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Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida
  • Home/Contact
  • Programs/Resources/BOD
  • About Us/ Military/Videos
  • SUPPORTERS;Burn Pits;9/11
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Welcome to Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida 'a Source for Veteran Resources'

Welcome to Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida 'a Source for Veteran Resources'Welcome to Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida 'a Source for Veteran Resources'Welcome to Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida 'a Source for Veteran Resources'

180 W. Idaho Ave, Ontario, Oregon 97914

541-889-1978

Learn More about the US Constitution

Also please 'check-out' the Daily postings on our 'Facebook' page, click the 'facebook' logo below.

Welcome to Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida 'a Source for Veteran Resources'

Welcome to Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida 'a Source for Veteran Resources'Welcome to Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida 'a Source for Veteran Resources'Welcome to Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida 'a Source for Veteran Resources'

180 W. Idaho Ave, Ontario, Oregon 97914

541-889-1978

Learn More about the US Constitution

CHECK OUT THESE RESOURES AND STORIES ON OUR WEBPAGES

MILITARY EVENTS & CELEBRATIONS FOR JUNE 2022 - Story at the bottom of this "HOME PAGE"

    This will take you to our very exciting "Facebook" page

    Welcome to our Website, Here is the 'Quote' of the month for JUNE 2022....

    "BE PATIENT AND CALM, NO ONE CAN CATCH A FISH WITH ANGER."

    Herbert Hoover, 1874 - 1964, 31st President of the United States, 3rd US Secretary of Commerce,

    More on Herbert Hoover

    WELCOME A FEW RESOURCES OF INTEREST (click on pics for more)

    Veteran Articles published Bi-monthly

    The Long and Uncertain Path Ahead for Veterans Waging War Against Lingering COVID

    Veteran Articles published Bi-monthly

    Logo of the Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida

     The Chairman of Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida, Ronald Verini, writes two articles every month for publication in a Regional Newspaper, this article "FAKE VETERANS CONTRASTING WITH HOMELESS HERO'S" will be published June 19, 2022. Here is a part of Mr. Verinis' article, and you can read the full article by clicking the red bar below.

     "FAKE VETERANS CONTRASTING WITH HOMELESS HERO'S"

    June 19, 2022 Veterans Corner Article by Ronald Verini     

      

    I was approached the other day asking for help, saying he was a veteran and that he served in Vietnam. After asking him a few questions about his service I just knew he was a fake. He had no idea what unit he was in, did not know what his MOS was or even what a MOS is. Of course, I could have asked him also about grid squares or maybe sky hooks depending on what service he was professing to be a part of.  I was so mad at having this scum tell me he was military and using the military for his own gain. Unfortunately, I was on my way to visit with a veteran that had some serious problems he was dealing with and could not follow through with this guy trying to impersonate a veteran. Would have been nice to, at least turn him in and maybe have him arrested. I am sure the authorities have bigger fish to fry and this probability would have not gone very far considering how busy our police have been but it would have given me some pleasure. 

    Now that I got that off my chest, I thought that I might touch base a little on the fact that this problem has been getting to be more visible since it is easier to panhandle and more organizations are opening their doors to help veterans in need. 

    Don’t be fooled, they either have paperwork regarding their service or a few simple questions might expose them quickly. 

    In Oregon this would fall under the Oregon Criminal Impersonation Laws:  ORS 162.365 Criminal Impersonation. (1) A person commits the crime of criminal impersonation if with intent to obtain a benefit, to injure or defraud another or to facilitate an unlawful activity, the person does an act in the assumed character of: (b) An active member or veteran of the Armed Forces of the United States. There is more to the wording of this law but I thought you would have an interest in seeing a part of it. It goes on to talk about the penalties being a Class A misdemeanor and then talks about other impersonations. Not sure about the laws in Idaho but on the Federal level the “Stolen Valor Act of 2013” gets into more of the fraudulent representations about having received military decorations or medals. 

    I know that I am  a little sensitive about panhandlers posing as veterans, especially since there is help for our veterans just not enough, the need to beg on the streets is much too much for me to grip. There are veterans on the streets begging but considering the places they might get help, that would not be the best place, in my mind, for them to be. If you see a veteran in need, please let them know about some of the services that are available and if you don’t know where to send them let one of the support organizations know about the veteran and maybe they might be able to reach out a hand and let the veteran know where we might be able to get some help. Please remember that not all veterans in need want help, we also have to respect that fact!  

    TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE PLEASE CLICK THE RED BAR BELOW

    Current & past Articles available

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    The Long and Uncertain Path Ahead for Veterans Waging War Against Lingering COVID

    Veteran Articles published Bi-monthly

    1-800-273-8255 press 1
Veterans Crisis Line

    HOW TO CONNECT WITH A RESPONDER


    Call

    1-800-273-8255

    and Press 1


    TEXT  -   838255


    This free support is

    • Confidential
    • Available every day, 24/7

    And serves

    • All Veterans
    • All Service members
    • National Guard and Reserve
    • Their family members and friends

    Connect with the Veterans Crisis Line to reach caring, qualified responderswith the Department of Veterans Affairs. Many of them are Veterans themselves.



    • Dial 1-800-273-8255 and Press 1 to talk to someone.
    • Send a text message to 838255 to connect with a VA responder.
    • Start a confidential online chat session at VeteransCrisisLine.net/Chat.
    • Take a self-check quiz at VeteransCrisisLine.net/Quiz to learn whether stress and depression might be affecting you.
    • Find a VA facility near you.
    • Visit MilitaryCrisisLine.net if you are an active duty Service member, Guardsman, or Reservist.
    • Connect through chat, text, or TTY if you are deaf or hard of hearing.

    More info on Crisis Line and Suicide Prevention

    The Long and Uncertain Path Ahead for Veterans Waging War Against Lingering COVID

    The Long and Uncertain Path Ahead for Veterans Waging War Against Lingering COVID

    Food Boxed at Veteran Advocates Food Pantry to hand out to Veterans/Military and their Families

    23,000 veterans continue to face problems with COVID

    May 2022 by Jonathon Lehrfeld, Military.com

    It began with mild congestion and the occasional sneeze.

    But soon came a loss of appetite, shortness of breath, chest pains and insomnia. The week of sleepless nights was especially difficult, leaving Isaiah Smith, 26, exhausted as wave after wave of COVID-19 symptoms washed over him.

    Finally, at 2 a.m., with his heart practically beating out of his chest, the former senior airman from Merrillville, Indiana, called for an ambulance to get him to the hospital fast. 

    "I was kinda scared because all you see on the news is what was going on if people caught it. I wasn't expecting to catch it. … I was doing everything I could to avoid it," said Smith, who regularly wore a mask and kept hand sanitizer in his car.

    t was early November 2020, before vaccines were widely available across the United States, and only a week after Smith, the young and otherwise healthy Air Force veteran, had tested positive for COVID-19 amid the surging Delta variant.

    "When they took me to the hospital, we actually waited outside in the ambulance because they had no room," said Smith, who spent a total of eight hours at the hospital before being discharged. Although doctors at the time told him there was little they could do because his case was "mild," he returned a few days later with a tightness in his chest.

    Smith is one of more than a half million veterans the Department of Veterans Affairs believes have had COVID-19, and one of about 23,000 veterans confirmed with a long COVID diagnosis, according to VA press secretary Terrence Hayes. 

    Long COVID, also known as long-haul COVID or post-COVID-19 condition, can be wildly different for patients. Symptoms may range from difficulty breathing to muscle aches to other serious conditions, including mental health disorders and suicidal thoughts, that may last weeks, months or longer. 

    The VA has not yet declared that veterans are specifically more susceptible to poor health conditions developed from long COVID, but "their underlying medical conditions, their age and their risk factors … might skew them from the general population," Dr. Elizabeth Brill, a VA COVID expert, told reporters during a VA press briefing April 25.

    click here for more on this story

    Food Boxed at Veteran Advocates Food Pantry to hand out to Veterans/Military and their Families

    Food Boxed at Veteran Advocates Food Pantry to hand out to Veterans/Military and their Families

    Food Boxed at Veteran Advocates Food Pantry to hand out to Veterans/Military and their Families

    Food boxed at Veteran Advocates Food Pantry to hand out for Veterans/Military & their Families


    May 2022

    The Food Pantry at Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida has really expanded and grown over the last few years. There has been such an increase of our Veteran and Military Families needing help to handle the increasing problems of 'food insecurity'. We do have a 'modest' pantry open every Monday and Thursday from 9:00am to 4:00pm. Give a call to 541-889-1978 to let us know you are coming to pick up Food Box. Please let us know how many in your family and about when your coming.

    Also, if you are interested in volunteering to help our veterans and the Food Pantry please give us a call or come on in and see what we are doing...

    CALL 541-889-1978 TO ARRANGE FOR A FOOD BOX PICK-UP

    1-855-948-2311 - This is the phone number for the 'White House' VA Hotline

    Food Boxed at Veteran Advocates Food Pantry to hand out to Veterans/Military and their Families

    1-855-948-2311 - This is the phone number for the 'White House' VA Hotline

    Staff answering the White House VA Hotline. 1-855-948-2311 - service open 24/7

    What is the White House VA Hotline?

    The hotline’s pilot began under direction of the Veterans Experience Office on June 1, 2017, and entered phase two on October 15, 2017.

    White House VA Hotline:  1-855-948-2311.

    Calls are answered by a live agent 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.  The hotline is staffed by more than 60 agents who have had extensive training on VA programs and services.  Most of these agents are a Veteran, military family member, caregiver or a survivor.

    The White House VA Hotline conducts immediate warm hand offs for at-crisis risk Veterans needing the services of the Veterans Crisis Line.

    Trends identified by the hotline will be used to rapidly respond to systemic inefficiencies and empower VA employees to resolve Veteran concerns quickly.

    • Veterans Crisis Line:  1-800-273-8255

    More info from the VA on this service

    VETERANS GET FREE TRUCK DRIVER TRAINING & CDL

    Food Boxed at Veteran Advocates Food Pantry to hand out to Veterans/Military and their Families

    1-855-948-2311 - This is the phone number for the 'White House' VA Hotline

    US Air Force Senior Airman Ryan Gomez

    May 2022, By Blake Stilwell, Military.com

    According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, 72% of the goods that are moved in America are carried by truck. Without people to drive those trucks, the U.S. economy starts grinding to a halt. And there is currently a severe shortage of truck drivers.

    Hiring Our Heroes, an initiative of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, is stepping in to help put U.S. military veterans in those trucks with its Drive for 500 campaign.

    There are 55,500 jobs open in America's trucking industry, an area critical to the daily lives of everyone in the United States. Fixing problems in the supply chain requires increasing those who move goods along that chain, so Drive for 500 is providing free training for veterans to get commercial driver's licenses (CDLs).

    A CDL is a requirement to drive large, heavy or hazardous materials for commercial purposes. All classes of CDLs require some kind of written test; some require a road test. But it's worth the effort: The average annual salary of a U.S. truck driver in 2021 was more than $48,000, and some earned more than $100,000.

    Due to the huge demand for drivers, wages are only increasing.

    Drive for 500 is helping put vets behind the wheel by providing 500 full-ride CDL scholarships to interested veterans with the help of TransForce Group, a CDL training, recruitment and job placement firm.

    TransForce Group's Troops Into Transportation Master Driving Program is a full-service initiative that operates regional training centers throughout the country. Veterans learning the skills it takes to be a truck driver would normally have to use their GI Bill benefits to pay for the classes, but Drive for 500 is picking up the tab for a few hundred eligible vets.

    The scholarship includes all required instruction and behind-the-wheel training; travel and transportation to training sites; lodging; training materials; and all Department of Transportation physical and testing fees. The only thing veterans will need to pay for are meals and incidentals.

    TransForce Group has brought together more than 500 employers who need skilled, qualified and reliable butts in seats to fill those 55,500 trucking jobs. The training company boasts that its graduates make an average of $60,000 per year in their new careers.

    Veterans and Reserve or National Guard military personnel must have an honorable or general under honorable conditions discharge. They need to be at least 18 years old, pass a drug test and meet the school's admission requirements.

    Military spouses are also eligible for the training program...

    Click here to read the full story
    Justin along with Sens. Blunt, R-Mo and Stabenow, D-Mich,to support Excellence in Mental Health Act.

    This Marine survived a sniper shot to the head in Iraq

    He spent the rest of his life fighting for others

    June 2022 by Melissa Sullivan, Task & Purpose

    I did not want to write this piece. Hundreds of people did not want me to write this, either. Putting these words to paper means that Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Justin Constantine is no longer with us. Justin passed from prostate cancer earlier this month.

    Those familiar with Justin’s story know him as the wounded warrior who miraculously survived a catastrophic combat injury in Iraq. On Oct. 18, 2006, highly-skilled Navy Corpsman George Grant performed an emergency battlefield cricothyroidotomy on Justin after a sniper’s bullet entered behind his left ear and exited his mouth. 

    Justin’s recovery was lengthy and included dozens of reconstructive surgeries. His injury transformed him physically and intensified the passion for service that already burned within him. 

    I met Justin three years after his injury while working in the U.S. Senate on Veterans’ policy. Like many other people who knew him, I was immediately impressed by his character, perseverance, mental fortitude, and impeccable credentials. 

    The more I learned about Justin, the more I appreciated him. I respected and admired the war hero revered by audiences and U.S. Presidents alike. 

    Yet Justin was so much more than his valiant service record. He was equal parts serious and self-deprecating. I treasure the candid moments we shared, especially now. 

    As a twenty-something on the Hill, my peers and I would gossip around the water cooler about The Real Housewives of Atlanta. Unbeknownst to us, the grizzly Marine a decade our senior was also an avid fan. 

    Justin would randomly shout the famous Housewives catchphrase, “Who gone check me, boo?!” in the lull of the workday, causing the otherwise desolate cubicle farm to erupt in laughter. He and I inhabited a small workspace and developed a bit of a big brother/little sister dynamic. He would roast me with his dry wit. I would remind him how old he was...

    Read the full story re Excellence in Mental Health Act
    Marine at a Burn Pit in 2007 in Fallujah.

    Sweeping Toxic Exposure Bill Near Finish After Senate Passag

    June 2022 by Rebecca Kheel, Military.com

    A historic expansion of veterans benefits for millions who were exposed to toxins during their military service is on a glide path to becoming law after it cleared the Senate on Thursday.

    The Senate voted 84-14 on Thursday to approve the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our PACT Act, which would extend health care and disability benefits to an estimated 3.5 million veterans exposed to burn pits and other airborne hazards. All of the "no" votes came from Republicans.

    The bill must still pass the House and be signed by President Joe Biden before becoming law. But the Senate was seen as the biggest hurdle to the bill making it into law after some lawmakers in that chamber balked at the price tag of an earlier version of the bill, meaning it is now expected to sail to the finish line.

    The bill, which is named in honor of a veteran who died of lung cancer after being exposed to burn pits in Iraq, would designate 23 diseases as presumed to be linked to military service, including hypertension, brain cancer, chronic bronchitis and more.

    The bill is "about righting a wrong that has been ignored for too damn long," Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester, D-Mont., said during floor debate on the measure. "There's always a cost of war, and that cost is never fully paid when the war ends."

    The Department of Veterans Affairs already treats asthma, rhinitis, sinusitis and nine types of respiratory cancers as presumed to be linked to military service. But for any other ailment, veterans must prove the disease is linked to their time in uniform, an effort that is often futile because of spotty Defense Department recordkeeping or what the VA says is a lack of scientific data proving a disease is caused by burn pits.

    In addition to expanding the list of presumptive diseases, the PACT Act would create a streamlined process to add more illnesses to the list in the future, something lawmakers hope will prevent the need to pass more legislation should other toxic exposure-related ailments emerge.

    .

    Read More on the TOXIC EXPOSURE BILL
    Soldiers burn trash at a Joint Security Station in Western Baghdad in Sept. 2008

    Nine respiratory cancers added to burn pit smoke

    May 2022, By Leo Shane III, MilitaryTimes

    Veterans Affairs officials this week will add nine respiratory cancers to the list of illnesses presumed caused by burn pit exposure, easing the path veterans suffering from those conditions have to take to get disability benefits.

    The move follows promises by administration officials last fall to speed up care and benefits for veterans exposed to burn pit smoke in Iraq, Afghanistan and other overseas locations over the last 32 years.

    In a statement, VA Secretary Denis McDonough called the move overdue.

    “Veterans who suffer from rare respiratory cancers associated with their service deserve the very best America has to offer, but they’ve had to wait for the care and benefits they deserve for far too long,” he said. “That ends now.

    “With these new presumptives, veterans who suffer from these rare respiratory cancers will finally get the world-class care and benefits they deserve, without having to prove causality between their service and their condition.”

    The nine new conditions are:

    • Squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx;
    • Squamous cell carcinoma of the trachea;
    • Adenocarcinoma of the trachea;
    • Salivary gland-type tumors of the trachea;
    • Adenosquamous carcinoma of the lung;
    • Large cell carcinoma of the lung;
    • Salivary gland-type tumors of the lung;
    • Sarcomatoid carcinoma of the lung;
    • Typical and atypical carcinoid of the lung;

    The policy applies to veterans who served in the Southwest Asia theater of operations beginning Aug. 2, 1990, to the present, or in Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Syria or Djibouti beginning Sept. 19, 2001, to the present. That includes all veterans who served in the Gulf War, the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan.

    VA officials did not say how many individuals would be affected by the new policy, although they did classify the cancers as “rare” in their announcement.

    The issue of presumptive benefits for burn pit victims has been a priority for advocates in recent years because of the difficulty in linking many health problems to the toxic smoke present at many overseas bases....

    Find out more read the full story, click here..
    VA Medical Center in Gainesville, Florida

    Florida VA Denied Dying Veteran Emergency Care

    Because Staff Couldn't Confirm His Service


    June 2022 by Rebecca Kheel, Military.com

    Emergency room staff at a Department of Veterans Affairs hospital in Florida violated policy by refusing to care for a veteran dying of heart failure because they could not confirm his military service, the VA's watchdog said in a new report this week.

    The unidentified 60-year-old man died 10 hours later after being taken to a different hospital. The VA inspector general faulted staff at the Malcom Randall VA Medical Center in Gainesville for having "wasted critical time" by continuing to try to identify the man and not prioritizing immediate medical treatment.

    "Emergency Department nurses dismissed the reported criticality of the patient's condition based on their own inaccurate visual assessment of the patient and the primary focus on verifying the patient's eligibility status," the inspector general, or IG, said in a report released Tuesday.

    Read Next: F-16 Landing Mishap Marks Second Incident This Month for South Dakota Guard Unit

    While facility leaders have taken actions to address issues identified in an initial investigation, the IG warned that "there continues to be a delay in the provision of emergency care to patients in the Emergency Department due to inefficient registration processes and practices."

    The incident the report focused on happened in summer 2020, but the IG said that during the course of its investigation it discovered "similar patient incidents" in 2019.

    The man in the summer 2020 incident had previously been treated at the same VA medical center for heart issues that spring.

    When a neighbor found the man unresponsive that summer, they called an ambulance and told the emergency responders that he had recently been discharged from a VA hospital.

    En route to the VA, the ambulance personnel notified hospital staff of the man's critical condition and gave them what little identifying information they had, including his initials and contact information for a family member, but told dispatchers they could not get any more identification since the patient was unconscious....

    Find out more
    Security Guard in a Pennsylvania School Board meeting

    Why armed military vets aren’t solution to school shootings

    most servicemembers are not weapons or close quarters battle experts

    June 2022 by Carl Forsling, Task & Purpose

    Last week’s mass murder of children in Uvalde, Texas has broken the hearts of Americans. People are desperately looking for solutions to this uniquely American problem. 

    In response, social media has demonstrated its unique capacity to amplify bad ideas. On several military and military fan pages, you’ll see people claiming that the solution to school shootings is to have armed veterans, or even “combat veterans,” patrol our schools.

    America often wishcasts positive traits upon military veterans, seeing each one as a G.I. Joe-like platonic ideal of a super-soldier. They’ve fought for freedom around the world, the thinking goes, so why can’t our military heroes help save our schoolchildren?  

    Unlike in the movies, most servicemembers are not weapons or close quarters battle experts, which is what this type of mission would really entail. Most sailors and airmen get only very basic weapons training when they join the military. Unless they are going into special operations, security forces, or similar fields, they are unlikely to train much with small arms for the rest of their careers.  

    Soldiers and Marines get a more robust introduction to weapons fundamentals, but unless they are in the infantry, or to a lesser degree the other ground combat arms, the amount of tactical shooting they do is generally fairly limited, focused on annual weapons qualification. For perspective, only about 15% of soldiers and 20% of Marines are infantry. 

    And if you really want combat veterans, in particular, things get trickier still. Only half of Post-9/11 veterans have any combat experience according to a Pew Research poll. And that poll defined “combat experience” very loosely. So, if you want a trained combat shooter with real-world experience, that intersection in the Venn diagram gets smaller very quickly. With Afghanistan and Iraq going further into the rearview mirror every day, combat vets still proficient in battle skills will only get rarer...

    Learn More

    Find out more, read the full article

    Photos shed light on food insecurity in post 9/11 Veterans

    By Erica Sprey VA Research Communications

    "People who are food insecure are making choices on how to spend their last $20 or $50. Usually food is the flexible component, so they apply it to rent."

    Photo-elicitation is a research method that combines detailed interviews with photographs taken by study participants. Researchers use it  to gain a better understanding of complex topics. Often, the act of taking photographs—in response to questions from the researcher—can summon emotional responses in study participants. It can also help both participants and researchers gain insight into participants’ behaviors.

    Dr. Nipa Kamdar is a researcher at the VA Center for Innovations in Quality, Effectiveness and Safety (iQUeSt) in Houston. Her focus is food insecurity in Veterans. In October 2021, Kamdar published a commentary, in Public Health Nursing, on her use of photo-elicitation to study food insecurity in low-income, post 9/11 Veterans. 

    [This is a picture of what was] in my fridge when I first started the project. You see [there's] hardly anything in there? And see how small the fridge is?

    "[This is a picture of what was] in my fridge when I first started the project. You see [there's] hardly anything in there? And see how small the fridge is?" (Photo taken by Veteran study participant.)

    The article discussed the results of an earlier study by Kamdar and colleagues that used photo-elicitation to better understand food insecurity in a group of post 9/11 Veterans with children. The researchers found that food insecurity in Veterans is highly intertwined with physical and mental health, military culture, and lack of basic resources like housing or transportation.

    Food insecurity intertwined with other risk factors

    We have the G.I. Bill, the Hazelwood Act, and the 'Voca Rehab' [Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment], but right now, I'm just using the G.I. Bill. It's the money from the G.I. Bill that helps us pay bills and stuff.

    "We have the G.I. Bill, the Hazelwood Act, and the 'Voca Rehab' [Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment], but right now, I'm just using the G.I. Bill. It's the money from the G.I. Bill that helps us pay bills and stuff." (Photo taken by Veteran study participant.)

    Food insecurity is defined as a limited ability to access food, largely due to financial considerations. In the U.S. population, about 10% of adults experience food insecurity, according to a 2020 report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

    Veterans have about the same rate of food insecurity as the general population, but differ in their level of food insecurity, according to a 2021 study that looked at working-age Veterans with children. Veterans often experience a greater severity of food insecurity, Kamdar notes. "That severe level means they are cutting down on what they eat, or they are skipping meals."

    FOOD INSECURITY?? VISIT OUR VAOI FOOD PANTRY

    Those Veterans and Families in the Ontario, Oregon area can reach out to our Food Pantry every Monday & Thursday from 9:00am to 4:00pm.

    call 541-889-1978 to come pick up a FOOD BOX

    Read the full article about Food Insecurity
    VA Secy. Denis McDonough at Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.

    VA Weighs Limiting Access to Outside Doctors to Curb Costs

    June 2022 by Patricia Kime, Military.com

    The Department of Veterans Affairs may alter the rules for its community health care program, a system designed to help veterans see doctors outside of the VA system if they don’t have easy access to a VA medical facility, to stop that program’s growing spending from devouring its overall health care budget, according to VA Secretary Denis McDonough.

    During a Senate hearing on the VA budget Tuesday, McDonough said the community care program now accounts for 33% of the VA's total health care demand, up from roughly 26% last year.

    Find out more read the full article
    Navy Vet Thomas Douglas new manual "Adapt or Die" to enter Civillian Life from the Military

    Navy veteran debuts ‘Adapt or Die’ business manual

    June 2022 by Nikki Madison, MiliteryTimes


     When Navy veteran Thomas H. Douglas transitioned from the military, he did what many service members do — he started a job.

    Douglas began a civilian career as an entry-level engineer with JMARK Business Solutions.

    Four years later, he purchased the company, then leading JMARK to many successes, including its place on Inc. Magazine’s 5000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America list. JMARK has made the list not just once but nine times.

    With 25 years of business experience to share, Douglas released his debut manual “Adapt or Die: How to Create Innovation, Solve People Puzzles, and Win in Business” in May 2022. “Adapt or Die” aims to be more than a typical business book, exploring what Douglas calls the Algorithm of Success business system and sharing real-world insights, strategies, and solutions for succeeding in businesses of all sizes. Douglas will also host an Adapt or Die Masterclass in August 2022.

    We asked Douglas about his book and requested advice for those considering business ownership after military service.

    A: When we are provided special things, I believe we have a responsibility to do something to pay that forward and help others. My life has been full of special people. It started at a young age with my family and amazing friends living in an amazing community. In college, I was fortunate to meet more exceptional people who showed me way too many ways to have fun but also taught me how to enjoy life. In the Navy, I again met exceptional people and was able to learn the impact of good (and bad) leadership. I was able to see transformation, suppression, anger, joy, and mostly, people rising to new levels and capabilities.

    Since my time in the Navy, I’ve continued to be exposed to exceptional people within our organization, meeting my wife, and with our clients, and through some awesome board members. In addition to all of these amazing people, I have focused on staying a student in all things. This passion to learn, combined with the teachings of others, has helped me achieve some pretty special things with some very special people.

    Learn More

    Find out more on "Adapt or Die"
    A U.S. Special Forces team leader meets with an Afghan Local Police checkpoint commander Kandahar

    ‘My war just kept going’

    How this Marine veteran became the voice of a generation fighting a forever war

    May 2022 by Peter Molin, Task & Purpose

    From public affairs staff officer in Iraq to author of the National Book Award-winning collection of short stories Redeployment, and the acclaimed novel Missionaries, to frequent contributor to the pages of New York Times, the New Yorker and other prestige media outlets, former Marine Phil Klay’s ascent to the top of the contemporary veterans-writing mountain has been remarkable.

    The best whetstones to keep your knives ready for anything

    Now, from Klay arrives Uncertain Ground: Citizenship in an Age of Endless, Invisible War, a collection of articles and editorials published between 2010 and 2021. The only new writing included is an interesting but short introduction, and the scholarly title heralds a more cohesive argument about citizenship than a random collection of pieces published over the breadth of a decade seemingly can deliver. And yet the title is not a false promise, for Uncertain Ground’s achievement lies in how the collected articles illuminate the complex relationship between the individual and the state, particularly in matters concerning military and war. 

    “And so,” Klay tells us in the Introduction, “as I started writing about the war and the people who fight it, I envisioned my task primarily as making sense of the past.” Past, in this case, means the previous few years of war in Iraq, but as Klay reports, this past has never really passed. Iraq, relatively subdued when Klay left in 2008, burned hot again for several more years and things got even hotter in Afghanistan while fighting spread to Syria, Somalia, Pakistan, and the Philippines. 

    “…my war just kept going,” Klay writes, and expanded not just to other overseas locations but to the domestic cultural and political fronts. “The essays in this book represent my attempts over the course of the Obama and Trump administrations to grapple with how we got here,”  with “here” being an America oblivious to continuous “invisible” wars waged overseas, but increasingly accustomed to politicized violence, hate-crimes, and mass murder at home. Contemplation of what Klay calls “a bizarre circumstance” — forgotten wars overseas, increasing strife at home in the United States — clarifies for Klay that citizenship is the crux of the issue. ...

    More about "My war just kept going"

    Some Stories that Inspire, and have 'Positive Energy'

    Best Pic's from the US Department of Defense

    National Resource Directory online for Veterans, Wounded, Ill & injured service members & Family

    Best Pic's from the US Department of Defense

    Here are some Pics from All Branches of the Military Service from the DoD

    Please click here for the pictures

    Help for Veterans with PTSD

    National Resource Directory online for Veterans, Wounded, Ill & injured service members & Family

    Best Pic's from the US Department of Defense

    PTSD in Military Veterans

    April 2022

    For all too many veterans, returning from military service means coping with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. But there are things you can do to start feeling better today.

    Understanding PTSD in veterans

    Are you having a hard time readjusting to life out of the military? Are you always on edge, always on the verge of panicking or exploding, or, on the flip side, do you feel emotionally numb and disconnected from your loved ones? Do you believe that you’ll never feel normal again?

    For all too many veterans, these are common experiences—lingering symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It’s hard living with untreated PTSD and, with long V.A. wait times, it’s easy to get discouraged. But you can feel better, and you can start today, even while you’re waiting for professional treatment. There are many things you can do to help yourself overcome PTSD and come out the other side even stronger than before.

    What causes PTSD?

    Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), sometimes known as shell shock or combat stress, occurs after you experience severe trauma or a life-threatening event. It’s normal for your mind and body to be in shock after such an event, but this normal response becomes PTSD when your nervous system gets “stuck.”

    Your nervous system has two automatic or reflexive ways of responding to stressful events:

    Mobilization, or fight-or-flight, occurs when you need to defend yourself or survive the danger of a combat situation. Your heart pounds faster, your blood pressure rises, and your muscles tighten, increasing your strength and reaction speed. Once the danger has passed, your nervous system calms your body, lowering your heart rate and blood pressure, and winding back down to its normal balance.

    Immobilization occurs when you’ve experienced too much stress in a situation and even though the danger has passed, you find yourself “stuck.” Your nervous system is unable to return to its normal state of balance and you’re unable to move on from the event. This is PTSD.

    Recovering from PTSD involves transitioning out of the mental and emotional war zone you’re still living in and helping your nervous system become “unstuck.”

    Find out more - read the whole story

    National Resource Directory online for Veterans, Wounded, Ill & injured service members & Family

    National Resource Directory online for Veterans, Wounded, Ill & injured service members & Family

    National Resource Directory online for Veterans, Wounded, Ill & injured service members & Family

    A National Directory database for veterans, family members, caregivers and service members.

    April 2022

    This is a National Directory  for resources that you as a Veteran, Military, Family member, Caregiver might need to assist you and help you with your needs.


    https://nrd.gov/Homeless-Assistance


    https://nrd.gov/Education-Training


    https://nrd.gov/Family-Caregiver-Support


    https://nrd.gov/Health


    https://nrd.gov/Employment


    https://nrd.gov/Housing


    https://nrd

    Click Here to "Log On" to the National Resource Directory & get Started!!

    What Veterans Who Are Homeless or At Risk of Homelessness Should do for Help

    What Veterans Who Are Homeless or At Risk of Homelessness Should do for Help

    National Resource Directory online for Veterans, Wounded, Ill & injured service members & Family

    Information on the VA Homeless Programs

    Veterans who are homeless or at imminent risk of homelessness are strongly encouraged to contact the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans at (877) 4AID-VET (877-424-3838) for assistance. If Veterans do not have access to a phone or the internet, only then are they to visit their closest VA medical center without calling in advance. VA also urges Veterans who are not homeless or at risk of homelessness to contact their VA medical center before visiting for any reason. These steps are necessary to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

    No Veteran Should Be Without a Place to Call Home

    VA is committed to ending homelessness among Veterans. Our focus is threefold:

    • Conducting coordinated outreach to proactively seek out Veterans in need of assistance.
    • Connecting homeless and at-risk Veterans with housing solutions, health care, community employment services and other required supports.
    • Collaborating with federal, state and local agencies; employers; housing providers, faith-based and community nonprofits; and others to expand employment and affordable housing options for Veterans exiting homelessness.

    Click here for more on the VA Homeless Programs

    How a funky spruce beer fueled the U.S. Army

    What Veterans Who Are Homeless or At Risk of Homelessness Should do for Help

    How World War II led to the invention of super glue

    Spruce beer traces its roots back to the Vikings.

    February 2022 by Sarah Sicard, Observation Post

    One of my most unpopular opinions is that IPA beers taste a whole lot like pine needles. But when troops fought in both the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, a piney beer was the only thing standing between the Army and a slow painful death by scurvy.

    Spruce Beer, made from plentiful spruce trees found in North America, was the only solution to solving soldiers’ scurvy woes.

    The disease, most commonly associated with rum-soaked pirates who don’t have access to fresh fruits and vegetables, is caused by vitamin C deficiency and can lead to anemia, oozing sores, tooth loss, and delayed healing processes for injuries — which, if you were a soldier during America’s early conflicts, could most certainly kill you.

    An early version of the ale, which doesn’t contain alcohol, was drunk by Vikings, who brewed their beer from Norway spruce shoots, according to the second edition of the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America.

    Later versions can be traced to New France, now Canada, in the 1700s. Explorer Jacques Cartier and his men reportedly fell victim to scurvy until the Huron taught them to use tree bark to brew teas and concoctions that would keep them healthy. In that same century, Swedish-Finnish botanist Pehr Kalm observed how locals there avoided the scurvy that so affected early settlers, and found that they had employed a beer brewed from spruce branches, a military heritage research site found.

    Spruce beer was used during the French and Indian War to give the British an edge. During the war, British Gen. James Murray wrote in a general order that spruce beer be made a ration requirement.

    This practice continued into the American Revolution, where the Continental Army was ordered to drink up to a quart of its own funky spruce beer each day.

    Read the full article...

    How World War II led to the invention of super glue

    What Veterans Who Are Homeless or At Risk of Homelessness Should do for Help

    How World War II led to the invention of super glue

    Dr. Harry Coover discovered 'super glue' during WWII

    Ah, super glue — the greatest-of-all-time fast-acting adhesive for all of your stuck-together needs.

    Chances are, you have a tube of this in that kitchen drawer, you know, the one with all the takeout menus, rubber bands and random keys to who knows what doors (you should probably clean that out by the way), because it’s an undeniable necessity.

    But before it occupied space in our junk drawers, and our hearts, it was accidentally developed for the U.S. military.

    Too sticky for Army weapons

    In 1942, companies across the country were looking to support the war effort, including the Eastman Kodak Company. One if its inventors, Dr. Harry Wesley Coover, accidentally created a new compound while attempting to make clear plastic gun sights for Allied soldiers.

    The compound, cyanoacrylate, was incredibly durable but way too sticky to use. (Imagine getting Krazy Glue anywhere near your eye. No thanks!) So Coover and his team abandoned the substance, not wanting to get stuck, literally or figuratively, on it.

    Over a decade later, Coover, who would become known as “Mr. Super Glue,” rediscovered the adhesive compound while researching heat-resistant polymers for jet canopies. Cyanoacrylate adhesives required no heat or pressure to stick items together and hold them permanently. Thus, in 1956, the patent for “Alcohol-Catalyzed Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Compositions/Superglue” was born. How’s that for a name?

    Feel Stuck? Find out more

    Some Ongoing Stories of Interest For Our Veterans

    MILITARY CELEBRATIONS & EVENTS FOR JUNE

    National University Is a Nonprofit Online School Created by a Veteran for the Military

    National University Is a Nonprofit Online School Created by a Veteran for the Military

    June 2020

    June 6: D-Day For more on D-Day and other articles on World War II, visit the Military.com D-Day overview.

    June 14: Flag Day  A day to commemorate the adoption of the United States flag. For more details, visit the Military.com Flag Day page.

    June 14: Army Birthday Since its formation during the Revolutionary War, the U.S. Army has defended our nation for over 200 years. For features and historical articles on the Army's birthday, visit Military.com's Army Birthday page.

    June 23: Coast Guard Auxiliary Birthday

    June 27: National PTSD Awareness Day   day set aside to raise public awareness about issues related to PTSD. For more resources on PTSD and mental health, visit the Mental 

    More on Military Observences

    National University Is a Nonprofit Online School Created by a Veteran for the Military

    National University Is a Nonprofit Online School Created by a Veteran for the Military

    National University Is a Nonprofit Online School Created by a Veteran for the Military

    (U.S. Army/Sgt. 1st Class Gary A. Witte)



    April 2021 by Blake Stilwell, Military.com

    These days, service members need to be wary of the multitude of online for-profit schools out to get a piece of their coveted Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits. Depending on which “academic institution” is looking to sign them up, the term “Results May Vary” doesn’t come close to describing some of the “schools” out there.

    But there are better choices for service members with non-traditional schedules who are looking for a good distance education to prepare them for life after the military. National University was founded by a veteran with similar issues and is today the second-largest nonprofit online school in America.

    David Chigos’ transition to civilian life had been rough. As a retiring naval officer in 1967, he tried to enroll in night classes at San Diego State University. The only problem, he said, was that San Diego State didn’t offer night classes, so he was faced with the choice of going to school or working during the day. He knew there were veterans and civilians like him trying to balance both tasks.

    In 1971, Chigos was working as a management development specialist for the General Dynamics corporation. The academic system in the U.S. kept many executives from pursuing higher education. So he did what any veteran might consider doing: fixing the problem by creating a college for the “real world” at a fraction of the cost.

    “From the trunk of my car,” he founded National University, completely upending the idea of how academic programs were formed, he said. Chigos created academic programs with a no-frills look at the world. National University would offer classes that would lead to education and employment. His first class numbered 27 students....

    Read the full article, click here....

    DoD SkillBridge: The best military transition program you didn’t know existed

    National University Is a Nonprofit Online School Created by a Veteran for the Military

    DoD SkillBridge: The best military transition program you didn’t know existed

    James Montgomery, right, management analyst, Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Pea

    January 2021 By Harm Venhuizen. MilitaryTimes

    When separating from the military, it’s not uncommon for servicemembers to discover gaps between their resume and the civilian job they want.

    Worries about putting food on the table can make going back to school, getting on-the-job training, or taking an internship seem like costly ways of filling that gap. Luckily, there’s a way servicemembers can gain the experience required by civilian jobs while still on the military’s payroll.

    The DoD SkillBridge Program lets active-duty personnel from all four branches spend the last 180 days of their military service interning at a civilian job with one of more than 500 industry partners.

    Participants continue to receive military pay and benefits, whether they’re getting certified by Microsoft in cloud development, learning to weld, or taking advantage of any one of the hundreds of other opportunities available.

    As part of the DoD’s requirements, all training programs offer a “high probability of post-service employment with the provider or other employers in a field related to the opportunity,” according to the SkillBridge website.

    In his internship with the Global SOF Foundation, retired Navy commander Chuck Neu says he not only tripled the size of his professional network, but also discovered a talent for sales.

    “Without that exposure to cold-call sales from doing SkillBridge with the Global SOF Foundation, I likely would have ended up on-base as a contractor or a government civilian, which is really not what I wanted to do,” Neu told Military Times....


    For more on this story click the 'Red Bar' below.

    For more on this story click here

    Trouble Navigating SkillBridge? 50Strong Is Here to Help

    How a WW2 banana shortage changed the course of Twinkie history

    DoD SkillBridge: The best military transition program you didn’t know existed

    SkillBridge is a groundbreaking program to help transition service members into civilian life

    August 2021 by Blake Stilwell, Military.com

    SkillBridge is one of the most groundbreaking programs the U.S. military ever introduced to help transition service members into civilian life. It allows veterans looking to separate from the military to work in training opportunities, internships and apprenticeships during the last 180 days of their enlistment while still receiving full pay and benefits.

    The only problem is that navigating SkillBridge to browse those opportunities is a notoriously difficult task. 50Strong was founded to help bridge the gap between the way the military works and the way the civilian world works, and it starts with an internship tool. Simply click here and scroll down to the middle of the page to start browsing.

    0Strong was founded by Kandi Tillman, a former corporate executive whose resume boasts some pretty impressive names, like Oracle, Proctor & Gamble and Standard & Poor. It’s safe to say she knows something about getting a job in the civilian world. When she met her now-husband, Kevin Tillman, he was a veteran struggling to get what he calls "a regular job."

    Kandi helped her husband with every aspect of his job search, from resume writing to employer referrals. Eventually, he landed a job at Lockheed Martin. The pair eventually founded 50Strong with the mission of smoothing out the process for any and all veterans.

    Their idea is that military norms to which veterans are accustomed often do not make the jump into the ways civilian companies look for and hire talent. 50Strong has developed a twofold approach to facilitating the process of helping veterans understand the way their new world works.

    Read More on SkillBridge Support

    VA's updated list of Agent Orange sites outside of Vietnam

    How a WW2 banana shortage changed the course of Twinkie history

    How a WW2 banana shortage changed the course of Twinkie history

    WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) released in January an updated Department of Defense (DOD) list of locations outside of Vietnam where tactical herbicides were used, tested or stored by the United States military.

    “This update was necessary to improve accuracy and communication of information,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “VA depends on DOD to provide information regarding in-service environmental exposure for disability claims based on exposure to herbicides outside of Vietnam."

    DOD conducted a thorough review of research, reports and government publications in response to a November 2018 Government Accountability Office report.

    “DOD will continue to be responsive to the needs of our interagency partners in all matters related to taking care of both current and former service members,” said Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper. “The updated list includes Agents Orange, Pink, Green, Purple, Blue and White and other chemicals and will be updated as verifiable information becomes available.”

    Veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange or other herbicides during service may be eligible for a variety of VA benefits, including an Agent Orange Registry health exam, health care and disability compensation for diseases associated with exposure. Their dependents and survivors also may be eligible for benefits.

    Click here for list of Agent Orange sites in USA

    How a WW2 banana shortage changed the course of Twinkie history

    How a WW2 banana shortage changed the course of Twinkie history

    How a WW2 banana shortage changed the course of Twinkie history

    Why do Teinkies have vanilla cream??

    June 2022 by Sarah Sicard, Observation Post

    Is there anything sweeter — literally or figuratively — than biting into the plastic-wrapped chemical compound of luxuriously spongey cake with vanilla cream that is a Twinkie?

    Perhaps not. But the original Hostess delicacy was once something else entirely. The preservative-filled dessert that many once believed could withstand nuclear war got its start as a banana cream shortcake, until World War II changed everything.

    In 1930, a baker named James Dewar began experimenting while serving as manager of Continental Baking Company’s Chicago area plant in River Forest, according to the Chicago Tribune. He wanted to prove that shortbread could serve a purpose outside strawberry shortcake.

    “The economy was getting tight, and the company needed to come out with another low-priced item,” he told the paper. “We were already selling these little finger cakes during the strawberry season for shortcake, but the pans we baked them in sat idle except for that six-week season.”

    While in St. Louis on a work trip, Dewar saw a billboard for “Twinkle Toe Shoes,” and thus found the name for his compact confections.

    More on the Twinkie
    Ron Verini (5th from the left) along with a few Volunteers and Board Members of Veteran Advocates of

    Meet your citizen of the year 2020

    Ron Verini, leader of nonprofit dedicated to veterans reluctant to take credit for his win

    January 2021 By Leslie Thompson, Argus Observer

    ONTARIO

    In the absence of the Ontario Area Chamber of Commerce Distinguished Citizens of the Year awards, which have been celebrated annually since 1972, the Argus Observer aimed to help fill the gap created by the pandemic and offer the community the chance to nominate a citizen of the year. 

    Nominations for the Argus Observer Citizen of the Year for 2020 were open Jan. 1-8, and the community’s responses came pouring in for people throughout the Western Treasure Valley. 

    A unifying theme in all of these nominations was people who put their community’s needs before their own.

    The person who garnered the most nominations for this inaugural award was Ron Verini, president and chairman of the board for Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida, a nonprofit dedicated to serving veterans. Trailing not far behind, but neck-in-neck, were Malheur County Health Department Director Sarah Poe, who is currently leading the local fight against COVID-19, and Jennifer Tolman, a pharmacist at Malheur Drug in Vale who, according to nominations is a vital part of groups that give back to the community.

    Verini mentioned all the work these people do (and there isn’t room to list it all — it is extensive), which includes myriad services, such as running the nonprofit’s food bank, connecting vets with local services, finding housing, hosting a website and Facebook page, sitting and talking with local vets, building ramps, home renovations, setting up a station for the visually impaired to read books and putting together a military museum.

    Motivating volunteers

    Along with others in the community who nominated Verini, many people from his core group of volunteers say they believe Verini deserves the award.

    Haines said Verini is the initiator and motivator behind the nonprofit, which consists solely of volunteers. 

    “It takes a special gift and desire to motivate and inspire others to do the same,” said Haines. “This year has been unique. Ron has more than passed the test.”

    When asked how he keeps inspiring volunteers, Verini had the following to say.

    “I stay focused on the mission, and you treat people like you want to be treated,” he said. “I think it’s so important that folks understand that we are all in this together, truly. There is something about the human nature that comes to the surface on a positive level when people are treated with respect.”

    Some of the volunteers have their own challenges, Verini said, including in some cases severe physical or mental challenges.


    ‘It’s far from mine’

    Upon finding out he won the Citizen of the Year award, Verini quickly went from disbelief to saying it was quite an honor “especially for Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida.” Then he quickly insisted (and still does) that the award really should go to the volunteers of the organization, without whom he says, “we don’t exist.”

    “I am thrilled,” he said about the award. However, added, “It’s far from mine. VAOI would not exist if it wasn’t for the volunteers.”

    He said that a core group of people helps get things done. That group includes Charlene Pelland, Doug Dean, Bob and Janet Metzger, Marilyn Justus, Vince and Claudia Schwartz, Billy Vance, Jan and Phil Jacques, David Looper, Margie Yasuda, Barbara Ogawa, Judy Snyder, Gerald Haines and John Breidenbach.

    He furthermore said Veteran Advocates could not operate without community services, such as the Oregon Food Bank, Payette Senior Center and Community Action, nor without donations from businesses, such as the nonprofit’s number one contributor Grocery Outlet along with Albertsons, The Home Depot, Dr. Jeffrey Pitts, the Ontario Masonic Lodge and others.

    “This is not my award,” Verini reiterated. “It’s an award that transcends anything I do.”

    He said it belongs to the team of people who work together to provide services for vets and their family members.

    “It’s unbelievable how many people are in that stream of support,” he said.

    "If you give them responsibility and you let them take the lead, give a little bit of direction but respect what they have to say — I think that makes all the difference in the world, whether they are a volunteer, worker, political individual serving on the city council, whatever,” he said. 

    In turn, volunteers continue serving because they love what they are doing and are passionate about it.

    “The volunteers take the lead, and I just give them direction

    Help Our Cause

    NEED HELP!!!! PLEASE!!! The Covid-19 pandemic has left many local Veterans and their families in need. If you are fortunate to not need your stimulus money or part of it, please think about donating it to Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida. As a non-profit your donation would be tax deductible. Please call me, Thank You.....

    Ron Verini - Chairman 541-709-8373

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    Our Campus Headquarters, Ontario, Oregon

    THANK YOU FOR VISITING OUR WEBPAGE!

    We thank all the Supporters, Businesses and Friends  for giving their time and resources in helping and caring for our Veterans, Military and First Responders and their Families.

    We really appreciate your interest too,  in 'Who we are and What we do'. If you have any questions or suggestions or would like to 'volunteer' or 'donate', well please contact us with an email, a phone call. Our hours are 9am to 4pm, and with the Covid rules we have, masks are required as are number of people in the Office, so please call.

     We are a "No Dues' nonprofit organization with the coffee pot always on and lots of conversation always available. Bring your questions regarding any veteran services you are concerned about, and we will do our best to steer you in the right direction.

    Our phone is 541-889-1978, and we are located in Ontario, Oregon at 180 W. Idaho Ave.

    PLEASE, Help Our Cause

    Your support and contributions will enable us to meet our goals and improve conditions. Your generous donation will fund our mission.

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