thedrifter
03-13-07, 06:03 AM
Veterans get to speak out to fill gaps in care
By STEPHEN BEALE
Union Leader Correspondent
BEDFORD – When George Munson returned home from Iraq, he said it was hard to spend three additional days away from his family while he underwent a health assessment by the New Hampshire Army National Guard.
But now he wishes he'd spent more time with the Guard before reuniting with his family.
"So I am sitting at home, you know, thinking, Wow, OK, so now I'm back. Oh, this is great,'" Munson said. "I can't talk to anybody. You know my wife is a former veteran but I don't want to talk to my wife about some of that stuff, I got to talk to my buds. We weren't allowed or we weren't given the opportunity to be amongst the warriors."
Munson, a Lyndeborough resident who flew Blackhawk air ambulances in Iraq as part of the 1159th Medical Company, was one of several members of the military who spoke at a forum on veterans' needs, hosted yesterday by Easter Seals.
Organizers of the event at the C. R. Sparks event center said veteran service groups especially need to reach out to National Guardsmen and Army Reservists, who do not have military bases or places that provide a supportive community when overseas deployments end.
Maj. Gen. Kenneth Clark, the adjutant general for the New Hampshire National Guard, said the military spends a lot of time preparing citizens to be soldiers, but historically has not put much effort into turning soldiers back into civilians.
"The issue isn't new, but paying attention to it is," Clark said.
Clark said the forum was planned long before news reports surfaced about substandard conditions at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., but he said the scandal has drawn more attention to the problem of improving veteran care.
During the forum, several speakers pinpointed gaps in the system. One woman, who identified herself as the mother of a soldier serving overseas, said that often the parents and the emotions they are dealing with are overlooked.
Another speaker said veteran organizations sometimes forget the single soldiers who live alone, without relatives to keep an eye out for any changes in their behavior or alterations in their mood.
Christine McMahon, the chief operating officer for Easter Seals, said the forum was intended to shed light on those gaps. She said her organization hoped to have another forum in six months to evaluate the progress being made by a coalition of private and public groups Easter Seals is leading to address veteran needs.
Clark said new programs and initiatives could come out of the event. During the forum, Clark said somebody had asked if there was a place on the Internet where veterans could share ideas and experiences.
"I wrote that down and said, �We're not doing a darn thing about that,'" Clark said.
Clark said he was also considering publishing a small, pocket-sized handbook for veterans, providing them with an "A to Z" guide of the issues they may be facing as veterans and what organizations can help them work through those issues.
Officials also heard from some older veterans who warned them not to repeat the mistakes of the past.
"Don't do to Iraq and Afghanistan veterans what you did to the Vietnam veterans," said Howie Howe of Manchester, who said he served in Vietnam with the U.S. Marines from 1967 to 1968.
When he headed off to Vietnam, Howe said he and his fellow servicemen had been promised the same benefits enjoyed by the World War II generation. Back home, he found out that many of those benefits had been revoked.
Gene Zizka, a Manchester resident who served in the Navy from 1976 to 1977, said veteran services had not been able to help him with his drinking problem or his struggle with post traumatic stress syndrome.
"I've been dealing with the Veterans Administration for 20 years," Zizka said. "You know where that got me? Nowhere."
Zizka said he had started to talk to God to end his drinking and combat-related PSTD, but he said he still needs help with paying his bills and college tuition, if he is accepted into St. Anselm College.
"I don't need any psychological counseling," Zizka said. "Thank you, all set. I want something real."
Ellie
By STEPHEN BEALE
Union Leader Correspondent
BEDFORD – When George Munson returned home from Iraq, he said it was hard to spend three additional days away from his family while he underwent a health assessment by the New Hampshire Army National Guard.
But now he wishes he'd spent more time with the Guard before reuniting with his family.
"So I am sitting at home, you know, thinking, Wow, OK, so now I'm back. Oh, this is great,'" Munson said. "I can't talk to anybody. You know my wife is a former veteran but I don't want to talk to my wife about some of that stuff, I got to talk to my buds. We weren't allowed or we weren't given the opportunity to be amongst the warriors."
Munson, a Lyndeborough resident who flew Blackhawk air ambulances in Iraq as part of the 1159th Medical Company, was one of several members of the military who spoke at a forum on veterans' needs, hosted yesterday by Easter Seals.
Organizers of the event at the C. R. Sparks event center said veteran service groups especially need to reach out to National Guardsmen and Army Reservists, who do not have military bases or places that provide a supportive community when overseas deployments end.
Maj. Gen. Kenneth Clark, the adjutant general for the New Hampshire National Guard, said the military spends a lot of time preparing citizens to be soldiers, but historically has not put much effort into turning soldiers back into civilians.
"The issue isn't new, but paying attention to it is," Clark said.
Clark said the forum was planned long before news reports surfaced about substandard conditions at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., but he said the scandal has drawn more attention to the problem of improving veteran care.
During the forum, several speakers pinpointed gaps in the system. One woman, who identified herself as the mother of a soldier serving overseas, said that often the parents and the emotions they are dealing with are overlooked.
Another speaker said veteran organizations sometimes forget the single soldiers who live alone, without relatives to keep an eye out for any changes in their behavior or alterations in their mood.
Christine McMahon, the chief operating officer for Easter Seals, said the forum was intended to shed light on those gaps. She said her organization hoped to have another forum in six months to evaluate the progress being made by a coalition of private and public groups Easter Seals is leading to address veteran needs.
Clark said new programs and initiatives could come out of the event. During the forum, Clark said somebody had asked if there was a place on the Internet where veterans could share ideas and experiences.
"I wrote that down and said, �We're not doing a darn thing about that,'" Clark said.
Clark said he was also considering publishing a small, pocket-sized handbook for veterans, providing them with an "A to Z" guide of the issues they may be facing as veterans and what organizations can help them work through those issues.
Officials also heard from some older veterans who warned them not to repeat the mistakes of the past.
"Don't do to Iraq and Afghanistan veterans what you did to the Vietnam veterans," said Howie Howe of Manchester, who said he served in Vietnam with the U.S. Marines from 1967 to 1968.
When he headed off to Vietnam, Howe said he and his fellow servicemen had been promised the same benefits enjoyed by the World War II generation. Back home, he found out that many of those benefits had been revoked.
Gene Zizka, a Manchester resident who served in the Navy from 1976 to 1977, said veteran services had not been able to help him with his drinking problem or his struggle with post traumatic stress syndrome.
"I've been dealing with the Veterans Administration for 20 years," Zizka said. "You know where that got me? Nowhere."
Zizka said he had started to talk to God to end his drinking and combat-related PSTD, but he said he still needs help with paying his bills and college tuition, if he is accepted into St. Anselm College.
"I don't need any psychological counseling," Zizka said. "Thank you, all set. I want something real."
Ellie