Many United States veterans face homelessness and a deep sense of purposelessness after their service. These men and women, who have already sacrificed so much for our country, deserve a path to reintegration and meaningful work. I am proposing a program that not only supports our veterans but also addresses the urgent need for safer school environments across the country.
This program would train veterans to serve as armed guards for every school in the United States, giving them a new sense of purpose, providing a stable income, and utilizing their unique skills to protect our most vulnerable—our children. By investing in this program, we can offer struggling veterans a way out of homelessness while addressing the alarming rise in school shootings that stem, in part, from the declining mental health of our youth.
In partnership with the VA, this initiative would offer free, comprehensive training to any veteran interested in becoming a school guard, funded by taxpayers as part of a broader effort to safeguard our communities. This is more than just an employment program for veterans; it’s a proactive measure to ensure the safety of our children and to give our veterans the respect, responsibility, and opportunity they deserve. Together, we can create secure schools and provide a lifeline to veterans in need.
I absolutely love this idea and I’m all for it! I would also love to build houses along all borders to house any veterans who would be willing to stand guard and protect our borders with deadly force which in the long run would save more lives than not once the word got out about the consequences of coming illegally. Taxpayer funded free housing. We spent $66 billion dollars on people who crossed our borders illegally in just 2023. Venezuela literally has empty prisons which all inmates are now within the United States. Let’s make America safe and honor our veterans as they should be. Let’s get every homeless veteran off the street.
Wow I never even thought about Veterans on the boarder but what an amazing idea! There should never be a homeless veteran on the streets and it makes me SICK that people here illegally are being treated better than not only the average citizen but especially those who sacrificed life and limb for this country.
The kamala/biden Administration has literally kicked out our veterans from shelters and certain housing to hand over to people who have done nothing for our country whatsoever and you cannot believe how mad that makes me.
I might not agree with the wars that we fought for politicians but I have the utmost love and honor for those who willingly went to die for the freedom of Americans.
I have so many ideas and I’m so happy to have a place where they might actually be heard.
Btw Thank you…
YES - YES - YES to developing this proposal. Expand the recruit pool to prior paramilitary (law enforcement, fire & paramedics). Backstop it w/ training & certifying a % of teachers/administrators/custodians to anonymously carry. Others can be trained/equipped on Byrna Launchers.
These measures are to provide protection from those that qould do harm. The long-term solution of prevention would be accomplished by returning in-school training for archery & firearms. Way more thorough than simply firing the weapons (tools).
As a veteran who has already done this I can say it’s a hard no for me. Here’s why: there is a ton of liability in these schools and administrators treat you like one well, because we are. Also, there is a thin line between guarding and being used by the schools which they all do. Because they can’t legally do certain things like illegal search and seizures, they expect us to. They expect us to be on the hook for all these things. Veterans can be held legally liable if they choose to be at the beck and call of these schools as well as getting fired for doing what’s right which is usually the opposite of what schools ask for. In theory, this seems wonderful but I assure you it is a mess, it already exists and it’s a failing program because of the schools.
Also, veterans shouldn’t just be volunteered to give their lives for anyone at any time. We already signed that check to the U.S. gov and we are no longer obligated to put our lives on the line anymore. That causes the ptsd and this program would only keep vets with PTSD in a constant state of alertness which is what we’re trying to cure. It may be beneficial to the community but it is bad for the veterans mental health if they already suffer from ptsd. Many vets don’t know they’re suffering from it for many years because it can show itself slowly. Too slow to recognize there’s a problem. Thanks for the consideration and good intentions though.
I also proposed this exact thing! I feel this takes care of two problems at once by keeping our kids safe as well as providing jobs to those who wrote the blank check knowing they might have to give all to defend our freedom! I am a wife to an Army veteran and he would LOVE something like this as a career option. I am also currently getting my bachelors degree in Psychology and feel that there needs to be screenings done to ensure that service members who have PTSD aren’t armed in our school system but they could have other roles to still hold a job doing security of some type just none with a weapon to ensure everyone’s safety. I would feel safer sending my child to school knowing there is someone who has already had extensive training and experience eliminating a threat! Our children should never be fearful about going to school and we should never be fearful to send them! Gun control ISNT the answer to this problem bad people will still have and still get guns and it is time we put guns in the hands of good people to protect our most precious lives!
I’ve been saying this for years! My veteran suggested it because him and his other veteran buddies are big ole softies when it comes to our children in the community. Most of which were also school bus drivers (it’s where they met and bonded with military service and deployments). Not only would they love to protect the most vulnerable population of the communities, they LOVE to teach about ensuring safety. They would be amazing at teaching these children about making sure their surroundings are safe, ways to evade threats for their own safety, etc. They are really good at “breaking it down Barney style” (if you know, you know). I think it would definitely utilize the skills they acquired during their service and make them feel like it wasn’t squandered when re-entering civilian life. They would have purpose again!
Some veterans don’t even realize they have PTSD for many years after trauma. So that really wouldn’t make a difference in my opinion. It seems you’re looking for something to make your veteran feel more useful. Putting them to work, in service to others yet again and at the possibility of the cost of their lives and the lives of others again may not be the best place to focus. Let our brains recover but not while having to go to that type of job again for 8+hours a day, it’s counter productive. One tiny issue that comes up in the cyclic ptsd thinking will validate those thoughts and cause more problems. Environments with little threat like basically doing hobbies with no risk help the brain to realize that not everything is a potential threat, lower cortisol and keep those overactive parts of the brain from constantly overfiring. You don’t have to be a veteran to do this job, really you have to be a “yes man” to do it successfully.
Another thing to consider is many veterans have issues with people with perceived authority. These administrators with little to no military experience will not have an easy time telling someone who knows better how to do their job. And, the veteran will instantly lose respect for that “boss” and likely walk anyway. Authority figures have nearly cost them their lives and the lives of others them have the nerve to try to tell a veteran with ptsd in a potentially dangerous or borderline illegal situation, it doesn’t work. This is why most veterans have the 70% ptsd rating. Then on top of that, mandating therapy once a week lol. Cool, make your already hyper vigilant veteran have to hash out all their internal stuff, relive stuff once a week for the sake of a job they will hate. And you gotta bet that therapy will take place on an off day or after work, more time away from not thinking about work or their safety. Weekly therapy may have helped your veteran and that’s wonderful. All around, this is a cute idea, not realistic or good idea.
Another thing to consider, pay. The going rate for this is just above min wage, prob right at min wage now. It’s not worth it. With that “armed guard” training they could do private security for more. So with everything I said above with the minimal pay, longevity won’t happen. And it’s not enough money to afford rent for a single person so it takes nobody off the street. The gov won’t continue this program when they pay to train these veterans and they won’t stay for more than a few months.
This is yet another ridiculous idea for veterans. After we’re done with service to our country, we can go live on the border and now live in constant threat of people crossing illegally trying to kill us. Fantastic. So we will never be able to recover and live a normal life. If you guys really want to help, try with the transition from military to civilian or into trade/colleges. That could use some work. For example, I was an intelligence analyst, maybe some programs for us interning in the civilian sector for a little bit in hopes of using our actual job experience for a new job. There’s more to the military than infantry, there’s more to infantry than just shooting things. Maybe waive the cost of dorms for single veterans and college apartments for those with families. Idk just spitballing here. Ask any veteran if they would have liked to live in an apartment right on the gate of a military base in Iraq. I doubt they would feel safe there at all. You’re basically proposing the same thing. And for what? We have a border patrol. If a veteran wants to patrol the border, they can apply for that job. I’m sorry but it seems people that have no concept of what it is to come back from that, be there or even have military related ptsd just seem to volunteer us for stuff that is in line with the exact reason we have trauma in the first place. Would you suggest a female veteran who has gone through MST go work in the sex industry? Cause it’s the same ask. You guys are saying, “I know this traumatized you in the past and that damage is permanent but you need to feel useful so here’s a gun, some desert and some criminals who want to kill you. You won’t be able to sleep because most movements are
at night but that’s ok, insomnia keeps you up anyway, just take some meds and sleep in the daytime. Thanks for your service, here’s more service.”
These ideas are well intentioned but they are so off from what our actual needs are when it comes to health and recovery. And if it’s about your safety and wellbeing well, we already served that contract and our time is up. You want to protect, I’m sure there is a recruiting station near you.
Thanks Michael. I actually did this job too. I’m not sure if you read my original reply and another reply in this thread about sending vets to the border or not lol. Either way, it will never happen. One thing people don’t realize about homeless veterans is many choose to be homeless, sad as it is. Many are heavy addicts, some have less than honorable discharges etc so this will not solve the veteran homeless crisis. I get fired up about this because I can’t stand people calling on vets like dogs to make them feel safe. Stop calling on us, stop volunteering us, we’re not yours to divvy out, we served our time and “dependa” wasn’t in charge of us then and sure AF aren’t in charge of us now. They don’t even know how much “their veteran” can’t stand when they do this stuff, how embarrassing it is.
I see your side of this but I don’t think all Veterans feel the way you do. We definitely can make changes to where it saves our children and schools, while giving Veterans a purpose.
They would not be a yes ma’am to the schools. Not would the schools be able to tell them what to do or how to be- this would fall under a jurisdiction of the State or a Special division of Law Enforcement.
My grandfather and father proudly served our country and I know they would be honored to serve the community in protecting our children.
They would have resources for therapy and have money in their pockets- not all Veterans share your thoughts. I’m sorry the schools were horrible to you but we need more for our children
Mental health plays a big part for all parties involved.
Thank you for your service
I’m sorry but I’ve done this job, I’ve been to the training for this job and I know how it works. You also make it seem like protecting people is all veterans can do to feel like they have purpose and that is really insulting. Another thing to understand is that many of the veterans you’re trying to reach with this choose to be in their situations. It’s an unfortunate truth. Many have addictions that make them the way they are, this program would be irrelevant to them. Also, the VA and any agency in the fed gov would absolutely not pay for this training because the turnover would be a loss for them. I see that you’re well intentioned and this idea has been floating around since Sandy Hook. Everyone looking at the veterans to continue their service for their kids.
In Texas, the best you’re going to get are the ISD police, I think each district has their own armed “police”.
When I did this in WA, it was only in high crime schools because WA didn’t want to put out any money for it so the districts paid/contracted the security companies. Everything falls under state law and schools dismiss that. They want us to search backpacks, illegally detain kids for reasons that are all out illegal for security. Every matter requires a call to the cops. Guards are powerless because we aren’t sworn law enforcement. Even a federal training program won’t change that. So basically it comes down to having a person there with a uniform and a gun as a deterrent and that is ALL they can be used for. We knew better than to even touch our guns, touch a child’s personal belongings or follow a “suspect” off school grounds because we are liable and can be sued for any reason a person could be sued. There are no protections. Literally a visual deterrent.
This is not the way to give veterans a sense of purpose. It’s not through meaningless work. Hobbies are 100x more successful like gardening, crafts, shooting etc. they put us at ease, where we need to be mentally. Purpose can be being an active parent, something we couldn’t be when we were active. It can be going to school and finally learning about our actual passions. This proposal sells us short and puts us back in places we don’t want to be and shouldn’t be. And for all this, I’m referring to those with moderate to severe PTSD. If someone with a clear bill of mental health wants to do this, good on them but not for those with PTSD. It’s a different animal. At the time I had this job, I didn’t know I had PTSD, I kept taking jobs like this because for a little while, walking around with a loaded gun made ME feel protected. When I worked at the prisons, caged animals screaming at me, doing horrible things…no gun, nobody around to protect me and my job was to protect them at the cost of my life. I realized I had to stop. Do you know why prison guards, people in security, military etc die by the age of 55, Sometime around retirement to about 3 years after they leave those types of jobs? Because they spent their entire adult lives in a state of hyper vigilance and when it’s quiet when they’re not working there anymore, it’s not quiet at all. PTSD kicks into full gear in the quiet and calm and they have heart attacks and die. That is a fact. Keeping people who are already susceptible to trauma in a somewhat threatening environment will literally kill us before we ever meet our grandkids. But ok, you think this would give us purpose because without it we would have none lol and you think it would help the schools but we’re actually useless. I this isn’t TV. It’ll never go anywhere anyway because it would have when it was nearly demanded back after Sandy Hook.
The kamala/biden Administration has literally kicked out our veterans from shelters and certain housing to hand over to people who have done nothing for our country whatsoever and you cannot believe how mad that makes me.