Annville, PA – The Shapiro Administration received an Abraham Lincoln Pillars of Excellence Award for veteran advocacy done through the Governor’s Advisory Council on Veterans Services (GAC-VS). The award was presented to the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs (DMVA) which oversees the GAC-VS, by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs during a National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs conference.
The Abraham Lincoln Pillars of Excellence Award was established in 2012 by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to evaluate state programs, establish best practices for other state agencies to follow for greater success and efficiency, and highlight the great work being done at the state level.
“The GAC-VS is well-deserving of this prestigious honor, and the DMVA is proud of the collaborative work done in support of our valued veterans,” said Maj. Gen. John Pippy, Pennsylvania’s adjutant general and head of the DMVA. “Pennsylvania is home to nearly 700,000 veterans, the fifth largest veteran population in the nation. Together, the council works to raise awareness and move forward key programs and services benefitting our diverse veteran population.”
The GAC-VS was established as Pennsylvania's first interagency cooperative approach to veterans services. The council reviews, evaluates and assesses state veterans programs in collaboration with senior staff from state agencies and commissions. It increases information sharing, ensures program fidelity, coordinates complementary programs and facilitates meaningful enhancements in service accessibility to veterans benefits and services within Pennsylvania.
The GAC-VS champions many topics to help raise awareness and protect the veteran community. This includes access to women-specific health care services, veteran suicide, pension poaching and other scams, homelessness, and veteran treatment courts.
Accomplishments include:
- Enabling jurors in various counties to donate their jury payments to the Veterans’ Trust Fund. This effort has become the third-highest donation source, generating over $111,000 to date and providing direct, life-changing support to veterans across Pennsylvania.
- Launching a one-hour accredited training course, Safeguarding our Veterans. Two sessions in 2025 drew 421 participants to expand awareness, offer helpful resources, and prevent our commonwealth veterans from losing their life savings.
- Promoted wellness for veteran suicide prevention. The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and DMVA partnered through the GAC-VS to host nature-based events featuring Forest Bathing – an evidence-based practice that boosts mental health and resilience through time spent in natural environments.
- Leading an annual Pension Poaching Awareness Campaign each June, equipping 78 groups with an impactful toolkit to protect veterans and their families from scams, raising community-wide awareness and safeguarding countless at-risk individuals.
- Producing a collaborative paper outlining the current landscape of veteran homelessness in Pennsylvania, aimed at assisting the PA Interagency Council on Addressing Homelessness and other complex housing initiatives.
The Shapiro Administration remains committed to ensuring that veterans who have served Pennsylvania and defended our freedoms can prosper here in the commonwealth. That commitment has included:
- In 2025, the Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs opened the Lickdale Veterans’ Outreach Center in Lebanon County, offering walk-in services to veterans in need of assistance with finding paperwork or accessing programs.
- In 2024, the Shapiro Administration helped veterans secure over $1 billion in earned compensation and pension benefits for the second year in a row.
- The governor has invested $1.9 million in workforce development through the Veterans Employment Program (VEP) to connect veterans with job opportunities.
- In 2023, the governor hosted the groundbreaking for a $97 million long-term care facility at the Hollidaysburg Veterans’ Home, which will offer modern skilled nursing and memory care to Pennsylvania veterans.
- His Administration has restored county mental health funding and established a Behavioral Health Council to improve mental health support for veterans.
- Through the Military Occupational Crosswalk, veterans receive help transferring their military experience into occupational licenses and civilian careers.
- Over the last two years, the commonwealth has invested an additional $65 million in workforce training programs, including apprenticeships and technical education that benefit veterans along with grants for the Veterans Employment Program (VEP) and PA Veteran Farming Network.
You can also learn more about DMVA’s support of veterans by following us at www.facebook.com/padmva, https://www.instagram.com/pa.dmva, https://www.linkedin.com/company/padmva/ or
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