On Tuesday, December 6, two of the Benedictine Sisters of Chicago gathered in Grand Junction, Colorado, with dozens of donors, volunteers, and other interested citizens of Grand Junction, to celebrate the opening of St. Martin Place.  The apartment complex provides housing for veterans who are homeless.  Sister Karen Bland is the executive director of Grand Valley Catholic Outreach, which sponsors the apartments.  In addition to the housing, the residents will receive services through a case manager, who will assist them in receiving adequate medical care, benefits, and in seeking employment, if they are able. 

St. Martin’s Place was envisioned in response to the national Veterans Administration’s goal of ending homelessness among veterans within five years. The Homeless Coordinator at the VA Regional Medical Center reports seeing approximately 10 new veterans a week who are homeless.  The overnight shelter did not have a sufficient number of beds for all those who were homeless this past winter.  The name "St. Martin Place" honors St. Martin, a Roman soldier who is said to have cut his cloak in half to share with a beggar during a snowstorm, St. Martin de Porres, a Dominican who lived a life of service to others, and St. Martin Luther, representing the ecumenical character of Catholic Outreach.

In keeping with this ecumenical character, ministers from various local churches, many of them board members at Grand Valley Catholic Outreach, blessed each apartment.  Sister Patricia Crowley, also in attendance, blessed the apartment for Bill, a veteran of the Vietnam War, and his dog Blue.  “It was cold that day,” she reflects, “and that made the opening of the apartments poignant, when you realize that without them, many of these people would be sleeping on the streets.”