Military transition and veterans affairs news of the day for 2/3/14

Good news story of the day

Student organizing second annual 5K for the Wounded Warriors Project  (Tallahassee.com)  Sarah Jean Fickett had no idea what to expect when she set out to raise money for the Wounded Warriors Project last year.

Military transition

10 Valley companies hiring workers now  (ABC15.com)  If you are currently out of the workforce or looking for a new job, there are hundreds of employers looking for workers in the Valley. We found these companies and more on indeed.com , simplyhired.com and jobing.com .

Program connects military students to help ‘take care of our own’  (The GW Hatchet)  The University’s office of military and veteran student services has launched a peer support program to ease the transition for more than 130 students this spring.

Veterans given tools for civilian job hunting  (Sun Sentinel)  They came out of the Army, Marines, Air Force and Navy more skilled than they went in, and many thought employers would welcome them with a job.

Veterans-services director helps MWCC students stand tall  (Sentinel & Enterprise News)

Standing comfortably between jarheads and student soldiers, some big and boisterous, others slight and quiet, Veteran Services Director Kristine Larkin trades verbal jabs with veterans as they socialize, plan and study, in that order.

St. Anthony: IT firm helps military vets embrace civilian careers  (Star Tribune)  After a two-year hitch in the Army, Kyle Marks, a veteran of the Iraq war, worked some on landscaping crews and built decks.

Aviation company bringing 155 jobs to Martinsville, Va.  (MyFox8.com)  More than 150 jobs are headed to Henry County, Virginia, according to the Winston-Salem Business Journal.

Veterans

Female veterans salute their sisters-in-arms  (The Gazette)  Patriots of all ages gathered at Disabled American Veterans Chapter 26 last month for a program saluting U.S. women who have served their country at home and abroad.

South Carolina looks to join fight against fake veterans  (The Augusta Chronicle)  Imposters who lie about being a decorated war veteran for monetary gain could face more than federal charges in South Carolina under a new bill making its way through the Legislature.

Automobile swap meet to benefit veterans  (The Daily Tribune)  Mark Land, purveyor of vintage hot rods and longtime nostalgic drag racing enthusiast, travels all over the country to car-related events. Last year he decided Bartow County would be a fitting place to host just such a gathering.

Success of Maine veterans court inspires plan to expand  (Portland Press Herald)   For Travis Bentley, it wasn’t the daily barrage of bullets, explosions and rocket fire during his two tours in Iraq that proved too much to bear. It was the return to civilian life in Maine.

Maj. Gen. Spragins, who introduced black beret, dies at age 90  (The Island Packet)  Retired Army Maj. Gen. Charles Echols “Pete” Spragins, who introduced the black beret to the uniform of the Airborne Rangers, died Wednesday at his Lady’s Island residence.

Lodi police kill Iraq veteran allegedly armed with knife  (Sacramento Bee)  When the aftereffects of his post-traumatic stress disorder made him very anxious, Parminder Singh Shergill, a Gulf War veteran from one of the Central Valley’s most established Sikh families, would simply start walking.

Veteran says he’s been cheated out of benefit worth thousands  (WBCV.com)  A new vehicle, courtesy of the federal government is one of many benefits disabled veterans are entitled to receive when they come home.

Agencies, organization work together to end vet homelessness  (Cadillac News)  A network of volunteers and government employees are looking out for veterans in need, especially the homeless. They have one goal in common, to end veteran homelessness by the year 2015.

Veterans affairs

Wilmington VA gradually rolling out services for veterans  (Star News Online)  The new Veterans Affairs health care center at the Wilmington airport is saving some residents the four-hour round trip to Fayetteville, but has not yet realized its full potential as the incremental rollout of services faced delays.

VA acquires Colorado land for new cemetery (Weatherford Democrat)  Land has been purchased by the Department of Veterans Affairs in Colorado for a new national cemetery.

Department of Veterans Affairs launches veterinary care program for service dogs  (Examiner.com)  The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is now offering US veterans with a service dog unlimited access to veterinary care.

Records workers dumped, destroyed or lost 1,800 veterans documents  (St. Louis Post Dispatch)  Paid for speed in handling documents pulled from 100 million federal employee records, two workers at the National Personnel Records Center here have admitted dumping, destroying or misfiling at least 1,800 of them, court records show.

Desperate WWI vets marched on Washington  (Chicago Tribune)  On Aug. 2, 1932, William Hushka of 2316 W. 23rd Place, Chicago, was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery, five days after he was killed when police and soldiers raided a shantytown occupied by World War I veterans in the nation’s capital.

Veterans dying because of treatment delays at VA hospitals, document says  (Fox News)  The Department of Veterans Affairs has linked the recent deaths of at least 19 vets diagnosed with cancer in 2010 and 2011 to appointment backlogs and delays at VA hospitals and clinics and resulting hindrances in care, according to an internal document.

Benefits

Veterans group seeks action to cut backlog of claims  (USA Today)  The government’s effort to cut a backlog of pending compensation claims for veterans has stalled at about 400,000 cases, and steps are needed to understand what is and isn’t working to solve the problem, says a group representing recent war veterans.

Bypassing Congress on defense cuts  (Politico.com)  The Pentagon has learned that if it can’t go through Congress to get what it wants, sometimes it’s best best to try going around.

Interview: Gates talks pay reform, toxic leaders and more  (Military Times)  Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates oversaw the troop surges in both Iraq and Afghanistan during his tenure at the Pentagon from 2006 to 2011.

MacDill families fear commissary closings  (Tampa Bay Online)  For those who live on the base and the thousands of military retirees living nearby, the MacDill commissary offers about 30 percent savings over the cost of food and other items at civilian supermarkets.

Push for new national cemeteries, as veteran deaths bring sites near capacity  (Fox News)  National cemeteries across the country are starting to reach capacity amid an increase in the number of veterans dying — fueling a push for the government to approve new sites, particularly in states that don’t have any.

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