Human Services

Veterans' Services

Richard Krug
Veterans' Officer

The Veterans' Services program is mandated according to Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 115 and is administered under State guidelines to provide information, advice and assistance regarding benefits to veterans and their families. Every city and town in the Commonwealth is required to have a benefits program for its resident veterans and their dependents, as well as a full-time Veterans' Services Officer. The Veterans' Services Officer must be a war-era veteran and be available full time to provide assistance. The Town is reimbursed by the State for 75% of benefits paid under this mandated program.

The Office of Veterans' Services is a one stop human service office with the top priority of providing services designed to improve the quality of life for every veteran in Town. Some examples of services for veterans and their survivning dependents are filing for Veterans Administration compensation and pension matters, care of veterans graves, homeless identification, discharge difficulties, educational and vocations benefits, employment, and alcohol-drug treatment.

Program Implementation

The Veterans' Services Officer responds to 3 to 4 calls daily requesting information, advice and assistance. Calls come from Concord residents as well as veterans and dependents from surrounding communities, and the numbers are constantly increasing as a result of the aging veteran population and the US military presence in the Middle East. The Veterans' Services Officer often helps veterans obtain assistance from veterans' organizations as well as other State and federal organizations, such as Social Security. The Veterans' Services Officer has been networking with local civic groups, senior citizen groups and area veterans' organizations - peacetime veterans, war veterans, as well as families of service members currently deployed. He has assisted at veterans' funerals, worked with students during Veterans' Day and Memorial Day exercises, served as a guest speaker in some high school and elementary school classes as well as for Rotary Club of Concord, the Lions Club of Concord, Concord Deaconess, and Concord Park Assisted Living, speaking on the history of the Viet Nam War and Veterans' Affairs. In addition to reaching out to veterans who are seniors, he has generated bi-monthly articles for the local newspaper about local veterans and their service to the country, along with some facts and perhaps a bit of humor that might be of interest to residents, as well as information onhow to contact the local Veterans' Services Officer.

The Veterans Administration distributed over $512,000,000 to disabled Massachusetts Veterans.

The table above is a list of applications applied for or services requested from Concord Veterans' Services.

Veterans Services Agent Dick Krug always attends Town Ceremonies and works to engage other Veterans as well.

Registrar of Veterans' Graves

James M. Deas,
Registrar

There were 33 interments of United States Veterans in the Town of Concord cemeteries in 2006. The names of the veterans, their respective wars, date of burial and place of burial are found in this table.