Military Benefits, Pay, Ranks, & Records    Veteran Service Organizations













Benefits resources for West Virginia Veterans
Military Benefits, Pay, Ranks, & Records

Benefits Delivery at Discharge (BDD)
If you are separating from active duty within the next 60 to 180 days, Benefits Delivery at Discharge (BDD) can help you receive VA disability benefits sooner.

Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS)
DEERS is a worldwide, computerized database of uniformed services members (sponsors), their family members, and others who are eligible for military benefits, including TRICARE. All sponsors are automatically registered in DEERS.  However, the sponsor must register eligible family members. Family members can update personal information such as addresses and phone numbers once they are registered in DEERS.

Military Pay and Allowances
With basic pay and 70 types of special pays and allowances, military pay is customized to your situation. Changes in pay grade, duty status, your military occupation, duty station, or deployment status can have an impact on your pay.  Whether you are on active duty, in the reserve or Guard, a veteran or a retiree this section will help you understand your pay, allowances, compensation, and pension. In addition you'll learn how to calculate retirement pay, veteran disability compensation, and veteran’s pension.

Officer Ranks
Enlisted Ranks
Military ranks can be somewhat confusing, especially to those who are exposed to the military for the first time. Each armed service branch has three tiers: Commissioned and Warrant Officers, Non-Commissioned Officers and junior enlisted personnel. The following graphics illustrate the military ranking system for each branch of service: Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard.

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans of the United States armed forces may be eligible for a broad range of programs and services provided by the VA. Eligibility for most VA benefits is based upon discharge from active military service under other than dishonorable conditions, and certain benefits require service during wartime. If you are new to the VA, the Federal Benefits for Veterans, Dependents and Survivors booklet will help you get started.  

Health CareVA's health care offers a variety of services, information, and benefits. As the nation’s largest integrated health care system, VA operates more than 1,400 sites of care, including hospitals, community clinics, community living centers, domiciliary, readjustment counseling centers, and various other facilities.  The VA administers a variety of benefits and services that provide financial and other forms of assistance to Veterans, their dependents, and survivors. Major benefits include Veterans’ compensation, Veterans’ pension, survivors’ benefits, rehabilitation and employment assistance, education assistance, home loan guaranties, and life insurance coverage.  

Burial and memorial benefits are available for eligible service-members, Veterans, reservists, National Guard members, and eligible family members. Service includes interment, headstones and markers, and Presidential memorial certificates. VA operates 128 national cemeteries in the United States and Puerto Rico, together with oversight and management of 33 soldiers' lots, confederate cemeteries, and monument sites.
Huntington Regional Office
640 Fourth Avenue
Huntington, WV 25701
800-827-1000
Veteran Service Records
Start Your Military Service Record Request (DD Form 214 & SF-180)

Military personnel records can be used for proving military service, or as a valuable tool in genealogical research. Most veterans and their next-of-kin can obtain free copies of their DD Form 214 (Report of Separation) and other military and medical records several ways.

West Virginia VA Benefits Summary
National Resource Directory detailing resources within the state of WV.  Also includes a November 2010 summary of benefits paid by the VA in West Virginia.

WV Department of Veterans Assistance
The aim of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is to grant a veteran exactly what they ask for when they are entitled to it, and no more. The aim of the State Department of Veterans Assistance is to obtain for a veteran all they are entitled to and to help them obtain and prepare the evidence that will prove their entitlement.

The Department of Veterans Assistance has 16 Field Offices located throughout the State to assist veterans and their dependents in filing claims. These offices are staffed by trained and accredited Veterans Service Officers.

Office of the Secretary
1514-B Kanawha Blvd., East, Charleston, WV 25311
304- 558-3661 or 866-984-8387

Huntington Claims: 640 Fourth Ave – Room 108, (304) 399-9395
Pittsburgh Claims: 1000 Liberty Avenue, Room 401, (412) 395-6793
Beckley: 407 Neville Street - SUITE 113, (304) 256-6955
Charleston: 1321 Plaza East – Suite 109, (304) 558-3540
Clarksburg: 1 Freedom Way, (304) 626-1600
Elkins: Elkins-Randolph County Airport, (304) 637-0235
Lewisburg: 200 N. Court Street, (304) 647-7500
Logan: 513 Dingess Street, (304) 792-7055
Martinsburg: 115 Aikens Center, Suite 17, (304) 267-0040
Morgantown: 1705 Mile Ground Rd., Suite 1, (304) 285-3480
Moorefield: 225 North Main Street, (304) 538-2839
Parkersburg: 1 Court Square – Room #403, (304) 424-1952
Princeton: 1500 W. Main Street, (304) 425-5194
Spencer: 811 Madison Avenue Suite 29, (304) 927-0980
Summersville: 715 Main Street, Suite 102, (304) 872-0829
Welch: McDowell Public Library, (304) 436-3804
Wheeling: 51 Eleventh Street – Room 300, (304) 238-1085   


Veteran Service Organizations

Directory of National Chartered Veteran Service Organizations
National Resource Directory listing of all chartered Veteran Service Organizations

National Guard Association of the United States
The association includes nearly 45,000 current or former Guard officers. It was created in 1878 to provide unified National Guard representation in Washington with the goal of obtaining better equipment and training by petitioning Congress for more resources. Today, 132 years later, NGAUS has the same mission.

Reserve Associations Directory
Directory of U.S. Military Reserve Associations