Seward County Veterans Service Office

The office. The Seward County Veterans Service Office is in the West Wing, 320 S. 14th Street, Seward, NE 68434, phone (402) 643-4105, [email protected]. The county's page gives hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Thursday and 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Friday; the State's directory (updated October 26, 2026) gives 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday and lists Ray Foreman as service officer with Kelly Jarzynka as assistant. The directory's link to the office (countyofsewardne.com) does not resolve; the county's site is sewardcountyne.gov. The page says the office "was created by state statute to assist veterans and their dependents in times of need", that the officer "serves under the Board of Commissioners" and that the office "also serves in an administrative capacity for the Veterans Service Committee". It lists VA disability and pension claims, dependency and indemnity compensation for widowed spouses, VA health care registration, home loan eligibility, education benefits, Veterans Home applications, burial and death benefits, Nebraska Veterans Aid applications and Seward County Veterans Aid applications (see the county aid entry). Under section 80-407 it is the veterans service committee that appoints the officer, subject to the Board's approval. The Board's year. On December 30, 2025 the Board authorized its chair to sign the Nebraska Department of Veterans' Affairs' memorandum of understanding putting the office on the department's VetraSpec claims database from January 1, 2026 to December 31, 2028. On June 2, 2026 Mr. Foreman and Dave Pankoke, for the Veterans Service Committee, brought names "submitted by the VFW posts throughout the county" for two vacancies, the minutes noting "the need for bylaws for the Committee"; the Board appointed Peggy Brown for 2026 to 2031 and Kyle Hinkle to the unexpired term to 2027. On October 28, 2025 Mr. Foreman asked to light the courthouse windows green for Operation Green Light, November 4 to 11. Each month the officer also introduces a Veteran of the Month to the Board (see that entry). The money. The Veterans function (0100-803) spent $96,552.91 in 2024-2025 and $107,446.78 in 2025-2026, and the 2026-2027 budget adopts $106,528.58, including $1,800 for grave markers ($1,880.17 spent in 2025-2026). The officer presented his office's and the aid fund's budgets to the Board on July 28, 2026. Discharges. The Clerk records a Form DD 214 brought to the office, and the fee schedule lists "Certificate of Discharge (DD214) No Fee" (see the Nebraska entry on the Discharge Record). Homestead certification. The Assessor's homestead FAQ, under "How do I qualify as a Disabled Veteran or their Widow?", lists the exemptions for a veteran totally disabled by a non-service-connected illness or accident, each "(annual certification required)", and sends the veteran to the Veterans Service Office first for a physician's form and the office's certification. The application under section 77-3508 is annual, but 77-3508(1)(c) says the medical certification need not be repeated when the condition has not changed, though the assessor may ask for it again (see the Nebraska entries).