Many Americans are more than willing to help out veterans in any way they can, and often that includes making unique items for them to use in their everyday lives. One such person in the greater Philadelphia area has been crafting knives for veterans over the last few years.

Scott Durham, of Haddonfield, Pennsylvania, has personally spearheaded his own Honor Your Hero Project, which involves him engraving a metal multi-tool with the names of veterans, and giving it either to the veterans individually, or their families, according to a report from CBS Philly. Included with the tools, particularly those given to families of veterans who died in combat, is a handwritten letter thanking them for their service.

Durham, who receives donations to help cover the cost of the materials and engraving, has made thousands of tools since 2013, including two sent to Presidents George H.W. and George W. Bush, the report said.

"And I don't know 99 percent of these people I send them to," Durham told the station. "They're in Montana. Idaho, Wisconsin. They're everywhere."

This is the kind of thing that many may not know is available, but it's one of the benefits for veterans that can help in their daily lives and better illustrate that people are always there for them.

Veterans entering their life after service often find that one of the hardest parts of communicating with others is that so few have shared their experiences. Clara Reynolds, president and CEO of the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay, told The Tampa Tribune that starting a few years ago, the center received numerous calls from veterans pleading for counselors who understand what they were going through based on personal experience in the armed forces.

Reynolds made sure that their requests didn't go unanswered. Tampa's crisis center now has a dedicated phone service specifically for veterans. If a servicemember calls in from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, they'll find themselves talking to a peer counselor who is also a fellow veteran.

Military training isn't the only thing that makes these counselors so effective. Being able to discuss similar backgrounds and experiences with callers can make all the difference in the world. The program has proven so successful that the crisis center is seeking more veteran volunteers to participate in the effort. 

Former Marine Jamie McPherson told The Tampa Tribune that "There's a stigma in the military culture about asking for help. In the military, you have a buddy to help you back up and we're extending that hand." 

The power of a phone call isn't lost on New York Sen. Robert Ortt, who in partnership with AT&T and Niagara County Veterans Service Agency helped to donate more than 900 cell phones to Cell Phones for Soldiers last month. Niagara Frontier Publications reported that the proceeds from the recycled phones went a long way toward assuring active duty military serving overseas could call home during the holiday season using long-distance calling cards.

There has never been a sign at the Utah border telling veterans to beware, but there may as well have been. For years they've been warned that, because the state is 1 of 16 that doesn't offer its veteran residents an income tax benefit in their life after service, Utah was a poor choice of retirement destination. That may soon change, however.

"Utah was one of the states they said do not move to," Mike Dunn, an Air Force colonel, told Fox 13 in Salt Lake City. "They had one of the things to talk about of where to go and where not to go based upon financial advantages of being in certain states and being in other states."

It was Dunn who brought the issue to the attention of Rep. Lee Perry, who presented house bill 99 to the state legislature this week. The bill amends the tax code to offer military veterans a statewide exemption on retirement income. The proposal would cut $5 to $7 million out of Utah's tax revenue, but Perry takes a practical approach to the matter.

"There are people who have come here, served at Hill Air Force Base, and would like to retire in Utah," he told Utah's NPR station. "If they came back here and retired from active-duty military, they're going to get a second job, and we are going to collect income tax on those jobs, as well as they're going to spend the retirement money on buying houses and cars and all kinds of things, so we can get that money back in sales tax as well."

The Utah legislature will take Perry's measure under consideration at their next general session beginning Jan. 25.

Many groups exist to extend significant help to veterans through healthcare, financial means, or other issues they may be facing in their everyday civilian lives. However, there are some others that can help just by showing they care.

A nonprofit organization in Washington state called Quilts from the Heart aims to provide veterans across the country – and others going through difficult times – with handmade quilts, according to a report from the Colorado Springs Gazette. Since 2003, the group has provided more than 12,000 blankets to individuals and organizations nationwide, with another 500 or so quilts being given to veterans of a number of foreign wars.

"It's the least we can do for what they've done for us," Marilyn Canitz, the founder of the organization who once spent four years as a dietitian in the Army herself, told the newspaper. "Some of them cry. They say the medals are nice but the quilts they can wrap up in."

Canitz added that the group currently has 30 quilts ready to be given away in case a crisis arises, the report said. The group – currently made up of about 15 volunteers – can complete a new quilt in about 10 hours, and finishes somewhere between 10 and 15 per week as a result.

Veterans who are having difficulties of any kind should understand that there are many groups designed specifically to provide benefits for veterans in need. Whether that help is financial, medical, or otherwise, assistance is often just a little bit of research and a phone call or email away. The more veterans and these groups can do to find each other, the better off both are likely to be in the future.

When veterans return home from combat, they may often have difficulties adapting back to civilian life. As a result, many have turned to service dogs as a means of helping them cope, and found a fruitful relationship with that animal that can significantly help them in their everyday lives.

Anecdotally, service dogs are particularly good for veterans who are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, which often goes undiagnosed but which obviously has very real consequences for those grappling with it, according to a report from Chicago Now. However, the VA no longer provides assistance to veterans who want service dogs, citing a lack of concrete evidence that they help in a tangible way. Unfortunately, that may leave many veterans in a tough position.

"We have the technology to rebuild body parts of injured veterans, artificial hands and legs; but no technology to deal with PTSD," Tracy Libby, author of a book about real-life service dogs and their owners, told the publication.

Fortunately, though, there are multiple organizations that exist specifically to help connect veterans with dogs that have been, or can be, trained to play the service dog role, the report said. The reason this kind of assistance is so important is that while many dogs may be perfectly capable of going through the training, the classes are not cheap and therefore may be very difficult for veterans to afford on their own.

The more veterans who are having various difficulties in their lives can do to reach out for help of any kind, the better off they're likely to be when it comes to dealing with civilian life once again. Many organizations exist to help veterans in a number of ways, and simply seeking them out can be an important first step.

Veterans are already regarded as industrious go-getters, but it may surprise some just how motivated they are to open their own business. 

According to the Miami Herald, veterans – who, at about 21 million, account for 8 percent of the U.S. population – are twice as likely to become entrepreneurs as the average civilian. One in every 10 small businesses started in this country is started by a veteran, and by the SBA's measure, 20 percent of all those employed by a small business work for a veteran.

While veteran-owned breweries and clothing shops make the news more often, most veterans actually open businesses in the finance and insurance industries. Transportation and warehousing; mining, oil and gas; and construction are all also popular. Cornell Crews, an Army veteran and current provider of small business training, told the Herald that in South Florida, lawn care maintenance, personal training and tech repair were other ventures pursed by veterans in their life after service.

"We have veterans who come to us who want to open a restaurant, or a store with a line of clothing, or online stores," said Crews. "We don't turn anyone away as long as it's legal. And if one day marijuana becomes legal in Florida, we'll help those folks as well."

In Florida and just about every other state, veterans have taken advantage of the SBA's Boots to Business initiative. An entrepreneurial training program, Boots to Business is a simple and effective two-step process that has seen real success in helping veterans get their foot into the business world.

The results have been remarkable. The (Minnesota) Star Tribune reported that veterans are now 45 percent more likely to be self-employed than non-veteran civilians, and that from 2007 to 2012, the number of female-owned small businesses has skyrocketed by nearly 300 percent. 

On Monday, the U.S. Veterans Affairs Department proposed new guidelines designed to lower the copayment for veterans purchasing prescription drugs. Following internal research, the VA found that approximately 80 percent of the veterans eligible for the rule change would save up to $5 per month's supply of a prescription. Six percent would see an increase.

Modern Healthcare reported that the proposal is a part of the larger wave of heated discussion concerning prescription drug prices that has swept across the country. Poll after poll has confirmed skyrocketing prescription costs as one of the average American's biggest concerns. Some presidential candidates have gained serious ground by focusing on the problem in their stump speeches.

In the VA's current procedure, the drug copay for non-exempt veterans is $8 to $9 for each month-long prescription. If the new rules are instituted, future rate increases would be turned down in favor of a new, three-tiered system that would categorize the drugs based on the amount of their copay costs. Tier 1, under which the majority of all medications would fall, would cost $5. Tier 2, meanwhile, would cost $8, and Tier 3 $11. According to DisabledVeterans.org, all veterans who are currently exempt would remain so.

Under the revamped guidelines, which would officially go into effect Jan. 1, 2017, a copay cap of $700 would be instituted. That is a big drop from the current $960 cap. Modern Healthcare relayed that by the VA's estimates, the amount of veterans saving from the cap would jump from a meager 2 percent to 9 percent. 

Veterans advocacy organizations like the American Legion have yet to announce an opinion on the proposed changes, citing a lack of information. As a significant shift in the way veterans benefits are put to use, the groups will meet to discuss the new guidelines shortly. 

While the VA provides many benefits to veterans who can get to their care centers, the fact of the matter is that a lot of former servicemembers are simply incapable of doing so.

Fortunately for those veterans, who may be plagued by a number of health and mobility issues, though, the VA also provides treatment at home through its popular Home Based Primary Care program, according to a report from the Connecticut Post. In many cases, all a veteran has to do to receive this kind of care, rather than making the often arduous trips to VA hospitals, is live within a 30-minute drive or so of their nearest center.

The care can then be recommended by a doctor or hospital administrators, but individuals can also ask for it themselves, the report said. If approved, a nurse will visit a veteran in his or her home and provide care, medical advice, and other information that may be critical to supporting the servicemember's ongoing health.

Veterans ought to have as much information as possible about the services for which they may be eligible that can help them in their everyday lives. Working with the VA or advocacy groups, or doing research on their own often goes a long way as a result.

One of the big problems that many veterans may encounter as they return to civilian life is that getting ready for job interviews can be challenging. However, one group in Columbus, Ohio, is working to ensure veterans can walk into any job interview confidently.

H.E.R.O.E.S. Care and a number of local businesses in Columbus recently worked together to provide free suits and accessories to veterans, according to a report from Columbus television station WBNS. The event was a major success, with more than 100 suits being given away in just two days.

"It's pretty amazing the way this whole thing has come together," Mitch Stafford, a U.S. Army captain and organizer of the event, told the station. "Most of these veterans that have come in and out of here have deployed, have been away and have been in harm's way. They deserve this. They deserve every opportunity that we can afford them."

Veterans should always be prepared to reach out to groups such as these, the VA, and others to make sure they are getting as much access to whatever help they need as possible. Taking that step can do a world of good for a veteran who may be struggling for any reason.

Many veterans may need financial help and other assistance once they are done with their service, and a large and growing number of organizations now exist to help them in this regard. One such group operating in Ohio is specifically focused on helping former servicemembers find reliable housing.

Iron Soup Historical Preservation is a group that renovates abandoned homes in Northeastern Ohio into multi-unit apartments, and allows veterans to live in them rent-free while they get back on their feet, according to a report from WKBN. Right now the organization is working on two homes in Campbell, Ohio – about halfway between Pittsburgh and Cleveland – but has a goal of renovating as many as 160 apartments for veteran use.

The group has also received significant donations from outside parties, including those of furniture, cabinets, tiles, and other home necessities, the report said. Further, all the work on these properties is done by volunteers. Therefore, the cost of renovating each unit often doesn't get to be much more than a few thousand dollars.

"There are all kinds of units around here," Iron Soup Historical Preservation Executive Director Linda Gens told the station. "They can all be rehabbed and it doesn't take much money. Our veterans are fighting, dying, getting maimed and everything for us, and they're homeless? They should be in a home. They should not be on the street somewhere."

This type of organization is always looking for two things: Veterans to assist, and volunteers. Being one or the other – or even both – can go a long way toward helping these groups reach their goals, which is to provide as much help as veterans need whenever they may need it.