Troubled JBLM soldiers find comfort on horseback
BY NANCY BARTLEY; THE SEATTLE TIMES
Published: 03/05/12
YELM, Wash. — After six tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, Staff Sgt. Aaron Heliker's luck ran out.
A roadside bomb left him with third-degree burns, a traumatic brain injury and nerve damage to one leg. But the unseen wounds became the most disabling of all.
The 27-year-old who rode motorcycles, was a whiz at auto-body work and had wanted to be a soldier since he was old enough to ask his mother to "buy some army pants" could no longer tolerate being around people.
He was anxious, hypervigilant, expecting attack. Memories rushed in of his last tour in Afghanistan, the five-hour attack by insurgents his convoy fended off, the soldier he found bleeding to death but was unable to help.
To block out the memories and the surges of anxiety that made him feel always ready for battle, he began to drink. He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and sent to a lockdown mental-health facility for veterans.
Faced with overwhelming physical pain, afraid of being close to anyone, and so mired in despair that he could see no hopeful future, Heliker didn't want to continue living.
Then he met Fred.
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Monday, March 5, 2012
Fort Campbell soldier captured after soldier girlfriend's body found
Suspect in Tennessee shooting captured in NC
The Associated Press
Monday, Mar. 05, 2012
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. -- A Fort Campbell soldier suspected of killing his girlfriend, also a soldier, and leaving her body in a bathtub was arrested in North Carolina over the weekend, authorities said Monday.
A witness told police that Spc. Shardae Wright, 23, was seen trying to get away from her boyfriend, later identified as 21-year-old Spc. Nicholas Rico Durant, after he allegedly pointed a gun at her early Saturday morning. An eyewitness ran to get help and then heard several gunshots.
Her body was found Saturday morning in an apartment in Clarksville, near the Army post on the Tennessee-Kentucky state line. Police found several shell casings outside the apartment and multiple bullet holes in the door.
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The Associated Press
Monday, Mar. 05, 2012
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. -- A Fort Campbell soldier suspected of killing his girlfriend, also a soldier, and leaving her body in a bathtub was arrested in North Carolina over the weekend, authorities said Monday.
A witness told police that Spc. Shardae Wright, 23, was seen trying to get away from her boyfriend, later identified as 21-year-old Spc. Nicholas Rico Durant, after he allegedly pointed a gun at her early Saturday morning. An eyewitness ran to get help and then heard several gunshots.
Her body was found Saturday morning in an apartment in Clarksville, near the Army post on the Tennessee-Kentucky state line. Police found several shell casings outside the apartment and multiple bullet holes in the door.
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Three Fort Campbell Soldiers Charged with Assault on Police Officer
Three Fort Campbell Soldiers Charged with Assault on Police Officer
David Bryant
Mar 05
HOPKINSVILLE, KY (3/5/12) – Three soldiers from Fort Campbell are now in the Christian County Jail charged with assaulting a police officer. The arrests followed an incident early Saturday morning in downtown Hopkinsville.
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David Bryant
Mar 05
HOPKINSVILLE, KY (3/5/12) – Three soldiers from Fort Campbell are now in the Christian County Jail charged with assaulting a police officer. The arrests followed an incident early Saturday morning in downtown Hopkinsville.
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Fort Hood hosting hiring event for soldiers
Post set to host hiring events
Mar. 4 2012
By Colleen Flaherty
Killeen Daily Herald
Leading military talent management firm Orion International, in conjunction with the White House's Joining Forces veterans employment initiative, is kicking off a series of hiring events at Fort Hood this week.
The event, to be held Thursday and Friday on post, is not just another job fair, said David Coe, a senior partner with Orion and a former Marine.
"This is not a job fair where we are bringing in dozens and dozens of employers who are interested in hiring veterans but are not really sure what they're going to do with them or are where they're going to place them," said Coe.
"The employers working with Orion coming to the event actually already have identified specific jobs openings for both (noncommissioned officers) and junior officers."
Junior-enlisted soldiers also are invited to the event, he said, and those attendees who pre-register have the opportunity to interview one-on-one with employers on the spot.
About 60 jobs will be offered as a direct result of the hiring fair, he said.
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Mar. 4 2012
By Colleen Flaherty
Killeen Daily Herald
Leading military talent management firm Orion International, in conjunction with the White House's Joining Forces veterans employment initiative, is kicking off a series of hiring events at Fort Hood this week.
The event, to be held Thursday and Friday on post, is not just another job fair, said David Coe, a senior partner with Orion and a former Marine.
"This is not a job fair where we are bringing in dozens and dozens of employers who are interested in hiring veterans but are not really sure what they're going to do with them or are where they're going to place them," said Coe.
"The employers working with Orion coming to the event actually already have identified specific jobs openings for both (noncommissioned officers) and junior officers."
Junior-enlisted soldiers also are invited to the event, he said, and those attendees who pre-register have the opportunity to interview one-on-one with employers on the spot.
About 60 jobs will be offered as a direct result of the hiring fair, he said.
read more here
Veterans group helping troops prepare for civilian life
MILITARY: Oceanside veterans group helping troops prepare for civilian life
By MARK WALKER
Posted: Sunday, March 4, 2012
A new effort to help members of the military transition to the civilian workforce gets under way in Oceanside this week.
The Veterans Association of North County is hosting free career-preparation classes with an emphasis on interviewing skills and creating a resume.
The classes come as the unemployment rate for California veterans hovers at about 12 percent, according to state statistics.
The rate is closer to 30 percent for those younger than 25, and nearly 50 percent for blacks younger than 25.
Those numbers could get even bleaker as the Marine Corps reduces its troops by 5,000 this year and by a similar number for the two following years.
"We have to secure jobs for these people," said Chuck Atkinson, founder of the Oceanside-based veterans association. "All the problems start with not having a job. You can't pay the mortgage, you can't pay for the car and everything else starts to go downhill."
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By MARK WALKER
Posted: Sunday, March 4, 2012
A new effort to help members of the military transition to the civilian workforce gets under way in Oceanside this week.
The Veterans Association of North County is hosting free career-preparation classes with an emphasis on interviewing skills and creating a resume.
The classes come as the unemployment rate for California veterans hovers at about 12 percent, according to state statistics.
The rate is closer to 30 percent for those younger than 25, and nearly 50 percent for blacks younger than 25.
Those numbers could get even bleaker as the Marine Corps reduces its troops by 5,000 this year and by a similar number for the two following years.
"We have to secure jobs for these people," said Chuck Atkinson, founder of the Oceanside-based veterans association. "All the problems start with not having a job. You can't pay the mortgage, you can't pay for the car and everything else starts to go downhill."
read more here
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