There are many benefits, resources, programs and assistance available to military veterans. These resources are provided by federal, state, county and sometimes city programs as well as non-profit and for profit organizations. Although there are many options available to veterans, finding these organizations and knowing about their resources is often difficult. Even if they are aware of the procedures to obtain these resources, the process often becomes a challenge in itself. Most often these valuable assets are not utilized and therefore, the service member is not able to benefit from the service that they so desperately need in many cases. I have personally experienced the difficulty in obtaining information on benefits and services. When I returned from my second tour in the Middle East, I pursued knowledge on the benefits and services I was eligible for. Unfortunately, finding a place to start was more difficult than I expected. When I did find a starting point, it wasn’t always user friendly, or I would get more than one conflicting answer on what I was pursuing. Through persistence, I was able to discover a multitude of services and support for veterans. Although I was not always eligible for the services provided, I learned what the qualifications were and the process needed to obtain them. With that knowledge, I could share it with other veterans that did meet the criteria. My objective would be to share my success and knowledge with other veterans who need and deserve these services.
“WarriorService.org” has been formed to assist military veterans to reconnect with their lives, purpose and meaning. Did you know?
* Veterans Affairs backlog of veterans waiting to receive disability benefits today is estimated at 900,000 service members.
* Our military can have a new recruit ready to go off to war within an average of 10 weeks of basic training. But when a soldier returns from battle with a physical or mental disability, it takes three to five years to receive a decision on disability benefits.
* Some vets even hesitate to file, feeling it is a waste of time.
* On any given night, more than 300,000 veterans are living on the streets or in shelters in the U.S
* Every day, 22 veterans take their own lives. As shocking as the number is, it may actually be higher.
* Military veterans experience “excessive wait time” for medical care, leading to higher incidences of preventable hospitalizations and death.
* Veterans seeking mental-health care at one site had to wait, on average, 86 days to see a psychiatrist. And veterans living in rural areas may not have access to any psychiatrists at all.
* Over 760,000 reserve and national guards service members have been deployed since 9/11.
