Event helps veterans navigate post-military life

Are you a veteran looking for a job, considering going to school on a military grant, taking out a home loan or needing to apply for health care benefits, but are having trouble figuring out where to start or how to get through all the paperwork?

Bring your questions, resume and documentation to a special information session, “Navigating Veterans’ Benefits,” from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 28, at the Krasa Student Center on the campus of Benedictine University, 5700 College Road, Lisle.

The Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs, state and local veterans resource providers and service organizations, benefit enrollment counselors and lenders will be present to answer some of the most frequently asked questions about veterans’ benefits such as:

Ÿ disability and health care coverage;

Ÿ eligibility and entitlement for loans; and

Ÿ post 9/11 G.I. Bill, Montgomery G.I. Bill and the Illinois Veterans’ Grant.

Employers also will be in attendance to discuss potential openings and speak with jobseekers.

Registration is required. To sign up, email partnershipevents@ben.edu.

With the information session, the university aims to provide area men and women of the armed forces an opportunity to network and find the answers they need to access their full range of benefits.

Filing for military benefits can be complicated and proper guidance can be very helpful. Veterans easily may overlook important entitled incentives, said Linda Alberty, associate director of educational partnerships at Benedictine University.

“The process can be daunting and sometimes overwhelming,” Alberty said. “Additionally, with changes in legislation or additions to existing benefits, it is not always easy to keep current on all the requirements. By providing this event, we are hoping veterans will leave with a sense of empowerment and appreciation for their service to their country.”

For information, call Alberty at (630) 432-3385.