Category Archives: Veterans Benefits

Veterans Benefits

Entrepeneurship Program for Veterans With Disabilities

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Media Contact:

Elise Anderson

elise.anderson@anderson.ucla.edu

(310) 206-7537

 

UCLA Anderson School of Management Provides Free

Entrepreneurship Program for Veterans with Disabilities

 

LOS ANGELES, CA – July 20, 2011 –UCLA Anderson School of Management and a select group of business schools are offering the fourth consecutive Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV). Some twenty-four military personnel who were injured in the line of duty will receive education and training in entrepreneurship and small business management free of charge. The program, which runs between July 23 and 31, 2011, is designed to help participants learn essential skills that will lead to successful careers in starting, growing and managing entrepreneurial ventures.

 

“We have an obligation to support disabled veterans who return to our communities and seek to build meaningful economic opportunities for themselves and others,” said Professor Alfred E. Osborne, Jr., Senior Associate Dean of UCLA Anderson School of Management. “With UCLA Anderson’s highly regarded entrepreneurship faculty and programs, we are honored to be providing these veterans with the tools to advance their entrepreneurial ambitions.”

 

EBV applications are accepted from veterans with a ‘service-connected disability,’ as designated by the Veterans Administration, and who have served on active duty after September 2001. Candidates must demonstrate a strong interest in entrepreneurship, high motivation for owning and managing a business, and a commitment to completing the program. To date, more than 50 veterans from around the nation have graduated from the program since its inception at UCLA Anderson.

 

Amy Sufak, a 2009 EBV alum and president of Red Energy Public Relations, Inc., was so moved by the program that she now serves as a course instructor. “I sincerely appreciate the resources and training this program provided me so that I could create a solid business that is still growing strong three years later,” said Sufak. “This program is about people helping people, and paying it forward to help change the life of one veteran at a time.”

 

The EBV was introduced by the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University in 2007. The following year, the EBV Consortium was launched as a national partnership with UCLA Anderson School of Management, Florida State University’s College of Business and Mays Business School at Texas A&M. Purdue University, the University of Connecticut and Louisiana State University have since joined the consortium. The EBV is designed around two guiding principles. The first focuses on practical training in new venture creation and growth, including information on programs and opportunities specific to disabled veterans and the businesses that they own. The second focuses on establishing a support structure for graduates through mentoring and other forms of technical assistance.

 

The UCLA Anderson EBV program is administered by the Harold and Pauline Price Center for Entrepreneurial Studies and is comprised of three distinct phases. Students develop their initial concepts during the online component of the program; participate in experiential workshops and in-class learning while at UCLA; and receive ongoing support and mentorship from UCLA Anderson faculty and alumni in the year following the residential component. With the generous support of corporate sponsors and private individuals, the entire program – including tuition, travel, and accommodations – is offered at no cost to the veterans.

 

“We are extremely grateful for the generous support that we have received for the EBV program,” said Elaine Hagan (’91), executive director of the Price Center. “The success of our past three classes has demonstrated the enormous value of the EBV, and we expect that this year’s program will have a significant impact on the lives of our veterans and their communities as well.”

 

About the Harold and Pauline Price Center for Entrepreneurial Studies:

The Harold and Pauline Price Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at UCLA Anderson School of Management is an internationally recognized leader in entrepreneurial education and research. With a distinguished faculty as its cornerstone, the Center oversees activities that advance the theory and practice of entrepreneurship as well as the related fields of technology and innovation, venture capital and private equity, and social enterprise. Well known for the impact of its outreach programs, the Price Center fosters a spirit of innovation in individuals, enhances the managerial capacity of organizations, and prepares entrepreneurial leaders who will provide significant, sustainable and economic value to society.

About UCLA Anderson School of Management:

Celebrating 75 years of Business Beyond Usual, UCLA Anderson School of Management is regarded among the leading business schools in the world. UCLA Anderson faculty members are globally renowned for their teaching excellence and research in advancing management thinking. Each year, UCLA Anderson provides a distinctive approach to management education to more than 1,800 students enrolled in its MBA, Fully-Employed MBA, Executive MBA, UCLA-NUS Global Executive MBA, Master of Financial Engineering, doctoral and executive education programs. Combining highly selective admissions, varied and innovative learning programs, and a world-wide network of 39,000 alumni, UCLA Anderson develops and prepares global leaders.

 

 

###

 

 

 

Note to journalists: Contact information for program participants available on request.

 

Veterans Benefits

Men Who Did Not Sign Grover Norquists Pledge

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Lance Cpl Robert Greniger 21.    Lance Cpl Norberto Hernandez 22.   Spec. Rafael Nieves 22.   Army Sgt. Christopher Soderland 23.    Army Sgt. Nicano Amper 36.    Marine Staff Sgt. Thomas J Dodds Dudley 29.   Army Sgt. 1st Clas Terry L. Parker 39.    Army Sgt. Steve Talamantez 34.    Spec Nathan Byers 24.   Spec Nicolas W Newby 20.

 

All members who died supporting combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, confirmed by the Defense Department July 8-14.  Casualty totals 10. Wounded in action 150.

October 10, 2001 to July 14th, total dead 1649 in OEF.  12,593 wounded.

 

March 19th, 2003 to July 14th. 4462 dead.  32,153 wounded.

All died protecting and defending the system of  Government we are trying so hard to export to foreign soil.  What wonderful role models we have walking the hallowed halls of congress.

Veterans Benefits

Elected Officials Are Veteran Uncle Toms

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This is what is going on in the backrooms of the halls of Congress while you are mislead, misinformed, misguided, and just plain missed in the hearts and minds of these men and women with an abacus in one hand and a heart of stone in another.  I believe, “take back the country,” is a ruse for anarchy, which is just around the corner. Especially in the community of veterans who actually did something for their country. Producing “soundbites” is not called something.

FLASH UPDATE
http://agentorangezone.blogspot.com/

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Don’t Let Them Forget

On the Amendment Senator Coburn (R-OK) sponsored that would cut the list of presumptive Agent Orange exposure connected diseases,
yesterday at about 1730 hours the Amendment was tabled (functionally killed) by a vote of 69 – 30 in the US Senate.
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=112&session=1&vote=00114

Those voting NOT TO TABLE the Amendment are YOUR elected representatives. They have taken a stand AGAINST your interests:

Alexander (R-TN), Barrasso (R-WY), Blunt (R-MO), Chambliss (R-GA), Coats (R-IN), Coburn (R-OK), Cochran (R-MS), Corker (R-TN), Cornyn (R-TX), Crapo (R-ID), DeMint (R-SC), Enzi (R-WY), Graham (R-SC), Hatch (R-UT), Hutchison (R-TX),Johnson (R-WI), Kirk (R-IL), Kyl (R-AZ), Lee (R-UT), Lugar (R-IN), McCain (R-AZ), McConnell (R-KY), Paul (R-KY), Portman (R-OH), Risch (R-ID), Sessions (R-AL), Shelby (R-AL), Toomey (R-PA), Vitter (R-LA), Wicker (R-MS)e

You Don’t Say?

Lung problems found in Iraq, Afghanistan Veterans
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/21/us-veterans-idUSTRE76J78720110721?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100

By Gene Emery

NEW YORK | Thu Jul 21, 2011 8:17am EDT

(Reuters Health) – Shortness of breath and reduced fitness among some military veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan may be caused by lung damage from smoke, sandstorms and toxins, a new study suggests.

Researchers who performed lung biopsies on 38 veterans with unexplained breathing problems found a form of tissue damage — called constrictive bronchiolitis — that is rare in young adults and doesn’t show up in standard tests.

In all but one case, a “lacy black pigment” also coated the delicate lung surfaces.

Dr. Robert Miller of the Vanderbilt University Medical Center said the cases, which he has been gathering for years, are apparently caused by exposure to airborne toxins during deployment.

“We believe they’re deployed to some pretty toxic environments. They’re exposed to burning solid waste, burning human waste (particularly in Iraq), and consistently exposed to fine particulate matter that’s easily inhaled deep into the lungs at a level that’s above what’s desirable,” Miller told Reuters Health in a telephone interview.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-L06dKXv6_LQ/Tih0BsuznzI/AAAAAAAAAhk/hZIOFXLp0yw/s1600/www.reuters.com.jpgDust storms and combat smoke may also be a factor. Previous research has suggested that service in the Middle East increases the risk of breathing problems.

Among the volunteers examined in the new study — primarily members of the 101st Airborne Division in Fort Campbell, Kentucky — most had long-term exposure to a sulfur-mine fire that burned for 30 days in 2003 near Mosul, Iraq, Miller and his colleagues write in the New England Journal of Medicine.

In all, Miller’s team tested 80 previously fit soldiers who no longer met the Army’s physical fitness standards.

Forty-nine agreed to undergo an invasive lung biopsy procedure after chest X-rays and other standard tests did not reveal the cause of their problems.

All 49 had tissue samples that were judged to be abnormal. The diagnosis of constrictive bronchiolitis — a thickening of the walls of the smallest lung passages, the bronchioles — was made in 38 cases (35 men and three women). Seven were active smokers and six were former smokers.
READ MORE: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/21/us-veterans-idUSTRE76J78720110721?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100

Posted by AgentOrangeZone at 11:42 AM 0 comments http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=1859114155388926489&postID=9189020183929349467&from=pencil

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

URGENT! URGENT! URGENT! UPDATE

The Amendment sponsored by Senator Coburn (R-OK) has been tabled (functionally killed) by a vote of 69 – 30 in the US Senate.
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=112&session=1&vote=00114
Those voting NOT TO TABLE the Amendment are:

Alexander (R-TN), Barrasso (R-WY), Blunt (R-MO), Chambliss (R-GA), Coats (R-IN), Coburn (R-OK), Cochran (R-MS), Corker (R-TN), Cornyn (R-TX), Crapo (R-ID), DeMint (R-SC), Enzi (R-WY), Graham (R-SC), Hatch (R-UT), Hutchison (R-TX),Johnson (R-WI), Kirk (R-IL), Kyl (R-AZ), Lee (R-UT), Lugar (R-IN), McCain (R-AZ), McConnell (R-KY), Paul (R-KY), Portman (R-OH), Risch (R-ID), Sessions (R-AL), Shelby (R-AL), Toomey (R-PA), Vitter (R-LA), Wicker (R-MS)e

Posted by AgentOrangeZone at 5:43 PM 3 comments http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=1859114155388926489&postID=7932076450455840406&from=pencil

URGENT! URGENT! URGENT!
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vvvVWNZDZ_Y/Tib4e92GdKI/AAAAAAAAAhU/bDOM6ChTS8c/s1600/scan0001.jpg

Would YOU want Senator Coburn providing YOUR medical care?
Time for everyone to contact your US Senator, urging a “NO” vote on this damaging and totally unnecessary amendment that is intended to not only reverse the recent additions of diabetes, ischemic heart disease and certain cancers; but, also to undermine and/or “gut” P. L. 102 -4, which too many of us fought a ten plus year battle getting enacted by Congress and signed by Bush the First in February 1991.

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/D?d112:24:./temp/~bd8Cme::

S.AMDT.564 to H.R.2055 To require evidence of causal relationships for presumptions by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs of service connection for diseases associated with exposure to certain herbicide agents.
Sponsor: Sen Coburn, Tom [OK] (introduced 7/19/2011) Cosponsors (None)
Latest Major Action: 7/19/2011 Senate amendment proposed (on the floor)
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p0_z4i6u83g/Tib5uDLVXaI/AAAAAAAAAhc/C6l5AP4cZ7I/s1600/images.jpg
http://coburn.senate.gov/public/?p=ContactForm
OFFICE PHONE: 202-224-5754

Veterans Benefits

Response To July 23rd Posting Regarding Agent Orange And Old Planes at Davis Monthan Air Force Base

6 Comments

I reckon this is one of the key values of a Blog. The truth will surface through a dialectical process that does not really exist elsewhere. Plus these postings are quite frequently revisited unlike much of the daily print media that expires as sunset every day.  One posting from June of 2009  about Vietnam Veterans dying prematurely, has more hits than any of the other 400 posts!  I am sure this one will have a long half life.

 

 

Director
Air Force Public Affairs
The Pentagon
Washington, DC
Dear Sir or Madam,
In April 2010 the 75th ABW, Hill AFB, Utah prepared in advance a press release describing the destruction of the remaining C-123K/UC-123K aircraft at the Davis-Monthan AFB.

Throughout the period 2000-2010, intense concern was raised at different agencies, including the Office of Secretary of Defense, the Air Staff, the Air Force Surgeon General, the Air Force Office of Environmental Law, the Deputy Undersecretary of the Army, HQ Air Force Material Command and more. The concern: dioxin contamination left on the aircraft from their Vietnam War service as Agent Orange spray aircraft in Operation Ranch Hand.

1993 seems to be the first time when tests were ordered on Patches, the Air Force Museum’s famous C-123, was tested before positioning inside the museum. It tested positive for dioxin…in the words of the Air Force test it was “heavily contaminated”.
More tests and correspondence abound during the period 1994-2000 with the only concerns expressed being the disposal of the aircraft, safety of personnel at the Boneyard, whether Walt Disney films should be told that two of the C-123s they purchased for movie production were contaminated, whether foreign governments should be informed that the aircraft transferred to them were contaminated, and similar correspondence.

In 1996 the Air Force Office of Environmental Law recommended the contamination be “kept within official channels”, a recommendation endorsed by the writer’s commander, the Director of the Office of Environmental Law.

In 2000 the Air Force joined with the General Services Administration in a court action to stop the contracted sale of some contaminated C123s. The federal judge took their evidence of the aircraft being “heavily contaminated, extremely dangerous, extremely hazardous, extremely contaminated” and other descriptions, and ordered the sale terminated.

In 2009 the AMARG/AFMC moved towards disposal of the remaining 21 aircraft, but they couldn’t be buried as they were too toxic for a landfill. The recommendation of the Office of Secretary of Defense (Dr Alvin Young, Senior Consultant) was to stop testing the aircraft immediately for toxicity…two of four had tested positive and his suggestion was that that result could be taken two ways.that “only two of the 21 aircraft were toxic”, or that “50% or more of the remaining aircraft were toxic.” As the testing was costly,  Dr Young and base officials, acting on Dr Young’s authority from Office of Secretary of Defense, opted to shred the entire fleet of C-123s, having learned that shredded metal does not fall under EPA guidelines as did the aircraft…and there was a threatened $3,000,000,000 fine.

And there were the comments by Colonel Schneider at DM, who told the 75th ABW “he is concerned with the potential dissemination of information”), and museums which wanted them, and private buyers who wanted them so desperately they unsuccessfully sued in federal court to try to force a sale.
Dr Young also recommended that the public affairs at Hill and Davis-Monthan prepare for media inquiries. He mentioned an article from Orion Magazine, and discussed the worry that a media “storm” that might develop could inform Air Force Reservists who flew the airplanes between 1972-1982 that their dioxin-related illnesses might be brought to the VA for treatment. Various drafts of a press release were offered, and Dr Young along with other officials “corrected” the drafts by eliminating words such as “Agent Orange”, “dioxin”,  “contamination” and replacing them with words less likely to alarm the public…Agent Orange and dioxin and contamination were replaced with “herbicide” and “aged Vietnam-era airplanes no longer flown.” The last part of the statements disregards the other Air Force memos about agencies desperate to purchase the valuable engines and propellers

In conclusion, a press release was crafted by the PA shop at the 75th Air Base Wing. It was not distributed, but held in case of media inquiry. This was a further element of the effort to minimize public awareness of the true story of the event.

No lies were told. Mistruths were constructed, however, to build a story which really had nothing to do with the real news of the event…dioxin contaminated aircraft. Nobody at the PA shop inquired of the managers of the event about the Air Force Reserve aircrews which had been exposed to dioxin on their airplanes for a full decade. Instead, the public affairs officers bent without objection, indeed, apparently with eager willingness, to construct a press release to deceive the media and the public, as well as the Air Force Reservists beginning to wonder why they have cancer, heart disease, acute peripheral neuropathy, ALS, and other dioxin-related illnesses.

While note part of the public affairs activity at either base, I note a possibly inappropriate use of a business title implying official actions within and by the Office of Secretary of Defense. Dr. Alvin Young was cited in several documents from HQ AFMC and the 75th Air Base Wing as Agent Orange “Senior Consultant to the Office of Secretary of Defense.” He used the title himself in memoranda, and his name and title were cited as authority for the decision by AMARG to shred and smelt 21 surplus C123K/UC-123K aircraft in 2010.

Further, his attitudes and reactions to Reserve Component aircrews are a specific concern, as in his position paper regarding the need for speedy destruction of the dioxin-contaminated aircraft, Dr Young mentions the media “storm” which might attend the operation and cause aircrews and maintenance workers with dioxin-related illnesses to seek care at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Concerned with the visibility of this event, which he frequently writes must be low key (and even congratulates base officials on concluding the operation with minimal public attention). There has been an obvious, skillful twisting of words to hide the actual event…destruction of dioxin-contaminated aircraft with a potential $3 billion dollar EPA or State of Arizona fine…by presenting a completely misleading press release. There is an ethical standard in preparation of press releases, but it was ignored here.

Dr. Young, who last week described the dioxin-exposed Air Force Reserve aircrews as “trash haulers, freeloaders looking for a sympathetic Congressman for tax-free dollars” seems an inappropriate person to be editing Air Force press releases especially when he helps direct the misinformation concerning events vital to my health….my friends and I flew those airplanes!

Thanks to various military-oriented editors and reporters, this story has changed quite a bit from what it could have been – the simple “destruction of Agent Orange contaminated aircraft in an environmentally responsible way” to one where the news value is in the early attempts to keep the information in official channels, to one where Air Force public affairs abused the trust of the public and media by misleading them through a poorly-crafted and deceptive press release, and where public affairs at both Hill AFB and Davis-Monthan AFB failed to bring to the attention of leadership their ethical responsibilities, and to alert their leaders as to the negative impact that failing to notify aircrews who’d been exposed to the toxins and the health dangers this press release was designed to conceal from us and our families.
I find this reprehensible.

Respectfully,

Wesley T. Carter, Major USAF
Retired   http://c123kcancer.blogspot.com

Veterans Benefits

Spiritural Retreat in Palos Verdes, California

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Did your experience of Trauma cause

Spiritual wounds that are still unhealed?


 

 

 

 

 

Helping Trauma Survivors and their Families

to make peace

With their Past

 

This weekend may be the start of a new journey for you and your spouse or significant other! Call the number on this flyer and register, scholarship help is available!

The International Conference of War Veteran Ministers (formerly known as National Conference of Viet Nam Veteran Ministers), an organization of clergy who served in Vietnam, has a unique mission to minister healing and meaning in the aftermath. As part of that mission the members of ICWVM are offering retreats for spouses and significant others focusing on spiritual issues raised by trauma. These retreats are made possible by the generous support of:

 

Vietnam Veterans of America, Incorporated

Information about the International Conference of War Veteran Ministers can be obtained by writing to the organization’s office at:

101 Walker Street, Apartment #B-5, Newtonville, Massachusetts 02460-1536

By calling (617) 930-5208

International

Conference

Of

War Veteran Ministers

 

101 Walker Street—Apt. B-5

Newtonville, MA 02460-1536

 

 

For Information:

Phone: 617-930-5208

 

Email: xuanloc@aol.com

 

 

Or by visiting the Web Site at www.warveteranministers.org

 

 

PTSD and SPIRITUAL HEALING

A weekend retreat for Trauma Survivors and Spouses

Or Significant Others

October 7, 8 and 9, 2011

Mary and Joseph Retreat Center

5300 Crest Road

Rancho Palos Verdes, California

www.maryjoseph.org

A WEEKEND OF SPIRITUAL HEALING

October 7, 8, & 9, 2011 in rancho palos verdes, california

 

Did you wonder where God was while this traumatic event was happening? Do you have questions about forgiveness? Do you find yourself estranged from God and those closest to you? Do you feel spiritually dead? Is part of you waiting to come home? Twenty-five, thirty, forty, fifty years after their experience with trauma. Survivors still have lots of unresolved questions. Spouses and significant others have questions as well. This weekend will provide an opportunity to raise some of these questions and explore possible avenues to a new life.

 

 

 

THE LEADERSHIP TEAM

 

Father Phil Salois, M. S., National Chaplain of the Vietnam Veterans of America, served as a foot soldier in the 199th Light Infantry Brigade around Xuan Loc.

The Reverend Dr. Alan Cutter was assigned to the Naval Advisory Group in the First Coastal Zone, working around Danang and points north. Dr. Cutter is a Presbyterian Minister.

Sister Linda McClenahan, OP was a Sergeant working with communications in the southern area of Vietnam.  Sister “Sarge” is a Racine Dominican Sister.

Reverend Dr. Jackson H. Day, a Methodist Minister, served as Chaplain to the Fourth Infantry Division in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.

 

Join these veterans for a weekend experience you won’t soon forget.

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO REGISTER

CALL NOW

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF WAR VETERANS MINISTERS

(617) 930-5208

COST: $350.00 PER PERSON, $400.00 FOR COUPLES

(INCLUDES ALL MEALS, LODGING AND PROGRAM MATERIALS)

SCHOLARSHIP HELP IS AVAILABLE!

 

Veterans Benefits

One Mans View of Agent Orange Contamination Of Old Planes

5 Comments

This mans name is Wesley Carter. Lets see if any of our readers have some relevant feedback.

 

 

Sir:
The 505th at Hill AFB and AMARG Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ together manage the Air Force’s fleet of stored surplus aircraft. In 2010 their collection of Vietnam-era C-123K/UC-123K were destroyed due to the dioxin contamination which remained ever since their last wartime spray mission.

The 505th Public Affairs staff worked with consultants who were particularly sensitive to the “Agent Orange” and “dioxin” power-packed words and the publicity likely attendant to such an event, the only time the Air Force had ever been forced to destroy surplus aircraft by shredding (because shredded metal does not meet EPA guidelines for contaminated materials, thus avoiding a threatened $3 billion fine) and then smelting to destroy the dioxin.

Along with friends, I flew the C-123K for ten years 1972-1982, and beginning in April 2011 started reading about the aircraft’s history online, and submitting FOIAs to see if this is where so many of my unit’s veterans are getting Agent Orange-presumptive illnesses. I found, in particular, test after test establishing the aircraft remaining “heavily contaminated, extremely dangerous, extremely hazardous, extremely contaminated”…the Air Force laboratories’ words.

But I also found a 1996 recommendation from the Air Force Office of Environmental Law to “keep this information within official channels only”, channels which apparently have never included us as aircrews. Along with other Stan/Eval flight examiners, I was supposed to be one of the most expert, most qualified, most experienced, most reliable flyers in my crew specialty…but I never was informed. The only “conversation” I eve had with the Air Force was about the stink of the airplanes when I first started flying them in 1972 and was told it was left over from Vietnam.

The press releases dealing with the destruction of 21 aircraft were crafted to keep the words in proper English and to discuss an event, but it was “word-smithing” to use true words for telling a lie. In all the AF documents the reason the 21 aircraft were destroyed was because of the dioxin residue – in the press release the aircraft were destroyed because they were aged Vietnam-era airplanes no longer flying, and the words first used in press release drafts “Agent Orange” and “dioxin” were replaced with the less-threatening and less- attention getting “herbicide”. Lies with truthful words. The press, supposed to rely on the basics of a military unit’s press releases, was completely misled.

We have among our flyers started a blog to post all the documents we’ve been piling up from the Freedom of Information Act. Tom Philpott of Gannett did a nice story about us at the end of May but did not touch on the false press releases…at that time we throughout the old airplanes were still sitting in storage at Davis-Monthan’s Bone yard.

Can you help? The VA is denying that we’ve ever had Agent Orange exposure, even though the Air Force’s own lab tests over 30 years say we flew contaminated airplanes. I feel this has both editorial and news value…I want the story driven!

Veterans Benefits

Veterans Retreats Proliferate

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Forgive me for being a bit retail, but I know all these retreat folks and serve as a mentor for some.  I determined that the more the merrier, as the mission is to find and heal as many returning veterans as possible. In an ideal world there would be on Retreat Center in every state.

 

Soldier’s Heart Veteran Return Retreat

www.soldiersheart.net
Led by Dr. Edward Tick and Kate Dahlstedt
August 24-28, 2011
The Expanding Light – Nevada City, CA

Colorado 004IMG_0440IMG_0446 2IMG_0451 3IMG_3366

Provides veterans, family members, helping professionals and caring community members an opportunity to learn and practice ways of successful homecoming and healing from war.

By replicating the Warrior’s Journey Home, participants will gain a deep understanding of PTSD and experience spiritual, holistic, community based, cross cultural healing from war, as found in
Dr. Tick’s Book, WAR AND THE SOUL.

To donate so that a veteran may attend contact Paula@soldiersheart.net

EVENT DETAILS

COST: $960 – includes tuition, room and board
To inquire about veteran scholarships – info@soldiersheart.net

START AND END TIMES: Registration begins at 3 PM Wed. Aug 24, opening ceremony at 7. Program ends on Sunday Aug 28, with lunch.

PLACE: Nevada City, CA – The Expanding Light – www.expandinglight.org

DIRECTIONS: www.expandinglight.org/who/directions.asp
Arriving by plane:Fly into either Sacramento or Reno
To arrange airport to retreat transportation  – info@soldiersheart.net

TO REGISTER: Request a registration form from Paula@soldiersheart.net

QUESTIONS? Contact us at info@soldiersheart.net or call 518-274-0501

Veterans Benefits

Spiritual Retreat For Combat Veterans

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I attended this most potent and healing retreat when it was last in Tucson. I will be at this one also in October. We can arrange for rides if needed. It is worth it.

 

 

Helping Trauma Survivors and their Families

to make peace

With their Past

 

This weekend may be the start of a new journey for you and your spouse or significant other! Call the number on this flyer and register, scholarship help is available!

The International Conference of War Veteran Ministers (formerly known as National Conference of Viet Nam Veteran Ministers), an organization of clergy who served in Vietnam, has a unique mission to minister healing and meaning in the aftermath. As part of that mission the members of ICWVM are offering retreats for spouses and significant others focusing on spiritual issues raised by trauma. These retreats are made possible by the generous support of:Vietnam Veterans of America, Incorporated

Information about the International Conference of War Veteran Ministers can be obtained by writing to the organization’s office at:

101 Walker Street, Apartment #B-5, Newtonville, Massachusetts 02460-1536

By calling (617) 930-5208

International

Conference

Of

War Veteran Ministers

 

101 Walker Street—Apt. B-5

Newtonville, MA 02460-1536

 

 

For Information:

Phone: 617-930-5208

 

Email: xuanloc@aol.com

 

 

Or by visiting the Web Site at www.warveteranministers.org

PTSD and SPIRITUAL HEALING

A weekend retreat for Trauma Survivors and Spouses

Or Significant Others

October 7, 8 and 9, 2011

Mary and Joseph Retreat Center

5300 Crest Road

Rancho Palos Verdes, California

www.maryjoseph.org

A WEEKEND OF SPIRITUAL HEALING

October 7, 8, & 9, 2011 in rancho palos verdes, california

 

Did you wonder where God was while this traumatic event was happening? Do you have questions about forgiveness? Do you find yourself estranged from God and those closest to you? Do you feel spiritually dead? Is part of you waiting to come home? Twenty-five, thirty, forty, fifty years after their experience with trauma. Survivors still have lots of unresolved questions. Spouses and significant others have questions as well. This weekend will provide an opportunity to raise some of these questions and explore possible avenues to a new life.

THE LEADERSHIP TEAM

 

Father Phil Salois, M. S., National Chaplain of the Vietnam Veterans of America, served as a foot soldier in the 199th Light Infantry Brigade around Xuan Loc.

The Reverend Dr. Alan Cutter was assigned to the Naval Advisory Group in the First Coastal Zone, working around Danang and points north. Dr. Cutter is a Presbyterian Minister.

Sister Linda McClenahan, OP was a Sergeant working with communications in the southern area of Vietnam.  Sister “Sarge” is a Racine Dominican Sister.

Reverend Dr. Jackson H. Day, a Methodist Minister, served as Chaplain to the Fourth Infantry Division in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.

 

Join these veterans for a weekend experience you won’t soon forget.

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO REGISTER

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INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF WAR VETERANS MINISTERS

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COST: $350.00 PER PERSON, $400.00 FOR COUPLES

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Veterans Benefits

Veterans And Soccer

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Should anyone wonder what these two entities have in common, it is loyalty to the community and incredible camaraderie.

 

It was only recently that Tucson Electric Park elected to return to the original name of the park, Veterans Memorial Stadium. That is the name the voters were given to sell the bonds. As soon as the park was completed the name vanished in the cloud of corporate sponsorship. They could well have melded the two names together. Should there ever be a stadium to host a local team and International matches, soccer would not be that disloyal to the population of veterans who delivered the vote to build the facility, that now, quite ironically will need soccer to gain solvency. That is karma squared.

 

As the former Director of the Pima County Sports Authority, I watched the good ole  boys of Tucson manipulate the socks off its citizens to insure there was no egalitarian approach to other sporting entities in Tucson. It was baseball or nada. The irony being that we were all baseball fans. I was a bat boy for the Cleveland Indians in 1959!

 

Sports marketers will inform you that the probability of a soccer player being a multiple sport participant both as fan and and rostered player is quite high. When I was trained by the National Association of Sports commissions I learned that cross marketing with soccer is a wise move, as you capture a huge population. The ratio of  youth soccer players in Southern Arizona, to other sports is nearly 5:1. Add stereo parents and a few family and friends, and you hit a population of approximately 75,000 before you leave the gate. Who else can deliver that kind of package?

 

In my travels I visited the Rochester New York  Rhinos  USL Soccer Franchise and attended one of their matches at the Triple A Ball park, before they built their own stadium.  16,000 fans were in attendance.  And who owned them? A local entity that owned the baseball and hockey franchise. Magic eh? Cross marketing to the max.  A trinity of  promotion that spanned the entire calender year.

 

I shared this concept with the Economic Development Office of the City of Tucson on multiple occasions, with the first being 1998. Never once was there a response. It now appears that the  right people with the “right stuff,” are at the table.

I  stand with great enthusiasm and anticipation that the city officials will see the opportunity that will last a lifetime in Tucson and leave many of our citizens smiling and proud to be supporters of FC Tucson and its tentacles that will bring Tucsonans together with esprit de corps.

 

 

 

PressRelease

For Immediate Release – July 8, 2011

Areas of Interest: Sports, Community Events, Economic Development, News

Contact: Demitri Downing, demitri@fctucson.com (520)909-4334

 

City of Tucson and Pima County Leaders host Major League Soccer Executive to Discuss Expanded Spring Training Role for Tucson

Nelson Rodriguez, Executive Vice President of Major League Soccer (MLS) will be in Tucson this weekend engaging in discussions with community leaders regarding the viability of an expanded role in MLS soccer spring training

 

Since the success of the Inaugural FC Tucson Desert Cup in March, where over 10,000 fans watched two MLS teams compete at a sold-out Hi Corbett Field, MLS officials and teams have taken notice of Tucson’s love for soccer. Added to Tucson’s reputation for hospitality and unrivalled climate, MLS is exploring the possibility of coming back to our community in force.

 

Major League Soccer’s swelling popularity nationally over the last two decades makes it an escalating economic force. This has drawn the attention of communities throughout the United States – many of which are now actively courting an MLS presence. Tucson, while not yet viable as an MLS expansion franchise city, is uniquely positioned to offer something league officials have expressed desire in achieving: a West coast hub at which MLS teams can train prior to the regular season. While MLS spring training is a concept still in its infancy, this concept is maturing rapidly, and some civic leaders have the foresight to explore the possibility of developing a mutually beneficial relationship with MLS.

 

After the abandonment by Major League Baseball of a multi-million dollar facility built for their use, our community has been left with an economic and social void.  These facilities can be used by MLS with limited conversion costs. MLS, while smaller than Major League Baseball, will provide Tucson an opportunity to get in on the ground floor of a growing sport.  The presence of many MLS teams and their fans in our community over a 2 to 8 week period in the spring would create an economic benefit for local businesses as well as a general social benefit to all.

 

Events are planned throughout Tucson over the next three days to demonstrate Tucson’s interest in developing a relationship with MLS. Members of the media are invited to join us on this journey beginning this Friday morning, when Mr. Rodriguez arrives. There will be an opportunity for interviews at FC Tucson’s final home game Friday night in Vail at 8 p.m. and a special breakfast on Saturday for members of the media to speak directly with officials from FC Tucson, Tucson and the MLS.

 

Please contact Demitri Downing 520-909-4334 to RSVP for Friday game or breakfast. (Space is limited)

 

About FC Tucson

FC Tucson, established in 2010, is committed to bringing the highest caliber of competitive soccer to Tucson and becoming a lasting, highly successful source of pride for Tucson. Our players, coaches and staff are committed to winning Championships and recognize that our success on the field reflects on our fans, our sponsors, and our community.

 

PDF version of this PRESS RELEASE

Veterans Benefits

Marine Arrogance

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As the sitting Commandant of a Marine Corps League, I like this mans response, yet I must add that I believe that most of the Marines I know and associate with our some of the most humble men I know. I think  Toys for Tots defines us as much as our War bonnets.

The below was taken from the latest edition of Sgt. Grit .  An excellent response:
I wrote this in response to an Army guy on Facebook who posted a comment on our Marine Corps site that he was sick and tired of Marine “arrogance”. As it would to any Marine, it piszed me off some and I posted this. I hope you enjoy it and feel free to repost it wherever you would like. Thank you and Semper Fi!    Marc Ciacchi.  

Someone asked me what makes Marines special. I thought about that for awhile.

I think that what makes Marines special, if only in our own minds, is that elusive Quality of Espirit D’Corps. It’s the fact that we, as individual Marines, don’t feel that we are individual Marines. When we wear our uniform, when we hear our Hymn, when we go into battle, we are going with every other Marine who ever wore the uniform.

Standing behind us are the Marines who fought during the birth Of our nation. We’re standing with the Marines who fought in WWI and gave birth To the legend of the “Tuefel Hunden”, or “Devil Dogs”. We are standing with the Marines who took Iwo and Tarawa and countless other blood soaked islands throughout the Pacific. We are standing with the “Frozen Chosin” and our Beloved Chesty Puller. We are standing with the Marines who battled at Hue City And Khe Sanh and the muddy rice paddies of South East Asia. We are standing With the Marines who fought in Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom and now, are fighting in Afghanistan. Like real brothers, their blood courses through our veins, and when we go into battle, we would rather lay down our lives than be a disappointment to them. We carry on our backs, their legacy, their deaths and their honor. We Carry that for the rest of our lives.

The Marine Corps uniform doesn’t come off when our active duty is over. We wear it daily in our attitude, and our love of Corps and country. We wear it on our tattoos and our bumper stickers. We wear it in our hearts. It’s why, no matter where we are in the world, on November 10th, every Marine celebrates the Marine Corps birthday. It’s why we’ll never be an army of 1.

It’s why we never stop being Marines. It’s why, for most of us, being a Marine Isn’t something we were. It’s something we are. It’s the most important part of Who and what we are. Some say we’re arrogant. We say we’re proud. We have a right to be proud. We are United States Marines. The most feared and ferocious Group of warriors to walk the face of this earth. When Americas‘ enemies formulate Their battle plans, they plan on going around Marine units, because they know D-mn well that they can’t go through them. We are what the other branches wish they were. We are the modern day Spartans. This isn’t bragging. It’s written In the battle history of our country. When there’s a parade and the Marines march by, everyone pays a little more attention. Some say “arrogance”. We call it “pride”

It’s why, in a crowd of service men, you can always spot the Marine.
Why are Marines special? I don’t know. We just are.

Semper Fidelis!

Moe Thomas