Doing "For" Some Veterans Does Something "Not Good" To Them

Stop, Look Around and Think of What We're Doing to Most Veterans
Combat PTSD Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
June 26, 2017

This hangs on the wall right behind my computer to remind me of how long this has all been going on. It is faded, old and worn out, much like my patience over the last decade.

It seems as if everyone has pulled their head out of their...whatever-wherever, and discovered that veterans have a problem that they have the only solution for. It is almost as if they just woke up one day and decided they were the Messier of PTSD.

After all, if they had not heard of it before, it must be something totally new. (Gee, safe bet the folks thinking the earth was flat were stunned to find out suddenly it got round when they were sleeping.) Well, PTSD has been called that a lot longer than I've been doing this. 

How did you think I learned it almost 35 years ago? I learned reading clinical books with a huge dictionary because at least one word in every sentence was cringe worthy.

I learned from experts. One of them was this guy. What I want you to notice are the title and the date.

Forgotten Warrior Project: Identity, Ideology and Crisis - The Vietnam Veteran in Transition Paperback – 1977

The date is important because the pamphlet is something the DAV funded based on the work from John Wilson PhD and put together by Jim Goodwin PhD but all that work was pretty much forgotten about, ironically.

There is a commercial I hear on a daily basis while I'm at work, trying to enjoy the music, when I hear a guy talk about how bad it is to be forgotten about right after he lists all the things PTSD used to be called. He says "now it is called" at the same time he talks about OEF and OIF veterans. And that ladies and gentlemen is the basis for my rant being held in control while the vein pops out of my head.

The problem is, most of the charities out there have not just forgotten about the majority of veterans in this country THEY FORGOT THEY WAITED LONGER FOR SOMEONE TO REMEMBER THEY WERE THERE IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!!

S. 1963 later became P.L. 111-163, the Caregivers and
Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 (hereinafter,
``the Caregivers law''), on May 5, 2010. 

At the same hearing, Rick Weidman of Vietnam Veterans of America observed: "Many Vietnam veterans are alive today because their wives, or sisters, or other relatives have been taking care of them for decades. Heretofore there was never any recognition of the fact that these veterans would either have had to enter into long term care or would have been on the street if not for the extraordinary efforts of these family caregivers. Either way the additional cost to American society would have been extremely large, whether in fiscal cost or the societal cost of having many additional veterans among the homeless."

And Weidman was absolutely correct! Right now some in Congress are trying to do the right thing while others are saying the government just can't afford to do it for all families. So far no one has explained why they found the money to do it for the smallest population of those giving care to some of our veterans.

Gee do you think it may be a good time to actually think of what we should do for veterans instead of letting so many get away with doing it to them?

Disabled Veteran Captures "Porch Pirate" on Video

Denver ‘porch pirate’ caught on camera stealing packages from disabled veteran

POSTED 6:04 PM, JUNE 25, 2017, BY DAVE YOUNG AND JOE DAHLKE

DENVER -- "Porch pirate" crimes are on the rise in Denver and across the country.

Nine-year disabled U.S. Army veteran Mike Long and his wife had their new surveillance security system installed Thursday, and captured a woman walking up to their porch and stealing packages two days later.

"It does make you feel violated because that was my wife's jacket and some toiletries and some gifts and stuff like that," Long said.

The security footage shows the postal carrier dropping off two packages at their front door then hitting the doorbell.

Then, an identifiable a tattooed woman walks up to the porch and steals the packages.

"And it came to my phone as an alert and I came back home about 10 minutes later and they were gone," Long said.

Long called police and showed the officer the video while filling out a crime report.

read more here

VA Press Releases on Homeless Veterans and Air Force

VA and Air Force Announce Tele-Intensive Care Unit Sharing Agreement
WASHINGTON — The Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) Midwest Health Care Network and the Air Force Medical Operations Agency today announced a collaborative Tele-ICU agreement that will allow Air Force patients at five military treatment facilities to use VA’s Tele-ICU capabilities through its centralized support center in Minneapolis.

The agreement extends to Air Force patients in Las Vegas; Hampton, Virginia; Biloxi, Mississippi; Dayton, Ohio; and Anchorage, Alaska.

The patients will be able to see VA’s Tele-ICU licensed physicians — called Tele-Intensivists — and critical-care nurses through telecommunications or other electronic technologies, which include direct view of the patient through live audio and video feed; electronic monitoring; and chart review and consultations. The doctors are also able to prescribe medications, order tests or procedures, make diagnoses and discuss health care with patients and family members.

“For VA, telehealth is revolutionizing the way we practice medicine,” said VA Secretary Dr. David J. Shulkin, who also sees patients by telehealth. “Tele-ICU is more than just a way of providing remote care. We know it improves the quality of care, decreases costs by supporting evidence-based practices and it improves patient outcomes through decreased ventilator days, ventilator-associated pneumonias and reduced lengths of stay. We are pleased to partner with the Air Force in this effort.”

Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, Dr. David Smith, agreed, noting that “Collaborative partnerships, such as this agreement with VA, help us provide the best possible care to our service members, military family members and retirees who receive health care though the Department of Defense.

VA’s Acting Under Secretary for Health, Dr. Poonam Alaigh, added, “This cooperation between the Air Force and VA reflects our shared commitment to caring for those who serve in our nation’s military, both during their service and beyond. We are pleased to establish this partnership.”

The collaborative effort is a result of a 2015 DoD-VA Health Care Sharing Incentive Fund, also known as the Joint Incentive Fund (JIF) project. JIF was authorized by Congress as part of the 2003 National Defense Authorization Act. The intent of JIF is to facilitate mutually beneficial exchanges of health-care resources between DoD and VA, with the goal of improving access to high-quality and cost-effective health care.


Veterans Matter Program and VA Announce Milestone of Helping 1,500 Homeless Veterans Secure Stable Housing

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department Veterans Affairs (VA) and Veterans Matter — a program that provides security deposits to homeless Veterans in 14 states and the District of Columbia — today announced that, through their joint efforts, they have helped 1,500 Veterans exit homelessness and move into permanent housing.

Veterans Matter, supported by John Mellencamp, Dusty Hill, Katy Perry, Kid Rock and many others in the entertainment industry, was established in 2012 by the Toledo, Ohio-based nonprofit 1Matters.org, and focuses exclusively on providing security deposits to homeless Veterans who qualify for rental subsidies from the joint U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program. In providing these security deposits, Veterans Matter removes a major barrier to securing stable housing for homeless Veterans.

“VA can’t end Veteran homelessness alone,” said Anthony Love, senior adviser and director of community engagement for the Veterans Health Administration Homeless Programs Office. “Partnerships with innovative, community-oriented groups, such as Veterans Matter, have played a major role in the decline in Veteran homelessness in recent years.”

“In collaboration with VA, we are able to make a greater impact for homeless Veterans than we could on our own,” said Ken Leslie, who founded Veterans Matter and was once homeless himself.

Once Veterans are housed through the HUD-VASH program, VA case managers can connect them to other supportive services — such as employment assistance, health care, mental health treatment and substance use counseling — to help them recover and improve their ability to stay housed.

Based on data released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in 2016, since 2010, there has been an estimated 47 percent reduction in homelessness among Veterans across the country. Further, HUD said, between 2015 and 2016 alone, the number of homeless Veterans decreased by 17 percent. In addition, of all VA homeless programs that assist Veterans, HUD-VASH assists the largest number of Veterans who have experienced long-term or repeated homelessness. And of those Veterans in the program, 91 percent remain housed. The program has allocated more than 88,000 housing vouchers nationwide to date">Veterans Matter — a program that provides security deposits to homeless Veterans in 14 states and the District of Columbia — today announced that, through their joint efforts, they have helped 1,500 Veterans exit homelessness and move into permanent housing.

Veterans Matter, supported by John Mellencamp, Dusty Hill, Katy Perry, Kid Rock and many others in the entertainment industry, was established in 2012 by the Toledo, Ohio-based nonprofit 1Matters.org, and focuses exclusively on providing security deposits to homeless Veterans who qualify for rental subsidies from the joint U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program. In providing these security deposits, Veterans Matter removes a major barrier to securing stable housing for homeless Veterans.

“VA can’t end Veteran homelessness alone,” said Anthony Love, senior adviser and director of community engagement for the Veterans Health Administration Homeless Programs Office. “Partnerships with innovative, community-oriented groups, such as Veterans Matter, have played a major role in the decline in Veteran homelessness in recent years.”

“In collaboration with VA, we are able to make a greater impact for homeless Veterans than we could on our own,” said Ken Leslie, who founded Veterans Matter and was once homeless himself.

Once Veterans are housed through the HUD-VASH program, VA case managers can connect them to other supportive services — such as employment assistance, health care, mental health treatment and substance use counseling — to help them recover and improve their ability to stay housed.

Based on data released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in 2016, since 2010, there has been an estimated 47 percent reduction in homelessness among Veterans across the country. Further, HUD said, between 2015 and 2016 alone, the number of homeless Veterans decreased by 17 percent. In addition, of all VA homeless programs that assist Veterans, HUD-VASH assists the largest number of Veterans who have experienced long-term or repeated homelessness. And of those Veterans in the program, 91 percent remain housed. The program has allocated more than 88,000 housing vouchers nationwide to date.

UPDATE

Veterans Matter is a program of 1Matters.org, the Toledo, OH, non-profit sparked and supported by singer John Mellencamp and others in the music industry. 1Matters creates and funds the startup of new local and regional initiatives to move people to financial and domestic autonomy. Veterans Matter is the organization’s first national program and has organically grown to house over 1,500 veterans in 14 states.

CIA Honored "Smokejumpers"

They were smokejumpers when the CIA sent them to Laos; they came back in caskets
The Washington Post
By IAN SHAPIRA
Published: June 25, 2017

Leary, the University of Georgia history professor and Air America expert, wrote the CIA a letter urging the agency to give the three men Memorial Wall recognition as far back as 1993.

Their families didn't know they were in Laos, and didn't know that they'd started working for the CIA in addition to their jobs with the U.S. Forest Service.

The CIA Memorial Wall uses stars to honor those killed in the line of duty.

JOHN MCDONNELL/THE WASHINGTON POST

They were young firefighters-turned-CIA operatives working thousands of miles from home in a remote corner of Southeast Asia. David W. Bevan, Darrell A. Eubanks and John S. Lewis, all in their mid-20s, were on a mission to drop supplies for anti-Communist forces in what was then known as the Kingdom of Laos. But on Aug. 13, 1961, the CIA-operated Air America plane carrying the men tried turning out of a mountaintop bowl near the Laotian capital of Vientiane and one of its wings hooked into a ridge.

The C-46 "cartwheeled into little pieces," according to the book, "Smokejumpers and the CIA," published by the National Smokejumpers Association. The CIA operatives died, along with Air America's two pilots.

When their families were told they'd been killed in Laos in a plane crash, they were stunned.
read more here

Amputee Afghanistan Veteran is Now a "Road Warrior"

Disabled veteran surprised with special wheelchair
WCYB 5 News
Ellie Romano
Posted: Jun 24, 2017

ELIZABETHTON, Tenn. - Jeremy Young was deployed to Afghanistan in 2011 where he fell victim to a blue on green attack.

One of his Afghani counterparts opened fire on him and his comrades.

Young was shot 13 times and suffered severe nerve damage and had to amputate his leg.

Now, he has a new form of transportation.

The Road Warrior Foundation gifted Young with a massive wheelchair that can work in tough terrain.

"I couldn't believe that was for me. I wanted one of these chairs since I got hurt, and the first time I saw it I was like 'do you know how cool it would be to own one of those.'" Young explained.

The organizers of this surprise where very particular in choosing the right recipient.

Road Warrior's Mid-Atlantic Regional Director said they denied about 15 candidates before finding Young.
read more here

500 Homeless Veterans Found Home and Hope in Pensacola

500 homeless vets housed through VA, Pensacola program
Pensacola News Journal
Kevin Robinson
June 25, 2017

"If it wasn't for the psychiatrist and the case workers and HUD-VASH, I probably would have fell backwards. They're all proud of me because of where I'm at now compared to how I used to be."
Billy Gillard

Billy Gillard's welcome to Vietnam was a hail of enemy gunfire.

The 18-year-old U.S. Marine Corps infantryman was deployed to Vietnam in 1968, the bloodiest year of the war. When his plane landed, Gillard's first instructions were to grab his duffel bag and sprint for cover. From there, Gillard spent restless nights unsure where or when the next attack would come. He lost brothers in arms suddenly and violently, and still can't shake the memories of the dead and wounded.

He made it home physically whole, but he left some piece of himself in the jungle.

"Now, I have a psychiatrist, and they recognize it's (post traumatic stress disorder)," Gillard, now 68, said. "Back then it was like, 'What do I do now?' ... . There were a lot of battles I was fighting by myself when I got back here."

Gillard turned to drugs to cope. He went through three marriages, more than a decade in prison and 15 years drifting from place to place without a home to call his own. In 2008, he realized he was tired of the way he was living, and this time, there was someone there to help.

Gillard is one of the hundreds of local, formerly homeless veterans who have been able to obtain housing through the HUD-VASH program.
read more here

Huey's Still Coming to Rescue of Vietnam Veterans

Vietnam Veterans give therapy rides to fellow Vets in 1968 Huey Helicopter
KTVU News
Leigh Martinez
June 25, 2017

That was the start of his mental healing process and Raquiza now volunteers every weekend with the Huey Vets and recruits veterans from all battlefields to take therapeutic rides and discuss military PTSD.

On the tarmac at the Bud Field Aviation Hanger, there’s a sound familiar to all Vietnam Combat Veterans. The deep, loud ‘thud, thud, thud’ of a Huey helicopter.

This distinct sound meant supplies, medic rescue, and most importantly, that they were going home.

"I wouldn't be alive today if it wasn't for a UH1 helicopter taking care of me,” said US Army pilot Randy Parent, one of two pilots commanding the EMU 309.

Today, veterans claim the Huey continues to save their lives. The EMU 309 is a Bell UH-1H Huey helicopter restored to its 1968 Vietnam War configuration. The all-volunteer team of Huey Vets now maintain the EMU 309 to provide therapeutic flights above the San Antonio Reservoir to veterans suffering the after-effects of war.

Geoff Carr and Peter Olesko bought the Huey helicopter in 2003. Carr mortgaged his house to restore it.

“I knew if these go out of service, they can become beer cans and lose their history,” said Carr.

It has turned the lives around for two veterans, who credit the aircraft for starting their PTSD recovery.

"You hear that expression 'Coming home' and I think it's different for everybody, but if I was going to use that expression, I'd say ‘coming home’ for me was getting back in this chopper and flying it again,” said Andy Perry, who flew the Huey 309 during the Vietnam War for the Royal Australian Navy, fighting alongside American troops.

Perry and U.S. Army Sgt. Faustino Raquiza both received silver stars for their roles in Vietnam. Raquiza was awarded two silver stars.

"The silver star doesn't mean anything to me,” said Raquiza.

“I know people make it a big deal -third highest ranking star in the United States military, but I rather be understood; understood for what I'm going through and not patronized. It's hurtful."

Perry and Raquiza said they had no idea what they were returning home to after their service in Vietnam.

"I was booed at the airport, they threw stuff at me, I was called a baby killer, women killer,” said Raquiza.
read more here
America's Forgotten Heroes - No Longer from Huey Vets - EMU, Inc on Vimeo.

PTSD Missing Veteran James Ivy

Police: Milwaukee man last seen a week ago in Fernwood
Chicago Sun Times
CHICAGO NEWS 06/25/2017

Police are asking for the public’s help in finding a Milwaukee man who last last seen a week ago in the Fernwood neighborhood on the Far South Side.

James Ivy, 69, was last seen about 10 p.m. on June 17 in the 10300 block of South State Street, according to a missing person alert from Chicago Police.

Ivy is a retired veteran who has post-traumatic stress disorder and may be headed back to Milwaukee via Amtrak, police said.

He is described as a 205-pound, 6-foot-1 African American man with brown eyes, black hair and a medium complexion, according to police.
go here for more

DAV fight for post-9/11 caregiver benefits

Disabled American veterans fight for post-9/11 caregiver benefits 
CBS Radio Connecting Vets 
Jake Hughes 
June 22, 2017 

“It’s bringing to light that a lot of pre-9/11 families, caregivers and veterans like our family, are under served by the VA,” says Jason Courneen, adding that he and their daughters are the only way his wife is able to get through her day.

In 1998, a horrible accident befell Alexis Courneen. While serving in the U.S. Coast Guard, Courneen was struck by a crane carrying a buoy that caused traumatic brain injury and other injuries, leaving her entirely reliant on her husband and caregiver, Jason Courneen.

Now, she’s fighting to ensure she can get the same benefits as a service member injured after 9/11.

“We spent a good 10 years very frustrated, very isolated, while I was learning that it was okay to speak up to the doctors,” Jason Courneen says.

Currently, the Department of Veteran Affairs has the Post-9/11 Comprehensive Caregiver Program, which offers enhanced support for caregivers of eligible veterans seriously injured in the line of duty on or after September 11, 2001.

To qualify, service members must have sustained or aggravated a serious injury — including traumatic brain injury, psychological trauma or other mental disorder — in the line of duty, on or after September 11, 2001; and be in need of personal care services to perform one or more activities of daily living and/or need supervision or protection based on symptoms or residuals of neurological impairment or injury.

However, the program leaves out service members injured before 9/11, going as far back as Vietnam Veterans. A study released by Disabled American Veterans, a non-profit charity that provides a lifetime of support for veterans of all generations and their families, highlights the disparity of care and attention given by the VA between pre- and post-9/11 veterans.

“It’s bringing to light that a lot of pre-9/11 families, caregivers and veterans like our family, are under served by the VA,” says Jason Courneen, adding that he and their daughters are the only way his wife is able to get through her day.

read more here

Glad someone is thinking about the Forgotten Warrior Generation and families like mine!

Glad my husband and I are life members of the DAV and the Auxiliary!

Wounded Marine Gets New Home After 3 Tours in Iraq

Wounded veteran receives mortgage-free home in Oakland

Home at Last donates 7th home to wounded veteran

Click Orlando

By Amanda Castro - Reporter/Anchor

Posted: 12:59 PM, June 24, 2017

OAKLAND, Fla. - A house doesn't become a home until it's filled with family, love and -- as the nonprofit organization Home at Last works to include – honor.

The nonprofit dedicated its seventh home to wounded former Marine Corps Sgt. Seann Windfield Saturday morning in Oakland.

The veteran told News 6 he can't wait to move in and make his new home his foundation.

“I could say thank you a million times, however my family's actions and being good Americans will prove our gratitude," Windfield said.

Windfield, who served in the Marines for eight years, was overwhelmed as he looked around his new, mortgage-free home.

Windfield did three tours in Iraq before he was medically discharged in 2012 after hurting his back.

Now he's going through the tough transition from Marine to civilian.

read more here