Eclipse Magazine - Produced by NABVETS Winter 2014 | Page 25
A Helping Hand Up:
NABVETS is Helping Veterans
Get Their Fair Share
Anyone who has stopped at a red light and been approached
by someone with a shamed look on their face, carrying a sign
asking for “anything to help,” knows the situation many of our
veterans are facing. Having worked with these heroes over the
last 45 years, I not only know how many of our vets have fallen
through the cracks, but I know an organization—our very own
NABVETS—that can make a real difference in their lives.
Some time ago while walking out of Walgreens, I met a man
asking for spare change. I gave him a couple of dollars, and
asked if he was a veteran, as I usually do. When he said he was,
I immediately told him about NABVETS and asked about the
status of his VA benefits. He told me he had tried to get help,
but because he had some issues with his discharge, he was told
he wasn’t eligible. I told him this wasn’t necessarily the end of
the story, and invited him to my office. He arrived the next day,
and over coffee, we talked about his situation.
This man had an “other than honorable” discharge because
he had tested positive for marijuana on a random u ɥ