Nov 10, 2003 By Amy Karpinsky 7 min read

Robert Hixson said the thing he likes best about his job is helping people. And as director of the Fayette County Office of Veterans Affairs, Hixson said he gets to do that often.

“It feels good to be able to help people in your own community,” Hixson said. He said when a veteran is crying on the phone because they have learned they will receive much-needed assistance, it gives him goose bumps.

“There is definitely an upside. I helped my own grandmother, my father and my next-door neighbor (a World War II veteran),” he said.

When Hixson signed up for the U.S. Army while he was in high school, two of his goals were to obtain military experience to use as a stepping-stone for a career and to earn money for college.

He met those goals and while attending California University of Pennsylvania, he got an opportunity to use the experience he gained during 10 years in the Army to get his current job.

When the director’s position opened in March 2002, Hixson was pursuing a business management degree while taking on a work-study position in the veteran’s affairs office. Although getting the position meant temporarily halting work toward his degree, Hixson is planning to return to class someday. But for now, his job plays a lead role in his life.

“I thought this job would allow more time than it does,” Hixson said. “But I’m definitely planning on finishing college.”

Hixson was one of 16 people who applied for the county position. He was hired over the 15 other applicants following a couple of interviews and completion of a written essay explaining why he was the best candidate for the position. Since taking over the office, Hixson said he has been working to make improvements to the office and to get the word out that help is available locally for veterans.

At 31, Hixson is younger than most veteran’s affairs directors, and sometimes catches older veterans off guard when they come to the office.

“Although I’m young, I’m very personable, and they know I care,” he said.

After graduating from Laurel Highlands High School in 1990, Hixson began his stint in the Army. He is an honorably discharged disabled veteran and is 30 percent disabled due to asthma. He and his wife have been married for 11 years and have two children, ages 7 and 9.

Hixson said serving as a dental hygienist in the Army gave him a lot of “bed side or chair side manner,” which has come in handy.

“That’s what this job is all about. You have to be able to talk and listen or you can’t help them,” he said.

As veteran’s affairs director, Hixson has begun holding veterans workshops at different sites in the county every other month, which he calls “informational briefings.” There have been six workshops this year, which Hixson said draw an average of about 50 veterans.

Additionally, he has also started using the laptop computer system. He said when he took over, there was no local database. Now, Hixson can do claims and pension requests and other paperwork at the office.

For veterans to be able to receive benefits, it depends on when, how long and where they served. Hixson said he can provide information about burial benefits and federal and state benefits. Veterans also can receive home loan guarantees or veteran’s preference for employment.

“There are fine lines for pensions,” Hixson said. “It’s hard to tell someone with cancer ‘sorry you were a reservist and you don’t qualify.’ In Pittsburgh they’re on the telephone and don’t have to look at the person, but here they are right across the desk. And those are the days you hate your job.”

According to the 2000 census, there are 16,800 veterans in Fayette County. However, Hixson said that number doesn’t include National Guard members and the reservists serving overseas.

A busy week for Hixson has him speaking with 40 to 50 vets. He said many times helping one veteran starts a chain that continues for a long time. He said he helped one vet and then his uncle and then his cousin.

“I want to get the word out to vets. The key to everything is getting out and getting known,” Hixson said. “If they don’t know you, you can’t help them.”

As his workload has increased, so has the need for help. Hixson said he is lobbying to get a full-time assistant in the office. While helping veterans is a full-time job, Hixson said he also attends veteran group meetings and events.

“It’s a neat little niche,” he said of being involved with the veterans groups.

Hixson said his county position is also a unique one. He said although it is a county job, the job doesn’t have much to do with county because he deals with mostly state and federal money. He said while the county commissioners are his bosses, he really doesn’t have too much contact with them.

Hixson also sets up transportation for veterans to the Veterans Administration hospital in Pittsburgh. The county bus system sends two buses five days a week to the VA hospital at no charge for vets. He said it costs about $115,000 per year for the county. Additionally, Hixson said he is working to get a veterans health clinic in the county.

In addition to Hixson, the office has one other full time employee and a Green Thumb worker. He said years ago the office contained five or six employees. Hixson said he would like to set up satellite offices at sites such as Point Marion or Brownsville, where he could go one day a month.

Hixson said the amount of benefits veterans have received has increased since he took over the office. In 2002, the year he started, there was $21 million obtained for veterans through the office, an increase of $1.3 million over the prior year. Hixson said he is hoping that with a full year in the office, the figures for 2003 will reflect an even bigger jump in benefits.

He said the funding formula to which veterans can receive benefits depends on out of pocket medical expenses. He said if a widow’s late husband served in wartime, she may be eligible for benefits.

“A lot of people assume they don’t qualify and they may,” he said.

Although he is still learning all these is to know about veteran’s benefits, Hixson said he will do everything he can to get veterans the most complete information that is available.

“I feel I have the nuts and bolts down but I need some fine turning,” he said. “You have to be a jack of all trades in this job. But if I don’t know, I just grab the phone because I feel the only dumb question is one that’s not asked.”

“You’re affecting someone’s life and if you don’t know or bother to find out you’re not doing justice to them,” Hixson said.

In some cases, Hixson said it is a matter of life and death. He said for example, being able to help an elderly couple using credit cards to buy groceries and cutting back on food because they have to spend hundreds of dollars for medication makes the job worth it.

“Those are the ones who when you help it feels great,” Hixson said.

Any veteran wishing to set up an appointment to speak with Hixson about any benefits they may be entitled to should call the office at 724-430-1241 or 724-430-1242.