VA Outreach Builds Bridges

Tuesday March 4th was an evening for pancakes, conversation, and learning more about the Veterans Administration and the work they’re doing in Dayton. We met at the Miami County YMCA Activity Center, amidst lots of construction. We got the griddle fired up and began making lots of fluffy pancakes. Sausage links roasted in the oven, and filled the air with the savory smell of breakfast.

Jessica, a volunteer with Concerned Veterans for America, helped with pancakes, practicing for their morning at the Miami Valley Veterans Museum. They generously provided sausage and juice, as well as willing hands to help serve the meal. Our Director was feeling under the weather, so our volunteers were feeling the burn!

After everyone had their fill of pancakes, sausage, and blueberry yogurt parfaits, we welcomed our speakers. Seth Stormer stopped by to talk to our veterans about the work he does with Medicare and Life Insurance. After Seth spoke, we welcomed Andy. Andy is an outreach coordinator with the Dayton VA Medical Center. He is new to Dayton, but he worked for the VA in Columbus prior to his move. Our veterans learned a lot about how the VA operates, and several of them learned that there are several departments to the VA. Andy works for the Veterans Health Administration, but there is also a Veterans Benefits Administration and a National Cemetery Association. The campus in Dayton encompasses all three departments. Andy’s presentation was like a VA 101 course for our veterans, and even those who thought they knew all there was to know about services offered at the VA learned something new!

Andy made himself available after his presentation, and quite a few veterans took advantage that to talk to him about services they needed or weren’t sure how to access. He even signed up one of our veterans for VA care!

We always have a great time at Muster & Mingle, and this month was no different. We would love to see you at one of our upcoming events! You can get a look at what we have coming up by clicking here, or by following us on Facebook.