Services provided for veterans during the pandemic

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The pandemic has affected many lives, but what about those who have worked in the military? The Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services have some resources. Service Director, Wanda Wright, is here to talk about programs available to assist those who serve the country.

The department itself has been locked down since March and that gave the opportunity to restructure.

“I believe, we had much greater outreach to our veterans to support them during the pandemic,” said Wright.

This pandemic has “created some issues with isolation, despair and anxiety…And so we want to, as a department, be there for veterans, when they’re experiencing these kinds of things,” said Wright.

The production rate for veteran benefit counselors has gone up 7%. The reasoning behind this is, “we believe…many more people have a little bit more time because they might have been laid off or out of work,” and now they’re reaching out to get the resources they need, said Wright.

What are the resources provided to veterans?

Veterans are able to call a number to transfer them to the proper resources for their mental health. And a veteran can also be transferred immediately to an individual for hands on work.

Physical health and medical tele-health are also available. One of the department’s biggest partners is Veteran Affairs. They help with both mental and physical health concerns.

Homelessness is another concern for veterans and there are programs in place to either provide resources or even the opportunity to support veterans who are ready to transition into housing immediately.

“Phoenix just recently got money to support transitioning, to a new facility, which will increase their capacity for housing,” said Wright.

Another resource available for veterans is the “be connected” program which offers resume writing and interviewing skills that will place them within the Arizona at Work organization.

These resources can be found on beconnectedaz.org and the number is 1-866-4AZ-VETS (429-8387).

Service Director, Wanda Wright

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