On February 13, 2024, just two months after being hired to lead the new Ottawa County Veterans Affairs Department, Jason Schenkel shared that he had completed his assessment, and from that he had created a Strategic Plan to help the 12,000 veterans and their families who call Ottawa County home.

“Our location doesn’t feel like the Department of Veterans Affairs,” Schenkel told the Ottawa County commissioners. Schenkel’s department currently is located in Holland, Michigan, in the same building as Ottawa County Health Department (OCHD). While thankful for the hospitality of the OCHD, many veterans seeking mental health services may avoid coming to a shared space. A veteran may not feel comfortable in a room with children waiting for medical services or others looking for STD testing. “We really need to look for a different space that makes people feel welcome, and it’s their space,” Schenkel said.

Another concern is geography. “Right now, we’re more the Holland Department of Veterans Affairs than Ottawa County,” he said. “We love it there, but there are some geographical needs in the county.”

Schenkel has shown determination and a passion to help the veterans of Ottawa County get what they need. That determination and passion paid off on November 12, 2024, when the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners helped Schenkel with his “Deeds, Not Words” approach and approved $981,740 in ARPA funds to the Department of Veterans Affairs. These funds will provide the department with new space for the veterans and more staff to help Ottawa County serve more veterans and their families.

The Department of Veterans Affairs will be setting “the flagpole in the center,” so to speak, by moving their office to the Fillmore Complex.

“I have elderly veterans that have to navigate a lot of blueberries and cornfields to get from Coopersville and Marne to Holland—a lot of blueberries and corn from Spring Lake,” Schenkel said.

Some commissioners were concerned about transportation to the new location, but Schenkel assured them transportation is in place. The department has a contract with Hope Network and a robust volunteer network to help with transportation. “If someone would call us today, I have wheels. I will travel,” Schenkel said.

“We don’t have the facilities that other counties have. We don’t have the resources that other counties have.” Schenkel continued, “It will give us a space that will allow our veterans to have private conversations with Veterans Services Officers about their claims and compensation. It will give us an opportunity to have private conversations about after-life care after a veteran passes away.”

In the new space there also will be a private shower and laundry space to help the veteran population that needs those services.

The $981,740.01 that the Board approved for the expansion will fund the department for two and a half years. These funds come from the Board Initiative Fund, which are unspent ARPA dollars, and will help get the Department of Veterans Affairs get to a spot where they then can ask for a millage moving forward in 2026.

The Department doesn’t have the funding available to fund its own ballot initiative due to wanting to be responsible with the funds it has been given to date. So, the millage will have to wait until 2026 when there is a ballot that would allow them to participate for free.

The Board responded without a “but” or “however.” Instead, in a 9–2 vote, they voted for the Department of Veteran Affairs to receive the funding to move forward with the department’s Strategic Plan, helping the department catch up to the other counties. Commissioners Jacob Bonnema and Doug Zylstra voted against funding for the veterans.

The determination and passion Jason Schenkel and his committee have for veterans have paid off with the help of Ottawa County Board of Commissioners and extra ARPA funds—ironically, the day after Veterans Day.