Vietnam veterans, others pay respects at travelling replica

Jerry Sousa, of West Nottingham and a veteran from the 82nd Airborne, salutes the American flag during the playing of taps while standing in front of The Moving Wall, a traveling replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C., during Newmarket's Memorial Day celebrations at Leo A. Landroche Memorial Field in Newmarket on Saturday, May 30, 2009. Sousa's biological brother, Lance Cpl. Robert Sousa, a marine, died during the war and has his name on the wall, "but they are all my brothers," he said, refering to the wall's names and the veterans in attendance.
Scott Yates/syates@seacoastonline.com

Moving tribute: Vietnam veterans, others pay respects at travelling replica
Vietnam veterans, others pay respects at travelling replica
By Gina Carbone
gcarbone@seacoastonline.com
May 31, 2009 6:00 AM
Roy Greenleaf lost 14 friends on May 19, 1968, in Vietnam. He found them again on May 30, 2009, at The Moving Wall in Newmarket.

Greenleaf, now the Newington fire chief, served two tours with the Marine Corps in Vietnam. On that May day, he was with Fox Company, 3rd platoon, 3rd squad, when they were attacked outside Khe Sanh.


The Moving Wall tribute to Vietnam veterans comes to Newmarket He caught shrapnel. His friends died.

Greenleaf had their names highlighted on a piece of paper in his shirt pocket Saturday morning at The Moving Wall, the half-size replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., which has been in Newmarket since May 28 and will leave town June 1.

"They're not the victims, they're the survivors," Greenleaf said, pointing to the more than 58,000 names. "Their war is over. It's done. The rest of us are still the victims. We still walk with it."

Greenleaf came to the wall with the Ancient Order of Hibernians Pipes and Drums Band of Manchester. They joined in the Newmarket Memorial Day Parade Saturday morning wending through town to the wall, where hundreds of veterans, families and Seacoast residents paid respects to the fallen.

Rick Donnelly of Dracut, Mass., lost one-third of the Air Force commandos he flew into Vietnam with the day before the Tet Offensive. Seeing them again at the wall was an emotional experience. "Very much," he said, wiping his eyes.

The Red Knights Motorcycle Club of New Hampshire helped bring in the wall on Thursday night. Congregating around the flowers, photographs and other offerings were members of various military branches — including Navy veteran Ed Lyons of Kingston; Army veteran Jim Voss of Kingston; Coast Guard veteran Aaron Epstein of Fremont; and Army veteran Dick Rodier of Epping.
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http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090531-NEWS-905310328

Dr. George Tiller, killed at church

You cannot justify this. Don't give me the crap about the number of abortions because if you approve or even attempt to justify this, you are not pro-life. You are supporting evil and hiding behind the pro-life title. Pro-life means all life and not just the ones you deem worthy of breathing. This man was killed in church of all places. Isn't church the place we're supposed to be able to go to make peace with God and find redemption? Was it up to anyone else to take this man's life away from him? He was murdered in front of people at church,,,his family and friends!

There are good, decent people in this country that happen to be really pro-life and they take the lives of the living just as sacred as they do the unborn. I happen to believe life begins with birth and the soul enters into the body when "God breaths life into" as when He did with Adam. Others believe it begins with the conception. We can all agree the born are alive. So if you believe this is what God wants, then you really have a problem a lot bigger than being inconsistent.

Doctor who performed abortions is shot to death
Dr. George Tiller, whose Wichita, Kansas, women's clinic has been the target of anti-abortion protests for years, was shot and killed at his church today, his family said. Sunday afternoon, authorities took a man into custody near Kansas City after stopping a car that matched a description of the killer's getaway vehicle, according to Johnson County, Kansas, sheriff's deputies. full story

Older vets ready to support others in uniform

Older vets ready to support others in uniform

By Kenneth Fine - News-Argus of Goldsboro
Posted : Sunday May 31, 2009 13:42:09 EDT

GOLDSBORO, N.C. — Thomas Marlow hasn't stepped into his military uniform in decades.

Bill Carr no longer carries a government-issued weapon.

And it has been years since the last time Theodore Ivey fixed the radar on a fighter jet.

But within places like the American Legion Post 11 headquarters — an aging construct tucked off U.S. 117 within earshot of the Wayne County Fairgrounds — their rank and experiences still matter.

Mike Burris straightens his back before saluting the men who showed up for a meeting of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

"We've got a long history," he said. "We don't need to let the past die."

The News-Argus of Goldsboro reported that the men in the room bow their heads and say a prayer — for those who graced that building long before; for those who will be left to fill their seats when they, too, are gone.

As veterans of World War II, Vietnam and Korea grow older, many think about the fate of organizations like the VFW.

And they scoff at the notion that when they die, so, too, will veterans' needs for fellowship and a sympathetic ear.

"It helps your mind," Ivey said, looking down the line at the other men who fought in Vietnam. "I won't tell you what I did in Vietnam, what happened in Vietnam, but I'll tell him and him."

And that, he says, is why the young men and women currently fighting in two war theaters will one day fill the ranks of veterans' groups.

Bill Graham agrees.

"I could never talk about (Vietnam) with friends, family or anybody until I got associated with these groups," he said. "Until I found people who were in the same situation I was, I was closed off to everyone."
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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/05/ap_vet_support_053109/

Fishing Event Aims to Mend Those Who've Served

Event Aims to Mend Those Who've Served
'This Day Is Worth Living,' Veteran Says

By Daniel de Vise
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, May 31, 2009

Sixty-seven days after brain surgery, Staff Sgt. Dave Love was out on the Potomac, fishing for bass on a beautiful afternoon.

He and more than 90 other wounded warriors participated in the Army vs. Marines Spring Bass Challenge yesterday at Smallwood State Park in Marbury. The event was a welcome change of scene for men whose days can be a blur of doctor visits and who are often tormented at night by post-traumatic stress.

"This day is worth living," said Love, a 32-year Army National Guard veteran who suffered brain trauma from roadside bombs during four years in Iraq. "This is what life is about."

The service members were paired with tournament-level anglers, each of whom brought a boat and tackle. A few service members walked with canes, and one or two used wheelchairs. Most of the disabled service members were stationed at Fort Meade or Fort Belvoir or recovering at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

Tournament director Ken Kirk turned to bass fishing a decade ago after post-traumatic stress disorder brought him low.

"The next thing you know, no more headaches, no more nothing," he said. "If I can help one individual, if I can turn his light bulb on and help him recover, then we've accomplished what we set out to do."
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Event Aims to Mend Those Who Have Served

Sergeant Joseph Huiet is on his sixth tour of duty

Fatal shooting shows stress risk facing U.S. troops
Sun May 31, 2009
By Tim Cocks

COMBAT OUTPOST COBRA, Iraq (Reuters) - Experts say the risk of soldiers suffering Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) goes up substantially on their third tour of duty. Sergeant Joseph Huiet is on his sixth.

The killing of five U.S. soldiers at a clinic in Iraq two weeks ago by a comrade on his third tour, possibly suffering a stress disorder, has led to soul-searching in the U.S. military about the effects of serial deployments.

Huiet, 28, from Modesto, California, took part in the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, just a week after completing basic training. More than six years later, he's still here and on his second marriage.

"Dealing with the stress has been real hard," he said inside combat outpost "Cobra," on the edge of Iraq's violent Diyala province.

"I've had times when I'm extremely angry, when I'm stressed out and so pent up I wanted to shoot or punch something. But I didn't," said Huiet, whose brigade is based in Alaska. A recent hardship: his daughter was born the day he started this tour.

Stress suffered by U.S. soldiers during multiple deployments came under the spotlight when a U.S. soldier shot dead five others at a clinic on May 14. Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, suggested stress was a factor.
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Fatal shooting shows stress risk facing US troops
Reuters - USA

Van Winkle offers view of PTSD

by
Chaplain Kathie
There have been many books I've had the honor of being sent to read. This is one I highly recommend. I brought it on the trip to Washington DC last week, but the trip didn't allow much time for reading. The rest of this week was playing catch up on the news and emails. Today, I had the time to finish reading it.


Van Winkle writes like master and commander of a remote control. He flips back and forth between events in Iraq and life back to what is supposed to be normal. He couldn't have done a better job because that is exactly what PTSD veterans go through all the time. Flashbacks take them back to where they were when their lives were in danger. Much like a remote control can change channels back and forth between programs, the mind performs the remote viewing on months, years and even decades in the past only this remote brings the smells and taste with the trip back into hell.

There have been compelling stories in the past from warriors but few have come close to the vivid imagery conjured up their creators.

From Barnes & Noble

Synopsis

A powerful, haunting, provocative memoir of a Marine in Iraq—and his struggle with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in a system trying to hide the damage done


Marine Sergeant Clint Van Winkle flew to war on Valentine’s Day 2003. His battalion was among the first wave of troops that crossed into Iraq, and his first combat experience was the battle of Nasiriyah, followed by patrols throughout the country, house to house searches, and operations in the dangerous Baghdad slums.

But after two tours of duty, certain images would not leave his memory—a fragmented mental movie of shooting a little girl; of scavenging parts from a destroyed, blood-spattered tank; of obliterating several Iraqi men hidden behind an ancient wall; and of mistakenly stepping on a “soft spot,” the remains of a Marine killed in combat. After his return home, Van Winkle sought help at a Veterans Administration facility, and so began a maddening journey through an indifferent system that promises to care for veterans, but in fact abandons many of them.

From riveting scenes of combat violence, to the gallows humor of soldiers fighting a war that seems to make no sense, to moments of tenderness in a civilian life ravaged by flashbacks, rage, and doubt, Soft Spots reveals the mind of a soldier like no other recent memoir of the war that has consumed America.
Soft Spots by Clint Van Winkle

Iraq War vet remembers historic battle

Brother in arms
Iraq War vet remembers historic battle

by E. Assata Wright
Reporter staff writer

History often leaves its mark on ordinary people, just as ordinary people often leave their mark on history.

On March 23, 2003, U.S. Marine Luke Smentkowski was doing what he had been training to do for months. He and the members of his unit were working in tandem with other military units to clear a strategically important area in Nasiriyah, Iraq. His unit’s mission was to secure one bridge while another unit was supposed to clear another.

Within moments, the other unit was ambushed by Iraq’s Republican Guard and heavy fighting ensued.

When the battle ended after nearly five hours, 11 U.S. soldiers had been killed and several had been taken as prisoners of war. Jessica Lynch was among the troops captured in the fighting that day. Smentkowski’s unit played a supporting role in her eventual rescue.

This initial battle was followed by six additional days of fighting that claimed the lives of 18 Marines and wounded 150 others.

“I knew we had took casualties,” the Secaucus resident said last week. “But I didn’t realize how many until I saw all the birds land.” The helicopters had been set in to collect the injured and the remains of those who had died.

When the incident happened, Smentkowski had been in Iraq for two months. He had joined the U.S. Marines in July 2001 and took his oath of service on Sept. 6, 2001 – less than a week before the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
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Brother in arms Iraq War vet remembers historic battle
The Hudson Reporter - Hoboken,NJ,USA

Fort Campbell Suicides affect entire community

Suicides affect entire community
By MARK HICKS • The Leaf-Chronicle • May 29, 2009


Because the military community is so ingrained in Montgomery County, what affects Fort Campbell also affects surrounding neighborhoods, businesses and the people, who historically have been strong supporters of soldiers and their families.

"I think it's really sad, sad for the families," said Angela Greenfield, owner of the Front Page Deli, of recent soldier suicides. "I think being a soldier is one of the most honorable things a person can do. People seem to take them for granted, not as much as before, but I think some people just don't realize the sacrifices they make and the sacrifices their families make."

On Thursday, several people suggested that a greater show of appreciation for the troops from the community would make a meaningful difference, but Ward 2 City Councilwoman Deanna McLaughlin to a degree disagreed.

While acknowledging thank-yous go a long way, she thinks dealing with an Army double standard would do more to help soldiers and families deal with the more frequent and longer deployments of recent years.

"Until they make psychological counseling mandatory after a deployment, the Army is always going to face this problem," she said.

As a military spouse for 17 years and Family Readiness Group leader for five years and two deployments, McLaughlin has seen first-hand and experienced her own stresses of military life.
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http://www.theleafchronicle.com/article/20090529/NEWS01/905290337

Injured soldier, bride ready to face hurdles together

Injured soldier, bride ready to face hurdles together
The couple squeeze their wedding in before the groom's next surgery.
By Kevin Haas
RRSTAR.COM
Posted May 29, 2009 @ 10:01 PM

ROCKFORD — Four days before Sgt. Joseph Mershon was scheduled to return home from Iraq and propose to girlfriend Hillary Krueger, he was seriously injured when an improvised explosive devise struck his troop.

The couple were able to follow through on wedding plans today by tying the knot in a small ceremony inside the chapel at Swedish American Hospital. Hillary works as an aide for the hospital’s medical imaging services.
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Injured soldier, bride ready to face hurdles together

Memorial bike run to benefit Eric Hall fund

Can you unbreak some hearts? Part of PTSD is feeling alone, abandoned to live with an enemy embedded within them. Hundreds of thousands of others have felt this unbearable pain and surrendered their lives to this invisible wound. We still have a chance to help heal the warriors simply by showing we care and remember them. In doing this, we help teach them that there is nothing they have to be ashamed of any more than had they been wounded by a bullet. When you act locally to support them, you are also telling veterans around the nation that the people of this nation do care and do appreciate them. If you can go to this bike run, please, if you feel any obligation to them at all, go to this fund raiser for this fallen warrior who died because of his loving heart and help heal a nation full of veterans like Eric Hall before it's too late to help them.

Raising PTSD awareness
Memorial run to benefit Eric Hall fund


PORT CHARLOTTE -- For many returning servicemen, the war doesn't end at home.

It never did for U.S. Marine Cpl. Eric Hall.

Family members are continuing their fight to ensure future veterans get the help the need.

On Saturday, hundreds of motorcyclists are expected to line the streets of Charlotte County in memory of those lost in the aftermath of war.

"Home Front Fight," a memorial ride dedicated to Hall, will begin at 11 a.m. at Black Widow Harley-Davidson/Buell, 2224 El Jobean Road, Port Charlotte. Registration, which begins at 9 a.m., is $10 per bike.

Now in its second year, the bike run is intended to raise awareness about the silent scars affecting thousands of veterans like Hall, and the lack of treatment many receive.

The 24-year-old Afghanistan and Iraq war veteran was found dead inside a drainage pipe near his aunt's Deep Creek home March 9, 2008.
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Memorial run to benefit Eric Hall fund