Outreach, job opportunities available for area veterans

Oct. 30--PATTON -- Area veterans will get a chance to connect with organizations and enroll in assistance programs on Monday.

State Rep. Gary Haluska and Cambria County Commissioner Tom Chernisky will host a free veterans outreach event from 3 to 6 p.m. at Patton American Legion Post 614, 716 5th Ave.

Veterans assistance organizations will be on hand to help local servicemen and -women apply for jobs, receive counseling, or seek shelter or assistance with living costs.

Those expected are Altoona CareerLink, Veterans Leadership Program, Veteran Community Initiatives, counseling group Tomorrow's Hope, Hollidaysburg Veterans Home and Cambria County Veterans Affairs.

The Pennsylvania Mobile Veterans Outreach Van, which will be at the Patton event, can help vets receive disability compensation, death pensions, VA health care benefits and more. The van was also at the last veterans outreach event in Cresson.

Trudy Thomas, a legislative assistant to Haluska, D-Patton, said the Cresson event drew more than 100 veterans. She said the value of the event is having all of the pertinent aid groups together in one spot.

"Everyone that was there worked together," Thomas said.

"If someone came up to them with a question, they were able to direct them to the right person, right there."

New this year are military-themed license plates that attendees can purchase. Plates for Vietnam War or Korean War veterans are available for $20, Thomas said, as well as a plate honoring the nation's veterans for $35. A Veterans Trust Fund under the Pennsylvania Department of Veterans and Military Affairs will get $15 from each sale of the veteran honor plates, Thomas said. The funds from those sales are issued to state charity organizations that assist veterans with living costs or finding shelter.

Thomas said she also was approached by Johnstown's Sitting Bulls sled hockey team, which is seeking disabled veterans who'd like to work with the players.

For more information, call Haluska's office at 674-8939.

Justin Dennis is a multimedia reporter for The Tribune-Democrat. He can be reached at (814) 532-5060. Follow him on Twitter @JustinDennis.

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