Last updated 5/8/2020. The original list of resources was originally sent in this email, and is far from comprehensive, but I hope it might still be useful. Thank you to Miriam Boyle, Robert Burke, Michelle Caver, Laura Gibson, Rachel Oblak, Richard Reed, Andre Wing, and others for sharing resources included below.

Go directly to:
Resources for Veterans, Service Members, and Families
Resources for the Community at Large
Resources for Seniors
Activities & Ways to Maintain Community

Veterans, Service Members, and Families

Vermont Veterans and Family Outreach Program: This peer support program helps veterans and their families obtain the benefits earned through their service. The outreach program can help with a variety of situations, so if you’re not sure where to start, these are great folks to get in touch with. You can find the outreach team member closest to you at this link, or you can call the 24-hour Military and Family Support Center at 1-888-607-8773.

COVID-19 & Quarantine Resources
Visit the Vermont National Guard Family Programs site for all sorts of info and tips relevant to the current situation, including COVID-19 info, financial and employment resources, mental health resources, childcare and home schooling tips, and more.

Veterans Crisis Line: Free, confidential support for Veterans in crisis and their families and friends. Available 24 hours a day. Call 1-800-273-8255 and press 1, or text 838255. Click here for more information. For support for deaf or hard of hearing, call 1-800-799-4889.

Referrals (non-crisis) to WRJ VAMC Behavioral Health via Phone or VA Video Connect (VVC): 802 295-9363 x 5760. During COVID, they’ve streamlined all behavioral health resources through this phone number for virtual (phone or VA Video Connect) outpatient medication or counseling/psychotherapy referrals.

COVID Coach for self-care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Comprehensive app from National Center for PTSD. Currently available on apple, soon to be available for Android.

Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) s a program to help very-low income Veteran families who are homeless or imminently at risk of homelessness gain and retain stable housing. Call 844.820.3232 or visit this link.

VA Claims Service Officers, are still available, as follows:
Joseph R. LaPerle, VFW Service Officer – VT
Office:  (802) 296-5168 (if you leave a message, it will take awhile to return your call)   Fax: (802) 296-5198   joseph.laperle@va.gov
Alaina “Keli” Murphy, American Legion – Service Office (VT)
Telephone: (802) 296-5166 (fast response time)   Fax: (802) 291-6266   alaina.murphy@va.gov
Vermont Office of Veterans Affairs 802 828 3379
Vietnam Veterans of America, Inc: Tom Jackson
covering southern VT  – vtvet4vets@gmail.com
Richard Reed vtvetadvocate@gmail.com

General

Not sure where to start? Call 2-1-1 for assistance. This is the number to dial to find out about hundreds of important community resources, like emergency food and shelter, disability services, counseling, senior services, health care, child care, drug and alcohol programs, legal assistance, transportation agencies, educational and volunteer opportunities, and much more.
The City of Burlington’s Resource and Recovery Center also has a lot of helpful information (focused on Burlington, but often applicable to everyone) arranged in an easy to navigate format.

Navigating Grocery Shopping, Prescriptions, Banking, Etc.
Visit the United Way of Northwestern Vermont’s COVID 19 Community Response page for advice and resources. Also includes volunteer opportunities, scam alerts, emergency loans, and more.

Food Access
If you’re experiencing food insecurity, visit Hunger Free Vermont to learn how you and your neighbors can access food.
Miss Weinerz (who donated the amazing donuts at last fall’s Veterans Town Hall in Colchester) is offering a free box of local food if you’re struggling to pay for food right now, no questions asked. (You can also donate to this program at the same link, and purchase items for delivery on her website.)

Setting Up Home Work Stations, Managing Neck & Jaw Pain, and more
Dr. Sarah Paquette of Compass Chiropractic has posted a variety of thoughtful, practical videos on YouTube. Click here to watch them.

Building Resilience
Created by game designer Jane McGonigal, SuperBetter is an app powered by a framework that activates the psychological strengths of game play to build resilience and success in real life.
Peer Collective is an affordable peer support line founded by Tim Desmond, author of How to Stay Human in a F*cked-Up World.

Vermont Department of Labor: To file an initial claim, call 1-877-214-3330 or 1-888-807-7072, or complete this form. The VT DOL has implemented an alphabetized order for Vermonters to file their weekly claims in an attempt to reduce call volumes and deliver benefits faster. Visit this page to see when you should file your weekly claim or receive assistance. You can find information for self-employed individuals and independent contractors at this page. If you’re having trouble getting through, get in touch with your state rep: A direct contact point has been created for state representatives to push individual cases with the Department of Labor. Legislator contact information is available at this link.

Seniors

Vermont Area Agencies on Aging: Information and help for older Vermonters and their families. Call 1-800-642-5119 to connect to your local agency or visit their website: Age Well (Northwestern Vermont) Central Vermont Council on AgingNortheast Kingdom Council on AgingSenior Solutions- Council on Aging for Southeastern VermontSouthwestern Vermont Council on Aging

Support Buddies: HANDS has partnered with Heineberg Community Senior Center to provide outreach to seniors in the Greater Burlington Area. This program partners isolated seniors, 60 years or older, with volunteers willing to help. Learn more.

Things to Do, People to See (for those of us with nowhere to go…)

There are a lot of things happening online and at home! Here’s a somewhat random assortment of activities that have caught my attention.

Vermont Adaptive’s Charity Ride has gone virtual! There are even more ways to participate this year: ride, stationary bike, run, walk, roll, do exercise classes, horseback ride, and more. Participate anytime and anywhere…from the safety of your own home or neighborhood. On June 20, join Vermont Adaptive online for a full day of livestream contests, hourly raffles, adaptive athlete interviews, interactive activities…and LOTS of prizes! Learn more.

Gardening: Interested in growing your own veggies this year? UVM’s Extension program has all sorts of up-to-date resources on their Gardening During Covid-19 page. Master Gardener are available to answer questions by email. You can submit your questions here.
Also check out foodfightvt.com, a platform designed for networking with-in the Vermont food system.

Fly Tying classes and more: Project Healing Waters’ virtual events calendar. Find more videos and news on the Green Mountain Project Healing Waters Facebook page.

A number of local yoga studios are streaming classes at reduced rates. Laughing River Yoga is offering online classes ($39-49 for three weeks unlimited). Sukha Yoga‘s classes are by donation while online, including chair/seated yoga. The Veterans Yoga Project is live streaming classes for veterans seven days a week. Down Dog is an app that leads you through custom yoga sequences (free through June 1st, and through July 1st for students and teachers, and for healthcare professionals).

Villari’s Martial Arts School is offering a variety of classes online, including a Chi Kung class Sundays at 10am. For more info, click here and here, or get in touch with them at younggrasshopper@comcast.net.

For parents: Sweethearts & Heroes has been hosting Superhero Talent Shows for kids on Instagram. You can find more content they’ve posted on their Facebook page. Also check out Villari’s (above) classes for different ages, and some of the concerts (below) are for children and youth.

Music & Dance: Seven Days is cataloguing local live-streamed concerts and dance parties, and you can find the latest weekly schedule at this link. See you on the dance floor?

Reading Material: Libraries offer a variety of online resources and may be offering curbside pick-up. Many local bookstores are available for shipping and/or curbside pick-up. The Center for Research on Vermont has a newsletter that includes heartening stories and thought-provoking info on Vermonters’ efforts to cope with COVID-19.

Sidewalk Chalk has become a popular form of expression…and is kind of hard to get. If you or your kiddo wants to get out and make some art, here’s a recipe for sidewalk paint made from corn starch and food coloring.