Transitionnews for Tuesday, January 7th 2014:

Good news story of the day

Wyoming’s homeless veterans have an ally in local nonprofit  (Wyoming Tribune Eagle)  A new initiative that seeks to reduce homelessness among veterans in Wyoming is already producing results – while showing that more work needs to be done.

Transition

Enlisted quality force review board to be held in May  (Air Force Personnel Center Public Affairs)  A quality force review board will convene here May 5-16 to consider eligible Airmen for retention, Air Force Personnel Center officials announced recently.

Military-friendly businesses and more resources make dent in Rock Hill vet unemployment  (The State)  Don Lowman described his first transition from military to civilian life as a tough one, filled with “reckless behavior” where he estranged himself from family and friends and could barely find or hold down a job.

AF to convene enhanced selective early retirement board in June (Air Force Personnel Center Public Affairs)  The Air Force will convene an enhanced selective early retirement board here June 16 to consider eligible officers for early retirement, Air Force Personnel Center officials said today.

Tactical Veteran: Vet entrepreneurs give advice to startup hopefuls  (Military Times)  Separating from the military is like beginning a new life, with seemingly infinite new choices.

Veterans

Veterans feel sting of Ramadi and Fallujah losses  (USA Today)  For David Bellavia, seeing the images of al-Qaeda flags flying over buildings in Fallujah and Ramadi in recent days has been devastating.

Jerry Coleman, legendary broadcaster, Marine pilot, dies at 89  (Fox News)  Jerry Coleman, a former second baseman for the New York Yankees and Hall of Fame broadcaster who interrupted his pro career to fly as a Marine Corps pilot in World War II and Korea, died Sunday after a brief illness, the San Diego Padres said.

Former Marine who died protecting students earns honor  (Marine Corps Times)  There is an old saying in the military that Marines run to the sound of the guns.

Veterans dismayed that gravesites kept under wraps  (Dayton Daily News) The National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl has burial sites available, information dismayed veterans organizations say was never shared with them.

Former Marine Gets Dying Wish of Honorable Discharge  (NewsMax.com)  A former Marine who received an “undesirable discharge” in  1956 for being gay has had his dying wish come true — he now holds an honorable  discharge.

Veterans Affairs

Care and Benefits for Veterans Strengthened by $153 Billion VA Budget  (MilitarySpot.com)  Continuing the transformation of the Department of Veterans Affairs into a 21st century organization, the President has proposed a $152.7 billion budget, a 10.2 percent increase over Fiscal Year 2013, that will support VA’s goals to expand access to health care and other benefits, eliminate the disability claims backlog, and end homelessness among Veterans.

Southern California University of Health Sciences Selected for the Department of Veterans Affairs’ First-Ever Chiropractic Residency Program  (PR Newswire)  Southern California University of Health Sciences (SCUHS) is proud to announce its participation in the first ever VA chiropractic residency training program. On December 6, 2013, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) unveiled its plan to initiate a pioneering chiropractic residency program beginning in July, 2014.

Lawmakers accuse VA of disrespecting Christians  (Fox News)  Why did VA hospitals restrict and in some cases ban volunteers from bringing holiday cheer to patients?

MRSA infection rates drop in Veterans Affairs long-term care facilities  (MedicalXpress)  Four years after implementing a national initiative to reduce methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) rates in Veterans Affairs (VA) long-term care facilities, MRSA infections have declined significantly, according to a study in the January issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).

VA hospital’s release of delirious veteran latest in string of failures  (The Washington Times)  Doctors at a Veterans Affairs  hospital in Puerto Rico released a patient who was suffering from delirium  and barely able to function, ignoring evaluations by staff nurses, an  investigation found — the latest in a string of high-profile incidents at the  department’s medical facilities.

Agency works to draw down costs, maintain top medical care  (Armed Forces Press Service)  The Defense Department’s goal to save medical dollars and deliver the best health care possible has made strides in its first 100 days, the director of the new Defense Health Agency said.

Benefits

Measure Extends Telehealth Coverage for Military Service Members  (iHealthBeat.org)  Last week, President Obama signed into law a measure that expands telemedicine coverage for military service members as part of the 2014 National Defense Authorization Act (S 1197), FierceHealthIT reports.

Tricare launches pharmacy cost calculator  (Military Times)  As the deadline nears for Tricare for Life beneficiaries to begin filling routine prescriptions at military pharmacies or by mail, Tricare has introduced a calculator to show just how much money they’ll save by making the switch.

Bill Would Stop Veterans Benefit Cuts and Saturday Mail  (U.S. Government Info)  Hoping to kill two birds with one stone, an influential House Republican has introduced a bill that would prevent a controversial cut in veterans’ retirement benefits by ending Saturday mail delivery.

White House Silence On Benefits Cuts Irks Veterans Groups  (Buzzfeed.com)  Cuts to military veterans benefits in December’s budget deal have outraged veterans groups, but as Congress and President Obama return to Washington this week, the cuts don’t appear to be going anywhere soon.

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Transitionnews for Monday, January 6th 2014:

Good news story of the day

Hundreds gather wreaths at veterans’ cemetery  (Killeen Daily Herald)  Amidst a sea of white headstones, more than 400 people collected Christmas wreaths Sunday afternoon during the culminating event of the eighth annual Friends of the Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery’s Wreaths for Veterans project at the cemetery.

Transition

San Jacinto College program helps military veteran students with transition back to civilian life  (ABC Local)  San Jacinto College has a new program that is proving to be a significant aid to military veterans trying to transition back to civilian life.

Military job fair set for Jan. 16 at Fort Benning  (AJC.com)  The Georgia Department of Corrections and the Georgia Department of Defense will be hosting a job fair for military personnel later this month at Fort Benning.

New Warrior Transition Battalion commander has combat experience  (El Paso Times)  The new commander for the Fort Bliss Warrior Transition Battalion has seen combat duty in both Iraq and Afghanistan, but now is getting to see a completely different side of the Army.

Thank You For Your Military Service — Now Here Are 9 Reasons Why I Won’t Hire You  (Business Insider)  So, you’ve decided to hang up the uniform after years of distinguished service to our great nation. You’ve attended a few transition classes and have your interview suit and shiny new resume as you make the leap into the civilian world.

Military “Transition” Center Coming to Warner Robins  (Georgia Works)  The State of Georgia and AT&T have announced they will join to build a center for higher education programming dedicated to military veterans and their families in the transition to civilian careers.

S.C. Guard’s final Vietnam War veteran retires  (Military Times)  The South Carolina National Guard is saying goodbye to its final Vietnam Veteran.

Forced out of the Army, soldiers find careers in the Reserve  (Army Times)  Frustrated by his inability to get promoted and the looming Army drawdown, then-Sgt. James Davis left active duty in 1995.

Veterans

Wounded warrior to lead pirate parade  (TBO.com)  An Air Force master sergeant who lost an eye when his helicopter was hit with a rocket-propelled grenade in Iraq will represent the U.S. Special Operations Command’s Care Coalition as grand marshal at the Seminole Hard Rock Gasparilla Pirate Fest Parade of Pirates on Jan. 25.

Wounded Soldier Guides Other Wounded As He Continues To Serve  (The Oconee Enterprise)  Staff Sgt. Giovanni Pascascio will always remember July 8, 2007. “You kinda remember the day you got blown up.”

Wounded veterans work to put away child predators  (Fox News)  Oskar Zepeda has had pretty much one mission in his life: kill or capture.

Sources: Cuomo To Unveil Plan To Help Businesses Owned By Disabled Veterans  (CBS New York)  Gov. Andrew Cuomo is set to announce a plan to help give businesses owned by disabled military veterans a boost.

Dem senator to Obama: End discrimination against gay veterans  (The Hill)  Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) asked the Obama administration to move more quickly to eliminate discrimination against same-sex couples seeking veterans’ home loans.

Veterans Affairs

Maine veterans’ true advocate ends service Veterans Affairs  (Portland Press Herald)  When Scott Karczewski of Augusta started at the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Togus Regional Office in 1977 as a temporary warehouse worker, World War I veterans were being cared for and World War II veterans were largely in charge.

Blumenthal Statement On CT Veteran Job Training Report  (Politicalnews.me)  U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) issued a statement following the release of a Connecticut Veterans Legal Center report calling for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to share military job training data with state and local occupational licensing boards in an effort to expedite the credentialing process for recent veterans seeking employment.

Caregiver Burnout affects families of veterans with PTSD  (Examiner.com)  PTSD causes a role-reversal effect on family caregivers, which can strain family relationships to the breaking point.

Christmas controversy at VA hospitals  (Army Times)  Several incidents at Veterans Affairs medical centers over the holidays have prompted the House Veterans Affairs Committee chairman to question whether VA has violated the civil rights of veterans in its care.

Jeff Miller calls for cooperation as Augusta VA congressional visit looms  (The Augusta Chronicle)  The chairman of the House Committee on Vete­rans Affairs said Friday that the success of his congressional oversight visits to VA medical centers in Augusta and Columbia next week will hinge on one element: cooperation.

Veterans Affairs cuts Honolulu VA mortgage guaranty for 2014 by 17%  (Pacific Business News)  The Department of Veterans Affairs has reduced its mortgage loan guaranty limit to $625,500 from $750,000 for veterans who want to buy a home in Honolulu in 2014, officials say.

Augusta family blames Vietnam vet’s death on Charlie Norwood Veterans Affairs Medical Center  (Augusta Chronicle)  Karen Burough said her husband’s body finally gave out after eight years of postponed appointments, delayed treatment plans and misdiagnoses at the Charlie Norwood Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Benefits

Was 2013 the height of military benefits?  (The News Tribune)  As it came to a close, 2013 seemed to leave a kind of high-water mark on the wall of more than a decade of steady, impressive gains to military and veterans’ pays and benefits. Will those gains now begin to recede?

Veterans health care panel scheduled for Jan. 10  (Tallahassee.com)  Pensacola Naval Hospital’s commanding officer, Capt. Maureen O’Hara Padden, is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at a symposium on military-related health care benefits scheduled on Jan. 10 at the Angus Inn Seafood and Steaks restaurant.

Compensation commission gets lengthy extension  (Military Times)  The commission that could trigger historic changes to military pay and benefits system was granted an extension and will not conclude its work until February 2015, many months after its original deadline.

One in three lawmakers wants to repeal cuts to military pensions   (The Hill)  More than 150 House members and 35 senators have signed onto efforts to repeal the cuts to military pensions included in the budget deal signed last month.

Defense Spending Bill Will Be Accepted Amid Grousing, Moran Says  (Business Week)  The military spending bill Congress passes for the current fiscal year will be legislation “people can live with,” according to a senior minority member of the House defense appropriations subcommittee.

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Transitionnews for Friday, January 3 2014:

Good news story of the day

Civilian, veterans group aids local family  (The Ada News)  This is a story about a soldier, his wife and their 9-year-old son. It is also about a soldier who returned from Iraq, was thanked for his service and badly needed a job and a place to stay.

Transition

CES 2014 announces the first tech program for Vets to connect with employers  (Examiner.com)  The CES 2014 convention to be held Jan.7-10 in Las Vegas at the Convention Center will launch the first ever online community to facilitate the hiring and career development of military veterans throughout the technology community.

Veterans Welcome Home and Resource Center to open new reintegration home  (CarolinaLive.com)  Veterans gave up their freedom to protect ours and now the ‘Veterans Welcome Home and Resource Center’ in Little River is in the process of creating a reintegration home to help homeless veterans get back on their feet.

Future veterans training center lands AT&T partnership  (The Telegraph)  A future Warner Robins institution, which will provide training and job assistance for veterans and active military members, will partner with AT&T, officials recently announced.

Employment Help for Military Veterans  (Buckeye Country)  Help is available for military veterans seeking employment through your local Ohio Job One-Stop Office.

Young veterans are fighting for work  (Orange County Register)  Jeffrey Wortham’s intent is clear: You’d better do as you’re told.

Enlisted retention board to convene in June  (Air Force Personnel Center Public Affairs)  An enlisted retention board will convene here in June to consider eligible senior airmen through senior master sergeants for retention, Air Force Personnel Center officials said.

Veterans

Hawaii hosting wounded warrior athletic competition  (Stars and Stripes)  More than 150 people will participate in a series of athletic events at the inaugural Wounded Warrior Pacific Invitational, Jan. 8-10 in Hawaii, according to event sponsors.

Fayette court program allows veterans to get physical, psychological help instead of jail time  (Kentucky.com)  Lexington veterans who run afoul of the law as a result of post-traumatic stress disorder, drug abuse or other issues stemming from their military service are getting a new chance under a recently launched court program.

Resource center in Wayne to offer aid to female veterans  (Philly.com)  A regional women’s resource center is launching an outreach program in Chester County that will provide educational, housing, and emotional support to female veterans and military members.

Veterans honored with a day of ceremonies  (Louisburg Herald)  A simple gesture brought a smile to dozens of faces at the Louisburg Veterans Memorial on Monday morning — a tiny child sheepishly placing an American flag into the hand of one of the thousands of men and women who defended it honorably.

WWII ace who flew through Eiffel Tower dies in Va.  (USA Today)  World War II fighter pilot William Overstreet Jr., who gained fame for flying beneath the Eiffel Tower’s arches in pursuit of a German aircraft, has died.

Riders salute the fallen on two wheels  (Air Force Times)  On a chilly, clear November morning, retired Air Force Maj. Robbie Smart and 14 other veterans gathered outside the gates of Quantico National Cemetery

Veterans Affairs

Dedicated driver puts veterans first  (SFGate.com)  When a veteran speaks, Duffy Jenniges listens.

VA Hit on Planned Disability Rules Changes  (Military.com)  Some of the country’s leading veterans service organizations have rejected changes proposed by the Department of Veterans Affairs that might create disparities between veterans filing for a disability on paper and those filing electronically.

Central Nebraska Veterans Home Included in National Priority List  (KHASTV.com)  Today, Nebraska’s Department of Health of Human Services’ Director of Veterans Homes John Hilgert received notification from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs of the 2014 priority list providing a ranking and funding process for awarding state veteran home construction grants.

VA Ignores Congress’ Questions on Eye Center  (Military.com)  Six months after his office asked a senior Department of Veterans Affairs official why the agency had not, after four years, provided staff for the congressionally established Vision Center of Excellence, Rep. Dan Banishek, R-Mich., is still waiting for an answer.

Benefits

Compensation commission in San Antonio next week  (Military Times)   Military troops, families and retirees in the San Antonio area will have an opportunity to offer feedback next week about potential changes to the military pay and benefits system.

It’s Time to Cut Military Health and Pension Benefits  (DefenseOne.com)  The time has come: Military health and pension benefits, which have more than doubled in the past decade, should be reduced as the defense budget comes down, said a whopping 90 percent majority of National Journal’s National Security Insiders.

Lawmakers Scramble to Undo Military Pension Cuts  (USGovInfo.about.com)  A bipartisan herd of lawmakers are now hurrying to repeal the cuts to military retirement benefits that were so clearly included in the compromise budget bill Congress just uncharacteristically hurried to pass.

Gains in Military Pay and Benefits Stalled in 2013  (Military.com)  As it came to a close, 2013 seemed to leave a kind of high water mark on the wall of more than a decade of steady, impressive gains to military and veterans’ pay and benefits.

Congress Throws Veterans Under the Bus for Illegal Immigrants  (Breitbart.com)  The bill was ferociously opposed by conservative groups in the House because it raises taxes, increases spending, and guts the sequestration cuts that have helped keep spending in check over the last couple of years.

Issa backs repeal of military pension cuts  (The Hill)  House Oversight Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) is the latest lawmaker to introduce legislation that would repeal cuts to military pensions.

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Transitionnews for Thursday, January 2d 2014:

Good news story of the day

Convoy completes cross-country ‘Drive for Veterans’ in low-speed vehicles to help wounded veterans (Orlando Sentinel)  Participants in the “Drive for Veterans” were honored recently after completing a cross-country trip via low-speed electric vehicles at the huge retirement community.

Transition

Senate Passes Key Provisions of Kaine’s First Bill, the Troop Talent Act  (PoliticalNews.me)  The U.S. Senate passed key provisions of U.S. Senator Tim Kaine’s first bill, the Troop Talent Act of 2013, as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2014.

New personnel chief: Know your options under force cuts  (Air Force Times)  Lt. Gen. Samuel Cox takes the reins as the Air Force’s newest personnel chief at a tumultuous time.

Deployment schedule means change in disbandment for Fort Carson brigades  (The Gazette)   The Army will disband the 4th Infantry Division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team — not its 3rd Brigade Combat Team, as previously announced — by fiscal year 2015, a Fort Carson spokesperson confirmed on Monday.

Veterans

Wounded Warriors to take on new opponents in softball  (The Palm Beach Post)  While the Florida Legends and a lineup of All Stars have had their fair share of competition, on Jan. 18 they will be facing competitors who have been to war and back.

Kansas Honor Flight plans six trips for veterans in 2014  (The Kansas City Star)  The Kansas nonprofit that takes veterans to see their war memorials and other sites in the nation’s capital expects to take six more flights in 2014.

Aid may be available for vets suffering loss of jobless benefits  (Lowell Sun)  With 1.3 million people expected to begin losing unemployment benefits through the federal government this week, Tyngsboro’s veterans’ service officer stresses there is assistance still available for veterans in need.

Iraq War vet makes Colorado’s first pot purchase  (USA Today)  The new year got a little happier for pot smokers in Colorado on Wednesday as the nation’s first retail outlets for recreational marijuana opened their doors.

Veterans Affairs

VA web site for families of veterans with PTSD  (Examiner.com)  The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has set up a web site specifically for the families of veterans who have PTSD.

Grave markers moved at Maryland veterans’ cemetery  (The Washington Post)  Grave markers were moved and the lawn was damaged Monday at a veterans’ cemetery in Prince George’s County, authorities said.

Benefits

Military pay cut battle is on  (My San Antonio)  This fight starts as soon as Congress reconvenes in January. At stake are billions of military pension dollars that will be cut over the next 10 years to help balance the federal budget. Should our troops pay that price?

Defend military pension cuts: Our view  (USA Today)  One of the best things Ronald Reagan did as president was to revamp federal pensions.

Leave veteran pensions alone: Opposing view  (USA Today)  Cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA) cuts passed by Congress in its budget bill are nothing more than a tax on our country’s military retirees.

Cut to military pensions in federal budget angers SC veterans  (The State)  A cut in military pensions that’s part of the budget bill signed by President Barack Obama last week will be a “terrible thing” when it starts in 2015, three SC veterans leaders say.

Security Insiders: It’s Time to Reduce Military Health and Pension Benefits  The time has come: Military health and pension benefits, which have more than doubled in the past decade, should be reduced as the defense budget comes down, said a whopping 90 percent majority of National Journal’s National Security Insiders.

California VA Loan Limits For 2014 Published  (StreetInsider.com)  Blue Loan Services is a full service mortgage company that has been helping California home loan borrowers to find the best loan products and benefit from the lowest mortgage rates and fees for many years.

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Transitionnews for Tuesday, December 31st 2013:

Good news story of the day

Fifth Third Bank Chicago Holiday Cheer Benefits Local Military Families & Veterans  (PR Newswire)  Fifth Third Bank (Chicago) today announced that it has contributed in a number of ways, over the holiday season, to help local soldiers, their families, and veterans

Transition

Enlisted retention board to convene in June  (Air Force Personnel Center Public Affairs)  An enlisted retention board will convene here in June to consider eligible senior airmen through senior master sergeants for retention, Air Force Personnel Center officials said.

Military members master public speaking as group  (42d Air Base Public Affairs)  “Some people just have the gift and ability to speak,” said Senior Airman Bryce Bellmore, an Air University knowledge operations manager. “I don’t have that, but I’m learning.”

Force cuts, eval changes and more: 15 things you should know for 2014  (Air Force Times)  Budget cuts and events worldwide and close to home mean many changes for airmen in 2014.

Veterans

Bonadio CEO donates to veteran care program  (Accounting Today)  Thomas Bonadio, CEO and managing partner of New York Top 100 firm The Bonadio Group, recently presented a $25,000 check to CDS Monarch in Webster to benefit the nonprofit organization’s Warrior Salute program.

Veterans want boxed dog tag artwork back on display  (Los Angeles Times)  In the basement of Chicago’s National Veterans Art Museum, there are 200 tall, sturdy cardboard boxes in straight rows, lined up like soldiers in formation.

New Year’s Resolution, cut the military and veterans suicide rate  (Examiner.com)  Today, the Army released the suicide data for the month of November 2013.

Wounded Warriors’ park coming to Whitby  (Durham Region)  Peace and tranquility were not familiar concepts to Daimian Boyne when he left the military in 2006.

Operation Homefront racks up December donations for 115 family needs  (San Antonio Business Journal)  San Antonio-based Operation Homefront, which offers assistance to military families and wounded warriors, says individual donors helped it meet 115 individual needs posted on its website.

Veterans Affairs

Veterans Affairs reduces disability claims backlog by one third since March  (PBS)  The Obama administration’s secretary of veterans affairs, Eric Shinseki, said the agency’s made progress with its initiative to eliminate the disability backlog by 2015.

Veterans’ housing project expected to be complete in 2014  (Santa Clarita Valley Signal)  Officials hope to soon cut the ribbon on a project that demonstrates a new level of commitment to America’s veterans: a low-cost housing development allowing vets and their families to own their own homes in the Santa Clarita Valley.

Benefits

Soldier Pushes for Change to GI Bill  (Military.com)  In August 2010, Sgt. 1st Class Angela Dees sent her stepson off to college, a move made possible because she transferred her benefits to him under the GI Bill.

Younger military veterans are angered by budget cuts to their pension benefits  (The Washington Post)  After 25 years of service, including combat tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, Lt. Col. Stephen Preston retired from the Army and began collecting a pension of nearly $55,000 a year.

States Differ on Retiree Tax Burden  (Kiplinger)  Click on any state in the map below for a detailed summary of taxes on retirement income, property and purchases, as well as special tax breaks for seniors.

Jackson County veterans to benefit from state law exempting disabled veterans from property taxes  (MLive.com)  They fought for freedom and ended up completely disabled as a result.

Many services are available to veterans, the disabled and seniors  (Regal Courier)  Washington County’s veterans’ services coordinator Kimberly Douthit brought a wealth of information to a group of seniors at Royal Villas when she was the featured speaker at its Nov. 23 breakfast in the Clubhouse.

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