Getting help for seniors

Charles Mitchell was drafted into the Vietnam War soon after graduating from college. He served his country as a medic. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

But when he returned home, the former marine biologist spent the next two decades "in hiding" from anti-war protesters, working for political campaigns and on various odd jobs.

By 1989, he applied for low-income housing and got an apartment on Skid Row in downtown L.A. Today, the 67-year-old scrapes by on about $1,000 a month in Supplemental Security Income benefits and pays $238 a month for his single-room apartment.