Veterans Corner

Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July all my Veteran riders, I know that this month if you are not aware we are doing the ground breaking ceremony in D.C, for the National Desert Storm War Memorial on 14th of July. Many of us will be riding into D.C. - (I am a Desert Shield/Storm & Iraq/Afghanistan Veteran). I am proud to have served my country and would do it again. So, I would like to enlighten some of the Women Veteran’s and Desert Storm Memorial in my future articles along with things that can help all our Veteran’s here in Michigan and hopefully everywhere in the United States. There are several resources that can help out our veteran’s here in Michigan one of them is:

Stand Downs

Stand Downs are typically one- to three-day events providing supplies and services to homeless Veterans, such as food, shelter, clothing, health screenings and VA Social Security benefits counseling. Veterans can also receive referrals to other assistance such as health care, housing solutions, employment, substance use treatment and mental health counseling. They are collaborative events, coordinated between local VA Medical Centers, other government agencies and community-based homeless service providers. Below are upcoming Stand Downs. New events are added regularly, so check this page often for updates. To add upcoming Stand Downs not listed below, please submit a notice of proposed event form to the VA Homeless Coordinator or VA Stand Down point of contact (POC) at your local VA Medical Center.

New Veteran Resource Service for Michigan Veterans

The Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency is hard at work connecting those who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces with the benefits they have earned. The MVAA is here to help veterans navigate the challenges of getting connected to federal, state, and local veteran services, no matter how they come in contact with the State of Michigan. The Veteran Resource Service Center is helping veterans and their families retrieve their military documents, navigate veteran benefit programs and find services to assist in their communities. While making these connections seems simple, it is often impossible to navigate the system alone. Many women who served are not aware of their eligibility and have not applied for the money set aside for pensions, disability benefits, health care, education, spousal support, and burial. Visit http://www. michiganveterans.com/ or call 1-800-MICH-VET (800-6424838) to find out more.Forgotten Eagles of Michigan http:// forgotteneagles.org/ Forgotten Eagles®, Inc. a non-profit organization formed in 2002 by a group of concerned veterans that have come together in a common desire to ensure our nation does not set aside the needs of veterans and their families. With holidays coming up in the fall, let’s look at how we as vets can help each other every day. With us losing 22 veterans a day we need to help end this. Did you know that in Michigan had an estimated 8,351 experiencing homelessness on any given day? Between 560 to 646 are women veterans. The help is there it’s getting the veterans the help. The problem is most vets don’t trust the government, or VA. So how can we change that? That is a good question? How do we get our veterans the help they need? Well first off if you know a vet that in trouble and needs help talk to them and give them this info; use this link http://vafvets.org/resources-vetera/links/ it will give you a list of help for veterans.

Veterans Crisis Line

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has established a national Veterans Crisis Line to ensure that Veterans in emotional crisis have free, 24/7 access to trained counselors. To operate the hotline, the VA partnered with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Veterans, family members and friends can call the lifeline number, 800-273TALK (8255) and press “1” to be routed to the hotline and speak to a counselor about any issue that is creating a crisis situation in his or her life.

State Hunting and Fishing

Eligibility: Michigan provides for eligible resident disabled Veterans and former prisoners of war to receive a fishing license, hunting license, fur taker permit, deer permit, wild turkey permit, wetlands habitat stamp or any combination of these licenses free of charge. More information can be found at https:// militaryhuntingandfishing.com/michigan/

(Part 2 of this article will appear in the August Issue of Thunder Roads Michigan)

SHARON K. HARVEY

(RET) TSGT, USA/USAF “RED”

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