Volunteers with the Disabled American Veterans office at White Sands Missile Range are offering benefits services counseling to veterans free of charge.
Ivan L. Winner and Thomas E. Chapin are both Veteran Services Officers helping veterans as part of the Disabled American Veterans Chapter #38 of the three crosses. The volunteers are available every Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. inside the Army Community Service Building 250.
Chapin said the first thing he wants veterans to know is that they don’t need to pay anyone for veteran services because they can get them for free with the DAV.
Winner and Chapin are also available in Mesilla on Fridays from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Old Mesilla Courthouse.
DAV is a nonprofit that provides a lifetime of support for veterans of all generations and their families. Through their National Service Program, they provide free, professional assistance to all generations of veterans in obtaining benefits earned through service from the VA and other Government agencies.
Chapin, who served in the U.S. Army 30 years retired November of 2017. He grew up living near National Park areas as his father worked for the U.S. Forrest Service.
Chapin said many veterans may not know that they qualify as disabled.
“It doesn’t hurt for them to come and talk to us because our services are free.”
He said it takes the same amount of time to process information, and you get the same results as any place that charges for these services, but they do it for free.
One of the services they provide for veterans when they pass away is they also work on getting benefits for their families.
“When I got out of the military, I didn’t even know these benefits existed,” Chapin said. “And most of the people don’t know.”
Chapin said they want to be available to veterans any time besides Wednesdays and Fridays, which is why they post their personal phone numbers.
He said sometimes they have veterans who are immobile and can’t come to them so they can go to their home if needed.
“Unlike most veterans we are well off because we are both retired, we have our disability and social security and all those benefits,” Chapin said. “We don’t need or want for anything, so we are trying to get help for people who need these services.”
“Whatever you do, don’t go to those headhunters.”
Chapin said they can get veterans started on their cases. It is helpful if they can bring their medical records. “If they don’t have their medical records, we can start with an SF180, which is a request for medical, service and dental records.”
“You may think you are not disabled until you come talk to us.”
Chapin said they both attended a Veterans Service Office course to prepare for the job. In addition, they must go to an annual class, and they also get news feeds when rules and regulations change.
“We are the only veteran’s group that has a certification program where we have to go in person.”
Winner, who is originally from a small town in New York, served in the U.S. Army from 1970 to 1992 and was a civil servant from 1993 to 2020. He worked in Korea, Germany, at WSMR, and Honduras as a civilian.
Winner said part of the work the DVA does is help veterans get disability benefits.
“Anything they want to know about how to get their VA benefits we can help them,” Winner said.
He said they also do volunteer hours and have drivers who take veterans to their appointments at their local or VA hospitals.
“We pick them up at their home, wait for them and take them back home.”
They also do employment program packets.
“We help them with their resumes and help them find employment.”
In addition, they also help the homeless.
On March 27 they helped at the Las Cruces 10th Annual Veterans Stand Down for all homeless veterans, where they offered free breakfast and lunch, a barber shop, a medical clinic, dental care, food bank, equipment issue, clothing issue, and visits with Veteran Services Officers.
“We’ve been doing quite a lot for the Veterans and the homeless here in las cruces,” Winner said.
The national service offers assistance in filing claims for VA compensation, pension and death benefits and many other programs. The Service Program in New Mexico has resulted in more than $300,000 in benefits issued to Disabled Veterans in New Mexico.
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