Tag: 1-800-273-8255

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The American Legion is Reaching Out to Help

The American Legion, which I am a member of, does a lot of things that do not make the news. Here are some things I found about some Legion posts across our country.

  1. 5,300 diapers distributed by Post 760 in Oceanside California.
  2. 10,000 pairs of latex gloves and 1,000 masks. They also sent gallons of hand sanitizers and many surgical gowns at Post 1.
  3. Post 405 in Philadelphia set up a Zoom meeting for many veterans to connect and share their worries, and just having someone to talk to who cares.
  4. 100 pounds of food collected by children of Legionnaires to give to those in need.
  5. $5,000 dollars donated to the food bank in Pennsylvania, by post 104.
  6. 1,600 Buddy Checks made by Post 83 in Merced, California. This is a way to check on your veterans friends to make sure they are OK. Here is a link to see how it works. www.legion.org/publications.

I will be sharing more as I compile them from reading and searching the internet.

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Active Older Veterans Fall More, Get Hurt Less.

Physically active veterans are more likely to fall, but less likely to get hurt, compared to inactive older people.

The take away from this is when you are more active you have less chances of getting hurt.

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Joke of the day:

With High-Definition TV everything looks wider and bigger. Kind of like my 62nd class reunion. (My actual reunion time for me. Yes I am old, but I am good!)

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I am excited to report that we have had 35 new subscriptions since I last posted. Welcome to all of you. We now have 8,324 subscribers. All veterans who are seeking hope, and wanting to stay up on what is happening for Veterans. This is the place for that.

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How are you doing brother/sister? Everything going OK? I have heard from some that are not doing well. PTSD, has raised its ugly head, and trying to control some of you.

DO NOT let that happen.

Get help! You are not a sissy if you get help. I know, people think you need to be tough if you are a veteran. That is not true! I needed help and I got it. I WOULD NOT be here today if I didn’t get help! I was a breath away from checking out of this hotel called earth, and I was saved.

I am sure you have many other demons chasing you like, depression, anxiety, fear, self-doubt, etc.

Stop the madness and call for help. Here is the connection line to get that much needed help.

1-800-273-8255. call now if you need it!

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken,

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Stories From Our veterans Who Have Been there

I am back with some more interviews with veterans for my book, “Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.”

I would like to share some current military news first. I will call this Facing the Tasks of Life. It will have stories from all over the world where our veterans are, and some stories from those who are now transitioned into civilian life. Hope it is interesting to you.

  1. A Iraq Veteran is now an astronaut for NASA. Lt. Colonel Anne McClain, blasted off from Kazakhstan December 3rd for a six month stay at a space station. She is only 39. She was a helicopter pilot in Iraq.
  2. Thank a Vietnam veteran on March 29th. It is Vietnam Veteran’s Day.
  3. A new law signed by Congress will “create jobs,” for veteran owned businesses. It will allow veteran owners to have access to military equipment that the military has no more use for.
  4. Senators question the VA on unused suicide prevention funds. Congress OKed 6.2 billion dollars to the military and yet only $57,000 of it has been used for suicide prevention. (What’s wrong with this picture!!)

Now I will share one interview I have done recently for the book, “Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.” This is only excerpts from the interview. You will have to buy the book to get “the rest of the story.”

I was able to talk to a vietnam veteran a while back. It was very hard to get him to answer anything about his actual combat. I did find out he has a purple heart, because of a serious injury. He is battling PTSD, and battled alcohol addiction for several years after he got out. He however said he would like to tell a uplifting story about his time there.

His group of men had settled down in the jungle to make camp. It turned out they stayed there for a long time. One day my soldier was sitting with a buddy and he looked up into the trees. There were monkeys everywhere. He told his buddy that he wanted one of those monkeys as a pet. His buddy said “No sweat!” He got a coconut and cut a hole in it. He cleaned it out and put a quarter in it. He tied a rope to it and put it out in a clearing.

Soon several monkeys came up to it because of curiosity. One reach in to get the quarter he tried to pull he hand out and couldn’t The buddy slowly pulled the monkey over to the soldier and said, “Here ya go!”

My soldier loved that monkey. He took very good care of him. He even built a cage to let him sleep in. Made a bed out of ferns etc. The monkey got very attached to the soldier. They were real buddies.

However, some of the other soldiers didn’t like the monkey because he was coming to their tents and stealing food. One soldier got so angry he made a parachute for the monkey and threw him over a cliff.

This made my soldier very angry. He was depressed and missed his monkey. Then one day coming through the tents came that same monkey with the parachute still attached to him. He didn’t give up , and found his way back to his master.

This is just one interview of many I have done for the book , Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.” The rest of the book are stories from my time in the military, and how I survived. Each chapter will talk about survival, especially for those who struggle with PTSD, TMI, Depression, Anxiety, War wounds, etc.

Check back here often to read more stories from veterans like yourself.

You can get these posts delivered to your email box by subscribing to the blog. Just click on the “Subscribe” icon at the top and go from there.

Are you are a veteran and wonder why things are happening to you that you aren’t pleased with? You certainly are not alone. I was there. Millions of other veterans were there. The important thing is to realize you need help. Too many of our brothers and sisters hide their feelings and become part of the 22 veteran suicides EVERY day. Do not let that happen. Get help!! The 24/7 help line is 1-800-273-8255 Press 1.

You need to also remember.

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…Never, ever, give up!