| Compton: Veterans’ benefits bring about $67 million to Ventura County By George Compton I would like to take advantage of my column today to provide my annual report on the activities to support veterans by the Department of Veterans Affairs, the State Department of Veterans Affairs and the Veterans Service Office. During the past year, the Veterans Service Office (VSO) provided individual counseling and assistance to more than 2,800 veterans. The VSO staff gave more than 80 briefings to military, veteran and service organizations; filed 1,200 claims with the Department of Veterans Affairs or the California Department of Veterans Affairs; and generated about $4 million in new claims. The annual total of benefits for compensation, education, pension, and insurance policies from the VA to veterans in Ventura County will be about $67 million, an increase of $3 million from last year. The Greater Los Angeles VA Health Care System and Community Memorial Hospital continue to provide excellent care through our VA Medical Clinics. We now have clinics in Oxnard, Ventura, Santa Paula and Camarillo. In addition, Oxnard has Adult Day Health Care provided by Oxnard Family Circle. This all adds up to almost 7,000 veterans who are taking advantage of VA healthcare and the VA, which are providing $42 million in medical benefits, an increase of $8 million from last year. The Department of Veterans Affairs also maintains a Vet Center in Ventura. With 30 percent of service members returning from current conflicts experiencing stress-related problems, this facility is critical in providing support for our veterans. A vocational rehabilitation counselor is also available in the county to assist disabled veterans in training for a career compatible with their disabilities. The California Fee Waiver program continues to provide more than 500 college students from Ventura County with the ability to attend California colleges tuition free. This program saves veterans’ families approximately $1.3 million per year. These numbers reflect the understanding of the importance of education by our veterans. Finally, I would like to thank The Star for helping the Veterans Service Office to reach so many of the veterans of this county and provide information about possible assets available, and for being a sponsor of the annual Veterans Health and Resource Fair. — George Compton, retired Army colonel, is the veterans service officer for the County of Ventura, Human Services Agency. Send your questions to Veterans Service Office, 1701 Pacific Ave., Suite 110, Oxnard, CA 93033; phone number: 385-6366; fax: 385-6371; or e-mail: George.Compton@ventura.org. —— MilitaryConnection.com is a portal of all things military. We have thousands of pages and hundreds of databases of valuable information and resources. There is something for everyone. All of this is provided free to users. Additionally, we feature all types of Press Releases like this one to keep you informed. We will post your press releases, special events, newsletters, professional conferences and seminars, reunions, job fairs, and videos to help organizations get out the word. One of the areas of our focus is connecting candidates from the military community with outstanding government and civilian employers. We are well aware that candidates from the military community across the board have a work ethic second to none. They make highly valued employees. MilitaryConnection.com has a multitude of employment resources including a Directory of over 30,000 employers, Job Tips, Columns, our Job Board, Virtual Job Fair and much more. We understand the importance of education. Please check out our new Scholarship Directory featuring thousands of scholarships. When the next tour is back home, it’s on MilitaryConnection.com. |