chaptersinaction Meeting a Need
By partnering with local community organizations that have a variety of resources at their disposal, MOAA chapter members are helping veterans and servicemembers and their families navigate and access needed services.
F
or more than two years, members of the Lee Coast (Fla.) Chapter (
moaa.org/chapter/
leecoast) have met monthly with rep- resentatives from other community organizations to address the needs of veterans and servicemembers and their families. The initiative, origi- nally called Community Blueprint, has continued to grow, with participa- tion from over 100 individuals repre- senting 70 organizations that provide relevant services. The program was cochaired by Rear Adm. Roger Triftshauser, USN (Ret), past presi- dent of the Lee Coast Chapter, and David Zammit, who chaired a similar program in Valdosta, Ga., where he served as executive director of Green- leaf Center, a behavioral health and substance abuse treatment facility. Though this collaboration was helpful, the Community Blueprint initiative lacked a single entity to co- ordinate these services and resources. About one year ago, the United Way of Lee, Hendry, Glades, and Okeechobee counties took the helm. “I have looked for that coordinator
since we started,” Triftshauser says. “Without someone answering that call 24/7, [we] couldn’t move forward and be successful. We were at a cross- roads, but this collaboration [with the United Way] has been imperative to carry on with what we started.”
44 MILITARY OFFICER FEBRUARY 2017
Zammit, who began volunteering with the Florida Community Blue- print program after moving to Fort Myers, agrees. “The landscape here in Florida is totally different. Georgia was a smaller community. It was easier to ... get something going. [Here] there are so many groups trying to help vet- erans that people are stepping all over each other to help. We needed coordi- nation, not another organization.” On Nov. 18, 2016, the new initiative officially launched with the mission of addressing the fragmented systems of veterans’ services. Called Mission United, the program will serve as a
veterans in need — and they have a lot of needs.
“
It takes a lot of work to help our
— Col. Ben Margolius,
USA (Ret), Southern Tier (N.Y.) Chapter
”
single phone point of entry to help local veterans and servicemembers and their families navigate and access needed services. When vet- erans dial 211, trained United Way information and referral specialists will assess their needs and refer them to appropriate resources in the community.
During the program’s soft launch
from May to November 2016, United Way 211 answered more than 500 calls from veterans, indicating there is truly a need for this service. Triftshauser is enthusiastic about the program’s future. “This resource is the key to success,” he says. “It’s a one-stop shop.” Moving forward, Mission United will focus on ongoing outreach ef- forts and database management to track the program’s success. Triftshauser says outreach is
an area with which the Lee Coast Chapter — a sponsor of Mission United — can assist. “It’s the grass- roots efforts that help make these programs successful,” he says.
Financial support
Members of the Southern Tier (N.Y.) Chapter (
moaa.org/chapter/ southerntier) also are assisting a local initiative that supports ser- vicemembers and veterans. Chapter Vice President for Membership Col. Ben Margolius, USA (Ret), who also is president of the New York Coun- cil of Chapters, and his wife, Sue, serve as vice president and secre- tary, respectively, of Southern Tier Veterans Support Group (STVSG). This alliance provides not only a network of resources through 80 affiliate organizations to local vet-
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