Military/Veteran Transitionnews for 1/28/14

Posted by Mike Grice on

Military transition and veterans affairs news of the day for 1/28/14

Good news story of the day

Glendale Heights collecting valentines for veterans  (Daily Herald)  Do you remember how fun Valentine’s Day was in elementary school?

Military transition

JPMorgan Chase Announces $1 Million Investment in Higher Education Programs for U.S. Military Veterans  (Business Wire)  JPMorgan Chase & Co. announced today it will invest $1 million to fund higher education programs for U.S. military veterans including grants to Florida State College at Jacksonville, University of South Florida, The University of Texas at Arlington and San Diego State University.

Veterans still fighting for survival in tough job market  (CNN Money)  The transition from soldier to civilian is rough.

Protecting Our Veterans From Domestic Enemies  (The Huffington Post)  The nation has changed dramatically since I returned from World War II in 1946.

Corporate jobs initiative meets 100,000 vet hiring goal  (USA Today)  A coalition of companies that vowed in 2011 to hired 100,000 veterans within a decade has made its goal seven years early, announcing today that 117,439 former service members have since been provided jobs.

Solar jobs attracting industry veterans  (Fierce Energy)  The Solar Foundation (TSF) has released its fourth annual National Solar Jobs Census, which found that the U.S. solar industry employed 142,698 Americans in 2013, including the addition of 23,682 solar jobs over the previous year — a 19.9 percent growth in employment since September 2012.

Veteran job fair Tuesday at Temple VA  (KWKT.com)  On January 28, Veterans are invited to a job fair from 9 a.m. to noon at the Olin E. Teague Veterans’ Medical Center, part of the Central Texas Veterans Health Care System.

Fort Bliss summit to teach businesses and military veterans about jobs  (El Paso Times)  How companies can hire military veterans and how veterans can find jobs will be covered at the two-day Fort Bliss Veterans Jobs Summit Feb. 3-4.

Veterans Corner: Veterans Job and Resource Fair on April 10  (The Sentinel)  Mark your calendars.

Veterans fair offers help with housing, jobs, benefits  (The Record Searchlight)  North State veterans struggling to make ends meet may be eligible for a variety of essential services and benefits unknown to them.

Veterans

Are U.S. Veterans Selfish?  (Time)  It’s an impudent question, but one that naturally surfaces given the outrage rolling in from assorted veterans’ groups as Congress and the Pentagon seek ways to trim government spending that sometimes affect those who have volunteered to fight America’s wars.

HOA wants Palm Coast man to remove wounded warriors flag from home  (WFTV.com)  A Palm Coast man said he’s racking up hundreds in fines for refusing to take down a flag that supports America’s wounded warriors.

UM Brain Injury Research to Benefit Athletes, Military  (ABCFoxMontana.com)  Professional athletes and members of the military could soon benefit from traumatic brain injury research at the University of Montana.

Connecting Veterans To Capital (The Street)  Pan American Bank today announced the “Connecting Veterans to Capital” workshop scheduled for February 5, 2014.

Afghan war vets, St. Louis researchers seek answers on head injuries  (St. Louis Post Dispatch)  For hours on route clearance missions in southern Afghanistan, Sgt. Michael Ritchey crammed his short body into a Husky, a single-seat vehicle that loosely resembles an armored road-grader.

It’s wounded amputee team, with Wisconsin native, vs. ex-NFL players  (Journal-Sentinel)  Sure, Jeremy Stengel loves the camaraderie of flag football.

For injured veteran, war continues even at home  (PilotOnline.com)  Chuck Rotenberry can talk about the virtues of others, both man and dog, at length.

Veterans affairs

ANN ARBOR: VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System honored for patient care  (Ann Arbor Journal)  VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System (VAAAHS) celebrated being the first healthcare organization to be awarded Planetree Silver Merit recognition for Significant Advancement in Patient-Centered Care with a special award ceremony featuring presentations by veterans and their loved ones who have received health care at the Ann Arbor VA.

Want to know why Wilmington’s VA compensation case backlog keeps growing? So would we (Delaware Online) Today marks the 38th day since I asked the Dept. of Veterans Affairs in Washington, D.C., for an on-the-record official to discuss why disability compensation cases were being transferred from Baltimore and Philadelphia to Wilmington and other northeast Veterans Benefits Administration offices last year, increasing Wilmington’s backlog – which continues to grow despite an overall national trend in the opposite direction.

VA closes community-based health care clinics Tues. and Wed. for weather  (The Times-Picayune)  The New Orleans office of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced it will close 10 community-based health care clinics Tuesday and Wednesday due to predicted snow, sleet and ice.

Latest breach at VA has Congress asking more questions  (FCW)  The latest data breach at the Department of Veterans Affairs — this one exposing thousands of veterans’ personally identifiable information in a mid-January software glitch — has Congress again questioning the agency about its IT security practices.

At VHA, Doctors, Nurses Clash on Oversight  (Wall Street Journal) The Veterans Health Administration is taking heavy fire from doctor groups over a proposal to let nurses with advanced training practice medicine without physician supervision throughout the VHA system—even in states where laws require more oversight.

Xerox Helps Department of Veteran’s Affairs Automate Healthcare Claims Pricing  (Business Wire)  Xerox has been selected to improve the healthcare claims pricing strategy for the Department of Veteran Affairs, Veterans Health Administration.

Benefits

Omnibus VA bill would repeal pension reductions, ensure benefits during future  shutdowns  (Fierce Government)  An omnibus veterans affairs bill introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) would  fully repeal pension reductions, ensure veterans benefits if the government  shuts down again and introduce new veteran hiring goals.

TRICARE military centers closing walk-in services in April  (Standard-Examiner)  A personal touch looks to be disappearing from the military health benefits system.

Iowa Senate passes tax exemption for military retirement pay  (The Gazette)  The Iowa Senate voted Monday to exempt military retirement pay from state income taxes – a move that backers hope will encourage more veterans to stay, return or move to Iowa.
Top enlisted retirees push back on COLA cuts  (Military Times)  Chip Hoynes retired from the Coast Guard in 2007, landing a high-paying job with a defense contractor in the same field he worked in on active duty.

Hearings: Senate panel to examine military pension cut  (The Washington Post)  Lawmakers are off to a busy start after returning from a week-long break, with some notable congressional hearings taking place on Tuesday.

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Military/Veteran Transitionnews for 1/27/14

Posted by Mike Grice on

Military transition and veterans affairs news of the day for 1/27/14

Good news story of the day

Veterans five months into trek from Milwaukee to Los Angeles  (Fox6Now.com)  For the past five months, two Milwaukee-area Iraq war veterans have been walking nearly every day.

Military transition

1,700+ Ga Vets Registered on Operation:Workforce  (CoosValleyNews.com)  Operation: Workforce, an online one-stop shop portal for all veteran employment issues in Georgia, is currently serving more than 1,700 veterans and 730 Georgia employers.

SEMO helping develop guide for schools to assist veterans  (The Daily Statesman)  Southeast Missouri State University has joined in a statewide effort that will create a guide to assist Missouri’s colleges and universities in becoming more “military friendly.”

AlliedBarton in Conshohocken helps keep veterans, retirees employed  (The Reporter)  Jerold Ramos chuckled when he recalled his first security job that paid $3.35 an hour back in the ’70s.

Transitioning to Civilian Life Through Higher Education  (The Flathead Beacon)  Barely a few years removed from serving as an officer in the U.S. Coast Guard, Robert Daniels was an alcoholic living in the streets.

Pro athletes share with military veterans how to get back in the game  (The Gazette)  Former NFL wide receiver Chris Sanders has never experienced combat.

100,000 Jobs Mission Reaches Goal Seven Years Early; Companies Hire 117,439 U.S. Military Veterans  (Market Watch) The 100,000 Jobs Mission announced today that its coalition members hired a total of 117,439 U.S. military veterans by the end of 2013 – surpassing the coalition’s original goal seven years early.

Veterans

Veterans Help People Sign Up for Insurance Plans Under ACA  (Philly.com)  U.S. military veterans are serving on a new mission at Cape Regional Medical Center.

Retired colonel homeless after 30 years in military  (Military Times)  Retired Air Force Col. Robert Freniere unintentionally became the public face for homeless veterans after a Philadelphia newspaper wrote about his struggle to find work.

Local nonprofit delivers quilts to wounded veterans  (The Oakland Press)  Miracle Quilts delivers quilts to wounded veterans at the American Legion Wilwin Lodge near Trout Lake and to veterans at the Michigan Veterans Foundation in Detroit.

Helping veterans overcome travails, Town of Lockport woman offers hope through SERV Niagara  (The Buffalo News)  Jennifer O. D’Andrea-Terreri spent most of her childhood on the Marine Corps base at Camp Lejeune, N.C., so she knows all about the military mindset.

Veterans group recognizes those who help the military  (The New Hampshire Union Leader)  For those who served, both at home and abroad, it’s such a relief when someone can help fix a broken car or even a broken spirit through acts of generosity.

Records belie Pike County vet’s claims  (Pocono Record)  Newly obtained records tell a story profoundly different than the one supporters of Pike County Army veteran Timothy Flaherty have told about how he was injured in Afghanistan.

Veterans affairs

Therapy options grow for wounded veterans  (Orange County Register)  Sin’s department commissions a study every other year to identify the needs of female veterans.

Vietnam vet a symbol of overcoming VA delays  (Orlando Sentinel)  A Vietnam War veteran from Fort Lauderdale who suffered severe burns in combat and financial hardship back home will be watching from the House gallery Tuesday night when President Barack Obama delivers his State of the Union address.

Rising demand drives up cost of Scituate veterans programs  (Boston.com)  Scituate officials are grappling with high veterans’ costs for the fourth year in a row, but it’s a trend administrators don’t expect to last into the long-term.

Veterans’ service directors struggle to catch ‘double dippers’  (WCPO.com)  Some Ohio veterans are purposefully double dipping into pools of taxpayer cash set aside to support military families in crisis.

Louisiana’s Sen. Vitter touts work on ‘essential’ needs of veterans  (The Advertiser)  U.S. Sen. David Vitter wants to see local community clinics built, the national Veterans Affairs backlog reduced and retired military personnel protected in the budget.

Clinton County Veterans Affairs Office welcomes public with open house  (The Express)  The new Clinton County Veterans Affairs office is a real hit.

Veterans exposed to cadaver parts from contaminated lab  (The Chicago Tribune)  he Department of Veterans Affairs ordered $241 million of cadaver tissue and other material derived from human and animal bodies in the last three years, some of it from vendors warned by federal regulators about contamination in their supply chain.

House Veterans Committee adds latest VA cyber breach to ongoing investigations  (Federal News Radio)  The House Veterans Affairs Committee continues to press the Veterans Affairs Department over its struggle to secure its systems and the data of tens of millions of veterans.

Benefits

Iowa politicians line up to support veterans  (The Palm Beach Post)  Gov. Terry Branstad and state lawmakers are billing an effort to enhance services for veterans as a way to attract new residents to Iowa, but it’s tough to gauge if this push will really have an impact on the state population.

The last salute: Veterans can expect specific funeral protocol  (PNJ.com)  Retired Army. Col. Allan Ford of Pensacola is planning for his eventual funeral to include horses pulling his remains in a caisson to the grave site.

Vet Groups Vow to Fight Commissary Cuts  (Military.com)  Military family and benefits advocates said they plan to fight a new Pentagon proposal to gut the commissary program by slashing its funding.

Elder Law: Congress likely to change Veterans Affairs benefits this year  (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) While only a small percentage of the millions of veterans and their families use the Aid and Attendance benefit offered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, it is clearly a vital program for those in need of medically related assistance with their daily activities.

In State of the Union, military often takes a back seat  (Stars and Stripes)  Military watchers are hoping the president’s State of the Union speech Tuesday will feature lengthy passages about the war in Afghanistan, the recent reductions in military retirement pay or the veterans claims backlog.

Veterans’ group cautiously optimistic about DOD’s new directive  (One News Now)  Last week the DOD announced changes in its regulations that relax its rules regarding religious items like turbans and beards and religion-based physical attributes for its military personnel.

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Military/Veteran Transitionnews for 1/24/14

Posted by Mike Grice on

Military transition and veterans affairs news of the day for Thursday 1/24/14

Good news story of the day

Verizon to fund hospice care for veterans  (Southern Maryland Newspapers Online)  With U.S. Census Bureau figures showing that 1 in 10 Charles County residents and 1 in 4 terminally ill Americans have served in the armed forces, Hospice of Charles County will expand its hospice services to provide care for veterans.

Military transition

Ready to get out? Army ramps up transition help  (Army Times)  Regulations require that separating soldiers receive transition services no later than one year before departing active duty, but Army is moving toward a strategy that will initiate those services much earlier in a soldier’s career.

Hired! For Veterans   (Fox News)  While unemployment levels are down overall, younger veterans, female veterans and older veterans are still struggling. Here are company’s looking to hire America’s heroes and their spouses.

Exelis, Korn Ferry and Points of Light Train Veterans to Apply Military Experience to Leadership in Civilian Careers  (WSJ Online)  Through its corporate volunteer service program Exelis Action Corps, defense and aerospace company Exelis Inc. has partnered with global talent consultancy Korn Ferry and nonprofit organization Points of Light to launch the Leveraging Military Leadership Program.

Veterans

Bitter cold affects agency that helps veterans, donations needed  (Fox6Now.com)  The frigid temperatures are affecting so many things — utility bills, car batteries and the homeless. One agency has experienced an influx of homeless veterans and their families seeking shelter — and that is causing a problem.

Disabled Veterans National Foundation Reflects on 41st Anniversary of Vietnam War’s Conclusion  (Yahoo.com) The Disabled Veterans National Foundation, a nonprofit veterans service organization that focuses on helping men and women who serve and return home wounded or sick after defending our safety and our freedom, is reflecting upon the importance of the coming anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. January 27th will mark the 41st year since the war came to an official end.

Congressmen join Veterans Lobby Day at statehouse  (WCF Courier)   A pair of Iowa’s U.S. House members were at the State Capitol Wednesday talking about better treatment of military veterans.

Shumlin promotes programs for vets and military  (Bennington Banner)  Gov. Peter Shumlin promoted programs for veterans and military personnel at his weekly news conference Wednesday.

Veterans affairs

Bill would give O.C. a veterans cemetery  (Orange County Register)  Orange County could become home to a veterans cemetery if a bill introduced by Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva passes through the legislature.

Veterans get physical with Saginaw’s Lutz Veterans Affairs Medical Center program  (MLive.com) Military veterans are used to carrying 65 or more pounds in a rucksack, but some could use help to lose weight they put on after leaving active service.

VA Medical Center opening delayed until December  (Orlando Sentinel)  After a long standoff over when the Orlando VA Medical Center would officially open, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the contractor for the new medical center have agreed on a date: December, more than two years later than promised.

Editorial: Too many veterans’ advisers cheat the government  (Tampa Bay Times)  Aging military veterans are being used by a growing coterie of unethical benefits advisers who see an opportunity to rip off a pension program and veterans alike.

Biloxi VA aims to be more patient-oriented  (SunHerald.com)  The times are changing and the Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System aims to change with them.

U.S. Vets Exposed to Contaminated Cadaver Parts From Labs  (Bloomberg.com)  The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs ordered $241 million of cadaver tissue and other material derived from human and animal bodies in the last three years, some of it from vendors warned by federal regulators about contamination in their supply chain.

Benefits

Is COLA cap relief tied now to a rocket or a falling star?  (Stars and Stripes)  Senate Democrats have tied repeal of the COLA cap for working-age military retirees to a mammoth veterans’ health and benefits bill that they aren’t sure yet how to pay for or whether Republicans will support it.

Senate to Vote on Veteran Benefits Reform Bill  (Executive Gov)  The Senate is set to decide on legislation that would extend various veteran privileges and create new benefits for former military service members, Federal News Radio reported Thursday.

Sanders touts bill that will benefit vets  (Berkshire Eagle)   Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., spoke with reporters across the country via teleconference Wednesday, describing and praising his most recently proposed bill.

VA Benefits may help your parents afford assisted living  (Examiner.com)  Assisted living costs can easily creep upwards of $4,000, making it very difficult for some seniors to get the assistance they need.

Veterans fair offers help with housing, jobs, benefits  (Redding.com)  North State veterans struggling to make ends meet may be eligible for a variety of essential services and benefits unknown to them.

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The sound of promises breaking

Posted by Mike Grice on

It’s funny, ironic, disingenuous, and sad that the clamor of support for the men and women who answered the nation’s call to arms has changed to a clamor for the evisceration of the benefits that were promised to them for risking their lives to protect those unwilling to serve.

Even though the bullets are still flying and Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines are still fighting and dying in Afghanistan, the elected and appointed leaders of our nation are shamelessly backing away from the commitments they made to those in uniform.

It started with “pension reform”, which is a blatant and arrogant rewriting of history in order to shave a few billion dollars off of the promised pension benefit that those who devoted twenty or more years of their lives to the nation earned.  When I enlisted I was promised that if I served a career in the military, I would receive a pension that included a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) that was based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), not the CPI minus one percent.

I served a total of 27 years under that assumption.  Unfortunately, Senators Ryan and Murray (neither of whom has served a single day in uniform or watched their friends go home in a body bag) decided that my assumption was incorrect and that the promise my recruiter made in 1984 was a lie.

Awesome.

Then came the retraction in TRICARE Prime service area availability.  It turns out that if you retired from the military and took advantage of TRICARE Prime, you were entitled to utilize the program wherever you decided to plant your flag.  As of last October, however, 171,000 retirees found that the promise was subject to the expedient whims of the people who promised such coverage.  That is in addition to the intractable whining by those who have not earned the benefit of subsidized TRICARE Prime premiums and are eager to make sure that veteran retirees pay “a fair amount” for their health care.

Awesome.

Then came the news that the pentagon is working to eviscerate the commissary system.  Sure, I am now retired and can shop at the local supermarket, but since I live by a military base I don’t.  I shop at the commissary because it is a benefit that I earned through my service in a couple of wars and a few decades of peacetime service. Again, my recruiter is a liar because he promised me something that the DOD has decided I probably don’t need.

Awesome.

I say thank you to everyone who wants to cut the benefits that military men and women have earned in the service of the nation.  You have confirmed that you lack the moral courage to actually pick up a rifle and use it on the enemies of the United States, but you have the shameful mendacity to plunge a knife in the backs of those who have.

Military/Veteran Transitionnews for 1/23/14

Posted by Mike Grice on

Military transition and veterans affairs news of the day for Thursday, January 23 2014

Good news story of the day

Islandia mayor hopes to build more houses for veterans  (Long Island News Day)  Islandia has built several houses for returning members of the armed forces in the village — and the mayor has his eye on building more homes for veterans on county-owned land.

New beach house will help wounded warriors heal invisible wounds  (KFDM.com)  A beach home on the Bolivar Peninsula, could become a place for wounded warriors to heal invisible wounds.

Military transition

Premier transitioning now available to Soldiers, but command support required  (Army News Service)  Soldiers now have the military’s best career transition program, which the Army began re-engineering about three years ago, said the program’s director.

Coastal Flow Fulfills Veterans Training Commitment  (Yahoo Finance)  Coastal Flow Measurement today announced that they’ve successfully reached their initial commitment to fully train 15 returning veterans for careers in hydrocarbon measurement.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation to hold job fair for military veterans, spouses in Montgomery  (AL.com)  A job fair for military veterans and their spouses is slated for Thursday, Jan. 30 at the Crampton Bowl in Montgomery.

Shaheen Promotes Job Creation During Nashua Stop  (Patch.com)  .S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, D-NH, visited Monument Construction, LLC on Jan. 21 in Nashua to tour the company’s building and showcase their efforts to hire New Hampshire veterans.

Veterans

Military veterans: Natural born CEOs?  (Fortune)  For decades, former generals or officers frequently found high-flying new careers in corporate executive suites, and their leadership was almost universally lauded.

ParkeBank Donates a Mobile Home to the South Jersey Vietnam Veterans Association (SJVVA)  (PRNewswire)  ParkeBank, headquartered in Sewell, Gloucester County, New Jersey, has recently donated a Mobile Home to the South Jersey Vietnam Veterans Association (SJVVA) located in Glassboro, New Jersey.

Batavia man named Illinois Veteran of the Month  (The Beacon-News)  John Carr of Batavia didn’t just look out for veterans from a desk tucked away in an office in Geneva.

Veterans affairs

VA’s software bug exposes personal info of more than 5,000 veterans  (Washington Business Journal)  A Jan. 15 software glitch exposed personal data of as many as 5,351 veterans, the Department of Veterans Affairs says, according to FedScoop.

Nine veterans recently received 100 percent rating for disabilities  (The Norman Transcript)  Our volunteer of the week is a lady all of those who visit Veterans Corner will know.

Feds push to enroll underserved Native veterans  (The Taos News)  The Department of Veterans Affairs officials who traveled from Washington, D.C. last week to visit tribes across New Mexico had hoped to reach former service members like Eloisa Apachito.

Benefits

Pentagon Proposes Plan to Gut Commissary’s Budget  (Military.com)  The Defense Department is discussing a $1 billion cut over  the next three years to the commissary’s budget in a move that could lead to a  widespread closure of stores, Pentagon and industry officials said.

Broad VA bill would repeal military pension cut, cost $30 billion  (Washington Post)  Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Wednesday discussed details of the massive Veterans Affairs bill he introduced last week, saying he is open to paying for the measure with savings from overseas contingency operations (OCO), formerly known as the global war on terror.

Sanders: Veterans bill will get bipartisan support, despite few details on how to pay for it  (Stars and Stripes)  Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is confident that lawmakers from both parties will support the initiatives in his wide-ranging legislative package for veterans if it comes up for a chamber vote next week.

Veterans issue on fast legislative track  (Quad-City Times)  State lawmakers are marching at double time to move bills designed to induce returning veterans to live or relocate in Iowa.

Veterans Benefit Seminar  (Tri-State Media)  Boonville American Legion Post 200 will host a Veterans Benefit Seminar Saturday, Feb. 1 at 11 a.m.

Senate bill would restore COLA reduction for military retirees  (Navy Times)  The Senate is poised to consider a massive veterans bill that not only would improve education, health and employment benefits for former troops, it would restore the cost-of-living adjustment reduction for military retirees set by the Bipartisan Budget Act.

CJCS’ top enlisted advisor speaks to DOD initiatives  (Minot Air Force Base Public Affairs)  On the cusp of one of Team Minot’s most demanding inspections this year, Airmen here welcomed the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Bryan Battaglia.

Senate to take up major overhaul of VA benefits  (Federal News Radio)  The chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee said Wednesday he has been assured the full Senate soon will take up a massive omnibus bill that veterans groups say is the most sweeping update to veterans’ benefits in modern memory.

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Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America event in San Diego

Posted by Mike Grice on

I recently had the good fortune to swap emails with a leader in the IAVA: Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.  They are holding a membership event this evening (Wednesday, 22 January 2014) aboard the USS Midway, the aircraft carrier museum that is on the San Diego waterfront.

It looks like a great opportunity to learn more about the organization.  From their website:

Join us for a gathering with IAVA staff and IAVA Leadership Fellows, Veteran Transition Managers and local IAVA members. Learn more about what IAVA has accomplished over the last year, the benefits of membership (it’s free!), and the exciting programs and events we have coming up in 2014. 

Member Veterans, supporters and anyone interested in learning more are welcomed!

If you are interested in attending, follow this link to register.  It seems like a pretty interesting event and an even more interesting organization.  I will certainly be engaging to learn more about what they do and how they help veterans.  Check out the event if you are in the area!

 

Military/Veteran Transitionnews for 1/22/14

Posted by Mike Grice on

Transitionnews for Wednesday, January 22 2014:

Good news story of the day

Garden will help veterans in need  (NewBernSJ.com)  A program being launched this spring in the Duffyfield area intends to help veterans find employment and provide the community with fresh vegetables.

Transition

Enlisting Companies To Invest In Veterans  (The Wall Street Journal)  With the drawdown of America’s major post-9/11 overseas engagements, nearly a million of the country’s finest men and women will be leaving the armed forces and joining the economy. With that in mind, we want to focus on the long-term futures of our veterans.

Job drive created for soon-to-be veterans  (The Tennessean)  The Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce has launched a new program to connect job seekers exiting the military and employers trying to fill many of the high-skilled jobs available across the county.

Vice chief discusses 3,000-man brigades, HQ cuts  (Army Times)  Soldiers could be in store for significantly smaller, more technically advanced brigade combat teams, according to Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. John Campbell, who discussed the service’s future in an interview with Army Times this month from Fort Hood, Texas.

Veterans unemployment may be OK’d  (GuamPDN.com)  Calvin Coolidge once said, “Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence.

Sears Holdings To Hire 6,500 Veterans And Military Spouses In 2014  (Yahoo Finance)  Sears Holdings Corporation announced today that it anticipates hiring 6,500 veterans and military spouses in 2014.

Veterans

World War II Marine gets overdue funeral in Chowchilla  (Fresno Bee)  Seventy-five-year-old military veteran Kevin Johnson fought back tears Monday standing over his father’s grave as his colleagues handed him a folded flag.

Veteran puts Army skills to work in new career as a fitness trainer  (The Washington Post)  After a 23-year career in the U.S. Army, Valetta SuRae Stewart was concerned that the primary skills she could bring to the private sector were “breaking things and killing people.”

Veterans Left Behind on the Battlefield: A New Form of Veteran Discrimination Emerging  (The Huffington Post) U.S. Navy Adm. (ret.) Mike Mullen coined the term “sea of goodwill” to describe the positive attitudes in the United States toward veterans and the military in general.

Programs help war veterans transition to civilian life  (MassLive.com)  The wounds of war are not always visible.

Homeless Veterans Laid To Rest At Cemetery Of The Alleghenies  (CBS Pittsburgh)  A pair of veterans were laid to rest Tuesday at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies.

Veterans Affairs

VA Medical Center Seeks Help to Shelter Veterans from the Cold  (Your4State.com)  The Martinsburg Veterans Affairs Medical Center is asking for the public’s help in getting veterans off of the street during this latest snow storm.

Dept. of Veterans Affairs: Online application for duplicate driver license, ID card with veterans identifier now available for eligible veterans  (WisPolitics.com)   The Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) and the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) announced today that a new online application system is in place for veterans who are requesting a duplicate driver license or identification card with a “VETERAN” identifier.

‘Defect’ on VA benefits site shares vets’ personal details online  (Fox News)  Thousands of veterans may have had their personal information broadcast online following a major “defect” on a popular benefits website run by the Defense and Veterans Affairs departments.

Benefits

Senate could vote to restore $6B military pension cut next week   (The Hill)  Senators may consider a new proposal to restore cuts to military veteran pensions as early as next week, according to a Senate aide.

Lawmaker: Congress crying ‘crocodile tears’ over military pension cuts  (The Hill)  Rep. Richard Nugent (R-Fla.) criticized Congress over the weekend by saying members are talking about restoring a $6 billion cut to military pensions, but aren’t doing anything to actually restore those benefits.

Former top military officer sees national debt as biggest threat to country  (The Washington Examiner)  Retired Adm. Mike Mullen on Tuesday went well beyond his traditional area of expertise, military affairs, and held forth on issues ranging from the national debt to K-12 education.

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Military/Veteran Transitionnews for 1/21/14

Posted by Mike Grice on

Transitionnews for Tuesday, January 21st 2014:

Good news story of the day

Fort Bragg projects set to break ground  (FayObserver.com)  Two national nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping troops and their families will break ground on Fort Bragg projects this week.

Transition

Study: Marine vets from non-combat jobs more likely to draw unemployment  (Marine Corps Times)  A new study offers surprising insights about Marines’ use of unemployment compensation and education benefits once they leave the Corps, and has inspired creation of a calculator that can help determine who may need greater assistance transitioning to civilian life.

Michigan Values Veterans Conference  (Crain’s Detroit Business)  The conference is for employers who would like to learn more about hiring veterans can help build a strong workforce.

No end in sight for Marines’ Wounded Warrior Regiment as war winds down  (Marine Corps Times)  The war in Afghanistan may be ending, but the Marine Corps’ Wounded Warrior Regiment isn’t going anywhere.

AlliedBarton Security Services Hires 5,000 Veterans in 2013  (Market Watch)  AlliedBarton Security Services, the industry’s premier provider of highly trained security personnel, hired more than 5,000 military veterans and reservists in 2013, fully supporting their Hire Our Heroes(SM) initiatives.

Student veterans one step closer to in-state tuition  (Tallahassee.com)  The transition to college could get a little bit easier for student veterans in Florida.

Aegis hires over 600 Military Veterans and their spouses in USA  (IIFL)  Aegis Limited, a global outsourcing and technology services company, announced today that it has hired more than 600 US military veterans and spouses during 2013.

US Army Studying Replacing Thousands of Grunts with Robots   (DefenseNews.com)   The postwar, sequestration-era US Army is working on becoming “a smaller, more lethal, deployable and agile force,” according to Gen. Robert Cone, head of the service’s Training and Doctrine Command.

Defense Industry Ponders Where It Goes From Here  (National Defense)  The Pentagon was declared the big winner of the massive federal budget bill that Congress passed for fiscal year 2014.

Veterans

Disabled veterans would be given preference for state contracts under bill proposed by Sen. Ritchie of Heuvelton  (North Country Now)  Disabled veterans would be given preference for state contracts under a measure supported by Sen. Patricia Ritchie of Heuvelton, who represents western St. Lawrence County.

New York law gives preference to vets for state temp jobs  (StaffingIndustry.com)   A new New York State law gives military veterans preference for state temporary jobs normally filled by employees from for-profit temporary staffing firms, New York State Sen. Greg Ball’s office announced.

Veterans can earn a reduction in their property tax through new new Veteran’s Work-off Program  (WickedLocal.com)  Veterans who have served their country honorably can apply for a reduction in taxes if they are willing to work for it.

Foreclosed-on Veteran Sues Bank Over ‘Dual Tracking’  (SCVNews.com)  Sixteen months after Habitat for Humanity volunteers rehabbed his Stevenson Ranch home, a military veteran is suing JP Morgan Chase over what he claims was an illegal foreclosure.

Veterans cemetery nears completion  (SFGate.com)  Muddy roads will soon give way to asphalt and bare ground transformed with sod and landscaping as construction of the Southeast Louisiana Veterans Cemetery near Slidell enters its final stages.

Fighting for each other; veterans band together  (The Chippewa Herald)  Garth Johnson of Stanley has lots of experience fighting with the Veterans Administration to get medical benefits.

Veterans Affairs

Kognitio CEO Steve Millard Named to Executive Board of Xavier University’s Center for Veterans Affairs  (Financial Content)  Steve Millard, president and chief executive officer of Kognitio, has been named to the board of the Center for Veterans Affairs at Cincinnati’s Xavier University.

Next Leader of Pittsburgh VA Must Implement Significant Reforms Following Deadly Legionnaires’  (Politicalnews.me)  U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) announced that he has sent a letter to Robert A. Petzel, M.D. Under Secretary for Health at the Department of Veterans Affairs, calling for a fresh vision as the VA seeks a new director of the VA Health Care VISN4, which includes the VA Pittsburgh Health System.

SD kicks off Reaching All Veterans, aims to locate 75,000 vets in state  (The Daily Republic)  The South Dakota Department of Veterans Affairs has kicked off one of the most aggressive outreach campaigns in the history of the department: Operation RAV (Reaching All Veterans).

Benefits

What Will Congress Cut to ‘Support Our Troops’?  (National Journal)  Congress undid some of its planned cuts to veterans’ benefits in the latest spending bill, but it also left the vast majority of the reductions in place.

Senate to hold hearing on pending COLA cuts  (Military Times)  Senate Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., has scheduled a hearing to examine the impact of the pending cost-of-living adjustment cuts for military retirees.

N.D. vets eye Pentagon’s pension cuts; Congress trying to undo change  (Grand Forks Herald)  North Dakota veterans are watching, but not yet pounding on doors, over recent cuts to military pensions for some veterans.

Lawmaker’s plan would offer tax credits for hiring vets  (AZDailySun.com)  A Lake Havasu City lawmaker wants to add some teeth to the concept that it pays to hire a vet.

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Military/Veteran Transitionnews for 1/20/14

Posted by Mike Grice on

Military/Veteran Transitionnews for Monday, January 20th 2014:

**Update:  The title of Transitionnews has changed to Military/Veteran Transitionnews at the request of readers who share the daily posts via their tablets because the subtitle is not depicted, and as a result those who receive the shared link may be unsure of its content.  It will be the same daily update, though, so don’t despair!**

Good news story of the day

Wrestlers support wounded veterans  (Amarillo Globe News)  Local athletes have raised $3,050 for wounded veterans, to be distributed by Jack Barnes of the American Fallen Warrior Memorial Foundation to various organizations in the area.

Transition

Veterans’ employment act signed into law  (MidHudson News)  A bill that will give veterans preference for temporary state jobs that the state normally fills with employees from for-profit temporary services company has been signed into law by the governor.

Job fair for military veterans planned in Omaha  (Associated Press)  Another job fair for veterans and their spouses will be held in Omaha.

After Army And Creative Careers: MBAs Talk Business Jobs  (Business Because)  Non-traditional career paths are increasingly common on MBA programs across the globe.

Convergys to Participate in Veteran Recruiting Virtual Career Fair  (Market Watch)  Convergys Corporation, a global leader in customer management, is proud to partner with Veteran Recruiting, the recognized leader of virtual career fairs for the military community, to help veterans find meaningful employment.

Force reductions: Your questions answered  (Army Times)  With the Air Force preparing for the deepest force cuts since the end of the Cold War, airmen across the service are asking how the various force management programs might apply to them.

Military cuts force wounded O’Fallon soldier to end his career  (BND.com)  Wounded Iraq veteran Sgt. Charles “Chas” Shaffer went through a lot to keep his Army career alive.

Veterans

Veterans commission meets Tuesday  (Boston.com)  The Veterans Services Advisory Committee on Tuesday will meet to discuss a range of issues, including planting memorial trees for women veterans and an update on the city’s work-off tax program for veterans launched last year. The commission will meet at 6:30 p.m., in the downstairs conference room at City Hall.

Number of young homeless vets triples in past 2 years  (Q13Fox.com)  Between 2007 and 2010, Nick McCallon served two tours in Iraq. Transitioning back into civilian life was one of the most difficult things he’s had to do.

Court seeks volunteers to mentor fellow veterans  (The Journal Times)  The Veterans Treatment Court of the 2nd Judicial District is looking for volunteers to become veteran mentors.

Veterans deported for crimes banished for life  (KHOU.com)  About 35,000 non-citizens are in the U.S. military, but some of those who served proudly have been deported to Mexico and other countries because they broke the law.

Sen. Young joins colleagues in urging passage of ‘Jobs for Heroes’  (The Observer)  Businesses owned by disabled veterans would achieve preference for procuring state contracts in a bill cosponsored by Senator Catharine Young (R, C, I-Olean).

Congressman Bishop Statement on Supporting Military/Veterans Through the Federal Budget  (WebRTCworld.com)  Rep. Sandford D. Bishop Jr., D-Ga. (2nd CD), issued the following news release:

Edmonds Military Wire: Veterans face uncertainty in 2014  (Edmonds News)  The New Year is proving to be interesting for veterans and their families.

State Veterans’ ID Makes Accessing Benefits and Services More Convenient  (Hamlet Hub)  overnor Dannel P. Malloy today joined military veterans, local business leaders and state officials to promote the Connecticut Veterans’ ID program, a joint initiative between the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) that gives veterans an option to place an American flag symbol on a state-issued license or identity card to designate his or her veteran’s status.

Veterans’ entries sought for creative arts festival  (Chillicothe Gazette)  Veterans who want to show off their artistic side can do so by submitting entries for a local festival at the Chillicothe Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Veterans Affairs

Pataskala man pleads to federal charges in 2011 VA theft  (Mansfield News Journal)  A Pataskala man pleaded guilty in federal court Friday to charges connected with the 2011 theft of nearly $90,000 worth of equipment from the Chillicothe Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

VA will begin publicly announcing available Punchbowl gravesites  (Star Advertiser)  The Department of Veterans Affairs said it plans “to further notify the public” of available in-ground gravesites at Punchbowl cemetery after veterans groups said they were never told about an unprecedented number of open burial spots.

VA Says Facility Falls Short  (Valley News)  Six disabled veterans living at Hanover Terrace have a little more than a month to find someplace else to live after the Department of Veterans Affairs decided to void its contract with the nursing home, saying that it had fallen below the VA’s standards of care.

Veterans’ website privacy breach under investigation  (WEARTV.com)  A breach that may have exposed the private information of thousands of veterans is under investigation.

Veterans affairs officer donates flags to Ansonia to dot downtown landscape  (New Haven Register)  Old Glory will proudly wave throughout downtown, thanks to a donation from a resident and state veterans affairs officer.

Benefits

Tricare centers closing soon  (Army Times)  The hospital- and clinic-based offices that handle Tricare patients’ claims and billing questions in the U.S. are closing April 1.

Military Update: Lightning-quick fix stilll leaves military retirees with trimmed COLAs, officials say  (NJ.com)  Congress has rushed to protect the medically retired and survivor benefit recipients from the cap on annual cost-of-living adjustments it approved only a few weeks ago for all “working age” military retirees.

DOJ faces renewed call to provide benefits to gay veterans  (Washington Blade)  Pressure is increasing on the Obama administration to ensure gay veterans have access to spousal benefits everywhere they go in the country as additional U.S. senators are joining others in a call for action.

Veterans’ groups press Congress to undo cuts to benefits  (Washington Times)  Lawmakers say they have plenty of time to repeal a cut to military retiree pay that takes effect in 2015, but veterans’ groups are warning Congress it must get it done soon before members get distracted by their own re-election campaigns later this year.

Veterans Group Backs Bill to Restore COLA Cuts  (National Journal)  Sen. Bernie Sanders introduced legislation Thursday that would roll back the pension cuts included in the budget agreement, and he’s already getting some key support.

Don’t turn away from reforming military retirement benefits  (The Hill)  The U.S. military is at a crossroads.

CBO: Bar younger retirees from Tricare Prime, save $90 billion  (Military Times)  Pushing working-age military retirees out of Tricare Prime could save the Pentagon nearly $90 billion over the next 10 years, a measure that would generate the most savings of the various options recently considered by the Congressional Budget Office to trim the defense health budget.

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Transitionnews for 1/17/14

Posted by Mike Grice on

Transitionnews for Friday, January 17th 2014:

Good news story of the day

Gary Allen’s Maine to Super Bowl Run Begins January 24  (The Free Press)  Gary Allen, founder and race director of the Mount Desert Island Marathon, has run over 100,000 lifetime miles

Transition

U.S. Chamber Foundation and Goodwill Industries® Partner to Provide Career Services to Veterans and Military Spouses  (Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel)  The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes program and Goodwill Industries announced today a collaborative effort to offer comprehensive vocational services to veterans and military spouses who participate in Hiring Our Heroes job fairs and programs.

ACAP sponsors workshop highlighting higher education  (Belvoir Eagle)  Servicemembers learned about different methods for researching colleges during a two-day Army Career and Alumni Program workshop at Barden Education Center, Jan. 7 and 8.

Young veterans transition to civilian life  (KVIA.com)  The 1st Armored Division Army Band rocked the UTEP Union Plaza Monday afternoon in honor of Veterans Day.

ACAP: Think outside the box  (Army.mil)  Do you have tunnel vision when it comes to thinking about what jobs you could do when you transition out of the military?

Fort Bliss a winner in warrior transition program restructuring  (El Paso Times)  With the war in Afghanistan drawing down, the Army is restructuring its warrior transition units which care for wounded, injured and ill soldiers.

Free career counseling for vets  (News4Jax.com)  If you or someone you know is a veteran looking for that next career move, there’s an event Thursday that can help.

Job fair for veterans hosted in City of Milwaukee  (Fox6News.com)  There are nearly a half million veterans living in our state and many of them are unemployed. To change that, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and Goodwill hosted a job fair for vets and their spouses on Thursday, January 16th.

Job Expo for Veterans in Bay Minette  (Local15TV.com)  Dozens of local veterans came out Thursday looking for work. The city of Bay Minette, the Alabama Career Center System and the North Baldwin Chamber of Commerce put together a job fair Thursday at the John F. Rhodes Civic Center.

Veterans

Up to 48,000 Afghan, Iraq vets homeless  (USA Today) Nearly 50,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans were either homeless or in a federal program aimed at keeping them off the streets during 2013, almost triple the number in 2011, according to numbers released Thursday by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Help for homeless Alabama veterans: Nonprofit Family Endeavors working to get soldiers off the street   (AL.com) For the past three months, the staff members of the San Antonio-based nonprofit Family Endeavors have been conducting what they call a “recon mission,” searching for homeless veterans under Birmingham bridges, trying to connect them with government services that could get them off the streets.

Veterans, dog trainers in Hampton Roads are pushing to recognize service dogs for PTSD  (The Los Angeles Times) Marine Sgt. Matthew Miller paid a high price for three combat tours in Afghanistan.

Korean War veterans joining World War II veterans in Senior Bowl program  (AL.com)  Veterans of World War II and the Korean War will be honored on the field before the Reese’s Senior Bowl on Jan. 25 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.

Program teaches veterans how to maximize remaining sight, maintain independence  (The News Tribune)  At 101, Carl Paul still likes to do things for himself.

Slidell veterans cemetery slated to open in April  (The Times Picayune)  Muddy roads will soon give way to asphalt and bare ground transformed with sod and landscaping as construction of the Southeast Louisiana Veterans Cemetery near Slidell enters the final stages.

Auto auction drives to benefit veterans  (Cinicinnati.com)  The 43rd Barrett-Jackson auto auction in Scottsdale, Ariz., will feature film and television stars, famous singers, celebrities, race car drivers and retired Marine Gunnery Sgt. Sam Deeds.

Veterans Affairs

5 More Ways VA Is Helping Out Vets   (The Huffington Post)  The Department of Veteran Affairs doesn’t get the recognition it deserves.

Vets get look at new VA clinic  (Mansfield News Journal)  Veterans who toured the new $14 million Veterans Affairs clinic Thursday night during a private reception marveled at the building’s design and, in particular, the massive skylight above the spacious central waiting area.

VA benefits briefings part of revamped transition program  (MyGuidon.com)  The Department of Veterans Affairs  new VA Benefits I and II briefings are  now available at Fort Leonard Wood as part of the revamped Transition Assistance  Program.

Keeping veterans healthy  (Mining Gazette)  Local and regional Veterans Affairs officials and about two dozen of the veterans they serve gathered for a town hall meeting at the National Guard Readiness Center in Calumet Township Wednesday for a town hall meeting aimed at helping veterans understand the services available to them.

Golden Hammer: VA hit for waste, lack of oversight on medical implants  (The Washington Times)  The Veterans Affairs Department wasted more than $3 billion over 10 years on medical implant purchases — and is now losing track of those implants once they’ve been put into patients, potentially putting veterans’ health at risk, according to a new watchdog report that’s drawing attention from members of Congress.

Gates skewers Congress, VA backlog on ‘The Daily Show’  (Military Times)  Congress has made it virtually impossible to cut the time it takes for veterans to get the services they need from the Veterans Affairs Department, said former Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Benefits

Veterans Advocate: Budget Bill a ‘Total Betrayal’  (NewsMax.com)  The House’s $1.1 trillion spending bill, passed Wednesday, cuts most veterans’ retirement benefits and is a “total betrayal” of those who served in the military, says the founder of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

Senate Sends Omnibus, Pentagon-Funding Measure to Obama’s Desk  (Defense News)  The US Senate on Thursday evening passed a government-wide spending measure that would give the Pentagon nearly $600 billion to buy new weapons, address readiness problems and fight America’s wars. The final vote tally was 72-26.

VA bill offers chance to repeal military pension cut after passage of spending bill  (The Washington Post)  Congress on Thursday gave final approval to a massive spending bill that will trim pensions for younger military retirees, but lawmakers still have a chance to end the controversial provision before it takes full effect in 2015.

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