People thank me for what I do then, sooner or later, they ask why I do it. The truth is, my Vietnam vet husband has saved countless lives without knowing it. What I do, I do because of him. He never seems to be aware of the fact he is a hero.
Yesterday was Veterans Day and as usual, I was online most of the day or on the phone. He never complains about the hours I spend or the fact most weeks it's about a 70 hour week. He doesn't complain about hours on the phone or calls late at night. He never complains when I have to travel or go to meetings or yet another training session. He remembers what it was like when he had no one to talk to and when I had no one to teach me what he could not tell me.
My husband was very young in Vietnam and doesn't think he did much at all. He did what was asked of him and that is where the story was supposed to end. Most of them are just like that. They think they are average, but they don't see how rare they are when the rest of the over 300 million people in this country don't have a clue what it is like to risk your life for the sake of the nation. He thinks his father and uncles, all WWII veterans and all passed away, were the heroes, even though none of them thought they were.
I grew up surrounded by veterans and that is behind the reason I began to investigate Vietnam and PTSD. I knew there was something very different about Jack and wanted to figure it out. I've been doing this since we met in 1982.
I wanted everyone to know what I knew so they would be able to help veterans heal and stop the twisted thinking that they were suddenly some kind of selfish jerk when their lives before they went were much different than the way they came home. I wanted everyone to know that it was not their fault. To know they could heal and actually live lives again. Above all, I wanted them to know that beyond the heartache there comes a time when they will rejoice over the victory after the worst is over.
None of what we are seeing has to happen with the suicides, arrests, divorces, domestic violence or homelessness. No family has to bury a veteran because hope has slipped away and they commit suicide.
No one serves alone and no one heals alone. It takes the same kind of interest we all seem to have as we see them off when they deploy and welcome them home with a prayer of thanks. No one should have to spend over 25 years studying everything about PTSD coming out when people like me have already been there, lived with it and done it so they won't have to. No wife should have to lose a husband like Jack and I want them all to spend the rest of their lives happy they went through the fire the way I did so they can see them living again.
I've helped a lot of veterans over the years and some have been awarded medals for their valor. Each one of them wants me to thank my husband for what I do because they know behind it all is a man who is filled with grace and a humble spirit thinking of them.
Whenever the financial problems take a toll on me, I feel like a failure because my family is suffering for my lost paychecks but Jack tells me I am not a failure at all. He still believes in me even if I cannot believe in myself at times and he reminds me how important what I do is. I look at him and know what is possible.
This is also my greatest heartache.
When some people dismiss PTSD, I think of the years I was watching Jack dying a slow death always afraid each day would be the day a police officer would come to the door instead of him. I think of how much pain he was carrying and know even with that depth of pain, he still would risk his life to help someone else. How with the nightmares and flashbacks, the last thing he wanted to do was to quit his job but he did only because his doctors told him the stress was making it all worse for him.
I think about phone calls from mothers and wives after it was too late to help their veterans. Then I grieve deeper when I know none of it had to happen if they knew what I knew, found me sooner, had support earlier and knew they were not alone.
Even though Veterans Day is over, there will still be parades on Saturday. When you go to them, when you want to thank a veteran for their service, remember that they are not just a veteran on one day out of the year but everyday of every year and maybe when you thank them you will think of the price many of them still pay for their willingness to lay down their lives and what that statement actually means. Laying down your life means being willing to die for someone else, but it also means to be willing to put the needs of someone else first. This my Jack does everyday and this is why he is a hero to a lot of veterans he will never meet. He is the reason I do what I do.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Florida Proclaims November Is Hire A Veteran Month
Florida Proclaims November Is Hire A Veteran Month
Source: Governor of Florida
Posted on: 12th November 2009
Governor Crist Calls on Florida Businesses to ‘Hire the Best – Hire a Vet’
Recognizing the tremendous contributions and significance of veterans who have served our country, Governor Charlie Crist today visited with residents of Alexander “Sandy” Nininger State Veterans’ Nursing Home in Pembroke Pines. The 120-bed skilled nursing care facility opened to residents in 2001 and can accommodate 60 residents with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
Governor Crist has proclaimed November 2009 as Hire a Veteran Month in Florida. The Governor’s proclamation reaffirms Florida’s commitment to the men and women who serve in our nation’s Armed Forces in times of war and peace.
“By recognizing our veterans, we honor not only their military service but also the contributions they bring to the workforce,” said Governor Crist. “In addition to the tremendous value our veterans provide their employers, a newly expanded federal tax credit for companies that hire our veterans offers a financial incentive to foster new businesses and help existing businesses grow.”
Source: Governor of Florida
Posted on: 12th November 2009
Governor Crist Calls on Florida Businesses to ‘Hire the Best – Hire a Vet’
Recognizing the tremendous contributions and significance of veterans who have served our country, Governor Charlie Crist today visited with residents of Alexander “Sandy” Nininger State Veterans’ Nursing Home in Pembroke Pines. The 120-bed skilled nursing care facility opened to residents in 2001 and can accommodate 60 residents with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
Governor Crist has proclaimed November 2009 as Hire a Veteran Month in Florida. The Governor’s proclamation reaffirms Florida’s commitment to the men and women who serve in our nation’s Armed Forces in times of war and peace.
“By recognizing our veterans, we honor not only their military service but also the contributions they bring to the workforce,” said Governor Crist. “In addition to the tremendous value our veterans provide their employers, a newly expanded federal tax credit for companies that hire our veterans offers a financial incentive to foster new businesses and help existing businesses grow.”
Florida has more than 1.7 million veterans, including more than 970,000 under the age of 65. Hire a Veteran Month is coordinated by the Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs, the Agency for Workforce Innovation (AWI), Workforce Florida, Inc. (WFI) and the state’s 24 Regional Workforce Boards.
read more here
Montana Roundtable looks to boost care for vets
Roundtable looks to boost care for vets
By PETER JOHNSON • Tribune Staff Writer • November 12, 2009
Montana is the model for broader mental health screening for war veterans, but the state needs to do more to meet their other health and employment needs.
Those were some of the major points made in two back-to-back Veterans Day panel discussions led by U.S. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont.
About 25 people attended the nearly three-hour session in the Civic Center Commission Chambers.
Baucus said he is "deeply troubled" by the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, and the increase in suicides among veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
He praised the Montana National Guard for creating a model program requiring more frequent mental health screenings for returning veterans.
Baucus successfully carried a federal bill that will require that system to be used nationwide.
He said veterans face other issues, including chronic claims backlogs, underfunded facilities, bureaucratic red tape and a lack of access to facilities in rural areas.
Susan Fuehrer, acting director for the Veteran Administration Montana Healthcare System, said the VA treated 31,744 Montana veterans last year, and is seeking to expand its service. Plans call for a 24-bed inpatient mental health center at Fort Harrison near Helena, veterans centers in Great Falls and Kalispell, and expanded rural health treatment in Plentywood and Hamilton.
Additionally, Buck Richardson, minority veteran program coordinator for the Rocky Mountain states, is trying to line up more veteran representatives on Indian reservations to help Native American vets learn about health benefits. He also hopes to arrange for more traveling psychologists to help provide screenings for PTSD.
read more here
Roundtable looks to boost care for vets
By PETER JOHNSON • Tribune Staff Writer • November 12, 2009
Montana is the model for broader mental health screening for war veterans, but the state needs to do more to meet their other health and employment needs.
Those were some of the major points made in two back-to-back Veterans Day panel discussions led by U.S. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont.
About 25 people attended the nearly three-hour session in the Civic Center Commission Chambers.
Baucus said he is "deeply troubled" by the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, and the increase in suicides among veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
He praised the Montana National Guard for creating a model program requiring more frequent mental health screenings for returning veterans.
Baucus successfully carried a federal bill that will require that system to be used nationwide.
He said veterans face other issues, including chronic claims backlogs, underfunded facilities, bureaucratic red tape and a lack of access to facilities in rural areas.
Susan Fuehrer, acting director for the Veteran Administration Montana Healthcare System, said the VA treated 31,744 Montana veterans last year, and is seeking to expand its service. Plans call for a 24-bed inpatient mental health center at Fort Harrison near Helena, veterans centers in Great Falls and Kalispell, and expanded rural health treatment in Plentywood and Hamilton.
Additionally, Buck Richardson, minority veteran program coordinator for the Rocky Mountain states, is trying to line up more veteran representatives on Indian reservations to help Native American vets learn about health benefits. He also hopes to arrange for more traveling psychologists to help provide screenings for PTSD.
read more here
Roundtable looks to boost care for vets
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Order of Silver Rose awarded to 7 Vietnam Veterans on Veterans Day
Central Texas observes Veterans Day
Posted On: Wednesday, Nov. 11 2009 05:53 AM
From staff reports
Several local events and programs are planned across Central Texas today in observance of Veterans Day.
Killeen's annual Veterans Day parade will take place beginning at 11 a.m. today in downtown Killeen.
The lineup will be along Avenue E, and the parade will kick off at City Hall, Avenue D and College Street.
The grand marshal for the parade will be retired Gen. Robert Shoemaker, a former Army aviator and commander of the 1st Cavalry Division and III Corps.
Shoemaker was also assigned as deputy commander, U.S. Army Forces Command (FORCOM) and a year later was promoted to general and became commander of FORSCOM.
An awards ceremony and a reception will be held after the parade at American Legion Post 223 at 1:30 p.m.
The "Order of the Silver Rose" medal will be presented to seven local Vietnam veterans by the Armed Forces E9 Association and District 54 state Rep. Jimmie Don Aycock. The event is open to the public.
read more here
http://www.kdhnews.com/news/story.aspx?s=37030
Posted On: Wednesday, Nov. 11 2009 05:53 AM
From staff reports
Several local events and programs are planned across Central Texas today in observance of Veterans Day.
Killeen's annual Veterans Day parade will take place beginning at 11 a.m. today in downtown Killeen.
The lineup will be along Avenue E, and the parade will kick off at City Hall, Avenue D and College Street.
The grand marshal for the parade will be retired Gen. Robert Shoemaker, a former Army aviator and commander of the 1st Cavalry Division and III Corps.
Shoemaker was also assigned as deputy commander, U.S. Army Forces Command (FORCOM) and a year later was promoted to general and became commander of FORSCOM.
An awards ceremony and a reception will be held after the parade at American Legion Post 223 at 1:30 p.m.
The "Order of the Silver Rose" medal will be presented to seven local Vietnam veterans by the Armed Forces E9 Association and District 54 state Rep. Jimmie Don Aycock. The event is open to the public.
read more here
http://www.kdhnews.com/news/story.aspx?s=37030
US doctors worried Hasan was 'psychotic:' report
But he was still treating our soldiers?
US doctors worried suspect was 'psychotic:' report
US military doctors had worried that the suspected gunman in the Fort Hood shootings was "psychotic" and unstable but did not seek to sack him, National Public Radio reported on Wednesday, citing unnamed officials.
Psychiatrists and medical officials who oversaw Major Nidal Hasan, accused of opening fire on fellow soldiers at the Fort Hood base in Texas last week, held a series of meetings between the spring of 2008 and the spring of this year to discuss serious concerns about his work and his behavior, NPR reported.
"Put it this way. Everybody felt that if you were deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, you would not want Nidal Hasan in your fox hole," one official was quoted as saying.
read more here
US doctors worried suspect was psychotic report
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