The Dallas County Veterans Affairs Commission has appointed New Hampton-native Nick Praska as the county’s new executive director of the Office of Veterans Affairs. He began work Monday.
Praska has served 12 years in the Iowa Air National Guard and been deployed four times: twice to Qatar, once to Kyrgyzstan and once to Afghanistan.
Praska is no stranger to the administrative side of veterans affairs, having worked 10 years for the Midwest Counterdrug Training Center at Camp Dodge in Johnston.
“Give me a couple of weeks to get acclimated,” he said Tuesday, “and I’ll be good. I’m looking forward to helping the county’s veterans and their survivors navigate the federal Veterans Health Administration and Veterans Benefits Administration.”
The county Veterans Affairs Commision is composed of the executive director and three commissioners: Korean War veteran and chair Richard Felt, Vietnam veteran Donald Bringle and Gulf War veteran Susan Piel.
Contact the Dallas County Office of Veterans Affairs at 515-993-5809 or nick.praska@dallascountyiowa.gov.
