Franklin County

Based on the 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates, approximately 3,575 veterans live in Franklin County, including 236 women veterans. This page includes local event listings and directories of veterans’ services; VA-accredited representatives, agents, and attorneys; VA healthcare facilities; community behavioral health centers; peer recovery support centers; elder services; veterans posts and auxiliaries; and veteran owned businesses, as well as veterans census, VA spending, veteran homelessness, and public health data.

The mission of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Veterans’ Services (EOVS) is to act as the primary advocate on behalf of all the Commonwealth’s veterans. The Office provides outreach and support through various programs. EOVS offers assistance to eligible veterans and their surviving spouses through the MassVets Financial Benefits Program, administered by local veterans’ services.

Veterans may use the Mass Vet Benefit Calculator to see what they may qualify for and contact their local veterans’ services office to apply. MGL Chapter 115 requires each town/city have a veterans’ agent to administer these benefits, but two or more contiguous towns can also appoint someone to serve as veterans’ agent and form Veterans’ Services Districts. Many municipal veterans’ services office also have VA-accredited staff to assist with federal benefit claims.

VA-Accredited Representatives, Agents & Attorneys

The directory below includes VA-accredited representatives, agents, and attorneys based in Franklin County cities and towns from the VA Office of the General Counsel (OGC) Accreditation Search Tool, updated on a weekly basis. Accreditation ensures VA claimants receive qualified assistance aligned with VA Standards of Conduct. Attorney listings also include available official state bar data, license status, registration dates, and disciplinary history, updated on a monthly basis.

VA Healthcare Facilities in Franklin County

Veterans in Franklin County are served by the VA Central Western Massachusetts Healthcare System, including the Greenfield VA Clinic located within the county, which provides primary care, mental health care, and treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. Anyone who has served in the military is encouraged to apply to determine their eligibility and Priority Group. Some veterans are exempt from co-pays due to their VA rating, income, or special eligibility factors.

Franklin County Community Behavioral Health Centers

Community Behavioral Health Centers (CBHCs) are one-stop shops for mental health and substance use services and treatment. Clinical & Support Options operates a Community Behavioral Health Center in Greenfield, providing outpatient, urgent, and emergency behavioral health care, with same-day, walk-in access. CBHCs are open daily for walk-ins, routine appointments, and crisis care, including Mobile Crisis Intervention.

CBHCs are closely connected to the Massachusetts Behavioral Health Help Line (BHHL). The BHHL is a 24/7 clinical hotline staffed by trained behavioral health providers and peer coaches who offer clinical assessment, treatment referrals, and crisis triage services. Staff directly connect callers with the nearest CBHC when appropriate.

Franklin County Peer Recovery Support Centers

Peer Recovery Support Centers (PRSC) in Massachusetts are free accessible peer-led spaces that provide individuals in recovery from substance use, as well as their family members and loved ones, an opportunity to offer and receive human connection, community inclusion, peer support, and access to non-clinical resources. The RECOVER Project is located in Greenfield.

The Massachusetts Overdose Prevention Helpline is staffed by a dedicated team of harm reductionists and people with lived and living experience with overdose. The hotline is not a recovery or treatment helpline; it connects people using drugs with trained operators who can call for help in case of overdose. It is available to anyone at risk of overdose.

Elder Services in Franklin County

Aging Services Access Points (ASAPs) are private, non-profit agencies established under MGL Chapter 19A. ASAPs provide direct and protective services, including information and referrals; interdisciplinary case management; intake and assessment; developing, implementing, and monitoring service plans; reassessing needs; and investigating reports of elder abuse and neglect.

Councils on Aging (COAs) are municipal agencies that provide local outreach, social and health services, advocacy, information and referral for older adults, their families, and caregivers. COAs and Senior Centers serve as advocates and links to support services for elders, families, and caregivers. They offer outreach, transportation, meals, health screenings, health insurance counseling, and life-long learning, social, fitness, wellness, and recreation activities.

MassOptions is a service of the Executive Office of Health & Human Services (EOHHS) that can also help older adults, people with disabilities, and family members or caregivers identify aging and disability services and connect to those that can meet their needs. Call (800) 243-4636 or click here to complete a referral.

Franklin County Veterans Posts & Auxiliaries

The Veterans Posts and Auxiliaries directory includes information about the VFW and American Legion Posts, Marine Corps League Detachments, and Vietnam Veterans of America and DAV Chapters based in cities and towns in Franklin County, as well as information about their auxiliaries and other affiliates.

Veteran Owned Businesses in Franklin County

The Veteran Owned Businesses directory is based on publicly available information and listings of veteran owned businesses based in Massachusetts. The listing below includes businesses in Franklin County. Follow the link below to update information or submit a new business.

Franklin County Veterans Census Data

Based on the 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates, approximately 3,575 veterans live in Franklin County. Veterans make up about 6 percent of civilian adults age 18 and older, or 5 percent of the total population.

Women account for approximately 6.6 percent of veterans (236). Around 66 percent of veterans are age 65 or older (2,351), compared with 34.3 percent of women veterans (81). Approximately 73 percent of veterans served during a wartime period (2,610). An estimated 13 people are currently serving in the Armed Forces, including 4 women. These small currently-serving estimates have substantial sampling uncertainty.

Between the 2021 and 2024 ACS 5-year estimates, the estimated veteran population decreased by 24.8 percent, from 4,752 to 3,575. The estimated number of women veterans decreased by 30.2 percent, from 338 to 236. These five-year periods overlap, so the differences should not be read as annual changes. Estimates also carry sampling error.

If you serve veterans and are trying to learn more about their demographics, explore the most recent ACS 5-year estimates from Census Reporter for cities and towns in Franklin County below.

Age, Disability & Poverty Status

Based on the 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates, disability and poverty data cover 3,560 veterans in Franklin County. Around 43 percent reported a disability (1,533), and 8.1 percent had incomes below the poverty level (289).

Among veterans age 65 or older for whom poverty status is determined, approximately 51 percent reported a disability (1,199), and 6.5 percent had incomes below the poverty level (151). Around 78 percent of veterans with disabilities were age 65 or older.

An estimated 182 veterans had both a disability and incomes below the poverty level. They made up about 12 percent of veterans with disabilities and 63 percent of veterans with incomes below the poverty level.

Approximately 26.7 percent of veterans reported a service-connected disability rating (953), including ratings of 0 percent. Among veterans with a rating, around 32 percent reported a rating of 70 percent or higher (304). Rating level was not reported for 19 veterans. These figures measure reported ratings rather than receipt of compensation payments.

Qualifying wartime service is one of the requirements for a VA Pension, along with income, net worth, and other eligibility requirements. Veterans age 65 or older may qualify without meeting a disability requirement.

Approximately 73 percent of Franklin County veterans served during a wartime period (2,610). The remaining 27 percent served only during peacetime (965). These estimates describe periods of service and do not establish eligibility for VA benefits.

Education, Employment & Median Annual Income

Among veterans age 25 or older, approximately 29 percent had a bachelor’s degree or higher (987). Around 28 percent had some college or an associate degree (959), 38 percent had a high school diploma or equivalent (1,302), and 6 percent had not completed high school (196).

Among veterans ages 18–64, approximately 73 percent were employed (895), and 24 percent were outside the labor force (289). The unemployment rate was 4.3 percent, representing 40 unemployed veterans among the 935 in the labor force.

Median annual income among civilian adults age 18 or older with income in Franklin County was $45,029 for veterans, compared with $41,051 for nonveterans.

These amounts are expressed in 2024 dollars. Differences in age and other population characteristics can affect these comparisons.

VA Spending in Franklin County

According to the latest VA Geographic Distribution of VA Expenditures (GDX) reports, VA compensation and pension spending in Franklin County increased by 19.1 percent, from $25.1 million in FY2024 to $29.9 million in FY2025.

In FY2025, VA reported $72.4 million in total spending in Franklin County, including:

• $38.4 million for medical care;

• $29.9 million for compensation and pension; and

• $1.3 million for education and employment programs.

VA Annual Benefits Reports provide additional information about benefit programs, including the number of recipients, their characteristics, and program activity. In FY2025, Massachusetts had 76,610 disability compensation recipients, 10,263 education participants, 3,197 Veteran Readiness and Employment participants, and 3,487 VA-guaranteed loans.

At the end of FY2025, 1,397 veterans were receiving VA pension in Massachusetts, with $18.6 million in estimated annual payments. Approximately 93.4 percent were age 65 or older (1,305). The number of Massachusetts wartime veterans receiving VA pension benefits has continued to decline from 1,582 veterans receiving $21.3 million in payments in FY2024, 1,998 veterans receiving $25.2 million in payments in FY2022, and 3,937 veterans receiving $43.1 million in payments in FY2013.

These figures cover the whole state and are not broken down by county. The chart below shows pension recipients by age through FY2025. The payment estimate is a benefit-program measure rather than a GDX expenditure total.

VA revised its GDX reporting methodology in FY2024, using individual and program-office records to assign spending by recipients’ addresses and facility or project locations rather than relying on financial transaction codes. Program categories also changed. Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC), survivors pension, and burial benefits are now reported separately from compensation and pension. The historical FY1996–FY2023 figures should therefore be read separately from the FY2024–FY2025 figures.

Veteran Homelessness in Franklin County

HUD’s Continuum of Care (CoC) Program is designed to promote community-wide commitment to the goal of ending homelessness. The Massachusetts CoC includes 12 regional CoCs, including the Three County CoC (covering Berkshire, Franklin, and Hampshire Counties).

During the last week of January, CoCs count all of the homeless people reported by service providers and counted by local police and volunteer groups on the streets. In 2023, veterans made up about 2.8 percent of the homeless population in Massachusetts, down from 3.4 percent in 2022.

From 2022 to 2023, the number of homeless veterans increased from 534 to 545, including 70 women, who made up 12.8 percent of homeless veterans counted. The number of homeless veterans increased by less than 3 percent overall, with a 23 percent increase for women veterans.

Franklin County Public Health Data

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s Suicide Prevention Strategies for Communities support the implementation of a public health approach that uses data to drive decision-making. Massachusetts does not publish comprehensive data surrounding the deaths of service members and veterans. The chart below includes toxicology data for suicide deaths overall in Franklin County.