Florida Veteran fired after being prescribed medical marijuana for post-traumatic stress disorder?

UPDATE School Board to pay suspended combat veteran

The School Board on Tuesday conducted a financial rescue mission of Mike Hickman, a Belleview High School dean and combat veteran who was suspended without pay two weeks ago after testing positive for medically prescribed marijuana.
Most board members said during Tuesday’s meeting that they made a mistake when suspending Hickman without pay. They thought he would be suspended with pay, pending a hearing before an administrative law judge.

Thanks to Tuesday’s decision, Hickman now is on paid leave status while the administrative law process plays out. He will be paid retroactively to Jan. 14

Superintendent Heidi Maier has recommended that Hickman be fired for violating School Board policy. Hickman hurt his shoulder while breaking up a fight at Belleview High. He went to the district’s worker compensation doctor, who reported to the district that he tested positive for cannabinoids. That is considered a violation of the school system’s zero tolerance alcohol and drug-free workplace policy, which was established by the board.
read it here

Military veteran fired from school for medical marijuana use

Ocala.com
By Joe Callahan
January 15, 2020

Mike Hickman, a former Belleview High School dean who served in the U.S. Marine Corps in the early 1990s, was prescribed medical marijuana for post-traumatic stress disorder.

Before Mike Hickman was named Belleview High School’s student services manager, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in the early 1990s.

Little did the aspiring assistant principal know that he would have to wage another battle, nearly 30 years later, to protect his name and livelihood.

On Tuesday, the School Board upheld the firing of Hickman, 50, after he tested positive for marijuana that he was legally prescribed to help with post-traumatic stress disorder.

The story began on Nov. 5, when Hickman injured his shoulder at Belleview High while breaking up a student fight. He went to the district’s worker compensation doctor, who is required to administer a urinalysis as part of the treatment.

The doctor reported to the School District that Hickman tested positive for cannabinoids, which is a violation of the school system’s zero tolerance alcohol and drug-free workplace policy, as established by the School Board.

Hickman was devastated when he learned Superintendent of Schools Heidi Maier recommended his firing, he said Wednesday morning. After all, he just spent $10,000 to obtain a master’s degree to enter the assistant principal’s hiring pool with aspirations of one day becoming a principal.
read it here

Fred Franks, a retired U.S. Army general, reflects on his more than 35 years in service

Naples veteran committed to service after decades in the military

WINK
Reporter: Teri Evans
Writer: Jack Lowenstein
May 28, 2019

A four-star army general with a storied military career from Vietnam and beyond lives right here in Southwest Florida. Twenty-five years into retirement, he remains committed to fulfilling the trust that’s owed to all who serve.

Fred Franks, a retired U.S. Army general, reflects on his more than 35 years in service.

In 1970, Franks was wounded in Cambodia. His leg was amputated from below the knee, but it was not long before he went back to active duty in the combat unit.

“I really wanted to stay in the Army,” Franks said. “I didn’t want to do anything other than be a soldier.”

But when soldiers returned from Vietnam, there were no parades, only protests against an unpopular war like at the 1967 national rally in Washington D.C. Soldiers got caught in the crossfire of blame, and their trust in military officials and the American people were broken.

“Duty, honor, country, didn’t it mean anything?” Franks said. “These young people went, did what our country asked. So that lit a hot blue flame in me. That for the rest of my service, for the rest of my life, I would devote myself to seeing to it that trust was never fractured again.”

Gen. Franks is best known for serving in Operation Desert Storm during the Gulf War and leading the VII Corps of the U.S. in a famous maneuver that forced the retreat of the Iraqi Army.

“What we call the left-hook attack,” Franks said. “There wasn’t a day on Desert Storm that I didn’t remember my fellow veterans.”

Through he retired in 1994, Franks never stopped thinking about the troops, especially those returning from war with both visible and invisible wounds.
read more here

REMINDER
Vietnam is still the longest war to anyone paying attention! 

Vietnam War, (1954–75), a protracted conflict that pitted the communist government of North Vietnam and its allies in South Vietnam, known as the Viet Cong, against the government of South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. Called the “American War” in Vietnam (or, in full, the “War Against the Americans to Save the Nation”), the war was also part of a larger regional conflict (see Indochina wars) and a manifestation of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies.

The last deaths came in 1975 and here is the first name added.

Vietnam Memorial Wall Page
THE FIRST KNOWN CASUALTY

Richard B. Fitzgibbon, of North Weymouth, Mass. is listed by the U.S. Department of Defense as having a casualty date of June 8, 1956.
His name is listed on the Wall with that of his son, Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Richard B. Fitzgibbon III, who has a casualty date of Sept. 7, 1965.

After 43 years Brig. Gen. Thomas Croymans retired from National Guard

South Dakota Army National Guard general retires after 43 years

American News via the AP
By: Kelda J.L. Pharris, Aberdeen (S.D.)
May 26, 2019

When he joined the Guard, the U.S. was enjoying a peaceful respite after the Vietnam War. The Guard’s first active duty was during Desert Shield and Desert Storm in 1990 and 1991. It tested the Guard’s mettle in a way it hadn’t been for some time, Croymans said. This was after his time as a soldier, so he fulfilled his duties stateside.

Brig. Gen. Thomas Croymans, assistant adjutant general for the South Dakota Army National Guard, speaks during his retirement ceremony at Camp Rapid in Rapid City, S.D., May 4, 2019. (Staff Sgt. Austin Pearce/Army)

ABERDEEN, S.D. — It was a privilege.

Brig. Gen. Thomas Croymans didn't speak the phrase.

He didn’t have to. With a slight flush in his skin, he averts his eyes and wipes at invisible particles on his meeting table in his office. His voice holds steady.

“It went quick,” Croymans told the Aberdeen American News.

Croymans, 60, retired from the South Dakota National Guard after 43 years. He was officially honored May 4 during a retirement ceremony at Joint Force Headquarters on Camp Rapid.

He’s quick to call attention to the sacrifice his family and employers have made and the support they’ve shown him and every guard member. He never anticipated being at this stage when he signed on at 17. He’s 60 now and continues working in his civilian job as a highway engineer with the Bureau of Indian Affairs Central Office.
read more here

VA latest "effort" on suicide prevention forgot about older veterans

Caution: While this sounds like a great idea...the majority of known veterans committing suicide are over the age of 50 and they do not use cell phones for more than calls and taking pictures for the most part. Would be nice to have the VA explain why they are not joining forces with groups that are helping all generations.

VA partners with Objective Zero Foundation

Department of Veterans Affairs Press Replease
Mobile platform connects service members and Veterans to peer support and mental health services

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently partnered with the nonprofit Objective Zero Foundation to aid in connecting Veterans with suicide prevention support and resources.

The partnership, formalized on Dec. 3, 2018 provides a shared goal of preventing suicide among service members and Veterans, with a special focus on service members transitioning out of the military.

Objective Zero offers a free mobile app that instantly and anonymously connects Veterans, service members, their families and caregivers to suicide prevention resources and a nationwide community of peer supporters via text, voice, and video chat. The foundation, enhances social connectedness among Veterans and improves access to mental health and wellness resources.

“At VA, we are working to prevent Veteran suicide by using an approach that looks beyond our traditional health care settings,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “Our partnership with Objective Zero is an integral part of reaching Veterans where they live, work and thrive, and we are looking forward to working more closely with them.”

Objective Zero Co-founder and Executive Director Betsey Mercado said her foundation was proud to partner with VA to improve the well-being and mental health of Veterans.

“Joining efforts with this community provides better access to resources and highly needed support for the men and women that have served and sacrificed so much for our country,” Mercado said.

VA has a suite of mobile mental health apps that offer information about mental health issues, tools to help develop and practice coping skills, and assessments that allow users to track progress over time. Learn more at www.ptsd.va.gov/appvid/mobile. The Objective Zero app can be downloaded at https://www.objectivezero.org/app.

Veterans who are in crisis or having thoughts of suicide, and those who know a Veteran in crisis, can call the Veterans Crisis Line for confidential support 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Call 800-273-8255 and press 1, send a text message to 838255 or chat online at VeteransCrisisLine.net/Chat.

Reporters covering this issue are strongly encouraged to visit www.reportingonsuicide.org for important guidance on how to communicate about suicide.


The Objective Zero Foundation contributes to efforts that prevent suicide. We accomplish this by enhancing social connectedness and access to suicide prevention resources. A MISSION-DRIVEN TECH START-UP, OBJECTIVE ZERO SEEKS TO CONNECT SERVICE MEMBERS, VETERANS, THEIR FAMILIES, AND CAREGIVERS TO SUICIDE PREVENTION SUPPORT AND RESOURCES.

Disabled Gulf War Veteran has VA benefits restored because reporter cared!

Disabled Campbell County veteran's VA benefits restored

WATE 6 ABC News
By: Don Dare
Posted: Feb 14, 2019

LAFOLLETTE, Tenn. (WATE) - A disabled Campbell County veteran has had his VA benefits fully restored following a WATE 6 On Your Side investigation.

Mike Sanders is a Gulf War-era veteran. The former Army sergeant badly injured his back during his service and is now unable to work. From 1987-1994, he served as a research lab assistant with the Chemical Corps, and later as a field medic.

Two weeks ago, WATE reported that Mike Sanders was losing his benefits after earning 18 cents in salary in 2017. The VA took quick action to correct a mistake.
read more here

Southeastern Massachusetts Veteran of the Year Helping Veterans Recover

New Bedford veteran overcame his troubles and now helps other veterans

Sun Coast Today
Curt Brown
October 23, 2018

Azevedo was deployed to Desert Storm with the U.S. Navy from 1988 to 1991 and was with the Naval Reserve until 1993 and received an honorable discharge in 1994. He worked as a corrections officer and then became a member of the New Bedford Fire Department, after leaving the Navy.

But then 9/11 happened and Azevedo had a change of heart after the terrorist attacks. He remembers hearing the sound of fighter jets over his deck flying from Cape Cod hours after the attacks, he said.

NEW BEDFORD — A New Bedford veteran, who is devoting his life to helping others after suffering a combat-related brain injury in Iraq, is this year’s Southeastern Massachusetts Veteran of the Year.

Christopher E. Azevedo, 48, who also recently retired from the New Bedford Fire Department, was unanimously selected by the Board of Directors of the Veterans Transition House for the honor, according to Wayne Carvalho, chairman of the board. “We all feel he epitomizes what struggle is for veterans and the ability to give back,” Carvalho said.

Azevedo will receive the award at a luncheon at Rachel’s Lakeside, 950 State Road, Dartmouth, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Nov. 8.

He said he does not help others for the recognition and was floored when he received a phone call from board member Linda Silveira, informing him he was selected as this year’s Veteran of the Year. He was nominated last year, did not receive it and never thought he would be nominated again, let alone receive it.

During his deployment, he survived numerous attacks, but in one direct hit to his vehicle from an IED, he suffered a traumatic brain injury as well as damage to his spine and chest, he said.

Azevedo suffered post-traumatic stress disorder from his service, which he still battles today, and was overprescribed meds and became addicted to painkillers, he said. He won that battle, too, and has been free of painkillers for five years now and alcohol-free for three years.
read more here

'I look pretty well preserved for being dead for 26 years'

Iraq veteran finds out VA has declared her dead
WLOS News
by Raphael Pires
August 29th 2018

What she also didn’t expect is having to prove she was alive when she came back.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — A Candler veteran who was trying to get medical treatment through Veterans Affairs found out the agency has declared her dead.

"I said, 'I look pretty well preserved for being dead for 26 years,'" Judith Herren, an Iraq War veteran, said.

Herren said the problem started back in November when she decided to consider getting treatment at Charles George Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Asheville.

"They couldn't process anything because I was listed as ‘deceased’ in September of 1991," Herren said.

Herren served in the military for eight years -- four in the Army and four in the National Guard, where she found herself in Iraq.

"We were the first units in Desert Shield and Desert Storm, and we really didn’t know what to expect," Herren said.
read more here

Gulf War Veteran standoff with police ended peacefully

Shots fired at Clinton police officers during standoff
KMBC 9 ABC News
July 14, 2018

Standoff ends peacefully when suspect surrenders

Clinton, MO
The suspect in a domestic violence incident fired a weapon at police during a standoff in Clinton, Missouri Saturday evening.

Nobody was injured. But a couple of police cars were hit.

Clinton Police describe the suspect as a Desert Storm veteran who suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He eventually surrendered peacefully and police took him into custody.
go to KMBC for updates

Elks cast net for PTSD veterans in Kentucky

Special event shows supports for veterans with PTSD
WPSD 6 News
Logan Gay, Justin Jones
June 23, 2018

It’s that type of support and awareness that can help these heroes conquer their battle with PTSD. They are hoping to make this fishing trip an annual event.

MARSHALL COUNTY, KY – Twenty veterans with PTSD were treated to a special fishing trip sponsored by the Marshall County Elks. The trip was made possible through a $2,000 grant from the Elks National Foundation.

According to the U.S Veterans Affairs the number of Veterans with PTSD varies by service area. About 11-20 out of every 100 veterans who served in Operations Iraqi freedom have PTSD in a given year. About 12 out of every 100 Desert Storm veterans suffer from PTSD in a given year . The VA estimates about 30 out of 100 Vietnam Veterans have had PTSD in their lifetime.

What do you call a person who sacrifices their life for a stranger? A hero. That’s what you can call these men and women. They’re all veterans no longer in a war zone but still fighting a battle. This time with PTSD.

Randy Henson said it’s a war that can only be won through support.

“A lot of times people can’t sleep and they have bad dreams. So when they get together with their buddies. You can talk about it and they’ve been through the same thing,” said Henson.

That’s what inspired the Marshall County Elks to sponsor a fishing trip. They wanted to show respect for these veterans and give them a relaxing day on the lake.
read more here

Disabled veteran left homeless after being hacked

Gulf war veteran and family living in a U-Haul van after hacker stole disability benefits from online account
Dallas Morning News
David Tarrant, Enterprise writer
June 7, 2018

DENTON — Jeff Slaughter needs answers fast after his monthly disability check didn't show up in his bank account earlier this month. The disabled Persian Gulf War veteran said he was told by Department of Veterans Affairs officials late last month that his account was hacked.

Slaughter had been staying at a La Quinta Inn off Interstate 35 in Denton, waiting for new veteran housing to open in Houston. But after his account was hacked, his money ran out. Today, he's living out of a U-haul van in the hotel parking lot with his wife, son and two dogs. Hotel management lent him a fan, but it was still a rough night.

"We didn't get much sleep — hardly any," Slaughter said, standing outside the white van.

A VA spokeswoman said that its eBenefits program, which handles compensation for the nation's disabled veterans, has not been hacked. Instead, individual eBenefits accounts — which 4 million disabled veterans use to get benefit payments — have been fraudulently accessed. Jessica Jacobsen, a VA spokeswoman, said about 2,300 of 7.1 million eBenefits accounts have been compromised since August 2015.
read more here

Deported Gulf War Marine Came Back in Casket

This deported Marine veteran came home the only way he could – in a casket
Fresno Bee
Carmen George
April 20, 2018

REEDLEY
Veteran Lance Cpl. Enrique Salas' flag-draped casket was loaded into a hearse with a Marine Corps seal and two miniature American flags protruding from either window.

Salas finally made it home to the central San Joaquin Valley the only way he could.

The Persian Gulf War veteran, who was deported to Mexico in 2006, was buried with military honors in a Reedley cemetery on Friday beside his younger brother, another fallen Marine.

"My parents gave two of their children to the Marine Corps, and now they've lost both of us," Salas once told the American Civil Liberties Union for a report titled "Discharged, then Discarded: How U.S. veterans are banished by the country they swore to protect."
read more here

PTSD Veteran From 2 Wars Life Changed by Bike

Helping veterans get motivated, and moving, goal of fund founder

Arkansas Online
Ginny Monk
November 19, 2017

"In Iraq, you know who your friends were and who your enemies were," (Paul Bunn) said, crossing his arms over his chest. "When I came back here, it got hard to tell."

PHOTO BY GINNY MONKMark Leonard is one of the founders and organizers for Arkansas Freedom Fund, a nonprofit aimed at getting veterans moving. The Arkansas Challenge Ride is its biggest event. 

Mark Leonard approached a veteran wearing an American flag T-shirt and paused on his way to set up more registration signs for his organization's biggest event of the year.

"I want you to sit on this one here or that one there because I want you to have a new bike," Leonard said, pointing to two recumbent bikes sitting under a tent. "I want you to go faster."

Paul Bunn, a veteran who is getting ready to participate in a 24-mile bike ride, hugs Leonard and starts adjusting his new bike -- an eight speed instead of a three speed.

Leonard, 59, is one of the founders and organizers for Arkansas Freedom Fund, a nonprofit that works to get veterans active. The Arkansas Challenge Ride last month is its biggest event, Leonard said.

This year's ride was Bunn's second time to participate. He is an Army veteran who served one tour during the Persian Gulf War and one in Iraq. He returned with post-traumatic stress disorder that made venturing out into crowds difficult. 
read more here

Congratulations! You survived yesterday with PTSD

You Survived Yesterday, Do It Again
Combat PTSD Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
September 27, 2017


Since you are reading this today, safe to assume you survived yesterday with PTSD. You survived all the other days, years and decades since you got home from serving in combat zones or on missions around the world. You put your life on the line and won.

Bet you never thought of it that way. If you are still here, then "it" lost! If you served, then the life of others mattered so much to you, you were willing to die for their sake. So why are so many thinking of taking their own lives now?

The bigger question is why are senior veterans the majority of veterans committing suicide? Yes, your generation. 65% of the suicides reported by the VA study are over the age of 50!

THE REPORT CONCLUDES:

• Approximately 65 percent of all Veterans who died from suicide in 2014 were 50 years of age or older.

• Veterans accounted for 18 percent of all deaths from suicide among U.S. adults. This is a decrease from 22 percent in 2010.

• Since 2001, U.S. adult civilian suicides increased 23 percent, while Veteran suicides increased 32 percent in the same time period. After controlling for age and gender, this makes the risk of suicide 21 percent greater for Veterans.

• Since 2001, the rate of suicide among U.S. Veterans who use VA services increased by 8.8 percent, while the rate of suicide among Veterans who do not use VA services increased by 38.6 percent.

• In the same time period, the rate of suicide among male Veterans who use VA services increased 11 percent, while the rate of suicide increased 35 percent among male Veterans who do not use VA services.

• In the same time period, the rate of suicide among female Veterans who use VA services increased 4.6 percent while the rate of suicide increased 98 percent among female Veterans who do not use VA services.

Most of those years between war and now, were taken up with being busy. Work, raising families and other things didn't leave you with much time to think about yourself. Now with retirement, too much time to think of what you brought back home with you.

What you may be missing is the other things you brought home with you, like courage, compassion and dedication.

Why live all those years and give up now? You don't have leave us now as long as you understand what PTSD is, why you have it and the most important message of all is, you still have time to heal and see tomorrow living a much better life! 

Disabled American Veterans Now Have A Female Commander

Gulf War vet becomes first woman in 25 years to lead a major veterans organization
Navy Times
By: Leo Shane III
4 hours ago

The largest veterans organizations have long been seen as dominated by men, especially before the recent wars dramatically increased the number of women with military and combat service. Army vet Mary Stout served as commander of Vietnam Veterans of America from 1987 to 1991, but none have followed in the last 25 years.

Army veteran Delphine Metcalf-Foster was named national commander of Disabled American Veterans on Aug. 1, 2017. (Courtesy of DAV) Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that Vietnam Veterans of America had a female commander in the 1980s.

WASHINGTON — Nine years ago, when Army veteran Delphine Metcalf-Foster went to her local Veterans Affairs hospital for a knee replacement, she asked her doctors if they would use a female-specific prosthesis.

They said they never considered getting any.

“I realized then there needed to be more education,” she said. “Women don’t have the same bone structure as men. But they just always used a unisex knee. Maybe if (the injury) hadn’t happened to me, I would have just assumed that it wasn’t a problem.”

Now Metcalf-Foster is hoping to shine a bigger spotlight on those types of overlooked women veteran issues as the first female commander of Disabled American Veterans. She was sworn into the post on Aug. 1, becoming the first woman to lead one of the major American veterans organizations since 1991.
read more here

Betrayal of Gulf War Veterans Continues

Waco Veterans Affairs office denies 92% of Gulf War claims
My Statesman
Jeremy Schwartz
American Statesman Staff
July 20, 2017

Waco VA office had the fourth-highest denial rate for Gulf War illness claims. Nationally, the VA denied 87 percent of Gulf War Illness related claims in 2015.

Persian Gulf War photo from the LBJ Library’s “American Soldier” exhibit.

Department of Veterans Affairs benefits officials in Waco have denied a whopping 92 percent of claims related to Gulf War illness, giving Central Texas veterans one of the highest denial rates in the nation, according to data in a recent U.S. Government Accountability Office report.

The report found serious and persistent problems with how the VA handles the complicated Gulf War benefits claims, ranging from poorly trained examiners to inconsistent methods of handling claims in different regions of the country. For example, in the continental United States denial rates ranged from 47 percent in Boston to 95 percent in Roanoke, Va., according to an analysis by the advocacy group Veterans for Common Sense.

The VA estimates that 44 percent of the 700,000 service members who served in the 1990-1991 Persian Gulf War have developed such symptoms as joint pain, chronic fatigue syndrome and neurological problems after returning home from war. The illnesses are believed to have been caused by exposure to toxic elements like smoke from burning oil wells, depleted uranium and chemical warfare agents such as mustard gas.
read more here

PTSD On Trial: Desert Storm Veteran

Veteran with PTSD goes on trial
Written by Silver City Daily Press
April 18, 2017

A decorated Silver City veteran goes on trial today in U.S. District Court in Las Cruces for allegedly growing marijuana and having an unregistered firearm.

Trevor Lee Thayer, a 46-year-old father of three and decorated U.S. Army veteran with the 82nd Airborne, was charged in 2012 after a SWAT-style search of his residence by the DEA and ATF, according to a news release from his defense team at the Bowles Law Firm in Albuquerque. At that time, Thayer was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress syndrome and was in possession of a medical marijuana license, his attorneys said.

Thayer, a Desert Storm veteran, had applied to renew his medical marijuana license and paid a renewal fee, but had apparently not yet received the card at the time of the search. According to his defense team of Bob Gorence and Jason Bowles, further investigation had revealed that the state had cashed Thayer’s check but the equipment for printing the cards in Santa Fe was broken and that delayed the mailing of his card. The charges allege that Thayer did not have a valid medical marijuana card at the time of the 2012 search.
read more here

Gulf War Disabled Army Veteran Helped by army from Caring Community

Community rallies to save property of Army veteran
WY Daily.com
By Andrew Harris
March 31, 2017

“It’s such a weight off,” Winn said through tears after hearing the news Friday. “When my father left me the land, I knew it was important to keep it.”

Thanks to donations from the Williamsburg community, Army veteran Kimberly Winn will be able to keep land that has been in her family for five generations.

Kimberly Winn will be able to keep her land as the result of a community effort to raise her funds. (Andrew Harris/WYDaily)

WYDaily reported Thursday that Winn was delinquent more than $2,400 in fees associated with her two-acre Toano property. The veteran of the first Gulf War had until Friday to pay off her delinquency.

She would see the property head to auction if she failed to pay off her debt to the James City County’s Treasurer’s Office.

In one day, from Thursday morning into Friday, community citizens raised more than the amount needed to pay off Winn’s debt.
read more here

2016 Employment Situation of Veterans

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Releases 2016 Employment Situation of Veterans 
Report – Finds Almost 36 Percent of Gulf War-Era II Veterans Had a Service-Connected Disability Last Updated: Sunday, 26 March 2017

In 2016, 5.2 million veterans had served on active duty during "other service periods," mainly between the Korean War and the Vietnam era and between the Vietnam era and Gulf War era I. All veterans from this period of service were 40 years or older at the time of the survey. Twenty-six percent of these veterans were age 45 to 54 in 2016, another 34 percent were age 55 to 64, and another 39 percent were age 65 and over. In 2016, 1 in 10 veterans of other service periods were women. Among veterans of other service periods, the unemployment rate for men was 4.1 percent, little different than the rate for women (4.9 percent).

March 26, 2017 - The unemployment rate for veterans who served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces at any time since September 2001--a group referred to as Gulf War-era II bureau of labor statistics edged down to 5.1 percent in 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported. 

The jobless rate for all veterans also edged down over the year to 4.3 percent. About 36 percent of Gulf War-era II veterans had a service-connected disability in August 2016, compared with 22 percent of all veterans. This information was obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS), a monthly sample survey of about 60,000 households that provides data on employment and unemployment in the United States. Data about veterans are collected monthly in the CPS; these monthly data are the source of the 2016 annual averages presented in this news release. 

In August 2016, a supplement to the CPS collected additional information about veterans on topics such as service-connected disability and veterans' current or past Reserve or National Guard membership. Information from the supplement is also presented in this release. The supplement was co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and by the U.S. Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment and Training Service. For more information, see the Technical Note, which provides definitions of terms used in this release. read more here

Gulf War

A Veteran Needs Your Help With Combat PTSD

A Veteran Needs Your Help 
Combat PTSD Wounded Times 
Kathie Costos 
January 30, 2017

A veteran needs your help. He did everything possible to stay alive in combat. After all, the lives of everyone in his unit depended on him. It didn't matter if he was sick, tired, hungry, or if he spent the night battling memories he didn't want to keep. He was always watching over everyone else.

When he got back home, everything came with him. It wasn't a matter of staying alive, because someone else needed him. It was a matter of not knowing how to get up when he no longer knew who he was. Nightmares, flashbacks, mood swings, pushing people away when he needs to have someone care. 

Hope? No hope of healing. Hell, he didn't think he deserved to and even if someone told him he could, he wouldn't believe them. Not that he would have told anyone he needed help at all. He feels totally alone like no one will ever understand him and even if they did, they would think he was just weak or there was something mentally wrong with him.

All he needs is someone to show up the same way others were watching his back with each deployment. Someone to just show they care about him. That's all he needs to know. He is worthy of someone sitting with him, listening to him, buying him a beer or even a cup of coffee. Picking up the phone and showing some compassion, listening without any judgment or competition.  

Do you think you can do that? Ok, then. That veteran is you. 

It is a safe bet you'd do anything for one of your brothers or sisters, without thinking anything less of them than you did in combat. So what's stopping you from doing what you need to help now? If in your mind your buddies deserved your help, then why don't you deserve their help?

Cross posted on Residualwar.com

Younger Veterans Swoop in For WWII Veteran

Berlin veterans swoop in to help WWII Navy man 
My Record Journal
January 6, 2017

The VFW Post 10732 is intending to do more of these projects. However, younger veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan are needed. It is tough when we ask an 85-year-old veteran to climb a ladder to paint. But they do it gladly.

Berlin VFW Post 10732 was in search of a veteran needing assistance with their home. It has been difficult to find a needy elderly veteran, Post Commander Gary Barwikowski pointed out.

From left, veteran volunteers Stu Topliff (Desert Storm), Brad Parsons (Iraq), Dan McKeon (Vietnam) and Bob Dornfried (Korea).

Well, the local post did not stop in its quest to find a candidate to support. Recently, Post 10732 found its veteran, a WWII Navy veteran who wanted to paint his home, but knew he was not up to the task. So his fellow veterans came to his aid. The veteran manpower was further augmented by the generous donation of the paint and supplies needed for the job by The John Boyle Company. Jim King, company president, personally came out to evaluate the home and assess the requirements. read more here