Dana West, Outreach Coordinator for Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services, will address Jewish War Veterans Post 619 on Sunday, Nov. 19.
Nancy Stutman
Jewish War Veterans (JWV) Copper State Post 619 will welcome Dana West, Central Arizona Outreach Coordinator for the Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services (ADVS), as its Sunday, Nov. 19, featured speaker. The meeting takes place in the Poolside building at Oakwood Country Club, 24218 S. Oakwood Blvd., Sun Lakes. A Meet & Greet with free lox and bagels, coffee, and doughnuts starts at 9:30 a.m. The speaker follows at 10 a.m. All are welcome.
ADVS’s mission is to remove barriers to the resources and benefits veterans have earned. By calling their Veteran Benefits Counselors (VBC) scheduling line, 602-535-1215, counselors educate veterans about the benefits available in the State of Arizona. Veterans can receive assistance with applying for such services as service-connected disability claims, non-service-connected pensions, burial, and survivor benefits.
Ms. West, an Army veteran herself, has been Outreach Coordinator for Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services since last year. Here, she spends her time raising awareness about the programs and services offered to veterans and their families by attending events and doing presentations in the community.
“Recently, as a team, we were able to assist a combat veteran who was experiencing homelessness,” sympathetically relays Ms. West. “He had completed the PTSD Foundation of America’s intensive residential program at Camp Hope, which aims to provide comprehensive peer support and mentoring-based healing for veterans. The veteran was offered a job with the PTSD Foundation after completing the program but needed assistance finding and obtaining housing. I was able to connect him to our Military Family Relief Fund (MFRF) team who assisted him with applying,” continued West. “The veteran was approved and was able to get assistance paying past-due bills, move-in fees, deposits, and a few months’ rent. I am honored we were able to connect him to a resource that not only helped but gave him the ability to get on his feet and thrive,” stated West.
JWV Post 619, which meets the third Sunday of every month from September through May, boasts members who represent a wide range of religious affiliations and participates in philanthropic activities to help veterans of all faiths. To learn more about JWV activities and membership, contact Elliott Reiss at [email protected] or 480-802-3281.