Vets Drive Yellow NYC is a new program that is helping former servicemembers get jobs as New York City taxi drivers in their life after service. 

According to NBC New York, the hiring initiative involves seven taxi garages, the owners of which are paying for the hackney licenses of returning soldiers in order to help ease their transition to civilian life. Having the owners purchase the licenses also speeds up the process, which can often be lengthy. 

AM New York explained that cab drivers are in high demand throughout the city, mostly due to the spike in popularity of ride sharing programs like Uber and Lyft. Since many soldiers are returning from war actively searching for ways to support themselves, matching them up with cab companies seems like a natural choice. 

Veterans can take advantage of the program by attaching their discharge papers to their driver applications. This will get them hiring preference so that they can immediately schedule the mandatory drug and driving tests and have their official licenses within a month. 

Garage owners are excited to take on former servicemembers, mostly because the skills they learned in the service translate well to the fast-paced life of NYC taxi driving. Not only are they a trustworthy and respectable pool of applicants, but many of them drove in combat situations. They are more than equipped to handle the often unpredictable streets of the Big Apple. Additionally, they hope passengers will return to using cabs in place of ride sharing apps once they know they will be helping to support veterans with every ride. 

Participating veterans have been pleased with their experiences so far. 

"It's a job where you do get to travel a lot and travel with a purpose. It's interacting with people from every single culture, every single place," veteran and taxi driver Peter Lloyd told AM New York. 

President Obama's administration is set to announce the creation of a panel that will be charged with determining ways the Veterans Affairs Department can better help soldiers in their life after service. 

Reuters reported that VA Secretary Robert McDonald will officially announce the details of a board at an event at the Phoenix VA facility. President Obama will also be there to unpack the details of how the panel will work and what the goals of this initiative are. Bloomberg explained that while he is in Phoenix, the president will meet with VA employees, veterans organizations and veterans to talk about the current strengths and weaknesses of the VA Department, and learn what they believe should be done to make improvements. 

The committee members have yet to be revealed, though Reuters noted that they will come from both the private and public sectors. Their combined experience runs the gamut from customer service to veteran advocacy. The group is comprised of not only health care professionals but also business moguls, academics and organization managers. The range of strengths and passions is intended to help ameliorate every facet of VA care.

Alfred Bettencourt, now 89, was recently recognized for service he did as an 18-year-old soldier fighting in World War II. The Cranston, Rhode Island, native was given a long-overdue Purple Heart Award, in addition to a Bronze Star Medal and World War II Victory Medal, for heroic actions he performed on Dec. 12, 1944, when he was wounded in combat, reported  Cranston Patch. 

According to Military Times, the recognition was severely delayed due to a 1973 fire that destroyed Bettencourt's military records. The former servicemember's family, along with local police and firefighters who had heard the soldier's story, partnered with U.S. Senator Jack Reed to recover these files.

Once they got the official word that Bettencourt would be able to receive the awards, his supporters planned a surprise event at the Morgan Health Center in Johnston, Rhode Island, where the vet resides in his life after service. Many local officials attended the ceremony, including Cranston's mayor Allan W. Fung, to show their respect for Bettencourt's immense sacrifices, noted Cranston Patch. 

"Alfred was just a teenager when he was wounded in combat. On behalf of a grateful nation, today we honor his service with a token of our enduring gratitude and respect," Senator Reed said as he gave the medals to Bettencourt. 

A historic lodge in Maine, formerly owned by cosmetics mogul Elizabeth Arden, will soon become a retreat location for veterans. 

The Associated Press reported that the home, located in Rome, Maine, was constructed by Arden as a summer home in the 1920s. She built an on-site spa and hosted many famous guests, including Judy Garland and Mamie Eisenhower. It was originally situated on 1,200 acres, but the source explained that the land was subdivided following Arden's passing in 1966. Last summer, the property was placed up for sale at $765,000. The Travis Mills Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to provide support to disabled soldiers in their life after service, bought the lodge on Tues., March 2. 

According to the Bangor Daily News, the organization was able to buy the building, along with 17 acres of land, for $460,000, since it requires significant repairs. The nonprofit plans to completely renovate the lodge, making it the country's first "smart" retreat center, meaning it will come equipped with state-of-the-art technology that will allow disabled veterans and their families to fully enjoy their stays. 

The Travis Mills Foundation plans to offer a number of activities to visitors at the Maine facility. Some of these include adaptive sports, spa treatments, fishing, boating, swimming and yoga. 

Veterans in St. Louis will now get hiring priority for city jobs. St. Louis Public Radio reported that Mayor Francis Slay recently signed the employment initiative into law in an effort to eradicate veteran joblessness. 

The priority will come in the form of five extra points on the city's civil service exam for former servicemembers. The source noted that disabled veterans will get an extra five points on top of that, for an additional 10 points. According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, voters approved the measure back in November. It was strongly supported and advocated for by Alderman Jeffrey Boyd, a veteran himself who wanted to ease the return to civilian life for local soldiers.

"Having served on active duty and returning home, I have first-hand experience of how difficult it can be when a soldier comes from active duty, matriculating back into the work-force in their hometown," he told St. Louis Public Radio. 

The legislature, dubbed the Veterans Preference Bill, aims to serve veterans in the same way they serve the country, by protecting and supporting them. Some of the positions that will be more accessible to honorably discharged members of the military who successfully pass the exam include working in the parks and recreation department, becoming firefighters or joining the police force. 

St. Louis Public Radio reported that the mayor hopes this initiative will not stop with local government. He told the source that he wants to encourage private employers throughout the city to implement similar hiring standards. Not only will they be helping the men and women who serve the U.S., he explained, but they will be bringing on staff members with important skills learned in the armed forces, like dedication, integrity and leadership. 

A group of injured veterans and supporters are currently cycling from Atlanta to New Orleans on a six-day, 470-mile bike ride in an effort to raise money and awareness for soldiers with both physical and mental disabilities. The Montgomery Advertiser reported that the funds raised by the ride will go toward rehabilitation programs, particularly those that use cycling as a form of therapy. 

Coming together for the health of veterans 
WTVM explained that for those participating, the ride is the experience of a lifetime. In addition to injured vets riding for their peers, the group of 200 cyclists is comprised of many active-duty soldiers. Many of them discovered cycling as a way to exercise their physical and mental injuries and want to help others do the same. 

"When I first found out about ride to recovery, I was still in the depressed mood of me being hurt, so I was trying to figure out what I can do to possibly get out on my own and what better way than ride 600, 400, 300 miles with a bunch of other wounded veterans," Eric Murray, a veteran with a foot injury, told WTVM. 

Vets tout cycling as an alternative therapy 
The Montgomery Advertiser explained that to help the participants prepare for the challenge, Ride 2 Recovery, sponsored by United Healthcare, assisted them by offering indoor spinning classes and long outdoor rides. It was during these training sessions that many of the veterans were able to view cycling as a form of mental and physical rehabilitation. 

For veteran Tim Brown, getting on a bike was more about clearing his head than building muscle. He is one of the former servicemembers riding for psychological health, and he points to cycling as a healthy way for him to manage his anger and depression. Many of the other soldiers participating are amputees, and one vet even praises cycling as a therapeutic way for her to deal with an injury that left her blind. 

Many of the disabled veterans cite the healthy exercise as an alternative to medicine or invasive treatments and want to spread the word about staying active. 

"I wish people knew how good cycling was. This is the best way to medicate yourself. If I wasn't doing this, I would probably be taking three or four pills, honestly," veteran Carmen Vega told the Montgomery Advertiser. 

A new study released by the American Heart Association revealed that female veterans seeking cardiac care from Veterans Affairs facilities tend to be much younger than their male counterparts. They are also more likely to be obese, depressed or experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder. 

Study explores the unique demographic in relation to cardiac disease 
The median age for female vets seeking care for heart issues was 57, while the median age for men with cardiac problems in their life after service is 63. This is interesting, noted the Minneapolis Star Tribune, since in the general population women tend to develop heart disease at older ages. Typical non-veteran women also tend to have a number of risk factors, such as hypertension and diabetes, contributing to their cardiac issues, while female veterans had far fewer risk factors. 

The study revealed that 55.3 percent of women with the health problem were also dealing with depression, compared to 31.4 percent of men. About 20 percent of them are also experiencing PTSD, versus 16 percent of men. The Star Tribune noted that these figures could be important for establishing a more solid connection between mental health and cardiac wellness, especially in soldiers. 

Female soldiers and the push toward better care 
Psych Central explained that this study was done largely because there have been few reports focusing solely on female veterans. As this demographic continues to expand, however, it is crucial that medical professionals know their unique health challenges so that they are better able to provide quality care. The source explained that women are typically underrepresented in heart health research in general, so many times physicians are unaware that female patients might show different symptoms or require different treatments than men. 

Within the veteran population, the number of women looking to obtain health care from VA hospitals has doubled in the past 10 years. The study was published in an issue of the AHA's journal, Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, in a section dedicated to taking a closer look at the way women experience heart disease. 

"In the future, if we really want to answer all the questions we have about gender differences, then we need studies that are large enough, focused enough, and with the intent from the start to illuminate the issues around sex differences," stated Harlan Krumholz, M.D., S.M., editor of the journal and director of the Center of Outcomes Research and Evaluation at Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Homegrown for Good, a startup company owned by brothers Tommy and Tim Gibb, is trying to teach veterans how to manufacture products and adapt their military-learned leadership skills to civilian managerial positions. And it is doing all this by making flip-flops. 

Forbes magazine reported that the Gibb brothers, who were raised by a father previously employed by shoe companies Nine West and Marc Fisher, are no strangers to the footwear industry. After spending time working in the field themselves, both became disillusioned with rising production costs and a shift toward outsourcing labor to China. In order to stay competitive while remaining domestic, the brothers decided to create flip-flops. A popular product that can also be manufactured inexpensively, it seemed like the perfect solution to their issues. 

After pooling their savings, establishing investors and taking out loans for the most cutting-edge technology on the market, the Gibbs opened their factory, which Forbes described as being more like an experimental laboratory, in New Rochelle, New York. As they were getting things off the ground, Tommy learned about Heroes in Transition, an organization that helps raise funds for veterans of recent wars. The organization works with those who served in Iraq and Afghanistan to help them get necessary home modifications for their disabilities, find local therapy for mental health issues, get paired with service dogs or simply help them support their families. 

Inspired by the group's mission, the brothers decided to start a veteran hiring initiative. Not only are they looking to employ soldiers in their life after service, but they are also looking to implement specific job training programs that would give these servicemembers managerial experience. Forbes explained that the Gibbs will have five vets working at Homegrown for Good by next month. 

When college student and photographer Devin Mitchell started to create a portfolio for graduate school applications, he was immediately drawn to snapping shots of military personnel. These are not traditional battlefield images or formal armed services portraits, however. Mitchell's pieces aim to capture veterans as they see themselves from both a personal and professional perspective in their life after service.  

The Huffington Post reported that the unique pictures feature two images, both shot by Mitchell and then pieced together. One picture features the veteran dressed in civilian clothing, looking in a mirror in his or her home. The picture looking back at him or her from the mirror is the soldier dressed in military garb. Mitchell's portraits are not only stunning because of their unique composition, but because he chose a wide variety of subjects to truly illustrate how diverse the veteran population is. 

The former servicemembers featured in Mitchell's images are supportive of the project, saying that it really gives them the opportunity to display their lives behind their uniform. 

"It's really giving back to us veterans in allowing us a chance to actually speak out and show who we are," Taralyn Goldman, one of the soldiers photographed by Mitchell, told ABC 7 News.

Many soldiers have difficulty returning to civilian life after spending time in the service, finding it hard to strike a balance between their former military life and new personal life. Additionally, a number of soldiers exit the service facing new obstacles, like mental and physical disabilities. Mitchell's photos shed light on all aspects of the veteran experience, featuring people dressed in traditional religious clothing, sporting prosthetic limbs and even showing off a mohawk hairdo. 

After receiving positive feedback from fans of his work and the veteran community, Mitchell has started raising money to compile his pieces into a book. 

A recent survey released by the Orange County Community Foundation revealed some of the financial, housing and health issues encountered by soldiers who call this California region home in their life after service. 

Work and education 
According to the report, servicemembers in this area encounter numerous obstacles as they transition back to civilian life. This is especially true for post-9/11 veterans – 61 percent of this demographic stated that they had difficulty making the switch, as opposed to only 30 percent of pre-9/11 soldiers. Much of this has to do with uncertainty – about 61 percent of these younger vets stated that one of the most challenging components of the transition was figuring out what they wanted to do with their lives. Finding work was a concern for both younger and older veterans. Almost 74 percent of post-9/11 veterans said they did not have a job upon leaving the service, while this statement was true for almost 70 percent of pre-9/11 soldiers. 

The Orange County Register explained that although job hunting was an obstacle faced by nearly all the veterans surveyed, many of them did not anticipate it to be such a large problem. While these vets acquired a number of transferable skills during their time in the military, like leadership, teamwork and organization, a significant portion of them lack the education to achieve full-time or high-paying jobs. Additionally, many of them felt that only being able to apply for jobs online was hurting their chances of securing work.

Health 
Medical care for both physical and mental disabilities has recently come to the forefront of veterans issues as the government looks to improve the quality of care offered through Veterans Affairs. While about 70 percent of veterans surveyed felt they were in good health, nearly 50 percent of them tested positive for some level of post-traumatic stress disorder. The majority of soldiers who took part in the report were without physical disabilities, but those who were cited their arms, legs and joints as bothering them the most. 

Housing 
Most Orange County veterans had somewhere to live upon leaving the service, explained the report, but significant portions of them did not. About 71 percent of pre-9/11 vets had secured housing for after their transition, while almost 65 percent of post-9/11 servicemembers had somewhere to live. The survey noted that many of the veterans who reported having housing were actually moving in to temporary situations with friends or family members as opposed to their own residences. 

Homeless rates for veterans in the area remained fairly low and were higher among pre-9/11 veterans. About 17.5 percent of this older demographic reported being homeless in the past 30 days, as opposed to 10.3 percent of pre-9/11 vets. 

"There were some gripping statistics from the study that echoes what we've seen in our work over the past couple of years," Shelly Hoss, president of the Orange County Community Foundation, told My News LA.