American Combat Veterans Of War

Long road to help for veterans
By Mick Zawislak Daily Herald Staff

Most times, Jim Black surfs the Internet into the early morning hours. When he does sleep, it's not for long and it's not very restful because of the nightmares.

"They're so vivid," says the 26-year-old Lake Villa resident. "I haven't gotten eight hours of sleep in five years."

The images are of Iraq, where Black served as a reconnaissance specialist in the Army beginning in 2003 at the dawn of the Iraq war.

"I had a 5-year-old throw a grenade in my truck the second day I was there. My son is 5," Black says, matter-of-factly.

Listening, as always, is his father-in-law, Tim Corrigan. He's heard a lot the last few years and has tried to help. But he has never been in combat and can't provide what Black needs most: someone who truly understands.

He has witnessed Black's anger and frustration with the Department of Veterans Affairs and other federal agencies as he sought help with his postwar problems.

"He's just an angry, bitter young guy," says Corrigan, who runs a quality control company in Mundelein, where Black works. "His whole life has changed."

Recently, it was Black himself who came upon a possible answer, finding the American Combat Veterans of War on the Internet. The organization was founded in 2001 by Vietnam vet Bill Rider and run on a shoestring budget in La Jolla, Calif.

The small group has a roster of experienced veteran volunteers used to dealing with the problems of returning "warriors", including the bureaucracy intended to assist them.
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