McDonnell appointed Wayne VA Director

By TOM KANE

HONESDALE, PA — A 20-year U.S. Marine gunnery sergeant has been appointed to be the Wayne County Veterans’ Affairs director.

Tom McDonnell has been on the job for two weeks.

Because of his own experience of leaving the Marines, he will emphasize the need to advise newly separated veterans of the Iraq War.

“When people are in active duty, when it is over for them, they want out,” McDonnell said. “They don’t want to sit around and worry about what benefits they have coming to them because often times they are young people and young people think that they’re going to live forever, never having medical problems. All they want to do is return to civilian life.”

McDonnell said that his office will assist returning veterans by directing them to the proper procedures to obtain education benefits, health benefits and V.A. home loans.

McDonnell will also direct his attention to the aging veterans of World War II because many of them will have difficulty proving their veteran status due to a major fire in St. Louis in 1973 that destroyed thousands of veterans’ records.

McDonnell’s office is located in the county’s Aging Office on West 10th Street in Honesdale. Office hours areTuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to noon.

Veterans can also make special arrangements for meetings by calling 570/253-4262, ext. 317.