Vietnam veteran beaten, robbed; 2 held
By Rosemary R. Sobol
Tribune reporter
June 23, 2012
Sixty-five-year-old Vietnam vet and retired factory worker Willie Haynes was just trying to pick up his cousin from a doctor's appointment but ended up needing one himself after two robbers “jumped him’’ early Friday on the Near West Side.
The two suspects, Eric L. Thomas and Elon Love, were apprehended by police and appeared in court today, charged with aggravated robbery and aggravated battery to a senior citizen.
In court today, Judge James Brown set bails at $100,000 each for Thomas and Love.
“I didn’t deserve this,’’ Hayes said when reached by phone this afternoon. “I couldn’t believe it was happening to me.’’
read more here
Sunday, June 24, 2012
New programs for combat PTSD conflict with scarcity of personnel
Psychiatrists on point back home
New programs conflict with scarcity of personnel
Jun 15, 2012
Written by
Philip Grey
Leaf-Chronicle
FORT CAMPBELL, KY. — While the Army anticipates a considerable shrinkage of resources and personnel in coming years, at least one aspect of Army operations is expected to grow rapidly, out of sheer necessity.
Due to an increasing and acknowledged need, resources aimed at addressing a host of problems coming under the term, “behavioral health,” are the big news at Blanchfield Army Community Hospital in 2012.
As a result, Lt. Col. Marla Hemphill, chief of the Department of Behavioral Health at BACH, and Maj. Joe Wise, chief of Adult Behavioral Health – both on the frontline of a vast new frontier of military medicine – are looking forward to getting some new troops to man that line.
Meanwhile, they have to manage being at the center of issues that are complex and contentious, while operating under a microscope due to the high visibility of the issues involved.
read more here
New programs conflict with scarcity of personnel
Jun 15, 2012
Written by
Philip Grey
Leaf-Chronicle
At Blanchfield Army Community Hospital at Fort Campbell, Lt. Col. Marla Hemphill and Maj. Joe Wise are psychiatrists manning the frontlines of the Army's war against suicide, PTSD and other behavioral health problems. / LEAF-CHRONICLE/PHILIP GREY
FORT CAMPBELL, KY. — While the Army anticipates a considerable shrinkage of resources and personnel in coming years, at least one aspect of Army operations is expected to grow rapidly, out of sheer necessity.
Due to an increasing and acknowledged need, resources aimed at addressing a host of problems coming under the term, “behavioral health,” are the big news at Blanchfield Army Community Hospital in 2012.
As a result, Lt. Col. Marla Hemphill, chief of the Department of Behavioral Health at BACH, and Maj. Joe Wise, chief of Adult Behavioral Health – both on the frontline of a vast new frontier of military medicine – are looking forward to getting some new troops to man that line.
Meanwhile, they have to manage being at the center of issues that are complex and contentious, while operating under a microscope due to the high visibility of the issues involved.
read more here
Why did we let Trever Gould die?
Why did we let Trever Gould die?
by Chaplain Kathie
Wounded Times Blog
June 24, 2012
Every 24 hours there are at least 19 suicides tied to military service. 18 veterans and 1 active military.
The military ran out of excuses years ago because none of these reports are new. While they said they were doing something about it, it all turned out to be massive failures. Why? The numbers have been screaming about this simple, ignored fact. Numbers go up and so do the families having to plan a funeral for someone who managed to come survive combat but could not survive one more day back home.
So why did we let Trever Gould die? Why didn't we do enough to save his life?
We can blame the military all we want but you see, when we as the collective we of this country, elect people to run this country, we are supposed to hold them accountable but congress hasn't really given a damn while pretending they care. Stop and think about the hearings they've had on military suicides and veterans committing suicide. How many have they had? Have they really done anything about any of this? Do they hold anyone accountable for failures? Do they even know the right questions to ask?
Resiliency Training is still going on no matter how pitiful and congress still wonders why suicides have gone up instead of asking why this program is still funded.
We allowed all of it to go on and didn't demand any answers from them so they in turn didn't really demand any answers from the DOD or the VA.
Yet still after all these years, Fort Hood managed to keep Trevor's suffering from combat PTSD a secret from his family along with the fact he was suicidal. This is after all the "help" they DOD could buy, all the funding handed over, calls flooded into the Suicide Prevention Hotline and veterans charities sprung up with their hands out pulling in hundreds of millions of dollars a year. We donated and then felt as if we were doing something to help but in the end, we were part of the problem and now another Mom has to bury her son after she thought he came home to safety.
UPDATE
Fulda family aims to get more help for reintegrating soldiers
by Chaplain Kathie
Wounded Times Blog
June 24, 2012
Every 24 hours there are at least 19 suicides tied to military service. 18 veterans and 1 active military.
The military ran out of excuses years ago because none of these reports are new. While they said they were doing something about it, it all turned out to be massive failures. Why? The numbers have been screaming about this simple, ignored fact. Numbers go up and so do the families having to plan a funeral for someone who managed to come survive combat but could not survive one more day back home.
So why did we let Trever Gould die? Why didn't we do enough to save his life?
We can blame the military all we want but you see, when we as the collective we of this country, elect people to run this country, we are supposed to hold them accountable but congress hasn't really given a damn while pretending they care. Stop and think about the hearings they've had on military suicides and veterans committing suicide. How many have they had? Have they really done anything about any of this? Do they hold anyone accountable for failures? Do they even know the right questions to ask?
Resiliency Training is still going on no matter how pitiful and congress still wonders why suicides have gone up instead of asking why this program is still funded.
We allowed all of it to go on and didn't demand any answers from them so they in turn didn't really demand any answers from the DOD or the VA.
Yet still after all these years, Fort Hood managed to keep Trevor's suffering from combat PTSD a secret from his family along with the fact he was suicidal. This is after all the "help" they DOD could buy, all the funding handed over, calls flooded into the Suicide Prevention Hotline and veterans charities sprung up with their hands out pulling in hundreds of millions of dollars a year. We donated and then felt as if we were doing something to help but in the end, we were part of the problem and now another Mom has to bury her son after she thought he came home to safety.
Soldier took his life, family mourns with anger
Jun 23, 2012
By Courtney Collen
Trevor Gould at 25 years old was an active member of the United States Army out of Fort Hood, Texas.
He was job hunting in his hometown of Fulda, MN, for the summer but would head back to school in Mankato in the fall.
"Everybody loved him. He had a heart of gold. He always wanted to be a leader," Sheri Johnson said.
Sheri Johnson is Trevor's mom. After Trevor served overseas in 2010, his mom said he changed, he had Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD.
Just last week, he took his life which is fifteen years after his dad took his.
After Trevor died, Sheri looked through his military paperwork and shocked by what she saw.
"I found out he had talked to doctors in the Army saying he was suicidal. They didn't contact me, they didn't send him to help, they just pushed the paperwork through.
That's the only way I found out is through military papers," Sheri said.
read more here
UPDATE
Fulda family aims to get more help for reintegrating soldiers
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Home Depot makes better home for DAV Orlando
Home Depot, Celebration of Service, returned to Chapter 16, Orlando Disabled American Veterans to finish the repairs to the building.
A new roof, paint, landscaping, widows, air conditioners, and the list goes on but one of the best changes was putting in a wider doorway into the meeting hall so that wheelchairs could get through without a struggle. Considering we have two triple amputees from the Vietnam War, it was a blessing.
As a matter of fact, Home Depot's crew was a blessing because there is no way we could have afforded to do any of what they did for us.
A new roof, paint, landscaping, widows, air conditioners, and the list goes on but one of the best changes was putting in a wider doorway into the meeting hall so that wheelchairs could get through without a struggle. Considering we have two triple amputees from the Vietnam War, it was a blessing.
As a matter of fact, Home Depot's crew was a blessing because there is no way we could have afforded to do any of what they did for us.
Tulsa American Legion honors female veterans
Female veterans honored at Tulsa American Legion post event
By CHASE COOK
World Staff Writer
Published: 6/23/2012
World War II veteran Pietje Wall served in the Marine Corps from 1945 to 1950, with 13 months of that time on active duty.
Her job during active duty was to help give the military ships returning from combat new orders, she said. It was a time when women were finding their place in the military and were allowed to serve only in limited roles.
Now, female troops are serving in more positions in the military, and the number of female veterans is expected to rise in the coming years, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The United States has about 1.8 million female veterans, and about 26,000 of them live in Oklahoma, according to the VA.
Wall and other women were recognized for their service during a dinner held by the American Legion Auxiliary Unit 1 on Friday. The dinner is an opportunity to recognize the veterans that may be overlooked, said Maxine Mackie, the auxiliary unit's president.
"It's nice to recognize the ladies and say, 'Hey, we recognize the service you have done for us,' " Mackie said.
Christina Smith, president of the Tulsa Chapter of the Oklahoma Women Veterans Organization, said events such as the dinner are special because they are a reminder that women serve in the military, too.
People often hear male references, such as "bring the boys home," she said, but she asks that people "just remember us all."
"It's a rite of passage to serve this country," Smith said.
read more here
By CHASE COOK
World Staff Writer
Published: 6/23/2012
World War II veteran Pietje Wall served in the Marine Corps from 1945 to 1950, with 13 months of that time on active duty.
Her job during active duty was to help give the military ships returning from combat new orders, she said. It was a time when women were finding their place in the military and were allowed to serve only in limited roles.
Now, female troops are serving in more positions in the military, and the number of female veterans is expected to rise in the coming years, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The United States has about 1.8 million female veterans, and about 26,000 of them live in Oklahoma, according to the VA.
Wall and other women were recognized for their service during a dinner held by the American Legion Auxiliary Unit 1 on Friday. The dinner is an opportunity to recognize the veterans that may be overlooked, said Maxine Mackie, the auxiliary unit's president.
"It's nice to recognize the ladies and say, 'Hey, we recognize the service you have done for us,' " Mackie said.
Christina Smith, president of the Tulsa Chapter of the Oklahoma Women Veterans Organization, said events such as the dinner are special because they are a reminder that women serve in the military, too.
People often hear male references, such as "bring the boys home," she said, but she asks that people "just remember us all."
"It's a rite of passage to serve this country," Smith said.
read more here
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