WASHINGTON – For as long as the United States has had veterans, the nation has also had men and women who volunteered to help in the care of the wounded, the sick and the injured.
But 60 years ago, a partnership was formalized when the Veterans Administration (VA) created an office to oversee the volunteers assisting at the agency's facilities. That office now has about 140,000 volunteers on its rolls, with 94,000 contributing more than 13 million hours last year. VA would have needed 6,200 employees to replace the time donated by the volunteers, at a cost of nearly $228 million.
"Volunteers have always been at the heart of VA," said R. James Nicholson, Secretary of Veterans Affairs. "They free our doctors, nurses and technicians for work that only a professional can do. They are visible proof, especially to our combat-wounded, that the nation deeply appreciates the many sacrifices of our veterans."
In April 1946, former General of the Army Omar Bradley, then head of the Veterans Administration, convened a meeting of veterans groups and welfare organizations to establish a national plan for volunteer assistance at VA facilities.
From that meeting grew the Voluntary Service Office that now works with more than 60 national groups to provide volunteers for the Department of Veterans Affairs.
“Our volunteers take your breath away with their spirit, selflessness and dedication," said Dr. Jonathan B. Perlin, VA's Under Secretary for Health. "Our health care system is immeasurably better for their priceless contributions."
Volunteers assist hospital staff. They work in nursing homes, hospital wards, clinics, recreational activities, end-of-life care and many other programs. They also work in national cemeteries and benefits offices.
