LAKEPORT — Lake County Vet Connect, a newly formed committee spearheaded by all local veterans organizations, will debut its first clinic to help county veterans access benefits and services this coming Wednesday from 9 a.m. to noon at the Umpqua Bank in Lakeport.
The clinics will help “connect people to the services that they need to improve their lifestyles,” United Veterans Council of Lake County (UVC) president Frank Parker said.
Three-hour clinics will be held twice monthly, allowing local veterans to speak with fellow discharged service men and women and many local veterans service agencies. The clinics are aimed at making it easier for in-need local veterans to gain access to benefits and services available to them.
According to the Vet Connect mission statement, “Our sole purpose is to provide outreach to former military service members and their families, and to assist those persons in gaining access to services and benefits due them as a result of their service to our country.”
Local veterans attending the clinics will be informed about a wide range of issues, including legal services, medical benefits, housing, employment, mental health and self-help. Attendees can speak with representatives from different service providers, who will be set up at tables around the “provider room.”
“It”s going to mean greater access to veterans (for providers),” according to Bob Penny, assistant county veterans service officer for the Lake County Veterans Service Office (LCVSO).
There are 12 confirmed providers for Wednesday”s debut clinic: Veterans Administration Support Housing (VASH), LCVSO, Lake County Mental Health, Veterans Administration Medical Center (VAMC), Disability Services and Legal Center, CalFresh, Employment Development Department (EDD), Drug and Alcohol Center, Legal Education, Financial Education, North Bay Veterans Resource Center and Catholic Charities.
“This is a place you can come for assistance,” American Legion Post 194 member Daniel Davi said about the clinics.
Discussions about a coordinated effort to meet local veterans” needs began in December, according to Penny, who said he spoke informally with individual UVC members during that time. Access to veterans is especially important for Lake County providers because there are an estimated 8,000 veterans living in the county, Penny said.
By January, members from all local veterans” organizations showed an interest in joining together for the common goal of helping veterans get better access to services and benefits, according to Parker.
Some local veteran volunteers traveled to Sonoma County to observe a well-regarded group in action, Sonoma County Vet Connect. Parker said the program offered by their neighbors to the southwest impressed all the Lake County veterans.
Sonoma County Vet Connect members provided input to the Lake County veterans and Lake County Vet Connect is modeled after Sonoma County Vet Connect, Parker said.
Veterans attending a Lake County Vet Connect clinic will first enter a welcome room with coffee, donuts and volunteers. First-time attendees will be asked to fill out an informational form, allowing the Vet Connect staff to better understand the individual”s needs.
The welcome area is a separate room from the provider room, where all the providers will be seated. Vet Connect staff and volunteers will help attendees navigate to relevant provider tables.
“We”re going to have to become very good listeners” to “try to determine where they need the assistance,” Davi said.
First-time attendees who are not already in the system will be asked to register with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Improving the accuracy of the number of VA-registered veterans in Lake County is an important goal of the clinics, Davi said.
The clinics will provide in-need veterans the opportunity to get first access with service providers, and let the veterans take the reins from there, according to Davi, adding that another goal is “to teach a person how to fish, not keep supplying them with fish.”
Lake County Vet Connect clinics will be held twice a month. Like the debut clinic, one will be held on the third Wednesday of the month on the second floor of the Umpqua Bank on 11th Street in Lakeport.
Another clinic will be held on the second Wednesday of the month at the American Legion Post 437 at 14770 Austin Road in Clearlake. The first clinic in Clearlake is scheduled for April 13. All clinics will run from 9 a.m. to noon.
First-time attendees are encouraged to bring a copy of their DD Form 214 Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (DD-214) to help with the verification process.
The involved local veterans groups are American Legion posts 194 and 437, Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) posts 2015 and 2337, Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Chapter 83, Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) Chapter 951 and Voiture 40-8, which are all members of the UVC.
For more information on the Vet Connect, contact Parker at 274-9512 or Kirk Macdonald at 263-8449.
