President Obama at Fort Bliss
Soldiers react to President Obama's speech
By Genevieve Curtis
FORT BLISS, Texas — President Barack Obama's trip to Fort Bliss was brief, but he had a big message for troops.
Soldiers told KFOX14 what they really thought about the speech.
Soldiers said the atmosphere on post was electrifying, but beyond all the excitement that comes with a presidential visit, soldiers said they really took the message from the commander in chief to heart.
Soldiers and military families said they were happy to hear Obama promise he's making the mental health of soldiers and veterans a priority.
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It is not the first time Obama has visited an installation to check out a military suicide prevention program. He did it in 2008 while he was still a Senator. He went to the Montana National Guards to see what they were doing.
Spc. Chris Dana's story told to Obama by step brother
Congress has failed because they only held hearings listening to what the failure has been and not listening to anything that has worked or even bothering to hold anyone accountable for the failures. They heard heartbreaking stories from families after they had to arrange a funeral but didn't bother to listen to families when they discovered what helped them live. Would have been nice to be able to provide families with that information before it was too late.
So now, President Obama traveled to Fort Bliss to see what they are doing since they have the lowest suicide rate. Would be nice to see the data on that, how many deployments they have had, how many attempted suicides, how many deaths are still under investigation along with how many veterans of Fort Bliss committed suicide after they were discharged and how many attempted it. There are so many questions that need to be answered but I doubt we'll ever have all the answers.
Obama to sign executive order before visit to Fort Bliss
By Ruben Veloz
El Paso Times
EL PASO, Texas — Experts say the president will use today's visit to Fort Bliss to remind the public that he kept his promise to end the war in Iraq.
It was two years ago to the day that President Barack Obama announced his drawdown of U.S. troops in Iraq at Fort Bliss.
According to our media partners at the El Paso times, Obama is expected to sign an executive order to boost mental health services for troops and veterans.
The president will be meeting with military leaders, troops and their families.
He's expected to discuss the suicide rate of soldiers, an issue Fort Bliss Commanding Gen. Dana Pittard tells KFOX14 Fort Bliss has done well to prevent.
"We have the lowest number of suicides of any major insulation in the Army, so we're really doing some neat things here, and he and his team are coming to find out about that," said Pittard.
So far this year, two Fort Bliss soldiers have committed suicide, but Gen. Pittard adds that's a small number compared to other posts of the same size where they have three to four times as many. Gen. Pittard says nearly a quarter of his troops go through a suicide intervention class called ASSIST.
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Army approves suicide-intervention training for leaders
December 3, 2009
By Army Public Affairs
WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Dec. 3, 2009) -- Suicide-intervention training is now available for Army leaders and other key personnel who are on the front lines of suicide prevention across the service.
The Army has approved two-day and five-day workshops on Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training, known as ASIST. The workshops are produced by Living Works Education, Inc., at locations across the country.
The five-day ASIST workshop is a "train the trainers" course that will certify key Army personnel, who upon completion will be qualified to conduct the two-day ASIST course throughout the Army.
"We would never deploy Soldiers without first training them to accomplish their anticipated mission -- why should suicide prevention be any different'" asked Brig. Gen. Colleen McGuire, director of the Army Suicide Prevention Task Force.
"When you go to the emergency room with a physical injury, you're right to expect the nurses and doctors are well-trained and can get you the care you need," McGuire said. "The same should be true if you're thinking of harming yourself and you choose to go to your leadership or other Army professionals seeking help."
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Suicide Prevention
Fort Bliss unit to deploy to Afghanistan this winter
By Daniel Borunda and Chris Roberts
El Paso Times
Posted: 08/25/2012
Four thousand soldiers from Fort Bliss will be deployed to Afghanistan this winter, the U.S. Department of Defense announced Friday.
The 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, is one of three units in the announcement.
The others are the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, with about 2,800 soldiers based at Fort Campbell, Ky., and the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, with about 2,870 soldiers based at Fort Drum, N.Y.
Military authorities said the deployment will be as part of a troop rotation in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Last month, more than 900 soldiers returned to Fort Bliss after a 10-month tour of duty in Afghan istan that was among the deadliest deployments for Fort Bliss due to the loss of at least 18 soldiers.
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This is the General that posted about suicide being a "selfish" act and then retracted it. He was tired of going to funerals after a soldier committed suicide.
Major General Dana Pittard blames soldiers for suicides?
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