HUNTINGTON ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥” The West Virginia American Legion hosted its 107th annual convention this weekend at the DoubleTree by Hilton Huntington beginning Thursday.
On Friday, several local officials and leaders of the American Legion gave remarks to the veterans in attendance.
Veteran, American Legion member and Huntington Mayor Patrick Farrell spoke at the event, telling members he made a pledge during his inauguration to make veteran homelessness in the city non-existent as soon as possible.
ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œIÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™d like you to watch. Watch what weÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™re doing here in Huntington, and if you come back here next year for the convention, weÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™re going to tell you ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥¦ IÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™m going to tell you that we got zero veteran homelessness in Huntington, and that we did it through a partnership with the VA, partnership with our social services organizations throughout the city, our police department, the health care facilities,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ he said.
Farrell continued in saying veterans should have access to the health care they need.
When asked for additional details, City Communications Director Evan Lee said in an email to The Herald-Dispatch the rollout of the cityÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s plan is coming soon.
A 2024 Point-in-Time Count conducted through the Cabell-Huntington Wayne Continuum of Care included a census of sheltered and unsheltered homeless people during a single night in January that counted 21 veterans altogether experiencing homelessness in Cabell and Wayne counties. Of those confirmed as experiencing chronic homelessness, three were veterans.
Gov. Patrick Morrisey also spoke at the event, sharing updates in federal VA funding, including more than $4.97 billion given to West Virginia in 2024 for a variety of uses. Morrisey said he signed a Troops to Teachers bill in May to help veterans become certified teachers.
Other speakers encouraged members to seek help in ensuring they receive their full benefits or discussed ways the local chapter or VA could help them.
According to American Legion West Virginia State Commander Jeff Wisley, the organization speaks to Congress every year in support of veterans, hosts programs like Mountaineer Boys State for youth and hosts a scholarship speech competition.
This weekend, he said, members picked officers for next year, had several leadership meetings, voted on in-organization competitions and shared reports.
By Friday morning, members had not yet voted on the new officers, but he said the most significant issues theyÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ll likely have to respond to coming up are veteran mental health and homelessness.
ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWhat weÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™re trying to do is break the stigmatism for mental health. Veterans who are in crisis, we used to have the belief that if we said, ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥˜Hey, are you going to hurt yourself?ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ You donÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™t want to ask that questions because youÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™re going to put that thought in their mind,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ Wisley said.
ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œBut now, we engage with them. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥¦ We let them know that itÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s OK not to be OK.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥
Wisley said of FarrellÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s plan to end veteran homelessness in the city, ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œI hope thatÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s true.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥
Wisley said not only is the American Legion the largest veterans service organization, but it was also expanded to include all veterans, not just those who served during a period of war.
ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWe thought weÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™d get a big influx of new members, and we really havenÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™t. So the American Legion just really needs to get the word out about that kind of stuff,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ he said.
At present, the American Legion has nearly 2 million members spread across 13,000 posts worldwide.
