Eagles Nest of St Clair County

The Eagles Nest of St. Clair County was founded and incorporated in 1997 as a 501(c)3 charitable organization to address the issue of homelessness amongst veteran males. From 1997 to 2009, the founder worked tirelessly to find a building and funders to support the vision. In 2009, The Joseph Center was opened as a 24-hour, secure transitional housing facility. The center operates in a 5535 square foot facility in East St Louis, Il and it encompasses a resident day room, computer lab, laundry room, cafeteria/recreational space, and thirteen (13) double occupancy rooms.
The program utilizes a harm reduction framework of housing models to accommodate new and chronically homeless veterans, unsuccessful in traditional housing programs as a result of Substance Use Disorder (SUD), mental illness, incarceration, and/or traumatic brain injury.
We provide trauma informed care and wrap around services and support through housing, clothing, meals, hygiene services, intensive case management, substance use groups, transportation assistance, life skills development, and career exploration options. We also collaborate with various organizations to assist veterans.
The program assists veterans from every branch of service: the U.S. Coast Guard, Army, Navy, Marines, and Air Force, regardless of service tenure, discharge status, or ability to receive free veteran services. Veterans accepted into the program can stay at the Joseph Center for up to 2 years. The agency serves between 0-75 males, annually. Since its inception, the program has served over 626 homeless male veterans, case managers have provided over 288,480 hours of intensive case management services, and the agency has served over 6,191,550 meals in support of the mission.
Our mission is “empowering homeless male veterans to self-sufficiency and economic independence.” Our goal is to serve our veterans with excellence, maintaining the dignity of human life through compassion, respect, and commitment.