America Supports You: Group Sews Globally for Wounded Troops

By Paul X. Rutz
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 16, 2006 - The Information Age has helped give birth to a global sewing circle creating unique clothing to fit America's wounded troops as they heal.

With an executive director in Ohio, a president in Minnesota, and over 300 seamstresses scattered throughout the world, the members of "Sew Much Comfort" have learned to work together from a distance.

"Without the electronic age, this could not have happened," said Virginia "Ginger" Dosedel, the group's founder and executive director. "I could not find enough people to support this otherwise."

Dosedel started the group here in December 2004, managing a small group of women as they sewed pants, shirts and underwear to accommodate the braces and other devices the troops wore as they recuperated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here.

In June 2005, Dosedel joined her husband in his reassignment to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.

But her group didn't miss a beat, she said. The effort continued to grow as members coordinated logistical operations and weekly sewing events through e-mails, phone calls and Web site postings with programs such as America Supports You, a Defense Department initiative facilitating grassroots and corporate support for the nation's servicemembers.

While sewing is at the heart of the effort, a lot has to happen to keep providing wounded troops with this custom-modified clothing not available from retail outlets or medical suppliers, Dosedel said.

From the beginning, Michelle Cuppy and DeDee Galligan, both living in Minneapolis, Minn., have taken care of many financial and communications issues.

Research and one-on-one interaction also play a big role, Dosedel said. The group has 12 "ambassadors" -- women who go into military hospitals to speak with the troops and hand out clothing. The relationships these women foster with servicemembers have turned into a vital part of the group's routine.

"It gives us a more personal touch," she said. "We can find out a little more about what they like, what they don't like ... whether there's anything that we need to change.... I do the inventory control from my house, and (the ambassadors) give me a really good feel for what the soldiers are using."

The ambassadors also help get pro sports team sponsorship.

"When they get to know soldiers, they can also tell me things like what NFL team they really like," Dosedel said. "That enables me to contact that NFL team, and we've had a lot of really good response from the professional sports teams -- baseball and football -- supplying us with clothing that we can then adapt and give to the soldiers."

Although e-mail and phone calls keep the network together, the actual sewing happens on a local level. She said that coordination is accomplished by regional directors, such as Air Force Maj. Sandra Edens, who volunteers as this area's Sew Much Comfort representative when not at work as a personnel officer at the Pentagon.

"I do a bit of everything," Edens said. She organizes area volunteers, coordinates local clothing drives, runs fundraisers, hosts sewing nights at her home, and regularly takes her place behind a sewing machine.

Edens said soon the group hopes to have designated regional directors and ambassadors throughout the U.S., as well as in Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany, and at forward-deployed hospitals near the fighting.

Calling the effort a "labor of love," Edens acknowledged that sometimes keeping all the program's moving parts in order has been "somewhat of a challenge," but helping the servicemembers recover has been more than worth it.

"These guys are amazing, and it's such an experience to go and interact with them. ... Thank goodness for e-mail," she said.

Related Sites:

Sew Much Comfort

America Supports You

NOTE: View the original version of this web page on DefenseLINK,
the official website of the U.S. Department of Defense, at
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Feb2006/20060216_4220.html.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site "America Supports You" at http://www.americasupportsyou.mil, that spotlights what Americans are doing in support of U.S. military men and women serving at home and abroad.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site for the latest news
and information about America's response to the war against terrorism: "Defend America" at http://www.DefendAmerica.mil.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: SgtCyns_New_Beginning,

From the VA Intranet.
HEY VA! HAVE YOU HEARD? March 14, 2006
"Courage After Fire" is a new book for veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan written by San Francisco VA Medical Center psychiatric social worker Keith Armstrong, LCSW, and two of his mental health colleagues, Suzanne Best, Ph.D., and Paula Domenci, Ph.D. The 230-page book is filled with valuable information, helpful tips, exercises and examples for veterans who are dealing with their reactions to war, returning to work and community, and/or reconnecting with their loved ones. The book has been well received by active duty personnel and the veteran community because it takes a complex topic and distills it into plain English. Armstrong said he and his colleagues decided to write the book because there wasn't a comprehensive text available to help returning veterans and their families with stateside readjustment difficulties. Learn more at: http://www.courageafterfire.com/.

VA Medical Facilities Welcome Women Veterans
By Rudi Williams
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, March 31, 2006 - There was a time when women veterans didn't feel welcome at Veteran Affairs Department medical facilities, but the causes of such feelings have changed dramatically over the last few years, VA's top advocate for women's health said.

"We're seeing a dramatic increase in the number of women veterans turning to VA for health care," Carole L. Turner, Veterans Affairs' national director for the women veterans health program, said. "And the satisfaction they're expressing about the health care they receive at VA is improving tremendously."

Turner said VA has a full continuum of comprehensive medical services, including health promotion and disease prevention and primary care. There is also women's gender-specific health care, such as hormone replacement therapy, breast and gynecological care, maternity and limited infertility treatments. There is also substance-abuse treatment, mental health, rehabilitation and long-term care.

"If a specialty isn't available in-house, VA will contract out with providers in the community," said Turner, a former Air Force nurse who has more than 20 years of VA experience.

Military sexual trauma treatment also is available, including counseling and treatment for any emotional or physical condition experienced as a result of sexual trauma experienced while on active duty.

Turner said women often seek treatment for "the same kind of health conditions that men experience -- diabetes, heart disease, orthopedics care, dental care." However, she added, women veterans also require certain unique health care services, such as maternity care.

There also are differences in the types of assistance services women seek from the VA. "Women who are homeless generally come with families or children," Turner said. VA has pilot programs for homeless women veterans with and without children at 11 medical facilities around the country.

VA also works to educate women on ways their health issues differ from men's -- for instance, how heart disease manifests itself differently in women than in men. She said VA is working with health care providers to ensure they're aware of and looking for signs and symptoms in women that they wouldn't ordinarily think are attributable to heart disease.

Turner emphasized that "all VA facilities aren't created equal."

"Some are very urban, highly affiliated academic teaching facilities, and some are very rural, kind of like a general-practice arrangement," she said.

But no matter what type of facility women visit, they're going to get quality breast care, either within the VA center or outsourced, she said. Studies indicate that newly diagnosed and treated breast cancer patients often suffer from such quality of life problems as insomnia, weight gain, chronic fatigue, depression and anxiety. "VA is very well equipped to help the social ramifications of disease," Turner said.

"The VA offers one-stop care for the majority of biological, psychological and social health care problems women might be experiencing," Turner said.

VA also has published privacy standards, particularly for treating women. Gone are the days when women didn't feel welcome at VA hospitals and voiced concerns about the lack of privacy, Turner said. "We also have waiting areas that are like subunits so women can wait separate and apart from men," she said. "The environment has been designed so women can bring their children, so they know that they're safe and secure."

Turner attributes much of VA's success in treating women veterans to women program managers who are advocates at every medical center. "They're there to help women veterans navigate the system," she said. "They try to ensure that the types of issues and concerns women might have about the environment or the care they receive are being addressed by staff and facility leaders who are sensitive to those needs."

Related Site:

Department of Veterans Affairs
________________________________________________
NOTE: View the original version of this web page on DefenseLINK,
the official website of the U.S. Department of Defense, at
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Mar2006/20060331_4674.html.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site "America Supports You" at http://www.americasupportsyou.mil, that spotlights what Americans are doing in support of U.S. military men and women serving at home and abroad.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site for the latest news
and information about America's response to the war against terrorism: "Defend America" at http://www.DefendAmerica.mil.

America Supports You: Group Raise $4,400 for Hospitals Treating Wounded Troops

By Rudi Williams
American Forces Press Service

WOODBRIDGE, Va., April 9, 2006 - The Landstuhl Hospital Care Project added $4,400 to its coffers April 7 to buy items needed by wounded, injured and sick servicemembers at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany, and hospitals in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Karen Grimord, the project's coordinator.

The money was raised during the "Hook & C's Karaoke" 2nd annual benefit, held here this year at American Legion Post 364. American Legion Auxiliary Unit 176 and American Legion Post 176, both in nearby Springfield, Va., donated $2,000 and $1,000, respectively. The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7916 of Occoquan, Va., also presented a $300 check to the project.

"Last year, I was asked by Karen Grimord and Karen Monk (former president of American Legion Auxiliary Unit 364) to do a karaoke to help raise money for the Landstuhl Hospital Care Project," said Ed "Hook" Hudgins, an electric tower crane operator and member of the Sons of the American Legion. "I suggested having a cookout and karaoke and we had a good turnout at American Legion Post 162 in Lorton (Va.). We raised more than $1,000."

In keeping with Hook's cookout idea, this year's benefit featured t-bone steaks grilled outdoors and assorted seafood dinners. There were also raffles and drawings for door prizes to raise money. The rest of the money came from personal checks from benefit attendees.


The "C" in Hook & C's Karaoke is Claude Burns, a retiree from the Washington Post security division.

This marked the fourth benefit held by the Landstuhl Hospital Care Project since Grimord and her husband Brian founded it in November 2004. "We try to provide mostly clothing items, but we've also extended to hospitals in Iraq and Afghanistan that need supplies, including bed sheets," Grimord said. "The project started supporting three hospitals In Iraq in 2005 and one in Afghanistan this year."

Pointing out that the project is an item-specific organization, Grimord said, "We don't just send whatever we can get our hands on. We send the items that they specifically want."

For example, the hospital in Afghanistan asked for bed sheets and pillows to use on litters. When patients arrive at hospitals, their clothes are ruined, stained or cut off in the treatment process. The project helps out by taking monthly orders from Landstuhl's Pastoral Services Department.

The April order includes sweatpants and -shirts, long-sleeve t-shirts, men's pajamas, ankle socks and slippers, pillows, quilts, blankets and travel-size mouthwash and toothpaste, among other items.

In addition to holding fund-raising benefits, the project pays for items with donations from American Legions, Veterans of Foreign Wars, churches and other organizations.

Grimord began seeking donations for hospitals in Iraq and Afghanistan after learning of the need from people who escort seriously wounded servicemembers from the theater to Landstuhl.

She said she's always amazed when seriously wounded patients arrive at Landstuhl don't want to take any of the donated items. "Those whom we almost have to force to take something feel that their biggest responsibility is to get back to the field," she said. "They want to get back to their guys. They have a responsibility, a job that needs to be done, so they want to get back to the field. So they don't want to take any items.

"Then you have patients who know they're going to come back to the states because they injury are so badly," Grimord said." They don't want to take anything because they want to leave it for the next patient coming in behind them. They don't feel that they deserve to take the sweat pants, underwear, and t-shirt or winter jacket."

Grimord said she was puzzled when a wounded helicopter pilot asked her if all the items were donated, and when told, yes, he said, "These guys deserve it."

"I told him he didn't include himself, and he said, 'No,'" Grimord noted. "He said he was a 'fly boy' and that the guys and gals on the ground deserve it all. I told him that we'd lost 14 'fly boys' in two weeks and that he had the back of the ground pounders and asked him who has his back. I asked him, 'So what makes you less deserving?'

"They always think someone else is more deserving," she noted.

Grimord returned to Landstuhl Jan. 17 to spend another 45 days volunteering. While there, she passed out 235 pink, red and white Valentine apes with little Xs, Os and messages of "I Love You," or, "I'm Ape for You," on them.

She also mailed 20 pillows to a hospital in Iraq en route to the airport. To her surprise, as she was waiting to pay the postage, the postmaster took out a debit card out of his wallet and paid the $21 shipping cost himself. "He thanked us for everything we do," Grimord said.

One day, while waiting for a busload of patients that were flown from Iraq to Ramstein Air Base, Germany, the doctors, nurses, chaplains and technicians saw the bags full of little apes. When they started commenting about the apes, Grimord started passing them out.

"They stuck them in their breast pockets so the little arms were hanging out," Grimord chuckled. "When the patients got off the buses, they were greeted by all these doctors, nurses, chaplains and technicians with little apes hanging out of their pockets.....Of course, we gave apes to the patients, too."

Grimord said that during her fall visit to Landstuhl, a wounded Marine told her about his battalion needing sweats because of the cold. She got information about their sizes and arranged to send sweats for all 300 Marines, by size.

When she returned to Landstuhl in January, the Marine sent her an e-mail message asking for her mailing address because he had something to send her.

"When I opened the box, there was an American flag with a note saying that it they had flown it over their camp headquarters in Iraq in my honor on Jan. 5 for the support I'd given them," Grimord said. "You don't expect that kind of thing. You don't expect anything because they're the ones doing all the work.

"Every time I look at that flag," Grimord said, with tears welling up in her eyes, "it brings tears to your eyes. That's for all the guys we've lost, all the guys that have sacrificed themselves and their families. That just tells you how much this support means to them."

America Supports You

Landstuhl Hospital Care Project
________________________________________________
NOTE: View the original version of this web page on DefenseLINK,
the official website of the U.S. Department of Defense, at
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Apr2006/20060409_4772.html.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site "America Supports You" at http://www.americasupportsyou.mil, that spotlights what Americans are doing in support of U.S. military men and women serving at home and abroad.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site for the latest news
and information about America's response to the war against terrorism: "Defend America" at http://www.DefendAmerica.mil.

The VA system gets my personal commendation and recommendation for its treatment of women veterans.

In the '70s, when my mother had breast cancer, she was denied treatment because she wasn't "a real veteran." (She was an Army Nurse for almost three years during WWII in Europe.)

Fast-forward to 1997. She was treated both for alcoholism (Fayetteville, NC, VA facility) and later for cervical cancer (Baltimore VA facility, outsourced to the U.MD Medical Center across the street). Her treatment was exemplary.

For the last two years of her life, she was followed at the Martinsburg (WV) VA facility on a monthly basis for several chronic ailments (asthma among them). After she died, in fact, it took me nearly two years to get them to turn OFF the reminder cards and phone calls.

The VA has made tremendous strides in its treatment of women. Hats off to them for that.

Cider33Alpha - Ma'am, I am so glad to hear that things turned out so well for your mother for her care and my condolences for your losss, no matter how long ago it was.

It is my honor to salute her for her faithful and patriotic sevice to our country. GOD bless her soul.

Cyn~

This message has been edited. Last edited by: SgtCyns_New_Beginning,

Thanks, Cyn. I appreciate that, as I'm sure she would. I sent her a bouquet of flowers on the 50th anniversary of VE Day (Victory in Europe Day, in April 1945 for you youngsters) with a card that just said "THANK YOU." She was thrilled while I played innocent.

"Just a grateful nation, Mom," says I ...

Paralympians Visit Wounded Servicemembers

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 17, 2006 - Visiting athletes encouraged Walter Reed Army Medical Center patients yesterday to challenge every limitation that comes their way.

"There's no such thing as a limitation, whether that's a physical limitation, a mental limitation (or) an economic limitation," soccer U.S. Paralympian Jon McCullough said, explaining that limitations are other people's perspectives. "As an individual, you can surpass any type of limitation that somebody else puts on you."

He knows this firsthand. The former Coast Guardsman suffered a brain injury that left him with little feeling in his left leg. He's been competing since the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta, and served as an athlete representative for this year's Winter Games.

John Register, associate director of outreach and development for U.S. Paralympics, said the visit by the 2006 Winter Olympians and Paralympians was also a chance to thank the servicemembers.

"We really just want to say 'thank you' to the men and women in uniform that allow us to do what we do," Register said. "It's because of servicemen and women who are over there on the front lines that allow the State Department to say, 'Yes, you can go compete in foreign countries.'"

U.S. Paralympics is a division of the U. S. Olympic Committee. It also encompasses the U. S. Paralympic Military Program, which serves as a tool to help rehabilitate wounded veterans.

The military program is bringing the Paralympic sport back to its roots, Register said, in programs started by injured World War II veterans.

"When they came back with injuries, they began wheelchair sports," he said. "It grew into the Paralympic Games in 1960."

The Vietnam War brought forth another group of injured veterans who started skiing. That was the birth of the winter Paralympic games, Register added.

While the program has been in existence in some form since World War II, interest tends to lull when there's no conflict resulting in large numbers of disabling injuries, he said. Small clinics have been held to reintroduce servicemembers and their families to Paralympic sport.

Yesterday, that reintroduction had Olympic and Paralympic athletes, as well as several Walter Reed patients, taking part in wheelchair basketball, wheelchair curling and sitting volleyball. These sports, among others, are good ways to get back into life, soccer Paralympian John McCullough said.

"As far as life beyond the disability, it's just a stepping stone in getting involved in society again, believing in themselves," McCullough said. "The idea of being able to compete in sport with a physical disability allows you to recognize that you can compete in any arena outside of sport as well."

After participating in the sports offered during yesterday's visit, Walter Reed patients saw new opportunities.

"This obviously has opened my eyes to know what kind of activities are out there," Army Spc. Maxwell Ramsey, a lower left leg amputee, said. "I had a lot of fun with the & wheelchair basketball."

Ramsey, who is planning to attend wheelchair games in Alaska this July, was anxious to talk with Register, who moves well on this prosthesis.

"I've only been here at Walter Reed for two-and-a-half months, so I'm still working on walking," he said. "The way (Register is) able to walk and handle himself on his leg obviously is of great interest to me."

Shouts of friendly competition filled the Walter Reed gym as athletes and patients tried out the different sports. This sense of camaraderie and teamwork is a good investment in getting back to life after a disability, McCullough said.

Today, the visiting athletes went to the White House, where President Bush praised their spirit and the examples they set as athletes.

"At the games you showed the best values of our country," Bush said. "You were humble in victory and gracious in defeat. I want to thank you for being such great ambassadors of our country."

He added his thanks to the champions in the group, who included "the dudes and dudesses of the snowboarders," for upholding the special responsibilities the come with being a winner.

Related Sites:

Walter Reed Army Medical Center

U. S. Paralympics

U. S. Military Paralympic Program
________________________________________________
NOTE: View the original version of this web page on DefenseLINK, the official website of the U.S. Department of Defense, at
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2006/20060517_5154.html.

================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site "America Supports You" at http://www.americasupportsyou.mil, that spotlights what Americans are doing in support of U.S. military men and women serving at home and abroad.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site for the latest news and information about America's response to the war against terrorism: "Defend America" at http://www.DefendAmerica.mil.

Program Gives Technology Access to Disabled GIs, Employees

By Rudi Williams
American Forces Press Service

HONOLULU, May 10, 2006 - A Defense Department program that 64 other federal agencies have adopted sees to it that wounded servicemembers from Iraq and Afghanistan and other people with disabilities have equal access to the information environment and opportunities throughout the federal government, a senior DoD official said here May 8.

Dinah F.B. Cohen, director of the Computer and Electronic Accommodation Program, spoke at the DoD Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month observance.

Cohen said the program, established in 1990, is centrally funded and pays for assistive technology for disabled employees. Over the years, CAP has been expanded to serve the entire federal government's accommodation program.

"If you have colleagues, friends or people with disabilities in other federal agencies, chances are they're getting their accommodations from CAP," Cohen told the audience.

Cohen said the war-wounded patients at military medical centers can benefit from assistive technology.

"CAP says when you're an able-bodied Marine, the last thing you probably know about is assistive technology - why would you?" Cohen said. "So we said, 'Let's take this expertise to the hospitals and let them know there's technology that will allow them to continue to work.'

"I met an Asian Pacific Islander who lost both of his hands and his sight to the explosion of an improvised explosive device and almost lost his arms," she continued. "He was on television holding his twins who were born while he was deployed, and he will never see. He was introduced to a lot of technology through occupational therapy, including the technology for people who are blind. He's now thinking about being a lawyer."

Whether he reaches that specific goal doesn't matter, she said. "I don't care if he becomes a lawyer; I just care that he has a vision for the future," Cohen said. "That's what we need to be focused on -- that vision for the future for our employees with disabilities and our wounded servicemembers."

Cohen said CAP is going to the hospitals showing wounded servicemembers assistive technology, telling them about new opportunities for employment and introducing them to new ways to new careers.

She encouraged the audience to visit the CAP Web site for a lot of information about the Workforce Recruitment Program, a CAP spotlight.

In fiscal 2005, Cohen said, CAP filled more than 3,000 requests for accommodations within the DoD family and more than 2,000 in other federal agencies.

"The demographics are always interesting, because we think of people in their minority populations, but when we think of people with disabilities, we think of about their disability," she noted. "I'd like to put that layer of disabilities on top of those demographics, because how many Asian-Pacific Americans have disabilities and how well are we doing?

"I challenge you to look at the numbers - they're not very exciting," Cohen said. "We need to constantly remember that people with disabilities are not blind and deaf and bound to wheelchairs. They are white, African-American, Asian-Pacific American and Hispanic. They're males and females. They cross all groups. Our challenge is to always think that way."

She pointed out that CAP provides assistive technology to any employee who needs it. "If you have an employee with a disability who needs assistive technology, I've got it," Cohen noted. "I've paid for it. I give it to the user. It's just that simple. It's not reimbursable. It's not out of your pocket. It's out of mine."

At the Pentagon CAP center , Cohen said, visitors can look at the equipment that allows a person with no hands to talk to the computer or a person with no vision to listen to a computer, and other technology for disabled people.

"We also do installation and training," she pointed out. "It's not enough to just buy stuff and leave it on their desk. We've got to make sure it's installed and people know how to use it. We want to make sure they're using it and using it well."

CAP ensures that everything possible is done to support recruitment, placement, retention and promotion of people with disabilities, Cohen said.

David S.C. Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, picks up the salaries for more than 200 summer students with disabilities every year, she noted. The college students work in a wide range of occupations -- everything from computer sciences and engineering to administration.

"More than 30 percent of the students involved in the Workforce Recruitment Program are minorities," Cohen noted. "It's a great way to deal with disability and diversity. I make sure that my WRP students represent the American population."

CAP also helps agencies with workers' compensation processes, telework solutions and equal employment opportunity complaints. Cohen said people injured on the job make up a "population that takes a lot of money for them to sit home and watch television."

"I think there's better ways of doing things," she said. "We need to shift gears and think of people who are out on workers' compensation as people with disabilities. We accommodate people with disabilities. So let's start accommodating people who got injured," she said. "Let's see if we can bring them back to work."

Cohen said CAP is ready to meet the challenges that lie ahead. "We have challenges to bring people back with disabilities," she emphasized. "We have the challenge of hiring people with disabilities and bringing them to our work force. We have the challenge of keeping the people who become disabled. We have the challenge of bringing back our wounded servicemembers and making sure we can accommodate our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen."

Related Site:

Computer and Electronic Accommodation Program
________________________________________________
NOTE: View the original version of this web page on DefenseLINK, the official website of the U.S. Department of Defense, at
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2006/20060510_5077.html.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site "America Supports You" at http://www.americasupportsyou.mil, that spotlights what Americans are doing in support of U.S. military men and women serving at home and abroad.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site for the latest news and information about America's response to the war against terrorism: "Defend America" at http://www.DefendAmerica.mil.

America Supports You: Navy Pilot Runs for Veterans

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 18, 2006 - It took running 26.2 miles for Lt. Cmdr. Richard Ryan, a Navy pilot, to decide how to spend his free time while preparing for his next assignment as an attaché in the Middle East.

Originally, Ryan thought he'd volunteer at the National Naval Medical Center, in nearby Bethesda, Md., or at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here. But as he toughed his way through the 2005 Marine Corps Marathon, Oct. 30 here, with "a lot of guys who were obviously just back from Iraq," a new idea struck him.

"I was thinking about running one marathon per month, which at that time seemed clearly insane, to raise some money for these guys' charities," he said, referring to organizations that support injured servicemembers and their families. "When I first said I was going to try 12, & most of my friends -- almost to a person -- said, 'You're insane. There's no way.'"

Still, he said, he needed to do this "to promote immense awareness ... one mile at a time," for a good cause -- or, rather, four good causes. Since his initial idea of 12 marathons in 12 months, Ryan has added to his plan. He now plans to run 28 races of varying lengths to raise awareness and financial support for The Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, or TAPS; the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund; and two British charities, the British Legion and Childhood First.

TAPS is a nonprofit organization supporting families, friends and military servicemembers affected by a death in the armed services. The Semper Fi Fund provides financial other support to Marines, sailors, and families of those injured serving our nation.

Ryan said the British Legion works much like TAPS, and Childhood First helps care for Britain's at-risk youth.

Ryan said he chose those British charities because his father is English. Ryan also has played rugby for the past 20 years. "About half of my personal contacts and supporters are from commonwealth nations," he said.

Ryan said he hopes the verbal encouragement he's gotten from his fellow servicemembers will parlay into more cash donations. To date, Ryan has raised about $10,000 for his chosen charities. Direct financial donations to the organizations can be made through his "Marathons for Hope" Web site, www.marathonsforhope.org.
"I don't handle any of the money myself," he said. "Every dollar that people are donating is going directly to one of the charities."

With the completion of the May 7 Potomac River Run Marathon here, Ryan completed what he refers to as the original "dirty dozen," a reference of his original plan to run 12 marathons for charity. But he's only a little over six months into his year of running and said he is hoping to get companies with military affiliations to add their monetary support to his charities.

Before the Marine Corps Marathon, Ryan had run one other marathon, 10 years earlier. "I was not, by any means, in marathon shape," he said.

Two marathons in a year is a good number for those who consider themselves marathoners, Ryan said. "(My) idea is to do things that shock people."

Ryan said he dedicates all his races to specific fallen servicemembers or crews. But he plans to dedicate the 2006 Marine Corps Marathon to all of his brothers and sisters in arms who have lost their lives in the global war on terrorism.

If all goes as planned, Ryan is scheduled to complete 24 full marathons, one 30-miler, a pair of 50-milers and a 100-mile race by the end of his year here studying Arabic. The JFK 50-Mile Race, Nov. 19 in Hagerstown, Md., is his last scheduled run.

Related Sites:

Marathons for Hope

Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors

Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund

America Supports You________________________________________________
NOTE: View the original version of this web page on DefenseLINK, the official website of the U.S. Department of Defense, at
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2006/20060518_5158.html.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site "America Supports You" at http://www.americasupportsyou.mil, that spotlights what Americans are doing in support of U.S. military men and women serving at home and abroad.
================================================
Visit the Defense Department's Web site for the latest news and information about America's response to the war against terrorism: "Defend America" at http://www.DefendAmerica.mil.

Italian Ambassador Welcomes Wounded Troops for Dinner

By Paul X. Rutz
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 20, 2006 - Beneath the Italian Embassy's clear glass rotunda, wounded servicemembers and their families accepted the ambassador's offer to host them for an evening of food, fellowship and song here yesterday.

"It's kind of a little token we offer to the wounded to share together a good Italian dish & and a very deep and sincere friendship," Ambassador Giovanni Castellaneta said.

In March the ambassador offered to host the event, when he heard about weekly dinners held by American veterans for wounded troops recuperating at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here and the National Naval Medical Center in nearby Bethesda, Md.

As it turned out, the Friday night events were about to lose their permanent home at Fran O'Brien's steakhouse. But thanks to help from the Italians and a Washington, D.C., hotel, the dinners have not missed a beat.

"These dinners aren't going to stop," said Hal Koster, former co-owner of the steakhouse and co-creator of the weekly dinners, which have run since October 2003. "These guys have earned a good time and a night out, and everybody says it helps, so we're going to do it. We're very appreciative of the Italian Embassy. It was their idea. They offered, they've followed through with their offer, and we're just delighted to be here tonight."

Koster said he hopes this event kicks off a new Friday dinner tradition for the wounded servicemembers, hosted each month by a different embassy.

Maj. Gen. Pasquale Preziosa, Italy's defense cooperation attaché, greeted troops as they walked, hobbled and rolled into the embassy with a grin. He spoke throughout the evening of his appreciation for their sacrifice.

"Those people offered a part of their bodies, of themselves, for our freedom, and you can see that freedom has got a cost," Preziosa said. "That's the value that I can see this night."

It costs between $4,000 and $6,000 per month to sponsor these dinners, according to Shoshana Bryen, special projects director for the Jewish Institution for National Security Affairs. The nonprofit group has been raising money for troops' welfare in part through Finmeccanica, an Italian defense contractor. The company gave a large donation in 2004 and has been a reliable partner ever since.

Bryen said Finmeccanica and its subsidiaries support a variety of charities. They have reportedly given $76,000 to support wounded troops so far this year.

"We've had tremendous support at the Pentagon from people who find this particular charitable endeavor to be close to their hearts," she said. That includes Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England and his predecessor Paul Wolfowitz, who was on hand for the embassy dinner.

In March, England invited officials from Finmeccanica to the Pentagon for a presentation, and that's how Ambassador Castellaneta heard about the dinners, Bryen said.

"We want to express our thanks for the American commitment in Iraq and more in general on the war on terror," embassy spokesman Luca Ferrari said. "We've seen a lot of charitable events in Washington on many different arguments or issues, on things like cancer or any kind of sickness. But there's also a military side to it.

"This is not a (public relations) event. This is a charity event," he added, explaining that the ambassador gave this dinner at his own expense, employing his personal chef for the occasion.

"It's a good atmosphere," said Army Spec. Michael Stanley as he sat in his wheelchair enjoying lasagna al fono, veal, pork, beef, risotto with zucchini, tiramisu for dessert, and plenty of Italian wine. "I just think it's really cool that the Italian Embassy did this."

The evening also featured a concert of opera and early 20th century standards featuring U.S. Army First Sgt. Antonio Giuliano, a tenor with "Pershing's Own," part of the U.S. Army Band.

"This is my calling, to sing for my fellow servicemembers," Giuliano said. "I'm very indebted to these gentlemen."
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NOTE: View the original version of this web page on DefenseLINK,
the official website of the U.S. Department of Defense, at
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2006/20060520_5183.html.
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Visit the Defense Department's Web site "America Supports You" at http://www.americasupportsyou.mil, that spotlights what Americans are doing in support of U.S. military men and women serving at home and abroad.
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Visit the Defense Department's Web site for the latest news and information about America's response to the war against terrorism: "Defend America" at http://www.DefendAmerica.mil.

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I would just like to add here that this makes me extrememly proud of my heritage; as I am half Italian and a first generation American born to Immigrant parents.

It is so heartwarming to see that the Italian Embassy has reached out to our Wounded Troops when the Hilton Family thought money was more important than tradition in this matter.

Ooooooo RAH to this fine group of individuals!!
Cyn~
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Supporting the Troops

The yearly cost of unemployment benefits for disabled military personnel has ballooned to $3 billion. Is the U.S. prepared for the oncoming wave of Iraq war vets?


Updated: 8:18 p.m. ET June 16, 2006

June 14, 2006 - Ron Dickey wanted to make the Army his career. When he joined the service at 19 he traded Rienzi, Miss.—a town with fewer than 500 residents—for a world of opportunities. Ambitious, Dickey became a member of the elite special forces and fought in the first Persian Gulf War. But when he got back from the Middle East, he developed extensive skin abrasions. He still doesn't know if he was exposed to something during the war, but his health began to deteriorate quickly. In addition to the mysterious skin disease, he came down with diabetes and he already had some hearing loss. In 1993, he opted not to re-enlist.

Dickey first tried his hand at police work back home in Mississippi. But his health wasn't up to it. So he went on the job market only to find that with a resume strong on weaponry but weak on Microsoft Word he was bouncing from one low-paying job to another. "There were a thousand options to collect a [benefits] check," says Dickey, now 35. "But I wanted to be a functioning member of society. I had to come up with a new way to be productive."

Many former soldiers are finding it difficult to return to 9-to-5 America. The number of disabled vets from all wars deemed "unemployable" by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs tripled from 71,000 to 220,000 between 1996 and 2005. Unemployable vets receive about $2,393 a month, with the total cost of the program now $3.1 billion a year (up from $857 million in 1996). That staggering price tag doesn't include the bulk of recent vets from Iraq and Afghanistan who will enter the system over the next few decades.

Many of those now receiving benefits aren't able to work because of their disabilities, and a majority are over age 60. But some vets, like Ron Dickey, could and would work under the right circumstances. And, while it is easier than ever for disabled vets to go online and get information about receiving unemployment benefits, the options for those who want to get a job are more complicated.


In a much-anticipated report issued last month, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) criticized the VA's unemployablity benefits for having unclear guidelines and weak follow-up. They found the big jump in those receiving benefits particularly troubling at a time when "advances in medicine and technology, along with labor market changes, have provided greater opportunity for people with disabilities to seek and maintain employment." Even the VA concurred with the criticism. "The VA should look at the program as an opportunity to return people to work if they can," says Cristina Chaplain, a GAO director and author of the May 30 report—the first major review of veterans' disability benefits in 50 years. "The demands of a new generation of veterans are going to be incredible, and the VA needs to get a good system in place."

It's difficult to gauge how much of an impact the new generation of war vets will have on the VA's already strained system. More than 150,000 military personnel are now serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the total number of troops who've rotated through either country at some point since September 2001 will definitely be much higher. About 18,000 military personnel have already been wounded in both conflicts. And many injuries like posttraumatic stress disorder may not surface until well after their homecomings.


No one wants to deprive injured vets of hard-earned benefits, but budgets are tight and the already overwhelming cost of "unemployable" benefits will only rise. The government, and increasingly the private sector, are starting to look for new ways to get vets jobs. "The system is broken," says Paul Rieckhoff, head of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, which advocates more and better job training and reintegration before returning vets wind up unemployed. "The VA needs to evolve to the new needs of the new war. They should be worried. A wave is coming."

Ken Smith of the Military Order of the Purple Heart Service Foundation has come up with an innovative way to get ahead of the wave. He is willing to bet that at least 10 percent of those currently "unemployable" vets could work if given a chance. So last year, the foundation started a training program for disabled vets that would teach them how to be customer-service agents, emergency operators and telemarketers—anything they can do by phone, preferably from home. The popular military Web site Military.com ran one paragraph about the training program and the foundation's phones wouldn't stop ringing. "Our position was overrun," says Smith, speaking like the Vietnam combat vet he is. He too was injured in that war but went on to a fruitful career in high tech.

Already, the training is changing people's lives. One man chosen to be among the first 20 trainees had been severely burned on his face. "He can walk, he can talk, he just scares the bejeezus out of everyone," says Smith, who is running the new Veterans' Business Training Center. After several uncomfortable job experiences with co-workers, he decided he needed to work at home. He went through the foundation's training and now works for the IT help desk of an Arizona company. He's never even met his employers face to face.


The foundation is currently selecting another 100 disabled vets for remote training with the goal of training 600 this year. But Smith has set his sights even higher. "I'm going after government contracts," he says. Legally, veterans get preference in federal hiring. But quotas for disabled vets are rarely filled. "Even if you look at all the laws and preferences, less than 1 percent are being hired [for government contracts]," explains Greg Bresser, executive director of the foundation. That's partly because many vets don't want to risk losing their benefits by trying out a job. So the foundation is trying to convince Congress not to touch veterans' disability rating and benefits (100 percent disabled vets make about $28,000 a year tax-free) for one year while he or she tries out working. "Otherwise you penalize the veteran for even trying," Smith says.

Meanwhile, the foundation hopes to play on private employers' patriotism. "Wouldn't you rather give your credit-card number to an American vet?" Bresser asks. He realizes that American salaries make vets uncompetitive with overseas workers. So he and the foundation have been pushing for tax credits for companies to make up the difference in salary.

For Ron Dickey, getting a job was about a lot more than the paycheck. He happened upon the Purple Heart training program online and was in the first wave of trainees. During his 15 weeks of remote training, Dickey not only learned how to type 30 words a minute but also how to use call-center computer software. This week, he starts a new job making $18.50 an hour at a large mortgage company in Virginia. He'll soon have health benefits, too. "If you go into the military you have to have some kind of drive," Dickey says. "You want to be part of the world." Helping American vets find gainful employment can be a big step to toward keeping that desire alive.

Source: MSNBC.com | Newsweek