Since 1945, the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs has assisted generations of veterans returning home from active-duty military service and then deploying their hard-earned leadership skills and experience to significantly contribute to our state’s communities and economy. Veterans are proud, proven, trained and service-oriented Oregon citizens who benefit from earned federal, state and local programs designed to assist them in their transition back to civilian life and compensate them for their service and sacrifices on behalf of our nation.
On this page, you will find a directory of the programs, benefits and resources that ODVA administers to serve veterans and their families. It is our goal that you or a veteran you know receives the support you have earned and deserve. If there is something specific you are looking for, but cannot find it on this page, please do not hesitate to contact us at 800-692-9666,
customer.service@odva.oregon.gov or fill out our customer assistance form here.
Advocacy and Outreach Programs
Oregon is proud to be one of the top states in serving historically underrepresented and underserved populations, including veterans with unique needs related to their stage of life, by providing experienced, full-time special advocates and program coordinators dedicated to assisting them effectively, compassionately, and with cultural sensitivity.
With more than half of Oregon's veterans being 65 or older, the Aging Veteran Outreach Coordinator provides services directed at aging veterans, especially those receiving in-home care or care in long-term facilities around the state. The position is an integral part of the agency mission to ensure aging and vulnerable veterans receive the highest quality of veteran programs and benefits and priority representation from an accredited veterans service officer specializing in assisting veterans with benefits as they age. ODVA also offers priority representation to ensure each aging veteran has applied for benefits and is receiving all entitlements through the federal VA and other government and nonprofit entities. Learn more here.
ODVA's Campus Veteran Coordinator works directly with veteran resource coordinators at public universities and community colleges to help build a supportive community for veteran-serving campus professionals through advocacy, training, and regular meetings. The Campus Veterans Coordinator facilitates connections between campus partners and regional resources such as county and Tribal VSOs, VA medical and mental health care services, and others. For more information about student veterans and the resources available to help you achieve your educational and vocational goals, click here. You can also learn more about education benefits through ODVA by clicking here.
As Oregon has one of the highest rates of veteran homelessness in the nation, ODVA's Houseless Veterans Program collaborates with federal, state, county, and Tribal agencies, veteran services offices, and community homeless service providers to meet the urgent and unique needs of Oregon's diverse veteran communities challenged with housing stability. In addition to advocating for Oregon veterans experiencing or at risk for houselessness, the program provides direct service to veterans and their families seeking federal and state veterans' benefits, including access to local VA health care, documentation of service, as well as other available state benefits, and local homeless services organizations and low-income assistance programs. Learn more here.
First established in 2016, the Incarcerated Veterans Program works with veterans and the families of veterans entering or transitioning from the state prison system. Depending on the circumstances, justice-involved veterans may still be eligible for VA and other benefits, and ODVA Incarcerated Veteran Coordinators work with the Oregon Department of Corrections to determine eligibility and provide assistance as needed to connect veterans and their families with these resources. This work provides veterans and their families an opportunity to establish stability and mitigate negative outcomes during and after incarceration with state and federal veteran benefits, health and behavioral health care, re-employment and education programs, and more. Learn more here.
Oregon is proud to have been the first in the nation to establish a dedicated LGBTQ+ Veterans Program offering direct services to LGBTQ+ veterans to assist with military records corrections, discharge status upgrades, and service-connected disability compensation claims filing for VA benefits. The program also provides extensive outreach to engage and foster community with LGBTQ+ veterans and assists veterans in enrolling in specialized health care through a Veterans Health Administration LGBTQ+ Veteran Care Coordinator. Through these efforts, veterans within the Oregon LGBTQ+ community now receive trauma-informed and dignity-affirming care while also connecting with needed federal, state and local services. Learn more here.
An estimated 3,128 of Oregon veterans are American Indian and Alaska Native, representing Oregon's nine federally recognized and non-recognized Tribes. Tribal members have one of the highest records of military service per capita of any ethnic group, and Native American communities in Oregon have a long and rich history of honoring and supporting all veterans. Working with Oregon’s Tribes, ODVA continues to appreciate Tribal sovereignty and strong partnerships, providing annual Tribal veteran advocate training while supporting outreach events that honors Tribal veterans and raises awareness of veterans' benefits, programs and services across the state. Learn more here.
In 2015, the Oregon Legislature created the Women Veterans Program to improve outcomes for women veterans in five specific areas: outreach, advocacy, data, research and policy. Focused outreach and advocacy is achieved via listening sessions and ongoing outreach to women veterans across Oregon. This work increases awareness of women veterans and their unique experiences, issues and needs as veterans. This program specializes in assisting in the claims process with women veteran specific expertise, especially related to difficult or challenging claims involving military sexual trauma. The Women Veterans Program also supports women veterans in accessing their earned benefits, including specialized health care and other care needs. Learn more here.
Education Programs
ODVA is the State Approving Agency for the state of Oregon. The State Approving Agency is responsible for the review, evaluation, approval, and oversight of schools and training facilities to ensure state and federal quality criteria are met for veterans using their G.I. Bill® funds. Learn more about the State Approving Agency
here.
Fiduciary Services
Established in 1965, ODVA’s Conservatorship Program provides professional fiduciary services to manage income and assets of incompetent veterans and their families deemed incompetent by the federal VA to manage their federal resources. The conservatorship program assists veterans and eligible dependents in managing their financial affairs and property. Conservatorship helps to ease the burdens often associated with paying bills, collecting funds on debts owed to the veteran, corresponding with creditors, and buying or selling real-estate, or other investments. Learn more here.
Representative Payees serve veterans deemed incompetent by managing the veteran’s monthly income provided by the USDVA and/or the Social Security Administration. The Representative Payee applies for benefits, establishes budgets, arranges payment for care and other bills for services for the client. Learn more here.
Grants for Organizations
In partnership with Oregon Lottery and many other state agencies and local organizations, ODVA administers a number of grant programs that benefit veterans across Oregon. These grants provide funding for organizations and groups that support veterans in areas such as emergency assistance, education/on-the-job training, transportation, behavioral health and more.
The Campus Veteran Resource Center Grant is administered by the Oregon Department of Veterans' Affairs to expand and enhance Campus Veteran Resource Centers on the campuses of Oregon community colleges and public universities. The purpose of the grant is to augment existing campus programs that help veterans successfully transition from military service to college life, succeed in college and complete educational goals, and then transition from college to the workforce and the community. Learn more here.
The Rural Veterans Healthcare Transportation Grant Program was created in 2019 via legislative budget note (Senate Bill 5538 - Package 103). With an initial investment of $500,000, ODVA engaged the Oregon Department of Transportation Public Transportation Division in a partnership to develop and deliver healthcare transit for veterans living in rural areas, including access to physical, mental, and/or behavioral health. Learn more here.
Distance and transportation to and from medical appointments are routinely cited by rural veterans as the main obstacles to obtaining health care. One answer to this is the VA’s Highly Rural Transportation Program, which provides free transportation to and from medical appointments (not just those at VA facilities) to any veteran living in one of Oregon’s participating highly rural counties. Learn more here.
The purpose of the Veteran Services Grant Program is to fund eligible proposals that provide direct services to veterans that help improve outcomes in areas such as health or behavioral health care, housing security and houselessness, employment opportunities or stability, education and training opportunities, transportation accessibility and availability, or other critical services within a community, region, or statewide basis. Learn more here.
Grants for veterans
In partnership with Oregon Lottery and many other state agencies and local organizations, ODVA administers a number of grant programs that benefit veterans across Oregon. These grants provide funding for organizations and groups that support veterans in areas such as emergency assistance, education/on-the-job training, transportation, behavioral health and more.
The Oregon Veterans’ Emergency Financial Assistance Program is for veterans and their immediate family (spouse, unremarried surviving spouse, child, or stepchild) who are in need of emergency financial assistance. Assistance is granted one time only and average award amounts vary. Learn more here.
The Veterans Educational Bridge Grant is administered by ODVA to help veterans achieve their educational goals. This grant is specifically designed to provide some support to veterans who find themselves unable to complete their academic or training programs on time, due to the unavailability of a required class or training hours or debt on a student account that prevents registration. Learn more here.
The ODVA Home Loan was the first official benefit offered by the State of Oregon to veterans when the Oregon Department of Veterans' Affairs was established in 1945 — and remains one of the agency's signature programs to this day. Oregon is one of only five states that offers a veteran home loan program. This state benefit is available exclusive to Oregon veterans, separate and distinct from the federal VA's home loan guaranty, and has lent approximately $8 billion in low-interest home loans to more than 334,000 veterans since its inception. Learn more
here.
Care at the Oregon Veterans' Homes is an earned benefit available to veterans, their spouses, and parents who had a child die while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. To be eligible for this benefit, qualifying veterans must have served as defined by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (Federal VA) and received an honorable discharge from their branch of service. A physician's recommendation that skilled nursing care is needed is required in order to be admitted into either Veterans' Home.
Oregon currently has two veterans’ homes, one in The Dalles and the other in Lebanon. The Oregon Veterans’ Home program is a self-sustaining program that offers award-winning superior care at a lower cost to veterans and their families. To learn more about the Veterans' Homes, click here.
Oregon is proud to offer veterans a robust network of veteran services offices accessible in all 36 counties and on four Tribal lands across the state — enabling veterans to be served in and by their own communities. The Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs, through its Training and Certification Office (TCO) partners with counties and Tribal nations to train and certify veterans service officers who provide veterans and their families these free, confidential and critically important services that are accessible in every corner of Oregon.
ODVA's Appeals & Special Advocacy Division also serves Oregon veterans and their families by handling appeals of adverse rulings by the federal VA — which can include denials of disability compensation or other benefits to which the veteran believes he or she is entitled, or a disability rating that the veteran believes should be higher. To locate your closest veterans service officer and schedule a free appointment, visit our
Locate Services page.
ODVA's Veteran Volunteer Program is now statewide! Whether you've served in the military or not, if you're 18 years or older, we welcome you to join our cause, and start making a difference in the lives of veterans across Oregon. As a volunteer, you'll receive training to raise awareness about federal and state veterans benefits, and help expand outreach efforts alongside the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs and our partners. Your efforts directly impact the lives of veterans by providing crucial information and support. You'll assist veterans in understanding and accessing state and federal services, guide them to state-certified VSOs or other agencies, and contribute to expanding our outreach initiatives. Learn more here.