Commissioner to Commissioner:
Connecting veterans to City services
In New York City, 72% of NYC veterans
are 55 and over. During National Veterans
and Military Families Month, it’s important
to connect these men and women of honor
to services and support systems that allow
them to age with ease in the communities
they served.
As Commissioner of the New York
City Department for the Aging (DFTA),
I sat down with the newly appointed
Commissioner of the New York City
Department of Veterans’ Services (DVS),
U.S. Army Reserves Lieutenant Colonel
James Hendon, to talk about the services
he thinks all veterans, and particularly
vulnerable veterans, should to know about.
Commissioner Cortés-Vázquez:
Welcome to New York City government,
Commissioner Hendon! I hear this is your
third week on the job. I’d love to have you
tell us a little about DVS.
Commissioner Hendon: I’d be happy
to! DVS was established in 2016 and is the
nation’s first local city agency for veterans.
Though we are still new, we already serve
27,000 service members, veterans, and their
families in New York City and are rapidly
expanding. For our older veterans, what
DFTA services would you recommend?
Commissioner Cortés-Vázquez: I’m
glad you ask because many veterans may
not know about DFTA. We provide services
for New Yorkers age 60 and older. Some
services include centers in the community
for older adults, home-delivered meals, casemanagement
assistance, mental health care
and friendly visiting services — and even
resources for older adults caring for children.
Friendly visiting, a service that connects
homebound older adults with volunteers
for weekly visiting, helps homebound older
adults avoid social isolation. Centers in
the community provide hubs for activities,
meals and socialization. At many centers,
mental health clinicians provide free mental
health services through our ThriveNYC
Geriatric Mental Health program.
Commissioner Hendon: More than half
of our veterans in shelters are older adults.
Local centers are essential communityspaces
for these veterans, especially during
extreme temperatures in the summer and
winter. How do you become a member of
a DFTA center?
Commissioner Cortés-Vázquez: Centers
in the community can really become your
second home, and we hear that frequently
from members. Becoming a member of a
center is free and easy. Older adults just
need to visit their local center and sign up.
Plus, centers can help members connect to
other City resources.
We understand that older veterans
have unique needs, including coping
with social isolation after rejoining their
communities and finding accessible
mental health care.
Commissioner Hendon: It’s so
important that we support the well-being
of veterans who have been through so
much. We recently announced a holistic
plan to provide mental health services to
veterans, including a peer-to-peer support
program and legal services to help veterans
challenge their discharge status – especially
LGBTQIA+ veterans who received “less
than honorable” discharges because of
their orientation, gender identity or mental
health challenges.
Speaking of resources, I’d love for New
Yorkers to know about VetConnectNYC.
org, our portal that helps veterans find
services in their communities. Not only
does it provide resources and connections
for veterans, it also assists professionals
helping veterans.
Commissioner Cortés-Vázquez: That’s
wonderful! I look forward to working
together to help older veterans receive the
services they need and deserve in this City.
If you’d like more information about
DFTA or DVS services, call 311 or visit
nyc.gov/aging or nyc.gov/veterans.
Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
is commissioner of the New York
City Department for the Aging.
Prior to joining the de Blasio
administration, she served in
executive leadership roles with
AARP, EmblemHealth and
other organizations. She also
served as New York’s first Latina
Secretary of State.
Schneps Media CNW November 21, 2019 9
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