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Former sergeant and now chemical engineering major Mark Castanon is leading the Veterans Club on an operation to raise funds and awareness for a clinic that all former soldiers in the San Gabriel Valley will be able to benefit from.

After leaving the Army two years ago, Castanon wandered on to campus and began adjusting to new life as a civilian. His leadership instincts led him to yet another team on another mission. The mission was to bring forward the important problem of inadequate medical attention for veterans. He and his team are now proceeding to raise funds for the Community-Based Outpatient Clinic, also known as CBOC.

“Most of us that who have to go see medical have to go to West Hollywood,” said Castanon. “And the VA (Veterans Association) is not known to be very good and we can’t schedule our own appointments, they have to schedule them for us so sometimes it interferes with our classes.”

Castanon explained that this extreme inconvenience forced him and other veterans to choose between their education and their health, none of which should be compromised.

“I was here full time and I worked here so I was here for 12 hours a day,” said Castanon. “For me, I can’t give up money, I can’t give up my education so to go get checked in at the VA, whenever they want is difficult.”

The CBOC will serve more than 50,000 veterans in the San Gabriel Valley, also generating potential opportunities for healthcare professionals.  In addition, healthcare students will be able to complete clinic work and finish off internships.  As for veterans, they will be able to come in for minor appointments, get screened, and then schedule further appointments at a larger hospital, if needed.

The proposal for the fundraising of the CBOC was approved at the end of spring semester of this year.  The Veterans Club plans to raise money by participating in campus events like the flea market and keeping in contact with organizations like The Rotary Club and The American Legion.

Patricia D’Orange-Martin, coordinator of the Veterans Resource Center, shared that she and the fundraising committee are receiving a lot of support from the community due to Congresswoman Judy Chu, D-Pasadena, who has been a strong voice in the veteran’s clinic project in her re-election campaign. The positive response will be a vital key in reaching their goal.

Castanon said she had no intention of dwelling on how far they need to go.  In true combat fashion, Castanon is keeping his head down and leading his team until they cannot go no more.

“It’s a lot,” Castanon said. “It’s always best not to look at the very top of the hill, you know. Just keep going.”

Castanon plans to expand the Veterans Resource Center so that it can properly accommodate the 800-plus veterans here on campus.  Castanon came a long way himself before returning to school.  After taking a year off to spend time with his two sons, he found himself struggling to adjust to student life.

“When I first came here, I had a lot of trouble adapting and so I didn’t participate in any of the things,” Castanon said. “I learned quickly that doing it on your own is not going to work so one of the things I did was join the club, became an officer and now I’m the president.  I’ve come a long way from where I was two years ago.”

His experience as a leader placed Castanon in his comfort zone and guided him successfully from the battle field to campus soil.

The San Marino Rotary club supports this project and is holding a fundraising event for their 5th Annual Rotary Interact All City Talent Show to support the PCC Veterans Health Center of the Foothills on Saturday, Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. at Huntington Middle School, 1700 Huntington Drive, in San Marino.

 

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