Free event will connect veterans with health care, benefits assistance, employment resources and other services.
Veterans across the Mid-Willamette Valley will be able to access health care, employment assistance, benefits support and other services in one place when the 2026 Mid-Willamette Valley Veteran’s Stand Down takes place in Salem on Sept. 2.
The free event runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Salem Withnell Family YMCA, 685 Court St. NE. Serving Our Veterans At Home, the Salem-based nonprofit organizing the event, says more than 50 service providers and hundreds of volunteers will participate.
The Stand Down is open to all veterans and people currently serving in the military, not only those experiencing homelessness or financial hardship.
Dean Chambers, vice president of Serving Our Veterans At Home and an Air Force veteran, said the event gives veterans a chance to learn about available resources while receiving some services on site.
“The biggest thing is that it’s free,” Chambers said during a Salem Business Journal Podcast interview. “It is available to any veteran.”
Planned resources include medical and dental services, financial guidance, haircuts, housing and homelessness assistance, veterans’ benefits support and donated necessities. Organizers also said transportation to Department of Motor Vehicles services will be available.
Employment is another major part of the event. Veterans will have access to a job fair and resume assistance, including help translating military experience into skills civilian employers recognize.
Serving Our Veterans At Home President Kevin J. Dial said representatives will also be available to help veterans who have never pursued benefits or are unsure how to begin navigating the system.
“This is an opportunity to look back and actually get started,” Dial said.
Lunch will also be provided at no cost.
Serving Our Veterans At Home says its annual Stand Down typically serves more than 300 veterans, bringing organizations together so attendees do not have to track down each service separately.
The 2026 Mid-Willamette Valley Veteran’s Stand Down is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 2, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Salem Withnell Family YMCA.
