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Veteran's Affairs
Our mission is to ensure that Westmoreland County Veterans receive those benefits to which they are entitled. The blessings of liberty have not been won or maintained easily or without great cost. Over the years, it has required the dedication and sacrifice of tens of thousands of servicemen and servicewomen to ensure all Americans can live, work, and worship as they choose.
The health and well-being of our Veterans must remain a top priority of our county, our state, and our nation. We at the Westmoreland County Office of Veterans Affairs are committed to ensure that our Veterans and all Veterans receive those benefits to which they are greatly entitled.
Ours is a gift of service which is gladly shared with all who are in need, throughout the year.
The health and well-being of our Veterans must remain a top priority of our county, our state, and our nation. We at the Westmoreland County Office of Veterans Affairs are committed to ensure that our Veterans and all Veterans receive those benefits to which they are greatly entitled.
Ours is a gift of service which is gladly shared with all who are in need, throughout the year.
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New VA Policy Aims to Stop Veterans from Hiding Guns in Wheelchairs
The Department of Veterans Affairs now has a policy requiring veterans in wheelchairs to switch to ones provided by the facility during emergency room visits to make sure they're not hiding guns, a top VA official testified Tuesday. Additional Info... -
Same Day Mental Health services for Veterans
All 172 VA Medical Centers (VAMCs) provide Same-Day Mental Health Care services. If a Veteran is in crisis or has another need for mental health care right away, he or she will receive immediate attention from a health care professional. Additional Info... -
Robin's Home: A haven for homeless female veterans in Butler
The unassuming house at 401 Pearl St. in Butler looks much like its neighbors: three stories high and built circa 1900s. But this house is being transformed into a much-needed resource, thanks to the vision of one veteran. Additional Info... -
Marine Corps League of Pennsylvania to gather in Hempfield
A group of 200-to-250 members of the Marine Corps League of Pennsylvania are expected to descend upon the Greensburg area next week for the organization’s 74th annual convention. Additional Info... -
Q&A: Charley Shop’n Save owner bikes across U.S. for veterans’ charity
Ray Charley biked 2,000 miles to prepare for his 3,048-mile, 48-day trek across the United States.The 14 cyclists in Charley’s group raised money for different veteran charities. Charley raised money for Feherty’s Troops First Foundation. Additional Info... -
No more smoking at VA hospitals
The Department of Veterans Affairs is outlawing smoking, vaping and other forms of tobacco use at its health care facilities across the country in an effort to better treat and protect patients, the agency announced Monday. Additional Info... -
World War II fighter pilot, retired Leechburg eye doctor promotes recycling, renewable energy
Dr. Arthur Duppstadt owes most of his life to the French. The now-retired optometrist from Leechburg was 19 when his P-51 Mustang, a single-seat fighter plane, was shot down during World War II in Nazi- occupied France. Additional Info... -
Former Ligonier female veteran honored for long military service
“I was just a small town girl who got to get out and see the world,” said Wilkins, 48, a former Ligonier resident. Additional Info... -
Thousands of disabled veterans may get refunds of VA home loan fees
More than 53,000 disabled veterans may be owed refunds totaling about $189 million in home loan fees they were incorrectly charged by the Department of Veterans Affairs, according to estimates from the VA Inspector General. Additional Info... -
Feathers Artist Market features Vietnam veteran’s work
Hempfield artist and Vietnam veteran Jack Otto will have his patriotic artwork featured at Feathers Artist Market in Irwin during the month of July. Additional Info... -
Stories from D-Day
On the night of June 5, 1944, Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower wrote a letter of apology. He knew history was watching. Additional Info... -
Western Pennsylvanians look back on D-Day 75 years later
Warren Goss will never forget the rigorous training he went through in England leading up to the D-Day invasion. Particularly what it didn’t prepare him for. Additional Info... -
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Life-saving partners: Veterans honor their service dogs at Duquesne U. ceremony
Army veteran Sami Erbecker stopped her car on a bridge last month and got out of the vehicle because, she said, “I was going to jump.” Her dog Angel blocked her. “I got back in the car and went home because I could not leave Angel behind.” Additional Info... -
Queen, world leaders honor veterans on D-Day anniversary
Queen Elizabeth II and world leaders gathered Wednesday on the south coast of England to honor the troops who risked and sacrificed their lives 75 years ago on D-Day, a bloody but ultimately triumphant turning point in World War II. Additional Info... -
Op-Ed: Veterans with addiction: Get your life back — for you and your family
"As a physician in the U.S. Air Force, I became addicted to prescription pain pills following a routine hernia repair surgery. I’m now celebrating 19 years in recovery; and, I’m here to tell you that there is hope." Additional Info... -
Smithton fair will feature Chris Higbee concert, celebrate Legion centennial
Smithton’s American Legion and volunteer fire department are joining forces to put on a community street fair that will feature a free concert by local country artist Chris Higbee July 13. Additional Info... -
South Greensburg bugler, 79, has played taps at military funerals since 1956
Trumpeter John Massari of South Greensburg can’t say for certain how many times he’s performed taps with the VFW Post 33 Honor Guard in Greensburg. Additional Info... -
Hempfield National Guard drill delivers goods to local charities
Thirty recent recruits with the Pennsylvania Army National Guard detachment in Hempfield completed a march with a mission Saturday. Additional Info... -
From World War II through Vietnam, women served in war zones as ‘Donut Dollies’
Debby Griffith MacSwain had only been in Vietnam for a couple of weeks when she was asked by a surgeon to hold the hand of a soldier who was about to die. Additional Info... -
With major changes a week away, VA secretary confident his department is ready
Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie is approaching next Friday “just another day at VA” and not potentially one of the most transformative and disruptive moments for the veterans health system in decades. Additional Info... -
Disabled Veterans can fly Space Available Flights for free
When congress signed the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act last year,100% service connected disabled Veterans became eligible for Space Available Travel. Additional Info... -
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Honoring Our Veterans with Special License Plates
New this year is an Honoring Our Women Veterans Plate Read on... -
Major VA Change Info Coming to Your Mailbox
Have you checked your mailbox lately for news from the Department of Veterans Affairs? Veterans around the country have started receiving a letter and brochure from the VA updating them on major changes coming to health care access. Additional Info... -
Washington Township WWII veteran receives honors for stellar service
A World War II veteran from Washington Township has received a long overdue honor for a stellar service. Additional Info... -
WWII combat medic, 95, honored for his heroic service
Three quarters of a century ago, Felix Lisovich was living day-to-day as a World War II combat medic tending to wounded soldiers in the Philippines, dodging kamikaze attacks from Japanese fighter planes, joining in jungle patrols. Additional Info... -
Unity Army veteran: Talking helps war trauma survivors
Now 75, he recalled those losses Monday as he delivered the keynote address at a Memorial Day service organized by the Greensburg Veterans of Foreign Wars post. Additional Info... -
WW II veteran, 101, throws Memorial Day party in Lower Burrell
“Thanks for your service!” shouted a young boy with a toothy grin from the backseat of a car driving by along Leechburg Road, minutes after the city’s annual Memorial Day parade came to an end at noon Monday. Additional Info... -
Disabled Veterans eligible for free National Park Service Lifetime Access Pass
Good for entry into 400+ National Parks and over 2,000 recreation sites across the country Additional Info... -
Franklin Regional student documentary on traveling Vietnam Wall earns national award
When Colten Oakes, a Franklin Regional senior, got his camera out at the traveling Vietnam War memorial in Murrysville Community Park, he couldn’t help thinking of his grandfather, whose dog tags were hanging around Oakes’s neck. Additional Info... -
World War II combat medic, now 96, to receive military honors
A 96 year-old Belle Vernon man will be honored next week for his service as a World War II combat medic in a campaign to liberate the Philippines. Additional Info... -
Students spruce up Lower Burrell’s Veterans Central Park
When a trip to New York City fell through, Burrell High School students decided to donate $1,000 they raised for the outing — along with their free labor — for a much-needed sprucing up of Lower Burrell’s Veterans Central Park on Monday. Additional Info... -
Kiski Area students looking for vets/families to include on veterans web site
During the festivities this Saturday honoring the late Sgt. Jason M. McClary at the Allegheny Township War Memorial, Kiski Area students will be signing up area veterans and the families of late veterans for inclusion on the Kiski Area Veterans Website. Additional Info... -
Hard work helps Norwin Air Force Junior ROTC win high honors
Hard work combined with community service were responsible for Norwin High School’s Air Force Junior ROTC program earning the second-highest recognition from the Air Force’s Junior ROTC, officials with the program said. Additional Info... -
Veterans don’t need to pay for help to apply for benefits in PA
Westmoreland County’s director of Veterans Affairs is reminding veterans that applying for benefits should never come with a fee. Additional Info... -
What helps prevent dementia? Try exercise, not vitamin pills
If you want to save your brain, focus on keeping the rest of your body well with exercise and healthy habits rather than popping vitamin pills, new guidelines for preventing dementia advise. Additional Info... -
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VA’s Home Loan Guaranty program notifies Veterans of potential loan fee waivers
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced May 13 that Veterans who qualify for a VA Home Loan funding fee waiver are now being notified in their home loan eligibility certificate and disability compensation award letter. Additional Info... -
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Vietnam vets appreciate Heinz History Center artifacts of war, memories
John Clark had been in Vietnam for about three weeks when, while out on patrol, he stepped on a metal stake that went through the side of his foot. Additional Info... -
Stories of heroism still resonate as 75th anniversary of D-Day nears
ANGOVILLE-AU-PLAIN, France — Long after 160,000 Allied troops stormed the Normandy beaches on June 6, 1944, long after the war was over, long after France was rebuilt, the stories of valor never lose their power. Additional Info... -
Westmoreland County prepares to launch new veterans court program
After years of hiatus, a reinvigorated and enhanced veterans court — expected to begin operations by early May — will enable former members of the military convicted of crimes to earn reduced sentences. Additional Info... -
Military.com Explains Tricare's Explanation of Benefits
If you're like me, you probably wonder just what that document you get from Tricare after you receive any type of medical care actually is. Additional Info...
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FREEDOM IS NOT FREE. WE HONOR OUR FALLEN BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN ARMS. Over 1.2 million soldiers, marines, sailors, airmen, and coast guardsmen have made the ultimate sacrifice to our great nation. We thank them for our freedom and dedicate the work we do in their memory.