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Every year, County Veteran Services Officers nationwide — many of whom are veterans themselves — serve as a critical link between a veteran and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in the process of applying for benefits related to military service.
At the Weld County Department of Veterans Services, this involves helping veterans and their families with the process of applying for education benefits as well as benefits related to service-connected and non-service-connected disabilities. Additionally, Veterans Services can assist with enrollment into the VA health care system and follow a claim through the process, keeping applicants informed of next steps.
This ability to serve as a critical link between a veteran and the VA — who is the benefit provider — has had a positive impact on many Weld County veterans over the years and is one way we can show our gratitude for their sacrifice and effort in defending our freedom.
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 Click the image above for a larger view; Those with screen readers, scroll down for more information.
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 United States.
 Over 17 million veterans live in the United States.
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 Weld County.
 Over 16,000 veterans reside in Weld County. More than 385,000 veterans live in Colorado.
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 $215 billion in federal dollars were distributed to veterans nationwide in Fiscal Year 2021.
 Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia have Veterans Services Officers who're responsible for helping veterans access federal benefits.
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 $171 milllion in funding was distributed to Weld County veterans by the Department of Veterans Affairs in Fiscal Year 2021.
 6,200 case files managed, 178 claims processed and 260 pending veterans claims awarded by Weld County's Department of Veterans Services in 2022.
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 Veterans Services offices are almost all funded by counties.
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 $213,228 allocated in 2023 to Veterans Services by Weld County. This includes the next cost for the department and allocated support (IT services, county attorney services, etc.)
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By Baker Geist and Shaley Dehner, Weld County Communications Specialists |
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Teamwork, persistence, adaptability or resiliency. Any of those words can be used to explain how the successful selection and implementation of a new public safety communications system in Weld County came to be.
In the next issue of County Roots, we'll highlight the challenges and successes of the work done to strengthen emergency response capability for residents.
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Welcome to County Roots, the official newsletter of Weld County Government. For those of us who work in county government, we think what we do is pretty interesting. So the goal of this newsletter is to highlight some of the partnerships, technology and efficiencies we are using to make government stronger and more effective for its residents.
Our goal is to establish regular communication with residents, spur interest in county projects, highlight county accomplishments and provide meaningful information to the public. In fact, our goal is to live up to the name “County Roots.” Want to know more about the meaning behind the name? Please visit our webpage where you can also find previous editions of this newsletter.
If you have a topic idea or general feedback about this new venture, please let us know at jfinch@weldgov.com.
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