Veterans in the Wichita area will be able to connect with 60+ programs and service providers for veterans this Saturday in Wichita at the fourth annual Veterans Awareness Expo.
This event is FREE and open to the public. Be sure to share it with your veteran friends!
Parking and Shuttle
The expo will be held at Mid-America All-Indian Center, but there will be FREE shuttle service provided by Wichita Transit from the Gander Mountain/Waterwalk parking lot near Century II, so you can park there. (It’s easier.) There’s a free parking garage and free parking lots, and they’re just north of Kellogg off Main Street.
The shuttle service will operate from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will pick up along Main Street.
Handicap parking will be available onsite.
There is a parking lot directly across from MAAIC off of Museum Blvd., but it usually fills up quickly and you do have to cross at the crosswalk to get to the Indian Center from that lot.
Activities
The fourth annual Expo runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The event is hosted by Vet-To-Vet Support Command, a non-profit outreach, and the Veteran Providers’ Coalition of Sedgwick County, which nurtures and connects veterans to resources of over 50 veteran service organizations to improve the lives of veterans and their families.
You can connect with them and see the event page on Facebook.
This year’s expanded Expo will feature a service dog demonstration by Midwest Battle Buddies, horses from Cloud 9 Equine Therapy Foundation, military vehicles, food trucks, VA representatives and mobile units along with more than 50 agencies and programs serving veterans.
At 1 p.m., leaders from McConnell Air Force Base will present an update on the military’s newest tanker, the KC-46 Pegasus. McConnell was the first base to get the Pegasus in January 2019. The seventh Pegasus was delivered to McConnell June 28.
In addition to the free expo, active duty military and veterans will also get free admission to the Indian Center Museum on grounds that day. Military families can get discounted $4 tickets.
Food
Food trucks will be at the event, so you may want to budget some lunch money. So far, the food trucks we know of will be Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers and Hot-2-Trot Gourmet Hotdogs.
Veterans Discounts
Veterans are invited to bring an original or certified copy of their DD-214, the military’s official discharge document, to register for safekeeping with the Sedgwick County Register of Deeds. Five free certified copies will be provided. Veterans who are Sedgwick County residents will also receive a Veteran & Military Discount Card for use at area businesses listed on www.veteranbargains.com. The Register of Deeds Office, 525 N. Main #227, offers the above services weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. To learn more, visit Register of Deeds page at sedgwickcounty.org or call (316)-660-9400.
Related: Military Discounts in Wichita