Amputee Iraq Veteran Rides Again With Restored Faith

Canton veteran who lost leg rides again thanks to customized motorcycle

IndeOnline
By Kelly Byer
January 5, 2020

Charles Zollicoffer on the trike he received from CAMVETS

Challenge America: Makers For Veterans helped Charles Zollicoffer ride a motorcycle for the first time in eight years.

More importantly, he said, the fall program renewed his faith in humanity.

“I was left for dead on the side of the road,” he said. “So, during my time in this last seven or eight years, I have lost a lot of faith in people. A lot.”

In 2011, a drunken driver pulled in front of Zollicoffer’s 1995 Kawasaki motorcycle on state Route 800. The now retired U.S. Marine Corps and Army National Guard veteran had completed three tours in Iraq and was scheduled for deployment to Afghanistan.

Another person came across the early morning wreck and stopped to help. Zollicoffer, a 53-year-old Canton resident, spent months in a coma and had his left leg amputated at the hip.

This past Veteran’s Day, he received a modified trike at the Makers For Veterans closing ceremony. His family’s safety concerns had kept Zollicoffer from pursuing a costly trike, but they talked and accepted what it meant to him beforehand.

He’s taken a few rides.

“I can’t even describe the feeling, when you get that wind blowing through your hair,” joked Zollicoffer, who has a shaved head. read it here

Marine veteran shot by police had been treated for PTSD

Gunman's family apologizes to victims

Rapid City Journal
Arielle Zionts
2 hrs ago

Camille said part of Patrick's job involved cleaning out military vehicles used in the Middle East and he told her that the blood and flesh sometimes found inside the vehicles made him get Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD.

The family of the gunman in the Rapid City apartment shooting last Sunday apologized to the victims and said while their loved one was a Marine Corps veteran struggling with a myriad of mental health issues, it doesn't excuse his actions.

"We're very sorry" for what he did, Camille Alden said Friday while sitting next to a stack of her son's military and health records.

"Help is out there. He didn't take it," Wayne Alden said of his son, Patrick.

Camille, Wayne and one of Patrick's neighbors told the Journal that Patrick fired multiple rounds Friday afternoon in his second-floor apartment 851 East Minnesota St. in Rapid City.

The 29-year-old then went into the hallway where he fatally shot David Iron Horse, 64, according to a news release from the Rapid City Police Department. Patrick, who also shot toward officers and hit a police vehicle, was then fatally shot by an officer who came across him in a stairway, the release says.

Camille and Wayne said Patrick wasn't allowed to own guns due to an involuntary mental health commitment, but he would go to the shooting range with Wayne and he built a 9 mm handgun out of two different guns. They said that's the gun he used last Sunday, not a rifle like police said.

She went through papers from Patrick's July 2019 visit to the Albuquerque VA which found depression gave him a 70% disability, the migraines from his concussions gave him a 50% disability, a shoulder injury gave him a 20% disability, and an Achilles tendon injury gave him a 10% disability. The VA found that Patrick qualified for 100% disability pay and also took him off his anti-psychotic medication around this time, leaving him with anti-depressants.

read it here

Is “Support for Suicide Prevention Coordinators Act” more of the same? Probably.

Do reporters read the bills the president signs?

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 4, 2020

If your email box is like mine, it was full of the latest "plan" to prevent veterans from committing suicide, “Support for Suicide Prevention Coordinators Act” but none of them seem to have thought about all the other "plans" or as they put it "efforts" to actually do what they claim the bill will do.

Start with this executive order going back to 2018

January 9, 2018
Trump expands mental health benefits to decrease suicide rates among new veterans
USA TODAY
Donovan Slack

WASHINGTON — President Trump signed an executive order Tuesday to provide more benefits to service members transitioning from the military to civilian life in an effort to decrease veteran suicides.

Veterans who have recently left the military are between two and three times more likely to commit suicide than active duty service members, and nearly 20% of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder or depression.

The order directs the departments of Defense, Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs to submit a plan within 60 days to provide “seamless access to mental health treatment and suicide prevention resources.” read it here

That one did about as much good as this suicide prevention bill for police officers in 2019.

A bill sponsored by Sen. Josh Hawley to prevent police officer suicides with expanded mental health services will head to President Donald Trump’s desk.

The bipartisan bill authorizes $7.5 million annually over the next five years for suicide prevention programs and other treatment to assist officers and their families.

Hawley, R-Missouri, introduced the legislation following a Kansas City police officer’s suicide in February. It passed the House by unanimous consent Wednesday afternoon after clearing the Senate without opposition in May.

And yet, President Trump followed the other executive order with another one in March of 2019

The president made the announcement during a signing ceremony for an executive order aimed to address veteran suicides. Roughly 20 veterans per day take their own lives, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). In 2016, the suicide rate among veterans was 1.5 times higher than non-veterans, according to the VA. The order creates a new Cabinet-level task force, run by Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie, but that also includes the defense, health and human services and homeland security secretaries. The task force's job is to create a "public health roadmap" to improve veterans' quality of life and end veteran suicides. It's unclear what that will look like yet.

In that video you'll hear this

Supporting veterans in distress is a critical priority for our entire administration - everybody in the administration. Last year, I signed into law the largest funding bill for the VA in its history, which included $8.6 billion for veterans in mental health services. I also signed an executive order directing the Department of Defense, Veteran Affairs, and Homeland Security to ensure our veterans have seamless access to mental health care and suicide prevention resources. These efforts focus on veterans the first year after they separate from military service when they are at the heightened-risk area.

There are more but you get the idea. You will also hear a lot more on money and other things they were claiming they would do.

I wonder if anyone bothered to actually read the bill?
President Trump signs Brindisi-authored veteran suicide prevention act

The bill requires the Comptroller General of the United States to “conduct an assessment of the responsibilities, workload, and vacancy rates of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs’ Prevention Coordinators.” The job of a Suicide Prevention Coordinator is to identify veterans that are high-risk and make sure they receive appropriate care.

Judging by the news reports, no one did, but you can. Support for Suicide Prevention Coordinators Act

AT THE FIRST SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Thursday, the third day of January, two thousand and nineteen

To direct the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct an assessment of the responsibilities, workload, and vacancy rates of Department of Veterans Affairs suicide prevention coordinators, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Support for Suicide Prevention Coordinators Act”.

SEC. 2. COMPTROLLER GENERAL ASSESSMENT OF RESPONSIBILITIES, WORKLOAD, AND VACANCY RATES OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS SUICIDE PREVENTION COORDINATORS.

(a) Assessment Required.—The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct an assessment of the responsibilities, workload, training, and vacancy rates of Department of Veterans Affairs suicide prevention coordinators. Such assessment shall include a determination of—

(1) the extent to which the use and staffing of suicide prevention coordinators varies between Department facilities; and

(2) the extent to which the Secretary provides oversight of suicide prevention coordinators.

(b) Report To Congress.—Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a report containing the findings of the assessment required by subsection (a).

In other words, more of the same we have seen in the last decade.

This one may actually make a difference.

H. R. 5516 To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to enter into contracts with States or to award grants to States to promote health and wellness, prevent suicide, and improve outreach to veterans, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 19, 2019
Mr. Levin of California introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to enter into contracts with States or to award grants to States to promote health and wellness, prevent suicide, and improve outreach to veterans, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Commitment to Veteran Support and Outreach Act”.

SEC. 2. AUTHORITY FOR SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS TO AWARD CONTRACTS AND GRANTS TO STATES TO PROMOTE HEALTH AND WELLNESS, PREVENT SUICIDE, AND IMPROVE OUTREACH TO VETERANS.
(a) In General.—Chapter 63 of title 38, United States Code, is amended—
(1) by redesignating sections 6307 and 6308 and sections 6308 and 6309, respectively; and
(2) by inserting after section 6306 the following new section 6307:
Ҥ 6307. Contracts and grants to promote health and wellness, prevent suicide, and improve outreach to veterans

“(a) Purpose.—It is the purpose of this section to provide for assistance by the Secretary to States to carry out programs that promote health and wellness, strengthen the coordination, implementation, and evaluation of comprehensive veteran suicide prevention programs, and offer a high probability of improving outreach and assistance to veterans and the spouses, children, and parents of veterans, to ensure that such individuals are fully informed about, and assisted in applying for, any veterans and veterans-related benefits and programs (including State veterans programs) for which they may be eligible.

“(b) Contracts.— (1) The Secretary may enter into a contract with a State in order to carry out, coordinate, improve, or otherwise enhance health and wellness programs, comprehensive veteran suicide prevention programs, and outreach by the Department and the State (including outreach with respect to a State, county, or other local veterans program).

“(2) As a condition of entering into a contract with a State under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall require the State to submit to the Secretary a detailed plan for the use of any funds provided to the State pursuant to the contract and to meet the outcome measures developed by the Secretary under subsection (c)(4).

“(3) Each contract entered into with a State under this subsection to carry out an activity shall include a requirement that the State carry out the activity through—
“(A) the county veterans service officers of the State; or
“(B) if a county veterans service officer does not exist in the State or exists only in portions of the State, an appropriate State, local, or tribal entity as determined by the Secretary.
“(c) Grants.— (1) The Secretary may award a grant to a State to be used—
“(A) to carry out, coordinate, improve, or otherwise enhance—
“(i) health and wellness programs;
“(ii) comprehensive veteran suicide prevention programs;
“(iii) outreach activities; or
“(iv) activities to assist in the development and submittal of claims for veterans and veterans-related benefits; or
“(B) to increase the number of county veterans service officers serving in the State by hiring new, additional county veterans service officers.
“(2) A State that receives a grant under this subsection to carry out an activity described in paragraph (1)(A) shall carry out the activity through—
“(A) a county veterans service officer of the State; or
“(B) if a county veterans service officer does not exist in the State or exists only in portions of the State, an appropriate State, local, or tribal entity as determined by the Secretary.
“(3) (A) To be eligible for a grant under this subsection, a State shall submit to the Secretary an application therefor at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require.
“(B) Each application submitted under subparagraph (A) shall include the following:
“(i) A detailed plan for the use of the grant.
“(ii) A description of the programs through which the State will meet the outcome measures developed by the Secretary under paragraph (4).
“(4) (A) The Secretary shall develop and provide to the recipient of a grant under this subsection written guidance on outcome measures, policies of the Department, and procedures for applying for grants under this section.
“(B) The Secretary shall review the performance of each State that receives a grant under this section and shall make information regarding such performance publicly available.
“(C) In the case of a State that is a recipient of a grant under this subsection that does not meet the outcome measures developed by the Secretary, the Secretary shall require the State to submit a remediation plan under which the State shall describe how and when it plans to meet such outcome measures. The Secretary must approve such plan before the Secretary may award a subsequent grant to that State under this subsection.
“(5) A grant under this subsection—
“(A) shall be used—
“(i) to expand existing programs, activities, and services;
“(ii) to hire new, additional county veterans service officers; or
“(iii) for travel and transportation to facilitate carrying out clause (i) or (ii); and
“(B) shall be used to supplement and not supplant State and local funding that is otherwise available.
“(6) A grant under this subsection may be used to provide education and training, including on-the-job training, for State, county, local, and tribal government employees who provide (or when trained will provide) veterans outreach services in order for those employees to obtain accreditation in accordance with procedures approved by the Secretary and, for employees so accredited, for purposes of continuing education.
“(7) A grant awarded under paragraph (1)(A) may be used to carry out, coordinate, improve, or otherwise enhance an activity carried out pursuant to a contract entered into under subsection (b).
“(d) County Veterans Service Officer Defined.—In this section, the term ‘county veterans service officer’ includes—
“(1) a local equivalent veterans service officer; and
“(2) a tribal veterans service officer or tribal veteran representative.
“(e) Funding.— (1) Amounts for the activities of the Department under this section shall be budgeted and appropriated through a separate appropriation account.
“(2) In the budget justification materials submitted to Congress in support of the Department budget for any fiscal year (as submitted with the budget of the President under section 1105(a) of title 31), the Secretary shall include a separate statement of the amount requested to be appropriated for that fiscal year for the account specified in paragraph (1).
“(f) Authorization Of Appropriations.—There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2024, $50,000,000 to carry out this section.”.
(b) Clerical Amendment.—The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 63 of such title is amended by striking the items relating to sections 6307 and 6308 and inserting the following new items:
“6307. Contracts and grants to promote health and wellness, prevent suicide, and improve outreach to veterans.
“6308. Outreach for eligible dependents.
“6309. Biennial report to Congress.”

President Trump is no different than other presidents on this one since we have heard over and over again what they said mattered, but the end result, showed they really didn't bother to change anything other than the name that was going on a repeat bill.

Why is the Pentagon hiding number of other than honorable discharges?

Lawsuit: Pentagon Withholding Info From Veterans' Advocates

By The Associated Press
Jan. 3, 2020

Dana Montalto, a clinical instructor at Harvard Law School's Veterans Legal Clinic"...there are thousands of decisions going back at least 15 years. She said the lack of information hampers veterans' efforts to change their discharge statuses and to get more help." 

NORFOLK, Va. — A veterans group said the Pentagon has stopped releasing information that helps former service members to contest less-than-honorable discharges from the military.

The Defense Department has been breaking the law since April, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday in federal court in Virginia by the National Veterans Legal Services Program.

The group says it lacks access to decisions made by military review boards. The boards grant or deny a veteran's request to upgrade a less-than-honorable discharge. Veterans’ lawyers study those decisions in hopes of building successful arguments for their clients.

The lawsuit comes at a time of growing recognition that a less-than-honorable discharge can stem from behaviors brought on by post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injuries. Liberal consideration is supposed to be given to veterans with combat-related mental health conditions and to those who were sexually assaulted while in the military.
read it here

More on this subject is a great report on Military.com 'Bad Paper' Discharges Would Get Final Pentagon Review in Defense Bill

Who gets to decide if the service member can fight the discharge?

The bill states that the secretary of defense, upon receiving a petition from an individual whose upgrade request has been rejected, could order the service branch secretaries to grant the upgrade "if the Secretary of Defense determines that such recommendation is appropriate after review."

Notice the "could" instead of "must" or anything else that requires a review?

The report goes on to explain how many service members are being kicked out.

According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, more than 500,000 veterans currently have less-than-honorable discharges, and most of them cannot access VA medical care because of their discharge status.

And this part shows how many were kicked out instead of being helped to heal PTSD and TBI.

In a 2017 report, the Government Accountability Office said that 62% of the roughly 92,000 personnel separated for misconduct between fiscal 2011 and fiscal 2015 had been diagnosed with PTSD or TBI.

And all of that is because what happened to Vietnam veterans was repeated instead of corrected by the "grateful nation" all of them risked their lives to serve.

Vietnam-era soldiers eligible for discharge upgrades which came out in 2014. You'd think it would have been fixed by now...but then again, you'd have to think the someone was being held accountable.

PTSD was not recognized as a potential behavior altering medical condition until 1980, which means that disability claims and discharge upgrades based on claims of the condition routinely were denied by government agencies, to include the Army review boards.

Hagel's September instruction to the services followed by several months a federal court class action suit filed by a group veterans and the Vietnam Veterans of America that claims the military systematically denied discharge upgrade applications based on claims of PTSD.

The suit estimated that about one-third of the 250,000 other-than-honorable discharges issued to Vietnam era veterans may have been PTSD-related.

PTSD Victim-less More Survivor

Courage to change the things you can

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 3, 2019

Before you wonder, that is not me in the picture. Erica is my favorite boss from Fidelity National Title, when I lived in Florida. She surprised me by taking my T-shirt to Peru and climbed to the top of Machu Picchu wearing it. Erica is one of the most wonderful people you could ever meet. No matter what happens, she accepts what she cannot change while being determined to change what she can.

Most of us think that people like Erica are happy because they have been blessed with an easy life. We never seem to wonder why someone who is miserable became that way. We just assume they were born with a terrible attitude toward everyone else.

The truth is, no one is born miserable and very few actually are born blessed. What they become is determined by what they are willing to accept, as much as what they are willing to expect.

God, give me grace to accept with serenity

the things that cannot be changed,

Courage to change the things

which should be changed,

and the Wisdom to distinguish

the one from the other.

Living one day at a time,

Enjoying one moment at a time,

Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,

Taking, as Jesus did,

This sinful world as it is,

Not as I would have it,

Trusting that You will make all things right,

If I surrender to Your will,

So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,

And supremely happy with You forever in the next.

Amen.

Reinhold Niebuhr

When you have PTSD, you have it because of something that happened to you. If what happened was because you decided to risk your life for the sake of someone else, the origins of that pull on your soul was based on having a courageous love.

If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.
1 Corinthians 13:2

Most of the time, you had no control over any of it. What you do control is what you do as a survivor of it. Do you stay stuck as a victim of "it" or do you move forward as a survivor of it?

Isn't it time that someone reminded you of that choice you have? Isn't it time that you became less of a victim and more of a survivor? Why accept the limits others placed on themselves? Why not expect that you can live a happier life by breaking the boundaries you put

You control what came after "it" happened. You are the one who has the power to define your own future. The "it" that happened, or the many "its" lost because you lived, thus you became victorious. Why surrender to something that already lost?

Stop and think about what it took to walk away from "it" and notice the courage you had to move one foot in front of the other. Acknowledge what strength it took to utter the first words from a grateful voice instead of a bitter heart.

You can become "reasonably happy" in life, as long as you seek to change what you can about how you choose to live. That begins when you decide that you are done with being miserable and be willing to take the next step toward becoming hopeful.

Do not turn from God as if He is punishing you. He is the One who put it within you to cause you to be willing to serve others.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11 New International Version (NIV)

If He put the strength and courage within you to do your job, He also put what you need to heal from what that doing that job did to you. Trust in what you knew to be true before "it" happened, because it is all there. There is nothing that is, or has to be, lesser about you, other than your suffering. Time to become victim-less and more survivor. You can get up there from here, if you have the courage to try to change how you define yourself.