Good news story of the day
WELCOME HOME! Hundreds greet injured Marine and his family at their new Elysburg residence (News Item) David Noblit looked at the large ceremonial key that he just received from the Homes for Our Troops organization.
Military Transition and Jobs News
Job fair Tuesday to help veterans find civilian work (KTVB) Hero 2 Hired is a chance for those serving in the military to ease back into civilian work.
NJ’s high veteran unemployment rate in sights of lawmakers, advocates (NJ.com) Members of the United States Armed Forces learn a lot of valuable skills while they serve the country.
KSU transitions veterans from the battlefield to the boardroom with business bootcamp (Marrieta Daily Journal) A business boot camp designed to transition military veterans from the battlefield to the boardroom was conducted for the first time by Kennesaw State University last week.
Coming Home: SC Vets Return (The State) Sgt Maj. Chris Fletcher was a teenager the last time he had a civilian job.
Veterans News
Veterans Transition Center (The Californian) If success can be measured by the number of individuals it serves, the Veterans Transition Center has been a smashing success.
Why Athletes and Veterans Make Incredible Franchisees (Entrepreneur.com) It’s a common – and accurate — notion that athletes and former military personnel make good entrepreneurs.
Iraq and Afghanistan: The physical and mental toll, by the numbers (The Washington Post) The 2.6 million Americans who volunteered to fight on IED-laden battlefields in Iraq and Afghanistan have returned home with a panoply of problems borne out of their service.
Local veterans to be affected by senate’s rejection of benefits bill (Daily Emerald) The Comprehensive Veterans Health and Benefits and Military Retirement Pay Restoration Act of 2014, an act which would have provided additional education and job-training benefits for veterans as well as improved health care, was rejected by senate in March.
Veterans commemorate the 30th anniversary of Vietnam Veterans Memorial Monument in Springfield (MassLive) Veterans and their families gathered at Springfield City Hall Sunday to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Monument.
IG: Vet overdosed while in VA rehab center (Military Times) A veteran of the war in Afghanistan died of a heroin and cocaine overdose last year while receiving treatment at a Miami Veterans Affairs residential treatment facility, according to a VA inspector general report released Friday.
Sen. Nelson: None of the controversial VA deaths occurred at Haley (Tampa Bay Online) Neither the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital in Tampa nor the C.W. “Bill” Young” VA Medical Center at Bay Pines were the locations where deaths occurred as the result of treatment delays, according to U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) and hospital officials.
Two Men, Two Fates (Stars and Stripes) In the early weeks of 1973, the infamous Hanoi Hilton was filling up with Americans. For once, the influx of prisoners was something to celebrate.
Irregularities cited in student vet study (Military Times) A study released by Student Veterans of America promised to bring much-needed clarity to veterans’ college graduation rates, but irregularities in how the research was done may cast doubt on its findings.
Jeremiah A. Denton Jr., 89, Dies; With Blinks, Vietnam P.O.W. Told of Torture (The New York Times) The prisoner of war had been tortured for 10 months and beaten repeatedly by his North Vietnamese captors in recent days, and there were threats of more if he did not respond properly when the propaganda broadcast began.
After the Wars: A Legacy of Pain and Pride (The Washington Post) More than half of the 2.6 million Americans dispatched to fight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan struggle with physical or mental health problems stemming from their service, feel disconnected from civilian life and believe the government is failing to meet the needs of this generation’s veterans, according to a poll conducted by The Washington Post and the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Benefits News
DoD to look at consolidating commissaries, exchanges (Military Times) Defense officials have ordered a review of options that include consolidating commissaries and exchanges, as well as having commissaries adopt an “Exchange-like business model,” according to information obtained by Military Times.
Disability claims backlog will disappear in 2015, Shinseki says (Fierce Government) The Veterans Affairs Department is still on pace to clear its disability claims backlog by the end of 2015, so long as the agency is given adequate money for information technology programs and claims processors’ overtime pay, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki told a House panel.
Outreach program aims to connect with all 75,000 veterans in state (Argus Leader) A push in South Dakota to meet with all 75,000 veterans is part of a trend among states to compensate for gaps in federal efforts, national experts said.
Edmonds Military Wire: New laws provide additional protection to veterans and military families (My Edmonds News) Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson successfully championed two bills on behalf of military and veteran families that received Governor Inslee’s signature on March 27, 2014.
VA restores aid to homeless veterans (USA Today) The VA has reversed course in the face of complaints from community groups and a USA TODAY query and restored aid to potentially several thousand homeless veterans who otherwise could have been left on the streets.
Eyeing disability backlog, GOP rep. pushes VA accountability (CBS) Citing a backlog of disability claims that leaves many disabled veterans waiting months to receive their benefits, Rep. Jackie Walorski, R-Ind., slammed the Department of Veterans Affairs for mismanagement Saturday, saying the VA has “become the epitome of bureaucracy run amok.”
Orders to Nowhere... 