Veterans to host A Day for a Veteran Saturday
Published 3:42 pm Thursday, July 25, 2019
VALLEY — Members of American Legion Post 67 are hoping for a good turnout at Saturday’s A Day for the Veteran, which will take place from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. EDT in Valley Community Center’s Bobby Crowder Room.
In recent days, Legion members have been trying to get the word out about Saturday’s event.
Last Saturday, they hosted A Gathering at the Memorials with the hopes of meeting younger veterans and invite them to this Saturday’s program.
Veterans are being asked to bring their DD 214 form with them. This is the certificate of release or discharge from active duty issued by the Defense Department. Having it on Saturday will speed up the process of getting information on their service record and the benefits they have earned.
“We’d like to have a good turnout on Saturday,” Post 67 Commander Lanny Bledsoe said. “We usually get around 75 veterans to come out. We try to make it a speedy process for them to talk to people who can help them. We want them to feel it was worthwhile for them to have been there.”
Veterans will have the chance to talk to representatives of the Veterans Administration, the VA Hospital and organizations such as Vet to Vet.
Numbers will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. There will be a seating area and refreshments will be available while they wait.
Bledsoe said he’s been pleased with the way things have gone in previous Days for the Veteran.
“We’ve gotten a good response when we’ve done this before,” he said. “We appreciate it when the veterans who come out tell us they think it helped them. We will have a cooler on hand with ice and refreshments for the veterans who come out. We think this is serving a good purpose.”