Rocky Hill — Army veteran Nathaniel Shorter was perusing clothes laid out across several tables, eventually settling on a nice striped long-sleeved shirt.

Onofrio Little, an Air Force veteran, had his feet soaking in a bin of warm water and was awaiting a toenail clipping.

Myron Craig, a Marine Corps veteran, had just finished a pulled pork sandwich.

Unique Flynn, another Marine Corps veteran, walked around with one of her children, seeking out housing and utility assistance.

Stand Down 2015, a daylong event held Friday on the campus of the Rocky Hill Veterans Home, was essentially a one-stop shop for the state's veterans to take care of their needs.

"Dental, optometry, podiatry. Just getting some shirts and stuff," Peter Fajayan, an Army veteran who lives in New London, said of the day's visits.

Fajayan got on a bus at 6:30 a.m. Friday in New London with about 10 other veterans to attend Stand Down, which he said was "very nice." 

A certified nursing assistant at Kindred Nursing and Rehabilitation - Crossings West, he said that he heard about the event through a co-worker and on the Internet.

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The resource and service fair provided veterans with access to a full dental clinic, various medical screenings and assistance with issues such as housing, employment, education and even legal help, all at no cost.

More than 90 agencies and organizations participated in the event, which has been going on for 22 years.

In those 22 years it's never rained, according to the state's new commissioner of Veterans' Affairs Sean Connolly, an Army veteran who is a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve.

Connolly has been on the job for about six months. His focus as commissioner, he said, is transforming the Rocky Hill campus.

"You see the facilities around here, which are historical. They go back to the late '30s and '40s ... bringing them up to the 21st century so that we can provide world-class service excellence to our veterans, not just the veterans who live here, but making this center, a true center, for all the veterans across the state to come to," Connolly said.

He noted that Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman is heading up a work group called "Reimagine Rocky Hill" to address this issue.

The longest line of the day was at the tent for the nonprofit A Reason to Ride, where volunteers were handing out sweatshirts and snacks.

Early on in the day, the line for haircuts was several hours long.

The Marine Draftsmen Association-United Auto Workers Local 571, including president Bill Louis, was there handing out food donated by the Gemma Moran Food Bank.

Inside where veterans lined cafeteria tables, they could choose from a pulled pork sandwich or chicken and several other offerings including a whole box of Girl Scout Cookies. One female volunteer who was serving food told each veteran who approached her: "Thank you for your service"

Veterans with motor vehicle or traffic violations could speak with a public defender and, in some scenarios, have their cases be heard in the impromptu court set up in one of the buildings on campus.

Another booth offered passport information and applications.

Frontier Communications had a booth where it gave away water bottles and other swag, and presented information on its Internet service program for veterans. A recruiter was also present to talk to any veterans interested in working for the company.

Employee Roger Gantenbein, a retired submarine veteran, said that Frontier in Connecticut has a lot of veterans working for the company.

While Flynn was looking for help herself with housing and utility bills, she said: "I hope one day I'll be able to be on the other side of this, you know, maybe next year things will change. I'm just grateful for what they are doing."

j.bergman@theday.com

Twitter: @JuliaSBergman