POST FALLS — His cart piled high with goods and gear, U.S. Army veteran Dave Hardee waited outside the Post Falls Armory on Saturday afternoon, just about ready to head for home.

Behind him, hundreds of fellow veterans picked out sleeping bags, jackets, bedrolls and groceries at the 2010 North Idaho Veterans Stand Down, an annual event that lends a helping hand to former soldiers, sailors and their families.

“I think it’s a great thing,” Hardee said. “They (a group of Vietnam vets) started this stand down in 1988, in San Diego, and it’s gone nationwide since 1988. They’re real good here. Very, very impressed with them.”

Around 1,300 people passed through the stand down Saturday. Most were veterans of the U.S. military; many needed food, clothing or medical care.

“We’re targeting homeless and/or disadvantaged veterans,” said event organizer Robert Shoeman. “The idea is to provide access to a wide variety of service providers.”

Veterans registered outside the armory, beginning at 7 a.m. Once inside, they loaded shopping carts with used clothing, groceries and other necessities, all of it free. They also received legal advice, dental and medical screening, haircuts and bicycle repair.

Organized through the Homeless Coalition and sponsored chiefly by the St. Vincent de Paul Society, the stand down has taken place in Post Falls every year since 2001. Four years ago, the event moved from the VFW Post on Highway 41 to its current location at the armory.

Second Harvest, based in Spokane, donated 10,000 pounds of fruit and vegetables. More groceries were collected by the Stand Down group (affiliated with St. Vincent de Paul) and piled alongside the armory. A small army of volunteers helped the veterans collect their goods and load them into vehicles.

“As long as you have some kind of military ID that shows you’re a veteran (you can participate),” said Bob Driscoll, another organizer. “We’re trying to offer everything that could possibly be needed to help (veterans) support their lives and their families.”

Congressman Walt Minnick spoke to the veterans, and Post Falls Mayor Clay Larkin and state senator Jim Hammond were also in attendance Saturday. The stand down ran until 2 p.m.

“If we help one veteran here, we’re doing our job,” said John Davis, coordinator of Health Care for Homeless Veterans and a Veterans Affairs representative. He explained that the VA, in partnership with organizations like Stand Down and St. Vincent’s, puts together several stand downs throughout the Northwest every year.

The events serve between 5 and 6,000 veterans annually.

“These guys have earned it,” Davis said. “They’ve all put on a uniform and went and did their thing. They earned it.”