Documents reveal Southeast Asian remains buried with US vet at Arlington
Stars and Stripes
By Matthew M. Burke
Published: April 21, 2014
Remains from an indigenous Southeast Asian were buried with those of an Army Reserve pilot from the Vietnam War at Arlington National Cemetery, America’s shrine for its fallen heroes.
According to internal POW/MIA documents, when the remains of Chief Warrant Officer 3 William Smith Jr. were turned over to investigators in Vietnam in 1999, a portion belonged to someone else.
Central Identification Laboratory documents stated that the unrelated remains had been identified and segregated from those of the pilot and that only Smith’s remains were shipped to Arlington for burial.
However, an internal memo from the laboratory obtained by Stars and Stripes said that did not happen.
After a ceremony that included a slow march, a horse-drawn caisson and a lone bugler, Smith was buried with foreign remains.
Laboratory anthropologist Gwen Guinan wrote in the internal memo that “subsequent to the shipment and the burial’’ it was discovered that a fragment of a leg bone that should have been separated from Smith’s remains “had been inadvertently included.’’ The memo, addressed to “record” and included in Smith’s case file, was dated Sept. 20, 2000, 12 days after Smith was buried.
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Showing posts with label Arlington National Cemetery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Arlington National Cemetery. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Bones from Southeast Asian buried in Arlington grave with MIA remains
This sounds even to strange for an episode of Bones
Friday, April 4, 2014
Military spouses face another fight over VA death benefits
Death certificate snafu can leave military spouses battling for benefits
Staten Island Live
Tom Wrobleski
April 1, 2014
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- It was hard enough for Josephine Maruffi and Carmela Fernandes to lose their husbands after lifetimes spent together.
But the pain was deepened when the Veterans Administration (V.A.) denied the widows the benefits they were due through their husbands' military service.
And all because of a paperwork issue that should be easily remedied, said Rep. Michael Grimm (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn) and City Councilman Vincent Ignizio (R-South Shore).
And many more military spouses in New York City could be suffering the same difficulty without even realizing it, they said.
"I dealt with the V.A. for almost two years," said Ms. Fernandes, an 80-year-old Eltingville resident.
"I must have spoken to them 50 times. They never said why they were denying me."
Speaking in Grimm's New Dorp district office, Ms. Fernandes said that she was due close to $1,800 in monthly benefits through her late husband, Anthony, an Army veteran who'd served in combat in the Korean War and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
The problem: The V.A. does not approve death benefits if a death certificate does not list a cause of death. New York City's one-page, "short-form" death certificate does not list causes of death, Grimm said.
read more here
Staten Island Live
Tom Wrobleski
April 1, 2014
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- It was hard enough for Josephine Maruffi and Carmela Fernandes to lose their husbands after lifetimes spent together.
But the pain was deepened when the Veterans Administration (V.A.) denied the widows the benefits they were due through their husbands' military service.
And all because of a paperwork issue that should be easily remedied, said Rep. Michael Grimm (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn) and City Councilman Vincent Ignizio (R-South Shore).
And many more military spouses in New York City could be suffering the same difficulty without even realizing it, they said.
"I dealt with the V.A. for almost two years," said Ms. Fernandes, an 80-year-old Eltingville resident.
"I must have spoken to them 50 times. They never said why they were denying me."
Speaking in Grimm's New Dorp district office, Ms. Fernandes said that she was due close to $1,800 in monthly benefits through her late husband, Anthony, an Army veteran who'd served in combat in the Korean War and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
The problem: The V.A. does not approve death benefits if a death certificate does not list a cause of death. New York City's one-page, "short-form" death certificate does not list causes of death, Grimm said.
read more here
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Staten Island folks step up so Vietnam Vet can finally be buried
Deceased veteran, John L. Matyi, headed to Arlington after 15 months of uncertainty (update)
Staten Island Advance
By Timothy Harrison
March 31, 2014
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Staten Island must be the most compassionate place on earth.
After the Advance revealed last week that the ashes of a deceased veteran remained in a Florida funeral home for more than a year, the veteran's surviving brother received a slew of messages from Islanders who wanted to help any way they could.
Now, with John L. Matyi's cremation service paid for, Alex Matyi speaks with a whole new sense of hope - you can hear the transformation in his voice.
Alex knows his brother will be buried at Arlington soon, John's sole wish since he returned wounded from active duty.
A childhood friend of the Matyi brothers, who insisted on remaining anonymous after paying the $1,200 fee in full, called Alex Friday.
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Florida funeral bill prevents Vietnam Veteran being laid to rest
Staten Island Advance
By Timothy Harrison
March 31, 2014
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Staten Island must be the most compassionate place on earth.
After the Advance revealed last week that the ashes of a deceased veteran remained in a Florida funeral home for more than a year, the veteran's surviving brother received a slew of messages from Islanders who wanted to help any way they could.
Now, with John L. Matyi's cremation service paid for, Alex Matyi speaks with a whole new sense of hope - you can hear the transformation in his voice.
Alex knows his brother will be buried at Arlington soon, John's sole wish since he returned wounded from active duty.
A childhood friend of the Matyi brothers, who insisted on remaining anonymous after paying the $1,200 fee in full, called Alex Friday.
read more here
Florida funeral bill prevents Vietnam Veteran being laid to rest
Friday, March 28, 2014
Florida funeral bill prevents Vietnam Veteran being laid to rest
Staten Island veteran, who asked for Arlington burial, still at Fla. funeral home 15 months later
Staten Island Advance
By Timothy Harrison
March 28, 2014
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Almost 15 months after he died, John L. Matyi, a disabled Vietnam War veteran who lived on Staten Island for six decades, still hasn't been buried at Arlington National Cemetery, his dream since he left the battlefield in 1970.
The Army awarded Matyi a Purple Heart.
Later, he suffered from severe post-traumatic stress disorder and subsequent alcoholism.
But according to Matyi's only survivor, his brother Alex, none of that mattered to Brown Funeral Home in Lecanto, Fla., which handled his cremation last year, when money ran short and the $1,200 charge couldn't be paid.
Alex Matyi said the funeral home assured him months ago that the service would be taken care of.
"I got all the papers from the V.A. for the burial," he said. But without a confirmation from Arlington seven months after his brother's death, he called officials at the cemetery, who searched for a week for the missing remains.
"I was under the impression that he had already left that funeral home," Alex Matyi said. He called the funeral director, who, according to Matyi, said: "No he's still here - it's a matter of $1,200."
read more here
Staten Island Advance
By Timothy Harrison
March 28, 2014
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Almost 15 months after he died, John L. Matyi, a disabled Vietnam War veteran who lived on Staten Island for six decades, still hasn't been buried at Arlington National Cemetery, his dream since he left the battlefield in 1970.
The Army awarded Matyi a Purple Heart.
Later, he suffered from severe post-traumatic stress disorder and subsequent alcoholism.
But according to Matyi's only survivor, his brother Alex, none of that mattered to Brown Funeral Home in Lecanto, Fla., which handled his cremation last year, when money ran short and the $1,200 charge couldn't be paid.
Alex Matyi said the funeral home assured him months ago that the service would be taken care of.
"I got all the papers from the V.A. for the burial," he said. But without a confirmation from Arlington seven months after his brother's death, he called officials at the cemetery, who searched for a week for the missing remains.
"I was under the impression that he had already left that funeral home," Alex Matyi said. He called the funeral director, who, according to Matyi, said: "No he's still here - it's a matter of $1,200."
read more here
Thursday, March 13, 2014
TN soldier lost in Vietnam to be laid to rest at Arlington
TN soldier lost in Vietnam to be laid to rest at Arlington
WBIR Staff
March 13, 2014
A Tennessee soldier who was killed in a plane crash almost fifty years ago will finally be laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery.
According to the State Department of Veterans Affairs, Staff Sergeant Lawrence Woods of Clarksville was among eight service members killed in a plane crash in Vietnam on October 24, 1964. He was the first Tennessean to be declared missing in action leading up to the Vietnam War.
Woods was a member of the 5th Special Forces Group based out of Fort Campbell. He lived there with his wife, Francis, and three children when he was killed.
U.S. Forces were able to recover the bodies of everyone on the plane except for Staff Sergeant Woods, until recently. Crews from the U.S., Cambodia, and Vietnam coordinated a series of searches from 1997 to 2010, and were finally able to excavate the wreckage of the plane and find Woods' remains.
Woods will be buried during a group burial at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C. on March 21. Governor Bill Haslam has declared that a day of mourning and ordered flags at half-staff from sunrise to sunset in honor of Staff Sergeant Woods' ultimate sacrifice.
read more here
WBIR Staff
March 13, 2014
A Tennessee soldier who was killed in a plane crash almost fifty years ago will finally be laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery.
According to the State Department of Veterans Affairs, Staff Sergeant Lawrence Woods of Clarksville was among eight service members killed in a plane crash in Vietnam on October 24, 1964. He was the first Tennessean to be declared missing in action leading up to the Vietnam War.
Woods was a member of the 5th Special Forces Group based out of Fort Campbell. He lived there with his wife, Francis, and three children when he was killed.
U.S. Forces were able to recover the bodies of everyone on the plane except for Staff Sergeant Woods, until recently. Crews from the U.S., Cambodia, and Vietnam coordinated a series of searches from 1997 to 2010, and were finally able to excavate the wreckage of the plane and find Woods' remains.
Woods will be buried during a group burial at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C. on March 21. Governor Bill Haslam has declared that a day of mourning and ordered flags at half-staff from sunrise to sunset in honor of Staff Sergeant Woods' ultimate sacrifice.
read more here
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Soldier Dies While Attending Special Forces School
Soldier Dies While Attending Special Forces School
Updated: Monday, December 9 2013
BOONE COUNTY, Ky. (WKRC) -- Visitation will be held Tuesday for a local soldier who died while training. 26-year-old Staff Sergeant Keith Shea died at Fort Bragg.
Shea was with the Army Airborne Command, and was attending Special Forces School. Shea served two tours of duty in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. He graduated from Boone County High School in 2006 where he played football and baseball. His visitation is five to eight Tuesday evening at the Stith Funeral Home in Florence. He'll be laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery.
go here for video
Updated: Monday, December 9 2013
Shea was with the Army Airborne Command, and was attending Special Forces School. Shea served two tours of duty in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. He graduated from Boone County High School in 2006 where he played football and baseball. His visitation is five to eight Tuesday evening at the Stith Funeral Home in Florence. He'll be laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery.
go here for video
Vietnam MIA being buried 45th anniversary of disappearance
MIA remains ID'd, to be buried on anniversary of disappearance
Stars and Stripes
Published: December 10, 2013
The remains of an airman who went missing during the Vietnam War have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial on the 45th anniversary of his loss.
Air Force Col. Francis McGouldrick Jr., of New Haven, Conn., is to be buried Friday with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery, according to a Defense Department statement Monday.
McGouldrick was listed as missing in action on Dec. 13, 1968, after his B-57E Canberra aircraft collided with another aircraft over Laos’ Savannakhet Province during a night strike mission, the statement said. In 1978, a military review board changed his status from missing in action to presumed killed in action.
read more here
Stars and Stripes
Published: December 10, 2013
The remains of an airman who went missing during the Vietnam War have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial on the 45th anniversary of his loss.
Air Force Col. Francis McGouldrick Jr., of New Haven, Conn., is to be buried Friday with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery, according to a Defense Department statement Monday.
McGouldrick was listed as missing in action on Dec. 13, 1968, after his B-57E Canberra aircraft collided with another aircraft over Laos’ Savannakhet Province during a night strike mission, the statement said. In 1978, a military review board changed his status from missing in action to presumed killed in action.
read more here
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Google cameras capture a 360 walk through Arlington National Cemetery
Google cameras capture a walk through Arlington National Cemetery
The Washington Post
By Cecilia Kang
Published: October 22, 2013
ARLINGTON, Va. — The walk through Arlington National Cemetery on a beautiful October day was being captured by Google for anyone to experience with a few keystrokes or the swipe of a smartphone screen.
Google on Sunday began its project to map the cemetery by collecting millions of photos and stitching them together to re-create the feeling of strolling the iconic burial ground of presidents and soldiers.
Online users will be able to zoom in close enough to read some grave markers. Or zoom out for panoramas of rolling hills dotted with thousands of white headstones. Or experience a 360-degree view of the resting place of America's service members.
read more here
The Washington Post
By Cecilia Kang
Published: October 22, 2013
Patrick Fennie pauses for a photograph as he captures the scene at Memorial Amphitheater at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia for Google Maps Street View on Sunday October 20, 2013 (The images will be stitched together and released in May, allowing people to virtually visit the cemetery on their computers. KATHERINE FREY/THE WASHINGTON POST
ARLINGTON, Va. — The walk through Arlington National Cemetery on a beautiful October day was being captured by Google for anyone to experience with a few keystrokes or the swipe of a smartphone screen.
Google on Sunday began its project to map the cemetery by collecting millions of photos and stitching them together to re-create the feeling of strolling the iconic burial ground of presidents and soldiers.
Online users will be able to zoom in close enough to read some grave markers. Or zoom out for panoramas of rolling hills dotted with thousands of white headstones. Or experience a 360-degree view of the resting place of America's service members.
read more here
Sunday, October 20, 2013
New documentary Gold Star Children
ABOUT GOLD STAR CHILDREN
Gold Star Children, a not for profit organization, was founded in 2008 to raise awareness about American child survivors whose mothers or fathers were killed or died while serving in the United States military. Utilizing film and interactive media, the current goal of Gold Star Children is to distribute the documentary film, “Gold Star Children” to every state in the U.S. and audiences around the world to remind the child survivors of war that they are not alone. The film is intended to draw attention to military families and those impacted by war. But, it is also intended to inspire and help non-military Americans understand, support and get involved with our military families and the children left behind by our fallen warriors.
ABOUT THE DOCUMENTARY
Gold Star Children is a documentary about child survivors of war casualties, written and directed by Mitty Griffis Mirrer, a gold star child herself. The film is a first-person narrative told through the eyes of a nine-year-old girl, who lost her father in the Iraq war, and the adult-children survivors of the Vietnam War. Gold star children who lost parents serving in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq work together to ensure that all child survivors know they are not alone.
Older survivors reach out to help their young counterparts through mentoring and community events.
The film opens a window on a unique part of the American story – one that has been tragically overlooked, and is happening now.
Together the characters of this film grieve, love and hope. Mirrer weaves together an inspiring narrative about the redemptive power of sharing and the resilience of our nation's Gold Star children, who continue to carry the burden of our country's wars.
Gold Star Children - Trailer from Mitty Griffis Mirrer on Vimeo.
Gold Star Children, a not for profit organization, was founded in 2008 to raise awareness about American child survivors whose mothers or fathers were killed or died while serving in the United States military. Utilizing film and interactive media, the current goal of Gold Star Children is to distribute the documentary film, “Gold Star Children” to every state in the U.S. and audiences around the world to remind the child survivors of war that they are not alone. The film is intended to draw attention to military families and those impacted by war. But, it is also intended to inspire and help non-military Americans understand, support and get involved with our military families and the children left behind by our fallen warriors.
ABOUT THE DOCUMENTARY
Gold Star Children is a documentary about child survivors of war casualties, written and directed by Mitty Griffis Mirrer, a gold star child herself. The film is a first-person narrative told through the eyes of a nine-year-old girl, who lost her father in the Iraq war, and the adult-children survivors of the Vietnam War. Gold star children who lost parents serving in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq work together to ensure that all child survivors know they are not alone.
Older survivors reach out to help their young counterparts through mentoring and community events.
The film opens a window on a unique part of the American story – one that has been tragically overlooked, and is happening now.
Together the characters of this film grieve, love and hope. Mirrer weaves together an inspiring narrative about the redemptive power of sharing and the resilience of our nation's Gold Star children, who continue to carry the burden of our country's wars.
Gold Star Children - Trailer from Mitty Griffis Mirrer on Vimeo.
Saturday, October 19, 2013
Arlington Cemetery rejects Vietnam veteran with 3 Purple Hearts?
Arlington Cemetery cancels funeral for Vietnam vet
NBC 11
Rebecca Lindstrom
October 18, 2013
FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. -- Eugene Curry's wife says he earned a Purple Heart with two gold stars, a National Defense Service Medal, Good Conduct medal, and Vietnamese Service Medal, also with two stars for his years of military service.
But none of that is good enough for Arlington National Cemetery. That's where Curry asked to be buried and initially, the cemetery agreed.
Curry died earlier this year. His widow, Betty Alba-Curry, even had a date for the service: Veterans Day Weekend, Nov. 8, at 10 a.m.
"What a better honor," Alba-Curry said.
It would be nearly eight months after her husband died, but the cemetery told her upfront, these things take time.
NBC 11
Rebecca Lindstrom
October 18, 2013
FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. -- Eugene Curry's wife says he earned a Purple Heart with two gold stars, a National Defense Service Medal, Good Conduct medal, and Vietnamese Service Medal, also with two stars for his years of military service.
But none of that is good enough for Arlington National Cemetery. That's where Curry asked to be buried and initially, the cemetery agreed.
Curry died earlier this year. His widow, Betty Alba-Curry, even had a date for the service: Veterans Day Weekend, Nov. 8, at 10 a.m.
"What a better honor," Alba-Curry said.
It would be nearly eight months after her husband died, but the cemetery told her upfront, these things take time.
"This man has three Purple Hearts, gone to Vietnam serving our country. He gave everything," said Alba-Curry, frustrated by the news.
A statement from the cemetery says to be buried there, Curry must have received an honorable discharge. According to his paperwork, Curry instead received a general discharge under "honorable conditions."
Alba-Curry says her husband was discharged after being sprayed in the face with Agent Orange.
"Even when he got wounded, he wanted to stay," Alba-Curry said.
She says her husband spent 30 years battling the side effects, from painful sores to kidney failure.
read more here
Thursday, October 17, 2013
War Widow Grieves at Arlington Grave
'I still don't know how to tell my son his daddy isn't coming home'
War widow reveals lingering pain two years after husband was killed in Afghanistan
Thania Sayne was pregnant with second child when Army Sergeant died
Toddler has never been told father died in bomb attack
Emotional visit to graveside to mark wedding anniversary coincides with Arlington relaxing rules about leaving mementos
Daily Mail
By JESSICA JERREAT
17 October 2013
Thania Sayne was pregnant with her second child when her husband, a sergeant in the U.S. Army, was killed in Afghanistan.
Two years after Sergeant Timothy Sayne was buried at Arlington Cemetery in Virginia, his widow has revealed she still doesn't know how to tell her young son that his father will never be coming home.
read more here
War widow reveals lingering pain two years after husband was killed in Afghanistan
Thania Sayne was pregnant with second child when Army Sergeant died
Toddler has never been told father died in bomb attack
Emotional visit to graveside to mark wedding anniversary coincides with Arlington relaxing rules about leaving mementos
Daily Mail
By JESSICA JERREAT
17 October 2013
Thania Sayne was pregnant with her second child when her husband, a sergeant in the U.S. Army, was killed in Afghanistan.
Grieving: Thania weeps at the grave of her husband, Sergeant Timothy Sayne, who was killed in AfghanistanThe Effingham, Illinois, mother wept at her husband's grave on Wednesday, the day before what would have been the couple's third wedding anniversary.
Two years after Sergeant Timothy Sayne was buried at Arlington Cemetery in Virginia, his widow has revealed she still doesn't know how to tell her young son that his father will never be coming home.
read more here
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Arlington National Cemetery’s Section 60 upsets families of war dead
Cleanup in Arlington National Cemetery’s Section 60 upsets families of war dead
Washington Post
By Greg Jaffe
Published: October 1 2013
Elizabeth Belle walked toward the grave of her son carrying a canvas bag full of miniature pumpkins, silk leaves and other decorations for his headstone. Then she noticed the changes.
Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery, where more than 800 Iraq and Afghanistan war dead are buried, had been stripped bare. The photographs of young soldiers were gone. The balloons, too, and love letters, the sonograms and worry stones, the crosses and coins.
“They’ve taken everything,” Belle said.
Over the past weeks, a quiet transformation has taken place in Section 60, leaving family members of the dead feeling hurt, saddened and bewildered. Today, Section 60 resembles the quiet cemetery of an older generation’s war, not the raw, messy burial ground of one still being fought. Even within the hallowed ground at Arlington, Section 60 is special, a living memorial to an ongoing war.
read more here
Washington Post
By Greg Jaffe
Published: October 1 2013
Elizabeth Belle walked toward the grave of her son carrying a canvas bag full of miniature pumpkins, silk leaves and other decorations for his headstone. Then she noticed the changes.
Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery, where more than 800 Iraq and Afghanistan war dead are buried, had been stripped bare. The photographs of young soldiers were gone. The balloons, too, and love letters, the sonograms and worry stones, the crosses and coins.
“They’ve taken everything,” Belle said.
Over the past weeks, a quiet transformation has taken place in Section 60, leaving family members of the dead feeling hurt, saddened and bewildered. Today, Section 60 resembles the quiet cemetery of an older generation’s war, not the raw, messy burial ground of one still being fought. Even within the hallowed ground at Arlington, Section 60 is special, a living memorial to an ongoing war.
read more here
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Vietnam POW-MIA pilots to be buried at Arlington
No. 670-13
September 19, 2013
Airmen From Vietnam War Identified
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of Air Force pilots Maj. James E. Sizemore of Lawrenceville, Ill., and Maj. Howard V. Andre Jr., of Memphis, Tenn., have been identified and will be returned to their families for burial with full military honors on Sept. 23 at Arlington National Cemetery.
On July 8, 1969, Sizemore and Andre were on a night armed reconnaissance mission when their A-26A Invader aircraft crashed in Xiangkhoang Province, Laos. Both men died in the crash but their remains were unaccounted for until April 2013.
In 1993, a joint U.S./Lao People’s Democratic Republic team investigated an aircraft crash site in Laos. They recovered aircraft wreckage from an A-26. The team was not able to conduct a complete excavation of the site at that time.
Twice in 2010, joint U.S./Lao People’s Democratic Republic teams conducted excavations of the crash site recovering human remains, aircraft wreckage, personal effects and military equipment associated with Sizemore and Andre.
In the identification of the remains, scientists from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) used circumstantial evidence and forensic identification tools, such as dental comparison – which matched Sizemore’s records.
There are more than 1,640 American service members that are still unaccounted-for from the Vietnam War.
September 19, 2013
Airmen From Vietnam War Identified
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of Air Force pilots Maj. James E. Sizemore of Lawrenceville, Ill., and Maj. Howard V. Andre Jr., of Memphis, Tenn., have been identified and will be returned to their families for burial with full military honors on Sept. 23 at Arlington National Cemetery.
On July 8, 1969, Sizemore and Andre were on a night armed reconnaissance mission when their A-26A Invader aircraft crashed in Xiangkhoang Province, Laos. Both men died in the crash but their remains were unaccounted for until April 2013.
In 1993, a joint U.S./Lao People’s Democratic Republic team investigated an aircraft crash site in Laos. They recovered aircraft wreckage from an A-26. The team was not able to conduct a complete excavation of the site at that time.
Twice in 2010, joint U.S./Lao People’s Democratic Republic teams conducted excavations of the crash site recovering human remains, aircraft wreckage, personal effects and military equipment associated with Sizemore and Andre.
In the identification of the remains, scientists from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) used circumstantial evidence and forensic identification tools, such as dental comparison – which matched Sizemore’s records.
There are more than 1,640 American service members that are still unaccounted-for from the Vietnam War.
Thursday, July 4, 2013
Too many have forgotten the true price of the 4th of July
Too many have forgotten the true price of the 4th of July
Wounded Times Blog
Kathie Costos
July 4, 2013
USA Today has an article titled Forget fireworks: July 4 is for freebies and it is a safe bet that many will read it and search for what they can get for free or as cheap as possible.
That is how some view how to honor the birth of this nation. Too many have forgotten the true price of the 4th of July.
There is a church near my house with a sign that says the price of freedom has been paid. I hope they are referring to our freedom from sin and the price Christ paid with His life because if they imagine the price for the freedom of this nation has been paid, they are delusional. We will never really pay for our freedom until every man and woman willing to risk their lives so we can retain our freedom are properly taken care of and honored for all they were willing to sacrifice for our sake.
It seem really popular right now to jump all over the Department of Veterans Affairs for all they got wrong in the last four years or so but an honest observation demands clarity. The clear message is, we have never properly taken care of our veterans and we will never do it unless we actually admit what we did before all of this suffering.
We didn't fix much after the Gulf War. We didn't fix enough after Vietnam or Korea. We came close after WWII but there was still much we didn't fix after WWI. We didn't get it right after the Civil War because we didn't learn much from the Revolutionary War.
Too many have forgotten the history of how we not only obtained our freedom but what price has been paid by those willing to sacrifice all to retain it.
When you are looking for your bargain today so you can save some money, remember the price paid for this day in our country.
Wounded Times Blog
Kathie Costos
July 4, 2013
USA Today has an article titled Forget fireworks: July 4 is for freebies and it is a safe bet that many will read it and search for what they can get for free or as cheap as possible.
That is how some view how to honor the birth of this nation. Too many have forgotten the true price of the 4th of July.
“What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as freedom should not be highly rated.” Thomas Paine
There is a church near my house with a sign that says the price of freedom has been paid. I hope they are referring to our freedom from sin and the price Christ paid with His life because if they imagine the price for the freedom of this nation has been paid, they are delusional. We will never really pay for our freedom until every man and woman willing to risk their lives so we can retain our freedom are properly taken care of and honored for all they were willing to sacrifice for our sake.
It seem really popular right now to jump all over the Department of Veterans Affairs for all they got wrong in the last four years or so but an honest observation demands clarity. The clear message is, we have never properly taken care of our veterans and we will never do it unless we actually admit what we did before all of this suffering.
We didn't fix much after the Gulf War. We didn't fix enough after Vietnam or Korea. We came close after WWII but there was still much we didn't fix after WWI. We didn't get it right after the Civil War because we didn't learn much from the Revolutionary War.
Too many have forgotten the history of how we not only obtained our freedom but what price has been paid by those willing to sacrifice all to retain it.
When you are looking for your bargain today so you can save some money, remember the price paid for this day in our country.
Friday, May 31, 2013
Air Force’s first African American female colonel buried
Air Force’s first African American female colonel buried
By Patricia Sullivan
Published: May 29, 2013
The first African American woman to be promoted to colonel in the Air Force was buried on a sultry Wednesday afternoon in Arlington National Cemetery, surrounded by scores of airmen in dress blues and about a dozen friends and family in somber summer suits and within sight of the soaring Air Force Memorial.
Ruth Alice Lucas, 92, who died March 23, “never accepted the injustice and prejudice of her time, and today we too must look for new ways in which we can better our world,” an Air Force chaplain, Maj. Robin Stephenson-Bratcher, said at the graveside.
Lucas worked the field of research, education and training, with particular interest in literacy.
In the November 1969 issue of Ebony magazine, she noted that among the servicemen then entering the military annually, “about 45,000 of them read below the fifth-grade level, and more than 30 percent of these men are black. Right now if I have any aim, it’s just to reach these men, to interest them in education and to motivate them to continue on.
read more here
By Patricia Sullivan
Published: May 29, 2013
The first African American woman to be promoted to colonel in the Air Force was buried on a sultry Wednesday afternoon in Arlington National Cemetery, surrounded by scores of airmen in dress blues and about a dozen friends and family in somber summer suits and within sight of the soaring Air Force Memorial.
Ruth Alice Lucas, 92, who died March 23, “never accepted the injustice and prejudice of her time, and today we too must look for new ways in which we can better our world,” an Air Force chaplain, Maj. Robin Stephenson-Bratcher, said at the graveside.
Lucas worked the field of research, education and training, with particular interest in literacy.
In the November 1969 issue of Ebony magazine, she noted that among the servicemen then entering the military annually, “about 45,000 of them read below the fifth-grade level, and more than 30 percent of these men are black. Right now if I have any aim, it’s just to reach these men, to interest them in education and to motivate them to continue on.
read more here
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Load gun at Arlington National Cemetery accidentally wounds visitor
Accidental Shooting Reported at Arlington Cemetery
May 29, 2013
Associated Press
ARLINGTON, Va. - One person was injured after an accidental shooting in the parking lot at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day.
A spokeswoman for Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, which responded to the incident, says the shooting occurred Monday, hours before President Barack Obama laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Sharon Walker says the gun fell out of a cemetery visitor's car. Walker says the gun fell under the car and as the man tried to retrieve it, a shot went off and struck one of the passengers from his vehicle in the leg.
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May 29, 2013
Associated Press
ARLINGTON, Va. - One person was injured after an accidental shooting in the parking lot at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day.
A spokeswoman for Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, which responded to the incident, says the shooting occurred Monday, hours before President Barack Obama laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Sharon Walker says the gun fell out of a cemetery visitor's car. Walker says the gun fell under the car and as the man tried to retrieve it, a shot went off and struck one of the passengers from his vehicle in the leg.
read more here
Monday, May 27, 2013
Washington taken over by rev of half a million motorcycles
Rolling Thunder 2013(Go to the link above for the video and more great pictures.)
Veterans, POWs Honored In Nation's Capital With Annual Motorcycle Rally (PHOTOS) (VIDEO)
Posted: 05/27/2013
WASHINGTON -- On Sunday, many thousands of motorcyclists rode from the Pentagon to the National Mall, ending their 10-mile trip near the Lincoln Memorial.
Rolling Thunder 2013
2013 marks the 26th Rolling Thunder -- an annual rally that honors veterans and fallen soldiers, and raises awareness about prisoners of war and soldiers who are missing in action.
By some estimates, this year's event brought some 500,000 riders to the nation's capital.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Marine finds closure 38 years after Marines killed
38 years later, closure for a Marine
By Erik Lacitis
The Seattle Times/MCT
Published: May 18, 2013
SEATTLE — The two had known each other less than three weeks when they found themselves inside helicopters about to land off a Cambodian island, and were easy targets for a firestorm of Khmer Rouge bullets and rocket-propelled grenades.
One would be killed as his massive chopper carrying 26 servicemen, mostly U.S. Marines, exploded on May 15, 1975.
He was among 13 who lost their lives, his remains not identified until this January. The arduous task included recovering bones using suction hoses in the sand.
The one who lived was in the CH-53 helicopter right behind and saw the fireball. Thirty-eight years later, Dale Clark cannot forget.
And so this week, he wanted to make sure his comrade in arms was remembered. Pfc. Daniel E. Benedett, 19, finally was given proper honors at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va.
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By Erik Lacitis
The Seattle Times/MCT
Published: May 18, 2013
SEATTLE — The two had known each other less than three weeks when they found themselves inside helicopters about to land off a Cambodian island, and were easy targets for a firestorm of Khmer Rouge bullets and rocket-propelled grenades.
One would be killed as his massive chopper carrying 26 servicemen, mostly U.S. Marines, exploded on May 15, 1975.
He was among 13 who lost their lives, his remains not identified until this January. The arduous task included recovering bones using suction hoses in the sand.
The one who lived was in the CH-53 helicopter right behind and saw the fireball. Thirty-eight years later, Dale Clark cannot forget.
And so this week, he wanted to make sure his comrade in arms was remembered. Pfc. Daniel E. Benedett, 19, finally was given proper honors at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va.
read more here
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Remains of USS Mayaguez fallen to be buried together at Arlington
Remains of Vietnam veteran killed in 1975 will be buried at ArlingtonOriginally Published May 10, 2013
Lancaster Online
By JACK BRUBAKER
Staff Writer
Lynn Blessing probably thought he was home free when the Vietnam War officially ended in the early spring of 1975.
But a month later — May 15 — the Lancaster Marine died with 12 other American servicemen when their helicopter crashed while trying to recapture the SS Mayaguez in the Gulf of Thailand.
Private First Class Blessing, 19 years old, was Lancaster's last casualty of the war.
On Wednesday, 37 years to the day after Blessing died, his remains and the remains of others who died with him will be buried in a common grave at Arlington National Cemetery.
Lynn Blessing's mother, Thelma Blessing, of Lancaster, knew nothing about the ceremony when informed by a reporter Friday morning.
The Marines did notify her when the first remains of her son were found.
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Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Army Ranger died after 6 tours at the age of 26
There are so many stories out there the general public never knows unless they happen in their own hometowns. Staff Sgt. Ryan Coyer passed away a year ago at the age of 26 and after 6 tours of duty. Think about that for a second and then think about all the others going through that many deployments. Then think about the others doing even more tours in our name.
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Family grieves for soldier who died after six tours of duty
By Elizabeth Chuck
Staff Writer
NBC News
March 12, 2013
At 26, Staff Sgt. Ryan Coyer already had a lifetime of accomplishments: four tours to Afghanistan, two tours to Iraq, and being named a member of the elite U.S. Army Rangers.
On Monday, the eve of the one-year anniversary of Coyer’s death, his family gathered at his graveside to commemorate that lifetime of accomplishments, unexpectedly cut short when Coyer died of cardiac arrest.
"The kid could do anything he wanted as long as he put his mind to it," Anthony Coyer, Ryan’s father, told Michigan’s MLive.com last year of his son, who was born in Nashville but grew up in Saginaw, Mich., playing football and frequently landing on the honor roll. "He wouldn't admit that."
Kevin Lamarque / ReutersLesleigh Coyer, 25, of Saginaw, Michigan, lies down in front of the grave of her brother, Ryan Coyer, who served with the U.S. Army in both Iraq and Afghanistan, at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia on March 11, 2013. Coyer died one year ago.
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