WWII Vet and Medal of Honor not enough to fly flag his way

Medal of Honor recipient draws support in fight for flagpole
By Bill Mckelway
Published: December 3, 2009
RICHMOND, Va. -- A flood of help is building for an embattled Medal of Honor winner in Henrico County who was ordered this week to remove a flagpole from his yard by his community's homeowners association.

From the halls of Congress to the 90-year-old colonel's old infantry unit, a local law firm and scores of service members, help is making its way to Col. Van T. Barfoot.

"He said he was outraged and wanted to help," Barfoot's daughter said yesterday, speaking of U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner, D-Va., who learned of Barfoot's plight on TimesDispatch.com yesterday.

In a five-paragraph letter that he received Tuesday, Barfoot was ordered to remove the flagpole from his yard in the Sussex Square community in far western Henrico County. The decorated veteran of three wars raises the American flag every morning on the pole, then lowers and folds the flag at dusk in a three-corner military fashion.
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Medal of Honor recipient draws support in fight for flagpole


Stars and stripes
Col. Van T. Barfoot, the 90-year-old Medal of Honor recipient who refuses to remove his flagpole from his property, speaks out on what the flag means to him.

The man had a highway named after him but can't fly a flag his way at this stage of his life. What's it going to hurt? How many other Medal of Honor heroes will they have to deal with after this if they let this one fly his flag anyway he wants?

Col. Van T. Barfoot Memorial Highway Dedication
Host: Central District Transportation Commissioner Dick Hall
Type: Other - Ceremony
Network: Global
Date: Friday, October 9, 2009
Time: 11:00am - 12:00pm
Location: The Big Horn Restaurant
Street: Highway 16 East
City/Town: Carthage, MS
Please join us for the Col. Van T. Barfoot Medal of Honor Memorial Highway Dedication Ceremony at the Big Horn Restaurant in Carthage, MS.

We will be honoring an American Hero, Col. Van T. Barfoot (Ret.), and dedicating the section of Hwy 16 from MS 35 to the Neshoba County line.

A dutch treat lunch will follow the ceremony.


MEDAL OF HONOR CITATION:

BARFOOT, VAN T. Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army, 157th Infantry, 45th Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Carano, Italy, 23 May 1944. Entered service at: Carthage, Miss. Birth: Edinburg, Miss. G.O. No.: 79, 4 October 1944.
Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty on 23 May 1944, near Carano, Italy. With his platoon heavily engaged during an assault against forces well entrenched on commanding ground, 2d Lt. Barfoot (then Tech. Sgt.) moved off alone upon the enemy left flank. He crawled to the proximity of 1 machine gun nest and made a direct hit on it with a hand grenade, killing 2 and wounding 3 Germans. He continued along the German defense line to another machine gun emplacement, and with his tommy gun killed 2 and captured 3 soldiers. Members of another enemy machine gun crew then abandoned their position and gave themselves up to Sgt. Barfoot. Leaving the prisoners for his support squad to pick up, he proceeded to mop up positions in the immediate area, capturing more prisoners and bringing his total count to 17. Later that day, after he had reorganized his men and consolidated the newly captured ground, the enemy launched a fierce armored counterattack directly at his platoon positions. Securing a bazooka, Sgt. Barfoot took up an exposed position directly in front of 3 advancing Mark VI tanks. From a distance of 75 yards his first shot destroyed the track of the leading tank, effectively disabling it, while the other 2 changed direction toward the flank. As the crew of the disabled tank dismounted, Sgt. Barfoot killed 3 of them with his tommy gun. He continued onward into enemy terrain and destroyed a recently abandoned German fieldpiece with a demolition charge placed in the breech. While returning to his platoon position, Sgt. Barfoot, though greatly fatigued by his Herculean efforts, assisted 2 of his seriously wounded men 1,700 yards to a position of safety. Sgt. Barfoot’s extraordinary heroism, demonstration of magnificent valor and aggressive determination in the face of pointblank fire are a perpetual inspiration to his fellow soldiers.
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PTSD on Trail:Wife says Iraq war changed soldier accused in slayings

Wife: Iraq war changed soldier accused in slayings

By MARY ESCH


The Associated Press

ALBANY, N.Y. — Relatives say a Fort Drum soldier accused of stabbing his two Army buddies to death told them he saw his best friend "blown to pieces" in Iraq and came back a changed man: violent, sleepless, edgy and plagued by flashbacks.


Spc. Joshua Hunter, a military policeman, was expected to be arraigned on second-degree murder charges Friday morning, three days after the bodies of Waide James, 20, and Diego Valbuena, 23, were found in their apartment just outside Fort Drum, about 140 miles northwest of Albany. Hunter and the two victims served in Iraq at the same time in the same battalion.

They all were based at the wind-swept Army post near the Canadian border, home of the much-deployed 10th Mountain Division, and shared an off-base apartment.

Hunter's wife, Emily Hunter, told The Associated Press in a phone interview that her husband was outgoing before he went to war, but when he returned stateside, he was preoccupied by images of his friend being blown up.
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http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/wife-iraq-war-changed-224253.html

Fort Hood suspect charged with attempted murder

Fort Hood suspect charged with attempted murder

By Angela K. Brown - The Associated Press
Posted : Thursday Dec 3, 2009 8:09:40 EST

FORT WORTH, Texas — The Army has charged the Fort Hood shooting suspect with 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder.

These charges are added to the 13 premeditated murder charges filed against Maj. Nidal Hasan in the wake of the Nov. 5 shooting massacre at Fort Hood.
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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/12/ap_hood_suspect_charged/

Hearing held for Fort Drum soldier in stabbings

Hearing held for Drum soldier in stabbings

The Associated Press
Posted : Thursday Dec 3, 2009 12:02:35 EST

PORTSMOUTH, Ohio — A Fort Drum soldier accused of fatally stabbing two fellow servicemen has been arraigned on fugitive from justice charges in Ohio and has agreed to return to New York to face murder charges.

A court official says bond was set at $1 million Thursday for 20-year-old Joshua Hunter in Portsmouth Municipal Court in southern Ohio.

Hunter was arrested at a nearby hotel early Wednesday. He is wanted in New York on two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of 20-year-old Waide James and 23-year-old Diego Valbuena. Their bodies were found Tuesday in an apartment complex housing mostly military families near Fort Drum.


http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/12/ap_army_drum_fatal_stabbings_120209w/

Obama Administration Struggling to Tackle Mental Health Crisis

Obama Administration Struggling to Tackle Mental Health Crisis Plaguing Military
Tuesday 01 December 2009

by: Jason Leopold and Mary Susan Littlepage, t r u t h o u t Investigative Report
In May 2008, during a campaign stop in Charleston, West Virginia, then-presidential candidate Barack Obama gave a passionate speech about the inadequate care war veterans had received, particularly those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, under the Bush administration's tenure in office.
Without identifying him by name, Obama cited the case of Grover Cleveland Chapman, a World War II veteran from Greenville, South Carolina, who had been repeatedly denied PTSD benefits by the Department of Veterans Affairs. After his final appeal for treatment was turned down in April 2008, Chapman took a cab to his local VA clinic, put a loaded Smith & Wesson revolver to his temple and pulled the trigger. He was 89 years old.
"How can we let this happen? How is that acceptable in the United States of America? The answer is, it's not. It's an outrage," Obama said at the time. "And it's a betrayal - a betrayal - of the ideals that we ask our troops to risk their lives for. ...
"We have to understand that for far too many troops and their families, the war doesn't end when they come home. Just the other day our own government's top psychiatric researcher said that because of inadequate mental health care, the number of suicides among veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan may actually exceed the number of combat deaths. Think about that. Think about how only half of the returning soldiers with PTSD receive the treatment they need. Think of how many we turn away - of how many we let fall through the cracks. We have to do better than this."
Although Obama has taken steps to overhaul the VA - he nominated retired Army Gen. Eric Shinseki as secretary of Veterans Affairs and Tammy Duckworth, an Iraq war veteran whose combat wounds cost her both of her legs, as assistant secretary of public and intergovernmental affairs - he still hasn't nominated an assistant and deputy assistant secretary of defense for health affairs to tackle some of the lingering mental health issues plaguing the military.
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http://www.truthout.org/1202095

VA To Survey Veteran Households

VA To Survey Veteran Households

WASHINGTON (Dec. 3, 2009) - 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.

Decorated WWII Veteran Remains Found in Dump

Decorated Vet's Remains Found in Dump
December 02, 2009
Tampa Tribune

TAMPA, Fla. -- Staff Sgt. Delbert E. Hahn survived the invasion of Normandy. He was a two-time Purple Heart recipient, including one for his actions in the days immediately following D-Day.

But when it came to a final resting place, the war hero wasn't treated with honor or respect.

Hahn's cremated remains -- along with those of his wife and a third unidentified person -- were found in a pile of trash dumped behind a vacant college on Busch Boulevard.

"I kind of decided that he shouldn't be out there in the trash," said Mike Colt, 19, who found the three urns. "Really nobody should. For somebody to do that to a World War II vet is kind of ridiculous."

Hahn was a five-time Bronze Star recipient, including one for valor in the Normandy invasion, police say.

It wasn't immediately clear when he died, although Colt said he believes paperwork found along with the urns indicated Hahn retired in the 1960s and died in the early 1980s.

A newspaper clip found in the trash says he received a Bronze Star and Purple Heart for "exemplary conduct in ground combat" while serving in the 26th Infantry Regiment in Europe in 1944, Tampa police spokeswoman Andrea Davis said.

Hahn's wife, Barbara, died Aug. 1, 2003. She was cremated Aug. 12, 2003, at Southeastern Crematories in Clearwater. A Southeastern funeral director said Tuesday that Barbara Hahn's paperwork wasn't immediately available.

The urns and paperwork were found behind Remington College, 2410 E. Busch Blvd., an area used for illegal dumping. Bills found there show the Hahns had lived in Zephyrhills.

Police say a Department of Veterans Affairs liaison determined the Hahns had no next of kin. VA officials said they were arranging with a Tampa funeral home to have the remains transported to Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell.
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Decorated Vets Remains Found in Dump

My dying dog and breaking heart

These have been very hard days for me and my family. Our Golden Retriever Brandon is at the end of his life. Tomorrow we have to have him put to sleep because after almost 14 years on this earth, his body is just too tired to go on. Up until about 6 months ago, he was very healthy and happy, but we could see he was deteriorating soon after an illness weakened him. He is the reason I have not been posting very much. I've been playing nurse 24/7. Selfishly, we want him to stay with us but knowing he is suffering, my heart is breaking.

When you talk to people they are either very understanding because they love their own pets or they are very cruel passing off the loss as if it is nothing to even spend time talking about. They fail to understand for most pet families, they are part of the family. When they are young, we teach them how to do everything, how to use the outdoors or a cat box instead of how to us a toilet. We make sure the house is pet safe instead of baby proof, removing anything that can hurt them, at the same time trying to make sure they can't destroy things in the house. We take them for check-ups and shots, buy them food we think will make them happy as well as healthy. We make sure we are up at a certain time to let them out so they can "do their business" walk them, feed them at the same time and end the day the same way we woke up, with them on our minds.

They give us unconditional love. They don't care if we brushed our hair but love it when we brush their's. When we are treated like crap by other people, they are there to lick our tears away. They don't care if we have money as long as their favorite toy that's falling apart has not been tossed out without being replaced. They don't care about anything that is not really important but care deeply for their family.

The first time I saw Brandon, he was in a pet store window with a Yellow Lab. He stood up on his hind legs and his front paws spread out walking toward the Yellow Lab like Frankenstein and pounced on the Lab without hurting him. Brandon ended up getting decked by the Lab. I fell in love. Our daughter wanted a Golden like the one she saw on Punkie Brewster. After seeing him, I returned to the pet store, paid cash for most of the cost but had to finance part of the price. I walked around the store with Brandon in my arms, dropping him more times than I can remember because even at about two months old, he was a huge Golden. I brought him home in my arms. From that day on, I have never once been able to repay him for the love he gave to all of us.

Gentle Giant is what my neighbors back home called him. We used to take a walk in the woods where he could run free. He knew as soon as we reached the gate, his leash came off and he was free. Brandon was obedient. As soon as I called him, he'd run right back. Kids loved him even with his size and they would wait patiently until he sat so they could hug him. Naturally, he'd be all excited. He even kissed a horse in the woods as I talked to the owner.

The only problem with the woods was that Golden's love water. There was a reservoir in the woods supplying drinking water and the city put a $50.00 fine on any wet dog. With my luck and taking him there everyday, I knew he'd end up costing me that fine everyday, so I trained him to stay out of the water. It worked a bit too well.

One time we went on vacation and he went to stay with a tech from the veterinarian's office. She had two dogs and took them to a pond near where she lived. When I called to check on Brandon, she was angry. She couldn't understand why a Golden would be crying by the edge of the water refusing to go in. Then she couldn't believe a dog would be trained so well that he would obey without me there.

When we moved to Florida, we couldn't get him to go into the pool. We kept trying so that he knew it would be ok, but even though I told him he could, he just wouldn't do it. That is until one day, I was floating around the pool and went to the side. He put his two front paws on my as his back legs ended up pushing him. That's how he ended up on top of me in this picture. It's probably the only day he was in the pool in five years except one time when he fell in.


I can remember almost every day like this with him in our home, never far from my thoughts. Most times when I was working on the computer, he'd be right behind me on the office floor. As soon as I signed off of AOL, he'd hear good-bye, then he'd get up and leave knowing soon I would follow him.

I've cried more times than I can remember on his shoulders when things got too hard. Now I'm crying because things have gotten too hard for him. I brought him home in my arms and tomorrow I'll take him for the last time in my arms even though he's close to 90 pounds even as age has worn him down.

Please understand that while I haven't been focused on the PTSD work online, I have still been working, but very limited. Brandon needs me now to comfort him. Tomorrow will be very hard but I'll be back working online as soon as I can. If you have a pet or lost a pet, don't let anyone tell you they are not important because no one can tell you what lives in your own heart.