C4
V incorporates the reasons that Veterans currently receiving
services are “highly willing to recommend” into the approaches
for offering services to potential customers. First, participation
in DoD programs providing “transition assistance” to active duty
military who are getting ready to transition to “Veteran status”
identifies potential customers. Next, those who claim the VI as
their home of record are proactively contacted and informed
of C4
V services and offerings. Within two weeks of official
discharge, service members are contacted by either the Benefits
Officer or social worker of a PACT to ensure that eligibility is
understood. Outreach staff recognized last year a need to improve
the process, so they began offering Benefits Information Days
(BIDs) to inform Veterans who are not newly separated about
their potential eligibility for the services. This day is offered as a
“fair” atmosphere, including refreshments and tours of the station.
BIDs also serve as an opportunity to engage Veterans in becoming
volunteers or employees at C4
V. BIDs have helped the outreach
to the homeless, specifically providing information to shelters
and known homeless living areas about these events. In 2014,
C4
V offered the first “off-site” BID in a park downtown near
the St. Thomas homeless shelter, yielding the enrollment of 17
Veterans for C4
V services.