Apopka at the Vietnam Memorial Traveling Wall

Dawn at the Wall

Combat PTSD Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
November 10, 2018

This morning I went out to Apopka at the Vietnam Memorial Traveling Wall. It was an overpowering experience just before dawn.

While I have been to many of these exhibits, it was the first time I walked around looking at the names, without crowds of people.

Most of the time I had to take a deep breath, unable to talk, no matter how many times I turned the video camera on.

No one can read the names and then forget how much that Wall means to all veterans. Sure, those are just the names of servicemembers who sacrificed their lives in Vietnam, but the Wall itself offers a message to all generations that they mattered too.

Veteran Day is the one day of the year when we are supposed to let them know they do matter. We just need to make sure that they matter the other 364 days a year, just as much.

Make sure to check PTSD Patrol tomorrow for the other video.

UPDATE
This is a video of the Wall going up from News 13

Reporter gave FUBAR veteran suicide report!

UPDATE
And what happened after this report? More carried the story without correction!

17 veterans per day commit suicide

PostBulletin.com-Nov 12, 2018

A frequently quoted 2012 VA report found that 22 veterans committed suicide per day, but that figure included active-duty troops,

Each day 17 veterans commit suicide. New campaign featuring ...

Herald & Review-Nov 10, 2018

A frequently quoted 2012 VA report found that 22 veterans committed suicide per day, but that figure included active-duty troops,

If you read the "story" by Nara Schoenberg of the Chicago Tribune, about "17 veterans committing suicide per day" demand accountability from her! 
This is what she reported.

"In 2016, the age- and gender-adjusted suicide rate for veterans was 26 per 100,000 — 1.5 times higher than the rate for nonveterans, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). A frequently quoted 2012 VA report found that 22 veterans committed suicide per day, but that figure included active-duty troops, Stars and Stripes reported in June. Stars and Stripes broke down more recent VA numbers, reporting there are 21 military suicides a day, including 17 by veterans and four by active-duty service members, Guardsmen and reservists."

Either she is misinformed or the VA and the DOD are! 

This is from the DOD, and if you add them up, it is an average of 500 a year, which is not even 2 per day.

Where did she get 4? Where did she get the numbers from at all?

Easy, from an article that was not only corrected, it was explained, and oh, BTW, it was on Military Times.

"Franklin said to VA researchers, the data shows that the rate of suicides among former service members has remained steady at around 20 a day, and the rate among currently serving troops sits just above one person a day."

This is the link to the last DOD Suicide report for up to June of 2018. They put it out for every quarter, as they have done going back to 2012. Do you think she should have at least did a basic search to find it?

These are the links to the VA reports and the chart from the latest one they did.

We will never change the deadly outcome as long as reporters DO NOT DO THEIR JOBS AND TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY~ instead of being FUBAR!

Newlywed Marine Bride Dead, Husband Charged

A WOMAN FOUND DEAD IN VIRGINIA AND THE MAN CHARGED WITH HER MURDER ARE BOTH U.S. MARINES

News week

BY JAMES LAPORTA

11/7/18

U.S. Marine Lance Corporal Natasha Rivera, 20, poses for a photograph in August 2017. Her husband, U.S. Marine Corporal Rodolfo Rivera, 24, has been charged with murder in connection with her death on November 3. FACEBOOK

A woman found dead in a Virginia hotel room on Saturday and the man arrested in connection with her murder are both U.S. Marines, Newsweek has learned.

Marine Corporal Rodolfo Rivera, 24, is being held without bond at the Arlington County Jail in Virginia, following a domestic-related homicide investigation at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Washington, D.C.

At roughly 9:40 a.m. on November 3, police responded to the hotel after a report of a possible death, according to a press release from Arlington County Police. Officers found the body of Marine Lance Corporal Natasha Rivera, 20, whose maiden name was Natasha Soto.

Local news outlets in Virginia and The Washington Post reported on the murder but did not say that the alleged suspect and victim were U.S. Marines. Both Task and Purpose and Newsweek confirmed their active-duty status on Wednesday.

Two U.S. Marines familiar with the incident, who asked for anonymity due to Pentagon restrictions told Newsweek that the two Marines were married and that on November 2, Rodolfo, who was alleged to be heavily intoxicated at the time, strangled his wife after the couple had returned to their hotel room.
read more here

Vietnam veteran died before stolen service dog was foung

Vet died hours before he was set to be reunited with stolen service dog

By: WESH
Posted: Nov 08, 2018

Vet died hours before he was set to be reunited with stolen service dog Kira the Pomeranian, left, suspect, right. (Photo: Osceola County Sheriff's Office)

Joseph was sadly never reunited with his beloved service dog, passing away hours prior to her recovery.

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. (WESH) - A veteran's stolen service dog has been recovered, hours after he passed away. Two women have been placed under arrest in Osceola County.

Authorities said detectives from Osceola County, Lake County and the Winter Garden Police Department identified Jennifer Gotschall and Monique Cosser on Wednesday.

Authorities said one of the woman got into an altercation with 67-year-old veteran Joseph Hanson last week in Kissimmee, while the other came up behind him and unleashed his dog, named Kira.
read more here

Original story

Veterans among victims killed in California bar attack

Navy, Marine Corps veterans among victims killed in California bar attack

By THE WASHINGTON POST AND ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: November 8, 2018

Dan Manrique, 33, volunteered for the Marine Corps and deployed to Afghanistan as a radio operator in 2007. He served for six years, then returned to Southern California. He was one of the 12 victims of Wednesday's shooting in Thousand Oaks, Calif. VIA TWITTER

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — One was a veteran police officer who didn't hesitate to run toward danger. Another was an art student who worked with children at her church. Others were a Navy veteran, an a cappella singer who worked as a caregiver, and a security guard with a "big personality" who was known for making sure everyone got home safely.

They were among a dozen people killed in a shooting at a country music bar in Southern California. Authorities believe the gunman , Ian David Long, ultimately killed himself.

The victims' stories began to emerge Thursday. It was going to be a "very difficult day for many people," said Andrew Fox, mayor of Thousand Oaks, California, where the attack happened Wednesday night.

DAN MANRIQUE: A 'REALLY STRONG, SELFLESS LEADER' It wasn't easy for Dan Manrique, 33, after he left the Marine Corps. As he resumed life in California, Manrique was drawn to Team Red, White and Blue, a group that helps veterans adjust. First, he was a volunteer, and then, just weeks ago, he became a full-time program manager.

TELEMACHUS ORFANOS: NAVY VETERAN NICKNAMED 'TEL'
Telemachus Orfanos, 27, was a U.S. Navy veteran with a thick beard, an easy smile and a gladiator helmet tattoo. His friends called him "Tel."

Orfanos had survived last year's massacre at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas, only to die inside Borderline, less than 10 minutes from his home in suburban Los Angeles.

CODY COFFMAN: 'THE BIG BROTHER THAT MY KIDS NEED' Cody Coffman, who had just turned 22, was talking with Army recruiters and preparing to fulfill his dream of serving his country, said his father, Jason Coffman, who wept as he told a group of reporters that his first-born son was among the victims.

read more here