A photo from the 2025 Vet Fest in Easthampton.
Photo credit: Easthampton Coalition for Veteran Wellness
EASTHAMPTON — Vet Fest, Easthampton’s annual veteran and military family celebration and appreciation event, will return for its third year on Saturday, Sept. 19, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Nonotuck Park.
The day will once again feature food, activities, and games for families, as well as information for the military-veteran family community.
Organized by the Easthampton Coalition for Veteran Wellness in partnership with Operation Veteran Vacation, and with support of local community sponsors and stakeholders, the event is free to any U.S. military member or veteran of U.S. military service and their guests.
The day of connection, resources and fun aims to bring together the local veteran community and their families from Easthampton and surrounding areas. It also aims to provide veterans with the needed benefits and resources.
“When the Coalition was forming, we were focused on a pretty simple but important idea: veterans need opportunities to connect with other veterans and with the community around them,” coalition member Heather Rudolph told Reminder Publishing. “We started with things like our monthly veterans’ luncheon, and Vet Fest grew naturally from that. We wanted to create a larger event where veterans, military families, friends and the broader community could come together in a relaxed, family-friendly setting.”
The Easthampton Coalition for Veteran Wellness began in 2023 through a partnership between the city of Easthampton and the VA Medical Center in Leeds to bring veterans together. Joined by local veterans, businesses and stakeholders, the coalition continues to grow and develop in service of its mission to build connection within the veteran community.
Now in its third year of Vet Fest, the coalition has seen its impact grow within the community.
“The first year, we honestly weren’t sure what to expect. We were thrilled by the turnout, and seeing how much people enjoyed simply being together made it clear that this was something our community wanted,” Rudolph said. “Now, heading into our third year, Vet Fest has become one of the ways we can bring that mission to life on a much larger scale. It’s not just a veterans’ event; it’s an opportunity for people of different generations and backgrounds to meet, connect, learn about resources and celebrate the people in our community who have served.”
Rudolph added that Vet Fest also provides a unique opportunity for the coalition to connect more with younger veterans. She said that one of the main goals of the coalition has been to ensure they are reaching veterans across generations, including younger veterans who served after 9/11. She said there can sometimes be a gap between the veterans who have been connected to the community for many years and the younger ones who may not yet see themselves as part of that local community.
“We want Vet Fest to be a place where that connection can happen naturally. Younger veterans can come with their families, meet other veterans closer to their own age, but also connect with Vietnam, Gulf War and other generations of veterans. There’s a lot we can learn from each other, and that intergenerational connection is really valuable,” Rudolph said. “We’ve also seen that connection happens veteran-to-veteran. Veterans often have a different level of trust and understanding with someone who has served, and that can make it much easier to start a conversation.”
She added, “It’s also important because many younger veterans may still be balancing careers, young families and all of the other demands of life. They may not be looking for a traditional veterans’ event or know what resources are available to them. If we can reach them in a setting that feels welcoming, family-friendly and fun, we have a much better opportunity to make that initial connection and let them know what’s available before they ever reach a point where they desperately need it.”
A photo from the 2025 Vet Fest in Easthampton.
Photo credit: Easthampton Coalition for Veteran Wellness
Information on federal Veterans Affairs, Springfield Vet Center, and state veteran benefits and programs to help veterans and their families will be available. Various city departments and programs, including the Central Hampshire County Veteran Engagement Team and local veteran service officers, will table at the event. The Easthampton Fire and Police departments will also attend with the ladder truck and a K9 demonstration.
Rudolph said that Vet Fest reminds the coalition that the biggest barrier isn’t lack of resources, but lack of knowledge about what’s out there for veterans and where to start. The event helps address that barrier and meet veterans where they are.
“A community event changes that dynamic. A veteran may come to Vet Fest because it’s a fun, free family event, but while they’re there, they can have a conversation with someone from Veterans Services, the VA, or one of our community organizations and discover a benefit or resource they didn’t even realize they were entitled to,” Rudolph explained. “That’s really the power of bringing these resources directly into the community. Instead of asking veterans to navigate a system on their own, we’re putting people and organizations in the same place and creating opportunities for those informal conversations to happen. Sometimes it only takes one person saying, ‘have you looked into this?’ to open a door.”
Lunch will be free, and those on Facebook can register for the event on the platform to help organizers gauge the expected turnout. Registration, however, is not a requirement to attend.
Activities for children will be available at the event, including various games and arts and crafts. Fletcher Farms, a longtime supporter of the coalition, will provide pumpkins for kids to paint and decorate. Another highlight is a youth-oriented military-style inflatable obstacle course organized by Operation Veteran Vacation.
Bright Spot Therapy Dogs, a local nonprofit organization, will also be in attendance with information about their programs. Volunteers will be at the event to talk about their programs, including hospitals, nursing homes, schools, libraries and other facilities.
There are still opportunities to donate, and all proceeds will support the coalition’s events throughout the year. To help raise funds for the coalition, a 50/50 raffle will be available at the event.
For donation opportunities or for more information about the Vet Fest, email the coalition at VeteranWellness.Easthampton@gmail.com. Sunday, Sept. 20, is the rain date.
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