Wednesday, November 5, 8 a.m. – 3 p.m., American Legion Post
Thursday, November 6, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m., Island Market

— from Jack Cory, The Guardian —

VA VanSan Juan County, with the largest number of veterans per-capita in the state, will now have improved access to counseling services and referrals for VA benefits and community resources. The Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) Tacoma Vet Center will deploy a Mobile Outreach Team beginning Wednesday, November 5th, to the San Juan Islands. The mobile team will be at the following locations for dates and times shown:

Friday Harbor 5 November 8AM – 3PM American Legion Post, 110 1st Street
Eastsound 6 November 8AM – 4PM Island Market, 469 Market Street

Veterans can make an appointment by calling (253) 565-7038. Veterans are also welcome for walk-in services.

VA uses Mobile Outreach Teams as a way to increase access to counseling services for Veterans and their families in rural and underserved communities across the country.

If you find yourself to be easily angered or startled, have lost interest in activities you used to enjoy, find yourself re-experiencing traumatic events, or avoiding things that remind you of those events, having difficulty in concentration or memory, or feel that you are emotionally numb towards others, please come and talk to a counselor to determine if you could benefit from counseling.

VA benefits and referrals are available to all qualifying Veterans regardless of combat service status.

If you are a Veteran or active duty service member who has served in a combat zone in World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam, Lebanon, Grenada, Panama, Persian Gulf, Somalia, Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq or Afghanistan, you may be eligible for free counseling.

VA has 300 Vet Centers serving communities across the country, offering individual and group counseling for Veterans and their families, family counseling for military related issues, bereavement counseling for families who experience an active duty death, military sexual trauma counseling and referral, outreach and education, VA benefits explanation and referral, and screening and referral for medical issues including traumatic brain injury and depression.

For more information on services provided visit www.vetcenter.va.gov.

For more information on this event, please contact Jason Scott or Mark Buckler at (253) 565-7038.