With a light rain falling on a cool autumn day in Northwest Louisiana, 400 area homeless ventured out to Operation Stand Down. They came to get flu shots, eye exams, haircuts, showers, ID cards, food and clothing from the more than 350 community volunteers, including doctors, nurses, hairdressers, social workers, counselors and homeless advocates. Also participating were more than 35 social service providers that hosted informational booths.

Ouch! Guster Hunter, who has a service-related disability, gets a flu shot. About one-third of the homeless in the Shreveport-Bossier area are veterans.

Sponsored by the local Continuum of Care, Hope for the Homeless, and Overton Brooks VA Medical Center, Operation Stand Down reaches out to the homeless and provides a wide range of needed medical and social services in one location and at the same time, focus attention on homelessness.

"Homelessness has really grown," said Major Stephen Long of The Salvation Army, one of the participating agencies. "And the plight and causes are bigger than any one organization can handle."

An estimated 4,500 homeless live in the Shreveport-Bossier area, ranging in age from 18 to 80. Many are married, while others are divorced, widowed or single. Many have children.

The homeless get free haircuts from local cosmetology students

For the volunteers, the day was a powerful reminder of how the homeless live and what it will take to end their calamity. For the homeless, the day was a respite from the streets, a chance to be warm and dry, eat some good food and get some needed human services.