Soldier amputees have more options for continued service Joint Base San Antonio U.S. Army Warrior Care and Transition By Whitney Delbridge Nichels July 26, 2018
FOB FRONTERAC, Afghanistan - Col. Todd R. Wood (right), commander of the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, administers the oath of re-enlistment to Staff Sgt. Brian Beem (left), a cavalry scout assigned to the 5th Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, during a special ceremony at Forward Operating Base Frontenac, Nov. 9. Beem is a single leg amputee who has continued to serve despite his injury. He lost his leg after an improvised explosive device detonated during his 2006 deployment to Iraq.
ARLINGTON, Virginia —
Thanks to advances in modern medicine and the availability of sturdier prosthetics, soldiers who are able to redeploy after amputation have a number of possible options for continued military service.
Army Staff Sgt. Brian Beem lost his leg in 2006 to an improvised explosive device in Iraq. "I thought my career was over," he said.
Beem credits his experiences at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, with helping him assess and eventually find options for returning to duty.
“It took me about a year to get up to speed with physical training, and I was feeling pretty confident,” he said. Within a short time, Beem was ready to deploy to Afghanistan with his unit. Although he was no longer on patrol as he was in previous deployments, he still played a vital role in battle staff operations.
“It was really gratifying to be able to deploy,” he said. “It’s possible, but it’s not easy. The process is there for those who have the perseverance.”
read more here
Man who pretended to be a decorated veteran sentenced WPTV Webteam Tory Dunnan Jul 27, 2018
"My actions, which I thought were for a good reason. To help my family overall," he said. "I've dishonored myself, my sons, my daughters, my family, my country, and veterans everywhere. For that, I am truly sorry," said Liroff who could barely get through a prepared statement.
ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. - ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. - A man in Port St. Lucie who pretended to be a veteran entered a no contest plea in court Friday.
For years, Edward Liroff told stories about his service saying he was shot twice in combat and that he pulled two soldiers out of a burning helicopter.
The ruse unraveled when tried to get a code enforcement job with the city and police say a document he used turned out to be falsified.
In court, a judge credited him with some of the time he has spent behind bars but he still must serve nine more months in jail.
Liroff apologized and said, "this wasn't his brightest moment."
Once he pays back all the money he received from veterans benefits, his one-year probation will be dropped. read more here
The Millennial Who Uses Comedy to Help Veterans Heal Politico By DEREK ROBERTSON July 26, 2018
“Until I joined the class, I talked about [that experience] two times, and each time I had full breakdowns about it,” Croghan told me afterward. “I hate to use the word ‘safe,’ but that’s what [the class] was. I felt comfortable discussing it with the group we had. … Until that point, I’d never done that before.”
A millennial-run nonprofit is bridging a divide between the military and civilians by giving veterans a chance to tell their stories—and their jokes—in public.
For the better part of a decade, Christopher Croghan was at war.
He deployed to Iraq for the first time in 2007 at the height of the conflict. Returning home, he found it no more peaceful than the desert. Like many in his generation of post-9/11 veterans, Croghan found it almost impossible to speak candidly about what he had lived through—particularly with those closest to him. When faced with the choice between returning to the battlefield and processing at home the trauma he brought back, he repeatedly volunteered for redeployment, even as a soldier for hire after leaving the Marines.
“The only stuff my family knew about the war and me is that every once in a while we would have a celebration, and I would get way too drunk,” Croghan said. “And I’d say, ‘Well, you’ve never shot at a fucking kid, so shut the fuck up.’”
Croghan’s drinking led to a DUI. Both the judge and his therapist at the VA encouraged him to pursue writing, his personal outlet of choice. One day, however, a slightly adjacent program crossed the desk of Croghan’s therapist—the Armed Services Arts Partnership, a nonprofit that teaches creative- and performing-arts classes for veterans and military families. ASAP’s mission is to forge “a new path for veterans to reintegrate into civilian life, and for our communities to welcome them home.”
Which is how, on a warm evening in May, Croghan came to be standing on a stage at the Drafthouse Comedy Theater on Washington, D.C.’s K Street, just a few blocks north of the White House, preparing to deliver a monologue that he had spent the previous six weeks perfecting in a storytelling class with nine other men and women. read more here
There is something that Sgt. 1st. Class James Spraggins understands very well. He understands what his choice of profession caused, but he understands a lot more than that! It takes a lot of courage to choose a career that could kill you. It takes a lot of courage to put your life on the line for the sake of others. It takes a lot of courage to admit that sometimes, you need help too. What takes even more courage, is to speak out publicly so that others are inspired to ask for help too!
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A Platoon Sergeant receives the gift of hope, strength and life U.S. Army Warrior Care and Transition By MaryTherese Griffin Courtesy Story 07.27.2018
"...this would be the start of my new life; the gift of hope, strength, and most importantly the gift of life.” Sgt. 1st. Class James Spraggins
Courtesy Photo | Sgt. 1st. Class James Spraggins Iraq 2008, (Photo courtesy James Spraggins)
ARLINGTON, Va. - “I was a disaster who was proficient at hiding the fact that I needed help. I was very confused on what was going on with myself and feared for the future.”
Those courageous words are from Sgt. 1st Class James Spraggins. The former Infantryman turned Army Sniper has deployed multiple times over his 15 year Army career and wants to let other Soldiers know a few things about his journey.
The events of September 11th encouraged Spraggins to enlist; he felt like he was honoring his family name by taking it overseas to defend the nation’s freedoms. However, after his last two deployments, Spraggins says he was a different person. “I no longer had the same mentality towards human kind when I returned,” and that included himself Spraggins said.
Spraggins suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. He was assigned as a Platoon Sergeant to the Warrior Transition Unit at Fort Knox, Kentucky. This was the first time, he says, he was away from his comfort zone. “I can remember feeling on top of the world (before PTSD), but then I lost who I was, I lost all hope. This began the complete spiral and destruction of Sgt. 1st Class Spraggins,” Spraggins recalled. “Those moments were some of the darkest moments of my life. I began neglecting everyone close to me so that I didn’t have to visit them or talk to anyone.”
Spraggins says he even began neglecting his basic human needs, like hygiene, for weeks and would skip meals for days to the point of complete exhaustion and he didn’t sleep. After suffering multiple panic attacks daily for several months he started thinking to himself that living was no longer an option. He sat with a loaded pistol in a church parking lot, thought about it, prayed about it, then he called his sister. “After failing in every direction, I turned for help. I made the choice to walk into Building 1480, the Behavioral Health Clinic on Fort Knox, this would be the start of my new life; the gift of hope, strength, and most importantly the gift of life.” read more here
North Dakota Veterans’ personal information at risk, audit says Bismark Tribune James B. Miller, Jr. Forum News Service Jul 24, 2018
Most notably, the audit found that the Veteran Aid Loan System was outsourced to a vendor without the department receiving an exemption from the Information Technology Department, meaning that, since 2005, information from veterans including credit history, debt-to-income ratio, discretionary income, spousal income, discharge information and more were hosted by an unvetted vendor.
In an extensive report, the Office of the State Auditor recently expressed concerns with the North Dakota Department of Veterans Affairs’ handling of the veteran aid loan, hardship assistance grant, impact grant and highly rural transportation grant programs.
The report stems from a performance audit conducted on the NDDVA beginning in October 2017 and concluding on March 28, 2018. The effort was headed by Rep. Chet Pollert, R-Carrington, and the Legislative Audit and Fiscal Review Committee.
The Veterans Aid Loan Program is a permanent revolving fund for eligible veterans and surviving spouses to receive funds for relief or assistance. The audit found that to obtain a loan, the Administrative Committee on Veterans Affairs required applicants to have the financial ability to repay the loan. However, neither ACOVA or the NDDVA had established underwriting guidelines to use when determining an applicant’s financial ability to repay the loan.
Attempts to reach North Dakota Department of Veterans Affairs Commissioner Lonnie Wangen and Administrative Committee on Veterans Affairs Chairman Dean Overby for comment went unanswered. read more here
Bride-To-Be Accused Of Killing Fiancé In Fight Over Wedding Guest CBS 4 Denver Brandon Watkins July 25, 2018
A friend of Watkins told KKTV the couple served together in the Army at Fort Carson.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (CBS4) — A bride-to-be is accused of killing her fiancé while they were planning their wedding.
Jacqueline Souza, 31, told investigators she thought her fiancé, Brandon Watkins, was having an affair – and that he wanted to invite that woman to their wedding in Las Vegas, KKTV reports.
The couple reportedly got into a fight about the invitation when they got home late Friday night after celebrating their upcoming wedding and Watkins’ new job. read more here
How much louder do they have to scream? That was the question a couple of weeks ago when we posted about veterans committing suicides in very public ways. Last year, veterans were facing off with law enforcement officers every week. Now there are three within 3 days.
Man taken to hospital after barricading himself inside Byron hotel The standoff began when police went to do a welfare check and found the man had barricaded himself inside the room Author: WMAZ Staff July 24, 2018
When police arrived, they found the door barricaded with all the furniture inside the room.
The SWAT team was called in after family members and police were not able to make contact.
The man inside was confirmed as a military veteran, and police are saying he is under intense mental and physical stress.
No weapon was found and police say he never threatened anyone or himself. read more here
Man charged with Domestic Battery after Cape Coral standoff FOX 4 News Jul 24, 2018
CAPE CORAL, Fla. -- A several-hour long standoff with deputies ended safely Monday with the suspect in jail for Domestic Battery.
Cape Coral Police responded to a welfare check in the 900 block of SW 47th Terrace after a wife called the VA clinic to report her husband was having combat flashbacks and threatened to harm himself.
Deputies responded and attempted to contact the resident, 48-year-old Michael DeArmas, who refused to come out or cooperate with deputies. He later walked out and was taken into custody without incident.
DeArmas' wife spoke to detectives and told them that DeArmas is a combat veteran who has flashbacks and becomes delusional, especially when drinking, as the couple had been doing last weekend.
She said he had access to guns and had threatened to kill himself and their dog. read more here
Deadly officer involved shooting after standoff in West Central Fresno July 21, 2018 FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- With Action News cameras recording from a distance and witnesses hiding out in neighboring hotel rooms, Fresno Police officers shot a man in the parking lot of the Parkway Inn.
"Officers fired two rounds. One of those rounds struck the suspect at which point he dove right in through a broken window into the hotel room," said Deputy Chief Pat Farmer.
Officers knew they'd hit him and paramedics rushed in, but they could not save the suspect and a standoff ended.
Action News talked to some of Maya's family members, including a woman who was with him at the motel.
They say he was a good man who once served in the army.
They called him a family man who had turned his life around over the last ten years and state records show he also owned his own business.
Both weapons turned out to be pellet guns, but police say they looked very realistic, especially from a distance. read more here
UPDATE: After being shocked by the update, I decided to go to the VA website for the answer. Here it is!
Gulf War Service For VA benefit purposes under 38 CFR 3.317, Gulf War service is active military duty in any of the following areas in the Southwest Asia theater of military operations at any time August 2, 1990 to present. This includes Veterans who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003-2010) and Operation New Dawn (2010-2011).
Southwest Asia theatre of military operations: Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, U.A.E., Oman, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman, Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea
Iraq Kuwait Saudi Arabia The neutral zone between Iraq and Saudi Arabia Bahrain Qatar The United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) Oman Gulf of Aden Gulf of Oman Waters of the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Sea, and the Red Sea The airspace above these locations Note: Service in Afghanistan on or after September 19, 2001, is considered qualifying service for disability benefits associated with certain presumptive diseases.
Really odd followup to this story boils down to no one officially ended the Gulf War!
“More than 650,000 Service members served in Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm from August 2, 1990 to July 31, 1991. For VA benefits eligibility purposes, the Gulf War period is still in effect,” the VA website states. “This means that anyone who served on active duty from August 2, 1990, to present is considered a Gulf War Veteran. For example, the Veterans Pension benefit requires service during a wartime period. Therefore, any Veteran who served on active military service for any period from August 2, 1990, to the present meets the wartime service requirement.”
“Even those of us who served in Operation Desert Storm were told that ‘the war was over’ when it fact there was only a cease fire declared, and no official end to the war has been declared as of this date, and all veterans who served from Aug. 2, 1990 until a date yet to be declared are Gulf War veterans.”
Holmes Beach mayoral candidate falsely claims he’s a veteran of first Gulf War. He was 15 Bradenton Herald Mark Young July 25, 2018
HOLMES BEACH Holmes Beach mayoral candidate Joshua Linney claims in his campaign biography that he served with the U.S. Army in Iraq and that he is a veteran of the first Gulf War.
Holmes Beach mayoral candidate Joshua Linney claims he misspoke in misrepresenting his military service. Provided photo
“I’m a Gulf War veteran whose worked to overcome war, trauma, alcoholism, chemical dependence and PTSD, while living with disabilities, and I conquered them all,” Linney, 42, wrote in a biography submitted to the Manatee County supervisor of elections office and posted on the agency’s website
However, Linney was never in Iraq, according to his discharge papers. And as for his claim to being a Gulf War veteran, the war was fought in January-February 1991, when Linney was 15.
When he was 18, Linney enlisted in the Army in September 1993 and was medically discharged in August 1996, after he fell off a building and suffered a traumatic brain injury for which he receives disability benefits, according to his discharge papers. read more here
Veteran goes from spending $500 a day on heroin to owning a business News4Jax By Chris Parenteau - Reporter July 25, 2018
"God is the only reason I came through it," Tipper said. "And I think there is always a plan and that things may seem insurmountable to be able to come past an addiction, but it’s definitely doable."
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A United States Army veteran went from spending $500 a day on heroin to owning a business.
Kendall Tipper shared his story about how the opioid crisis affected him with News4Jax on Wednesday. The former soldier talked about how he broke his addiction and turned his life around.
Day-to-day, Tipper works as a chauffeur, driving a black car for Tipper Transportation, the company he started.
But to getting to where he is today wasn't easy.
"A lot of times, I would catch myself thinking, 'Am I going to be on drugs forever?'" Tipper said.
After he graduated from First Coast High School, Tipper enrolled at Florida State College at Jacksonville, but he quickly knew it wasn’t for him. That’s when he enlisted in the U.S. Army.
"I need the discipline and I didn’t have it at the time," he said. read more here
Want to know the best way to destroy a reputation? Go off on a public rant about whatever you think, as soon as you think it then share it without ever thinking about what comes next. Florida Official Resigns After Cursing Out Army Veteran As ‘Traitor’ On Facebook THE PALM BEACH POST By ALEXANDRA SELTZER July 26, 2018
“My words were spoken as a private citizen, not in any professional or public capacity and should be treated accordingly,” she wrote. She also added her role in the exchange wasn’t “her finest hour” and she “let my Trump hate get the best of me and said some truly hurtful things.”
The vice chair of a little-known environmental panel resigned Wednesday after she came under fire for cursing at a U.S. Army veteran, calling him a traitor and speaking ill of fallen veterans in a Facebook chat earlier this month.
Patricia “Pat” Edmonson, who until Wednesday afternoon served on the Palm Beach Soil and Water Conservation District, and U.S. Army veteran James Plowman, who lives in North Carolina, didn’t know each other before they met in cyberspace through a discussion on Facebook on July 16.
But their conversation turned extremely ugly — and has gone viral.
The two sparred over a Facebook post by another user regarding President Donald Trump’s meeting with Vladimir Putin. After Plowman mentioned the years he spent in combat, Edmonson, wrote using an expletive, “—— you, traitor.”
Edmonson then launched into a vitriolic tirade of posts. “Do your dead brothers ever visit your dreams and ask you why you’ve turned your back on them?” she wrote. She also asked:“Do you smell the rotting flesh of those you’ve betrayed?”
Reached on Wednesday, Plowman said he isn’t concerned about being called a traitor. That’s comical to him, he said. But the comments she made about soldiers killed in battle “just can’t be forgiven,” Plowman said. read more on Task and Purpose
In 2007 I was one of those idiots. I always complained about people crossing the line and getting to political, until I did it. That kept going on until I received an email from a Marine serving in Iraq, telling me he really liked the work I did but did not want to read my political BS. I snapped back at him in an angry email and sent it feeling oh, so justified. That was until he responded with just one question. "Are you doing this for yourself or us?" When I stopped crying enough to see the computer screen again, I made him and promise that from that day on, he would not read anything political unless a politician did something for them or to them. It is not easy keeping my word but I did and have gone after elected officials no matter what party they belong to. Frankly after what I've seen, I have lost faith in both sides, including staunch supporters who would rather fight than communicate. Anyway, the thing is, I have friends on both sides and none of them know what I think. On the flip side, none of them know when they are hurting me by publicly sharing their thoughts while slamming something I feel strongly about. While their view is important to them, their view can destroy friendships, ruin organizations and, all too often, destroy a reputation. It is not easy to remember to keep stuff to myself, so as a reminder, I left that embarrassment online all these years. I did not know who I was hurting back then either but the worst thing is, I was so self-absorbed, I did not even think about anyone else. That is why I cried when I read the Marine's email. I was doing that for myself.
