Nemo Resideo · No one left behind
To the heroes who gave everything for this country: we didn’t give up on him, and we won’t give up on you. What started with one wife’s love and one veteran’s resilience now teaches communities to do the same.
By us. For us. Peer-led support for justice impacted veterans: housing, reentry, and a life rebuilt with purpose.
In crisis right now? Dial 988, then press 1 for the Veterans Crisis Line.
Veterans Justice Commission
Personal support, one conversation at a time. Face obscured to protect the veteran pictured.
Presenting the Veteran Equity Framework with co-author Eric Sowers at the Veterans in Society conference, 2026.
Bringing lived experience to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.
Founded from the inside.
Dr. Manuel Gomez, a Navy veteran, former Veteran Service Officer and Doctor of Social Work, founded VetPhoenix after his own incarceration. That experience shapes everything the organization does: we start with the people living inside these systems and carry what they know into support, reentry and public policy.
Empowerment, compassion, integrity, and respect guide our work. We listen, honor lived experience, and help veterans move forward.
With Dr. Manuel Gomez, case manager Anthony Romero, and veterans served by VetPhoenix. 1:19, open captions.
America’s veterans. Our shared responsibility.
The cost reaches beyond prison walls. Public dollars tell only part of the story. Time away from family, interrupted care, and lost opportunities reach across generations.
01 / The public cost
$127,788
Average prison operating cost to incarcerate one person for one year in California, 2025–26 enacted budget.
Applies to all incarcerated people. This is a cost measure, not guaranteed savings from diversion. California Legislative Analyst’s Office
02 / A lifetime of impact
31.1%
Of U.S. separated or retired service members ages 18–64 reported a lifetime arrest and booking, 2002–2014 survey data.
Self-reported lifetime experience, not a conviction or annual rate. Snowden et al., 2017, Table 2
03 / The human scale
181,500
Veterans in U.S. state and federal prisons and local jails, 2011–12.
A historical national estimate from the Bureau of Justice Statistics, not a current count. Behind this number are families, service, and futures. Bureau of Justice Statistics
Service in community
Service to incarcerated veterans. April 17, 2026.
2025 Veterans Expo. November 13, 2025.
To Los Angeles County for its Justice Involved Veterans Initiative, the county program Dr. Gomez managed.
The VetPhoenix team at the house.
