Benefits & Services

The Veterans Service Office processes claims for the following:

The Veterans Office supports all local veterans organizations and the Sampson County Veterans Council. The office offers support for homebound veterans and/or veterans and dependents confined in nursing homes to ensure continuation of benefits.

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DISABILITY COMPENSATION
Monetary benefits known as disability compensation are paid to veterans who are disabled by injury or disease incurred or aggravated during active military service. The service of the veteran must have been terminated through separation or discharged under conditions that were other than dishonorable. Disability compensation varies with the number of dependents, and is paid monthly. The payment of military retirement pay and separation known as SSB and VSI (Special Separation Benefits and Voluntary Separation Incentives) also affects the amounts of VA compensation paid.


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DEPENDENCY INDEMNITY COMPENSATION, (DIC) 
Widow's or Widower's of Service Connected Veterans who die of their Service Connected Disability or who have been receiving Service Connection for over 10 years and have been married to their spouse for 8 of those 10 years are eligible to apply for DIC with the DVA. Eligibility will be determined by the VA.

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DISABILITY PENSION
Veterans with low income may be eligible for monetary support if they have 90 days or more of active military service, one day of which was during a period of war. The discharge from active duty must have been under conditions other than dishonorable. The veteran must be permanently and totally disabled for reasons not traceable to willful misconduct. Payments are made to qualified veterans to bring their total income, including other retirement or may be reduced by unreimbursed medical expenses. Pension is not payable to those who have assets that can be used to provide adequate maintenance.

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DEATH PENSION AND ACCRUED BENEFITS SURVIVING SPOUSE OR CHILD

Widow's or Widower's of Non Service Connected Veterans who have served their country and have a Honorable or General Discharge with low income may be eligible for monetary support from the VA. Eligibility will be determined by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Contact the Veterans Service Office for assistance in filing for Death Pension Benefits.

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HOME LOAN GUARANTIES
VA guarantees loans made to service members, veterans, reservists and un-remarried eligible surviving spouses for the purchases or refinancing of homes, condominiums and manufactured homes. VA guarantees part of the total loan, permitting the purchaser to obtain a mortgage with a competitive interest rate, even without a down payment if the lender agrees. The VA requires a down payment for the purchase of a manufactured home. VA also requires a down payment for a home or condo if the purchase price exceeds the reasonable value of the property or the loan has a graduated payment feature. With a VA guaranty, if the borrower fails to repay the loan, the VA will pay the loan up to the guaranteed amount. A VA loan guaranty can be used: (1) to buy a home; (2) buy a residential condominium; (3) build a home; (4) repair, alter or improve a home; (5) refinance an existing home loan; (6) buy a manufactured home with or without a lot; (7) purchase and improve a home; (8) buy and improve a manufactured home lot; (9) refinance an existing VA loan; (10) install a solar, heating or cooling system, weatherization or other improvements; and (11) refinance a manufactured home loan to acquire a lot.

Eligibility: Applicants must have a good credit rating, have an income sufficient to support mortgage payments, and agree to live in the property. To obtain a VA certificate of eligibility, complete VA Form 26-1880, "Request for Determination of Eligibility and Available Loan Guaranty Entitlement", and submit to the nearest VA Regional Office. The Veterans Service Office will be glad to assist you in this process.

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EDUCATION AND TRAINING
Veterans are eligible to apply for Education Benefits under the following programs. 

Montgomery GI Bill 
Post 9/11 GI Bill 
Reserve Educational Assistant Program (REAP) 
Veterans Education Assistance Program (VEAP) 

Dependent's Education Assistance Program (DEA) Chapter 35
Contact the Veterans Service Office 910-592-2862 for more information

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VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION

A disabled veteran may receive employment assistance, self-employment assistance, training in a rehabilitation facility, college or other training. Severely disabled veterans may receive assistance to improve their ability to live independently.

Eligibility: Veterans and service members are eligible for vocational rehabilitation if they:

  • suffered a service connected disability or disabilities in active service and are receiving at least 20% compensation or would if not for receiving military retirement pay (veterans with a 10% disability may also be eligible if found to have a serious employment handicap); or
  • were discharged or released under other than dishonorable conditions or are hospitalized awaiting separation for a service connected disability and need vocational rehabilitation to overcome an employment handicap caused by their service connected disability.
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INSURANCE

There are two regular and two disabled insurance programs currently available for new policyholders:

  • Service Members Group Life Insurance – open to active duty members of the uniformed services.
  • Veterans’ Group Life Insurance – available to individuals released from active duty after August 1, 1974 and to reservists.
  • Service Disabled Insurance – available for veterans with service connected disabilities.
  • Veterans’ Mortgage Life Insurance – provides mortgage like insurance for veterans granted specially adapted housing grants.
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DEATH AND BURIAL BENEFITS
(In National Cemeteries): Veterans, service members and dependents are eligible for burial in a VA National Cemetery. Burial benefits include the gravesite, headstone or marker, grave opening and closing, and perpetual care.

Eligible veterans must have been discharged or separated from active duty under conditions other than dishonorable and have completed the required period of service. Persons entitled to retired pay as a result of 20 years creditable service with a reserve component are eligible. U. S. citizens who served in the armed forces of a government allied with the United States in a war may also be eligible. A 1997 law bars any veteran convicted of a federal or state capital crime from being buried or memorialized in one of the VA National Cemeteries. Headstones or markers are available to memorialize eligible veterans or deceased service-members whose remains were not recovered or identified, buried at sea, donated to science, or cremated and scattered. The headstone or marker is the same as that used to identify a grave, except the mandatory phrase "In Memory Of" which precedes the inscription. The memorial marker may be provided for placement in a cemetery other than a National Cemetery. In such a case, VA supplies the marker and pays the cost of shipping, but does not pay for the plot or the placement of the marker. Only a relative recognized as the next of kin may apply for a headstone or marker.

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NURSING HOME CARE
Nursing care in a VA or private nursing home may be provided for veterans who are not acutely ill and not in need of hospitalization. If space and resources are available in VA facilities, the VA may provide nursing home care. Veterans who have a service-connected disability are given first priority for nursing home care.

North Carolina has 4 State Veterans Nursing Homes available for our states Veterans from the heart of our Military Town of Fayetteville to the Mountains of North Carolina. There is a State Veterans Nursing Home to suite our Veterans Needs. They are located at the four different sites listed below:

  • 214 Cochran Ave., Fayetteville, North Carolina 
  • 21580 Hull Road, Kinston, North Carolina 
  • 1601 Brenner Ave.# 10., Salisbury, North Carolina (located on the Salisbury Hospital Grounds) 
  • 62 Lake Eden Road, Black Mountain, North Carolina 

Contact our office for more info. 910-592-2862

The following may be provided nursing home care with an income eligibility assessment:

  • Veterans with service-connected disabilities.
  • Veterans who were exposed to herbicides while serving in Vietnam
  • Veterans exposed to ionizing radiation during atmospheric testing or in the occupation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
  • Veterans with a condition related to an environmental exposure in the Persian Gulf.
  • Veterans of the Mexican border period of World War I who are eligible for Medicaid.

Non-service connected veterans and zero-percent, noncompensable service-connected veterans requiring nursing home care for any non-service connected disability must submit an income eligibility form 10-10F. VA will determine whether they will be billed for nursing home care.

VA also offers Domiciliary Care which provides rehabilitative and long-term health maintenance care for veterans who require minimal medical care but who do not need the skilled nursing services provided in nursing homes. Income is considered when applying for domiciliary care. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may determine a veteran with no adequate means of support can also receive domiciliary care.

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Transportation

Sampson Area Transportation (SAT) provides transportation services for veterans. To view these services click here

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