Staten Island Vet Center
We offer confidential help for Veterans, service members, and their families at no cost in a non-medical setting. Our services include counseling for needs such as depression, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the psychological effects of military sexual trauma (MST). We can also connect you with more support in VA and your community.
Our commitment
- We offer a range of services, from talk therapy to recreational activities. Our team will work with you to identify your goals and make a plan to meet them. We'll help you and your family build meaningful connections to improve your quality of life.
- Our counseling is confidential. We won’t share any information about you or the services you receive without your permission—except in a life-threatening situation. Our records can't be accessed by other VA offices, the Defense Department, military units, or community providers.
- We encourage you to contact us, even if you're not sure you're eligible. We'll find a way to connect you with the help you need.
Locations and contact information
Main Location
Direct line
Hours
- Mon. 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Tue. 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Wed. 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Thu. 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Fri. 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Sat. Closed
- Sun. Closed
Other locations
Vet Centers are community based to be more accessible in areas where you live.
We also have non-traditional hours that change periodically given our community’s needs. Please call us to find out more.
Need help after hours?
Our call center is available 24/7. Call us anytime at 877-927-8387.
Prepare for your visit
Select a topic to learn more.
First time visitor? Give us a call and let's discuss how we can help. Call
Many of our services are available on a walk-in basis. Anyone in crisis will be seen within the same day.
Making an appointment:
After your initial contact with the Staten Island Vet Center, we will call you to schedule an appointment. You can expect a return call within 1-2 business days, after the initial call you should have your first appointment within 2-5 business days, depending on schedule availabilities.
Contacting us:
You can call us anytime during our posted hours of operation. If you need to call outside of those times, on weekends, or holidays, the Vet Center Call Center is available 24/7 at 877-927-8737.
Cancelling or rescheduling an appointment:
If you know you will miss an appointment, please notify us as soon as possible so we can reschedule your appointment and make that time available for another Veteran.
We are a 10 minute walk from the Staten Island Ferry Terminal.
If you'd like to know how to get here please plan your route at MTA Planner.
You do not need to be registered for care at VA, rated for a service-connected disability, or receiving any other form of VA benefits. On your first visit, we will look for one or more of the following:
- Discharge documents (such as a DD214)
- Receipt of certain awards
- Deployment orders
- Other documents that show qualifying military service
Request your military service records online.
If you don’t have these documents on-hand, come in and we can work with you to establish your eligibility and answer any questions you might have.
See our designated free spots on a map.
Pay the parking clerk ($10 cash), the clerk will give you a parking ticket. Give parking ticket to the person you made an appointment with at the Staten Island Vet Center. Ticket will be stamped by the person you made an appointment with. Give the parking clerk the stamped parking ticket. Parking clerk will return the $10 cash.
In the spotlight
New Vet Centers and Satellite Locations Announced
To improve access to counseling, we are adding three Vet Centers and six satellite locations across the US and its territories. We will continue to expand our program to meet Veteran demand and provide local support to those who served.
Counseling services
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We offer couples and family counseling to support you as you work toward meeting your goals.
The Staten Island Vet Center can provide services such as:
- Individual counseling for spouses, children and significant others
- Couples counseling
If someone close to you has died or you’re adjusting to a difficult life change, we’re here to support you.
The Staten Island Vet Center can provide services such as:
- Bereavement counseling for families who have lost a loved one while they were serving on active duty.
If you or a loved one are in—or may be in—a potentially abusive or violent relationship, we can help.
The Staten Island Vet Center has counselors trained to provide support for those that are experiencing or have experienced abusive or violent relationships.
The VA’s Intimate Partner Violence Assistance Program (IPVAP) is committed to helping Veterans, their partners, and VA staff who are impacted by IPV. If you, or someone you know could be experiencing and/or using IPV - help is available.
If you're a Veteran who identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, or a related identity, we can help you find counseling, support, and referral services to meet your specific needs.
Staten Island Vet Center recognizes the existing diversity within the Veteran population, including the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBTQ+) community.
If you’re struggling with issues like PTSD, depression, grief, anger, or trauma, we offer counseling and other support. We’ll work with you to help you achieve your personal goals.
At the Staten Island Vet Center, we offer individual and group counseling. We also provide referral services to appropriate resources in our community
Care at our center includes:
- One-on-one hour-long counseling sessions targeted at your individual needs
We also offer group counseling. Our specialty groups include:
- Vietnam Combat Veterans
- OEF/OIF groups
- Combat Veterans (era integrated)
- Women Veterans
If you experienced sexual assault or harassment during military service, we can help you get the counseling you need. Any Veteran or service member, including members of the National Guard and Reserve forces, who experienced military sexual trauma is eligible to receive counseling. This applies to people of all genders from any service era.
If you’re a Veteran from a minority community, we can help you find counseling, support, and referral services to meet your specific needs.
Staten Island Vet Center has a designated bilingual counselor to serve Hispanic Veterans and families. We also have a bilingual Veteran Outreach Program Specialist to serve Hispanic Veterans and families.
Learn more about Minority Veterans.
If you have symptoms of PTSD after a traumatic event, we can help. We offer assessment and support through private counseling and group therapy. We can also refer you to VA or community counseling for treatment and therapy resources.
At the Staten Island Vet Center, we are dedicated to help all Veterans and service members heal from trauma endured while serving in the military.
Care at our Center includes:
- Anger management
- Stress management
If you’re returning from military service, we’ll help you transition to civilian life. We can connect you with educational and career counseling, mental health services, and other programs and benefits that will support your transition.
The Staten Island Vet Center understands that the transition from military to civilian life can be a challenge. We offer a variety of ways to assist you in that process such as:
- How to get VA medical benefits and register for care
- Where to go to file claims and other forms
- Understanding your VA education benefits
- Housing and home loans
- Education and referral for VA burial benefits
The Staten Island Vet Center can also connect you to Veterans Service Organizations in your community.
Whole health puts you—instead of your illnesses or conditions—at the center of care. We’ll work with you to develop a personalized health plan based on your values, needs, and goals.
At the Staten Island Vet Center, we work to bridge mental health care with every other aspect of Veterans’ lives. You can expect your counselor to help you highlight the connection between mental health and various aspects of self-care (e.g. food and drink, working your body, surroundings, spirit and soul, personal development, recharging, and relationships).
For more information about Veteran's Whole Health Care
If you’re a woman Veteran transitioning to civilian life, we can help you find counseling, support, and referral services to meet your specific needs.
As a woman Veteran, you have specialized health care needs.
Learn about VA Women's Mental Health services and resources designed to uniquely support you.
Referral services
Select a topic to learn more.
We can help you overcome substance use problems, from unhealthy alcohol use to life-threatening addiction. We'll connect you to services for your specific needs.
We know that addiction and substance abuse issues often accompany trauma-related conditions.
We can easily refer Veterans in need of such services to excellent programs at the local VA or in the community for outpatient treatment or residential care.
Learn more about options for Veterans concerned about Addiction and Substance Abuse.
If you’re homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, we can help you connect with resources in your community.
Staten Island Vet Center can refer you to the VA Homeless team or connect you to our community partners.
Veterans who are homeless or at risk of homelessness—and their family members, friends and supporters—can make the call to or chat online with the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans, where trained counselors are ready to talk confidentially 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Call
Visit the VA Homeless Veterans for more information.
Call our Veterans Crisis Line at 988 and press 1 to get support anytime day or night. This service is private, free, and available 24/7. Our Vet Center can also connect you with ongoing counseling and services.
Staten Island Vet Center can connect you with the VA Suicide Prevention Coordinator.
We can help connect you to VA and community resources that will support you in achieving your goals.
Other services
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We provide private organizations and community agencies education on our Veteran community and military culture. Together, we build referral networks to expand support for Veterans, service members, and their families.
Staten Island Vet Center supports local Veterans through partnerships with government and community agencies, including:
- Law enforcement and other first responders
- New York State Division of Veterans' Services
- College of Staten Island
- Wagner College
- St. John’s University
- National Guard and Reserve components
We offer secure and confidential individual and group counseling through telehealth. You can schedule a phone or video appointment for Vet Center services.
At the Staten Island Vet Center, we offer flexibility by offering a variety of appointment modalities to meet your individual needs to include in-person, video, and phone appointments. Ask how we can complement your in-person care with virtual services.
We offer workshops and classes if you want to connect with other Veterans but don't want a group counseling setting.
Staten Island Vet Center offers a number of virtual presentations on benefits for Veterans, service members and their families, as well as groups and organizations who serve them.
How Vet Centers are different than a medical clinic
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Vet Centers are small, non-medical, counseling centers conveniently located in your community. They’re staffed by highly trained counselors and team members dedicated to seeing you through the challenges that come with managing life during and after the military.
Whether you come in for one-on-one counseling or to participate in a group session, at Vet Centers you can form social connections, try new things, and build a support system with people who understand you and want to help you succeed.
You may be eligible for Vet Center services no matter your discharge status or eligibility for VA health care. And we encourage you to contact us, even if you’re not sure if you’re eligible. If we can’t help you, we’ll find someone who can.
If you’re a Veteran or service member (including National Guard and Reserves), you’re eligible if you meet any of these service requirements:
- You served on active duty in any combat theater or area of hostility, or
- You provided mortuary services or direct emergency medical care to treat the casualties of war while on active duty, or
- You were a member of an unmanned aerial vehicle crew that provided direct support to operations in a combat theater or area of hostility, or
- You served on active duty in response to a national emergency or major disaster declared by the president, or under orders of the governor or chief executive of a state in response to a disaster or civil disorder, or
- You’re a current or former member of the Coast Guard who participated in a drug interdiction operation, or
- You’re a current member of the Reserve Component assigned to a military command in a drill status, including active Reserves, and you need to address a behavioral health condition or psychological trauma that is related to your military service
If you’re a Veteran or service member (including National Guard and Reserves), you’re also eligible for Vet Center services if any of these descriptions is true for you:
- You’re a Vietnam Era Veteran who used Vet Center services before January 2, 2013, or
- You experienced military sexual trauma (no matter your gender or service era), or
- You currently use any covered VA educational assistance benefits
What are the covered educational assistance benefits?
- Montgomery GI Bill Active Duty
- Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve
- Post-9/11 GI Bill
- Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E)
- Veterans’ Educational Assistance Program (VEAP)
Remember: You don’t need to be enrolled in VA health care to be eligible for Vet Center services. You don’t need to have a service-connected disability. And you can have any character of discharge.
You can use our counseling and other support services when your participation would support the growth and goals of the Veteran or service member in your family. If the Veteran or service member considers you family, so do we.
You can also use our bereavement services if any of these descriptions is true for your family:
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The Veteran or service member died while serving on active duty, or
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The Veteran was using Vet Center services at the time of their death, or
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The Veteran or service member died by suicide
No. You don’t have to be enrolled in VA health care or have a service-connected disability.
Safe and confidential. Our records can’t be accessed by other VA offices, the DoD, military units, or other community networks and providers without your permission or unless required to avert a life-threatening situation. Here, you can be as open as you want—there’s absolutely no judgment.
Call us at
Our confidential call center is staffed by combat Veterans from several eras and family members of Veterans.
You can talk to us about your military experience, issues around transitioning out of military service, or trauma. We’ll help connect you to resources and support at a Vet Center near you.