January 2020 Happy New Year! In This Issue: Executive Director's Message Volunteers Inspiring Pro Bono (VIP) - Duane Morris LLP Winterhaven Homeless Veterans Stand Down Welcome Our New TVC Team Members Notable News
Executive Director's Message New year, new decade, new Chairman of the Board, new Executive Director, new Deputy Executive Director - same mission, focus and passion! Happy 2020 to our incredible Mission Partners, stakeholders, volunteers & supporters of The Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program. I’m pleased to address you as the new Executive Director of TVC. As I embark on my learning and meeting initiatives, I look forward to connecting and working with you to further our mission of access to justice for Veterans. I want to offer my appreciation for the leadership of Jim Carlsen and Mike Kail, who stepped up as Managing Director and Director of Program Operations respectively, to keep the day to day operations of TVC running smoothly since last March. TVC had the most successful and impactful year in its 27-year history of serving our Veterans. As we say in the Navy - Bravo Zulu (well done) to Jim and Mike. I’d like to share one initial thought as I start to look strategically at what TVC does and how we can continue to improve and grow. TVC is established as a national thought leader in Veterans disability law; however, I’d like to increase national recognition of our impact in the lives of the Veterans we serve. I ask you all to be ambassadors of and for TVC, no matter your role as a contributor to the Mission. Follow us on social media, share this Monthly Brief and spread the word. #theyfoughtforus I join the TVC Staff in wishing you all a happy, healthy and productive new year and look forward to our continued partnership to ensure our nation’s defenders get the care, benefits and compensation they were promised, and the best legal services, free of charge, to meet their challenges. In gratitude, Stephen Jordon Executive Director
Volunteers Inspiring Pro Bono (VIP)
We selected our Volunteers Inspiring Pro Bono (VIP) for January with the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in mind. His call to engage in community action to solve social problems is a part of the ethos at Duane Morris LLP, especially when it comes to Veterans in need. This firmwide “call to action” is why we have chosen to honor Duane Morris this month. In particular, we highlight their steadfast commitment to an initiative that The Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program is very proud of and committed to – our Veterans Pro Bono Legal Clinic at the DC VA Medical Center (DC VAMC), in Washington, DC. “We have been very fortunate to work with the amazing Duane Morris team,” says Jeff Janicke, TVC Staff Attorney. “Their commitment to justice for Veterans and to our Veterans Pro Bono Legal Clinic, makes it possible for us to provide a critical service to this under-served population in our community.”
(Left to right: Chris Tyson, Rebecca Bazan, Heidi Lunasin, Samantha Stiltner (TVC) and Katharyn McGee)
In 2016, TVC teamed up with Duane Morris and Neighborhood Legal Services Program (NLSP) to assess the need for pro bono legal services for low income Veterans in the DC area. The process began by holding pop-up legal clinics throughout the city to assess interest and impact. It quickly became clear that the need was significant and that the location best suited for the most impact was the DC VAMC. In May of 2017, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed by TVC, NLSP, and the DC VAMC to establish TVC’s Veterans Pro Bono Legal Clinic in the Transition & Care Management Center at the DC VAMC. Chris Tyson, Katharyn McGee and the team at Duane Morris were important partners throughout the process of negotiations and drafting of the MOU that created the Clinic, which has now served more than 1,400 Veterans, their families, caregivers and survivors. The Clinic hosts teams of volunteer attorneys and law students from the DC area. It is completely free to Veterans and operates every Friday, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Our volunteer attorneys conduct triage based on stated needs, offer information and resources, and provide referrals. The Clinic is open to all Veterans, regardless of discharge status.
Veterans served at the Clinic often have underlying nonlegal issues that are impacting their lives as well legal issues. Each team of attorneys is provided with an updated resource guide for legal and non-legal services which Heidi Lunasin, from Duane Morris, created. These potentially lifechanging resources are critical to getting Veterans the help and services they need. Duane Morris has also generously donated laptops to the Clinic in order to better manage referrals and resources. Under the leadership of Chris Tyson, Duane Morris manages the staffing and training of their attorneys two Fridays a month. To date, more than 60% of the Duane Morris D.C. office has volunteered for a shift at the Clinic. “The Clinic is a ‘win-win’ for all involved. It is a local connection point between the many generations of men and women who served in the military, and the current and future generations of legal professionals,” says Chris Tyson, a Veteran himself. “For the local area Veterans, many of whom are just barely scraping by or even homeless, the Clinic provides them the opportunity to confidentially discuss the issues that they are facing with a local lawyer and be provided with a direct conduit to legal and non-legal resources that can assist them.” The Clinic is also a great opportunity for students to work side by side with experienced attorneys and to learn more about Veteran’s law. “For the volunteer attorneys and law students, the Clinic provides a meaningful connection to this special class of people, an opportunity to be part of the solution, and, when they walk away at the end of the day, that sense of happiness and fulfillment that only comes from service to another,” says Chris.
The attorneys at Duane Morris LLP have been part of TVC National Volunteer Corps since 1997 and have an amazing 97% success rate in their CAVC cases. They are always at the ready to assist at pop-up clinics, the Winterhaven Veterans Homeless Stand Down pro bono clinic, and new initiatives, such as a recent clinic specifically for women Veterans. They are true partners in every sense of the word. TVC knows we can always count on them and their desire to help Veterans.
WINTERHAVEN HOMELESS VETERANS STAND DOWN This month, we honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. through a Day of Service. TVC Staff and members of our TVC National Volunteer Corps will perform our Day of Service on Saturday, January 25 at the DC VA Medical Center (DC VAMC) by volunteering at the annual Winterhaven Homeless Veterans Stand Down.
Winterhaven is sponsored and organized by the VA and provides services to homeless and at-risk Veterans. Typically, over 70 community and government agencies join forces at this annual event in support of hundreds of Veterans that will come through the doors of the DC VAMC for a full day of services such as: health screenings, housing and employment counseling, substance abuse, psycho-social services, dental exams, and legal support. For the fourth year, TVC will have an Outreach and Resource table and operate a Pro Bono Legal Clinic throughout the day. Thank you in advance to our volunteers!
Welcome Our New TVC Team Members As we ring in the new year, we would like to introduce you to the newest members of the dedicated team at The Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program!
MARY BENTON Mary works as a Legal Assistant in our Discharge Upgrade Program, which is sponsored by the DAV Charitable Service Trust, at The Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program (TVC). Mary is a graduate of the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University (J.D., 2019), Kings College London (M.A., 2010) and the University of Scranton (B.A., 2009). During law school, Mary was a Student Advocate for the Robert W. Entenmann Veterans Law Clinic and helped Veterans obtain disability benefits and apply for discharge upgrade. “I am incredibly honored to be joining The Veterans Consortium Discharge Upgrade Program and excited to continue my work with Veterans as a part of the TVC team.”
CAITLIN ENS Caitlin serves as a Law Clerk at The Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program, where she analyzes incoming cases for potential placement with volunteer attorneys. She recently passed the July 2019 Uniform Bar Exam. Caitlin is a graduate of the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University (J.D., magna cum laude and Environmental Law Certificate) and Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey (B.S.). “As someone with a long-standing passion for helping vulnerable communities achieve social justice, I’m excited to become a subject matter expert in Veterans law, focusing on disability compensation at the appellate level. I’m eager to use my legal background to make a positive difference in the lives of Veterans.”
JOSIE PEERY Josie Peery works as as a Client Services Specialist where she staffs the Informational Helpline and corresponds with veterans who inquire about our services. Josie also assists with client intake.
Josie is a graduate of Taylor University (B.A., Political Science, Philosophy, and Economics).
“I am very excited to use my skills to directly impact the lives of our Veterans. I think the work that TVC does is so important, and I am honored to be on this hard working team.”
PETER GREGORY Peter joined TVC as a member of the Client Services team in July 2018, but recently changed roles and now serves as Volunteer Outreach & Education Coordinator. In this role, Peter assists with organizing volunteer trainings, placement of cases with volunteer attorneys, and ensuring that operations involving TVC and volunteer attorneys run efficiently and smoothly. Peter is a graduate of The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (B.A. in Public Policy and Geography).
“I’m excited about my new role and my professional growth within TVC. My previous position in Client Services was a great foundation for me to understand the many challenges that Veterans face, it what can be a very long and frustrating process.”
CASEY WATTS - Extern Casey is currently a third year law student at George Mason University in the Antonin Scalia Law School. She is in her second semester as a Legal Extern at TVC, where she works on screening
memoranda and briefs for appellate court cases. "I am descended from several veterans, some of whom gave the ultimate sacrifice. Helping Veterans obtain benefits is one small way I can honor their legacy."
CAROLYN CORCORAN - Extern Carolyn is currently a second year law student at Georgetown University Law Center. She is a Legal Extern at TVC. She works on memoranda and briefs to place cases on remand before the Board of Veterans’ Affairs with TVC's volunteer attorneys. “Five generations of Corcorans have served in the military. They instilled in me a heart of service, need for courage, and desire for justice.”
NOTABLE NEWS Want to apply for the 2020 David Isbell Summer Internship? Send a cover letter, resume, unofficial law school transcript, and writing sample to Courtney Smith, Director of Volunteer Outreach & Education, at: Courtney.Smith@vetsprobono.org
Deadline is January 31, 2020 Click Here To Apply
Download Application Instructions Here
Available Pro Bono CAVC Cases for our current TVC National Volunteer CorpsSM Click below to view our list of Available Pro Bono Cases in need of representation by a volunteer attorney. *Note: you must be a current volunteer who has taken our training and has been approved as a member on our website in order to log in and view the available cases.
Upcoming Training Information Partner with us & sponsor a U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims Appellate Advocacy training.
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For assistance, email volunteer@vetsprobono.org
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