Detroit VA will soon offer free, weekly rides to nearby hospital for veterans in need

Veterans in and around Detroit, Michigan will soon have access to free weekly rides to the John D. Dingell VA Medical Center. 

In the next few weeks, veterans will be able to call and reserve a spot on a 14-seat bus that will take them to the hospital for the care they so valiantly earned serving our country. 

“Lack of transportation and weather issues are problems veterans face,” said Don Howard, chairman of the American Legion Veteran Affairs in Michigan, which is hosting the program. 

“We have a lot of veterans that can’t make it down for exams. We are going to start with the Detroit VA once a week and see how that goes.”

The bus will leave on Wednesday mornings from the Downriver American Legion office located inside the Downriver Community Conference, 15100 North Line, Southgate.

“This is very important for our senior veterans, and the service is especially needed in southeastern Michigan,” Howard said. “We are working with Ann Arbor VA and the Detroit VA to make sure our veterans get the care they deserve.”

The Downriver American Legion offers many services for those who have served – a food bank, clothing store, employment office, and even more. The office opened five years ago and since then it has served more than 9,000 veterans. 

Apart from hospital visits, “whatever a veteran needs, we do here,” Howard said. “There’s no need to go to Detroit. We do it right here in this office.”

For more information, please call 734-720-7855.