Veterans in need gather at Stand Down

ROCKY HILL, Conn. (WTNH) -- More than a thousand Connecticut veterans from all the services went to the historic grounds of the State Veteran's Home in Rocky Hill on Friday for any helping hand they needed.

Five volunteer hair cutters from the Marinello Beauty School in Meriden were kept busy trimming up veterans all day.
       
Volunteers from the Yale School of Nursing checked every vet that came to their tent for blood pressure and other important medical tests.
       
For the 20 year in a row the state of Connecticut stood up for any veteran that needs help with the annual Stand Down in Rocky Hill.
       
It's held each year on the grounds of the State Veteran's home, the first such facility in the nation dating back the Civil War.
       
Twenty years ago Linda Schwartz was an unemployed, disabled veteran with a 6-year-old daughter.

"I was a flight nurse, I was on a mission where the door blew off our aircraft at 30,000 feet and I ended up with decompression sickness of the brain and spinal chord," she said.
      
Twenty years ago she was also a volunteer with the Vietnam Veterans of America and convinced state officials to conduct an annual stand-down for veterans. Now she is the State Commissioner of Veteran's Affairs, in charge of this successful program.

"I've been to ten of these, so far," said James Hardy of Waterbury.

"Oh, I've been here about four or five times," said Phillip Sanders of Meriden.
      
Seventy organizations from the DMV, to the courts and the IRS came to help those that defended our country and it's not just homeless vets, many just come to get help with things like the red tape of getting benefits from the VA.
 
"They write it up for you and they really get to the bottom of it, which is good," said Jeff Desiata of Meriden.

"So it is a big help," asked News 8's Mark Davis.

"Yes it is."

"It's like a family reunion," David Donald of Norwalk said. "I get to see people I haven't seen in a while and also if I have anything that I need to get straightened out, I can find the help here for that."
      
As Schwartz put it, the message to Connecticut veterans is, "You are never alone and we thank you for your service."

Visit www.ct.gov/ctva or call (860) 616-3802 to learn more.