Not long ago, my office pledged to reach out to the organizations that make Illinois’ 70th Representative District such a great place to settle down in. With the tireless humanitarian work that these groups do, it makes me content to know that I am helping out–even if in a small way–by giving their causes some visibility through these blog posts. Of course, it is of utmost importance that our community members know what services are available to them and that the people providing those services can work towards their mission long-term with the resources they need.
Last week’s publication was based on these ideas and summarized a conversation between my staff and CASA DeKalb County. It has since surpassed my expectations. After seeing the response we got, I am confident that CASA will be able to continue to aid neglected and abused children in our area, hopefully with a newfound influx of necessary volunteers and monetary contributions.
I see no reason to discontinue these spotlights, with that in consideration. That’s why my team sat down on a video call with Tammy Anderson, the Superintendent of the DeKalb County Veterans Assistance Commission, within the last few days. Tammy and her colleagues pride themselves in helping veterans with everything that they could encounter in life after service. From simply providing advice to helping with the collection of well-deserved benefits, Tammy sums up their work best: “Each of our employees has some stake in this. Whether they are veterans themselves or they have a direct relation to a veteran, we all have the same desire to help those who contact us with everything we possibly can.” That goal seems to be fulfilled as Tammy also mentioned that they have helped with countless requests, which is one of the reasons that the DeKalb County Veterans Assistance Commission is so effective. Obviously, the more you see the cumbersome processes that commonly cause problems for veterans, the easier it is to complete them with success.
If you have had any trouble with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or need any other support as a veteran, I strongly recommend contacting the DeKalb County Veterans Assistance Commission. Not only can they deal with our distressing bureaucracy for you, but they also understand that hardship can fall onto everyone. As such, they have funding available to provide veterans with basic necessities should they need them.
As this is a government-funded initiative, it obviously comes at no cost to its users who have already given so much to this country. They ask, though, that you donate to a local veteran organization if you would like to support their cause as these organizations usually work hand in hand with them. There is a list of these organizations on the DeKalb County Veterans Assistance Commission’s webpage HERE.
If you need to get in contact with the DeKalb County Veterans Assistance Commission, you can contact Tammy to set up an appointment:
● DeKalb County Veterans Assistance Commission
● 2500 N. Annie Glidden Road, Suite A
DeKalb, IL 60115
● Phone: (815) 756-8129
● Email: tanderson@dekalbcounty.org
My only wish, now, is that my writing here permits someone in our district to learn about an organization that is just waiting to help them out and has the expertise to do so.
Naturally, I’m going to close with a big thanks to all of our veterans in the area and to the DeKalb County Veterans Assistance Commission for making sure that they don’t need to navigate the next stage of their life alone. If you ever need my guidance, you know right where to reach out.