Military Dog Up for Hero Award
Jul 28, 2012
Knight Ridder
On Oct. 6, Gabe, a weapons sniffing dog at Fort Jackson who conducted 210 combat missions in Iraq -- and has more than 20,000 Facebook friends -- will be cooling his paws at the Beverly Hills Hilton with the likes of Betty White and Whoopi Goldberg.
The 10-year-old lab mix -- who was rescued as a puppy from a Houston shelter just one day before he was to be euthanized -- is the 2012 American Humane Association Hero Dog in the military category. Now he and his handler, Sgt. 1st Class Charles "Chuck" Shuck, will face off against other service dogs, from guide dogs to search and rescue dogs, for the title of American Humane Association Hero Dog of the Year before the panel of celebrity judges.
read more here
Monday, July 30, 2012
Marine finds Dad after Internet search
Marine finds Dad after 15 year search made the news and it is a good story. It reminded me of a little known other story that happened because another Marine was searching for his Dad as well.
Here in Orlando, there was another story of a Marine finding his Dad because of the Internet and the fact I posted the story because I was so touched by what happened.
The Marine's Dad was Vietnam Vet Andrew Elmer Wright and he found a home as a homeless vet with a church and was loved.
I ended up knowing about this because Chaplain Lyle Schmeiser from Orlando DAV Chapter 16 made sure I did. Andrew was being laid to rest. Lyle knew I cared about homeless veterans. Andrew's funeral was different than any other homeless veteran's funeral I had ever seen. Andrew's service was a full of people grieving for the loss.
56 seconds into this video Pastor Joel talks about another Marine finding his Dad but was serving overseas and his Dad, well, his Dad was a homeless Vietnam Veteran and by the time his son found him, he had already been laid to rest. I did the story he found.
This is the update to the story
The Story of Vietnam Veteran Andrew Elmer Wright, Proof of Love
At about 9 minutes in you'll hear how this Marine found he also had brothers and sisters he never knew about.
The Internet, for all of the good things it can be used for, like the above stories, can include acts of love all the time as well as acts of evil that get more attention. All you have to do is look for them. If you only search for what is bad, you'll usually miss what is good.
The Marine's Dad was Vietnam Vet Andrew Elmer Wright and he found a home as a homeless vet with a church and was loved.
I ended up knowing about this because Chaplain Lyle Schmeiser from Orlando DAV Chapter 16 made sure I did. Andrew was being laid to rest. Lyle knew I cared about homeless veterans. Andrew's funeral was different than any other homeless veteran's funeral I had ever seen. Andrew's service was a full of people grieving for the loss.
56 seconds into this video Pastor Joel talks about another Marine finding his Dad but was serving overseas and his Dad, well, his Dad was a homeless Vietnam Veteran and by the time his son found him, he had already been laid to rest. I did the story he found.
This is the update to the story
The Story of Vietnam Veteran Andrew Elmer Wright, Proof of Love
At about 9 minutes in you'll hear how this Marine found he also had brothers and sisters he never knew about.
The Internet, for all of the good things it can be used for, like the above stories, can include acts of love all the time as well as acts of evil that get more attention. All you have to do is look for them. If you only search for what is bad, you'll usually miss what is good.
Security guard at Olympics called soldier "baby killer"
G4S Olympic security guard faces sack after calling soldier who had served in Afghanistan a 'baby killer'
Asian guard is also said to have spat at the serviceman during confrontation
Pair were working at the archery contest at Lord's Cricket Ground
G4S has begun urgent internal investigation into claims
By ROB PREECE
PUBLISHED: 03:13 EST, 30 July 2012
Under-fire private security firm G4S was at the centre of another embarrassing Olympics scandal today after an employee allegedly called a soldier a 'baby killer' as they worked at a Games venue.
The Asian civilian guard, who faces the sack, is said to have spat at the serviceman and made the abusive remark at the archery contest at Lord's Cricket Ground.
The remark is believed to have been a reference to the soldier's service in Afghanistan.
Read more:
Asian guard is also said to have spat at the serviceman during confrontation
Pair were working at the archery contest at Lord's Cricket Ground
G4S has begun urgent internal investigation into claims
By ROB PREECE
PUBLISHED: 03:13 EST, 30 July 2012
Under-fire private security firm G4S was at the centre of another embarrassing Olympics scandal today after an employee allegedly called a soldier a 'baby killer' as they worked at a Games venue.
The Asian civilian guard, who faces the sack, is said to have spat at the serviceman and made the abusive remark at the archery contest at Lord's Cricket Ground.
The remark is believed to have been a reference to the soldier's service in Afghanistan.
Read more:
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Flip side of a group home and neighborhood
I thought this was going to be about another neighborhood trying to keep people in need out but wow, was I wrong on this. If you ever wanted to know the flip side of the story, here's one that will leave your blood pressure boiling.
Group homes stir anger in quiet Normandy Park
July 29, 2012
Normandy Park residents accuse for-profit care provider Hanbleceya of secrecy and deception in housing mentally ill and drug-addicted clients in their neighborhoods, and were even more dismayed when told state and local authorities have no power to step in.
By Christine Willmsen
Seattle Times staff reporter
One person heard the rumor at a Normandy Park book club. Another got wind of it chatting with neighbors on a walk. Then residents saw strangers moving in next door.
By the time citizens of this small, tight-knit suburb, just south of Seattle, realized that a private, for-profit California company was buying houses and moving in the severely mentally ill and drug-addicted — well, it was too late.
In the past six months, the La Mesa-based company, called Hanbleceya, has opened a treatment clinic in Normandy Park, bought three homes and rented two others. The company has plans to expand in Normandy Park, and also possibly to Burien and Des Moines.
When residents sought answers from Hanbleceya, which charges about $100,000 a year per client for treatment and housing, they say they encountered secrecy and deception. What has disturbed them most is that there appears to be no government oversight of this new breed of long-term mental-health treatment that couples semi-independent living with off-site clinical care.
Because Hanbleceya doesn't provide treatment inside the homes, they are not considered residential treatment facilities, which are regulated by the state Department of Health (DOH). And because Hanbleceya doesn't provide other supervised care inside the homes, they most likely do not fall under Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) regulation.
read more here
Aurora shootings survivor says Navy training saved her life
Aurora shootings survivor says Navy training saved her life
By JIM CARNEY
Akron Beacon Journal
Published: July 28, 2012
AKRON, Ohio — Carli Richards instinctively knew the smell.
The former Summit County woman had learned all about tear gas in Navy basic training.
And so when a tear gas canister was tossed at her and her boyfriend inside the dark theater in Aurora, Colo., during the midnight premiere a week ago of the Batman movie The Dark Knight Rises, her “fight or flight” instinct kicked in.
“I dropped my purse on the way out with all of my cards — insurance, ID, bank card as well as my cell phone and car keys,” Richards, 22, said of her escape as a gunman fired into the crowded theater.
Authorities say James Holmes killed a dozen moviegoers and wounded nearly 60, including Richards.
The Akron native ran for the exit as soon as the gunfire started with her boyfriend, also a Navy veteran, following close behind.
read more here
By JIM CARNEY
Akron Beacon Journal
Published: July 28, 2012
AKRON, Ohio — Carli Richards instinctively knew the smell.
The former Summit County woman had learned all about tear gas in Navy basic training.
And so when a tear gas canister was tossed at her and her boyfriend inside the dark theater in Aurora, Colo., during the midnight premiere a week ago of the Batman movie The Dark Knight Rises, her “fight or flight” instinct kicked in.
“I dropped my purse on the way out with all of my cards — insurance, ID, bank card as well as my cell phone and car keys,” Richards, 22, said of her escape as a gunman fired into the crowded theater.
Authorities say James Holmes killed a dozen moviegoers and wounded nearly 60, including Richards.
The Akron native ran for the exit as soon as the gunfire started with her boyfriend, also a Navy veteran, following close behind.
read more here
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