June 25, 2007
- Seattle, Washington
VA pushes to help Washington National Guard, reservists
By Associated Press
OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - The state Department of Veterans Affairs is reaching out to Washington National Guard and Reserve members it worries aren't taking advantage of services when they return home.
Director John Lee said fewer than one-third of the more than 11,500 citizen-soldiers called up since fall 2001 have used the state's programs to help them readjust to civilian life.
He's concerned that some veterans facing problems might be unaware of his agency's programs or too embarrassed to seek help.
The agency wants veterans to know what's available, especially since Lee expects thousands more National Guard and reservists will need counseling, and job and tuition assistance in coming years. The number of returnees "could double and triple - given potential future deployments," he said.
In 2006, the state Legislature created the Veterans Innovations Program, which provides emergency financial assistance to National Guard and Reserve members who served in Afghanistan, Iraq or domestic homeland-security missions. The program provides grants for soldiers and their families to supplement wages and pay tuition.
Under the Veterans Conservation Corps, all veterans may volunteer on environmental restoration projects to learn job skills and, in some cases, earn college credit.
Another program counsels veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder.
"They're not just leaving us flapping in the wind," said Clint Sheehan, 30, whom the agency helped with benefits after he returned from Afghanistan with the 864th Engineer Combat Battalion at Fort Lewis.
Sheehan now works for a Puyallup-based construction company and plans to go to college. He's interested in becoming a counselor to veterans.
Shameka Henson, 26, of Olympia, served four year with the Army and cared for wounded soldiers during a deployment to Iraq with the 62nd Medical Brigade based at Fort Lewis.
She now participates in the conservation program, planting trees and restoring stream habitat. She said the work is therapeutic and has given her valuable hands-on training. She'll begin classes in the fall in the University of Washington's environmental-science program.
"It's helped me move on and not only that, it's been beneficial for my overall career," she said.
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