Alabama officials celebrate passage of resource center to support military veterans

State officials and private sector partners joined forces at the Alabama State Capitol on Wednesday afternoon to celebrate the passage of legislation creating the Alabama Veterans Resource Center.

Legislative leaders and lawmakers responsible for the idea say the center will offer a centralized hub to streamline access to essential resources and assist veterans and their families with transitioning seamlessly from military to civilian life.

“When veterans are in crisis or in need of service, the last thing they should have to worry about is navigating the maintenance of state government,” Lt. Governor Will Ainsworth said. “That’s why we created a one-stop shop where veterans can access job training, mental health and wellness, care and other services are going to help them transition to civilian life.

“Our veterans need someone fighting for them. Everybody up here is doing that because our veterans fought for us. Our veterans deserve the very best Alabama has to offer.”

Ainsworth said it’s thanks to the bipartisan consensus of the Alabama Legislature that lawmakers have passed over 50 bills since 2019 with the goal to make Alabama the most veteran a military friendly state in the country.

“Alabama’s ranked the second-best state in the country for veterans to retire in. And while that’s our impressive, everybody knows in Alabama, our goal is to be number one. And so with that, the Veterans Resource Center we believe is going to help us achieve that goal.”

The concept for the center revolves around a public-private partnership that promises to far exceed the investment possible from the public sector alone.

Jeff Peoples, CEO of Alabama Power, said the center will address sobering statistics. He cited studies that overwhelmingly show that veterans disproportionately suffer from homelessness, financial hardship, healthcare access, and die from suicide after leaving the military.

“We have to do something about that,” Peoples said.

“And so what we are willing to do with this Alabama resource center is to create a hub so that the people who have fought and served, for our country and for us, have had a very difficult time to transition – what we can do is we can assist with that into their civilian life.”

“We’re certainly thankful for the dollars that have been appropriated for us in this bill, but we’re not going to rest on our laurels from the private sector. We’re also going to raise a significant amount of money to support this. You have our word at Alabama Power that is what’s going to happen.”

The center will connect veterans with employment opportunities, healthcare services, education benefits, and mental health resources. A nine-member advisory board, appointed by the governor, lieutenant governor, and legislative leadership, will oversee the center’s operations to ensure it meets the evolving needs of Alabama’s veteran community.

“I’m certainly proud to be part of how Alabama is home to over 400,000 veterans. We take pride in being one of the most military and veteran-friendly states in America,” Speaker of the House Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) said.

“We make big strides and improve the veterans quality of life, especially when it comes to mental health and tackling healthcare and employment. The Alabama Veterans Resource Center is all about helping veterans successfully transacting from military to civilian life. These brave men and women have been so sacrificial to the service of our country, protecting the people of this country, and I think it’s our responsibility to serve them the best way we can transition from life to military life and private sector.”

Grayson Everett is the editor in chief of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @Grayson270.