DECEMBER 2011
Veterans, staff, service providers, volunteers and friends of MACV all came together for the annual Holiday Open House at Building 47 on December 2nd.
Hosted by Jimmy Collier (the Metro Regional Director) with help from the entire Metro staff, the event is a great chance to reconnect with long time MACV supporters. It is also a wonderful opportunity for people who may be unfamiliar with MACV to meet our staff and learn more about what MACV does to support our veterans.
  
Rebuild Together at it again!
Rebuilding Together and MACV are continuing our wonderful partnership, not only enhancing, but expanding the housing MACV offers to veterans experiencing homelessness. On September 6th, Rebuilding Together organized a great group of volunteers from Target who painted, landscaped, and carpeted MACV's Richfield home, making it sparkle inside and out (they even purchased and installed a new range hood!). Also in September, Rebuilding Together partnered with the Honeywell Retiree Volunteer program who brought out the heavy machinery, constructing a new bedroom in the basement of a Minneapolis MACV house, adding space to house another veteran in our program.
BUILDING 47 Gets a Makeover!
On May 19th, Rebuilding Together and Honeywell performed a tremendous rehab at MACV’s Building 47 transitional housing program. Over 60 volunteers spent the day painting, landscaping, building new cabinets and, redecorating the building. The outcome is a fresh facelift in the building with new furniture, bicycles, kitchen fixtures, and gardens. The veterans in the program are thrilled with the outcome, and new residents will feel and appreciate these changes for years to come.
Click here to read more.
"A quilt is a gift of warmth and comfort for body and soul" says Maggie Tackman from her cheerful sewing room where she has crafted over 120 quilts for our military, many of which she has donated to MACV. The well-made practical twin quilts are made in a variety of unique designs and color combinations; a blanket comes with each quilt for added warmth and comfort. Maggie's homemade cookies and brownies are a welcome treat too!
Maggie Tackman drops off quilts for MACV veterans.
 
 
TDS is collecting donations for MACV at Tuesday home Saints games this summer. Watch for their booth at the main gate, where a donation to MACV will get you entered into a drawing for prizes at the game. Click here to read a StarTribune article on the promotion.
MACV’s Metro Regional Manager, Nathaniel Saltz appears on Kare11 to talk about the Care Connections promotion at upcoming home Saints baseball games.
Click here to watch the video.
 Give a Veteran the Gift of Technology
You can give a low income or homeless veteran the gift of technology. Due to financial constraints, many of our veterans must rely on public computer resources for resume writing, e-mail, and internet research on their benefits and assistance programs. While the libraries and community centers offer free computer access, they do not offer a means to store this information. A simple flash drive can make a huge difference in a veteran’s life, enabling them to keep their information in one location for easy retrieval, saving them time and frustration.
IT4U and the Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans are pleased to be accepting donations of cash and/or flash drives for our veterans’ community. IT4U staff will load each flash drive with various tools that would be useful in a veteran’s life including phone numbers, various templates, and other resources. All flash drives will then be distributed in August of 2011.
IT4U will proudly match each donation made in conjunction with a PC service appointment, up to $20.00.
Click here to find out more about IT4U.
MACV featured on KSTP News! Click here to reach the article.
You can make a donation specific to this program through our online donation button, just note “Flash Drives” in the comment section when you make your donation.
 Thank you to the AUSA Fighting Saint's Battalion ROTC Sub-Chapter St. Cloud members who volunteered to help with spring clean-up at MACV’s St. Cloud SIL Home!
 Metro Open House Welcomes Record Numbers
MACV held its Annual Holiday Open House on Friday, December 3rd welcoming a record number of guests for a gathering that brought together veterans, MACV staff, volunteers, board members and friends of MACV. The Open House was held at Building 47 on the VAMC campus.
The line of people was nearly out the door with standing room only for much of the afternoon. As those gathered enjoyed a buffet of refreshments and treats and the opportunity to visit, the building was filled with cheer and warm wishes for a great holiday season and a successful new year.
November 2010: Roundy’s Foundation (Rainbow Foods) Donates $2,500 to
MACV Metro
 
October 2010: Party with a Purpose Fundraiser
Mainstreet Bar and Grill
   
United Veteran Legislative Council August Meeting. Attendees flew to Camp Ripley in a C-130. Meeting attended by Nathaniel Saltz of MACV-Metro.
JUNE 2010: Supporting MACV's Misson: Terry Pieper VFW Fundraiser
Click here to watch the video
JUNE 2010: Senator Al Franken visits MACV Metro
 
MAY 2010: MACV Veterans and Staff at Twins Game Memorial Weekend
 
MAY 2010: Metro StandDown 2010 Fort Snelling Army Reserve Complex
Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans (MACV) held the annual MACV StandDown May 25-26, 2010 at the Fort Snelling Army Reserve Complex. This two-day event was the largest Metro StandDown to date, with 732 veterans seeking services from 65 agencies/organizations with the support of over 215 volunteers. Veterans attending the event were able to meet with representatives from various agencies regarding issues including Federal and State veteran benefits, housing and employment assistance, legal assistance, education assistance, tax help and free voicemail. Free meals, massages, and reading glasses were provided, and veterans could meet with Chaplains or attend a number of AA/NA meetings over the two days. Veterans also received military surplus clothing and sleeping bags, as well as donated civilian clothes.
 
 
Secretary of State Mark Ritchie introduced the “Vote in Honor of a Veteran” campaign at the StandDown Welcoming Ceremony held on Tuesday, May 25. Minnesota Dept of Veterans Affairs Commissioner Michael Pugliese also participated in the ceremony welcoming veterans and volunteers.
New to this year’s Metro StandDown was StandDown Court. Registration for court was held during Day One of StandDown. Court was held on Day Two at the Minnesota Judicial Center in Saint Paul, with transportation provided to the veterans from Fort Snelling. Veterans had the opportunity to resolve legal issues such as misdemeanors, petty misdemeanors, tickets, and non-felony warrant-surrenders with the assistance of volunteer defense attorneys. Cases were heard from the 7-county Metro area by several volunteer judges.
Read More about MACV StandDown 2010:
Minnesota Public Radio
Minnesota Lawyer
Click here to learn more about the MACV StandDown Program
Chisago Lakes Lutheran Church Quilt Donation
 
 
MACV on MPR News Q
Click here to read the article "The New Science of PTSD" by Jessica Mador, Minnesota Public Radio
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