The Veterans Outreach Center, Inc. is the nation’s oldest veteran outreach effort. We opened in 1973 to help Vietnam veterans cope with their wartime experiences and to facilitate their government benefits claims. Through the years, we have evolved and grown to meet the contemporary and ever-changing needs of all veterans—World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, Iraq, and those who served during peacetime.

OUR VISION

To be the highest-quality provider of comprehensive outreach action to veterans and their families: find them, offer them assistance, bring them in, assess their needs, manage their care and help them solve their problems.

OUR MISSION

The Veterans Outreach Center, Inc. is the nation’s oldest community-based outreach effort serving veterans and their dependents. We strive to improve their quality of life by offering free, veteran-specific services through a seamless continuum of care designed to nurture individual potential and provide support in building a better future.

AGENCY PROGRAMS

Veterans Alternatives to Incarceration Program

Many veterans, especially combat veterans, turn to drugs and alcohol as an effort to self-medicate service-related issues. This program’s goal is to reduce their criminal behavior and rearrest rates while helping them turn their lives around.

Comprehensive veterans-helping-veterans service programs and drug court program in general have been effective in reducing the rate of recidivism. A recent study indicated that only 15 percent of drug court participants were rearrested, but the rate for nonparticipants was over 75 percent.

Richards House

Named after the Reverend Thomas B. Richards, a longtime advocate for the area’s homeless, VOC opened this transitional housing facility exclusively for homeless and disadvantaged veterans in 2000.

Richards House can accommodate up to 23 residents who live in a safe, homelike environment while receiving vital mental health services and addiction treatment as the first steps toward making positive, long-term lifestyle changes.

Supportive Living

In 2001, VOC opened eight supportive living apartments adjacent to Richards House. Veterans who have completed initial treatment continue to receive case management services while living in these apartments. Supportive living provides the final step on the road to independent living.

Residents may stay for up to two years through the combined programs of Richards House and the supportive living apartments.

The Resource Center

The programs and services offered through our Resource Center, which opened in 1999, help veterans re-enter the work force. Veterans receive career counseling, skills assessment, resume assistance, job readiness and occupational skills training, career development and placement services, and specialized workshops. They also have access to a job information library.

In addition, two New York state agencies are on site. Veterans are provided benefits counseling and claims processing by the Division of Veterans Affairs, and employment counseling and placement services by the Department of Labor.

Another service is provided with support from the staff of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Together with VOC’s outreach workers, they find homeless and other disadvantaged veterans, helping them stabilize, reintegrate into the community, and become self-sufficient.

Veterans Community Technology Center

This computer lab was established in response to the need for occupational skills training to help veterans become marketable and competitive in the future work force.

Quartermaster’s Club

A one-stop wardrobe service was established in cooperation with the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 20 Thrift Store to provide job seekers with proper attire for interviews and employment.

Stars & Stripes/The Flag Store

Proceeds from STARS & STRIPES support programs and services for homeless and disadvantaged veterans. The goal is to generate enough profit so that the store becomes a primary funding source for the agency’s programs and services.

Based on the concept “Buy America’s Flag From America’s Veterans,” the store’s main products are the American flag and flag-accessory items, such as flagpoles, brackets, etc. Other products including custom flags and banners, solid oak flag cases handcrafted by local veterans and patriotic clothing are also available.

Regular store hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. For more information, call 585/546-FLAG, check out the web site at www.eflagstore.com or contact via e-mail at flags@frontiernet.net.

FUNDING

Special Events

Two annual special events—a golf tournament and the distribution of handheld American flags in exchange for donations on Flag Day—have become significant fundraisers for the agency, each raising over $30,000. The core of the golf tournament funds comes from sponsorship support, including major support from Chapter 20. For the past two years, Chapter 20 has been the platinum sponsor of the event, providing an annual contribution of $15,000 toward the tournament.

Sponsorship support is also integral to Flag Day, and this past year, Chapter 20 served as the lead sponsor of the event, contributing $2,500. In addition to funding secured through sponsorships and outright contributions, the core of the money comes as a result of the efforts of hundreds of local volunteers who are instrumental to the success of the Flag Day event. Volunteers can help us at a location that is most convenient for them, such as their place of employment, their place of worship, in front of a local mall, etc. Volunteers simply offer the flags and request contributions, noting that the money raised benefits programs and services for local veterans. Most often, volunteers work for a two-to-three hour shift. Although Flag Day is always on June 14, the event is often held over a several-day period, in order to help generate more revenue for the agency.

United Way

The only United Way funding the VOC receives is through the Donor Choice Program. To support VOC through your United Way contribution, you need to complete a Donor Designation Form, available through your employer’s United Way coordinator. On the form, please specify the amount you would like to contribute to VOC and include our identification number—1119.

Grants/Contributions

Additional revenue comes from individual and corporate contributions, foundations and veterans groups. The VVA, Chapter 20, gave over $70,000 to the VOC over the past year: Golf Tournament Sponsor - $15,000, Flag Day Sponsor - $2,500; and another $53,000 toward programs and services that help local veterans.

Government Grants

The VOC also receives city, county, state, and federal funds to assist with the development of programs and services that we provide to disadvantaged, disabled, and homeless veterans.