The State of New Mexico has hired a local veteran, David Morrison, to fill the position of Disabled Veterans Outreach Program Representative that has been vacant for over two years at the Workforce Solutions office at 410 West Broadway here in Silver City. The federally mandated position gives local eligible veterans that have a significant barrier to gainful employment; such as a disability, low income, or being homeless; the services of a fellow disabled veteran to assist them in securing a better quality of living.

Of New Mexico’s population of just over 2 million residents, nearly 10% are veterans. To be an “eligible” veteran, you must have served in any branch of the US Armed Forces a minimum of either 180 days of “Active Duty” or any duty in a “Combat Zone” of declared war. Many veterans are unaware of the assistance available to them now, and/or have just “given up” because there was no one reaching out to help them. The new veterans representative also has the responsibility of “reaching out” to the local agencies that provide community care services in our rural and remote area. He also will have to overcome the lack of service to our community for the past two years and get the word out to both agencies and veterans, that services are now available. The position covers the four counties of Southwest New Mexico: (Grant, Catron, Luna and Hidalgo). This is an area equal to 1/6th the area of the entire state. Our population however is very sparse and most communities are small and very remote from larger cities where community services are readily available. Of the three sizable cities in our four-county area, none has a population of more than 15,000. However, among the many towns and communities we have with under 2000 people, there are 18 communities with an average veteran population of 36%. The statistics show a disproportionate population of veterans are residing in our four-county southwestern part of the state. There is moreover, only one Veterans Service Officer, Chris Teran, located at the now inactive National Guard Armory in Santa Clara; and the VA Community Healthcare for all our 1600+ veterans is provided by our small clinic in the basement of the Rehabilitation Center at 2950 Leslie Road. To reach out to veterans, and for them to receive services is an obstacle in itself; which hopefully can be changed to better services offered for our local veterans.

There are many local agencies and programs available to help eligible veterans with needs. The New Mexico Workforce Solutions Office has several partnered programs that veterans may apply for: including classes to get your GED at no cost, Adult Dislocated Workers, Young Adult Career and Senior Citizens Goodwill Training. There is a pamphlet available for veterans that provides contact info for all our local community care agencies and services. All of this is now available for our local eligible veterans as a free service to help them find a better job and living condition. Since there is an increasing number of homeless and low income residents in our Silver City, Deming and Lordsburg communities, it is very important that we who have the means, reach out to and help provide the appropriate services for those in need; especially during this upcoming holiday season.

David Morrison is a Retired USAF Master Sergeant from the 210th Red Horse Squadron at Kirtland Air National Guard Base in Albuquerque. He has served honorably in several deployments overseas, supporting our nation’s troops in combat and natural disasters as a Firefighter and a Structural Craftsman since 1977. He also worked as an Airport Technician/Firefighter at the Grant County Airport from 2008 to 2018. He lives in Hurley with his wife, Vickie, and enjoys cowboy music, playing guitar, woodcrafts, and hiking our local wilderness at Fort Bayard with their Australian Shepherds.