[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 141 (Friday, October 9, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S12227]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                       VET CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE

 Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, the Readjustment Counseling 
Service (RCS) within the Department of Veterans Affairs recently named 
five Vet Centers--from 206 across the country--as ``Vet Centers of 
Excellence.'' I note with great pride that the Morgantown Vet Center, 
in my State of West Virginia, was one of the Vet Centers selected for 
this distinguished award.
  RCS Vet Centers, mandated by Congress in 1979, are community-based 
service centers staffed by highly qualified professionals. Vet Center 
services include individual and group counseling, family/marital 
counseling, sexual trauma counseling, substance abuse counseling, 
vocational and employment assistance, VA claims and benefits 
information, help for the homeless, and social service and health care 
referrals. They provide readjustment counseling to combat veterans and 
their families--veterans who served during Vietnam, Korea, and World 
War II--as well as veterans involved in combat hostilities in Panama, 
Grenada, Lebanon, Somalia, and the Persian Gulf.
  Mr. President, many veterans suffer from psychological injuries as a 
result of their service in the Armed Forces, especially service in 
combat. But unlike those injuries that can be bandaged, sewn, or cast, 
psychological battle wounds are typically unseen and left untreated. 
Many veterans struggle for years to find peace within themselves, often 
turning to VA for help years after they've come home from war.
  So, the work being done at our Vet Centers is enormously important. 
And Vet Center services become even more vital when they are the only 
VA presence for hundreds of miles, as is the case in some parts of the 
country.
  The criteria used in selecting the ``Vet Centers of Excellence'' 
included quality of clinical care, administrative management, outreach 
to high-risk veteran populations, and cost effectiveness.
  I am truly delighted that the Morgantown Vet Center has been 
recognized among those which best represent the spirit and mission of 
RCS. The Morgantown Vet Center catchment area is mostly rural, with a 
widely dispersed population covering 16 counties in North Central West 
Virginia and two counties in Pennsylvania. Since opening its doors in 
1982, it has provided service to over 7,000 veterans. To the Morgantown 
Vet Center staff--Johnny Bragg, Melody Johns, Ronald Jones, and Sandra 
Calvert--I say thank you for a job well done, and for always going 
above and beyond what is required in your positions. I am very proud of 
you.
  In addition, I congratulate the staff of the other Vet Centers 
selected as ``Vet Centers of Excellence''--Vista, California; Tucson, 
Arizona; Atlanta, Georgia; and White River Junction, Vermont.
  But I also want to note my appreciation for the other Vet Centers in 
West Virginia, and those others around the country. All provide a vital 
service--in many cases, literally a lifeline to troubled vets. I am 
reminded of the many times my Senate staffers have contacted a Vet 
Center employee somewhere in the country after hearing from a veteran 
in crisis--or a family member--and been able to secure the help needed 
to avert an emergency. And I am reminded of the number of veterans and 
family members in my State of West Virginia who tell me how positively 
their lives have changed after contact with a Vet Center.
  So, to all 206 Vet Centers and the dedicated staff who work there--
your good deeds have not gone unnoticed. Keep up the good work. Our 
Nation's combat veterans are lucky to have you, and I am enormously 
proud of what you have been able to accomplish.

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