Lee Chauvette, of Athol who is seeking the office of State Representative for the Second Franklin District recently attended a meeting at the Greenfield Veterans Resource and Referral Center to hear Veterans concerns first hand and observe conversations with Veterans and Governor Deval Patrick. Chauvette said that while he is a candidate for office the long line of Veterans in his family makes him genuinely concerned for all Veterans past and present.
” In my family my Grandfather the late John Abbott of Orange was in World War I. My Father, Lionel Chauvette served in the Army during the Korean War as a personal chef to General Douglas MacArthur. Three of my uncles served, one during World War II and two during the Vietnam Conflict. Extended members of my family currently are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan along with family friends. Veterans are a very important part of my life.”
Chauvette stated that he was moved to hear the plight of a young female Veteran who returned home from service and found it difficult to access services during the off hours of local Veterans Services offices. ” She made it quite clear to Governor Patrick that more needs to be done to assist the new generation of disabled Veterans who return home.” Another woman the mother of a son who had served abroad talked about how the state needs to support the families of sons and daughters that fight for our country especially regarding suicide prevention. Chauvette said that one Veteran stood before the crowd and talked about himself as an alcoholic and how Veteran services said his life.
Chauvette stated that he did feel that Governor Patrick truly listened to the Veterans who spoke and that he took notes and informed Veterans he would have his staff look into their concerns. ” A lot is said about our current administration and the state budget etc but I personally witnessed Governor Patrick’s commitment to the Veterans that were there and I witnessed him caring about what they had to say.” Chauvette feels that the Veterans Resource and Referral Center in Greenfield is a tool for Veterans that needs to be replicated in other communities.
Chauvette said, ” My commitment to helping the Veterans of the Second Franklin District extends beyond campaign rhetoric. I truly care that our past and current Veterans get the help they and their families need to assist them back into the main stream. They have fought hard for us now we need to fight the fight for them.”
