Bryan Suddith, deputy director for the county Veterans Service Commission, said the commission may be the only such veterans service commission in Southwest Ohio and perhaps the state as a whole that has hired such a worker full-time.
Suddith said that for too long, financial assistance proffered to veterans could feel like a one-time “band-aid.” While the commission might help veterans find rent or financial assistance, lingering problems would go unaddressed.
Bringing Griffith on board was an effort to address those issues for veterans the commission may see every few months or even more often.
“We’re paying the rent this month or we’re paying utilities, and then that would be it — they would be sort of on their own,” Suddith said of those veterans. “If the issue behind that was, they didn’t have reliable transportation or didn’t have a contact for a job ... they were sort of left on their own.”
The intention now is make sure someone follows up and offers longer-term guidance. In the past, the approach was to rely on referrals to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services and the veterans team there.
Most veterans typically adjust well to civilian life. But compared to non-veteran populations, national advocates have said veterans as a group can suffer higher rates of unemployment, suicide and homelessness.
On top of that, federal benefits for veterans can be complex to navigate, hard to find or rapidly changing.
“What we’re hoping with the addition of Courtney to the team is there’s some follow-up,” Suddith said.
Griffith came on board to help veterans find a variety of services, including VA services, or financial assistance. Some simply need help becoming self-sufficient.
“When they (the commission) started seeing that — veterans were coming in multiple times for financial assistance — that’s when they realized they needed assistance, they (some veterans) needed more help with becoming self-sufficient,” Griffith said.
The pandemic worsened problems for a number of veterans, Suddith said. More recently, rising rents have been an issue. The commission has seen more housing insecurity in the Dayton area. The commission’s attorney has spent more time this year and last fighting evictions and foreclosures than in the past.
Griffith may be familiar to some local readers as a former manager and vice president for the Dayton YWCA. She’s familiar with the worlds of case- and program-management and trauma care, she said.
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