Licking County Veterans Service Commission: Temporary Financial Assistance

The Licking County Veterans Service Commission is the county's commission under Revised Code chapter 5901; see the Ohio entry on county veterans service commissions. Its office is at 935 Buckeye Avenue, Newark 43055 (740-670-5430, fax 740-670-5434), closed noon to 1 p.m., and it keeps a second office in Pataskala. In 2026 it restructured for growth, from 8 employees to 12, and the board heard in May that it had granted $310,633.62 of assistance and carried 882 veterans to appointments that year, for about 12,000 county veterans. The five commissioners are Gary Jones (president, Vietnam Veterans of America), David Conner (vice president, American Legion), Dan Ohde (secretary, at large), Wendy Ragnone (Veterans of Foreign Wars) and Dwight Reynolds (at large), and the commission meets the fourth Wednesday of each month at 4:30 p.m. (the third Wednesday in December) at the Newark office. What it pays. Emergency, temporary help with food, housing and utilities. Emergency assistance is by law not meant to replace or supplement income. How much and in what categories is the commission's own policy, and it is not published, so ask the office. How to apply. By appointment only, Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Applications are not taken on the fourth Tuesday, Wednesday and last Friday of each month, or after the third Tuesday in December. Bring the county's checklist: the most recent DD-214 or DD-215, or military ID if still serving; a current Ohio photo ID; proof of 90 days' residency, such as a lease, mortgage statement, rent receipts, bank statements or a utility bill; marriage, birth or death certificates; every source of income in the household for the past 30 days, including roommates and significant others; all bank account activity for the 60 days before the appointment; and 30 days of outgoing expenses, down to paid medical, car repair and property tax. A landlord statement is wanted where rent is unpaid. An applicant who does not return grocery receipts from earlier assistance, or misses the appointment, may lose future eligibility. Unemployed veterans must be actively seeking work or bring medical evidence of the inability to work. The checklist asks for a "verification of honorable service", which the statute does not: a discharge under honorable conditions, including a general discharge, qualifies under 5901.01(B), so a veteran with a general discharge should apply and cite the section. Claims help, flags and documents. The office's accredited service officers file VA claims free and follow appeals. The office supplies grave flags and markers for any Licking County veteran's grave (each cemetery sets its own placement rules) and helps recover lost documents, such as a DD-214, marriage licence or medical record, though it will not pay the fee to get them. Burial. Section 5901.25 has the commission bury or cremate a veteran, or a veteran's parent, spouse or surviving spouse, who died without means, with up to $1,000 from the county (see the Ohio entry). No page of the county or the commission describes its practice, so call 740-670-5430 before signing a funeral contract.