AGENCY TESTIMONY
Greater New York City Veteran and Military Families Summit at Yankee Stadium
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Commissioner Hendon discusses the Greater New York City Veteran and Military Families Summit held at Yankee Stadium, highlighting its significance in connecting veterans with services and cultural activities.
- The summit was held in September 2024 at Yankee Stadium
- It was the largest standalone event in the history of DVS
- Approximately 460 veteran community members attended, with 350 receiving benefits, programming, and services
- The event created a significant footprint, drawing local, state, and national attention
- The summit demonstrated the effectiveness of pairing services with a cultural entity like the New York Yankees
James Hendon
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We've witnessed time and time again that one of the ways to make a crucial first connection in inspiring veterans to self identify is through the use of arts and culture.
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The September 2024 Greater New York City Veteran and Military Families Summit, held at Yankee Stadium, exists at the intersection between the services that our department provides to the veteran community and our support for wider cultural activities.
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We successfully completed completed the largest stand alone event in the history of our agency in the form of a summit.
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Details about this and prior DVS summits can be found at nyc.gov/vetsummit.
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Fueled by the lure of the New York Yankees, a yoke local cultural institution, DVS estimates that approximately 460 veteran community members physically entered Yankee Stadium with roughly 350 of those attendees being individuals who came to receive the benefits, programming, and services offered.
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The remainder were service delivering personnel from DVS, the New York State Department of Veterans Services, the VA, veteran service organizations and other community based organizations.
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The recent summit did not just help our veterans.
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It created a footprint.
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This footprint drew local, state and national attention, proving to also be one of our most successful outreach operations to date.
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All all those involved rose awareness about the need for veteran services through this gathering.
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We delivered great benefit to the community, provide proving just how effective pairing services with a cultural entity such as the New York Yankees can be.
