Helping our vets get the benefits nation owes them
Wednesday in Athens there was an event advertised as a "Supermarket of Veterans Benefits." On hand were representatives from the VA, the University of Georgia's Small Business Development Center, and other folks and outfits that you wouldn't necessarily associate with military matters.
It was a one-stop shop for veterans to learn not just what benefits are available to them, but also what career opportunities might be out there that are a good fit for the skills they developed in service -- opportunities they otherwise might have no way of knowing about. The Georgia Department of Veterans Service sponsors these gatherings for vets who often don't know what their service has earned them.
Wednesday's vets "supermarket" in Athens was not, of course, the first. In fact, it was an anniversary of sorts for something that began right here in Columbus 50 years ago.
John Suggs, public information director for the Department of Veterans Service, said the need for such assistance became obvious in 1965: "As the first casualties were coming home from Vietnam," Suggs said Friday, "there was a need to bring services together to help people learn what was available to them."
Returning soldiers weren't the only ones who needed such help. Widows and family members also needed information on VA and other benefits.
According to the Department's website (https://veterans.georgia.gov), "In January of 1966, with the generous cooperation of the Columbus area news media and City officials, the first one-day counseling service for veterans, widows, widowers, and family members ever held in the United States was conducted with astounding success."
The event attracted more than 5,000 visitors and resulted the filing of more than 4,000 benefits claims that very day -- including, according to the department, one by a 90-year-old Spanish-American War widow.
Since then, owing to the success of that event, "supermarkets" have been held in Augusta, Albany, Atlanta, Savannah, Waycross, Valdosta, Athens and other cities around the state -- including, of course, Columbus. "I couldn't say for sure," Suggs said, "but I think it's been held in Columbus more often than in any other city." The last one here was in 2008; the GDVS has not yet scheduled the next one, Suggs said.
Wherever these events are held, they bring veterans and families from all over Georgia, and from outside the state as well. They bring in not just veteran-related groups but representatives from federal and state labor departments, the Social Security Administration and other organization -- and possible employers.
"It's a career assistance center," Suggs said. "It can tailor a veteran's specialized military service skills to a civilian resume."
The country owes all our veterans a debt. Each of these events is one small payment on it.
This story was originally published December 5, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Helping our vets get the benefits nation owes them."