Page 33 - AAA Hudson Valley – AAA Every Day – March/April 2019

AAA Hudson Valley presents contribution for the Veteran Connect Center. AAA Hudson Valley President and CEO Michele Van Epps, Brig. Gen. (Retired) and Veteran Connect Center Board Chair Michael Swezey, Center for Economic Growth President and CEO Andrew Kennedy and AAA Hudson Valley Board Chair Robert Blackman.
“Transitioning from military life to civilian life is a challenge, but so is navigating the many services available to transitioning service members and their families,” said AAA Hudson Valley President and CEO Michele Van Epps. “The Veteran Connect Center will streamline and simplify that process while putting the Capital Region on the radar of transitioning service members and their families who are looking to begin a new chapter in their lives. AAA Hudson Valley has a long history of helping veterans get to where they need to go. We are happy to support the VCC and help them find a home in the Capital Region.”
VETERAN POPULATION PROJECTIONS
Veterans play a vital role in the Capital Region’s economy. Throughout the region’s eight counties in 2017, there were 31,577 Veterans between 17 and
64, with 24,828 of them participating in the civilian
labor force, according to U.S. Census Bureau five-
year estimate. However, between the growing ranks of Vietnam War-era veterans approaching retirement age, veteran mobility and a decline in service members over the past decade, the Capital Region is expected to see its ranks of working-age Veterans dwindle by 25 percent
over the next 10 years, according to actuarial projection data from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics.
“Other parts of the state are aggressively pursuing transitioning service members to help bolster their economies, and the Capital Region needs to up its game if it wants them to live and work here. With there being tens of thousands fewer active duty service members now than a decade ago, new veterans are becoming
a rarer talent commodity and tech hubs around the country are clamoring for them. Veterans have long been a valued staple in the Capital Region’s workforce and the VCC is our way of ensuring they stay that way,” said Swezey, chair of CEG’s Veteran Committee, which has approximately 20 members, including veterans from all military branches.
If you would like to join AAA by donating to the Veteran Connect Center, please send your check payable to “Center for Economic Growth” and note “VCC” on
the bottom left and mail to 41 State St., Suite 705, Albany, NY 12207. CEG is a 501(c)(3), not for profit. For additional information, please contact CEG Director of Research and Communications James Schlett at 518- 465-8975, ext. 221, or at jamess@ceg.org
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