Helping Clarksville: Military veterans use benefits to make economic impact in Montgomery County
While protecting the country is always at the forefront for soldiers at Fort Campbell, off the installation, they are making a big impact financially on Middle Tennessee.
Military veterans and their families make up at least 25% of the Clarksville community, Montgomery County Veterans Service Organizer Director Andrew Kester said.
Only Shelby County with 53,268 and Davidson County, 33,670, have higher veteran populations.
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Montgomery County is outpaced financially by Shelby and Davidson Counties.
In 2021, a total of $459,412,000 has come from veterans' disability benefits locally, Kester said.
Shelby County totaled more than $307 million while Davidson County totaled a little more than $161 million in veterans disability benefits.
Montgomery County a preferred destination for military
"This community is home for our military families, who are fully integrated
into the neighborhoods where they live, attend school and enjoy the culture
and entertainment," Fort Campbell Garrison Commander Colonel Andrew Q. Jordan told The Leaf-Chronicle.
Support for current or former military makes Clarksville-Montgomery County a preferred destination for many veterans, Jordan said.
"Fort Campbell supports more than 239,000 people, including active-duty soldiers, civilian employees and their families. The largest of our supported population is military retirees. More than 150,000 military retirees and their families choose to make this area their home and continue to inject into the local economy.
"Without the community, we would not have that economic impact on this region," Jordan said.
Though veterans are being assisted, Kester told Montgomery County Commissioners during a July 5 meeting that around 10,000 veterans are not using the benefits owed to them. The VSO files more than 9,000 claims each year.
"Montgomery County leads in economic impact over every other county across the state," Kester said in a release. "That is not seen directly in our office but in the community in economic impact dollars in education, entertainment and housing."
Montgomery County is among the top 4% for all military veteran populations in the United States and ranks 25th for total known veteran population.
"We keep and retain our veterans here, so we're doing something well," Kester said during the commission meeting. "We provide services for veterans; we have the jobs and infrastructure to keep veterans."
Veteran-owned businesses thrive in Middle Tennessee
Out of the 3,134 counties in the United States, Montgomery County ranks number 309 in overall population and 127 in total veteran population, Kester said.
He noted the impact from veterans is seen in education, housing and entertainment.
There are many veteran-owned businesses through Clarksville and Middle Tennessee as veterans seek their next career after service.
Since 2019, Kester said MCVSO has served more than 9,000 veterans each year with no reduction during the COVID-19 pandemic. And 80% of veterans served lived in Montgomery County, while 10% lived outside Montgomery County and 10% lived out of state.
“We make the biggest impact at our VSO and have the largest staff because of the support we receive from County Commissioners, our VSO board, the Mayor and the community, allowing us to provide the best services for our veterans,” Kester said in the release.
Reach reporter Craig Shoup by email at cshoup@gannett.com and on Twitter @Craig_Shoup. To support his work, sign up for a digital subscription to TheLeafChronicle.com.
This article originally appeared on Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle: Veterans services making financial impact on Montgomery County
