What Can We do to Reach Out to Our Hurting Veterans?

Today I will share some news about military, and add some of my own thoughts.

Quick thoughts:

  1. Walgreens now accepts Tricare.
  2. One in ten Vietnam veterans have Hepatitis C and don’t even know it. Get tested!
  3. Becoming a gardener helps a lot with PTSD.
  4. The American Legion web site is one of the top resources for job seekers.

What can we do to reach out to our fellow veterans who are in need?

This questions has come up many times. What can we really do? I have some thoughts and ideas.

  1. Check out your very own neighborhood and see how many veterans live near you. Get to know them and help where they may need help.
  2. When you are in a restaurant, don’t be bashful. If you see a veteran with a hat on saying what branch he was in. Go greet him and talk to him.
  3. I was shopping at a grocery store and saw a WWll veteran. I thanked him and it lead to a great interview for my new book , Signs of Hope for the Military: IN and Out of the Trenches of Life. We have become good friends.
  4. I was having coffee with several fellow heart disease men and women after our workout at cardiac rehab. Three of them were veterans. Got three interviews from that and kept them as new friends.
  5. At church, I have found there are many veterans who go there. I have connected with many of them who have become friends. They love to sit and talk.

What about you who are having your own struggles?

Need some help yourself? This is the right place to be my friend. There are over 7,000 followers here who are in the same boat. Make a comment at the end of this post. and I know many will read it and reach out.

If you want to be able to read these posts in your inbox, just go to the top of this page and click on Subscribe. When you do, every time there is a post it will go directly to your inbox.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all….never ,ever, give up!

A Story of Sadness About a Wounded Warrior

It has been a while since my last post. I hope this is a start of many more post.

It has been sad to see how many of my fellow veterans are struggling. It breaks my heart when I hear their stories. I will share one here, and hope you will support him.

Sgt Michael Thorin was deployed to Afghanistan. He was a platoon leader of a escort unit protecting the caravans of vehicles traveling.

One day he was escorting a caravan, when the vehicle in front of him caught on fire for no reason. It burst into flames very quickly. Sgt Thorin jumped out of his rig and ran to try to save his men. They couldn’t get close, because of the heat of the flames. Two of his men burnt to death.

When I interviewed him this was the toughest part for him to talk about.

To be helpless and watch your men die has to be hard at best.

This is not the end of the story for Sgt Thorin. During his deployment he contracted some virus, or germ. This tore into his lungs. When he got out, he attempted to be a firefighter, and did well for a while. He had to stop working later because his lungs were closing down.

Today he is still alive, but needs a double lung transplant.

He is a very strong Christian, and he said that is what is keeping him going. He posts a lot on Facebook to share his love for the Lord. Go to Facebook and put in his name, Michael Thorin, and be blessed.

There are many more stories like this in my new book, Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.

What about you? Are you struggling? Please understand the you are not alone. There are over 7,000 followers of this blog and they are in the same boat with you.

Reach out by making a comment and we will support you 100%

Don’t let the dark side take over your life.

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all….never, ever, give up!!

Daily News for Veterans/Excerpt From New Book

I want to start today with some military news that may be interesting for you.

2020 Census Wants Military Spouses

The 2020 census will be held this year, and it needs hundreds of temporary workers. The Census Bureau believe military spouses and veterans are prime candidates for those jobs.

Jobs include census taking, recruiting assistants, office staff, and supervisory staff.

To be eligible applicants must be 18 years old, have a valid Social Security number, be a U.S. citizen, have a valid email address, complete an application, and answer assessment questions.

To apply call 1-855-JOB-2020 select option 3, or go to http://2020census.gov/en/jobs/how-to-apply.html

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Medal of Honor Museum to be Built in Texas.

The directors of the National Medal of Honor has selected a permanent site in Arlington, Texas.

This museum will honor the 3,507 Medal of Honor recipients of whom 71 are still living.

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Post Office Issues The Purple Heart Stamp

The U.S. Postal Service began selling the Purple Heart Medal 2019 stamp. It honors the sacrifice of the men and women who served in the military.

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OK…

Earlier I promised you that I would share an interview I had with a veteran. This interview is actually funny even though the veteran I have interviewed was severely injured in Vietnam.

I talked to the Vietnam veteran over the phone. I had hear about him from a friend who lives in Yachats, Oregon. She shared with me that he was severely injured and may not want to talk much. She gave me his phone number.

I connected with him, and she was right. He did not want to talk about his wounds. He said he is trying to forget the past, but would tell me a story that happened while he was out in the jungle. I accepted that, and he proceeded to share.

He told me that he and a buddy were resting under a palm tree and he noticed all the monkeys in the trees above him. He told the buddy, “I sure would like to have one those monkeys for a pet.” His buddy said, “No problem!” He took a quarter out of his pocket. He got a coconut and cut a hole in it. He drained the “Milk,” out of and proceeded to put the quarter inside the coconut.

This really had my interviewee confused. His buddy just told him to wait. Sure enough. Several monkeys were very curious what the shiny thing in that coconut was. One of them got too curious and stuck his hand in the coconut. He tried to pull the quarter out and his hand was stuck. The buddy said, “There you go!”

My friend caught the monkey and made a home for him. It was a large area that had wiring around it. He even made a padding for the monley to sleep on. Eventually the monkey liked where he was, because he got fed every day.

Not known to my friend the monkey found a way to escape the home area and go out taking things from the other soldiers. He would then go back into his home and eat, or play with what he brought home.

One of the soldiers didn’t like this going on so he made a tiny parachute tied it to the monkey and threw him over a big cliff. The monkey was able to land safely. My friend was heart broken. He couldn’t figure out what happened to his monkey.

One day as they sat around the campfire, my friend looked at the edge of the jungle and saw his monkey walking towards him with the parachute dragging behind him.

All the soldiers laughed, even the one who threw him over the cliff.

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How are you Doing?

I have no idea who you are, but I worry about you every day. We are brothers. If you are having any distress, please call the following number for help. (877-247-4645. They will do all they can to help you.

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never unloved.

You are never forsaken.

And above all…never, ever, give up!