COMMUNITY BRIEFS

NMPASI public hearing on Saipan

The Northern Marianas Protection & Advocacy Systems Inc., or NMPASI, will be holding a public hearing on Aug. 5, 2005 at the NMPASI Conference Room on Saipan to inform the community of its 2006 Statements of Objectives and Priorities. The hearing will take place from 6pm to 8:30pm.

‘Dinner with Man’Amko reset

The fundraising “Dinner with the Man’Amko” has been rescheduled from June 17, 2005 to July 22, 2005 but due to availability of the Garapan Central Park, the fundraising has been moved to July 23, 2005, from 6pm to 10pm.

Booths available for
2005 Summer Festival

The Carolinian Affairs Office, in collaboration with the Chamolinian Cultural Village, is proud to announce the 2005 Summer Festival, which will be held from July 6 until Aug. 30, 2005, at the Chamolinian Cultural Village ground in Garapan. Booths are available to any nonprofit organization interested to raise fund during the festival.
For more information, stop by or call the Carolinian Affairs Office at 234-6383 to 2346385.

Toll free phone service for veterans

The regional office of the Honolulu Veterans Administration announced Saturday that veterans throughout the U.S. territories in the Pacific—the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and American Samoa—and the island of Oahu in Hawaii will be able to dial the national benefits toll-free number, 1-800-827-1000, to obtain general benefits information and the status of benefit payments.

The number will also enable veterans residing on Oahu, Guam, American Samoa, and the CNMI, to access the wide range of benefits information that is available on the national menu. Neighbor island veterans in Hawaii have had access to this national toll-free number for years.

The new number is expected to be operational on July 1, 2005. Medical appointments at the Honolulu VA Medical Center can still be arranged toll-free from most areas by dialing 1-800-214-1306.

Other frequently called toll-free numbers that are available to veterans are:

* VA Education Program 888-442-4551

* Home Loan Eligibility 888-487-1970

* VA Life Insurance 800-669-8477

* VA Health Enrollment 877-222-8387

* CHAMPVA 800-733-8387

* Gulf War or Agent Orange 800-749-8387

* Telecom Device for the Deaf 800-829-4833