Saratoga County hopes veterans find FAVOR
Discount card program redesigned
CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. » Saratoga County has redesigned its FAVOR (Find and Assist Veterans of Record) card in hopes it will get veterans to join a program that can help them and their families in a crisis.
The program was created by former county clerk, now state Sen. Kathy Marchione, R-Halfmoon, in 2011 as a way to return a favor to the veterans for their service. By submitting their discharge papers to the county the veterans get the card which, when shown to participating businesses, gets them a reduction on their purchases.
More importantly, with the discharge documents on file in one place, when a crisis hits, like a veteran needing admission to Stratton VA Hospital or in case of death, for a burial plot in the national cemetery in Saratoga, the proper papers could be easily accessed. It’s one worry the families or the veterans themselves would have covered.
The card’s redesign allows the veterans to display their branch of service and if eligible, their Purple Heart Medal designation. Present Saratoga County Clerk Craig Hayner said it is a way to keep the program innovative and get the attention of veterans who haven’t registered.
“The new logo is our way to honor the five military branches and to also recognize the service and sacrifice of the individual,” he said. “Starting on Nov. 13 veterans can come into our office and there will be the opportunity, if valor has been earned, for it to be placed on the FAVOR card with the logo. When you have a successful program you want to see it grow and this is our way of doing that.”
Hayner said when he came into office in 2014 one of the first things he did was form a committee to review how to keep the program vibrant. The redesigned logo was thought to be a way to reach more veterans as was the Purple Heart designation. Marchione, who joined Hayner for the announcement, said the program was popular from the start and the number of veterans who registered for it when it was initiated was more than the office could handle technologically.
“It is a program I can tell you even today that when I’m out, veterans come up to me and say let me show you my Return the FAVOR card,” she said. “It is an award winning program that says thank you to our veteran community not just from elected officials but from the business community that participates in this wonderful program.”
Frank McClement, the director of the Saratoga County Veterans Agency, used the announcement to discuss what he sees as the real benefit of the card for veterans.
“It’s not just 10 percent off a cup of coffee,” McClement said.
“It’s recording that discharge and making sure it’s available in time of crisis. I can’t tell you how many times we receive calls in a time of crisis where individuals are either looking to access burial benefits or hospitalization or medical benefits or other care related benefits and we have to go through a significant amount of red tape to obtain the discharge forms. If it was on file with the FAVOR card we’d have it within minutes and we could easily move forward with often life changing
benefits and services.”
McClement said having the card is a good opportunity for the 18,000 veterans who reside in the county. In many cases, he said, the benefits and services offered by his agency are indeed life changing.
“Often times,” he said, “those benefits and services include significant amounts of income, significant amounts of benefits or services. And they can all be had through meeting with people in my office yet it’s a population that’s hesitant to ask for help. That’s why we’re here, to get the word out.”
The first veteran to receive the newly redesigned card was Vietnam Veteran Dave Wallingford who served in the Marines.
“They should sign up now as soon as possible primarily so their record is on file in the event that they want to file a compensation claim or they need health benefits thru the VA. That document is step one in process.”
Wallingford said if any veteran has misplaced his or her discharge paper they should contact McClement and his office will take care of getting them a certified replacement. In addition to the announcement of the redesigned FAVOR card, the county has installed two military memorabilia exhibits with veterans’ photos and medals on the first floor of the library. The exhibits will be up for the month.