Indiana veteran receives outpouring of support after facing collection agency over kids' lunch money
RTV ABC 6 News
Rafael Sanchez
Nov 1, 2018
SHELBYVILLE, Ind. -- A local veteran who was facing a collection agency over unpaid school lunches says he’s thankful for all of the help he’s received since his story first aired on RTV6 back in September.
George White says people and other veterans from across the country have come to his assistance when he thought he was alone in dealing with a persistent debt collector. An anonymous person has also paid off the entire $562.61 school lunch bill that White owed to Shelbyville Central schools for his children’s lunches.
Because of his financial situation, White says his children have always qualified for free lunches. He said he thought they had turned in the necessary paperwork in time this year, but he somehow ended up with a large bill because his kids were not receiving free lunch.
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University study that aims to identify well being of Manatee County veterans could be a game changer
Bradenton Herald
BY JAMES A. JONES JR.
November 03, 2018
“The Veterans Administration provides very generic data on a county level — age, gender and branch of service — but we know very little about their employment status, physical and mental health, education level, relationships or their living environments,” Hodges said in a press release.
MANATEE
Manatee County’s 35,000 veterans have an opportunity to anonymously participate in a first-of-its-kind study of their well being by the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee.
An online survey recently went live, seeking information on veterans’ physical and mental health, employment history, relationships and lifestyle.
Vets will also be able to participate in study at Manatee County’s primary Veterans Day observance Sunday, Nov. 11, at Palmetto’s Lamb Park.
“The study should be completed by summer of 2019. We want to touch all the areas related to veterans. We will use it as a major tool for organizations to focus on the needs that veterans have,” said Carl Hunsinger, chairman of the Manatee County Veterans Council.
Collaborating on the USFSM study of veterans’ well being are Eric Hodges, a professor of interdisciplinary social science, Thomas Becker, a business professor, and Ramakrishna Govindu, an instructor of information systems and decision sciences.
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Widow wins nine-year battle with Veterans Affairs over cancer coverage
The Chronicle Herald
Francis Campbell
November 3, 2018
“When he was diagnosed and we met with his oncologist for the first time, she asked was he exposed to chemicals. And we said, yes. He looked at me and he said, ‘Hon, the Persian Gulf War did this to me.’ He asked me to pursue it on his behalf and I did.”
Natasha Mohr stubbornly sticks to her promises.
Unfortunately, the Canadian Forces do not, she said.
“Sign on the dotted line, you’ll be taken care of,” Mohr, 49, said of commitments the Forces and the federal government make to military personnel. “And that is not so.”
Mohr said the broken promises to her Lower Sackville family began after Christmas Day, 2008, the morning her husband, Petty Officer Rick Mohr, passed away in her arms of brain cancer that was related to his 22-year naval career.
It took nine long years for Veterans Affairs Canada to begrudgingly agree that his death was service related.
Petty Officer Mohr had been diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive brain tumour, just more than two months earlier.
“He was a brilliant naval communicator and even more so, he was a loving father and husband,” Natasha Mohr said.
Rick Mohr was only 42. His death crushed his wife and the couple’s son and daughter, both in their teens.
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Mayor of Utah city killed in 'insider attack' in Afghanistan
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Nov 4th 2018
Taylor was deployed to Afghanistan in January with the Utah National Guard for what was expected to be a 12-month tour of duty. Taylor, an officer in the National Guard, previously served two tours in Iraq and one tour in Afghanistan.
NORTH OGDEN, Utah (AP) — The mayor of a Utah city was killed during an attack in Afghanistan while he was serving with the state's National Guard, the Salt Lake Tribune and other media reported.
North Ogden Mayor Brent Taylor died Saturday in an apparent "insider attack" in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, the Tribune reported. Another U.S. service member is being treated for wounds sustained in the attack, American military officials said.
The Utah National Guard has identified the service member killed as a member of the Guard. The Guard member's name is being withheld pending notification of next of kin.
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Orlando Vets Center Open House
PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
November 4, 2018
You know when there is something going on with your vehicle. It just doesn't seem to be running right. As you drive down streets, you hope it does not breakdown in traffic or on some isolated road.
Oh, sure you have a cellphone to call for help, but while you are waiting, you never know what is going to happen, or how long you'll be stuck there.
While waiting for a tow truck you start to think about what the mechanics will find wrong with it. Most of the time, it is an easy fix. Sometimes it takes a lot more work than you thought it would.
When the vehicle you live in is not running right, it works the same way. When you are not running right, you may breakdown and feel stuck. If you call for help, and get to a mechanic for what you need, then, sometimes it is an easy fix, but other times, it takes a lot more work.
Yesterday we went out to the Orlando Vets Center for their open house. Actually it should have been called hope'n house, because that is what they are dedicated to doing.
Vets Centers started in 1979.
Who We Are
We are the people in VA who welcome home war veterans with honor by providing quality readjustment counseling in a caring manner. Vet Centers understand and appreciate Veterans’ war experiences while assisting them and their family members toward a successful post-war adjustment in or near their community.
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