Senator Lea Webb and the Tompkins County Veterans Services Office Host Veterans Resource Fair

ITHACA, NY - On Thursday, Senator Lea Webb, in partnership with the Tompkins County Department of Veterans Services and the Tompkins County Veterans Affairs Clinic, hosted a Veterans Resource Fair in the clinic in Ithaca. The fair brought together federal and state agencies serving the veteran community, in addition to community organizations dedicated to supporting local veterans, for an afternoon of information, support, and community engagement. 

“I am thrilled to host this veterans resource fair,” said Senator Lea Webb. “This is a great opportunity to ensure that members of our armed forces have access to the wide variety of career, health, and wellness resources available to them here in Tompkins County. Ensuring that our veterans are equipped with the resources rightfully available to them is important to my office, and it reflects our deep commitment to honoring the sacrifices made by our brave servicemen and servicewomen. As a greater community, we owe our deepest gratitude to those who have served our nation, and providing them with this critical support towards successful transition into civilian life is a small token of our appreciation. Thank you to the Tompkins County Veterans Services Department for partnering with us, to the VA Clinic staff for hosting us today, and to all of our partners for sharing their good work with the community.” 

Said J.R. Clairborne, founding director of the Department of Veterans Services in Tompkins County, “It is an honor to serve the more than 4,200 veterans and their families who live in Tompkins County during Veterans Week as well as every day. Today, we were able to bring together a room full of resources to address our Veterans community’s need for services, from health, mental health, and housing services, to state and federal resources. I am happy that we were able to offer this veterans’ fair in addition to the numerous ceremonies and celebrations that mark Veterans’ Week across our County. I am grateful to Senator Webb and her team for their partnership and I thank the VA Clinic for hosting us today, and for their tireless work to serve our local community of Veterans.”

During the event, Senator Webb’s team distributed free, rapid COVID-19 tests and masks, and her constituent services team was on hand to assist community members with an array of issues, such as unemployment, HEAP, health insurance, EBT\WIC\SNAP, and more. 

Other organizations taking part in the event included the American Red Cross’ Service to Armed Forces/International Services, American Gold Star Mothers of New York, Clear Path for Veterans, New York State Department of Labor, Soldier On, Team Red White Blue (RWB), Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), Veterans Affairs (VA) Outreach Services, and Warrior Writers in Tompkins County.

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