Top 10 Veterans News from Around the Country 08-18-08

1. Peake To Open Clinic In North Carolina.
2. VFW Says Peake Will Address Convention.  
3. Peake’s Job Performance Praised.  
4. Studies Show Sleep Deprivation Common Among Veterans.  
5. Educational Program Called ‘Model’ For Veterans Assistance.  
6. Counseling Program Inspired By Volunteer Therapists.  
7. Group Says Many Military Service Claims Are Fraudulent.  
8. Golden Age Games Begin This Week.  
9. Injured Vets To Participate In Summer Sports Clinic.  
10. Disabled Athlete Praises Wheelchair Games.  

      1.      Peake To Open Clinic In North Carolina.   In continuing coverage, the AP (8/18) reports Veterans Affairs Secretary James Peake "will officially open" a new VA outpatient clinic in Charlotte Monday "at 9:30am on University East Drive." The facility "will serve veterans from Mecklenburg, Gaston, Cabarrus, Union and Lincoln counties."
      The Salisbury (NC) Post (8/17) reports Peake "will give the keynote address Monday morning at the ribbon cutting ceremony for a new VA clinic in Charlotte." Joining Peake "at the ceremony will be Daniel F. Hoffmann, director of the department’s Mid-Atlantic region," Carolyn L. Adams, "director of the Hefner VA Medical Center in Salisbury," and US Sens. Elizabeth Dole and Richard Burr, both North Carolina Republicans. After "the hour-long ceremony, officials will conduct tours of the new outpatient clinic."

2.      VFW Says Peake Will Address Convention.   On its "Central Florida Political Pulse" blog, the Orlando Sentinel (8/17, Collins) reported, "The 10,000 people in town this week to attend the Veterans of Foreign Wars national convention in Orlando will have some very special visitors," including presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama, and, according to the VFW website, President Bush. Also "addressing the convention, the website says, will be Veterans Affairs Secretary James Peake."

3.      Peake’s Job Performance Praised.   An editorial in the San Antonio (TX) Express-News (8/18) references Veterans Affairs Secretary James Peake’s recent "trip to numerous military medical facilities and hospitals in Baghdad, Kuwait and Germany." Peake, who "has ignored partisan considerations" during his time as secretary, also "announced an advertising campaign last month to inform veterans of the department’s suicide hotline services." The Express-News adds, "A new administration is around the corner, but Peake has thrust himself into a difficult job, and the evidence indicates that he is fully engaged." His "dedication is admirable."
      Lawmakers Accompanied Peake On Trip To Iraq.   In an article on US Rep. John Salazar’s (D-CO) reelection campaign, the Pueblo (CO) Chieftain (8/17, Roper) reported, "Salazar spent the first week" of August "in Iraq…along with" Peake. The Sauk Valley (IL) Telegraph (8/17, Bustos) noted that US Rep. Phil Hare (D-IL) also accompanied Peake on the "5-day trip to the Middle East and Germany."
      Suicide Hotline Said To Be "An Importance Resource."   American Medical News (8/18, Sanders) reports, "The Veterans Suicide Prevention Hotline, in operation for about a year, is proving to be an important resource," receiving "calls from more than 22,000 veterans, their families or friends, according to the sponsoring federal agencies." The hotline "is operated jointly by the VA and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration."
      New Vet Center Opens In Ohio.   The Toledo (OH) Blade (8/17, Nelson) reported Dorian LeBeau served in Iraq and Afghanistan before becoming "a social worker for the Department of Veterans Affairs, so he could help soldiers hurting the way he once did." Today, the 44-year-old LeBeau "is helping run the Toledo Vet Center," a VA facility in South Toledo that opened this month. The center, "the first in northwest Ohio, will offer free mental health counseling and group therapy to combat veterans and their families."
      VA Offering Family-Based Resources.   In his "For Your Benefit" column in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin (8/17), Gregg K. Kakesako noted that the Department of Veterans Affairs offers a "Family-to-Family Education Program" that "provides current information about illnesses of the brain and their treatment, and includes sections on…depression" and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The VA also offers the "Family Support Group," which "meets regularly to discuss issues regarding mental health treatment and services, housing, employment and transition to civilian coverage."

4.      Studies Show Sleep Deprivation Common Among Veterans.   The Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune (8/17, Chong) profiles an Iraq veteran who has suffered from sleep deprivation since his service. According to the Tribune, "sleep and wakefulness issues were the most common health problems described by recently returned soldiers, researchers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center found in a study published last year." Steve Woodward, a VA sleep expert, said "studies have shown that [sleeping] problems are much more common in combat veterans than in other young adults."

5.      Educational Program Called ‘Model’ For Veterans Assistance.   In the Times-Standard (CA) (8/17, Young), Carl Young, a Vietnam Veterans of America spokesman, writes about a new Humboldt State University program which "is sure to become a national model for providing educational opportunities" to veterans. Veterans Enrollment and Transitional Services (VETS) "is based upon the same concept as stand downs a one-stop center offering services for all veterans." The program will provide scheduling and administrative assistance, mentoring, and PTSD information.

6.      Counseling Program Inspired By Volunteer Therapists.   In an interview with the Ann Arbor News (8/17, Cobbs) about Eastern Michigan University’s new short-term military counseling program, Perry Francis, the program’s coordinator, says he was "inspired" by stories of private counselors donating time to assist veterans. "The VA is overwhelmed as well as the military bases are overwhelmed with returning veterans who are seeking mental health services at a greater rate than they have ever seen before," he says.

7.      Group Says Many Military Service Claims Are Fraudulent.   The Killeen Daily Herald (8/17, Bolding) reports that the Armed Forces E9 Association has confirmed "about the 3,400 [cases of] fraudulent claimants of high military medals or disabled or prisoner-of-war status, or all three." According to the group, "20 to 40 percent of all military records showing honors or qualifications for special government assistance are fraudulent." The organization supports House Resolution 3769, which mandates "a searchable database of military decorations," and provides other measures to cut down on fraud.

8.      Golden Age Games Begin This Week.   The Raleigh (NC) News & Observer (8/18, Shaffer) reports the National Veterans Golden Age Games begin this week in Indianapolis. Sponsored by the US Department of Veterans Affairs, the event’s "prime purpose is to stimulate minds and bodies through good-natured sports rivalry. Anyone older than 55 who receives care at a VA hospital can compete in the four-day games, which are expected to draw 750 veterans this year, including 13 from North Carolina."

9.      Injured Vets To Participate In Summer Sports Clinic.   The fifth story in George W. Reilly’s "Veterans’ Journal" column in the Providence (RI) Journal (8/11) notes, "One hundred recently injured veterans from around the country will participate in the National Veterans Summer Sports Clinic, sponsored by the Department of Veterans Affairs, in San Diego from Sept. 28 through Oct. 3." The clinic "is open to veterans with recent spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, certain neurological conditions, amputations and other mobility impairments, and posttraumatic stress disorder."

10.    Disabled Athlete Praises Wheelchair Games.   The WVIR-TV Charlottesville, VA (8/17, White) profiles Tremaine Rollins, a recent participant in the National Wheelchair Games. Rollins praised the games, crediting them for helping him improve in his physical therapy. One of Rollins’ physical therapists says the games "changed Tremaine" and given the staff "something to look forward to everyday, to see him and get more people involved."