Brevard's homeless veterans get gifts, meals and motel stays
Dec 24, 2012
Written by
Rick Neale
FLORIDA TODAY
TITUSVILLE — The Stars and Stripes and a black POW/MIA flag hang from tree trunks at Harry Duhr’s secluded forest campsite outside of town, overlooking his green canvas tent and a small table crammed with provisions.
Duhr served with the 101st Airborne Division from 1969-71. A pesky raccoon keeps raiding his meager possessions. And the 62-year-old Army veteran hasn’t slept indoors since last Christmas — that’s when National Veterans Homeless Support put him up in a hotel for the holiday weekend.
Monday morning, NVHS President George Taylor picked up Duhr in a van and drove him to Super 8 in Titusville to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas as a gesture of goodwill.
read more here
National Veterans Homeless Support helps veterans during Christmas: George Taylor's group, National Veterans Homeless Support, will pull homeless veterans from the woods and put them up in hotels on Christmas Eve and Christmas.
By Tim Shortt, edited by Caroline Perez.
Posted Dec. 25, 2012.
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
War to home Christmas letters saved for history, re-tweet
War to home Christmas letters saved for history, re-tweet
by Kathie Costos
Wounded Times Blog
December 25, 2012
At first I thought how lousy it was that so much history is being lost with the technology we have now. Thousands of tweets sent back and forth between the troops and families, pictures and videos replacing hand written accounts of what they are thinking and praying for.
Then I thought about more.
Technology provides us with instant communication across thousands of miles. Could you imagine George Washington sending a tweet crossing the Delaware?
Think of all the history that would have been lost. How about during WWI when there was a truce between sides. Imagine them on a cell phone later that day taking instant pictures as their wives sent them back pictures of the kids opening their gifts.
I was reading this when I got onto the computer early this morning and thought about Christmas letters being sent home from war.
With technology comes problems. Computers crash, accounts get canceled and files are not saved. There is a lot of history being lost when people don't think of how important all of this is to future generations. Save what you have so that generations from now will learn what we have learned from hand written letters. Print emails, make copies of pictures and save them so that when your children grow up they can learn. We all know we are not getting enough information from the media these days on what is happening in Afghanistan so you are the one to save their voices. Don't just trust Facebook to save all your files because one day they could be just as irrelevant as a lot of sites we used to use.
by Kathie Costos
Wounded Times Blog
December 25, 2012
At first I thought how lousy it was that so much history is being lost with the technology we have now. Thousands of tweets sent back and forth between the troops and families, pictures and videos replacing hand written accounts of what they are thinking and praying for.
Then I thought about more.
Technology provides us with instant communication across thousands of miles. Could you imagine George Washington sending a tweet crossing the Delaware?
George Washington's Christmas Crossing The weather is cold, but not as cold as it was on this day in 1776, when a raging blizzard tormented the tattered remnants of Washington’s volunteer army.
Back then, there was no one to witness either the misery or the bravery of this heroic band. Today thousands of spectators from all over the world, many dressed in period clothing, are here to watch Rinaldi’s Washington and his men re-enact the event credited with saving the republic.
“These are the times that try men’s souls,” Rinaldi begins, solemnly intoning the words from Thomas Paine’s American Crisis, as Washington did to rally his cold and hungry troops. Parents hush small children; conversation drops to a respectful murmur. “The summer soldier and sunshine patriot, will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country, but he that stands it now deserves the love and thanks of man and woman...”
Think of all the history that would have been lost. How about during WWI when there was a truce between sides. Imagine them on a cell phone later that day taking instant pictures as their wives sent them back pictures of the kids opening their gifts.
The Christmas Truce
On January 1, 1915, the London Times published a letter from a major in the Medical Corps reporting that in his sector the British played a game against the Germans opposite and were beaten 3-2.
Kurt Zehmisch of the 134th Saxons recorded in his diary: 'The English brought a soccer ball from the trenches, and pretty soon a lively game ensued. How marvellously wonderful, yet how strange it was. The English officers felt the same way about it. Thus Christmas, the celebration of Love, managed to bring mortal enemies together as friends for a time.'
The Truce lasted all day; in places it ended that night, but on other sections of the line it held over Boxing Day and in some areas, a few days more. In fact, there parts on the front where the absence of aggressive behaviour was conspicuous well into 1915.
I was reading this when I got onto the computer early this morning and thought about Christmas letters being sent home from war.
From war with love: Christmas letters home span centuries but hit same notes
By Bill Briggs
NBC News contributor
Across three pages — typed on Christmas Eve 1966 from a village in South Vietnam — the soldier’s words to his wife dance seamlessly from a description of singing carols in the jungle to his latest enemy kills to, finally, a vow of eternal affection.
“Last night we had a candle-lighting ceremony ... Gasoline drums welded together end to end with a white Noel on the side. Electric light on top covered by red cellophane ... Reindeer and Santa Claus at front. It was raining,” Army Gen. Sidney B. Berry wrote to his wife. He next reveals how he recently had perched in a helicopter door, firing his rifle at men below: “We all were shooting. And we killed several ...”
“Lovely Anne, I love thee,” Berry closed. “Perhaps the best aspect of this whole period of separation is our increased appreciation and understanding of each other. I love thee, and I will devote the rest of my life to making love to thee.” He signs off: “Thy wearied professional, Sid.”
This time of year, communication from combat lines has long provided a poignant piece of Christmas.
From the Civil War to the Vietnam War, troops ranging from privates to a general struck the same literary chords — no matter the success of their conflict, their era, or the location of their last battle. They often chronicle violence during a moment meant to celebrate peace. They typically express humor, perhaps to put families at ease. And they reveal yearnings to be back with gathered families and friends.
“A lot of people wrote letters to their mothers at Christmas. I guess it’s a time you really start to think about home, really start to think about where you come from,” said Conrad Crane, chief of historical services at the Army Heritage and Education Center.
Some of the letters offered to NBC News were were originally mailed to nieces, parents and wives.
read more here
With technology comes problems. Computers crash, accounts get canceled and files are not saved. There is a lot of history being lost when people don't think of how important all of this is to future generations. Save what you have so that generations from now will learn what we have learned from hand written letters. Print emails, make copies of pictures and save them so that when your children grow up they can learn. We all know we are not getting enough information from the media these days on what is happening in Afghanistan so you are the one to save their voices. Don't just trust Facebook to save all your files because one day they could be just as irrelevant as a lot of sites we used to use.
Monday, December 24, 2012
Veteran's Stolen WWII Medals Replaced by Fellow Marine
Veteran's Stolen WWII Medals Replaced by Fellow Marine
The war medals were stolen from a home in Vista sometime between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15
By Monica Garske, Tony Shin and Elena Gomez
Sunday, Dec 23, 2012
A Marine who learned several World War II medals were stolen from a fellow veteran's home brought the 88-year-old vet a surprise on Friday: a new set of medals to replace his originals.
The medals were the only item taken from Clyde Kellogg's home in the 1000 block of Prospect Place in Vista sometime between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15, according to San Diego County sheriff's detectives.
The medals have no real monetary value, detectives said, but they do hold great sentimental value to the owner, a World War II Marine veteran who earned them while fighting in the war.
read more here
The war medals were stolen from a home in Vista sometime between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15
By Monica Garske, Tony Shin and Elena Gomez
Sunday, Dec 23, 2012
A Marine who learned several World War II medals were stolen from a fellow veteran's home brought the 88-year-old vet a surprise on Friday: a new set of medals to replace his originals.
The medals were the only item taken from Clyde Kellogg's home in the 1000 block of Prospect Place in Vista sometime between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15, according to San Diego County sheriff's detectives.
The medals have no real monetary value, detectives said, but they do hold great sentimental value to the owner, a World War II Marine veteran who earned them while fighting in the war.
read more here
Daughter surprises dad with replacement medals
Daughter surprises dad with replacement medals
By Steve Wagner - Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer via AP
Posted : Monday Dec 24, 2012
BEMIDJI, Minn. — Two years ago, while vacationing over Christmas, someone broke into Arlin Melgaard’s home.
The bandit made off with nearly everything he and his wife, Wanda, owned: a car parked in the garage, the 2001 retirement gift containing his military medals and badges, the longtime musician’s electric guitars, even canned goods and coffee filters stored in the cupboard.
Over time, the couple had replaced most items, but one piece of his past couldn’t be replaced easily — the shadow box commemorating Melgaard’s Army and reservist career.
On Saturday, the 71-year-old Bemidji man, a 40-year veteran, received re-issued medals, badges and service stripes.
At his bedside at the Sanford Bemidji Medical Center, daughter Angie Kamin of Fargo presented him a replica of the retirement gift given to him nearly 12 years ago by the North Dakota Army National Guard unit in which he served.
“Those are all my medals,” proclaimed Melgaard, when his daughter surprised him with the shadow box.
“Of all the things I lost ... that was the worst,” he said. “I wondered, ‘Why the hell would anybody take medals that weren’t even theirs?’ It was devastating.”
read more here
By Steve Wagner - Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer via AP
Posted : Monday Dec 24, 2012
BEMIDJI, Minn. — Two years ago, while vacationing over Christmas, someone broke into Arlin Melgaard’s home.
The bandit made off with nearly everything he and his wife, Wanda, owned: a car parked in the garage, the 2001 retirement gift containing his military medals and badges, the longtime musician’s electric guitars, even canned goods and coffee filters stored in the cupboard.
Over time, the couple had replaced most items, but one piece of his past couldn’t be replaced easily — the shadow box commemorating Melgaard’s Army and reservist career.
On Saturday, the 71-year-old Bemidji man, a 40-year veteran, received re-issued medals, badges and service stripes.
At his bedside at the Sanford Bemidji Medical Center, daughter Angie Kamin of Fargo presented him a replica of the retirement gift given to him nearly 12 years ago by the North Dakota Army National Guard unit in which he served.
“Those are all my medals,” proclaimed Melgaard, when his daughter surprised him with the shadow box.
“Of all the things I lost ... that was the worst,” he said. “I wondered, ‘Why the hell would anybody take medals that weren’t even theirs?’ It was devastating.”
read more here
As veterans return, PTSD could become more common in workplace
If you learn nothing else from this report, I hope you keep this part in mind.
Combat veterans and civilians exposed to traumatic events share two things. The first is they are humans and the second, they survived something most humans never have to go through.
PTSD affects about 7.7 million adults, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.
Combat veterans and civilians exposed to traumatic events share two things. The first is they are humans and the second, they survived something most humans never have to go through.
As veterans return, PTSD could become more common in workplaceThe last thing you should take away from this is PTSD is not a "relatively new issue" and it would be great if people stopped saying it was.
By KELLY YAMANOUCHI
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published: December 24, 2012
At a recent weekly staff meeting, human resources manager Zetta Ferguson noticed that one of her employees wasn’t sitting at the conference table.
She encouraged the employee who was sitting against the wall, Corey Michael McGee, to join the rest of the group at the table, but he declined. After the meeting, McGee explained: “I sit against the wall where I’m safest. Or in my mind I feel I’m safest.”
An Army veteran who was struck by an improvised explosive device and gunfire in Fallujah, Iraq, McGee says post-traumatic stress disorder and some remaining effects of his injuries affect him in some ways in the workplace, but “it’s gotten a lot better over the years.”
Many employers have not delved deeply into how they might address PTSD, a relatively new issue, but they could face it more frequently as more veterans return to the workforce.
About 2.4 million members of the military have been deployed in the past decade in Iraq and Afghanistan, and tens of thousands are returning home. The influx is expected to continue until 2016.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs estimates as many as 11 percent of veterans of the war in Afghanistan and 20 percent of Iraqi war veterans are afflicted by PTSD, which can generate both sympathy and fear.
read more here
Hero of Superstorm Sandy dies in surfing accident
Hero of Superstorm Sandy dies in surfing accident
By The Associated Press
The Belle Harbor section of the Rockaways in New York, where so many heroes emerged during Superstorm Sandy, has lost one of them to a tragic surfing death in Puerto Rico.
Friends of 23-year-old Dylan Smith and his family expressed sorrow Monday that someone who saved so many lives during the October storm could lose his own on vacation. A local funeral parlor said funeral arrangements were being made.
read more here
By The Associated Press
The Belle Harbor section of the Rockaways in New York, where so many heroes emerged during Superstorm Sandy, has lost one of them to a tragic surfing death in Puerto Rico.
Friends of 23-year-old Dylan Smith and his family expressed sorrow Monday that someone who saved so many lives during the October storm could lose his own on vacation. A local funeral parlor said funeral arrangements were being made.
read more here
Two firefighters are dead, two more wounded in ambush
Two firefighters are dead, two more wounded and a police officer was hit by shrapnel by a convicted double murder with a gun.
Gunman ambushes, kills two firefighters at New York blaze
By Catherine E. Shoichet and Chuck Johnston
CNN
December 24, 2012
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: Two firefighters were killed and two were injured before the gunman shot himself, police said
NEW: Police: The suspect had been convicted of killing his grandmother, and his sister may be missing
NEW: Seven houses were destroyed in what police described as an "inferno"
"It does appear that it was a trap that was set," the police chief said (CNN) -- A man convicted of killing his grandmother decades ago allegedly ambushed firefighters on Monday, fatally shooting two of them as they arrived to battle a blaze in upstate New York, police said.
Two other firefighters were wounded in the attack in the Rochester-area town of Webster. Investigators believe the suspect, (the shooter), 62, deliberately lured them to a house fire, Webster Police Chief Gerald Pickering said.
Police: Gunman set trap for firefighters
Authorities do not know how (the shooter) who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the scene, obtained the weapon he used in Monday's shooting or why he opened fire, Pickering told reporters.
read more here
Firefighters shot while battling New York fire
Was soldier killed over wife's lesbian affair?
The saddest part of this is the story will end up getting plenty of attention from people who would not care otherwise.
Army sergeant shot, killed in Iraq after discovering wife’s lesbian affair – now dad is on case
EXCLUSIVE: Kevin Green — whose son LaShawn Evans was shot in the head on Valentine’s Day 2011 after discovering that his fellow soldier wife was having a lesbian affair with another officer — has filed papers in Brooklyn Federal Court demanding the preservation of cell phone and text messages from devices belonging to Evans.
BY JOHN MARZULLI
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
PUBLISHED: SUNDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2012
Kevin Green — whose son LaShawn Evans was shot in the head on Valentine’s Day 2011 after discovering that his fellow soldier wife was having a lesbian affair with another officer — has filed papers in Brooklyn Federal Court demanding the preservation of cell phone and text messages from devices belonging to Evans; his wife, Florinda Evans, and LaShawn’s mother-in-law from Jan. 1, 2011, to Sept. 1, 2011.
“I made my son a promise that I would honor him and fight till I know what happened,” Green told the Daily News.
The Army initially ruled Evans’ death a suicide, but the crime was reclassified as a murder six months later. That’s where the investigation remains.
read more here
Firefighters shot while battling New York blaze
UPDATE
4 firefighters shot, 2 dead, after responding to blaze
By Jason White
NBC News
Four volunteer firefighters were shot -- two fatally -- as they responded to a blaze early Monday at a small cluster of homes along Lake Ontario in Webster, N.Y.
The firefighters arrived on the scene just before 6 a.m. ET, and as they exited their vehicles they were fired upon, police and fire officials said. Police chief
“These firemen are part of our family. You go into a fire with these guys. To see them go down with something like this is totally unexpected. We are in shock,” Billy Gross, fire commissioner for West Webster, told the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.
The gunfire forced firefighters to flee from the scene of the blaze -- a narrow spit of land, with Lake Ontario on one side and Irondequoit Bay on the other. The two firefighters who were hit but survived are being treated at a local hospital for their wounds.
read more here
4 firefighters shot, 2 dead, after responding to blaze
By Jason White
NBC News
Four volunteer firefighters were shot -- two fatally -- as they responded to a blaze early Monday at a small cluster of homes along Lake Ontario in Webster, N.Y.
The firefighters arrived on the scene just before 6 a.m. ET, and as they exited their vehicles they were fired upon, police and fire officials said. Police chief
“These firemen are part of our family. You go into a fire with these guys. To see them go down with something like this is totally unexpected. We are in shock,” Billy Gross, fire commissioner for West Webster, told the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.
The gunfire forced firefighters to flee from the scene of the blaze -- a narrow spit of land, with Lake Ontario on one side and Irondequoit Bay on the other. The two firefighters who were hit but survived are being treated at a local hospital for their wounds.
read more here
Firefighters shot while battling New York blaze
By Chuck Johnston
CNN
updated 9:40 AM EST, Mon December 24, 2012
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: Flames engulf three homes and a vehicle as gunshots stop firefighters from battling a blaze
NEW: At least two firefighters were shot, the fire marshal says
NEW: One firefighter escaped from the scene in his own vehicle
(CNN) -- At least two firefighters were shot when they arrived to battle a blaze at a house in upstate New York on Monday, officials said.
Authorities believe someone shot at the firefighters shortly after they exited their vehicles, said Rob Boutillier, fire marshal in the town of Webster, New York.
The gunfire stopped firefighters from battling the blaze and forced police SWAT teams to evacuate homes in the area.
Firefighters arrived at the scene before 6 a.m., Boutillier said. By 9 a.m., flames had engulfed three houses and a vehicle, he said.
read more here
Ask for help this Christmas to fight another day
Ask for help this Christmas to fight another day
by Kathie Costos
Pointman of Winter Park
December 24, 2012
If you are a veteran and suffering inside today, please read this.
All across this nation there are veterans thinking they have run out of prayers, out of hope and out of time. They spent all they had on trying to "get over it" while praying for a miracle, but what was delivered to them was not enough to give them what they needed to fight another day of suffering.
There are at least 19 funerals being planned for today that should not have happened. Families are looking at the gifts they wrapped knowing they will never be opened by someone they loved. There is an empty pair of boots in William Busbee's home. There is an empty uniform in Army Staff Sgt. Earl Granville's home.
Navy Cmdr. Job W. Price left behind a lot of questions as his death is still under investigation since it just happened Saturday.
There is a extreme sadness when members of the military survive combat to fight another day, but cannot find the support they need out of combat to fight one more day to stay alive.
Tonight families will shut off the lights of their Christmas trees, stuffed with gifts for the people they love waiting to be opened tomorrow morning. Tomorrow 19 more gifts will be left unopened.
Last night my favorite Christmas movie was on. The Bishop's Wife
Cary Grant showed up as an angel named Dudley responding to the prayers of David Niven, the Bishop confused between his pride and his desire to serve God. There was a wealthy woman he was sucking up to living with her own secrets.
"Mrs Hamilton" was not a happy woman even though she was very wealthy. She thought she could get her own way on the cathedral the Bishop wanted to build since she was paying for most of it. Later on the story we discover Mrs. Hamilton did not love the man she married, but had loved a man she sent away because he didn't have any money. While she gave away huge sums of money in her husband's name out of guilt, she had forgotten what really mattered, and that is love, true acts of charity fueled by compassion. The Bishop forgot all of that as well. Dudley reminded them of everything, changed their thinking and then vanished leaving behind no memory of him having been there accept for the angel he had given the Bishop's daughter.
While the Bishop thought Dudley had shown up to help him build his massive cathedral, it was a different House of God God had in mind. It was the houses the Bishop, his family and Mrs. Hamilton actually lived in. Within the walls of their bodies.
Dudley changed the Bishop's Christmas Eve sermon to one of remembering Christ on Christmas. The Bishop was stunned reading it, wondering where it came from in the beginning but soon he understood the true meaning of Christmas. The sermon talked about an empty stocking still hanging after stuff was bought for a list of others. The stocking we should fill for Christ is how we treat other people, not just this one day a year, but everyday.
When we pray, God sends people to answer our prayers. He doesn't just wave His hand and deliver. When people hear His voice, are willing to do, the entire world can change.
The people He can send won't come if they don't know you need them to. The healing that is possible won't happen if you do not seek it. If you try to just do what you want, the way the Bishop did, then the best way won't even be thought of. If you self-medicate instead of heal, tomorrow won't be any different than today is. If you wait to get over it the way Mrs. Hamilton did, then you will not be as happy as you could be when you open your eyes to what is really important and that is love.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is what you live with today but you can heal from it tomorrow. Many other veterans went through the same struggles you have today but they found the help they needed to heal because they didn't stop fighting. They were helped by others that understood what many others knew.
If you take nothing away from the way Christ lived, what He said and how much love was behind it all, then He cannot heal the pain you feel inside. The day we celebrate His birth is tomorrow. Don't let your family spend the day grieving for your last day. Live to fight another day and heal so you can help others do the same. Angels do live here on earth but these angels are just as human as you are. Contact Point Man Ministries or some of the other wonderful groups out there and give your family a gift that will not be forgotten but will be a living testimony of love. You still here, healing here with them.
by Kathie Costos
Pointman of Winter Park
December 24, 2012
If you are a veteran and suffering inside today, please read this.
All across this nation there are veterans thinking they have run out of prayers, out of hope and out of time. They spent all they had on trying to "get over it" while praying for a miracle, but what was delivered to them was not enough to give them what they needed to fight another day of suffering.
There is a extreme sadness when members of the military survive combat to fight another day, but cannot find the support they need out of combat to fight one more day to stay alive.
Tonight families will shut off the lights of their Christmas trees, stuffed with gifts for the people they love waiting to be opened tomorrow morning. Tomorrow 19 more gifts will be left unopened.
Last night my favorite Christmas movie was on. The Bishop's Wife
Cary Grant showed up as an angel named Dudley responding to the prayers of David Niven, the Bishop confused between his pride and his desire to serve God. There was a wealthy woman he was sucking up to living with her own secrets.
"Mrs Hamilton" was not a happy woman even though she was very wealthy. She thought she could get her own way on the cathedral the Bishop wanted to build since she was paying for most of it. Later on the story we discover Mrs. Hamilton did not love the man she married, but had loved a man she sent away because he didn't have any money. While she gave away huge sums of money in her husband's name out of guilt, she had forgotten what really mattered, and that is love, true acts of charity fueled by compassion. The Bishop forgot all of that as well. Dudley reminded them of everything, changed their thinking and then vanished leaving behind no memory of him having been there accept for the angel he had given the Bishop's daughter.
While the Bishop thought Dudley had shown up to help him build his massive cathedral, it was a different House of God God had in mind. It was the houses the Bishop, his family and Mrs. Hamilton actually lived in. Within the walls of their bodies.
Dudley changed the Bishop's Christmas Eve sermon to one of remembering Christ on Christmas. The Bishop was stunned reading it, wondering where it came from in the beginning but soon he understood the true meaning of Christmas. The sermon talked about an empty stocking still hanging after stuff was bought for a list of others. The stocking we should fill for Christ is how we treat other people, not just this one day a year, but everyday.
When we pray, God sends people to answer our prayers. He doesn't just wave His hand and deliver. When people hear His voice, are willing to do, the entire world can change.
The people He can send won't come if they don't know you need them to. The healing that is possible won't happen if you do not seek it. If you try to just do what you want, the way the Bishop did, then the best way won't even be thought of. If you self-medicate instead of heal, tomorrow won't be any different than today is. If you wait to get over it the way Mrs. Hamilton did, then you will not be as happy as you could be when you open your eyes to what is really important and that is love.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is what you live with today but you can heal from it tomorrow. Many other veterans went through the same struggles you have today but they found the help they needed to heal because they didn't stop fighting. They were helped by others that understood what many others knew.
If you take nothing away from the way Christ lived, what He said and how much love was behind it all, then He cannot heal the pain you feel inside. The day we celebrate His birth is tomorrow. Don't let your family spend the day grieving for your last day. Live to fight another day and heal so you can help others do the same. Angels do live here on earth but these angels are just as human as you are. Contact Point Man Ministries or some of the other wonderful groups out there and give your family a gift that will not be forgotten but will be a living testimony of love. You still here, healing here with them.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)