Never too early to mark your calendar for the annual Wreaths Across America Day to remember every veteran who has passed on. Ceremonies will be taking place at Rose Hill Cemetery (American Legion Post 10) in Kissimmee and Mount Peace Cemetery (VFW Post 3227) in St. Cloud. For more information, see https://bit.ly/4AFiLOO.
Operation Foster— Be A Hero for Our Heroes I am continuously amazed at the sheer number and variety of veterans helping veterans nonprofits out there. For many of us, our pets are part of our family, and anything not in their best interest is nonnegotiable. Operation Foster provides peace of mind to military personnel facing deployment and pet owners undergoing medical treatment by placing their pets into safe, loving foster homes until they can be reunited. Founded over 11 years ago, they have helped more than 3,000 pets in all 50 states. For more information, see https://bit.ly/46McT8P.
This One is for the Fellas The Department of Veterans Affairs is conducting a research study, the Prostate Cancer, Genetic Risk, and Equitable Screening Study (ProGRESS), to determine if genetic testing can improve the way men and their doctors screen for prostate cancer. The goal is to revolutionize how they approach prostate cancer screening to perhaps something more accurate than the PSA test, and a little less “invasive” than other methods. If you are with the VA, you may have already been contacted to participate in ProGRESS. Like the VA’s Million Veterans Program (MVP), veterans can benefit ourselves and the general public by giving the medical research community access to a large, age-diverse population that receives regular medical care in a program administered by medical professionals in a nonprofit environment.
Continued VA Funding for Homeless Vets The Department of Veterans Affairs recently announced a record $1.17 billion in grants to 680 organizations helping Veterans who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. The funding includes $855 million for one-year grants supporting case management, prevention, and rapid rehousing beginning in October, along with $318 million in three-year grants for transitional housing and specialized services. An estimated 32,495 Veterans experienced homelessness on a single night in January 2025. The VA reported helping more than 51,000 Veterans find or maintain housing during fiscal year 2025. Find more info at https://bit.ly/4yZk5u7.
VA Flu Shots Now Available If you have been with the VA for any amount of time, you know how the VA loves to give out those flu shots. Shots are now available on a walk-in basis, Monday through Friday at the Kissimmee VA Clinic, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Lake Nona from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information and other locations, see https://bit.ly/3TqMcDC.
