Man working to aid local vets in need

SANDPOINT — Serving his country in Iraq only strengthened Staff Sgt. Mike Shaw's personal mandate to help others.

While stationed in Baghdad in 2011, he founded a veterans' assistance organization that would continue to grow once he returned home. The Guardians Foundation is his way of helping provide for veterans in need of shelter and other essentials.

“When I got hurt in Baghdad, I wanted to do something for veterans, but I didn’t know what it would be. At first, we were going to take them hunting and fishing, but on the way to those activities, I kept seeing veterans on street corners with their signs saying I’m a homeless vet," Shaw said, so he changed the direction the charity was going.

Through his foundation, he established three shelters for homeless veterans. One is located in Kootenai while the other two are in Spokane.

It costs nearly $20,000 per year to keep the Kootenai House up and running, according to Shaw, and GF raises part of those funds through community donations. Over the past four years, the organization gleaned about $9,000 through fundraising activities in the Sandpoint area that went directly into the Kootenai House fund, Shaw said.

The shelter is a small home that provides up to 2,190 bed nights annually to veterans and their families. GF also uses funding to procure food and clothing for former service persons in need. Currently, Shaw and foundation volunteers are soliciting funds from greater Sandpoint residents to support Kootenai House.

"We will be in the area with our fish nets and our vehicles with Guardians logos," he said. "I want to stay here until we reach our goal of $15,000, which is about three-fourths of our annual budget."

Shaw's efforts in advocacy for veterans have not gone unnoticed. Earlier this year, he received Idaho's Brightest Star Award from the governor's office. In 2014, Sandpoint Elks named GF the Veterans' Organization of the Year.

The Idaho Community Foundation, Providence Medical Center and the Walmart Foundation currently provide smalls grants to support GF's programs. Local merchants such as Yoke's, North 40, Super 1, MacDonald's, Safeway and the Bonner Mall are also among its financial or in-kind donors.

The organization's website, theguardiansfoundation.org, is the best place for veterans to apply for assistance. However, GF does not yet have the resources to respond to every request immediately.

"I'll know I've done my job," said Shaw, "when the phone rings and we have the ability to say yes to housing for that person right away."