Suffolk Establishes Voluntary Registry To Connect Women Veterans

HAUPPAUGE, NY — A resolution creating a voluntary registry for female veterans living in Suffolk County passed the Legislature unanimously this week, according to a news release. It was sponsored by Suffolk County Legislator Susan A. Berland and gathered bipartisan co-sponsorship from eight legislators: Deputy Presiding Officer Kara Hahn and Legislators Jason Richberg, Sam Gonzalez, Anthony Piccirillo, Sarah Anker, Tom Cilmi, Steven Flotteron and William Spencer.

The resolution, developed by Berland in collaboration with the members of the Suffolk County
Women Veterans Advisory Board, creates a voluntary registry for female veterans, enabling the
County and local veterans’ organizations to more effectively perform outreach and provide
resources to meet their needs.

The registry will be created and maintained by the Suffolk County Veterans Service Organization and aims to connect female veterans not only with programs that specifically address their needs, but with fellow female veterans as well. Registrants will be able to indicate their preferences, electing to keep their information private or allowing it to be disseminated to organizations that may be able to assist them. Veterans can also indicate whether representatives of the Veterans Service Agency or the Women Veterans Advisory Board are permitted to contact them directly. The registry is expected to be up and running later this fall.

"Female veterans are an underserved group and for generations have remained distant from the
male-centered veteran community," said Berland, chairwoman of the Legislature’s Veterans & Consumer Affairs Committee. "This voluntary registry will serve as a vital tool, connecting our female vets with the resources they deserve and need. For too long, existing systems have overlooked the needs of these women. For their service and valor, the very least they are entitled to is a seat at the table and the opportunity to be connected to the organizations and services that can benefit them."

The Suffolk County Women Veterans Advisory Board is excited to see all the momentum towards supporting women veterans in the county, said Board Chairwoman Christine Glynn, USMC (Ret.) and Vice Chairwoman StaceyAnn Castro Tapler, USMC (Ret.).

"We hope that every woman veteran will take advantage of this opportunity to register themselves," they said in a joint statement. "The benefits of this registry will go far beyond recognition. It is our vision that women will feel empowered to use the opportunities and programs that are available to them, as well as feel the camaraderie of the other sisters that reside in their communities. The registry is voluntary and confidential and will give the veteran the power to choose to share their contact information if they want to. We would personally like to encourage all women veterans to register, and to be silent no more."