Michigan Air Force base water may have caused cancer By: The Associated Press August 12, 2018
The chemical was first found in the base's water in 1977, but drinking water wells could've been contaminated for many years before the discovery, according to the report. The Air Force installed a groundwater treatment system to clean up the trichloroethylene in the 1980s after being sued by Michigan.
The Wurtsmith Air Force Base grounds in Oscoda Township, Mich., two years ago. (Garret Ellison/MLive.com via AP)
OSCODA, Mich. — A federal health agency says contaminated drinking water might have caused cancer and other chronic disease among veterans and families who lived at a former northern Michigan military base.
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry released last month a draft report about the Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda, Michigan, MLive.com reported. The report concluded that people who consumed or had skin contact with Wurtsmith water may be at an increased risk for cancer.
Extremely high levels of benzene and trichloroethylene were documented in the former B-52 bomber base’s water before its 1993 closure.
The report is based on long-term exposure over a period of years. The findings also note that even short-term exposure to trichloroethylene for pregnant mothers during the first trimester could lead to heart birth defects in their children. read more here
Sailor found dead on base in Norfolk Navy Times By: Mark D. Faram August 13, 2018
NORFOLK, Va. — A sailor from Naval Computer and Telecommunications Area Master Station, Atlantic was found dead at Naval Station Norfolk Friday night, Lt. Cmdr. Ben Tisdale, spokesman for U.S. Fleet Cyber Command told Navy Times on Monday.
Tisdale said the cause of the death was still under investigation on Monday but officials have identified the deceased sailor as Information Systems Technician 3rd Class Joshua I. Johnson. A three-year Navy veteran, Johnson, 22, was originally from Orange Park, Florida. read more here
‘Tough as nails’ veteran urges focus on fitness, not wounds STARS AND STRIPES By ROSE L. THAYER Published: August 11, 2018
Reeves said Bullock’s focus as a business owner is incredible — just as it was during his early days of recovery.“When he got injured, he said, ‘This does not define me.’ He hasn’t let it define him,” Reeves said.
Jared Bullock, a former Green Beret, and his wife Jesica stand outside Foundry Athletics, a gym they opened May 19, 2018, in Carterville, Ill.
PHOTO BY TIM KOLCZAK
AUSTIN, Texas — Everything changed for Sgt. 1st Class Jared Bullock on Nov. 13, 2013.
It was one month into his fifth deployment, and the Green Beret and a team of soldiers were riding in an all-terrain vehicle in Kandahar when it ran over an improvised explosive device. Bullock woke up in Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, where he learned he’d lost his right arm above the elbow and his right leg above the knee.
The explosion also took the life Bullock’s best friend, Staff Sgt. Richard L. Vazquez, 28, and Staff Sgt. Alex A. Viola, 29, died days later in the hospital.
His injuries left him wondering what was next for him, after 10 years in the Army doing a job that he loved. read more here
Pensacola veterans struggle to pay for legal help in civil court cases, panel says Pensacola News Journal Melissa Nelson Gabriel Aug. 10, 2018
A Tampa veterans crisis line receives more than 10,000 calls a month from veterans needing help, said Dennis Baker, president of the Florida Veterans Foundation. Many of the calls are about suicidal thoughts or addiction issues. A lot of the calls are also from veterans who need help negotiating the legal system, he said.
From child support hearings to eviction notices, many Florida veterans are left to fend for themselves when it comes to complicated legal issues, members of a statewide committee on civil justice heard Friday.
Judges, lawyers and veterans advocates from around the state met in Pensacola to discuss what can be done to ensure veterans have better representation in the civil justice system.
Florida Supreme Court Justice Jorge Labarga, chairman of the Florida Commission on Access to Civil Justice, said the group took its meeting on veterans' issues to Pensacola because of the high number of active-duty military members and retirees in the region.
"Access to civil justice not only impacts the poor, it also affects those of moderate income," he said.
A Tampa veterans crisis line receives more than 10,000 calls a month from veterans needing help, said Dennis Baker, president of the Florida Veterans Foundation. Many of the calls are about suicidal thoughts or addiction issues. A lot of the calls are also from veterans who need help negotiating the legal system, he said.
"A number of callers are telling us they need an attorney. It's everything from landlord/tenant disputes, wills and estates, mortgages and foreclosures, and taxes," he said. read more here
Vista veteran and service dog kick off casino's new six-legged security force San Diego Union Tribune Pam Kragen August 12, 2018
Four years ago, Tipton said he wouldn’t have been able to strike up a conversation with strangers and even found himself incapable of cracking a smile. Tipton said having Daisy and the self-esteem of a holding a job “have made me human again.”
After struggling for years with post-traumatic stress disorder, 22-year Marine veteran John Tipton decided three years ago to get a trained service dog. The Vista man calls the day he took Daisy home in May 2015 both the best day and the worst day of his life.
John Tipton of Vista and his service dog Daisy do their rounds at Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula. The 22-year Marine Corps veterans and his dog are the first of nine human-canine security teams Pechanga plans to hire. (Pechanga Resort and Casino)
Because although the 4-year-old black Lab/terrier mix helped heal the crippling anxiety that had turned Tipton into a housebound “grumpy grandpa,” he couldn’t find anyone willing to hire a man with a full-time service dog.
“It was a pretty rough couple of years,” said Tipton, 62. “I’d walk into job interviews and they’d take one look at me and then look at the dog … You could see it in their eyes and hear it in the tone of their voice. They wondered what was wrong with me.”
But those years of isolation ended in mid-June, when Tipton and Daisy became the first six-legged safety patrol team at Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula. Over the next year, Pechanga plans to hire a total of 10 veteran-service dog teams.
The idea was conceived by Robert Krauss, vice president of public safety at Pechanga. Before joining Pechanga’s security team 21 years ago, Krauss spent four years in the Marine Corps. He said military veterans make up a substantial portion of his department’s 300-strong staff because their leadership qualities make them great workers. read more here
Search underway for Camp Pendleton Marine missing at sea San Diego Union Tribune Andrew Dyer August 10, 2018 An all-hands effort is underway near the Philippines to find a U.S. Marine reported overboard Thursday morning from the amphibious assault ship Essex.
An MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft prepared to depart the flight deck of the USS Essex (LHD 2) on July 17. The Essex and its crew of sailors and marines left San Diego July 10. (U.S. Navy)
The unidentified Marine is deployed with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit based out of Camp Pendleton.
The Essex left Naval Base San Diego with its complement of Marines on July 10.
The Navy, Marine Corps and Philippine ships and aircraft are searching the Sulu Sea, where the ship was conducting routine operations, the Marines said in a news release Friday.
“It is an all-hands effort to find our missing Marine,” said Navy Capt. Gerald Olin, the amphibious squadron commander leading the search and rescue operation, in a statement. “All of our sailors, Marines and available assets aboard the USS Essex have been and will continue to be involved in this incredibly important search and rescue operation.” read more here
Have you decided to get into your life and drive? PTSD Patrol Sunday Morning Empowerment Zone Kathie Costos August 12, 2018
When you are a passenger, you do not control anything. Someone else is in control of where you go, how fast you get there and how safe your trip is.
When you are the driver, then you decide all of it! Where you go and how fast you get there is all up to the decisions you make. There are things you decide in your own life. Do you want to be happy? Do you want to stay miserable? How you live can change just as it did when you survived the events that caused PTSD. This time, it can change for the better! PTSD is change, so, change again! It is your life. Get in and drive it instead of letting it drive you!
PTSD Patrol Sunday Morning Empowerment Zone topic is are you a passenger in your own life or a driver?
Iraq War veteran, radio host David Bellavia to run for 27th Congressional District WHAM ABC News 13 August 11, 2018
Buffalo, N.Y. (WHAM) - Decorated Iraq War veteran and radio host David Bellavia will run for Congress to represent New York’s 27th District.
Bellavia confirmed his decision to run Saturday, hours after Rep. Chris Collins announced he will not be running for reelection. read more here
Bellavia spoke at the Point Man conference in Buffalo last year.
Money Raised for Veterans Charities at Hog Heaven for Heroes News 9 and 10 Bret Greenacre August 11, 2018
“Well, I woke up in the middle of the night with a dream, and it just blossomed from there.”
It started as a dream, but it’s now become reality, helping to raise money for charity.
Saturday, people are going hog wild at an event to raise money for veterans organizations.
People at Saturday’s “Hog Heaven for Heroes” event at Hopewell Ranch in Weidman are being treated to everything from a roast pork dinner to live music — and even a live auction.
The money raised is going to two veterans organizations that support veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder: Project Solomon and Reboot Combat Recovery.
About three years ago we pulled together a group of veterans to create an advisory board so we could expand our programming to help veterans struggling with PTSD,” said Jodi Stuber, executive director of Hopewell Ranch. “We’re really excited to have this great event here today.” read more here
Ed Smith, would-be loner and World War II veteran, dies at 92 Star Tribune By Emma Nelson AUGUST 11, 2018 Those who knew him describe a man whose life was colored by tragedy from the beginning, but punctuated until the end by moments of grace.
Smith was able to bring Puffy when he spent the night at St. Stephen’s. Later, with help from the organization and Novatney, he moved into an apartment. When Puffy died, Smith asked that the dog be cremated and the ashes tucked inside a stuffed animal that he could hold as he slept.
The RV stood in the same downtown Minneapolis parking lot, day in and day out, never moving.
Don Novatney could see it from the building where he worked and wondered if someone was living inside. He hoped not — it was deep winter and frigid cold.
Then, one Sunday, he read a newspaper story about a World War II veteran living in an unheated RV.
“I drove over there and knocked on his door and asked him if he was the person in that article,” Novatney recalled. “And he said yes.”
Shortly after, the man, Ed Smith, also caught the attention of the VA. He soon started receiving enough benefits to move out of the RV, and he lived the rest of his life in an apartment building for seniors in Minneapolis.
Smith died July 25 at age 92. Those who knew him describe a man whose life was colored by tragedy from the beginning, but punctuated until the end by moments of grace.
“He didn’t really have anybody most of his life,” Novatney said. “He just wanted somebody to know his story.” read more here
