Good news story of the day
‘Still a fighting force:’ 50 years later, Vietnam War’s first Medal of Honor recipient remembers (NWF Daily News) In 1964, Roger Donlon, a 30-year-old Special Forces soldier, was sent into the thick of the jungle in Vietnam.
Military Transition and Jobs News
Tesla Motors on a mission to hire American veterans (San Jose Mercury News) Tesla Motors, which is on a mission to bring electric cars to the masses, now has another goal — to become a leading employer of America’s military veterans.
Nonprofit Helps Veterans Find Jobs, Runs Recycling Program (Manhattan NewsNY1) Mario Figueroa spent the first part of this century serving his country.
Pax River helps veterans transition from military career (Gazette.net) William “Jerry” Large enlisted in the Navy, worked as a helicopter crewman and went to night school to earn his degree.
From fatigues to scrubs: Memorial Hermann looking to hire veterans (Your Houston News) Memorial Hermann is among Houston-area businesses actively recruiting new employees from the thousands of veterans separating or retiring from active duty.
Veterans News
Louis Zamperini, Olympian and ‘Unbroken’ War Survivor, Dies at 97 (NY Times) Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner who as an airman during World War II crashed into the Pacific, was listed as dead and then spent 47 days adrift in a life raft before being captured by the Japanese and enduring a harsh imprisonment, died on Wednesday in Los Angeles.
National oral history project StoryCorps stops in Miami to collect veterans’ stories (Miami Herald) Before that Thursday, James Garcia had rarely talked about his three tours of duty, remembering his fellow Marines in Iraq and Afghanistan but sharing little detail of his time there.
Senate bill forces repayment of VA bonuses (The Hill) Sens. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) and Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) introduced a bill that would take back bonuses paid to VA employees who falsified waitlist times.
VA scandal: How to fix a broken system (AZ Central) Mr. Robert McDonald: We admire your courage. In accepting this nomination, you are about to confront one of the most daunting challenges in all of federal governance: reforming the VA hospital system.
Crunch time for VA deal (The Hill) Pressure is building on House and Senate lawmakers to reach a deal this month on legislation to reform the troubled Veterans Affairs Department.
Transforming the VA will be daunting task (AZ Central) It seems nearly every day there’s more bad news about the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and how it has treated those who served in the military.
Benefits News
New VA stats show ballooning wait times (Stars and Stripes) Statistics released Thursday by the Department of Veterans Affairs show dramatically increased numbers of veterans who waited more than 30 days for health care appointments in June compared with the prior month.
Here’s How the Pentagon Could Save $108 Billion Over the Next Decade (Defense One) Thanks to sequestration, the Defense Department will have to reduce its spending by $500 billion over the next 10 years.
Most Veterans Are Satisfied With GI Bill Education Benefits (Gallup) As the original GI Bill turns 70, Gallup finds nearly eight in 10 American veterans saying they are “very satisfied” (32%) or “satisfied” (46%) with the education benefits the bills provide. Relatively few — 16% — are dissatisfied to any degree.
BUREAUCRATIC DISCHARGE: Wyoming veterans face difficult system to gain VA benefits (Star Tribune) The fear reminded Don Browning of that long-ago warning shot at sea, when his destroyer ventured into Chinese waters.
Disabled veterans lose funds from unpublicized benefits (Montgomery Advertiser) In 1996, local Vietnam veteran Rubin Willis was deemed 100 percent disabled by the U.S. Army — the branch he served for more than 25 years.
Veterans turn to American Legion for medical help in wake of VA scandal (Fox News) A counselor at the local Veterans Affairs office looked at Rebecca King, a victim of domestic violence and abuse who was seeking help for depression, and told her she would not be able to see a psychologist.
VETERAN DIES WAITING FOR AMBULANCE IN VA HOSPITAL (AP) A veteran who collapsed in an Albuquerque Veteran Affairs hospital cafeteria — 500 yards from the emergency room — died after waiting around 20 minutes for an ambulance, officials confirmed Thursday.
Orders to Nowhere... 