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Veterans: Operation Magic Touch helps those suffering from PTSD | Guest Columns

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Twenty-two a day — suicides have plagued our veterans for many years. While the causes of suicide are complex and not fully understood, military leaders and community members continue to search for answers in combating this unfortunate number. The COVID-19 pandemic has added additional stressors to an already strained force as well. Our military forces these past two years were called upon to support testing and vaccine clinics while struggling with the virus themselves, with their families and friends. They also dealt with continued war-zone deployments, national disasters and often violent civil unrest.

Each community offers a variety of counseling programs to help our veterans as they work through the road to recovery. Some of the programs offered are traditional counseling sessions, music therapy and outdoor adventure. One Rhode Island Army veteran, Jason Morel, has come up with an alternative program incorporating the world of magic and laughter.

In 2017, Jason founded Operation Magic Touch, dedicated to helping veterans and their families through magic. Morel created his magic show to be a safe form of entertainment for veterans who suffer from PTSD and their families. From a young age this veteran began his studies with magic. Upon his discharge from the Army, Jason continued his studies as a means of combating his PTSD.

Each year the National Veterans Arts Competition is conducted. Veterans who are enrolled at VA health care facilities are eligible to compete. In 2019, Jason entered the competition and placed second in his division with his magic show. That year, over 5,600 veterans representing 130 VA medical facilities competed. Jason’s placement was the highest for any participant representing the Providence VAMC.

Jason is now on a journey to aid veterans and their families through his magic. The public is invited to see this veteran in action on March 12 for a steak dinner and magic show at Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9404, 29 South Main Street, Coventry. The dinner begins at 5 p.m., followed by Jason’s spectacular magic show at 7 p.m.

Tickets are $25 and can be purchased by calling 401-828-9705. All proceeds will go to VFW Post 9404 to assist Jason Morel with his objective of helping his fellow veterans and families.

St Patrick’s Special Corned Beef Dinner

Come and enjoy a St Patrick’s traditional corned beef dinner, with all the trimmings, on March 15 from 5 to 8 p.m. You have the choice of dining in or take-out, $20 a plate, at Amancio-Falcone-Gaccione VFW Post 8955, 113 Beach St., Westerly.

Auxiliary announces visit of national president to R.I.

VFW Auxiliary Department of Rhode Island is excited to announce the visit of Jean Hamil, national president of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States Auxiliary. Hamil will tour the Rhode Island State Capitol and the Rhode Island Office of Veterans Services, enjoy dinner at the Valley Inn in Portsmouth, and take a helicopter tour of Aquidneck Island.

The VFW Auxiliary Past Department Presidents’ Club will host a dinner at Davenport’s in East Providence, upon Hamil’s. Her visit will include speaking with VFW and Auxiliary members in Pawtucket and throughout Rhode Island. VFW Auxiliary Department President Shauna Fournier will serve as her official escort.

President Hamil, of Orlando, Fla., was elected to office at the Auxiliary’s 108th National Convention in Kansas City, Mo. For more information, contact GinaMarie Doherty, VFW Auxiliary Rhode Island, Historian, [email protected], 401-500-1721.

About the VFW Auxiliary: The VFW Auxiliary is one of the nation’s oldest veterans’ service organizations and our members are the relatives of those who served in a location of foreign conflict. We have nearly 470,000 members representing all 50 states who volunteer millions of hours and give millions of dollars to support veterans, military service personnel and their families. Learn more at www.vfwauxiliary.org.

Amancio-Falcone-Gaccione VFW Post 8955

New members are always welcome to attend our next monthly meeting on March 2 at 6:30 p.m. at the Post Home, 113 Beach St, Westerly.  Voice of Democracy winners will present their winning essays at this meeting. The Post meets the first Wednesday of each month. The three qualifiers for membership in the VFW: Citizenship — U.S. citizen or U.S. National; honorable service — received a discharge of Honorable or General (Under Honorable Conditions); or be currently serving, service in a war, campaign, or expedition on foreign soil or in hostile waters, or service in Korea for 30 consecutive or 60 non-consecutive days.

Project Outreach

The mission of Project Outreach is to assist all veterans to gain access to the VA and eligibility for all benefits and programs they offer. The program is staffed by certified Chapter Service Officers that have attended the yearly Disabled American Veterans training. The service officer provides the proper VA forms and guidance to properly complete required documents to then ensure that they have proper representation at the VA. If a veteran is not in the VA system, he/she or their family are not eligible for all the great services and benefits the VA offers. Hours: VFW Post 8955, first Wednesday and third Monday of each month, 5 p.m.

Prayers of peace to Ukraine

“Pray for Ukraine!”

“May God hear our loving petitions and soften the hearts and minds of all, those within and outside Ukraine, during these dangerous times,” wrote the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA Council of Bishops, in a statement responding to news of the Russian invasion this week.

Gen. David Thompson, American experts agree the US and China are in a space race

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On a panel of US space experts and leaders speaking at the Reagan National Defense Forum in a panel moderated by CNN’s Kristin Fisher, Gen. Thompson warned China could overtake the US in space capabilities by the end of the decade.

“The fact, that in essence, on average, they are building and fielding and updating their space capabilities at twice the rate we are means that very soon, if we don’t start accelerating our development and delivery capabilities, they will exceed us,” Gen. Thompson said, adding, “2030 is not an unreasonable estimate.”

Gen. Thompson was joined by Rep. Jim Cooper, a Tennessee Democrat who chairs the House Armed Services Committee’s strategic forces subcommittee, which helps oversee the Space Force’s budget, and Chris Kubasik, president and CEO of L3Harris Technologies, a defense contractor that develops Space and Airborne systems.

Cooper said, “Hell yes,” when asked if the US is competing in a so-called space race with China.

Both Gen. Thompson and Kubasik agreed with Cooper’s assessment.

Cooper has been a steadfast advocate for the Space Force, but said Saturday it is not moving fast enough to “keep up” with private industry.

“It’s great that the private sector is so much more innovative than our Air Force was, and we need to get the Space Force to be much more innovative and try to keep up with the private sector,” Cooper said.

He added: “To really be superior, we’ve got to go beyond Elon Musk’s imagination, Jeff Bezos’ imagination, beyond their pocketbooks. (The) budget right now is $17 billion — that’s a lot of money, but considering how crucial space is, are we doing enough?”

Cooper suggested the Space Force should be more like the National Reconnaissance Office, which oversees government space satellites and provides satellite intelligence to several US agencies.

“The NRO has actually done a pretty amazing job,” Cooper said. “They’re not as well-known as some other agencies. … But I had a recent side-by-side briefing with the NRO and Space Force. My conclusion after that briefing was: thank God for the NRO. I anxiously await the day that I can say the same about the Space Force.”

When asked to respond, Gen. Thompson said, “As Congressman Cooper noted, every time we meet, Congressman Cooper asks what he can continue to do to help, and my request of him is always the same: continue to be our strongest supporter and our toughest critic, and I can say this morning he continues to perform effectively in both of those roles,” to which the room erupted in laughter.

Tampa Bay Veterans Aiding American Evacuations From Ukraine – CBS Tampa

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TAMPA, Fla. (CW44 News At 10) – As Ukraine shifts to a war footing and political tensions rise Wednesday, many are buckling down amid warnings of a “full-on-invasion” from Russia. A Tampa Bay nonprofit group, on the other hand, is working to get Americans and American allies out of the country.

“Knowing that Americans were probably going to get left behind, we were like, ‘let’s not watch it on tv, let’s not be a spectator. Let’s try and help’,” said Bryan Stern, Co-Founder of Project Dynamo. An American veteran-led organization, Project Dynamo was founded following the Afghanistan evacuations in 2021.

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“When we deploy, we buy one-way tickets,” he said Wednesday.

His team of volunteer veterans is grounded in the Special Operations and Intelligence Sector.

“We have the skills. We have the expertise. We’ve been doing these kinds of things for the government for many years,” he said. “We’ve rescued more people personally than most military elements and most special operations elements in the government. The volume of what we’ve personally done is prolific.”

For the last week, the Tampa Bay-based team has been mapping out Ukrainian exit routes from the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv which is currently shut down, itself.

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“The invasion started just the other day. We’ve been here planning prepping and setting conditions and building out human and physical infrastructure, building out routes,” said Stern. “What Ukraine is all about is taking the lessons learned from Afghanistan and applying them here. Getting Americans and NATO allies from where they shouldn’t be to where they want to be, safely and legally.”

But unlike prior missions, he says the current environment is different.

“The Russian Army – they have a tremendous cyber capability. If they take Kyiv, the first thing they’re going to do is kill the phones and kill the lights. The Taliban don’t do that.”

And with Russian soldiers now entering the country, the team is in desperate need of donations to prepare for arrangements.

“Covid shots, if it’s buses, if its safe houses it all costs money. Pilots cost money, airplanes don’t fly for free,” he said. “These things are incredibly expensive.”

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Project Dynamo is solely funded by donations. Click here to help.

The Marines Need Billions for Climate Prep

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The Twentynine Palms Marine Base in California.

The Twentynine Palms Marine Base in California.
Photo: David McNew (Getty Images)

The Marine Corps says it will need to spend $5 billion over the next 30 years to update two recruit depots for both climate resiliency and the integration of women into boot camp, the Marine Corps Times reported. This move comes as the U.S. military is pushing for better preparation for climate change-fueled disasters like extreme flooding.

The two depots are based in San Diego, California and Parris Island, South Carolina. The Parris Island depot is more than 100 years old and is near low-laying land that will eventually flood.

“Tidal flooding affects low-lying locations around MCAS Beaufort and MCRD Parris Island, including extensive wetland areas, 10 times per year on average,” according to a 2016 case study on the future of the depots. “By 2050, the currently flood-prone areas within both bases could experience tidal flooding more than 300 times annually and be underwater nearly 30 percent of the year given the highest scenario.”

A 2021 article in the Marine Corps Times outlined how some military leaders were concerned about the lack of plans for preventing the South Carolina depot from flooding regularly in the future. One idea involves building a seawall around the facility.  

There are other bases in trouble, too: The U.S. Navy’s huge station in Norfolk, Virginia is experiencing sea level rise at 4.6 millimeters per year along with land subsidence, and several bases have been damaged by extreme weather in recent years, according to 2019 report from Defense One.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Army (the country’s oldest military branch) unveiled a plan to supposedly make its operations more climate friendly, including rolling out electric military vehicles and installing microgrids on its bases that will be powered by renewable energy such as solar panels. The branch will also train soldiers to withstand and respond to natural disasters like floods and heat waves.

Regardless of how much the Army and the Marine Corps weatherize their bases and prepare for future disasters, the U.S. military is a major polluter that uses a tremendous amount of water and energy to run hundreds of military bases around the world. Moving service members across the globe for ongoing operations and maintenance and training also contributes to the military’s already massive carbon footprint. The only greener military is a much smaller one, with fewer bases and vehicles around the world.

Top Space Force official: China is developing space capabilities at ‘twice the rate’ of US | News

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Gen. David Thompson, vice chief of space operations for the US Space Force, said Saturday China is developing its space capabilities at “twice the rate” of the US.

On a panel of US space experts and leaders speaking at the Reagan National Defense Forum in a panel moderated by CNN’s Kristin Fisher, Gen. Thompson warned China could overtake the US in space capabilities by the end of the decade.

“The fact, that in essence, on average, they are building and fielding and updating their space capabilities at twice the rate we are means that very soon, if we don’t start accelerating our development and delivery capabilities, they will exceed us,” Gen. Thompson said, adding, “2030 is not an unreasonable estimate.”

Gen. Thompson was joined by Rep. Jim Cooper, a Tennessee Democrat who chairs the House Armed Services Committee’s strategic forces subcommittee, which helps oversee the Space Force’s budget, and Chris Kubasik, president and CEO of L3Harris Technologies, a defense contractor that develops Space and Airborne systems.

Cooper said, “Hell yes,” when asked if the US is competing in a so-called space race with China.

Both Gen. Thompson and Kubasik agreed with Cooper’s assessment.

Cooper has been a steadfast advocate for the Space Force, but said Saturday it is not moving fast enough to “keep up” with private industry.

“It’s great that the private sector is so much more innovative than our Air Force was, and we need to get the Space Force to be much more innovative and try to keep up with the private sector,” Cooper said.

He added: “To really be superior, we’ve got to go beyond Elon Musk’s imagination, Jeff Bezos’ imagination, beyond their pocketbooks. (The) budget right now is $17 billion — that’s a lot of money, but considering how crucial space is, are we doing enough?”

Cooper suggested the Space Force should be more like the National Reconnaissance Office, which oversees government space satellites and provides satellite intelligence to several US agencies.

“The NRO has actually done a pretty amazing job,” Cooper said. “They’re not as well-known as some other agencies. … But I had a recent side-by-side briefing with the NRO and Space Force. My conclusion after that briefing was: thank God for the NRO. I anxiously await the day that I can say the same about the Space Force.”

When asked to respond, Gen. Thompson said, “As Congressman Cooper noted, every time we meet, Congressman Cooper asks what he can continue to do to help, and my request of him is always the same: continue to be our strongest supporter and our toughest critic, and I can say this morning he continues to perform effectively in both of those roles,” to which the room erupted in laughter.

The-CNN-Wire

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Oklahoma veterans achieve number one status | News

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OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs (ODVA) said Oklahoma has reached a special milestone. Oklahoma is now number one among the 50 states for veterans, per capita, in receipt of federal, service-connected disability benefits. This represents a $2.4 billion cash infusion into the Oklahoma economy. 

“We have an amazing veterans community here in Oklahoma and this could not have been accomplished without all the veteran service organizations banding together as a team and working really hard to achieve this,” said Joel Kintsel, ODVA executive director.

Out of approximately 300,000 Oklahoma veterans, there are about 100,000 veterans with some level of service-connected disability. Service-connected disability means that the federal VA has established that a veteran has a compensable injury or medical condition resulting from military service. For the 100,000 service-connected, disabled Oklahoma veterans, this reflects $2.4 billion provided directly to the individual veterans.

“So much can be accomplished when we all work together. Hitting number one was a huge win for the Oklahoma team,” said Pete Peterson, chairman, Oklahoma Veterans Council.

“Congratulations to our great Veteran Service Officers across Oklahoma for the outstanding achievement of being first among the 50 States,” said Charles O’Leary, state commander, American Legion. “All of us sacrificed during our time in the military and disability is the price we paid for that sacrifice.”

“The VFW is very proud to be part of Oklahoma’s accomplishment. This is proof of the power of veterans helping veterans,” said Jim Basset, state commander, Veterans of Foreign Wars.

“I am tremendously proud of ODVA’s role in bringing Oklahoma to number one,” said Larry Van Schuyver, state commander, Military Order of the Purple Heart and chairman, ODVA Veterans Commission. “Our executive director has shown tremendous leadership leading Oklahoma’s effort to the top.”

“Oklahoma has achieved this level of success in serving veterans because there is no competition in helping veterans. Oklahoma service organizations have unified in this effort. We are one team and one family taking care of veterans,” said Danny Oliver, state adjutant, Disabled American Veterans.

“As a paralyzed Oklahoma veteran, this issue is near to my heart,” said Bill Kokendoffer, state commander, Paralyzed Veterans of America. “At the PVA, we are committed to serving paralyzed veterans and we are proud to be a part of the effort to be number one.”

It is estimated that nearly half of the Oklahoma veterans who are eligible for compensation for injuries and/or medical conditions arising from military service have not yet applied.

Oklahoma veterans who need assistance with filing a claim for service-connected disability are invited to call or visit on-line: (405) 523-4000; www.oklahoma.gov/veterans 

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