Assistance to Needy Veterans

The Assistance to needy Veterans grant program provides limited health care and subsistence assistance to veterans with low incomes. The maximum amount is $5,000.

Who qualifies: Although aid is primarily available for veterans, unremarried spouses and dependents of veterans who die in the line of duty, and spouses and dependents of currently activated or deployed service members also qualify. Logon to dva.wi.gov for further information and details. It is as simple as clicking on the Veterans Benefits Booklets right there on the left hand side of the home page screen.

Helmets to Hardhats is a free program that helps transitioning military, Guardsmen and Reservists find great careers. They work with the fifteen building and construction trade unions to list construction careers and they work with qualified employers to list all other types of careers. This is a free resource established in 2003 that is available to all transitioning military personnel, Guardsmen, Reservists and Veterans. According to Executive Director Matthew Caulfield, Major General, USMC (Ret), only quality careers with the best pay and benefits are listed on their website. Once you are registered their career counselors directly assist the veteran and his/her family in the career search. For more information about Helmets to Hardhats, visit www.helmetstohardhats.org or email marketing@helmetstohardhats.org. You can also reach them via telephone toll free at 1-866-741- 6210. Put your military skills to work.

County Veterans Service Officers

In Wisconsin, state law mandates that each of Wisconsin’s 72 counties provide a full-time or part- time County Veterans Service Office (CVSO) to assist the county’s residents with state and federal veterans benefits. CVSO’s are most Wisconsin veterans’ first point of contact for benefits and eligibility questions, applying for benefits, or questions regarding current benefits. A complete listing of CVSO’s by county is available on the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs website at dva.wi.gov The Wisconsin Department of Military Affairs supports this with a State Benefits Advisor for all Reserve Component members and their families. Office contact information for this resource and referral service is listed below (right).

All veterans are encouraged to make a permanent copy of their Certificate of Release or Discharge from “active duty” (DD Form 214) by recording it with the CVSO or County Clerk’s office. (Wisconsin state law protects the confidentiality of your discharge papers).

For more information contact:
State Benefits Advisor
PO Box 8111
Madison, Wisconsin 53708-8111
fedhrfeedback@wi.ngb.army.mil
DSN 724-3727
Comm (608) 242-3727