Today's Thought: "My Country right or wrong, If right to be kept right, and if wrong to be set right."
Guests: Dennis Shaw came as the guest of Richard Hernandez.
Announced: A.J. gave us an update on Dan Davis being in intensive care. Prayers please.
Sgt. At Arms: Clent and Matt fined all the greeters as he did not get greeted, as well as the committee of Sgts as he did not get the News that he was sgt. Phil Goode was fined for having his picture in the paper and Glen for being the last guy in the door. Tony Shaw brought in enough salmon he caught in Alaska to feed 8 people. Between Jim Clemens and Richard Hernandez it raised $45. Harringtons are going to the Rotary Institute. Happy bucks all around.
Speaker: Naomi King gave us an update on what is happening at the US VETS of Prescott. Naomi’s history of US Vets began with Stephen Peck, president and CEO of U.S.VETS, the nation’s largest non-profit provider of comprehensive services for at-risk and homeless veterans and families. A veteran himself, Peck fought with in the Marines in the Vietnam War. He has been working on veteran homelessness issues since 1991.
The U.S. VETS opened in 2003 in Prescott. They work closely with the VA Hospital in our community.
The Mission of U.S. Vets is the successful transition of military veterans and their families through the provision of housing, counseling, career development and comprehensive support. Veterans in Progress, Prescott’s transitional living facility, currently has a capacity of 72 beds. This program is targeted to serve homeless veterans with goals of attaining stable housing and employment, working toward meeting their individual steps to self-sufficiency.
Through the program’s individualized case management and utilization of many community resources, we identify and address the barriers that participants have upon entry and strive to eliminate these barriers before discharge. Barriers can be obtaining/retaining employment, maintaining sobriety, stabilizing mental health, legal issues, lack of transportation, physical disabilities or financial debt.
U.S. Vets of Prescott serves the entire Northern Arizona with over 500 vulnerable and homeless veterans each year, providing meals, case management, employment assistance and workforce development. In January they will move into a new facility off of Whipple St. in Prescott.
Naomi urged our members to utilize their Arizona Charitable Tax Credit up to $800 for a joint return and up to $400 for an individual return, then subtract those amounts from your Arizona State Tax bill.