Our Mission

The Veterans Mental Health Department (VMHD) is focused on ensuring access to competent mental health services for service members, veterans, and their families. VMHD accomplishes this task by providing training, certification, and technical assistance across Texas. In addition to connecting veterans in need directly to local services, VMHD also works with partners at the national, state, and local level to address veteran-specific issues including suicide prevention/intervention, veteran homelessness, military cultural competency, peer support services, military-related trauma, women and rural veterans, and justice involvement. Across all programming, VMHD is fortunate to have the broadest definition of veteran regardless of discharge status, branch of services, or having served one day or a career. All services including training, technical assistance, and direct services provided across VMHD programming are offered freely to all who are in need.  

VMHD Who We Are

Who We Are

We work with partners at the national, state, and local level to address a wide variety of veteran-specific issues.

BLAKE HARRIS

Ph. D

Director
Blake.Harris@tvc.texas.gov
(512) 676-1895

MARY MARGARET BRAKEN

CTRS

Program Support Coordinator
MaryMargaret.Bracken@tvc.texas.gov
(512) 463-6091

MANUEL RECENDIZ

Army Veteran

Platform Coordinator
Manuel.Recendiz@tvc.texas.gov
(512) 348-3783

ARLENE PEREZ

Army Veteran, LMSW

Peer Services Manager
Arlene.Perez@tvc.texas.gov
(512) 560-9937

CYNTHIA GRAY

Air Force Veteran

Justice Involved Veteran Coordinator
Cynthia.Gray@tvc.texas.gov
(512) 815-7906

TERRI WILLIAMS

Licensed Professional Counselor

Justice Involved Veteran Coordinator
Terri.Williams@tvc.texas.gov
(737) 237-4080

Amber Morson

Social Services Professional

Homeless Veteran Coordinator
Amber.Morson@TVC.Texas.gov
(512) 567-5477

ANTHONY BUSTOS

Army Veteran, MPH

Homeless Veteran Coordinator
Anthony.Bustos@tvc.texas.gov
(512) 567-5618

JESSICA DEL RIO

Licensed Professional Counselor

Veteran Suicide Prevention Coordinator
Jessica.DelRio@tvc.texas.gov
(512) 560-9469

JOHN WILSON

Retired Air Force Lt. Colonel

Community & Faith-Based Program Manager
John.Wilson@tvc.texas.gov
(512) 463-6091

DON HIPP

Navy Veteran, LPC-S, CCTP, LCCA

Mental Health Provider Coordinator
Don.Hipp@tvc.texas.gov
(512) 420-7704

Get Social

We are the state appointed advocate of Texas veterans and assist them in securing the benefits they earned while serving.

Services

All services including training, technical assistance, and direct services provided across VMHD programming are offered freely to all who are in need.

Two people working in front of laptops

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

We provide technical assistance to Service Members, Veterans, and their Families (SMVF) peers.

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Training class sitting at a table with laptops

TRAININGS

We offer training to licensed mental health providers and organizations, community & faith-based organizations, and state agencies on the impacts of military-related trauma.

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Hand with diploma

CERTIFICATIONS

Mental Health Providers can get certified with free military cultural competency training.

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A History Of Helping Veterans

VMHD is a branch of the Texas Veterans Commission. TVC was created in 1927 as the State Service Office to assist veterans of the Indian wars, Spanish-American War and World War I.

Homeless Veterans On the Street

%

Veteran Suicide Rate per 100,000

Group of friends in Military uniform

Why It Matters

Military trauma-affected SMVF often have difficulty accessing timely mental health resources due to factors, which include; an individual’s difficulty in recognition of their mental health needs, lack of resources available upon recognition of mental health needs, difficulty accessing mental health resources, and a lack of community-level awareness of military-related traumas resulting in mental health conditions.

The VMHD provides military trauma-informed training and technical assistance to create greater awareness of and access to mental health resources for SMVF.

Join Our Network

We provide training and technical assistance to agencies and organizations spanning the Texas Criminal Justice System in an effort to improve diversion and mental health treatment options for justice-involved veterans who have suffered military-related traumas.

Sign up today to become a volunteer.

How Are We Doing?

VMHD and TVC are committed to providing our Texas veterans and their families with superior customer service. Let us know how we are doing by completing a brief survey.