Annville, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs (DMVA) received an Abraham Lincoln Pillars of Excellence Award from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for its PA VETConnect initiative.
Brig. Gen. (PA) Maureen Weigl, deputy adjutant general for Veterans Affairs, received the award on behalf of DMVA during the National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs Mid-Winter Conference. The award was presented by Hon. Denis Richard McDonough, secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
“Receiving this award validates the hard work that went into launching PA VETConnect,” said Weigl. “As the fourth largest veteran population in the nation, Pennsylvania is faced with the herculean challenge of identifying and connecting with nearly 800,000 veterans. PA VETConnect is making that happen. We are grateful to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for recognizing this initiative and by doing so, raising awareness for Pennsylvania veteran advocates looking for every resource available to help veterans and their families.”
PA VETConnect is an outreach program that enables the DMVA to concentrate services from within communities where Pennsylvania veterans live and allows the DMVA to utilize community-based providers to fill gaps in services. Since PA VETConnect launched in 2020, DMVA has successfully accomplished more than 16,000 connections with federal, state and local government officials, non-profit organizations, and community leaders.
“This initiative is known as a trusted channel among veteran advocates for gaining increased awareness of and connection to veteran-centric and mainstream resources that can assist veterans who are in crisis,” added Weigl.
The Abraham Lincoln Pillars of Excellence Award was established in 2012 by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to evaluate state programs, establish best practices for other state agencies to follow for greater success and efficiency, and highlight the great work being done at the state level.
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