Weekly Report 🎖
TVLC | Lunch & learn | Camp Corral | FSU Baseball | FAMU Commissioning
FSU Baseball Veterans Recognition occurs during every Saturday home game this season.
FAMU Army ROTC spring commissioning ceremony will occur at 9 am, Friday, May 2nd at the FAMU Pharmacy College auditorium, 1415 S. Martin Luther King Jr Blvd. 5 cadets will be commissioned as Second Lieutenants in the U.S. Army, Army Reserve, and Florida National Guard.
FAMU Navy ROTC spring commissioning will occur at 10:30 am, Friday, May 2nd at the FAMU Pharmacy College auditorium, 1415 S. Martin Luther King Jr Blvd. 5 Midshipmen will be commissioned as Second Lieutenants in the U.S. Marine Corps and Ensigns in the U.S. Navy.
At yesterday’s Legal Clinic at Lk Ella (Thursday), our volunteer team totaled 19 (including 5 attorneys), assisting 18 Veterans and family members including 2 Veterans in phone responses who couldn’t come to the in-person clinic! Cases again included several county and state jurisdictions outside Leon, and requests included for real estate, consumer fraud, wills… More Vets asked for Driver’s license assistance with appointments pending for reissuance this next week!. Our truck broke down last week, but kudo’s to Veteran Bruce Ballister for to driving his truck Friday to pick up and transport food from Quincy, with Khalid Shafi and Dexter White. (photo attached) . And thanks to Khalid Shafi and Margaret Deciano for the consistent volunteer administrative work at the computer/files table with Susie throughout our Clinic sessions.
The Florida Department of Veteran Affairs and the Florida Veterans Foundation hosted a record turnout for the kickoff reception at the Capital this week to kick off Military and Veterans Appreciation activities. The local Commanders Coalition met today at the American Legion hosting VSOs and allies for our monthly meeting. Staffers for 4 Local and Federal elected officials attended; and participants heard brief legislative summaries from trips to the Florida Legislature these last couple of days. If you want to know more about the dozens of Veterans-friendly bills in this year’s legislative session, we can help you track any of them these final few weeks.
According to Representative Dunn, 20 staff have been fired recently from the Tallahassee VA Clinic, (not including new medical people not brought on board officially nor pending applications in process). Reprise: Call your friends who work for the federal VA to let them know they’re appreciated and give them your contact info in case they lose their VA cell number amidst the funding cuts, layoffs and firings that are including probationary employees, as well as former military Veterans in a variety of specialties (and the latest projections target some 84,000 VA jobs and programs to be cut!) And be sure to let us know about part-time job opportunities for Veterans on subsistence, as well as any emergency housing, shared rentals, etc. since housing is still scarce and services are delayed via waiting lists.
What else?
Dan Hendrickson, for the Tallahassee Veterans Legal Collaborative
Dan Hendrickson’s Written Testimony to the Members of the: Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee
CS/HB 845
To the Honorable Members of the Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee;
I am writing in support of Gen. Maney's amendment to HB 845, which I was honored to testify in support in its previous hearing; the Amendment specifically strengthens Veterans Treatment Courts statewide by clarifying the role of the Treatment Team which meets regularly with the Veterans Treatment Ct Judge, and includes agencies and court personnel who in most cases have the highest liklihood of already knowing a Veteran's background, Recovery Plan, triggers, medications, and other factors important to deciding the appropriateness of entry into a treatment court, as well as potential sanctions and other tools to support compliance and recovery.
HB 845 is consistent with a previous strengthening of specialty courts in Florida when the legislature recognized the importance of a defendant with behavioral / mental health problems being transferred from another jurisdiction to his/her local court with a history of familiarity by a judge, state attorney, not to mention a VA medical team or possibly a probation officer, increasing, in this case, the Veteran's best chance for successful recovery. It helps avoid the situation where a Veteran might end up appearing before a busy Judge who may not be familiar with the Veteran's struggle for recovery. Thank you. I hope to be in attendance at this meeting, too, but am waiving my appearance this time, since I've already testified recently on this issue.
The Military Officers Association (MOAA) Tallahassee Chapter is excited to announce that FSU Football Head Coach, Mike Norvell, will be speaking at our upcoming April 21st dinner. The opportunity is open to all veterans, family, and friends.
Reservation cost includes dinner and hearing the Coach speak.
Cost: $30
Reservations required:
https://mike-norvell-dinner.cheddarup.com/
The dinner/Mike Norvell speaking event will be held at the Elks Lodge on Magnolia Drive from 5-8pm, on Monday, 4/21.
Please contact Cheryl Walters, MOAA Tallahassee Chapter President, at moaatlhprez@gmail.com or 850-212-7009, with any questions.
Culley’s MeadowWood Funeral Home & Memorial Park
