Top 10 Veterans News from Around the Country 2-23-09

1. Shinseki To Take Part In "Fiscal Responsibility" Summit. 
2. VA Said To Be Waiting For GPO To Release Portraits Of Obama, Shinseki.  
3. Iraq Vet Part Of "New Breed" Of VA Counselors. 
4. Fort Carson At Forefront Of New Hearing Disability Treatments.  
5. Charity Takes Back Home Gifted To Veteran Who Lost Legs In Iraq.  
6. Double Hand Amputee Visits Troops Injured In Iraq And Afghanistan.  
7. Changes Said To Be In Store At Lebanon VAMC.  
8. College In California, VA Working Together To Help Veterans Adjust.  
9. Veterans Stage Their Own Show.  
10. Army Emergency Relief Charity Said To Have Stockpiled Millions.  

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NEWS FROM CHAIRMAN BOB FILNER: HOUSE COMMITTEE ON VETERANS’ AFFAIRS

Schedule for Week of February 23, 2009 
Tuesday, February 24 at 2 p.m. – 345 Cannon House Office Building
Joint House and Senate Full Committee Hearing
Legislative Presentation of the Disabled American Veterans 

Thursday, February 26 at 1 p.m. – 334 Cannon House Office Building
**Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity Hearing 
“VA’s Update on Short and Long-Term Strategies for Implementing New G.I. Bill Requirements”

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1.      Shinseki To Take Part In "Fiscal Responsibility" Summit.   On its "44" blog, the Washington Post (2/21, Connolly, Montgomery) reported, "President Obama and Vice President Biden plan to convene a White House ‘fiscal responsibility’ summit Monday afternoon to launch a national conversation on how to put the nation on sounder financial footing." The "three-hour, high-level gabfest, which will be open to press, begins in the State Dining Room with remarks by Obama and Biden. Participants will then be divided into five breakout sessions, before a wrap-up by the president." The Post said Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki and "White House domestic policy adviser Melody Barnes…will handle" the breakout session on healthcare.

2.      VA Said To Be Waiting For GPO To Release Portraits Of Obama, Shinseki.   The second story in the Grand Junction (CO) Free Press‘ (2/23) "Briefly News" column reports, "According to Paul Sweeney over" at Veterans Affairs, "he’s fielded several complaints from patients and visitors because President Obama’s picture is not hanging in the VA’s lobby yet. So here’s what" DC "is saying: The Government Printing Office has not yet released the official portrait of the president." The "current expectation is that the president’s and the new Veterans Affairs secretary’s portraits will be mailed sometime in March."

3.      Iraq Vet Part Of "New Breed" Of VA Counselors.   The Hartford (CT) Courant (2/23, Buck) profiles 37-year-old Iraq veteran Jay White, a "member of a new breed of counselors hired" by the US Department of Veterans Affairs "in an attempt to avoid the Vietnam-era mistake of ignoring" post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) "and other readjustment problems experienced by soldiers returning from war zones." White, "an outreach counselor at the Hartford Vet Center," was "hired in 2004, one of about 50 counselors recruited because they had served in Iraq. In addition to counseling sessions, White has inspired the formation of a unique group of veterans. These men tour the state addressing police departments, college administrators and social service agencies on the hazards" of PTSD, "and what can happen when society fails to recognize the symptoms of soldiers returning from combat with hair-trigger emotions and an inability to cope with the everyday challenges of civilian life." UPI (2/23) publishes a similar story.
      Nonprofit Attempting To Prevent Military Suicides, Assist Families.   In a related story, the Army Times (2/22, Jowers) said Terry Bridges, whose son, Pvt. Paul Bridges, committed suicide in Iraq, "and his wife, Sherryl Marsh, are joining forces with other families of suicide victims in the military through the nonprofit" Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) "to help prevent suicide in the ranks and assist families of suicide victims." According to the Times, TAPS "can…help connect service members, families and others to free, confidential, one-on-one, unlimited counseling through partnerships" with Vet Centers operated by the VA, "Give An Hour and the Association of Death Education and Counseling. In the past year, TAPS has seen a 25 percent increase in calls from survivors of suicide to its 24-hour crisis line, (800) 959-TAPS."               Dealing With Vets Part Of Training For Police Officers In Oregon.   In a third related story, the Ashland (OR) Daily Tidings (2/21, French) said Ashland police officers recently participated "in a week-long training on crisis intervention with the mentally ill." The Ashland Police Department had "been working since last spring to put the program together, researching best practices of other agencies and attending conferences hosted by the National Association on Mental Health and a similar training in Riverside, Calif.,"

Police Chief Terry Holderness said. The "program they developed" included "36 hours of training on topics such as suicide prevention, panic attacks, homelessness, substance abuse and issues specific to veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan."
      Hollywood Said To Have Negatively Portrayed US Troops Fighting Iraq War.   Meanwhile, in a related Washington Times (2/23) op-ed, Roger L. Simon, "a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences," writes, "For the last several years, a staple of the Academy Awards has been a ritualized salute to our troops," but "any halfway decent movies about them have not been in evidence. Other than a handful of dreadful and commercially disastrous films telling" US servicemen suffer from PTSD "or, worse, were rapists, Hollywood has largely ignored the conflict of our times against Islamic extremism and, more particularly, the Iraq war. Now that war is proving more successful than some expected," that "cinematic omission seems increasingly egregious." Simon argues, "There are several reasons for this absence, but they stem, for the most part, from the obvious: Hollywood has, and has had for years, a distinct liberal bias that skews production in one direction only — leftward.

4.      Fort Carson At Forefront Of New Hearing Disability Treatments.   The Arizona Daily Star (2/22) reports, "Staff Sgt. Chris Mountjoy couldn’t hear for three days after the mortar round screamed into his camp and exploded 15 feet away. The open door of a Humvee saved him from the shrapnel, but a shock wave blew him 30 feet into a wall, perforating his eardrums. His hearing came back, but only partially. Now, more than two years later, Mountjoy, who loved the infantry, spends his days behind a desk at the 10th Combat Support Hospital in Fort Carson, where he was reassigned because of his hearing loss and a traumatic brain injury from the blast. … Mountjoy, 27, isn’t alone in his quiet world. A cacophony of roadside bombs, machine guns and heavy equipment is wreaking havoc on the hearing of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. An Army questionnaire of soldiers returning from Iraq found that as many as one in four had some hearing damage. A 2005 study in the Journal of Audiology found that soldiers deployed to Iraq from April 2003 to March 2004 were 50 times more likely to suffer acoustic trauma than those who weren’t deployed. Such statistics have prompted the military to rethink how it handles hearing cases, and Fort Carson is on the front lines of that change. The Colorado post is piloting an Army study to show whether additional hearing experts on staff and a sharper focus on prevention can cut down on hearing disabilities. Efforts are working, said Capt. Leanne Cleveland, the senior audiologist and hearing-program manager at Fort Carson."

5.      Charity Takes Back Home Gifted To Veteran Who Lost Legs In Iraq.   The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (2/22, O’connor) reports, "Newlyweds Scott and Samantha West drove their SUV through the gate of the exclusive housing community, winding upward to an empty cul-de-sac that offers commanding views of the surrounding valleys. For months, the young couple visited this site and dreamed of their bright future, ever since a charity that serves wounded veterans announced last year it was building a house for Scott at no charge. The gift, like his new bride, seemed heaven-sent to Scott West, 23, who had lost his legs to a roadside bomb in Iraq in December 2005. The new home would feature wide hallways, voice-activated lighting and other amenities tailored to Scott’s needs. … In January, just two days after the couple had returned from their honeymoon, the charity took back its gift after learning that Scott West had been arrested on marijuana charges in 2007 and pleaded guilty in December to a felony of possession with intent to distribute. Last week, a judge placed West on five years probation."

6.      Double Hand Amputee Visits Troops Injured In Iraq And Afghanistan.   The Augusta Chronicle (2/22, Corwin) reports, "Jeff Kepner knew as soon as he opened his eyes that he would lose his hands. A massive infection caused blood to be cut off from his hands and feet, withering his limbs. But he soon might regain hands. Mr. Kepner, 57, could become the first double hand transplant patient in the U.S. through a program at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. There have been 11 such cases worldwide, mostly in Europe and in Asia, according to the International Registry on Hand and Composite Tissue Transplantation. There have been five single hand transplants in the U.S. and more than 20 worldwide. Mr. Kepner would also be the first hand transplant recipient to undergo a new immunosuppressant protocol. It replaces the traditional three drugs (and their serious side effects) with a bone marrow transplant and a single drug with potentially fewer complications, surgeons at the Pittsburgh center said. … He visits more recent amputees at the Augusta Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers, some of them active military personnel just returning from Afghanistan or Iraq. ‘These kids who come back from Iraq with lost limbs, I’ll go over and talk to them,’ Mr. Kepner said. ‘But most of the time when I walk in they’ll go, ‘Ohhh, I’m not near as bad as you are.’ And I can see it in their eyes when I walk in. They kind of perk up.’ It happens a lot, actually.

7.      Changes Said To Be In Store At Lebanon VAMC.   The Central Penn Business Journal (2/21, Holzman) said, "Changes are afoot" at the Lebanon Veterans Affairs Medical Center. For example, a "recently announced patient account center will bring up to 450 full-time jobs" to the hospital. The Federal government has also "approved a new, $1.9 million Women’s Clinic at the Lebanon campus to provide specialized care to the increasing number of female veterans, said Norman Faas Jr., a public-affairs officer who works" at the hospital. The Business Journal added, "The Lebanon VA also continues to adapt to the increasing stream of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan."

8.      College In California, VA Working Together To Help Veterans Adjust.   In continuing coverage, Marke Tarte’s column for California’s Tri-Valley Herald (2/22) said the veterans program at Las Positas College, which "serves more than 300 veteran-students, about 75 of whom have recently returned from Iraq or Afghanistan." In "this tough economy, many Tri-Valley community groups have been helping the college implement and continue this important work. One such group, the Sentinels of Freedom, recently introduced" Iraq veteran Jay Wilkerson, who "spent the past…two" years at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Healthcare System’s Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center, to Las Positas. Meanwhile, community groups "from around the Valley have pitched in to try to make the veterans program a success," and Tarte said Susanne Scott, "the volunteer coordinator at the Livermore VA hospital, is an excellent example of the people who make these services work for veterans."

9.      Veterans Stage Their Own Show.   The Argus Leader (2/22) reports, "18 veterans with service time spanning World War II through the Iraq War who performed Saturday at the 19th annual Sioux Falls VA Medical Center variety show. Forty-two performers – spread through 17 acts – sought to bring a little levity into a cold, blustery February afternoon. ‘We know here at the VA that we provide great care,’ medical director Paul Bockelman said. ‘But you’re going to see many other secrets and talents out there. And I’m glad there’s a lot of comedy skits since laughter is the best medicine.’"

10.    Army Emergency Relief Charity Said To Have Stockpiled Millions.   The AP (2/23, Donn) reports, "As soldiers stream home from Iraq and Afghanistan, the biggest charity inside" the US military "has been stockpiling tens of millions of dollars meant to help put returning fighters back on their feet," an AP "investigation shows. Between 2003 and 2007," when the Army Emergency Relief (AER) "grew into a $345 million behemoth," it "packed away $117 million into its own reserves while spending just $64 million on direct aid, according to an AP analysis" of AER’s "tax records. Tax-exempt and legally separate from the military, AER projects a facade of independence but really operates under close Army control. The massive nonprofit," which is "funded predominantly" by troops, "allows superiors to squeeze soldiers for contributions; forces struggling soldiers to repay" loans; and "too often violates its own rules by rewarding donors, such as giving free passes from physical training, the AP found."