The Massachusetts Executive Office of Veterans Services worked with the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Kraft Group to host its first-ever New England VA 1-on-1 Expo last week.
The groundbreaking event held at Gillette Stadium, which was attended by Chief of Staff for the Department of Veterans Affairs Margaret Kabat, connected more than 600 veterans with personalized support and essential services. This marked the highest attendance of any single-day VA 1-on-1 Expo to date across the country.
“Our goal is to ensure that every veteran feels seen, heard and supported,” said Jon Santiago, Secretary of the Executive Office of Veterans Services. “This event has exemplified the power of community partnership in serving those who have served us, and we are incredibly proud of the record-breaking turnout.”
The New England VA 1-on-1 Expo is part of a nationwide series of events, formerly known as Veterans Experience Action Centers, designed to provide veterans and their families with immediate access to state and federal resources.
The collaborative effort brought together representatives from the Veterans Health Administration, Veterans Benefits Administration, National Cemetery Administration, Board of Veterans’ Appeals and community partners to offer one-on-one assistance in areas such as VA health care, benefits enrollment, crisis support and peer-to-peer connections.
While the VA has previously hosted 42 such expos across the United States, this was the first event held in New England.
“It truly has been an honor to be able to host such a wonderful event at Gillette Stadium, honoring and supporting a veterans caregivers family members out in your community,” said Ena Lima, Executive Director, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. “The partnership between the VA and our community partners has been outstanding and made this event. We’re so grateful for the opportunity to be able to serve out in our community in these one-on-one modes and be able to support over 600 veterans.”
Throughout the day, veterans received personalized help with enrolling in VA health care, understanding their eligibility, obtaining toxic exposure information, accessing VA education benefits and submitting or checking the status of disability claims. Additional services included guidance on income benefits for wartime veterans and survivors, career assistance, VA burial information and housing support.
