tricityherald.com / Opinions / Columnists

reprint or license Print E-Mail

Friday, Jul. 17, 2009

Programs open to Tri-City veterans

By by Herb Ayers, MA, Mid-Columbia Voices

You can help the Columbia Basin Veteran Coalition (CBVC) share information with veterans or members of the military.

Every National Guard, reserve, regular military veteran, and family member needs to know our community is ready and willing to help them meet the challenges of readjusting to civilian life.

CBVC offers guidance with VA claims, veteran benefits, stress reduction programs and classes aimed at helping veterans and their families adjust to changes.

In the last three months, 327 claims were filed resulting in a return to the community of $3,263,782. This year alone, more than 716 claims were processed.

Steve Prince who helps vets with their claims says, "The Tri-Cities office has an 81 percent success rate, much higher than most others."

"We want the CBVC to be like a one-stop center for the veteran," says president, Mike Black. "Our veterans all deserve the best we can give them. They've made so many sacrifices for us," he reminds us.

Counseling is designed to help veterans recover quickly from stresses they experience. Professional counselors who volunteer use different treatments depending on what is needed. But they try to make the counseling easy for the veteran. They don't want our veterans to be re-traumatized, so they use some very effective nontalk therapies like Thought Field Therapy which eliminates the internal source of stress quickly.

Of course, not all veterans need counseling. Others need mentoring help to get connected with community members who can help them find work, go back to school, or enter and complete an apprenticeship program in the trades. Some need support from chaplains.

Thanks to caring veterans and community supporters, the coalition is becoming a catalyst in finding help for veterans by "partnering" with other organizations and churches in the community. In this way special needs are met such as the building of wheelchair ramps, transportation to hospitals, and specialized help.

The CBVC also has partnered with the national ATFT Foundation that provides donated timeshares to veterans so they and their family members can have a vacation.

A family member called me recently to say thank you for this opportunity because she and her husband had no opportunity to "take a break" between his first and second tour of duty in Iraq. She's excitedly planning a Freedom R&R timeshare vacation upon his arrival home. Interested veterans apply online for this opportunity.

In effect, people in Benton and Franklin counties are mirroring what our early American settlers did in order to make America a great nation.

Sen. Rick Santorum, in his book It Takes A Family comments on Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy In America. De Tocqueville observed our early nation and he saw how successful our democracy was becoming. But he didn't think we were successful because of our geography, our laws, our natural resources, our government or our political leaders. He figured it was because of Americans' unique ability to form associations - a way of building bonds between citizens so we could achieve something beyond ourselves, and to find a sense of fulfillment not available to an individual alone.

The CBVC mission states, "The 'Circle of Service' is not complete until veterans and their families heal from the physical, emotional and spiritual wounds they suffer in the defense of our freedom and security."

We want our veterans to know our hearts and hands are open to them regardless of when they served. They can reach us at: 1600 N. 20th Ave., Suite A in Pasco. Our website is www.veterancoalition-cb.org, and phone number is: 509-545-6558.

* Herb Ayers, MA, is a licensed mental health counselor in private practice in the Tri-Cities specializing in trauma, anger and stress elimination. He served armed forces personnel as a counselor in Vietnam.

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.CommentBody@

@Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@