We are dedicated to a single purpose: empowering veterans to lead high-quality lives with respect and dignity. We accomplish this by ensuring that veterans and their families can access the full range of benefits available to them; fighting for the interests of America’s injured heroes on Capitol Hill; and educating the public about the great sacrifices and needs of veterans transitioning back to civilian life.
This mission is carried forward by:

• Providing free, professional assistance to veterans and their families in obtaining benefits and services earned through military service and provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and other agencies of government.

• Providing outreach concerning its program services to the American people generally, and to disabled veterans and their families specifically.

• Representing the interests of disabled veterans, their families, their widowed spouses and their orphans before Congress, the White House and the Judicial Branch, as well as state and local government.
 

• Extending DAV’s mission of hope into the communities where these veterans and their families live through a network of state-level Departments and local Chapters.
 

• Providing a structure through which disabled veterans can express their compassion for their fellow veterans through a variety of volunteer programs.
 

Our Veteran Story
The hard facts of history brought about DAV’s creation. But compassion and service have been the tools that made our organization what it is today.
A great deal has changed since DAV was founded, but this much has remained the same: those who return from war must have men and women waiting for them at home who will stand with them as they work to take back their lives. Through DAV, veterans and civilians alike can fully express their appreciation and concern for those who have risked so much for our country.
The historical account of DAV in Wars and Scars on the pages that follow tells the story of that journey, from the days after World War I to the men and women of today returning from Iraq, Afghanistan and beyond. It tells the story of the veterans, families and civilians who made the commitment that none of America’s heroes should ever go it alone.
Read further at: https://www.dav.org/about-dav/history/