Tools in hand, around 30 POET team members utilized their volunteer time off in late August to put up fencing, paint, cut and place siding, and more to help construct a tiny house for veterans in Sioux Falls.
“We split into smaller groups and worked on different projects, either learning from quick training or from previously learned skills,” said James Schwarz, POET Operations Engineering Manager. “The great thing is how I felt afterward; Veterans Community Project is doing a great thing in not just giving people a home, but they’re truly ‘teaching a man to fish.’”
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Tait Johannsen, POET team member, measures wooden boards to frame a shower insert
These team members volunteered with Veterans Community Project (VCP). VCP’s mission is to provide housing with on-site, wraparound support services designed to equip homeless veterans with the tools needed to return to a stable, prosperous, independent life.
By the time winter rolls around, Veterans Community Project (VCP) will have added five newly completed tiny houses to the five already completed and furnished to provide homes and services to homeless veterans. The goal is to complete 15 more over the next two years on a two-acre site located a couple of miles southeast of POET’s Sioux Falls headquarters.
VCP’s philosophy appealed to POET, said Alyssa Broin Christensen, POET Vice President of Team and Community Impact. “One of the things we appreciate about VCP is their comprehensive approach to veteran care. They’re not only providing short-term housing, but if veterans have other areas where they need support, they come alongside them with a variety of important resources. When a veteran has finished their time with VCP, they’re equipped with the tools to get back on their feet. At POET, we aim to give back to those who need it most in our communities, and this seemed like a really tremendous cause.”
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The cause is relatively new to Sioux Falls, but VCP’s volunteer fundraisers were able to find sponsors for all 25 homes within three months. “It shows how much the community wants this project here,” said Alisha Grove, VCP Sioux Falls Director of Development. Construction on the first home started in the fall of 2022, and the first three military veterans moved in a year ago. One staff member leads all-volunteer construction crews to build the tiny homes.
“All of the houses were already sponsored when POET came on,” Grove said. “But they were so generous. Half their donation went to program expenses and half to capital expenses to help build the Village Center.”
The Village Center will be a game-changer for case management, Grove said. “There’s a lot of ways to put a roof over somebody’s head, but if we don’t have that wraparound case management to get to the root cause of trauma or issue that put them in their current situation, you’re not ending that cycle of poverty. It might be their mental health issue from past military trauma, past personal trauma, substance abuse — everybody’s got their reason.” The Village Center will offer space for support services and room for community classes such as resume workshops and financial literacy courses.
The center will also include a fellowship hall where the vets can gather for morning coffee or games. “The houses are really tiny and can be isolating, especially in winter,” Grove said. Homes for single persons are 240 square feet, while family residences are 320 square feet. “We are 100 percent transitional, so this isn’t permanent housing,” she said, adding that the organization’s projects in other cities have found it typically takes 10 to 14 months before residents are ready to move on.
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Prefabricated tiny homes ready to be moved to final site location
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Interior of completed tiny home ready to house veteran Bottom Left: Village Center for VCP community
Trauma-informed design was important for the four combat veterans who started the first program in Kansas City, she continued. Beds, for instance, are located in back corners with a line of sight to the door and windows. That’s why tiny houses were chosen over an apartment building approach to minimize noise triggers from shared walls and offer a greater sense of privacy and safety. Another lesson learned as the project expanded to Longmont, Colo., St. Louis, Mo., and now Sioux Falls, S.D. is to not keep a waiting list. Some veterans might turn down other opportunities, hoping for a house to become available, and some might be difficult to locate when the time comes.
"The majority of our funding comes from individuals, corporations, foundations, and community organizations; we also have received a handful of state and federal grants that align with our core values. That allows us to operate as we need to,” Grove said, giving the example of not having to be concerned about a person’s discharge status. “We do housing interviews, and it is a process. They need to prove they’re veterans, have a need, and are willing to put in the work to make a positive transition.”
Not only does the program provide housing; it includes furnishings and household necessities as well. “Once a veteran moves into a tiny house, everything inside becomes their personal property, except appliances,” Grove said. “We furnish with brand new items because we want every veteran to have a fresh start. It all comes down to housing with dignity.”
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While POET has partnerships with several longstanding nonprofits, Christensen said they were excited to be able to partner with a newer organization to Sioux Falls and pleased that team members — many with maintenance and construction experience — were willing to lend a hand in building one of the homes.
“Our teams are always looking for ways to get engaged,” she said, “especially now that we have a POET-wide volunteer time off program.” Launched in February 2023, every full-time eligible team member receives 16 hours of paid time off annually for volunteer efforts. 5,000 hours were given back to local communities throughout the POET network in the first year. “Team members have the opportunity to give back to their communities in ways that are meaningful to them and align with our POET values,” Christensen said. Volunteer hours can be used for team-building projects or individually for causes like student mentoring.
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“We’ve been very encouraged by the generosity of our team members and the ways they’ve contributed to their local communities,” she added. This idea of uniting the hands and feet of team members with stewarded community dollars complements the annual POET Community Impact Grant Program, which offers a one-time grant of up to $4,000 to local individuals, nonprofits, schools, churches, and other causes that share POET’s vision to make the world a better place.
"At POET, giving back to our communities in a meaningful way is at the heart of everything we do,” said Christensen. “It's not only a part of our mission; it's a core value that drives us to support and uplift the places where we live and work. We believe in creating a positive impact, not only through our sustainable bioproducts but also through our active engagement and contributions to the communities we're proud to call home."
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