This op-ed was originally published in The Olympian on November 10, 2024.
By Anthony Sandoval and Eric Burns
Each November, we talk a lot about how we need to improve support for America’s veterans. We lament over high suicide rates and the many barriers preventing veterans from accessing care.
Vet Corps is a group that does more than just talk and lament — they act. We know because we served with them, and we experienced how their work saves lives.
Vet Corps, an AmeriCorps program coordinated by the Washington Department of Veterans Affairs, embeds veterans and individuals from military families on campuses to connect with fellow veterans and help them navigate their transition into civilian life. Vet Corps members host gatherings, help other veterans access resources, and facilitate workshops on academic habits and “learning how to learn.”
Vet Corps positions are funded by AmeriCorps through Serve Washington and include a living allowance, professional development, and an education award.
As two veterans and alumni of Vet Corps, we understand this program’s power. We remember the community we built, marked by joyful events, service projects, and mutual support. But we also remember harder days, like when a student veteran suddenly vanished off the grid, refusing contact with loved ones. Or when a Marine Corps veteran started struggling, but put up walls against anyone trying to help.
As veterans, we don’t need an explanation for these behaviors — we already understand. In the military, background aside, you’re part of a unit; you share the same mission, challenges, and rigid schedule. Some of us shared the same traumas and saw the same horrific things. Being launched from a cohesive unit abroad to a college campus back home, where your experience is rare, can feel like whiplash.
This whiplash feeling impacted us both.
One of us came home with severe survivor’s guilt; the haunting imagery from a deployment in Afghanistan left no room for joy, leaving instead only PTSD and suicidal ideation.
One of us came home from Iraq and tried to replace the structure and physicality of the service with football, struggled with drinking, and did not form a memory for eight years, due to the confluence of pressure on the body and mind.
We were both searching for purpose, seeking community, and grappling with complicated feelings about the service. We were each referred to our campus centers for military support — one of us at Pacific Lutheran University, and one of us at Wenatchee Valley College.
There, we connected with Vet Corps, which saved both our lives. It afforded us the opportunity to find meaning and service post-military. Our mentors encouraged us to try ideas informed by our own experiences and talents. We connected with hundreds of other veterans who needed someone who spoke their language to help them find their path. We found belonging and purpose.
For 15 years, federal funding through AmeriCorps has supported 600 Vet Corps members, including 41 who served last year. These members have improved, and even saved, the lives of thousands of veterans.
This year, funding constraints led to a reduction in Vet Corps’ footprint. While there have been calls to increase funding for AmeriCorps so it can continue supporting programs like Vet Corps, the agency has not received the increase to meet nationwide needs.
Today, we both work for the Washington Department of Veteran Affairs with the SSG Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program. Vet Corps offered us a chance to give back on campus, and later opened doors for us to secure permanent, meaningful employment that allows us to continue our service and live out our purpose.
This Veterans Day, we share gratitude for the strong community we found through Vet Corps, and we are proud of the impact of our service in Washington. We share a hope that in the future, AmeriCorps programs like Vet Corps will exist across every county in every state, so there is a home for more of these communities, and we can continue having each other’s backs here at home.
Anthony Sandoval and Eric Burns are staff with SSG Fox Suicide Prevention Program at Washington Department of Veterans Affairs and AmeriCorps alumni with Vet Corps.