Wayne County's Veterans Service Office, on the lower level of the County Annex, 401 East Main Street, Richmond (765-973-9200 ext. 1651), helps veterans and families with VA and Indiana claims, Monday to Friday 8 to 4; service officers Michele Padgette and Buddy Strunk. It also runs a yearly resource fair, keeps a donated veterans' emergency fund and lists the county's veteran events.
Also called: CVSO, county veterans service officer, claims help, Michele Padgette, Buddy Strunk, Annex Building, 401 East Main Street, 765-973-9200, IC 10-17-1-9, accreditation, emergency fund, Veterans Connect Resource Fair, Veterans Day parade, Richmond, Cambridge City, Centerville, Hagerstown, Fountain City, Dublin, Milton, Economy, Boston, Greens Fork, Mount Auburn, Spring Grove, Whitewater, East Germantown.
For: Veteran or service member, spouse, child, survivor.
Indiana requires every county to employ a veterans service officer (IC 10-17-1-9; see the Indiana entry). Wayne County's office helps veterans, dependents and survivors with VA compensation, pension, health care and education claims and with the Indiana benefits its page lists (the property tax and excise benefits, the tuition remission for children of disabled veterans and Purple Heart recipients, and the veterans' licence plates).
Who and where. "Veteran Services, 401 East Main Street, Richmond, IN 47374. Located on the bottom level in the Wayne County Annex Building. Open Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:00 p.m. Veteran Service Officer: Michele Padgette. Phone: (765) 973-9200 x1651. FAX: (765) 973-9493." The Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs' locator lists Michele Padgette ([email protected]) and Buddy Strunk ([email protected]) at the same address and numbers. The Auditor's deductions page gives the office as (765) 973-9207; use the extension above.
Accreditation. On February 11, 2026 the Department's Joe DeVitto briefed the Commissioners on the standards the State adopted for 2026: service officers must be accredited and keep it, each must work at least 1,000 hours a year, and all attend a June training.
The emergency fund. The county has a veterans' emergency fund fed by donations; the October 22, 2025 Commissioners' minutes record a $5,000 gift to it from Indiana Aquatics, and "veterans' assistance" claims appear on most months' claim dockets. The county publishes no rules or application for it, so ask the office whether you qualify. In December 2025 the office also bought Christmas gifts for 16 veterans at the Brickyard nursing home with public donations.
Events. The office's page lists the Veterans Connect Resource Fair (July, at the First Bank Kuhlman Center at the fairgrounds, which the Commissioners lent free for 2026), the Memorial Day ceremony and the Halloween "Rolling with Candy" trunk-or-treat at the Wayne County Veterans Memorial Park, the Veterans Day parade (November 7, 2026, noon, lining up on 12th Street), Coffee with a Veteran in Centerville and the Black Legacy Project's free veterans' dinner at American Legion Post 65. The local VA clinic is at 1010 North J Street, Richmond, (765) 973-6915.
Thresholds
Thresholds for Wayne County (Indiana) Veterans Service Office
Gate
Rule
Veterans and their families
Any veteran, dependent or survivor in Wayne County can use the office. No rating is needed; the emergency fund has no published test.
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Disclaimer
VetTOC is not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the Department of Defense. Information is for reference only and is not an eligibility determination. Verify with VA, the relevant state or territory, or an accredited VSO.