Struggling Iraq vet may lose his anchor
His wife, brought here illegally at age 6, is about to be deported. 'She's my everything,' her husband says.
By Teresa Watanabe
October 26, 2009
The nightmares still plague him. The terrifying mortar attacks. The loss of an Albanian soldier and ally, mutilated by shrapnel. The Iraqi children, bloodied and battered, lined up for medical care at the U.S. base at Mosul.
Two years after returning from his service in Iraq, U.S. Army Spc. Jack Barrios, 26, is fighting sleeplessness, sudden angry outbursts, aversion to emotional intimacy and other fallout from his post-traumatic stress disorder.
But as he undergoes counseling and swallows anti-depressants, the soldier is fighting an even bigger battle: to keep his family from collapsing as his wife, an undocumented immigrant from Guatemala, faces deportation.
His wife, 23-year-old Frances, was illegally brought to the United States by her mother at age 6, learned of her status in high school and discovered just last year that removal proceedings have been started. Her possible deportation has left Barrios in panic as he contemplates life without her.
The Army reservist says his wife is the family's anchor, caring for their year-old daughter and 3-year-old son and helping him battle his post-traumatic stress.
read more here
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-immig-soldier26-2009oct26,0,144983.story
Showing posts with label wounded warrior. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wounded warrior. Show all posts
Monday, October 26, 2009
Wounded and struggling Iraq vet may lose his wife
Her crime was not her's. Her parents brought her here illegally when she was only six. How would this be justice for this combat wounded veteran to lose his wife for something she did not do? Now consider that what she is doing for this veteran is making his life with his wounds easier should be worth at least giving her citizenship for his sake alone, then add in their two children.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Burned soldier portrait to show at Smithsonian
Matthew Mitchell via AP Matthew Mitchell's life-sized oil portrait of Sgt. Richard Yarosh will go on display at the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington later this month.
Burned soldier portrait to show at Smithsonian
By Michelle Roberts - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 19, 2009 17:43:52 EDT
SAN ANTONIO — Retired Army Sgt. Richard Yarosh has gotten used to the stares. His face is blanketed in knotty scar tissue. His nose tip is missing. His ears are gone, as is part of his right leg. His fingers are permanently bent and rigid.
All is the result of an explosion in Iraq that doused him in fuel and fire three years ago.
“I know people are curious,” he said. “They’ll stop in their tracks and look. I guess I can understand. I probably would have stared, too.”
Soon, a lot more people will be staring at Yarosh’s face but in a very different way: A life-sized oil painting of him will go on display at the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington later this month. The portrait, by Matthew Mitchell, is a finalist in the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition, which recognizes modern portraiture at the gallery known for its collection of notable Americans.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/ap_yarosh_smithsonian_portrait_101909/
also
Portrait Does Justice to a Soldier's Sacrifice
Andrea Stone
WASHINGTON (Oct. 23) – Arlene Coffman stared at the man in the painting. He had no ears, no nose, no eyebrows. Instead of smile lines by his eyes there was scar tissue. Tears welled in her eyes.
"It's incredible. It's hard to describe because it's so moving," said Coffman, 64, visiting here from Pebble Beach, Calif. "Most portraits bring emotions. This one is emotional in a different way."
go here for more
Portrait Does Justice to a Soldier's Sacrifice
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Wounded warriors get heros' welcome at Andrews
Wounded warriors get heros' welcome at Andrews
Posted 10/2/2009
by Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
10/2/2009 - ANDREWS AIR FORCE BASE, Md. (AFNS) -- Minutes after the hulking C-17 Globemaster III rolled to a stop on the tarmac here Sept. 28, two oversized ambulances backed up to its rear loading ramp to receive its precious cargo: 23 wounded warriors and sick or injured servicemembers in need of advanced medical care.
Most of the patients arrived from Iraq and Afghanistan after being stabilized at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.
Several had serious combat injuries. A soldier who had been in a helicopter crash in Iraq was headed to the National Naval Medical Center in nearby Bethesda for specialized care for his head and other injuries. Another, suffering serious musculoskeletal injuries from a mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicle accident outside his forward operating base in Afghanistan, was en route to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington for treatment.
Another patient, severely wounded in a rocket-propelled grenade attack in Afghanistan, remained on the aircraft to be flown directly to the burn unit at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.
read more here
http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123170970
Posted 10/2/2009
by Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
10/2/2009 - ANDREWS AIR FORCE BASE, Md. (AFNS) -- Minutes after the hulking C-17 Globemaster III rolled to a stop on the tarmac here Sept. 28, two oversized ambulances backed up to its rear loading ramp to receive its precious cargo: 23 wounded warriors and sick or injured servicemembers in need of advanced medical care.
Most of the patients arrived from Iraq and Afghanistan after being stabilized at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.
Several had serious combat injuries. A soldier who had been in a helicopter crash in Iraq was headed to the National Naval Medical Center in nearby Bethesda for specialized care for his head and other injuries. Another, suffering serious musculoskeletal injuries from a mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicle accident outside his forward operating base in Afghanistan, was en route to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington for treatment.
Another patient, severely wounded in a rocket-propelled grenade attack in Afghanistan, remained on the aircraft to be flown directly to the burn unit at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.
read more here
http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123170970
Monday, September 21, 2009
Proper Exit, trips offer Iraq vets closure
Brian A. Barbour / Courtesy of the U.S. Army
From left: Sgt. Robert Brown, retired Staff Sgt. Bradley Gruetzner and Sgt. Christopher A. Burrell walk through “Hero’s Highway” on June 25 at the Air Force Theater Hospital at Joint Base Balad, Iraq. Brown, Gruetzner, Burrell and four other soldiers wounded in Iraq had the opportunity to return to the places they once served in a program called Operation Proper Exit.
For the wounded, one last mission
‘Proper Exit’ trips offer Iraq vets closure
By Seth Robson, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Monday, September 21, 2009
GRAFENWÖHR, Germany — Some soldiers are returning to the places where they were wounded in Iraq under a program that aims to speed their recovery and close a painful chapter in their lives.
"They left without closure. … They left behind their belongings, their friends and battle buddies," said Rick Kell, director of the Troops First Foundation, who devised Operation Proper Exit after hearing wounded soldiers talk of their desire to return to Iraq. "We have heard for so long that Vietnam veterans wanted to go back and in their words, ‘have some closure.’ I thought why not try to get some of these guys to go back in real time so they don’t have to wait 30 years? "
Six soldiers took part in the initial trip in June, and another is planned for November.
One participant in the June trip was Staff Sgt. Kenneth Butler, 29, of Braintree, Mass., who lost his right arm above the elbow in a bomb attack while serving in Baghdad in 2007.
"I blacked out a few times," said Butler, who recently retired from active duty. "The last time was at FOB Rustamiyah and I woke up at Walter Reed."
Almost all wounded soldiers want to go back to where they served, Butler said.
"They want to rejoin their team and to be part of the fight and leave that place on their own terms and not on a gurney almost dead," he said.
read more here
http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=64913
Also older story on Operation Proper ExitWounded Warriors Return to Iraq
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Navy SEAL Daniel Cnossen to receive Bronze Star for Valor
Mom hopeful for SEAL son
By Mike Hall
Created September 11, 2009 at 11:59am
Updated September 12, 2009 at 1:29am
The message of 9/11 was made more personal Friday for students at Shawnee Heights High School as they learned a graduate of the school had been seriously injured in Afghanistan this week.
Even before receiving the news that Navy SEAL Daniel Cnossen, a 1998 SHHS graduate, had been injured, the mood of the 1,200 students was somber and respectful at a memorial ceremony in the school gym for 9/11 victims.
Students filed quietly into the darkened gym, illuminated only by three spotlights at floor level and a projector screen that was to display an audio-visual presentation created by Matthew Rinehart, a senior at the school and a lieutenant commander in the school's Navy Junior ROTC program.
The message of the ceremony, repeated frequently, was "We will not forget."
Cnossen, a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, was expected to arrive in Washington, D.C., about 8 p.m. Friday to continue his treatment and rehabilitation for his injuries.
His mother, Alice Landers, was reached by telephone Friday morning en route to Washington to see Cnossen when he arrived at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
"He's progressing wonderfully," she said. "We get more positive reports every day. We're very hopeful."
Information pieced together by The Capital-Journal Friday indicates Cnossen, a platoon leader, was injured by a land mine and has had both legs amputated at the knees. He also suffered other internal injuries.
Because of his bravery in the situation, he will be presented a Purple Heart and Bronze Star with V (for valor) from the Secretary of the Navy on Tuesday.
read more here
http://www.cjonline.com/news/local/2009-09-11/mom_hopeful_for_seal_son
By Mike Hall
Created September 11, 2009 at 11:59am
Updated September 12, 2009 at 1:29am
The message of 9/11 was made more personal Friday for students at Shawnee Heights High School as they learned a graduate of the school had been seriously injured in Afghanistan this week.
Even before receiving the news that Navy SEAL Daniel Cnossen, a 1998 SHHS graduate, had been injured, the mood of the 1,200 students was somber and respectful at a memorial ceremony in the school gym for 9/11 victims.
Students filed quietly into the darkened gym, illuminated only by three spotlights at floor level and a projector screen that was to display an audio-visual presentation created by Matthew Rinehart, a senior at the school and a lieutenant commander in the school's Navy Junior ROTC program.
The message of the ceremony, repeated frequently, was "We will not forget."
Cnossen, a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, was expected to arrive in Washington, D.C., about 8 p.m. Friday to continue his treatment and rehabilitation for his injuries.
His mother, Alice Landers, was reached by telephone Friday morning en route to Washington to see Cnossen when he arrived at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
"He's progressing wonderfully," she said. "We get more positive reports every day. We're very hopeful."
Information pieced together by The Capital-Journal Friday indicates Cnossen, a platoon leader, was injured by a land mine and has had both legs amputated at the knees. He also suffered other internal injuries.
Because of his bravery in the situation, he will be presented a Purple Heart and Bronze Star with V (for valor) from the Secretary of the Navy on Tuesday.
read more here
http://www.cjonline.com/news/local/2009-09-11/mom_hopeful_for_seal_son
The New Walter Reed: Less Than 'World Class'?
The New Walter Reed: Less Than 'World Class'?
By Stephen Schimpff
Columbia
We Americans owe our servicemen and women, especially our wounded warriors, the very best in medical care. With the construction of a “new Walter Reed” in Bethesda, we have a unique opportunity to ensure that they get such world-class care. But for that to happen, much more needs to be done.
Care for military personnel in the Washington area has long been provided by Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington and National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda. But in 2005, the Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC) mandated consolidation into a new Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on the grounds of the naval hospital. This facility will provide primary and more complex care to all military personnel who live in the northern half of the capital area, as well as tertiary care — high-level specialty care — to those from the entire region, including complete care for wounded service members.
About a year ago, following reports that the new facility was not on track to meet a stated requirement of “world class,” Congress passed legislation calling for a review by a subcommittee of the Defense Health Board. I was nominated to join this 15-member group by Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Md.).
There is much to commend in the work that has been done so far. For example, the view of the facility from Wisconsin Avenue will be very pleasing, with the iconic 1930s tower flanked by a new outpatient building and a revamped, extended inpatient building — and these will provide not only good but excellent care. But a master facility plan has never been done for the campus, which currently serves multiple functions and includes many older buildings that, over time, should be replaced in an orderly manner. During our review, we were told that such a plan was not within the scope of the BRAC budget.
Similarly, no analysis has been performed to determine future needs based on local demographic changes (the number of retired military personnel in the area is increasing), changing types of wounds (such as from improvised explosive devices) or advances in the delivery of medical care. Instead, the consolidation was planned using a static approach, whereby the functions performed at Walter Reed were simply shifted to the future facilities. Again, the rationale we were given for this was that the BRAC law did not allow for any other approach.
read more here
The New Walter Reed
By Stephen Schimpff
Columbia
We Americans owe our servicemen and women, especially our wounded warriors, the very best in medical care. With the construction of a “new Walter Reed” in Bethesda, we have a unique opportunity to ensure that they get such world-class care. But for that to happen, much more needs to be done.
Care for military personnel in the Washington area has long been provided by Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington and National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda. But in 2005, the Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC) mandated consolidation into a new Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on the grounds of the naval hospital. This facility will provide primary and more complex care to all military personnel who live in the northern half of the capital area, as well as tertiary care — high-level specialty care — to those from the entire region, including complete care for wounded service members.
About a year ago, following reports that the new facility was not on track to meet a stated requirement of “world class,” Congress passed legislation calling for a review by a subcommittee of the Defense Health Board. I was nominated to join this 15-member group by Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Md.).
There is much to commend in the work that has been done so far. For example, the view of the facility from Wisconsin Avenue will be very pleasing, with the iconic 1930s tower flanked by a new outpatient building and a revamped, extended inpatient building — and these will provide not only good but excellent care. But a master facility plan has never been done for the campus, which currently serves multiple functions and includes many older buildings that, over time, should be replaced in an orderly manner. During our review, we were told that such a plan was not within the scope of the BRAC budget.
Similarly, no analysis has been performed to determine future needs based on local demographic changes (the number of retired military personnel in the area is increasing), changing types of wounds (such as from improvised explosive devices) or advances in the delivery of medical care. Instead, the consolidation was planned using a static approach, whereby the functions performed at Walter Reed were simply shifted to the future facilities. Again, the rationale we were given for this was that the BRAC law did not allow for any other approach.
read more here
The New Walter Reed
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Waning war interest frustrates wounded troops
Waning war interest frustrates wounded troops
By Michelle Roberts - The Associated Press
Posted : Thursday Sep 10, 2009 7:11:47 EDT
SAN ANTONIO — A year after Capt. Sam Brown was set ablaze when a bomb blew up his Humvee in Afghanistan, the 25-year-old West Point graduate endures a steady schedule of painful surgery and stretching to break up knotty burn scars.
He also has another routine: checking a Web site that counts U.S. and coalition troop deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan.
For Brown, it’s one more regular reminder that the wars have not ended — something he says many Americans seem to have forgotten.
With the timetable set for withdrawal from Iraq and the fighting in Afghanistan nearing its ninth year, U.S. war coverage has waned, often pushed off the front page by the economy, health care and celebrity deaths.
But for severely wounded soldiers — those with huge burn scars and amputated limbs — the wars are no distant memory. Their long and painful recovery battles are a constant reminder.
“Unless you see it all the time, it’s just kind of easy not to remember,” Brown said. “The war is definitely not over.”
read more here
Waning war interest frustrates wounded troops
By Michelle Roberts - The Associated Press
Posted : Thursday Sep 10, 2009 7:11:47 EDT
SAN ANTONIO — A year after Capt. Sam Brown was set ablaze when a bomb blew up his Humvee in Afghanistan, the 25-year-old West Point graduate endures a steady schedule of painful surgery and stretching to break up knotty burn scars.
He also has another routine: checking a Web site that counts U.S. and coalition troop deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan.
For Brown, it’s one more regular reminder that the wars have not ended — something he says many Americans seem to have forgotten.
With the timetable set for withdrawal from Iraq and the fighting in Afghanistan nearing its ninth year, U.S. war coverage has waned, often pushed off the front page by the economy, health care and celebrity deaths.
But for severely wounded soldiers — those with huge burn scars and amputated limbs — the wars are no distant memory. Their long and painful recovery battles are a constant reminder.
“Unless you see it all the time, it’s just kind of easy not to remember,” Brown said. “The war is definitely not over.”
read more here
Waning war interest frustrates wounded troops
Friday, September 4, 2009
Operation Comfort Warriors: We owe it to our heroes
Operation Comfort Warriors: We owe it to our heroes
Submitted by Robby Douglas on Thu, 09/03/2009 - 6:24pm.
By Jay Conti Sr., American Legion
4th District Vice Commander
There are many great reasons to belong to the American Legion family, but I can think of no greater purpose than to support our hospitalized heroes.
Operation Comfort Warriors accomplishes this mission since last December, Operation Comfort Warriors has raised $189,483 to purchases items not normally budgeted through government channels to troops recovering in U.S. military hospitals and warrior transition units around the world.
These items have included sweatsuits, iPods, computer games, DVD players, puzzles, books and other comfort items. Operation Comfort Warriors won't heal our troops or make them "whole" again, but it will show them that we care and appreciate their great sacrifices.
Nearly 35,000 of our men and women in uniform have been injured in Iraq or Afghanistan and more are hurt every day. Moreover, thousands more are hurt each year in accidents or are hospitalized due to illnesses. While the American Legion family has raised a lot to help these heroes, the need is even greater. And with your help, we can work toward meeting that need.
read more here
Operation Comfort Warriors
Submitted by Robby Douglas on Thu, 09/03/2009 - 6:24pm.
By Jay Conti Sr., American Legion
4th District Vice Commander
There are many great reasons to belong to the American Legion family, but I can think of no greater purpose than to support our hospitalized heroes.
Operation Comfort Warriors accomplishes this mission since last December, Operation Comfort Warriors has raised $189,483 to purchases items not normally budgeted through government channels to troops recovering in U.S. military hospitals and warrior transition units around the world.
These items have included sweatsuits, iPods, computer games, DVD players, puzzles, books and other comfort items. Operation Comfort Warriors won't heal our troops or make them "whole" again, but it will show them that we care and appreciate their great sacrifices.
Nearly 35,000 of our men and women in uniform have been injured in Iraq or Afghanistan and more are hurt every day. Moreover, thousands more are hurt each year in accidents or are hospitalized due to illnesses. While the American Legion family has raised a lot to help these heroes, the need is even greater. And with your help, we can work toward meeting that need.
read more here
Operation Comfort Warriors
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Wounded GIs in Afghanistan
Wounded GIs in Afghanistan: Casualties More Seriously Injured Than in Iraq
David Wood Columnist
FORWARD OPERATING BASE SALERNO, Afghanistan -- They are the invisible casualties of this war, the 2,194 Americans who have been badly wounded in battle here. More are coming.
Stunned, torn and bleeding, they are extracted from dusty battlefields in wild, shouting chaos, and because they are so quickly rushed into the hands of trauma nurses and surgeons, more of them survive than in past wars.
But their wounds are often grievous, even more severe than those inflicted in the Iraq war. It is not uncommon for a casualty to arrive at a combat surgical hospital with two, three or even more immediately life-threatening injuries. Simultaneously drawn to the soldier's side will be specialists in setting broken bones, repairing deep abdominal wounds, attending to crushing chest injuries and cleaning the stumps of amputated limbs, while a neurologist works to assess brain damage.
The battle dead, deservedly, are venerated and honored by name. They are memorialized by their comrades in formal, intense, battlefield ceremony, honored as their remains are carried past rows of saluting troops onto waiting aircraft, and their sacrifices are sanctified again during and after their various journeys home. Their deaths are announced by the Pentagon and recorded on gravestones.
The wounded receive no such recognition. They are moved swiftly and anonymously; their names and sacrifices are not publicly recorded by the Department of Defense, which effectively bans interviews and photographs.
But as they are tenderly passed along -- from the combat medics who bandage them and the dust-off pilots who fly them away under fire, to the surgeons who perform emergency battle-zone surgery and the aero-medical evacuation pilots and crews who fly them toward home -- they are known and respected, honored, and treated with urgent compassion.
read more here
Wounded GIs in Afghanistan
David Wood Columnist
FORWARD OPERATING BASE SALERNO, Afghanistan -- They are the invisible casualties of this war, the 2,194 Americans who have been badly wounded in battle here. More are coming.
Stunned, torn and bleeding, they are extracted from dusty battlefields in wild, shouting chaos, and because they are so quickly rushed into the hands of trauma nurses and surgeons, more of them survive than in past wars.
But their wounds are often grievous, even more severe than those inflicted in the Iraq war. It is not uncommon for a casualty to arrive at a combat surgical hospital with two, three or even more immediately life-threatening injuries. Simultaneously drawn to the soldier's side will be specialists in setting broken bones, repairing deep abdominal wounds, attending to crushing chest injuries and cleaning the stumps of amputated limbs, while a neurologist works to assess brain damage.
The battle dead, deservedly, are venerated and honored by name. They are memorialized by their comrades in formal, intense, battlefield ceremony, honored as their remains are carried past rows of saluting troops onto waiting aircraft, and their sacrifices are sanctified again during and after their various journeys home. Their deaths are announced by the Pentagon and recorded on gravestones.
The wounded receive no such recognition. They are moved swiftly and anonymously; their names and sacrifices are not publicly recorded by the Department of Defense, which effectively bans interviews and photographs.
But as they are tenderly passed along -- from the combat medics who bandage them and the dust-off pilots who fly them away under fire, to the surgeons who perform emergency battle-zone surgery and the aero-medical evacuation pilots and crews who fly them toward home -- they are known and respected, honored, and treated with urgent compassion.
read more here
Wounded GIs in Afghanistan
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Injured GI from Howell has a calling. Helping others heal
Injured GI from Howell has a calling: Helping others heal
Golf outing for Brennan foundation
By Michelle Gladden • FREEHOLD BUREAU • August 19, 2009
HOWELL — It's been a long road, in more ways than one, for the Brennan family.
Committed to establishing a foundation that would help other wounded soldiers returning from war, the family is hosting its Brennan Stands Alone Foundation Golf Outing Monday at the Cruz Golf Club.
"We're just beginning to crank it up," said Joanne Brennan, mother of Afghanistan war veteran 1st Lt. Brian Brennan, who suffered life-threatening injuries and lost both legs in a roadside bomb attack. "We have our first corporate sponsor and we're hoping for a good response for the golf outing."
Brian Brennan, 24, said he will serve refreshments during the event while members of the local Policemen's Benevolent Association will prepare food.
It was only a few months after his May 2008 injuries that he and his family expressed their wish to help others the way they'd been helped. But money earmarked for the trust could only be used to help her son, Joanne Brennan said.
The trust fund was established to help the family with the cost of traveling first to James A. Haley Veterans Hospital in Tampa, Fla., and then to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
read more here
Injured GI from Howell has a calling
Golf outing for Brennan foundation
By Michelle Gladden • FREEHOLD BUREAU • August 19, 2009
HOWELL — It's been a long road, in more ways than one, for the Brennan family.
Committed to establishing a foundation that would help other wounded soldiers returning from war, the family is hosting its Brennan Stands Alone Foundation Golf Outing Monday at the Cruz Golf Club.
"We're just beginning to crank it up," said Joanne Brennan, mother of Afghanistan war veteran 1st Lt. Brian Brennan, who suffered life-threatening injuries and lost both legs in a roadside bomb attack. "We have our first corporate sponsor and we're hoping for a good response for the golf outing."
Brian Brennan, 24, said he will serve refreshments during the event while members of the local Policemen's Benevolent Association will prepare food.
It was only a few months after his May 2008 injuries that he and his family expressed their wish to help others the way they'd been helped. But money earmarked for the trust could only be used to help her son, Joanne Brennan said.
The trust fund was established to help the family with the cost of traveling first to James A. Haley Veterans Hospital in Tampa, Fla., and then to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
read more here
Injured GI from Howell has a calling
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Iraq wounded vet's clash with Boise police still a mystery
Reasons for Iraq vet's clash with Boise police still a mystery
By Patrick Orr - porr@idahostatesman.com
Published: 07/30/09
George Nickel Jr. couldn't explain to police why he used a rifle to shoot into a Vista neighborhood apartment complex and pointed a handgun at officers, according to court testimony Thursday.
Nickel is being held in the Ada County Jail on a $500,000 bond -- which is half as much as Ada County prosecutors said is necessary to keep the 38-year-old former Iraq vet incarcerated after an armed confrontation with Boise police late Tuesday night.
Boise police say Nickel told them he was looking for his dog in his apartment building when he used an AR-15 rifle to try to shoot the locks off two different doors. Minutes later, Boise police say, officers confronted him in a stairway and fired an estimated 12 rounds at Nickel, who was seen holding a handgun with a flashlight attached and didn't shoot back. No one was struck by any of the gunfire, police say.
A few new details emerged during Nickel's court arraignment Thursday, but they did not include a possible motive.
After he was arrested, Nickel could not explain to Boise police why he shot at the doors and confronted officers. All he said was that on a scale of one to 10, he was angry to the level of nine, Ada County Deputy Prosecutor Whitney Faulkner said.
read more here
http://www.idahostatesman.com/mobile/story/851137.html
By Patrick Orr - porr@idahostatesman.com
Published: 07/30/09
George Nickel Jr. couldn't explain to police why he used a rifle to shoot into a Vista neighborhood apartment complex and pointed a handgun at officers, according to court testimony Thursday.
Nickel is being held in the Ada County Jail on a $500,000 bond -- which is half as much as Ada County prosecutors said is necessary to keep the 38-year-old former Iraq vet incarcerated after an armed confrontation with Boise police late Tuesday night.
Boise police say Nickel told them he was looking for his dog in his apartment building when he used an AR-15 rifle to try to shoot the locks off two different doors. Minutes later, Boise police say, officers confronted him in a stairway and fired an estimated 12 rounds at Nickel, who was seen holding a handgun with a flashlight attached and didn't shoot back. No one was struck by any of the gunfire, police say.
A few new details emerged during Nickel's court arraignment Thursday, but they did not include a possible motive.
After he was arrested, Nickel could not explain to Boise police why he shot at the doors and confronted officers. All he said was that on a scale of one to 10, he was angry to the level of nine, Ada County Deputy Prosecutor Whitney Faulkner said.
read more here
http://www.idahostatesman.com/mobile/story/851137.html
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
CNN Barbara Starr writes about two soldiers lives she took personally
Behind the Scenes: Triumph and tragedy for two wounded soldiers
Story Highlights
CNN's Barbara Starr celebrated a victory and mourned a loss on July 15
An injured Marine was celebrating getting into Harvard Law School
On same night, a warrior with a traumatic brain injury was found dead in his car
Men's stories are linked -- both pleaded with the government to aid injured soldiers
By Barbara Starr
CNN Pentagon Correspondent
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Where were you on the night of July 15? You may not even remember, but for me it was an extraordinary evening, an evening of unimaginable triumph and unbearable tragedy.
But I would not actually know everything that happened until the night was long over.
A couple of weeks before July 15, a friend who works with injured troops emailed me to say it was time for Andrew's going away party.
Andrew Kinard is a young Marine I first met a few years ago at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington where he was recovering from a devastating IED attack in Iraq. He had stepped on the roadside bomb and lost his entire body below the hips.
The party being arranged was Andrew's farewell to D.C. Andrew is off to the rigors of Harvard Law School. He's says he's itching to get into a courtroom.
You need to remember the name Andrew Kinard. Many of his friends believe Andrew is such an amazing man that he will become president of the United States. If I had to bet, I'd say it could happen.
I wouldn't have missed the party for the world. I was touched that this tight-knit community of wounded warriors had included me in this very special, very intimate evening.
There was a display of photos of Andrew serving in Iraq. I suddenly realized I never knew how tall he was before the war. There were a few sniffles and wiping of eyes in the room for a Marine whose dream of service to his country ended within a few months of getting to Iraq. But sniffles didn't last long and the evening became one of hugs, laughter and good wishes (and more than a few beers) for a young Marine who had triumphed over what the war had dealt him.
But my warm feelings didn't last long. The next day another source in the wounded troop community came to me in the Pentagon hallway with another tale.
"You have to do something about the story of Ray Rivas," he said.
In the very hours we were celebrating Andrew in Washington, tragedy was unfolding in Texas. Lt. Col. Raymond Rivas, a 53-year old civil affairs officer who had dedicated his career to rebuilding war torn countries, was found dead in his car in the parking lot of Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio Texas.
Colleagues of Ray's said prescription pills and notes he wrote to his family and wife, Colleen, were found. A military source told me all indications are Ray took his own life.
read more here
Triumph and tragedy for two wounded soldiers
Story Highlights
CNN's Barbara Starr celebrated a victory and mourned a loss on July 15
An injured Marine was celebrating getting into Harvard Law School
On same night, a warrior with a traumatic brain injury was found dead in his car
Men's stories are linked -- both pleaded with the government to aid injured soldiers
By Barbara Starr
CNN Pentagon Correspondent
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Where were you on the night of July 15? You may not even remember, but for me it was an extraordinary evening, an evening of unimaginable triumph and unbearable tragedy.
But I would not actually know everything that happened until the night was long over.
A couple of weeks before July 15, a friend who works with injured troops emailed me to say it was time for Andrew's going away party.
Andrew Kinard is a young Marine I first met a few years ago at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington where he was recovering from a devastating IED attack in Iraq. He had stepped on the roadside bomb and lost his entire body below the hips.
The party being arranged was Andrew's farewell to D.C. Andrew is off to the rigors of Harvard Law School. He's says he's itching to get into a courtroom.
You need to remember the name Andrew Kinard. Many of his friends believe Andrew is such an amazing man that he will become president of the United States. If I had to bet, I'd say it could happen.
I wouldn't have missed the party for the world. I was touched that this tight-knit community of wounded warriors had included me in this very special, very intimate evening.
There was a display of photos of Andrew serving in Iraq. I suddenly realized I never knew how tall he was before the war. There were a few sniffles and wiping of eyes in the room for a Marine whose dream of service to his country ended within a few months of getting to Iraq. But sniffles didn't last long and the evening became one of hugs, laughter and good wishes (and more than a few beers) for a young Marine who had triumphed over what the war had dealt him.
But my warm feelings didn't last long. The next day another source in the wounded troop community came to me in the Pentagon hallway with another tale.
"You have to do something about the story of Ray Rivas," he said.
In the very hours we were celebrating Andrew in Washington, tragedy was unfolding in Texas. Lt. Col. Raymond Rivas, a 53-year old civil affairs officer who had dedicated his career to rebuilding war torn countries, was found dead in his car in the parking lot of Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio Texas.
Colleagues of Ray's said prescription pills and notes he wrote to his family and wife, Colleen, were found. A military source told me all indications are Ray took his own life.
read more here
Triumph and tragedy for two wounded soldiers
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Soldier on leave for funeral dies
Soldier on leave for funeral dies
By Seth Robbins, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Wednesday, July 22, 2009
BAUMHOLDER, Germany — Family and friends are mourning the loss of a 22-year-old soldier who died while on leave at his home in Litchfield, Maine.
Pvt. Lawrence "Larry" Gowell II died at home on Saturday from what his father suspects was a blood clot. Gowell had been at the warrior transition unit in Baumholder after being diagnosed last fall with post-traumatic stress disorder. He had just served his first tour in Iraq.
He had returned to Maine on July 15 to attend a relative’s funeral. His father, also named Larry, said Tuesday that an official cause of death has not been determined, but that he suspected it was a blood clot.
"He had a sore around his leg," the father said by phone from his home in Maine. "It was hurting him bad. I tried getting him to go to the hospital, but he didn’t want to because he had just gotten home."
Gowell leaves behind a wife, Crystal; a 2-year-old son and a 15-month-old daughter, as well as his parents, Larry and Lisa, both of Litchfield.
By Seth Robbins, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Wednesday, July 22, 2009
BAUMHOLDER, Germany — Family and friends are mourning the loss of a 22-year-old soldier who died while on leave at his home in Litchfield, Maine.
Pvt. Lawrence "Larry" Gowell II died at home on Saturday from what his father suspects was a blood clot. Gowell had been at the warrior transition unit in Baumholder after being diagnosed last fall with post-traumatic stress disorder. He had just served his first tour in Iraq.
He had returned to Maine on July 15 to attend a relative’s funeral. His father, also named Larry, said Tuesday that an official cause of death has not been determined, but that he suspected it was a blood clot.
"He had a sore around his leg," the father said by phone from his home in Maine. "It was hurting him bad. I tried getting him to go to the hospital, but he didn’t want to because he had just gotten home."
Gowell leaves behind a wife, Crystal; a 2-year-old son and a 15-month-old daughter, as well as his parents, Larry and Lisa, both of Litchfield.
read more here
Monday, July 6, 2009
Wounded ex-Marine now fighting a two-front war
Web Posted: 07/05/2009 12:00 CDT
Wounded ex-Marine now fighting a two-front war
By Sig Christenson - Express-News
Eric Alva lived and breathed the Marine Corps for 13 years. Then he earned a dubious slice of American history by becoming the first GI injured in the Iraq invasion in 2003. He stepped on a mine three hours after rolling into Iraq, breaking both legs, suffering a badly mangled right arm and being filled with shrapnel from torso to his legs.
The picture-perfect Marine, who later lost part of his right leg and still carries 27 pieces of shrapnel, has evolved from a war hero photographed with President George W. Bush to one of the nation's prominent gay activists after coming out on ABC's “Good Morning America” on Feb. 27, 2007.
Now he advocates for gays to serve openly in the armed forces, a battle that heated up since a recent Supreme Court decision.
He marked July 4th by participating in San Antonio's Gay Pride parade and has spoken on dozens of college campuses. For him, a true Independence Day would see gays, lesbians and bisexuals allowed to openly serve in the armed forces — to be treated with the same dignity and respect of their straight comrades, rather than hiding in plain sight.
Alva, a 38-year-old San Antonio native, finds himself fighting a two-front war — one to maintain his health, and the other for gays who still conceal the truth about their sexual orientation from comrades and commanders.
He's got a home and devoted partner, but the war never is far away.
read more here
Wounded ex-Marine now fighting a two-front war
I often wonder what the troops from other nations think of us when they have gay people serving side by side but the US doesn't want them serving and kicks them out no matter how long they've been in, how good they are, how trained they are, or how much they are liked by those they serve with.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
America's Worth Less Soldiers
by
Chaplain Kathie
America celebrates 4th of July in style as we do every year. We shoot off fireworks and stuff ourselves with barbeque, watermelon and beer. Spray ourselves with sunscreen during the day followed by bug spray at night. We listen to patriotic speeches and music feeling how great it is to be an American waving our flags yet never really stop to think how we got here.
From the time the Patriots decided to do whatever it took to "form a more perfect union" free, up until last night, we have been a nation of worth less soldiers. That's right. Worth less, not worthless. See, we have a habit of saying we support the troops when we send them off to fight our nation's battles. We train them, arm them, cloth them, feed them and expect them to follow orders given, fight the battles no matter how truly worthy or unworthy the cause, no matter how plans are either proper or paltry, then stay until there is victory. We seem so interested in the beginning when it looks as if each and every military campaign waged will be quick and easy, believing we have the best military in the world and nothing can stop us. We cheer as we send men and women off with our thanks and our prayers.
We even manage to pay attention to news reports coming through our TV sets combined with the latest local news and celebrity scandals. We may say a quick prayer for the soldier just killed, then move onto our own lives, our own problems, our own personal battles. Yet that interest soon fades as military campaigns go on and we begin to think of the cost in terms of our taxes. We begin to notice things we need right here at home at the same time we hear about what is being done for the nation our men and women are dying in wondering what's in it for us. Then we manage to regret sending them, blaming the ones deciding to send them and the failure of the planners to provide this best military in the world with a swift victory.
Gone are the days when Vietnam veterans were treated with hostility when they came back from where they were sent. Gone are the days when troops return to empty airports. They are welcomed home to US soil in style. Many are given parades and parties. Even when a fallen soldier returns, people line the streets with flags as the flag draped coffin carries the soldier on his or her last ride home. We feel we're just doing our part for the heroes who say "we're just doing our jobs" when we try to hold them up as heroes.
We manage to do some things for them, but there are very few giving a few moments out of their day to honor any of them. When they go, they are worth everything it takes, but when they return they are no longer soldiers going to risk their lives. They are veterans and many of them needing help to heal from their wounds. Then, then they are worth less. They are worth less of our attention. They are worth less than making sure they are clothed, fed, sheltered and worth less than then helping to train them how to heal. We find it too difficult to help the wounded, say a prayer for them, spend time talking to them or even to take the time to remember what that red, white and blue flag actually means.
Yesterday President Obama hosted some members of the 101st airborne at a White House 4th of July party. You would think the news would be all over this event but I had to struggle to find the report. I finally found it on CBS videos.
President Obama celebrated the 4th of July with Fort Campbell's 101st.
President Obama has done a lot for the wounded and our veterans since the beginning of the year and First Lady Michele has a great love for military families. They are setting the tone for the rest of us to follow, but we're just too busy it seems to remember the price our veterans paid so that we can celebrate the 4th of July with our families and friends.
It is our fault things got as bad for the wounded and our veterans. Sure, Bush was in charge and Congress was controlled by Republicans during the worst of it for this nation's veterans, but they couldn't have avoided the needs of our veterans as long as they did if we were paying attention. We let it all happen until the media began to tell their stories to us. Then suddenly we cared about what they needed. We didn't pay attention because a veteran, especially a wounded one, is worth less than a soldier. This attitude was made perfectly clear on the floor of Congress as budgets were being debated. It seemed the Republican members of congress found no problem at all funding the military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan, but found it very difficult to fund the VA to take care of the wounded both campaigns were producing. Again they proved to the world that when it comes to veterans, they are worth less than soldiers. America is not the only guilty nation of this attitude. I read the reports from the UK and Australia all the time as each nation seems to find the money to send them but never seems to find the money when it comes to taking care of them after.
You would think that having the best military in the world would also translate into appreciation of them when they are no longer in the military risking their lives, but spending the rest of their lives as the unique among us as veterans of this nation's battles. I wonder how many of our veterans spent yesterday wondering they have been forgotten. How many of them spent the day wondering how to pay their bills as their claims have been trapped in a mountain of other claims waiting to be honored? We know there are now over 900,000 claims waiting to be honored. Among them are claims filed by veterans of our nation's battles no longer able to work because of their wounds. They spent yesterday looking at their families and wondering how much longer it will take for this nation to live up to our end of the deal and take care of them. They spent it wondering when they will once again be worth as much as when they were sent ending up wounded and waiting.
Did they make us wait when this nation said "we need you" to go and risk your life? Did they make us wait until it was a good time for them to go? No, they never made us wait at all. Even when Vietnam was being protested and some burnt draft cards, they enlisted to go. Even when after September 11th caused a surge of enlistments wanting to fight the terrorists that attacked us, ended up being sent to Iraq instead, they still enlisted. Even as the appalling conditions at Walter Reed were being reported, they still wanted to join because this nation needed them. They were not oblivious to what this nation was not doing for the veterans, they went in spite of it. They still believe in us, that we would eventually do the right thing and really value their service.
How many families spent yesterday at the grave of their family member so wounded by PTSD that they committed suicide because help was not there for them? How many veterans spent it in shelters because they never received the help they need for their sake? So much we refuse to see behind the fireworks, speeches and music of this celebration we do every year.
So when do we actually live up to being a "grateful nation" and stop treating the veterans like they are worth less than soldiers?
Chaplain Kathie
America celebrates 4th of July in style as we do every year. We shoot off fireworks and stuff ourselves with barbeque, watermelon and beer. Spray ourselves with sunscreen during the day followed by bug spray at night. We listen to patriotic speeches and music feeling how great it is to be an American waving our flags yet never really stop to think how we got here.
From the time the Patriots decided to do whatever it took to "form a more perfect union" free, up until last night, we have been a nation of worth less soldiers. That's right. Worth less, not worthless. See, we have a habit of saying we support the troops when we send them off to fight our nation's battles. We train them, arm them, cloth them, feed them and expect them to follow orders given, fight the battles no matter how truly worthy or unworthy the cause, no matter how plans are either proper or paltry, then stay until there is victory. We seem so interested in the beginning when it looks as if each and every military campaign waged will be quick and easy, believing we have the best military in the world and nothing can stop us. We cheer as we send men and women off with our thanks and our prayers.
We even manage to pay attention to news reports coming through our TV sets combined with the latest local news and celebrity scandals. We may say a quick prayer for the soldier just killed, then move onto our own lives, our own problems, our own personal battles. Yet that interest soon fades as military campaigns go on and we begin to think of the cost in terms of our taxes. We begin to notice things we need right here at home at the same time we hear about what is being done for the nation our men and women are dying in wondering what's in it for us. Then we manage to regret sending them, blaming the ones deciding to send them and the failure of the planners to provide this best military in the world with a swift victory.
Gone are the days when Vietnam veterans were treated with hostility when they came back from where they were sent. Gone are the days when troops return to empty airports. They are welcomed home to US soil in style. Many are given parades and parties. Even when a fallen soldier returns, people line the streets with flags as the flag draped coffin carries the soldier on his or her last ride home. We feel we're just doing our part for the heroes who say "we're just doing our jobs" when we try to hold them up as heroes.
We manage to do some things for them, but there are very few giving a few moments out of their day to honor any of them. When they go, they are worth everything it takes, but when they return they are no longer soldiers going to risk their lives. They are veterans and many of them needing help to heal from their wounds. Then, then they are worth less. They are worth less of our attention. They are worth less than making sure they are clothed, fed, sheltered and worth less than then helping to train them how to heal. We find it too difficult to help the wounded, say a prayer for them, spend time talking to them or even to take the time to remember what that red, white and blue flag actually means.
Yesterday President Obama hosted some members of the 101st airborne at a White House 4th of July party. You would think the news would be all over this event but I had to struggle to find the report. I finally found it on CBS videos.
President Obama celebrated the 4th of July with Fort Campbell's 101st.
Obama Wishes Happy 4th
Sat Jul 04 17:16:24 PDT 2009
President Obama honors the men and women who went beyond the call of duty in battle and speaks about the importance of our nations independence and reflects on what it means to be an American.
President Obama has done a lot for the wounded and our veterans since the beginning of the year and First Lady Michele has a great love for military families. They are setting the tone for the rest of us to follow, but we're just too busy it seems to remember the price our veterans paid so that we can celebrate the 4th of July with our families and friends.
It is our fault things got as bad for the wounded and our veterans. Sure, Bush was in charge and Congress was controlled by Republicans during the worst of it for this nation's veterans, but they couldn't have avoided the needs of our veterans as long as they did if we were paying attention. We let it all happen until the media began to tell their stories to us. Then suddenly we cared about what they needed. We didn't pay attention because a veteran, especially a wounded one, is worth less than a soldier. This attitude was made perfectly clear on the floor of Congress as budgets were being debated. It seemed the Republican members of congress found no problem at all funding the military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan, but found it very difficult to fund the VA to take care of the wounded both campaigns were producing. Again they proved to the world that when it comes to veterans, they are worth less than soldiers. America is not the only guilty nation of this attitude. I read the reports from the UK and Australia all the time as each nation seems to find the money to send them but never seems to find the money when it comes to taking care of them after.
You would think that having the best military in the world would also translate into appreciation of them when they are no longer in the military risking their lives, but spending the rest of their lives as the unique among us as veterans of this nation's battles. I wonder how many of our veterans spent yesterday wondering they have been forgotten. How many of them spent the day wondering how to pay their bills as their claims have been trapped in a mountain of other claims waiting to be honored? We know there are now over 900,000 claims waiting to be honored. Among them are claims filed by veterans of our nation's battles no longer able to work because of their wounds. They spent yesterday looking at their families and wondering how much longer it will take for this nation to live up to our end of the deal and take care of them. They spent it wondering when they will once again be worth as much as when they were sent ending up wounded and waiting.
Did they make us wait when this nation said "we need you" to go and risk your life? Did they make us wait until it was a good time for them to go? No, they never made us wait at all. Even when Vietnam was being protested and some burnt draft cards, they enlisted to go. Even when after September 11th caused a surge of enlistments wanting to fight the terrorists that attacked us, ended up being sent to Iraq instead, they still enlisted. Even as the appalling conditions at Walter Reed were being reported, they still wanted to join because this nation needed them. They were not oblivious to what this nation was not doing for the veterans, they went in spite of it. They still believe in us, that we would eventually do the right thing and really value their service.
How many families spent yesterday at the grave of their family member so wounded by PTSD that they committed suicide because help was not there for them? How many veterans spent it in shelters because they never received the help they need for their sake? So much we refuse to see behind the fireworks, speeches and music of this celebration we do every year.
So when do we actually live up to being a "grateful nation" and stop treating the veterans like they are worth less than soldiers?
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Wounded Warriors Return to Iraq
Wounded Warriors Return to Iraq
June 29, 2009
JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq (American Forces Press Service) – Six wounded soldiers, all amputees, returned here last week hoping to close the door on the combat that changed them forever.
The last time Sgt. Christopher A. Burrell was in Iraq, he was pulled from a burning vehicle in Baghdad’s Sadr City neighborhood. A tourniquet applied by another soldier saved his life, but a nurse here at the Air Force Theater Hospital had to break the tragic news—his left leg was gone, taken by an explosively formed projectile.
Now, almost a year and a half later, and after months of rehabilitation and physical therapy at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., Burrell returned to Iraq with five other amputee combat veterans as part of Operation Proper Exit.
”I don’t remember much, but I remember my nurse,” Burrell said. ”Shelly. She was an angel, there to comfort me when I was in a difficult spot.“
Operation Proper Exit, a United Service Organizations pilot program sponsored by the Army and the Troops First Foundation, allows soldiers wounded in combat to return to Iraq. The goal of the program is to give the soldiers an opportunity for closure, and to see the progress made in securing and stabilizing the country, Burrell said.
”It kind of helps you heal mentally and emotionally, to close that chapter in your life so you can move on,” he said. ”The progress that’s been made—it shows that we made a sacrifice but it was for a reason.”
go here for more
http://www.army.com/news/item/5539
June 29, 2009
JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq (American Forces Press Service) – Six wounded soldiers, all amputees, returned here last week hoping to close the door on the combat that changed them forever.
The last time Sgt. Christopher A. Burrell was in Iraq, he was pulled from a burning vehicle in Baghdad’s Sadr City neighborhood. A tourniquet applied by another soldier saved his life, but a nurse here at the Air Force Theater Hospital had to break the tragic news—his left leg was gone, taken by an explosively formed projectile.
Now, almost a year and a half later, and after months of rehabilitation and physical therapy at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., Burrell returned to Iraq with five other amputee combat veterans as part of Operation Proper Exit.
”I don’t remember much, but I remember my nurse,” Burrell said. ”Shelly. She was an angel, there to comfort me when I was in a difficult spot.“
Operation Proper Exit, a United Service Organizations pilot program sponsored by the Army and the Troops First Foundation, allows soldiers wounded in combat to return to Iraq. The goal of the program is to give the soldiers an opportunity for closure, and to see the progress made in securing and stabilizing the country, Burrell said.
”It kind of helps you heal mentally and emotionally, to close that chapter in your life so you can move on,” he said. ”The progress that’s been made—it shows that we made a sacrifice but it was for a reason.”
go here for more
http://www.army.com/news/item/5539
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Bank turns down checks for Operation Open Arms?
How does a bank refuse to cash checks at all? I can understand them waiting the usual time for checks to clear before they release funds, but how do they refuse to do it? How do they refuse for a veterans charity of all places when there is such a dire need out there to take care of our troops and veterans?
Capt. John "Giddy Up" Bunch had an idea, perhaps a God sent idea, and has apparently been blessed with success. He managed to touch enough hearts that donations came in to support his work and blessed that he's getting the national media attention. So how is it that this program may be forced to close because of the bank's refusal to handle the transactions now that Operation Open Arms is tax exempt? I really wish that Capt. Bunch mentioned the bank's name because I'm sure all the military families and veterans families out there would be more than happy to pull their money out of whatever bank it is. It would also be very interesting to know if this bank was among the recipients of the bailout the tax payers provided.
Capt. John "Giddy Up" Bunch had an idea, perhaps a God sent idea, and has apparently been blessed with success. He managed to touch enough hearts that donations came in to support his work and blessed that he's getting the national media attention. So how is it that this program may be forced to close because of the bank's refusal to handle the transactions now that Operation Open Arms is tax exempt? I really wish that Capt. Bunch mentioned the bank's name because I'm sure all the military families and veterans families out there would be more than happy to pull their money out of whatever bank it is. It would also be very interesting to know if this bank was among the recipients of the bailout the tax payers provided.
Founder may shut down Operation Open Arms in 2010
Nonprofit offers soldiers on leave goods, services
By DREW WINCHESTER, dwinchester@breezenewspapers.com
Operation Open Arms has been so successful over the last four years that its success threatens its future existence.
OOA founder and Pine Island fishing guide Capt. John "Giddy Up" Bunch said he plans on shutting down the nonprofit organization by April 19, 2010, if the financial outlook does not improve.
"I have come to one astounding conclusion: If I can't get enough donations that will allow me to at least compensate our fishing guides and key benefactors by April 19, 2010 ... financially, I am going to have to shut it down," he said.
Bunch recently had to return nearly $24,000 in donations because his bank would not cash the checks. He said the bank refused to cash the checks after he received his nonprofit 5013c status.
With only $1,900 left in the bank account, Bunch had to turn down a prestigious invitation from Maj. Gen. Mark A. Graham to attend a conference in Colorado focusing on soldier mental and physical health.
Bunch said, as honored as he was to be invited, he did not feel right about draining the OOA bank account in order attend. He ranks it as his "biggest disappointment" thus far with OOA.
"I spend this money like I've got a leash around the eagle's neck," Bunch said. "Nothing is spent unless it's necessary."
Started as an organization that focused on Pine Island soldiers returning from active duty, OOA quickly grew to focus on soldiers from all over Southwest Florida. Now troops from 49 of the 50 states make their way to the area to take part in services offered by OOA.
go here for more
http://www.cape-coral-daily-breeze.com/page/content.detail/id/507640.html
Thursday, June 18, 2009
In VA backlog, a one in a million, you!
by
Chaplain Kathie
You've read about the backlog of claims increasing and a lot of their stories about being trapped in the waiting line. While this piece on AP may not be news to you, you should read it because it has several stories about veterans, not just numbers. These are real people, with real lives, real families and real wounds.
Aside from the economy getting in the way of them finding work after they served in the military, the National Guards have a harder time because if they are still active, employers don't want to risk hiring them and see them redeploy again. There is also the issue of the veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan being viewed as "damaged" because too many do not understand what PTSD is or the fact there are different levels of it. Mild PTSD, if they have it, does not make them unemployable nor does it make them hard to work with. As a matter of fact, if they are treated for mild PTSD the result is a better employee. Considering they survived combat, if nothing else, it shows they care about others and are able to think fast on their feet. They are able to follow instructions and usually dutifully follow orders of superiors. One other factor to consider is that if they are able to work and they are hired, there is also the sense of appreciation for giving them a job and you have a grateful employee.
For chronic or high level of PTSD when they cannot work, there is nothing for them while their claim is trapped in the backlog. They are just one in a million waiting for what they already earned. That's right, they earned it. They earned it by saying they would go and risk their lives, ending up wounded for having done it. The VA compensation is not a hand out, or as some Republican elected have stated in the past, welfare.
What is being done has not stopped the backlog of claims from increasing. It's time to take a good look at the lives these claims represent. These are our veterans!
One part of the citizens of this nation can get the veterans to seek help for PTSD, get them to understand what it is so that they realize there is absolutely nothing to be ashamed of at all because they carry this wound. This translates into also getting older veterans to seek help at the same time newer veterans are seeking help and this cluster of veterans should have been foreseen. Plans should have been in place many years ago to prepare for this, but no one was paying attention. At the same time there were two military campaigns going on in Iraq and Afghanistan, no one was preparing for the increase in veterans needing care. Now they are trying to play catchup at the same time the numbers are increasing.
It's time to take a leap of faith in our veterans and just approve the claims already in the backlog. Stop looking for proof and just rate the ones already there, then take a look at them later when the emergency situation for them is over. Fraudulent claims are not the problem right now. In addressing fraudulent claims the VA should issue a warning that if a claim turns out to be fraudulent, then the claimant will not only have to repay the VA but will also have to pay with interest and other legal options are on the table. They should have the opportunity to remove their claim first, something along the line of a month before the other claims are to be approved. The new claims processors are not enough to meet the challenge right now, but when most of the backlog is cleared, they will have plenty of time to review the claims to make sure they are legitimate.
Congress has already taken a baby step in helping veterans with PTSD by making it easier to prove their claim. They will no longer have to find the stressor that caused PTSD and there is already an assumption of honesty in these veterans. So why not go all the way?
I know what suffering is when trying to have a claim approved and I know what it does to a PTSD veteran still struggling with the diagnosis along with what it all comes with. I know what it's like to see another denial in the mail being read by a veteran wounded by his service and then assaulted by the denial accusing him of lying. My husband saw his claim tied up for six years. He sought help but was forced to pay for his treatment because his claim was not approved. Our insurance company wouldn't pay for his mental health care, even though we were paying for it, because the VA doctors linked it to Vietnam. We nearly lost everything and I nearly lost him. Why was his claim tied up? A social security number typed wrong on his Bronze Star award. When he received it, he told his commander it had the wrong number on it and he was told they would correct it. It ended up on his DD214 but was not fixed all the way through the paperwork chain. Once this was corrected, his claim was approved but it took a general to do it.
How many others are suffering the same right now? How many in the backlog fast approaching a million? How many other families are seeing all hope slip away? How many are wondering what the words "grateful nation" really mean when they are living with the wound caused by serving this nation?
Chaplain Kathie
You've read about the backlog of claims increasing and a lot of their stories about being trapped in the waiting line. While this piece on AP may not be news to you, you should read it because it has several stories about veterans, not just numbers. These are real people, with real lives, real families and real wounds.
Aside from the economy getting in the way of them finding work after they served in the military, the National Guards have a harder time because if they are still active, employers don't want to risk hiring them and see them redeploy again. There is also the issue of the veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan being viewed as "damaged" because too many do not understand what PTSD is or the fact there are different levels of it. Mild PTSD, if they have it, does not make them unemployable nor does it make them hard to work with. As a matter of fact, if they are treated for mild PTSD the result is a better employee. Considering they survived combat, if nothing else, it shows they care about others and are able to think fast on their feet. They are able to follow instructions and usually dutifully follow orders of superiors. One other factor to consider is that if they are able to work and they are hired, there is also the sense of appreciation for giving them a job and you have a grateful employee.
For chronic or high level of PTSD when they cannot work, there is nothing for them while their claim is trapped in the backlog. They are just one in a million waiting for what they already earned. That's right, they earned it. They earned it by saying they would go and risk their lives, ending up wounded for having done it. The VA compensation is not a hand out, or as some Republican elected have stated in the past, welfare.
(If you are stunned by this, then you do not watch CSPAN and hear their own words coming out of their mouths. Hearings have been going on for many years and when the Republicans had control over the funding, their excuse for not increasing the VA budget to meet the challenge of taking care of the wounded warriors was there was not enough discretionary money to do it. It was really easy for them to be in front of a group of veterans when they wanted their votes to say they appreciated their service and then make statements against veterans on the floor of Congress. Senator John McCain was one of them. Check his voting record when it comes to veterans then maybe I can stop hearing how much better he would have been as President. As bad as it is, at least President Obama has increased funding and is trying to fix the mess the VA is in. While he has a long way to go, McCain wanted to hand out cards so that veterans could just go to private doctors and disappear. )
What is being done has not stopped the backlog of claims from increasing. It's time to take a good look at the lives these claims represent. These are our veterans!
One part of the citizens of this nation can get the veterans to seek help for PTSD, get them to understand what it is so that they realize there is absolutely nothing to be ashamed of at all because they carry this wound. This translates into also getting older veterans to seek help at the same time newer veterans are seeking help and this cluster of veterans should have been foreseen. Plans should have been in place many years ago to prepare for this, but no one was paying attention. At the same time there were two military campaigns going on in Iraq and Afghanistan, no one was preparing for the increase in veterans needing care. Now they are trying to play catchup at the same time the numbers are increasing.
It's time to take a leap of faith in our veterans and just approve the claims already in the backlog. Stop looking for proof and just rate the ones already there, then take a look at them later when the emergency situation for them is over. Fraudulent claims are not the problem right now. In addressing fraudulent claims the VA should issue a warning that if a claim turns out to be fraudulent, then the claimant will not only have to repay the VA but will also have to pay with interest and other legal options are on the table. They should have the opportunity to remove their claim first, something along the line of a month before the other claims are to be approved. The new claims processors are not enough to meet the challenge right now, but when most of the backlog is cleared, they will have plenty of time to review the claims to make sure they are legitimate.
Congress has already taken a baby step in helping veterans with PTSD by making it easier to prove their claim. They will no longer have to find the stressor that caused PTSD and there is already an assumption of honesty in these veterans. So why not go all the way?
I know what suffering is when trying to have a claim approved and I know what it does to a PTSD veteran still struggling with the diagnosis along with what it all comes with. I know what it's like to see another denial in the mail being read by a veteran wounded by his service and then assaulted by the denial accusing him of lying. My husband saw his claim tied up for six years. He sought help but was forced to pay for his treatment because his claim was not approved. Our insurance company wouldn't pay for his mental health care, even though we were paying for it, because the VA doctors linked it to Vietnam. We nearly lost everything and I nearly lost him. Why was his claim tied up? A social security number typed wrong on his Bronze Star award. When he received it, he told his commander it had the wrong number on it and he was told they would correct it. It ended up on his DD214 but was not fixed all the way through the paperwork chain. Once this was corrected, his claim was approved but it took a general to do it.
How many others are suffering the same right now? How many in the backlog fast approaching a million? How many other families are seeing all hope slip away? How many are wondering what the words "grateful nation" really mean when they are living with the wound caused by serving this nation?
Number of VA claims poised to hit 1 millionBy KIMBERLY HEFLING – 5 hours ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Veterans Affairs Department appears poised to hit a milestone it would rather avoid: 1 million claims to process.
The milestone approaches as the agency scrambles to hire and train new claims processors, which can take two years. VA officials are working with the Pentagon under orders from President Barack Obama to create by 2012 a system that will allow the two agencies to electronically exchange records, a process now done manually on paper.
"They keep talking about a seamless transition, but I can tell you I haven't seen it being very seamless," said John Roberts of Houston, who is national service director for the nonprofit Wounded Warrior Project, which helps veterans such as David Odom, 29, of Haleyville, Ala.
Odom, a former Army staff sergeant who did three tours in Iraq, said he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. With symptoms such as anxiety and anger, he finds it difficult to work. He said he's waited months to learn the outcome of an appeal that would give him higher compensation.
"It's added quite a bit of stress because I don't know what's going to happen. I want to know either way so I can figure out what my next step is," Odom said.
Former Marine Cpl. Patrick Murray, 25, of Arlington, Va., who was severely burned and had his right leg amputated after a roadside bomb explosion in 2006, considers himself fortunate. He got a job once he was discharged from the military, making for an easier wait as his case is processed.
"For someone that gets out of the military and doesn't have a job lined up, they have no income," said Murray, who works for a construction company. "They are sitting there making zero money, either racking up credit card bills or taking out loans, whatever it may be, all the while waiting."
Murray said the first claim he filed was lost. The second ended up at a VA office in Colorado, and the third was finally processed after a couple of months. It was mind-boggling, he said, to have spent 11 months in Walter Reed Army Medical Center and in outpatient care with stacks of medical files, only to find out he had to mail his records to the VA to prove he was injured.
On the Net:
: Veterans Affairs Department
: House Committee on Veterans Affairs
: Wounded Warrior Project
: AMVETS
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