Warm sunshine bathed down on several dozen veterans, their families and supporters at East Cobb Park Saturday afternoon for an appreciation picnic.
Hot dogs, chips and cookies were available for all comers, and when a local band, the Tunnel Rats, wasn’t playing, patriotic and wartime music played on the sound system at the concert pavilion.
The tunes included Vera Lynn’s World War II classic, “The White Cliffs of Dover,” and when the “Star Spangled Banner” was played, many of the veterans in attendance stood at attention. Some placed their hands over their hearts, and others saluted.
The veterans ranged from more recent conflicts in the Middle East, Vietnam and even Korea.
Organized by East Cobb-based United Military Care and the Aviation History and Technology Center of Marietta, the event is meant to do more than show thanks and appreciation for those who served in the military.
It’s also part of a larger outreach project that involve other organizations to help connect veterans not just socially, but for services and support.
United Military Care has been doing that for more than a decade.
A newer group, Connecting Cobb Veterans, got going last year in association with the Cobb Collaborative non-profit, after spending time during the COVID-19 pandemic getting organized.
West Cobb resident Dan Valentine, one of the CCV leaders, said the group was founded because “we have so many great veterans’ service providers but we have so many veterans.”
With more than 40,000 veterans living in Cobb County, the need to connect them with all kinds of services—from housing and food assistance, to employment and education, and to navigate the Veterans Administration for benefits—is acute.
A handout at the picnic Saturday called a “family activity guide” provided information about how young people can become a “junior veteran ally” and encourages them to offer gratitude to veterans when they meet and encounter them.
Another new initiative is the VECTR Center (Veterans Education Career Transition Resource Center), on the campus of Chattahoochee Tech in Marietta. It’s designed a one-stop destination for veterans to visit, call, e-mail or contact otherwise to access a wide variety of service providers.
“The idea is that anyone who has some sort of challenge or problem, they can go there,” said Valentine, who was an active-duty infantry soldier and supply pilot in the Army for seven years and served 18 more in the Army Reserve.
He said United Military Care director Kim Scofi was involved in efforts to better streamline access.
“Our focus isn’t about to provide these services, but to help them get the services they need,” he said.
Part of the outreach is aimed at family members, friends and even veterans who know other veterans, when they’re unaware of what may be available to them or who may reluctant to ask for help,
“Some of them are still in their shell a little bit, they want to tough it out,” Valentine said. “All we’re trying to do is tell them, and those who know them, that ‘if you want to move forward, we’ll help you.’ ”
Veterans wishing to get in touch can contact Connecting Cobb Veterans by visiting its website, dialing 404-479-1551 (phone or text) and via e-mail at veteranhelpccv@cobbcollaborative.org.
The next CCV meeting at the VECTR Center (980 South Cobb Drive) is Nov. 14.
The Marietta Veterans Day parade takes place next Saturday, Veterans Day, starting at 11 a.m. A ceremony follows at noon on the Marietta Square.
That event is organized by American Legion Post 29, the City of Marietta and the Aviation History and Technology Center.
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