Roughly 60 Cape May County veterans and their spouses were provided free legal services in an innovative program called “Wills for Warriors.” Cape May County Surrogate Judge E. Marie Hayes and the Surrogate’s Office, in partnership with the New Jersey State Bar Association, the Cape May County Bar Association, and the Citizen/Veterans Advisory Committee (CVAC) introduced the program on Thursday at the Ocean City American Legion Morvay-Miley-Cruice Post 524.
More than 20 attorneys donated their time to prepare a will, power of attorney, and health care directive free of charge to the Veterans who attended. Many well-known firms that do law work donated time, including King Barnes, who supplied several attorneys and two law interns. Shoreside Legal and local attorneys from Ocean City, Sea Isle City, and the Wildwoods were all among those who helped.
Surrogate Hayes brought the concept to Cape May County after attending the Firefighters Convention in Atlantic City and observing a similar program that had been implemented for first responders. Knowing the significant veteran’s population in Cape May County, she created a working group, consisting of the Surrogate, the Cape May County Bar Association president, New Jersey Bar Association, veterans, attorneys, and paralegals. Recent Census data estimates that roughly 5,400 veterans live in Cape May County.
“Veterans have risked everything in life to give us the freedoms we have today,” said Hayes. “In Cape May County, we don’t just say we appreciate our veterans, we show it with actions. To that point, I personally want to thank the tremendous support we received from the legal community and volunteers to allow so many veterans to be served today.”
Hayes also extended her thanks to the City of Ocean City and Mayor Jay Gillian for their assistance, and the Ocean City American Legion Morvay-Miley-Cruice Post 524 for hosting. Due to the success of the program, the Surrogates Office is considering future events that expand to help veterans and first responders.
