When Travis came to 603 Legal Aid’s Hope for Heroes program in March 2025, the 47-year-old Navy veteran had already tried several times to secure an increase in his VA disability benefits.
His claims involved mental health conditions including PTSD, anxiety, depression and claustrophobia. But despite repeated attempts, his VA disability rating remained at just 30 percent.
And as his legal aid team worked on his case, Travis’s life became increasingly unstable.
He lost his job. He faced housing instability and homelessness. He lost access to the case worker who had originally helped connect him with 603 Legal Aid. Amid everything he was dealing with, Travis sometimes struggled to stay in contact with the program.
His legal aid team kept reaching out.
When they were able to reconnect, 603 Legal Aid worked with Travis to gather his medical and military records and helped him tell the story behind those records, including preparing a personal statement about his military service and the disabilities that continued to affect his life. The team assembled the evidence and submitted the claim on his behalf.
Then came the news Travis had been waiting for: the VA increased his disability rating from 30 percent to 70 percent, retroactive to July 2024.
The impact is significant.
For a veteran facing the possibility of homelessness, that isn’t simply a successful benefits claim. It’s income that can help provide housing, stability and the opportunity to move forward.
And it happened because Travis didn’t have to navigate a complicated system alone, even during a period when the challenges in his life made it difficult for him to stay connected to the help available to him.
This is what access to justice looks like.
Support for the NH Campaign for Legal Services helps make programs like Hope for Heroes possible, connecting New Hampshire veterans with legal help that can provide stability when they need it most. Stories like this are possible because of our supporters. Donate today to support civil legal aid for Granite Staters in need.
