NineLine Video Interviews

If not us, then who? The truth behind the trials of over 37,000 homeless and growing is that the world continues to grow and forget the pattern we set for our veterans. Vietnam, Korea, WW2 and most recently Iraq & Afghanistan. Knowing first hand my own struggles with homelessness, fighting PTSD, TBI and much more.

The frustration lies with accountability, seeing ultimately the struggles of my fellow homeless, being tuned away by the local service offices, county representatives and elected leaders who stood on their “freedom courtesy of the free campaigns” my shoulders, your shoulders and their shoulders. Yet when the campaign dies down, the war ages and the all mighty dollar dwindles, that’s when the veteran is cold and alone unaware of the support they could have.

Never did I imagine however that I would find my answer as that peer, that support, that through my own trials I would find a system to uplift, empower and educate for the success of others facing my own to familiar demons. That a system that allowed me to fail would also give me the tools for success. How it happened:

Well, it was through boots on ground searches for supportive services, basic needs (food, rental assistance, emergency care, daycare and financial support) during a time in my life “we will call this the transition period”, where the world around me didn’t make to much sense, everyone else carried the burden of my choices, my family was to blame for my lack of success and everyone was out to get me “yup, this was my self proclaimed stance.” Then when I hit rock bottom, living out of the car, scraping by to feed my son, working graveyard shifts, going to school full-time something finally clicked. I attended meetings, I sought support and care, I went a stumbled into the VA begging for support for a world that had left me drained of what to do next.

It was this that illuminated and changed the trajectory of my life. The groups I attended lead by some civilian who had some fancy letters following their name offered little comfort or practical insight, only sighting what the new DSM had read. No, see we Veterans found comfort in each other, we created a squad of strugglers that grew knowing “we were not alone”, knowing that utilizing each others stories, getting to know one another’s short comings, well we could learn from each other and fill the gaps of our own lives. This changed the game at the time for about 25 of us, it really got to the point where our so called clinician was showing up so she didn’t get fined. We grew all of us in that group, we learned, but mostly we grew. We started attending events, growing our networks, understanding the processes, witnessing the procedures and offering those same supports to others. We were for all practical purposes healing through our pain, remembering that service is what we were trained for and that it was going to save us all.

Looking back all those years ago, 15 to be exact. We had no idea what we were doing, we had no explanation on how it worked, we didn’t understand micro and macro or the ideas of how to quantify our success’s, we knew above all else that we had each other, and that we would never be alone again. That concept grew what today is the local veteran services, collaboration, understanding and the supports that drives a peer lead, evidence based platform for hundreds if not thousands at this point, it lead to what you see in this video as our commitment to “Service Above Self” NineLine Veteran Services. We are soldiers, airmen, marines, coast guard, navy, DOD, VA and many more, we are the change we all needed and wanted to see in the world.
Humbled to Serve,

Shawn Durnen
President
NineLine Veteran Services
5013 Pacific Hwy E, #21
Fife, WA 98424
Nine9Line.org
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“Do not measure the idea of success vs. failure,
Just aim for results and success will follow.”