Warming Centers - City of Fort Smith
Volunteers Needed for the Annual Point in Time Count
Honor and Duty 5K June 4, 2022
Southern Nights Fundraiser
Sharon Chapman, New Executive Director
At any given time, as many as one in five homeless individuals are military veterans.
That statistic is told frequently by Kim Wohlford, the executive director for Next Step Homeless Services when she is spreading the word about the upcoming Honor & Duty 5K Fun Run and Walk to End Veteran Homelessness event. Set to begin at 7:30 a.m. June 10 at Darby Avenue and Ellis Street at Chaffee Crossing, the fifth annual event will be a certified, timed 3.2-mile race/walk for competitors; those wishing to walk the event at their own pace also are welcome to participate and show their support for homeless military veterans, she said.
“There will be free food for all participants and their families at the 5K, we’re working on some entertainment and the National Guard will have a booth,” Wohlford said. “Also, there will be some type of military vehicle — it’s a touch-the-truck thing for people — and that will go along with our military theme for the event.”
Expected to draw as many as 250 runners, walkers and other supporters from Arkansas and surrounding states, the 5K will raise funds for Next Step Homeless Services to help cover the costs with its Buddy Smith Home, a transitional, 16-bed facility that opened in May 2012 and focuses on homeless military veterans. Next Step operates the facility, which costs about $150,000 to keep open each year...read more
