Feb 10, 2016 3 min read

Leap Day – Feb. 29 – occurs just once every four years, but for Barry Grimm, it’s going to be a jumping-off point.

Grimm, 68, will be reporting for duty for the last time that day as director of Washington County Veterans Affairs.

Grimm, a Charleroi High School alumnus and Monongahela resident, is a U.S. Navy veteran of the Vietnam War. He didn’t use the term “disembark,” but he said Tuesday, “I’m going to hang it up.”

After working at Washington County Health Center, Grimm became director of veterans affairs in 2011.

“It became more and more interesting as I was here,” Grimm said. “You learn from the VA, and you learn from your clients. I just call it a great learning experience.”

This past spring, an Observer-Reporter story on his office and what it could do to aid veterans coincided with the mailing of a letter notifying recipients of Supplemental Security Income who were veterans that they might also be eligible for VA benefits. The phone rang off the hook, and Grimm’s office was busy with appointments for weeks.

“Barry is a fascinating individual,” county commission Chairman Larry Maggi, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, said by phone Tuesday before performing honor guard duty at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies. “His military service was extraordinary. He served on the USS Forrestal that caught fire, and then the Army. He really does a great job for the veterans of Washington County. He’s always at meetings and always there to help his fellow veterans.”

The two-person office secured $1.7 million for Washington County veterans during the 2014-15 fiscal year, according to a report from the state Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.

Grimm, a recipient of the Vietnam Service Medal with a service star and the National Defense Service medal, enlisted in 1965 and remained on active duty until 1969. He then served in the Army National Guard from 1981 to 1988 and in the U.S. Army Reserve until 1991.

The Washington County Human Resources Department will be accepting résumés for the position through Feb. 26. After Grimm’s last day on the job, Susan Meighen, veterans affairs coordinator, who is nationally accredited to handle veterans’ claims, will continue to aid those who are seeking help with applying for benefits and monitor the status of claims.

Grimm is a member of American Legion Post 613, Finleyvile; VFW Post 6664, Library; Washington Voiture 676, 40&8; Sons of the American Legion; and the United States Navy Club Ship No. 720. He is a life member of West Newton Amvets and the Association of Aviation Ordnancemen, known as the “Red Shirts,” which he called “the bomb guys – that’s what I did in the Navy.”

Asked about his post-retirement plans, Grimm replied, “I have no plans at all. I’m not going on vacation or anything like that.”