MCVC Meeting Notes 28 Mayl 2013 The meeting was held at the Vass Community Center where American Legion Post 296 meets. See the list of attendees below. American Legion Post 12 – Mike Gast American Legion Post 72 – Rora Kellis Disabled American Veterans Chapter 83 – Joe Rasmus Marine Corps League Detachment 1001 – Dave Berger Military Officers Association of America – Tom Nesbitt, Peter Dotto Reserve Officers Association NC Department – Mike Moose Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7318 – Jean Beadle Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 966 – Chuck Spelman This meeting began with an invocation, pledge of allegiance, and a moment of silence for POWs/MIAs. Mike Dorman provided the group with an informative presentation about Military Missions In Action (MMIA) which he founded in 2008. MMIA has offices in Fuquay-Varina and Southern Pines to serve the 100 counties of North Carolina. See their website at militarymissionsinaction.org/ or their facebook page at https://facebook/MilitaryMissionsInAction. Before discussing the MMIA programs, Mike provided the latest statistics concerning veteran suicides (24 a day), Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) (350,000), and PTSD diagnoses (400,000). Those statistics are nationwide and pertain to military members from the current conflict only. MMIA offers the below programs and is always looking for volunteers and/or donations of money, construction materials, or appliances/furnishings. For every dollar donated to MMIA, $0.98 goes to projects for veterans. Operation Building Hope provides home modification services to ensure that veterans with disabilities can live independently in a fully-accessible home. For veterans with financial or physical limitations to get the modifications done themselves. Homes for Healing assists TBI or PTSD impacted veterans who lack the ability to translate their mental focus into a specific physical task. It has been noted that domestic violence is up 85% among veterans. Military Child Access Assistance Program (MCAAP) assists active duty service members and veterans who have children with special needs who require handicap accessibility into their home with ramps, rails, and bathroom access, etc. MMIA receives referrals from the VA since they cannot provide this type of assistance. Operation Warrior Golf is a program sponsored by MMIA in which golf professional Gretchen McLean teaches veterans with disabilities how to overcome their limitations through the game of golf. Each veteran receives a set of gently used golf clubs upon completion. Fill The Footlocker supports active duty service members and military working dogs serving in combat areas by sending them care packages. Last year, MMIA sent out over 14,000 boxes. MMIA also provides items to Homeless Veteran Stand-Down events. The council then began to share information about opportunities and upcoming events that may be helpful to veterans. See below for those activities that were discussed at the meeting. AT&T Hiring Veterans: AT&T plans to hire five thousand veterans after the pass an aptitude test. The AT&T website (att.jobs/military.aspx) has more information. Marine Corps League Detachment 1001 Picnic: The Sandhills Detachment invites all Marines, Navy FMF Corpsman and Wounded Warriors plus their families to picnic on 15 June 2013 at Reservoir Park, Southern Pines from 1130 to 1400 hours. Call 910-295-2218 to make reservations. Homeless Shelter: Family Promise of Moore County (FPMC) provides shelter, meals, and hospitality to homeless families with children through a cooperative network of local congregations. Wheels to Work: Part of Family Promise, this program helps an employed individual with a good driving record purchase a used car. Burial Veteran Discount: Boles Funeral Home is willing to work with veterans having financial difficulty. Boles may allow payments or wait for the VA payment depending on the individual circumstances. Wounded Warrior Golf Tournament: Southern Pines Elks Lodge will hold a golf tournament fundraiser on 14 Sep 2013 at the Southern Pines Golf Club. The proceeds will go to help needy veterans in Moore County. Wounded Warrior Hunt: American Legion Post 72 will gather more details. Gulf War Illness Study: Dr. Meggs from Eastern Carolina University wishes to reach out to veterans who have deployed to the gulf region. He has received a VA grant and is looking for veterans who want to participate in his study. You may contact him or his nurse at (252) 744-5568. Temporary Financial Assistance: The American Legion provides up to $1,500 grants to assist veteran dependent children living at home. The turnaround time from request to check delivery can range from days to weeks. Flag Retirement Ceremony: American Legion Post 12 will hold its flag retirement ceremony on 14 June 2013. More details to follow. Now that we have established a facebook page for this council, Dave Berger will speak with his wife about holding classes to teach those interested how to navigate facebook. American Legion Post 72 has offered their post as a location for the classes. More to follow. There are 3 more veterans in need in Moore County. One is homeless and looking for work, one is on 30% disability and looking for work (both with transportation limits), and one Vietnam Veteran needs a little financial assistance. If any of the organizations can help, please contact Jean Beadle at 478-335-8982. The option of having officers for this council was brought up again. The council upheld its decision that there is no need for officers since we are not collecting money or increasing the membership. We are simply facilitating communication amongst all our veteran’s membership organizations in Moore County to help our local veterans. The meetings will rotate around to each chapter or post once a month and whoever hosts the meeting can lead the group. The council decided that the 4th Tuesday of each month was the most convenient for everyone and that will be our meeting night henceforth. The next meeting will be held at American Legion Post 72 on 25 June 2013 at 7 pm. The Post is located at 211 East Main Street, Aberdeen. Respectfully submitted by Jean Beadle & Joe Rasmus
Posted on: Tue, 11 Jun 2013 02:10:09 +0000
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