Fair Offers One-Stop Shopping For Veterans

BROOKSVILLE - Here's a chance for veterans to put a face on the often faceless bureaucracy.

Former servicemen and women who seek a solution to a specific problem or who simply want to find out more about a host of services available to them have a one-stop shopping opportunity in the Veteran Benefit Resource Fair in Brooksville this weekend.

The fair, organized by U.S. Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite, is slated for this Saturday, Feb. 1 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Nature Coast Technical High School, 4057 California St.

Representatives from local and national veteran agencies will offer information on services relating to claims, medical and dental care, education benefits, employment and housing, among others.

The list of agencies and organizations includes: James A. Haley VA Hospital; U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Hernando County Health Department; Hernando County Veteran Service Office; Alzheimer's Association; Lighthouse for the Blind; Florida National Cemetery; Florida Army National Guard; Air Force Association; and the Women's Army Corp Veterans Association.

Freebies will abound, including blood pressure and oral cancer screenings.

Brown-Waite, R-Brooksville, said she got the idea for the fair from other members of Congress, particularly Palm Harbor Republican Rep. Gus Bilirakis, who hosted one in Pasco County that drew constituents from Brown-Waite's 5th District.

"I thought, 'We really should do the same thing,'" Brown-Waite said. "We have always had information available to veterans at various events we have. This is just an expansion of that policy."

Brown-Waite said she is hopeful that veterans will show up to learn how they can make life after service easier. They often aren't aware of benefits and services that can do that, she said.

Veterans who are 100 percent disabled, Brown-Waite cited as an example, are eligible for a special property tax exemption.

A chance for veterans to tell their stories

While Brown-Waite hopes veterans will leave the fair armed with information or with problems addressed, former servicemen and women also are invited to leave something behind.

There are still a few openings left for the Veterans History Project. Videographers will be on hand at the fair to record local veterans as they tell stories from the service for this undertaking by the Library of Congress.

The goal is to collect oral history interviews, memoirs, letters, diaries, photographs, and other original materials from veterans of World Wars I and II, and the Korean, Vietnam, and Persian Gulf wars, as well as the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts.