One of my greatest honors as your senator is taking part in Veterans Day tributes throughout Southwest Michigan to thank our courageous veterans for their outstanding service. While the sacrifices of these heroes and their families is a debt we can never fully repay, I am proud that our state is doing all it can to express our appreciation in a meaningful way.
The Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency (MVAA) provides valuable services — from medical benefits to transition assistance — to our state’s more than 660,000 military veterans, which is the 11th largest veteran population in the nation.
I encourage all Michigan veterans to make sure that they are receiving the benefits they earned by contacting the agency at 1-800-MICH-VET or visiting its website at MichiganVeterans.com.
Southwest Michigan veterans can also contact a local veterans services office: Berrien County Veteran Services at (269) 983-7111, ext. 8224 or llull@berriencounty.org and the Cass County Veteran Affairs Department at (269) 445-4472 or tomg@cassco.org.
One of the many ways we can show our deep appreciation for our veterans is to adorn their graves with special markers so people will forever know of their service. Disturbingly, some people in recent years have sunken so low as to disturb the final resting place of our veterans by stealing these markers and selling them to collectors or scrap metal dealers.
I will soon begin introducing legislation to crack down on these thefts, so we can give our veterans the honor and rest they have rightfully earned.
My measure would specifically make it illegal to “buy, receive or possess” a stolen veterans marker or memorial. It would apply broadly, including antique stores and scrap dealers who would melt down the markers for the metal.
I want to thank former Sen. Ron Jelinek for bringing this issue to my attention, and I look forward to working with him to stop these grave robbers the best way we can — by cutting off much of their ability to profit from stealing from the graves of our veterans.
Thankfully, America’s service men and servicewomen have always answered the call and served their country to ensure that we could live in the land of the free. In heartfelt appreciation of our veterans, I urge all Southwest Michigan residents to thank these heroes throughout the year for their sacrifice and service. May God bless our veterans.

Sen. John Proos, R-St. Joseph, represents Southwest Michigan.