, and even has a hospice facility for medically fragile veterans, many of whom don’t have any family to turn to.

“Our heroes should not be homeless they should not be destitute, they should be totally reintegrated back into society and they should be doing well,” Walker said.

Leonard Perkins found a home and work in Alpha Omega.

“It was just like a big brick or something came off my chest. It feels so good to work and pay taxes and tell someone, ‘Hey, I have a job,’” Perkins said.

Approximately 9,000 veterans have gone through the program in the past 27 years. Many, like Heagwood and Perkins, come back to work for Alpha Omega and help others who are in the same place they started.

“I call this place my home. I treat it like it’s my home, and I tell everyone else as long as you are here you have a home,” Heagwood said.

If you would like to learn more about Alpha Omega or how you can help homeless veterans in our area, click here.