VFW urges county to bolster veterans service office; board to draft job description, letters to state

Rick Arbogast, District 1 commander for the Veterans of Foreign Wars speaking on behalf of multiple posts, told the board that Harrison County has the largest veteran population in Mississippi but only one employee in the county veteran service office and asked the board to consider hiring additional help and to correct outdated online contact information.

Arbogast and other VFW-affiliated speakers stressed the difficulty veterans face when state benefits advisers are assigned to military installations rather than community locations. A VFW speaker said the county had worked for years on the issue and urged the state to move outreach staff back into the community and to implement grants allocated under the Elizabeth Dole Act, which the speaker said had not been opened for county applications despite passage earlier.

County supervisors discussed prior steps taken to provide assistance to the county veteran service officer and suggested three parallel actions: correct website/contact information immediately, draft a job description should the board decide to add staff, and prepare letters to state authorities asking that state VSO personnel be placed in community locations where veterans have easier access. Supervisors said they would coordinate with the VFW and other stakeholders and that the board would seek a factual report on existing state placement of VSOs and the status of Elizabeth Dole Act funds.

Board members agreed to move forward with drafting job descriptions and letters and to keep the VFW informed by email.