National Veterans Golden Age Games Set for Hawaii

WASHINGTON (Nov. 30, 2010) -- More than 700 "golden age" Veterans from
the East Coast to the West and from the Pacific islands will travel to
Hawaii to participate in the nation's largest sporting event for senior
military Veterans.

The 25th National Veterans Golden Age Games, a national sports and
recreational competition sponsored by the Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA), Veterans Canteen Service and Help Hospitalized Veterans, will take
place May 26-31, 2011, in Honolulu.

"VA is pleased to present the Golden Age Games for another year," said
VA Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs Tammy
Duckworth.  "The games showcase our senior Veterans' spirit of
competition and commitment to healthy activities."

Events at the games are open to all U.S. military Veterans age 55 or
older, who are currently receiving care at a VA medical facility.
Hosted by the VA Pacific Islands Healthcare System, the games will have
14 competitive events, including swimming, cycling, horseshoes, bowling,
croquet and air rifles.

A leader in rehabilitation, VA offers a spectrum of health care services
to military Veterans.

The games have grown from 115 participants its first year to more than
700 in 2010.  It is the only national multi-event sports and
recreational seniors' competition program designed to improve the
quality of life for all older Veterans, including those with a wide
range of abilities and disabilities. It is one of the most progressive
and adaptive rehabilitative senior sports programs in the world.

"To have this year's Golden Age Games in Hawaii has brought some
logistical challenges to the event that took a fair amount of creativity
between the sponsors and coordinators," said Marilyn Iverson, director
of Veterans Canteen Service. "But challenges like this are well worth
the effort, and I believe that everyone will love the results.  This has
been a labor of love for our Veterans on this special anniversary of the
Golden Age Games.  The Veterans Canteen Service is honored to share the
experience."

"Help Hospitalized Veterans is extremely proud to be once again a
national co-sponsor of the Veterans Golden Age Games," said Mike Lynch,
president and CEO of Help Hospitalized Veterans. "By participating,
Veteran patients gain a new sense of accomplishment and self-worth that
can be life changing for many of them.  The games are a proven
therapeutic and rehabilitative program that enhances social interactions
and helps rebuild self-esteem and confidence."

The 2011 games begin with a gala opening ceremony May 26 at Kuroda
Field.  Competitive events run from May 27-31.

The National Veterans Golden Age Games serve as a qualifying event for
competition in the National Senior Games in a number of competitive
events.  The National Senior Olympics are a community-based member of
the United States Olympic Committee and recognize senior athletes as the
best athletes in their respective age groups in the United States.

For more information about the National Veterans Golden Age Games and
other VA national rehabilitation programs, visit VA's web site at
www.veteransgoldenagegames.va.gov.

Care only a veteran can give

http://www.buffalonews.com/city/article268056.ece

When volunteer Gene Brayley recently visited Ralph Bishop in Niagara Hospice House, their nostalgic banter took them back 60 years to their military days in Washington, D.C.

They recalled everything from the slow, somber processions at Arlington National Cemetery to the auspicious inauguration of President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

"The Army led the parade because Eisenhower was in the Army," recalled Brayley, who played the saxophone in the Navy Band during the ceremony that day.

"That's right, we were in front with Eisenhower," boasted Bishop, an Army honor guard member who also marched.

They reminisced about the new president riding in a convertible on that cold, rainy day, and about a variety of other shared military experiences.

But there was one thing they didn't talk about: Bishop's stroke four years ago and its debilitating effects that brought him to the facility last year.

And that's the goal of their meetings. Reveling in highlights from his Army career keeps Bishop from thinking about his condition, as the two vets share "a different kind of camaraderie," said Brayley, 81, who served from 1947 to 1968.

Their weekly chats are part of a new initiative launched in September to ensure quality end-of-life services for veterans by revamping the hospice model of compassionate, pain-free care and death with dignity. The facility wants to infuse the care with methods specifically geared to veterans.

"We Honor Veterans," a nationwide project of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization and Department of Veterans Affairs, matches hospice facilities with local VAs, which train hospice employees to detect and tend to the unique conditions faced by veterans with advanced illnesses.

With the majority of veterans failing to utilize their VA health care benefits, the campaign also aims to bolster awareness of those benefits, especially the underutilized hospice care, which entitles veterans to free hospice care in various settings, including their homes.

The veteran-to-veteran visitations, in which hospice volunteers who are veterans visit patients who also are veterans, is a key component of the project. The pairings boost spirits and get veterans, characteristically mute about their service, to open up. That makes it easier to properly treat their anxiety and, in some cases, the guilt associated with taking a life and other combat-related demons that often surface around the time of death.

"I don't talk about my service; most servicemen don't," said Bishop, who served from 1951 to 1953 and worked in security for presidents Eisenhower and Truman. "But talking to [Brayley] about it is different because he understands."

Howard Bruning, Bishop's son-in-law, said Brayley's visits, which began last month, have had a dramatic effect on Bishop.

"The stroke left him withdrawn, but now I see him bouncing, happier and encouraged," Bruning said. "We're very thankful; it's been really good for him."

The Lockport hospice and other area hospices have teamed up with the VA Western New York Healthcare System to implement the project, which includes an aggressive effort to recruit new veterans to volunteer. They're also doing outreach to educate veterans and their families about the free hospice care and other benefits.

At Niagara Hospice, employees have been disbursed throughout the county, spreading the word through presentations at meetings of veterans' organizations.

Also, local hospice staff members -- from nurses to social workers -- have been traveling to the Bailey Avenue VA facility for workshops on pain and medication management, as well as training to recognize and treat common conditions faced by veterans, such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

"There are a lot of variables with vets that don't exist with the general hospice patient, and they weren't considered before but will be integrated into our services with this project," said Stacey Falkowski, Niagara Hospice's director of intake and provider relations.

Niagara Hospice kicked off its Niagara County program on Veterans Day with a special ceremony and informational session.

"We wouldn't be here enjoying the freedoms we have if it weren't for veterans," said John L. Lomeo, president and CEO of Niagara Hospice. "We've relied on the VA to do too much; and now they've reached out to us to help them reach vets. We're just in the infancy stages of giving vets the dignity and service they need and deserve."

Deborah Medakovich, the WNY VA's palliative care coordinator, is at the helm of the area's implementation efforts. She said the region's hospices are "committed to speaking to the uniqueness of the veteran population," and are at different stages of "assessing their current ability to serve veterans, accessing resources from the project to improve service and using best practices for continued improvements."

Area facilities are also revising their intake and medical forms, adding questions about military service to identify veterans upon admission, and organizing ongoing tributes, involving their families, to honor them.

Niagara Hospice plans to present its patients with handmade quilts, depicting their military careers, and has been surprising them with plaques from their military branches.

Hospice Buffalo has 115 patients who are veterans and for years has offered specific services for veterans, but will further enhance its program with the new initiative. For example, its VA nurse liaison will become more vigilant, and instead of only recognizing veterans' on Veterans Day with a pinning ceremony, special events will be held year-round, said Rose Collins, director of public relations for Hospice Buffalo.

"This new program will make anyone who provides care for veterans more sensitive to their needs, and know how best to care for them because they are different," she said.

With 680,000 veterans dying each year, the population is sizable and worthy of customized end-of-life services, said Jon Radulovic, vice president of communications for the national hospice organization.

"That's a quarter of all dying Americans, enough people who share that common trait for us to look more closely at their needs and find ways to address them," he said. Additionally, about 85 percent of veterans don't go to VA hospitals and only 4 percent of them die in those facilities.

"I run into vets every day who don't have a clue about the benefits they have earned, and that's why outreach is so critical," said Patrick Welch, a Vietnam veteran and director of Daemen College's Center for Veterans and Veterans Family Services. "Of the 24 million veterans, only 28 percent are taking advantage of VA health care. This collaboration with the community is something long overdue and will enable us to get the word out to vets and their families."

At Niagara Hospice, 39 veterans have so far been identified among its patients. Terminally ill Niagara County veterans who are patients at the VA in Buffalo also are being transfered to the Lockport facility, which aims to become the area's primary provider of hospice care for its veterans.

At their recent visit, Brayley presented a grateful Bishop with an Army plaque before igniting the long-standing, Army-Navy rivalry with the swapping of humorous barbs.

"Since you were in the so-called Army, you're gonna let a Navy man sit next to you?" Brayley asked, drawing his chair closer to Bishop's.

"Well yeah, you are bigger than I am," Bishop responded with a chuckle.

"As they say, the Army never got anywhere without the Navy," Brayley said, continuing with the teasing.

But after he left the room, Bishop said: "It's nice when he comes by; I look forward to it. You know, we were only joking with all that Army and Navy talk."

VA Testing Quicker Access to Medical Records

WASHINGTON (Nov. 29, 2010) - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is
working to significantly reduce the average time needed to obtain
health-care records from private physicians with the help of a private
contractor and the Internet to speed claims decisions.

"Innovations that will speed, simplify or improve our services to
Veterans are receiving rigorous tests at VA," said Secretary of Veterans
Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. "We are committed to harnessing the best
technology and the brightest minds in the government and private sector
to ensure Veterans receive the benefits they have earned."

One innovation is using a private contractor to assist VA in collecting
health-care records.  When private medical records support a Veteran's
application for benefits, a contractor will quickly retrieve the records
from the health-care provider, scan them into a digital format and send
the material to VA through a secure transmission.

This pilot project hopes to validate initial estimates that a
specialized contract can yield records required to process Veterans'
disability compensation claims in seven to 10 days instead of VA's
average 40 days.  In addition, the additional contract frees VA staff to
focus on core duties to process claims more quickly.

Exploring economical contract support for time savings is one of more
than three dozen initiatives supporting VA's claims transformation plan,
which aims to ensure that by 2015, Veterans' claims are decided within
125 days.

VA officials emphasize that in all cases Veterans must sign documents
approving the release of their medical records to the department from
private health-care providers.

The test is expected to involve about 60,000 records requests among
regional benefits offices in Phoenix; New York City; St. Louis;
Portland, Ore.; Chicago; Anchorage, Alaska; Indianapolis, and Jackson,
Miss.  At the conclusion of the test, VA officials will decide whether
to cancel, modify or expand any changes in procedures nationwide.

Exercise Could Be Seen as Escalating Tensions? Not True Says UN Commander

By Jim Garamone American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Nov. 27, 2010 - Movements of troops in South Korea and ships in the Yellow Sea are part of long-planned exercises and shouldn't be seen as a response to North Korea's Nov. 23 attack on Yeonpyeong Island, the commander of United Nations Command said today. "Media rhetoric from North Korea, along with images of [South Korean] forces moving on the peninsula may give you a misperception of efforts on the peninsula," Army Gen. Walter "Skip" Sharp said in a community message aimed at Americans living and serving in Korea. South Korean forces are participating in the previously planned annual Hoguk exercise. The exercises, announced Nov. 16, feature movements of some 70,000 South Korean soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines. "The USS George Washington will also participate in a previously planned, combined, training exercise," Sharp said in his message. Neither Hoguk nor the George Washington carrier battle group exercise is in response to Tuesday's attack that killed four people on the island. South Korean and U.S. forces hold exercises year-round to improve readiness and to ensure a peaceful and safe environment on the peninsula, he said. Sharp visited Yeongpyeong Island yesterday to assess the damage the unprovoked artillery barrage caused. Analysts are calling the attack one of the most serious since the Korean War Armistice Agreement was signed in 1953. The attack killed two South Korean marines and two civilians. Combined Forces Command Deputy Commander Gen. Jung Seung-Jo, members of the Swiss and Swedish Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission, and members of the UNC Military Armistice Commission accompanied Sharp to the island. During the visit, the general called on North Korea to refrain from additional attacks and provocative actions, and meet with United Nations Command officials immediately in the truce village of Panmunjom for general officer talks to discuss the incident.

Biographies: Army Gen. Walter "Skip" Sharp

IAVA News

Dear Sean,

What an inspiring week.

We asked you to march, and you turned out in unprecedented numbers. Click here to see a powerful video recap of IAVA's Veterans Week events across the country.

Click here to watch the video.

• Hundreds of IAVA Member Veterans marched on the ground in cities across the country.
• Thousands of Americans joined the march online.
• 2.2 million Iraq and Afghanistan veterans were recognized.
• And 2 vets from California are headed to the Super Bowl, thanks to your participation in IAVA's online march.

Together, we made this Veterans Week the largest one yet, and we showed new veterans that we've got their backs. From Seattle to Atlanta, and from San Diego to New York City, it was a monumental week.

Check out photo and video highlights from Veterans Week 2010 and the Fourth Annual IAVA Heroes Gala.

IAVA is working to make every day Veterans Day by delivering innovative products and resources for new veterans like The Rucksack. And by marching this year, you helped us spread the word to thousands more vets nationwide.

Your involvement made this a truly historic week - and with your continued support, we're making the new veterans movement stronger by the day.

Thanks for having our backs.

Paul

Paul Rieckhoff
Founder and Executive Director
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA)

VA Pilots Expedite Payments to Disabled Veterans

VA Pilots Expedite Payments to Disabled Veterans

'Quick Pay' and 'Express Lane' Initiatives Work to Cut Processing Time

WASHINGTON (Nov. 16, 2010)- VA has launched two pilot programs to test
new procedures that will speed the payment of Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA) compensation benefits to Veterans with disabilities
connected to their military service.  These new programs are part of
Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki's effort to "break the
back" of the disability claims backlog.

"A fundamental goal in the transformation of VA's claims processing is
to make sure that Veterans receive in a timely manner the benefits they
earned through their service to our Nation," Shinseki said. "VA's
ambitious tests of numerous innovations reflect our commitment to
constantly improving how we meet our mission of responsiveness to
Veterans, their families and survivors."

The "Quick Pay" Disability Program at the St. Petersburg, Fla., Regional
Office and the "Express Lane" Pilot, based at the Seattle, Wash.,
Regional Office, are among a number of new initiatives using
reengineered and streamlined claims processes to provide Veterans with
faster claims decisions and benefit payments.

Secretary Shinseki established as one of VA's highest priority goals the
elimination of the disability claims backlog by 2015, so that all
Veterans receive a quality decision on their claim in no more than 125
days.

The "Quick Pay" Disability initiative is designed to speed disability
compensation to Veterans who provide sufficient evidence at the time of
claim submission to decide all or part of their claim.  Since program
launch, "Quick Pay" has paid more than $2 million in benefits to 1,656
Florida Veterans.  These payments averaged $1,236 monthly and were made
three months faster than the department's 125-day goal.

Under the "Express Lane" Pilot program based in the Seattle Regional
Office, staff members are realigned to address disability claims based
on claim complexity.

Like a supermarket check-out "express lane," small employee teams focus
on rapidly processing numerous less complex claims that typically
involve only one disability, thus freeing their co-workers to process
the more complex and multiple-disability claims that demand the greatest
level of unilateral effort.

The "Express Lane" Pilot, while managed from Seattle, is also being
tested at three additional VA regional offices: Nashville, Tenn.; St.
Paul, Minn.; and Muskogee, Okla.

The St. Petersburg and Seattle pilots are among more than three dozen VA
initiatives exploring optimal ways to organize and deliver benefits and
improve service to Veterans.

For additional information on VA's claims transformation activities,
visit http://www.vba.va.gov/transformation

The USMC Birthday and Flag Raising at Ewa Field

Aloha,

The USMC Birthday and Flag Raising at Ewa Field went off great today! The
Marines are 235 years old.

US Marines in BDU (Battle Dress Uniform)  and with bugler came out. This was
the FIRST US Marine Corps birthday flag raising at Ewa Field in well over
half a century!

The Marines were on the dot raising the US and USMC flag at 8 AM as the
bugler played the traditional "To The Colors". A total Class Act.

Rep. Kym Pine was there and spoke to the "troops". Tom Berg shot great video
which you will be seeing soon, and photographer Toni Russ took great photos.
Ewa Beach Lion Sam Fisk was there too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_E810sJGLMs

We are looking forward to greeting the Pearl Harbor veterans this year with
a special Aloha ceremony for them on December 5, 2010. Hope you can make it-
there will be a LOT of SPECIAL VIP's coming out this year.

http://www.december7.com/1941/Ewa_Field_2010/index.html

John Bond, Coordinator
Pearl Harbor Day, MCAS Ewa Field and Fort Barrette Commemorations

YouTube - Videos from this email

VA Expands Support for Families of Low-Income Veterans

Communities and Non-Profits Will Play Critical Outreach Role

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced today an important program designed to provide enhanced services to low-income Veterans and their families who are at risk of being homeless.  Under the Supportive Services for Veteran Families Program, VA will provide grants to private non-profit organizations and consumer cooperatives that will help break the cycle of homelessness among America's Veterans at risk.

The program will deliver grants to community agencies for vocational and rehabilitation counseling, employment and training service, educational assistance; and health care services.  

Agencies will also provide direct financial assistance for daily living, transportation, child care, rent and utilities and other expenses.  Agencies may also propose funding for additional services in their supportive services grant application based on the specific needs of their communities and local Veterans.

"Ending homelessness for Veterans and their families will require all segments of our communities to work together," said First Lady Michelle Obama. "I am pleased this new program will help more local organizations support them when they need it most."

 "This new program will provide valuable new tools in our campaign to end homelessness among Veterans and their families," said Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki.  "Partnering with homeless agencies across this country, we will attack the problems that underlie homelessness and, for the first time, fund services for the spouses and children of homeless Veterans."

By mid-December, VA officials will provide local agencies with the instructions necessary to apply for grants under the program.

Eligible Veteran families include those who are residing in permanent housing, are homeless and scheduled to become residents of permanent housing within a specified time period, or who have left permanent housing and are seeking other housing that is responsive to such very low-income Veteran family's needs and preferences.

The program is available for public viewing at http://www.ofr.gov/.

 

#  #  #

WWII Fighter Raised

Tue, 09 Nov 2010 07:30:00 -0600

Crews working for the U.S. Navy Monday raised a WWII F4U-1 Corsair fighter jet from the bottom of Lake Michigan where it had been resting for 70 years.

VA Celebrates National Family Caregiver Month

WASHINGTON (Nov. 8, 2010)- The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is
marking National Family Caregiver Month by honoring the service of
family members and friends who have dedicated their lives to caring for
chronically ill, injured, or disabled Veterans.

"Caregivers are the family members and loved ones who take care of the
severely injured Veterans who need assistance on a daily basis," said VA
Secretary Eric K. Shinseki. "These mothers, wives, fathers, husbands and
other loved ones make tremendous sacrifices to be there every day for
the Veterans who served this Nation.  They are our partners in Veteran
health care and they deserve our support."

November is National Family Caregivers Month, and VA medical centers
nationwide will offer locally sponsored events for caregivers.  Because
caregivers often experience stress, burnout, or feel overwhelmed by the
caregiving experience, planned activities will provide useful
information about VA and community resources that offer support and
assistance to caregivers and Veterans.

Caregivers provide a valuable service to Veterans by assisting them
beyond the walls of VA medical facilities with support such as accessing
the health care system, providing emotional and physical support, and
allowing injured Veterans to stay in their homes rather than living
their lives in an institutional setting.

Caregivers help Veterans maintain a better quality of life and gain more
independence.  As the Veteran population ages and continues to increase,
the role of caregivers as partners in supporting Veterans is even more
prevalent. The Veteran population aged 65 and older is expected to
increase from 37.4 percent to 44.8 percent by the year 2020. VA is also
treating a new era of younger, severely injured Servicemembers. Many
Veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan will need lifetime care. VA
recognizes the support of their caregivers is vital for these Veterans.

On May 5, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Caregivers and
Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010.  Passed by Congress, this
law will allow VA to care for those who provide supplemental help to
family caregivers of the most severely wounded veterans returning from
Iraq and Afghanistan.  VA has been consulting with Veterans
organizations, as well as individual Veterans and their family members,
to ensure these new programs are implemented to provide the best
possible support for those who have sacrificed so much.

These benefits will add to the wide range of compassionate and practical
programs for Veteran caregivers that are already available from VA:

o        In-Home and Community Based Care:  This includes skilled home
health care, homemaker home health aide services, community adult day
health care and home based primary care.

o        Respite care:  Designed to temporarily relieve the family
caregiver from caring for a chronically ill, injured or disabled Veteran
at home, respite services can include in-home care, a short stay in a VA
community living center or other institutional setting or adult day
health care.

o        Caregiver education and training programs:  VA provides
multiple training opportunities which include pre-discharge care
instruction and specialized caregiver programs such as polytrauma and
traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury/disorders, and blind
rehabilitation.  VA has a caregiver assistance healthy living center Web
page on My HealtheVet, www.myhealth.va.gov, as well as caregiver
information on the VA's main Web page health site; both Websites include
information on VA and community resources and caregiver health and
wellness.

o        Family support services:  These support services can be face to
face or on the telephone.  They include family counseling, spiritual and
pastoral care. Polytrauma Centers also offer family leisure and
recreational activities and temporary lodging in Fisher Houses.

o        Other benefits:   VA provides durable medical equipment and
prosthetic and sensory aides to improve function, financial assistance
with home modification to improve access and mobility, and
transportation assistance for some Veterans to and from medical
appointments.



Caregivers should contact their nearest VA medical center for caregiver
activities in the local area. Facility locators and contact information
can be found at www.va.gov.

Katie Lalor: Miles For Miracles

 2010 NYC Marathon
Boston Childrens Hospital
Miles For Miracles

Hello everyone:

I just wanted to let you know that I am running in the 2010 New York City marathon this Sunday to raise money for Childrens Hospital Boston.

 
You may know that my daughter Katie has been a patient at Childrens Hospital Boston to treat hypo-plastic left heart syndrome, the severest of heart conditions.  She had her first open heart surgery when she was six days old and her second when she was four months old.  Then last September at age three she had the third and hopefully final surgery. 

 
Katie turned four on July 18th and is full of energy and life and doing great.  She took ballet, attended an acting camp  and now takes Irish step dancing lessons.  Katie is a true miracle girl. 

Childrens Hospital Boston has been great to us since before Katie was born when we first learned about her heart condition.  The cardiologists, surgeons, nurses and support staff at Childrens Hospital Boston are all pros who have gone above and beyond for Katie and our family.

I've been training for about four months and I'm ready to run 26.2 miles through all five boroughs.  I've pledged to raise $6000 for Childrens Hospital Boston and hope you can give $5, $10, $25, $50, $100 or whatever you can to help me reach that goal. 
Just click on the link to contribute:  Miles For Miracles

 

Thanks so much for helping Childrens Hospital Boston.
All the best,
Kieran Lalor

Congrats to New Members of Congress 2010 class of Veterans

Iraq Veterans

 Tim Griffin
Arkansas's 2^nd District

U.S. Army Veteran

Dr. Joe Heck
  Nevada's 3^rd District
U.S. Army Veteran

 Adam Kinzinger
  Illinois' 11^th District
U.S. Air Force Veteran

 

Steve Stivers
  Ohio's 15^th District
U.S. Army Veteran

Allen West
Florida's 22^nd District
U.S. Army Veteran  

 

 

Gulf War Veterans

Michael Grimm
  New York's  13th District

U.S. Marine Corps Veteran

Steven Palazzo
Mississippi's 4^th District
U.S. Marine Corps Veteran

 

Veterans of Other Eras

Rick Crawford
Arkansas' 1^st District
U.S. Army Veteran

Steve Pearce
New Mexico's 2nd District
U.S. Air Force
*Vietnam Veteran      

Mike Pompeo
For Kansas' 4^th District
U.S. Army Veteran

Veteran's Reflections: 'Serving a Cause Bigger than Myself

By Ian Graham Emerging Media, Defense Media Activity WASHINGTON, Nov. 1, 2010 - If it weren't for America, John Gunther Dean very well might not be alive today. Ambassador John Gunther Dean, a U.S. Army World War II veteran, provides an interview about his time in service, Sept. 13, 2010. Dean, a German immigrant, came to the United States in 1938 to avoid persecution by the Nazis. DoD photo by Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class William Selby (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Born John Gunther Dienstfertig in Breslau, Germany, in February 1926, Dean had a good life to look forward to until the Nazi government started annexing surrounding nations by force -- persecuting, enslaving and murdering Jews along the way. "This country was great to me," he said. "I came as an immigrant, I was able to go to Harvard, I was fleeing Nazis. ... I want to help the country." Dean's family was one of the lucky ones; they escaped to the United States in the winter of 1938-39 and changed their surname. Dean was a quick study in Kansas City, Mo., where his family finally settled, and went off to study at Harvard at the age of 16. In 1944, he became a U.S. citizen and interrupted his education to join the Army. "Every human being, regardless of age, has to decide at one point what they want to do with their life," Dean said. "I wanted to serve a cause bigger than myself. Serving the country was a wonderful way of fulfilling that need." He originally was sent to Fort Belvoir, Va., to train as a combat engineer. But Dean -- a native German speaker who also is fluent in English, French and Dutch -- was a perfect fit to work in the Office of Military Intelligence at the infamous P.O. Box 1142, a facility housing teams that interviewed prisoners of war and made clandestine attempts to communicate with Allied prisoners held overseas. After serving his enlistment, Dean returned to Harvard, where he finished his undergraduate studies in 1947. He studied law at the Sorbonne and got a degree in international relations from Harvard in 1950. He would end up spending the next 39 years in the U.S. Foreign Service, eventually serving as the U.S. ambassador to Cambodia, Denmark, Lebanon, Thailand and India. But his time working with the military wasn't over. He routinely worked side by side with top brass. In Vietnam, he oversaw a large contingent of U.S. diplomats as the war came to an end. "I worked a great deal with the military from 1970 to 1972, in Da Nang, ... I was given the equivalent rank of major general," he said. "I had several hundred American advisors working for me in Vietnam. Unfortunately, 14 of them were killed." His unwavering dedication to telling the absolute truth in his diplomatic work often was unpopular, he said, but that didn't keep him from speaking his mind to superior officers, secretaries of state and U.S. presidents. "It wasn't always much appreciated," he said, noting that his honesty as a diplomat caused quite a few personal conflicts in addition to accolades. He said his goal in his diplomatic career, fueled partly by his own life, has been to promote development around the world, irrespective of religious influence or culture, so long as the people represent good values and respect. "I've tried to be the best possible representative for the good values the United States stands for, whether it was in military or civilian life," he said. "We all come to this country, whether we're Muslims, Christians, Jews, Hindus or Buddhists, we couldn't care less – we care about our country, and it's a wonderful country. "I'm here today to help the country with the problems it has in 2010," he added. "We're all humans. We all make mistakes, and so I'm trying to help people learn to do things better." ("Veterans' Reflections" is a collection of stories of men and women who served their country in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, and the present-day conflicts. They will be posted throughout November in honor of Veterans Day.)

Defense Department News Through Facebook On American Forces Press Service's Facebook page, you can post comments and share news, photos and videos. Go to http://www.facebook.com/pages/American-Forces-Press-Service/65137437532 or search for American Forces Press Service at Facebook.com.

VA Begins Paying Benefits for New Agent Orange Claims

VA Encourages Affected Vietnam Veterans to File Claims

 

WASHINGTON - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has begun
distributing disability benefits to Vietnam Veterans who qualify for
compensation under recently liberalized rules for Agent Orange exposure.

 

"The joint efforts of Congress and VA demonstrate a commitment to
provide Vietnam Veterans with treatment and compensation for the
long-term health effects of herbicide exposure," said Secretary of
Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki.

 

Up to 200,000 Vietnam Veterans are potentially eligible to receive VA
disability compensation for medical conditions recently associated with
Agent Orange.  The expansion of coverage involves B-cell (or hairy-cell)
leukemia, Parkinson's disease and ischemic heart disease.

 

Shinseki said VA has launched a variety of initiatives - both
technological and involving better business practices - to tackle an
anticipated upsurge in Agent Orange-related claims.

 

"These initiatives show VA's ongoing resolve to modernize its processes
for handling claims through automation and improvements in doing
business, providing Veterans with faster and more accurate decisions on
their applications for benefits," Shinseki said.

 

Providing initial payments - or increases to existing payments - to the
200,000 Veterans who now qualify for disability compensation for these
three conditions is expected to take several months, but VA officials
encourage all Vietnam Veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange and
suffer from one of the three diseases to make sure their applications
have been submitted.

 

VA has offered Veterans exposed to Agent Orange special access to health
care since 1978, and priority medical care since 1981.  VA has been
providing disability compensation to Veterans with medical problems
related to Agent Orange since 1985.

 

In practical terms, Veterans who served in Vietnam during the war and
who have a "presumed" illness do not have to prove an association
between their illnesses and their military service.  This "presumption"
simplifies and speeds up the application process for benefits.

 

The three new illnesses - B-cell (or hairy-cell) leukemia, Parkinson's
disease and ischemic heart disease - are added to the list of presumed
illnesses previously recognized by VA.

 

Other recognized illnesses under VA's "presumption" rule for Agent
Orange are:

*         Acute and Subacute Transient Peripheral Neuropathy

*         Chloracne

*         Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

*         Diabetes Mellitus (Type 2)

*         Hodgkin's Disease

*         Multiple Myeloma

*         Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma

*         Porphyria Cutanea Tarda

*         Prostate Cancer

*         Respiratory Cancers

*         Soft Tissue Sarcoma (other than Osteosarcoma, Chondrosarcoma,
Kaposi's sarcoma, or Mesothelioma)

*         AL Amyloidosis

VA Backs 19 Million Home Loans

Home Loan Program Going Strong Despite Tight Market

WASHINGTON (Nov. 1, 2010)- With mortgage rates at historic lows,
Veterans and military personnel continue to use the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) home loan program in record numbers to purchase a
home or refinance their existing loans.



"Home ownership is one of the foundations of the American dream," said
Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. "VA is honored to
administer a benefit that for two-thirds of a century has profoundly
affected the lives of our Veterans, our military Servicemembers, and
their families."



Since the VA Home Loan program began in 1944 as part of the Montgomery
GI Bill, VA has helped Veterans by guaranteeing more than 19 million
home loans, valued at more than $1 trillion.  During the past four
years, the number of Veterans VA has helped purchase a home has risen by
63 percent.



VA's foreclosure rate for the last nine quarters and serious delinquency
rate for the last six quarters have been the lowest in the housing
industry, even when compared to prime loans, according to the Mortgage
Bankers Association's National Delinquency Survey.



In a time where other no-downpayment programs are virtually non-existent
and mortgage credit can be difficult to obtain, Veterans and
Servicemembers have an avenue to obtain financing and take advantage of
historically low rates through the VA home loan program.



Most Veterans, Servicemembers, Reservists and National Guard members, as
well as some surviving spouses, are eligible for the program, which
provides an opportunity for borrowers to qualify for no-downpayment home
loans as well as regular and interest-rate-reduction refinance home
loans.



VA-guaranteed home loans are made by banks and mortgage lenders, with VA
ensuring payment of a portion of the loan if the borrower fails to repay
the balance.



A unique aspect of VA's program is a commitment to help borrowers keep
their homes if they encounter financial difficulties.  During the past
decade, VA loan specialists have helped more than 150,000 families hold
onto their homes when threatened by foreclosure.



Shinseki attributed the "professionalism and savvy" of VA employees and
the "unshakeable sense of responsibility" among Veterans and military
personnel as key factors for maintaining a low foreclosure rate on
VA-backed home loans.



VA's loan specialists can intervene on a Veteran's behalf with the loan
servicer to explore home-retention options, including repayment plans,
loan modifications, and forbearance.  When home retention is not an
option, VA can help arrange a compromise sale or a deed-in-lieu of
foreclosure, both of which are less detrimental to borrowers than
foreclosure.