Now that Veterans Day has passed, it's important the country not forget that supporting military veterans is a year-round responsibility. Part of that is to ensure that veterans are employed when they return home. Thankfully, some major U.S. companies have made it their mission to hire those who served.
To affirm its commitment to veterans, Comcast established a new vice presidential position within their company dedicated to veteran employment and outreach. In a press release, Comcast stated that it would hire 10,000 veterans, reservists and their family members between now and 2017. They will find work in every facet of the company's business, from marketing to network engineering.
In 2013, Walmart pledged to hire 100,000 veterans within five years. Earlier this year, however, Walmart doubled-down on their pledge and amended their hiring target to 250,000 veterans by 2020. That is, by the Huffington Post's estimation, an admirable 107 percent of its natural hiring rate. Walmart's Greenlight a Vet campaign has also gained momentum.
Starbucks has recently expanded its educational benefits for veterans. In collaboration with Arizona State University, the coffee giant offers full tuition coverage to its veteran employees, their spouses or even one of their children as they pursue a bachelor's degree online, regardless of whether they are full- or part-time students. The Washington Post reported that their decision to extend the benefits came after many of their veteran employees, who already had degrees or were utilizing the GI Bill, requested that they be able to gift the benefits to family members.
Comcast, Walmart, Starbucks and companies like them are the primary catalysts behind increased veteran hiring. These companies are taking the lead, but they are only a few of the thousands nationwide who have realized the worth of employing former military members in their life after service.
Since close to the end of World War II, when the GI Bill was signed into law by President Franklin Roosevelt, Syracuse University has stood as a shining example of how universities should support veterans in their life after service. But their good reputation wasn't enough for Syracuse. A press release from the U.S. Army stated that when Kent Syverud became the school's chancellor and president last year, one of his first acts was to emphasize his commitment to military veterans. To make that commitment clear, he named Dr. Mike Haynie, an Air Force veteran, vice-chancellor.
Haynie's role is to coordinate the many veterans programs on campus. From the Institute for Veterans and Military Families, to the Air Force and Army ROTC units, to the university's renowned visual journalism course, in which 34 active-duty enlisted personnel are enrolled every year to learn the finer points of communications and photojournalism, there is a wide range of organizations aimed either in part or exclusively toward veterans.
"They take very, very good care of us," Lt. Col. Jason Warner, a professor of military science, told the U.S. Army's news service. "Our ROTC scholarships, for example, include full room and board, and both the cadets and veterans enjoy early registration."
Veterans Day is a very special occasion on campus. On Nov. 11, a Syracuse graduate student and former Marine served as master of ceremonies for school traditions like a Fun Run, according to TWC News, and Air Force Brig. General Michael Fantini served as keynote speaker for the school's main ceremony, which honored veterans of all ages. Nearby, an exhibition celebrated World War I soldier Lorimer Rich, a 1914 Syracuse graduate best known as the designer and architect of Arlington Cemetery's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
States and cities nationwide have already succeeded in putting a functional end to chronic veteran homelessness. Boston is on course to join cities like New Orleans and Houston by the end of 2015. According to the Huffington Post, in July 2014, when Boston pledged to participate in the Mayor's Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness, an initiative sponsored by First Lady Michelle Obama and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, there were 414 homeless veterans living on the city's streets. Since then, 484 homeless veterans have received housing.
A Veterans Day press release issued by Mayor Martin Walsh's office announced that a $200,000 endowment from the Brighton Marine Health Center would greatly assist with the mayor's goal of securing each man and woman struggling in their life after service a stable residence. The money will go toward the Homeless Veterans Housing Fund, which subsidizes the one-time fees that can hold up the housing process, such as security deposits, outstanding utility debt and rental application fees. Veterans with be funded up to $2,000 to meet those costs.
"No one who has served our country should be homeless – and in Boston, we're committed to giving our veterans the resources they need to succeed," said Mayor Walsh. "The Homeless Veterans Housing Fund is an integral tool to support our fight to end homelessness among our veterans."
Boston looks to be on track to meet its goal. When the initiative began last year, 50 percent of homeless veterans left shelter in under six months. Now that number stands at 70 percent. Additional veterans have begun to use the city's system, but hundreds of volunteers going door-to-door all over Boston are dedicated to ensuring that veterans have not only our appreciation, but the health and financial resources they are due.
It's that time of year. Everyone has packed away their Halloween costumes and candy in favor of autumn wreaths and various Winter Solstice decorations. Television networks have begun to air advertisements for Christmas sales, festive music fills the shopping malls and people seem to be in an overall merrier mood. The holiday season is a time of joy for most people as families come together to celebrate. Yet, for military families, the holidays can be a challenging time. Deployments can keep even the closest of families apart when they really want to be together. Take a look at a few ways to make the holidays a little brighter when your loved one is away at service.
Invite other military families to celebrate with you
Yours is not the only family missing someone. Try to contact other military families in your area with a loved one deployed. You can invite them to your home for a large holiday celebration. This can help prevent loneliness and make the holiday extra special for everyone involved. If you are feeling really ambitious, you could arrange a group celebration on the nearest military base, where many families could spend the holidays together.
Try to schedule a video chat session near major holidays
If possible, arrange a time to video chat with your deployed loved one on or near the holiday. Not only will this brighten up your servicemember's day, it will bring a little more joy into your own celebration. Remember that your servicemember may not be able to talk on the exact date of the holiday, so try to plan ahead as much as possible.
Send your servicemember a piece of the celebration
While it is not possible to send your loved one a whole turkey or a Christmas tree, you can still send him or her a small part of the celebration. In your holiday care package, you could include the servicemember's favorite ornament or a picture of the family taken during the Thanksgiving meal. Your loved one will feel like he or she was a part of the gathering, even if there is a large distance separating them from you.
Invite other servicemembers to share in the celebration
Your deployed servicemember would be proud if you opened your home to other local servicemembers who may not have a family to celebrate the holidays with. Contact your local VA or VFW post to inquire about Adopt-a-Vet programs. They can tell you how to arrange for a veteran to celebrate the holidays with you and your family. There are also many Adopt-a-Soldier programs that will put you in contact with a local servicemember looking for a place to spend the holidays. Click here for more information on these programs.
The holidays should be a source of happiness for everyone. Deployment does not have to put a damper on things. By following the above suggestions, you can help make the season just as merry as if your loved one were still here.
Timothy Marsh, a veteran of the first Gulf War, still wasn't totally at ease with his recent relocation to Oregon when he got lost and ran out of gas while driving through the state's heavily forested coast on Saturday, Nov. 7. Marsh had been on his way to a family member's home, his 12-year-old golden retriever Rusty tagging along in the passenger seat, when he began to feel disoriented. Within moments he had blacked out.
"I had some sort of medical issue. I didn't take my medicine," Marsh told Katu.com, a local news site. When Marsh woke up, his truck's fuel gauge read empty and he found himself stranded on a hillside somewhere in a forest he knew little about. There was nothing to drink, and nothing to eat besides a can of Rusty's dog food.
Marsh's family soon reported him missing, according to Reuters, and the local search and rescue teams set out looking for him. Meanwhile, Marsh was trying desperately to attract attention. He used sticks to create help signs and left notes where he could. As the days went by, he survived by drinking puddles of rain water and splitting dog food between Rusty and himself. But the situation was getting desperate. Marsh told Katu.com that he didn't expect to live through another night among the wet, frigid trees.
On the fourth day though, a man out hunting nearby heard Marsh's shouts for help. The man, also a veteran, contacted the county sheriff as quickly as he could. Within two hours, the search and rescue team had found Marsh and Rusty. They were cold and disoriented, but they were alive.
Marsh was released from the hospital on Veterans Day.
Data released by the National Health Interview Survey on Veterans Day had good news for everyone who has served in uniform: the number of veterans without health insurance declined rapidly in the last few years. The survey, conducted by the Urban Institute, found that uninsured status among non-elderly veterans dropped from 12 percent in 2013 to 8.6 percent in 2014. This is the first published research on how the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has affected veterans.
The institute's prior research discovered in 2010, before the ACA's coverage provisions were implemented, that more than 1 million non-elderly veterans lacked health insurance. When compared to former military members with veterans insurance, uninsured veterans reported that they had much less access to the kinds of health care required to treat a variety of mental and physical ailments.
This month marks the start of the third ACA open enrollment period, and it appears veterans are taking advantage of the new ACA and Medicaid coverage options open to them, as well as the choice of additional enrollment in military insurance plans available from the Department of Veterans Affairs. Since the ACA went into effect, more than 16 million previously uninsured Americans have received coverage, according to the Washington Post, while costing $142 billion less than the Congressional Budget Office expected.
Until the Urban Institute released their survey, it wasn't yet known if the number of uninsured veterans would follow the same pattern as that of the general population. Now it's obvious that improvements have been made. But there is still more to do. In 2014, 1 in 11 veterans still reported they were uninsured. The institute noted that if more states expand their Medicaid programs the number will continue to decline significantly, but in the meantime, insurance for veterans continues to be a work in progress.
At a ceremony in the East Room of the White House on Thursday, President Obama awarded Capt. Florent A. Groberg the Congressional Medal of Honor. In Afghanistan in Aug. 2012, Capt. Groberg was serving as the head of a personal security detachment in the Fourth Infantry Division when the group of senior commanders he was escorting on foot through Kunar Province was approached by an individual with his back turned to the group.
Capt. Groberg's Medal of Honor citation states that the man made a sudden turn towards their formation, a suspicious bulge visible beneath his dark clothes. Rushing the man without any regard for his own safety, the captain confirmed that the bulge was a suicide vest. He selflessly tackled the bomber down and away from the security detail. Upon hitting the ground, the bomber's dead man switch detonated the vest, killing four of Capt. Groberg's fellow soldiers and wounding him desperately. The explosion triggered a second bomber's vest nearby, but it did little damage.
The citation credits Capt. Groberg's heroism with minimizing the severity of the coordinated suicide attack. He saved the lives of many of his comrades and senior leaders. The New York Times reported that the extent of the injuries to his legs, which required 33 surgeries over three years, did not keep the captain from standing at attention while his president awarded him our country's greatest commendation.
"A day after Veterans Day, we honor this American veteran whose story – like so many of our vets and wounded warriors – speaks not only of gallantry on the battlefield, but resilience here at home," said Obama. Capt. Groberg retired from the Army earlier this year. Even in his life after military service, he has chosen to continue to serve, now as a civilian in the Department of Defense.
On Nov. 12, Marine Corps veteran Guy Valentino broke the Guinness World Record for most pull-ups in 24-hours. According to ABC 7 News, Valentino decided to attempt the feat to draw attention to Veterans Operation Wellness, an organization that encourages veterans to use fitness as a method of healing from mental and physical combat-related injuries.
"Each pull-up is for that one Marine, that one sailor, that one solider that feels like they don't have a voice or that is suffering from PTSD or suicidal thoughts," Valentino told People Magazine.
People Magazine wrote that Valentino began his pull-ups at 9 a.m. on Nov. 11 and was cut off by Guinness World Record officials at 9 am. on Nov. 12.
In 24 hours, Valentino finished 5,862 pull-ups, which beat the previous record by 61 pull-ups. Hundreds of veterans gathered in Times Square in New York City as part of America's Parade celebration and many of them cheered the 37-year-old Valentino on as he worked to beat the record, reported ABC News 7.
Valentino told the news source that he was going to celebrate his victory by getting acupuncture and a massage for his sore muscles.
At Arlington National Cemetery on Nov. 11, President Obama laid a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. During this Veterans Day ceremony, he also spoke on veterans issues. The president talked about the "new generation of veterans," the former servicemembers coming out of America's longest period of active combat. Though he made sure to outline the positive progress made for veterans, he made it clear he was still unsatisfied.
"We have made historic investments to boost the VA budget, expand benefits, offer more mental health care and improved care for our wounded warriors, especially those with post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury," Obama said in his speech.
Obama said there was much work to be done in the Department of Veterans Affairs, according to the New York Post. The president noted that moving forward, the administration would focus on veteran employment and homelessness. He also voiced a plan to focus on lowering the veterans suicide rate. Stars and Stripes also reported that Obama made a comment about bringing more troops home in the coming months.
The overall tone of the address was positive, but the president made it clear that there was much room for improvement.
Seth Jordan is no ordinary brewer. A veteran of multiple combat tours with the U.S. Marine Corps, Jordan is the founder of Dog Tag Brewing Co., a non-profit run by veterans that, in a drive to expand awareness of those who lost their lives defending this country, displays the story of a fallen warrior on every beer can. All the proceeds are donated to remembrance organizations chosen by the families of the servicemen and women featured on the cans.
"It's to make sure that the folks we lost are never forgotten," Jordan told USA Today. "And it's about celebrating their lives rather than focusing on their death."
Since it first launched, Dog Tag has expanded from featuring only a few families on its cans to more than 600. Jordan insists on speaking with every family that requests their loved one's story be told so as to truly understand what they were like not only as warriors, but as people.
So far the brewing company has proved a major success. Dog Tag's first runs of its India pale ale and pilsner are already depleted. Jordan said that he is in the process of talking with a major distributor to extend Dog Tag's reach nationwide. "Random Americans will be in a position to learn about people's loved ones," he told the paper. "And the families enjoy that."
Dog Tag isn't the only veteran-run brewery achieving success. Veteran Beer Co., which started up in Cold Spring, Minnesota two years ago, is a brewery run by Paul Jenkins, a disabled Navy veteran. Jenkins doesn't drink, he told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, but he wanted to create jobs for veterans and thought crafting beer was an excellent way to do it.
Jenkins hopes to employ 3,500 veterans in regional breweries by 2017. For men and women who love beer and are looking for unique work in their life after service, veteran breweries are worth a toast or two.