Amy Hess started Adonai Community Support Services, a one-woman grassroots veterans support agency on September 11, 2012. A 22-year Army vet herself, she saw the growing need for her comrades bogged down in the VA system.
"We, and I include myself, we get really tired of being handed off," Hess said. "That is not acceptable."
Hess says the problems exposed within the Veterans Administration was hardly shocking, and says she hopes lawmakers do the right thing when it comes to patient delays and cover-ups within the VA system.
"Open up that bottleneck and get us to a place where veterans can get in now and be seen," she said.
Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont says he plans to introduce a refashioned bill in the Senate that would allow veterans on waiting lists to see private doctors, and give the VA authority to immediately remove senior executives based on poor job performance.
Hess says, it's about time.
"Fire them. There's no way that any of these practices would be allowed in a business setting," she said. "Get rid of those who won't do their job and hire more that will do their job," Hess said.
Meanwhile, she continues to guide veterans through the system via her not for profit, on a shoestring budget and a wing and a prayer, relying on donations and fundraising.
Adonai Community Support Services is located at 110 NW 5th Avenue in Aledo. The phone number is 309-582-2277.