Jefferson County Hires New Veteran Services Officer

After a long search, James Carpenter has been selected as Jefferson County's new Veteran Services Officer. He will be replacing Don Cook, who took over the role in 2020 and will soon be retiring. Cook promised to stay on until Carpenter is fully trained.Veteran Services Officers are trained and accredited by the VA (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs) or other recognized organizations to provide assistance to veterans, their dependents, and survivors. This includes not only applying for federal and state benefits but also providing information on resources related to the following:Compensation and PensionHealth CareEducation & TrainingEmploymentBurial & SurvivorHousingTransportationMilitary RecordsIn addition, Jefferson County has records of veterans dating back decades, long before the use of computers. The Jefferson County Veterans Office is working on digitizing all of those records.Cook recommended Carpenter to the Jefferson County Commissioners at a meeting on Tuesday, June 20, 2023, “James was with the U.S. Army three years and a year in the reserves. I think he'd be a good person to take my place.”In the Army, Carpenter served as Transportation and Traffic Management Coordinator in Fort Bragg. North Carolina. He told commissioners, “After the military, I worked for the railroad for 11 years. I worked down here at Beatrice Concrete, driving a truck for 11 years.”Carpenter also worked for the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office for seven years. He was jail administrator. He said, “Before that I worked for the State Department of Corrections running a wood shop for a few years. So as far as dealing with a lot of state issues, federal issues, things like that, keeping up with state statutes, and staying on top of issues, I'm fairly well versed.”Commissioners were supportive of the choice. Michael Dux said, “From what I know of Jim, I think he will be easy to work with and to get along with people well, and yet I think he can get the job done.”Mark Schoenrock was not present in person at the meeting but attended via webcam. He said, “I think Jim would be a really good VSO for us.”Gale Pohlmann said, “As most of us know, Veteran Service Officers, or people that are available, are just not a dime a dozen in our community.”Carpenter's expected start date is July 10, 2023.

Senator Fischer Responds to Biden Veto of EPA Bill

Lyle LeRoy Danner

Related Articles

Storms Bring Respite From Heat,But Also Downed Trees And Power Outages

Why Property Valuations Increased And How They Will Impact The Tax Levy

County Attorney Addresses Wind Farm Controversy

Apace Becomes Financially Independent From Jefferson County