Center offers array of help for veterans
Jeff Heider, left, team leader and psychologist, and Ronda Kirby, a veteran from the most recent Iraq War and the center's office manager, are part of the team at the Kalispell Veterans Center at 690 N. Meridian Road, Suite 101.
The estimated 40,000 combat veterans in Western Montana have another option for counseling services.
A new Veterans Center opened at 690 N. Meridian Ave. on Nov. 1. The Vet Center is located in Suite 101 of the two-story building. It is one of 60 new veterans centers being opened nationwide this year.
Any U.S. veteran can use the services free. The services include treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder and issues with marriage, jobs, bereavement or sexual trauma.
Since there is not a military base close by, a majority of the veterans who will use the facility are in the Reserves or National Guard, said psychologist Jeff Heider, the center’s team leader.
Heider previously operated a private practice at 955 N. Meridian and has worked with veterans for 27 years. He brings with him some 50 veterans who were his clients.
Heider plans to do outreach to find other veterans who need counseling services. He’s willing to travel to Polson, Libby and Eureka, with plans already in place to see veterans in Polson once or twice a month at the Grandview Clinic.
“We want this ‘welcome home’ atmosphere,” Heider said, noting veterans can walk in without an appointment. The Vet Center’s motto is “Keeping the Promise” to care for veterans when they come home.
The Vet Center is eager to help veterans readjust to life when they return from combat operations.
Paul Hanna recently moved from Wasilla, Alaska, and specializes in marriage and family counseling. Hanna plans to start a spousal support group for spouses of those on active duty. Hanna is a 19-year Navy veteran who served in Kuwait.
Ronda Kirby, a combat veteran from the 2003 Iraq invasion, serves as the office manager. She notes that the divorce rate among veterans is much higher than the national average.
The Vet Center wants to help save marriages and help veterans not burn bridges, Heider said. Some examples include helping them not walk off jobs when they return or not get caught up in drug use.
Post-traumatic stress disorder is the main area of need for combat veterans, but they also may suffer from sexual trauma or bereavement issues.
It can take six months to several years for a veteran fresh off a tour to recover from PTSD, Heider said.
“It’s an individual thing,” Kirby said. “Everyone deals with it differently, even though there’s a lot of similar symptoms.”
Heider said he has seen some Vietnam veterans for 10 years. Others from that era he only counseled a few times. Treating PTSD earlier can help with a quicker recovery, he said, noting some have lived with the disorder for so long it has become part of their lifestyles. He helps those veterans learn to cope and expand their lives.
The Vet Center plans to hire a social worker within the next few months and eventually add a readjustment counselor.
Veterans also can obtain information on jobs and social services.
Heider said the Vet Center is separate from the VA Clinic and the Northwest Montana Veterans Food Pantry, which are located on Three Mile Drive and U.S. 2 East, respectively.
“We will complete a ‘circle of service,’” Kirby said. “We’ll work with the food pantry and the clinic,” she said, noting the center would help distribute 12 cases of milk donated to the food pantry recently.
There will be more than 260 Vet Centers nationwide when the new ones are built.
Montana’s other Vet Centers are located in Missoula, Great Falls and Billings.
For more information on the center, call 257-7308.
Reporter Caleb Soptelean may be reached at 758-4483 or by e-mail at csoptelean@dailyinterlake.com.