Franklin November 2020

Page 6 Franklin Local Town Pages www.localtownpages.com November 2020
Franklin Veterans Office Taping a Virtual Program for Veterans Day
By J.D. O’Gara
Franklin Veterans Agent Dale
Kurtz notes that the latest brick
installation at the Franklin Veterans
Memorial Walkway will
take place before November
11th, Veterans Day, this year.
Although a luncheon honoring
veterans usually takes place at
Franklin Senior Center, this year,
because of Covid-19, said Kurtz,
“I’ll be taping a virtual Veterans
Day program, where I’m going
to focus on veterans, then it will
be played on local TV on Veterans
Day and days thereafter.” At
press time, Kurtz was contacting
different veterans, inviting them
to participate. The program, he
said, would include interviews
with non-veterans as well, asking
them “What does Veterans Day
mean to you?”
“I just wanted to focus on the
meaning of the day and really
hone in on how special our vets
are,” said Kurtz.
In addition to the virtual celebration
of veterans, members
of the Franklin American Legion
Edward L. Grant Post 75 will be
holding small celebrations, not
open to the public, for veterans
at local assisted living centers in
town, said Kurtz.
When asked what top concerns
are among local veterans,
Kurtz replied that issues of
Covid-19 are “amplified for our
vets. I look at my older veterans,
who maybe live alone – they’re
very isolated now. They used
to be able to come to our senior
center or veterans’
events, and with that
(isolation) comes
concerns about
suicide.” Such
issues, he said,
have been the
subject of discussions
in the
VSO and the
VA.”
“There’s also
concern about domestic
abuse,” says
Kurtz. “(Being together)
24/7, sometimes you can rub
each other the wrong way, and
then because you’re isolated, and
because you can’t go out, you
may have an extra drink, and
tensions rise, and we’ve got an
issue. Those are things
I worry about with
my veterans, and
I just want them
to be healthy
and to be safe.”
Kurtz encourages
local
veterans to
reach out to the
VA Crisis line.
Veterans having a
crisis or those who
know a veteran experiencing
issues can call 800-
273-8255 and press 1, send a text
message to 838255, or chat online
at VeteransCrisisLine.net/
Chat. Locally, Kurtz encourages
veterans experiencing substance
abuse or domestic violence issues
to reach out to the SAFE
Coalition, which serves 9 local
communities and is located right
in Norfolk. The SAFE Coalition
support hotline can be reached at
(508) 488-8105. Kurtz explained
that veterans can also head to
a Veterans Center, the nearest
being in Brockton, although vet
centers are located in Boston and
Worcester as well.
“They’re fantastic, with counselors,
doctors on staff,” said
Kurtz. The doctors, he said, “are
part of the VA, but work independently
of the VA medical system.
You don’t have to be a part
of the VA to use it – you just have
to be a veteran.”
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In Loving Memory of
T/Sgt. John C. Tulli
IN MEMORIAM
Cpl. Laurence T. Maher
U.S. Army Air Corps
1922 - 2020
U.S. Army
Served 1943-1946
Thank you for your bravery and
service. You are our HERO!
LOVE TO YOU JOHN,
DAD & GRANDPA
Veteran’s Dedication
Thank you for your Service.