HYANNIS – A local nonprofit has launched a transportation program to help veterans with rides to medical appointments and other essential services.
Cape and Islands Veterans Outreach Center Executive Director Jim Seymour said the client program provides rides to older veterans who are no longer able to drive or who cannot find another means of transportation.
“If you’re not taking care of yourself with your primary care or your dental work or any of that, that leads to physical breakdown, and you become less independent,” Seymour said.
He added missing appointments can be very challenging for clients since some medical offices book out 90 to 180 days in advance. The organization is partnering with livery and medical transportation services for the initiative.
In addition to the rides program, Seymour said they have raised their community profile over the course of 2022 with other vital services.
“In the last year, we’ve expanded from four food pantries a month to thirteen,” he said.
Seymour said he wants to explore more mental health counseling programs in 2023.
“Those resources here on the Cape are very limited and the need is growing,” Seymour said.
The group plans to be part of community conversations about developing more affordable housing since the crisis has impacted local veterans.
“For folks who are successfully navigating our (transitional) housing program, there’s no place for them to go,” Seymour said.
They will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony for its new food distribution center in Hyannis on December 16.
By Brian Engles, CapeCod.com NewsCenter
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