An Army Innovative Readiness Training (IRT) mission will be held at the Walton Central School District in July.
Through a grant awarded to the Southern Tier 8 Regional Planning and Development Board (ST8) from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), Delaware County was selected as the host site for the IRT.
The IRT mission will provide no-cost medical and veterinary services to the public and will be held July 11-19. It will be open as a walk-in service to any person wanting to attend. Services are provided at no cost to the patients as the Department of Defense is supporting this mission through military training budgets.
Innovative Readiness Training is a federally supported program through the US Department of Defense to ready military personnel for future potential deployment missions across the nation and throughout the world. Through the IRT program, military units are paired with communities willing to partner with them as a real-world field experience. The medical IRT Delaware County has been selected to host will provide our residents and those in surrounding areas with no-cost health exams, youth sports physicals, eye exams and glass prescriptions, dental exams and procedures, behavioral health screenings, and veterinary care for domestic household pets.
As the host community, Delaware County is responsible for providing support through a host site, which the Walton Central School District has volunteered to provide space at the Stockton Ave. complex. Additionally, Delaware County will provide support through staffing a command center being hosted by the New Hope Church adjacent to the school. The county will provide security, manage traffic flow, assist with patient flow, and organizing continuity of care services for those in need.
Delaware Opportunities is partnering with Delaware County in support of the IRT through coordinating volunteers to assist on site during the event and organizing a community resource area where local and regional services will be available to assist with long term care needs and services. Additionally, regional medical services through United Health Services in Walton, Bassett Health Care, and Westchester Medical are participating to assist patients and provide additional services through their facilities.
If you are interested in volunteering to help with this event, please contact Delaware Opportunities at 607-746-1600. If you have any questions about the program or services being provided, please contact the Delaware County Planning Department at 607-832-5444.
