Soldier who lost both legs and his eyesight in while serving Afghanistan takes on huge challenge for charity Wales Online
BY ABBIE WIGHTWICK
21 APR 2016
In 2014 the former Ysgol Clywedog pupil flew to Australia for pioneering surgery. In an operation called osseointegration, titanium rods were implanted into his stumps.
A soldier who was blinded and lost both legs and his reproductive organs when he was blown up in Afghanistan is asking people to join him on a fundraising walk in Wales.
Fusilier Shaun Stocker was 19 when he suffered life-threatening injuries stepping on an improvised explosive device (IED) in Helmand serving with Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, the Royal Welsh in Afghanistan.
Six years since the blast Shaun, 25, from Wrexham is on the way to completing a 100km walk in stages – a feat he never thought possible.
On May 14 he aims to walk 27km from Llanberis to Llyn Padarn and along local footpaths, and is asking people to join him and donate for his fundraising for Blind Veterans UK. read more here
Neglecting Fort Hood Survivors Is a National Disgrace TIME Kathy Platoni
April 19, 2016
Too many survivors don't have access to the benefits they need
Nearly seven years after the national tragedy of the Fort Hood massacre, little has changed. Despite the unveiling of the magnificent memorial in Killeen, Texas, on March 11 to pay tribute to the wounded and the fallen, this catastrophic event and its victims have been largely forgotten. Thirteen innocents lost their lives and more than 30 were wounded that day, gunned down by a self-proclaimed radical jihadist who advocated for the burnings and beheadings of his fellow soldiers.
Some of the wounded have been obtaining medical treatment on their own dime, desperately trying to restore themselves to health and to find their way back to any degree of normalcy. And then there are the psychological wounds, which often remain unspoken and are often unlikely to ever heal. Joshua Berry, a survivor of the massacre, suffered from post-traumatic stress and committed suicide in 2013. The Army should have done more to help him and others like him.
Kathy Platoni is a retired Colonel in the U.S. Army and a survivor of the Fort Hood massacre.
Louisiana lawmaker files bill to create service dog regulations KPLC 7 News
Liz Koh
Wednesday, April 20th 2016
LAKE CHARLES, LA (KPLC)
Service dogs are often used to help disabled individuals or those suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
(Source: Liz Koh/KPLC)
Like anything else, there are those looking to take advantage of the animals even if they don't need them.
Senator Jonathan Perry of Kaplan has filed a bill that aims to crack down on service dog fraud.
Joshua Mercer is an Army veteran who suffers from PTSD. He got his service dog Chloe about a year ago.
"I don't know what I'd do without her," said Mercer.
Chloe earned her service dog patch of honor by going through extensive training.
"She went through about three rounds of testing and that includes over 100 hours of public access training using various situations that I would encounter in my day-to-day life and she rocked it," he explained.
Those who take advantage of the system skip training altogether. Currently, there is no way to officially identify service dogs. Since there are no regulations for the industry, it's as easy as buying a service vest and then claiming your pet as a service dog.
"Having been in the military, it's very prideful. It's hard to admit when you have a disability or an issue and (it's) very humbling," said Mercer. "I think it's a horrible thing to take advantage of that and to pretend that you're somebody that you're not. It's sad."
If it passes, Perry's bill will require the Governor's Office of Disability Affairs to create a service dog registry.
The proposal also states service dog owners should be required to obtain a doctor's note and carry identification. read more here
Rep. Gallego: Deported veterans served their country but they can't come home
The Republic Daniel González
April 21, 2016
"These men and women who served our country, sacrificed time, sweat and blood for our country are told don’t come back until you are dead," said Gallego, an Iraq War veteran. "That is something we just cannot allow to happen."
Hector Barajas, 39, folds an American flag to be placed with the remains of a deported veteran who died in Mexico. The remains were allowed to be returned to the U.S. for burial. The flag presentation before Cesar Medrano (right)took Spc. Chaides' remains back to U.S. soil. (Photo: Photo courtesy of Cesar Medrano and Hector Barajas)
Legislation proposed to help some of the hundreds of soldiers convicted of crimes to return to this country
Sometimes, the only way a deported military veteran can get back into the United States is in a casket.
U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., said these former soldiers, often convicted of crimes related to their service, are stripped of all their military benefits, except one: the right to be buried in a U.S. veterans cemetery.
He and other Democratic members of Congress are trying to change that for some deported vets.
Gallego introduced a bill Wednesday that asks the Department of Homeland Security to set up a process that would allow deported veterans who have not been convicted of felonies or serious misdemeanors to apply to return to the U.S. The legislation also would protect veterans not convicted of serious crimes from being deported in the future. read more here
VA Secretary Joins Others in Pledge to Donate their Brains to VA-lead TBI Research Program
April 20, 2016
VA Secretary Joins Others in Pledge to Donate their Brains to VA-lead TBI Research Program
WASHINGTON - Today the Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert A. McDonald announced that he, along with three-time Olympic gold medalist swimmer Nancy Hogshead-Makar and former NFL player and Super Bowl champion Phil Villapiano, have pledged to donate their brains to advance brain research conducted by VA in partnership with the Concussion Legacy Foundation.
The announcement was made at the VA-hosted Brain Trust: Pathways to InnoVAtion, a public-private partner event which builds on the trailblazing efforts of a number of distinguished VA brain researchers and brings together many of the most influential voices in the field of brain health to identify and advance solutions for mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
“As I listened to the very powerful personal stories from Veterans and the challenges the world’s top researchers are working to overcome in TBI, I made a decision: I decided to join the hundreds of Veterans and athletes who have already donated their brain to the VA Brain Bank so that I may, in a small way, contribute to the vital research happening to better understand brain trauma,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert A. McDonald. “This is a very, very serious issue, one that affects Veterans and non-Veterans alike. We don’t know nearly as much as we should about brain health, but if there’s one thing I’ve seen after visiting almost 300 VA facilities in the past two years: our Veterans, particularly those who served in Iraq and Afghanistan are greatly affected by TBI. VA needs to continue leading the coalition of scientists working to improve their lives.
“Building more and stronger strategic partnerships is one of the five strategies of the MyVA transformation. Today, we witnessed a room full of the world’s leading experts coming together under the convening authority of VA to solve one of our most significant challenges, particularly among our younger Veterans. I’m proud to do my part because I know that the researchers at VA are committed to improving lives and they have my full support.”
“Concussions were ignored for a long time and viewed largely as an invisible injury but chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is something we can see and something we can understand. It reveals that brain trauma can have long-term and devastating consequences,” said Chris Nowinski, former WWE wrester and co-founder and president of the Concussion Legacy Foundation which leads outreach and recruiting for the VA-BU-CLF Brain Bank. “The Concussion Legacy Foundation is working to create a culture of brain donation in America by asking living athletes and Veterans to donate their brains to the Brain Bank to be researched by VA and Boston University researchers. It’s a perfect partnership because the most common victims of CTE are athletes and Veterans and by researching both as a part of one program, the sports community and Veteran community can work together to solve this problem. We all need to work together to solve the concussion crisis.”
The VA-BU-CLF Brain Bank is directed by VA’s own Dr. Ann McKee and is located at the Bedford VA Medical Center. It is now the largest sports mTBI and CTE repository in the world with over 325 brains donated, and over a thousand more pledged.
“The research on CTE all started with VA; it began with a VA patient who was a well-known boxer and from that first case of CTE, it has morphed into a tremendous research effort involving NIH, DoD and many other organizations,” said Dr. Ann McKee. “This is not a problem we can solve in any one lab. It’s going to take medical researchers and scientists working with business to detect where it first starts – on the battlefield and sports field. We will need health assessments going into the future for many years. That will take innovation and real input from industry to stimulate this research. That’s why we need a collective effort and his group of leaders is so important. I’m proud to be here encouraging us all to work together to better care for America’s Veterans and patients.”
Brain Trust: Pathways to InnoVAtion is a two-day public-private partnership event hosted by VA. As the largest, integrated health care system in the country, VA is using its convening authority to bring together many of the most influential voices in the field of brain health – to include the Department of Defense, the sports industry, private sector, federal government, Veterans and community partners - to identify and advance solutions for mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Issues related to brain health and head trauma transcend the Veteran and military community, impacting all Americans. By highlighting the themes of collaborative research, medical technology, and sports innovation for player safety, Brain Trust participants are discussing the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and reintegration of Veterans, athletes, and Americans in general - suffering from head trauma related injuries. The event will also serve as a showcase for many of the advancements that VA is pioneering to improve brain health for Veterans, the military and for the American public at large.
In addition to many of the world’s most accomplished brain research scientists, Brain Trust attendees include sports commentator Bob Costas, Gen. Peter Chiarelli (CEO of One Mind, and the former Vice Chief of Staff of the Army), Briana Scurry (former U.S. Women’s Soccer Player), Jeanne Marie Laskas (author of the GQ article that inspired the movie “Concussion”), Terry O’Neil (16-time Emmy award winner), representatives from the NFL Players Association, the NFL, the NCAA, DARPA, DOD, NIH, CDC, and many more.
Michigan family seeks help in search for missing Marine vet Marine Corps Times Matthew L. Schehl April 19, 2016
Geoffrey Michael Bowen was last seen by his wife on March 31 at his home in Brooklyn, Michigan. (Photo: Courtesy Kenneth Bowen)
Police and family are urgently asking for help locating a Marine vet missing for two weeks.
On April 1, the sheriff’s office in Jackson County, Michigan, issued a missing person alert for Geoffrey Michael Bowen, who was last seen by his wife on March 31 at his home in Brooklyn, Michigan.
“[Bowen] is 5 feet 10 inches, 175 pounds with short brown hair and a short brown beard,” police said in the alert. “He was last seen driving a 1989 Ford Bronco dark blue in color with white stripes. It has a Michigan Marine veteran license plate with the registration of OLCC7.”
Bowen joined the Marines as a rifleman in December 2005. He deployed to Iraq twice — once in 2007 and again in 2008. He left the service as a corporal in December 2009, according to Marine Corps officials. His brother said he served with 2nd Battalion, 6th Marines. read more here
‘Welcome Home’ event aimed at saluting Vietnam veterans Tampa Tribune
Linda Chion Kenney
Special Correspondent
April 20, 2016
“We don’t make the policies,” he said. “We don’t make those decisions. We follow the orders we’re given. We perform our duties. We perform our duties and serve with honor.”
U.S. Navy commander and Vietnam veteran Bradley E. Smith Ex-POW
After “The Last Patrol” performance by Rolling Thunder, members, from left, Mike Vitel, Doc Watson and Bill Marion pose by a Vietnam-era helicopter at the Vietnam Memorial at Hillsborough County’s Veterans Memorial Park. LINDA CHION KENNEY
TAMPA — Soldiers seasoned and battle-scarred, and the people who support them, stood in solidarity and solemnity March 26 at Veterans Memorial Park, where “welcome home” was the order of the day for the men and women called to service in the Vietnam War era.
In her very personal remarks, chaplain Linda J. Pugsley, a retired lieutenant colonel, who volunteered for two tours of duty in Vietnam as an aeromedical evacuation nurse, recounted the “soaking, soaking rains” and the “scorching, scorching heat” of Vietnam.
“We are valiant people who served with unswerving bravery in that hostile, unfriendly, ungodly Vietnam,” said Pugsley, who in 1978 resigned her position as flight nurse with the rank of major, to pursue her career in the ministry. “We served our country and our fellow warriors in that most brutal and unwise war. Some of us saw mayhem that none of us should have seen, yet we did not run.”
Vietnam veterans are heroes, she added, deserving of appreciation for “what they did and all that they gave up.” read more here
How art therapy helps a Georgia veteran with PTSD Atlanta Magazine
Frank Reddy
April 20, 2016
“[My art] gives me somewhere to put energy
that I have no other way to get rid of.”
Jason Smith works in his home studio.
PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVEN KARL METZER
Everywhere Jason Smith turned, it seemed death surrounded him. As a medic in the smoldering battlegrounds of Iraq, he performed CPR on fatally wounded Marines. Back home he was involved in a car wreck that left him with a traumatic brain injury and killed a friend.
Before long he began hallucinating. There were daytime visions of dying men at his feet. In the grocery store, Smith saw the smiling ghosts of uniformed Marines waving. He was diagnosed in May 2005 with post-traumatic stress disorder.
The following year Smith, 33, was discharged after two tours in Iraq. Back in civilian life, he held and lost eight different jobs, largely due to symptoms relating to his PTSD. After a period of hardship and heavy drinking, Smith finally found comfort doing something he’d never done before: picking up a paintbrush.
These days the walls of the Gainesville, Georgia, home he shares with his wife, Pamela, are decorated with paintings and mixed-media artwork incorporating found items like feathers, vinyl records, and gnarly chunks of driftwood. Pop culture is a dominant theme—think ThunderCats cartoons, Iron Maiden album covers, and Duke’s Mayonnaise jars—but it’s not all lighthearted. One painting features a man dangling from a cliff; a group of soldiers grasp at him from below, trying to pull him down. “The chasm represents PTSD and memories and intrusive thoughts,” says the burley, bearded Smith, who swears by the healing power of the creative process. read more here
UPDATE: Veteran "terminated" after fight to take service dog to work
Veteran says ready to file discrimination charges NBC 26 News
Billy Wagness
Apr 18, 2016
"They're saying they're not getting the proper paperwork, but the paperwork that they're asking [for has] Borderline HIPAA violations," adds Kettner, "and the VA will not fill it out."
A marine veteran living with PTSD has been fighting for months to bring his service dog to work with him.
Now, as the legal battle continues, Shaun Kettner says he has been "terminated" from his employment at L and S Electric.
For Kettner, the Dutch shepherd named 'Sig' has been a lifesaver, helping him focus in daily life when the stress becomes too great.
"You have to look at him as like a wheelchair," says Kettner, as Sig sits quietly next to him.
But the fight to bring the service dog to work has been caught up for weeks in its own legal battle between L and S Electric and the VA.
Representatives for the Appleton-based manufacturing and motor repair company say Kettner had failed to complete proper paperwork for bringing in Sig to work. But Kettner says the VA has so far refused to sign the paperwork in question over concern that some
questions asked violated HIPAA laws.
read more here
Once homeless, veteran far from alone at funeral Des Moines Register
Grant Rodgers
April 18, 2016
"He has no family — absolutely no family, so our staff and the chaplain from IVH will gather on a quiet hillside at IVH and put this man to rest," Mitchell wrote in a post that was shared more than 1,500 times.
MARSHALLTOWN, Ia. — The mourners stood on a breezy hillside Monday to honor a Navy veteran whose face most had never seen. There wasn't even a photograph available of Charles Lanam to adorn the small program at his funeral.
But more than 100 people gathered to see him laid to rest, inspired by a funeral director's plea not to let a veteran's death go unnoticed.
Lanam, who never married and once was homeless while living in Des Moines, was 81 when he died April 10 at the Iowa Veterans Home, leaving behind no known family members.
"Charles was one of those quiet individuals who passed through life seemingly leaving not much of a mark," Craig Nelson, an Iowa Veterans Home chaplain, told the crowd assembled outside the home. "But as with all lives, he touched the people he came in contact with: His family while he was growing up, his shipmates while he served in the Navy, those he worked with, and our staff and the residents of the veterans home … your presence is a reminder of the fact that Chuck's life mattered." read more here
