Port Jervis veterans village to open with housing, support services

Veterans in Port Jervis will soon have a new place to live that is built around more than a roof overhead. Rumshock Veterans Village, at 297 East Main Street, will open with 10 one-bedroom tiny homes and support services meant to help veterans who need stability, transportation help and a path back to independence.

The public ribbon-cutting is scheduled for June 14 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The village is being described as the first veterans community of its kind in Orange County, and the foundation behind it says the goal is safe, affordable and sustainable housing tied to employment opportunities and a support network.

Rumshock Veterans Foundation says the village is a master-planned tiny home community on 0.75 acres. Other reporting has said each home is about 20 by 20 feet, or 400 square feet, a size that makes the project far different from a traditional apartment complex or shelter. The homes are intended for veterans who need more than emergency housing, especially those facing homelessness or instability.

The first tiny home built for the village was sent to the Port Jervis site in December 2025, after Orange-Ulster BOCES carpentry students helped build it. That student connection has made the project both a housing effort and a workforce-training effort, linking veterans’ needs with local education and construction programs.

Congressman Pat Ryan announced $1 million in federal funding for the project in March 2024 to build 10 homes for homeless veterans. The Rumshock Veterans Foundation was founded in February 2019, and the years since have brought the project from concept to a real site on East Main Street.

The opening lands at a moment when veteran mental health and housing instability remain urgent concerns in Orange County. A county veterans data report said one in four veterans reported a risk of suicide. Christian Farrell of Orange County Veterans Services said veterans lose more to suicide than to combat, and said that reality demands innovative solutions.

That is the gap Rumshock Veterans Village is meant to fill. Its model pairs housing with practical support, aiming to give residents not only a place to sleep, but also the structure, connection and mobility that can help them stay housed and move forward. With elected officials and community leaders expected at the ribbon-cutting, the village is set to become a visible test of whether local veterans services can do more than honor service and actually reduce isolation.