Board declares Sept. 4 as Pepin Academies Silver Anniversary Day
During its Sept. 4 meeting, the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners presented a commendation to Mentors for Hillsborough County Veterans, a nonprofit organization that helps veterans overcome personal issues such as substance abuse, mental illness, and post-traumatic stress disorder to help them fully integrate back into the civilian world. Retired U.S. Army Col. DJ Reyes and the Hon. Michael J. Scionti, Circuit Judge, 13th Judicial Circuit Veterans Treatment Court, accepted the commendation.
Established in 2013 and consisting of 50 dedicated veterans, Mentors for Hillsborough County Veterans partners with the 13th Judicial Circuit Veterans Court, a court division designed for veterans, in order to help troubled veterans get the services they need. Mentors help veterans comply with court orders and assist with housing, food, transportation, and other crucial needs, enabling the veterans to stay on track in their quest for recovery.
After accepting the commendation, Scionti thanked the Board for the recognition and said that the organization has grown significantly and made tremendous accomplishments for local veterans.
"It's amazing how an idea can move mountains," he said. "From its humble beginnings in a courtroom in Buffalo, New York, to our own Hillsborough County courtroom and through 650 other courtrooms across the country, we have veterans treatment courts. Our veterans treatment court - your veterans treatment court - is the national model, congressionally recognized, and it's the mentors who … are critical to the success to this program."
The Board also presented a proclamation declaring Sept. 4 as Pepin Academies Silver Anniversary Day in Hillsborough County.
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