Rodney Cress, Veteran Advocate, Salisbury, NC
♦For more than 20 years I’ve done veteran advocacy work for anyone who calls. I have received numerous awards for my efforts. In the past 4 years my work increased because our county failed to provide proper care for the proud and honored veterans of Rowan. Most of my cases came from veterans who already visited the county veteran officer and were disappointed with what they were told or not told, since many didn’t get seen. This falls on county manager Gary Page who said in open meeting 4 years ago he would “keep an eye on her”. A few veterans took their complaints to the Post and to Ch. 9. While the Ch. 9 reporter was reading from a stack of complaints sent to Mr. Page and to each commissioner, Mr. Page said he never received any complaints. Here is where the problem resides. I have no trust in Mr. Page. I sent complaints to him I received from veterans and he knows it.
The commissioners have changed their minds numerous times over the past year and are forced to act because of Page’s failure. It’s become a guessing game. Do I want to improve service to the veterans or just let them fight it out themselves? I receive more calls per week with complaints than the county service officer had veterans defending her at the recent commissioners meeting. I no longer send complaints to Mr. Page because he would just say he never got it. The only way a veteran will get better service in Rowan is to use a national service officer (NSO). There are already 4 nationally trained NSO’s available at no cost to county veterans so why are we paying a salary for poor service?
Just last week I was able to secure a large back payment and an increased monthly benefit for a veteran who spent 2 years waiting for the county service officer to get it done. I did it in 3 weeks total. My point is the veterans of this county deserve their rightful due. Anyone who speaks out to defend the county service officer is speaking against the veterans. My priorities are helping needy veterans over friendship. My real friends would understand that, the others don’t matter. If you have been to the county and were not pleased then take it directly to Mr. Page. I washed my hands in doing the county’s work for them. Page wants to coast into retirement and leave the veterans out to hang. The veterans didn’t wait for you, they gave you freedom. Show them some respect, if you can bring yourself to it. I’m tired of these games you are playing on the backs of veterans.
