Veterans Serving Veterans
Llano County Reaches Out in Multitude of Ways
In Llano County, “Veterans Serving Veterans” is more than just the name of a program – it’s a philosophy.
“As you know, veterans are a band of brothers, and we like to help one another,” shared Llano County Commissioner Ron Wilson, a veteran of the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps (JAG).
Wilson was drafted in 1972 and served as a JAG court reporter. While the possibility of deployment to Vietnam loomed, Wilson’s unit remained in service stateside. Following active duty, Wilson continued on part time in the U.S. Army Reserves as a court reporter until his honorable discharge in 1978.
JAG deals with the legal side of the military, Wilson explained. While Wilson’s experience included court martials and two instances of self-inflicted injury, proceedings were primarily “Article 15s” as designated by the Uniform Code of Military Justice. An Article 15 is considered non-judicial punishment, meaning that it is not considered a judicial proceeding. These types of infractions include disorderly conduct, disobeying an order and drug use, Wilson detailed. A soldier may, however, refuse to accept the Article 15 and instead demand trial by court martial.
Upon being drafted, Wilson reported to Fort Dix, N.J., for basic training followed by Advanced Individual Training at the Naval Justice School in Newport, R.I. While Wilson had to be trained as a military court reporter, he came into the post with a wealth of civilian experience.
While at Llano High, Wilson worked as a “printer’s devil” at the Llano News; he also held down a second job at Hasse’s gas station, pumping gas at $.29 cents a gallon. After completing training at McMahon College of Court Reporting in Houston in 1970, Wilson moved to Birmingham, Ala., and took his first job as a court reporter for the district courts. Two years later, he joined the Army JAG. While in the Reserves, Wilson was attached to a JAG unit in Dallas, where he also owned and managed a firm with some 30 employees.
Wilson returned to Llano in 2010 and served as a court reporter for then-Llano County Judge Wayne Brascom. During that time, the Commissioner in Wilson’s precinct chose not to run again, and Wilson was encouraged to “give it a try.”
“I had several issues that were dear to my heart,” Wilson offered, including serving the youth and improving the community by cleaning up the county, particularly the area around the Llano River. He ran successfully, was sworn into office as a Llano County Commissioner in January 2013, and plans to run for a second term.
When Wilson took office, Llano County supported a paid veterans service officer (VSO). However, the decision was made to defund the position, and Wilson asked if he could assume the position on an unpaid basis.
“I told my Judge that I would volunteer to do as much as I could to help our veterans,” Wilson recalled. He continues to volunteer to this day and is officially listed as the county’s acting VSO. In fact, the day Wilson spoke with County Progress, he had been contacted by an area veteran for assistance.
Along with allowing Wilson to serve as VSO, the Llano County Commissioners Court supports veterans via the VetRides and Veterans Serving Veterans programs.
VetRides assists veterans and their families in Llano, Lampasas and Burnet counties with transportation to and from Veterans Affairs facilities, hospitals, medical clinics, pharmacies and retail stores. The transportation is free of charge and can accommodate those with disabilities. The Llano County Commissioners Court has budgeted $5,000 for the VetRides program for the next fiscal year, according to Wilson.
The county also donates office space to the Hill Country MHDD Center and its Office of Veterans Services. The center provides mental health, individual developmental disability, substance abuse, and early childhood intervention services throughout the greater Texas Hill Country including Llano County, http://www.co.llano.tx.us/default.aspx?Llano_County/VeteransServingVeterans.