DAV Department of Arizona is committed to the mission and vision of Disabled American Veterans. As stated in the charge given to new members and new officers, the vision is:

 

"...our mission as a Disabled American Veterans organization is not fulfilled until all our country's wartime disabled, and their dependents and survivors, have been adequately cared for."

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To that end, DAV Department of Arizona is making a concerted effort to reach out to our Native American and rural Veteran Communities--Veterans who have historically been underserved or unserved for decades.

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The mission began with a casual conversation on December 23, 2025, between one of our DAV Chapter Commanders and her friend--the President of the All-Navajo Veterans Auxiliary (ANVA). During that discussion, the topic of life on the Navajo Reservation came up--and it urged the Chapter Commander to call the Department Adjutant about whether we had the ability to help address some of the issues being faced on the Reservation.

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In January 2026, we designed what a remote service office should look like and then acquired the necessary equipment. In early February, we installed a remote service office setup at Elks Lodge 489 in Globe, AZ--a community over an hour and a half from the nearest DAV Chapter. Elks Lodge 489 is providing the location and the security for our equipment, as well as Internet access--all at no charge, since we are partners in working with the Veteran Community. This was our test of concept to work out all the bugs--fortunately, there were very few!

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Later in February, we installed a remote service office at the Veteran Wellness Center and Chapter Hogan in Pinon on the Navajo Nation. When word about DAV being there to provide service got out, the Navajo Veteran Community got excited--which was readily apparent when we started conducting remote claim service on March 2nd and were faced with over two dozen people waiting for us to get started! Since then, along with additional offices in Kayenta and Ganado, we have accomplished over 500 interviews and actions with our Native American Brothers and Sisters.

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Since the program's inception, Department of Arizona and Chapters across the state have become involved in providing service. Our Chapter 1, Chapter 20, and Chapter 24, have taken on the mission of promoting and managing donations of every kind you can imagine, resulting in a 26-foot moving truck full of donations being taken to the Navajo Nation every 4-6 weeks. We are a conduit for the Navajo Veteran Community to apply for financial assistance from local Phoenix foundations. And starting in January 2027, we will be offering tele-mental health at our remote service offices in conjunction with Home Base and Honor Health--with losing one Veteran every other month to suicide, we believe that there is a real opportunity to get this Veteran Community's number to ZERO!

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And the future holds even more promise! We are providing vans to the ANVA for transporting Veterans to their appointments at Reservation clinics and sites near the Reservation. And we have a long-term plan to acquire and provide Starlink-mini setups, basic smartphones, and "portable"-type solar panels to enable Reservation Veterans to have the communications capability necessary for caregiver and other support programs.

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...and we will keep expanding the program until we reach every corner of the state!