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Today, Feb. 19, the Readjustment Counseling Service branch of Veterans Affairs visited in their mobile center. Their goal was to reach out to local veterans who might be having trouble transitioning back into civilian life.

“What we do is provide mental health counseling for veterans and their families,” Readjustment Counseling Therapist Mark Buckler said. “We help with things like PTSD or just readjusting from military life to civilian life, because sometimes that’s a very difficult transition to make.”

For a population like Steilacoom where many students and staff are connected to the military, Pierce is an ideal place to help empower veterans to get care that they are eligible for.

“A lot of people get out of the service and they have no idea what benefits are available to them out there,” Buckler said, “and while our focus is mental health counseling, we do have a staff member on board who can help them answer some VA benefit questions and can point them in the right direction if they are having trouble claiming VA benefits.”

For more information regarding Veterans Affairs and the Readjustment Counseling Service, go to www.vetcenter.va.gov or call the Tacoma Vet Center at 253-565-7038