Veterans Administration says 900 World War II vets pass away every day

Four brothers in my husband's family were part of WWII. Louis DiCesare, my husband's father was in the Army. He had a Bronze Star and Purple Heart. His uncle John was a Marine and killed in action. Another uncle Tony was in the Navy and Uncle George was a Merchant Marine. While three brothers survived, George never recovered from WWII. His ship was hit by a kamikaze pilot and he spent the rest of his life living on a farm for what they used to call "shell shock."

On my side of the family all of my uncles were in the service as well and my father was a Korean War veteran. Growing up, I was surrounded by veterans but aside from the a few pictures they had on their walls, it was hard to imagine them any different than any other family. Once in a while there were war stories told with a great sense of humor but sooner or later, their eyes would cloud, a tear or two would fall and the subject was quickly changed.

When I was young, I would read about war in history class and imagine my relatives being part of what I was reading about, yet when I was in their company again, I never asked them any questions. The fact they were there, in real time, faded and they were just my uncles and my dad.

They are all gone now. I have memories of the stories they told but above all, I have memories of them as who they were and the love they gave. None of them thought of themselves as heroes. They were just your average "Joe" because most of the people they knew were also in the service at one time or another. Unlike Vietnam when most of the people my husband grew up with didn't go except for one of his nephews, who was the same age as he was at the time. Jack had an older sister with two sons and a daughter. One son went and the other didn't. When they came home, they didn't feel like heroes either. They felt like outcasts. No one wanted to hear their stories. It was almost as if they wanted to dismiss the year out of their lives as if they had been away on vacation. "Shell shock" was understood when George went to live on the farm but it was not understood when my husband and his nephew came home with the same kind of inside wound.

Veterans Administration says 900 World War II vets pass away every day
By Randy Conat
GENESEE COUNTY (WJRT) -- (11/11/09)--While we pause the honor those who have served their country on Veterans Day, we have to face the fact that their numbers are dwindling.
The Veterans Administration says 900 World War II vets pass away every day.
One of the oldest vets in Genesee County fondly remembers answering when his nation called.
He's 91 years old, but Eugene Glass of Flint Township can still clearly remember his time in the Army over 60 years ago. Glass was living near Grand Rapids when he was drafted.
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http://abclocal.go.com/wjrt/story?section=news/local&id=7113176

Alleged Army gunman's former patients need follow-up care, observers say

Alleged Army gunman's former patients need follow-up care, observers say
By Katherine McIntire Peters kpeters@govexec.com
November 12, 2009 If your doctor went on a killing spree, you might question the kind of care he provided, especially if he was ministering to your mental health. Thus, after law enforcement officials took Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan into custody at Fort Hood, Texas, last Thursday after he allegedly shot dozens of fellow soldiers and civilians, killing 13, service medical personnel should have started contacting patients formerly treated by the doctor, experts say.

"First, I'd get a list of all the patients he'd ever treated and get in contact with them," said Dr. Thomas P. Lowry, a psychiatrist who served two years as a doctor in the Air Force and then held the top psychiatry positions at four hospitals before retiring in 1999. It's important to know how the doctor's former patients perceived him and understand the care they received, he said.

Dr. Jonathan Shay, who spent 20 years as a Veterans Affairs Department psychiatrist specializing in the treatment of combat trauma before retiring last year, said some of Hasan's former patients might worry that the stories they shared in therapy sessions could have contributed to the doctor's state of mind, or even feel some responsibility for the killings.
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http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1109/111209kp1.htm

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Aftermath of Fort Hood shootings may be worse

Vietnam veteran will finally retire from military service

Vietnam veteran will finally retire from military service
Published: Saturday, November 14, 2009
By JOHN M. ROMAN
jroman@delcotimes.com

Senior Master Sgt. Ralph E. Miller Jr., 59, of Sharon Hill, of the Delaware Air National Guard, an aircraft mechanic during the Vietnam War and in Afghanistan, will finally be putting down his wrenches after nearly 30 years of combined military service.

He is the last member of the Vietnam War era still serving in the 166th Airlift Wing of the Delaware Air National Guard, according to Tech. Sgt. Benjamin Matwey, public affairs specialist for the unit.

“I’m a little anxious. It’s going to be interesting to see what my next career’s going to be — I’ve been around these guys for 20-plus years,” said Miller, a full-time enlisted man at the air base at New Castle County Airport.
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Vietnam veteran will finally retire from military service

Veterans Day has become every day

More than just a holiday now, Veterans Day has become every day
With two wars and the recent attack at Fort Hood, there’s more public concern about the treatment of vets. The Obama administration and Congress are doing something about that.

By Brad Knickerbocker Staff writer/ November 14, 2009 edition

It’s another 300-plus days until next Veterans Day, a holiday most Americans traditionally have seen as a day off from work.

But this year was different, coming as it did in the middle of two lengthy wars, just days before it was announced that the alleged “mastermind” of the 9/11 terrorist attacks that launched those wars was to be tried in New York City, and just days after a murderous rampage at the Army’s Fort Hood in Texas where soldiers prepare for war.

As a result, it seems, Veterans Day is becoming every day. President Obama alluded to this in his Saturday radio address.

“We owe our troops prayerful, considered decisions about when and where we commit them to battle to protect our security and freedom, and we must fully support them when they are deployed. We also owe them the absolute assurance that they’ll be safe here at home as they prepare for whatever mission may come.”

He was speaking specifically of Fort Hood, but the political and military establishment — and American society generally — are learning that safety for service personnel also means being adequately provided for between deployments and when the war is over for them.
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More than just a holiday now

Homeless Veterans Everday

Homeless Veterans Everyday

Posted to Great Americans by NamGuardianAngel on September 10, 2009

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Funerals to be held for 6 Fort Hood victims

Staff Sgt. Amy Krueger wanted to help soldiers heal from the anguish of PTSD. She was killed by someone else who cared little for the lives at Fort Hood. If we do nothing to honor her life and dedicate ourselves to taking care of those she loved, then people like the one who did all of this evil, win.

Jeffrey Phelps / The Associated Press
A veteran salutes the casket of slaim Army Sgt. Amy Krueger on Nov. 13 during the visitation for Kureger in Kiel, Wis. Krueger was one of 13 shot at Fort Hood, Texas, last week. Maj. Nidal Hasan faces 13 counts of premeditated murder.

Funerals to be held for 6 Fort Hood victims

By Ryan J. Foley - The Associated Press
Posted : Saturday Nov 14, 2009 10:50:55 EST

KIEL, Wis. — When Staff Sgt. Amy Krueger joined the Army Reserve after the 2001 terrorist attacks, she vowed to hunt down Osama bin Laden. When her mother said she couldn’t do it alone, the soldier defiantly told her, “Watch me.”

Krueger and several of the other 12 victims of the Fort Hood shooting rampage were set to be mourned at funerals across the country Saturday.

On Friday, hundreds packed into the Kiel High School gymnasium for a visitation for Krueger, 29, who was remembered as a determined, energetic young woman.

“We know what happened, but we don’t know why it happened,” said Geneva Isely, 57. “To give her all the way she did — and on United States soil. Just unbelievable.”

Krueger was set to deploy to Afghanistan for a second time in December and had recently arrived at Fort Hood for training. She had been studying psychology at University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and was a mental health specialist who wanted to help soldiers cope with combat stress.
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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/11/ap_army_hood_victims_funerals_111409/