Transitionnews for Friday, December 13th 2013:

Good news story of the day

Support system lifts Mo. vet out of homelessness  (AP)  James Snorgrass stood at the corner of a Columbia intersection, waiting for the bus to arrive at 7:10 a.m. A knee-length parka was wrapped around his slender frame. An insulated hat covered his salt and pepper hair.

Transition

AT&T Continues Hiring Drive In Tennessee; More Than 130 Jobs Currently Available; Military Veterans Sought   (The Wall Street Journal)  AT&T* today announced that the company is seeking applicants to fill more than 130 jobs in the Tennessee, including nearly 50 new jobs. The positions will be primarily focused on customer service, retail and technician positions and are a result of AT&T’s continued investment in Tennessee.

Pa. State Police to military vets: come on board, your experience will count  (PoliceOne.com)  State police hope to entice active military personnel, veterans and full-time cops to join its ranks by allowing them to replace college credits with work experience.

Ecotech Institute Selected as a Top Military-Friendly School in Military Advanced Education’s 2014 Guide to Military-Friendly Colleges & Universities  (MarketWired)   Military Advanced Education (MAE) has awarded Ecotech Institute the designation of a Top Military-Friendly College in its 2014 Guide to Military-Friendly Colleges & Universities. The guide is available in print and online at http://www.mae-kmi.com.

Air Force envisions smaller force to preserve readiness  (DCMilitary.com)  Discussing upcoming budgetary variables during a Pentagon news conference recently, the Air Force’s top civilian leader for the past six months addressed the inevitability of a smaller force.

Veterans

Veterans in legal trouble celebrate completion of special court program  (Ventura County Star)  Carolin Maples was overcome with emotion as she stood Thursday in front of a packed Ventura courtroom.

Veterans council formed in Ruidoso  (Ruidoso News)  At the urging of resident and veteran Vic Currier and following the lead of the city of Alamogordo, Ruidoso village councilors approved forming a Ruidoso Veterans Advisory Council to provide leadership in the community, to advise on issues involving the military, to sponsor events and programs, and to continue to foster a closer relationship with all branches of the armed forces.

Veterans Healthcare Expansion  (KATC.com)  The Department of Veterans Affairs approved new regulations making it easier for veterans to receive health care and compensation for certain illnesses that are linked to traumatic brain injury, like Parkinson Disease, Dementia, Depression, seizures and Hormone deficiency.

Disabled veterans get more time to apply for property tax exemption  (SooEveningNews.com)  Disabled veterans across the state got an early Christmas present this week, announced Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency Director Jeff Barnes.

Veterans receive keys to new homes in Islandia  (Newsday.com)  Six military veterans were handed keys Thursday to new homes built just for them in Islandia through a joint effort of area home builders and a local technology company.

Veterans group fights to keep cross at Mt. Soledad Memorial  (Examiner.com)  The Mt. Soledad Memorial Association (MSMA), represented by Liberty Institute and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, has filed notice of appeal of a district court’s order requiring the removal of the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial Cross.

Marine Corps veteran’s bid for pardon  (WXOW.com)  Marine Corps combat veteran Eric Pizer of Madison has commendations and medals, but feels his professional future hinges on something that’s out of his grasp, so far: a pardon from Governor Walker.

Jimmy Harding, Business Strategist, Urges Entrepreneurs Support Wounded Warrior Project  (Baystreet.ca)  Wildly successful business growth strategist Jimmy Harding challenges entrepreneurs to understand the importance of giving generously to nonprofit organizations – especially during the holiday season.

Veterans Affairs

VA cyber saga continues as audit shows continued holes in network security  (Federal News Radio)  As the Veterans Affairs Department tries to reassure and explain to House lawmakers the steps it’s taking to protect veterans’ data and agency networks, a new audit shows long-standing holes in the network continue to put veterans’ data at risk.

Conway Jones to Head County Veteran Affairs Commission  (The Post News Group)  Retired Air Force Colonel Conway Jones has been elected chairman of the Alameda County Veterans Affairs Commission.

Iraq veterans find the war at home is with red tape  (Los Angeles Times)  Glenda Flowers stood at the edge of a crowd of angry veterans at San Francisco’s War Memorial building. They had been waiting months, even years, to hear whether they would receive disability benefits, and they were tired of excuses.

Benefits

Veterans Affairs offers dental insurance program  (Char-Koosta News)  The Department of Veterans Affairs is partnering with Delta Dental and MetLife to allow eligible veterans, plus family members receiving care under the Civilian Health and Medical Program (CHAMPVA), to purchase affordable dental insurance.

Paul Ryan Mum on Proposal to Fund Veterans’ Pensions by Cutting Illegal Alien Tax Benefits  (Breitbart)  Reps. Martha Roby (R-AL) and Mike Fitzpatrick (R-PA) have introduced a legislative plan to protect veterans’ pension benefits from the slashes they would receive if cuts from the recently-passed budget deal ever materialized.

Veterans groups say military cuts should prompt Obama budget veto  (The Washington Times)  Two veterans groups demanded Thursday that President Obama veto the budget bill Congress passed earlier this week, saying that the cuts to military retirement benefits — which even the bill’s authors now admit were a partial mistake — are an insult to former troops.

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Transitionnews for Tuesday, December 17th 2013:

Good news story of the day

Helping veterans — one smile at a time  (The Herald News)  The rotting and cracked teeth were more than just a cosmetic problem, though. They were painful.

Transition

Survey aimed at understanding veterans’ first civilian jobs  (Stars and Stripes)  Veterans unemployment has dropped steadily over the last two years, but no one knows whether the jobs they are finding are any good.

AT&T Continues Hiring Drive In Louisiana; Nearly 240 Jobs Currently Available; Military Veterans Sought  (Market Watch)  AT&T* today announced that the company is seeking applicants to fill nearly 240 jobs in Louisiana, including more than 80 new jobs. The positions will be primarily focused on retail, technician and customer service jobs and are a result of AT&T’s continued investment in Louisiana.

SolarCure Announces Military Veterans Hiring Initiative  (Yahoo Finance)  SolarCure Chief Executive Officer Mike Ferraro and Founder Ray Saluccio announced today a new veterans hiring initiative designed to offer veterans, military spouses and wounded warriors a “Boots to Boardroom Career Lifeline” into the growing Green Energy sector. As part of the SolarCure Veterans Hiring Initiative, the pledge expands a goal in 2014 to offer meaningful careers for an estimated 100 veterans across the nation.

Virginia sanctuary helps veterans heal  (Daily Herald)  The war followed Scott Botts home.

Veterans

Wells Fargo and Military Warriors Support Foundation say Happy Holidays to Military Veterans with Home Donations at College Bowl Games  (Business Wire)  Wells Fargo (WFC) and the Military Warriors Support Foundation (MWSF) will spread holiday cheer to military veterans by announcing home donations during eight college bowl games.

US, Manila ink pact to repair ash-covered veterans cemetery   (Stars and Stripes)  U.S. and Philippine officials signed an agreement Monday for Washington to restore a cemetery north of Manila where the graves of thousands of American service members and dependents have been covered in ash since Mount Pinatubo’s 1991 eruption.

Suits for Troops benefits WNY vets  (Buffalo Law Journal)  As the saying goes, the suit makes the man.

Veterans, beer brewer team up to support Vets4Vets  (Great Falls Tribune)  About a month before the Veterans Stand Down in September, organizers were told they might lose about $3,000 in funding for facility rentals.

Wreaths for Veterans Continues  (KULR8.com)  Wreaths for Veterans continues Monday with a stop at Riverside Cemetery.

Death rate unusually high for young veterans  (Los Angeles Times)  Mark Tyree was chasing death.

Veterans Affairs

VA eases rules for claims on some TBI-related health problems  (Stars and Stripes)  Veterans Affairs officials are easing disability filing rules for brain injured veterans with additional combat complications like depression, dementia or Parkinson’s disease.

VA adds five diseases to be covered with traumatic brain injury  (Examiner.com)  Some Veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI) who are diagnosed with any of five other ailments will have an easier path to receive additional disability pay under new regulations developed by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Veterans in 9 cities have to wait more than a year for claims to be addressed  (The Washington Post)  Disabled veterans in Reno, Nev., have to wait an average of more than 14 months to have their claims addressed, according to data compiled by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans in Baltimore wait more than 13 months for their disability claims to be resolved.

VA proposes pension regulations rewrite to provide more clarity  (Fierce Government)  The Veterans Affairs Department will rewrite its regulations for veteran benefits claims and pensions to make them more clear and coherent, a Nov. 27 Federal Register notice of proposed rulemaking says.

Benefits

3 GOP Senators: Ryan-Murray Budget ‘Unfairly Targets’ Military  (Newsmax.com)  A bipartisan budget deal that has passed the House is facing some Republican opposition because it penalizes members of the military while protecting civilian federal employees, according to three GOP senators.

Chuck Schumer compares senators paying more under Obamacare to military retirees having benefits cut  (Washington Examiner)  How’s this for sacrifice? Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., believes that members of Congress have made personal fiscal sacrifices comparable to the cut in retirement benefits that military retirees are facing, because lawmakers have to pay more for health care under Obamacare.

Cuts for military retirees costing GOP support for budget deal  (The Washington Post)  GOP lawmakers and military groups have lined up against the bipartisan budget deal making its way through Congress because of a provision that would trim pay for young military retirees.

Reform of military retiree benefits is a hard battle for federal government  (The Washington Post)  Not all military retirees fought in combat, but as a group they certainly know how to attack any legislative plan that cuts into their pensions.

Military Partners and Families Coalition Joins Efforts To Protect Commissary and Exchange Benefits  (Business Wire)  The Military Partners and Families Coalition (MPFC) has joined The Coalition to Save Our Military Shopping Benefits, which now represents nearly 2 million service members – active duty, National Guard and Reserve, retirees, and veterans – and their families.

Vt. man sentenced for false veterans benefits  (Boston.com)  A Vermont man has been sentenced to five years of probation and ordered to pay over $24,000 for submitting false mileage reimbursement claims for travel to a VA hospital.

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Transitionnews for Monday, December 16th 2013:

Good news story of the day

A dedication for those who sacrifice  (The News Virginian)  Just over a month ago, one local student saw his hard work pay off at Wayne Hills Center. Isaac Edwards, a 13-year-old eighth grader at Kate Collins Middle School, spent his Veterans Day morning at Wayne Hills as a 40-foot flagpole was erected as part of his Eagle Scout project. Edwards raised almost $3,700 for his project through donations.

Transition

Making a smooth transition to a post-military career  (The Oconee Enterprise)  Leaving the military is like leaving home for the first time. Upon discharge, service members are faced with the question of: “What’s next?”

Goodwill programs help veterans transition into workforce  (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)  Jerry Jones spent 16 years maintaining multimillion-dollar equipment at U.S. Air Force bases around the world.

CivilianJobs.com’s Resume Matching Process Reinforces 2014 Military Job Fair Schedule  (Virtual-Strategy.com)  CivilianJobs.com matches transitioning military job seeker resumes to open positions for companies attending job fairs.

New order defines separation rules  (Military Times)  The Corps has overhauled its manual governing how Marines retire or are separated from the service, with broad changes that cover everything from transition assistance requirements and involuntary separation protections for career officers to drug use and sexual ­assault.

Businesses step up their efforts to hire veterans  (The Columbus Dispatch)  It took Francisco “Frank” Miranda, a veteran of the war in Afghanistan, about three years to find a job in the civilian world that was a good fit.

Welsh: Budget deal doesn’t end need for force cuts  (Air Force Times)  The proposed budget deal for the next two years would not change the need to issue force management guidelines, Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh told reporters Friday.

Job Front: Sacramento State center offers support to veterans  (The Sacramento Bee)  For returning veterans, coming home can be a tough transition. Readjusting to the civilian world, looking for work, going back to school – all pose unique challenges.

Veterans

Veterans vow to fight order to remove cross overlooking San Diego  (CBS News)  A veterans association that built a massive cross overlooking San Diego as part of a war memorial plans to fight a federal judge’s order to tear it down, a lawyer for the group said on Friday.

Veterans disappointed in lack of legislation for 2013  (Stars and Stripes)  The House wrapped up its legislative work for 2013 on Thursday without finalizing any major veterans initiatives, a disheartening footnote for some advocates pushing issues they thought had bipartisan support.

Veterans force IRS to retreat from invasive requirements  (U.S. Finance Post)  Once again America’s veterans have showed the rest of the public that standing up can make a difference, this time against one of the most feared agencies in the country, the Internal Revenue Service.

The war next door: Can a vet with PTSD come home?  (Stars and Stripes)  The man in the grainy surveillance footage strides through the sleepy cul-de-sac with purpose, like someone in command of his own destiny.

Instructor’s work benefits students, vets  (The Grand Island Independent)  For Grand Island Senior High students who are part of the Career Pathways Institute program at the Central Community College-Grand Island Campus class work involves learning how to perform specific kinds of welds with expertise.

Veterans Affairs

Over time, new computer system put dent in VA benefits backlog  (The Berkshire Eagle)  Far fewer veterans are facing long waits for disability compensation after the Department of Veterans Affairs spent the past six months focusing on the backlog, including mandating case worker overtime and rolling out a new computer system.

Worth VA director understands veterans’ needs  (GlobeGazette.com)  Brett Schmidt, a retired career veteran of the Iowa National Guard, is using his military experience to help veterans in Worth County receive benefits and services to which they are entitled.

VA program works to find homes for heroes  (Courier-Journal.com)  Valerie Bridges’ orderly life seemed to be coming apart.

Washington veteran struggles after leaving the service  (Observer-Reporter.com)  “Join the Navy and see the world” has long been a recruiter’s enticement, but it doesn’t always lead to exotic lands.

Two years later, Hot Springs is still fighting to keep its VA hospital  (Rapid City Journal)  Attending one of the recent weekly meetings of the Save the VA group, the same word comes up over and over.

New Rule Could Aid Veterans’ Access to Health Care for Some Traumatic Injuries  (The New York Times)  The Department of Veterans Affairs has approved new regulations to make it easier for veterans to receive health care and compensation for certain illnesses, including Parkinsonism, dementia, and depression, which have been linked to traumatic brain injury.

Benefits

‘Pension poachers’ profit off benefits meant for elderly veterans, widows  (Cronkite News)  Business is booming in a multibillion-dollar government program that offers modest pensions to America’s neediest elderly war-time veterans – and that’s not necessarily a good thing.

Cutting military benefits a poor decision  (The News Viginian)  You don’t balance a budget on the backs of military veterans.

Ryan Defends Reduction to Cost-of-Living Adjustments for Early Military Retirees  (The Weekly Standard)  The two-year budget deal crafted by Republican congressman Paul Ryan and Democratic senator Patty Murray sailed through the House of Representatives on a 332-94 vote last Thursday, just two days after it was introduced.

Republican Senators Battle Budget Cuts Targeting Military Retirees  (National Journal)  A handful of Senate Republicans are balking at a provision in the budget deal that would cut benefits to military retirees.

Trim military commissaries? Them’s fightin’ words  (Omaha.com)  No matter where in the world the Air Force took them, Kim Livingston and her daughter, Shannon, always knew they could count on one familiar thing: a modern commissary well stocked with low-cost American groceries.

Military retirees: Hands off our checks  (Union-Tribune)  Ann Wade, wife of a retired Camp Pendleton Marine officer, watched with alarm as the congressional budget deal was unveiled this week.

Armed Services panel to review retirement changes in budget deal  (The Hill)  Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.) said Friday his committee would review the changes to military retirement benefits included in the budget deal before they fully take effect.

Republican Senators Battle Budget Cuts Targeting Military Retirees  (National Journal)  A handful of Senate Republicans are balking at a provision in the budget deal that would cut benefits to military retirees.

Military Retirees Up in Arms over Congressional Plan to Reduce Pensions  (MintPress News)  A bipartisan congressional vote on Thursday cut pay raises for active troops and military retiree pension plans for those who aren’t disabled and under 62.

Ayotte meeting with NH veterans over cuts to military retiree benefits  (The Republic)  New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte is meeting with leaders from veterans’ service groups over cuts to military retiree benefits in a pending congressional budget.

‘Modest’ tag on military pension cuts is disputed  (Omaha.com)  Military veterans associations charged into the fray this week after what they described as a surprise attack on retirement benefits for those in uniform.

Sen. Ayotte joins veterans in opposing cuts to military retirees’ benefits  (New Hampshire Union Leader)  Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-NH, will appear in Merrimack today with leaders from several state veterans service organizations, calling for cuts to military retiree benefits to be removed from a budget deal currently before the U.S. Senate.

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