‘Clay Shoot’ pulls in much needed funds for area veterans

After a couple of rain-filled weeks, the morning was blissfully clear as shooters, sponsors and volunteers gathered at Vero Beach Clay Shooting Sports for the sixth annual Veterans Council Clay Shoot. Participants took their best shot at raising funds to support local veterans through the programs and services of the Veterans Council of Indian River County.

“It’s truly a pleasure and honor to have you all here. On behalf of our board of directors, staff and volunteers, I thank you all for coming out today to enjoy a day of great times for a great cause and a great competition,” said April Colvin, Veterans Council executive director, during the opening ceremonies, before thanking the generous event sponsors, beginning with the platinum sponsor, the Brackett Family Foundation.

“Our mission is basically helping veterans and military families in need; transporting them to and from their medical appointments and looking out for them in the long term,” said Carlos Halcomb, VCIRC board chairman.

In this fiscal year, he said they provided nearly 1,200 medical-related trips to either the West Palm Beach VA medical center or to local appointments, a 25 percent increase over the prior year.

“And if you look around our county, it’s going to get bigger. More veterans are coming,” said Halcomb.

Halcomb said the Veterans Council alone provided nearly $180,000 in direct aid to 365 veterans and their families. However, the impact of the nonprofit is closer to $1 million when taking into consideration the work of their staff, who coordinate with 140 other partner nonprofit organizations to assist veterans with their needs.

“I think that we are the only veterans organization that does what we do in the state; maybe even the nation. We don’t build specialized homes; we keep the families in their homes,” said Halcomb.

“What we are is a home. We’re a family. We’re coaches. We’re not a government entity,” said Colvin.

“In fact, none of our funds come from the government. All of our funds come from you all, and our sponsors, and donations and grants. And as you know, in our economy today, a lot of funding has been cut. So relying on the community that we serve is extremely important to us,” said Colvin.

She also commented that while many people think of veterans as those from World War II or Vietnam, a number of the more than 16,000 veterans in our county served in more recent wars and conflicts, adding, “So we need to start focusing on them as well.”

Becky Straley, VCIRC director of programs, said that their services can range from figuring out how to get a veteran a new roof or air conditioner, to obtaining a safe repair for their car or helping with overdue utility bills.

“So there’s a variety and what everybody needs is different,” said Straley.

As a very small 501c3, they survive only on donor dollars, and are always in need of funds that aren’t restricted to certain types of services so that they can direct it as needed.

“Usually we have a waiting list for our services, and it’s kind of on a spectrum. So highest need, lowest income first, and then we work forward. It doesn’t mean somebody who has a better income can’t get help. It just means that we serve the biggest problem first,” said Straley.

They partner with all the other relevant local agencies, referring those veterans who they think could benefit from their services, including Indian River Habitat for Humanity, whose Veterans Build initiative provides critical and minor home repairs to veterans and military families.

“There’s a portion that Habitat for Humanity can fund and a portion that’s the responsibility of the veteran. And we come in and pay that responsibility of the veteran to help them through that program. So, combined with our extra help, it creates more projects within the community,” Straley explained.

“Our goal is to meet a veteran where they need to be met and help them through that situation in the hopes that once we fill in some of those gaps they can continue on their own.”

For more information visit VeteransCIRC.com.

Photos by Mary Schenkel