"Take Me Home Huey" Honoring Vietnam Veterans

Vietnam Memorial Helicopter "Take me home Huey", visits Oshkosh

NBC 26 News
Shara Taylor
July 2, 2017

"I know a lot of Vietnam vets don't like to talk about it, but for me being able to share it with other people it kind of lifts it away," said Ruby.

OSHKOSH, Wis.
A Vietnam war helicopter, transformed into a work of art, will be on display at the EAA Aviation Museum beginning this July 4th weekend. The exhibit honors Vietnam veterans and brings awareness to PTSD.

"They never really got the proper welcome home and we're trying to fix that," said EAA Programs Coordinator Chris Henry.

Henry said the helicopter was shot down in 1969. It was refurbished and later used for training at Fort Rucker in Alabama.

The aircraft was originally used in the Vietnam War for medical evacuations. Saturday it brought back memories and created dialog for veterans.

The display is called "Take me home Huey". A veteran said the helicopter had many uses.

"This was a life line to get inserted or extracted out of fire bases in Vietnam," said Vietnam War veteran Stephan Ruby.
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Afghanistan Veteran High Speed Chase After Seeking Help

Only On 9: War Veteran Suffering From PTSD Leads CHP On Dangerous 2-County Chase
CBS Los Angeles
July 1, 2017

The son returned to Los Angeles from Afghanistan about three-and-a-half years ago and the elder Hidalgo says it’s been a struggle for his son ever since.

“Once he came back,” said Gary, “he got no help. I had to fight for his assistance, to get him what he needs.”

ONTARIO (CBSLA.com) — A war veteran who allegedly suffers from PTSD led law enforcement on a two-county high-speed chase Saturday.

The veteran’s father, Gary Hidalgo, spoke to KCAL 9’s Cristy Fajardo about his son, 26-year-old Christian Hidalgo.

She spoke to the elder Hidalgo in Ontario where the chase ended. It is a story that is Only On 9.

The father said his son has not been the same since returning from Afghanistan after “multiple” deployments spanning three years.

The CHP said they first tried to pull the son over in Santa Clarita for driving recklessly. They called the chase dangerous and said Hidalgo often exceeded 100 mph.

The father said his son has not been the same since returning from Afghanistan after “multiple” deployments spanning three years.

The CHP said they first tried to pull the son over in Santa Clarita for driving recklessly. They called the chase dangerous and said Hidalgo often exceeded 100 mph.

A squad car crashed during the chase. There was no word on whether the officer driving the vehicle was injured.

Gary said his son’s PTSD was so bad he went to the VA Hospital in Westwood today trying to get help.
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Idaho Vietnam Veteran Searching for Orphan He Saved in 1970

Vietnam War veteran searches for orphan he rescued in 1970

ADVANCE FOR USE SATURDAY, JULY 1 - In this June 22, 2017 photo, Robert Martin holds a picture of himself at his home in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, holding 2-month-old Roberta Sunday after finding her in a bunker in Vietnam. 

By BRIAN WALKER - Associated Press - Saturday, July 1, 2017

COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho (AP) - Robert Martin’s platoon was sent to check out an enemy bunker complex that had been hit with heavy airstrikes. He heard a coughing sound.

“In this one bunker I found three dead Vietnamese - two men and one woman,” the Coeur d’Alene man said softly. “I turned to go to the next bunker when I heard a cough from under the dead bodies.”

Under the woman’s body was a naked infant girl - perhaps 2 months old - who was shivering and had shrapnel in one of her thighs.

Martin wrapped the girl in an empty sand bag and carried her to the pickup zone.

After Martin informed his commanders via radio of the situation, his chopper was diverted to the Quang Tri Catholic Hospital, where the baby could be treated.

read more here

Veterans and Youth Hunt Pythons in Florida

War vets, inner city youth join to trap Florida pythons
Yahoo News
Leila MACOR Agence France-Presse
June 30, 2017

Boynton Beach (United States) (AFP) - US war veteran Chad Brown suffers from PTSD after serving in Iraq and Somalia, has been homeless and classified as mentally disabled, sold his blood for $20 a pop and tried to kill himself.

The NGO Soul River, founded by war veteran Chad Brown, bring together veterans dealing with PTSD and disadvantaged inner city youth for outdoor excursions to help find healing through nature (AFP Photo/Javier GALEANO)

Now he has found some semblance of redemption in the swamps of Florida, mucking around with disadvantaged inner city youths to catch snakes and get a taste of nature as he works to connect with other people.

The project is the brain child of a Portland-based NGO called Soul River. The kids find adult mentors while the vets gain some perspective on life, says Brown, a decorated Navy veteran who founded the organization.

On this particular day Brown is with another vet and five youths in the Loxahatchee nature reserve, on Florida's east coast, when a Burmese python slithers out of a sack that a forestry official had been holding it in.

Later, the group troops off into a swamp with muck up to their hips infested with mosquitos and alligators. But a Florida Everglades guide assures them that the big-toothed critters do not like human flesh. All the humans get are bug bites.

Brown founded Soul River in 2011 after concluding that a simple sport -- fly fishing -- was the only thing that helped him battle his PTSD. 

- Natural medicine - 

Brown left the Navy in 1994 and bottomed out in 2000 when he was admitted to a psychiatric ward and thought he had lost everything. But life changed when he ventured out into nature. He went fishing.read more here

Clergy Get Schooled on How to Help Veterans Come Home

I am part of Point Man International and while this article says for members of the clergy "it is not usual for them to be one-on-one" that is exactly the best way to do it.

It is not posting on Facebook. It is giving face time. It is not using a cellphone to text back and forth, but using it to talk to someone so you can hear the sound of their voice and know there is compassion there, as well as knowledge. It is not doing push-ups but helping them push the pain away. It is not taking a walk to get attention for something you haven't even bothered to understand, but standing by their side and helping them find the way to take control of their lives back.

PTSD is complicated. Suicide is complicated. Helping them heal takes a lot out of us but what we get back is priceless. As long as people seem so satisfied with what we're doing, nothing will ever change.

If you are going to church this morning, share this with your clergy and elders. They need to do what has been working for over 3 decades.

Clergy training designed to help NH veterans reintegrate

Union Leader

By BEA LEWIS

Sunday News Correspondent 

LACONIA - Returning veterans are getting some help from above. 

"Clergy are typically on the front lines of helping veterans and it is not usual for them to be one-on-one dealing with specific issues. This event will help give clergy who don't have any direct connection with the military a better understanding of what vets are facing when they return from deployment," said Heilshorn.

Veterans display their colors during the annual Freedom Ride and Vigil at Hesky Park in Meredith during Motorcycle Week. (Bea Lewis/Sunday News Correspondent) 
Genesis Behavioral Health and the Veterans Administration are partnering to train clergy to recognize the challenges faced today by servicemen and women, active or retired.

The challenges of reintegration, coupled with issues that may be linked to their service, can result in problems that go unrecognized or develop slowly over time, said Ann Nichols, director of Development and Public Relations for GBH.

"Our role is to teach clergy and designated lay people how to play such an important role. It's a really nice partnership with the VA to have the opportunity to be able to do this," Nichols said.

"The military culture is so ingrained in our soldiers and competes with other things we know in life it doesn't surprise me that there are challenges. It's important to remove the stigma and to be able to have a positive impact on veterans and their families."

Approximately 115,000 veterans live in New Hampshire. A third are from the Vietnam Era, and more than 48 percent are 65 years of age or older, compared with 15 percent of the civilian population. The second largest group of veterans is from the Gulf Wars, with more than 7,000 coming from post-9/11 service. Only 30,000 of the 115,000 use the VA Medical Center, according to the state Bureau of Community Based Military Programs.read more here