Some of the 'Services' and 'Programs we have available

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Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida
  • Home/Contact
  • Resources/CIVICS/BOD
  • About Us/ Military/Videos
  • SUPPORTERS;Burn Pits;9/11
  • Gallery/Vets Stories
  • Veteran Articles
    • Veteran Article

THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR SUPPORTERS!!

We have listed many of the "Supporters"
of Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida. We are 'Thankful' for their Contributions, for those resources are intergal to helping so many Veterans, Military and Families in need. Thank You.... 


"Thank You" to our Business and Community Supporters !!

Grocery Outlet, Ontario,Or.

"Love's Travel Stop", Ontario, Oregon - at Exit 374 on I-84

Grocery Outlet, Ontario,Or.

https://www.facebook.com/OntarioGroceryOutlet/

Thanks to the owners and all the staff for all you do in helping our area Veterans and Military and their Families!

Find out more

Community In Action

"Love's Travel Stop", Ontario, Oregon - at Exit 374 on I-84

Grocery Outlet, Ontario,Or.

http://www.communityinaction.info

Thanks 'CIA' for your programs to assist our Veterans and their Families!!

Find out more

"Love's Travel Stop", Ontario, Oregon - at Exit 374 on I-84

"Love's Travel Stop", Ontario, Oregon - at Exit 374 on I-84

"Love's Travel Stop", Ontario, Oregon - at Exit 374 on I-84

Love's Travel Stop in Ontario, Oregon off exit 374 on I-84

www.loves.com/locations/372

Thank's to the Management and Staff of our local Ontario Love's, for their continued assistance for our local Veterans and their Families!

Love's phone= 541-823-8282

1041 NW Washington Ave, Ontario,OR

Find out more

Waldo Agencies

City of Ontario, Oregon

"Love's Travel Stop", Ontario, Oregon - at Exit 374 on I-84

https://www.waldoagencies.com

For any of your Insurance and Real Estate needs the Waldo Group helps you manage your risks.

Find out more

City of Ontario, Oregon

City of Ontario, Oregon

City of Ontario, Oregon

https://www.ontariooregon.org

A special thanks to all the City Departments and elected Officials for supporting our local Veterans, Military and their Families!

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"Thank You" to our Business and Community Supporters" !!

Home Depot, Ontario, Or.

Treasure Valley Community College, Ontario,Or.

Home Depot, Ontario, Or.

https://www.homedepot.com/l/Ontario-OR/OR/Ontario/97914/4025

Thanks Home Depot for assisting our area Veterans, and Military!

Find out more

Union Pacific

Treasure Valley Community College, Ontario,Or.

Home Depot, Ontario, Or.

https://www.up.com/index.htm

A special thanks to the Union Pacific Team for their continued assistance to all Veterans.

Find out more

Treasure Valley Community College, Ontario,Or.

Treasure Valley Community College, Ontario,Or.

Treasure Valley Community College, Ontario,Or.

https://www.tvcc.cc

A special thanks to all the Board and Staff at TVCC for their continuing assistance for our Veterans , Military and their Families.

Find out more

VSBM - Veteran Small Business Management

VSBM - Veteran Small Business Management

Treasure Valley Community College, Ontario,Or.

https://bizcenter.org/veterans-mean-business/

Through the Small Business Development Center at TVCC, the VSBM offers Veteran Business Owners excellent assistance! Thanks 

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Meadow Outdoor Advertising

VSBM - Veteran Small Business Management

Meadow Outdoor Advertising

https://www.meadowoutdoor.com

Meadow Outdoor Advertising has helped promote the Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida with great Billboard signage! Thank you for continuing to support our Nations Veterans!

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Thank you Community Supporters

The Ontario, Oregon Basque Club is a great supporter of our Military and Veterans.

Ontario, Oregon Basque Club

Since it's beginnings in 1947, the Basque Club has continuously supported our Countries Military and Veterans. We at Veteran Advocates of Ore-ida thank the Basque Club for their continuing encouragement and support. Please click on the photo to learn more about the Ontario Basque Club.

Elks Lodge #1690, Ontario, Oregon

Elks Members across this Country have and always will be great supporters of our Military, Veterans and First Responders. We thank our local Elks Lodge for their continuing support for our area Veterans. If you click the photo you will see the Elks Facebook page.

Ontario Saturday Market

Here in our Downtown Moore Park, a group of area Farmers and Crafters offer their 'bounty' every Saturday from June thru September. They have always been supportive of our Veterans and their Families, and we thank them all for that support. To see more about the Saturday Market click the photo & see their Facebook page.

Ashley HomeStore in Ontario, Oregon

Ashley is a proud supporter of our local veterans, military and their families.

Learn More about Ashley

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Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida

Veteran Advocates of Ore-Ida Doing The Right Things for The Right Reasons - Supporting Military Members- Veterans- and Their Families

How "Burn Pits" in Iraq & Afghanistan put Veterans at risk

"It is indefensible that U.S. military personnel, who are already at risk of serious injury and death when fighting the enemy, were put at further risk from the potentially harmful emissions from the use of open-air burn pits," said a report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction.

The report also said that millions of dollars were spent on incinerators to properly dispose of waste, but that many sat idle next to the active burn pits. 


Burning oil well in field coated in spilled oil in Kuwait in the aftermath of Operation Desert Storm

30 Years After the Gulf War: Veterans Legacy of Toxic Wounds

by James H. Bings, Military.com

This is by James H. Binns, a Vietnam War veteran, chaired the congressionally mandated Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans Illnesses from 2002 to 2014.

America's memory of the 1991 Gulf War has faded, but we must remember the 697,000 U.S. veterans who drove the Iraqi army from Kuwait 30 years ago this month -- especially the one in four who lost their health to toxic exposures serving their country. That country refuses to care for them.

The inauguration of a president who personally understands the terrible consequences of toxic wounds to veterans and their families inspires hope that help may finally be coming.

The Gulf War was hailed at the time as a great victory, with U.S. casualties limited to 148 dead and 467 wounded. Today, we know that at least 175,000 American servicemen and women returned home with constant pain; fatigue; and gastrointestinal, memory and chronic neurological problems now referred to as Gulf War Illness. They will not be celebrating this anniversary.

All Americans should remember the Gulf War as these veterans do

This article is from February 2021

American battle casualties in the post-9/11 wars in Afghanistan and Iraq currently total 5,458 dead and 53,250 wounded. More than 213,000 veterans have reported respiratory diseases, cancers and other protracted health problems to the Department of Veterans Affairs' registry for burn pits, the massive fire pits on U.S. bases where waste was incinerated with jet fuel.

In the Vietnam War, 58,000 U.S. service members died and 153,000 were wounded. But more than 650,000 Vietnam veterans suffer or have died from illnesses related to Agent Orange......

Find out more, read the full article
An Army pickup truck passes  military vehicles, as smoke rises  in a trash burn pit

Benefits for burn pit illnesses, Agent Orange now possible

Nearly all veterans who served in overseas conflicts in the last 31 years would be granted benefits

By Leo Shane III, MilitaryTimes

Nearly all veterans who served in overseas conflicts in the last 31 years would be granted presumptive benefits status for a host of respiratory illness and cancers under a sweeping proposal to be introduced by Senate leaders next week.

In addition, Vietnam veterans who suffer from high blood pressure would be granted the same presumptive status for their disability claims, potentially handing out billions more in payouts to the aging group.

The legislative package, dubbed the True Cost of War Recognition Act, represents the most ambitious attempt so far by Congress to address the long-term health effects of burn pits and other toxic exposure events on veterans who served in wars overseas, both recent and long past......

Under the TCRW Act, that eligible group would include all veterans who served in following locations

in Iraq from August 1990 to March 1991 and from March 2003 until present day;

Outside groups have successfully lobbied in recent years to broaden the number of illnesses linked to the use of the chemical defoliant Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. But hypertension has remained off the list, in large part because Veterans Affairs officials still have not accepted outside scientific studies that have shown a strong link between the two.

Similarly, advocates for years have complained that Veterans Affairs officials have done too little to react to rising cases of unusual, serious illnesses among veterans who worked near burn pit smoke during overseas deployments, or were exposed to other potential chemical poisoning on missions.

Click here to read the full article
Spraying of Agent Orange in Vietnam during the period of 1961 to 1971.

Awareness of Agent Orange & it's effects on Veterans

Information from the US Department of Veteran Affairs

Veterans Exposed to Agent Orange

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

"Agent Orange" refers to a blend of tactical herbicides the U.S. military sprayed in the jungles of Vietnam and around the Korean demilitarized zone to remove trees and dense tropical foliage that provided enemy cover. Herbicides were also used by the U.S. military to defoliate military facilities in the U.S. and in other countries as far back as the 1950s.

In addition, VA has determined there is evidence of exposure to Agent Orange for Air Force and Air Force Reserve members who served during the period 1969 through 1986 and regularly and repeatedly operated, maintained, or served onboard C-123 aircraft (known to have been used to spray an herbicide agent during the Vietnam era). For more information about service qualifications and other eligibility criteria, visit our Agent Orange C-123 web page.

VA and federal law presumes that certain diseases are a result of exposure to these herbicides. This "presumptive policy" simplifies the process for receiving compensation for these diseases since VA foregoes the normal requirements of proving that an illness began during or was worsened by your military service.

A Veteran who believes he or she has a disease caused by Agent Orange exposure that is not one of the conditions listed below must show an actual connection between the disease and herbicide exposure during military service.

Eligibility - Service in Vietnam or Korea

VA presumes that Veterans were exposed to Agent Orange or other herbicides if they served:

  • In Vietnam anytime between January 9, 1962 and May 7, 1975, including brief visits ashore or service aboard a ship that operated on the inland waterwaysof Vietnam
  • In or near the Korean demilitarized zone anytime between April 1, 1968 and August 31, 1971

If you fall into either category listed above, you do not have to show that you were exposed to Agent Orange to be eligible for disability compensation for diseases VA presumes are associated with it. Check the list of U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships that operated in Vietnam to confirm whether your service aboard a ship allows VA to concede you were exposed to Agent Orange..

Eligibility - Service Outside of Vietnam or Korea

Even if you did not serve in Vietnam or the Korean demilitarized zone during the specified time periods, you can still apply for disability compensation if you were exposed to an herbicide while in the military and believe it led to the onset of a disease. This includes:

  • Veterans who served on or near the perimeters of military bases in Thailandduring the Vietnam Era.
  • Veterans who served where herbicides were tested and stored outside of Vietnam.
  • Veterans who were crew members on C-123 planes flown after the Vietnam War.
  • Veterans associated with Department of Defense (DoD) projects to test, dispose of, or store herbicides in the U.S.

If eligible, you must prove that you were exposed to Agent Orange or other herbicides during your military service to be eligible for service-connection for disease VA presumes are related to Agent Orange exposure.

Exception: Blue Water Veterans with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma may be granted service-connection without showing inland waterway service or that they set foot in Vietnam. This is because VA also recognizes non-Hodgkin's lymphoma as related to service in Vietnam or the waters offshore of Vietnam during the Vietnam Era.

Diseases Associated with Agent Orange

VA currently presumes that some diseases resulted from exposure to herbicides like Agent Orange. The Veterans Health Administration's Public Health website lists these diseases VA presumes are associated with exposure to Agent Orange or other herbicides during military service:

Evidence Needed

If you are seeking service connection for one of the diseases VA presumes is associated with exposure to herbicides during service, VA requires the following:

  • A medical diagnosis of a disease which VA recognizes as being associated with Agent Orange (listed above)
  • Competent evidence of
    • service in Vietnam or at or near the Korean demilitarized zone during the dates shown above, or
    • exposure to herbicides in a location other than the Vietnam or the Korean demilitarized zone.
  • Competent medical evidence that the disease began within the deadline (if any). (See 38 CFR 3.307(a)(6)(ii) for more information on deadlines.)

If you believe that you have a disease caused by herbicide exposure, but that disease is not on the list of diseases associated with Agent Orange, you may still apply for service-connection. In these cases, VA requires all of the following:

  • Competent medical evidence of a current disability,
  • Competent medical evidence of an actual connection between herbicide exposure and the current disability, AND
  • Competent evidence of:
    • service in Vietnam or at or near the Korean demilitarized zone during the dates shown above, or
    • exposure to herbicides in a location other than Vietnam or the Korean demilitarized zone.

Compensation Benefit

Monthly payment rates are based on the Veteran's combined rating for his or her service-connected disabilities. These ratings are based on the severity of the disabilities. Additional amounts are paid to certain Veterans with severe disabilities ("special monthly compensation") and certain Veterans with dependents. You can view the current Compensation Rate Tables to determine the amount you may receive.

How to Apply

  • Apply online using eBenefits, OR
  • Work with an accredited representative or agent, OR
  • Go to a VA regional office and have a VA employee assist you. You can find your regional office on our Facility Locator page

For more information on how to apply and for tips on making sure your claim is ready to be processed by VA, visit our How to Apply page.

More Information

Check VA's Guide to Agent Orange Claims to learn more about how to establish eligibility to disability compensation and how much VA pays. You can also call the Agent Orange Help Line at 1-800-749-8387 or send an e-mail to GW/AOHelpline@vba.va.gov. You must provide your name, e-mail address, telephone and/or fax number, and VA file number/Social Security Number. We will do our best to respond within a reasonable amount of time (usually 3 to 10 workdays).

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RESOURCES

  • Appeals Modernization
  • Military Sexual Trauma Coordinators
  • Agent and Attorney Fee Coordinators
  • Appeals
  • Benefits A-Z
  • Federal Benefits Guide
  • Benefit Rates
  • VA Code of Federal Regulations
  • New/Update Military ID Card
  • Claims Adjudication Procedures Manual/Live Manual
  • Link to subscribe to receive email notice of changes to the Live Manual

Learn More

LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD !!

whether you are a veteran or not, you can contact the 'Senate Veteran Affairs Committee', 'The House Committee on Veterans' Affairs', and the US Dept. of Veteran Affairs.

Just click on their links on our page titled "PROGRAMS/RESOURCES/BOD

Why We Should Always Remember the 9/11 Tragedies

The following is a story by 'Teen Kids News'

I found their perspective especially understanding when they acknowledged a deep and historically seeded understanding about 'who we are', and that was: "always remember that we were attacked not for what we do wrong but for what we do right".

The attacks of September 11, 2001, reshaped the face of the nation and the course of history. Our lives and the lives of those to come — not just here in New York or the United States, but around the globe — have changed forever.

The date, September 11, will forever evoke recollections of unimaginable tragedy, of lives callously lost and brutally cut short and of unspeakable horror and sorrow in the hearts and minds of all of us. We must never forget the depths of inhumanity to which terrorist fanatics are willing to sink in the name of their depraved cause as they seek to destroy the very principles of freedom and democracy on which this great nation was founded.

That is why each and every September 11, we as Americans pay tribute to those who lost their lives that fateful day. We gather in unity and dignity to honor the freedoms that we have fought for in the past, the freedoms our loved ones have died for, and those freedoms that we continue to fight for today.

Remembering that day is not a choice but our solemn obligation — on September 11, 2001, there were 2,749 heroes lost; seven buildings destroyed and, with their collapse, 30 million square feet of commercial office space was lost or damaged; 60,000 jobs disappeared; 65,000 commuters were dislocated by the destruction; five subway lines and 12 subway stations were affected or closed; and 1.6 million tons of smoking debris filled the World Trade Center site.

As you recall September 11, always remember that we were attacked not for what we do wrong but for what we do right. Remember the spirit of that day — the day America showed what makes us a great people and a great nation; the day the true character of our nation triumphed over unspeakable evil; the day that freedom and democracy prevailed yet again over oppression and tyranny.

By By George Pataki/ CNN

Learn More

At 8:45 a.m. on September 11, 2001, an American Airlines Boeing 767, Flight 11, collided into the World Trade Center’s north tower in New York City immediately killing hundreds of people and trapping hundreds more in the 110-story skyscraper. Only 18 minutes later, a second Boeing 767, United Airlines Flight 175, flew into the south tower. Both towers afire, burning debris covered the surrounding buildings and the streets below while hundreds jumped from the towers to their deaths in an attempt to escape. About 30 minutes later, a third plane, American Airlines Flight 77, crashed into the west side of the Pentagon near Washington, D.C. and a fourth plane, United Flight 93, crash-landed into a field in Pennsylvania killing all 40 souls onboard. Meanwhile, both World Trade Center towers collapsed into a terrifying and deadly inferno of rubble.

More on the 9/11 Tragedies

LATEST ACTIVITY FROM HOUSE COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS

Hearing on Bills to Improve access to Mental Health Care & Expand Rural Services



Health Chairwoman Dr. Miller-Meeks Leads Legislative Hearing on House Republicans’ Bills to Improve Access to Mental Health Care, Expand Rural and Remote Healthcare Services, and Ensure VA Prioritizes Senior Veterans

Share on Facebook Share on X Print this Page Share by EmailWashington, June 12, 2025 | Kathleen McCarthySubcommittees: Health

Today, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa), the Chairwoman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Health, delivered the following opening remarks, as prepared, at the start of the subcommittee’s legislative hearing to discuss potential legislation to ensure veterans get the care they need no matter where they live, keep senior veterans’ priorities at the forefront of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) policymaking, and more. A full list of bills on today’s agenda can be found here.

Good afternoon.

This legislative hearing of the Subcommittee on Health will now come to order. Without objection, the Chair may declare a recess at any time.

I would like to welcome all the members and witnesses to today’s hearing.

We have 12 important legislative proposals to consider here today. It is important to note that not all of the proposals will move forward in the legislative process.  

Congress is responsible for ensuring V.A. stewards its resources effectively. Many of my colleagues’ bills would optimize V.A.’s funding, talent, and capital. Other bills reinforce V.A.’s mission to care for veterans’ mental and physical health.

I am grateful to Representative Hamadeh for introducing the Health Professionals Scholarship Program Improvement Act. One of the greatest resource drains at V.A. is the broken student-to-employee pipeline. 

V.A. loses untold investments in student clinicians by offering scholarships in exchange for employment commitments—only for V.A. to not keep its end of the deal. Students are consistently unemployed for months before V.A. gives them a position. 

These students have been driven to the point where they cut their losses with V.A. and seek jobs elsewhere, at a great financial cost to them, and opportunity cost to V.A. 

Representative Hamadeh’s bill would help end this unacceptable dilemma.

The Representing Our Seniors at V.A. Act by Representative Kiggans would improve the Geriatric and Gerontology Advisory Committee. 

Under current law, there is no requirement for input from state veterans homes, even though these homes are key partners in serving aging veterans. Representative Kiggans’ bill would fix this oversight by making sure these homes have a seat at the Committee table.

The Veterans Patient Advocacy Act by Representative Moolenar would increase the rural footprint for V.A. patient advocates. I know all too well how veterans in rural areas struggle to obtain care from V.A. I firmly support the bill’s goal to have patient advocates accessible to rural veterans. I think we can all agree that we can always do more to ensure that V.A.’s resources must keep evolving to reach veterans where they live. 

The TRAVEL Act by Representative King-Hinds would also help our veterans living in remote areas. This bill would require a one-year “billet” for V.A. physicians at U.S. territories like the Northern Mariana Islands. Health care is not easy to come by in these remote parts of the world. This bill would place V.A. practitioners in the right places at the right time.

Representative McGuire’s bill, the V.A. Data Transparency and Trust Act, tackles the unending reporting requirements at V.A. and replaces them with a comprehensive and unified report on outcomes and metrics to improve V.A. programs. The laws today incentivize a system where consultants can create a cottage industry to broker reports, which diverts precious time and money away from V.A.’s mission and only makes oversight more difficult.

Congress has gained little from the manner in which it has received information from the numerous current V.A. reporting requirements. Representative McGuire’s bill would pull in the reigns and improve outcomes for veterans.

My bill, the Fisher House Availability Act, would make lodging in Fisher Houses more accessible for servicemembers and their families. Fisher House Foundation is a nonprofit dedicated to providing lodging for veterans and servicemembers in need. 

read the full article - click here

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