Jeff Anderson, 58, is a veteran of the U.S. Navy.
Originally from California’s Central Valley area, he joined the navy with consent from his parents at age 17. “I was young and dumb and I thought the navy would be a good idea.”
He doesn’t like to talk much about his early home life, but said that was what other people his age were doing at the time to get away from home and see more of the world. He said he just missed being sent to Vietnam, for which he is grateful, since so many people from his home town didn’t come back.
He served four years, became a machinists’ mate, and after boot camp was sent to Virginia where he served on the USS Shenandoah, mostly in the Mediterranean Sea.

Drifting his way across the country after the navy, he stayed with a sister in Iowa for awhile,four other midwest “freedom states” as he calls them, then in Colorado for eight years, and finally New Mexico before landing in San Diego a month ago, where he sits beside a cardboard sign near the USS Midway Museum, politely nodding at people willing to turn and look him in the eye. He prefers to stay by himself, and hasn’t learned about San Diego’s resources yet for homeless individuals.

He wants to create his own business, selling information products, and has a business model all ready to go. In fact he was about to launch his business when his roommate ran up his phone bill causing the phone to be cut off. He had his i.d. and other personal items stolen, so had to close his bank account and says he lost his PayPal account when he lost his home because they require a residential address in order to do business.

“I may be a little unique out here. I may be the only one that’s starting their own business. All I need is to get my phone back, and a bank account, I just need $25 for a new bank account. You do what you can do. I would like for other (homeless) people to learn more about business, to pick themselves up. I try to teach people, but it’s like they’re just not there for it,”
he said.

Anderson would like to get a couple of dogs eventually, as soon as he gets his house.