Wounded Times Dog Days

It seems most of Wounded Times Google+ posts over the last couple of days have been about dogs. (Gee, no shocker there)

How a dog named 'Harbaugh' helped a Michigan veteran fight PTSD

Skydiving Dogs

Dropping into action Dogs are also trained to rappel from helicopters. “That is the most effective tool against poaching ever used and it’s low technology, it’s low cost compared to other technologies. And it works,” Holtshyzen says

‘Puppy Love’ Turning Out To Be Great Way To Help Vets With PTSD

March 13, 2017 

On National K9 Veterans Day, Salute Military Working Dogs

Monday, March 13, marks National K9 Veterans Day, a day to honor and commemorate the service and sacrifices of American military and working dogs throughout history. According to American Humane, it was 75 years ago today that the U.S. Army first established the War Dog Program, or “K9 Corps,” to train man’s best friend to become the military’s best canine asset. The dogs of war who have served alongside soldiers throughout history aren’t just good dogs — they’re great dogs.

Veteran who served in Afghanistan gets reunited with service dog after 5 years

Orange County Fire Department Captain Death Spotlights Suicides

Apparent suicide of Orange County fire captain may be part of sad trend in profession
The Mercury News
By SCOTT SCHWEBKE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
PUBLISHED: December 15, 2016

Tuesday’s apparent suicide of an Orange County Fire Authority captain is part of a sad trend among firefighters.

In 2015, 132 firefighters committed suicide in the U.S. – a bigger number than those who died of job-related injuries and illnesses, according to figures provided by the California Professional Firefighters union.

In addition, a national study of 1,000 firefighters, by researchers from Florida State University, revealed that nearly half of the respondents say they had suicidal thoughts at one or more points in their careers. About 15 percent reported one or more suicide attempts.

One cause may be post-traumatic stress syndrome, similar to that experienced by military personnel in combat, that can take an emotional toll on firefighters with their high-stress duties, according to the International Association of Firefighters.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Department and California Highway Patrol are investigating what prompted Eric Weuve to jump from the Crown Valley Parkway overpass onto the I-5 freeway in Mission Viejo, where he was fatally struck by a big-rig.
read more here

Lack of Support Forced Firefighter Into Retirement Because of PTSD

Longtime Johnson City firefighter retires early, cites workplace conditions
WJHL 11 News
By Nate Morabito
Published: September 19, 2016

JOHNSON CITY, TN (WJHL) – A Johnson City firefighter who is battling mental illness has decided to call it quits and retire early, citing the ongoing working conditions as his reason. 25-year veteran Sergeant. Mike Sagers retired earlier this month after spending an extended period of time on medical leave.

Sgt. Sagers says it was a difficult decision, but one he had to make for his mental health. Sagers suffers from stress, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder, according to medical records.

Back in May, Sgt. Sagers provided us with select medical records that documented his concerns of bullying, belittling and workplace violence by longtime administrator and current Fire Chief Mark Scott. His medical provider documented words like “abusive fire chief,” “harassment” and “concern of retaliation.”

Johnson City Professional Firefighters Association President Charlie Ihle shared his disappointment.

“I don’t like it one bit,” Ihle said. “To lose somebody like Mike Sagers is awful. It’s just awful. Mike Sagers was passionate about the fire department and the city. Nobody knows more about the fire department and the city than Mike Sagers, so for him to be forced out is just awful.”
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Women With Protective Service Jobs More Likely to Commit Suicide

Female Law Enforcement Agents More Likely To Commit Suicide Than People In Other Professions
The Daily Caller
THOMAS PHIPPEN
Author
07/10/2016

Women in protective services are most likely to commit suicide PHOTO/ Shutterstock

A person’s job and gender may determine how likely they are to commit suicide, according to a report from the Center for Disease Control. Women in law enforcement, for instance, commit suicide at a higher rate than women in any other occupation.

The CDC analyzed data from 2012 and found women in protective services, like police officers and firefighters, commit suicide at a higher rate than women in other professional groups. For every 100,000 women in protective services, 14.1 committed suicide in 2012.
read more here

Iraq Veteran Marine Helps Others Through Music

Peterson: Ex-Marine helps combat vets through music
Mercury News
By Gary Peterson
POSTED: 06/19/2016

It was a routine mission, at least as routine as any mission could be in Iraq circa 2004. John Preston and his Marine Corps unit were helping open a school when the most amazing thing happened.

"The kids surrounded us," Preston recalled, "and they were clapping and singing, 'Good, good America! Good, good America!' I remember going, 'OK, this is what it's about, win the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people.' It made no sense up until that moment."

A lot of cosmic puzzle pieces fell into place that day. Preston, who grew up on a Kentucky tobacco farm, was in Iraq because he enlisted in the Marines like his father and two older brothers. And having followed his father's bliss as a songwriter and performer, there was only one way for Preston to end that day.

"I wrote 'Good, Good America' that night," he said.

Fast-forward. Preston, 34, lives in Danville with his wife, Lauren, and son "Little" John, 6. He works for the Palo Alto Fire Department. He still writes and records music like a man on a mission. Which he is, donating money from live appearances and sales of his music to veteran-related causes while raising awareness of veterans' suicide.

The transition has been neither seamless nor painless.
read more here
Good Good America

Yarnell Hotshot Firefighter Remembers 19 Brothers Lost That Day

The Yarnell Hill Fire killed 19 firefighters — The lone survivor shares his story KPCC Staff
May 06, 2016

He said that he'll be battling survivor's guilt for the rest of his life and continues to struggle with PTSD.

"The things that I saw and the things that I've been through have just been branded into my mind," McDonough said.

A photo from Brendan McDonough's book, "My Lost Brothers." MCCARTIN/DANIELS PR

On June 30, 2013, the Granite Mountain Hotshots responded to a wildfire in Yarnell, Arizona. The specially-trained wildland firefighters were met by a 3,000-degree firestorm that eventually took the lives of 19 firefighters from Prescott, Arizona within minutes, leaving a sole survivor: Brendan McDonough.

Four of those firefighters had Southern California roots. McDonough reflects on his life and the fire which burned 8,000 acres in his new book, "My Lost Brothers: The Untold Story by the Yarnell Hill Fire's Lone Survivor," and he spoke with KPCC.

McDonough said that he wanted to be a firefighter since he was 13 or 14. He was advised to become a "hotshot" — the firefighters who are sent to fight wildfires in remote spots — because it meant the opportunity to travel and see the country.

McDonough said that he was going down a bad path and that joining the Granite Mountain Hotshots when he was 19 saved his life.

"The journey I was headed down before I got hired was not a good one. I was a drug addict. Six months before I got hired, I was just released out of jail," McDonough said. He'd been using heroin.

McDonough credits the Granite Mountain hotshots with turning him from who he was into who he is today.

"The guys that I worked with were just humble, caring, passionate, just amazing men that weren't only training me to be a firefighter, but to be a good dad," McDonough said. He has a young daughter.
read more here

Iraq Veteran Firefighter Crawled Past Flames to Save Yonkers Woman

Yonkers Firefighter, an Iraq War Veteran, Crawls Past Flames to Save Trapped Woman on Christmas
NBC New York

Yonkers Fire Lt. Danny Lee (inset top left) is being credited with saving a woman's life Christmas morning.

A Yonkers fire lieutenant crawled past heavy fire to rescue a woman trapped in the back bedroom of a flame-engulfed apartment on Christmas morning, according to the local department and union.

The Yonkers Uniformed Fire Officers Association said Lt. Danny Nee, a six-year members of the Yonkers Fire Department and an Iraq War veteran, responded to the eight-story apartment building on Bronx River Road after getting a call about smoke coming from a third-floor apartment around 10 a.m.

As they were en route, a woman called 911 in a panic, saying she was trapped in the bedroom, according to the union. The woman told the 911 operator heavy fire in the living room was blocking her way out and her bedroom had filled with smoke.

Nee and the other firefighters arrived minutes after being dispatched to the scene, and as crew members worked to stretch a hose to the burning apartment, Nee crawled into the burning building and made his way to the back bedroom.
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New York 9-11 Firefighters Get Justice Out of New Budget

NY Lawmakers Applaud Passage Of 9/11 Health Bill After Congress OKs Year-End Budget Deal
December 18, 2015

Tale Of The 'Walking Dead'

The 9/11 legislation is named after James Zadroga, a responder who died after working at Ground Zero. It first became law in 2010, and the health benefits expired this fall.

WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/AP) — Congress on Friday sent President Barack Obama a bipartisan a trillion dollar spending bill to fund the government through next September, which includes an agreement to reauthorize the Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.

A 65-33 Senate vote on the measure was the last act that shipped the measure, combining $1.14 trillion in new spending in 2016 and $680 billion in tax cuts over the coming decade, to Obama.

The legislation earlier swept through the House on a pair of decisive votes on Thursday and Friday, marking a peaceful end to a yearlong struggle over the budget, taxes, and Republican efforts to derail Obama’s regulatory agenda.

New York’s elected officials applauded the inclusion of the Zadroga Act, which extended federal health monitoring and treatment to Sept. 11 first responders through 2090.

The legislation also would pay an additional $4.6 billion into a compensation fund for victims and extend if for five years.
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Marine-Firefighter “Worcester’s Smokin’ Hot Hero”

Local firefighter fundraises as calendar cover man
Community Advocate
By Ed Karvoski Jr., Contributing Writer
December 15, 2015

Seamus Shanley pictured on the cover of “Worcester’s Smokin’ Hot Heroes”

2016 calendar to benefit the Box 4 Special Services. Photo/submitted

Shrewsbury – Seamus Shanley of Shrewsbury is a Marine Corps veteran, Worcester firefighter and marathoner. Now, he’s also the cover man of “Worcester’s Smokin’ Hot Heroes” 2016 calendar to benefit the Box 4 Special Services. Between the calendar covers are other shirtless Worcester firefighters representing each month for a charitable cause. According to its Facebook page, “Box 4 Special Services provides extended incident rehab for the first responders of Worcester County.” Citing a recent fire he worked, Shanley described the service this nonprofit organization provides.

“As soon as it becomes a multiple-alarm fire, the Box 4 truck comes, manned by volunteers,” he explained. “We had a three-alarm fire at 4 a.m. They jumped out of their beds, got on the truck and drove to the fire scene to provide food and beverages to all the citizens that were displaced and all of us fighting the fire. It’s always a good morale booster to see Box 4.”

He became inspired to help others while in elementary school when a neighbor joined the Marine Corps. Shanley served in the Marine Corps from 1996 to 2000, based at Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, N.C. He was deployed with a marine expeditionary unit to Mediterranean countries and travelled to Panama for jungle training.
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Support for Us!

PTSD Support for Service Members | Home Front Heretics provides knowledge and support for family members of firefighters, police officers, veterans and military personnel suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Home Front Heretics

"Heretic: A person holding an opinion at odds with what is generally accepted" and you can't get more against what is generally accepted than to be married to someone willing to die for others.

Veterans Day A Family Affair There are so many things that just don't get talked about and intimacy is one of the biggest secrets of all because no one wants to admit it. Welcome to my world!

There was a lot I could have learned the easy way, but had no way of knowing where to find it. The truth is, back when I was growing up, there were things no one talked about but somehow, within the silence, everyone knew about what was not said.

When I first heard the words "shell shock" they came from my Dad, a Korean War veteran talking about his first impression of my then boyfriend, a Vietnam veteran.  He couldn't explain what he meant by it.  He told me to go to the library.

Yes, back in the stone age before computers plugged in everything within reach of the keyboard strokes.  Every spare moment I had, I sat with a stack of clinical books and a huge dictionary.  I couldn't understand at least one word in each sentence since they were all written by psychiatrist and psychologist.

When I was done learning what I had to learn about war and the terms they used, I moved on to learn about Vietnam. After all, when by "boyfriend" was in Vietnam, I was still in grade school, so I had no clue what was what or where Vietnam actually was.  I had a lot to learn.

Then I had a lot to share including my life with the man I fell in love with and married over 30 years ago.

This quest began out of love and knowing my best friend had so much within him that a devotion to veterans began.  Knowing if he was going through all of it, there were a lot more just like him and wives just like me, I had to do something. No one seemed to know what I had learned was available for us to discover to make our lives easier. I was pretty shocked to discover most of the research was over a decade old back then.  Now I find it all disgraceful that after even more decades, we actually knew more about PTSD back then than most wives know now.

How can that be with all the technology plugging in information within reach of a cellphone?

Because everyone is doing what is easy while few are doing what is necessary.

Home Front Heretics is for us, the family members forgotten about in all the clutter of screamers and claimers bringing attention to themselves and not much else.

They choose to serve and we choose to love them even knowing what comes with all of what they do for others.

Go into any of this blindly and there you discover the reason why marriages fall apart.  Go in with eyes wide open and you have a glimpse of what may come.  Get support to stay and you walk side by side with them.  Get the right support and you will see them thrive.

It isn't as easy as it seems nor is it as complicated where we really need money to do it.

It isn't hopeless as long as we stop believing we're helpless.  We make it better for our families or we make it tougher on everyone.  It is up to us to use the power we do actually have to form our own future.

Little did I know over 30 years ago I'd still be doing this work but since my husband is worth it, I know that millions of other wives feel the same way but have not found what they need to get through the worst of all of this so they can see the best of what is possible.

From today, Veterans Day until Veterans Day 2016 I will post something to share on Home Front Heretics to make a difference in your life so you can keep making a difference in their life.

Today began with one of the biggest things we just don't seem time to talk about and that is intimacy in our marriages on Veterans Day a Family Affair.

Featured in the post is Why veterans have intimacy issues by Lee Woodruff on CNN.

As for the rest, I have over 30 years of research plus living with PTSD, making mistakes as well as making a better life for us.  Pick my brain!  I'll tell it to you straight so you won't have to learn the hard way like I did.

Most of what you'll read will be about veterans but I will try to blend in just as much information on police officers and firefighters, not just from the US but from other countries going through the same issues we do. Then you'll know for sure that just because you feel no one will understand what is part of your now normal life, you do have plenty of others living in your world too!

Nam Knights Eternal Chapter Orlando

Yesterday the Nam Knights Orlando Chapter, also known as the Eternal Chapter of the Nam Knights held the annual Biketoberfest party and remembrance service to lay bricks for members who passed away since the last year.

In the Nam Knights, it is all about those who serve and family.

You can tell by the sound my camera makes when zooming in and out that it is wearing down. Not sure how much longer it will hold out, so please excuse the added sound. It has done a few hundred videos and is getting tired.

Ohio Police, Firefighters and First Responders May Get Comp for PTSD, Finally!

Ohio Senate panel to weigh police PTSD compensation bill 
By The Associated Press
Published: October 13, 2015

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – Emergency responders with post-traumatic stress disorder could be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits regardless of whether they have suffered any physical injuries under legislation before an Ohio Senate panel.

The bill would apply to police, peace officers, firefighters and emergency medical technicians with PTSD arising from work. read more here

Mom Gets to Meet Solider Who Saved Her Son

SOLDIER SAVES 6-MONTH-OLD IN CRASH 
ABC 11 News
September 30, 2015

SPOUT SPRINGS, NC (WTVD) -- It was an emotional reunion Wednesday at the Spout Springs Fire Department as a young Army family thanked a fellow soldier for rescuing their son.

Sgt Josh Farrell got a big smile from the 6-month-old boy he rescued.

On August 18, Caitlin Coffeen ran off the road in the rain and hit a power pole along HWY 87 S. north of Spring Lake. She was able to get out, but couldn't get to her son strapped in a child seat in the overturned vehicle. read more here

Did Fort Bragg Soldier With PTSD Get Justice?

NEW MOTIONS, HEARING IN FORT BRAGG SOLDIER'S SHOOTING CASE
ABC News
By Nicole Carr
September 24, 2015

FAYETTEVILLE (WTVD) -- Attorneys for a Fort Bragg soldier convicted for opening fire on local first responders are asking military and civilian courts to lighten their punishments.

Staff Sergeant Joshua Eisenhauer, 34, is serving an 18 year sentence for shooting at Fayetteville police and firefighters during a 2012 standoff in his apartment complex. Eisenhauer's defense team has argued the soldier was going through an episode tied to PTSD. Military health officials have disagreed with civilian doctors, citing substance abuse as the issue ailing the young soldier.

Eisenhauer, who was sentenced in Cumberland County last month, will face a military separation board on October 8. His military defense attorney Todd Conormon plans to request the Fort Bragg board to allow him to finish his service agreement instead of discharging him.
read more here

Firefighters Help Double Amputee Get Wheels

Firefighters rally around wounded warrior
KSDK-TV
Jennifer Meckles
September 11, 2015


KSDK - A group of Illinois firefighters is rallying around a wounded warrior.

Cameron Crouch walks into his fundraiser at TGI Fridays with two firefighters

(Photo: KSDK)

The Metro East Professional Firefighters Association is raising money to buy a truck for an Iraq War veteran, injured overseas.

Cameron Crouch, who now lives near Champaign, served in the Army National Guard, and lost both his legs from injuries sustained during his tour. He has received multiple sets of prosthetic legs, with the most recent pair coming about a week ago.

"I bounce back and forth trying to do some of the things I used to do and I like to do," he said. "And it's hard to find a fine line of still getting to do the things I like and not getting hurt in the process."

The truck will cost $50,000 and come outfitted with hand controls and a system to load and store Crouch's wheelchair.

"A lot times these guys, who get injured in Iraq and Afghanistan, come home and spend a year in the hospital and come home to not a lot of fanfare," said Nate Kamp, a firefighter in Wood River and part of the leadership for the professional association. "So this is our opportunity to get that support from our community and focus it on the people who really need it."
read more here

Indiana Axemen Motorcycle Club and Firefighters Team Up for Homeless Veterans

Firefighters host cookout fundraiser for homeless veterans
WNDU 16 News
Christine Karsten
Updated: Sun 7:18 PM, Aug 23, 2015

Clay firefighters teamed up with a motorcycle club today to fire up the grill and feed homeless people in South Bend.

The firefighters, along with the Indiana Axemen Motorcycle Club hosted a cookout At Robert Miller Veterans Center for the Homeless.

Volunteers served up burgers, brats and potato salad to hungry vets.

The groups were raising donations to give to Miller Veterans Center and Jesse's Warriors.
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Army Sending 200 Soldiers to Fight Wildfires

Army Sends 200 Soldiers to Battle Wildfires in Pacific Northwest
Military.com
Kris Osborn
August 20, 2015

Firefighters and Washington National Guard soldiers work to extinguish hot spots on a hillside as they fight the First Creek Fire, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2015, near Chelan, Wash (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

The Army is mobilizing 200 active-duty troops to help firefighters battle deadly wildfires in the Pacific Northwest at the request of the Idaho-based National Interagency Fire Center, service officials said.

The move comes a day after three firefighters with the U.S. Forest Service died when they were overcome by the blaze in a rural part of Washington state.

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter approved the request and is sending the 17th Field Artillery Brigade from Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington to provide military support to the ongoing fire suppression efforts, officials said.

"It is an honor and a privilege to serve our nation," said Lt. Col. James Dunwoody, commander of the 5th Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery, 17th Fires Brigade, Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

The soldiers will be organized into ten crews of 20 persons each. They will head to the so-called Tower fire in the Coleville National Forest north of Spokane.
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Lawyers Want Fort Bragg Soldier's Sentence Changed

Lawyers seek corrected sentence for Fort Bragg soldier suffering from PTSD
FayObserver
By Greg Barnes Staff writer
August 18, 2015

Lawyers, family members and psychiatrists contend that Eisenhauer's severe PTSD and addiction to a prescription anti-anxiety medication caused him to have a flashback, believing he was shooting at enemy insurgents in Afghanistan.

Joshua Eisenhauer
Staff Sgt. Joshua Eisenhauer talks to one of his lawyers during his sentencing Thursday.

A lawyer for Fort Bragg Staff Sgt. Joshua Eisenhauer has filed a motion seeking to correct a sentence handed down Aug. 6 that landed Eisenhauer in prison for up to 18 years for shooting at police and firefighters in 2012.

In his motion for appropriate relief, lawyer Larry McGlothlin argues that the state did not substantially rebut defense testimony that Eisenhauer suffers from severe post-traumatic stress disorder and needs immediate professional treatment. The motion was filed Monday afternoon in Cumberland County Superior Court.

Eisenhauer pleaded guilty in February to shooting at police and firefighters after they responded to a report of a fire at Austin Creek Apartments in west Fayetteville on Jan. 13, 2012. Police shot Eisenhauer four times during a standoff. Police and firefighters escaped serious injury.

On Aug. 6, Cumberland County Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons sentenced Eisenhauer to between 10 and 18 years in prison after listening to about four hours of testimony.

Among those who testified, psychiatrist G. Martin Woodard said that on the night of the incident, Eisenhauer suffered from severe PTSD that was exacerbated by alcohol and anti-anxiety medications.
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Vietnam Veteran Finally Gets Medal After 48 Years

Worcester Vietnam veteran receives medals 48 years later 
Telegram and Gazette
By Samantha Allen
Posted Aug. 6, 2015

“There’s an old cliché in the Army, ‘Hurry up and wait,’ ” he said Thursday. “So it’s been 48 years.”

Robert LaRose Jr. pins a medal on his father, retired firefighter and Vietnam War veteran Robert LaRose, during a ceremony Thursday at the office of U.S. Rep. James P. McGovern in Worcester. Looking on is Mr. LaRose's other son, Tim LaRose. T and G Staff/Steve Lanava

WORCESTER – Retired Firefighter Robert LaRose, a lifelong resident of the city, hasn’t been to the Massachusetts Vietnam Veterans Memorial at Green Hill Park yet.

Having known several of the Worcester men whose names are etched into the granite markers, he finds the memorial difficult to go and see in more ways than one, he said.

Mr. LaRose, 67, reflected on his two tours in Vietnam with the U.S. Army artillery unit Thursday, moments before U.S. Rep. James P. McGovern, D-Worcester, presented him with several medals that had never come. Mr. LaRose’s family reached out to the military to rectify the situation when they realized their father and grandfather was never recognized for his efforts more than four decades before. Mr. LaRose said he heard there was a fire at a national office that slowed the process, and then typical “red tape” ensued.
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Jon Stewart Crusading for Sept. 11 First Responders.

Jon Stewart’s next act: Lobbyist? 
The host has promised to fight for a 9/11 bill in September.
Politico
By DARREN SAMUELSOHN


Jon Stewart is less than a week away from retiring from The Daily Show, but he’s already thinking about his next act: crusading this fall in Washington for the Sept. 11 first responders.

The Comedy Central star has promised to make a Capitol Hill trip as early as September to support a bill extending an expiring law that provides billions of dollars in medical health benefits for the police, firefighters and other emergency rescue workers who spent time at Ground Zero, as well as survivors of the 2001 terrorist attacks.

Stewart committed to lobby the very lawmakers he’s made a career out of skewering during a backstage greenroom chat early in July with John Feal, an Army veteran and post-9/11 cleanup worker who is spearheading the advocacy push for the legislation. Feal told POLITICO that he expected Stewart to firm up the date for the visit after his final Daily Show appearance on Thursday.

“Everything he’s ever said, he’s kept his word,” Feal said.

The first-responders portion of the law, passed in 2010, is scheduled to expire this October but has enough money to run into next year. A separate fund for 9/11 survivors and first responders ends in October 2016. Supporters want to renew the whole law in perpetuity, like the health programs for coal miners who suffer from black lung disease, and the government workers and contractors who built the country's nuclear weapon arsenal. In early July on his program, Stewart called it “bullshit” that the 9/11 first responders even have to lobby to extend it, and demanded to know who on the Hill was blocking the effort.

In his 16-year TV career, Stewart has put his shoulder behind a number of policy and political issues. He has put the spotlight on bureaucratic blunders preventing military veterans from getting health care, and is widely credited with CNN’s decision more than a decade ago to cancel an earlier version of the ‘Crossfire' talk show. Sensing his power with young voters, senior White House aides also cultivated relationships with Stewart and his staff, and the host even met twice privately in the Oval Office with President Barack Obama.
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