Utah County Veterans Services outlines programs, calls for stronger post-treatment support

Randy Edwards, identified in the meeting as the Utah County Veterans Services coordinator, told the Utah County Commission about local veteran services and national American Legion activity, and urged continued county support for veterans programs, warming centers and post-treatment housing and employment assistance.

Edwards said the veterans group conducted an open house and related activities that helped more veterans in a single day than in prior years: "Last year, we had on our the year before last, we only had like 9 people that we actually recognized. This year, we did 50 in 1 day," he said, describing expanded access to veterans service officers and assistance with benefits.

Edwards described national American Legion activity and provided figures his remarks attributed to national programs, including large volumes of retroactive VA disability benefits awarded in December to veterans who used American Legion appeals representation and numbers of American Legion advocacy contacts to lawmakers. He discussed local programs supported by the veterans group: communications support (including amateur-radio/satellite links with Civil Air Patrol), a sailboat-therapy program on Utah Lake intended to help veterans with suicide and PTSD therapy, participation in flag-day and Freedom Festival events, ROTC and Eagle Scout recognition, and a planned Jose Valdez Congressional Medal of Honor recipient statue.

Edwards said the veterans group also staffs warming centers (the Red Barn, Odyssey House and the Seventh Day Adventist facility) and works with local organizations to support veterans leaving the Veterans Treatment Court and the drug court. "We need to support the drug court and the veteran's treatment court even more," he said, citing difficulty graduates face in finding housing and employment because criminal records can follow them.

Edwards described employer recognition work through the Department of Defense's Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (patriot awards) and listed local partnerships with organizations including the American Legion posts, Civil Air Patrol and the VA. He asked the commission to continue allowing the veterans group to use a county facility (the historic courthouse space) for meetings and events and said the organization intends to be more involved in county events such as the state of the county address and naturalization ceremonies.

Commissioners thanked Edwards for the report and said staff would follow up on scheduling and coordination of county events that the veterans group would support. No formal county action or funding request was decided at the meeting.