Although I've been traveling the country quite a bit in the last several months as part of the C4SI national homeless services training team for SAMHSA/PATH, I never forget just how important the work I do at Operation Stand Down Nashville is to me and I hope to the hundreds of others I see each week as part of my duties. Forgive me a moment while I toot our own horn here, but the truth is that we've more than doubled our client count in the past year and by the time we come to the end of this fiscal year, we will have served more than 1,100 veterans in need in the greater Nashville area.
And that number reflects only the persons that walk through our doors five days a week. If we were to add the annual Operation Stand Down event to the mix, that number would rise to over 1,500 folks.
Perhaps one of the best things we do each year at the annual event is to provide legal services, including court sessions in front of local judges, for civil issues and misdemeanor cases. It's a great way for veterans who've picked up a minor case to get their issues adjudicated, since often there is incredible leniency given, as well as the squashing of sometimes huge fines.Because of the incredible demand we have for legal services at our annual Operation Stand Down event (and our 18th annual event occurs Oct. 8, 9, and 10 this year at the Tennessee State Guard location -same as last year) our exceptionally brilliant Executive Director, retired Lt. Colonel Bill Burliegh, put together a one-day Legal Clinic in the hopes that it would ease some demand on this particular service at the annual event and allow more vets access to the variety of other services available at the main event.
Saying it was a smashing success would be an understatement and big thanks goes to all the court personnel who made it possible. Judge Solomon (seated in pic at right and who happens to be my favorite, no-nonsense Judge here in Davidson County ), heard the cases and the rest of the supporting staff, from probation, child support and various other areas, made things flow as smooth as silk!
