Help us heal our Nation and honor those who have served and sacrificed.

VVA to President Trump:Help us Heal our Nation

Vietnam Veterans of America

March 21, 2019
Statement by Vietnam Veterans of America National President John Rowan:
On the eve of Vietnam Veterans Day, March 29, we are chagrined by the President’s inability to let a fellow Vietnam veteran rest in peace.

Every day we live our founding principle, “Never again will one generation of veterans abandon another.”

We have succeeded in teaching our fellow Americans that warriors don’t make policy.

They have learned to separate the war from the warrior.

The era of spurning veterans is past. We have made sure of it.

Our experience has taught us how fear and hatred corrode the soul and imprison the spirit.

We have forgiven those who have condemned us for answering our country’s call.

We have forgiven those who received educational and medical deferments from serving in the war.

We have forgiven Hollywood for its negative portrayal of veterans. We are proud of the warmth, respect, and honor that our newest veterans receive today.

And we are greatly saddened by the President’s inability to let a Vietnam War hero rest in peace.

Mr. Trump, it’s time to move on. Help us heal our Nation and honor those who have served and sacrificed.

Ignorant Fire Chief insulted firefighter asking for help with PTSD

Fire Chief made joke about PTSD to firefighter?

Why is this still happening when someone with the authority should have invested time in understanding what PTSD is considering the men and women under him face the causes of it on a daily basis?

Advocates have spent decades to educate everyone on what PTSD is, why they have it and what they can do to heal. We spent all these years to do that so that the stigma is proven stupid and so are jerks like this who feel it is OK to make a joke about a firefighter finding the courage to #BreakTheSilence and ask for help.

Any kind of idea what kind of message this sends to the people they rescue who end up with PTSD as survivors too?

At least the other firefighters made sure their "brother" got the help he asked for and the want to make sure the Chief is held accountable~

Firefighters call for Marion Fire Chief to step down after disconcerting comments

The Indy Channel News
By: Nicole Griffin
Mar 22, 2019

"He said, 'ha, we'll tell your family how good of a guy you were,'" Captain Lamb recalled. He said the chief then made a joke, referencing the death of another firefighter.

MARION —Firefighters at the Marion Fire Department said they are stunned about comments the fire chief reportedly made to a firefighter who confided in him about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms he was having. They are now asking the city's mayor to demote the fire chief, or for him to step down.

"It's probably the least common thing for someone to talk about it, to be honest with you," Captain Jordan Lamb, Marion Fire Department, and local union president, said.

Captain Lamb has been a part of the Marion Fire Department for 12 years. Day after day, he responds to difficult calls. He said every firefighter and EMT handles the emotions differently.

"I just try to keep it in and let it pass. Kids are the worse - especially since I have kids," Captain Lamb said. "I can see anything, but you put a kid out there it's going to affect me."

The department recently went through mandatory suicide awareness training. One firefighter came forward to the chief expressing his feelings of PTSD. It was the chief's response that has firefighters upset.
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Priest stabbed during mass...parishioners show no fear stopping attacker

Priest stabbed while leading Mass; suspect arrested after attack is caught on camera

WLKY
Ralph Ellis and Sarah Jorgensen, CNN
March 23, 2019

A man who allegedly stabbed the elderly rector of a church in Canada during a televised Mass as shocked parishioners watched will appear in court Saturday.

The attack happened as the priest of St. Joseph's Oratory at Mount Royal led Mass on Friday morning at the church in Montreal, Quebec, police said.

The suspect's name was not immediately released. He is expected to appear by video feed Saturday afternoon at the Quebec Court Criminal Room. If any charges are filed, they will be determined by prosecutors, Constable Caroline Chevrefils said.

Police said the stabbing was not considered a terrorist attack, and described it as "an isolated act committed by one individual."

Father Claude Grou, 77, was taken to a hospital and is recovering, Chevrefils said.

The 26-year-old suspect was detained by security staff at the church and taken into custody by police, Chevrefils said. She said the suspect is known to police.
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Fort Hood Soldiers Mentor at Good Grief Camp

Soldiers supporting child survivors

Fort Hood Sentinel
By Ariana-Jasmine Castrellon, Sentinel Staff
March 21, 2019

“I just found so much joy in being able to be present for somebody who’s grieving,” Wright said.

During the Good Grief Camp, March 15-17, 131 service members and veterans from around the Fort Hood area volunteered to mentor 123 child survivors at Duncan Elementary School. Each child was given his or her own mentor during the camp.

Training for volunteers was held on Friday, prior to the Good Grief Camp kick off Saturday morning, where child survivors were greeted by their mentors and broken up into seven different groups depending on their age.

The camp, hosted by Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors with support from the Fort Hood Survivor Outreach Services, offered classes and activities for adult and child survivors.

Sgt. Sarah Vanterpool, attached to Golf Forward Support Company, 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, shared that although she is married and does not have kids, she volunteered as a mentor as a way to give back to children in the community.

“At the end of the day, they just get to have their voices heard,” Vanterpool said.

Vanterpool said that although she was “voluntold” her first year to be a Good Grief Camp mentor, she came back for the second time this year on her own.

“It was the best experience ever,” Vanterpool said. “It makes me feel great – like amazing.”

TAPS has been a private non-profit organization since 1994. TAPS’ mission is to provide assistance, programs and resources to Family members, children, spouses, friends and fiancés after the loss of a loved one who died as a result of his, or her service. TAPS provides support 24/7.
For more information on visit TAPS
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VA overpays over time...then takes money back all at once?

Should veterans have to pay for VA’s benefits errors?

Military Times
By: Leo Shane III
March 20, 2019

“We’ve got to stop the VA from pulling the rug out from under veterans and their families.”

A group of Senate lawmakers is again arguing that if veterans are overpaid on benefits because of accounting errors, they shouldn’t be punished for the federal government’s mistakes.

Legislation introduced Wednesday would require changes to how the Department of Veterans Affairs handles benefit corrections, including limiting the amount they can withhold from veterans’ future payouts to cover the debt.

Volunteers gather at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., for a clean-up event on June 2, 2018. (Gene Russell/VA)

“It’s wrong to put the debt from the VA’s accounting mistakes on the shoulders of men and women who have served their country,” Sen. Jon Tester, ranking member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, said in a statement. “For some veterans, these benefits make the difference between paying monthly rent or missing payments.

“We’ve got to stop the VA from pulling the rug out from under veterans and their families.”

Under current law, VA officials can withhold 100 percent of a veteran’s monthly benefits to cover past overpayments, even if those mistakes are the fault of federal officials.
read more here

Better off with you feeling better about being here

Tragic Loss Of Brothers To Veteran Suicide Inspires VA Employee To Raise Awareness

SM Corridor News 
Date: March 21, 2019 

Carolyn Colley, an associate counsel at VA’s Board of Veterans’ Appeals, recently produced the short film With or Without Me to raise awareness of Veteran suicide and to illustrate its devastating impact on their loved ones.

Veteran suicide is an issue close to Colley’s heart as she lost both of her brothers, who were combat Veterans, to suicide.

In February, she took part in a film workshop for post-9/11 Veterans called the Patton Veterans Project whose mission is to help Veterans cope with post traumatic stress, reduce social isolation and strengthen family, community and professional bonds.

The program incorporates screening events that validate Veterans’ experiences, advance community dialogue and educate the public about the mental health challenges facing Veterans and military families.

Tragedy Assistance Program For Survivors (TAPS) partnered with the Patton Veterans Project (PVP) by participating in its game-changing “I Was There” filmmaking workshop. Colley, an Air Force Veteran, joined Ben Patton and other Veterans touched by suicide loss to make the film.

According to TAPS, With or Without Me is a powerful example of the ways in which storytelling through film can at once bring awareness to a difficult issue to light while at the same time being immensely healing for the creators of the content. Watch the film and see for yourself.

To learn more about TAPS and the Patton Veterans Project, please visit their websites at taps.org and pattonveteransproject.org.

TAPS and PVP will present a session on the healing power of film for suicide loss survivors on April 26 at the 52nd Annual Conference of the American Association of Suicidology in Denver.
read more here

Vietnam veteran died from stage 4 brain cancer...after hearing there was nothing wrong with him?

Vietnam veteran dies after battling stage four brain cancer

News 4 San Antonio
by Darian Trotter
March 20th 2019

"They couldn't keep him at BAMC because there was nothing wrong with him," Poe said. "How can you tell me there's nothing wrong with him and less than a week later he has stage four brain cancer."

Ms. Poe says her husband Doyle died late Wednesday night.

SAN ANTONIO - There's an update to a story we first brought you Tuesday night about a Vietnam veteran battling a terminal illness.

Doyle Poe has since died from stage four brain cancer.

Brooke Army Medical Center or BAMC is responding to our report on Doyle Poe.

Poe's wife, Annette, reached out to us upset that he wasn't diagnosed with the terminal disease after repeated attempts to get him help.
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New depression treatment from VA can cause suicidal thoughts? Seriously?

VA to Offer New Ketamine-Based Nasal Spray for Depression

Military.com
Patricia Kime
March 20, 2019

As with any other medication, there are risks. Spravato carries a boxed warning for side effects that include misuse, the reason it is administered under a doctor's supervision. The list of side effects includes sedation and blood pressure spikes and disassociation, such as feelings of physical paralysis and out-of-body experiences. It also can cause suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

The newest FDA-approved medication to treat severe depression, a nasal spray based on the anesthetic (and misused hallucinogenic party drug) ketamine, will soon be available to veterans treated within the Department of Veterans Affairs.

In a move that may help thousands of former service members with depression that has not improved with other treatments, VA officials announced Tuesday that the department's doctors are now authorized to prescribe Spravato, the brand name for esketamine, a molecular variation of ketamine.
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Widow of Columbus Fire Department wants to start a conversation to save lives

Widow of Columbus firefighter remembers husband, talks need for mental health awareness

WBNS 10 News
Bryant Somerville
March 20, 2019

Eight years of dating and a five-month engagement led Katie-Jean and Shane Brintlinger to the middle of the dance floor for their first dance as a married couple.

Shane picked the song "More of You" by Chris Stapleton.

The day is frozen in time in pictures. They are moments Katie-Jean remembers every detail of.

They met at Otterbein University. Katie-Jean says, originally, Shane wanted to be a high school history teacher, but later changed his mind and opted for fire school. She says it was his passion.

"He would always tell me 'I thrive in those environments,'" she said. "He would say 'When I go in and people are freaking out, that's when I do my best. I can slow my mind down and think through what I need to do.'"

He worked in London, then Delaware. Then, the last five years, Brintlinger worked at the Columbus Fire Department.

"He truly loved it because he could just go after it," she said. "He loved that high speed, everything about it."

December 29, 2017, they were married. A year and two months later, Katie-Jean was at the grocery store.

"I called him to see if the asparagus was still good in our fridge," she said. "Well, he didn't answer."

A picture shows Katie-Jean on the back of a fire engine, talking to her husband one last time at the cemetery.
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Floyd E. “Tut” Fann Veterans Home abusing veterans?

Current employee and family of veterans allege physical abuse, retaliation at Huntsville veterans home

WAFF News
By Chris Joseph
March 20, 2019

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF) - Allegations of veterans mistreatment continue against the Floyd E. “Tut” Fann Veterans Home in Huntsville.

A current employee and family members of former veterans at the home are alleging physical abuse, mistreatment, chronic under-staffing, and a culture of fear at the facility.

The allegations come after WAFF 48 News published a report on Tut Fann where two former employees alleged mistreatment of the veterans staying there.

Years of state inspection documents supported some of the former employees claims, but the most recent reports clear the facility of any major deficiencies.

The facility serves roughly 150 veterans, some who are unable to speak for themselves.

The following account comes from Amanda Childress, the granddaughter of a former veteran who stayed at the facility. WAFF 48 News contacted Amanda after she commented pictures of her grandfather, Tommie Pierce, on a Facebook post of the original report.
read more here