The Unseen Wounded

Ed Freeman (finally) awarded Metal of Honor

2009-04-13T08:00:00.002-04:00

Ed Freeman Reprinted from craigslist.

"You're a 19 year old kid. You're critically wounded, and dying in the jungle in the Ia Drang Valley , 11-14-1965, LZ X-ray, Vietnam.

Your infantry unit is outnumbered 8 - 1, and the enemy fire is so intense, from 100 or 200 yards away, that your own Infantry Commander has ordered the MediVac helicopters to stop coming in.

You're lying there, listening to the enemy machine guns, and you know you're not getting out. Your family is half-way around the world, 12,000 miles away, and you'll never see them again. As the world starts to fade in and out, you know this is the day. Then, over the machine gun noise, you faintly hear that sound of a helicopter, and you look up to see an un-armed Huey, but it doesn't seem real, because no Medi-Vac markings are on it.

Ed Freeman is coming for you. He's not Medi-Vac, so it's not his job, but he's flying his Huey down into the machine gun fire, after the Medi-Vacs were ordered not to come.

He's coming anyway.

And he drops it in, and sits there in the machine gun fire, as they load 2 or 3 of you on board.

Then he flies you up and out through the gunfire, to the Doctors and Nurses.

And, he kept coming back.... 13 more times.....

And took about 30 of you and your buddies out, who would never have gotten out.

Medal of Honor Recipient, Ed Freeman, died last Wednesday (August 2008) at the age of 80, in Boise , ID ......May God rest his soul.....

Medal of Honor Winner Ed Freeman!"

For more information see Snopes.com

In my opinion, once again, we are not honoring our soldiers properly. It's not just the wounded who are poorly treated. I thought this was appropriate here.

Some help for kids

2008-07-25T11:07:00.001-04:00

News I like to hear:

Foundation helping families of fallen soldiers
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25824902/

729 days

2007-10-30T10:46:00.000-04:00

The 2,600 members of the Minnesota National Guard returned recently from extended duty in Iraq, which was reportedly the longest consecutive deployment of any outfit (22 months, counting extensions). However, the Guardsmen still do not qualify for government education benefits. The law allows the benefits only for those on "active duty" at least 730 days, but the Minnesota Guard's orders (as well as some other outfits' orders), were specifically written for "729 days." [KARE-TV (Minneapolis), 10-18-07]

The Army did not respond questions Tuesday afternoon. surprise.
VA Watchdog http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/nf07/nfOCT07/nf100607-5.htm

CNN: 'Day short' troops now 'fighting the Army they served' http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Iraq_vet_speaks_out_when_benefits_1009.html

Ground broken on center for wounded soldiers' families

2007-09-18T09:39:00.000-04:00

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20804740/

Ground broken on center for wounded soldiers' families

Some links for Government Help?

2007-07-26T06:53:00.000-04:00

Vets Commission Defense Health Board
Task Force on the Future of Military Health Care
Mental Health Task Force
Department of Veterans Affairs

Better Veterans Care?

2007-07-26T06:48:00.000-04:00

Commission Calls for Better Veterans Care, Help for Troops' Family Caregivers
By HOPE YENAssociated Press Writer
(AP) 07:32:15 PM (ET), Wednesday, July 25, 2007 (WASHINGTON)

A presidential commission on Wednesday urged broad changes to veterans' care that would boost benefits for family members helping the wounded, establish an easy-to-use Web site for medical records and overhaul the way disability pay is awarded.

The nine-member panel, led by former Sen. Bob Dole, R-Kan., and Donna Shalala, health and human services secretary during the Clinton administration, also recommended stronger partnerships between the Pentagon and the private sector to boost treatment for traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder.

A 29-page report was presented to President Bush in the Oval Office, just after the Senate addressed some of the issues Wednesday morning by passing sweeping legislation to expand brain screenings, reduce red tape and boost military pay.

"Gone are the countless calls for appointments," said Shalala, who said the proposals would provide more customized, personalized care to injured Iraq war veterans. "Gone are the days of telling the same thing to doctors over and over again."

Bush said he has instructed Veterans Affairs Secretary Jim Nicholson and Defense Secretary Robert Gates to take all the recommendations seriously and implement the ones they have the power to enact. He called on Congress to make the recommended changes under its authority.
That way, Bush said, "we can say with certainty that any soldier who has been hurt will get the best possible care and treatment that this government can offer."

About six of the 35 proposals require legislation, while the rest call for action primarily by the Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs. The expected price tag for the whole package was about $500 million each year, with added costs that could push it to $1 billion in later years.
Among the recommendations was an indirect rebuke of the VA _ a call for Congress to "enable all veterans who have been deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq who need post-traumatic stress disorder care to receive it from the VA."

Only recently, the VA has taken steps to add mental health counselors and 24-hour suicide prevention services at all facilities, after high-profile incidents of veterans committing suicide. In the past, the VA had failed to use all the money for mental health that was allotted to it.

"Making the significant improvements we recommend requires a sense of urgency and strong leadership," the report read. "The experiences of these young men and women have highlighted the need for fundamental changes in care management and the disability system."

The report does not seek to directly criticize or lay blame for shoddy outpatient treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center that brought a public outcry for change and creation of the commission. It cited a need to move forward, saying there was no need to "reiterate" the findings of news reports that uncovered substandard care by the Defense Department and VA.

Among the proposals:
_Boost staff and money for Walter Reed until it closes in the coming years. Also urges Pentagon to work with the VA to create "integrated care teams" of doctors and nurses to see injured troops through their recovery.
_Restructure the disability pay systems to give the VA more responsibility for awarding benefits.
_Require comprehensive training programs in post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries for military leaders, VA and Pentagon personnel.
_Create a "My eBenefits" Web site, developed jointly by the VA and Pentagon, that would let service members and doctors access private medical information as the injured move from facility to facility to receive treatment.
_Provide better family support, because one-third of injured Iraq war veterans reported that a family member or close friend had to relocate to care for them. It calls for training and counseling for families of service members who require long-term care and improved family leave and insurance benefits for family members.

"We owe our wounded soldiers the very best care, and the very best benefits, and the very easiest to understand system," Bush said. "And so they took a very interesting approach. They took the perspective from the patient, as the patient had to work his way through the hospitals and bureaucracies. And they've come up with some very interesting and important suggestions."
Bush created the panel March 6 to investigate problems in the treatment of wounded veterans following the disclosures at Walter Reed.

The White House event followed the Senate's vote by unanimous consent on legislation that seeks to end inconsistencies in disability pay by providing for a special review of cases in which service members received low ratings of their level of disability. The aim is to determine if they were shortchanged.

The bill also would boost severance pay and provide $50 million for improved diagnosis of veterans with traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder. The House was considering similar measures.

"It has been hurry up and wait for the results of this commission report and now the White House is telling our vets to wait even longer," said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. "That's why the Senate has moved ahead with our Wounded Warriors Act. The public is waiting, our veterans are waiting."

Paul Rieckhoff, executive director of Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America, agreed.
"It is important for the American public to understand that the Walter Reed fiasco is not over," he said. "Everything is not fixed. The follow-through will be the most important part."

Bush commented on the report after a dramatic lap around the South Lawn jogging track with two soldiers: Sgt. Neil Duncan, who lost both of his legs in Afghanistan in 2005, and Spc. Max Ramsey, who lost his left leg in Iraq in 2006. They were aided by prosthetics. Bush met both men at Walter Reed last year. The White House said the timing of their visit _ on the same day as the report _ was a coincidence.

Dole said he planned to make sure the Bush administration implements the panel's recommendations. "We did this because it was important," he said. "We're expecting somebody to follow-up on it. I'm going to be watching closely to make sure it happens."
___
Associated Press writers Anne Flaherty, Ben Feller and Jennifer C. Kerr contributed to this report.

On the Net:
The report: http://www.pccww.gov/docs/Final%20report_July%2024.doc

President's Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors:

http://www.pccww.gov/

email the commission: PCCWW.Feedback@wso.whs.mil

Updated News

2007-07-24T18:22:00.000-04:00

Injured Iraq War Veterans Sue Federal Government Over Delays in Disability Pay, Health Care
By HOPE YENAssociated Press Writer
(AP) 11:18:05 PM (ET), Monday, July 23, 2007 (WASHINGTON)
Frustrated by delays in health care, injured Iraq war veterans accused VA Secretary Jim Nicholson in a lawsuit of breaking the law by denying them disability pay and mental health treatment.
The lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, filed Monday in federal court in San Francisco, seeks broad changes in the agency as it struggles to meet growing demands from veterans returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Suing on behalf of hundreds of thousands of veterans, it charges that the VA has failed warriors on numerous fronts. It contends the VA failed to provide prompt disability benefits, failed to add staff to reduce wait times for medical care and failed to boost services for post-traumatic stress disorder.
The lawsuit also accuses the VA of deliberately cheating some veterans by allegedly working with the Pentagon to misclassify PTSD claims as pre-existing personality disorders to avoid paying benefits. The VA and Pentagon have generally denied such charges.
"When one of our combat veterans walks into a VA hospital, then they must see a doctor that day," said Paul Sullivan, executive director of Veterans for Common Sense, which filed the lawsuit. "When a war veteran needs disability benefits because he or she can't work, then they must get a disability check in a few weeks."
"The VA has betrayed our veterans," Sullivan said.
VA spokesman Matt Smith said Monday he could not comment on a pending lawsuit.
"Through outreach efforts, the VA ensures returning Global War on Terror service members have access to the widely recognized quality health care they have earned, including services such as prosthetics or mental health care," Smith said. "VA has also given priority handling to their monetary disability benefit claims."
The lawsuit comes amid intense political and public scrutiny of the VA and Pentagon following reports of shoddy outpatient care of injured soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and elsewhere.
The complaint seeks to represent between 320,000 and 800,000 veterans of the Iraq war who lawyers say are at risk of having PTSD. Ultimately, a federal judge will have to decide whether the lawsuit is properly deemed a class action that adequately represents them.
As of March 31, roughly 52,375 Iraq veterans were evaluated at VA facilities for suspected PTSD, according to an internal quarterly VA report released Monday to The Associated Press.
"Unless systemic and drastic measures are instituted immediately, the costs to these veterans, their families and our nation will be incalculable, including broken families, a new generation of unemployed and homeless veterans, increases in drug abuse and alcoholism, and crushing burdens on the health care delivery system," the complaint says.
It asks that a federal court order the VA to make immediate improvements.
Earlier this month, a federal appeals court in San Francisco issued a strong rebuke of the VA in ordering the agency to pay retroactive benefits to Vietnam War veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange and contracted a form of leukemia.
"The performance of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs has contributed substantially to our sense of national shame," the opinion from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals read.
Nicholson abruptly announced last week he would step down by Oct. 1 to return to the private sector. He has repeatedly defended the agency during his 2 1/2-year tenure while acknowledging there was room for improvement.
More recently, following high-profile suicide incidents in which families of veterans say the VA did not provide adequate care, Nicholson pledged to add mental health services and hire more suicide-prevention coordinators.
Some veterans say that's not enough. In the lawsuit, they note that government investigators warned as early as 2002 that the VA needed to fix its backlogged claims system and make other changes.
Yet, the lawsuit says, Nicholson and other officials still insisted on a budget in 2005 that fell $1 billion short, and they made "a mockery of the rule of law" by awarding senior officials $3.8 million in bonuses despite their role in the budget foul-up.
Today, the VA's backlog of disability payments is between 400,000 and 600,000, with delays of up to 177 days to process an initial claim and an average of 657 days to process an appeal. Several congressional committees and a presidential commission are now studying ways to improve care.
"While steps can and will be taken in the political arena, responsibility for action lies with the agency itself," Melissa W. Kasnitz, managing attorney for Disability Rights Advocates, said in a telephone interview. Her group is teaming up with a major law firm, Morrison & Foerster, to represent the veterans.
"We don't believe the problems will be fixed by the VA if we wait for them," she said.
Gordon P. Erspamer, a partner at Morrison & Foerster, stressed that the lawsuit does not seek to make a partisan statement about the Iraq war but instead finally force action after years of delay.
"This is the worst it's ever been for veterans, and it's only going to get worse," he said.
The lawsuit cites violations of the Constitution and federal law, which mandates at least two years of health care to injured veterans.
The veterans groups involved in the lawsuit are Veterans for Common Sense in Washington, D.C., which claims 11,500 members, and Veterans United for Truth, based in Santa Barbara, Calif., with 500 members.
___
On the Net:
Copy of the complaint: http://www.mofo.com/docs/pdf/PTSD070723.pdf
Department of Veterans Affairs: http://www.va.gov/

2,996 - in memoriy of 9/11/2001 - Martin Coughland

2006-09-11T13:38:00.000-04:00

On September 11th, 2001 Martin Coughlan, 54, of County Tipperary, Ireland, a carpenter, died. He was just one of the 2,996 victims of the coordinated terrorist attacks against the United States. Below are some of the articles written about this father of four daughters, Orla, Ailish, Sinead and Denise, and beloved husband of Catherine Coughlan.

"I'm trying to get out"
....Irish carpenter Martin Coughlan, from County Tipperary, is also missing. He last spoke to his wife Catherine on the phone from the lift on the 96th floor of the south tower just after the second hijacked plane plunged into the skyscraper complex.

Martin and Catherine Coughlan lived in the Queen's district of New York after moving with their four daughters to the US 14 years ago. Martin's sister-in-law, Josie Coughlan said the family is devastated. She said: "Catherine is devastated. They tried the hospitals yesterday looking for Martin but it looks bleak." from BBC news, 2001

Carpenters union hit hard
On the morning of September 11, 2001, 21-year-old Brian Monaghan and Martin Coughlan, 53, were on top the world - literally.

Monaghan, who had lived in the old Manhattan Irish stronghold of Inwood, and Coughlan, a Tipperary native, were two of 150 carpenters working on the highest floors of both Twin Towers. Then the world collapsed around them.

While the numbers of missing and dead for the city's rescue workers are staggering, heavily-Irish unions such as Carpenter's Local 608, also lost many brothers in the lower Manhattan carnage.

Like Monaghan, many had spent their lives in New York's Irish enclaves. Others such as Coughlan had come to America to raise children - Coughlan had four - and make a better life. Terror was never in the plans. But as of last Tuesday, some 16 union carpenters alone are missing or dead as a result of the terrorist attack. Irish Voice 2001-09-26 00:00:00+01

Carpenter With Goals
Martin Coughlan was raised in Cappawhite, a small village in County Tipperary, Ireland, but his family said he had no trouble fitting into life in the big city. He moved here in 1987 with his wife, Catherine, and their four daughters, Orla, Ailish, Sinead and Denise.

A carpenter in Ireland, he immediately set about finding work in the trade. Mrs. Coughlan said the family left because there were better job opportunities here than in Ireland. But Mr. Coughlan also had a love for Elvis Presley, Graceland and western movies, which may have been a small part of the inspiration to immigrate.

Shortly after they came to New York, Mrs. Coughlan told her husband that she did not want the family to live in an apartment. Mr. Coughlan zealously pursued jobs, often working seven days a week, and the family moved to a house in Bayside, Queens."He just wanted a comfortable home and a car that worked and to see that we were educated," said his eldest daughter, Orla Bowie.

His job with the Sweeney and Heekin Carpentry and Dry Wall Corporation of Long Island City took him to buildings all around Manhattan. On Sept. 10 and 11, 2001, Mr. Coughlan, then 53, was working on the 92nd floor of 2 World Trade Center.

The Coughlans' daughters now range in age from 28 to 20. Two have completed college. "I was finally getting him to relax on Sundays," Mrs. Coughlan said. "We were just getting our life back." Profile published in THE NEW YORK TIMES on June 30, 2002.

The Carpenter From Cappawhite
He was born in the shade of the Galtees,
From the village of Cappawhite he did hail,
But after September the eleventh,
No more would he return to his Golden vale.
He died on top of the world,
With his hammer in his hand,
And he broke the hearts of so many
Back home in his native land.
So goodbye Martin John Coughlan,
With that smile all loving and true,
Sleep now with the angles in heaven,
Goodbye my friend, and god bless you.
Mossie -- anonymous (Friend {}) 09 Oct 2002 Age: 53 Occupation: Carpenter Worked for: Originally from: Cappawhite, Co Tipperary Resided in: Queens, NY Martin brother Finbar,

CNN Memorial Site
On September 11, 2001, four U.S. planes hijacked by terrorists crashed into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania killing nearly 3,000 people in a matter of hours. Behind the staggering number of deaths are the individuals, each of whom left behind family, friends and co-workers who feel the national tragedy on a personal level. CNN.com has established a site as an evolving record of those who died and a place for readers to build a living memorial for them.

How can I make this person I never knew real to you? Maybe this will do it. From the Irish tribute pages:

Martin John Coughlan was my father.
But, he wasn't just my father because I just so happened to be born. He was my father because
he... cared about me.
raised me.
Loved me.
Picked me up from dance class never being a second late.
encouraged me.
Gave me someone to look up to.
Made me laugh.
Gave me everything I ever needed, even when I didn't deserve it.
taught me.
He was the best father anyone could ever have.
There isn't a day that goes by where I don't think about you Dad. We all miss you!

-- Denise Coughlan (Daughter {}) 20 Oct 2002

Victims. Two thousand nine hundred and ninty nine is the official count of the deaths caused by the first serious terrorist attacks in our own country in many years.

The number is too limited. While only that many died, many more had their lives destroyed that day. For my man, Martin, there were five in his immediate family that had their hearts broken. "They tried the hospitals yesterday looking for Martin but it looks bleak". The hope that they would find their father and the prayers that Catherine must have prayed as they searched for him, wilting as they realized he was not among the wounded, dying as they faced the fact that their man would never be home again.

How I hurt then as a caring bystander. Having lost the mate, I hurt as a fellow mother and wife. Earlier I lost my father and now I can understand the pain and saddness of the daughters. My children and I know how the sudden and unexpected death of the man of the family can not only hurt your heart but change your everyday life in ways you can't foresee. Every one of the victims of 9/11 devastated a family and friends. I can not imagine the tsunami of ripples in the life of the city and nation this attack cause.

Martin was the same generation as my mate and I. A peer. If we had met we might have been friends. The tributes for him and the one photo I have found show a smiling man with kind eyes. He loved and was loved by his family and friends. He was a comic and and singer at parties he attended. He was Irish and I imagine him with a thick brogue rolling through "Danny Boy" with friends, toasting his wife over a glass of champagne, laying his arm over the shoulder of a daughter and smiling at her. I ache for them.

The total number of people who were personally affected by the murders committed on 9/11 is unknowable. The trickle effect has spread the pain of the loss of these people to many of us that never knew them. We must make sure the people responsible are punished.

This article about the Interim Memorial Center was published on Wednesday. Each family has contributed items for display remembering their loved one.

We do not forget.

Martin John Coughlan

2006-07-29T13:23:00.000-04:00

Ananke, one of the bloggers I read regularly, signed up for 2,996. The site wants one blogger to memorialize each person that died in the 9/11 attack. I think it’s a timely idea and I hope enough bloggers sign up to cover all the names. I was number . Letting America forget that we were attacked on our own ground and have still to find all those responsible would be criminal. We are too soft already. I have Martin Coughlan. He will be honored and remembered here on 9/11/06.

Now they notice the problem

2006-06-15T00:07:00.000-04:00

Now they notice the problem, three years into the war. I think they should be spanked. How can you plan on getting all these people hurt and not plan on how to help them become happy and productive humans again?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13319120/site/newsweek/

"The number of disabled vets from all wars deemed "unemployable" by the
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs tripled from 71,000 to 220,000 between 1996
and 2005. "

"About 18,000 military personnel have already been wounded in both
conflicts. And many injuries like posttraumatic stress disorder may not surface
until well after their homecomings."

Ok, where were the other 11, 1000 vets wounded then?

Films of the war in Iraq

2006-05-24T15:09:00.000-04:00

Got this in the mail today. This is not a reference, I don't know the guy. I thought it might get a more "real" version of the war out and am passing it on.

Hello,
I am a television producer who just finished working on a documentary series for the (Discovery) Military Channel called BATTLEFIELD DIARIES. Three of the 10 hours have highlighted various aspects of the Iraq War – a Kiowa crash rescue in September 2004, the USMC drive towards Baghdad in April 2003 and the 724th Transportation Company Ambush of April 2004.

I am currently developing an exciting new television project for another major cable network that will utilize images personally shot by the troops and some text from various MilBlogs. So I am looking for personal videos and stills of our servicemen & women in Iraq, shot by those same servicemen & women.

I'm especially looking for soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines talking INTO the camera...video diaries, having fun, being creative, interviewing one another, explaining what life is like in Iraq and/or Afghanistan, down time, training, explaining what happened to them that day, music videos, etc. Nothing is out of bounds! The good, the bad, or the ugly. Action, down time, fun time, helping Iraqi communities, interacting with Iraqi civilians/children/police or military...anything that has little a story to it or is visually interesting.

If you know of anyone that kept a video diary while deployed; or did some "interviews" with his comrades in arms, please ask them to contact me. Any format is probably workable. (CD, DVD, cassette, etc.) All originals will be returned at my expense.

If you have some ideas about how I should go about trying to get some footage together, I'm open to suggestions? Are there a couple of websites I should post my footage request on? Also, can you help me by passing the word around to other units? I need to act quickly as I must show the network some sample footage in 8 weeks. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Please pass this email to ANYONE you think might be able to assist with either footage or their experiences as a MilBlogger!

Please let me know if you have any questions. Thank you and stay safe.

Jake Klim
Normandy Films
Jklim007@yahoo.com
Please Visit - www.NormandyFilms.tv

You can help here

2005-11-14T23:51:00.000-05:00

OperationAC: Sends donated air conditioners to US troops in Iraq.

Sergeant Mom

Military Family Resource Center

Operation Uplink: Free phone cards provided by the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW)

Illinois Family Relief Act: established a check off box on Illinois income tax returns to allow Illinois taxpayers to voluntarily contribute to a trust-fund established to provide financial assistance to thousands of Illinois military men and women called to active duty.

USO: United Services Organization

NMCRS: Navy-Marine Corp Relief Society

Operation Homefront, San Diego: Computers and volunteer services. [news story] This organization is distinct from Operation Homelink™.

CINCHouse: Advertising and event listings for military families -- affiliated with Operation Homefront in San Diego.

The charity below needs a serious hand, people. What does your company or organization do with it's old computers?

Operation Homelink™ "provides free refurbished computers to either parents or spouses of deployed service men and women in the ranks of E-1 through E-5, enabling email communications between families and their loved ones deployed outside of the continental United States.

Unfortunately, we do not have an available inventory of computers, and accordingly are not able to accept requests for computers from either individuals or military units. "

News Flash! Publicity Needed!

2005-11-09T11:04:00.000-05:00

American Soldier says:

From Sgt. Chuck, who was wounded the same day as my niece:

Publicity Stunt
Mkay… I dragged my drugged and temporarily one-handed body out of the hospital bed to tell ya’ll about something most important.
Carren is gonna be on national TV (and live national TV at that) to let everyone know about Project Valour-IT. She will represent me (the nerd who thought of this project), and the many people who have made this project a success.

She is going to be on “Connected coast to coast” a show run by MSNBC. Don’t know how long she’ll be on, but for the love of god, please tune in, put your hands on the top of your TV, and talk to Jesus when the show is over.

The show runs from 1200-1300 (noon to one fer ya civlians out there)(and that’s eastern time) My beloved is supposed to be on around 1240, but I will rest assured that her looks, personality, and general charm will either get her on early, or the show will go into extra rounds like Rocky and the Big Ruskie in Rocky IV.

Here’s how you can help. Send this to every one you know, post it on your blog, get them to post it on theirs. One side will say it’s a failure of the gummint to not prvide this for the soldiers, others just see it as a way to help our brothers and sisters who have fallen but will be getting up. However they spin it, just get the word out.

There’s less than 18 hours to game time, so let’s get our blog on!
–Chuck

Chuck asks that we “cross post the hell out of this”. So, I’ll make it easy for you. Copy the above message. Below are the link and trackback for Chuck’s post at TC Override.

link: http://tcoverride.blogspot.com/2005/11/publicity-stunt.html
trackback:

Try it get by

2005-10-27T16:15:00.000-04:00

Our wounded are still being discharged from the services with months and years of medical treatment needed that they can only get throught the VA. The
VA is buried by the numbers of people needing help.

Even the niece has been told she will get a medical discharge, they can't do anything more for her. I don't know how they can expect anyone to sign up knowing that if they get hurt they will be abandoned if they need too much care or repair.

One of the reasons it's so hard for me to keep up with this blog is that it depresses me so badly to read these stories and not be able to help these men and women in need. Prayers seem a thin help but I am not in a position to do much else for them at this time. And if I am depressed, think how they feel!

With Halloween coming I found one story with a little spooky tale in it.

He had been hit in the shoulder and wrist, he had shrapnel in his head, and had suffered burns. He later told his mother, Paula, that he believed his grandmother, who had died a few months before, had lifted him from the wrecked vehicle.

(more)

Injured troops' care questioned

Other ghosts haunt our vets.

She's only 18 and delivers treats, toiletries to wounded soldiers

Monika Hammon was watching CNN one day when she was struck by a report about wounded soldiers coming home from overseas.

Contact her at www.geocities.com/woundedsoldierproject2006 or e-mail her at woundedsoldierproject@msn.com .

Now this one set me off again and it was right near here in Michigan.

CALEDONIA, Mich - A woman who took an unpaid leave of absence from work to see her husband off to war has been fired after failing to show up for her part-time receptionist job the day following his departure.

I located the company and tried to call. Line busy. Next, answered by machine saying the voice mail is full. Next a recording stating they are closed till tomorrow. Then the website was down. On my last try they were taking info by voice mail to return calls for their customers and I left a long message of protest. You can email them through this site, but I'll bet she's back at work tomorrow.

He should have been back home,

but the Pentagon's "stop-loss" order prevented him, like thousands of others, from leaving the Army until his overseas deployment was over....Tan had been driving a Bradley Fighting Vehicle on what is known as 28th Street near the Golden Mosque. His team had already patrolled the road six times that day. The seventh proved unlucky.

And each day there are more wounded.
Three US Soldiers Killed, four wounded in Iraq

State Casualties map

Another Iraq war legacy:

Some US soldiers wounded in Iraq are coming home infected with

multidrug resistant (MDR) acinetobacter, and several strains have spread within military ...

October 27, 2005 - Troops Pay Cost for Pentagon Mismanagement by Diane M. Grassi

Are they wounded because of poor armour?

2005-09-29T13:17:00.000-04:00

...The Pentagon has still failed to figure out a way to reimburse soldiers for body armor and equipment they purchased to better protect themselves while serving in Iraq.
Soldiers and their parents are still spending hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars for armor they say the military won’t provide. (more)

I still say the National Guard is to protect the NATION!

With most of its best equipment in Iraq, the National Guard has only about one-third of the helicopters, trucks, radios and other supplies it needs for homeland security, the Guard’s top commander said Thursday. (more)

More wounded, More red tape

2005-09-13T23:49:00.000-04:00

I have said it many pages ago and it's so sadly true. America and Americans are NOT taking care of their own.

Long-term care a challenge for soldiers - "Last year, the VA temporarily stopped certain veterans from enrolling for health care because demand was too high.""...according to a report in September from the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress. Its investigators found that the VA doesn't know how many vets are being treated for post-traumatic stress disorder at its facilities and "lacks the information it needs to determine whether it can meet an increase in demand.""

The Talking wounded - Read it here. Three soldiers stories

Do NOT skip reading this article then look at the numbers above and decide if you could live on that money. A soldier's Easter story

The news: "...soldiers wounded when an improvised explosive device detonated at dawn next to their vehicle while on patrol near Samarra, the military said ina statement. The wounded soldiers were evacuated to a US military medical facility."

Benefits brouhaha brings in feds - Some places take better care of our veterans than others. Feds want to know why.

Illinois wounded vets at bottom for benefits
"Illinois vets each receive thousands of dollars a year less in disabilty pay, on average, than vets from other states and U.S. territories.

The top three:
1. Puerto Rico: $11,607
2. New Mexico: $10,851
3. Maine: $10,842

The bottom three:
50. Illinois: $6,802
51. Michigan: $6,733
52. Ohio: $6,710 "

The table loses it definition here. Sorry. But Please, Compare the numbers above with the 2005 Poverty Level Guidelines

# in Family	States/D.C.	Alaska	Hawaii
1	$ 9,570	$11,950	$11,010
2	12,830	16,030	14,760
3	16,090	20,110	18,510
4	19,350	24,190	22,260
5	22,610	28,270	26,010
6	25,870	32,350	29,760
7	29,130	36,430	33,510
8	32,390	40,510	37,260
over 8 add	3,260	4,080	3,750

Our vets are not even kept at POVERTY LEVELS! Please use the links in the side bar to write to your reps and ask why a person who has given his health, the life he knew before the war, and his body can not receive the treatment, medication, housing and money they need for themselves and their families. What is saving our way of life worth to you?

Smoothing the way

2005-08-26T18:32:00.000-04:00

Just one person CAN make a difference.

Not only is he OUT but now Sgt. Chuck is in the news and working with the Soldier's Angels on Project Valour IT, in memory of his father, SFC William V. Ziegenfuss. They want to provided voice-controlled software and laptop computers to wounded Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines recovering from hand and arm injuries or amputations at major military medical centers. There is a podcast of Chuck and an Angel on this site.

Two US soldiers wounded in car bombing
"Sweetwater, Monroe County (WVLT) - An improvised explosive device has killed two 278th soldiers and wounded two others in

Wounded Warrior Project and Government Accountability Office Seek Stories of Soldiers with Unpaid Department of Defense (DOD) Debts -
...seeking the stories of injured Army National Guard and Reserve soldiers who have separated from the service but have unpaid Department of Defense (DOD) debts that are being referred to credit bureaus and collection agencies.These service members, and their stories, are being sought as part of a GAO audit of pay problems impacting soldiers who were wounded in action. GAO is particularly interested in learning about debts that resulted from pay problems and whether these debts are inaccurate.... Both organizations are also interested in hearing from soldiers about the challenges these debts pose in their transition back to civilian life.

http://www.md-times.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=9919&format=html. For more information about the benefit contact Bob Adamson, (317) 839-5042 or (317) 965-0136.

Festus, MO: Parade Welcomes Wounded Marine Home From Iraq A Festus Marine, critically wounded in Iraq, received a hero's welcome ....

That's it for today. Pray for our soldiers if you can't do anything else to help.

Wound Woman American Soldier and more

2005-08-16T18:58:00.000-04:00

A new web site: Operation Quiet Comfort has a Yahoo Group so you can contact them directly. Quilts and care kits for the wounded overseas. They are already getting rave reviews!

An article on What is the Best Way to Suppport our Troops?

Military cracking down on Iraq soldier blogs

I have not checked out the following sites myself, let me know what you think of them.

http://www.americasupportsyou.mil/

http://www.anyservicemember.navy.mil

http://www.adoptaplatoon.org/

Wounded 224th soldier returns home for benefit in his honor A group of Iowa Operation First Response, met Bob in his hospital bed in Washington months before, the day after he was taken off life support.....

This girl was wounded in Iraq in December. Her mom says she'll be right back then the soldier tells us all about it.

Another Great Resource - Can you spare airline miles? Operation First Response, has a mission - to assist the wounded military and their families who are serving our country during Operation Iraqi Freedom and forward.

He is getting out!

2005-08-15T18:54:00.000-04:00

If you have been following along with Chuck, who was wounded the same day as Jewel then you will be glad to hear he is getting out!

In Rememberance

2005-08-15T14:48:00.000-04:00

I search for help for our wounded soldiers on the net. I also watch for stories about the wounded in the news. Following are today's findings.

The Brit wounded are invisible, too. See this article! Toll of British wounded in Iraq war reaches 800

NPR, Again. Caring for the Wounded: The Story of Two Marines

Freedom Quilts wants to Honor the Soldiers who have lost their lives fighting terrorism since Sep 11, 2001. Betty wants to give a Freedom Quilt to the families of the fallen soldiers. For more info see this Amputee Wounded in Iraq to Return to Active Duty

Talking Wounded Terry Rodgers Came Back From Iraq a Changed Man, and Not Just Because of the Bomb

A British soldier critically injured by a roadside bomb in Basra has been flown home for more treatment, the Army said.

On August 10th, six more wounded.

A Soldier's Story

2005-08-14T10:13:00.000-04:00

At Blackfive today, I found this story of our wounded recieving help from the Soldier's Angels. It's a great read!

Another news article, same soldier.

And you should see the Heros Page at Soldier's Angels.

See you Tuesday.

Continuing the search

2005-08-11T18:05:00.000-04:00

I try to surf a little each day and find stories about and resources for people who have been wounded in the wars. Here are the ones I have come up with this week.

Please post a link in the comments to share a story or resource. If your soldier is having problems getting treated properly, let us know. Making these government neglect or pressure tales public is the only way to start getting people informed enough to make them correct it.

I have had two sites link to this one! We are on the way to getting more information to the wounded coming home from the wars! Thank you to Digital Irony and Two Babes and a Brain.

Today's Good News

Remains of 12 Vietnam MIAs heading home
11 Marines, Army sergeant died in 1968 battle near Laos border.

Articles

An Article on the wounded in Iraq

Nearly nine soldiers a day have been wounded in Iraq since President's March 20, 2003 - This is a poem, an article and a letter from a nurse at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Please read this.

This guy thinks a lot. Open Letter To Wounded Veterans by James Glaser

by James Glaser We Are Still Losing About Eighteen Americans A Day August 3, 2005

by James Glaser Luckily They Were Only Wounded May 3, 2005

by James Glaser Wounded Veterans Are Speaking Out July 13, 2005

Photos

Pictures of the Wounded in Iraq

Photo article of the wounded by a Doctor

In the News:

Sun - August 7, 2005 - 1832 American soldiers killed and 13,769 wounded in Iraq As of Aug. 6, 1832 U.S. soldiers have died in Iraq since the war began and 13,769 have been wounded. 6,651 of the wounded were hurt seriously enough that they could not be returned to duty within 72 hours. Over 23,317 Iraqi civilians have been killed according to Iraq Body Count.

1 in 6 Combat Wounded in Iraq, Afghanistan Need Treatment by Otolaryngologists

Wounded U.S. Soldiers Maltreated - Maimed in Iraq, then mistreated, neglected, and hidden in America.

Resource Lists

G.I. Rights Hotline: A network of nonprofit, nongovernmental organizations who provide information to servicemembers about military discharges, grievance and complaint procedures, and other civil rights. Call the Hotline at: (800) 394-9544

Veterans for Common Sense says: "America is grateful for your commitment and sacrifice, and many resources are available to assist you in your transition, from both the private and public sectors. This guide is designed to present an overview of those resources, and to help you find whatever assistance you or you family need.

Michael Moore's Resourse for the wounded Page

See you soon. Thanks for stopping in. I hope we have helped some of you find what you or your families needed.

Local Good News

2005-08-08T18:52:00.000-04:00

Two men, Dad and Son, from Michigan get in touch in Iraq!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8862769/

And our other wounded soldier, Chuck, is back posting thanks to modern technology! He's been down since 6/22 but they can't keep him that way much longer1

Check This Out!

2005-08-05T18:43:00.000-04:00

Soldierride.com
Join us in congratulating Chris Carney, SSgt. Heath Calhoun, and SSgt. Ryan Kelly for successfully completing their epic, 4200 mile cross country bike ride.

Through their efforts and sacrifices over the past few months, they have helped to raise public awareness and support for the needs of the thousands of severely wounded servicemen and women who are still undergoing rehabilitation at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and other government medical facilities across the country.

Soldier Ride and the Wounded Warrior Project provide comfort items and necessities to severely wounded soldiers recovering in military hospitals around the country, support families of the wounded as they travel to the bedside of their injured loved ones, and assist our wounded heroes in their transition to an independent life back home.

Happy Thoughts

2005-08-05T12:21:00.000-04:00

This is a great resource site for helping the wounded still in Germany - NOANIE

Army Families On Line more resources here!

Mick Foley visits the wounded!

Little Caesars owner sets up injured soldier and a buddy with franchise.

When Little Caesars pizza owner Mike Ilitch read about soldier Robbie Doughty's struggle after losing two legs in Iraq, it reminded him of an injury that curtailed his baseball career. "I gave up my career after three years in the minors," Ilitch said. "I couldn't get a job when I got out. I had no training and no specific knowledge."
So Ilitch, who now owns the Detroit Tigers and the Detroit Red Wings, had a Little Caesars executive track down Doughty and offer him a chance to open a franchise in Paducah......MORE.

Thanks to Yishai for the happy thoughts of the day!

Wedding Bells

2005-08-03T16:11:00.000-04:00

The niece called twice last night. Her fiance made it back over here last week. They have decided to go all the way. They are getting married in October. They want to have the wedding on a Florida Beach. We have been invited but I don't know how we will make another long trip this year. I am just thrilled that her soon to be mate loves her still! I like the man!

While she is still dealing with the schrapnel scraps, she is walking with a cane and goes for her re-evlauation this week. With a year and a half to go on her time I don't know if they will send her back over or not. For purely selfish reasons we hope she will stay stateside.

I haven't had time to poke around for other stories today. If you see something that should be here please put a link in the comments.

Back soon!

News and links

2005-08-01T18:46:00.000-04:00

Story on the wounded: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8767915/site/newsweek/
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8767915/site/newsweek/page/2/

Good Resource site: http://www.optruth.org/

Awesome list of resources for vets: http://www.optruth.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=16&Itemid=42

understanding the wounded: http://www.optruth.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=68&Itemid=66

More help for vets: http://www.dav.org/

See the Movie! Read the News

2005-08-01T17:51:00.000-04:00

This is worth waiting for the download, even on dial up! I found it here.

See this vidio clip!

Soldier survives attack; captures, medically treats sniper

"During a routine patrol in Baghdad June 2, Army Pfc. Stephen Tschiderer, a
medic, was shot in the chest by an enemy sniper, hiding in a van just 75
yards away. The incident was filmed by the insurgents"...... Read
all about it! And don't miss the report!(pdf)

******************

I found it here.

06/13/05 BAGHDAD (AP) -

"A suicide car bomb exploded next to U.S. troops handing out candy and toys, killing 18 children and teenagers Wednesday. Parents heard the shattering explosion and raced out to the discover children's mangled, bloodied bodies strewn on the street.....At Kindi hospital, where many victims were taken, a distraught mother swathed in black sat cross-legged outside the operating room. "May God curse the mujahedeen and their leader," she cried, referring to the insurgents as she pounded her head with her fists in grief. "

******************

I found it here.

LES BLUMENTHAL; The News Tribune
Last updated: July 11th, 2005 08:44 AM (PDT)

"The day before his 22nd birthday, a bomb hanging from a tree along a road near Fallujah exploded above Rory Dunn’s Humvee. Dunn’s forehead was crushed from ear to ear, leaving his brain exposed. His right eye was destroyed by shrapnel;the left eye nearly so. His hearing was severely damaged.

“I remember a bright flash. The trees lit up, and the Humvee was shaking,” Dunn recalled during a recent interview while curled up in an easy chair in the living room of his mother’s Renton home. Within minutes of the May 2004 explosion, he was strapped on a stretcher and flown by helicopter to a hospital in Baghdad – the first step in his 10-month struggle to recover"......Read it all here

******************

A real Hero

2005-07-28T18:57:00.000-04:00

http://www.wtv-zone.com/Mary/THISWILLMAKEYOUPROUD.HTML

Silver Star Families

2005-07-26T17:07:00.000-04:00

Silver Star Families of America is a group working to get a WIA Service Flag designated to honor those of our Heroes wounded in service to their country.You can go to this site to find out more. They also have a Yahoo group support site

Info from their webpage: ... while America is at war it honors its hero’s but it doesn’t take long for the heroes to be forgotten. The wounded of our nation to live and struggled on their own with little or no help. The medals tarnish and some of our most vulnerable soldiers and veterans are left to survive or die with no recognition for their achievements.

Since that time I have struggling for a Service Flag for our wounded. Something to fly over a V.A. Hospital to remind the country, day in and day out, of the sacrifice of our men and women in the armed forces and for families of the wounded to hang in their windows or fly proudly from a pole to show their pride. ... we especially need to be reminded that some are still suffering the consequences of conflict.

We started a web site and requested of our Senators that legislation be enacted to allow for placement of the Silver Star on the Blue Star Service Flag to show wounded. We started an on-line petition, which has now entered the real word as an actual hard copy petition, which I hope you will soon see on every street corner.

Friends started a Yahoo Group where like-minded people, and families of our wounded, could gather to exchange ideas and to work on accomplishing our goal. On April 1st of the year of our Lord 2005, we decided that instead of waiting for legislative action or other organizations acceptance, we would start to honor the wounded of our country NOW. Thus was formed the SILVER STAR FAMILIES OF AMERICA. We designed and copyrighted the Silver Star Service Flag that can be downloaded now. We are also working on forming our own 501 c organization.

...we are doing what we set out to do. Helping those that cannot, or do not know how, to help themselves. And we are showing our respect for them by flying our Silver Star Flags NOW.

It is one of my fondest wishes that other organizations would join with us and many already have. It is an honorable cause. I invite each and every one of you to sign the petition but more importantly to join us now to do something that was once done many years ago by several states. That is to show our fellow countrymen that we DO honor our wounded and that they are not forgotten.Chief Steven J. Newton (ret)

An 8 year old writes to our soldiers: Phil Haberman Normally, I start my stories off with a soft, tender moment meant to show something other than what you see on the news. Well, I'm not going to to that this time. As I sit here in my hospital bed reflecting on everthing that has happened over the last few months, I have to say one thing....WAR SUCKS!!!

When I volunteered to go to Iraq, I THOUGHT I knew what I was getting myself into. I figured my time as a medic back home in Florida would have numbed me to death and injuries. But seeing what you see on the streets, and then seeing what I saw in war are two completely different things. And one will never prepare you for the other. I will just say now that this article will be fairly graphic at times. But everything that I say is what I have seen or experienced first hand, and not what you hear on the news.When I last wrote you, I told you about what Iraq was like for us living there. I told you about the constant mortar attacks and small arms fire. Well this story is not going to be about life in Iraq. It is going to be about death in Iraq.....(more)

New protection for our soldiers: Army Fields New IED Counter Measure System -The Army is reporting that a new IED counter measure system (ICE) is being fielded in the article, “New device counters terrorism, Visiting Kyle Again at the VA Hospital Marine with brain damage in MN VA gets a visit from a Soldiers Angel

July 26, 2005 BUSH JR. NOT PREPARED FOR VETERANS

We have all read the stories of Bush Jr. not having a plan going into Iraq
or having a plan to get out. In another example of just how incompetent Bush Jr.
is, his own Veterans Administration (VA) has just acknowledged that Bush Jr. had
predicted (and budgeted for) that about 23,000 of the veterans who had served in
Iraq and Afghanistan would need VA health services.
The actual number so far
is 103,000 – over four times the number Bush Jr. had predicted.

The Last of the Comanche Code Talkers

2005-07-22T13:58:00.000-04:00

Charles Chibitty, 83, the Last of the Comanche Code Talkers, Is Dead

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By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: July 22, 2005
OKLAHOMA CITY, July 21 (AP) - Charles Chibitty, the last survivor of the Comanche code talkers who used their native language to transmit messages for the Allies in Europe during World War II, died Wednesday in Tulsa. He was 83.

His death was announced by Cathy Flynn, administrative assistant in the Comanche Nation tribal chairman's office.

The Army selected a group of Comanche Indians from the Lawton, Okla., area for special duty to provide the Allies with a language that the Germans could not decipher. Like the larger group of Navajo Indians who performed a similar service in the Pacific theater, the Comanches were called code talkers.

"It's strange, but growing up as a child I was forbidden to speak my native language at school," Mr. Chibitty said in 2002. "Later my country asked me to. My language helped win the war, and that makes me very proud. Very proud. "

He once told a gathering, "I wonder what the hell Hitler thought when he heard those strange voices."

Mr. Chibitty was born on Nov. 20, 1921, near Medicine Park, Okla., and attended high school at Haskell Indian School in Lawrence, Kan. He enlisted in 1941.

In 1999, he received the Knowlton Award, which recognizes individuals for outstanding intelligence work, during a ceremony at the Pentagon's Hall of Heroes.

"We could never do it again," Mr. Chibitty told Oklahoma Today magazine. "It's all electronic and video in war now."

James Doohan - Montgomery Scott 1920 - 2005

2005-07-21T18:36:00.000-04:00

Tribute

War Heros

Hear His Voice

Star Trek Site

Ashes going to Space

Memorial Gathering, Canada

Memorial Gathering, Scotland

When I was little we watched the first moon landings in school. I was fascinated. I totally grokked that this man would explode and DIE if his suit got a hole in it.

I went on to find Robert Heinlein books at the library. I really wanted to be a pioneer, a terra-former on a new planet. Barring that being an astronaut was my second choice.

Then came Star Trek. I wanted IN! I would even be a red shirt! I really wanted to be the botanist. They really needed one!

So today I want to say,"You've done a fine job, Mr. Scott, in showing two generations that being an engineer can be exciting, challenging and rewarding. Many inventions in the past 10 years and in the future will be because you led the way to making the impossible happen. May every science and engineering student hold you as the finest example of their craft. I salute you."

"Mr. Doohan was also a soldier involved in D-Day in 1945, surviving treacherous seas and invading enemy territory. "I got hit by a machine gun, and received four (bullets) in the left knee, and three hit that one finger--and they eventually took it off--" He showed his right hand, missing the middle finger. "--and one hit a sterling silver cigarette case that my brother had given me for being best man at his wedding. And I still have that at home, with the dent in it." He added that he took most of the dent out and continued using that cigarette case until 24 years ago when he quit smoking."

Another Wounded Soldier

2005-07-17T19:22:00.000-04:00

You should go here and read this. At least click the second link. It's a note from one soldier that just visited Walter Reed to see another soldier, a friend of his.

The whole blog is a good read but right now the soldier's wife is keeping it up as he got nailed by a home made explosive device in an ambush in Baghdad and is just beginning to get around. He got hurt the same day our girl did. He has lost fingers, was burned and has begun skin grafts and is in a lot of pain.

They are having a card shower for the wounded man to help keep his spirits up. I urge you to send him a card, especially one with a joke included! He needs the humor. Their goal it to fill his post office box to the rim. I am sending this as an email, please feel free to do the same. Let's show this man someone appreciates the sacrifice he has made. Even if we don't agree with the war he is our soldier and we CARE!

CPT Charles W. Ziegenfuss
PO Box 59051
Washington, DC 20012

Soldier calls Home

2005-07-16T18:06:00.000-04:00

The mate just called. He heard from the soldier today.

Jewel is already trying to walk some, she says. She is still waiting for her stuff from Iraq to catch up with her. Her SO should be here in two weeks and she will still have a week of leave left to spend with him.

It looks like she will end up on a desk job here in the states for the rest of her tour. I can't say I am sorry. She did her duty.

We are talking about making another trip down, both of us this time, to visit. There isn't really any need to at this point except I want the girl to know we appreciate her and every soldier that is doing their duty. I might make her some cookies and send a box to her unit that is still over there.

Jewel is OUT

2005-07-15T17:52:00.000-04:00

The soldier girl is out of the hospital! She will be treated on an outpatient standing for a while yet. Jewel is getting around on crutches and is on convalesent leave. She has chosen to stay in NC with friends and house hunt while keeping her appointments with the doctors for further treatment.

She hopes her fiance will be back in the states on leave in the next week or so. I think she will feel a lot better after he has seen her in person and reassured her he loves her inspite of the scars.

The schrapnel she took is still slowly working it's way to the surface and she will be dealing with the mess that causes for weeks yet.

She will be fine, in the long run. A blessing.

I continue to work on this new site and hope to have it finished by August 1st.

A Quiet Fourth

2005-07-14T17:18:00.000-04:00

There are no fireworks for the soldier today. Her Dad, step mom, Grampa and Step Grama left for home early this am. They had to get stepmom back for work. (NOTE: any employers out there that would care to try and JUSTIFY NOT giving family emergency leave to the step parent of a wounded Vet are welcome to TRY.)

Because, when Jewel landed at NC, she was no longer considered to be seriously injured the family could NOT be reimbursed for traveling expenses. As a tax payer, I feel this is a just expense and believe our wounded need all the help we can give them. That includes the moral support of having family with you.

I really don't understand why a girl who is covered head to foot with shrapnel wounds, with a gash on her face that required stitches and staples, who has one leg split open from the back base of the knee to the ankle, one leg broken, an arm broken, fractured or with nerve damage, who can't get out of bed without help is considered NOT seriously injured. She only has one properly working limb and that one is covered in shrapnel wounds. Sure, she won't die from her wounds, but this is not serious? Bad call, Doctor.

Tomorrow she will be alone again. She hopes that in ten days or two weeks her fiance will be able to join her from Iraq. They are working on getting him leave for two weeks, then shipping him BACK to Iraq to finish the last 4-6 weeks of his tour of duty.

I know the people on base have been especially wonderful to her. We can't express how much we appreciate all their help. I just don't think it is the same as having your family there.

On the anniversary of the day we voted to approve the Declaration of Independence, in which the American colonies proclaim their separation from Britain - the government that didn't understand their needs, over taxed them and mandated their religious beliefs - we struggle to understand our current leaders, their spendthrift ways with foreign aid and the penny pinching that won't help a family of an Army soldier be there when they are needed.

Read the Declaration. Think about it.

Enjoy the day, all!

Blessings

2005-07-13T18:55:00.000-04:00

I sat here the night my mate made it home (Friday) contemplating my blessings. He was asleep in his own bed, home safe, and Jewel was doing well. Her Uncle was there to greet her. Her mother came that same day. The soldier had her back up team in place, she wasn't alone.

Saturday she got her first bath since the mortor fire hit her. Her Mom did her hair and nails and gave her a good scrubbing. She got to talk to her fiance in Iraq. They are trying to get him back here for her. He has the key to their locker where all her extra clothes and such are stashed. She also needs to know he will still love her with her scars. It's a scary time for her.

Her Dad, step mom, Grampa and step Grama drove down to see her, they should have been there Saturday afternoon. That will complete the roll of family that can get free to go down and see her. The rest will wait till she gets home on leave.

She still had no cast on her broken leg and the mate says her other leg is slashed open all the way down the back of the calf along with the shrapnel wounds. No word on how badly her arm is fractured yet, either.

We have been waiting for word from one of those still down there on her current situation. I hate waiting.

Note on Milblogs

2005-07-12T18:38:00.000-04:00

This was a smile. I wrote to thank her for being so good to the mate while he was on base:

It was my pleasure to escort your husband, no doubt - he is very kind and special.

You should have seen the smile on his face as he met Jewel’s litter. If only I would have had a camera!! I am sure that it will be a memory that he and she will remember forever.
*****************

We have had no word yet today. Mate may leave to come home tomorrow.

I know at least one other blog is following a wounded soldier. They are at Walter Reed. His link is : http://tcoverride.blogspot.com/

Milblogs now REALLY censored

Now the military has decided that our soldiers have to register their blogs with their CO's. This effectively removes the anominity that blogging give to all of us. Many of them are just closing their blogs. See this article for more comments.

They can still send email and IM's. Those could be posted to civilian sites.....sort of milblog ghosts or ghost soldier writers.

Pass the idea around.

(Stupid me! Lost lots of links as I didn't have them backed up before I hit the button. Curses, Blogger, you have foiled me again!)

I want to say I appreciate all the comments and even the silence from the almost 200 visitors in the last two days. It's great of you to stop in.

Landed Safely!

2005-07-11T17:52:00.000-04:00

Our soldier, Jewel, landed at Ft. Bragg, NC around 6 tonight. The mate/Uncle was there to greet her quickly as she was transported to the hospital. About an hour later he got in to see her and give her the roses he brought her.

The damage to the girl is pretty sad. The 3/4" cut on her face is larger than that and has been stitched AND stapled. I hate those staples! Her legs look like she caught a load of rock salt from a double barrel shot gun. Her leg still has no cast on it. She is drugged with morphine and has been now for a week. Demerol is not available...(OK, WHY NOT!) even though there are people for whom morphine does NOT work. (I know, I'm one of them!) So she will have to be weaned off the pain killer soon. But she hurts! The mate says she told him it hurts every time she woke up. Poor Girl!

At least we got our kid back, many don't. She can be repaired, she's young and will heal fast. It's ok., it sucks but it could be way worse.

Mate stayed with her about an hour. Her first Company Commander came to visit her while Mate was there. On the way out he told the mate she was a hell of a good soldier. It really impressed the mate that the man had taken time to come see her when he is going back to Iraq in ten days.

Her Mom and step dad arrived. They only live two hours from the base. The mate went back to his room to get some rest. Instead he called me to report and we talked a while. We both agree she has some serious healing to do before she will be looking for housing off base. I figure a week to ten days in the hospital till they have her off the dope.

Her Dad and step mom are flying down tomorrow. My mate will be coming home probably and we will go back when she is closer to getting out to help her do whatever it is she feels has to be done. We want her to have family around her but not so many she feels crowded.

I feel so much better knowing the mate is there. Her mom is there for her and her Dad is on the way. I wish I could have gone but I will wait and make the next trip and pray in the mean time.

I want to mention that there were an awful lot of people involved in coordinating this for the family and they have all done a wonderful job. I have a new keyboard pal in Iraq I intend to keep up with and the Mate says the Captain is treating him like a king. Every possible kindness has been showed the family.

Below are today's links and I hope you take the time to read them. There are tears, grief, laughter and information in them that you can only find on the net.

May I also add the IM and email have made keeping in touch with our soldier so much more "real time" that I say a prayer for the computer system, too. That we can turn on and "talk" to the soldier across the world has been a comfort for all of us. I am sure it is a comfort to the soldiers, too.

I know I have been craming on this topic but it is important to our integrity as Americans that we provide for those who have sacrificed their lives or parts of their bodies and minds for you and I. How about "No soldier left behind"?

"Military statistics as of June 8, 2005 show that 12,762 American soldiers have been wounded in the conflict in Iraq and 1,674 have been killed. According to a spokesman at the Pentagon, the disparity between the two numbers has created a severe backlog in medical board hearings."

Photos
Milblog
True Story
Our Heros
Heros here!
More Heros
Milblog w. LINKS
A Hard one to read
Purple hearts and bruises
This Blogger Wounded June 05
Has your soldier been in the news?

Extra note

2005-07-10T18:20:00.000-04:00

UPDATE: 2:15 pm

Dear God, I love my husband!! He just called me again with his room number and word that he may be able to meet the plane tonight. With no prompting from anyone the beloved mate has roses for the soldier. He just makes me cry, he does so right!

When we were younger I used to wish he was my big brother, when we were older I wished he'd like me. When we fought and broke up I wished we could get back together. It took 15 years but it happened!! Every night I go to bed with the man of my dreams.

He is all of that and more to me now and I wouldn't trade him for a millionaire, a hunter, a mechanic, a gigolo, a biker, a cook, a nurse, a gardner, a boyfriend with a hot car, a chauffeur, a personal companion and a shrink all together! It would take the full dozen men to try to replace him and it would never be right.

I am so blessed.

Don't touch that dial!
*************************
I just got a call from the Mate. He arrived in one piece at about 1 pm at Ft. Bragg. He was waiting for the Captain to meet him and show him to his room at the Air Borne Inn.

Now we are at the official Army "hurry up and wait" portion of this tale. Spc. Jewel will not arrive until early evening instead of early afternoon as we were told. She has to be cleared for visitors before he can see her. Sounds like they will try to stall him one more day. I am upset as we told her he would be there for her the last time we talked. Stupid Army Regs!

But he's there. Now we will get the rest of the story.

Don't touch that dial!

Back in the USA

2005-07-10T17:57:00.000-04:00

Present location confirmed at Andrews Air Force Base hospital, staying overnight, scheduled to depart approximately xxxxx tomorrow morning, arriving Pope AFB approximately xxxxx. Flight times to be confirmed in morning.
*****************************************
We spoke to Womack Army Medical Center – the hospital at Fort Bragg and they are also tracking Jewel’s return. They show her scheduled to depart Germany on 28 June at xxxx (Greenwich Mean Time). This translates to approximately xxxx EDT. This time jives with what MAJ W describes below. Fort Bragg also shows her scheduled to arrive at Andrews AFB at xxxxxPM Greenwich Mean Time which equates to xxxxxxPM EDT. Then Fort Bragg believes she’ll be scheduled for a flight to Fort Bragg on the following day – Wednesday, 29 JUN – time To Be Determined.

Of course, all of this data is subject to change. My folks here will continue to track her progress home.

I’ve also spoken to Department of the Army Casualty affairs Once Jewel arrives in the states, her attending physician (either at Walter Reed or perhaps Fort Bragg) will verify her condition and determine if/when family members should be invited to join her. Once he makes this determination, family members can be officially invited to join her at whichever hospital she gets assigned to (we assume it will be Fort Bragg).

I will continue to check with Fort Bragg’s medical folks to ensure they are giving the same statuses that Landstuhl is giving to MAJ Watson. So far, both ends of this medical pipeline seem to be telling the same story so I’m fairly confident that the data is accurate. We look forward to receiving Jewel at Fort Bragg and attending to her family’s needs as well.

*****************************************
I have tried about eight or ten times today, but I have been unable to get through to either Jewel’s room or to her nurses station. II did get through to the air movement coordination section, and confirmed she is manifested on tomorrow’s flight. Her TRACES site number is -------------------; this is the tracking number they will use for her entire move from Germany through Andrews AFT to Womack Army Hospital on Ft. Bragg.

The flight is scheduled to take off from Germany at 1400 local time tomorrow. Flights to the United States from Germany last eight to nine hours, so although they cannot give me an ETA in the U.S., it should be about 1700 (5:00pm) Eastern Standard Time tomorrow when she lands in the D.C. area (if my calculations are right). This is just an estimate, and in Germany tonight they cannot provide any information on how long it will be before she moves from Andrews AFB to Ft. Bragg.

On another note, all of Jewel’s personal belongings were inventories by a specially appointed officer and a witness, and have been boxed up and mailed back to Ft. Bragg. They will not beat her back, but she should get all her things in 10 – 14 days.
*****************************************
Just a quick note this time. I just spoke with your daughter again, and I was glad to hear her sounding better again today than yesterday. There is no major change in her condition, which is that she is stable and still improving.

No change from last night – it still looks as if she’ll fly from Germany to the US on Tuesday. They’ve told her she will fly into Andrews AFB outside of D.C., which is standard. She’ll likely spend a day or so there then move to Ft. Bragg. That’s all I have to report today, but I’ll call again tomorrow to see if I can get precise movement times and information.

CPT George from our rear detachment should be in contact with you by now and helping you on all your needs on the Ft. Bragg end; please let me know if you have not heard from her or someone on the U.S. side to help you.
*****************************************
I just got off the phone with the duty nurse on Jewel’s ward. Unfortunately she will not be on the flight tomorrow, and it looks like the next flight will be Tuesday. There were two separate reasons she did not get on the flight.

First is the blood count I wrote about before. Due to the injuries and the surgery she had a bit of blood loss and her red blood count was not high enough this morning to qualify her for a high altitude flight. (anemia) They gave her blood this afternoon, but did not do a new test for her “H&H” count until about four hours ago. The results of that test have not come back, so when the manifest closed she was not eligible to fly.

Second is the fact that the hospital in Germany is very full right now due to a surge in injured soldiers over the last week. The manifest is based on a combination of “First in – first out”, and on seriousness of injuries; Jewel was low on both criteria so even had she been qualified would most likely have not got on the flight tomorrow. It is possible they will request another air evacuation mission before Tuesday based on the number of patients, but Tuesday is the next one going for sure.

I asked the nurse specifically is this was basically an administrative decision or represented a downturn for her condition, and the answer was administrative. She is still doing well. The nurse said she was eating and talking several times today and was still upbeat. Her condition has improved, she is still stable, and her prognosis is still for a full recovery.

The hospital orthopedic surgeon also examined her today. They now think that her so there is clearly some damage of some type, but based on the improvements today they think it may be less than a break. Because she was initially expected to fly tomorrow they did not schedule further treatment for her leg and arm, but tomorrow morning she should be re-evaluated by the orto specialist. I will continue to call at least once in the morning and once in the afternoon until she flies for the United States.
*****************************************

Yesterday I got a call from the Captain at Ft. Bragg in charge of helping visitors. She was full of good information on housing and visitor info. She also told us that Jewel had her leg re-broken and set yesterday. I told Mom they would have to do this as there was no word of the broken bone being set and it had been more than 3 days. Young bones heal quickly. She was annoyed that I was right.

The leg was diagnosed as broken on the first day of this story. Instead of treating her in a timely manner they had to re-injure our soldier, slowing her recovery further. This costs us more in the long run by extending time it will take for her to heal. She was kept in Germany, as far as I can tell, in a drugged stupor, in a US hospital for 5 days and no one there could set her leg before it began to heal wrong. IMHO it is because a broken leg in a young body is a pitifully tiny injury compared to the kids with amputations and internal wounds.

She was seen by the EMT's in Iraq and has been at the hospital in Germany since the 23rd. In 5 days no doctor has had the time to set a broken leg before it began to heal.

This tells me that:

They are too busy with more seriously wounded soldiers.
We are not being told the full count of the wounded, more than they can treat properly
There are not enough doctors available to treat the wounded we do have.
We are NOT taking care of our own.

Jewel was the soldier closest to a mortar round because she was in Iraq and doing her job as a soldier, performing a duty for her country. She was wounded in an action that has received, as far as I can tell, one tiny paragraph on one page on the internet that mentions the mortar fire that hit her.

"At about the same time as the three car bombs were going off in al-Karradah, Iraqi Resistance forces fired several mortar shells into the al-Jadiriyah district of Baghdad, police sources claim that the barrage inflicted no Iraqi casualties."

The mate and I worked with Jewel's folks trying to figure best ways to get someone to her. I keep forgetting we have animals and we could not get a dog sitter so I could not go. Her step mom is told that she can't get family emergency leave for this, we don't know why.

The math was getting easier. The mate took the bike and rolled out this morning. He has ridden through storms on and off all day but is about 5 hours out of Ft. Bragg. He should be there by 2 pm tomorrow. She should be there about 1 pm. Pretty good timing!

It's been hard to work to day. My mind was flying home with the soldier. I have found more links for you to puruse at your leisure. Educate yourself then use the links in the sidebar to express your opinion to a Congressman or Representitive

Cyclist for the Wounded

Bring Them Home Now

True Story

True Story 3

The most silent blog

True Story 4

Some News of the Wounded

Some Military Blogs censored/removed

Military Blog River bend

Military Blog Brandon

Military Blog Soldier's Life

Military Blog Michael Lyon

Military Blog Dagger Jag

More Soldier's Stories

2005-07-09T12:55:00.000-04:00

We called and talked to Jewel yesterday. She spoke to her Dad twice today. She is still very groggy, probably from the medication. We are working on a schedule to visit her that staggers us a little so she has visitors for a longer period of time, instead of all at once and then left alone again.

See the other soldier's story at the bottom of the links. Stay tuned!

Just a quick note this time. I just spoke with your daughter again, and I was glad to hear her sounding better again today than yesterday. There is no major change in her condition, which is that she is stable and still improving.

No change from last night – it still looks as if she’ll fly from Germany to the US on Tuesday. They’ve told her she will fly into Andrews AFB outside of D.C., which is standard. She’ll likely spend a day or so there then move to Ft. Bragg.

That’s all I have to report today, but I’ll call again tomorrow to see if I can get precise movement times and information.

I have spent hours tracking the wounded from Iraq on the web. The story is disgusting. To help maintain Bush's falling ratings there is an Unwritten Ban on Photos showing the wounded. Think about it. You see walls falling down and cars blowing up but no bodies. Soldiers going down the streets but no bodies. Take the time to check out these links, please. There is much more out there but I have to get ready to travel.

Invisible Wounded

On the Media
PBS Iraq Casualties False?
Salon.com Night landings?
Democracy Now - Interview with Writer of Invisible Wounded
Mother Jones more on Invisible wounded
Source Watch- Many more links to relate articles!
We can't take care of our own - or WON'T

WKYC - Soldier's Homecoming
Our Michigan Soldier
Roll Call of the Dead

Middletown – He lost his arm serving his country in Iraq.

Now this wounded soldier is being discharged from his company in Fort Hood, Texas, without enough gas money to get home. In fact, the Army says 27-year-old Spc. Robert Loria owes it close to $2,000, and confiscated his last paycheck.

"There's people in my unit right now – one of my team leaders [who was] over in Iraq with me, is doing everything he can to help me .... but it's looking bleak," Loria said by telephone from Fort Hood yesterday. "It's coming up on Christmas and I have no way of getting home."

Loria's expected discharge yesterday came a day after the public got a rare view of disgruntled soldiers in Kuwait peppering Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld with questions about their lack of adequate armor in Iraq.

Like many soldiers wounded in Iraq, Loria's injuries were caused by a roadside bombing. It happened in February when his team from the 588th Battalion's Bravo Company was going to help evacuate an area in Baqubah, a town 40 miles north of Baghdad. A bomb had just ripped off another soldier's arm. Loria's Humvee drove into an ambush. When the second bomb exploded, it tore Loria's left hand and forearm off, split his femur in two and shot shrapnel through the left side of his body.

Months later, he was still recuperating at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and just beginning to adjust to life without a hand, when he was released back to Fort Hood.

But "clearing Fort Hood," as the troops say, takes paperwork. Lots of it. Loria thought he'd done it all, and was getting ready to collect $4,486 in final Army pay. Then he was hit with another bomb.

The Army had another tally – of money it says Loria owed to his government. A Separation Pay Worksheet given to Loria showed the numbers: $2,408.33 for 10 months of family separation pay that the Army erroneously paid Loria after he'd returned stateside, as a patient at Walter Reed; $2,204.25 that Loria received for travel expenses from Fort Hood back to Walter Reed for a follow-up visit, after the travel paperwork submitted by Loria never reached the correct desk. And $310 for missing items on his returned equipment inventory list.

"There was stuff lost in transportation, other items damaged in the accident," Loria said of the day he lost his hand. "When it went up the chain of command, the military denied coverage."

Including taxes, the amount Loria owed totaled $6,255.50. The last line on the worksheet subtracted that total from his final Army payout and found $1,768.81 "due us."

"It's nerve-racking," Loria said. "After everything I have done, it's almost like I am being abandoned, like, you did your job for us and now you are no use. That's how it feels."

In Middletown, yesterday, Loria's wife, Christine, was beside herself. "They want us to sacrifice more," she said, her voice quavering. "My husband has already sacrificed more than he should have to."

For weeks now, Christine has been telling her 3-year-old son, Jonathan, that Robbie will be coming home any day now. But the Army has delayed Loria's release at least five times already, she said, leaving a little boy confused and angry. "Rob was supposed to be here on Saturday," she said. "Now [Jonathan] is mad at me. How do you explain something you yourself don't understand?"

Christine said the Department of Veterans Affairs has been helpful in giving Loria guidance about how to get his life back on track, offering vocation rehabilitation to "teach them to go back out in the world with the limitations they have." But the Army brass has been unreceptive, she said.

The Lorias also contacted the offices of U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., and Rep. Maurice Hinchey, D-Saugerties. Hinchey's office responded. "There's enough to go on here to call the Army on it and see if it can get worked out," said Hinchey aide Dan Ahouse. "We are expressing to the Pentagon that based on what we see here, we don't see that Mr. Loria is being treated the way we think our veterans returning from Iraq should be treated."

Army officials at Fort Hood could not be reached for comment yesterday.

"I don't want this to happen to another family," Christine Loria said. "Him being blown up was supposed to be the worst thing, but it wasn't. That the military doesn't care was the worst."

Christine Loria was at the end of her rope earlier this week when she called her wounded husband's commanders at Fort Hood, Texas, and gave them a piece of her mind. The Army was discharging her husband, Robert, after he lost his arm and suffered other severe injuries in Iraq, without even gas money to drive his car home.

"I am up here and he's there. That's 1,800 miles away," she said. "I had to call his chain of command and scream at them." Their reaction, she said, was "very mature." (sarcasim)

"If he feels that way, why is his wife talking for him? Why doesn't he come talk to us himself?" she remembers them asking her.

"Because on some level, he still respects you," she answered. "I don't have that problem."

Dianna Cahn - Who to call to help

Outraged about Army Spc. Robert Loria's plight? Speak your mind. Below are contact numbers for federal legislators and defense officials.
U.S. Senate: Hillary Clinton: 202-224-4451;
Charles Schumer: 212-486-4430
Maurice Hinchey: 845-344-3211;
Sue Kelly: 845-897-5200
Secretary of Defense: Donald Rumsfeld: 703-692-7100
Fort Hood: Major General James D. Thurman: 254-288-2255
Fort Hood operator at 254-287-1110;
Public Information Officer Jim Whitmeyer: 254-287-0103

For your own peace of mind END THE SILENCE! Use the links in my sidebar to let your reps know how you feel about the way our wounded are being treated!

She's not home yet.

2005-07-08T05:58:00.000-04:00

Our wounded girl, the American Soldier, is still in Germany. She has had surgury but still not had her broken bones treated. The letters below are like a blog, read it from the bottom up.

Obviously our goal is to have no one hurt ever, but truly SPC Weiler is not critically injured. I know it sounds like a lot, and numerically she does have a lot of wounds, but she was never in danger of dying, loosing any limbs or use of limbs, or anything like that. She is very bruised up, has a huge number of minor cuts and punctures along with a few more serious cuts, and the broken leg and all, but I saw her when it was the worst and I know she will be back at 100% soon.

Right now is probably the worst time for her, because she will be extremely sore and hurting, but I will bet within two weeks she’ll be much, much better and giving the doctors hell about her cast and the rest of it.

We have a very strong family readiness group that is always willing to help, and someone should be calling you today. If you do not hear from anyone tonight please let me know tomorrow.

Jessica is a really great trooper and we all like working with her. Again, please let me know if you can’t work out a way to make a trip to Fayetteville work.
****************************************************************
I just got off the phone with the duty nurse on Jessica’s ward. Unfortunately she will not be on the flight tomorrow, and it looks like the next flight will be
Tuesday.

There were two separate reasons she did not get on the flight. First is the blood count I wrote about before. Due to the injuries and the surgery she had a bit of blood loss anemia, and her red blood count was not high enough this morning to qualify her for a high altitude flight. They gave her blood this afternoon, but did not do a new test for her “H&H” count until about four hours ago. The results of that test have not come back, so when the manifest closed she was not eligible to fly.

Second is the fact that the hospital in Germany is very full right now due to a surge in injured soldiers over the last week. The manifest is based on a combination of “First in – first out”, and on seriousness of injuries; Jessica was low on both criteria so even had she been qualified would most likely have not got on the flight tomorrow.

It is possible they will request another air evacuation mission before Tuesday based on the number of patients, but Tuesday is the next one going for sure.

I asked the nurse specifically is this was basically an administrative decision or represented a downturn for her condition, and the answer was administrative. She is still doing well. The nurse said she was eating and talking several times today and was still upbeat. Her condition has improved, she is still stable, and her prognosis is still for a full recovery.

The hospital orthopedic surgeon also examined her today. They now think
that her left arm may be only sprained and not broken. She has swelling, pain,
and weakness in the left arm and hand, so there is clearly some damage of some
type, but based on the improvements today they think it may be less than a
break. Because she was initially expected to fly tomorrow they did not schedule
further treatment for her leg and arm, but tomorrow morning she should be
re-evaluated by the orto specialist.

I will continue to call at least once in the morning and once in the afternoon until she flies for the United States. Please let me know if there is anything else I can help, questions I can answer, or coordination you need.
--------------------------------------------
I just talked to SPC Weiler and to her nurse in Germany. She is doing well and sounded better than yesterday. She says so, and the nurse says so too. Nurse said she was much more alert and responsive today and seemed in better spirits.

Right now she is receiving some blood to make up for the overall blood loss of the last three days. All her drainage tubes are out, and she remains stable and in good shape. Her broken leg and arm have not been set or treated yet
(three days after she was wounded. Why? Because the available doctors were busy with more serious casualties. How did she deal with this? She was on morphine.); most likely course of action is that they will move her back to the U.S. and she will receive definitive treatment at Womack Army Hospital on Ft. Bragg.

Right now the next flight is tomorrow. They working to get her on it and are hopeful, but her blood count needs to come up a bit before they will let her fly from Germany. The manifest for that flight will be available in a few hours, and I
will call back in four to five hours to confirm if she is on it or not. If her
blood count and potassium level is not high enough and she does not make it,
they may set her leg in Germany while she waits for the next flight, which at
this point looks like Tuesday.
****************************************************************

I just spoke to the floor nurse on night duty in Jessica’s ward. She has
just arrived back in her room from post-operation recovery. The nurse said that
her prognosis was still good and that everything seemed to have gone well. At
this time she was awake but still feeling the affects of the anesthesia and
medications.

The surgery this afternoon was to ensure all the wounds had been cleaned out, that all debris was removed, and that all bleeding was under control. It looks like she had some(previously undiagnosed) abdominal injuries that did need to be treated, and should be fixed. The nurse said she was not in pain and had asked about eating something. Also they confirmed that she does have some type of fracture in her left arm as well as the lower right leg. To my knowledge these have not yet been set.

I asked about her eventual destination, and found out that they have begun to prepare a movement request with the destination of Ft. Bragg / Womack Army Medical Center. This is very preliminary, but there was a form in her chart that had been started as a working document. From what I was able to find out the next medical flight from Germany to the US is likely to be on Sunday, and it is possible she could be on that flight depending on the doctor’s assessment over the next day.

I will call again tomorrow in the late morning or early afternoon, talk to her, and let you know anything I find out about her condition or her movement plan.

So we are waiting but not patiently. Plans are being made to get the family to the girl when she reaches the states. We aren't the Rockefellers so it's crunch time. The family is a good group, we'll get there!

Keeping up with the Wounded American Soldier

2005-07-07T17:59:00.000-04:00

This reads like a blog, from the bottom up. I have to say they really do an impressive job keeping you notified. When the Mate was Army it might take a week before they let you know what was happening.

**************************
Sent: Friday, June 24, 2005 3:12 AM

Jewel has checked into LRMC. She is in Room 224, which is on Ward 8D. The direct dial number for her room is **********; the DSN number to the room would be *********. If you cannot get an answer in the room, it may be because she is being treated or is asleep – if you need to speak to someone the nurse’s station for that ward is ***********.

I spoke to SPC Wondergirl just a few minutes ago. She said she was very tired and sounded exhausted, which is what I would expect, but she said he was doing OK. She told me they were about to move her into surgery prep, so I don’t know how much longer she will be in the room or when she will be back. The surgery is to verify that all her injuries were completely cleaned out and properly treated here, and to ensure any fluid build up is drained.

I have not spoken to a doctor in Germany about her treatment plan, but based on her injuries, the comments of the doctors here, and our prior experiences, I would guess that the most likely sequence of events would be a stay at LRMC in Germany for two to five days, followed by a move back to the U.S. She is most likely to either end up at Womack Army Hospital on Fort Bragg for convalescent leave (which is what I think will happen) or at Walter Read Army Hospital in the D.C. area for additional treatment.

**************************
Sent: Friday, 24 June 2005 08:56

Jewel’s plane is wheels down in Germany now, but she has not yet arrived at LRMC. I gave the triage nurse your email address, and she promised to send you a message as soon as they have a room assignment and phone number.

In any case I will call back to Germany again in about two hours and see if she is settled. I will send you all the room and phone information at that time.

*****************************
Sent: Friday, 24 June 2005 04:09

SPC Wondergirl did get on the flight to Germany tonight. The flight actually took off about one hour ago or so ago. At this point the time differences begin to kick in, so here is the best idea of a timeline I can give you:

· It’s about 0348 here in Iraq, 0148 in Germany (two hours earlier), and 7:48PM East Coast time in the US, if I have my time zones right.
· The flight is scheduled to land at Ramstein Airbase at about 0600 local time in Germany, roughly four hours from now.
- It should take about 20 minutes to get everyone off the plane, and about 20 minutes driving time to get to the hospital, depending on weather and traffic and everything else.
· By about 0700 Germany time (five hours from now, so 0100 EST, Jewel should reach a room with a phone.

I have begun calling the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center to coordinate with them. They do not have a room assignment yet and will not do that officially until she is admitted, but I should be able to find that out either just before or just after the plane lands. Her room should have a phone, and you should be able to talk to her there.

The international direct dial number will be ****************. If you have access to a DSN phone, the number would be ****************. The last four digits will be the extension number for the room which I will forward to you as soon as I can find out the room assignment or the ward she’ll stay on for the floor nurse phones. Again I think I’ll be able to send that to you before she even arrives in the room, and whenever I find out I’ll forward it right away.

*****************************
Sent: Thursday, 23 June 2005 22:33

I have just confirmed that Jewel did arrive in Balad as scheduled. Her condition is still stable and her prognosis is good. I also confirmed that she is tentatively schedule to fly to Germany tonight. As before, the manifest is never final until they shut the door of the plane, but right now the flight is two to three hours away and they are planning on putting her on it.

She is in Ward Four of the Balad hospital, which is the ward for stable patients who are doing well – Ward Four is always a good sign. The only change in her condition is that the doctor is considering putting a temporary cast on her left hand. Her hand and wrist have swelled a bit, and he is not sure if that is the result of a bruise, a break, or a sprain, so he is likely going to put a cast on it for protection and for some support for comfort.

I have not yet been able to speak directly to her, but the doctors are all saying positive things.
I will call the hospital again in three to five hours and try to confirm if she is on the way to Germany or not, and I will let you know what I find out. Once she is on a plane I will begin making contact with Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, and I should be able to give you a more specific ETA in Germany and eventually a direct dial number to her room.

*****************************
Sent: Thursday, 23 June 2005 18:20

PC Wondergirl has left Baghdad for the medical facility on Balad Airfield. Her flight left here 1710, about one hour ago local time here. She should arrive there within the next hour. I will call the hospital in Balad to confirm her arrival in about two to three hours.

When soldiers arrive they are always given a complete re-evaluation and they have to have paperwork processed, so that can take time depending on what else is going in when they arrive.

The next flight from Balad to Germany will leave sometime around midnight tonight from Balad. The goal is to have Jewel on that flight, however I may not know if she made the flight or not until late tonight or early tomorrow morning. The reason for this is that the manifest for the medical flight is constantly changing, and if more seriously wounded soldiers were to arrive they would go first. Because Jewel is in stable condition and her life is not in danger she could be bumped, although they usually have an extremely high success rate for getting everyone on the first flight after arrival.

The flight to Germany typically takes about seven hours, and once they arrive there is always a delay caused by moving the soldiers from the plane to the hospital, another initial exam, and administrative paperwork. Once SPC Wondergirl is in the medical center in Germany, she will be able to make and receive calls, but at this point I would not count on getting any calls in the next 24 hours – when they arrive they always treat all injuries as quickly as possible, so whatever she needs for her leg will be done right away if they can, and that will lead to a delay in her reaching a room with a phone.

I will keep you posted on all flight information as soon as I receive it.

*****************************
Sent:Thursday, 23 June 2005 12:58

I have some more news for you, and it is good. 1SG Goodguy, your daughter’s company First Sergeant, has just called me from the hospital. SPC Wondergirl is still roughed up and under some sedation / medication, but she was able to wake up and talk to them. She knows you have been informed of the accident, and she is still rated as in good condition.

She is going to begin movement to Germany later this evening. The specific reason she is still being evacuated is her broken leg. She will go to Germany for the orthopedic doctors to look at the leg, and set it or do surgery for that as needed. We believe at this time she will almost certainly be further evacuated at some point to Ft. Bragg for convalescence, recovery, and any physical therapy for her leg.

I have found out from 1SG Goodman that the doctor who treated her did take out all the shrapnel from her. At this point the doctor believes there is no more debris left to be removed, which is very good. It also appears that the injuries described to her lung area and liver may have been either overstated, or may have been confused in conversation with another female soldier admitted at the same time with similar injuries. Jewel does have a small drainage tube in her nose right now to assist in keeping her lungs clear of any fluid build up, but she is not expected to have any complications in this area.

When a soldier moves as a medical evacuation, the system used to track that move is called TRACES. Each soldier gets what is called a "site number". SPC Wondergirl’s site number for her move from Baghdad, through Balad, to Germany is *********. If you or anyone else calls a hospital, that number will allow them to quickly tell you where she is in terms of the movement to Germany. If you call the hospital itself asking for an update on her condition, ask to speak to the patient representative and use her social security number (typically works faster).

As I write this message they have not yet established her flight schedule or itinerary, but I will continue to ask and I’ll let you know that timeline as soon as it begins to develop.

*****************************
Sent: Thursday, 23 June 2005 08:57

I have just got off the phone with the hospital where your daughter is currently receiving treatment. The good news is that at this time she is doing fine, had a good night, and is stable. She is not in any danger, and everyone I spoke with said she should have no problems making a full recovery and will not have any loss of any functions.

Since I wrote the note below I have received better information, so I’m going to recap all her injuries here. There are some rumors going around, but what I write here came directly from her doctor and from my personal observation.

SPC Wondergirl was very close to the blast, and got hit with a lot of fragments. She has a very large number of very small wounds. Most of her wounds are skin punctures from small pieces of rocks. A smaller number are from metal fragments. Most of these are on her legs.

Her most serious injuries appear to be two small pieces of metal that did penetrate her torso. One is in the area of her left lung, the other is near the right lobe of her liver. Her lung was not punctured by the fragment and she is having no trouble breathing, it is just in the lung area of her chest.

Her liver was slightly nicked and she had some fluid build up in her pelvis, but none of the major arteries or veins in the area were cut. The doctor I spoke with stated that they would make a decision in Germany about removing these, but there will not be any surgical intervention here because again the injuries are not critical or dangerous, and due to the dirt here they do not do any surgery unless there is no choice.

Jewel has a facture of her right fibula. She has a cast on her right leg and a brace for her right knee. I asked about the previous report that she had broken anything in her left leg or her femur, and the doctor today said it was her right fibula. I’ll continue to check on this and should be able to send you a 100% verified account within the next two hours.

She has several small cuts. The most serious cut is on her face to the left of her mouth, and it’s about 3/4 of an inch long. This and a few other cuts have been stitched. Other cuts were on her shoulder and several very minor ones on her legs.

She was initially intubated to help with breathing while they examined and treated her last night, but the tube is out and she was awake and communicating this morning.

This information is slightly different than what I sent out last night, and may change again, but I will keep you fully updated on all changes or additional developments.
SPC Wondergirl will be evacuated to Balad Airfield Iraq and then on to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany tonight. They do not yet have flight times or a tracking number for her, but I will get that later this afternoon and forward to you as soon as I receive it. Once she gets to LRMC she will have a phone in her room, and when I get that number I will let you know immediately. You will be able to call that number through the military phone system if you have access, or commercially if you don’t.

I was not able to speak to Jewel this morning because she was groggy and the phone in the hospital here would not reach her bed, but her lieutenant and platoon sergeant will by flying in to see her within the next half hour, and again I will keep you posted with all the information as soon as we receive it.

*****************************
Sent: Wednesday, 22 June 2005 21:39

I have just got off the phone with the hospital in the IZ. The good news is SPC Wondergirl’s lungs are clear – there was no puncture or compromise of her torso, only relatively minor shrapnel wounds.

She has several deep shrapnel wounds to her right leg with possible damage to her femur. The corpsman I talked to was not sure if it was fractured or not, or if the damage was from impact or shrapnel. There is also a single fracture on her lower left leg. She will be admitted, but no decision has been made regarding MEDEVAC. She is not in any danger or in critical condition. I will call again at 0600 to see if there is any update.

*****************************
Sent:Wednesday, 22 June 2005 21:17
Subject: Injured Soldiers

We need to keep each set of family members updated with every 6 hours or so. This is most effective by e-mail.
***************************
I want to add a big thank you to the soldier that tracks the wounded and sends the emails to the family. It may seem like an easy job but it must be difficult to find the words sometimes. Prayers going up for all of the wounded and all of the soldiers in Iraq and everywhere.

The First Rant

2005-07-06T00:58:00.000-04:00

I hope you can find the time today to look at a few of the links that follow. Open your heart and search it when you are done.

Pulling up extra tall, heavy duty soap box, clambering up to stand on top. Reaches in pocket for wireless microphone. "Testing....Test. Can you hear me now? OK."

I am not only non political but politically ignorant. I vote, but usually in a state of despair that there are no candidates worth the paper we punch the hole in, and choose what I hope are the lesser of the evil weasels that are running for office. I claim no concept of the larger picture - I do, however, have an OPINION.

Support our Troops! Yes , we do that. How? Putting a cute magnet on the vehicle? By keeping in touch with the ones we know?At least until we kinda forget them in the flow of everyday life. Then we send a joke or a chain email and the letters and boxes from home stop. Then the jokes stop. The calls stop. They are too busy, broke and far from home to call us. They don't want to be an imposition or extra cost to strapped families so they won't call collect. They're tough, they're soldiers, nothing can stop them.

Except a bullet, a car bomb, a hundred other ways to kill a human or, in our case a motar round.

And we are among the lucky ones. There are others, families that are getting a special notice about their boys and girls - the ones that will not be home - EVER.

And what about the previously wounded? Here's great news! low-cost “traumatic injury” insurance for members of America’s armed forces. Now, explain to me, why a country that was EMARRASSED into sending a LARGER donation to tsunami victims has soldiers that need INSURANCE related to their war injuries? We can't take care of our own?

We can't take care of our own. Chairities are making sure our wounded have backpacks to transport belonging, personal care and hygine items, a way to call home. Charities are providing military families with help while the soldier heals.

Why are there no photos of the action in Iraq? Read This, PLEASE. Where are the films of 6 soldiers being blown up by land mines, the children crippled and bloody from car bomb fragments? The images that would make us sick, that we won't let children watch because we are bombing other children? Where is the photo of the truth of war; the things that we refuse to picture, even in our minds as we read them? Is it just me? I don't read a lot of real papers, I get my new online. I checked google for iraq, soldier wounded. Not many links to real news places.

"DR. GENE BOLLES: The average American has not really witnessed the horrifying aspects of war, except from a distance, except from reading, except from what they may see on television. And we aren't showing very much here." Why not? Because we would have to take a stand against it. It's out there - on the web! In blogs and dot orgs. Check it out.

Can anyone show me how blowing up one more person is going to bring us closer to peace? Why is our fearless leadership sitting in it's cushioned office chairs (at 1500.00 a pop) on it's soft, lazy butts while our children are killed? Why are the 300,000 or so Great High Kabunga's telling the remaining 6,529,357,000 people to beat each other up from the comfort of their limos?

BECAUSE we let them. You let them. I let them. We grant permission by our SILENCE! As an adult citizen of the United States of America if you do not TELL them to stop, if you do not mail one letter to Washington saying War is the Wrong Way to solve disputes, then you are joining them as a warmonger .

If the people of the world can't stomach the destruction we can now cause with our hi tech, remote control weapons then the people of the world have to say ENOUGH. STOP. Stop the fighting and the bickering and butchering NOW.

Ask one mom if she would sacrifice her son or daughter for world peace. A few will say yes. I might even sacrifice ME for world peace. But isn't even one more life too many dead?

Ok, it is a rant. I have no grand plan to make the US quit wasting our money overseas an concentrate on making the section of the planet we have last longer. I turn off the lights, the faucets, drive to work and back as often as I can on the least fuel eating machine I have. I don't have room for a windmill and not enough money for thermal heating. I do what I can.

But I don't see how the US can fix anything anywhere until it fixes what is wrong at home. Stop the wars. Bring the kids home. Fix the infrastructure, feed the hungry, find all of us that want to work jobs so that we don't have to move to Mexico to work, get our kids in GOOD schools, let us disipline our children to teach them not to fight and bully but to share and compromise.

Share and compromise. Make Peace. Don't be so greedy. Get by with what you have. Share what you have too much of. Be kind to each other.

I love this world, the wilderness, the animals, the beaches and trees. I want it to last and I want to be proud to be an American again.

***************

I wrote the above when we had just heard of three soldiers being violently wounded. I believe our leaders have to lead. There may be ultimate good to come out of this war.

But it is up to us to make sure they stay responsible for the damage done our soldiers and their families. There are more stories out there about the neglect, attempts to get soldiers to leave the service before their medical needs are met, families being billed for items signed out but blown up when the soldier was wounded, it's UGLY! I will be putting these items here as I can find them.

If you have a story, a news article, photo or personal tale to tell, email me or post it in the comments. I will gather the links and post them here as often as I can.

The Links:
Help the Families at Home
A Soldier's Story,
Wounded Soldiers.
Never Returning
Previously Wounded
News Story“traumatic injury” insurance
Wounded Warrior Project
Fishers Houses.
Real Photos
Another Opinion on invisible wounded
Search for Photos.
Write Your Reps

Her Story Starts Here

2005-07-05T00:59:00.000-04:00

Once upon a time there was a girl, not a little girl, but a really small grown up girl, who wanted to be in the Army. She was four feet and an inch or two high and skinny. She had to eat and exercise to gain weight to meet the requirments. She had to study for the exams. She failed the written test twice but the third time she passed!

At boot camp she was the first one up the tower and over the walls. She worked hard to be the best. She studied every night.

She transfered from Infantry to Airborne and went through additional training. She learned to jump out of planes with a parachute.

When her training was done she was sent to Iraq. Her company was stationed in Baghdad. She was in the 82nd Airborne, 327th Signal Battalion out of Fort Bragg, NC.

One day she walked out the door of the barracks for the day's PT. That's physical training. She was wearing regulation shorts and a tee shirt. Someone fired off a mortar round nearby. The explosion was so close it shocked her. She started to turn and go back inside to get undercover but a second round landed about 5 feet from her.

On Wednesday, 22 June 2005 about 21:00 (all dates and times are Baghdad time) Jewel's Dad was notified his daughter had been wounded in Baghdad by mortar fire.
He sent up copies of all the updates he recieved on her in the following days. I mailed her the following letter by snail and email.
Dear Jewel, favorite niece,
We have just received word that you have been wounded and are being evacuated to Germany.Your Dad got the email that says you had many surface wounds from flying schrapnel and pieces embedded near your spine and liver.
The second email detailed the leg, broken near the knee that has been set in a cast and a knee brace. They also said you have a slash cut in your face from the lip to the cheek.
The third one said you had been treated, the schrapnel removed and would be evacuated to Germany.
Your Dad told your Uncle Bill and Grampa Ron. Uncle called me at work. We are letting the rest of the family know.
I called your Dad. After your Uncle left he got a call from you, praise God! He was so happy to hear your voice! He told me you had to hang up to get on the transport that is taking you away from that place on your first step home.
He wishes he could be in Germany to meet you and be with you but we will all have to wait till you are in the States again. He gave me your TRACES tracking number but there is no place on line I can find to get info on you with it. I guess we have to call the hospital when you arrive.
I hope this letter finds you. We all want you to know we are praying for you and will do whatever we can to help. Call collect our time in the evening to let us know what you need. If you need someone to contact your fiance who is still over in Iraq, let me know.
I know how much surgury takes out of you so don't expect to just hop up and party for a while. It's ok to be too tired to even talk or read a book. Just rest and let your body and heart heal.
We love you and will join you when we can.
Your Dad and family, Grampa R and Grama A, Uncle B and Aunt V, Grama W and Grama P (my mom), Cousins D, A and their families, All the other W's that love you
P.S. Sending a copy to the hospital as well as your email.

*************
Thursday, 23 June 2005 08:57
I have just got off the phone with the hospital in the IZ.

The good news is SPC Weiler’s lungs are clear – there was no puncture or compromise of her torso, only relatively minor shrapnel wounds.
She has several deep shrapnel wounds to her right leg with possible damage to her femur (the corpsman I talked to was not sure if it was fractured or not, or if the damage was from impact or shrapnel), and a single fracture on her lower left leg. She will be admitted, but no decision has been made regarding MEDEVAC.

She is not in any danger or in critical condition.

I will call again at 0600 to see if there is any update.

*************
I have just got off the phone with the hospital where your daughter is currently receiving treatment. The good news is that at this time she is doing fine, had a good night, and is stable. She is not in any danger, and everyone I spoke with said she should have no problems making a full recovery and will not have any loss of any functions.

Since I wrote the note below I have received better information, so I’m going to recap all her injuries here. There are some rumors going around, but what I write here came directly from her doctor and from my personal observation.
SPC Jewel was very close to the blast, and got hit with a lot of fragments. She has a very large number of very small wounds. Most of her wounds are skin punctures from small pieces of rocks. A smaller number are from metal fragments. Most of these are on her legs.
Her most serious injuries appear to be two small pieces of metal that did penetrate her torso. One is in the area of her left lung, the other is near the right lobe of her liver. Her lung was not punctured by the fragment and she is having no trouble breathing, it is just in the lung area of her chest.
Her liver was slightly nicked and she had some fluid build up in her pelvis, but none of the major arteries or veins in the area were cut.
The doctor I spoke with stated that they would make a decision in Germany about removing these, but there will not be any surgical intervention here because again the injuries are not critical or dangerous, and due to the dirt here they do not do any surgery unless there is no choice.
Jewel has a facture of her right fibula. She has a cast on her right leg and a brace for her right knee. I asked about the previous report that she had broken anything in her left leg or her femur, and the doctor today said it was her right fibula. I’ll continue to check on this and should be able to send you a 100% verified account within the next two hours.
She has several small cuts. The most serious cut is on her face to the left of her mouth, and it’s about 3/4 of an inch long. This and a few other cuts have been stitched. Other cuts were on her shoulder and several very minor ones on her legs.
She was initially intubated to help with breathing while they examined and treated her last night, but the tube is out and she was awake and communicating this morning.

This information is slightly different than what I sent out last night, and may change again, but I will keep you fully updated on all changes or additional developments.

SPC Jewel will be evacuated to Balad Airfield Iraq and then on to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany tonight. They do not yet have flight times or a tracking number for her, but I will get that later this afternoon and forward to you as soon as I receive it.

Once she gets to LRMC she will have a phone in her room, and when I get that number I will let you know immediately. You will be able to call that number through the military phone system if you have access, or commercially if you don’t.

I was not able to speak to Jewel this morning because she was groggy and the phone in the hospital here would not reach her bed, but her lieutenant and platoon sergeant will by flying in to see her within the next half hour, and again I will keep you posted with all the information as soon as we receive it.
*************
We were worried and tense. The emails came often and that really helped. While I was looking for ways to get information on our wounded soldier I found out some things that really bothered me.

From the beginning

2005-07-04T01:00:00.000-04:00

For those new to blogs, they are read back to front. The story begins in the archives with the oldest date and the last story on the page. I will be really pleased when they make that optional. So please dig back through from the beginning to see what brought us here.

I would like to dedicate this site to our neice, Jewel, who was wounded in Baghdad June 22, 2005 and to all the wounded veterans who have sacrificed so much for "the greater good".

My goal is to present to the public the problems our wounded are facing in their lives because of the governments unwillingness to spend one dime more than they have to on someone they have designated as no longer useful to them.

In many cases our vets not only could, but would CHOOSE to serve our country's needs in a different capacity so they could remain productive and active citizens. By investing in retraining, rather than classifying them as useless, we could all profit from their experience and knowledge.

Even a person with no legs can teach, so can one with no hands. They would be especially able as social workers in helping our newly wounded soldiers adjust to their traumatically imposed limitations. They understand the process of recovering a sense of self worth and confidence in your ability.

With new technology more is possible everyday for people with severly limited mobility. They could work as trainers in boot camps for class work in weapons training and identifying artillery and bombs or homemade devices. What student would not pay attention to someone who really knew what he was talking about as opposed to a teacher who had never seen combat? Seeing the results of failure or betrayal what student wouldn't study harder?

Just because you can't run doesn't mean you can't coach a ball team or manage a scout troup. Not being able to type won't stop you from writing a book with the "you talk, it types" software available for computers. If you have a strong voice you can do voice overs on training tapes, work in radio or be an announcer for local sports.

All it takes is training and our willingness to put our money where it will always do the most good - education. We are responsible for telling our leaders we want to take honorable care of those we are indebted to for their contributions for our freedoms. Use the links in the sidebar to tell your rep how you feel after reading the soldier's stories here.

The story starts like this...........

Honor the Wounded

2004-07-04T00:00:00.000-04:00

This blog is for honoring our wounded soldiers. It seems appropriate to start it as we begin our 4th of July weekend, 2005.

Our niece was wounded in Baghdad, Iraq on the 22nd of June. As I searched the web for resources I found that our wounded are being tucked carefully away where we can't see them. They are, in many cases, not getting the care we expect them to and that they have earned by their service. This article, "The Invisible Wounded", by Mark Benjamin spurred me on to help publicize the plight of our wounded American soldiers and their families.

If you have a story to share, post it in the comments for this first post or email me and I will add it to the blog for you. God Bless all the soldiers for doing the hard job!