By Jim Daly

What do young veterans want or need in a veterans organization?

This Memorial Day I am pondering the future of our country’s veterans organizations. It is apparent across the country that most of them are dying of old age. As an officer of the Aberdeen Post 224, Senior Vice-commander of District No. 5 (Grays Harbor, Mason, and Thurston counties), and a committee chairman for the Department of Washington Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), this concerns me a great deal.

The veterans organizations such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, Marine Corps League, AmVets, Disabled American Veterans, the NCO Association, Vietnam Veterans of America, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Jewish War Veterans of the United States, Student Veterans of America, Paralyzed Veterans of America, and all the rest are finding it very hard to recruit new members and to encourage the participation of younger veterans. The mission of all these organizations is to serve and support our veterans, our active military and to educate our citizens.

But recent veterans are not joining. I wish I could understand the reason for this trend. Why is it that young people, qualified candidates for membership, are not supporting and participating in our veterans organizations?

What do young veterans want or need in a veterans organization? I wish I knew that answer. I can’t find even half a dozen to tell me what we are doing wrong, or what we could do to involve them.

We active members suspect many different causes and reasons, but when we make attempts to reach out to them, we get little or no response. We realize that family is important, and earning a living must come first. Support and education of children is a strong second. And the many other activities young people are involved in are also important. But so are our veterans and active duty military members. Why won’t young veterans support other veterans through a veterans organization?

It only requires a couple of hours per month, to support our veterans, active duty service members, children and the community. We desperately need the help. We need help with our current and future programs. We need help identifying the best way to help our younger veterans, to identify the veterans needing assistance, and the best way to communicate with these veterans.

We need help with managing our existing programs, ensuring that programs meet a need, that the veterans are aware of their benefits and how to access them. Accessing benefits is a huge problem. I am a prime example of not knowing how to access benefits.

I was injured in Vietnam but did not know how to access the Veterans Administration system. I did not know that my injury was as extensive as it was, or that I could have been receiving disability benefits for the last 40 years or so. Over the years, my condition has deteriorated, and about three years ago I began to really investigate what benefits I might rate. When I finally identified and made contact with the correct three different Veterans Administration departments, I received certification as 60 percent disabled. How many of us are in the same situation?

There are many other benefits that veterans have earned through their service: employment assistance, vocational rehabilitation and training, housing assistance, education, mental health programs, prescriptions, survivor benefits, burial benefits and dependent education, to name only the best known. There are many more government benefits for veterans. Then there are specific programs in many of these areas that are provided by the veterans organizations, many of which do not require membership.

I do not have experience with all of these organizations, but I do know that the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, Vietnam Veterans of America, Marine Corps League and Disabled American Veterans have trained and certified service officers who can explain these government benefits and organization programs. I suspect that the other organizations can help explain benefits as well.

Many of us have supported the various veterans’ organizations for many years, and we are aging. The truth is, that without our recent veterans stepping up to join and support these organizations, current and future veterans will find it more and more difficult to learn about, apply for and receive the benefits they have earned. And programs to educate and support children and community will fade.

So, what can we do for you younger or recent veterans?

I would love to speak to anyone who has an idea or ideas that we (the Aberdeen Veterans of Foreign Wars, District 5, Department of Washington, and VFW National, or any veterans organization) could use to appeal to younger and recent veterans.

I can be reached through the Aberdeen VFW at 360-533-9863. I am there on the first and last Tuesdays of the month at 7:30 p.m. for meetings, and all veterans are welcome to visit. The VFW staff will also provide my phone number when asked so that we could arrange an individual meeting or talk on the phone. The current Commander, Anthony Magri, would be willing to speak with you as well. We would accept letters with suggestions, as well. Please address correspondence to: Jim Daly, Aberdeen Veterans of Foreign Wars, 105 East Heron Aberdeen, WA 9850.

We are also planning a public forum for this fall, to have an opportunity to hear from you on what would encourage young or recent veterans to become active in any veterans organization. Several veterans organizations and their auxiliaries will be on hand with information on their programs for veterans, family and community. There will be information on various benefits and services available to veterans from many sources. We will not be pushing you to join our organizations, but we will have membership applications available as well.

Veterans have always supported veterans. We hope this will continue, but without your help, it may not.

Please join the veterans and civic organizations on Memorial Day as we celebrate the service and sacrifice our veterans have made for our country. We will be attending a ceremony at Fern Hill Cemetery, Monday, May 29, at 11 a.m. to present wreaths at the Veterans Memorial.

This country should be preserved at any cost. I am glad that I was born, raised and live in the United States. I suspect you are too. I love this country. America is the greatest country on Earth, and I would defend her again today or any day.

Jim Daly is a retired Marine Corps captain and Past Commander of Aberdeen Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 224.