An important program launched by companies in the information technology (IT) industry to educate, train, certify and provide job placement assistance for returning veterans. Military who successfully complete the Creating Futures program will have the knowledge and skill level they need to start a rewarding career in IT.
Creating Futures is free for all participants. The cost is covered by organizational sponsors such as HP, Xerox and Ricoh.
The Creating Futures program is tailored to help individuals with various levels of skill. Individuals who have honed their computer skills in the military will be taught how to transfer those skills to civilian life, and those who are new to IT will be taught the basic skills they need to pursue a career in information technology.
Returning veterans interested in participating in the program should visit www.creatingfutures.us for information on how to participate
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Utah Soldiers to be Awarded with Military Service Stars
Utah soldiers to be awarded with military service stars
June 19th, 2008 @ 8:34am KSL.com
DRAPER, Utah (AP) -- Two Utah National Guard soldiers will be decorated for their bravery and service in Afghanistan at a ceremony in Draper Thursday.
First Lt. Tyler J. Jensen of the 19th Special Forces Group will get the Silver Star for protecting a wounded fellow soldier during a firefight on Jan. 27, 2007.
The Provo soldier is the first Utah guardsman to get the Silver Star in 20 years. The medal is awarded for acts of "gallantry in action."
Capt. Chad Pledger, of North Ogden, will get the Bronze Star for recovering the body of a solider killed during a firefight Nov. 26, 2006 near the Tarin Kowt village in the Uruzgan province.
The Bronze Star is awarded for "heroic or meritorious achievements or service
June 19th, 2008 @ 8:34am KSL.com
DRAPER, Utah (AP) -- Two Utah National Guard soldiers will be decorated for their bravery and service in Afghanistan at a ceremony in Draper Thursday.
First Lt. Tyler J. Jensen of the 19th Special Forces Group will get the Silver Star for protecting a wounded fellow soldier during a firefight on Jan. 27, 2007.
The Provo soldier is the first Utah guardsman to get the Silver Star in 20 years. The medal is awarded for acts of "gallantry in action."
Capt. Chad Pledger, of North Ogden, will get the Bronze Star for recovering the body of a solider killed during a firefight Nov. 26, 2006 near the Tarin Kowt village in the Uruzgan province.
The Bronze Star is awarded for "heroic or meritorious achievements or service
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
1-145th Returns from Iraq
About 130 members of the 1-145th return from Iraq
May 28th, 2008 @ 4:14pm
Jed Boal reporting
President Bush was not the only important arrival today at the Utah Air National Guard Base. Approximately 130 Utah National Guard soldiers touched down after a tour of duty in Iraq.
For the families of the soldiers of the First Battalion, 145th Field Artillery (1-145th), the most important planes touched down before the President arrived in Utah. They saw their loved ones for the first time in about a year. As you might expect, soldiers at the homecoming told us they were overwhelmed but proud of their service.
These soldiers are the second and third groups of four to return to Utah from the 1-145th. About 80 of their comrades got home Memorial Day and another 80 will get back to Utah late tomorrow night.
These soldiers come from Logan, Brigham City, Manti, Spanish Fork and Fillmore. It was the second deployment for some of them.
While in Iraq, they handled military-police duties at Camp Bucca, one of the largest Coalition detention facilities in Iraq. A member from the 1-145th said, "It was a long, hard job but we got it done, and I'm glad to be home with wonderful people."
A family member said, "It's so awesome. I can't even describe it. I'm so proud of all the service people."
The last 80 members of the unit get home tomorrow night at 11:30. Some families waiting on those soldiers are upset about their late arrival. A spokesman for the Utah National Guard says the soldiers' return depends upon the time they got back to the states for demobilization at Fort Bliss, Texas.
As for the late flight, that's a bid process that is out of the control of the Utah National Guard.
E-mail: jboal@ksl.com
May 28th, 2008 @ 4:14pm
Jed Boal reporting
President Bush was not the only important arrival today at the Utah Air National Guard Base. Approximately 130 Utah National Guard soldiers touched down after a tour of duty in Iraq.
For the families of the soldiers of the First Battalion, 145th Field Artillery (1-145th), the most important planes touched down before the President arrived in Utah. They saw their loved ones for the first time in about a year. As you might expect, soldiers at the homecoming told us they were overwhelmed but proud of their service.
These soldiers are the second and third groups of four to return to Utah from the 1-145th. About 80 of their comrades got home Memorial Day and another 80 will get back to Utah late tomorrow night.
These soldiers come from Logan, Brigham City, Manti, Spanish Fork and Fillmore. It was the second deployment for some of them.
While in Iraq, they handled military-police duties at Camp Bucca, one of the largest Coalition detention facilities in Iraq. A member from the 1-145th said, "It was a long, hard job but we got it done, and I'm glad to be home with wonderful people."
A family member said, "It's so awesome. I can't even describe it. I'm so proud of all the service people."
The last 80 members of the unit get home tomorrow night at 11:30. Some families waiting on those soldiers are upset about their late arrival. A spokesman for the Utah National Guard says the soldiers' return depends upon the time they got back to the states for demobilization at Fort Bliss, Texas.
As for the late flight, that's a bid process that is out of the control of the Utah National Guard.
E-mail: jboal@ksl.com
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Family of Utah Soldier Killed Sending Humanitarian Goods to Iraq
KSL.com
April 8th, 2008 @ 4:32pm
Sam Penrod reporting
The family of a Utah solider killed in Iraq last summer is trying keep his memory alive. Instead of forgetting the people he was trying to protect, they collected humanitarian goods and sent them to Iraq.
Sgt. Barnes died on July 17, 2007 from small arms fire in Iraq. His family immediately wanted to help the children of Iraq in his memory. With help from the community of American Fork and the state of Utah, including Operation Give, they collected items such as food, toys, clothing, school supplies, hygiene items and even wheelchairs.
The donated items were loaded into a 40-foot-long shipping container. After several weeks, that container has finally arrived in Iraq. Now soldiers are distributing the goods to the Iraqis, and it is bringing his family comfort months after his death.
"We're very grateful that all of this has been done, and been done to honor Nathan. He truly was a wonderful individual. I don't say that just because I'm his dad, but it's gratifying to see some good has come out of what, for us, is a very personal tragedy, and we're still very close to that tragedy. But it is good to see that other people's lives are being blessed because of him and his service and sacrifice," Sgt. Barnes' father, Kevin Barnes, said.
Also included in the delivery were some footballs, soccer balls and Frisbees. Apparently the Frisbees were something the Iraqi children had never seen before.
Family members say they want to thank everyone who helped contribute to the project in Nathan's honor.
E-mail: spenrod@ksl.com
April 8th, 2008 @ 4:32pm
Sam Penrod reporting
The family of a Utah solider killed in Iraq last summer is trying keep his memory alive. Instead of forgetting the people he was trying to protect, they collected humanitarian goods and sent them to Iraq.
Sgt. Barnes died on July 17, 2007 from small arms fire in Iraq. His family immediately wanted to help the children of Iraq in his memory. With help from the community of American Fork and the state of Utah, including Operation Give, they collected items such as food, toys, clothing, school supplies, hygiene items and even wheelchairs.
The donated items were loaded into a 40-foot-long shipping container. After several weeks, that container has finally arrived in Iraq. Now soldiers are distributing the goods to the Iraqis, and it is bringing his family comfort months after his death.
"We're very grateful that all of this has been done, and been done to honor Nathan. He truly was a wonderful individual. I don't say that just because I'm his dad, but it's gratifying to see some good has come out of what, for us, is a very personal tragedy, and we're still very close to that tragedy. But it is good to see that other people's lives are being blessed because of him and his service and sacrifice," Sgt. Barnes' father, Kevin Barnes, said.
Also included in the delivery were some footballs, soccer balls and Frisbees. Apparently the Frisbees were something the Iraqi children had never seen before.
Family members say they want to thank everyone who helped contribute to the project in Nathan's honor.
E-mail: spenrod@ksl.com
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
New Project for Salt Lake City VAMC
The Salt Lake City, Utah VAMC has started a new project. In visiting many of the homebound veterans who are too sick to make it to the hospital, they have realized many do not have 72 hour kits in case of an emergency. So they have started a drive collecting items and kits.
My contact, Belinda, would like Angels to put together kits with the following items, and then put them in a bucket (which can be put to use as a port-a-potty in that emergency) with a sticker showing it was from the Angels! **** You do not have to put together a bucket, if you only want to donate items, that is very appreciated. We will fill the buckets with the items donated from the Angels!!!!
Thanks much angels you are the best! I know some items are large, so if you know of any companies that would like to donate, please let me know.
72 Hour Kit:
Windproof/waterproof matches
Other method to start a fire (lighter)
Tent/Shelter
Wool blanket or sleeping bag
Hand and Body Warming Packs
Poncho
Light sources, Flashlight with batteries
Candle, or light stick
Pocket knife
Shovel
Sewing Kit
50 ft nylon rope
First Aid kit and supplies
whistle with neck cord
Bottle of potassium iodide tablets
Personal Sanitation Items
Soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, brush, combs,
Method of water purification
Granola Bars
Trail Mix
Pop top canned vegetables and fruits
Pop top canned juice
Cloth sheets
Plastic tarps
Mini hand sanitizers
Emergency reflective blanket
Lightweight stove and fuel
Consider the needs of elderly people as well as those with handicaps or other special needs when building your 72 hour kit.
Please send to, and include a note that it is from Soldiers Angels, and for the Soldiers Angels 72 hour kits!!!
Salt Lake City VAMC
Attn Belinda Karabatsos
500 Foothill Drive
Salt Lake City, UT 84148
My contact, Belinda, would like Angels to put together kits with the following items, and then put them in a bucket (which can be put to use as a port-a-potty in that emergency) with a sticker showing it was from the Angels! **** You do not have to put together a bucket, if you only want to donate items, that is very appreciated. We will fill the buckets with the items donated from the Angels!!!!
Thanks much angels you are the best! I know some items are large, so if you know of any companies that would like to donate, please let me know.
72 Hour Kit:
Windproof/waterproof matches
Other method to start a fire (lighter)
Tent/Shelter
Wool blanket or sleeping bag
Hand and Body Warming Packs
Poncho
Light sources, Flashlight with batteries
Candle, or light stick
Pocket knife
Shovel
Sewing Kit
50 ft nylon rope
First Aid kit and supplies
whistle with neck cord
Bottle of potassium iodide tablets
Personal Sanitation Items
Soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, brush, combs,
Method of water purification
Granola Bars
Trail Mix
Pop top canned vegetables and fruits
Pop top canned juice
Cloth sheets
Plastic tarps
Mini hand sanitizers
Emergency reflective blanket
Lightweight stove and fuel
Consider the needs of elderly people as well as those with handicaps or other special needs when building your 72 hour kit.
Please send to, and include a note that it is from Soldiers Angels, and for the Soldiers Angels 72 hour kits!!!
Salt Lake City VAMC
Attn Belinda Karabatsos
500 Foothill Drive
Salt Lake City, UT 84148
Friday, March 7, 2008
Veterans and Hearing Loss
updated 1:20 p.m. MT, Fri., March. 7, 2008
SAN DIEGO - Large numbers of soldiers and Marines caught in roadside bombings and firefights in Iraq and Afghanistan are coming home with permanent hearing loss and ringing in their ears, prompting the military to redouble its efforts to protect the troops from noise.
Hearing damage is the No. 1 disability in the war on terror, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs, and some experts say the true toll could take decades to become clear. Nearly 70,000 of the more than 1.3 million troops who have served in the two war zones are collecting disability for tinnitus, a potentially debilitating ringing in the ears, and more than 58,000 are on disability for hearing loss, the VA said.
"The numbers are staggering," said Theresa Schulz, a former audiologist with the Air Force, past president of the National Hearing Conservation Association and author of a 2004 report titled "Troops Return With Alarming Rates of Hearing Loss."
One major explanation given is the insurgency's use of a fearsome weapon the Pentagon did not fully anticipate: powerful roadside bombs. Their blasts cause violent changes in air pressure that can rupture the eardrum and break bones inside the ear.
Also, much of the fighting consists of ambushes, bombings and firefights, which come suddenly and unexpectedly, giving soldiers no time to use their military-issued hearing protection.
"They can't say, `Wait a minute, let me put my earplugs in,'" said Dr. Michael E. Hoffer, a Navy captain and one of the country's leading inner-ear specialists. "They are in the fight of their lives."
In addition, some servicemen on patrol refuse to wear earplugs for fear of dulling their senses and missing sounds that can make the difference between life and death, Hoffer and others said. Others were not given earplugs or did not take them along when they were sent into the war zone. And some Marines weren't told how to use their specialized earplugs and inserted them incorrectly.
Hearing damage has been a battlefield risk ever since the introduction of explosives and artillery, and the U.S. military recognized it in Iraq and Afghanistan and issued earplugs early on. But the sheer number of injuries and their nature — particularly the high incidence of tinnitus — came as a surprise to military medical specialists and outside experts.
The military has responded over the past three years with better and easier-to-use earplugs, greater efforts to educate troops about protecting their hearing, and more testing in the war zone to detect ear injuries.
The results aren't in yet on the new measures, but Army officials believe they will significantly slow the rate of new cases of hearing damage, said Col. Kathy Gates, the Army surgeon general's audiology adviser.
Considerable damage has already been done.
For former Staff Sgt. Ryan Kelly, 27, of Austin, Texas, the noise of war is still with him more than four years after the simultaneous explosion of three roadside bombs near Baghdad.
"It's funny, you know. When it happened, I didn't feel my leg gone. What I remember was my ears ringing," said Kelly, whose leg was blown off below the knee in 2003. Today, his leg has been replaced with a prosthetic, but his ears are still ringing.
"It is constantly there," he said. "It constantly reminds me of getting hit. I don't want to sit here and think about getting blown up all the time. But that's what it does."
Sixty percent of U.S. personnel exposed to blasts suffer from permanent hearing loss, and 49 percent also suffer from tinnitus, according to military audiology reports. The hearing damage ranges from mild, such as an inability to hear whispers or low pitches, to severe, including total deafness or a constant loud ringing that destroys the ability to concentrate. There is no known cure for tinnitus or hearing loss.
The number of servicemen and servicewomen on disability because of hearing damage is expected to grow 18 percent a year, with payments totaling $1.1 billion annually by 2011, according to an analysis of VA data by the American Tinnitus Association. Anyone with at least a 10 percent loss in hearing qualifies for disability.
From World War II and well through Vietnam, hearing damage has been a leading disability.
Despite everything that has been learned over the years, U.S. troops are suffering hearing damage at about the same rate as World War II vets, according to VA figures. But World War II and Iraq cannot easily be compared. World War II was a different kind of war, waged to a far greater extent by way of vast artillery barrages, bombing raids and epic tank battles.
Given today's fearsome weaponry, even the best hearing protection is only partly effective — and only if it's properly used.
Some Marines were issued a $7.40 pair of double-sided earplugs, with one side designed to protect from weapons fire and explosions, the other from aircraft and tank noise. But the Marines were not given instructions in how to use the earplugs, and some cut them in half, while others used the wrong sides, making the devices virtually useless, Hoffer said. Today, instructions are handed out with the earplugs.
In any case, hearing protection has its limits. While damage can occur at 80 to 85 decibels — the noise level of a moving tank — the best protection cuts that by only 20 to 25 decibels. That is not enough to protect the ears against an explosion or a firefight, which can range upwards of 183 decibels, said Dr. Ben Balough, a Navy captain and chairman of otolaryngology at the Balboa Navy Medical Center in San Diego.
The Navy and Marines have begun buying and distributing state-of-the-art earplugs, known as QuietPro, that contain digital processors that block out damaging sound waves from gunshots and explosions and still allow users to hear everyday noises. They cost about $600 a pair.
The Army also has equipped every soldier being sent to Iraq and Afghanistan with newly developed one-sided earplugs that cost about $8.50, and it has begun testing QuietPro with some troops.
In addition, the Navy is working with San Diego-based American BioHealth Group to develop a "hearing pill" that could protect troops' ears. An early study in 2003 on 566 recruits showed a 25 to 27 percent reduction in permanent hearing loss. But further testing is planned.
And for the first time in American warfare, for the past three years, hearing specialists or hearing-trained medics have been put on the front lines instead of just at field hospitals, Hoffer said.
Marines and soldiers are getting hearing tests before going on patrol and when they return to base if they were exposed to bombs or gunfire.
"You have guys that don't want to admit they have a problem," Hoffer said. "But if they can't hear what they need to on patrol, they could jeopardize their lives, their buddies' lives and, ultimately, their mission.
SAN DIEGO - Large numbers of soldiers and Marines caught in roadside bombings and firefights in Iraq and Afghanistan are coming home with permanent hearing loss and ringing in their ears, prompting the military to redouble its efforts to protect the troops from noise.
Hearing damage is the No. 1 disability in the war on terror, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs, and some experts say the true toll could take decades to become clear. Nearly 70,000 of the more than 1.3 million troops who have served in the two war zones are collecting disability for tinnitus, a potentially debilitating ringing in the ears, and more than 58,000 are on disability for hearing loss, the VA said.
"The numbers are staggering," said Theresa Schulz, a former audiologist with the Air Force, past president of the National Hearing Conservation Association and author of a 2004 report titled "Troops Return With Alarming Rates of Hearing Loss."
One major explanation given is the insurgency's use of a fearsome weapon the Pentagon did not fully anticipate: powerful roadside bombs. Their blasts cause violent changes in air pressure that can rupture the eardrum and break bones inside the ear.
Also, much of the fighting consists of ambushes, bombings and firefights, which come suddenly and unexpectedly, giving soldiers no time to use their military-issued hearing protection.
"They can't say, `Wait a minute, let me put my earplugs in,'" said Dr. Michael E. Hoffer, a Navy captain and one of the country's leading inner-ear specialists. "They are in the fight of their lives."
In addition, some servicemen on patrol refuse to wear earplugs for fear of dulling their senses and missing sounds that can make the difference between life and death, Hoffer and others said. Others were not given earplugs or did not take them along when they were sent into the war zone. And some Marines weren't told how to use their specialized earplugs and inserted them incorrectly.
Hearing damage has been a battlefield risk ever since the introduction of explosives and artillery, and the U.S. military recognized it in Iraq and Afghanistan and issued earplugs early on. But the sheer number of injuries and their nature — particularly the high incidence of tinnitus — came as a surprise to military medical specialists and outside experts.
The military has responded over the past three years with better and easier-to-use earplugs, greater efforts to educate troops about protecting their hearing, and more testing in the war zone to detect ear injuries.
The results aren't in yet on the new measures, but Army officials believe they will significantly slow the rate of new cases of hearing damage, said Col. Kathy Gates, the Army surgeon general's audiology adviser.
Considerable damage has already been done.
For former Staff Sgt. Ryan Kelly, 27, of Austin, Texas, the noise of war is still with him more than four years after the simultaneous explosion of three roadside bombs near Baghdad.
"It's funny, you know. When it happened, I didn't feel my leg gone. What I remember was my ears ringing," said Kelly, whose leg was blown off below the knee in 2003. Today, his leg has been replaced with a prosthetic, but his ears are still ringing.
"It is constantly there," he said. "It constantly reminds me of getting hit. I don't want to sit here and think about getting blown up all the time. But that's what it does."
Sixty percent of U.S. personnel exposed to blasts suffer from permanent hearing loss, and 49 percent also suffer from tinnitus, according to military audiology reports. The hearing damage ranges from mild, such as an inability to hear whispers or low pitches, to severe, including total deafness or a constant loud ringing that destroys the ability to concentrate. There is no known cure for tinnitus or hearing loss.
The number of servicemen and servicewomen on disability because of hearing damage is expected to grow 18 percent a year, with payments totaling $1.1 billion annually by 2011, according to an analysis of VA data by the American Tinnitus Association. Anyone with at least a 10 percent loss in hearing qualifies for disability.
From World War II and well through Vietnam, hearing damage has been a leading disability.
Despite everything that has been learned over the years, U.S. troops are suffering hearing damage at about the same rate as World War II vets, according to VA figures. But World War II and Iraq cannot easily be compared. World War II was a different kind of war, waged to a far greater extent by way of vast artillery barrages, bombing raids and epic tank battles.
Given today's fearsome weaponry, even the best hearing protection is only partly effective — and only if it's properly used.
Some Marines were issued a $7.40 pair of double-sided earplugs, with one side designed to protect from weapons fire and explosions, the other from aircraft and tank noise. But the Marines were not given instructions in how to use the earplugs, and some cut them in half, while others used the wrong sides, making the devices virtually useless, Hoffer said. Today, instructions are handed out with the earplugs.
In any case, hearing protection has its limits. While damage can occur at 80 to 85 decibels — the noise level of a moving tank — the best protection cuts that by only 20 to 25 decibels. That is not enough to protect the ears against an explosion or a firefight, which can range upwards of 183 decibels, said Dr. Ben Balough, a Navy captain and chairman of otolaryngology at the Balboa Navy Medical Center in San Diego.
The Navy and Marines have begun buying and distributing state-of-the-art earplugs, known as QuietPro, that contain digital processors that block out damaging sound waves from gunshots and explosions and still allow users to hear everyday noises. They cost about $600 a pair.
The Army also has equipped every soldier being sent to Iraq and Afghanistan with newly developed one-sided earplugs that cost about $8.50, and it has begun testing QuietPro with some troops.
In addition, the Navy is working with San Diego-based American BioHealth Group to develop a "hearing pill" that could protect troops' ears. An early study in 2003 on 566 recruits showed a 25 to 27 percent reduction in permanent hearing loss. But further testing is planned.
And for the first time in American warfare, for the past three years, hearing specialists or hearing-trained medics have been put on the front lines instead of just at field hospitals, Hoffer said.
Marines and soldiers are getting hearing tests before going on patrol and when they return to base if they were exposed to bombs or gunfire.
"You have guys that don't want to admit they have a problem," Hoffer said. "But if they can't hear what they need to on patrol, they could jeopardize their lives, their buddies' lives and, ultimately, their mission.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Legislature approves Veterans Nursing Home
Legislature approves veterans nursing home
February 29th, 2008 @ 11:20am
KSL.com
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The Legislature has approved nearly $20 million for a new veterans nursing home in Ogden.
The Senate gave its final approval to the funding Friday. Nobody voted against the measure.
More than 100 veterans were on hand to watch the vote.
Utah only has one veterans' nursing home, and it is in Salt Lake City. The new veterans home is expected to ease crowding at that home and allow people to get treatment closer to their families.
Gov. Jon Huntsman is expected to approve the funding.
February 29th, 2008 @ 11:20am
KSL.com
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The Legislature has approved nearly $20 million for a new veterans nursing home in Ogden.
The Senate gave its final approval to the funding Friday. Nobody voted against the measure.
More than 100 veterans were on hand to watch the vote.
Utah only has one veterans' nursing home, and it is in Salt Lake City. The new veterans home is expected to ease crowding at that home and allow people to get treatment closer to their families.
Gov. Jon Huntsman is expected to approve the funding.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Utah Army Reservists Receive High Honors
Army Reservists receive high honors
February 24th, 2008 @ 10:01pm
(KSL News)
We hear of suicide bombers, al Qaida, and insurgents in Iraq, but oftentimes we don't get a chance to hear first-hand what U.S. military men and women endure during their tours in Iraq. Today we got that chance.
With little fanfare, no parade, no pomp and circumstance, six men from an Ogden, Utah-based Army Reserve Unit today got the welcome home they deserved, with bronze stars and purple hearts. It was a recognition of extraordinary effort under unusual circumstances.
The members of C Company, as they were known, cleared explosives in one of the most dangerous parts of Iraq, the Al Anbar province. Six of its soldiers were killed. The company was attacked more than 50 times. Through it all, these men and women stuck together.
Sergeant Jordan Taylor, of the 744th Modular Augmentation Company, said, "In my mind, we're just lowly soldiers just doing our job." And in doing just his job, Sergeant Taylor was awarded three purple hearts.
Sergeant First Class Cory Chartier got the Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts. On the outside of his uniform are the medals. But inside is the trauma of one year of war. "My left side is numb most of the time. I have a few issues with sleeping," he said.
Chartier's wife, Carie, says seeing her husband receive the ninth highest military honor, the Bronze Star, just reinforced what she already knew. "That's the kind of man he is. He just gives everything he can to his job and the soldiers. He makes sure they're taken care of," she said.
Those we spoke to echoed those words: military is family, and you take care of your family
February 24th, 2008 @ 10:01pm
(KSL News)
We hear of suicide bombers, al Qaida, and insurgents in Iraq, but oftentimes we don't get a chance to hear first-hand what U.S. military men and women endure during their tours in Iraq. Today we got that chance.
With little fanfare, no parade, no pomp and circumstance, six men from an Ogden, Utah-based Army Reserve Unit today got the welcome home they deserved, with bronze stars and purple hearts. It was a recognition of extraordinary effort under unusual circumstances.
The members of C Company, as they were known, cleared explosives in one of the most dangerous parts of Iraq, the Al Anbar province. Six of its soldiers were killed. The company was attacked more than 50 times. Through it all, these men and women stuck together.
Sergeant Jordan Taylor, of the 744th Modular Augmentation Company, said, "In my mind, we're just lowly soldiers just doing our job." And in doing just his job, Sergeant Taylor was awarded three purple hearts.
Sergeant First Class Cory Chartier got the Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts. On the outside of his uniform are the medals. But inside is the trauma of one year of war. "My left side is numb most of the time. I have a few issues with sleeping," he said.
Chartier's wife, Carie, says seeing her husband receive the ninth highest military honor, the Bronze Star, just reinforced what she already knew. "That's the kind of man he is. He just gives everything he can to his job and the soldiers. He makes sure they're taken care of," she said.
Those we spoke to echoed those words: military is family, and you take care of your family
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Liberty Tax Helps Disabled Veterans
Liberty Tax helps Disabled Veterans
From VA Watchdog.org
Liberty Tax Service Files Free Returns For Taxpayers Who Don't Meet Regular Filing RequirementS
If you are eligible for a payment, all you have to do is file a 2007 tax return. Liberty Tax Service is offering to prepare tax returns at no charge for select taxpayers who have no tax liability. Low income workers, or those who receive Social Security benefits or veterans' disability compensation, pension or survivors benefits received from the Department of Veterans Affairs in 2007 will be eligible to receive a payment of $300 ($600 on a joint return) if they had at least $3,000 of qualifying income.
Qualifying income includes Social Security benefits, certain Railroad Retirement benefits, certain veterans' benefits, and earned income, such as income from wages, salaries, tips and self-employment. While these people might not normally be required to file a tax return because they do not meet the filing requirement, they must file a 2007 return in order to receive a rebate."Liberty Tax Service wants to help people who do not normally have to file a return get the rebate they are entitled to receive. Many people who receive Social Security and veterans benefits are likely to overlook this opportunity to get the stimulus payment. Last year, over 30 million taxpayers missed the telephone excise tax credit that was due to them. We don't want that to occur with the tax stimulus package," states John Hewitt, CEO of Liberty Tax Service. "Liberty is known for our commitment to give back to the communities that support our company. This is just another way we can help out."Liberty Tax Service will be mounting a public awareness campaign to ensure that everyone entitled to a stimulus payment is alerted.
Anyone who has questions can e-mail taxrebates@libertytax.com for more information. Representatives from Liberty Tax Service are available to comment on this program as well.
About Liberty Tax ServiceLiberty Tax Service is the fastest growing retail tax preparation company in the industry's history. Founded in 1997 by CEO John T. Hewitt, a pioneer in the tax industry, Liberty Tax Service ( www.libertytax.com ) has prepared over 5,000,000 individual income tax returns and currently operates over 2,700 offices throughout the United States and Canada.Liberty Tax Service provides computerized income tax preparation, electronic filing, and refund loans. With an emphasis on customer service including audit assistance, a money back guarantee and free tax return checking, Liberty Tax Service is well known for its strong commitment to its client base.With 39 years of tax industry experience, Hewitt stands as the most experienced CEO in the tax preparation business, having also founded Jackson Hewitt Tax Service
(NYSE: JTX).
------------------------- posted by Larry ScottFounder and EditorVA Watchdog dot Org
From VA Watchdog.org
Liberty Tax Service Files Free Returns For Taxpayers Who Don't Meet Regular Filing RequirementS
If you are eligible for a payment, all you have to do is file a 2007 tax return. Liberty Tax Service is offering to prepare tax returns at no charge for select taxpayers who have no tax liability. Low income workers, or those who receive Social Security benefits or veterans' disability compensation, pension or survivors benefits received from the Department of Veterans Affairs in 2007 will be eligible to receive a payment of $300 ($600 on a joint return) if they had at least $3,000 of qualifying income.
Qualifying income includes Social Security benefits, certain Railroad Retirement benefits, certain veterans' benefits, and earned income, such as income from wages, salaries, tips and self-employment. While these people might not normally be required to file a tax return because they do not meet the filing requirement, they must file a 2007 return in order to receive a rebate."Liberty Tax Service wants to help people who do not normally have to file a return get the rebate they are entitled to receive. Many people who receive Social Security and veterans benefits are likely to overlook this opportunity to get the stimulus payment. Last year, over 30 million taxpayers missed the telephone excise tax credit that was due to them. We don't want that to occur with the tax stimulus package," states John Hewitt, CEO of Liberty Tax Service. "Liberty is known for our commitment to give back to the communities that support our company. This is just another way we can help out."Liberty Tax Service will be mounting a public awareness campaign to ensure that everyone entitled to a stimulus payment is alerted.
Anyone who has questions can e-mail taxrebates@libertytax.com for more information. Representatives from Liberty Tax Service are available to comment on this program as well.
About Liberty Tax ServiceLiberty Tax Service is the fastest growing retail tax preparation company in the industry's history. Founded in 1997 by CEO John T. Hewitt, a pioneer in the tax industry, Liberty Tax Service ( www.libertytax.com ) has prepared over 5,000,000 individual income tax returns and currently operates over 2,700 offices throughout the United States and Canada.Liberty Tax Service provides computerized income tax preparation, electronic filing, and refund loans. With an emphasis on customer service including audit assistance, a money back guarantee and free tax return checking, Liberty Tax Service is well known for its strong commitment to its client base.With 39 years of tax industry experience, Hewitt stands as the most experienced CEO in the tax preparation business, having also founded Jackson Hewitt Tax Service
(NYSE: JTX).
------------------------- posted by Larry ScottFounder and EditorVA Watchdog dot Org
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Senate says Discriminating against Veterans should be Illegal
Senate says discriminating against veterans should be illegal
February 20th, 2008 @ 11:03am
KSL.com
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Employers would no longer be allowed to discriminate against military veterans under a bill the Senate has approved.
Veterans would be added to a list of protected groups in the state's nondiscrimination act under Senate Bill 166.
Discrimination on the basis of race, sex, national origin and religion is already illegal.
The bill is sponsored by Sen. Scott McCoy, a Democrat from Salt Lake City.
It passed in the Senate 27-0 and will now be heard in the House.
February 20th, 2008 @ 11:03am
KSL.com
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Employers would no longer be allowed to discriminate against military veterans under a bill the Senate has approved.
Veterans would be added to a list of protected groups in the state's nondiscrimination act under Senate Bill 166.
Discrimination on the basis of race, sex, national origin and religion is already illegal.
The bill is sponsored by Sen. Scott McCoy, a Democrat from Salt Lake City.
It passed in the Senate 27-0 and will now be heard in the House.
Monday, February 11, 2008
National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans Week
It's National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans Week
February 11th, 2008 @ 4:06pm
(KSL News) The public will have a chance to honor hospitalized veterans this week.
Salt Lake's VA Medical Center is inviting people to visit the hospital this week to pay tribute its patients who have given so much to protect the country.
"The National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans gives everyone a chance to let those who have given the nation so much know that they are not forgotten," said VA Medical Center Director James R. Floyd. "We want people of all ages to bring Valentine's Day cheer to our patients."
Today, Utah Rep. Jim Matheson paid a visit. He said, "I'll tell you what I think. It's important for all of us to remember our veterans, what they did for us before and kind of what they're dealing with now. Some of these folks still are dealing with medical problems from their service, and I don't think we can ever thank them enough."
Hospital officials encourage anyone to visit this week. Anyone interested can contact the medical center's voluntary service office at (801) 584-1241, extension 1.
February 11th, 2008 @ 4:06pm
(KSL News) The public will have a chance to honor hospitalized veterans this week.
Salt Lake's VA Medical Center is inviting people to visit the hospital this week to pay tribute its patients who have given so much to protect the country.
"The National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans gives everyone a chance to let those who have given the nation so much know that they are not forgotten," said VA Medical Center Director James R. Floyd. "We want people of all ages to bring Valentine's Day cheer to our patients."
Today, Utah Rep. Jim Matheson paid a visit. He said, "I'll tell you what I think. It's important for all of us to remember our veterans, what they did for us before and kind of what they're dealing with now. Some of these folks still are dealing with medical problems from their service, and I don't think we can ever thank them enough."
Hospital officials encourage anyone to visit this week. Anyone interested can contact the medical center's voluntary service office at (801) 584-1241, extension 1.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Man to spend night homeless after charity theft
Man to spend night homeless after charity theft
AP from MSNBC.com
updated 9:31 a.m. MT, Fri., Jan. 25, 2008
PAINESVILLE, Ohio - A judge on Thursday ordered a Salvation Army worker who stole a holiday kettle containing about $250 to spend the night homeless.
Nathen Smith, 28, was to spend the night anywhere but a house, said Municipal Judge Michael Cicconetti. Smith was fitted with a GPS device to track his moves.
"My initial reaction was, 'Wow.' But I don't think the sentence is too harsh," said Smith, who expected to spend Thursday night in a homeless shelter. "I can see the judge's point because what I did, I shouldn't have done. Now I've got to pay the consequences."
The Salvation Army uses kettle donations to help pay for food, clothing and shelter for the homeless.
Smith, who also received a three-day jail sentence, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of theft.
Smith worked as a bell ringer for the Salvation Army outside a Kmart store in nearby Eastlake on Dec. 17. Police arrested him at his mother's house after a co-worker reported that one of eight kettles was missing.
Smith was scheduled to return to court Friday to determine how much community service he must do to avoid paying a fine and costs for the tracking system.
Painesville is about 30 miles northeast of Cleveland.
AP from MSNBC.com
updated 9:31 a.m. MT, Fri., Jan. 25, 2008
PAINESVILLE, Ohio - A judge on Thursday ordered a Salvation Army worker who stole a holiday kettle containing about $250 to spend the night homeless.
Nathen Smith, 28, was to spend the night anywhere but a house, said Municipal Judge Michael Cicconetti. Smith was fitted with a GPS device to track his moves.
"My initial reaction was, 'Wow.' But I don't think the sentence is too harsh," said Smith, who expected to spend Thursday night in a homeless shelter. "I can see the judge's point because what I did, I shouldn't have done. Now I've got to pay the consequences."
The Salvation Army uses kettle donations to help pay for food, clothing and shelter for the homeless.
Smith, who also received a three-day jail sentence, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of theft.
Smith worked as a bell ringer for the Salvation Army outside a Kmart store in nearby Eastlake on Dec. 17. Police arrested him at his mother's house after a co-worker reported that one of eight kettles was missing.
Smith was scheduled to return to court Friday to determine how much community service he must do to avoid paying a fine and costs for the tracking system.
Painesville is about 30 miles northeast of Cleveland.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
19 Deaths at VA Traced to Substandard Care
19 deaths at VA traced to substandard care
Two federal reports find fault with 6 doctors at Ill. hospital
AP
updated 8:51 a.m. MT, Tues., Jan. 29, 2008
ST. LOUIS - Substandard care at a southern Illinois Veterans Affairs hospital may have contributed to 19 deaths over the past two years, a VA official said Monday as he apologized to affected families and pledged reform.
The hospital in Marion, Ill., initially drew scrutiny over deaths connected to a single surgeon, but two federal reports found fault with five other doctors.
The hospital undertook many surgeries that its staffing or lack of proper surgical expertise made it ill-equipped to handle, and hospital administrators were too slow to respond once problems surfaced, said Dr. Michael Kussman, U.S. veterans affairs undersecretary for health.
"I can't tell you how angry we all are and how frustrated we all are. Nothing angers me more than when we don't do the right thing," Kussman told reporters during a conference call after releasing findings of the VA's investigation and summarizing a separate inspector general's probe.
Still, Kussman insisted, "what happened in Marion is an exception to what otherwise is a truly quality health-care system" across the VA.
The VA will help affected families file administrative claims under the VA's disability compensation program, he said. Families also could sue.
The VA investigation found that at least nine deaths between October 2006 and March last year were "directly attributable" to substandard care at the Marion hospital, which serves veterans from southern Illinois, southwestern Indiana and western Kentucky.
Kussman declined to identify those cases by patient or doctor, though Rep. Jerry Costello, an Illinois Democrat, said those nine deaths were linked to two surgeons he did not name.
Of an additional 34 cases the VA investigated, 10 patients who died received questionable care that complicated their health, Kussman said. Investigators could not determine whether the care actually caused the deaths.
Inpatient surgeries have not been performed at the facility since problems first became public last August. They will remain suspended indefinitely, Kussman said.
In pledging reforms, Kussman said the VA has launched an administrative investigatory board to review care problems and matters raised by employee groups.
The VA last September also installed interim administrators to replace the Marion VA's director, chief of staff, chief of surgery and an anesthesiologist, moving them to other positions or placing them on leave, Kussman said. The anesthesiologist has since quit, Kussman said.
"The previous leadership will not return" to their former jobs, he said.
The VA's investigation cited by Kussman covered a two-year span, the VA said.
The inspector general's office blamed three deaths on substandard care at the Marion site, but that review covered only the past fiscal year, which ended in October, the VA said. That report was not immediately available Monday.
Telephone calls on Monday seeking comment from the Marion VA were directed to spokespeople with the agency's Washington headquarters.
Neither Kussman nor the VA investigation's 41 pages of findings named surgeons involved in the deaths, though Kussman acknowledged that much of the criticism has focused on Dr. Jose Veizaga-Mendez.
Veizaga-Mendez — identified in Monday's report as "Surgeon A" — resigned from the hospital Aug. 13, three days after a patient from Kentucky bled to death after gallbladder surgery. All inpatient surgeries stopped a short time later.
Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, has said Veizaga-Mendez is linked to 10 patients' deaths at the Marion facility, about 120 miles southeast of St. Louis. Kussman declined to discuss that claim Monday, saying he didn't want to influence additional internal investigations of six of the site's surgeons he said had "at least one episode of substandard care."
Veizaga-Mendez and another surgeon no longer practice at the Marion VA. The remaining four surgeons remain on staff but are "only doing minor cases at this time," Kussman said.
"We don't think the physicians killed the patients," he said. "We think the physicians were trying to care for the patients and did so in an inadequate way."
Costello and fellow Rep. John Shimkus, a Republican from Collinsville, Ill., called Monday's findings "shocking." Durbin said the reports "confirm what many of us in Illinois feared" — that the Marion VA's medical care was substandard and that protocol for protecting patients was ignored.
"As the inspectors who reviewed the Marion hospital put it, the quality of care at Marion was 'horrible,'" Durbin said.
Veizaga-Mendez's whereabouts are unclear. He has no listed telephone number and has been unreachable for comment.
The Marion VA hired Veizaga-Mendez in January 2006 after he practiced in Massachusetts, where he was under investigation for substandard care in 2004 and 2005. The claims include allegations that he botched seven cases, two ending in deaths.
Veizaga-Mendez was permanently barred from practicing medicine in Massachusetts last November — a disciplinary move that also requires him to resign other state medical licenses he may hold and withdraw pending license applications. He has also made payouts in two Massachusetts malpractice lawsuits.
Two federal reports find fault with 6 doctors at Ill. hospital
AP
updated 8:51 a.m. MT, Tues., Jan. 29, 2008
ST. LOUIS - Substandard care at a southern Illinois Veterans Affairs hospital may have contributed to 19 deaths over the past two years, a VA official said Monday as he apologized to affected families and pledged reform.
The hospital in Marion, Ill., initially drew scrutiny over deaths connected to a single surgeon, but two federal reports found fault with five other doctors.
The hospital undertook many surgeries that its staffing or lack of proper surgical expertise made it ill-equipped to handle, and hospital administrators were too slow to respond once problems surfaced, said Dr. Michael Kussman, U.S. veterans affairs undersecretary for health.
"I can't tell you how angry we all are and how frustrated we all are. Nothing angers me more than when we don't do the right thing," Kussman told reporters during a conference call after releasing findings of the VA's investigation and summarizing a separate inspector general's probe.
Still, Kussman insisted, "what happened in Marion is an exception to what otherwise is a truly quality health-care system" across the VA.
The VA will help affected families file administrative claims under the VA's disability compensation program, he said. Families also could sue.
The VA investigation found that at least nine deaths between October 2006 and March last year were "directly attributable" to substandard care at the Marion hospital, which serves veterans from southern Illinois, southwestern Indiana and western Kentucky.
Kussman declined to identify those cases by patient or doctor, though Rep. Jerry Costello, an Illinois Democrat, said those nine deaths were linked to two surgeons he did not name.
Of an additional 34 cases the VA investigated, 10 patients who died received questionable care that complicated their health, Kussman said. Investigators could not determine whether the care actually caused the deaths.
Inpatient surgeries have not been performed at the facility since problems first became public last August. They will remain suspended indefinitely, Kussman said.
In pledging reforms, Kussman said the VA has launched an administrative investigatory board to review care problems and matters raised by employee groups.
The VA last September also installed interim administrators to replace the Marion VA's director, chief of staff, chief of surgery and an anesthesiologist, moving them to other positions or placing them on leave, Kussman said. The anesthesiologist has since quit, Kussman said.
"The previous leadership will not return" to their former jobs, he said.
The VA's investigation cited by Kussman covered a two-year span, the VA said.
The inspector general's office blamed three deaths on substandard care at the Marion site, but that review covered only the past fiscal year, which ended in October, the VA said. That report was not immediately available Monday.
Telephone calls on Monday seeking comment from the Marion VA were directed to spokespeople with the agency's Washington headquarters.
Neither Kussman nor the VA investigation's 41 pages of findings named surgeons involved in the deaths, though Kussman acknowledged that much of the criticism has focused on Dr. Jose Veizaga-Mendez.
Veizaga-Mendez — identified in Monday's report as "Surgeon A" — resigned from the hospital Aug. 13, three days after a patient from Kentucky bled to death after gallbladder surgery. All inpatient surgeries stopped a short time later.
Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, has said Veizaga-Mendez is linked to 10 patients' deaths at the Marion facility, about 120 miles southeast of St. Louis. Kussman declined to discuss that claim Monday, saying he didn't want to influence additional internal investigations of six of the site's surgeons he said had "at least one episode of substandard care."
Veizaga-Mendez and another surgeon no longer practice at the Marion VA. The remaining four surgeons remain on staff but are "only doing minor cases at this time," Kussman said.
"We don't think the physicians killed the patients," he said. "We think the physicians were trying to care for the patients and did so in an inadequate way."
Costello and fellow Rep. John Shimkus, a Republican from Collinsville, Ill., called Monday's findings "shocking." Durbin said the reports "confirm what many of us in Illinois feared" — that the Marion VA's medical care was substandard and that protocol for protecting patients was ignored.
"As the inspectors who reviewed the Marion hospital put it, the quality of care at Marion was 'horrible,'" Durbin said.
Veizaga-Mendez's whereabouts are unclear. He has no listed telephone number and has been unreachable for comment.
The Marion VA hired Veizaga-Mendez in January 2006 after he practiced in Massachusetts, where he was under investigation for substandard care in 2004 and 2005. The claims include allegations that he botched seven cases, two ending in deaths.
Veizaga-Mendez was permanently barred from practicing medicine in Massachusetts last November — a disciplinary move that also requires him to resign other state medical licenses he may hold and withdraw pending license applications. He has also made payouts in two Massachusetts malpractice lawsuits.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Miss Utah not your Stereotypical Pageant Contestant
Miss Utah not your stereotypical pageant contestant
January 24th, 2008 @ 10:10pm
Bruce Lindsay reporting
Utah's contestant in The Miss America pageant this year is shattering pageant stereotypes. Jill Stevens is a sergeant in the National Guard who served as a medic in Afghanistan. In advance of next week's pageant, we spoke with "G.I. Jill."
In combat boots or in high heels, Jill Stevens hasn't been one to pass up a challenge. "It's been a lot of walking in high heels, and my feet, I feel like they are bruised (laughs). It's a whole new training."
Training to become the next Miss America isn't easy, but Jill says she's enjoyed preparing for the pageant this week in Las Vegas. "It's been great, a lot of rehearsals, a lot of jokes and just laughing around, hanging out with the girls. It's been a lot fun," she says.
Before the contestants could make it on stage, they had to prove they could break away from the "traditional pageant look." The cablecast "Miss America: Reality Check" seriously updates the image of Miss America.
Stevens says, "I really think Miss America should be relatable and really represent the diversity of American women. And I think she should be well spoken, out there, talented -- all what we're portraying in this competition."
The Miss America Organization has announced a new national platform, supporting the Children's Miracle Network. Miss America 2008 will become the goodwill ambassador for this children's cause as well as an ambassador for her personal platform.
Stevens says her platform is emergency preparedness. "Because emergencies are common to everyone, they happen everywhere; but we do not all have to be casualties, and the difference is preparing."
Stevens is prepared and reporting for duty at The Miss America Pageant, Saturday night. It will air on TLC.
January 24th, 2008 @ 10:10pm
Bruce Lindsay reporting
Utah's contestant in The Miss America pageant this year is shattering pageant stereotypes. Jill Stevens is a sergeant in the National Guard who served as a medic in Afghanistan. In advance of next week's pageant, we spoke with "G.I. Jill."
In combat boots or in high heels, Jill Stevens hasn't been one to pass up a challenge. "It's been a lot of walking in high heels, and my feet, I feel like they are bruised (laughs). It's a whole new training."
Training to become the next Miss America isn't easy, but Jill says she's enjoyed preparing for the pageant this week in Las Vegas. "It's been great, a lot of rehearsals, a lot of jokes and just laughing around, hanging out with the girls. It's been a lot fun," she says.
Before the contestants could make it on stage, they had to prove they could break away from the "traditional pageant look." The cablecast "Miss America: Reality Check" seriously updates the image of Miss America.
Stevens says, "I really think Miss America should be relatable and really represent the diversity of American women. And I think she should be well spoken, out there, talented -- all what we're portraying in this competition."
The Miss America Organization has announced a new national platform, supporting the Children's Miracle Network. Miss America 2008 will become the goodwill ambassador for this children's cause as well as an ambassador for her personal platform.
Stevens says her platform is emergency preparedness. "Because emergencies are common to everyone, they happen everywhere; but we do not all have to be casualties, and the difference is preparing."
Stevens is prepared and reporting for duty at The Miss America Pageant, Saturday night. It will air on TLC.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Mom Searches for Missing Veteran Son
Mom Searches for Missing Veteran Son
By DAN BARRY,The New York Times
Posted: 2008-01-21 15:15:38
Filed Under: Nation News
KENNESAW, Ga. (Jan. 21) -- The man emerged from the night’s anonymity to sit at the counter, across from the stainless steel grill and the stacks of white plates. He wore a blue jacket appropriate for the January cold, but his left hand was covered with writing of some kind. And, ever so softly, he was talking to himself.
It was 3:20 on the second morning of a new year indistinguishable still from the difficult one just past, in a 24-hour chain restaurant on Highway 41 called the Huddle House, where pie and respite are served to the hungry and solitary. The tired waitress, Patsy Schirmer, pulling a rare overnight, approached the customer and asked:
What can I get for you?
The man accepted this open-ended question in terms of food only, muttering an order of scrambled eggs and grits and requesting water, with lemon. He ate everything on his plate, continuing his private conversation all the while. He paid his bill, left no tip, and slipped back behind night’s curtain.
A woman walked in 20 minutes later, carrying leaflets. Her name was Sheryl Futrell and she had been searching for weeks for her disoriented son, an Iraq-Afghanistan war veteran named Gary Chronister. Here is his photograph, she said — and you know the rest.
Soon the waitress was wailing Oh my God, he was just here. Soon the mother was making frantic telephone calls, searching for a flashlight to beam into the brush out back, bouncing between sorrow and joy. Yes, my son always orders scrambled eggs. Yes, he always asks for lemon with his water. Yes, he is so off his meds that he would be talking to himself.
Faint hope found in a Huddle House.
Two months ago, Mr. Chronister’s green Ford pickup truck was found here in Cobb County, where he used to live, in a convenience store parking lot a couple of miles from the Huddle House. Since then, Dr. Futrell has driven up, down and around Highway 41, looking for her 33-year-old son, the troubled vet, missing in action at home.
More StoriesShe has arranged search parties, talked with dozens of shop owners, handed out hundreds of fliers, and festooned intersections with sad little signs that bear his photograph. “Missing Gary Chronister,” the signs say. “Confused & Unable to Call Home.” In searching the surrounding woods of this prospering county just northwest of Atlanta, she has come upon homeless veterans in lean-tos, living lives of invisibility.
But the longer her son remains missing, the more complex his story becomes. Last week the sheriff’s office in Cherokee County, to the immediate north, issued a warrant for his arrest on charges that he molested a young girl last summer. Dr. Futrell says it is untrue, unfair — un-Gary.
She also maintains that he is not on the run. For one thing, she and the child’s mother both say that investigators told everyone months ago that there were too many inconsistencies to prosecute a case. For another, Mr. Chronister was living in Bibb County, 100 miles to the south: if he was on the run, why would he run toward his pursuers?
“Because my son has disappeared, and is talking to himself, then he’s guilty,” Dr. Futrell says. “He’s not running; he’s walking.”
Or so the sightings say. Here he is, walking near the Circle K convenience store on Highway 41, a big smile on his face. And here he is, at a stoplight on Wade Green Road, trying to cross the street but not making it, walking out a few feet and then back, out and back, head bowed, smiling.
The smile, his mother says, voice breaking, “seems to be a hallmark of my son.”
Dr. Futrell returned recently to the Huddle House, driving up in her son’s pickup that she hopes he might recognize from the road. Stacks of “Missing Gary Chronister” signs, each one adorned with a small American flag, sat in its bed.
She is 53, stout and tired, with a ready smile conveying disbelief at what her life has become. A school psychologist by profession, now a manhunter by circumstance. That is why she chose a back booth: she wanted to see everyone and everything.
Her ever-ringing cellphone rang again before she could take a bite of her meal. “This is Gary’s mom,” she answered, hopeful, then not. “No, no, that wouldn’t be Gary ... I so appreciate you calling, though. Thank you so much. Keep your eyes open, sweetie.”
Dr. Futrell said her son has a great intellect, a mild case of Tourette’s syndrome and a sense of right and wrong so rigid that he sometimes struggles through the grays of life. He is also a loner. Asked if he ever had a girlfriend, his mother said with a note of reluctance, “Not really.”
After earning a bachelor’s degree in English in 1998 from the University of Tennessee, he enrolled in a seminary in Kentucky to pursue “full-time Christian service,” his mother said. But things didn’t work out there, and he had a lot of outstanding college loans. So, several weeks before 9/11, he joined the Army.
Over the next three years he spent several months in Afghanistan and several in Iraq, helping to erect guard towers, install light fixtures and build memorials for dead soldiers. Although he saw no combat he came home different, his mother said, with the only telltale sign a check mark on a military document, next to the words “personality change.”
Mr. Chronister disappeared many days into his bedroom, which he kept boot-camp spotless. He had trouble holding jobs. Then came his first psychotic break, in which he quietly disengaged from reality. Tests revealed an unspecified brain injury. Was it from being beaten up when he was 16? Was it from something that happened in the military?
After several go-rounds with the Department of Veterans Affairs, Mr. Chronister finally received medication that seemed to work, but only for a while. “This is the first day of my healing,” he wrote in his journal on Nov. 8. Within two days, he was gone.
Now the police are looking for Gary Chronister, up, down and around Highway 41. And so, still, is his mother, who hasn’t forgotten one of their last conversations. He had said he was having trouble again controlling the thoughts, and she answered, “Son, I’m here.”
By DAN BARRY,The New York Times
Posted: 2008-01-21 15:15:38
Filed Under: Nation News
KENNESAW, Ga. (Jan. 21) -- The man emerged from the night’s anonymity to sit at the counter, across from the stainless steel grill and the stacks of white plates. He wore a blue jacket appropriate for the January cold, but his left hand was covered with writing of some kind. And, ever so softly, he was talking to himself.
It was 3:20 on the second morning of a new year indistinguishable still from the difficult one just past, in a 24-hour chain restaurant on Highway 41 called the Huddle House, where pie and respite are served to the hungry and solitary. The tired waitress, Patsy Schirmer, pulling a rare overnight, approached the customer and asked:
What can I get for you?
The man accepted this open-ended question in terms of food only, muttering an order of scrambled eggs and grits and requesting water, with lemon. He ate everything on his plate, continuing his private conversation all the while. He paid his bill, left no tip, and slipped back behind night’s curtain.
A woman walked in 20 minutes later, carrying leaflets. Her name was Sheryl Futrell and she had been searching for weeks for her disoriented son, an Iraq-Afghanistan war veteran named Gary Chronister. Here is his photograph, she said — and you know the rest.
Soon the waitress was wailing Oh my God, he was just here. Soon the mother was making frantic telephone calls, searching for a flashlight to beam into the brush out back, bouncing between sorrow and joy. Yes, my son always orders scrambled eggs. Yes, he always asks for lemon with his water. Yes, he is so off his meds that he would be talking to himself.
Faint hope found in a Huddle House.
Two months ago, Mr. Chronister’s green Ford pickup truck was found here in Cobb County, where he used to live, in a convenience store parking lot a couple of miles from the Huddle House. Since then, Dr. Futrell has driven up, down and around Highway 41, looking for her 33-year-old son, the troubled vet, missing in action at home.
More StoriesShe has arranged search parties, talked with dozens of shop owners, handed out hundreds of fliers, and festooned intersections with sad little signs that bear his photograph. “Missing Gary Chronister,” the signs say. “Confused & Unable to Call Home.” In searching the surrounding woods of this prospering county just northwest of Atlanta, she has come upon homeless veterans in lean-tos, living lives of invisibility.
But the longer her son remains missing, the more complex his story becomes. Last week the sheriff’s office in Cherokee County, to the immediate north, issued a warrant for his arrest on charges that he molested a young girl last summer. Dr. Futrell says it is untrue, unfair — un-Gary.
She also maintains that he is not on the run. For one thing, she and the child’s mother both say that investigators told everyone months ago that there were too many inconsistencies to prosecute a case. For another, Mr. Chronister was living in Bibb County, 100 miles to the south: if he was on the run, why would he run toward his pursuers?
“Because my son has disappeared, and is talking to himself, then he’s guilty,” Dr. Futrell says. “He’s not running; he’s walking.”
Or so the sightings say. Here he is, walking near the Circle K convenience store on Highway 41, a big smile on his face. And here he is, at a stoplight on Wade Green Road, trying to cross the street but not making it, walking out a few feet and then back, out and back, head bowed, smiling.
The smile, his mother says, voice breaking, “seems to be a hallmark of my son.”
Dr. Futrell returned recently to the Huddle House, driving up in her son’s pickup that she hopes he might recognize from the road. Stacks of “Missing Gary Chronister” signs, each one adorned with a small American flag, sat in its bed.
She is 53, stout and tired, with a ready smile conveying disbelief at what her life has become. A school psychologist by profession, now a manhunter by circumstance. That is why she chose a back booth: she wanted to see everyone and everything.
Her ever-ringing cellphone rang again before she could take a bite of her meal. “This is Gary’s mom,” she answered, hopeful, then not. “No, no, that wouldn’t be Gary ... I so appreciate you calling, though. Thank you so much. Keep your eyes open, sweetie.”
Dr. Futrell said her son has a great intellect, a mild case of Tourette’s syndrome and a sense of right and wrong so rigid that he sometimes struggles through the grays of life. He is also a loner. Asked if he ever had a girlfriend, his mother said with a note of reluctance, “Not really.”
After earning a bachelor’s degree in English in 1998 from the University of Tennessee, he enrolled in a seminary in Kentucky to pursue “full-time Christian service,” his mother said. But things didn’t work out there, and he had a lot of outstanding college loans. So, several weeks before 9/11, he joined the Army.
Over the next three years he spent several months in Afghanistan and several in Iraq, helping to erect guard towers, install light fixtures and build memorials for dead soldiers. Although he saw no combat he came home different, his mother said, with the only telltale sign a check mark on a military document, next to the words “personality change.”
Mr. Chronister disappeared many days into his bedroom, which he kept boot-camp spotless. He had trouble holding jobs. Then came his first psychotic break, in which he quietly disengaged from reality. Tests revealed an unspecified brain injury. Was it from being beaten up when he was 16? Was it from something that happened in the military?
After several go-rounds with the Department of Veterans Affairs, Mr. Chronister finally received medication that seemed to work, but only for a while. “This is the first day of my healing,” he wrote in his journal on Nov. 8. Within two days, he was gone.
Now the police are looking for Gary Chronister, up, down and around Highway 41. And so, still, is his mother, who hasn’t forgotten one of their last conversations. He had said he was having trouble again controlling the thoughts, and she answered, “Son, I’m here.”
Thursday, January 17, 2008
1 in 5 Returning Troops May Have Brain Injury
Associated Press
updated 6:13 p.m. MT, Thurs., Jan. 17, 2008
WASHINGTON - As many as 20 percent of U.S. combat troops who fought in Iraq or Afghanistan leave with signs they may have had a concussion, and some do not realize they need treatment, Army officials said Thursday.
Concussion is a common term for mild traumatic brain injury, or TBI. While the Army has a handle on treating more severe brain injuries, it is "challenged to understand, diagnose and treat military personnel who suffer with mild TBI," said Brig. Gen. Donald Bradshaw, chairman of a task force on traumatic brain injury created by the Army surgeon general.
The task force, which completed its work in May, released its findings on Thursday.
It estimated that from 10 percent to 20 percent of soldiers and Marines from tactical units leaving Iraq and Afghanistan are affected by mild traumatic brain injury. The most common cause was blast from an explosion.
The symptoms can include headaches, dizziness, nausea, light sensitivity, sleep problems, memory problems, confusion and irritability. With treatment, more than 80 of patients recover completely, the task force said.
Less than half who suffered from a mild traumatic brain injury in combat have persistent symptoms associated with it, said Col. Robert Labutta, a neurosurgeon with the Army surgeon general's office.
In some cases, however, symptoms from the injury such as irritability affect a soldier's interaction with his or her family and fellow soldiers, said Col. Jonathan Jaffin, deputy commander of the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command.
"By identifying them, giving them a diagnosis, so they don't think they're just going crazy ... we think that helps them deal with it," Jaffin said.
Thousands of troops have been treated for traumatic brain injury, and it is commonly called the signature wound of the war. Reports that troops were not properly treated or diagnosed for the injury led to some improvements in care.
Today, all troops brought to military treatment facilities from a war zone are screened for traumatic brain injury, Bradshaw said. But troops lacking more outward signs such as bleeding following a blast or other incident might not realize they experienced a concussion, Bradshaw said.
One of the challenges in treating a mild traumatic injury is that it can have some of the same symptoms as post-traumatic stress disorder, such as difficulty sleeping.
Labutta said more research and tracking is needed to determine if a mild traumatic brain injury can put someone at greater risk for Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.
The task force praised work done at Fort Carson, Colo., where soldiers going back to war are screened for brain injury. Surveys there found that about 17 percent of the soldiers returning to war could have a traumatic brain injury.
The task force identified problems associated with the treatment of troops with traumatic brain injuries, such as inconsistent treatment and documentation at some facilities, but it said some of its recommendations have already been implemented.
updated 6:13 p.m. MT, Thurs., Jan. 17, 2008
WASHINGTON - As many as 20 percent of U.S. combat troops who fought in Iraq or Afghanistan leave with signs they may have had a concussion, and some do not realize they need treatment, Army officials said Thursday.
Concussion is a common term for mild traumatic brain injury, or TBI. While the Army has a handle on treating more severe brain injuries, it is "challenged to understand, diagnose and treat military personnel who suffer with mild TBI," said Brig. Gen. Donald Bradshaw, chairman of a task force on traumatic brain injury created by the Army surgeon general.
The task force, which completed its work in May, released its findings on Thursday.
It estimated that from 10 percent to 20 percent of soldiers and Marines from tactical units leaving Iraq and Afghanistan are affected by mild traumatic brain injury. The most common cause was blast from an explosion.
The symptoms can include headaches, dizziness, nausea, light sensitivity, sleep problems, memory problems, confusion and irritability. With treatment, more than 80 of patients recover completely, the task force said.
Less than half who suffered from a mild traumatic brain injury in combat have persistent symptoms associated with it, said Col. Robert Labutta, a neurosurgeon with the Army surgeon general's office.
In some cases, however, symptoms from the injury such as irritability affect a soldier's interaction with his or her family and fellow soldiers, said Col. Jonathan Jaffin, deputy commander of the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command.
"By identifying them, giving them a diagnosis, so they don't think they're just going crazy ... we think that helps them deal with it," Jaffin said.
Thousands of troops have been treated for traumatic brain injury, and it is commonly called the signature wound of the war. Reports that troops were not properly treated or diagnosed for the injury led to some improvements in care.
Today, all troops brought to military treatment facilities from a war zone are screened for traumatic brain injury, Bradshaw said. But troops lacking more outward signs such as bleeding following a blast or other incident might not realize they experienced a concussion, Bradshaw said.
One of the challenges in treating a mild traumatic injury is that it can have some of the same symptoms as post-traumatic stress disorder, such as difficulty sleeping.
Labutta said more research and tracking is needed to determine if a mild traumatic brain injury can put someone at greater risk for Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.
The task force praised work done at Fort Carson, Colo., where soldiers going back to war are screened for brain injury. Surveys there found that about 17 percent of the soldiers returning to war could have a traumatic brain injury.
The task force identified problems associated with the treatment of troops with traumatic brain injuries, such as inconsistent treatment and documentation at some facilities, but it said some of its recommendations have already been implemented.
Utah Company Surprises National Guard Members with Cruise
Utah company surprises National Guard members with cruise
January 16th, 2008 @ 6:10pm
(KSL News) The CEO of a Utah company surprised some lucky Utah National Guard members with a special "tour of duty": a seven day cruise to Bermuda.
The Utah-based scrapbook company Stampin' Up donated 85 cruise cabins to the guard to thank the soldiers for their service.
The unsuspecting winners received the good news today. One guardsman felt overwhelmed by the unexpected gift. "This has been kind of a dream come true. We've been married 22 years and I've been trying to get my wife on a cruise, just a three- or five-day cruise," Lt. Col. David Osborne said.
Many of the guard members selected for the cruise have served multiple tours of duty overseas.
January 16th, 2008 @ 6:10pm
(KSL News) The CEO of a Utah company surprised some lucky Utah National Guard members with a special "tour of duty": a seven day cruise to Bermuda.
The Utah-based scrapbook company Stampin' Up donated 85 cruise cabins to the guard to thank the soldiers for their service.
The unsuspecting winners received the good news today. One guardsman felt overwhelmed by the unexpected gift. "This has been kind of a dream come true. We've been married 22 years and I've been trying to get my wife on a cruise, just a three- or five-day cruise," Lt. Col. David Osborne said.
Many of the guard members selected for the cruise have served multiple tours of duty overseas.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Man Accused of fraud in case tied to fundraising for Vets
Man accused of fraud in case tied to fundraising for vets
January 15th, 2008 @ 6:25pm
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- A man who raised money to send World War II veterans to Washington, D.C., last year has been charged with communications fraud and a pattern of unlawful activity.
Court documents say Paul McSweeney misspent $90,000, partly to pay expenses remaining from a 2006 trip to the nation's capital. A trip last May was suddenly canceled when McSweeney's group, Our Unsung Heroes, said there wasn't enough money.
McSweeney, who lives in Mapleton, did not return a phone call seeking comment. The Deseret Morning News says he's due in 3rd District Court on Wednesday.
In September, about 130 war veterans finally took their free trip to Washington after another group raised more than $200,000.
Info from Deseret News and KSL.com
January 15th, 2008 @ 6:25pm
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- A man who raised money to send World War II veterans to Washington, D.C., last year has been charged with communications fraud and a pattern of unlawful activity.
Court documents say Paul McSweeney misspent $90,000, partly to pay expenses remaining from a 2006 trip to the nation's capital. A trip last May was suddenly canceled when McSweeney's group, Our Unsung Heroes, said there wasn't enough money.
McSweeney, who lives in Mapleton, did not return a phone call seeking comment. The Deseret Morning News says he's due in 3rd District Court on Wednesday.
In September, about 130 war veterans finally took their free trip to Washington after another group raised more than $200,000.
Info from Deseret News and KSL.com
Company Has Cool Idea for Troops' Comfort in Iraq
Company has cool idea for troops' comfort in Iraq
January 15th, 2008 @ 6:15pm
Jed Boal reporting, KSL news
The blistering heat in Iraq is one aspect of the war U.S. troops will not soon forget. So, a Utah company came up with a cool idea to make the time a little more bearable for one unit.
Think of the hottest day in Utah this past summer, then add 20 to 30 degrees on top of that, and you have an average summer day in Iraq. A business owner in Fillmore realized he could help his hometown troops stay cool under fire.
A big box is headed to Camp Bucca, Iraq.
Steve Robison, an evaporative cooler manufacturer, said, "He set his hottest deployment record in Iraq at 127 degrees, so it's pretty hot."
Members of the 145th Field Artillery Battalion of the Utah National Guard deployed last June. Soon they may feel this is among the greatest care packages.
"They'll see a 40-plus degree drop with this unit," Robison said.
Inside is a MegEvap industrial evaporative cooler, one monster of a swamp cooler for the troops' rest tent. RCF Incorporated manufactures swamp coolers in Fillmore. Robison owns the company. He has a brother-in law and friends in the 145th.
"They're local people. We want them home. We want them home safe. We want them to be as comfortable as they can be while they're there," he said.
To get the 400-pound cooler to the soldiers, he needed help from the Governor's Office of Economic Development.
Fred Lange works in that office. He said, "Only way we could help out was to see if we could help make arrangements to get it from here to there."
Operation Give regularly sends shipping containers of gifts and necessities for troops and the Iraqi people. Founder Paul Holton, an Iraq War veteran, offered to send the cooler with an upcoming shipment.
"It's just unbearably hot," Holton said. "Throw in the sand and the wind, and a little bit of comfort goes a long way over there."
In addition to the cooler, Operation Give along with Mesa Systems will send 22 pallets of stuff to Camp Bucca and the soldiers.
Holton said, "Anybody that wants to participate and do something in a positive way to support the troops, support their mission, and reach out to the Iraqi people, that's what this is all about."
The unit will keep cooling for years to come. RCF sent replacement parts, but we're told no one should have to do any maintenance for at least five years.
January 15th, 2008 @ 6:15pm
Jed Boal reporting, KSL news
The blistering heat in Iraq is one aspect of the war U.S. troops will not soon forget. So, a Utah company came up with a cool idea to make the time a little more bearable for one unit.
Think of the hottest day in Utah this past summer, then add 20 to 30 degrees on top of that, and you have an average summer day in Iraq. A business owner in Fillmore realized he could help his hometown troops stay cool under fire.
A big box is headed to Camp Bucca, Iraq.
Steve Robison, an evaporative cooler manufacturer, said, "He set his hottest deployment record in Iraq at 127 degrees, so it's pretty hot."
Members of the 145th Field Artillery Battalion of the Utah National Guard deployed last June. Soon they may feel this is among the greatest care packages.
"They'll see a 40-plus degree drop with this unit," Robison said.
Inside is a MegEvap industrial evaporative cooler, one monster of a swamp cooler for the troops' rest tent. RCF Incorporated manufactures swamp coolers in Fillmore. Robison owns the company. He has a brother-in law and friends in the 145th.
"They're local people. We want them home. We want them home safe. We want them to be as comfortable as they can be while they're there," he said.
To get the 400-pound cooler to the soldiers, he needed help from the Governor's Office of Economic Development.
Fred Lange works in that office. He said, "Only way we could help out was to see if we could help make arrangements to get it from here to there."
Operation Give regularly sends shipping containers of gifts and necessities for troops and the Iraqi people. Founder Paul Holton, an Iraq War veteran, offered to send the cooler with an upcoming shipment.
"It's just unbearably hot," Holton said. "Throw in the sand and the wind, and a little bit of comfort goes a long way over there."
In addition to the cooler, Operation Give along with Mesa Systems will send 22 pallets of stuff to Camp Bucca and the soldiers.
Holton said, "Anybody that wants to participate and do something in a positive way to support the troops, support their mission, and reach out to the Iraqi people, that's what this is all about."
The unit will keep cooling for years to come. RCF sent replacement parts, but we're told no one should have to do any maintenance for at least five years.
Monday, January 14, 2008
From MSNBC.com News~Veterans and Murder
121 war veterans linked to killings, report finds
Paper says murders tied to soldiers are soaring; military questions premise.
updated 4:15 p.m. MT, Sun., Jan. 13, 2008
NEW YORK - At least 121 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans have committed a killing or been charged in one in the United States after returning from combat, The New York Times reported Sunday.
The newspaper said it also logged 349 homicides involving all active-duty military personnel and new veterans in the six years since military action began in Afghanistan, and later Iraq. That represents an 89-percent increase over the previous six-year period, the newspaper said.
About three-quarters of those homicides involved Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans, the newspaper said. The report did not illuminate the exact relationship between those cases and the 121 killings also mentioned in the report.
The newspaper said its research involved searching local news reports, examining police, court and military records and interviewing defendants, their lawyers and families, victims' families and military and law enforcement officials.
Defense Department representatives did not immediately respond to a telephone message early Sunday. The Times said the military agency declined to comment, saying it could not reproduce the paper's research.
Methodology Questioned:
A military spokesman, Lt. Col. Les Melnyk, questioned the report's premise and research methods, the newspaper said. He said it aggregated crimes ranging from involuntary manslaughter to murder, and he suggested the apparent increase in homicides involving military personnel and veterans in the wartime period might reflect only "an increase in awareness of military service by reporters since 9/11."
Neither the Pentagon nor the federal Justice Department track such killings, generally prosecuted in state civilian courts, according to the Times.
The 121 killings ranged from shootings and stabbings to bathtub drownings and fatal car crashes resulting from drunken driving, the newspaper said. All but one of those implicated was male.
About a third of the victims were girlfriends or relatives, including a 2-year-old girl slain by her 20-year-old father while he was recovering from wounds sustained in Iraq.
A quarter of the victims were military personnel. One was stabbed and set afire by fellow soldiers a day after they all returned from Iraq.
Paper says murders tied to soldiers are soaring; military questions premise.
updated 4:15 p.m. MT, Sun., Jan. 13, 2008
NEW YORK - At least 121 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans have committed a killing or been charged in one in the United States after returning from combat, The New York Times reported Sunday.
The newspaper said it also logged 349 homicides involving all active-duty military personnel and new veterans in the six years since military action began in Afghanistan, and later Iraq. That represents an 89-percent increase over the previous six-year period, the newspaper said.
About three-quarters of those homicides involved Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans, the newspaper said. The report did not illuminate the exact relationship between those cases and the 121 killings also mentioned in the report.
The newspaper said its research involved searching local news reports, examining police, court and military records and interviewing defendants, their lawyers and families, victims' families and military and law enforcement officials.
Defense Department representatives did not immediately respond to a telephone message early Sunday. The Times said the military agency declined to comment, saying it could not reproduce the paper's research.
Methodology Questioned:
A military spokesman, Lt. Col. Les Melnyk, questioned the report's premise and research methods, the newspaper said. He said it aggregated crimes ranging from involuntary manslaughter to murder, and he suggested the apparent increase in homicides involving military personnel and veterans in the wartime period might reflect only "an increase in awareness of military service by reporters since 9/11."
Neither the Pentagon nor the federal Justice Department track such killings, generally prosecuted in state civilian courts, according to the Times.
The 121 killings ranged from shootings and stabbings to bathtub drownings and fatal car crashes resulting from drunken driving, the newspaper said. All but one of those implicated was male.
About a third of the victims were girlfriends or relatives, including a 2-year-old girl slain by her 20-year-old father while he was recovering from wounds sustained in Iraq.
A quarter of the victims were military personnel. One was stabbed and set afire by fellow soldiers a day after they all returned from Iraq.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Military Veteran, Teacher honored by KSL news
Military veteran, teacher honored with High 5
January 11th, 2008 @ 7:19am
Brooke Walker reporting
Any history book will teach lessons of sacrifice, patriotism and democracy. But students at Lincoln Academy in Pleasant Grove get an experience beyond any book.
That's because their history teacher, Mr. Durrant, also goes by the title of Master Sgt. And before they say good-bye to him, they wanted to say thanks. So we gave him this week's High 5.
Master Sgt. Charles Durrant uses his military stories and experiences to bring history lessons alive. Teachers and parents agree those experiences have helped his students gain a greater appreciation for the price of freedom.
As Mr. Durrant prepares to leave for his second tour in Afghanistan, his students are very proud of their teacher. But that doesn't mean they won't miss him.
Ninth grader Maegan Jacot said, "I didn't really know a lot about the war. I just knew there was something going on over there. But he has really helped me know why we had to go over there and everything that is happening over there."
The academy's office manager, Lisa Coombs, helped us present this morning's High 5. She told Mr. Durrant, "The students, the teachers, the faculty and board are so pleased with how you inspire these students to learn, how you make history come alive and how you keep them wanting to come to our school every day."
Mr. Durrant said, "I'm simply a soldier and I'm their teacher, and there is nothing heroic in what I do. It's just my life and really a simple thing."
Mr. Durrant received a KSL Swag Bag and tickets to see the Auto Show at the South Towne Expo Center. He deploys on Jan. 20. Also, he will be on Studio 5 later this morning.
January 11th, 2008 @ 7:19am
Brooke Walker reporting
Any history book will teach lessons of sacrifice, patriotism and democracy. But students at Lincoln Academy in Pleasant Grove get an experience beyond any book.
That's because their history teacher, Mr. Durrant, also goes by the title of Master Sgt. And before they say good-bye to him, they wanted to say thanks. So we gave him this week's High 5.
Master Sgt. Charles Durrant uses his military stories and experiences to bring history lessons alive. Teachers and parents agree those experiences have helped his students gain a greater appreciation for the price of freedom.
As Mr. Durrant prepares to leave for his second tour in Afghanistan, his students are very proud of their teacher. But that doesn't mean they won't miss him.
Ninth grader Maegan Jacot said, "I didn't really know a lot about the war. I just knew there was something going on over there. But he has really helped me know why we had to go over there and everything that is happening over there."
The academy's office manager, Lisa Coombs, helped us present this morning's High 5. She told Mr. Durrant, "The students, the teachers, the faculty and board are so pleased with how you inspire these students to learn, how you make history come alive and how you keep them wanting to come to our school every day."
Mr. Durrant said, "I'm simply a soldier and I'm their teacher, and there is nothing heroic in what I do. It's just my life and really a simple thing."
Mr. Durrant received a KSL Swag Bag and tickets to see the Auto Show at the South Towne Expo Center. He deploys on Jan. 20. Also, he will be on Studio 5 later this morning.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
2008 "Sweethearts for Soldiers" Calendar
Military.com | Soldiers R U.S. | December 27, 2007
Former NFL Cheerleaders Form "Sweethearts for Soldiers" Calendar
Scottsdale, Ariz. - On Veterans Day weekend, a group of former NFL cheerleaders representing teams from across the country joined forces in Arizona to shoot the second annual "Sweethearts for Soldiers" calendar to support troops deployed overseas. Just in time for the New Year, the calendar was officially released through its website www.soldiersrus.org.
Several NFL cheerleaders conceived the idea while conducting a United Services Organization (USO) tour in the Middle East. Bari Yonkers, then a cheerleader for the Arizona Cardinals, discussed the idea of giving back to the troops with some of her fellow teammates. "We were just so humbled when we visited the troops that we wanted to come up with something to bring some cheer to their lives," said Yonkers. "All NFL cheerleaders shoot a swimsuit calendar; why not make a military themed one with proceeds benefiting them?"
When Yonkers returned to the states, she teamed up with Benjamin Moline, founder and chairperson of Soldiers-R-U.S. The inaugural calendar, which was financed through sponsorships from Arizona-based businesses and individuals, raised funds for 595 Arizona National Guardsmen deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. The funds for the 2008 calendar will go toward sending care packages and calendars overseas to raise the morale of the troops. The theme of the 2008 calendar, WWII pin-up girls, is a classic concept that expresses universal appreciation for the sacrifices of all deployed service members. The calendar has 13 attractive months of pin-up themed shots.
The models, (all former NFL cheerleaders) for this year's calendar all have a special reason for donating their time and efforts - they all have a personal connection to the military. Not only have most of them been on multiple USO tours overseas, Tonya was married to Cory Helman, a Navy search and rescue (SAR) swimmer who lost his life in January when his helicopter went down during exercises off San Clemente Island, Calif. She is participating in honor of his memory. Kimberly's fiance is a Navy Seal who is in Iraq right now. Brooke and Andrea are sisters who lost their dad when they were kids. Their father was a U2 pilot for a base on the East Coast. Kalani's sister serves in the military and has been deployed to Iraq and finally, Jessica currently serves in the Air Force as a Reservist.
Moline, a former soldier himself, hopes to build on the popularity of the 2007 calendar to create more opportunities to interact with the troops. "We already went on a handshake tour to Ft. Lewis and McChord Air Force Base. We'd like to visit our brave men and women overseas and personally deliver these calendars sometime this year in a USO or AFE sponsored tour."
The website, www.soldiersrus.org, is also designed so that everyone can support our troops through the online purchase of the calendar. On the website, you can learn more about the personal involvement each girl has had with the military and why this project means so much to them.
Former NFL Cheerleaders Form "Sweethearts for Soldiers" Calendar
Scottsdale, Ariz. - On Veterans Day weekend, a group of former NFL cheerleaders representing teams from across the country joined forces in Arizona to shoot the second annual "Sweethearts for Soldiers" calendar to support troops deployed overseas. Just in time for the New Year, the calendar was officially released through its website www.soldiersrus.org.
Several NFL cheerleaders conceived the idea while conducting a United Services Organization (USO) tour in the Middle East. Bari Yonkers, then a cheerleader for the Arizona Cardinals, discussed the idea of giving back to the troops with some of her fellow teammates. "We were just so humbled when we visited the troops that we wanted to come up with something to bring some cheer to their lives," said Yonkers. "All NFL cheerleaders shoot a swimsuit calendar; why not make a military themed one with proceeds benefiting them?"
When Yonkers returned to the states, she teamed up with Benjamin Moline, founder and chairperson of Soldiers-R-U.S. The inaugural calendar, which was financed through sponsorships from Arizona-based businesses and individuals, raised funds for 595 Arizona National Guardsmen deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. The funds for the 2008 calendar will go toward sending care packages and calendars overseas to raise the morale of the troops. The theme of the 2008 calendar, WWII pin-up girls, is a classic concept that expresses universal appreciation for the sacrifices of all deployed service members. The calendar has 13 attractive months of pin-up themed shots.
The models, (all former NFL cheerleaders) for this year's calendar all have a special reason for donating their time and efforts - they all have a personal connection to the military. Not only have most of them been on multiple USO tours overseas, Tonya was married to Cory Helman, a Navy search and rescue (SAR) swimmer who lost his life in January when his helicopter went down during exercises off San Clemente Island, Calif. She is participating in honor of his memory. Kimberly's fiance is a Navy Seal who is in Iraq right now. Brooke and Andrea are sisters who lost their dad when they were kids. Their father was a U2 pilot for a base on the East Coast. Kalani's sister serves in the military and has been deployed to Iraq and finally, Jessica currently serves in the Air Force as a Reservist.
Moline, a former soldier himself, hopes to build on the popularity of the 2007 calendar to create more opportunities to interact with the troops. "We already went on a handshake tour to Ft. Lewis and McChord Air Force Base. We'd like to visit our brave men and women overseas and personally deliver these calendars sometime this year in a USO or AFE sponsored tour."
The website, www.soldiersrus.org, is also designed so that everyone can support our troops through the online purchase of the calendar. On the website, you can learn more about the personal involvement each girl has had with the military and why this project means so much to them.
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