Veterans Transition Center

The Veterans Transition Center (VTC) is a non-partisan student-led Veterans group at the University of MN-Twin Cities started by Comfort for Courage (C4C). We exist to support the veterans of our country’s Armed Forces and our main goal is to help student veterans smoothly make the transition from military to civilian life. We provide student veterans with a place where they can meet other student veterans in a friendly atmosphere. Stop by and share your story if you’d like, or hear another veteran’s story. The VTC is open to and encourages participation of non-veterans, all students, staff and faculty of the University, as well as neighbors in the community. Veterans do a great job of supporting each other, but it is important to note the support veterans receive from non-veterans and the importance of that support. We want to build an environment on campus that is supportive of and friendly to veterans and making the VTC open to non-veterans is an important part in achieving that goal.

What’s in the VTC?
• Couches to relax on
• Computers w/ Internet
• TV with DVD player (and some DVDs)
• Free pop and candy

SPECIAL THANK YOU to AT&T/Operation Homefront for their generous donation of $40,000. To see the press release, go to this website: http://www1.umn.edu/urelate/newsservice/NS_details.php?release=080502_3523&p

NEWS UPDATE - The VTC was awarded the Tony Diggs Excellence Award for the Rookie Registered Student Organization (RSO) of the Year for 2007. This award recognizes newer student groups (less than 3 years since inception) who have demonstrated significant success and development in following the mission and goals of their organization.

On September 16, 2005, the University of Minnesota announced that it would sponsor Comfort for Courage’s proposed Veterans Transition Center on the University’s campus.

“This transition center aims to offer a safe-haven and help curb the disturbingly high drop out rate of veterans who return to school,� said Andy Davis, chairman of Comfort for Courage. “We are excited about this opportunity, because we could feel the influx of veterans returning to school similar to what the country felt after World War II.�

During the fall 2005 semester, Comfort for Courage and the University of Minnesota worked to establish the new transition center in Eddy Hall. Volunteers, many of them student veterans, staff the transition center. The VTC exists mainly as a place for veterans to meet other veterans and develop a new support system. Information about educational and other veteran-related resources is also readily available and shared within the student veteran community.

“A solid education is the foundation for achieving personal goals and successes,� said Jerry Rinehart, the university’s Vice Provost for Student Affairs. “We want to ensure that returning student veterans have the support they need to make the most out of their learning experience. We applaud Comfort for Courage’s forward thinking and compassion for the men and women who serve our country.�

Comfort for Courage is a student-led, non-profit, non-partisan effort to support the nation’s armed services. Since its inception in November 2004, Comfort for Courage has shipped more than seven tons of comfort items to service-men and -women serving overseas. Two University of Minnesota students, Andy Davis and Tony Richter, founded the organization. Andy Davis is a former Army Ranger who served three combat tours in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Tony Richter graduated from the University's Carlson School of Management in 2007.