After Being Shot By Police, Veteran Finally Gets Help

E. Texas veteran shot by deputies shares message of hope
Tucson News Now
By Skylar Gallop
Jan 27, 2016

TYLER, TX (KLTV)
A 25-year-old East Texas veteran says getting help with PTSD saved his life, after being shot by Smith County deputies in an apparent attempt at "suicide by police".

Cameron Dossey, a Navy veteran who served tours in Afghanistan and Africa, now has a strong message to other veterans to get help.

Dossey discusses his service, saying, "I don’t like people thanking me for my service, because there’s things I'm not proud of."

Dossey's family says he came back changed. Dossey admits he struggled with depression.

"You know, the last couple of years... getting stuck in my own head, all I hear are my own thoughts."

Thoughts turned into actions.

"I tried to commit suicide three times."

Family members were unable to reach him.

Dossey explains, "I never wanted to talk to my parents about what I've seen, because in my mind I'm carrying the visions and the price for freedom around in my head, so that they don't have to."

His family urged him to get help.

Dossey recalls, "I called the Green Zone, a counseling service for veterans, and I left a message but never got a call back. At that point, I did make an attempt to reach out."

Another call was returned by a different organization, but was unsuccessful at identifying the deep depression and PTSD Dossey was in denial of.
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Oldest Female “Queen Bee” Veteran Died in Her Sleep at 108

Alyce Dixon, oldest female veteran, dead at 108
FOX News
January 28, 2016

Alyce Dixon, one of the first African-American women to serve in the army and believed to be the oldest living female veteran, died Wednesday. She was 108.

Dixon, known as “Queen Bee,” died in her sleep, the Washington DC Veterans Affairs Medical Center said, according to FOX5DC.

Born in Boston in 1907 as Alice Ellis, Dixon changed the spelling of her first name when she was 16, inspired by actress Alyce Mills, the VA said in a prior press release. She briefly attended Howard University but quit school early to help support her family.

She joined the Women’s Army Corps in 1943, stationed in England and France during World War II and working in the postal service with the 6888th Battalion. Her job was to help eliminate a massive backlog of letters and packages sent to soldiers fighting on the frontlines. She received the Good Conduct Medal for her service.
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Non Combat Death in Iraq Under Investigation

Coalition servicemember dies in Iraq from noncombat injuries
Stars and Stripes
Published: January 28, 2016

A coalition servicemember supporting operations against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria died of a noncombat-related injury in Iraq, the Combined Joint Task Force in charge of Operation Inherent Resolve said in a statement.

The incident is under investigation, the statement said.
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Veteran With Cancer and VA Claim Died at 46

Barry Coates dead; veteran was at heart of VA scandal
CNN
By Scott Bronstein, Nelli Black, Drew Griffin and Curt Devine
CNN Investigations
January 27, 2016

Washington (CNN) Barry Coates, the U.S. veteran who became the human face of the Veterans Affairs scandal over delays in care in 2014, died on Saturday of the cancer that wracked his body after waits for medical care at a VA facility. He was 46.

Coates became a national figure representing delays in medical care at VA hospitals after he was featured prominently in a CNN investigation in January 2014.

The CNN investigation that included Coates was the first national story about delays in care across the country that year. It led to a national controversy resulting in the resignation of VA Secretary Eric Shinseki, and ultimately a law that provided $16 billion to overhaul the Department of Veterans Affairs, passed by Congress and signed by President Obama.
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What Did CBS Wounded Warrior Project Leave Out?

There is so much the CBS report on Wounded Warrior Project left out. First their "mission" itself is troubling.

WWP only "helps" post 9-11 veterans.

"Who We Serve"
Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) serves veterans and service members who incurred a physical or mental injury, illness, or wound, co-incident to their military service on or after September 11, 2001 and their families.

Mission Statement
To raise awareness and enlist the public's aid for the needs of injured service members.
To help injured service members aid and assist each other.
To provide unique, direct programs and services to meet the needs of injured service members.

Did you actually read that? Most people didn't, so all the reports of what they did with the money seem so shocking.

Go back and read those words again. "Raise awareness" which is something WWP did not invent. That's been going on for decades and they haven't explained why they need hundreds of millions to do it.

"Aid and assist each other" but they don't explain why they should get money if veterans are doing it for each other. After all, that is something they do for free and for the most part, exactly what most charities are taking care of.

There are huge sums of money regular folks give when they see the commercials tugging at your heart. Then there are even bigger donations corporations get good PR out of plus a tax write-off.

Southeastern Grocers, which owns Winn-Dixie, Harveys and BI-LO, raised $3,044,091.38.

The money was raised with donations made between July 1 and July 5, plus all profits earned from sales on July 4 at the three supermarket chains. The donations were collected across Southeastern Grocers' nearly 790 stores.
Every penny from the fundraiser will go to Wounded Warrior Project's Independence Program, which helps injured veterans live independently, despite their injuries. The program provides personalized plans for each vets needs or interests.

And that was back in July. Goes to show that while it was for Independence Day, they seemed to have forgotten that older veterans waiting even longer for their wounds to be taken care of were excluded.
Raytheon did it too.

SUPPORTING THE WOUNDED

Raytheon actively supports those wounded while serving their country. In 2014 we fulfilled a five-year grant to the Wounded Warrior Project totaling $2.5 million to provide transition assistance to wounded troops and their caregivers.

Raytheon's grant allowed the organization to expand its Transition Training Academy in six states and to offer two additional certification courses. The academy provides information technology training to help students compete in the job market. More than 4,500 wounded warriors and caregivers have graduated from the academy since 2010.

And Brawny Wounded Warrior Project Celebrates "Plaid Day" with Brawny

One program that will benefit from the Brawny® brand donation is Warrior Care Network™. Warrior Care Network, which is set to begin serving injured veterans in 2016, increases access to quality care for two of the most commonly experienced wounds of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan: post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI). WWP and its Warrior Care Network partners will commit $100 million over three years to ensure that thousands of wounded veterans do not fall through the cracks.

ATLANTA, Dec. 30, 2014 /PRNewswire/-- Georgia-Pacific, the maker of Brawny® paper towels, is proud to have donated more than $2 million to Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) following its third year of partnering together. WWP is a national organization dedicated to honoring and empowering wounded service members transitioning back to civilian life through unique, direct programs and services. This year alone, the Brawny® brand raised $600,000, achieving its 2014 goal.

And you can look up past millions from other years. Then you can also see that WWP has been writing huge checks to colleges. Yep, money you donated to them to help veterans has actually gone to colleges and other places at the same time they took in money for veterans.

Wounded Warrior Project has approved a $15.7 million grant over three years for UCLA Health to expand its Operation Mend program.

Biggest problem with all of this is this part.

The CEO has said that the fundraising should and can be included in the programs and services.

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Wounded Warrior Project told CBS News it is committing $100 million to a new mental health care initiative, and they hope to raise another $500 million for long-term care for severely wounded veterans.

What this doesn't say is when will they actually do it? If they are including the money they have given to colleges in that total, it is not the same as actually doing the work. Veterans 'disgusted' by Wounded Warrior report revelations

Veterans we spoke with in Tampa say they are sickened by allegations that the charity spent $26 million in 2014 on expensive parties and conferences. It’s nearly the same amount the Wounded Warrior Project spent on combat stress recovery, which is its top program.

Naturally WWP isn't happy about the reporting going on. CBS didn't mention how the new Caregiver Act was pushed by WWP but excluded pre-911 veterans and our families. It didn't mention that while you donated to WWP they donated to other charities.

The David Lynch Foundation (DLF) has received a $125,000 grant from Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) to provide the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique to veterans who are affected by combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). WWP’s Grant Program, now in its fourth year, is expanding the availability of programs and services that provide support to this generation of injured service members.

But again, not making this too easy on you, you can look up other charities they gave money to.  Who knows? You may even see that you wrote them checks too.

A new program funded by Wounded Warrior Project aspires to improve mental health services and care for veterans in the private sector.

The charity is using $70 million to fund an effort that will create outpatient programs at four of the nation's top academic medical facilities, aimed at helping sufferers of post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury.
Reported June 2015

***WWP ISSUES RETRACTION DEMAND TO CBS NEWS***
January 27, 2016
Al Ortiz, Executive Director
CBS Network
51 W. 52nd Street
New York, NY 10019
Via email: ARO@cbsnews.com
Re: CBS Stories re: Wounded Warrior Project, Inc.

Then again, considering they never really say much at all in those commercials, other than they want your money, if you gave, BLAME YOURSELF!