Jack Johnson, new commander of The Villages chapter of the Disabled American Veterans, has been elected to the third top post with the statewide organization.
Johnson, who was named chapter commander for the second time in May, was elected as Florida department junior vice commander. The post puts him in line to serve as state commander in a few years. He previously served as statewide membership chairman.
He said the job involves traveling to DAV events around the state. The Florida DAV has about 61,000 members.
“You’re in line so if something happens to the commander, you take his place,” said Johnson, a DAV member for 42 years.
He said The Villages chapter has grown from 267 members in 2010, during his first term as chapter commander, to more than 700 today.
Originally from Towanda, Pa., Johnson and his wife, Sandee, moved to The Villages four and a half years ago after living in Florida for 25 years.
Johnson also works in a local office at the VA Clinic, where he counsels veterans about their benefits.
“There are a lot of veterans who have benefits coming to them that they don’t know about,” he said.
ohnson enlisted in the Army out of high school and intended to pursue a military career. But his plans were cut short when he was disabled after an accident in Cambodia.
He said veterans should lobby political candidates to support advance funding for the Veterans Administration so the agency won’t be vulnerable to a government shutdown as occurred last fall.
Johnson also said the recent controversy over delays for VA care can be expected and isn’t that unusual when compared to the private health care system. Aging Vietnam veterans are using more benefits and young veterans are returning from Afghanistan, which puts more stress on the system.
“We’ve had wars forever,” he said.