2023-2024 Post Service Officer Sub-Committee
Department Service Officer/Chairman: Eric Isaksen (327)
Assistant to DSO for Admin: Sarah Maddox (32)
Asst. to DSO for Eastern Region: Bob DeChamplain (TBD)
Asst to DSO for Northern Region: Scott Morse (TBD)
Asst to DSO for Western Region: Makea Barton (29)
Members: Craig Ervin (284), Rita Chandler (55)
Accredited American Legion service officers are specially trained to provide expert assistance, free of charge, to veterans and their families. While the majority of a service officer’s work involves application for VA disability benefits, these compassionate professionals also provide information, referrals and resources on education, employment and business, death benefits and other important topics.
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Basic Service Officer Class & Test
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Information Sharing:
How To Obtain An Expedited DD 214 For A Deceased Veteran’s Funeral
Attached is an instruction sheet, SF 180 and a fax cover sheet to request and expedited separation document for a deceased veteran where the family cannot find the DD 214 or the separation doc from WWII for the veterans funeral.. In addition to what is here you will also need to provide proof of death ( death certificate or obituary) and the date of funeral if veteran separated from service after 1955. These will be put on the Department Website under Service Officer and listed as emergency request for 214 for burial or medical
SF 180 (PDF)
Burial or Medical Request Instructions (PDF)
Burial or Medical Request Instructions (Word)
Burial or Medical Fax Cover (PDF)
Burial or Medical Fax Cover (Word)
Additional Information needed (Word)
Additional Information needed (PDF)
Consideration_on_Discharge_Upgrade_Requests
Army Policy Disch Uprgades and PTSD
I have received the following information from several sources today. It was put out two years ago but there has been updated information so we are putting it out for widest dissemination.
Some info just in case this applies to anyone here:
. DOD Improves Discharge Upgrade Process for Veterans with PTSD: On September 3, 2014, then Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel issued a memo instructing Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records (BCM/NR) to grant “liberal consideration” to requests for discharge upgrades from veterans who may have been suffering from PTSD before it was a recognized diagnosis. Previously, those upgrade requests would have been denied, because veterans had no way of proving they had PTSD while still in service. The policy change was especially helpful for Vietnam veterans, whose post-service PTSD diagnoses had not been recognized by the BCM/NR up to that point. Unfortunately, the memo did not explicitly allow veterans who had been denied under the old rules to reapply under the new rules. To correct this error, DOD issued a memo on February 24, 2016, clarifying that those veterans may reapply under the new policy. It also waives the statute of limitations in those cases. If you or someone you know wishes to apply for a discharge upgrade under this policy.
For more information see attached letter from DOD and a Policy statement from the Army Review Boards Agency.
These will be posted on the Department Webpage under Service Officer
BRIAN MULLICAN
Department Service Officer
American Legion
Service Officer Code of Procedure
Five Steps to Social Security Disability Chart
Servicemembers Civil Relief Act: Information on Mortgage Protections and Related Education Efforts: GAO Report 01282014