Over the last 46 days I have traveled many miles while visiting the facilities and staff that make the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs (MDVA) the successful organization that it is.  I have met hundreds of our MDVA team members and stakeholders.  I relay to you that I have been very pleased with the attitude and professionalism that I have witnessed at both the Veterans Homes and the Programs and Services staff.  I continue to get unsolicited positive feedback in regards to the way our staff engages with Veterans throughout Minnesota and I am so proud of the work they do each and every day for our nation’s heroes.

I wanted to take a moment to discuss my initial priorities for the agency.  This is not an all-inclusive list but I thought you might be interested in the items that we will be working on collectively over the next couple of years.

These are the five areas that I see as a starting point for improvement:

1. Every Veteran will have a place to live.  We will end Veteran Homelessness during my tenure and become the 4th state to achieve this in the U.S.
2. Significantly increase outreach to Vietnam, Gulf War, OIF and OEF Veterans.  These Veterans need our help and we are here to serve them.
3. Optimize each of our facilities to make them more sustainable. Embracing sustainable goals at each facility is now required as part of what we do every day.
4. Obtaining federal approval and funding for the three new State Veterans Homes in Preston, Bemidji and Montevideo.
5. Developing a capital replacement and renovation plan.  We will spend time over the next two years to assemble a 30 year plan that will guide our future renovations and new construction.

If I haven’t met YOU yet, I hope to soon. Please make sure to introduce yourself and ask me any questions you may have. Thank you for all you do for Minnesota’s Veterans.