|
 A
retired law enforcement person and someone with over 30 years
of duty in the armed services, Larry Helsene is currently
performing a very important service as in independent
contractor. He works with Minnesota Military Family
Assistance Centers who mission first is families always. One
percent of the nation's population is in the mi litary
but almost everyone at the Sertoma was able to raise their
hand to indicate that they knew a soldier who had returned
from deployment. Each single person serving in the military
has a direct connection to an average of seven family
members. That number expands to 12 for the married soldiers.
Minnesota, for instance, has deployed over 10,000 reserves
and is scheduled for 2500 more soon. That is an awful lot of
people who might need help. The organization has 9 different
centers in Minnesota which receive about 35,900 contacts a
year for assistance. They provide direct assistance and
referrals as well as using a foundation that makes grants to
help with financial difficulties. The organization works
with both the active duty and reserve soldiers and their
families. Larry said, "Do what you can to help anyone you
personally know. It is the little things that make a
difference." He also recommended referral which are
confidential or going to the Governor's Wife's website to
sign up to help. One interesting thing that came out of the
Q & A session was the fact that they are currently helping
some Viet Nam vets to get needed services since they are now
realizing that asking for help is possible. |
