Transitionnews for Monday, January 6th 2014:

Good news story of the day

Hundreds gather wreaths at veterans’ cemetery  (Killeen Daily Herald)  Amidst a sea of white headstones, more than 400 people collected Christmas wreaths Sunday afternoon during the culminating event of the eighth annual Friends of the Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery’s Wreaths for Veterans project at the cemetery.

Transition

San Jacinto College program helps military veteran students with transition back to civilian life  (ABC Local)  San Jacinto College has a new program that is proving to be a significant aid to military veterans trying to transition back to civilian life.

Military job fair set for Jan. 16 at Fort Benning  (AJC.com)  The Georgia Department of Corrections and the Georgia Department of Defense will be hosting a job fair for military personnel later this month at Fort Benning.

New Warrior Transition Battalion commander has combat experience  (El Paso Times)  The new commander for the Fort Bliss Warrior Transition Battalion has seen combat duty in both Iraq and Afghanistan, but now is getting to see a completely different side of the Army.

Thank You For Your Military Service — Now Here Are 9 Reasons Why I Won’t Hire You  (Business Insider)  So, you’ve decided to hang up the uniform after years of distinguished service to our great nation. You’ve attended a few transition classes and have your interview suit and shiny new resume as you make the leap into the civilian world.

Military “Transition” Center Coming to Warner Robins  (Georgia Works)  The State of Georgia and AT&T have announced they will join to build a center for higher education programming dedicated to military veterans and their families in the transition to civilian careers.

S.C. Guard’s final Vietnam War veteran retires  (Military Times)  The South Carolina National Guard is saying goodbye to its final Vietnam Veteran.

Forced out of the Army, soldiers find careers in the Reserve  (Army Times)  Frustrated by his inability to get promoted and the looming Army drawdown, then-Sgt. James Davis left active duty in 1995.

Veterans

Wounded warrior to lead pirate parade  (TBO.com)  An Air Force master sergeant who lost an eye when his helicopter was hit with a rocket-propelled grenade in Iraq will represent the U.S. Special Operations Command’s Care Coalition as grand marshal at the Seminole Hard Rock Gasparilla Pirate Fest Parade of Pirates on Jan. 25.

Wounded Soldier Guides Other Wounded As He Continues To Serve  (The Oconee Enterprise)  Staff Sgt. Giovanni Pascascio will always remember July 8, 2007. “You kinda remember the day you got blown up.”

Wounded veterans work to put away child predators  (Fox News)  Oskar Zepeda has had pretty much one mission in his life: kill or capture.

Sources: Cuomo To Unveil Plan To Help Businesses Owned By Disabled Veterans  (CBS New York)  Gov. Andrew Cuomo is set to announce a plan to help give businesses owned by disabled military veterans a boost.

Dem senator to Obama: End discrimination against gay veterans  (The Hill)  Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) asked the Obama administration to move more quickly to eliminate discrimination against same-sex couples seeking veterans’ home loans.

Veterans Affairs

Maine veterans’ true advocate ends service Veterans Affairs  (Portland Press Herald)  When Scott Karczewski of Augusta started at the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Togus Regional Office in 1977 as a temporary warehouse worker, World War I veterans were being cared for and World War II veterans were largely in charge.

Blumenthal Statement On CT Veteran Job Training Report  (Politicalnews.me)  U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) issued a statement following the release of a Connecticut Veterans Legal Center report calling for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to share military job training data with state and local occupational licensing boards in an effort to expedite the credentialing process for recent veterans seeking employment.

Caregiver Burnout affects families of veterans with PTSD  (Examiner.com)  PTSD causes a role-reversal effect on family caregivers, which can strain family relationships to the breaking point.

Christmas controversy at VA hospitals  (Army Times)  Several incidents at Veterans Affairs medical centers over the holidays have prompted the House Veterans Affairs Committee chairman to question whether VA has violated the civil rights of veterans in its care.

Jeff Miller calls for cooperation as Augusta VA congressional visit looms  (The Augusta Chronicle)  The chairman of the House Committee on Vete­rans Affairs said Friday that the success of his congressional oversight visits to VA medical centers in Augusta and Columbia next week will hinge on one element: cooperation.

Veterans Affairs cuts Honolulu VA mortgage guaranty for 2014 by 17%  (Pacific Business News)  The Department of Veterans Affairs has reduced its mortgage loan guaranty limit to $625,500 from $750,000 for veterans who want to buy a home in Honolulu in 2014, officials say.

Augusta family blames Vietnam vet’s death on Charlie Norwood Veterans Affairs Medical Center  (Augusta Chronicle)  Karen Burough said her husband’s body finally gave out after eight years of postponed appointments, delayed treatment plans and misdiagnoses at the Charlie Norwood Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Benefits

Was 2013 the height of military benefits?  (The News Tribune)  As it came to a close, 2013 seemed to leave a kind of high-water mark on the wall of more than a decade of steady, impressive gains to military and veterans’ pays and benefits. Will those gains now begin to recede?

Veterans health care panel scheduled for Jan. 10  (Tallahassee.com)  Pensacola Naval Hospital’s commanding officer, Capt. Maureen O’Hara Padden, is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at a symposium on military-related health care benefits scheduled on Jan. 10 at the Angus Inn Seafood and Steaks restaurant.

Compensation commission gets lengthy extension  (Military Times)  The commission that could trigger historic changes to military pay and benefits system was granted an extension and will not conclude its work until February 2015, many months after its original deadline.

One in three lawmakers wants to repeal cuts to military pensions   (The Hill)  More than 150 House members and 35 senators have signed onto efforts to repeal the cuts to military pensions included in the budget deal signed last month.

Defense Spending Bill Will Be Accepted Amid Grousing, Moran Says  (Business Week)  The military spending bill Congress passes for the current fiscal year will be legislation “people can live with,” according to a senior minority member of the House defense appropriations subcommittee.

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Have a great day!