SAGINAW, MI – Dave Schmidt was among dozens of people standing outside the Aleda E. Lutz Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center on Thursday, March 20, as sleet and snow poured down.
Some protesters held signs outside the hospital at 1500 Weiss St. in Saginaw, which provides primary care and other health services to veterans, while others were there for support. But they all had one common message to the federal government: “Stop your cuts on the VA.”
“I live at the VA, basically,” said Schmidt, who served in the U.S. Navy from 1994-98. “I’m here all the time.”
Schmidt was stationed on the U.S.S. Shiloh while serving in the Navy and was injured overseas. He said he was terrified when he began learning of the cuts.
“How are we going to get better service with less employees?” he said. “That’s what I can’t figure out. And nobody can answer that question.”
On Feb. 13, the Department of Veterans Affairs announced the dismissal of more than 1,000 employees. That was followed by the dismissal of 1,400 additional employees just 10 days later.
The moves were part of larger federal cuts by the Trump administration, which the president has claimed is part of an effort to make agencies more efficient, effective and responsive to the American people.
Those who lost their jobs were non-bargaining unit probationary employees who had served less than a year with the VA.
The administration has touted the cuts at the VA alone as saving the department more than $177 million.
The two mass firings affected VA medical centers based in Ann Arbor and Detroit, where the terminations of probationary employees left impacted VA employees confused and scrambling.
Upset with what they were seeing or experiencing, about three dozen people lined the sidewalk outside the Aleda E. Lutz VA facility in Saginaw. Using megaphones, protesters called out messages of disdain for the cuts to passersby.
There were chants: “The constitution matters,” “This is what democracy looks like,” and “Save our veterans.”
That last message was part of what prompted Kim Rowan to begin organizing the protests. She said she formed several throughout February and has continued them into March.
The mother of a veteran, she said the federal cuts are personal.
“Our veterans have served and lost lives and given their time, they’ve been away from their family,” Rowan said. “It’s a cold day, but how many cold days, how many hot days have our veterans had to stand outside and fought for our freedom? We can come out and support them when some of their services might be in jeopardy.”
Michigan has five VA hospitals—Ann Arbor, Battle Creek, Detroit, Iron Mountain and Saginaw—meaning each one serves more than just the city it is in but works more as a regional hub. Rowan said that shows the importance of having the hospitals, which are already in such demand.
“We have this here, it services a lot of people, and we need to stand up for our veterans,” she said.
Tony Hall, a veteran who lives in Breckenridge, traveled down M-46 to make his way to Saginaw. t’s not much of a trek for the former Coast Guard member, as he’s used to making the trip; he has been receiving services at the VA hospital in Saginaw for 15 years.
“I get all my medical here,” he said. “If I lose that, I’m done. These guys take care of me.
“I’ve made a lot of friends here, and to see the worried look on their faces because of these things happening…we’ve got to stop this.”
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