WEST CHESTER, Ohio -- Not-for-profit company Warrior Homesteads wants to end homelessness among veterans once and for all.
"For me, it's a labor of love, because you've got to want to be an example for folks who change the world before the world starts changing," Warrior Homesteads founder Glenn Grootegoed said.
Warrior Homesteads produces tiny homes. For the last four and a half years, Warrior Homestead has donated trailers and RVs to homeless veterans. This year, they’ve partnered with Maverick Tiny Homes to donate tiny homes to veterans in need.
"We have a lot of folks reaching out to us that need housing now, veterans that are in bad spots." Grootegoed said.
Although they might be more associated with hipsters than people in need, tiny homes can be a great option for low-cost living if a person is unemployed or unable to work, Maverick Tiny Homes owner Michael Green said.
"There's low utility costs for them and somebody could have a tiny home and be fully sustainable and fully living without having to have a full-time job," he said.
Grootegoed said 1.4 million veterans are at risk of being homeless, and that's why, when someone buys a tiny home, they're donating another.
"Having a tiny home that's much more affordable for us to produce is an easy way that we can get temporary housing to veterans now," Grootegoed said.
Grootegoed said that each tiny home takes anywhere between one and four weeks to make, and the company is always looking for people to help out.
"I thought when I started this that everybody would want to get involved, but it's been a struggle being a non-for-profit," he said. "There's not a lot of pay."
