Transitionnews for Thursday, January 9th 2014:

Good news story of the day

Sport Clips Haircuts Announces $500,000 in Scholarships for Veterans  (Yahoo News)  Sport Clips Haircuts’ mission to provide active-duty military and veterans support for their post-military career goals was accomplished today when the franchise announced 43 scholarships for the spring semester.

Transition

Technology Industry Leaders and Monster.com Launch USTechVets.org to Connect Veterans with Careers in the U.S. Technology Sector  (Business Wire News Releases)  Today, at the 2014 International CES®, leaders from top U.S. technology industry trade associations announced the launch of USTechVets.org, an online community to connect the one million service members who are transitioning back into civilian life to employment opportunities within the technology industry.

NSA Washington-JBAB Fleet Family and Fun  (DCMilitary.com)  Military and Family Support Center (MFSC) located on Joint Base Anacostia Bolling introduces a comprehensive centralized scheduling service for your individual appointment needs. 

Nonprofits Help Veterans Find Green Jobs  (Green-Buildings.com)  According to the San Mateo County Times, former Marine Jarom Vahai founded Green and Gold Careers in 2011 – a nonprofit dedicated to placing veterans in green jobs.

Veterans

Laying veterans to rest in the watery graves at Pearl Harbor  (Yahoo News)  The world is on the verge of losing the last living links to the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, but one man has dedicated his life to ensuring the memory of that “day of infamy” will never be extinguished.

Iraq War veterans feel sting of reversals in hard-won Fallujah  (Fox News)  The image of two charred American bodies hanging from a bridge as a jubilant crowd pelted them with shoes seared the name Fallujah into the American psyche. The brutal house-to-house battle to tame the Iraqi insurgent stronghold cemented its place in U.S. military history.

Teaneck woman falsely claimed business was owned by disabled veteran, U.S. Attorney says  (NJ.com)  A Teaneck woman pretended her company was owned by a service-disabled veteran to win more than $1.2 million in government contracts, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said.

Local Veterans and Senators Support Proposed Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument  (The Huffington Post)  They do a lot of things well in New Mexico. It is truly a Land of Enchantment.

Air Force Wounded Warriors hone skills while at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam  (Pacific Air Forces)  More than 120 wounded warriors arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam to prepare for the  2014 Wounded Warrior Pacific Invitational.

Ticker-tape parade puts local vet, Winter Park on big stage  (Orlando Sentinel)  Downtown Winter Park took on the feel of a miniature Manhattan on Wednesday as well-wishers filled the streets and confetti streamed to welcome home a local veteran.

Veterans Affairs

Veterans assist 90 with medical claims  (The Norman Transcript)  This week, we are recognizing a husband and wife team who spend many of their Thursday mornings volunteering at the Goldsby Community Center.

Veterans Affairs apologizes for Cheltenham cemetery damage  (Southern Maryland Newspapers Online)  Officials said damage done Dec. 30 to the Maryland Veterans Cemetery in Cheltenham was “inadvertent.”

Coatesville VA celebrates new addition  (The Times of Chester County)  At the Coatesville Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center, cause for celebration occurred on Tuesday, Jan. 7, as VA leadership and employees, veterans, community members, and representatives of elected officials gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the addition of a new, world-class hospice unit.

Benefits

Disabled Veterans to Be Exempted From Pension Cuts  (ABC News)  A massive spending bill taking shape on Capitol Hill is likely to repeal a recently enacted pension cut for disabled veterans.

What the New Qualified Mortgage (QM) Regulations Mean for VA Loans  (The Huffington Post)  A new era for the mortgage industry is about to begin.

MilitaryTimes.com Launches VA Loan Center  (Market Watch)  Military Times has launched VA Loan Center on MilitaryTimes.com  to help members of the military understand how to finance a home using VA loans.

Republican senators look to merge fights over military pensions, jobless benefits  (The Hill)  Republican senators are trying to combine their efforts to offset the cost of a three-month unemployment benefits extension with a repeal of $6 billion in cuts to military pensions.

Hagel discusses military benefits, Iraq and Gates’ new memoir  (Stars and Stripes)  Wounded warriors implored Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel during a town hall meeting Wednesday not to cut health care and other benefits for servicemembers and veterans.

CBO suggests tough defense spending cuts  (Military Times)  The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has proposed six ways to reduce defense spending ranging from deep cuts to the military services to controversial reductions in pay and benefits.

VIRGINIA BRIEFS: New Rates for Compensation, Pension Benefits in 2014  (The Washington Informer) Veterans, their families and survivors receiving disability compensation and pension benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs began receiving a 1.5 percent cost-of-living increase in their monthly payments Jan. 1.

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Have a great day!