Updated at 9:47 a.m., Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Sen. Akaka lauds staff expansion at veteran's centers
News Release
U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawai'i, who serves as chairman of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, today applauded the announcement that 60 new staff members will be added to existing veteran's centers across the country, with centers on Maui and Honolulu each receiving one additional counselor.Akaka's Vet Center Enhancement Act of 2005, became law last year and expanded resources and programs for these storefront counseling and assistance centers.
"Vet centers are extremely critical for our country's service members as they transition from military to civilian life, and the addition of staff to the Vet Centers in Honolulu and Maui will allow more veterans to get the help and counseling that they need," Akaka said in a news release issued today.
Nationwide, there are 209 community-based vet centers, with 23 more slated to open within the next two years. Center services include: individual and group counseling, family and marital counseling, sexual trauma counseling, substance abuse counseling, vocational and employment assistance, veteran-related claims and benefits information, help for homeless veterans, and social service and healthcare referrals.
In a related announcement, Steve Molnar, team leader of the Vet Center in Honolulu, has been named as a co-chairman of Veterans Affairs Department's Special Committee on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, which reports to Congress.
