BEACON – Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado has called for making the Joseph P. Dwyer Veterans Peer-to-Peer program available nationwide to help veterans across the country.
The program, funded by the state and available in many counties in New York, is named in honor of Iraq War Army veteran Joseph Dwyer, who enlisted in the Army after the 9/11 attacks and served as a combat medic. Dwyer was said to be suffering from PTSD, and committed suicide at the age of 31.
The Dwyer Program provides Vet-to-Vet support to veterans who are familiar with the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury. It has been touted as being highly successful in assisting veterans, despite repeated attempts by former Governor Andrew Cuomo to withhold funding.
Speaking in Beacon on Tuesday, Delgado said that the state had expanded funding to the Vet2Vet program but called for further expansion. “We’ve got to nationalize this program,” he said. “I was a big proponent of that in Congress and we need to take it beyond just the state level and really robustly push this out across the country.” He called the plan a “huge step” towards helping veterans on a larger scale.
State Senator Sue Serino (R-Hyde Park) was instrumental in bringing the program to Dutchess County and was pleased with Delgado’s endorsement. “I can’t think of a better program to take nationwide than Vet2Vet,” said Serino. “Vet2Vet saves lives and I have seen first-hand how effective this program is at engaging and empowering our veterans, which is why I was proud to bring the program here to Dutchess, and why I have fought for its preservation and expansion in each State Budget. I look forward to partnering with our federal representatives to help make that vision a reality.”
In Dutchess County, the Vet2Vet program is managed by Mental Health America of Dutchess County. “Having a program that employs veterans, utilizing their skills and their need and desire to help other veterans, is a no-brainer,” said CEO Andrew O’Grady. “TheVet2Vet program throughout New York State has proven itself over and over again. Veterans who have experienced trauma during their service feel comfortable only talking to people that could potentially understand what they’re going through. The only people that could ever understand what they’re going through with someone who has gone through it. Anything we can do in this country to help our veterans is a welcomed proposal.”
With recent uproar over the potential closing of the Castle Point VA Hospital, O’Grady said, “A program like this financially pales in comparison to trying to build a brick and mortar VA center. There are veterans all over this country seeking a purpose and the work that veterans in Vet2Vet programs do is extremely rewarding and healing at the same time.”
