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WATCH: New WXXI Initiative Will Help Connect Area Veterans and Families to Services and Resources

WXXI and Little Theatre President, Norm Silverstein, announces an initiative to help link veterans with community support and services.
SASHA-ANN SIMONS/WXXI NEWS
WXXI and Little Theatre President, Norm Silverstein, announces an initiative to help link veterans with community support and services.

WXXI and the Little Theatre have launched a new initiative, Veterans Connections, which is designed to help bridge military and veteran needs with community support and awareness.

Norm Silverstein, President of WXXI and The Little said “WXXI and the Little Theatre will use our resources to help connect our veterans, especially returning veterans and their families, with critical services and agencies throughout the region. We will also honor our service men and women by sharing their stories through special programs, news reports and films, to never lose sight of the sacrifices these military families have made for our country.”

Through special TV and radio programs, documentary films, news features, and a new dedicated web site, current and ex-military personnel now have a place to find out what's available to them. Veterans Connectionswill serve as a hub for valuable resources, placing information like local support groups and other counseling services right at their fingertips. It's all an effort to make a difference in their day-to-day lives.

The greater Rochester area is home to more than 70, 000 men and women who have served their country. But you'll be surprised how many of them are unaware of the benefits they have earned.

Earlier this year, WXXI and The Little convened a “Veterans Affairs Task Force” made up of members of its Board of Trustees and other community leaders.  Its mission was to identify the most pressing needs and issues facing veterans and their families and to recommend ways that WXXI and The Little can utilize programming and outreach efforts to help address those needs. The Task Force is led by Mark Leary, who served 22 years in the U.S. Army, and is currently Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer of Xerox. Leary is also a member of WXXI and Little Theatre Film Society Board of Trustees.

The Veterans Connections initiative kicks off with a free screening of the Academy Award- nominated documentary Last Days in Vietnam on Tuesday, April 21 at 7 p.m. at the Little Theatre. Visit  www.wxxi.org/veterans for details.

Watch as veteran and Task Force member, Christine Adamo, explains what this initiative will provide to veterans.

http://youtu.be/AWJFcEMTUSU

Watch as Veterans Affairs Task Force Chair, Mark Leary, discusses the goal of Veterans Connections.

Sasha-Ann Simons joined the team at WXXI News in 2015 as a Multimedia Reporter/Producer. She tells stories about the innovation economy and technology in upstate New York and also does general assignment reporting. Sasha-Ann is the host of Arts InFocus, WXXI-TV's weekly arts and culture program. She is also a fill-in host and regular contributor to Need To Know.
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