In order to provide veterans and first responders with access to experts and resources to improve their lives in light of the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Veterans and Military Council of the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce launched a three-part “Helping Our Heroes” webinar series in May.

The initiative, which features speakers from a variety of veterans’ aid organization, seeks to “familiarize and encourage military veterans, first-responders, their family members and friends to access the support they may need.

The effort also provides awareness on the services and resources available for their emotional, mental and physical well-being, as well as employment resources,” according to a council news release.

Before the panelists were introduced, Mike Dopkin, administrator at PA CareerLink Lehigh Valley, spoke about veteran employment resources.

Dopkin said, as a veteran, he was once on the long-term unemployment list and thus could “empathize with the stresses and struggles of being unemployed.”

He noted a veteran representative at CareerLink had helped him obtain his first position with the organization.

Dopkin said due to COVID-19, the national unemployment rate has climbed to 14.4 percent, and in the Lehigh Valley, more than 4,600 individuals are collecting unemployment benefits.

On average, Dopkin said 50 veteran unemployment claims were received per week between April 1 and May 15, more than four times the amount seen before the COVID pandemic.

He also noted that due to their past, veterans may feel the stressors of unemployment - disruption of structure, financial obligations, loss of sense of self and purpose, and concern for friends and family - more than their civilian counterparts.

To help them find employment, Dopkin said veterans will always find an open seat in CareerLink’s workshops, receive preferences in resource use.

Dopkin noted PA CareerLink Lehigh Valley has three veteran representatives available to connect veterans with necessary resources.

Additionally, CareerLink has added a toll-free number, online job portal showcasing 50 employers with more than 4,700 immediate openings, 13 virtual workshops, online job fairs.

The organization is working with local community colleges to develop online certifications to improve employee marketability.

All resources are available online 24/7 at careerlinklehighvalley.org.

The first panelist speaker was Matt Guedes, an Army veteran and executive director of Camp Freedom PA.

“Our tagline at Camp Freedom is ‘healing heroes with outdoor adventures’ and that really captures the truth of what we do, he explained.”

His organization invites disabled veterans and first responders to the Camp Freedom PA 1,800-acre property in Carbondale for single and multiday experiences in a variety of outdoor activities including hunting, shooting, biking and fishing.

“We get to participate in the journey of our guests and help them find new direction, help them find new purpose, help them sometimes just rest,” Guedes said.

In 2019, the camp welcomed 409 veterans and 219 family members of veterans and first responders.

“That’s so important because as you - as a veteran or first responder - are struggling your way through the things you’ve experienced, your family is struggling through the exact same things but from a completely different perspective,” he said, adding at Camp Freedom it really brings that family unit back together.

He invited people to come to Camp Freedom and become involved by visiting the organization’s website, campfreedompa.org, completing an application to be an overnight guest, or becoming a volunteer.

The next speaker was Adalberto Morales, a veteran and suicide prevention coordinator with the Wilkes-Barre Veterans Affairs Medical Center, discussing suicide prevention and the VA’s Suicide Prevention Program.

Morales said with the ongoing coronavirus situation and veterans returning from overseas, there are many concerns about veterans and suicide.

He noted the suicide prevention program team covers 18 counties in Pennsylvania and one in New York.

The team offers individual and group therapies, crisis intervention services, case management services, suicide prevention education, family education and crisis assistance.

Morales said the program also conducts referral services to appropriate organizations such as PTSD or substance abuse programs, and also performs advocacy and community outreach.

According to his presentation, the program started in 2007 with the establishment of the National Veterans Suicide Prevention Hotline and has handled more than 4 million calls and over 138,000 dispatches of emergency services.

“I am for veterans, so when it comes to advocacy it could be another way of saying ‘I’m going to fight for you,’ we’re going to care for you as long as you’re willing to care for yourself,” Morales said.

He noted 18 percent of all suicides among U.S. adults were veterans and in 2018 approximately 9,600 veterans took their own lives.

Morales said veterans can have heightened emotional or mental health crises due to their military experiences and service, and noted that with the stresses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to have people in crisis keep themselves mentally and emotionally healthy.

If assistance is needed, veterans or their families should contact the Veterans Crisis Line at 1-800-273-8255 and press 1 for veterans, or the Veteran Crisis Text Line by texting to 838255.

“It doesn’t matter what the problem is, what the situation is … most of the providers on that crisis line are vets, and they’ll definitely be able to empathize with you,” Morales said. “We are here for you 24/7 to help you and your family if there’s a crisis.”

Next, Jenny Pacanowski, founder of Women Veterans Empowered and Thriving and member of the Veterans and Military Council, discussed how her organization used writing and performance to empower veterans’ experiences and to facilitate skills to thrive in daily life.

Writing and performance had been helpful in aiding her transition home in 2007 as a female combat veteran.

She said historic warrior cultures such as the Greeks, Romans and Native Americans welcomed warriors home with storytelling rituals which provided education, awareness and reconnection with family members and civilians.

In her organizations’ workshops, veterans have the opportunity to share their writing and performances to improve communication which “hones the ability to be confident when speaking about one’s trauma or triumphs, such as things you do at home or interviewing for jobs.”

Additionally, she said the workshop experiences empower veterans and first responders to speak about their strengths and skills, decreases stresses and aids in decision-making by providing a secure space to make decisions “that do not have life, death or financial consequences.”

Veterans can connect with others to gain access to additional resources and, most importantly, receive the ability to respond calmly and concisely instead of making rapid reactions often taught in the military or emergency services.

She said veterans and first responders often feel disconnected from themselves due to the actions, experiences or trauma brought on by military service or emergency responses.

“These disconnections from our own self are debilitating and lead to suicide, addiction and homelessness,” she said, adding her program “provides a space where you can reconnect to yourself as well as your community.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, programming for Women Veterans Empowered and Thriving has been expanded and provided to first responders, men and women veterans, as well as family members and service members.

All programming is available online at womenveteransempowered.org.

The final speaker of the day was retired Lt. Col. Alexander Alex, Air Force, director of Lehigh Valley Health Network’s Veteran Health Program.

Alex said providing care for veterans needed to address both mental health and medical care.

The care also needed to consider the impact on veterans’ family, adding veterans are looking for access to available high-demand services, VA and community care, services from community providers, and access to commercial space health systems, which can be difficult to navigate.

He said the Veteran Health Program plays an important role because Pennsylvania is the fourth largest state for living veterans in the country, with between 900,000 to 1 million veterans in the state.

In the Lehigh Valley and surrounding 13 counties, about 8 percent of the population is veterans and military families - around 199,000 vets and 130,000 eligible family members - who may need health care guidance and assistance during their lifetime.

Alex said the Veteran’s Health Program plays three major roles; ensuring the network of medical professionals at LVHN are accessible to VA and Department of Defense beneficiaries, helping veterans navigate and coordinate the complex health care system network, and offer guidance and care planning through a comprehensive plan to provide a “total pathway” for veterans.

Since the program opened Nov. 10, 2017, it has served more than 550 veterans and families.

He encouraged veterans to call for an appointment at 610-969-2082 or reach out by email to veteran.health.program@LVHN.org.

Additional information can also be found online at LVHN.org/VHP.

Additional information on accessing the archived presentations is available on the GLVCC website, lehighvalleychamber.org.