Mat-Su Winter Preparedness Project provides services for Valley veterans this year

The Alaska Warrior Partnership (AKWP) is offering services through their Mat-Su Winter Preparedness Project for veterans this year. These services include snow removal, emergency firewood and a sense of community. AKWP Program Lead Jessy Lakin noticed a need for this service after both his organization and other veteran-oriented organizations received calls for veterans requiring assistance.

“We get the call,” Lakin said. “All of us have been getting the call for years, and we've been responsive. How can we get proactive?”

Lakin first noticed this issue after receiving a call about a man living alone in an Airstream trailer. Lakin was serving as the Director of Operations at Battle Dawgs at the time and responded by providing the man with firewood as a “veteran helping veteran,” Lakin said.

After taking a new position with AKWP, Lakin returned to check on the man. In less than two weeks, the man had lost his ability to call for help.

“He ran out of all that firewood,” Lakin said. “And he was then, at that point, essentially freezing to death.”

Lakin was able to connect the older gentleman with other local veteran’s programs that provided him with a working vehicle and more firewood. Lakin began brainstorming the following summer on how to be better prepared for these types of emergencies.

“I started doing research, I started making phone calls,” Lakin said. “I started trying to find as much data as I could, figuring out if there was a need for supporting people with firewood and emergency snow plows.”

Other groups including State Troopers, the Mat-Su Borough and emergency responders all agreed that this was an issue they were seeing in the Valley, according to Lakin. Lakin addressed this by contacting and planning with other veteran organizations.

The Mat-Su Winter Preparedness Project was created as a solution to this issue. A partnership with the Mat-Su Health Foundation provided AKWP with a grant to service 15 warriors last year. AKWP and its volunteers provided 521 services to veterans in 2023. 37 of those services were for Tier 1 Veterans. These services take top priority, and had action not been taken within 24 hours, serious harm to life or even death could have occurred, according to Lakin.

Lakin pointed out that part of the program is to help veterans to graduate and help find them better living situations. 17 veterans graduated from the program last year. Seven were connected to Veteran Affairs (VA) Benefits. 12 moved into housing programs. Eight veterans were connected to Meals on Wheels programs. This project also connects veterans struggling with mental health issues with professionals that can work with them.

“We realize there’s a huge need,” Lakin said.

AKWP used the information from last year to create a better plan for this winter. A partnership with Papoose Milling in Big Lake provided a source for firewood. Working with other veterans programs provided AKWP with an all-encompassing location to store and prep firewood, as well as other supplies. A grant from the Mat-Su Health Foundation is also providing funds for the program this year.

“We had a bunch of lessons learned over the winter, and we kind of put it in play to move forward this winter,” Lakin said.

The Mat-Su Winter Preparedness Project provides free services to veterans 65 years old and older and their families. Disabled veterans that have difficulty with winter tasks can also receive support. AKWP can help veterans take advantage of other programs that are available for them.

“We look at it in a holistic mindset of what's the best way to serve them and then get them self-sustaining or move them into a better situation,” Lakin said.

Veterans that need support this winter can call the Mat-Su Winter Preparedness Project at (907) 312-7229 or by signing up on the AKWP website at https://www.alaskawarriorpartnership.org/ Those with smartphones can also scan the provided QR code.