New veteran services director takes over role

Date: 1/9/2015

WEST SPRINGFIELD – A new year brings a new face to the West Springfield Town Hall. Chris Lizotte has been welcomed on as the new director of veteran services, beginning in his new office Jan. 5.

Lizotte, a 2005 graduate of Agawam High School, served in the Army National Guard with Delta Company 1-181 Infantry in Baghdad, Iraq from 2007 to 2008. He returned home and was reattached to Alpha Company 1-181 Infantry in Agawam.

Michael Straite, Lizotte’s predecessor, announced he would be leaving the position in late November for a job in the private sector, and when Lizotte found out he would be taking over, he said he was thrilled to start and to work with Mayor Edward Sullivan.

“I can’t wait to learn the ins and outs of veteran services,” Lizotte said.

While he said much of his job pertains to Chapter 115, or veterans’ benefits, Lizotte said he wants to go beyond the minimum and establish a community feeling for all veterans in the area.

“I want to get veterans actively engaged in community events,” Lizotte said. “Veterans helping veterans. I love that idea.”

That idea will be Lizotte’s motto for the year and one with which he has been familiar.

Before coming to West Springfield, Lizotte worked with Veterans Inc., a nonprofit based in Worcester that helps veterans “to rebuild their lives, regain their self-respect and reintegrate with their families and communities,” according to the organization’s mission.

Through his work with Veterans Inc., Lizotte said he grew to understand more deeply the kinds of needs veterans face, from Vietnam veterans to those returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

He said that he wants to bridge the gap between the different generations of veterans and become a “jack of all trades” of veteran services.