Veterans may review VA benefit information on foundation website

Veterans may review VA benefit information on foundation website
Sep. 27, 2012
USA Today
By Joan Noricks
Guest Columnist

Believe it or not, Michigan ranks last among the states in its dollar receipt of Veterans Affairs benefits. Yet Michigan is home to more than 704,000 veterans, making it the 11th largest veteran population in the United States.

Clearly, there's a significant gap between the size of our veterans' population and the dollar amount of benefits individual veterans receive. Michigan is below what is called the median Geographic Distribution of VA expenditures (GDX), which is $4,703. Michigan's GDX is $3,409. If Michigan could increase its distribution of benefit dollars to that median level, the state would reap an additional $1.03 billion, which just might be a help to our economy.

The Canton Community Foundation staff and board are still in awe at the unprecedented attendance at our recent third annual Veterans' Summit Sept. 13. Following presentations on specific VA benefits, veterans had plenty of questions and comments.

As we watched veterans pour into the Laurel Manor Banquet & Conference Center for the summit, many armed with their military paperwork, we fully realized that our decision to host the annual forum is on the right track.

Far too many veterans are unaware of their potential benefits and how to obtain them. On the other hand, we heard plenty of frustrated veterans who, in some cases, have spent years trying to get benefits.
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