Any information must be verified by the postmaster prior to posting, however that does not
mean everything on this page is 100% true and accurate. The information posted here is true and accurate to the best
of the postmaster's ability to verify. It is you, the consumer which is responsable for how and what actions you
take with this information.
Veterans Industries, it is a :Work Shop: at the James
A. Haley hospital that creates various items for sale. They make coins and they do a lot of embroidery work,
make banners, pen sets and much more. All proceeds go to assisting Veterans in need, they operate as a non-profit.
WASHINGTON – The Department of Veterans Affairs opened registration
on July 8 for a women Veterans forum that will address the quality of VA health care, the provision of benefits for women,
and ways for VA to continue improving access to the care and benefits for women Veterans.
“The VA forum will bring advocates for women Veterans together to learn about VA services and
to share valuable information with each other,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “The forum
will also give Veterans’ advocates the tools they need to help build women Veterans networks and communities throughout
VA.”
Shinseki and VA department heads will attend the forum
on July 28 at the Women’s Memorial in Arlington, Va.
Because of anticipated
demand, available seats will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis, and confirmed registrants will be notified by
email once registration is filled. Registration—through the Center for Women Veterans by e-mail at 00W@va.gov -- closes when either all seats are filled or no later than July 16.
The
Forum will run from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., with morning presentations and an afternoon information marketplace in which participants
are invited to move through the gallery and gather resources and materials provided by VA program offices, Veterans Service
Organizations and advocacy organizations. There will also be an afternoon screening of the updated “Lioness” documentary
film.
VA’s women Veterans health conference held earlier in the month
will help inform the Forum with the most up-to-date information available from VA’s health care system.
Presentations from the event will be made available online. Feedback about this event and announcements
on future events will be available to Forum participants. For more information contact the Center for Women Veterans at (202)
461-6193 or by e-mail at 00W@va.gov.
VA has undertaken major initiatives to transform the department to meet the
unique health care needs of women Veterans and provide the best quality care at every VA medical center. In addition, the agency is working to shorten the delays for claims processing, improve access to VA health
services for minority and rural Veterans, end Veteran homelessness, and ease the transition back to civilian life.
There are about 1.8 million women Veterans among the nation’s total of 23 million living Veterans.
VA estimates women Veterans will comprise 10.5 percent of the Veteran population by 2020.
My name is Ashley Ammen
and I am with the Veteran’s Affairs Network Office in Bay Pines
VISN 8 and the James A Haley
Veterans Hospital will be co-hosting a faith-based outreach event on Saturday, July 31st from 11AM to 2PM at the St. Mary’s
Episcopal Church at 4311 W San Miguel Street in Tampa, Florida. Though this event will be featured as a Health/Employment
Expo we are also interested in including agencies that offer veteran services and would be interested in distributing materials
or information during the event. Set up will be at 10AM and tables, tablecloths and chairs will be provided. If
you are interested in having your agency participate, please send me an email directly.
Please note that although the outreach is being hosted at the Episcopal Church, it is not limited to the Episcopal
faith.
The event will be promoted community-wide. Once again, please let me know if
you are interested or if you have any questions.
We appreciate your participation and hope
to see you on July 31st!
DISCOUNTS ON ANNUAL ENTRANCE PASSES FOR VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILIES
Effective
July 1, 2010 Florida’s state parks will provide discounts on or free Annual Entrance Passes to those who currently serve
or have served in the United States military branches, veterans with service related disabilities and surviving spouses of
members of the US military who have fallen in combat.
The discounted Florida State Parks Annual Entrance Pass is only
available for purchase at any Florida State Park staffed ranger station. The free annual pass can only be obtained at a staffed
ranger station. View list of staffed ranger stations.
Effective July 1, 2010 the Florida Park Service shall provide discounts on the purchase of Annual Entrance Passes
to persons who present satisfactory written documentation which demonstrates their eligibility:
25%
discount on Annual Entrance Passes for active duty and honorably discharged veterans of the United States Armed Forces, National
Guard or reserve units of the U.S. Armed Forces or National Guard who present proof of eligibility.
Satisfactory
written documentation to prove eligibility includes:
Current military identification card showing the bearer as
active duty, reserve or retired member of a branch of the Department of Defense, or
Personal identification (i.e.:
driver license) and
Most recent DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, showing the named
individual’s Character of Service as Honorable, or
Other current official documentation from the Department
of Defense, or one of its branches, naming the bearer as active duty, reserve, veteran or retired military.
Free
for Life Family Annual Entrance Passes for honorably discharged United States veterans who have service-connected disabilities.
Satisfactory
written documentation to prove eligibility includes:
Personal identification (i.e.: driver license) and
Most
recent DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, showing the named individual’s Character of
Service as Honorable, or
Other current official documentation from the Department of Defense, or one of its branches,
naming the bearer as veteran, or retired military, and
Current official documentation from the Department of Defense,
or one of its branches, naming the bearer as having sustained a service-related disability.
Free
for Life Family Annual Entrance Passes for surviving spouses of deceased members of the United States Armed Forces,
National Guard or reserve units of the U.S. Armed Forces or National Guard who have fallen in combat.
Proof
of spouse having fallen in combat and proof of spousal relationship are required.
Personal identification (i.e.:
driver license) and
The final DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, showing the date
of death as the same date as the date of separation, and,
Marriage certificate or license, or death certificate showing
the bearer as the spouse of the military member who has fallen in combat.
Do you know a Veteran and family whose home deserves an Extreme Makeover? If so,
the producers of ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition want to hear from you.
What does it take to be picked for an Extreme Makeover? "We're looking for those special people
who have amazing strength of character and never give up. Whether it’s keeping their chin up in really tough circumstances
or going out of their way to help others. We want to help people whose stories have really affected their community or made
a big difference in other people's lives. There are a lot of people who are heroes to those around them because of the way
they inspire others and quietly serve their communities on a daily basis."
Four Chinese submarines lead 56 destroyers, frigates, missile boats, subs and planes
off the port of Qingdao in April 2009 after tensions flared with... View Enlarged Image
Military Advantage: Our defense secretary proposes doing what no other foreign adversary has
done: sink the U.S. Navy. We don't need those billion-dollar destroyers, he says. Meanwhile, the Chinese navy rushes to fill
the vacuum.
Once Britannia ruled the waves, later to be replaced by America and its Navy. From the Battle of Midway
to President Reagan's 600-ship fleet that helped win the Cold War, naval supremacy has been critical to the protection and
survival of our nation.
Which is why we find the recent remarks of Defense Secretary Robert Gates to the Navy League
at the Sea-Air-Space expo so disturbing. He seems to think naval supremacy is a luxury we can't afford and that, like every
other aspect of our military, an already shrunken U.S. Navy needs to downsize.
Education Benefits for Military SpousesFlorida Realtors
has just been approved as an official education provider as part of the Military Spouse Career Advancement Account Program.
This program provides eligible military spouses up to $6,000 of financial assistance to help them pursue education, training,
licenses, certificates and degrees. This program can be used to pay for GRI and continuing education programs for spouses
of actively deployed military personnel. This program will be available to all associations starting on May 1st,
so stay tuned for details.
By Lara Jakes - The Associated Press Posted : Thursday Apr 22, 2010 6:19:31 EDT
BAGHDAD
— A U.S. military jury cleared a Navy SEAL on Thursday of failing to prevent the beating of an Iraqi prisoner suspected
of masterminding a 2004 attack that killed four American security contractors.
The contractors’ burned bodies
were dragged through the streets and two were hanged from a bridge over the Euphrates River in the former insurgent hotbed
of Fallujah, in what became a major turning point in the Iraq war.
The trial of three SEALs has outraged many Americans
who see it as coddling terrorists.
Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Julio Huertas, 28, of Blue Island, Ill., was found
not guilty by a six-man jury of charges of dereliction of duty and attempting to influence the testimony of another service
member.
The jury spent two hours deliberating the verdict.
Huertas is the first of three SEALs to face a court-martial
for charges related to the abuse incident. All three SEALs could have received only a disciplinary reprimand, but they insisted
on a military trial to clear their names and save their careers.
Center
for Independant Living may have funds to help Disabled Veterans with Ramps,
Beverly of the Center for Independent Living,
(863) 413-2722 may have funds that could be provided for disabled veteran ramps and provide employment services
The Florida Strawberry Festival will honor our American Heroes by offering
FREE admission. All active, reserve and retired military and military veterans along with Law Enforcement,
First Responders (EMS & Fire Fighters) will be admitted free all day when they show a valid ID. Didwe
ever tell you that you’re our heroes? These people put their lives on hold and on the line everyday so that
we may enjoy the freedoms we have here in America! AT 3:30 p.m. Aaron Tippin (who is most recognized for his patriotic
smash hit single “Where the Stars and Stripes and the Eagle Fly,” among others) will perform on the GTE FCU Soundstage.
There’s a hero if you look inside your heart!
The
Polk County Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) is in the process of developing a multimodal (roads, transit, sidewalks,
bike paths, multi-use trails) cost feasible long range transportation plan for the year 2035.
This 2035 Mobility Vision
Plan will identify and address future transportation needs. Transportation plans will be developed for drivers,
transit users, pedestrians and bicyclists, ensuring that the overall transportation system will operate safely and effectively
into the future.
Please take a few minutes to fill out our 8 question survey to let us know how you feel about future
investments in Polk County's transportation system.
National Anthem auditions will be held
Saturday February, 6 from 10 a.m. - 12 noon for Spring Training and Lakeland Flying Tigers games. Each singer will be required
to sing an acappella version of the National Anthem. There are limited dates still available. If there are any questions please
contact Dan Lauer at his e-mail: dan.lauer@detroittigers.com.
Please be aware
that the VA Police are now issuing parking citations for those who park in the Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) unit area
without a SPECIAL SCI PARKING PERMIT.
A State of Florida issued Handicap Parking Permit is
not the permit authorized to be used. You must have a Special SCI Parking Permit to park in most
of the SCI parking lot.
Even though the sign is misleading and does not say you need a special SCI Parking
Permit VA Police have started to issue paring violation citations.
Below is a modified picture
of a Special SCI Parking Permit. To obtain one you must be a patient in SCI and go to the SCI office and register your
vehicle.
Why did this come about? Because most SCI patients need mobility assistance and some people
have actually parked so close to side loading vans and trucks that the SCI patients could not get back into their own vehicles.
If you see a sign on a Van or Truck, either side load or rear load, please do not park too close to their vehicle, unlike
you and I, they need space to be able to move, give them the space they need so they can enjoy life also.
Airman 1st Class Corey Hernandez pulled the trigger.
Nothing was supposed to happen, except the metallic click of the hammer striking the firing pin.Instead, the pistol
fired.Senior Airman Michael Garcia fell to the floor of his apartment, just outside Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., a bullet
in his head from his own gun fired by one of his best friends.
Police called what the airmen were doing “horseplay.”The
men had been playing a game, one that tests faith and wills, one increasingly common in the military. Two months ago,
four Marines received time in the brig for their roles in the death of a Marine killed in Iraq while playing the game, called
Trust.Until Dec. 10, when the 23-year-old Garcia died, the Air Force had not had any reported incidents of airmen playing
Trust. Today, Hernandez, 21, faces charges of manslaughter and use of a weapon to commit a felony. A preliminary hearing
is set for Jan. 11 in Sarpy County Court, the local civilian jurisdiction. If convicted of both charges, he could
be sentenced to up to 70 years in prison, according to Nebraska sentencing guidelines. The Air Force released details
about the airmen’s job responsibilities — both belonged to units of the 55th Wing — but refused to speculate
on Garcia’s death because it is still under investigation by the local civilian authorities. It did not rule out
the possibility that Hernandez could be charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice at some point as well.
“The
55th Wing, Offutt Air Force Base and the Air Force as a whole suffered a great loss with the death of Senior Airman Garcia.
We share in the sorrow felt by his loved ones and the loss of one of our own affects all of us,” read a statement released
by Offutt officials.Drinks and a weaponGarcia and Hernandez met in April, when Hernandez arrived at Offutt right out of communications
tech school. Both belonged to units of the 55th Wing, the Fightin’ Fifty-Fifth. Hernandez is a voice network apprentice
with the 55th Communications Squadron; Garcia was an intelligence analyst with the 55th Operations Support Squadron.They lived
in the same apartment complex, Gateway Park, only two miles from base, and hung out together often, according to James Martin
Davis, Hernandez’s civilian attorney. On the night of the shooting, according to authorities, Garcia, Hernandez
and two other airmen started out at a nearby bar, winding up at Garcia’s apartment about midnight. Neither the
police in Bellevue, Neb., — near Offutt — nor the Air Force would identify the other airmen. At the apartment,
Garcia brought out his Springfield .40-caliber semiautomatic handgun, according to what Davis said Hernandez told him.
There was not supposed to be a round in the chamber. That’s the way the game is played — buddies trust each other
that the weapon is cleared and pulling the trigger will be harmless.Garcia “took the gun down, he put it in front of
[Hernandez], and he says, ‘Trust me. Now point it at me and shoot.’ And Corey did,” Davis saidHernandez
and Garcia had played Trust with the gun before, Davis said, and they usually took turns as the shooter. “They
had done this a number of times,” he said. “No one knows why there was a round in the chamber.” Garcia’s
roommate, also an airman, dialed 911 shortly before 1 a.m. Dec. 11 to report the shooting. When officers arrived a few
minutes later, Hernandez, the roommate and another airman were waiting outside. “They were obviously upset,”
said Lt. Keith Bader, commander of the Bellevue Police Department’s special investigations unit. Officers found
Garcia dead in the apartment, then drove the three airmen to police headquarters for questioning. They arrested Hernandez.
He stayed in the Sarpy County Jail until Dec. 15, when he posted $20,000 of a $200,000 bond.During questioning, according
to Bader, the airmen did not say they were playing a game but did use the word “trust” in explaining what happened.
Bader described the airmen’s actions as “horseplay” and “inappropriate handling of the handgun.”“Actually,
this is the first I had heard of it,” Bader said of the Trust game. “They did state that the victim had pointed
the gun at himself and at others and had pulled the trigger.”
A Marine trick Troops have played the Trust game
— in different forms — for years, a few times with fatal consequences. In 1997, a Marine lance corporal
died in Okinawa after other Marines accidentally dropped him from the third floor of his barracks. In that version of
the Trust game, the Marines took turns dangling each other out a window, holding only their ankles. Five Marines faced criminal
charges; one was sentenced to 10 years in the brig. A decade later, a Kentucky Army National Guardsman shot and killed
his best friend, a fellow soldier, while playing Trust, which he said he learned while deployed to Iraq.
This
year, two deaths, both caused by Marines, have been attributed to the game.The first was the one in Iraq that sent the four
Marines to the brig. The second was the fatal shooting of a civilian by his Marine roommate in an off-base home near Camp
Lejeune, N.C. The Marine faces a charge of second-degree murder. The game is touted as a way to build camaraderie
and “maintain an edge,” according to the Marine investigation of the shooting in Iraq.
Perhaps
because of Air Force culture, the high education level of airmen or the roles that the service has played in the war zones,
airmen seem far less familiar with Trust than Marines seem to be. Enlisted airmen and an officer told Air Force Times that
they either had never heard of Trust or had never heard of the game being played by their fellow airmen. The officer,
a judge advocate, said he remembers a case from his years as a defense counsel that involved airmen playing Russian roulette
but has never heard of Trust being played in the Air Force.
”Brig. Gen. John N.T. Shanahan, the 55th
Wing commander, posted a commentary Dec. 15 on Offutt’s Web site encouraging his airmen to watch out for each other, help each other make good decisions and “simply [say] ‘no’
when somebody asks you to join in an action that you know could result in injury or damage.”
WRITER'S CENTER SCHOLARSHIPS
OPEN TO WOMEN VETERANS The Writer’s Center in Bethesda, Md., is calling for applications for the Ann Darr
Scholarship for deserving writers who wish to take workshops offered by the Center. If you are female veteran or active-duty
soldier, you can get a scholarship to cover the cost of tuition for one writing workshop. Additional scholarships are available
for those applicants who re-apply and/or receive instructor recommendation. To apply, send a 1-2 page cover letter that discusses
your armed service experience and your specific goals and aspirations. Applications should be postmarked by February 15, 2010,
and e-mailed to charles.jensen@writer.org or sent to Charles Jensen, Director, The Writer’s Center, 4508 Walsh Street, Bethesda, MD 20815. Find out more at https://www.writer.org/news/news.asp?id=204
Marvel Digital Comics Unlimited will give away
1,000 free one-year subscriptions of its digital comics to enlisted military personnel from Monday through Jan.7. It’s
first come, first served, said spokeswoman Ann Hinshaw.
A year’s online subscription would normally cost
$59.88, she said.
Enlisted personnel who want to sign up for the free subscription can send an e-mail to marveldigitalpromo@sunbeltfs.com to receive a promotion code.
Online subscribers have access to the largest collection of new and classic Marvel
comics on the Internet, with more than 5,000 characters spanning the last 70 years.
It includes the first 100 issues
of the Amazing Spider-Man series, the first run of the X-Men series and original stories developed exclusively for Marvel
Digital Comics Unlimited, which is part of Marvel Entertainment.
By KIMBERLY HEFLING, Associated Press Writer Kimberly Hefling,
Associated Press Writer Mon Dec 14, 9:29 am ET
WASHINGTON – Nobody wants to buy them a beer.
Even near military
bases, female veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan aren't often offered a drink
on the house as a welcome home.
More than 230,000 American women have fought in those recent wars and at least 120 have
died doing so, yet the public still doesn't completely understand their contributions on the modern battlefield.
For
some, it's a lonely transition as they struggle to find their place.
Aimee Sherrod, an Air
Force veteran who did three war tours, said years went by when she didn't tell people she was a veteran. After facing
sexual harassment during two tours and mortar attacks in Iraq, the 29-year-old mother of two from Bells, Tenn., was medically
discharged in 2005 with post-traumatic stress disorder.
She's haunted by nightmares
and wakes up some nights thinking she's under attack. She's moody as a result of PTSD and
can't function enough to work or attend college. Like some other veterans, she felt she improperly received a low disability
rating by the Department of Veterans Affairs that left her with a token monthly payment. She
was frustrated that her paperwork mentioned she was pregnant, a factor she thought was irrelevant.
"I just gave
up on it and I didn't tell anyone about ever being in the military because I was so ashamed over everything," Sherrod
said.
Then Jo Eason, a Nashville, Tenn., lawyer working pro bono through the Lawyers Serving Warriors program, stepped
in a few years later and Sherrod began taking home a heftier monthly disability payment.
"I've never regretted
my military service, I'm glad I did it," Sherrod said. "I'm not ashamed of my service. I'm ashamed to try and tell
people about it because it's like, well, why'd you get out? All the questions that come with it."
The Defense Department
bars women from serving in assignments where the primary mission is to engage in direct ground combat. But the nature of the
recent conflicts, with no clear front lines, puts women in the middle of the action, in roles
such as military police officers, pilots, drivers and gunners on convoys. In addition to the
120-plus deaths, more than 650 women have been wounded.
Back home, women face many of the same issues as the men, but
the personal stakes may be greater.
Female service members have much higher rates of divorce and are more likely to
be a single parent. When they do seek help at VA medical centers, they are screening positive at a higher rate for military
sexual trauma, meaning they indicated experiencing sexual harassment, assault or rape. Some studies have shown that female
veterans are at greater risk for homelessness.
Former Army Sgt. Kayla Williams, an Iraq
veteran who has written about her experience, said she was surprised by the response she and other women from the 101st
Airborne Division received from people in Clarksville, Tenn., near Fort Campbell, Ky.
She said residents just
assumed they were girlfriends or wives of military men.
"People didn't come up to us and thank us for our service
in the same way. They didn't give us free beers in bars in the same way when we first got back," said Williams, 34, of
Ashburn, Va. "Even if you're vaguely aware of it, it still colors how you see yourself
in some ways."
Genevieve Chase, 32, of Alexandria, Va., a staff
sergeant in the Army Reserves, said the same guys who were her buddies in Afghanistan
didn't invite her for drinks later on because their wives or girlfriends wouldn't approve.
"One of the hardest
things that I had to deal with was, being a woman, was losing my best friends or my comrades to their families," Chase
said.
It was that sense of loss, she said, that led her to get together with some other female veterans for brunch in
New York last year. The group has evolved into the American Women
Veterans, which now has about 2,000 online supporters, some of whom go on camping trips and advocate for veterans'
issues. About a dozen marched in this year's Veteran's Day parade in New York.
"We
just want to know that when we come home, America has our back," Chase said. "That's the biggest thing. Women are
over there. You want to feel like you're coming home to open arms, rather than to a public that doesn't acknowledge you for
what you've just done and what you just sacrificed."
Rachel McNeill, a gunner during hostile convoys in Iraq,
said she was so affected by the way people treated her when they learned she fought overseas that she even started to question
whether she was a veteran.
She described the attitudes as "Oh, you didn't do anything or you were just on base,"
said McNeill, who suffers from postconcussive headaches, ringing in her ears, and other health problems related to roadside
bomb blasts. The 25-year-old from Hollandale, Wis., was a sergeant in the Army
Reserves.
She said she seemingly even got that response when she told the VA staff in Madison,
Wis., of her work. She said she was frustrated to see in her VA paperwork how what she told them had been interpreted.
"It would say like, 'the patient rode along on convoys,' like I was just a passenger in the back seat," McNeill
said.
Other women have had similar complaints. The VA leadership has said it recognizes it needs to do more to improve
care for these veterans, and as part of changes in the works, female coordinators are in place at each medical center to give
women an advocate. The agency is also reviewing comments on a proposal to make it easier for those who served in noninfantry
roles — including women — to qualify for disability benefits for PTSD.
Sen. Patty Murray, a member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs
committee, recently asked VA Secretary Eric Shinseki and Defense
Secretary Robert Gates to ensure that service members' combat experience is included on their military
discharge papers, so later they can get benefits they are entitled to.
Research has shown that a lack of validation
of a soldier's service can make their homecoming more difficult.
"What worries me is that women themselves still
don't see themselves as veterans, so they don't get the care they need for post-traumatic stress syndrome or traumatic brain
injury or even sexual assault, which obviously is more unique to women, so we still have a long ways to go," said Murray,
D-Wash.
Chase said one challenge is getting female veterans to ask for changes.
"Most of us, because we
were women service members, are so used to not complaining and not voicing our issues, because in the military that's considered
weak. Nobody wants to hear the girl whine," Chase said.
McNeill said that when she's been out at restaurants and
bars with the guys in her unit, they make sure she gets some recognition when the free beers go around.
"They'll
make a point ... usually to say, 'She was over there with us, she was right next to us,'" McNeill said
WASHINGTON – Secretary of Veterans
Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has launched a national survey of Veterans, active
duty service members, activated National Guard and reserve members, and family members and survivors to learn if they are
aware of VA services.
“By hearing directly from Veterans and their family
members, we gain valuable information to help us serve them better. We hope those who receive the survey will respond
to it,” Secretary Shinseki said.
In addition to assessing awareness
levels, the National Survey of Veterans will collect important health care, benefits, employment, and demographic information
that VA will use to inform policy decisions and improve benefits. Recognizing a broader client base than just Veterans,
this is the first time VA has included others, such as Veteran family members, in its survey population.
VA is mailing out survey “screeners” to more than 130,000 households to identify potential
survey participants. The screener asks if anyone in the household is a member of one of the identified survey groups
– Veterans, family members and survivors, active duty, Guard or Reserve members. Eligible survey participants
then may be requested to participate in a full-length survey.
Participants
will be able to select a preferred survey method: through U.S. mail, telephone or a password-protected Internet address. VA
expects approximately 10,000 Veterans to complete the full-length survey.
This
is the sixth VA National Survey of Veterans since 1978. The information collected will help VA in its efforts to
design and conduct outreach to Veterans. In addition, it will provide a clearer picture of the Veteran population’s
characteristics to help evaluate existing programs and policies and measure their impact.
The data collection is expected to be finished by the end of February and the final report released by December 2010.
WARNING
- 2010 Census and your personal Information - Identity Theft
For years, Better Business Bureau has educated consumers
about not giving out personal information over the telephone or to anyone who shows up at their front door. With the
U.S. Census process beginning, BBB advises people to be cooperative, but cautious, so as not to become a victim of fraud or
identity theft.
The first phase of the 2010 U.S. Census is under way as workers have begun verifying the
addresses of households across the country. Eventually, more than 140,000 U.S. Census workers will count every person
in the United States and will gather information about every person living at each address including name, age, gender, race
and other relevant data.
“Most people are rightfully cautious and won’t give out personal information
to unsolicited phone callers or visitors, however the Census is an exception to the rule,” said Steve Cox, BBB spokesperson.
“Unfortunately, scammers know that the public is more willing to share personal data when taking part in the Census
and they have an opportunity to ply their trade by posing as a government employee and soliciting sensitive financial information.”
The Census data will be used to allocate more than $300 billion in federal funds every year, as well as
determine a State’s number of Congressional representatives. Households are actually required by law to respond to the
Census Bureau’s request for information.
During the U.S. Census, households will be contacted by mail, telephone
or visited by a U.S. Census worker who will inquire about the number of people living in the house. Unfortunately, people
may also be contacted by scammers who are impersonating Census workers in order to gain access to sensitive financial information
such as Social Security, bank account or credit card numbers. Law enforcement in several states have issued warnings that
scammers are already posing as Census Bureau employees and knocking on doors asking for donations and Social Security numbers.
The big question is - how do you tell the difference between a U.S. Census worker and a con artist? BBB
offers the following advice:
• If a U.S. Census worker knocks on your door, they will have a badge,
a handheld device, a Census Bureau canvas bag and a confidentiality notice. Ask to see their identification and their badge
before answering their questions. However, you should never invite anyone you don’t know into your home.
• Census workers are currently only knocking on doors to verify address information. Do not give your Social Security
number, credit card or banking information to anyone, even if they claim they need it for the U.S. Census. While the
Census Bureau might ask for basic financial information, such as a salary range, it will not ask for Social Security, bank
account or credit card numbers nor will employees solicit donations.
• Eventually, Census workers may
contact you by telephone, mail or in person at home. However, they will not contact you by e-mail, so be on the look
out for e-mail scams impersonating the Census. Never click on a link or open any attachments in an e-mail that are supposedly
from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Our mission at the Army Heritage and Education Center is to tell
the Army's story one soldier at a time. In order to accomplish our mission we need your stories. We run a veterans survey
program to collect the stories and recollections from United States Army veterans. These surveys help everyone understand
the experiences of the Soldier and are critical to helping researchers, historians and the next generation learn from our
history. We are interested in everyone's story, from privates to generals, because each story in unique and important. Please
take the time to participate in this program so that others may understand all that you have experienced and sacrificed for
our country. Click on the appropriate survey below. If you have any questions, please contact Visitor and Education Services
by email or call (717) 245-3641.
Veteran Surveys
Our mission at the Army Heritage
and Education Center is to tell the Army's story one soldier at a time. In order to accomplish our mission we need your stories.
We run a veterans survey program to collect the stories and recollections from United States Army veterans. These surveys
help everyone understand the experiences of the Soldier and are critical to helping researchers, historians and the next generation
learn from our history. We are interested in everyone's story, from privates to generals, because each story in unique and
important. Please take the time to participate in this program so that others may understand all that you have experienced
and sacrificed for our country. Click on the appropriate survey below. If you have any questions, please contact Visitor and
Education Services by email or call (717) 245-3641.
Please use the links below to fill out your Veteran Survey using our online form. You
will be required to submit your e-mail address so you may return to your survey at anytime. A link will be sent to the e-mail
provided by you to allow access to your survey. Please read the "Survey Instructions"
provided on the first page of the survey for important information on the use of this form.
WASHINGTON — Congressman Rodney Alexander
is urging residents to send holiday mail to ensure that troops and veterans in the U.S. and around the world will receive
heartfelt wishes during the holidays.
From now until Dec. 7, Alexander says residents are invited to send cards with
personal messages of gratitude and holiday cheer. The American Red Cross and Pitney Bowes Inc. will then deliver the
cards to military bases, hospitals, veterans' hospitals and other locations.Last year, the Holiday Mail for Heroes program
received about 1.4 million cards.
Alexander says the nation's military men and women "serve selflessly
to ensure our freedom," and participation in this effort is just one way to show gratitude for their service.
RESERVE YOUR FUN NOW!Lakeland Flying Tigers Fun! You can now reserve your group packages for the upcoming
2010 season. The Flying Tigers offer a number of exciting ways to entertain your friends, family, coworkers, church groups,
and civic groups during all home games at Joker Marchant Stadium. For more information submit your name, phone number and
e-mail address by clicking here:
Our
Military is under attack—by the US government…
·CIA Agents being investigated.
·Terrorist trials in NY.
·90
days to make Afghanistan troop decision—over 140 have died in that time.
·Congressional members calling for “War Tax” for Afghanistan troop plus-up(National
Security) but no such call for Stimulus or other social programs.
·Now, Prosecuting SEALs. Is US Military the enemy?? If you have a family member in the Military they are in greater danger from
the current Administration (Eric Holder – Obama {‘air raiding villages’}) or the Congress(John Murtha, Harry
Reid, John Kerry, Dick Durbin, Nancy Pelosi, etc.).
Get involved. Bill Nelson’s phone number is 202-224-5274.
Navy SEALs Face Assault Charges for Capturing Most-Wanted Terrorist
Tuesday , November 24, 2009
By
Rowan Scarborough
ADVERTISEMENT
Navy SEALs
have secretly captured one of the most wanted terrorists in Iraq — the alleged mastermind of the murder and mutilation
of four Blackwater USA security guards in Fallujah in 2004. And three of the SEALs who captured him are now facing criminal
charges, sources told FoxNews.com.
The three, all members of the Navy's elite commando unit, have refused non-judicial
punishment — called an admiral's mast — and have requested a trial by court-martial.
Ahmed Hashim Abed,
whom the military code-named "Objective Amber," told investigators he was punched by his captors — and he
had the bloody lip to prove it.
Now, instead of being lauded for bringing to justice a high-value target, three of the
SEAL commandos, all enlisted, face assault charges and have retained lawyers.
Matthew McCabe, a Special Operations Petty
Officer Second Class (SO-2), is facing three charges: dereliction of performance of duty for willfully failing to safeguard
a detainee, making a false official statement, and assault.
Petty Officer Jonathan Keefe, SO-2, is facing charges of
dereliction of performance of duty and making a false official statement.
Petty Officer Julio Huertas, SO-1, faces those
same charges and an additional charge of impediment of an investigation.
The three SEALs will be arraigned separately
on Dec. 7. Another three SEALs — two officers and an enlisted sailor — have been identified by investigators as
witnesses but have not been charged.
FoxNews.com obtained the official handwritten statement from one of the three witnesses
given on Sept. 3, hours after Abed was captured and still being held at the SEAL base at Camp Baharia. He was later taken
to a cell in the U.S.-operated Green Zone in Baghdad.
The SEAL told investigators he had showered after the mission,
gone to the kitchen and then decided to look in on the detainee.
"I gave the detainee a glance over and then left,"
the SEAL wrote. "I did not notice anything wrong with the detainee and he appeared in good health."
Lt. Col.
Holly Silkman, spokeswoman for the special operations component of U.S. Central Command, confirmed Tuesday to FoxNews.com
that three SEALs have been charged in connection with the capture of a detainee. She said their court martial is scheduled
for January.
United States Central Command declined to discuss the detainee, but a legal source told FoxNews.com that
the detainee was turned over to Iraqi authorities, to whom he made the abuse complaints. He was then returned to American
custody. The SEAL leader reported the charge up the chain of command, and an investigation ensued.
The source said intelligence
briefings provided to the SEALs stated that "Objective Amber" planned the 2004 Fallujah ambush, and "they had
been tracking this guy for some time."
The Fallujah atrocity came to symbolize the brutality of the enemy in Iraq
and the degree to which a homegrown insurgency was extending its grip over Iraq.
The four Blackwater agents were transporting
supplies for a catering company when they were ambushed and killed by gunfire and grenades. Insurgents burned the bodies and
dragged them through the city. They hanged two of the bodies on a bridge over the Euphrates River for the world press to photograph.
Intelligence
sources identified Abed as the ringleader, but he had evaded capture until September.
The military is sensitive to charges
of detainee abuse highlighted in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. The Navy charged four SEALs with abuse in 2004 in connection
with detainee treatment.
Three Navy SEALs are facing court-martial in connection with the alleged assault and mishandling of a detainee they
captured in Iraq in early September, military officials said.The military provided few details of the circumstances, but a
source with knowledge of the investigation confirmed for Navy Times that the detainee was Ahmed Hashim Abed, the alleged planner
of the March 2004 ambush, killing and mutilation of four Blackwater contractors in Fallujah.“That’s why [the SEALs]
went after him,” the source said, who asked not to be named. He noted that the takedown was “kinetic” but
there was no gunfire. “[Abed] had a gun. The intel was perfect. No shots were fired.”The three SEALs — Special
Warfare Operators 2nd Class Matthew McCabe and Jonathan Keefe, and SO1 Julio Huertas — will be arraigned Dec. 7 in a
military court in Norfolk, Va., said Army Lt. Col. Holly Silkman, a spokeswoman with U.S. Special Operations Command Central.
All are assigned to SEAL Team 10, based in Little Creek, Va., Navy records show.McCabe is charged with one count each of assault
of the detainee, dereliction of duty and making a false official statement, Silkman said.Keefe is charged with one count each
of dereliction of duty and false official statement; Huertas is accused of dereliction of duty, making a false official statement
and impeding an investigation, she said.Army Maj. Gen. Charles Cleveland, SOCCent commander, preferred the charges against
the SEALs and will serve as the convening authority as the cases proceed to court-martial, tentatively scheduled for mid-January,
Silkman said.The alleged incident happened in Iraq on or about Sept. 1, Silkman said. None of the SEALs is confined, she added.The
source said the charges stem not from the capture itself — which have a high potential for violence — but from
later on, when Abed was under detention.“If they really wanted to [beat] him that was the time do it,” during
the capture, the source said. “That’s why this is so ridiculous.”The charges were first reported by Fox
News, which posted a story on its Web site Tuesday. The source confirmed that Abed was known by the military code “Objective
Amber,” but could not say if the capture went down in the city of Fallujah or in the outlying area.The source said the
allegations began when a master-at-arms sailor assigned to guard Abed told a SEAL platoon commander that one of the operators
had punched Abed in the stomach.“This was reported by the SEAL platoon commander to the chain of command,” he
said.The SEALs have been assigned military attorneys to defend them in the cases, which will be tried separately as special
courts-martial.One defense attorney said the SEALs refused to accept nonjudicial punishment, which are administrative actions
that some in the military may consider as an admission of guilt.Neal Puckett, a defense attorney who is representing McCabe,
said the SEALs are being essentially charged for allegedly giving the detainee “a punch in the gut.”They are expected
to plead not guilty when they appear at their December arraignment, he said. “They are all together, and they all maintain
that they are innocent of these charges,” said Puckett, a retired Marine Corps lieutenant colonel and judge advocate.The
SEALs were on the tail-end of their deployment to Iraq when the alleged incident happened, he said.McCabe’s special
court-martial is slated to begin Jan. 19, he said.Huertas, 28, is from Blue Island, Ill., and enlisted in 1999. He has served
in special warfare units since 2002. He has an Iraq Campaign Medal and was advanced to E-6 in June 2006, Navy records show.Keefe,
25, is from Yorktown, Va., and enlisted in 2006. He began SEAL training the same year, Navy records show. He was last advanced
in June 2008.McCabe, 24 is originally from Perrysburg, Ohio, and enlisted in 2003. He served on the Amphibious Assault Ship
Belleau Wood before training in special warfare. He was advanced in September 2007, Navy records show.
Veterans who served in peace and war, performing services “from the mundane to the dangerous,”
were honored at a Veterans Day celebration hosted by Summerlin Academy Saturday morning at Mosaic Park.
On a sunny,
but breezy day, 400 JROTC cadets from Summerlin and Bartow High School were joined by veterans, family and friends in honoring
the service of those in the military.
The 10 a.m. program began with a welcome from retired Col. S.L. Frisbie,
IV, followed by the presentation of the Corps of Cadets, introduced by retired Sgt. 1st Class Lloyd Harris, a JROTC instructor.
Yellow Jacket Battalion Commander Dakota Bastanzi led the companies by the reviewing stand. Commanders of individual
units are Company A, Marc Julia; Company B, Jennings DePriest; Company C, Taylor Parrish; Company D, Randy Martin; Company
E, Andrew Burris; and Summerlin Equestrian Troop, Devon Kelly. Members of the Color Guard were Ryan Sullivan, Nyoka Miller,
Robert Holmes, Kathyia Sanchez, and Samantha Valentin.
Homewatch CareGivers, the largest international franchise provider of home care, is offering up to 20 hours of free
in-home care to disabled or injured U.S. military veterans of any conflict -- from World War II and Korea to the wars in Afghanistan
and Iraq -- through its"We Care for Veterans" program. Servicemembers or a family member can sign up for the "We
Care for Veterans" program on the Homewatch CareGivers website or by calling toll free 1-800-777-9770. The program is
available to one veteran per location and is issued on a first come, first serve basis. Applicants must sign up for the program
by Nov. 30, 2009. For more information, visit the Homewatch CareGivers website at http://www.homewatchcaregivers.com/.
Shari L. Balter, Psy.D. Clinical Psychologist, Florida Licensed Independent Contractor, FHLC, Inc. Email: sbalter@standown.org
"Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work."
Aristotle
Posted by: Marialice Quinn on November 4, 2009 at 8:27:42 AM
Two Wars 59 Years Apart, One Brotherhood
In May of 1944, Gerald "Virgil" Myers
was a tall, 26-year-old production supervisor with the Quaker Oats Company, married with a 3-year-old daughter. Given a draft
deferment twice because his job was vital to supplying food to the U. S. military, the third time he turned it down. After
basic training and a 10-day leave, Myers was on his way to England; on his way to fight a war.
"Well, this is what I signed up to do," Myers thought as he arrived at Omaha
Beach. He settled in with the 80th Infantry Division. The next 215 days would prove to be the toughest days of his life.
Please come this coming Sunday November 8th to the
Lakeland Center, Youkey Auditorium. This is our 31st season's first concert. Concert is free, Center charges parking
so grab a few other friends and car pool.. spread the word. Thanks Cindy
Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar restaurants
invite all active duty and veterans to pull up a chair for a delicious meal.
Eat Good on Veterans Day
Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar restaurants invite all active duty and veterans to one of 164 participating restaurants
nationwide to pull up a chair for a delicious meal and heartfelt thanks this Veterans Day. With gratitude for their service
and sacrifice, active duty and veterans will eat free at participating locations on Veterans Day (November 11, 2008) during
regular business hours.
Veterans and active duty with proof of United States military service will be able to go to
one of the participating Applebee's and select one complimentary entrée from a selection of delicious favorites: a
savory House Sirloin, hearty Riblet Basket, zesty Fiesta Lime Chicken®, a juicy Quesadilla Burger or fresh Oriental Chicken
Salad. All the traditional - sides are included.
"It's an honor to host an event that helps the neighborhood come
together and say thanks to our veterans and active servicemen and women," said Mike Archer, President, Applebee's Services,
Inc..
Proof of military service includes:
* U.S. Uniform Services Identification Card * U.S. Uniform Services Retired Identification Card * DD214 * LES * Citation or Commendation * Photograph
in uniform * Veterans Organization Card
If anyone has a TV (19”) they are no longer using, the
James A Haley VA Hospital 3rd Floor Oncology could use one for the waiting room, there’s only shows monocolor
(blue).If you would like to donate a TV please contact Will Clark 813-972-2000 x 6853. Let me Postmaster@PolkVeteransCouncil.org know if I can deliver it to the VA, I'll go by and pick it up from you and get it to the 3rd floor Onocology.
The Supreme Court heard vigorous
arguments this morning in Salazar v. Buono, an Establishment Clause dispute over a Latin Cross that has stood for
more than 70 years as a war memorial on federal land in the Mojave Desert. But for much of the hour, you might have been forgiven
if you thought you were back in civil procedure class.
LOS
ANGELES — Larry Gelbart, the award-winning writer whose sly, sardonic wit helped create television’s “M-A-S-H”
is dead.Gelbart died at his Beverly Hills home Friday morning after a long battle with cancer, said Creative Artists Agency,
which represented him. He was 81.His wife of 53 years, Pat Gelbart, told The Associated Press on Friday that after being married
for so long, “we finished each other’s sentences.” She declined to specify the type of cancer he had.Gelbart,
who won a Tony for “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” an Emmy for “M-A-S-H” and was
nominated for two Oscars, is most likely best remembered for the long-running TV show about Army doctors during the Korean
War.“M-A-S-H” debuted on CBS in 1972, when the nation was still embroiled in the Vietnam War, and some viewers
were initially puzzled or offended by its depiction of the cynical, wisecracking physicians who worked frantically to save
the lives of soldiers.By its second season it had caught on and it remained one of television’s top-10 rated shows until
its final episode in 1983. Along the way, it won numerous awards including the Emmy for best comedy series.“What attracted
me to ‘M-A-S-H’ was the theme song, ‘Suicide is Painless,’ ” Gelbart once remarked. “It
was written in a very minor key and appealed to me emotionally.”After writing 97 half-hour episodes and winning an Emmy,
Gelbart quit during the show’s fourth season, saying he was “totally worn out.”His films “Oh, God!”
with George Burns as a philosophical deity, and “Tootsie,” with Dustin Hoffman as a cross-dressing actor, both
brought him Academy Award nominations, and the HBO movie “Barbarians at the Gate,” about Wall Street chicanery,
brought another Emmy.Larry Simon Gelbart was born in Chicago, moving to Los Angeles while in high school.He married singer
and actress Pat Marshall in 1956 and they raised their two children, Becky and Adam, and her three by a previous marriage,
Cathy, Gary and Paul. Cathy died of cancer at age 50.
PYHO Lakeland considers applications from homeowners throughout the city who meet these criteria:
(1) The homeowner must be 62 years of age or older OR must be disabled OR
must qualify under the "very low income" or "low income" guidelines as set forth in the City of Lakeland,
Florida, Housing Assistance Income Schedule. (2) The homeowner must live
in the home being nominated. (3) The home must be in Lakeland, FL. (4) The home must be a single story, single family dwelling. (5) The home must be in such repair that PYHO Lakeland can actually paint the dwelling after only
minor repairs are made. (6) The home must actually need to be painted.
PENSACOLA,
Fla. — Officials at Pensacola Naval Hospital are warning patients to monitor their financial records after a computer
went missing.Hospital officials reported that the computer had personal information on 38,000 patients who used the hospital’s
pharmacy in the past year. The laptop did not contain patient medical records, but it had disability ratings and spouse information
for some patients.Hospital commander Capt. Maryalice Morro says there is no evidence the information has fallen into malicious
hands and may have been disposed of. Still, officials began sending notification letters Wednesday to all the patients who
have been affected. The letters will be mailed out over several days.The laptop disappeared last month.
Combat to Connection A Retreat for Female
Service Members and Veterans October
8-11, 2009During this four-day retreat we will focus on healing, connecting & finding our strengths. Connect with other women veterans by sharing stories, experiences and community; learn stress management
techniques; exercise your creative side; and enjoy a beautiful setting through hiking & kayaking on scenic Tomales Bay,
California. Who is eligible?All women who served in the military since September 11th,
2001, without regard for race, religion, politics or sexual preference.
What does the retreat cost?There is no cost to you for lodging, meals, workshops, ground transportation or air travel.
Coming Home Project programs are completely free of charge to the participants.
Everyone is welcome as they are and all are treated with respect.
There is no particular political or religious belief or affiliation
that is represented or required. The intention of the Coming Home Project is to serve veterans and contribute to their well-being
and healing.
Polk Heroes To Be Honored At Inaugural Freedom WalkFreedom Walk - I walk in your
honor because you serve in mine!
Aug. 17, 2009 –
The Marine Families of Polk County (M.F.P.C.) and the Lakeland Flying Tigers are joining together to honor our active, retired
and fallen military veterans, along with law enforcement, firefighters and EMT heroes who serve faithfully in Polk County
while reflecting on the lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001. Sheriff Grady Judd will be on hand with remarks during the ceremony.
Join us on
Thursday, Sept. 3, at 6 p.m. at Joker Marchant Stadium for Polk County’s Inaugural Freedom Walk. All active and retired
military, and members of the law enforcement, fire and EMT community along with their families will be able to attend the
event for free. Additionally, anyone registering for the Freedom Walk will enter at no charge. Participation in the walk is
not required to enter for the ceremony or the Flying Tigers game.
Registration for the walk begins at 5 p.m. with all Freedom Walk participants
enjoying hamburgers and hot dogs, compliments of Texas Cattle Co.
The Freedom Walk will begin at 6 p.m. with participants making three trips around
the field – roughly a mile in length – with walkers finishing at home plate. Directly following the walk, special
recognition will be given to all heroes present, with other festivities on hand throughout the evening.
Make your plans to participate
in the Freedom Walk showing your support and gratitude to our local heroes followed by a great game of baseball by our hometown
Flying Tigers!
For
more information, visit our Marine Families of Polk Facebook page or contact Jamie Brown, president of M.F.P.C. at Jamie@nikdel.com or 299-9980, ext. 1022.
Military Appreciation Monday Free "Thank You"
Dinner Monday, Nov. 9, 2009, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Golden Corral's
9th annual Military Appreciation Monday dinner will be held on Monday, November 9, 2009,
from 5 to 9 pm in all Golden Corral restaurants nationwide.
The free dinner meal is a special "thank you tribute"
to any person who has ever served in the United States Military. If you are a veteran, retired, currently serving, in the
National Guard or Reserves, you are invited to join us for Golden Corral's Military Appreciation Monday dinner.
To
date, Golden Corral restaurants have provided over 2.2 million free meals and contributed over $3.3 million to the Disabled
American Veterans organization.
Personal information of about 131,000 former and current Army National Guard members may be at risk of identity theft
after a contractor’s laptop turned up stolen, the National Guard reported Tuesday.The laptop was stolen July 27. It
contained information for soldiers enrolled in the Guard’s Bonus and Incentives Program, including Social Security numbers,
incentive payment amounts and payment dates.Those affected by the incident will receive a letter in the mail by next week,
spokesman Randy Noller said in a news release.For more information, visit www.ng.mil. The Web site provides steps on how to check credit reports, how to guard against identity theft and who to
call if a Guard member believes any fraudulent activity occurs with his personal information.Beginning Wednesday, the Guard
will operate a toll-free number, 877-481-4957, available from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A spokeswoman for the family of the missing Navy pilot whose remains were found Sunday
18 years after his jet was shot down in an Iraq desert says they now have closure after a nearly two-decade struggle for answers.Cindy
Laquidara said the family expects to get a classified briefing sometime Monday on exactly what happened to Navy Capt. Scott
Speicher after 18 years of twists and turns.“We owe a duty to people who put themselves in danger for the defense of
the country and you just do it, do the part that you can,” Laquidara said. “Never give up.”The Speicher
family is thankful to Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., who, like many others, never gave up.“Without Senator Nelson’s
support, we wouldn’t be here,” Laquidara said. “He has dogged this — it was such a change when he
became our senator.”Laquidara said the family has closure because of Nelson’s persistence.“There were long
gaps during the past administration, there was a different approach that he was gone and we needed to get over it,”
Laquidara said. “That’s not the way it works in the active-duty military. That’s not the duty we owe those
men and women and that’s not the duty we were willing to take.”Nelson said Sunday night the news isn’t what
the family had hoped for, but it’s something that will allow them to move forward.“It’s a relief to get
the news, although it’s sad, it certainly allows the family to have closure on this and it allows those children not
to have to continue to wonder if their father is alive,” he said.It is uncertain when Speicher’s remains will
be transferred to the family or where he will be buried.
This Veterans Day, children across the country can express their thanks for America’s millions of
veterans by entering the Paralyzed Veterans of America’s (Paralyzed Veterans), sixth annual National Veterans Day Poster
and Essay Contest.
This year’s contest theme is: Veterans Day: Why I'm Grateful for Our Nation's
Veterans. Using their own words, images and creativity, children can express their understanding and appreciation
of the many contributions veterans have made to our country.
This year’s competition is open to students in grades
1-8. The poster contest is open to students in grades 1-4, and the essay contest is open to students in grades 5-8.
To
learn more about Paralyzed Veterans of America’s National Veterans Day Poster and Essay Contest, click on one of
the links below to learn more.
2nd
Annual Run For the Fallen hosted by T.A.M.P.A.
5K & 1 mile WALK/RUN TO SHOW SUPPORT FOR NATIONAL
“RUN FOR THE FALLEN”
“Run for the Fallen” Relay Team
Has Covered One Mile for Each Fallen Service Member in Run
From California to Arlington National Cemetery
Tampa, Florida – In coordination with the final day of the cross-country memorial run, “Run
for the Fallen,” the Tampa Area Marine Parents Association/T.A.M.P.A. have organized a 1 mile & 5K walk/run in support.
The miles to be run at this event will be pledged towards a national total of miles for all fallen service members. As
of today, on August 23 there will be remembrance runs held in 23 states. Runners have pledged thousands of miles for all fallen
marines, soldiers, sailors and airmen. “Run For the Fallen” is a national memorial run that will collectively
run one mile for every service member killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. The run will take
place during the weekend of Aug. 22/23, 2009. It is on this weekend that “Run for the Fallen” is encouraging people
across the country to run in honor of our fallen service members from both Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring
Freedom. To date the state of Florida has lost 228 military men and women serving in these two conflicts. T.A.M.P.A.’s
goal for this year’s event is to have a walking/running representative for each of Florida’s fallen and additional
participants representing each state. Each participant will receive a bib with the name and information of a specific
fallen hero which they will represent and a small flag which will be used to create a memorial at the race site during the
opening ceremony. We will need the full support of our communities to make this event a success. This FREE event will
be held on Sunday, August 23rd , at E.G. Simmons Park in Ruskin with registration at 8:00a.m., opening ceremony at 9:00a.m.
and the walk/runs immediately following. Pre-registration is requested so we can verify our participant numbers in order
to reach our goal. Registration and information can be found at www.usmcfamilysupport.org, by calling (813)965-2682 or contacting kym@usmcfamilysupport.org. WHO: The Tampa Area Marine Parents Association WHAT: 2nd Annual “Run For the Fallen” Final
Day Event Memorial 5K/1 mile Walk & Run WHEN: Sunday, August 23, 2009 WHERE: E.G. Simmons Park 2401 –
19th Ave. N.W./just off US 41 in S. Hillsborough County
Ruskin, FL
About Run for the Fallen
Run
for the Fallen began as a cross-country memorial run that took place during the summer of 2008 that ran one mile for every
soldier killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom. The team ran in a relay style, spanning over 4,000 miles from Painted Rocks
in California to Arlington National Cemetery. Runners marked each mile of their cross-country journey with an American flag
and personalized sign card in honor of every fallen service member. Jon Bellona, director and founder of Run for the Fallen,
developed the idea for the run when his best friend and Hamilton College roommate, 1st Lt. Michael J. Cleary, was killed in
Iraq in December 2005. For more information or to track the 2009 event, please visit www.runforthefallen.org.
There is a group of private pilots willing to donate their time and aircraft for those military men and women
in need of transportation to family members or family members in need of transportation to their wounded loved one. They will
fly family members to their loved ones or vice versa. I have included the link to the website, so go see what they offer
and if you know of someone that could use this service feel free to contact them to left them know there is a way to meet
with love ones even if they can not afford it. Please help get the word out. We all know there
are troops/families that need this kind of help. http://www.veteransairlift.org/page/1/home.jsp Veterans Airlift Command 5775 Wayzata Boulevard, Suite 700 St. Louis Park, MN 55416
GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba — A pretrial hearing in the
Sept. 11 war crimes trial was delayed Thursday when none of the five defendants agreed to attend.The defendants were apparently
protesting a judge’s ruling that the accused mastermind of the terrorist attacks and two other men would not be able
to speak at the session, which was to focus on preparations for a hearing on whether two of the men are mentally competent
to stand trial.The judge, Army Col. Steve Henley, had previously ruled that he would only allow the two defendants whose mental
competency was in question to speak at the hearing.Prosecutor Bob Swann said the government believes detainees should attend
all sessions and he asked the judge to grant five minutes of speaking time for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and the other detainees
to persuade them to attend.The judge was considering the request when he received a note that one of the defendants had changed
his mind and would attend. The hearing was expected to resume later Thursday.The question of whether a defendant can be forced
to attend all sessions of the Guantanamo war crimes court is unresolved under the special system for prosecuting alleged terrorists
created by Congress and former President George W. Bush.At times, military judges have directed guards to forcibly bring detainees
to court while detainees at other times have been allowed to boycott sessions.All five are charged with murder and other crimes,
and they face a possible death sentence if convicted.The men have said they intend to serve as their own attorneys and plead
guilty. The two who have not yet been deemed mentally competent, Ramzi Bin al Shibh and Mustafa Ahmed al-Hawsawi, have not
yet received clearance from the court to represent themselves.
A handful of lawmakers are gearing up for a fight to largely exempt
military and veterans benefits from the broader health care reform movement. Two issues are involved. One has to do with whether
military and veterans benefits could be taxed in the same fashion as employer-provided health benefits, a proposal included
in the 1,018-page health care bill being taken up by the House Education and Labor Committee.A second question involves potential
federally imposed limits on the types and cost of care covered by health insurance, limits that could apply to both direct
care from military hospitals and clinics and from the Tricare health plan, as well as to direct care from the veterans health
care system.Republican aides, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said they expect amendments will be offered to protect
the military and veterans health plans. Exactly who will offer the amendments and what those amendments might say has not
been determined.This will pose a problem for Democrats, who fear that allowing any exemptions from the overall health reform
effort opens the door for other changes that could undermine the legislation"We believe that any health reform legislation
must be fully paid for. However, it is untenable to put these costs on the backs of the men and women who are serving their
country in the Armed Forces," said Rep. Glenn Nye, D-Va., one of the lawmakers trying to round up support to prevent
the military and veterans benefits from being taxed."Our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines are key components of
our economic engine who lend their unique talents and experiences to drive this nation forward," Nye wrote in a letter
to the education and labor committee. "A proposal to tax their health benefits could harm them and their families in
unintended, extremely serious ways, jeopardizing their families' welfare and even negatively affecting their employment opportunities."
By Dan Lamothe - Staff writer Posted : Wednesday Jul 15, 2009 9:22:29 EDT
For nearly 10 years, Staff Sgt. Brian
Foster stared at the same concrete prison walls after being convicted on a bogus rape charge. It was three short steps to
his toilet, he said, and 50 to the chow hall.
Foster, 35, travels much farther now, but he said he still doesn’t
feel free.
With his conviction overturned, the military policeman is in the process of putting his life back together.
Pinned as a staff sergeant June 26, he received $275,000 in back pay (minus about $90,000 in taxes) July 1, he said.
He
recently re-enlisted, embracing the Corps that court-martialed him. He also got married May 27, to a woman he said he fell
in love with before his incarceration.
He has been cleared by the Corps to retire with full benefits if he serves out
his next contract.
Still, problems persist.
Released in February from the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth,
Kan., and assigned to Mobilization Command in Kansas City, Mo., Foster said he has been told by officers overseeing his reinstatement
that he will not receive tens of thousands of dollars in retroactive allowances he thought he’d receive, including commuted
rations, Basic Allowance for Housing and family separation pay.
Additionally, Foster said he has been warned not to
speak out publicly about his situation without permission, with several MobCom officers telling him it could be considered
a challenge to authority and lead to court-martial. The handling of the ordeal by his command has angered him, even as he
continues to put faith in the Corps as an institution.
“To me, they’re still treating me as a prisoner,”
he said of MobCom officials. “I will feel that way until the day that they fully restore me with my rank, my pay, my
privileges and my property that was taken from me.”
MobCom says that’s not the case. The unit’s leadership
meets weekly specifically to work on Foster’s problems and has waded through a variety of issues that had little precedent,
said MobCom spokesman Maj. Winston Jimenez. A variety of decisions, including whether Foster will receive retroactive allowances,
are “still being worked out with higher headquarters,” MobCom officials said.
Foster hasn’t been warned
not to speak with the media, but he has been ordered to use Marine public affairs when doing so ensure the release of a “full
and accurate message,” Jimenez said.
“We understand he went through a lot,” Jimenez said. “We’re
trying to do everything we can to assist him.”
Foster said his response is simple: How long will it take?
Seeking
absolution
The past is ugly: Foster was sentenced in December 1999 to 17 years’ imprisonment after being convicted
on two counts of aggravated assault, one count of rape and one count of making threats, all against his then-estranged wife.
But
the conviction was flawed, the U.S. Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals decided Feb. 17, more than nine years after
Foster initially appealed the decision. The appeals court found that Foster was convicted following “a muddled, hearsay-based
case” that included a variety of errors by the judge, prosecutor, defense attorney and, eventually, the appellate process.
“It
is clear to this court that the prosecution attempted to bootstrap a rape conviction atop several instances of assaultive
conduct,” the court wrote. “We are unable to conclude that the appellant is guilty of rape beyond a reasonable
doubt. To the contrary, we hold that his conviction of rape was factually insufficient and was obtained as the result of other
errors.”
With that as the background, Foster reported to MobCom on Feb. 20 with little more than the shirt on
his back.
Several Marines have gone out of their way to help Foster find normalcy, even as the system slowly comes to
decisions on Foster’s future. They’ve taken him out for steak, helped him sift through paperwork and served as
a sounding board as he’s grown increasingly frustrated with the process to “make me whole,” he said.
“I’m
not bashing all Marines here; I need to be clear with that,” he said. “I’m just disappointed with my unit
and the way they’ve taken care of me.”
Still, the Corps has moved to help Foster in several ways.
On
June 3 — more than three months after the conviction was overturned — he received his first paycheck in years
with sergeant’s pay from the Defense Finance Accounting Service, he said, essentially doubling the $1,400 a month he
was receiving. Busted to a private after his conviction, he had worn his sergeant’s stripes for months following his
release while waiting for his E-5 paygrade to be reinstated.
The Corps also moved in June to promote him to staff sergeant
retroactively to April 1, 2000, netting him a large pot of money. MobCom declined to say how much he will receive, but Foster
said he received a one-time payout of about $275,000 before taxes from DFAS, which is consistent with a Marine Corps Times
analysis of basic pay tables for the past 10 years. About $90,000 of the payout went to taxes, Foster said, but he could eventually
recoup some of that from the IRS.
Marine officials also have discussed with Foster a three-year re-enlistment and a
permanent change of station in August to Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., where he would continue to serve as a military policeman.
If he completes the tour, he’d be eligible to retire as a staff sergeant in October 2012, as the Corps’ rules
dictate that any Marine who is denied re-enlistment after 18 years of service will be granted “enlisted sanctuary”
and be allowed to remain on active duty until they qualify for retirement, MobCom officials said.
The Corps’ plans
for Foster were reinforced by Sgt. Maj. Carlton Kent, the Corps’ top enlisted Marine, who visited Mobilization Command
headquarters May 19 and met with Foster.
“He just said he wanted to meet me and shake my hand,” Foster said.
“I shook his hand, and he said, ‘I guarantee you that everything will be taken care of for you. You don’t
have to worry.’ It was a pretty inspiring moment.”
MobCom officials confirmed the meeting took place. Kent
was not available for comment.
The road ahead
Even with his status as a staff noncommissioned officer now guaranteed,
Foster has other issues to sort out.
He is still waiting to receive numerous uniform items that were promised to him
in a new seabag, he said. In fact, with a PCS planned in a few weeks, he’s worried that he won’t be able to report
to Security Battalion at Quantico in his Alpha uniform, as tradition dictates.
“It’s frustrating,”
Foster said. “You’re telling me that recruits are coming to the depot and they’re not getting their Alpha
blouse, or their Charlie pants?”
There are also career issues to deal with. Foster likely would have been eligible
for promotion to gunnery sergeant in 2005, said Maj. Shawn Haney, a spokeswoman for Manpower and Reserve Affairs. Foster said
his MobCom first sergeant also told him that he would have been eligible for selection to first sergeant this year, but the
Corps isn’t authorized to promote him — even through a remedial board — because he has no track record as
a staff NCO, Haney said.
To reach gunny, Foster will need to petition the Board for Correction of Naval Records, which
was created to “provide a method for correction of errors or removal of injustices” from the service records of
current and former Marines and sailors, according to BCNR’s Web site. It is considered the highest level of administrative
review within the Navy Department, with a three-member panel drawn from a pool of about 50 civil servants reviewing cases.
Each
case takes an average of six months, Navy officials said. By law, service members are not allowed to sit on the board.
The
need to go through the board frustrates Foster, who said he can see himself serving well beyond 20 years if things are squared
away.
“I was hoping that when I checked out of [MobCom], I’d be able to just go back to being a Marine,”
he said. “I am just perplexed why the Marine Corps can’t do this when I have been able to accomplish so much on
my own.”
Foster also wants all the allowances, such as BAH, that he didn’t receive while imprisoned, but
fears that the Corps will say that because he was housed and fed by the military while imprisoned, he doesn’t rate them.
For
their part, MobCom officials said the uniforms stand as a good example of the unit trying to do right by Foster. Even with
a possibility in March that Foster could have faced a retrial or a punitive discharge because of the original assault charges
— they were later dropped — MobCom moved within days of him arriving to file a request for a new seabag, Jimenez
said.
To date, Foster has signed for all but nine items, which remain on back order.
“Obviously, when he
reports to Quantico, he’ll need to do so in Alphas,” Jimenez said. “We’ll need to focus on that in
coming weeks in order to make sure that he can do so.”
The silver lining
Foster has had no easier time
playing catch-up in his personal life — but it has been rewarding.
On May 27, he married his wife, Briana, whom
he first met in 1999 through an introduction by his first sergeant at Camp Pendleton, Calif. At the time, Foster was going
through the messy divorce with his ex-wife that eventually included the criminal charges.
The relationship started innocently,
Foster said. Both of them were new to Southern California and alone much of the time. Eventually, it blossomed, and they began
discussing getting married, believing the flimsy evidence offered in his court-martial wouldn’t be enough to land him
in prison.
“When I was convicted, she was just as devastated as I was,” he said. “She said she would
stay with me until the end.”
Briana flew to Kansas City to meet Foster two weeks after his release, and in May,
he flew to her home in San Francisco, helping her to pack up her possessions. They drove to Reno, Nev., got married, then
moved on to visit his brothers — both former Marines — in Cheyenne, Wyo., and Denver, before settling in a new
apartment near Kansas City.
Briana Foster said staying together during his confinement wasn’t easy. The two sent
thousands of letters to each other, and Briana occasionally would fly from California with her daughter, Haley, 16, to see
Foster at Leavenworth.
“It was really hard for me to understand that, even though I was living in the best country,
this could happen to one of its best men,” she said. “He’s definitely worth waiting 10 years for.”
The
couple is planning to move together with Haley once Foster is reassigned to Quantico. He chose to PCS to Virginia in part
because he thought moving to Japan would be too difficult on his family, which also includes two sons, Jacob and Nicholas,
who are now in their teens.
Foster hasn’t yet been in contact with his sons, and expects that they will continue
to live with his ex-wife in another state, he said. With some money finally in hand, however, he plans to pursue visitation
rights and hopes they’ll fly to Virginia and take trips with him to see Washington, New York and other East Coast attractions.
“It
seemed to be a central location, and it’s exciting,” Foster said. “My sons could come out to visit me and
we could see the heart of our country, you know?”
By Michelle Tan - Staff writer Posted : Tuesday Jul 14, 2009 12:57:31 EDT
The Defense Department announced Tuesday
the next major units tapped to deploy to Afghanistan and Iraq beginning this fall.
The announcements affect 37,500 soldiers
— 30,000 to Iraq and 7,500 to Afghanistan. However, these upcoming rotations are part of regular deployments and will
not change the overall number of troops in each theater, according to DoD.
To Afghanistan
About 3,800 soldiers
from 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, from Fort Campbell, Ky., will deploy to Afghanistan in late fall. The
brigade returned from its last deployment, to Iraq, in November 2008.
About 3,700 soldiers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade
Combat Team, of Vicenza, Italy, will deploy in the winter. The unit has completed two tours in Afghanistan, the most recent
ending in August 2008.
Both brigades will conduct full spectrum operations in Afghanistan.
To Iraq
About
30,000 troops — in three division headquarters and eight BCTs — will deploy to Iraq beginning in the fall. Units
will continue deploying into early 2010, according to the DoD.
The headquarters units deploying are from the 3rd Infantry
Division, of Fort Stewart, Ga.; 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.; and 1st Armored Division, Wiesbaden, Germany.
These
division headquarters will provide command and control, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities to support
security operations in Iraq.
The following three brigade combat teams will replace units already on the ground and they
will be tasked with conducting full spectrum operations:
• 1st BCT, 1st Armored Division, of Fort Bliss, Texas.
The brigade returned from its last Iraq tour in February 2007.
• 1st BCT, 10th Mountain Division, of Fort Drum,
N.Y. The unit returned from its last Iraq deployment in November 2008.
• 2nd BCT, 10th Mountain Division, Fort
Drum, which completed its last Iraq tour in November 2007.
These four BCTs will serve in an advisory and assistance
role, and their mission will be to train and mentor Iraqi Security Forces, conduct coordinated counter-terrorism missions
and protect ongoing civilian and military efforts in Iraq, according to the DoD announcement.
• 3rd BCT, 3rd Infantry
Division, of Fort Benning, Ga., which returned from Iraq in June 2008.
• 2nd BCT, 3rd Infantry Division, of Fort
Stewart, which came home from Iraq in July 2008.
• 1st BCT, 3rd Infantry Division, of Fort Stewart, which completed
its last Iraq tour in April 2008.
• 3rd BCT, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo. This unit came home from
Iraq in February 2009.
In addition, the 53rd BCT from the Florida Army National Guard also will deploy. Its mission
will be to conduct security force missions, including base defense and route security. The 53rd originally had been tapped
to deploy to Afghanistan, but was re-missioned to serve in Kuwait and Iraq.
By Kimberly Hefling - The Associated Press Posted : Tuesday Jul 14, 2009 12:52:04 EDT
WASHINGTON
— Veterans Affairs Department hospitals and clinics aren't always making sure women veterans have privacy when they
bathe and receive exams, government auditors said Tuesday.
As thousands of women veterans return from Iraq and Afghanistan
and enter the VA's health system, the Government Accountability Office reported that no VA hospital or outpatient clinic under
review is complying fully with federal privacy requirements.
GAO investigators found that many VA facilities had gynecological
tables that faced the door — including one door that opened to a waiting room. It also found instances where women had
to walk through a waiting area to use the restroom, instead of it being next to an exam room as required by VA policy.
At
four hospitals investigators visited, women were not guaranteed access to a private bathing facility. In two of those cases,
there wasn't a lock on the door.
Female veterans told the Senate Veterans' Affairs committee that VA workers need to
be better educated about combat situations that women face in the two ongoing wars. Beyond privacy concerns, there are other
issues as well, they said, such as a lack of child care at VA hospitals and difficulty in finding diaper-changing tables.
"Many
VA facilities are not prepared to accommodate the presence of children," said Kayla Williams, an Iraq veteran and author.
"Several friends have described having to change babies' diapers on the floors of VA hospitals."
A majority
of the women veterans who have turned up at VA facilities are between the ages of 20 and 29, and on average are much younger
than the average male veteran, the GAO survey found. Nearly 20 percent have been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder,
and many experienced sexual trauma while serving. Yet, a smaller percentage of eligible women than men use VA care.
Randall
Williamson, director of health care issues at GAO, said while top VA officials are committed to improvements in women's care,
hospitals and clinics weren't always taking simple steps to make women more comfortable — such as moving the direction
of exam tables.
"Part of it comes down to commitment at the local level," Williamson said. The GAO is the
investigative arm of Congress.
Patricia Hayes, chief consultant of the veterans strategic health care group at the VA,
said the VA recognizes the care given to women isn't as good as what's offered to men, but it's made changes and will continue
to do so.
She said space constraints and the layout of buildings pose challenges, but the VA is putting together long-term
plans for construction improvements. Changes under way "will build the system that will provide care equal to the health
care needs of all America's veterans, regardless of gender," Hayes said.
In 2008, the VA provided health care to
more than 281,000 women veterans, a 12 percent increase from 2006. Over the next two decades, the number of female veterans
is expected to increase by 17 percent.
Bills to Improve VA Health Care, Insurance Programs Today, the House Committee on Veterans Affairs Subcommittees on Health and Disability Assistance and Memorial
Affairs approved a number of bills to improve Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care and life insurance programs.
Lawmakers approved
a number of bills to improve Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care and life insurance programs.
H.R. 1293,
which was introduced by House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Ranking Member Steve Buyer, would provide significant increases
in the amounts payable under VA's Home Improvement and Structural Alteration (HISA) program. HISA provides home adaptation
grants to veterans who require in-home medical care. The maximum amount of the grant is $4,100 for service-connected veterans
and $1,200 for non-service connected veterans.
H.R. 2379, the Veterans Group Life Insurance Improvement Act of 2009,
also introduced Buyer, would allow veterans to purchase additional amounts of Veterans Group Life Insurance (VGLI).
TALLAHASSEE - Military personnel from Florida serving overseas would get a property tax break on their primary
homes if voters approve a proposed constitutional amendment.
The measure (HJR 833) will be on the 2010 ballot after
getting final legislative approval today. The vote was unanimous in both the House and Senate.
The tax cuts would be
based on how many days soldiers served overseas in the previous year. An estimated 25,000 Floridians are now deployed abroad.
The
measure would cover Coast Guard, National Guard and reserve as well as active-duty members of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps
and Air Force.
The amendment requires 60 percent voter approval to pass.
FOR ANYONE ACTIVE DUTY DURING OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM OR OPERATION ENDURING
FREEDOM!
Question: What's better than a FREE day of fun?
Answer: A FREE day
of fun with food and transportation provided!
The Quantum Leap Farm and the Tampa Bay Ray's families are hosting
a FREE FAMILY FUN DAY at the equestrian farm in Odessa on June 27th. They are also providing transportation to/from our MacDill Family Resource Center in Brandon as well as to/from the
Airman and Family Readiness Center on MacDill!
Horseback Rides Carriage Rides Water Slide Animal
Petting Area Lunch
Fun for the whole family! A few of us went out there this week and had a great
time! We even finger-painted on a horse! "Idaho" (the horse) was very patient as we all put
our handprints, shapes and names on her sides, even a big red heart on her rear!
A bus will be provided on
the 27th, or your family can drive up themselves. We ask that you call to sign up so our hosts will know how many
to expect to visit.
Please call to sign up by calling 655-9281 or 828-0145. Bus will leave each
location (MFRC and A&FRC) @ 0900 and 1300
SWORDLESS SAILORSGraduating midshipmen of the U.S.
Naval Academy in Annapolis are being told in writing to leave at home or in their vehicles all "ceremonial swords"
and anything else "that might be considered a weapon or a threat by screeners" for Friday's outdoor commencement
ceremonies featuring an address by President Barack Obama. Inside the Beltway has obtained the academy's list of prohibited items for this year's graduation exercises,
which, besides ceremonial swords, includes umbrellas.
At All-American Direct, we are committed to providing quality products through an "All-American"
sales organization to every home in America. One of the ways that we are embracing that commitment in 2009 is by running a
national campaign to give 2 laptops with webcams away every 2 months to a deserving home that has an immediate family member
serving in the armed forces overseas.
Times in America are tough, and they can be even tougher for families who
have loved ones serving on the front lines to protect our freedom.
Would a brand new laptop and webcam help you
keep in touch with your husband, wife, son or daughter, mom, dad, brother, or sister?
Would a brand new laptop
help to improve your quality of life, especially since an important contributor to your home is now serving our country overseas?
Submit a 400 word essay below, telling us your story of need, and detail why your family should be picked out
of thousands of Americans to win this month's laptop.
You may also submit an entry by going to http://www.youtube.com/group/laptopsforflattops, joining our group, and submitting a one minute video. When you submit your video,
please remember to begin it with your name, and then submit an entry to www.allamericandirect.com/military with the words "see video", so we can send you your laptop when you win!
The prize package includes a laptop with a built-in webcam, as well as an additional webcam that can be sent to
your loved one who is serving overseas.
If you win, you will be contacted by our executives, and a laptop will
be sent to your door!
The entries will be judged by the following criteria:
Intensity of need as expressed in
the essay
Immediate family member is an active member of the US military and is stationed overseas, as confirmed by their military
identification number.
Winners will be selected from entries collected in April through May, June through July, August through
September, October through November, and December through January 2010.
Contest Rules:
Submissions must come from a family who has an immediate family member (husband, wife, mom, dad, brother, sister,
son, daughter) who is serving in the US Military in a location not in the continental United States.
Submissions may come on behalf of
a third party who has an immediate family member (husband, wife, mom, dad, brother, sister, son, daughter) who is serving
in the US Military in a location not in the continental United States.
Entries must be submitted through allamericandirect.com/laptop
All
entries must be associated with a AllAmericanDirect.com registered email address
Entries must be associated with an "opt-in"
email address
AllAmericanDirect.com submissions must include name, email address, phone number, and physical mailing address.
Families that submitted
essays in previous months may resubmit a new essay each month if they are not selected
Essays should be no longer than 400 words
Entries cannot be
from an employee of or immediate family member of an employee of AllAmericanDirect.com
Published: Sunday, June 7, 2009 at 12:01 a.m. Last Modified: Monday, June 8, 2009 at 12:06 a.m.
LAKE WALES | Little Jovani Guzman II was impatient to see his father, a member of the Florida Army National
Guard
unit that returned to a joyful homecoming in Lake Wales on Sunday after nearly a year in Iraq.
Restrained by his stroller and clutching a blue balloon, 19-month-old Jovani
called to his
father, Specialist Jovani Guzman.
But Guzman and the other returning Guard members weren't able to immediately hug
and kiss their loved ones until the 'Welcome Back' ceremony had concluded at the Guard Armory in Lake Wales.
OCEANSIDE, Calif. — After more than
nine years locked up in prison, fighting to overturn his 1999 rape conviction, Sgt. Brian W. Foster finally won his freedom
in February.
But the battle to restore his military rank, pay, career and life is just beginning.
A decade ago,
while serving as a military police officer at Camp Pendleton, Calif., Foster told his company commander that he would refuse
nonjudicial punishment over allegations made by his estranged wife accusing him of raping her in 1995 and assaulting her from
1994 to 1998. Her rape claim surfaced amid a bitter divorce and custody fight over their two young sons.
Foster, now
35, figured he’d be acquitted at court-martial, where he was charged with rape, aggravated assault and making threats.
What Foster didn’t know was that about 90 percent of all general courts-martial end in convictions, either from the
jury or through plea agreements, according to annual reports from the Navy’s Judge Advocate General.
He also didn’t
count on a shoddy defense and prosecution, which convinced a jury to sentence him to 17 years in prison, bust him to private
and cap it all with a dishonorable discharge.
The 356th Combat Support Company out Lake Wales, returned to the states roughly around 5:30am this morning (June 2nd).They are flying to Camp Shelby, Mississippi, where
they will be staying so they can debrief before returning home Saturday (June 6th). The troops have been gone since last June.
UPDATE #1: 356th Combat Support Unit from Lake Wales will be returning home to the armory in Lake Wales,
this Sunday at 2:00pm. John Hopkins, Polk County VSO.
UPDATE
#2: We need ,(and V.F.W. ) would like to get a group
of MC riders for Sunday about 2:00 o’clock to escort a couple of busses thru our town of Lake Wales. We will pick them
up at The Ridge mall which is about 5 miles North of Lake Wales and escort the busses from the mall down Lady Susanne to hwy
17 and then South to Lake Wales ,turn right on Central Ave.,Go past the VFW and across 27 out to the Lake Wales Airport which
is only about 5 miles West of Lake Wales. I just got the request today thru the V.F.W. 2420 and the people who are organizing
the escort. There will be a Police Escort ,so we can blow the traffic lights. This is only about a 20 mile escort at the max.
It will mean so much to the young men and women coming back from Iraq and combat. Anyone within driving distance of Lake Wales
on Sunday June 07/2009 who can come please let me know. We will be meeting at either The VFW or at the North side of the mall
(Eagle Ridge). I plan to be at the VFW at 12 or 12:30. I know that this is short notice but the VFW asked me and they have
always made us feel welcome there. Thanks
As of June 23 at 1000 hours, Lt. Col. Carol Marie Tschida
will become the new battalion commander for the 900th Contingency Contracting Battalion at Ft. Bragg, N.C.
The
daughter of Gabe and Carlene Tschida of Babson Park and sister of David Tschida has made her parents proud.
“Carol
is an example of a small town girl who chose to serve a cause greater than her own and her family thanks her and her other
soldiers for service to our country so we can all have the precious freedoms that we all enjoy every day, because freedom
is not free,” her mother said.
Tschida graduated from Lake Wales High School in May 1982 with honors
after marching in the Lake Wales Highlander Band all four years, then from Webber International University in 1984.
According to her bio submitted to the News, in 1985 she enlisted in the Army and served as an electronic warfare signals
analyst in Berlin, Germany, then became an advanced individual training instructor (AIT) in a joint service school at the
Naval Technical Training Center Corry Station in Pensacola. By 1991 she had earned the honor of Distinguished Military Graduate
at the University of West Florida, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Studies while serving as a
cadet in the National Guard and at the same time participating in the Simultaneous Membership Program.
Once commissioned
as an Army officer in aviation, she became a pilot skilled at flying Huey and Chinook helicopters and fixed wing C-12 aircraft
with over 10 years of flight time.
To read more click on the link at the top of the story.
I am writing on the behalf of my son, Sgt. Thornhill. You may have received an email or found out about my son.
There are errors in the email. We would like you to have the correct information. My son's name is Daniel Thornhill,
not David Thornhill. He lost both legs just above the knee. He lost part of his right hand. His left hand
and both arms are fine. The burns are 30%. Daniel was injured in Afghanistan.
Daniel has been
at the Fisher House for a few weeks. Before then he was in hospitals, military and civilian, since the incident that
caused Daniel's injuries. Daniel was injured almost one year ago, not 2 years. Daniel's birthday was 17 May and
he spent a quiet day with his brother and myself. His brother and I are not concerned about Daniel's emotional status.
Daniel is making friends here. Daniel has myself, his brother and several friends that visit regularly.
Daniel is a "just doing my job" kind of man. He is not one to seek attention. Thank you for all your
concern. We know this is everyone's way of showing support for the soldiers who stand in harm's way to protect our freedom.
Thank you again.
With the reissuance of
the Purple Heart stamp, the Postal Service honors the sacrifices of the men and women who serve in the U.S. military.
The Purple Heart is awarded in the name of the president of the United States to members of the U.S. military who have been
wounded or killed in action. The medal is the oldest military decoration in the world in present use and the first award made
available to a common soldier. The stamp features a photograph by Ira Wexler of one of two Purple Hearts awarded to James
Loftus Fowler of Alexandria, VA, who was battalion commander of the Third Battalion, Fourth Marines serving in Vietnam. This
stamp was first issued in 2003.
From Memorial Day to Labor Day, Discover Card purchases at any U.S. Military Base worldwide,
up to $1,000, will automatically earn Double Cashback Bonus or Double Miles.
It's just one small way we can
say thank you—and put a few more dollars back in their pockets.
Plus, Cardmembers can now donate their rewards
to Operation Homefront - an organization providing critical assistance to military families in need.
TALLAHASSEE,
Fla. -- Florida veterans who dropped out of high school to serve in the Vietnam War will get diplomas under a new law.
Gov.
Charlie Crist signed the measure (SB 316) Wednesday.
Florida already grants diplomas to World War II and Korean War
veterans who left school to serve. More than 3,000 World War II veterans and 500 Korean War veterans have gotten the diplomas.
There's no estimate of how many Vietnam vets will apply.
The bill was among 11 Crist signed into law. They include
measures expanding a panel that recommends how to spend health care money for low-income patients but banning certain lobbyists
from being members (HB 285) and adding a dental professional to a children's health insurance board (HB 185).
Representatives of major veterans' groups on Thursday called on
the Supreme Court to allow the Mojave Desert Veterans Memorial to stand within the Mojave Desert Preserve in California, and
to reject Establishment Clause arguments against it.
The fate of the memorial, a seven-foot-tall cross first built
in 1934, will be decided by the high court in Salazar v. Buono, set for argument in
the fall. A challenge to the cross, led by the American Civil Liberties Union, has been successful thus far, with the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruling twice that the cross violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
In the second ruling, the court said that intervening congressional action transferring the land surrounding the cross to
a private party did not cure the constitutional problem. The cross is still standing but is covered by a plywood box pending
the outcome of the case.
"It's not about a single cross in an obscure place. It's much bigger than that,"
said Jim Sims of the Military Order of the Purple Hearts. Sims said a ruling upholding the 9th Circuit would impact similar
veterans' memorials around the world, including the Canadian Cross overlooking the graves of some World War I veterans at
Arlington National Cemetery. Mark Seavey of the American Legion also said he was "gravely concerned" about the fate
of other veterans memorials if the Mojave cross is ordered torn down.
Kelly Shackleford of the Liberty Legal
Institute, who wrote a brief in the case on behalf of the veterans' groups, said those organizations "don't always do
things together," making their solidarity on this issue more significant. Losing the case would cause "incredible
havoc around the country and incredible pain." While acknowledging that the cross is a "religious symbol,"
Shackleford said that at the Mojave memorial and many other veterans' memorials, the cross has come to have more secular significance
as a commemoration of all veterans -- especially from World War I -- regardless of religion. The institute has launched a
"Don't Tear Me Down" web site with details about the case.
Also at the press conference in D.C. in Thursday were Henry and Wanda Sandoz,
who have maintained and rebuilt the Mojave cross since 1984. They donated some of their own land in the preserve to enable
the land swap that Congress enacted in 2003 to protect the memorial. Sandoz said he has nurtured the memorial "to give
back" to veterans for the sacrifices they have made. When, at one point during the litigation, the Park Service told
him to take down the cross, Sandoz said his reply was "not no, but hell no."
Groups opposing the
memorial say it is a clear violation of the Establishment Clause, and the fact that the land on which it stands is now privately
owned makes no difference. "The cross is in the middle of a national park, and anyone looking at it would assume it was
erected by the government," said Rev. Barry Lynn of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, who said
the land transfer was "an obvious ploy" to circumvent the Constitution.
Footnote: The representatives
of the veterans' groups were asked at the press conference whether they'd like to see President Barack Obama appoint a veteran
to the Supreme Court -- a type of diversity that has not been discussed much since Justice David Souter announced his retirement
plans. The question was diplomatically answered, with Joe Davis of the Veterans of Foreign Wars stating with a smile,
"You don't have to be a veteran to love a veteran."
Posted by Tony Mauro on
May 22, 2009 at 12:22 PM in Supreme Court
The last two days has been a huge learning
experience for me. I am usually pretty good about checking out emails and urban legends that circulate around cyberspace
before I pass them along to others. I felt fairly sure about this email until my email box filled up and the cell phone
kept ringing off the hook, then I began to get a little nervous and second guess myself. After much cyber searching and many phone calls to and from all over
the nation I can assure everyone that this is in fact a legitament request about a legitament hero! There is one
correction and a few things I can add: His name is Sgt. Daniel Thornhill (not David as per the previous
email) and he is an Army soldier who served in Iraq with an MP unit. He was injured just about a year ago, so he has
not been in the Fisher house for 2 years. His birthday was actually last week, but the family would still love for him
to continue to get cards, letters and well wishes. I hope this clears things up and I apologize for the name correction. I have been assured that even with the wrong name (if you have already sent cards, etc.) it should arrive to him with no
problems. Thank you for ALL your wonderful support, this is literally traveling all over the nation. I have received
calls from OH, TX, CA, VA & Washington DC! Emails from OH, TX, CA, VT, NY, and many more. Keep up the good
work! Please keep Daniel and the family in your prayers as he had to undergo another sugery last week and has a long
road to full recovery and rehabilitation.
Mailing address: Sgt. Daniel Thornhill Fort Sam Houston Fisher
House 3623 George C. Beach Rd Fort Sam Houston, Texas 78234
Cyd Deathe Tampa Area Marine
Parents Assoc., Inc. President - Executive Director Proud Mom of OIF Wounded Warrior Veteran LCpl Adam, USMC 03-07
(813)965-2682 www.usmcfamilysupport.org
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the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." - - - Margaret Mead
Tampa Area Marine Parents Association,
Inc. a/k/a T.A.M.P.A. is a civilian organization with 501(c) (3) non-profit status, is not a government agency and is solely
supported by the generosity of its members, individuals, corporations and foundations in support and appreciation of our American
military men and women. Federal Tax ID #02-0775646
MAKE YOUR SEARCH ENGINE: www.GoodSearch.com (ASK ME HOW IT CAN BENEFIT T.A.M.P.A)
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First, it was trying to have those injured in battle pay for their own care.
Second, massive cuts to the military budgets as Iran and North Korea not to mention China and Russia
are building up their military budgets.
Third, Obama apologizes for what the US (including vets) have contributed to the world.
Fourth, Military Vets are now categorized as Right Wing Extremists—no
mention of Bill Ayers, ACORN, Black Panthers, attacks on liberal college campuses, or others who have actually been involved
in terrorism.
We know where this administration stands on national
security.
Napolitano should resign.
Gary
Addition: The DHS Secretary wouldn't
have to applogize if she would have had more respect for our troops in the First Place.
Gus - PCVC Postmaster
Homeland Security
Secretary Janet Napolitano apologized to veterans in a FOX News interview after a DHS report labeled returning troops at risk for embracing right-wing extremism.
Homeland Security
Secretary Janet Napolitano apologized to veterans after a report issued by her department said troops returning from the wars
in Iraq and Afghanistan were at risk for being recruited by right-wing extremists.
"To the extent veterans read
it as an accusation ... an apology is owed," she said during an on-air interview on FOX News Thursday, a day after veterans'
groups and members of Congress blasted her for the report, which they said libeled members of the armed forces.
"This
was an assessment, not an accusation," Napolitano continued. "It was limited to extremists those who seek to commit
violence within the United States. And all this was meant to do was to give law enforcement what we call 'situational
awareness.'"
"The last thing I want to do is offend or castigate all veterans. To the contrary, let's
meet and clear the air," she said.
A footnote in the report, "Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment,"
said that while there is no specific information that domestic right-wing terrorists are planning acts of violence, such acts
could come from unnamed "rightwing extremists" concerned about illegal immigration, abortion, increasing federal
power and restrictions on firearms -- and singled out returning war veterans as susceptible to recruitment.
"If
there's one part of this report that I would rewrite ... it would be that footnote," Napolitano said.
American
Legion National Commander David Rehbein, who blasted the report earlier this week as incomplete and politically-biased, said
he was pleased with Napolitano's apology.
"I am glad that Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano
has apologized for the language used in the report about 'Rightwing Extremism,'" Rehbein said in a statement
obtained by FOXNews.com. "I look forward to meeting with her next Friday, putting this behind us and discussing critical
issues involving Homeland Security and The American Legion."
At least one veterans group, however, wasn't moved
by Napolitano's mea culpa.
"It wasn't an apology in my view," said Pete Hegseth, chairman of Vets
for Freedom. "It was one of those non-apology apologies. She was sorry that veterans were offended. She should either
apologize for the content of the report as it stands or they should rewrite the report and reissue it."
Hegseth,
an Army veteran who served in Iraq, said the report represents a "gross misunderstanding and oversimplification"
of the country's service members. He did not call for Napolitano's ouster, but said he would accept her resignation.
"If
she volunteered to step down, that'd be very honorable of her," Hegseth said. "It would be a recognition of
what she did."
Napolitano defended the report Wednesday, saying it is part of an ongoing series of assessments
to provide information to state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies on "violent radicalization" in the United
States.
"Let me be clear: we monitor the risks of violent extremism taking root here in the United States,"
Napolitano said in a statement. "We don't have the luxury of focusing our efforts on one group; we must protect the
country from terrorism whether foreign or homegrown, and regardless of the ideology that motivates its violence."
But
the unclassified report, which was produced by DHS' Office of Intelligence and Analysis also cited the case of Timothy
McVeigh, a decorated Gulf War veteran who was executed in 2001 after being convicted of killing 168 people during the bombing
of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995.
"The willingness of a small percentage of military
personnel to join extremist groups during the 1990s because they were disgruntled, disillusioned or suffering from the psychological
effects of war is being replicated today," the report reads.
Rehbein criticized the report in a letter sent to
Napolitano on Monday.
"The American Legion is well aware and horrified at the pain inflicted during the Oklahoma
City bombing, but Timothy McVeigh was only one of more than 42 million veterans who have worn this nation's uniform during
wartime," Rehbein wrote. "To continue to use McVeigh as an example of the stereotypical 'disgruntled military
veteran' is unfair as using Osama bin Laden as the sole example of Islam."
Hegseth said he found it "amazing
they would single out veterans as a threat to this country. It underscores a pervasive belief that some are trying to spread
that veterans are victims and we're coming home as damaged goods that need to be coddled instead of celebrated."
Napolitano
acknowledged Rehbein's letter on Wednesday and said she plans to meet with him sometime next week. But she told FOX News
that the report's reference to the Oklahoma City bombing "rang true" to her.
"Unfortunately [McVeigh]
was a vet, that's where he got his training and so when I was told about the report, it rang true with me, this has happened
in the past," Napolitano told FOX News. "That is a far cry, however, from saying veterans somehow are at risk."
Hegseth
said he was also troubled by the report's assertion that returning veterans who face "significant challenges reintegrating
into their communities" could be easy targets for extremist groups seeking new members.
"If anything, veterans
have an allegiance to this country greater than the average citizen," he said. "Veterans have learned where their
allegiances lie and are less prone to extremism. Something's wrong with the editing process or [DHS officials] just don't
understand veterans. The report demonstrates a true lack of understanding of who veterans are."
House Minority
Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, also criticized the report, saying its portrayal of veterans was "offensive and unacceptable."
The
report follows a similar DHS assessment released in January that detailed left-wing threats, focusing on cyberattacks and radical "eco-terrorist" groups
like Earth Liberation Front, accused of firebombing construction sites, logging companies, car dealerships and food science
labs. The report noted that left-wing extremists prefer economic damage to get their message across.
"Their leftwing
assessment identifies actual terrorist organizations, like the Earth Liberation Front and Animal Liberation Front," House
Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Lamar Smith, R-Texas, said in a statement issued Wednesday. "The rightwing report
uses broad generalizations about veterans, pro-life groups, federalists and supporters of gun rights. That's like saying
if you love puppies, you might be susceptible to recruitment by the Animal Liberation Front. It is ridiculous and deeply offensive
to millions of Americans."
FOXNews.com's Joshua Rhett Miller contributed to this report.
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is conducting a comprehensive review of scientific literature and potential health risks related to exposures at Camp
Lejeune. NAS has indicated they are tentatively scheduled to release their review in early May 2009. As a Registrant,
you will receive a summary of this review delivered to you via standard mail and through your email address.
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is conducting a health study to see if there is an association between exposure to the water and certain adverse health effects.
The study results are tentatively slated for release in late 2009. As a Registrant, you will receive a copy of
the study results via standard mail and email upon completion.
TRUMBULL, Conn. -- Milton Pierce's voice reverberated across the
room as the former World War II bomber pilot called the roll at his monthly American Legion meeting.
It was much like
any other gathering of the roughly 15,000 posts nationwide, except for one critical difference: Pierce and his fellow members
were only steps away from the comfort of their own homes.
The 90-year-old veteran and his compatriots live at Middlebrook
Farms, an assisted living community in Trumbull, Conn., where they are members of the state's first American Legion post
stationed in a nursing care complex.
As the nation's veterans age and become less mobile, groups such as the Legion
and Veterans of Foreign Wars are trying to recruit and retain more members by making it easier for them to reach meetings.
In
Trumbull and elsewhere, that means invoking an age-old adage: If Mohammed can't come to the mountain, the mountain must
come to Mohammed. The "mountain" _ in this case, American Legion Post 207 _ has been steadily gaining members at
Middlebrook Farms since it was launched in 2006 at the assisted living facility about 90 minutes north of New York City.
Leaders
of the Indianapolis-based Legion say it's among just a few such posts among their 15,000-plus sites nationwide. Others
already are in place in retirement communities for people ages 55 and older, including one about 45 miles north of Trumbull
in Southbury's Heritage Village.
"What we try to do is make sure we have a post wherever our service population
is, wherever our veterans are, and that means nursing homes and assisted living (communities) are a prime place for us,"
said Jack Querfeld, the national Legion office's internal affairs director.
Membership at the Middlebrook post started
with just a handful of interested veterans in 2006. Now it has about 25 members.
They do have another option: a well-established
Legion post nearby and others in neighboring Shelton, Fairfield, Stratford and Bridgeport.
But for Pierce and others
like him, making the trip is a physical and organizational marathon. It means finding a ride and packing up the large oxygen
tank he uses after a battle with lung cancer _ all the while ensuring his breathing tube, which he jokingly calls his "nose
hose," doesn't come loose.
"If I had to leave to go to meetings, I guess I just wouldn't," said
Pierce, who moved to Trumbull last November from Temple, Texas, to be closer to his grown children.
"That would
be a shame because I like it quite a bit, and the goals of the Legion are the same as mine so it's very easy to support,"
he said.
The Middlebrook post, which meets monthly in the building's community room, is a far cry from the stereotypical
Legion halls where members can drop in, grab a beer with friends, jawbone for hours and rent space for parties or receptions.
Yet
the camaraderie and traditions are the same, said Everett Shepard III, adjutant of the American Legion's Connecticut operations.
"They
get great attendance here, a lot of times more than at some of what would once be considered traditional posts," Shepard
said as he prepared to greet the Middlebrook veterans at a recent meeting.
And even though these veterans are in the
same complex as their living quarters, that doesn't mean they slack off when it comes to attire.
Some arrive in
wheelchairs or using walkers, some stroll in on their own. But all proudly sport dress clothes and their blue and beige Legion
hats with yellow piping.
In one corner of the room, iced tea and juice await those whose medications don't allow
them to indulge in the Bud Light chilling in ice. Nearby, a small table set for one with a single red rose in a vase honors
missing prisoners of war.
Gene Dardani, 88, the post's chaplain and a retired supervisor for a chain of produce
stores, was an active member of a post in neighboring Fairfield before he moved to Middlebrook about three years ago.
Being
forced to give up driving because of eyesight and hearing problems stopped him from traveling to those gatherings but motivated
him to become one of the earliest leaders and members of the Middlebrook post.
"I'm the type of person that,
if I'm interested in something and it's not here, I'll start it," said Dardani, who also launched a Bible
class at the facility. "I'm not going to sit around."
Cindy Shea, Middlebrook's activities coordinator,
was able to bring together the interested veterans and the Legion officials with a call to the organization. It's become
such a popular group at the facility that Middlebrook pays the members' dues as a perk of their residency and buys their
Legion caps for them.
"We have so many veterans here who can bond and connect over their military service,"
Shea said. "We put a note in the calendar about the meetings, they started showing up and it really took off from there."
“LOCAL MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO LARGEST SINGLE DISABILITY COMPENSATION BENEFITS FRAUD
IN VA HISTORY”
Spokane – James A. McDevitt, United States
Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that James M. Sebero, age 59, a resident of Idaho entered guilty
pleas to two crimes related to illegally receiving disability compensation from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA). Specifically, James M. Sebero entered a guilty plea to one count of wire fraud (contained in a District of Idaho Indictment)
which was related to the payment of a monthly VA disability compensation benefit and one count of making a false statement
(contained in the Eastern District of Washington Indictment) based upon a claim to a VA physician that he continued to be
paraplegic. Sentencing is set for July 10, 2009. The investigation of James M. Sebero disclosed that he was an enlisted member
of the United States Air Force between 1969 and 1975. In 1975, Sebero reported to Air Force personnel that he had been injured
while unloading a snowmobile. Sebero was treated by military medical personnel. Ultimately, Sebero claimed he had lost all
use of his legs and was paraplegic. The VA was advised by the Air Force of its findings and began making disability compensation
payments to Sebero based upon 100% disability from the paraplegia and other injuries in 1976.
Almost immediately after receiving his medical retirement from
the Air Force and VA disability compensation benefits, Sebero established and operated a business known as Custom Excavation.
According to Washington state records James M. Sebero operated that business between 1980 and 1992. From 1992 to the present,
James M. Sebero owned and operated an aircraft maintenance facility called Custom Aviation and obtained a pilot’s license
without any restrictions based on any disability. FAA records indicate that on each application for various airman’s
certificates, Sebero denied any sort of medical problems or disability. He was also a commissioned law enforcement officer
with Bonner County, Idaho. Sebero was required to meet certain medical and physical requirements in connection with his position.
Bonner County records indicate he was able to pass all those requirements, showed no evidence of disability and was assigned
several tasks during his employment which could not have been accomplished by a person who was paraplegic. On September 26,
2007, James M. Sebero entered the VA hospital in a wheel chair and was examined by a VA physician. During the course of the
examination, the physician asked James M. Sebero if he continued to suffer from paraplegia. James M. Sebero confirmed that
he was paraplegic and that he had been unable to walk since his discharge from the Air Force. On the following day, September
27, 2007, James M. Sebero appeared before Magistrate Judge Cynthia Imbrogno to answer to charges concerning an unrelated false
statement. James M. Sebero was observed by agents and others as he walked into the Thomas S. Foley Courthouse in Spokane,
stood without assistance as he made his appearance before the Judge, walked the stairs to the U.S. Marshal’s office
for booking after his court appearance and then walked as he departed the Courthouse following his appearance. James A. McDevitt,
U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, said, “The successful resolution of this case is due to the cooperative
efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s office from the District of Idaho and the very thorough and persistent efforts of the
Office of the Inspector General, Department of Veterans Affairs. By his actions, Mr. Sebero disgraced the system that compensates
all those veterans who are truly disabled and who are fairly compensated for their injuries sustained in service to their
country.” Douglas J. Carver, Special Agent in Charge for the Western Field Office, said, “This has been collaborate
effort between the VA OIG and the United States Attorney’s offices to investigate substantive fraud and prosecute those
individuals diverting precious benefits from deserving veterans. I am pleased that this matter was successfully resolved.”
A conviction for wire fraud carries a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, up to 3 years of court
supervision after release and restitution. A conviction for making a false statement carries a maximum penalty of twenty years
imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, up to 3 years of court supervision after release and restitution. In the plea agreement, Sebero
agrees to the forfeiture of substantial assets and payment of $950,000 in restitution. The investigation was conducted by
the Office of Inspector General, Department of Veterans Affairs. This case is being prosecuted by both the United States Attorney’s
offices in the District of Idaho and the Eastern District of Washington.
The VA, Office of Inspector General, has
established a hotline for anyone to anonymously report fraud, waste, and abuse at 1-800-488-8244 or vaoighotline@va.gov
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) - The Veterans Affairs Department is investigating whether there's
a link between a patient's positive HIV test and unsterilized equipment that may have exposed thousands of veterans to
infectious diseases.
The positive test was the first reported since the department warned veterans treated at three
clinics that they might be at risk.
The VA previously reported that hepatitis was found in 16 patients, but the agency
cautioned there was no way to prove that the patients contracted the illnesses because of treatment at their facilities.
In
an e-mail late Friday, the agency said it was investigating "the possibility of such a relationship."
The
VA earlier this year warned more than 10,000 veterans to get blood tests because they could have been exposed to contamination
while getting colonoscopies in Murfreesboro, Tenn., and Miami.
The endoscopic equipment in question was also used at
an ear, nose and throat facility in Augusta, Ga. All three sites failed to properly sterilize the equipment between treatments.
The VA has said it does not yet know if veterans who were treated with the same kind of equipment at its other 150
hospitals may have been exposed to the same mistake before the department had a nationwide safety training campaign. An agency
spokeswoman has said the VA is certain the mistake with the equipment was corrected nationwide by March 14.
The problems
dated back for more than five years at the Murfreesboro and Miami hospitals.
So far, less than a third - 3,174 - have
been notified of their test results. The agency also is trying to locate patients whose warning letters were returned.
The
statement Friday did not say where the patient who tested positive for HIV was treated, and the agency did not return telephone
and e-mail messages Monday.
In all, at least five veterans have tested positive for hepatitis B and 11 for hepatitis
C, which is potentially life-threatening.
No infections have been reported from Miami.
All three sites used
endoscopic equipment made by Olympus American Inc., which said in a statement it is helping the VA address problems with "inadvertently
neglecting to appropriately reprocess a specific auxiliary water tube."
The problem put patients at risk of being
exposed to other patients' body fluids.
Megan Longenderfer, an Olympus spokeswoman, said the company sent notices
to 5,800 "customer accounts," but a facility could have more than one endoscope.
A lawyer with more than
a dozen clients who had colonoscopies at the VA hospital in Murfreesboro said some have tested positive for hepatitis but
none for HIV.
Attorney Mike Sheppard said in an e-mail Monday that one client had espoghageal cancer and died from
"massive infection" soon after getting a colonoscopy. He said medical records are being reviewed for any connection
between the infection and exposure.
My name is Ric Shinseki, and I am a Veteran. For me, serving
as Secretary of Veterans Affairs is a noble calling. It provides me the opportunity to give back to those who served with
and for me during my 38 years in uniform and those on whose shoulders we all stood as we grew up in the profession of arms.
The Department of Veterans Affairs has a solemn responsibility to all of you, today and in the future, as more Veterans join our ranks and enroll to secure the benefits
and services they have earned. I am fully committed to fulfilling President Obama’s vision for transforming our department so that it will be well-positioned to perform this duty even better during the 21st Century. We welcome the assistance and advice of our Veterans Service Organizations,
other government departments and agencies, Congress, and all VA stakeholders as we move forward, ethically and transparently, so that Veterans and citizens
can understand our efforts.
Creating
that vision for transforming the VA into a 21st Century organization requires a comprehensive
review of our department. We approach that review understanding that Veterans are central to everything VA does. We know that
results count, that the department will be measured
by what we do, not what we promise, and that our best days as an organization supporting Veterans are ahead of us. We will
fulfill President Lincoln’s charge to care for ". . . him, who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan" by redesigning and reengineering ourselves for the future.Transforming
any institution is supremely challenging; I know this from my own experi
ence in leading large, proud, complex, and high-performing organizations through
change. But the best organizations must be prepared to meet the challenging times, evolving technology and, most importantly,
evolving needs of clients. Historically, organizations that are unwilling or unable to change soon find themselves irrelevant.
You and your needs are not irrelevant. Veterans
are our clients, and delivering the highest quality care and services in a timely, consistent and fair manner is a VA responsibility. I take that responsibility seriously and have charged all of the department’s employees for their best efforts and support
every day to meet our obligations to you. Our path forward is challenging, but the President and Congress support us. They have asked us to do this well—for you. Veterans are our sole reason for existence
and our number one priority—bar none. I look forward to working together with all VA employees to transform our department into an organization that reflects the change and commitment
our country expects and our Veterans deserve.
Thank you and God bless our military, our Veterans, and our Nation.
The worldwide financial crisis has hit private colleges
hard enough that relatively few are likely to participate in the Post-9/11 GI Bill’s “Yellow Ribbon” initiative
when it begins this fall, says Keith M. Wilson, director of education service for the Veterans Benefits Administration.
Under
the Yellow Ribbon program, private colleges and universities can enter into agreements with the Department of Veterans Affairs to waive up to half of tuition and fees charged above the most costly state-run school.
The VA, in turn, will match the waived amount, thereby enhancing school reimbursements and the value of the new GI Bill.
Wilson
said he hopes he is wrong about near term prospects for the Yellow Ribbon feature which is intended to allow academically
qualified veterans to attend some of the most prestigious schools in the country.
“Most schools aren’t going
to want to do a Yellow Ribbon program… because their finances have been hit too hard in the last couple of months,”
Wilson said in phone interview on draft GI Bill regulations.
That, he added, is his personal opinion from informal talks
with some private school officials and not official responses returned to VA.
Get answers to the frequently asked questions
about the New GI Bill.
Sen. John Warner (R-Va.), who retired this month, insisted last year that the Yellow Ribbon be
part of the new GI Bill as a condition for winning his support. Warner said he wanted to be sure that qualified veterans could
afford to attend the best schools just as veterans did following World War II.
VA officials in December mailed letters
explaining the Yellow Ribbon program to private colleges and universities. VA is following up this month with another letter,
this one asking schools if they will participate, what percentage of tuition and fees they might waive, and for how many veterans.
To
date, Wilson said, he hasn’t detected much enthusiasm for offering Yellow Ribbon discounts.
“Schools are
really struggling right now, especially the high-end schools,” he said. “Their endowments have just been crucified.
That’s [the] gut feeling I get from talking with these folks. They are just not in a position to be able to contribute.”
Wilson
suggested that some costly private schools “may do something token” so as not to seem “anti-veteran.”
But “not what we would have expected had we asked the question six months ago,” he said, before stock markets
and student loan markets “went south.”
Many schools, he said, still are weighing the Yellow Ribbon option
but there have been few positive signals.
“I really haven’t had a real strong, iron clad, by-God-we’re-going-to-do-this
from any school,” Wilson said.
The new GI Bill will pay tuition and fees at any college, up to the cost of attending
the most expensive state-run school. Students also will get a monthly living allowance, set to equal basic allowance for housing
locally for pay grade E-5, plus up to $1000 a year for books and school supplies.
Veterans Will Be Honored at FSCPublished: Sunday, March 8, 2009 at 12:01 a.m. Last Modified:
Monday, March 9, 2009 at 1:02 a.m. Florida
Southern College's homecoming Saturday will include a special event focused on veterans.Lt. Gen. Francis "Frank" H. Kearney III, deputy commander
of the United States Special Operations Command, will deliver the keynote address on Saturday, March 14, at 10 a.m. on Barnett
Field. His address is part of the homecoming event designated as a "Tribute to Military Veterans" and is free to
the public.The tribute will include
retired Lt. Gen. John "Mark" Curran, vice president of the Huntsville, Ala., operations of L-3 Communications and
a 1974 graduate of Florida Southern and the college's ROTC program.Florida Southern College graduates who are veterans and wish to participate in the ceremonies
on the field are asked to call the Office of College Relations at 863-680-3891
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted a review to evaluate the accuracy of VA regional office (VARO) compensation
and pension (C&P) benefit claim receipt dates. We initiated the review after the Veterans Benefits Administration’s
(VBA) Administrative Investigation Board concluded that VARO New York intentionally reported inaccurate receipt dates for
220 (56 percent) of 390 reviewed claims. The objectives of the review were to determine if (1) other VAROs reported inaccurate
claim receipt dates; (2) inaccurate claim receipt dates caused veterans or their beneficiaries to receive incorrect benefit
payments; and (3) inaccurate claim receipt dates caused VBA to report incorrect claim-processing times to veterans, members
of Congress, or other stakeholders. Our review indicated that the inaccurate dates were unintentional errors that did not
significantly affect the four VAROs’ fiscal year (FY) 2008 average claim-processing times. VARO Boston was the only
exception where we projected an understatement of average processing time for the sampled rating claims by 4 days. Of the
94,920 claims the four VAROs completed during FY 2008, we projected that 88,639 (93.4 percent) claim receipt dates were accurate;
4,520 (4.7 percent) were inaccurate; and 1,761 (1.9 percent) were not adequately documented in the claim folders and we could
not evaluate the accuracy of these dates. While all four VAROs reported inaccurate claim receipt dates, none of the rates
came close to the 56 percent rate VBA reported for the VARO New York review. VARO Albuquerque reported a 5 percent inaccuracy
rate, VARO Boston reported a 10 percent inaccuracy rate, VARO San Diego reported a 3 percent inaccuracy rate, and VARO Winston-Salem
reported a 4 percent inaccuracy rate. Even though all four VAROs reported inaccurate benefit claim receipt dates, no veterans
or their beneficiaries received incorrect or delayed benefit payments as correct claim receipt dates documented in claim folders
were used as effective! dates o f benefit awards. OIG made three recommendations to improve the accuracy and adequacy of C&P
benefit claim receipt dates. The Under Secretary for Benefits concurred with the report’s conclusion and recommendations.
We consider the planned actions provided by the Under Secretary acceptable and will follow up on their implementation.
Since 1978, I've been gathering various military artifacts, forming a collection I named
the Museum of War and Military History (http://www.armedforceshistory.org/). My goal from the outset has been to obtain items directly from the service members in order to preserve
not only the artifacts, but more importantly, the individual's story as well. I believe as veterans we all made
contributions to our common defense and every soldier, sailor, airman, and marine deserves to have their story remembered.
As we lose thousands of veterans everyday, especially the World War Two generation, I'm concerned that we are also losing
too many of these stories when they should be preserved for future generations. Anyone who is interested in contributing
or learning more is welcome to contact me.
Help is only a phone call away for military veterans considering suicide. Nearly 100,000 veterans,
family members or friends of veterans reached out for help by calling the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) suicide prevention
hotline at 1-800-273-TALK since the hotline was launched July 2007. The hotline operates 24 hours a day, seven days a
week, and is staffed by trained mental health professionals prepared to deal with an immediate crisis. Also, suicide prevention
coordinators are on hand at each Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical facility and outpatient clinic. Troubled veterans,
whether they call the suicide prevention hotline or walk in, receive follow-up care almost immediately. For more information,
visit VA's Suicide Prevention webpage.
When you look at a firefighting operation, particularly in wildland firefighting, you
see echoes of military operations. This similarity in philosophies goes more than skin deep. Fire department recruiters will
tell you that there are several qualities they look for in new recruits that military veterans have such as, respect for the
chain of command; teamwork; integrity; and maturity. Let’s take a closer look at how two seemingly different worlds
parallel each other.
Chain Of Command As in military operations, firefighting requires a distinct
command structure and it’s imperative that firemen work within that chain of command. Even in their earliest training experiences, firefighters are conditioned to follow the chain. For students taking fire science classes, instructors emphasize
that trainees have a captain that they communicate through. In fact, an instructor will refuse to speak directly with a student
and direct them to channel their questions through their captain. In fire agencies, this same way of doing things is cultivated
and encouraged for both new and old members.
Teamwork Every firefighter works as the member of
a team, just like the military. The military adheres to an all-arms approach to warfare, combining artillery, armor, infantry,
and air power into an integrated fighting force, just like firefighters who combine people with distinct duties into a force
that can tame a fire.
Captains guide the team of firefighters through the operation, and determine the best approach
to fight a fire and lead the attack. Engineers drive the apparatus (fire trucks, etc.) and man the pump controls at a fire.
A tillerman on large apparatus guides the rear of the rig around corners. Individual firefighters are given tasks to enable
the team to achieve its objective, in this case saving lives and property.
In wildland firefighting, there are specialized
duties, such as smokejumpers, the folks who parachute into areas adjacent to wildfires, helitack crews, who are the air-mobile
troops that helicopter into a fire area, and of course the air-tanker crews, who pilot their firefighting aircraft into the
heart of a fire. Everyone knows their job and works to integrate their efforts into a team approach.
Integrity How many times has a battle depended on the actions of a single Soldier, Sailor or Airman to do his or her job? The same
is true in firefighting. Personal accountability for doing their part to the best of their ability is a hallmark of successful
firefighters and is the key to the successful resolution of an emergency, no matter how large or small.
Maturity This is an aspect of military life that many people may have never considered, but is of great importance to recruiters
in the fire service. When servicemembers are given responsibility for millions of dollars worth of equipment, or have been
asked to lead troops into combat situations, or given jurisdiction over a team to accomplish a task, the maturity of the individual
grows accordingly.
The Payoff What are the rewards to a fire service career? As with a military
career, the fire service is a public service-oriented job. The public is served by being protected from auto accidents and
medical emergencies (80 percent of city firefighter calls), as well as both structure and wildland fires. As a result, lots
of towns and cities show their appreciation to firefighters with such things as tax breaks, parades, and general goodwill
towards their fire warriors.
And a typical firefighter works only 10 or 12 days a month (24 hours per day, which includes
bunking at the fire station overnight), which frees up lots of time for side jobs or projects around the house.
And
when it comes to pay, even rookie firefighters can pull in mid-five-figure salaries, as well as earn substantial overtime
pay by working extra shifts when they’re in the mood. Those who decide to move into command positions can earn even
more, typically six-figure incomes.
Firefighters get to retire at a younger age than workers in the corporate world,
55 being typical, opening up all sorts of possibilities for travel and time with family (or possibly starting a third career
for some).
If this sounds like a career to look into, contact your local fire agencies (federal, state, county and municipal)
to see what they have to offer. As one academy instructor said, in hard times it may just turn out to be your ticket to a
better, more fulfilling career.
Looking for a career in the fire service? Check Military.com's Veteran Job Board to search careers in firefighting or law enforcement.
The National Salute to Hospitalized
Veterans ‘Valentines for Veterans’ Concert will be celebrated Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009 at 6 p.m. at the Ford Amphitheater,
4802 US Highway 301.
Open
to the public and held during the Florida State Fair, the free concert will feature The Spinners and 2009 Rock and Roll Hall
of Fame nominee, Little Anthony and The Imperials.
The event is sponsored by Help Hospitalized Veterans, Seminole Hard Rock Casino and the Florida State Fair Authority. There
will be complimentary admission to the Florida State Fair after 4 p.m. that day.
Veteran Frank Buckles, a West Virginian who turns 108 today, "never thought I'd be the last."
By Tom Infield
Inquirer Staff Writer
CHARLES
TOWN, W.Va. - World War I took place so long ago - in a lost world of cavalry horses and biplanes - that it's a little
startling to meet Frank Buckles in the flesh.
The last known U.S. military veteran of World War I, Buckles turns 108 today.
On
Tuesday, as a winter storm moved in from the west, he sat in a nice blue blazer in a warm corner of his day room, surrounded
by history books. Outside, white wisps blew across the pale stubble on the 330-acre cattle farm where he settled quietly in
1954 after what already had been a life's worth of adventure in not one but two wars and as a commercial seafarer. Beyond
lay the river town of Harpers Ferry and the Civil War battlefield at Antietam.
Buckles said he had always known he would
grow quite old. His father lived to be 97. He had a sister who was 104. Other relatives on his mother's side lived to
be 100.
The national World War I veterans group, of which he is the commander and sole member, used to publish a newsletter.
Each issue counted down the number of old doughboys still around. As the number got smaller and smaller, "I realized
I'd be one of the last," he said, "but I never thought I'd be the last."
He grinned
slowly and added, "Of course, if it has to be somebody, it might as well be me."
On Nov. 11, the 90th anniversary
of the armistice that ended World War I, the secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs recognized Buckles as "our
last living link" to that war. Buckles met President George W. Bush at the White House last year and was feted at the
Pentagon.
He seems to have enjoyed the attention, but he isn't eager to talk about the sadness and melancholy that
must come with being the last of 4,734,991 American military personnel during the war, in 1917 and 1918.
"Being
the last is sort of a negative thing because it means all your buddies have gone before you, so he doesn't dwell on that,"
said Muriel Sue Kerr of Mount Vernon, Va., the longtime director of Buckles' veterans group and the granddaughter of a
World War I veteran.
Until he was in his 70s, Buckles each month smoked a pound of pipe tobacco and a box of cigars
that he ordered from a shop in San Francisco.
He drove a car and a farm tractor until he was 102.
He's still
in good health - "for a man my age," as he put it. A couple of years ago, his only child, Susannah, 53, moved in
with him. His son-in-law built two new rooms on the ground floor of his 250-year-old house so he doesn't have to climb
stairs anymore.
As he sat in his favorite chair, his shaggy hair combed across his scalp, an eagle-head cane leaning
against the wall, Buckles had to concentrate hard to hear the questions in an interview. His answers came with pauses to catch
his breath.
He enjoyed telling the old, old stories - the funny ones, mostly. Like the time he tried to teach his father
how to drive a Model T Ford on the Oklahoma farm where he grew up. On the way back to the house after a spin, his father forgot
himself and yelled, "Whoa!" The car crashed through the gate.
If anyone could be said to embody the history
of America, Buckles might be it.
He can remember talking to his grandmother, born in 1817. His grandmother, in turn,
could remember talking to her grandfather, who had been in the Revolutionary War. The first Buckles came from England to Philadelphia
in 1702 and married into a Quaker family in Bucks County. The clan moved to the upper Potomac River region in 1732, the year
of George Washington's birth.
Frank Woodruff Buckles was born Feb. 1, 1901. When World War I broke out in Europe
in 1914, he was 13. He was still just 16 in 1917 when the United States entered the war against Germany, on the side of Britain
and France.
He tried to join the Marines, but was rejected as too young. He tried the Navy, then the Army. He lied that
he was unable to produce his birth certificate, and the Army let him in.
In December 1917, he sailed for Europe aboard
the ocean liner Carpathia, converted into a troop ship. The Carpathia had rescued survivors of the Titanic 51/2 years earlier.
After
landing in England, Buckles worked as a military driver. He had to finagle his way to France. He never saw combat - "not
close," he said - but he was at least in the war theater. He was a corporal when he got home.
Officials make plea for mental health professionals to help reverse trend.
By PAULINE JELINEK THE
Associated Press
Published: Thursday, January 29,
2009 at 10:20 p.m. Last Modified: Thursday, January 29, 2009 at 10:20 p.m.
WASHINGTON
| Suicides among U.S. soldiers rose last year to the highest level in decades, the Army announced Thursday.
At least 128 soldiers killed themselves
in 2008. But the final count is likely to be considerably higher because 15 more suspicious deaths are still being investigated
and could also turn out to be self-inflicted, the Army said.
A new training and prevention effort will start next week.
And Col. Elspeth Ritchie, a psychiatric consultant to the Army surgeon general, made a plea for more U.S. mental health professionals
to sign on to work for the military.
The new suicide figure compares with 115 in 2007 and 102 in 2006 and is the highest
since record-keeping began in 1980. Officials calculate the deaths at a rate of roughly 20.2 per 100,000 soldiers - which
is higher than the adjusted civilian rate for the first time since the Vietnam War, officials told a Pentagon news conference.
"We
need to move quickly to do everything we can to reverse this disturbing … number," Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen.
Peter Chiarelli said.
Officials have said troops are under tremendous and unprecedented stress because of repeated and
long tours of duty because of the simultaneous wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The stress has placed further burdens on
an overwhelmed military health care system also trying to tend to huge numbers of troops suffering from post-traumatic stress,
depression and other mental health problems as well as physical wounds and injuries of tens of thousands.
Yearly increases
in suicides have been recorded since 2004, when there were 64 - only about half the number now. And they've occurred despite
increased training, prevention programs and psychiatric staff.
When studying individual cases, officials said they found
that the most common factors for suicides were soldiers suffering problems with their personal relationships, legal or financial
issues and problems on the job.
The statistics released Thursday cover soldiers who killed themselves while they were
on active duty - including National Guard and Reserve troops who had been activated.
The previous year's rate of
suicides - 18.8 per 100,000 soldiers - had also been the highest on record. But the new pace of 20.2 per 100,000 was the first
time the rate surpassed the civilian number, when adjusted to reflect the Army's younger and male-heavy demographics.
The
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the suicide rate for U.S. society overall was about 11 per 100,000 in 2004,
the latest year for which the agency has figures. But the Army says the civilian rate is more like 19.5 per 100,000 when adjusted.
The
new estimated rate of 20.2 is more than double the 9.8 in 2002 - the first full year after the start of the war in Afghanistan
The
new Army statistics follow a report earlier this month showing that the Marine Corps recorded more suicides last year than
any year since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003.
2009 Veterans Day Poster Contest to be announced soon
Below is a copy of an e-mail I received pertaining to the 2009 Veterans Day Poster Contest
Hi Gus,I am preparing the announcement this week. Here is the
one from last year, it will basically be the same information, just new due date (2009). Matt
Attention artists, graphic designers and photographers. The Veterans Day National Committee is seeking submissions
for the 2008 national Veterans Day poster. The poster is distributed to more than 110,000 schools nationwide, military installations
around the world, and to federal agencies in the nation’s capital. It also graces the cover of the official program
booklet for the Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. The committee will convene in May 2008 to review all
submissions and select a finalist. The final poster must be 18x24” at 300 dots per inch, but please scale down submissions
to 9x12” and submit electronic versions as jpg images or PDF files via e-mail to: vetsday@va.gov. Alternatively, send copies of artwork or a CD with artwork files to: Department of Veterans Affairs (002C), 810 Vermont
Ave., NW, Washington, D.C., 20420. Please do not send originals. The deadline for submissions is May 1, 2008. To
view Veterans Day posters from previous years, please visit http://www.va.gov/vetsday and click on “Poster Gallery”. Submissions should include sufficient information to demonstrate that the
image is the work of the artist and is not copyrighted material (i.e. photos and concepts). The committee may select a particular
submission but ask the artist to make modifications to the original design. Additional changes may be required prior to printing.
--Any person who willfully wears the badge, button or other insignia of the American Legion shall be guilty
of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083; provided,
that the provisions of this section shall not apply to any member of the American Legion.
I am currently looking for donations for a little project I am calling
“Pedicures for our Troops”. Often the women in the military get put into the same category as men (as they
teach in Basic that everyone is the same- your all wearing the same uniform) But I wanted to let some of the women in Iraq
know that we still think of them and their needs as well as the men. I am looking for a few of the spa foot baths (electric)
that I can send along with the items for the soldiers to have a “girls day out”. The cost is anywhere from $20-30
dollars and you can purchase them at any CVS, Walmart, Walgreens etc. Ideally I would like to ship a large box over
there with everything they need for a “pedicure” day with their friends, (Magazines, Hot Tea Bags, Comfy new socks,
Assorted Nail polish, Foot Cleaning Kits, Foot Creams, Lotions, etc….)
I already have a good size box going…and need your help with just a little bit more.
Anything is MUCH appreciated! (and trust me…the women will love it! )
Active and Retired U.S. Military,
including members of the U.S. Coast Guard and activated members of the National Guard or Reservists, may obtain one complimentary
5-Day Disney's Armed Forces Salute Ticket (Base Ticket with the Park Hopper option and Water Park Fun & More Option
- No Expiration option is not available). They may also purchase 5-Day Disney's Armed Forces Salute Companion Tickets
for up to five (5) family members and/or friends for $99 plus tax (Park Hopper Option and Water Park Fun & More Options
may be purchased for an additional $25 + tax for each option - No Expiration option is not available). These tickets are valid
through December 23, 2009.
Military Personnel must present valid United States Military identification (active
or retired). Activated members of the National Guard or Reservists must present active duty orders in addition to valid Military
ID. Sales locations should refer to the Military ID Reference Sheet for verification.
In order to be eligible
for this program, the military member must have been active for any length of time between January 1, 2008 and the end of
this offer (December 23, 2009)
Published: Thursday, January 1, 2009 at 12:01 a.m. Last Modified: Friday, January 2, 2009
at 1:19 a.m.
Back when he still had two legs in working condition, Michael
Fradera had an aversion to water that might have seemed silly to others.
'I always had a fear of being in the water
where there are big fish,' said Fradera, a muscular man with a stubbly scalp of dark hair.
These days, the Lakeland
resident could readily be excused for avoiding water. He lost both of his legs when his Army vehicle encountered a roadside
bomb in Iraq on Aug. 17, 2007.
Fradera, 31, has learned to walk with increasing assurance on a pair of titanium legs
and prosthetic feet that fit into black sneakers. Swimming without legs, though, might seem an unnecessary risk.
Not
to Fradera. He joined a few other veterans with lasting injuries in mid-December in a pool at a Lakeland dive shop for an
introduction to scuba diving. By the time he left the water, Fradera had decided he wants to pursue certification as a diver.
Fradera
first entered the pool at Deep Six Divers Services wearing his 'water legs' with rubber fins attached, but he soon
decided the prosthetics were too cumbersome.
'I took them off and I had a blast,' he said.
The introductory
session was the work of Divers4Heroes, a Lakeland-based, nonprofit outfit devoted to giving wounded veterans the chance to learn scuba diving at no cost. Bo and
Debbie Twillman, a married couple in Lakeland, created the organization about a year ago, with Bo serving as the main instructor.
Divers4Heroes gives veterans the option of earning open-water certification, if necessary through the Handicap Scuba Association.
Three
other novice divers joined Fradera in the indoor pool at Deep Six, along with another wounded veteran who has been certified
as a diver. The first-timers included Mark Lalli, an Army sergeant who incurred a traumatic brain injury along with multiple
broken bones in a helicopter training accident in Italy on Nov. 8, 2007.
Lalli, 23, now uses a wheelchair, and he speaks
in a low voice in bursts of just a few words in succession. Lalli, who wears black wristbands bearing the names of the two
pilots who died in the helicopter crash, said the only time he and his fellow veterans stopped smiling during the lesson was
when they had their mouthpieces in place.
'I loved it; I got bit by the bug,' the Cleveland native said. 'It
was very freeing. Liberating. Nothing to hold me back. Endless possibilities. It was just another escape, a chance for me
to do something else instead of being cooped up inside.'
The Twillmans said the idea for the program arose from
a moment in Key West in 2006 when they glimpsed a group of wounded veterans, some of them missing limbs, and wondered what
they could do to provide comfort for the many returning from Iraq and elsewhere with permanent injuries.
Bo Twillman,
42, has been scuba diving since he was a teenager and has been a dive instructor since 1993. He also has a brother who is
a quadriplegic as the result of a car accident. He is an Army veteran and works for a private contractor supporting the military
mission in Afghanistan.
Debbie Twillman's background is in marketing, and she navigated the bureaucratic obstacles
required to establish ties with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Divers4Heroes now has the sponsorship of the recreational
rehabilitation program at James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital in Tampa, and the five men who took part in last month's
training session are all patients at the Tampa center.
All the veterans must have a doctor's permission to take
part. The hospital provides transportation and sends along therapists and sometimes a nurse, depending on the severity of
the disabilities.
Fradera, a retired staff sergeant, said he never felt in danger in the water despite his lack of legs.
'I'm confident in the water,' he said. 'I can swim very well, even though I don't have legs on.
Believe it or not, I've been more buoyant since I lost my legs.'
Tami Pasquel, one of the recreational therapists
from the VA hospital, said the pool sessions offer both physical and emotional benefits.
'We've got some guys
here who said when they got back (from service) they sat around and watched TV and didn't think there was anything for
them, and this gives them freedom,' Pasquel said. 'It's just made a huge difference in their lives.'
Deep
Six and other participating dive shops offer their pools and rental gear at no charge to the veterans.
'I've
gotten to see just the joy of being able to have use of some body parts when they're down under water,' said Deep
Six owner John Appelboom. 'You get guys, for example, who have no use of their legs or an arm, and the thing is, when
they're down under the water there's no gravity so a lot of the negatives of being land-bound disappear completely.'
The
Twillmans plan to take a group of veterans to the Florida Keys in April for an open-water dive trip. Lalli has his sights
set on a more distant locale.
'I have family in Sydney (Australia),' he said. 'My goal is to go there and
dive.'
Fradera has more modest goals.
'I'll stick with Florida, and maybe Puerto Rico,' he said.
'If a group is going to go someplace else, I'll probably go with them — except Africa. They've got some
big great whites (sharks) over there. I'm not going there.'
But Fradera is ready to go places that might have
seemed unlikely not long ago.
Some Veterans to see another travel reimbursement increase
WASHINGTON–Service-disabled
and low-income veterans who are reimbursed for travel expenses while receiving care at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
facilities will see an increase in their payments beginning January 9.
A recently
passed law allows VA to cut the amount it must withhold from their mileage reimbursement. The deductible amount will
be $3 for each one-way trip and $6 for each round trip -- with a cap per calendar-month of $18, or six one-way trips or three
round trips, whichever comes first. The previous deductible was $7.77 for a one-way trip, and $15.54 for a round
trip, with a calendar-month cap of $46.62.
“I’m pleased that we can help
veterans living far from VA facilities to access the medical and counseling help they deserve, especially in the current economic
climate,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake. “Together with the increased mileage
rate approved last month, we can further reduce the financial hardship some veterans undergo to use our superior health care.”
In November, Peake announced VA’s second increase in the mileage reimbursement rate during 2008,
from 28.5 cents to 41.5 cents a mile.
Service-disabled and low-income veterans
are eligible to be reimbursed by VA for the travel costs of receiving health care or counseling at VA facilities. Veterans
traveling for Compensation and Pension examinations also qualify for mileage reimbursement. VA can waive deductibles
if they cause financial hardship.
If you received a Purple Heart for being wounded in Vietnam, you could be one
of 9 lucky vets to win VFW’s “Return to Vietnam” trip.
This in-country tour from April 24-May
7, 2009,will visit Hanoi, Saigon, Chu Lai, Cu Chi, Hue, the DMZ, Hoi An, Marble Mountain and China Beach.
Airfare,
accommodations and meals are included. Don’t miss this chance to revisit battle sites and to share your experiences
with fellow Vietnam vets.
Entries must be received prior to the drawing on Jan. 15, 2009. Winners will be notified
by mail or e-mail in late January. To claim their trip, winners must send a copy of their Purple Heart documentation to VFW
National Headquarters by Feb. 15, 2009, and their passport by March 1, 2009. (If you do not have a passport, please apply
immediately.)
Note: Previous VFW-sponsored trip-winners to various events are not eligible.
CAMDEN
-- City authorities announced Wednesday that a 63-year-old Laurel Springs resident who was a Military and Veterans Affairs
official was arrested for falsifying his veteran and government records in order to receive $40,000 in tax exemption and $34,000
benefits from Veteran Affairs.
William Devereaux, of the 700 block of Sycamore Court, was charged with falsifying or
tampering with records and theft by failure to make required disposition.
Appointed by former Gov. McGreevey as Director of Veterans Programs for the NJ Department of Military and Veterans Affairs,
Devereaux is alleged to have invented a false history of combat and heroism set in the Vietnam War, including stories that,
as a paratrooper and artilleryman, he exchanged fire with enemy combatants and was also involved in an incident of friendly
fire, claiming to have been injured multiple times.
It is alleged that he also claimed to have received a Purple Heart,
Soldiers Medal and the Bronze Star.
Devereaux received compensatory benefits for medical conditions he claimed to have
sustained in combat.
Authorities say Devereaux was never a paratrooper or artilleryman, serving only as a payroll distribution
specialist in Vietnam for four months and 11 days in 1968. No medals were awarded to him, and there is no record of any injuries
being sustained in any type of combat.
HEADQUARTERS MARINE CORPS -- Former residents and employees of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C., can now
register at the official Marine Corps water study website for notification and information purposes regarding past drinking
water contamination.
The web registration is a tool intended to assist the Marine Corps in obtaining current addresses
of Marines, dependents and civilians that lived or worked at Camp Lejeune prior to 1987. Once registered, at the official
site https://clnr.hqi.usmc.mil/clsurvey/ , the Marine Corps will be able to send individuals updates regarding the study by letter mail or e-mail.
While the
Marine Corps has obtained some personnel records of former residents and workers, many records are incomplete. We need all
interested parties to register to ensure that our notification effort is as complete as possible.
Taking care of Marines,
sailors, and their families is a top priority for the Marine Corps. The Secretary of the Navy and the Commandant of the Marines
Corps are committed to reaching all former residents that may have been exposed to unregulated chemicals in the base drinking
water between 1957 and 1987.
The Marine Corps fully supports the Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry's
ongoing health study to determine whether exposure to these chemicals can be linked to any increased health risks. At the
completion of the study in mid-2008, the Marine Corps will announce the results in conjunction with ATSDR.
We encourage
former base residents to register on-line or contact the Camp Lejeune Water Study Call Center for assistance or additional
information. The Call Center staff can be reached at 877-261-9782, Monday through Friday, between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m.,
or by email at clwater@usmc.mil.
For more information regarding the health study, contact the ATSDR information line
at 888-422-8737.
For Americans w/ Spinal Cord injuries, MS, ALS, SB, Polio, and other Spinal Cord issues
The United Spinal Association announced the launch of its online veterans help center, Ask VetsFirst, an interactive gateway to information
on a host of subjects of interest to veterans and their families. VetsFirst.org includes a listing of VetsFirst's
national veterans service officers, an online library with "Knowledge Books," fact sheets and self-help guides.
For more information, visit the VetsFirst website at http://www.vetsfirst.org/.
Published: Thursday, November 13,
2008 at 10:50 p.m. Last Modified: Thursday, November 13, 2008 at 10:50 p.m.
LAKELAND
| A large and expanded medical clinic for veterans has opened in Southwest Lakeland.
Currently staffed by six physicians and a part-time physician's
assistant, half of the 20,000 square-foot facility opened informally Monday. Additional staff - including 11 mental health
practitioners, a dietician, a podiatrist, two additional psychologists, two audiologists and one audiology technician - will
soon join the complex.
The new complex is five times larger than the crowded, 4,000-square-foot clinic on South Florida
Avenue, and its staff eventually will be more than five times the size of the staff at the old clinic.
One of the key
features of the clinic is that for the first time it will offer women's health-care services, including pap smears and
breast exams, recognizing the needs of the increased number of women who have served in the military.
An official ribbon-cutting
will be scheduled later when U.S. Reps. Adam Putnam, R-Bartow, and Ginny Brown-Waite, R-Brooksville, can attend, VA officials
said.
In the meantime, the first of two 10,000 square-foot buildings on the site is open and serves primary care, dietetic,
podiatry and the women's health-care specialities.
A second building, expected to be completed and open in February,
will contain mental health care, laboratories and a pharmacy, home health-care staff, and a small prosthetics lab.
"We
are greatly expanding our clinics throughout the area," said Carolyn Clark, public affairs officer for the James A. Haley
Veterans Hospital in Tampa, which operates the regional clinics.
Carolyn King, nurse team leader at the new clinic,
said that even before the grand opening business has been brisk with patients already scheduled for appointments. Also, many
people had driven by during the past several months checking on the progress toward completion of the building, she said.
The
clinic is at 4237 S. Pipkin Road, east of Lakeland Linder Regional Airport.
Veterans will no longer have to travel to
the hospital in Tampa for routine primary care, lab work or prescriptions. The clinic is especially helpful for some veterans
who don't drive and had to wait for a bus to take them to Tampa.
The two buildings were built by Rodda Construction
for a private investment group, JG BAMM Lakeland VA, LLC, which leases the buildings to the Veterans Administration for about
$800,000 a year.
When both buildings are operational, the clinic complex will employ a permanent staff of about 80,
including doctors, physician assistants, psychologists and nurse practitioners, along with support staff. The staff at the
small South Florida Avenue clinic numbered about 15. The second building will also house staff for home-based nursing.
"We
are very excited," King said, "because our home-bound veterans were outside the service district before. Now veterans
who are home bound in Polk County can receive that care."
Visits at the new clinic have been a little busier during
the soft opening of the new facility this week, in part because the addition of podiatry and audiology.
Dr. Kathryn
Corrigan, associate chief of ambulatory care, who oversees the emergency room at James A. Haley and VA clinics in Lakeland,
Brooksville and Zephyrhills, said the new Lakeland clinic is a vast difference from the first local clinic.
"The
history of the clinic goes back several years, with a small one in Bartow that was even smaller than the South Florida Avenue
clinic where it moved," she said. "Now, once we have the second building completed, it will be a very large complex."
Published: Monday, November
10, 2008 at 12:01 a.m. Last Modified: Tuesday, November 11, 2008 at 3:50 a.m.
RANDOLPH,
Vt. | In World War II, Samuel Mazur was a tail gunner on a B-17 bomber that flew over Europe.
Three
decades later, he died of cancer - with no family at his side - at a Veterans Administration hospital in Vermont.
His
cremated remains were sent to a funeral home, where they were placed on a shelf and forgotten.
Until last week.
On
Friday, Mazur got full military honors and was laid to rest along with three other forgotten veterans as part of the Missing
in America Project, a volunteer organization that seeks to identify and honor the unclaimed remains of American veterans.
There
was no family, but there were dozens of leather-clad, motorcycle-riding veterans at the Vermont Veterans' Memorial Cemetery,
and a military honor guard.
"The recognition of their service transcends their death, and in places like this cemetery,
we will continue to devote ourselves to their cause," retired U.S. Army Col. Joseph Krawczyk said during the ceremony.
In
two years, the group's volunteers have visited 592 funeral homes, found 6,327 sets of unclaimed remains, identified 491
of them as belonging to veterans and interred 325, said Bruce Turner, the Vermont coordinator.
The Department of Veterans
Affairs supports the effort.
"We would support any organization that helps to identify veterans who would be eligible
for burial," said VA spokeswoman Josephine Schuda in Washington.
"We can't get into the task of locating
and recovering remains, but when a group like this presents identification, the VA will verify eligibility and assist the
group to organize burial honors," she said.
In honor of our nation’s veterans and active military
personnel, entry will be free to all state parks for day-use on Veterans Day, Tuesday, November 11.
Pick
your favorite outdoor activity – hiking, bicycling, bird watching or looking for shells on the beach – and enjoy
a day at the park.
Florida’s state park service supports military families and honors the sacrifices
of members of the armed forces.
WASHINGTON -- Veterans and active-duty military not in uniform can now render
the military-style hand salute during the playing of the national anthem, thanks to changes in federal law that took effect
this month.
“The military salute is a unique gesture of respect that marks those who have served in our nation’s
armed forces,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake. “This provision allows the application of
that honor in all events involving our nation’s flag.”
The new provision improves upon a little known change
in federal law last year that authorized veterans to render the military-style hand salute during the raising, lowering or
passing of the flag, but it did not address salutes during the national anthem. Last year’s provision also applied
to members of the armed forces while not in uniform.
Traditionally, members of the nation’s veterans service organizations
have rendered the hand-salute during the national anthem and at events involving the national flag while wearing their organization’s
official head-gear.
The most recent change, authorizing hand-salutes during the national anthem by veterans and
out-of-uniform military personnel, was sponsored by Sen. Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, an Army veteran. It was included in
the Defense Authorization Act of 2009, which President Bush signed on Oct. 14.
The earlier provision authorizing
hand-salutes for veterans and out-of-uniform military personnel during the raising, lowering or passing of the flag, was contained
in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2008, which took effect Jan. 28, 2008.
# # #
For the latest news releases and other
information, visit VA on the Internet at
The walk in flu clinic was actually last week. If veterans who do not have an appt. want the shot,
they can still come but will have to wait until all veterans with scheduled appts. are checked in (per our nurse manager).
Any vets that have scheduled appts. can request it at that time.
10/7/2008 - DALLAS (AFNS) -- By simply logging on to a Web
site or calling a toll-free number, any American can now give Army and Air Force Exchange Service gift cards
to military families worldwide.
"We're not even charging to ship these cards," said Chief Master
Sgt. Jeffry Helm, AAFES' senior enlisted adviser. "Whether the AAFES gift card is sent down the street or overseas,
shipping is free.
AAFES gift cards can be redeemed at base and post exchanges worldwide by active-duty troops and
their families, as well as military retirees.
"With the economy the way it is, now is not the time to haphazardly
guess what someone needs to brighten their day or pay extra money for shipping," said Chief Helm. "AAFES gift cards
not only eliminate all shipping costs, but also put the power of choice in the hands of the spouse waiting for the return
of a loved one, retiree trying to make the best of a turbulent economy, or servicemember far from home.
"All
that needs to be sent is a lightweight plastic card that can be redeemed for a movie, phone call home or even gasoline for
a much deserved weekend getaway," Chief Helm said.
Besides exchange gift cards, any American also can send
a gift certificate that can be redeemed through the exchange's mail order catalogs or Web site.
"The gift
certificates are perfect for Reserve and Guard families that may not live close to a brick and mortar exchange," said
Chief Helm.
AAFES gift cards and gift certificates, up to $500, can be sent by any American who calls (877) 770-4438
or logs on to www.aafes.com. Online visitors can click on the "Gift Cards/Certificates for our Troops" link under AAFES Community Connection
on the home page.
Gift certificates are sent to individual servicemembers (designated by the purchaser) or distributed
to "any servicemember" through the Air Force Aid Society, American Red Cross, Fisher House Foundation Inc., Navy-Marine
Corps Relief, USO or Soldiers Family Assistance Center. (Courtesy of AAFES News Service)
Action Is Sought to Ensure Timely Financing for V.A.
LIZETTE ALVAREZ
Published: Friday, September 19, 2008 at 12:01
a.m. Last Modified: Monday, September 22, 2008 at 5:28 a.m.
As the
veterans’ health system strains to handle a growing caseload, a move is under way in Congress to avoid yearly delays
in financing that can hamper the medical care of the nation’s veterans.
The legislation would allow Congress to approve the money for veterans’
medical care one year in advance. In so doing, it would separate veterans’ health care financing from the crush of appropriations
and political horse-trading that take place at year’s end.
The so-called advanced appropriation
is already used to ensure the timely delivery of money to other programs, including the Low Income Home Energy Assistance
Program and Housing and Urban Development vouchers for low-income renters.
The effort is being
spearheaded by the chairmen of the Veterans’ Affairs Committees in the House and Senate. They say the long delays in
getting the money for health care to the Department of Veterans Affairs is untenable in a time of war.
“The
Department of Veterans Affairs operates the largest health care system in the nation, but its funding is untimely and unpredictable,”
said Senator Daniel K. Akaka, the Hawaii Democrat who is chairman of the Senate veterans committee.
“Unlike
Medicare and Medicaid,” Mr. Akaka said, “V.A. never knows what its level of funding will be for the next year.
V.A. health care providers are tied down by uncertainty. This situation is bad for taxpayers, bad for V.A. and bad for veterans.”
Representative Bob Filner, the California Democrat who heads the veterans committee in the House, said
the measure was a compromise that did not call for mandatory financing for veterans’ programs.
Explaining
that Congress has been routinely late in passing the spending bill, Mr. Filner said, “You can’t run an agency
if you can’t get timely funding.”
The last time Congress approved Department of Veterans
Affairs money by Oct. 1, the start of the fiscal year, was in 1997. Congress failed to pass this year’s spending bill
for the agency until February.
Waiting for Congress to pass spending legislation is a parlor
game in Washington and few agencies ever get their money on time.
But Mr. Akaka and an umbrella
group of major veterans organizations say the delays pose a critical problem when it comes to providing medical care for veterans,
especially at a time of exploding growth.
The delays, they say, affect service to veterans, including
waits for appointments; hamper the hiring of personnel; and hinder equipment purchases.
At the
same time, the department has been under intense pressure to serve veterans better.
“It
has a real impact on services,” said Joseph A. Violante, the legislative director for Disabled American Veterans, part
of the umbrella group Partnership for Veterans Health Care Budget Reform.
==============================================
Rotary
Clubs in Lakeland have embarked on a project to construct handicap ramps for those who require same. These ramps
will be constructed at no cost to the person requiring such assistance.
If you know of a Veteran
who is in need of a ramp at their home, please forward their name to me.
Operation Homefront is proud to partner with the Department of Defense in their America Supports program for
Freedom Walk 2008.
Freedom Walk is a non-partisan, non-exclusive event open to the general public and free of charge
to participants. This is not a fundraiser, nor a platform to discuss politics or policies.
The purpose of this event
is simply to establish a tradition to reflect on the lives lost on September 11, renew our commitment to freedom and the values
of our country and to honor our veterans, past and present .
Please share this with anyone who's had active duty service prior to January 2002 and planning
for retirement. In a nutshell it boils down to this:
You
qualify for a higher social security payment because of your military service, for active duty any time from 1940 through
2001 (the programwas done away with in January 2002). Up to $1200 per year of earnings credit credited
at time of application - which can make a substantial difference in social security monthly payments upon your retirement.
You must bring your DD-214 to the Social Security Office - and you must ask for this benefit to receive it!
For
every $300 in active duty basic pay, you are credited with an additional $100 in earnings up to a maximum of $1,200 a year.
If you enlisted after September 7, 1980, and didn't complete at least 24 months of active duty or your full tour, you
may not be able to receive the additional earnings.
Check with Social Security for details.
This is something to put in your files for when you apply for Social Security down the
road. It is NOT just for retirees, BUT anyone who has served on active duty prior to January 2002. Note: This benefit is not
automatic, you must ask for it!
==============================================
The Florida
Military Collectors Show is coming to Fantasy of Flight, Polk City on Saturday August 23, 2008.
For more information
click on the links provided below.
Even if you are not otherwise required to file a tax return, you may still be entitled to an economic
stimulus payment from the federal government.
WHAT
YOU COULD GET:
You could receive a payment of $300 for individuals
or $600 if you are married and file a joint tax return with your spouse. Eligible taxpayers who qualify for a payment may
receive an additional $300 for each qualifying child. To qualify a child must be under age 17 as of December 31, 2007.
Department Strengthens Partnerships with Seven Nursing Schools
WASHINGTON (July
31, 2008) -- To provide compassionate, highly-trained
nurses to serve the health care needs of the nation's veterans, the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is establishing new partnerships
with seven of the country's finest nursing schools.The partnerships
will bring to
10 the number of collaborations between the Department and
nursing schools under the VA Nursing Academy.
"The expanded
role of VA in the education of nurses will ensure the
Department has the nurses needed to continue our world-class health care
for veterans," said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake.
"The VA Nursing Academy expands our teaching faculty,
improves
recruitment and retention, and
creates new educational and research
opportunities."
The VA Nursing Academy is a virtual organization with central
administration in Washington.It expands learning opportunities for
nursing students at VA facilities, funds additional faculty positions
so
competitively selected nursing school
partners will accept additional
baccalaureate-level
students, and increases recruitment and retention of
VA
nurses. The five-year, $40 million program began in 2007.
Seven nursing schools
will form new partnerships with nine VA medical
centers
and join the VA Nursing Academy this year.They are:
VA Facility School
of Nursing
Charleston, S.C. Medical University
of South
Carolina
Hines, Ill. Loyola University of
Chicago
Michigan Consortia University of Detroit
(Detroit, Saginaw, Mercy, and
Battle Creek, Ann Arbor) Saginaw Valley State
University
Oklahoma City, Okla. University of Oklahoma
Health Sciences Center
Providence, R.I. Rhode Island College
Tampa, Fla. University of South Florida
Partnerships already
in the VA Nursing Academy include the VA medical
center
in Gainesville, Fla., with the University of Florida; the VA
medical center in San Diego with San Diego State University; the VA
medical center in Salt Lake City with the University of Utah; and the VA
medical center in West Haven, Conn., with Fairfield
University in
Connecticut.
VA expects to add several more nursing-school partnerships.
The American Association
of Colleges of Nursing has reported that in
2006
more than 38,000 qualified applicants were turned away from
entry-level baccalaureate degree programs in nursing schools because of
insufficient numbers of faculty, clinical sites, classroom space and
clinical mentors.VA currently provides
clinical education for
approximately 100,000
health professional trainees annually, including
students
from more than 600 schools of nursing.
VA's "Enhancing Academic Partnerships"
pilot program enables
competitively selected
VA-nursing school partnerships to expand the
number
of nursing faculty, enhance the professional and scholarly
development of nurses, increase student enrollment by about 1,000
students and promote innovations in nursing education.
Further information about the pilot program can be obtained from VA's
Office of Academic Affiliations web site at www.va.gov/oaa.
==============================================
School districts around the country
are desperate for the maturity an experience troops have gained through military service, says Robert Henry, who coordinates
the Troops to Teachers Program for Maryland and the District of Columbia. Since 1994, the program placed more than 11,000
former troops into public schools nationwide. To qualify for the program, candidates need a bachelor's degree and teacher
certification that the Troops to Teachers program can help finance. For more information, visit the Troops-to-Teachers Program website.
============================================== Tommy Cassel, Marketing Director for the Polk Visitor Information Center, Outpost 27, is requesting assistance from any
of Polk County's 12,000 plus Veterans. If you have any military artifacts you would like to display at the Outpost 27 to honor your brothers and sisters who also served, please contact Tommy Cassel at 863.420.2586 or E-Mail tommy@visitcentralflorida.org
This would be a great opportunity to educate the public on what you did while
you served your country.
============================================== The article below was in the Ledger on June 13, 2008
New VA Clinic Will Open in Lakeland By Bill Rufty The Ledger
Published: Friday,
June 13, 2008 at 6:01 a.m.
LAKELAND | Area military veterans will have
a new clinic before the end of the year that will be five times the size of the current clinic and deal with newly added specialties,
including health care for women and care for veterans who have recently returned from the war on terror.
Veterans will no longer have to travel to the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital in Tampa for routine primary care,
lab work or prescriptions, Veterans Administration officials said.
The new 20,000-square-foot
complex is under construction at 4237 S. Pipkin Road, east of the Lakeland Linder Regional Airport. It will replace the 4,000-square-foot,
overcrowded building on South Florida Avenue.
The first of the two 10,000 square-foot buildings
is expected to be completed in October and open in November as a primary care clinic that also will contain dietetic, podiatry
and women's health care specialities.
The second building, expected to be completed
and open in January, is for mental health care, laboratories and a pharmacy.
Like the current
clinic, the new clinic will be operated by the Tampa VA hospital.
The two buildings are being
built by Rodda Construction for a private investment group, JG BAMM Lakeland VA, LLC, which then will lease the buildings
to the Veterans Administration for about $800,000 a year.
When fully operational, the clinic
complex will employ a permanent staff of about 80, including doctors, physician assistants, psychologists and nurse practitioners,
along with support staff.
That is a more than 400 percent increase from the current staff
of about 15 at the South Florida Avenue clinic. "It will greatly enhance our medical outreach
abilities with a full complement of specialists in mental health and audiology and speech pathology among many others,"
said Susan Wentzel, a public affairs officer with the James A. Haley VA Hospital in Tampa.
"It will serve Polk County veterans and those from surrounding counties," she said.
In
March, Polk County commissioners reduced impact fees for the clinic because it will help veterans.
U.S. Rep. Adam Putnam, a Bartow Republican who represents Polk County, has been pushing for additional veterans' care
in the county since entering office in 2001.
He said the new complex is essential to quality
health care for older veterans and those just leaving service or returning with their reserve units.
"A lot of people remember when it was a pipe dream to get a VA facility of any sort that was more accessible to the
military veterans of Polk and eastern Hillsborough counties," Putnam said in an e-mailed statement. "Now the VA
is expanding to provide more and better services. Our military veterans deserve this, and I'm so pleased to see it becoming
reality here."
Wentzel and Dr. Walter Townsend, the senior health systems specialist
for the Haley VA Hospital who worked on the expansion program for Polk County, said it will meet the needs of the growing
number of military veterans in the area, both from those retiring here and from the Guard and Reserve units returning from
the war on terror.
"There is a tremendous amount of people from Reserve and National
Guard units from Polk County who have served overseas and return home needing services nearby," Townsend said. "This
will be a unified health-care facility, and returning veterans may also receive attention for any mental health care needs
they may have.
"That's the purpose of these regional clinics, to get care to our
veterans close to home," he said.
[ Bill Rufty can be reached at 802-7523 or bill.rufty@theledger.com.
]
Click on picture for Map to Clinic
Click on picture for Map to Clinic
==============================================
Below is a link to a Power Point Presentation, The Evolution of Europe during WWII.
Very interesting.
If you don't have MS Power Point Click on the MS Office Logo to download a View Only Copy (Free)
This is an excerpt from page 35 of the July issue of the American Legion magazine.
www.legion.org
VETERANS, TROOPS CAN ALWAYS SALUTE
A change to Section 9 of the U.S. Flag Code written into the Defense
Authorization Act this year now gives veterans and members of the U.S. Armed Forces the authority to render a salute to the
flag, whether or not they are in uniform or wearing identifying veteran apparel such as an American Legion cap.
All others present remove any headwear, face the flag and place
their right hand over their heart.
Headwear
should be held to the left shoulder, leaving the right hand over the heart.
These acts are to be conducted anytime there is a hoisting or lowering of the U.S. flag, whenever it passes.
Citizens of foreign countries should stand at attention.
Also,
this from page 34:
U.S. FLAG CODE
is
federal law, providing rules for proper display, treatment and respect for Old Glory. No committee of Congress has sole
authority over the flag. No government agency controls its place in society. There are no flag police. The
U.S. Flag Code essentially belongs to the people, and its enforcement is most often conducted through education. The
code has been modified many times over the years, including 2008, when military personnel and veterans were given authority
to salute the flag even when not in uniform.
The
question has arisen, is it now proper for a Veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces to render a salute during the Pledge of Allegiance?
I believe that the correct response to that question lies in the text of the Pledge itself. Does the Pledge not say,
"I pledge allegiance to the FLAG
of the United States..."? That, to me, means that we are pledging to Old Glory, that sacred symbol that represents
all of the best qualities that our nation stands for and has always stood for. It doesn't imply that we are
offering our pledge to Mt. Rushmore
-- for instance -- no matter how revered that national treasure may be. It is, in its own words, a pledge to the FLAG!
Therefore,
it is the conclusion of many that the intent of the revision must be that Veterans are given the authority to salute
during the Pledge of Allegiance, just as they are during "the hoisting or lowering or the U.S. Flag, whenever it passes."
Whether
or not Veterans, not "in uniform or wearing identifying veteran apparel..." are authorized to render a salute during
-- for example -- the playing of TAPS
is, I believe, subject to interpretation. Bottom line is this, who among us would ever deny a Veteran the lifelong right
to salute?
I feel that the test should be fairly simple: Is the Veteran,
by rendering a salute, displaying proper respect during an appropriate occasion? Afterall, isn't that the very definition
of a salute -- as display of respect? As for myself, I will proudly and tearfully salute during the blowing of TAPS -- regardless of my attire -- and will continue
to question any man's authority to deny me that right. If you agree, congratulations; you earned it!
Freedom isn't free...
The entire text of the U.S. Flag Code is available online.
If you
are a veteran living in Florida who survived the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, the Florida Department of
Veterans’ Affairs would like to hear from you. Please e-mail HeidelbergC@fdva.state.fl.us
or call (850) 487-1533 x719.
from you. Please e-mail HeidelbergC@fdva.state.fl.us or call (850) 487-1533 x719.
In the mid 1980's and early 1990's a soldier stood on the borders of East and West Germany. A member of
the soldiers family would send videos and newspapers to that soldier to remind him he was not forgotten. almost 15 years
later a new war has begun, and this same soldier's family member decided she was going to help other soldiers, some way,
some how.
So she joined Soldiers Angels, she adopted a soldier in Iraq and insured he and his buddies knew, America
does support you. She and her family sent items to that soldier just as she had done in the 1980's and early 1990's.
When that soldier returned home she still didn't want to just turn a blind eye on the rest of the military, and
with a remarkable talent for creating all sorts of items from just cloth and yarn, she began to sew, and sew some more.
Just recenty after one of her family members, a soldier from the 1980's and 1990's was hospitalized, this
Soldier's Angel made 22 afghans and quilts, along with many wheelchair bags, knitted caps and other items. However
the Soldier's Angel, living a good distance from the VA Hospital, had no way to get the quilts and afghans delivered,
thats where the American Legion Riders and the American Legion Post #4 came in. A Legion Rider rode down to Lake Placid
to retrieve the quilts and afghans and the American Legion Post #4 delivered the Quilts and Afghans to the James A Haley VA,
where these items are to be distributed to those who are hospitalized.
Even though she wants to remain anonymous,
this Soldier's Angel is my Sister. One day she will be recognized for all of her efforts in helping the American
Soldier, but for rights now, I just want to say THANK YOU Sis, for support me in the 1980's and 1990's, support my
wife (also a veteran) while she was hospitalized, and THANK YOU for SUPPORTING OUR TROOPS. Your actions certainly speak
louder than words.
ARLINGTON, VA June 16, 2008 Military
Handbooks has announced the release of its latest 2008 FREE handbooks for military personnel.
The response to these handbooks has been great.
These handbooks, written specifically for military service members, include a variety of information about pay, benefits, education and transitioning from
the military. To receive your own copies of these handbooks, simply go to our Web site
- www.militaryhandbooks.com. Don't forget to tell all of your military colleagues
about these free handbooks too!
2008 Military Handbooks Now Available
- 2008 BASE INSTALLATION DIRECTORY (NEW!)
- 2008 U.S. MILITARY RETIRED HANDBOOK
- 2008 GETTING UNCLE SAM TO PAY FOR YOUR COLLEGE DEGREE
- 2008 BENEFITS FOR VETERANS AND DEPENDENTS
HANDBOOK
- 2008 MILITARY CHILDREN'S
SCHOLARSHIP HANDBOOK
- 2008 U.S.
MILITARY HANDBOOK
==============================================
OPERATION THUNDERSTRIKE (Update)
The
City of Berkeley has been a Veteran's "No Spend Zone". This has been quite effective. The Vendors
have
started to show change of attitude and have shown support for the Troops.
We need to use this to our
advantage, and show the rest of Berkeley, the benefiets of this advantage.
So here is the plan...
We "WILL" spend money in the City of Berkeley this time! Every establishment
that has BOTH,
An American Flag and a We Support the Troops sign, is on our spend list....
We will show the rest of
Berkeley of the power of supporting our troops!
Don't forget, Operation Thunderstrike is this coming Saturday!!!
============================================== The Second Annual GI Film Festival, which will be held May 14-18, 2008 at the Carnegie Institution for Science
in Washington, DC, recently announced that award-winning actors Gary Sinise, Robert Duvall, Jon Voight, and James Franco are
scheduled to lead the 2008 festival line-up. Overall, the five-day film festival will present both classic and world
premier films honoring the nation's men and women in uniform, in addition to panel discussions, musical performances,
cocktail parties, Hollywood meet and greets, and more. This is a can't-miss event for anyone who wants to watch great
military films, connect with Hollywood stars, and support the military. For the full GI Film Festival agenda, and to
catch a sneak preview of the festival's films, visit www.gifilmfestival.com. Tickets start at $5.
Section 594
of the 2008 National Defense Authorization Bill reads(emphasis added): "Section 9 of title 4, United States
Code, is amended by striking ‘‘all persons present’’ and all that follows through the end of
the section and inserting the following: ‘‘all persons present in uniform should render the military
salute. Members of the Armed Forces and veterans who are present but not in uniform may render the military salute. All other persons present should face the flag and stand at attention with their right hand over the heart,
or if applicable, remove their headdress with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being
over the heart. Citizens of other countries present should stand at attention. All such conduct toward the flag in a
moving column should be rendered at the moment the flag passes.’’
The Boat of Heroes: A Fund Raiser for The Wounded Warrior Project
As some of you already know, the FPF is
getting ready to embark on a major fund raiser that will shine some positive light on us during the upcoming months.
The FPF will be raffling off a fishing boat to benefit The Wounded Warrior Project (WWP), an organization dedicated to assisting wounded soldiers as they come home from overseas. The WWP assists in providing prosthetic limbs, wheelchairs,
and rehabilitation, both physical and mental. The WWP also provides recreational outings for these soldiers.
The boat has been named “The Boat of Heroes” in honor of these wounded soldiers. It
is a 16’ fiberglass fishing boat that is vinyl wrapped in the American Flag. It is going to be loaded with
a GPS fishfinder, trolling motor, and additional accessories.
The purpose of the fundraiser is to give
FPF locals a chance to get out in the public with an opportunity they might not have normally been able to do.
A website has been created to promote the raffle. You can access it here:
Starting at the FPF convention, this boat will travel the state and will be available to FPF locals
who want to host it and benefit from the exposure it will create. There is a section on the Boat of Heroes web
site where you can view where the boat is heading and sign up for a time to have it in your area. If you have an
event you would like to see the boat at, please e-mail me or call me and we can make it happen.
Tickets
will be $5 each and go on sale June 1. We will be selling tickets online and we should be having an internet pre-sale
starting May 10th.
In addition to the boat, we would like to be able to give away several
prizes locally. As soon as the raffle is over, the ticket sales will be broken down into regions and DVPs will
be provided those addresses to form mailing lists if they desire. It is at this point you will be able to
raffle off any local prizes you gather, creating more PR for yourselves.
I am getting ready to order
an initial print of 5,000 tickets. If you would like to participate, please let me know how many tickets you think you can move and let me know.
We are still ironing out details for the event so if you have any suggestions, comments, or concerns please contact me. I appreciate the input.
This is an excellent
opportunity to be seen in your communities, provide positive photo ops for your political allies, and most of all raise money for an excellent charity. I urge you to take advantage of this opportunity.
Mark Treglio (904) 219-8657
==============================================
Army Seeks WWII, Korea, and
Vietnam DNA Samples
The Army is trying to locate more than 6,300 families to collect DNA samples for the purpose of identifying missing
soldiers from World War II and the wars in Korea and Vietnam.The military maintains a database of mitochondrial
DNA samples from family members of missing-in-action soldiers in the Armed Forces DNA Identification Lab.The
DNA samples help the Army identify missing soldiers' remains when they are uncovered so they can be returned to the families.Families with unaccounted-for soldiers, or anyone who knows of a family with an unaccounted-for soldier, should contact
the Past Conflict Repatriation Branch by calling 1-800-892-2490 or sending e-mail to tapscper@conus.army.mil
==============================================
Choice Hotels Rewards
program helps the Armed Forces Relief Fund (AFRF). At first I was skeptical, so I contacted the Army Emergency Relief office, e-mail and response is posted below. So as it turns out, it is true, Choice Hotels Rewards donations do
help our military.
Summer is here and soon many of us will be traveling, the price of fuel is very expensive so
maybe we won’t be pulling our travel trailers this summer and maybe some of us just want to stay at a hotel, give Choice
Hotels a consideration, and if you register in their rewards program and donate the rewards to the AFRF, you can enjoy your trip and still help our military members and their families in their
times of need.
{Original E-Mail}
Greetings,
I am a user of Choice Hotels and recently I noticed I can donate my earned rewards to the Armed Forces Relief Fund, but I don’t remember an Armed
Forces Relief Fund when I served and when I did an Internet search I didn’t really get any info on the program.
I would like to know before
I post a link to Choice Hotels and the AFRF on our Veterans website. Our policy is not to post any info such as this without verification.
I contacted Choice Hotels but did not get much info, you can read their response down below.
Thank you for any assistance. {Reply}
Dear
Mr. Garcia:
In answer to your questions the following information is provided:
According to Choice Hotels’ website the Armed Forces Relief Fund assists military families in financial distress with
loans and grants for emergencies and unexpected expenses when hardship occurs. Donations to the Armed Forces Relief
Fund will be distributed equally to the Army Emergency Relief Society, the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society and the Air Force
Aid Society.
AER along with the other societies do receive donations from the Armed Forces Relief Fund on
behalf of travelers who donate their points.
The AFRF and ARFT are two separate functions, Choice Hotels operates their AFRF distributes directly to the Military Aid
Societies. The AFRT is a fund established to received contributions for all of the Military Aid Societies and distributes
the funds a prorated basis used each services authorized active duty strength as its basis of pro ration.
I hope this answers your questions. Please
feel free to contact me should you have additional questions.
Sincerely,
Andy Cohen
ANDREW H.
COHEN
COL (R), USA
Deputy Director for Finance and Treasurer
Army
Emergency Relief
Office:703-325-0463
FAX: 703-325-7183
============================================== GWOT Purple Heart Veterans: Win a Free Trip to Daytona
If you received
a Purple Heart for wounds sustained in Iraq or Afghanistan, you could be one of eight veterans to win VFW’s trip to the Daytona International Speedway Pepsi 400 on July 5, 2008. Airfare, luxurious hotel accommodations and a ticket
to the race for each winner are included.
Don’t miss this chance. Only one completed entry per veteran will
be accepted, and must be received prior to the drawing on April 15, 2008. Winners will be notified by mail or e-mail in April.
To fully qualify for the trip, winners must send a copy of their Purple Heart documentation to VFW National Headquarters by
May 15,2008. Note: Previous Kahle Fund trip-winners are ineligible.
============================================== Operation Iraqi Freedom's only MIA now located:
Remains ID'd
As Missing Ohio Soldier's
Remains Found in Iraq Identified As Those
of Ohio Soldier Missing Since 2004
The father of a soldier listed as missing-captured in Iraq since 2004 said Sunday
that the military had informed him that his son's remains had been found.
Keith Maupin
said an Army general told him DNA testing had identified the remains of his son, Sgt. Keith Matthew Maupin, or "Matt"
as he was commonly known. He said the Army didn't say how or where in Iraq his son's remains were discovered, only
that officials found a shirt similar to the one his son was wearing at the time of his disappearance. "My heart
sinks, but I know they can't hurt him anymore," Maupin said, speaking in the soldier's hometown near suburban
Cincinnati.
The Army was continuing its investigation, he said. Lt. Lee Packnett,
an Army public affairs officer in Washington, confirmed that the Maupins were notified Sunday that their son's remains
had been identified. Packnett said an official statement about the identification would be released Monday.
Matt Maupin was a 20-year-old private first class when he was captured April 9, 2004, after his fuel convoy,
part of the Bartonville, Ill.-based 724th Transportation Company, was ambushed west of Baghdad. a stunned-looking Maupin wearing
camouflage and a floppy desert hat, sitting on the floor surrounded by five masked men holding automatic rifles.
That June, Al-Jazeera aired another tape purporting to show a U.S. soldier being shot. But the dark and grainy
tape showed only the back of the victim's head and not the actual shooting.
The Maupins
refused to believe it was their son, and the Army had listed him as missing-captured. The Maupins lobbied hard for the Army
to continue listing their son as missing-captured, fearing that another designation would undermine efforts to find him.
The Pentagon agreed to give the Maupins regular briefings, and President Bush met with them when he traveled
to Cincinnati.
Keith Maupin said the Army told him early on that there was only a 50 percent
chance his son would be found alive. He said he doesn't hold the Army responsible for his son's death, but that he
did hold the Army responsible for bringing his son home.
To view the ABC story and post your comments click on the link provided
Webb's GI Bill
Tagged as Threat to Volunteer Force
Defense officials are alarmed by the very real prospect
that Congress this year will enact the robust GI Bill education plan designed by Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.). One Defense official, who declined to be named, described the bill as a "retention killer" for the all-volunteer
military.
Webb reintroduced his bill, the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act (S. 22), last week with changes that attracted strong bipartisan support, including the endorsement of Sen. John Warner (Va.), former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
"I'm just going to go full bore
on this thing," Warner told Military Update in a phone interview.
That's a worrisome vow for Defense officials
who believe enhanced post-service education benefits, particularly if enacted while troops face multiple deployments to Iraq
and Afghanistan, could trigger an exodus severe enough to put the viability of the volunteer military at risk.
No one disputes Webb's claim that his enhanced GI Bill would boost recruiting sharply. But a Defense official said
it also would encourage thousands of young service members, trained at great expense, to separate after completing their initial
service obligation to attend college fulltime.
Webb, in an interview, described such arguments as "absurd."
The
Department of Defense, he said, "is doing a very good job managing its career force, given the strains that are on it.
But it's doing a very poor job of taking care of the people who don't come in for a career."
Raising GI bill benefits nearer to those offered to veterans returning from World War II, Webb said, will give every volunteer,
particularly those with no intention of making the military a career, "a proper reward for their service" and a
great tool for transitioning to civilian life.
Defense officials have to understand, Webb said, that a volunteer
military is "only a career system to a certain point." The current system isn't properly rewarding those
who enter "because of love of country, or family tradition, or the fact that they just want to serve for a while,"
he said.
The services, he said, "have got this one demographic group they keep pounding on and throwing
money at. Yet there's a whole different demographic group that would be attracted to coming in and serving a term."
Webb
declined to describe either demographic group in more detail.
His enhanced GI Bill would be available to
any member, active or reserve, who has served at least three months on active duty since Sept. 11, 2001. The level of benefits
would be tied to length of service. The $1200 member buy-in under the current Montgomery GI Bill would be returned.
The bigger change would be in the value of benefits. Maximum benefits, earned for 36 months' active
duty, would cover tuition for up to four years at a level to match tuition at the most expensive in-state public school. The
average across states is about $1900 a month. MGIB pays $1100.
Webb's bill also would pay a monthly
stipend to cover living expenses. The stipend would reflect local housing costs near school and would be set to equal military
Basic Allowance for Housing for married enlisted in grade E-5.
A feature added to win Warner's support
would encourage private colleges to make their schools affordable to veterans. Schools that agree to pay half of their tuition
in excess of the most costly state schools would see the government cover the remaining half. Thus academically qualified
veterans could attend some of the best schools in the country. Warner said it's the kind of opportunity he got after World
War II using the GI Bill.
The Defense official said that was a different era when the government was worried
about long-unemployment lines from millions of returning draftees. A robust GI Bill now would make it difficult to keep careerists.
"Why would anybody stay for another deployment when they can go out on a four-year free ride, with guaranteed
rent and utilities at the E-5 standard, which by long-standing DoD policy is a two-bedroom townhouse?"
Given current conflicts, this official continued, even volunteers who like service life might decide "to sit out for
a year or two, in a large rented townhouse, and come back when things are more hospitable."
Such concerns
can't be dismissed, Warner said. But he's still ready to give Webb's plan "a try." Today's veterans,
he said, deserve it.
Senior defense officials declined to be interviewed. But Bill Carr, deputy under secretary
of defense for military personnel policy, said in a written statement that DoD's top personnel initiative for Congress
is to allow members with unused MGIB benefits to transfer them to spouses or children.
President Bush endorsed
the idea in his State of the Union address. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he heard spouses ask about MGIB transferability
at a town hall meeting with Army families. Transferability, Carr's said, "is clearly what those in uniform have clamored
for."
Webb and Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.), who introduced companion GI Bill legislation in the House (HR 2702), don't like the concept of encouraging service members to trade away earned education benefits. Too many veterans, Webb
said, could come to regret the decision years later when they want to go to school or even after a divorce.
Scott said it also would be unfair to put members in a situation where they would be perceived -- or would perceive themselves
-- as selfish if they withheld their earned education benefits from a spouse or a child.
Warner said he
views transferability favorably, as a good retention tool. But he agreed with Webb, he said, not to include it in GI Bill
legislation.
============================================== Did you know that 47 countries' have
reestablished
their embassies in Iraq ?
Did
you know that the Iraqi government
currently employs 1.2 million Iraqi
people?
Did you know
that 3100 schools have been renovated,
364 schools are under rehabilitation,
263 new schools are now under construction;
and
38 new schools have been completed in Iraq ?
Did you know
that
Iraq 'shigher educational structure consists
of 20 Universities, 46 Institutes or collegesand 4 research centers,
all
currently operating?
Did you know
that 25 Iraq students departed for the United States
in January 2005 for the re-established Fulbright program?
Did you know
that
the Iraqi Navy is operational?
They have 5 - 100-foot patrol
craft,
34 smaller vessels and a naval infantry regiment.
Did you
know
that Iraq ' s Air Force consists of three operational
squadrons, which includes 9 reconnaissance and 3 US C-130 transport aircraft (under Iraqi operational control) which
operate day and night, and will soon add 16 UH-1 helicopters and 4 Bell Jet Rangers?
Did you know
that Iraq has a counter-terrorist unit and a Commando
Battalion?
Did you know
that
the Iraqi Police Service has over 55,000
fully trained and equipped
police officers?
Did you know
that
there are 5 Police Academies in Iraq
that produce over 3500 new
officers every 8 weeks?
Did you know
there are more than 1100 building projectsgoing on in
Iraq ?They include 364 schools, 67 public clinics, 15 hospitals, 83 railroad stations, 22 oil
facilities, 93 water facilities and 69 electrical facilities.
Did you know
that 96% of Iraqi children under the age of 5
have received the first 2 series of polio vaccinations?
Did you know
that 4.3 million Iraqi children were enrolled in primary
school by mid October?
Did you know
that there are
1,192,000 cell phone subscribers in Iraq
and phone use has gone up 158%?
Did you know
that Iraq has an independent media
that consists of
75 radio stations, 180 newspapers and 10 television
stations?
Did you know
that the Baghdad Stock Exchange opened
in June of 2004?
Did you know
that 2 candidates
in the Iraqi presidential election had a televised debate recently?
----
Above facts are verifiable on the Department of Defense web site.
Peake: Honoring
Commitment to Newest Combat Veterans
WASHINGTON – Military veterans who served in combat since Nov. 11, 1998, including veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan,
are now eligible for five years of free medical care for most conditions from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). This
measure increases a two-year limit that has been in effect nearly a decade.
“By
their service and their sacrifice, America’s newest combat veterans have earned this special eligibility period for
VA’s world-class health care,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake.
The five-year deadline has no effect upon veterans with medical conditions related to their military
service. Veterans may apply at any time after their discharge from the military -- even decades later -- for medical
care for service-connected health problems.
The new provision, part of
the National Defense Authorization Act of 2008 signed by President Bush on Jan. 28, 2008, applies to care in a VA hospital,
outpatient clinic or nursing home. It also extends VA dental benefits -- previously limited to 90 days after discharge
for most veterans -- to 180 days.
Combat veterans who were discharged between Nov.
11, 1998 and Jan. 16, 2003, and who never took advantage of VA’s health care system, have until Jan. 27, 2011 to qualify
for free VA health care.
The five-year window is also open to activated Reservists
and members of the National Guard, if they served in a theater of combat operations after Nov. 11, 1998 and were discharged
under other than dishonorable conditions.
Veterans who take advantage of this five-year
window to receive VA health care can continue to receive care after five years, although they may have to pay copayments for
medical problems unrelated to their military service. Copayments range from $8 for a 30-day supply of prescription
medicine to $1,024 for the first 90 days of inpatient care each year.
==============================================
News Channel 5 KSDK in St. Louis, MO. has a broadcast about lost Veterans - Their remains after cremation have been sitting on shelves and the
Veterans have yet to be laid to rest and honored. To view the video click on the station call letters above.
==============================================
Move America Foward is not allowing the City of Berkely to dishonor our U.S. Marine by launching a new ad campaign fighting Berkeley's Anti-Military
statements.
Please note: New pricing for these new boxes will not be effective until March
3, 2008. Prior to March 3, 2008 postage for these new boxes will be charged based on weight and destination.
Introducing
a quick, easy, convenient and NOW 50% larger way for you to ship Priority Mail packages to military personnel
serving overseas. The Priority Mail APO/FPO Flat Rate Box features predetermined rates regardless of weight
(domestically) or destination, similar to our other Flat Rate products.
Some key benefits:
Only
$10.95 when used to send to APO/FPO addresses; $2.00 less than our domestic pricing.
Box features
the “America Supports You” logo and APO/FPO addressing block.
The U.S. Postal Service
offers free Package Pickup from your home or office at a time and place convenient for you. To schedule Package Pickup and
for other pickup options and availability
VA
Awards Contract for Disability Benefits Studies
Virginia
Company Awarded Contract
WASHINGTON – The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has awarded a
$3.2 million
contract to Economic Systems Inc. of Falls Church, Va., to develop information relating to possible changes in the composition
of disability payments to disabled veterans.
“This contract is further evidence of VA’s commitment to review the full range
of benefits and programs to ensure today’s disabled veterans receive the help they have earned,” said Secretary
of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake.
The contact is based upon recommendations of the Dole-Shalala Commission, which issued its
final report in July 2007, and the October 2007 final report of the Veterans Disability Benefits Commission.
The contractor
will provide its findings in August.Economic Systems Inc. will address three basic research questions
in two studies.One study will examine the nature and feasibility of making “long-term transition
payments” to service members separated from the military due to disability while those veterans undergo rehabilitation.
A second study
will provide information on the appropriate levels of compensation necessary to compensate for any loss in earnings capacity
caused by service-incurred or service-aggravated conditions.It will also provide information on potential
“quality of life” payments called for by both studies.
The youngest Vietnam KIA is believed
to be Dan Bullock at 15 years old.
The oldest Vietnam KIA is believed to be Dwaine McGriff at 63 years old.
At least 5 men killed in Vietnam were 16 years old.
At least 12 men killed in Vietnam were 17 years old.
There are 120 persons who listed foreign countries
as their home of record.
At least
25,000 of those killed were 20 years old or younger.
More than 17,000 of those killed were married.
Veterans killed on their first day in Vietnam 997 (unconfirmed) Veterans killed on their last day
in Vietnam 1,448 (unconfirmed) Number of Chaplains on the Wall -- 7 (2 Medal Of Honor) Number of Women on the Wall -- 8(7
Army, 1 USAF - 7,484 served)
============================================== The question must be asked, is there
some kind of epidemic of STUPIDITY among our elected officials?
You may not be aware of the situation in Berkeley,
California. The mainstream media has not been reporting on it. Here is the situation. The Berkeley City Council has told the
Marine Recruiting Office to get out of Berkeley.
Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina has put together a video that shows you explicitly what the City Council members of Berkeley said about our Marines and the effort to force the recruiters
to leave the city. They include comments from the Mayor who says that the Marines "don't belong here in Berkeley."
These people aren't just against the war, they are against our soldiers who are fighting and dying
in that war.
The video also includes rebuttal by veterans of this nation who are outraged by the conduct
of this city council. I hope you will send the letter and forward it to friends and family. The letters will go straight to
the Mayor and City Council members.
Mr. Tom Bates, Mayor Berkeley Mayor 2180 Milvia Street Berkeley, CA 94704 Primary Phone: 510-981-6900 Fax: 510-981-6901 E-Mail: Mr. Tom Bates, Berkeley Mayor
Creating separate system is an injustice to all
disabled veterans
WASHINGTON (Feb. 7, 2008)
– The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. is urging the leadership of four key congressional committees to
block attempts to create a separate disability system that would have the Department of Veterans Affairs compensate veterans
with similar wounds differently based on their age.
"There is no difference between
a 22-year-old shot in the leg on Iwo Jima 63 years ago this month and a 22-year-old shot in the leg in Iraq yesterday,"
said VFW National Commander George Lisicki, a Vietnam veteran from Carteret, N.J. "To compensate them differently
based solely on age, and using the rational that this new generation is more deserving than older veterans, is an injustice,
and violates every fundamental rule of fairness that Americans hold dear."
The recommendation in contention was made by the President's Commission on Care
for America's Wounded Warriors, which was co-chaired by retired Sen. Bob Dole (R-Kan.) and former Secretary of Health
and Human Services Donna Shalala. The Dole/Shalala Commission was chartered in March 2007 as the administration's
response to the outpatient housing debacle at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Four months later, the commission published
a 149-page report with six broad recommendations.
The VFW wants more attention paid
to the Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission that Congress chartered in 2004 to study the benefits that compensate
and assist veterans and their survivors for disabilities and deaths attributable to military service. After thousands
of interviews and almost three years of research – including major studies by the Institute of Medicine and the Center
for Naval Analysis – it published a 562-page report in October 2007 that included 113 detailed recommendations.
"The Dole/Shalala Commission's
mandate was not to make broad generalizations and sweeping recommendations that would throw out a disability compensation
system that has served millions of veterans extremely well over the years," said Lisicki. "Dole/Shalala was
good, but it wasn't that good, and it certainly wasn't thorough enough to be touted as the 'cure-all' for
all the VA's problems."
The VFW national commander is very
concerned that a major change in the way the VA conducts business may be forced upon America's veterans without any opposition.
"The VFW is 100 percent against
compensating veterans with the same injuries differently because of their age," said Lisicki, who voiced the VFW's
opposition yesterday in a letter to the leadership of the House and Senate Committees on Armed Services and Veterans Affairs.
VFW Washington Office Executive
Director Bob Wallace is now tasked to ensure the VFW's position is conveyed to and understood by the administration and
Congress.
"How our nation properly cares
for, and then fairly compensates our disabled veterans or their surviving family members are the only issues on the table,
and that's why we are calling on Congress to thoroughly evaluate the recommendations made by both commissions" said
Wallace, also a Vietnam veteran.
"Everyone wants to do what's
best for our troops and for our veterans – to include all the members of both commissions – but what we absolutely
must not do is create conditions that could cause the VA to fail in its primary mission," he said. "The VA
is a national resource for disabled veterans. As an institution, it must survive, not just for the next 10 years, but
for the next 100 years."
-30-
The 2.3 million-member
Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. and its Auxiliaries is a nonprofit veterans' service organization that was founded
in 1899 and chartered by Congress in 1936. The VFW is the nation's oldest major veterans' organization, and
the largest organization of war veterans in the country. The VFW is dedicated to "Honoring the dead by helping
the living." For more information or to join, visit the organization's Web site at www.vfw.org.
Did you know that only 13% of the U.S. population have
served in the U.S. Armed Forces?
Did you Know Florida has the 2nd largest population of Veterans? 1.8 million
second only to California's 2.5 million.
Did you know that even though Florida has the 2nd largest population
of Veterans Florida does not have the 2nd largest Veteran population per capita? Florida only has 15% of it's citizens
as Veterans while Alaska has 17% with Maine, Montana Nevada and Wyoming at 16% of their population as Veterans.
Nationwide only 13.36% of the U.S. population ever served this country.
If you are a U.S. Armed Forces
Veteran, you are part of the minority.
Subject: Immediate Assistance Requested -- Importance: High
I have been requested by Colonel
Len Hayes, USMC (Ret'd) to assist in locating any Marine or Corpsman who served with B/1/1 in Koreaon Sep 21, 1950. On that
date the 1stBn, 1st Marines were involved in the attack on Yongdong-po. B
Company attacked over a series of dikes outside the town and the western part of Yongdong-po and suffered heavy casualties. One Plt Ldr, Lt Connor Hollingsworth, from B/1/1 was severely wounded and
many have stated previously that he should be awarded an award for his heroic conduct during this engagement with the enemy. After the SeoulSeoulengagement the Company Commander, Captain Bland was transferred to Wpns Co. Capt Bland (LtCol Bland, USMC-Ret'd recently passed away) but prior to
his passing sent an E-Mail to Lt Col Marvin D. Gardner, USMC (Ret'd) highly recommending 1stLt Hollingsworth for an award. The Awards Board at HQMC refused to accept this unsigned Personal Award Recommendation
submitted by the former Co Cdr, now deceased. LtCol Gardner's recommendation
was considered acceptable to the Awards Board, but we need one additional, signed & notarized statement from another Marine
or Corpsman who witnessed 1stLt Hollingsworth's heroic actions during that engagement. Captain
Hollingsworth was medically separated from the USMC on Nov 1, 1950. He
is being recommended for the Bronze Star Medal w/v and we have been informed that he is not expected to live. Those
that knew him would like to see him receive this award before he passes away. 1stLt
Hollingsworth was the Plt Ldr of the 3rd Plt of B/1/1. Anyone having
witnessed the heroic actions by the Lt are asked to contact Colonel Len Hayes, USMC (Ret'd). Business
Mgr of the 1st Marine Division Assn. LtGen Dick Carey, USMC (Ret'd) is also working on this award. Colonel Hayes may be reached by calling (760) 967 - 8561/62 (Office) or (760)
712 - 7088(Cell). Time is of the essence. PLEASE
PASS THIS ON TO ANY MEMBERS OF 1/1 WHO MAY BE ABLE TO ASSIST.
S/F,
Don
Greenlaw
Captain,
USMC(Ret'd)
Marine
Mustang
==============================================
January 16, 2008
A Veteran - whether Active Duty, National Guard, or Reserve, is someone who at
some point in their lives, wrote a blank check made payable to "The People of the United States of America" for
an amount of "up to and including my life".
The Polk County Veterans Council
endeavors to unite all of Polk County's Veterans Organizations to better serve the
Men and Women whom have served our country so valiantly.
The Polk County Veterans Council is - Veterans helping Veterans.