By Contributing Editor Blair Drake

Since 2018, the Western Colorado Chapter has been supporting the local military community through the Western Region One Source (WROS). The organization, under the Colorado Department of Military and Veterans’ Affairs, connects veterans, servicemembers, and military families with service providers and resources to enhance their opportunities and quality of life.

WROS aims to become a one-stop-shop for the military community in Western Colorado to access key resources and assistance, such as veterans’ benefits, family support, counseling services, employment, and housing, among other services.

The Western Colorado Chapter is helping WROS achieve that goal through financial support of the organization. According to Col. Steve Root, USAF (Ret), who serves as vice president of the chapter as well as the Colorado Council of Chapters, the generosity of the chapter’s members has allowed the chapter to provide annual donations to WROS.

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“We’re always looking to see what [WROS] needs, and we try to fill a need for them,” Root said. The chapter’s contributions have been used for facility improvements and daily programs for veterans, including the purchase of flags for the facility’s conference rooms, yoga classes, a weekly coffee club, and a weekly group for veterans with traumatic brain injury.

“The Western Colorado Chapter’s support of the Western Region One Source has been outstanding,” said Joanne Iglesias, WROS administrator. “The Colorado Division of Veterans Affairs is grateful for MOAA’s continued support. It serves as an indicator to all that we shall never forget our veterans [and] military members and their families and the immense sacrifices they have made to preserve this nation’s freedom. MOAA’s generous contributions are appreciated by many.”

Root said the chapter wants to help ensure the viability of WROS.

“When I [moved to this area], I knew there was a VA hospital, but I didn’t know there was anything else,” Root said. “Through WROS, I found about 35 other organizations that are a direct source to veterans. Without WROS, how do you find out about these? We want to do our part to keep [WROS] alive.”

Blair Drake is a contributing editor for MOAA and lives in Souderton, Pa. She previously served on the editorial team of Military Officer magazine for nine years.