Subscribe now to Veterans Life and $5 from your subscription fee will go to the Kitsap County Veterans Assistance Fund.

Subscriptions are $24 a year. Send a check to Sound Publishing, Inc., Attn: Circulation, P.O. Box 657, Kirkland, WA 98083. Or visit us at 19351 8th Ave., Poulsbo.

The fund is part of the Kitsap County Veterans Assistance Program, a division of the Kitsap County Human Services Department. State law requires that each county operate a veterans assistance fund, to be maintained in an account in the custody of the county auditor.

The assistance fund is funded by a small portion of property taxes and helps veterans and their families who are unable to pay reasonable costs for shelter, food, utilities, and/or transportation. Assistance is temporary — it’s not a handout, it’s a hand.

According to the county’s Veterans Assistance Program office, the fund is being strained by an increasing number of veterans applying for temporary help. These veterans might be receiving disability payments, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, nutrition assistance, Medicaid, or Supplemental Security Income.

Giving to the Kitsap County Veterans Assistance Fund will help the county meet the needs of veterans who might need help getting through a rough patch. In many cases, the course of their lives was affected by their service. It seems only proper that we stand ready to help these veterans and neighbors, as our lives were affected by their service as well.

In addition to temporary emergency assistance, the Kitsap County Veterans Assistance Program co-produces spring and fall stand downs; co-hosts “The Unforgotten, Run to Tahoma,” in which the remains of deceased veterans are escorted to Tahoma National Cemetery; and provides emailed information of importance to local veterans.

To learn more about programs available for veterans — and to provide input on those services and local veterans’ needs — attend a meeting of the Kitsap County Veterans Advisory Board. The board meets on the second week of each month, at 5:30 p.m., in the Silverdale Community Center’s Evergreen Room. And read Veterans Life to stay informed about issues and events of interest to local veterans and their families.