Update Gulf War/ Desert Storm/ ‘STATE”  Project on Facebook

by Denise Nichols

The effort to get a Force Multiplier for Gulf War Veterans is gaining strength through Community Building on Facebook.  VT over two years ago encouraged Gulf War /Desert Storm Veterans to utilize Facebook to organize into their units they served with by calling for the Reunite- Reconstitute Virtual Units Effort.  That effort is continuing.

The idea was to reform as units not only for social but for actually functioning as units with individuals tasked to be Communications, Information Sharing on Gulf War Illness, Collect Data on their own members in regards to how many are ill with undiagnosed or Gulf War illness or Diagnosed illnesses, VA claims statistics re ratings, progress on claims, problems with claims medical care, and support needed, to hunt down their missing unit members using all methods, to account for those that have died by age , date , cause of death.  To compile reports re unit sit reports.

To share information on Gulf War Illness Research Studies, Progress in Congressional, and other Agencies(VA) actions, to share information on needs for unified response to changes needed at the national level for Gulf War/Desert Storm Veterans.

To identify needs of their own unit members and to find ways to meet those needs.  To be able to have information flow and potential hearing testimony to Capitol Hill or other agencies ie DOD/VA.

To identify those that are healthy that can also contribute to Research efforts as being Controls in any studies.

To identify unit members that could be trained to help with VA Claims process in order to help their unit members.  To identify unit members that want to plan reunions not only for social but as forming a function to help their fellow unit members.

To provide a support team for their own unit members.

The next effort that VT put out the call for is for Gulf War/Desert Storm/”STATE”  Project.  Again by utilizing Facebook the veterans can come together at state levels where they are living to work together in their state.  To network and identify problems with VA hospitals, Regional offices, meet with US Representatives/Senators to provide reports to them of the findings of problems and need for correction.  They could also impact on state level government needs for the veterans and how the state government and officials could help.

At the same time they can support each other in similar ways as the unit specific groups.  Information flow and communication is imperative.  This effort was to support and meet the needs veterans and veteran families have not to be an organization like a typical VSO or organization unless they choose that direction later. It is brother and sister veterans, their families, or supporters coming together to identify and fix problems as a group.

So far as of this morning their are now 14 States that have individual veterans that step forward to serve as initial administrators of the Gulf War/Desert Storm/ “STATE”  pages on Facebook.  This does not cut out nondeployed, Desert Shield, or clean up operations after the cease fire in 91 but it is an effort to focus on the 1990-91 and close follow on dates.

The States represented now are:  California, Oregon, Arizona, Colorado, Texas, Louisiana, TN, Kentucky, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, Michigan,and DC. The Specific Labeling Gulf War/Desert Storm/”state” Veterans  serves as a means to make search on Facebook easier.

The administrators of the state pages need help so as you sign on identify the city you live in, service, unit, if you are ill or healthy, diagnoses, VA Rating, Problems, and what you as an individual are ready to do to help.

What tasks are you willing to help with?  Communications, writing press releases, reports, collection of information data statistics for those that come forth, planning meetings as the need is identified, Scheduler of meetings, or being the information(Intell) gather to receive or search out the information that is needed to share.

You are welcomed to leave comments here after this article here at VeteransToday.

These are all initial ideas that are being shared to help get the tasks rolling.  Remember the reason for this is Gulf War Veterans, “We” got problems and veterans that need help!  Gulf War and Desert Storm issues of health are after 20 years not resolved, we have left many behind injured and ill.