Marine From Florida Among Missing After Helicopters Collided

Marines Identify 12 Missing After Helicopter Crash Off Hawaii
NBC News
by PHIL HELSEL
January 17, 2016

The Marine Corps on Saturday released the names of 12 Marines missing after two helicopters apparently collided in mid-air off the coast of Oahu Thursday, as the search continued for the missing air crew for a second day.

The missing air crew were identified as:

Maj. Shawn M. Campbell, 41, College Station, Texas.

Capt. Brian T. Kennedy, 31, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Capt. Kevin T. Roche, 30, St. Louis, Missouri.

Capt. Steven R. Torbert, 29, Florence, Alabama.

Sgt. Dillon J. Semolina, 24,Chaska, Minnesota.

Sgt. Adam C. Schoeller, 25, Gardners, Pennsylvania.

Sgt. Jeffrey A. Sempler, 22, Woodruff, South Carolina.

Sgt. William J. Turner, 25, Florala, Alabama.

Cpl. Matthew R. Drown, 23, Spring, Texas.

Cpl. Thomas J. Jardas, 22, Fort Myers, Florida.

Cpl. Christopher J. Orlando, 23, Hingham, Massachusetts.

Lance Cpl. Ty L. Hart, 21, Aumsville, Oregon.

Coast Guard and other aircraft and ships spent a second day searching for the missing Marines, but weather and high swells were hampering the effort.

As of 8 a.m. Saturday, searchers had scoured more than 5,000 square nautical miles, the Coast Guard said.
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Sergeant Dillon Semolina

‘He Was Just A Fun-Loving Kid’: Missing Marine Left Mark On Community

Corporal Christopher Orlando
Family of missing Hingham Marine speak about son

Sgt. Adam C. Schoeller
PHILADELPHIA MARINE AMONG 12 MISSING AFTER HELICOPTER CRASH IN HAWAII

Fake Iraq Veteran Got Free Drinks Then Wrote About it?

Backlash grows after column sparks outrage 
Citizens Voice
BY BOB KALINOWSKI
Published: December 29, 2015

The public backlash against the Weekender continues to mount following a column in last week’s edition in which a writer boasted about scoring free drinks at a bar by pretending to be an Iraq war veteran.

Veterans expressed outrage, with some accusing the writer of “stolen valor.”

One of Northeastern Pennsylvania’s leading civil rights activists launched a petition demanding apologies — from the columnist all the way up to the head of the Weekender’s parent company, North Carolina-based Civitas Media, which also publishes The Times Leader.

The writer and the Weekender’s editor have issued public apologies, but some local businesses still vowed to pull their advertising and stop distributing the free weekly entertainment newspaper.

“R bar and grill Nanticoke will NEVER advertise or distribute this paper again. It’s a disgrace to all of NEPA. pathetic!,” Lauren Temarantz Maga, owner of R Bar and Grill, proclaimed on her Facebook page with a link to the column.

“We come from a family of veterans,” Maga said Monday. “The men and women that serve are heroes.”

Maga said the business called the Weekender offices Monday to demand they stop delivering the paper to the restaurant.

River Grille in Plains Township did the same.

“We haven’t advertised with them in a long time anyway, but we don’t want to have the paper even available at the bar anymore,” River Grille manager Erica West said.

The controversial column, titled “Free drinks come at a price,” was written by Justin Adam Brown, who was laid off in November as a full-time staffer, but continued to write his weekly “Sorry mom and dad” column. Last week’s column described his musings about a summer night out when he and a friend ran into a drunk Vietnam veteran. He said it was then he “discovered the secret to getting a free drink” as a man at a bar.

“Just say you’re a veteran,” Brown wrote.
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Iraq Veteran Ordered to Put Flowers on Grave After Fatal Crash?

Not sure what to make out of this story. Comment left on the site says she was not drunk at the time of the fatal accident.

Drunken driver ordered to place flowers on victim's grave
By The Associated Press
December 18, 2015

Sloan must also carry a picture of Naylor and place flowers on her grave after she gets out of prison.

HOLLIDAYSBURG, Pa. (AP) — An Iraq war veteran who claims she turned to alcohol to relieve post-traumatic stress disorder has been sentenced to 2 ½ to 5 years in prison crashing and killing another Pennsylvania woman. read more here

Iraq Veteran Journey From Dark Place to Dream Wedding

Iraq Veteran, Bride Have Dream Wedding 
CBS Pittsburgh
December 14, 2015

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – An Iraq veteran and his beautiful bride had a dream wedding this weekend.

It was all free, courtesy of Pittsburgh’s swank new Hotel Monaco.

Matthew Brown and Hannah Reese were winners of the hotel’s Warrior Wedding contest:

Brown walked down the aisle Sunday with the woman of his dreams.

After returning from a tour of duty in Iraq in 2007, he said he was in a very dark place. That is until he met Reese.

“It’s been hectic. Three months to plan a wedding. Everyday there was something to do. It’s been pretty hectic, but it was all worthwhile,” Brown said.

The couple entered a contest on Facebook sponsored by the Hotel Monaco and they won.
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Some Veterans Had Their Day Behind Bars

These veterans had their day behind bars. Many of them are there because of unaddressed PTSD and a law that was not fair to all of them.

"In 1980, the law changed to allow judges to consider PTSD as a reason for leniency for veterans. However, those who suffered from the disorder prior to 1980 aren't entitled to that consideration."

A Veterans Day service for those behind bars
Reading Eagle
Holly Herman
November 12, 2015

SKIPPACK, PA

Reading Eagle: Tim Leedy | Former U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak speaks at the event.

Sunlight glistened through the stained-glass windows in a Montgomery County chapel on Wednesday during a service for 150 veterans who served their country and lost comrades in combat.

The Veterans Day service seemed like all of the others going on around the Tri-County region, but it wasn't.

These veterans are inmates at the State Correctional Institution at Graterford, Skippack Township. About 50 of them are serving life sentences for murder.

They are members of the Graterford Prison Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 466, an organization founded in 1980 to address the concerns of Vietnam War vets.

"We all band together like brothers," Commer Glass, founder and president, said during a telephone interview prior to the 33rd annual Veterans Day service at the prison. "We help each other out, and we cry on each others' shoulders."

Glass, 70, is serving a life sentence. He said the group is lobbying for a law that would permit veterans who served before 1980 a chance to be released if it could be determined that post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, caused them to commit a violent crime. PTSD is an anxiety disorder that can develop after a person is exposed to a traumatic event such as war.

In 1980, the law changed to allow judges to consider PTSD as a reason for leniency for veterans. However, those who suffered from the disorder prior to 1980 aren't entitled to that consideration.
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Double Amputee Afghanistan Veteran Lives on Street

Double amputee will live outside for 1 month to raise awareness of homeless veterans
WPXI.com
November 4, 2015

Rumbaugh, who started his mission on Nov. 1, says he plans to stay outside until Nov. 29, the anniversary of when he was injured in Afghanistan five years ago.

Double amputee will live outside for 1 month to raise awareness of homeless veterans

UNIONTOWN, Pa. — Marine Cpl. Brandon Rumbaugh, a double amputee veteran, is voluntarily living outside for a month in an effort to raise awareness of homeless veterans.

Rumbaugh, known by many in the Uniontown area as a great guy, is trying to gain attention for how veterans live when they return from active duty.
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Wendy's Employee Refused to Serve Iraq Veteran with PTSD Service Dog

Veteran Claims Wendy's Denied Service Dog in Columbia County
PA
By Kelly Choate
Published 10/08 2015

Buckhorn, Columbia County -- An Iraq War veteran said a manager of a fast food restaurant gave him a hard time about bringing his service dog into the building.

Patrick Welsh has post traumatic stress disorder, and his Australian Cattle Dog named Snip helps him cope with the condition.

The Columbia County man said Snip wears a vest that identifies her as a service dog, but a recent trip to the Wendy's near the Columbia Mall turned into a nightmare.

Welsh said the manager demanded to see the dog's paperwork, which he said is against the law. He said the woman told him that she did not have to serve him, and that's when the veteran walked out.

The Lewisburg company that owns the Buckhorn Wendy's called the situation a misunderstanding and said the district manager immediately apologized.

A spokesperson said the employee's intent was not malicious, and all service dogs and veterans are welcome in the restaurant.
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Iraq Veteran, Volunteer Firefighter In Battle for Life Against Cancer

Veteran, volunteer firefighter, father and newlywed battles cancer
FOX 43 News
BY LEAH KIRSTEIN
SEPTEMBER 19, 2015

YORK, Pa. - Freddie Kemfort joined the Army right out of high school and spent 11 years in the service. He completed three tours in Iraq and survived four IED explosions.

He has been a volunteer firefighter since he was 14. Zoey, 3, and MaKenzie, 1, are his daughters and his pride and joy. He just married their mother, Lindsey. They had to cancel their wedding, on October 3, to be married on June 17, by a Justice of the Peace because Freddie is battling cancer.

"He has renal clear cell carcinoma with sarcomatoid features which is a very aggressive cancer that metastasis to the rest of the body very quickly," said Lindsey.
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Pennsylvania Veteran Lost Leg, Lost Twin, Fights To Not Lose More

Pennsylvania veteran rebuilds his life
Scranton area man loses left leg at war and twin to suicide
Pennsylvania Observer Reporter
Scott Beveridge Staff Writer
August 30, 3015

“I didn't want to spend the rest of my life in the Middle East. We have to learn to take that uniform off. It's not going to take overnight to learn how to live like a civilian.”

Scott Beveridge Observer-Reporter
Retired Pennsylvania National Guard Staff Sgt. Earl Granville
speaks in June at Mon Valley Hospital about working for
mental health treatment to lower suicide rate among veterans.

MONONGAHELA – Retired Pennsylvania Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Earl Granville spent a lot of time drinking at bars after his twin brother and comrade in arms killed himself.

“That was my low point,” said Granville, who believes his brother, Joe, was unable to cope with the fact that his twin had lost his left leg to a roadside bomb June 3, 2008, while serving in Afghanistan.

“That horrible human that I was. I thought, 'Do I really want to go on like this?'” said Granville, 31, who lives in the Scranton area.

Granville and his brother served together in Iraq and Bosnia, and then, he said, he decided to go his separate way on a deployment to Afghanistan. His brother was preparing to go back to Iraq until the military prevented that from happening after the roadside bomb sent Earl Granville to the hospital.

At the time, Granville said he was “happy to be alive.”

His brother's depression, caused by post-traumatic stress disorder, worsened after the Army sent Joe Granville's wife, who was also in the service, to Iraq instead of him, Granville said in June while speaking about veteran suicide prevention at Mon Valley Hospital.

Joe Granville, who also was a staff sergeant, took his own life by leaping off a bridge on Dec. 18, 2010.
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The National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics (NCVAS) supports planning, analysis, and decision-making activities through the collection, validation, analysis, and dissemination of key statistics on Veteran population and VA programs.

"White House Fence Jumper" Killed After Attacking Deputy

Man Previously Arrested For Climbing White House Wall Killed After Attacking Sheriff 
He had a criminal record that included arrests for assault and burglary.
Reuters Posted: 08/25/2015 Aug 25

(Reuters) - A man arrested for climbing a White House fence earlier this year was shot and killed at a suburban Pennsylvania courthouse on Tuesday after he sliced a sheriff's deputy with a knife, the local district attorney said.

Curtis Smith, 34, is accused of entering the lobby of the Chester County Justice Center at about 11 a.m. and slashing a sheriff's deputy on the arm or hand, Chester County District Attorney Thomas Hogan said in a statement.

A second deputy in the lobby drew his weapon and shot Smith, who was treated at the scene but later died at Paoli Hospital, Hogan said. read more here

Marine Recruiter's Home Hit By Bullets in Drive-by

Police: Someone shot at Marine’s home in Lancaster County
ABC 27 News
By Ed Albert and Mark Hall
Published: August 12, 201

MOUNTVILLE, Pa. (WHTM) – Police in Lancaster County say someone targeted a Marine recruiter’s home in a drive-by shooting Wednesday morning.

Shell casings were found in the driveway and bullets were found in the living room.

It happened on West Main Street in Mountville.

“My husband and I were already in bed and I thought we heard fireworks,” neighbor Denise Peters said. “We got up and saw the bullet holes.”
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Iraq Veteran Committed Murder-Suicide At Flapjack Pub

Sharon Williams is dead, killed by ex-boyfriend. Iraq veteran Arthur Guise is dead after pulling the trigger on her and then himself. It didn't happen in the privacy of a home. It happened on the deck of a pub with lots of strangers left in shock. It left two families in shock.

Guise was fighting the battle after war with PTSD and was seeking help to heal. So why wasn't he helped enough to prevent this? That is the question we should always get answers to but we never seem to get them.

PTSD veterans are mostly non-violent. Pretty much they are more of a danger to themselves than to anyone else. So why are more and more seeking help at the same time more and more are committing suicide?

Did Guise end up on one of the medications that does more harm than good? Did he see a VA doctor? Did he get the help he needed at the same time he did all he could to be proactive to heal? Was he told everything he needed to know? Does responsibility end with Guise or does everyone else involved in this tragedy deserve to know the rest of the story?

'He saw a lot in Iraq. It changed him': Father of shooter in York County murder-suicide
Pennlive
By Julianne Mattera
July 03, 2015

Flapjack's Pub reopened for customers to come visit, but did not serve food, after last night's murder-suicide that took place on the deck of the pub in Dillsburg on Friday, July 3 2015. Emily Kask, PennLive

The man who authorities said committed suicide after he shot a woman at a York County bar last night likely suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder following military tours in Iraq, according to his father.

Lenard Guise of Mount Holly Springs said Arthur Guise, his son, did two tours in Iraq during his time in the Army.

"I think that affected him," Guise said. "He was going to some counseling to help. He saw a lot in Iraq. It changed him."

County Coroner Pam Gay said Arthur Guise, 31, shot and killed Sharon Williams, 33, of Mount Holly Springs before shooting and killing himself at Flapjacks Pub, on Route 15, just outside Dillsburg.

"He came onto the deck and walked right up to her — she was sitting at a table on the deck — and just walked up right behind her and shot her three times," said Osterhoudt, whose wife manages the bar, which is owned by Osterhoudt's father-in-law.

Osterhoudt said the man then "put the gun to his head and shot himself."
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UPDATE
'It was all quick. No hesitation': Bartender recalls York County murder-suicide
PennLive
By Julianne Mattera
July 03, 2015

Scotty Osterhoudt barely slept last night after seeing a patron shoot his ex-girlfriend before killing himself on the deck of his family's York County pub.

Osterhoudt, a bartender at Flapjack's Pub just outside of Dillsburg, turned around from making a drink Thursday night after hearing a "pop go off" outside the bar. Through a window, he saw Arthur Guise take one last shot at Sharon Williams, his ex-girlfriend, and then turn the gun on himself.

"It was all quick. No hesitation," said Osterhoudt, who heard at least four or five shots. "... He was just dead set on what he wanted to do."

When he came to the door to the deck, there was "just chaos" and "blood everywhere," Osterhoudt said.
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Senators Not Giving Up FIght For Air Force Reservists Agent Orange Battle

VA Nomination On Hold in Senate Over Agent Orange Dispute 
Associated Press
by Hope Yen
Jun 11, 2015

"These veterans have waited too long to receive the health care and disability benefits they deserve," Brown told The Associated Press. "Dr. Shulkin is extremely qualified, but we can't move forward to confirm an undersecretary for health at the VA until this pressing veterans' health issue is addressed."

WASHINGTON — Three Democratic senators are holding up a confirmation vote on President Barack Obama's nominee for Veterans Affairs' top health post, citing the department's delay in extending disability benefits to Air Force reservists possibly exposed to Agent Orange.

Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Oregon's two senators, Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, said Thursday they will block a vote on Dr. David Shulkin's nomination in the full Senate until the Department of Veterans Affairs provides a fuller update on its efforts to help roughly 1,500 to 2,100 reservists who served from 1972 to 1982 at military bases in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts.

The senators had requested such feedback in a letter to the VA in April, with no adequate response to date, they said.
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Vietnam Veterans "Fought a Noble Battle"

Local Vietnam War roundtable shares stories, military history
PennLive
Wesley Robinson
June 11, 2015

Pham lamented how Vietnam veterans were treated in the U.S. after the war because he respects their efforts to keep his native country free and thought they fought a noble battle. Many veterans are still fighting the war, he added, with the physical and mental scars they still work to overcome.

More than 35 years after the Fall of Saigon, many Vietnam-era veterans are still viewed differently than other veterans because of the unpopular war, which is why a roundtable was created to talk about the conflict and its effects and to thank the veterans who served.

On the second Thursday of each month, veterans of the Vietnam War era get together and talk about the experience in Vietnam and life after battle at the Michael Novosel Vietnam Veterans of America Michael J. Novosel Medal of Honor Capital Chapter 542 at 8000 Derry St.in Harrisburg.

Richard Burton, coordinator of the Central Pennsylvania Vietnam Round Table, said the various roundtables are a great place to learn more about the history of the wars and what it was like to serve during the conflicts. He said he isn't aware of any other Vietnam-only oral history groups in the U.S., but he said one may be forming in York.

The roundtable is fairly informal and open to the public. Generally, a Vietnam-era veteran speaks for 30 minutes to an hour before taking questions. Each presenter matter-of-factly explains the reality that was their war, underscoring the strong sense of duty for country and the inglorious nature of the conflict.
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Here is another thank you from a survivor from South Vietnam right here in Orlando.
He talks about what it was like in 1968 and what Vietnam veterans did for his people.

Story Behind Desert Storm Famous Photo Continues

Strangers linked by iconic Desert Storm photo finally meet 24 years later
Buffalo News
By Tim Graham
News Sports
Reporter
May 30, 2015

Veteran whose face came to symbolize Desert Storm meets comrade’s widow 24 years after tragedy that forever binds them

The face of war: Sgt. Ken Kozakiewicz, left, wails with grief after learning that the soldier in the body bag is fellow crewman Pvt. Andy Alaniz, in this February 1991 file photo. The widely published photo came to define the Persian Gulf War for many.

UNIONTOWN, Pa. – Twenty-four slow, burning years have passed since Sgt. Ken Kozakiewicz got wrecked to his soul.

Raw from a battle that ended moments before, dazed from the two missiles that smoked his Bradley Fighting Vehicle and weary from traversing an ungodly expanse of Iraq desert, Kozakiewicz did what any man would.

He read the name on the dead soldier’s identification card, looked away from the bloody body bag and wailed.

Kozakiewicz’s helpless, primal howl became the signature image of Operation Desert Storm. The picture, taken by David Turnley, showed war’s wicked truth and is considered one of military history’s most provocative photos.

Kozakiewicz, his broken left hand in a sling, had been guided into a medical evacuation helicopter after the Jalibah Airfield rout Feb. 27, 1991. The battle was among the final objectives of a dominant campaign to expel Iraq dictator Saddam Hussein’s army from neighboring Kuwait.

Kozakiewicz and Cpl. Mike Tsangarakis were about to be whisked away. Then a body bag was loaded onto the helicopter floor. Kozakiewicz demanded the dead soldier’s name.

A medic reluctantly handed Kozakiewicz the ID for 20-year-old Pvt. Andy Alaniz. In the center of the photo, Tsangarakis lifted his head bandages to glimpse the sack at his feet.
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Vietnam KIA Family Receives Apology After 49 Years

49 years later, apology for racism from American Gold Star Mothers brings healing for Steelton family 
PennLive.com
By Debbie Truong
May 09, 2015

The sadness, anger and frustration that lingered from that slight was eased only recently after a classmate of Lise learned the family's story and helped seek a written apology from the organization.

It was March of 1966. Tracie Garnett, 6, was playing house in the playroom at her home on Ridge Street when a driver from the Steelton Taxi Cab Company pulled up. Tracie answered and was handed a Western Union telegram.

Reuben Garnett was killed trying to save a fellow officer during the Vietnam War. According to his family, decorations, personal and unit awards were not reflected in his record. Also, according to his family, Garnett's mother submitted an application to join the American Gold Star Mothers shortly after her son's death but was told that other mothers in the organization were uncomfortable with her joining because she was black. India Elaine Garnett, Tracie Garnett, and Lise Garnett, 3 of Reuben's sisters, with some of his medals. Sean Simmers, PennLive.com. May08 2015. (SEAN SIMMERS)

One of her parents — Tracie, now 55, can't remember which — read the note and started crying. Her brother, Reuben Louis Garnett Jr., the only boy and the oldest in the family, had died in the Vietnam War.

He was "on a combat operation when hit by hostile small arms fire," the telegram, addressed to Reuben's parents, read. He was 23.

Tracie was too young to understand what death meant. But her three older sisters — Janine Garnett, Lise Garnett and India Elaine Garnett — did.

Janine, 9, cried to herself on the stairs. Lise, 12, doesn't remember much of that day — she's blocked it from her memory, she said. Half a block away, India, 22, began screaming and wailing after her parents came over and showed her the note.

The Garnett sisters point to their brother's death as a turning point in their family's history. Their mother, they said, was forever changed. Her loss was further compounded after she tried to join a local chapter of the American Gold Star Mothers, an organization for mothers who lost a child in the military, and was turned away because she was black.
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Apology letter erases years of hurt for woman India Elaine Garnett, 71, said an apology from the American Gold Star Mothers helped erase 49 years of agony. In the video, she is opening a gift bag containing an American Gold Star Mothers flag.

"Admiral" Learns Rank Has Limits

Sestak's use of rank violates military's code of ethics 
TribLive
By Salena Zito
Thursday, March 26, 2015

Sean Stipp | Trib Total Media
Democrat Joe Sestak talks to supporters at Carol and Dave's Roadhouse in Ligonier on March 23, 2015 during a stop on a symbolic walking tour across Pennsylvania on the first anniversary of Obamacare. Sestak is running for U.S. Senate in 2016.

Joe Sestak retired from the Navy in 2005, but he still prefers the title “Admiral” in his campaign literature.

And that could be a problem, experts say.

Sestak's website emphasizes his military career, pointing out that he served 31 years in the Navy. But in many sections, it refers to him as “Admiral Sestak,” as do his campaign news releases.

Department of Defense ethics guidelines say retirees not on active duty can mention their military rank or service affiliation when campaigning for federal office but must clearly indicate their retired or reserve status. The rules were designed to prevent any implication of official endorsement or approval of military members' participation in political activity.

Neither the Navy nor the Pentagon would discuss Sestak's campaign to unseat U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Lehigh Valley, who beat him by 2 percentage points in 2010.

At an event in Latrobe on Tuesday, titled “Admiral Sestak for Senior Citizens and People with Alzheimer's Disease,” Sestak refused to address questions about why his campaign literature doesn't prominently indicate he retired as a two-star rear admiral.

“I don't know what you are talking about,” said Sestak, who rose to the rank of three-star admiral but wasn't in that position long enough to retire as such. He said he could not answer the question and referred it to campaign spokeswoman Danielle Lynch, who refused comment.

Retired Army Gen. Tony Cucolo, a former commandant of the Army War College in Carlisle, believes retired military officers make good public servants “because their natural inclination is to the serve the nation.”

“But you cannot run using your military title, and a true professional soldier would not do that,” Cucolo said.
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Vietnam Veterans Sings Song of Thanks at Soup Kitchen

Vietnam vet sings at Harrisburg soup kitchen
Lionel Gonzalez, 67, sings his thanks after a meal in March 2015 at Harrisburg's Downtown Daily Bread soup kitchen.

The Vietnam veteran and state retiree isn't homeless or necessarily needy. But he grew up hungry in Puerto Rico and knows well the value of a hot meal.

He says he likes spending time talking with other patrons at Downtown Daily Bread, where he plans to volunteer. He also said he likes the food. His spontaneous songs, belted in rich baritone, are his way of saying thanks.

Head of Charity For Military Families Under Investigation Committed Suicide

Just to give you some perspective here, what I do costs me a lot of time and little bit of money. While I do this and more stuff 7 days a week with at least 40 hours a week, I lose money every year. I had to go back to work for a paycheck at the same time I work from home because this is my passion and my vocation.

I used to be jealous of folks who were able to do the the work and still figured out how to find financial support to do it. How can they spend time that kind of time doing the work they promised to do and then raise such huge funds at the same time? Simple because most of the time they hire firms to do it and they get a huge chunk of the money people donate so even less goes to the purpose of the money donated.

The part that makes me want to toss my cookies on a regular basis is when they feel as if they deserve hundreds of thousands of dollars because they are worth it! Bullshit! Either they are in it to take care of the troops and veterans or they are in it for themselves. I've known too many great people that work harder than even I do and they are happy just breaking even. The cause is what matters to them not getting rich.

Can someone please tell me why anyone would actually deserve a six or seven figure income to get veterans to help each other when that is what they do on their own for free all the time?

Are folks really that nuts they just don't see it or are their hearts tugged to do something so that anything sounds good to them?

Rant over,,,,sorry, but when I read this article, it just made me sick to my stomach!

Maine charity founder who committed suicide faced FBI fraud investigation
Portland Press
BY SCOTT DOLAN STAFF WRITER
March 18, 2015

Marcel Badeau of Gorham-based Operation Tribute is suspected of siphoning off large sums donated to buy holiday gifts for children in military families.

Margo and Marc Badeau, seen working at their Gorham business in 2007, are now identified in court records as the targets of an investigation by multiple federal agencies.
Press Herald file photo/Jack Milton

The founder of a Maine charity that provided holiday gifts to the children of military families was under investigation for fraud when he committed suicide last month.

The investigation focused on whether Marcel “Marc” Badeau, chairman of the Gorham-based nonprofit Operation Tribute, siphoned off hundreds of thousands of dollars that he told donors would be spent on gifts for children.

Badeau and his wife, Margherita Badeau, are identified in court records unsealed Wednesday as the targets of an investigation by multiple federal agencies that started in July.

The accusations depicting Marcel Badeau as an ex-con scam artist stand in stark contrast to his public image as a selfless man, tirelessly devoting his time to support the children of military service men and women in New England, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Wednesday’s revelation surprised many people who supported Badeau, including Gov. Paul LePage and first lady Ann LePage, who both issued statements after his death Feb. 27.

In honor of the charitable group’s recognition of the sacrifices made by military families, LePage declared December 2012 Operation Tribute Month. The organization was also named Maine’s Outstanding Non-profit in 2011.

The court filings indicate the Badeaus used donated money for personal needs, including more than $230,000 in cash, $138,000 in mortgage payments, more than $25,000 for personal cars, nearly $24,000 for one of their children’s college tuition, and more than $7,000 at New Hampshire state liquor stores.
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Army Chaplain Finds Faith Again After War

An Army Chaplain, First Tested By War, Finds His Faith Renewed
NPR
John Burnett
JANUARY 06, 2015

As an Army chaplain in Iraq, David Peters administered last rites and grieved with survivors. When he came home, he says, he "fell apart emotionally and spiritually." Courtesy of Robert K. Chambers

David Peters' life was supposed to be one continuous arc of piety and service.

But for the U.S. Army chaplain, it's ended up a more circuitous route. Peters lost the very faith he was supposed to embody for his soldiers — but has also found his way back.

Peters grew up in a fundamentalist evangelical church in Pennsylvania, served as youth minister and then went to war in Baghdad as a chaplain in the U.S. Army in 2005.

At the age of 30, he was serving as a chaplain for the 62nd Engineer Combat Battalion, a unit that built guard towers and repaired roads. "So they were operating all around Baghdad, at night, in the streets, in the neighborhoods — and it really exposed [them] to an incredible amount of danger," he says.

Peters' duties included administering last rites, grieving with survivors and listening to soldiers lament their broken marriages back home.

After 12 months in a combat zone, it was time for Peters to go home. But when he arrived back in Texas, Peters realized that he had changed.

"I found that going to war was really pretty easy and it was kind of exciting, and there was a lot of energy around it," he says. "But when I came home, I really fell apart emotionally and spiritually."

He had symptoms of PTSD, and his own marriage had shattered while he was away at war.
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