WWII veteran has new hope after losing almost everything KOB 4 News
Brittany Costello
September 16, 2016
Hundreds of thousands of dollars gone, two savings accounts drained. Now a World War Two Veteran is just trying to get by after he said he was scammed out of all that money by his two so-called caretakers.
It's a story we first brought you in July: Caregivers accused of scamming 95-year-old Santa Fe man. But, Friday, Sept. 16, KOB sat down with 95-year-old Dennis Ferk, who has had to make some huge changes, including selling his home.
He is a former army sergeant who was awarded three Purple Hearts, two Bronze Stars and two presidential citations for his service.
But now, he’s fighting a much different battle. He spends most days trying get his finances back in order.
He said at first, the two helped with yard and house work, and then took over his finances.
“I thought they were my friends but what they were after was taking care of themselves,” said Ferk.
He said over two years they took around $340,000 of his money. Money that was set aside, not for vacations or shopping sprees, but to care for his disabled daughter whose brain never fully developed. read more here
For all the global awareness of PTSD and suicides, this is the result. They managed to survive combat with every anguishing moment yet too many cannot survive living in their own countries. So when do we stop the bullshit of raising awareness they are suffering and actually tell them how they can heal?
Tragedy of the Afghanistan and Iraq Army heroes who cannot live with the trauma of PTSD Mirror UK
BY SEAN RAYMENT , PHIL CARDY , JONATHAN CORKE
18 SEP 2016
One serviceman or woman commits suicide almost every two weeks, official figures have revealed and nearly 400 have taken their lives between 1995 and 2014
Lee Alan Dodgson is the latest of 400 troops to
lose their lives due to post traumatic stress
Lee Alan DodgsonLee Alan Dodgson is the latest of 400 troops to lose their lives due to post traumatic stress
He survived tours of duty in Iraq, Afghanistan and Bosnia – but it was a silent killer that claimed the life of Lee Dodgson.
Only 40, the ex-soldier was found lying near the spot where his father’s ashes were scattered.
For years the dad-of-one had been failed by authorities in his fight with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Speaking shortly after Lee’s funeral, his stepmum Roseann told us: “Post-traumatic stress disorder is underrated. It’s a silent killer. It’s not recognised quick enough.
“He has said he was told that you don’t show your emotions, you hold them in. They, the soldiers, aren’t taught how to deal with it.”
One serviceman or woman commits suicide almost every two weeks, official figures have revealed.
Nearly 400 have taken their lives between 1995 and 2014.
Today the Sunday People highlights Lee’s tragic story and demands change. read more here
Suicides among military bomb techs at crisis level Pensacola News Journal
Melissa Nelson Gabriel
September 17, 2106
"For every IED you disarm, you save between one and 10 lives, but there is always another one you cannot take care of that gets hit. There becomes a point where it haunts your nightmares and it haunts your thoughts during the day." Air Force Sgt. Chris Ferrell
Danelle Hackett wanted her Marine husband to focus on the lives he saved disarming IEDs as a military bomb technician during two tours in Iraq.
Maj. Jeff Hackett and his wife, Danelle. Danelle didn't know what to do to help
her husband when he returned from his dangerous combat tours diffusing explosives.
(Photo: Special to the News Journal)
Maj. Jeff Hackett could only focus on his 16 colleagues who died during the dangerous bomb disposal missions he led from early 2005 through late 2007.
"My husband looked at those guys as his own family, his own sons. Repeatedly losing techs just wore on him and wore him. He blamed himself for every death," Danelle Hackett said.
In June 2010, after a day of drinking at an American Legion Post in Wyoming near the family's home, Jeff Hackett downed a couple more swigs of alcohol, said "cheers" and shot and killed himself.
Among the highly skilled and elite ranks of military explosive ordnance disposal technicians — the men and women who have been on the front line of the war on terror since Sept. 11, 2001 — suicide is a growing concern.
"It is literally an epidemic," said Ken Falke, a former EOD technician and founder of the Niceville-based EOD Warrior Foundation, which supports current and former military EOD techs and their families.
EOD tech Air Force Sgt. Chris Ferrell has attempted suicide four times. He has a sleeve of tattoos on his arm with 26 stars, each one represents a friend he lost on the battlefield. (Photo: Special to the News Journal)
Air Force Sgt. Chris Ferrell, a 32-year-old EOD tech who has had many combat deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan over the last 13 years, has attempted suicide four times. He has a sleeve of tattoos on his arm with 26 shaded-in stars, each one represents a friend he has lost on the battlefield.
read more here
Suspect in Philadelphia Shooting Rampage Left Note Showing Hatred Toward Police, Officers Say ASSOCIATED PRESS PHILADELPHIA
By MEGAN TRIMBLE
Sep 17, 2016
The wild chase and shootout through the streets of Philadelphia began about 11:20 p.m. Friday when Sgt. Sylvia Young, a 19-year police veteran, was ambushed while sitting in her patrol car in west Philadelphia; she was shot a number of times in the arm and protective vest, Ross said.
"She didn't hear him say a word, just walked up on her and started firing," Ross said. "She did hear about 15 shots or so, and that's consistent with the scene, where we believe she was struck at least eight times."
PHOTO: An aerial view of police activity of a shooting in Philadelphia on September 16, 2016.WPVI-TV
A "rambling" note expressing hatred for police was found after a man opened fire on a Philadelphia police officer then went on a shooting rampage, injuring a second officer, killing a woman and wounding three other people before he was shot and killed by police in an alley, authorities said Saturday.
Police Commissioner Richard Ross identified the gunman in the Friday overnight attack as 25-year-old Nicholas Glenn, who was "well-known" to police and has a criminal record.
Ross said Glenn had a 9mm Ruger and at least three magazines as well as a plastic bag with 13 to 15 live rounds. Investigators were trying to track the origins of the weapon, which had an obliterated serial number.
"Obviously, he was hell-bent on hurting a lot of people," the commissioner said at a news conference, adding that "we aren't absolutely clear as to why."
The note was addressed "Doomed People" and expressed hatred for law enforcement and a probation officer; it was found on the gunman, Ross said. Police believe Glenn acted on his own and not as part of a group. read more here
Army investigating death of Fort Hood officer, 23
Army Times By: Staff report
September 16, 2016
A 23-year-old officer was found unresponsive in his Fort Hood residence Tuesday and pronounced dead 90 minutes later at the Texas installation's medical center.
The death of 2nd Lt. Andrew J. Hunt is under investigation, Fort Hood officials said in a Friday news release. No further details were provided. read more here
Navy Launches Suicide Prevention Program Modeled After Marines' Effort
Military.com by Hope Hodge Seck
Sep 16, 2016
"Suicide prevention requires ongoing efforts to promote health and a sense of community. It is a shared responsibility," the message states. "Despite the fact that 85 percent of Sailors say they will seek help if overwhelmed by stress, 2 out of 3 believe there are barriers to seeking help, and 1 in 3 believe their shipmates will see them as weak."
Lt. David Dziengowski, left, Yeoman 1st Class Silvia Raya, and Lt. j.g. Victor Gutierrez, from the Chief of Naval Personnel office, show support as part of Suicide Prevention Month. (US Navy Photo)
A Navy program rolling out in the coming year aims to keep care providers in closer contact with sailors who have expressed suicidal ideations in an effort to prevent suicide in the ranks.
Called Sailor Assistance and Intercept for Life, or SAIL, the program is modeled after a Marine Corps initiative launched in late 2013.
Both SAIL and the Marine Intercept Program allow counselors to make contact with consenting troops at six different intervals -- 3, 7, 14, 30, 60 and 90 days -- after a service member expresses a suicidal ideation.
"We need to develop a culture where people are just not afraid to ask for help when facing a challenge that is just a little overwhelming," Capt. Mike Fisher, director of the Navy's Suicide Prevention Branch, told Military.com in an interview. "This is just one more small act that can save one more life." read more here
Suicide Awareness Shouldn't Be Easy For You Wounded Times Kathie Costos September 17, 2016 The headline on USA Today from the editorial board was chosen as "Every 72 minutes a veteran commits suicide" and it has been repeated all across the web. The question is, why?
The editorial pointed out this, "A veteran is choosing death every 72 minutes, and the VA could be doing more to keep that person alive." Later on there was this, "Of 20 veteran suicides daily, just six were enrolled in VA health care. The others either chose against going to the VA or were ineligible for its care." That pretty much summed up the simple fact that they are in fact getting help to live from the VA. So why put a number on our veterans seeking to end their suffering with suicide instead of healing without putting in the facts? Here are some basic facts they forgot to mention.
In 1999, according to the VA chart, there were 20 veterans committing suicide a day. At least the ones they could find. When you look at those numbers it is important to know the backstory. According to the US Census Veterans Day report of 2015 there were 21,369,602 veterans. For the 2000 Veterans Census there were 26.4 million veterans which translates into the stunning fact that we are down by over 5 million veterans. Why didn't the editorial board wonder why the same reported number of veterans committing suicide has remained the same even though we're down that many veterans? You're probably thinking that would be important since veterans have been the subject of research for the last 4 decades topped off with "awareness" and a surge in spending attempts to change the end of their story. There is an interactive map on the link and you can find the number of veterans in your state. I looked up Florida and we have 1,569,406 veterans living here and most of them are Vietnam veterans along with the other fact that most are over the age of 50. That is another omitted fact within the reports from the VA.
Within those numbers reported are families left behind. Within those numbers is the fact that those older veterans managed to survive combat, all the following years starting those families, working toward a future, but then surrendered their lives. Within those numbers there is the other fact that all generations came home with the war being fought within themselves, yet it was Vietnam veterans pushing for all the research 4 decades ago. They are last on the list of the new charities popping up focusing on Iraq and Afghanistan veterans leaving Vietnam veterans without any attention at all.
So why is it that after all these years, there is an equal number of suicides committed by less veterans after all that has been "done for them" or is a matter of what was "done to them?"
If you're like me, you've paid attention to all of this since our husbands and wives came home. It is a safe bet that you're just as angry over all of this as I am. When will we matter enough that these reporters actually figure out that these veterans are not just numbers to us? They are our family members.
Lawsuit accuses Wynn of discriminating against worker with PTSD Associated Press
September 16, 2016
Wynn Las Vegas is accused of discriminating against a U.S. Army veteran who was working for them as a security guard and had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
An exterior view of the Wynn and Encore Tuesday, November 15, 2011.
Steve Marcus
The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit Friday in Las Vegas, alleging the company refused to accommodate the veteran and aggravated his condition by suspending him.
The lawsuit says the employee served in Iraq and started working in 2007 as an unarmed security officer on bike patrol. read more here
UPDATE Wynn Las Vegas denies it discriminated against disabled employee Las Vegas Review Journal Jeff German September 17, 2016
A Wynn Las Vegas spokesman Saturday denied allegations the Strip resort discriminated against a disabled employee diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
The allegations were leveled in a federal lawsuit filed Friday by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
“We did not discriminate against the employee on the basis of an alleged disability,” Wynn spokesman Michael Weaver said in a statement. “Wynn Resorts profoundly resents the false accusations of the EEOC in taking this action and intends to prove that in court.”
Weaver said the lawsuit is an example of the EEOC’s “frequent irresponsible and ill-conceived actions that often ignore the obvious facts, and in this case, the truth.”
“We are deeply disappointed that the EEOC decided to file a lawsuit three years after our last communication on this matter, rather than contact us and engage in the real work necessary to help an employee ensnared in medical and government bureaucracy. “
The company makes work accommodations under the Americans With Disabilities Act and was prepared to do that for the employee, a security bike officer and U.S. Army veteran, Weaver said.
“Unfortunately, the employee was unable to obtain the certification required by government regulation which would allow us to fairly make an accommodation for him,” Weaver said. “The company worked with the employee for months to help him obtain the necessary medical certification. Eventually, the employee resigned; he was not terminated.” read more here
Report: Black Hawk crash rescue efforts stalled nearly 3 hours Killeen Daily Herald
By David A. Bryant
Herald staff writer
September 15, 2016
FORT HOOD — Search and rescue operations were not launched for nearly three hours after a fatal Black Hawk helicopter crash on Fort Hood in November due to a series of delays in communication.
Sgt. 1st Class Toby Childers
The UH-60 Black Hawk carrying four soldiers crashed at approximately 5:30 p.m. Nov. 23, 2015, in a training area on Fort Hood. The aircraft was reported missing about 20 minutes later when the crew failed to report over the radio on schedule and was classified as overdue, according to a report on the crash.
Search and rescue missions should begin after officials are unable to make contact. However, an attempt to locate the aircraft was made before notifying the authorities responsible for initiating a search.
There was a nearly three-hour delay in launching those rescue efforts, according to the facts, findings and recommendations section of the internal investigation released Wednesday by First Army.
Regulations state the Installation Operations Center (IOC) on Fort Hood is responsible for initiating search and rescue. However, officials at the IOC seemed “unaware of their role in the overdue aircraft battle drill,” according to the internal investigation.
The report further stated the cause of the crash that killed Sgt. 1st Class Toby Childers, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Stephen B. Cooley, Sgt. 1st Class Jason M. Smith and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Michael F. Tharp was due to pilot error while attempting a combat maneuvering flight technique called a break turn. read more here
KOB 4 News
