IN.gov - Skip Navigation

Note: This message is displayed if (1) your browser is not standards-compliant or (2) you have you disabled CSS. Read our Policies for more information.

DVA > Director of Veteran Affairs Director of Veteran Affairs

Director Charles T. Applegate

Charles T. "Tom" Applegate, the Director of the Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs, was appointed by Governor Mitch Daniels in February, 2005, to head the Department which trains Indiana's county veterans' service officers and administers state veterans' benefits for Hoosier veterans, their dependents and survivors.

Prior to his appointment, Tom was the Huntington County Veterans' Service Officer from 1995 until 2005 and served two terms as the President of the Indiana Veterans' Service Officers' Association.

He retired from the military in 1995, as a First Sergeant, after serving 17 ½ years as a full-timer (Active Guard-Reserve) with the Indiana Army National Guard, and 8 years of prior service active duty with the U.S. Air Force.

Tom is a member of the American Legion, the Disabled American Veterans, American Veterans (AMVETS), the VFW Men's Auxiliary (Huntington), an associate member of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, and the founder of Purple Heart Chapter 692, Gas City, Indiana, named in honor of his father, Charles L. Applegate, a deceased World War II veteran.

In July, 2005, he was named the recipient of the Samuel Jones Pioneer Award, an award given by the citizens of Warren, Indiana in honor of persons who have devoted much of their lives to the service of other individuals.

As the Director of the Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs (IDVA), Tom is responsible for the training and certification of Indiana's 92 county veterans' service officers. IDVA oversees the operation of the Indiana Veterans' Memorial Cemetery in Madison, Indiana, and the Indiana Veterans' Home in West Lafayette, Indiana. He is the Governor's primary advisor on veterans affairs, is the main contact for Hoosier legislators on legislative matters concerning veterans and he is the Governor's liaison to State veterans' groups and organizations.

Tom and his wife, Louise, were married in 1961 and have lived in Indianapolis since his appointment as the Director in 2005. Prior to his appointment, they lived in Warren, Indiana for 35 years. They have two children, Charles Jr., Huntington, Indiana, and Brenda Applegate, Marion, Indiana, four granddaughters and one great-granddaughter.