Tag Archives: Post 9/11

Veterans unemployment rate continues to fall

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By Riley Johnson, News21

The overall employment picture for post-9/11 veterans continued to improve as the unemployment rate fell for the fifth consecutive month, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Friday.

At 7.2 percent, the June unemployment rate for post-9/11 veterans dropped one-tenth of a percentage point from May.

Unemployment was higher, however, among women than men in June and highest yet among the youngest veterans, those 24 and under. Among that group of post-9/11 veterans, unemployment continues to hover above the non-veteran rate by four percentage points at 20.5 percent.

Art Burrola, program director at the Kino Veterans’ Workforce Center in Tucson, Ariz., said he has seen employment improve for younger veterans lately.

The center serves more than 200 veterans a month, Burrola said, about 40 percent of whom are post-9/11 veterans. More employers are hiring veterans, Burrola said, and he thinks national efforts to reduce veteran unemployment are working.

“It’s good for vets,” he said of the veteran employment situation. “It’s never going to be perfect for anybody.”

The five months mark the longest streak since the bureau started collecting data on veterans whose service in Iraq and Afghanistan came after 2001.

Overall, the economy grew by 195,000 jobs as unemployment held steady at 7.6 percent, the BLS reported.

What We’re Reading: Week 7

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By Chad Garland, News21

Texas Monthly's July 2013 cover story is a photo essay about soldiers returning home from war.

Texas Monthly’s July 2013 cover story is a photo essay about soldiers returning home from war.

What We’re Reading:

The Call of Battle (Matt Cook, 7/2013, Texas Monthly) After two Iraq deployments, Matt Cook left the Army in 2006. He found success writing and making films, where he “mined” his memories — some that haunted him, some that slipped away. Eventually, he no longer recognized himself as a soldier, and that’s when he felt the need to return, “to feed on the pain of war again.” In November 2012, he embedded with his old unit, then in Afghanistan.

4th of July Fireworks a Nightmare for Shell-Shocked War Veterans (Susan Donaldson James, 7/3, ABC News) On the eve of Independence Day, some veterans are looking for alternatives to the customary fireworks displays. Startling noises, such as fireworks, can be a trigger for veterans who served in combat zones where frequent mortar shelling, gunfire and other explosions ingrained second-nature reactions or traumatic memories.

Troops still wary of admitting mental health problems (Gregg Zoroya, 7/3, USAToday) A confidential survey of troops in Afghanistan last year reveals that nearly half of Army troops and 60 percent of Marines who reported psychological problems feel they would be seen as weak if they sought help. A review of previous versions of the survey shows these attitudes have changed little since the first was conducted in 2003.

Former U.S. Marine and amputee brings the heat as rising underwear and fitness model (Nina Golgowski, 6/18, New York Daily News) Alex Minsky, a 24-year-old Marine Corps veteran who lost his right leg below the knee in an explosion in 2009, turned to alcohol to cope with the challenge of recovery. When he finally went sober, he was discovered in a Southern California gym just two days later, launching his career as a fitness and underwear model.

The Rock ‘n’ Roll Casualty Who Became a War Hero (Clay Tarver, 7/2, The New York Times) Before he joined the Army, before he became a member of the elite U.S. Army Special Forces, before he fought the Taliban in Afghanistan, Jason Everman was in a rock band. In fact, he was in two. They just happen to be Nirvana and Soundgarden, two of the most well-known alternative rock groups from the 1990s era grunge movement, and Everman just happens to be the one guy who was kicked out of both.

Army vehicles add seatbelts

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By Bonnie Campo, News21

The Heavy Recovery Vehicles that soldiers steer into battle are getting retrofitted to increase safety against the high threat of improvised explosive devices. At Fort Bliss, Texas, for example, the U.S. M88A2, M1A2 Abrams and the M2A3 Bradley already have gotten seatbelts that resemble harnesses instead of traditional lap belts.

Felix Mendoza, logistics management specialist, and his crew work on the combat vehicles. Seatbelt modifications prevent soldiers from being bumped around when under attack, he said.

“We inspect the vehicles here, send them off and they get taken apart piece by piece, apply the modifications and then we get them back for a final inspection,” he said.

Mendoza’s team at Ft. Bliss also will begin placing aircraft materials to the HRVs to make them more secure, he said. Those changes include intricate suspension systems to absorb shock from the floor and Kevlar blankets to prevent cabin fires.

Mendoza knows how valuable the alterations can be. He was deployed twice to Iraq, for about a year each and now is a civilian employee at Fort Bliss. Mendoza served from January 1981 to January 2007. He was a New Equipment Training Team Instructor and a drill sergeant at Fort Knox, Ky.; a battalion motor sergeant at Fort Carson, Colo.; a First Sergeant in South Korea, and a task force motor sergeant in Iraq.

He retired as a master sergeant, but his workload hasn’t changed since he returned home.

Mendoza worked on combat vehicles in Iraq too, but said there was one difference: guns and mortar fire. It was a powerful reminder to him that soldiers leave their homes with a strong connection to their country, but in life and death situations, there is only one-thing men and women in uniform fight for — each other.

As he sat inside one of the Bradleys, Mendoza’s voice changed.

“Soldiers fight for their buddy, the guy sitting right here next to them,” he said.

He has reached retirement, but Mendoza continues to serve those willing to die for America.

“I got a call from a guy I went to basic with. He said he needed someone who could work on vehicles and speak Spanish. Well that was me,” Mendoza said.

He said that the companionship shared between those who serve now and served before will always be life long.

His active duty service has ended, but Mendoza still considers his job of retrofitting fighting vehicles a duty that allows him to continue to protect the lives of American warriors.

Calls to veteran suicide crisis line increasing

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By Jeff Hargarten, News21

The Veterans Crisis Line, managed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, has experienced steady increases in calls, texts and chat sessions from former soldiers struggling with suicidal thoughts since its launch. Counselors have answered about 840,000 calls since the crisis line started in 2007, according to VA statistics.

Online chat sessions since 2009, and text messages since last year, also have increased.

“The phone has not stopped ringing,” said Jan Kemp, the VA national suicide prevention coordinator and program manager of the crisis line.

Crisis counselors fielded 9,379 calls in the first year. Each year the call volume has increased, reaching a high of 193,507 calls in fiscal year 2012. Through April 2013, more than 151,000 callers have asked for help. Chat sessions leaped from 864 in fiscal year 2009 to about 45,000 in 2012. Text messages also have exceeded 4,300 in this fiscal year, up from 3,800 last year.

Veterans Crisis Line Call Volume 2007 - April 2013

Kemp was skeptical that veterans would call the crisis line, she said. Now 800 to 1,000 calls daily reach the crisis line, she said, along with chats and texts.

A 2012 VA report found 19 percent of callers to the VCL call more than once per month and that most callers are male aged between 50 and 59. Also, the percentage of those thinking of suicide when calling the VCL has decreased, as have calls resulting in rescues from suicide attempts.

Initially calling it the Veteran Suicide Hotline, the VA found that veterans were less likely to call if they weren’t feeling imminently suicidal. The name was changed and that made a “huge difference” in the number of veterans using the line, Kemp said.

The line isn’t merely for those with suicidal feelings, but those experiencing any kind of crisis, Kemp said, to help head off possible future suicidal tendencies.

There are nearly 21.5 million veterans in the United States, according to the 2011 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. The VA estimates 22 veterans die by suicide each day, according to a 2012 report. But officials said that rising suicide rates don’t indicate that the VCL is ineffective.

“We have to ask: what would the suicide rate be if we weren’t doing these programs? It seems like it might be worse,” said Craig Bryan, associate director of the National Center for Veterans Studies at the University of Utah.

The VA also started Make the Connection, a campaign that includes a website with information on common mental health symptoms and conditions, links to screening resources and a video series where veterans talk about their personal struggles.

The Veterans Crisis Line can be reached online or by calling 800-273-8255.

Camp helps veterans cope with PTSD

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By Chase Cook, News21

Matthew XXXXX smokes cigarettes with Jaydee Faulkner at their interim house on June 25th, which is part of the PTSD Foundation of America's Camp Hope in Houston, Texas. The camp offers housing for struggling veterans, like Faulkner who suffers from post-traumatic stress brought on by his service in the Army. (Photo by Chase Cook, News21)

Matthew Marshall smokes cigarettes with Jaydee Faulkner at their interim house on June 25th, which is part of the PTSD Foundation of America’s Camp Hope in Houston, Texas. The camp offers housing for struggling veterans, like Faulkner who suffers from post-traumatic stress brought on by his service in the Army. (Photo by Chase Cook, News21)

If it weren’t for Camp Hope, Jaydee Faulkner would be dead.

“I would have killed myself,” the Army veteran said.

After Faulkner came home from duty in Iraq, he battled with post-traumatic stress disorder. The only emotions he could feel were anger and depression, Faulkner said, and he knew that needed help after he lashed out and struck his wife.

He discovered the PTSD Foundation of America Camp Hope in Houston, Texas. The organization places struggling veterans in transitional housing so they can focus on recovery. Transition can last up to six months, depending on veterans’ needs. The PTSD Foundation also places veterans in support groups and offers faith-based services.

Faulkner has been at Camp Hope for six weeks and said he is improving. His wife and daughter joined him two weeks ago.

Faulkner’s progress and successes by others have motivated Camp Hope officials to double the number of veterans they can house, increasing to 16 by fall 2013. Two more homes are being built to support four people or a family, Retired Lt. Col. Ann Marie LaRoque said.

One of the homes will be available for female veterans as the need arises, LaRoque said.

Each veteran in an interim home gets a single room and shares a living room and kitchen with other residents. They may personalize their space, and some do, with drawings done by their children, for example.

Housing is granted according to when a veteran arrives and the level of need evident.

“There are people we turn away right now because there aren’t enough beds,” LaRoque said. “We can get people into the support groups, but with the current infrastructure we can’t house anyone else.”

Having veterans live at Camp Hope, where they have access to other veteran workers or residents is paramount to their recovery, Executive Director David Maulsby said.

“Civilians have no idea what they have gone through,” he said.

After the two new homes are built in the fall, LaRoque said, attention will shift to construction plans next year for a building that would house 23 veterans, expanding the potential number of residents to 39.

What We’re Reading: Week 6

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By Chad Garland, News21

What We’re Reading:

Navy uniforms are flammable, and military knows it (Dianna Cahn, 1/9, The Virginian-Pilot) The Navy’s standard-issue working uniform is not flame-resistant and “when subjected to a flame, it will burn robustly until completely consumed,” according to Navy findings released in December. A Navy spokesman said the service knew about this when designing the uniform, but had no requirement for a fire-retardant uniform. A Navy Times editorial estimates that phasing in a flame-resistant uniform could carry a $20 million price tag.

Can Service Save Us? (Joe Klein, 6/20, Time) Several service-based veterans groups are helping veterans find a sense of purpose in civilian life after returning from war. Organizations like Mission Continues and Team Rubicon give veterans an opportunity to apply their unique skills and experience toward improving communities through volunteer service and disaster relief.

“I Am Sorry That It Has Come To This”: A Soldier’s Last Words (Daniel Somers, 6/22, Gawker) Daniel Somers’ suicide letter describes his struggle with the trauma he brought home from war in Iraq, including PTSD and traumatic brain injury. Somers was a machine gunner in the turret of a Humvee on as many as 400 combat missions in Iraq in 2004-2005. He was 30 years old when he took his own life on June 10, 2013.

Veterans key to medical marijuana lobby efforts (Sophia Tareen, 6/21, Associated Press) Illinois Governor Pat Quinn faces a decision whether to sign legislation to legalize medical marijuana in the state. The Democratic governor has placed veterans’ issues at the top of his agenda and veterans lobbying for medical marijuana legalization may sway his decision.

In Debate Over Military Sexual Assault, Men Are Overlooked Victims (James Dao, 6/23, The New York Times) As the Pentagon, Congress and even the White House grapple with the problem of sexual assault in the military, one aspect that has been largely overlooked is the fact that the majority of victims are men. Of the estimated 26,000 service members who experienced unwanted sexual contact in 2012, 53 percent are men, according to the Pentagon.

Facebook page memorializes suicide victims

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By Chase Cook, News21

Mike Purcell is searching for 36,135 faces. He has found 2,109.

“Putting a Face on Suicide,” is a Facebook page that Purcell hopes will break the stigma surrounding suicide. The page features albums of 99 faces and allows family members and surviving families to grieve and remember together.

“You need to have some sort of remembrance of you,” Purcell said. “There is no shame in suicide…I didn’t want anyone not to be remembered.”

Purcell started the site after his son, Christopher Purcell, 21, died by suicide in 2008. Christopher was in the Navy and stationed in New Brunswick, Maine.

More active duty military died by suicide in 2012 than those killed in Afghanistan, according to the U.S. Department of Defense. An estimated 22 veterans die by suicide daily, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Nobody wants to talk about suicide, Purcell said, especially in the military where members are taught to “suck it up and move on.”

The Facebook page is full of activity, with families posting small memorials after someone dies or on the suicide victim’s birthday.

Albums posted sometimes have themes, such as the military tribute. The album shows veterans and active duty military personnel who died by suicide. Some photos are accompanied by notes from loved ones.

Karen Heisig submitted a photo of her husband, Maurice Heisig, who died by suicide in 2006. “Mo,” she called him, had left the service to take care of his ailing father.

“If someone had suggested that Mo would end his life, they’d have been laughed out of the room, despite the fact that his younger brother died by suicide in 1999,” Heisig posted on Facebook.

Purcell plans to continue running the Facebook page until he gathers all 36,135 faces, which means one album of 99 portraits for each day of the year. However, the site is on day 22 and has been active since January 2011. Purcell said he might have gone overboard, but running the site has its own rewards.

“Every day I get some sort of nice email from one of the families saying how much comfort and how helpful our website has been to them in their recovering from their grief,” Purcell said.

“It has been part of my healing to help these other families.”

Click here if you want to submit a photo to the Facebook page.

Advocacy group shares stories from veterans in claims backlog

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By Daniel Moore, News21

Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America on June 20 launched an  interactive database that shares the personal experiences of more than 1,700 post-9/11 veterans who are waiting — some for more than 10 years — on their disability claim to be processed.

The New York-based veteran advocacy group collected information from their members with a survey asking details about their claim, disabilities, wait time and how that wait has affected them emotionally and financially. Using the interactive, titled “The Wait We Carry,” the public can view each veteran’s response sorted by a variety of metrics, including location.

The public also may send messages to veterans to learn more of their story. Messages are sent to IAVA, which double checks with the veteran to make sure they are still open to speaking publicly.

Aminatou Sow, IAVA director of digital engagement, said the project is designed to “put a face to the big scary numbers” of the much-reported backlog of claims at VA regional offices by reaching out to all communities.

“One thing that we hear a lot from veterans is how they don’t feel heard specifically,” Sow said. “It’s one thing to say half a million people are still waiting for benefits, but the point of digital storytelling that the individual data points are as important as the aggregate.”

IAVA worked with Periscopic, an information design firm, and used a grant from the Knight Foundation to create the interactive.

What We’re Reading: Week 5

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By Rachel Leingang, News21

A Loan Program for Veterans Comes Wrapped in Red Tape (Elizabeth Harris, 6/10, New York Times): More than 200,000 veterans live in New York City, but only 266 Veterans Affairs home loans were made in the city last year. One couple searching for a home loan finds the VA loan options to be burdensome for New York City properties.

Deployment to war doesn’t figure in majority of military suicides (Alan Zarembo, 6/15, Los Angeles Times): Most military suicides are committed by soldiers who never deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, according to data from the Pentagon. The LA Times looked into some possible causes of the high suicide rate through the stories of five servicemembers.

What is the military-civilian divide to you? (Leo Shane III, 6/19, Stars and Stripes): Throughout our reporting, we’ve heard from veterans who cite a lack of understanding and cultural divide between military members and families and civilians. Stars and Stripes asked its readers what that divide means in their lives and what civilians should know about them and their service.

Elite Units in U.S. Military to Admit Women (Jennifer Steinhauer, 6/17, New York Times): The Pentagon announced Tuesday that women will be allowed to train as Navy SEALs, Army Rangers and Marine infantry members, among others. The branches each can decide how to integrate women into their ranks, but must ask for exemptions when they decide women can’t do a particular position.

Deadline passes for VA claims open more than two years

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By Daniel Moore, News21

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs still has compensation and pension claims that are more than two years old, according to data from some regional offices, meaning that the agency missed the self-imposed deadline to clear all two-year-old claims by June 18.

Allison Hickey, the VA Undersecretary for Benefits, sent a letter in April to all 57 regional offices, instructing all claims workers and “as many (others) as needed” to focus on finishing all such claims within 60 days. She also asked all claims pending for more than a year to be cleared within six months.

As of June 19 the VA did not have numbers, but spokeswoman Meagan Lutz said the agency would have a progress report by the end of the week.

Jason Dominguez, assistant director at the Ohio Department of Veteran Services, said the Cleveland regional office, which handles all Ohio claims, started with 3,114 and has 238 left to process.

“Those mainly need medical evidence,” Dominguez said, adding that Cleveland also has been working on 1,560 additional claims sent from other offices with higher backlogs.

Of those claims that were “brokered” as part of Hickey’s deadline, 150 remain to be processed.

A claims processor at the Columbia, S.C., regional office reported her office had cleared the two-year-old claims.

“Once you got the go-ahead to clear something … I don’t know how you couldn’t get them cleared,” she said.