For veterans: Most important document for vets? It's your discharge documents.
One of the most frequent services that I provide is to help veterans or their next of kin find their DD-214 Discharge documents. When I was serving, I remember being told that the DD-214 is the most important document I would receive from my military service. It turns out that the DD-214 is genuinely an essential document!
The DD-214 is a summation of a veteran's time served in the military. It records such important information as awards, promotions, combat and overseas service, military occupational specialty, and training and schools completed. This document also contains codes used by the Armed Forces to describe a former service member's reason for discharge and their re-enlistment eligibility. The DD-214 is also used when applying for all sorts of veterans benefits, everything from property tax deductions to VA disability compensation — you simply must have a DD-214 to apply for benefits!
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Often, veterans lose track of their DD-214; the good news is that in the vast majority of cases, a replacement DD-214 can have by the veteran. There are four main places for Hoosier veterans where a replacement DD-214 may be found: the county recorders office, the Indiana State Archives, the Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Archives. The process to retrieve a DD-214 from each of these entities varies, but my office is knowledgeable of the various processes and we are happy to help you get a copy of the DD-214.
If you are a Monroe County, Indiana, resident and need assistance filing a VA disability claim or if you have questions about federal, state or local veterans benefits, please reach out to my office. Steven Miller, Monroe County Veteran Service Officer. 812-349-2537 smiller@co.monroe.in.us.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: For veterans: Lost your discharge documents? There's help available.
