Continued support through Community Covenant for military families and veterans in Lyon and Storey counties

During the September 2010 Healthy Communities Coalition meeting, over 70 community leaders and officials from throughout Lyon County, Nevada gathered to sign a “community covenant.” The covenant promised Lyon County communities, State and local groups will work together to increase community support to the area’s military families and veterans. A number of new or expanded events and initiatives have followed that pledge.

Mental Health
Christy McGill, Director of Healthy Communities Coalition of Lyon and Storey, worked with Senator Harry Reid’s office to streamline communication between rural mental health and the V.A. (rural veterans have expressed a preference for seeing providers in their own towns rather than traveling to VA services in Reno).

Dr. Brilliant at the V.A. and Dr. Cook with State Mental Health planned to meet to further discuss this issue after it was broached by McGill and Susan Lisagore of Senator Reid’s office. During the past two meetings, Healthy Communities Coalition members have suggested that possibly State mental health clinics could bill the V.A. for services for veterans as they do in other states. Contact Christy McGill at (775) 351-8242 for more information.

Care Packages and Wall of Service
S Club of Silver Stage High School (a Junior Soroptimist Club for teens led by Peggy Edwards) organized a soldier support program called M & M’s for Soldiers in November and December 2010 — care packages were then sent to soldiers and Blue Star Mothers assisted with mailing costs. S Club also distributed yellow ribbons in the community. The club of young leaders is also organizing the creation of a “Wall of Military Service” featuring photos of local service people in their uniforms. Frames will be created by the high school wood shop.

National Guard Family Readiness Connections
During the November Healthy Communities Coalition gathering, the director formally introduced Coalition members, who include representatives from mental health and primary health, social services, schools, etc. to Ronald Emerich, National Guard and Reserve Family Readiness Assistance. Emerich works with families of deployed soldiers and works closely with Army One Source community outreach coordinator Omar Mewborn, a Coalition member, to point families to resources in mental health, housing, employment, etc.

Lyon School District Recognition of Service People
Partly in response to the September community covenant pledge for increased community support for military families and veterans, Lyon Schools announced in December that anyone attending a school event in uniform from the Armed Forces (including National Guard), state and local law enforcement, firefighters, and emergency medical services and their immediate family members who attend the same event will be charged no admission fee. The Superintendent and school trustees were among those who signed the Community Covenant pledge during September.

Monthly Dinner Socials for Military Families and Veterans of Stagecoach and Silver Springs, Nevada  
Silver Stage Task Force, a partner of Healthy Communities Coalition, has initiated military families and veterans dinner socials each month in Silver Springs, beginning with a chili lunch social on Saturday, January 29 at 11 a.m. at the Silver Springs Senior Center.

The task force will send flyers to schools, newspapers, online military sites, etc. The monthly socials offer a way for military families to meet one another and to meet featured speakers from groups such as Blue Star Mothers, Army OneSource, National Guard and Reserve Family Readiness Assistance, Reno Vet Center, etc. The task force is seeking club and business sponsorships to help with costs of future socials. Contact task force leader Cara Childs at 315-2990 for more information.

Lyon County 4-H
Jessica Angle, Lyon County 4-H Program manager, was among those who signed the Covenant in September. She reports that Lyon 4-H has since actively recruited more youth with parents serving in the military, and hosted a luncheon in honor of veterans on Veteran’s Day in Smith Valley. Call Angle at (775) 463-6541 for more information.

Businesses and Clubs
Nonprofit community Task Forces are seeking business and club sponsors in each town in Lyon to help fund more dinner socials for military families and veterans with community support group speakers. Please call Quest Lakes, Task Force Coordinator, at (775) 287-7598 for details. Donations are tax deductible.

The following is a copy of the Community Covenant for the Lyon County, Nevada Area:

Community Covenant to Soldiers, Veterans and Their Families

In acknowledgment of the great gift local military personnel, veterans, and military family members give, local leaders from all walks of life will sign a community covenant pledging to work together towards the following:

Assist military members and all veterans with reintegration into our communities.

Provide assistance to soldiers and their families by advocating for local, state and federal benefits.

Work with community partners to connect soldiers and veterans to services and programs to ensure they are a vibrant, respected and a well-served community.

Connect military family members with both formal and informal community and governmental support throughout the deployment cycle.

Encourage and protect our returning military members by promoting fair and legal employment practices.

Strengthen federal, state, and local collaborations to improve and increase service options for veterans in the Lyon region.

Improve availability of education and training for VA and non-VA service providers in the Lyon region.

For more information about progress on the pledges made in this covenant, please call Christy McGill at (775) 246-7550, or check the Coalition Facebook page for updates: www.facebook.com/healthycommunitiescoalition.