The Community Partnership on Homelessness was honored Sept. 22, 2024, at the 19th annual International Day of Peace Awards Ceremony, sponsored by the Riverside County American Veterans group.
“We believe world peace is not really complete until our homeless and hungry people of the world are taken care of,” said Tom Swann Hernandez, founder and president of Veterans For Peace and commander of AMVETS Post 66. He told of having friends who are homeless and struggle to stay hydrated in the desert or get government benefits they are entitled to.
Accepting the award for CPoH, Howard Goldberg explained how the group came together three years ago when people were discussing the homelessness crisis on social media. They were seeking peace themselves by not seeing people suffering, but also by restoring more order and security in the city. He said some CPoH members may sympathize with officials who are shutting down encampments, while others consider it criminalizing homelessness. But we need to work together because our well-off community of Palm Springs still has far too many unhoused people, including many veterans, he said, adding: “Between our desert heat, and society’s neglect, there have been far too many needless deaths and too much suffering.” Full text of remarks here.
Other honorees this year were State Sen. Steve Padilla; Rusell Betts, a Desert Hot Springs City Council member; Former Palm Springs Mayor Ron Oden, who is a College of the Desert trustee; AMVETS Express Volunteers, who provide transportation to the Veterans Hospital; the Palm Springs Police LGBTQ Outreach Committee; and the José Garduno Comite Latino Coachella.