Homeless veterans in Milwaukee find therapy in taking photos

Kurt Prinz liked the look of a couple of buildings along the Wisconsin River in downtown Milwaukee, so he pulled out his iPhone 7 and snapped a few photos.

He didn't realize it at the time but he caught the fleeting image of a man's face exiting the frame. Now, everyone who passes through the Milwaukee VA Medical Center's south entrance can see what Prinz saw on a summer day as he captured the moment.

Four of Prinz's photos are on display in a photography exhibit by homeless veterans in Milwaukee.

Veterans in the homeless treatment program at the Milwaukee VA Medical Center participated in an outpatient therapy program that supplied them with small digital cameras and instruction in photography techniques.

"It gets me out and I socialize more. Photography is a stress reliever," said Prinz, 51, who served in the Marines, 1985-'89, and was injured when he fell off a cliff while stationed in Japan. He used his iPhone in class because it's always in his pocket.

Courtney Zeller, a recreation therapist at the Milwaukee VA, started the program earlier this year with a donation from the Elmbrook Rotary Club, which paid for cameras and camera cases. She knew that getting veterans outdoors to snap pictures would be therapeutic.

Nine veterans signed up for the first group and in six sessions they learned to use the cameras and went on photography walks at the VA grounds, the Basilica of St. Josaphat, Schlitz Audubon Nature Center, Milwaukee County War Memorial Center and river front.

"I thought, 'What a great way to get them out into the community to socialize and develop a new leisure skill to help them in their recovery,' " said Zeller.

While it's geared toward homeless veterans, any veteran participating in mental health programs at the Milwaukee VA can join. A second group of 11 veterans recently attended their first photography class.

The aim of the class, Zeller said, is to help veterans feeling isolated and depressed.

"Photography gets them out into the community, boosts their self-esteem and gives them a visual reminder of where they have been," said Zeller.

Willie Weaver-Bey, who served in the Army 1972-'74, used a pocket-sized Panasonic digital camera to snap his six photos featured in the exhibit. Weaver-Bey already had an artistic bent — his portrait of a Vietnam veteran earned first place in the pastels category at the 2016 National Veterans Creative Arts Festival.

Two of the photos are ghostly images he took inside the basilica; he's not sure what he did to capture the pictures but he liked what he saw.

"I don't do any planning. I just shoot. I think I have a pretty good eye," said Weaver-Bey, who was homeless after finishing a prison term for possession of drugs with intent to distribute. Earlier this year, he bought a home.

When he started the photography program, Prinz had been sleeping in his car or couch surfing with friends but now lives at Veterans Manor on W. Wisconsin Ave. He smiles as he looks at his photos blown up and printed on high-quality paper in the exhibit.

"I take pride in my pictures. I appreciate having a place to display them," said Prinz. "I can't wait to take them home to put on my walls."

The photos will be exhibited at the south entrance to the hospital, 5000 W. National Ave., through Oct. 20.