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As a veteran services officer, Siegel is
responsible for the management and administration
of federal, state, and local benefits to
assist veterans, widows, and dependents. Also,
he answers inquiries, and provides assistance
relative to many veterans’ issues, including war
bonuses, education, and training, employment,
tax abatements, veterans affairs medical care,
and burial benefits. Siegel is also responsible
for the coordination of the local Memorial
Day and Veterans Day ceremonies.
Siegel has been able to take part in some
special projects in the town. He has been able
to honor soldiers with Gold Star street signs
and plaques around Lynnfield. There are four
locations throughout town that are named
after Lynnfield residents who were killed in
action. The town also recently became a Purple
Heart community.
For Siegel, the best part of the job is simply
being able to help veterans.
"It's interesting to see how people react
when you tell them you help veterans. They are
very receptive, very responsive and they are just
so enthusiastic when you tell them you work
with veterans," he said.
He also mentioned a particular situation
from the beginning of his time as a veteran
services officer when a young veteran came
An American flag and POW flag rest over Bruce
Siegel's desk.
into Siegel's office and said that he wanted to
take his own life. Siegel said that the young
man was lacking confidence and was worried
about failing in school or his profession.
"I said 'wait a second. You have your whole
life ahead of you. I'm sure you have a family.
I'm sure you have friends,'" Siegel said.
Several months later, that same young man
reached out to Siegel and said if it wasn't for
that conversation, he might have ended his life.
The young veteran was able to go to school
and find a job.
"Those are the types of things that I
appreciate and I cherish when people tell me I
helped them," he said.
Siegel currently is working on bringing a
new war memorial to town. Prior to his time
in the position, a previous veteran services
officer wanted to update the memorial that is
currently in town to ensure that all the names
of servicemen and women from Lynnfield are
on that memorial.
"The memorial that exists today doesn't go
past the Vietnam War," he said. "There might
be a few names after the Vietnam War, but
many names that should be on there are not."
Siegel is a part of Lynnfield's War Memorial
Committee, which, along with the Select
Board, has approved a design that is currently
being formally designed by an architect. The
new memorial will look to honor veterans
from the Revolutionary War all the way up
to today. According to Select Board member
Joseph Connell, the committee is also looking
to include a history of each war, as well as a
map of where individual battles took place.
The new war memorial will be located
across from the town common in a brand new
location, as the town bought a piece of land
nearby the current location of the memorial.
The town received a $50,000 state grant for
the project, which is estimated to cost upwards
of $300,000.
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