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Mlnarik and Veterans Service Office staff guide veterans through paperwork jungle

Gretna Breeze - 3/6/2018

Tom Mlnarik holds one of the good guy jobs.

He is the Sarpy County Veterans Services officer, and he and his staff are there to make sure veterans get what they've earned.

And what veterans have earned can be substantial, ranging from tracking down medals and providing home-based health care, to stellar education, health care and home loan benefits, to pensions for the veteran and his or her surviving spouse.

Mlnarik has two full-time staff members working with him, plus a part-timer. Together, he said, they take veterans and walk them through the unavoidable paperwork and documentation submission that is integral to applying for federal, state and county benefits, a task from which many veterans shy away.

"That's what we do here, all the time," Mlnarik said. "We do it for them. We hold their hands all the way through.

"And it's very rewarding work, to see someone come to you for assistance and you know you helped them get the benefit they needed. Maybe they didn't have good health care. Now they've got good health care. Or they're getting compensated for a disability that they incurred during service, so now they have some funds that allows them to do things they couldn't do before."

Mlnarik's records show Sarpy County has approximately 20,000 military veterans, which, considering their children are often eligible for benefits, means that some 50,000 county residents - about 28 percent of the county's population - could be served by his office.

He said the most rewarding work involves helping the surviving spouses of veterans, many of whom have no idea what their spouse was receiving or what the survivor might be eligible for.

"Unfortunately, some of our veterans don't always share everything with their spouses, and those spouses come in here just lost," Mlnarik said. "They don't know what he was getting benefits for, don't know what they were going to get when he or she was gone, and we help them go through that process. If they hadn't come in here they might have got nothing. They're very grateful."

The support available to surviving spouses is sometimes substantial, Mlnarik said.

Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, for example, a tax-free benefit paid to survivors of military service members who died in the line of duty or whose death resulted from a service-related injury or disease, can reach $1,200 a month. Homestead exemptions from property taxes are also available.

"I get an 80-year-old widow in here three days after her veteran husband passes, and she doesn't know what to do or where to start," Mlnarik said. "We walk her through the whole process. Where else would she go? If she calls the VA's toll-free number and is lucky enough to talk to someone, they'll probably send out a package of information on paper. That's all they get. We just take over. We're lucky to be able to do that."

Mlnarik is himself a 30-year Navy veteran - active duty and reserve. He said it is important veterans receive an honorable discharge when separating from the military. That is the only level of discharge that provides educational benefits, which after just four years of service, will pay full tuition in addition to a housing stipend and a book allowance.

"The education benefits are very good," he said.

A military service member nearing separation will receive guidance about benefits through base counselors, he said, although it never hurts to touch base with the veterans service office in their county of residence. After separation, he said, the county office will be their primary resource.

The Sarpy County Veterans Office can be reached at 402-593-2203 or 402-593-2204.

It is located in Bay 5E in the Sarpy County annex at 1251 Golden Gate Drive in Papillion.

The office hours are 8 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Walk-ins are accepted Mondays and Fridays.

Appointments are required Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.