I have always said that one agency cannot do it all when it comes to serving the 560,000 veterans living in Washington. It takes all of us putting our collective wisdom, resources, and passion for "Serving Those Who Served" together to truly make it happen!
Recently, members of our active duty military got involved in serving veterans without homes. Members of the Sergeant Audie Murphy Club at Madigan Army Medical Center completed a volunteer project to build a tiny shelter home, which will be used by a non-profit in Seattle to provide emergency shelter to veterans. Moreover, this is just the beginning! Other units are making plans to do similar builds and I have no doubt that veterans in need of emergency shelter will benefit from their hard work.
In addition to these shelters, several transitional and permanent housing projects are being developed across the state. A local non-profit is planning to build a village of tiny homes for veterans in Shelton and the Soldiers Home at Orting. These are not emergency housing programs and instead will provide small communities for veterans and perhaps be a stepping-stone into other living arrangements.
I am delighted to report that thanks to a grant from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, WDVA will begin serving veterans with transitional housing in Roosevelt Barracks on the campus of the Soldiers Home later this fall. We will be sharing additional information on that program soon, as well as opportunities for you or your organization to get involved by adopting a room.
I know there are many more projects out there and if we can help highlight the hard work that is happening for veterans, please send the information our way to communications@dva.wa.gov.
Are you a CNA looking for a career that allows you to give back to your community and provide compassionate care to Veterans?
The new Walla Walla Veterans Home is hiring Certified Nursing Assistants for the night shift.
As a Washington State Employee, your benefits include retirement plans, medical insurance, paid leave, and more. We may even be able to help with moving expenses!
On Sunday August 19th, was the Port Orchard Veterans Home held their Annual Home and Family Picnic. The residents invited their friends and family to the home for an outdoor hamburger and hot dog BBQ.
Close to around 600 people came to celebrate, including the residents' families, staff and volunteers.
"Rude and Unprofessional" entertained all the attendees throughout the picnic. Most of the band members also served in the military, so coming to play for our guests each year is something they always look forward to.
Everyone was able to stay cool with the help of complimentary Hawaiian Shaved Ice.
We would like to thank the many volunteers who served hundreds of the flavorful treats, helped to barbecue, set up and clean up the event, interacted with the residents and more.
Walla Walla Veterans Home residents chose the Tokyo Steak House as their lunch out restaurant of choice in late August. Residents experienced the excitement of Teppanyaki Tableside Grilling. It was a very artistic and entertaining style of cooking and the residents enjoyed a wonderful meal and time.
On August 23rd, the Spokane Veterans Home held their Annual Tailgate Party. The residents joined in the annual Tailgate Seahawks by supporting their team with a group picture. It was all hands on deck and even all of our family, residents and staff got involved in joining in the picture and being with our residents.
We would like to thank the local Spokane Combat Vet Motorcycle Association for interacting with the residents at the BBQ and thanks goes to the local Spokane VFW for helping us serve up all of the food.
Thank goodness the water was warm!
We also got to enjoy looking at all of the cool motorcycles, old cars and played corn hole and drank non-alcoholic beer to celebrate. We had so much fun and enjoyed everyone's help.
On August 14th, Washington Soldiers Home resident's participated in the 1st Annual Water Fun in the Sun program.
Five water stations where set up, that included a Duck Race with squirt guns, Knock the Cup Pyramid Down with a Water Blaster, a water balloon toss, Shoot the Cup on String Race. Along with the water stations, there was also a bubble making area and the grand attraction, the Dunk Tank, where many residents lined up for a chance to soak the Recreation Staff and Part Time Staff. Resident's competed against the clock and each other for prizes.
These big events would not be successful without the many volunteers. A big thank you goes out to the WA-KIMWA Ladies Korean American Organization, Puyallup VFW, Doreen Roe and the many other individuals that helped make this new program a big splash!
September is National Preparedness Month. The overarching theme for this year's National Preparedness month is "Disasters Happen. Prepare Now. Learn How." We challenge you to take thirty minutes here or an hour there to complete simple tasks that will place you in a better position to respond to and recover from emergency situations. This week our focus is: Making and Practicing Your Plan.
Make/update your Emergency Plan using FEMA's quick and easy templates.
What is a Veterans Peer Corps Mentor?
Many veterans have a need for support services, including peer-to-peer interaction and connections. Some veterans need to talk about their experiences with combat, deployment, or other situations experienced during their time in the military. Often, there is no better person to talk about these experiences with than another veteran. This is exactly what the WDVA Veterans Peer Corps does. A Veterans Peer Corps Member is a veteran, or a veteran's dependent, who receives training and certification and then serves as a peer mentor by facilitating meetings and activities. The Veterans Peer Corps gives veterans places to gather, share experiences and stories, heal together, and ultimately create a sense of a Veteran Community within their own community.
Dan Overton works with military veterans for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) through the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs.
He offers a subtle but important alternative view of the condition.
Indeed, Overton noted that by developing symptoms, soldiers are reacting the way most people would to "awful" conditions.
After you've notified us that you've hired a veteran, we will contact you to arrange delivery of your YesVets decals, to be prominently and proudly displayed at your place of business.
Thank you for your support of those who served!
Visit www.YesVets.org for more information and to signup!
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