Shreveport Cares for Veterans With More Than Money

At a veterans affairs news conference in Shreveport Tuesday,  veterans and citizens alike were present to hear about what's being done for  active and retired military men and women.

David Lacerte, deputy secretary of the Louisiana Department of  Veterans' Affairs,  says there's new legislation that will allow military spouses who transfer to bases like Barksdale to carry their credentials, like licenses with them so they can get jobs easier.  With more than 20,000 veterans living in Caddo Parish, there's a great need for better benefits for veterans.

Lacerte  said another recent benefit is that veterans will now be able to have a designation on their driver's license for retail discounts.

There are also indigent veterans whose bodies lie unclaimed in morgues, and a new law will allow coroners to properly identify those military men and women and find out if they qualify for burial in one of the many veterans cemeteries across the country.

Some $140 million goes towards helping veterans in Caddo Parish alone.  The four-star veterans home in Bossier and the Northwest Louisiana Veterans Cemetery is one of the best in the country.