The word “outreach” is defined as the “extent or length of reaching out.” Most of us are familiar with conducting outreach at events or armories, and often times, that is the most effective way to reach veterans and service members. But what about the veterans and service members who are not attracted to these particular events? How do we engage those veterans or service members who believe they don’t need help, or are unaware that support is available?
If you feel that you don’t naturally gravitate to conducting outreach, I can relate. It can make me feel out of my comfort zone. If I don’t push past my initial instincts, I might simply avoid eye contact with people and not engage with them. However, if we think about the number of veterans residing in Michigan and compare it to the number of veterans and service members we encounter at events and in armories, we’ll find that there’s a large discrepancy between those veterans and service members we encounter verses those we do not.
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Adam at an outreach event
earlier this year
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But there are many tried and true ways to do outreach. Some simple tactics are to put brochures under the wiper blades of vehicles you encounter that have licenses plates indicating they belong to a veteran. Another good method is to post our flyers on bulletin boards in places like coffee shops, restaurants, and community centers—just make sure you ask for permission to do so first. Many volunteers have had success connecting with other veterans by striking up conversations with individuals wearing veteran-related apparel and then sharing our information and materials with those individuals if they’re interested.
Regardless of our comfort levels, if we resolve to make that extra effort to reach one more veteran, in these small ways, we are conducting one of the most effective forms of outreach.
Respectfully,
Adam Jando
Program Manager
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Stories from the Field:
Richie Roberts Helps a Veteran Stay in His Home
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Thanks to Buddy-to-Buddy volunteer Richie Roberts, a disabled veteran and his wife were able to stay in their home. Richie used the connections he has built over time as a volunteer to secure emergency financial assistance for the veteran, who had gotten behind on his mortgage payments due to chronic health issues.
To read the full story about how Richie was able to provide much needed assistance to a veteran in need,
click here
.
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Month in Review | July 2018
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Number of service members and veterans assisted:
41
Concerns identified:
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Top interaction log submitters:
Paul Jingozian - 25
Ron Springer - 14
Richie Roberts - 14
Steve Alguire - 13
Julia Treme - 8
Number of drill/outreach events:
24
Most drill/outreach events attended and logged:
Mark Lindke - 3
Ron Springer - 2
Cliff Tholen -2
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Thank you for taking the time to submit your logs and using the website to communicate with us. These submissions are key in helping us continue to serve Michigan’s veterans.
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This Month's Training Anniversaries
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The following volunteers are celebrating their training anniversaries with the program this month:
Seven Years!
Richard Edmonds
Billy Host
Six Years
Delia Baker
Five Years
James True
Two Years
Bianca Racine
Bill Stead
One Year
Brandon Dunlap
Stacey Hapner
Keven Johnson
Richard LeAnna
Steve LeAnna
Ron Zaleski
Thank you for your service!
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Save the Date for the 2019 Volunteer Recognition Event!
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We are excited to announce that our 2019 Volunteer Recognition Event will be held at the
Doherty Hotel and Conference Center
in
Clare
on
Saturday, April 20
. Mark your calendars! We will send more information as the date gets closer. It will be an event not to be missed!
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FAQ:
Can I recruit new volunteers?
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Absolutely! As a volunteer with the program, you have a good sense of what types of qualities are helpful when it comes to handling referrals and attending drill and outreach events. If you know or meet veterans who you think would make excellent Buddy-to-Buddy volunteers, let us know about them. Simply call or email us and consider directing that veteran to the
"Volunteer" page
on our website where they can learn more about what is involved with being a volunteer.
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Program Merchandise for Sale
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With the warm summer weather upon us, you could be wearing a Buddy-to-Buddy lightweight, performance material T-shirt to events, drills, and around town! To make this purchase, please call Ivy Promotions (a veteran-owned business) at 734-585-5149.
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When temperatures cool off, there are also blue zip hoodie sweatshirts, gray long sleeve T-shirts, black fleece vests, and travel mugs with handles all with a Buddy-to-Buddy logo. There are many sizes and several have both men’s and women’s styles. A percentage of all sales goes directly to support B2B.
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Has it been a while since you went through our New Volunteer Training? Do you think you might benefit from going through training again? If so, contact us about attending an upcoming training. We continually update our training content and think that any and all volunteers who are interested in refreshing their skills will benefit from going through the new and updated training.
Contact us to schedule a re-training...
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Need Any New Program Supplies? Let Us Know!
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If you are running low on program supplies or have outdated materials, such as business cards, brochures, or other documents, please contact Jamie Majer at (734) 998-5825 or
jmajer@umich.edu
and the supplies will be ordered and sent to you as soon as possible.
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Interested in Representing Buddy-to-Buddy at an Event?
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Would you like to represent Buddy-to-Buddy at a veteran-focused event in your community? Do you know of an event that you think someone from Buddy-to-Buddy should attend? If so, contact Adam Jando at
ajando@med.umich.edu
or (734) 998-5826.
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Volunteers Mark Lindke and Paul Jingozian with B2B staff members Jamie Majer and Adam Jando at the Region 9 VCAT VetFest in Brighton.
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B2B staff member Margy Howes picking up 520 cookies with the B2B logo on them that were given out by Adam Jando and volunteer Ron Springer to service members at the Grand Ledge Armory.
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Alfonse VanHese at the UP State Fair.
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Father and son volunteers Steve and Richard LeAnna at the UP State Fair
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Mark Lindke (right) representing B2B at a Vietnam Veteran Pinning Ceremony.
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Buddy-to-Buddy Volunteer Veteran Program
2025 Traverwood Dr., Suite C | Ann Arbor | MI | 48105
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