Veterans get rides through national program operated at VA Butler Healthcare
BUTLER TWP — Whether it’s a local drop-off after a half-hour trip or a drive to a hospital in another state, Lee Dyer enjoys his time behind the wheel for VA Butler Healthcare because of the stories he hears along the way.
Dyer, who regularly takes veterans to lifesaving appointments for chemotherapy or dialysis, said his passengers also relish the opportunity to speak with someone, usually about how they met their significant other or about their children.
“It's not just a ride back and forth,” said Dyer, who began volunteering about three months ago. “It’s listening.”
The Disabled American Veterans Transportation Network operates a fleet of vehicles around the country to provide free transportation to VA medical facilities for injured and ill veterans. The agency has provided vehicles to VA Butler Healthcare Healthcare, and the VA organizes volunteers and schedules trips for clients who may otherwise not be able to get to medical appointments.
Amy Tomko, voluntary services officer and chief of the Center for Development and Civic Engagement at the VA Butler Healthcare, said there are slightly more than a dozen active volunteer drivers for the VA. VA Butler Healthcare Healthcare, which serves five counties, provides roughly 150 trips a month through the program, but with a few more volunteers, the agency could fulfill all requests for trips, she said.
“There is a huge demand,” Tomko said. “We could do more if we had more drivers; and we're working on having more vans donated.”
Tomko said volunteers can sign up to drive as often as they want and can take on long trips to places such as Cleveland, Ohio, regional trips to Pittsburgh or even local trips around Butler County. Eligible veterans can request a ride through the Disabled American Veterans Transportation Network and can receive a ride as long as it is a VA-sponsored appointment.
From there, the VA Butler Healthcare calls out for available drivers. On the day of the trip, the driver will go to the Abie Abraham VA Clinic on North Duffy Road to pick up the proper vehicle, whether it be a van or wheelchair-accessible shuttle, drive it to the veteran and take them to their appointment.
“(Veterans) can call our office and what we do is work with them, and we determine next week how many drivers we have,” Tomko said. “The driver takes them, drops them off and helps them get to their actual appointment.”
The drivers go through a vetting process, which includes a physical and some safety checks, before training on driving and using equipment in the specialized vehicles. On Wednesday, Aug. 30, Tomko and Jack Hutchinson, who has been volunteering for about a year, demonstrated the use of a wheelchair-accessible van, which requires the driver to operate the platform that lifts a wheelchair into the cabin.
Hutchinson, who started volunteering after he retired, said it is a rewarding experience. The longer the trip, the more conversation he gets to have with a military veteran, he said.
“I don't have any problem doing the long trips ... a lot of the guys don't like to deal with the city traffic,” Hutchinson said. “I lived in Pittsburgh for a number of years, so that part doesn't bother me. The driving doesn't matter.”
Tomko said the VA has a few incentives for volunteers, as well as volunteer appreciation events a few times a year, but most people who donate their time to the agency do it as a way to give back to military personnel.
Hutchinson and Dyer said they come from military families, and Dyer is a veteran of the Navy, having served during World War II. They each said having an opportunity to perform services to veterans is a privilege.
“I love every minute of it,” Dyer said. “We should take care of our veterans. That's what we're doing, and I feel very honored to do it.”
For more information on the volunteer driving program, contact Tomko at amy.tomko@va.gov, or call 724-477-5010.
