Top 10 Veterans Stories in Today’s News

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Top Veterans Stories in Today’s News

1. Wounded Veterans Take On Boston Marathon Boston, Massachusetts – A dozen amputee veterans will take on the 114th Boston Marathon on Monday. They are part of the Achilles Freedom Team of Wounded Veterans, run by the New York-based Achilles Track Club. The organization, founded in 2004, helps disabled men and women compete in athletic events. The program provides motivation, training and the opportunity to rebuild strength and endurance.
2. UOG To Host Veterans Business Outreach Center Guam – The University of Guam is host to one of eight new Veterans Business Outreach Centers (VBOCs) funded by the U.S. Small Business Administration to provide entrepreneurial development services to eligible military veterans and reservists who own or start small businesses. SBA is providing a total of $2.5 million in grants to the centers, continuing funding to the existing centers, and new funding for the new centers.
3. At Battle of the Bulge veterans’ reunion, the wives remember West Palm Beach, Florida – After more than 65 years, they are still thankful. Four women who lived in France and Belgium during the Nazi occupation in those countries expressed their enduring gratitude Sunday to some of their liberators.The women all ended up living in Palm Beach County, three of them married to American veterans of the Battle of the Bulge, one of the decisive encounters of World War II. They addressed a meeting of those vets at the Airport Hilton in West Palm Beach, recalling the difficult days they lived before their heroes came marching in.
4. Joint Chiefs chairman to meet with vets in W.Va. Morgantown, West Virginia – (AP) – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is coming to Morgantown to meet with veterans, community leaders and officials from West Virginia University. Officials say Adm. Mike Mullen’s visit on Tuesday is meant to highlight the success and commitment of integrating returning veterans into their communities.
5. Students and sweethearts called Vetsville home Boulder, Colorado – Vetsville was the name given to the University of Colorado’s post-World War II student housing project for married veterans, but to those who lived there it was an adventure. The community’s residents overlooked their primitive living conditions in cramped surroundings to embrace an era of romance and youthful optimism. “The vets loved it,” said late professor Howard Higman when interviewed for an oral history. “It was a continuity of their Army experience in a campus setting.”
6. Smaller state veterans home decision still a victory Roseburg, Oregon – We’re feeling a bit like a team that’s lost a state championship game. While it’s true that the loser still ends up in second place, we really wanted to win. We’re referring to Roseburg’s bid for a state veterans home. We were surprised to learn the site evaluation committee for the Oregon Department of Veterans Affairs came up with an alternate plan. Rather than choosing one location for a 250-bed nursing home and rehabilitation facility estimated to generate $10 million in annual payroll, the committee decided to site two smaller care centers in two different locations.
7. Mullen Reaches Out to Local Communities on Behalf of Veterans New York – Investing in America’s military veterans through education and employment opportunities will benefit local communities greatly, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said here today at Columbia University. Columbia University is the first of many “conversations with the country” Mullen intends to make in an endeavor to help local communities understand the value of their military veterans.
8. Updated benefits booklet from R.I. Veterans’ Affairs Providence, Rhode Island – Copies of the new booklet from the Rhode Island Division of Veterans’ Affairs listing all benefits available to Rhode Island veterans may be picked up at the Rhode Island Veterans’ Home at 480 Metacom Ave., Bristol. The 70-page guide may also be viewed and downloaded at http://dhs.embolden.com/Veterans/VeteransServices/tabid/307/Default.aspx. Go to “What’s News” and click the link for the “Service Guide for Rhode Island Veterans.”
9. Federal benefits to be paid electronically by 2013 Washington, DC – Most Social Security and other federal benefits payments will be made by direct deposit by 2013, the Treasury Department is set to announce Monday. The decision will eliminate about 136 million paper checks sent by the Social Security Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, Railroad Retirement Board and Office of Personnel Management.
10. U.S. Spent $5.6 Billion Last Year Treating Veterans with Mental Disabilities Washington, DC – Caring for soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental illnesses is costing the federal government billions of dollars a year, and will continue to do so for years to come. According to an analysis of Department of Veterans Affairs’ records by the Chicago Tribune, the VA spent $5.6 billion last year to treat mental disabilities. While these costs included treating veterans from previous wars, such as Vietnam and the Persian Gulf, the ballooning expenses have been driven largely by soldiers serving in Afghanistan and Iraq.