Mutual Salvation, Disability Exams, Job Fair April 3, Agriculture Jobs

WBTV 3 News, Weather, Sports, and Traffic for Charlotte, NC

Saving each other: Kashka was born in war torn Afghanistan, and against all odds, she now resides in Oregon, with the soldier whose life she rescued from heartache.  See the video at: http://www.wbtv.com/category/240205/video-landing-page?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8657108

Vantagepoint highlights news from the VA, like this recent decision to waive in-person medical examinations for some disability claim types: http://www.blogs.va.gov/VAntage/9048/ace-eliminates-need-for-some-in-person-disability-exams/

Veterans Upward Bound will be at the Verde Valley Job and Education Fair on Wednesday, April 3, from 9-2 at the Verde Valley Fairgrounds at 12th and Cherry Streets in Cottonwood.  Several technical schools, colleges, and universities will showcase opportunities to build your employability.  Employers will be there, ready to take applications and resumes, see the details at: http://verdenews.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=53230&SectionID=264&SubSectionID=2078&S=1

Veterans Employment News: Jobs and internships were announced by the Community Food and Justice Coalition and reposted by Ground Operations at: http://www.groundoperations.net/jobs-internships-hiring-now/  Ground Operations is a movement to pair veterans with new careers in sustainable agriculture, see their video at: http://vimeo.com/53633273 or their website at: http://www.groundoperations.net/  If you’d like to get inspired, read D’Artagnan’s story at: http://www.groundoperations.net/images/D%27Artagnan-Sample.pdf and plant some seeds in your neighborhood.

Women Veterans, Vietnam Memorial Wall/Welcome Home Celebration in Cottonwood, Employability, Disability, Photo Winners

Today’s Video shows the Women Veterans Champions of Change ceremony at the White House at: http://youtu.be/m-wxjCVDqrs  March is Women’s History month, and 14 female veterans have been honored by the White House and the VA as Champions of Change.  See the article at: http://www.blogs.va.gov/VAntage/9023/va-and-white-house-honor-women-veterans-who-make-a-difference/

Vietnam Memorial Wall Replica comes to Cottonwood March 28-31:  See the full article at: http://verdenews.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=53242&TM=54214.23 This weekend is also the Cottonwood Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans celebration on Saturday, March 30 from 12:30-5:30 (and Veterans Upward Bound will be there - come visit us) – see more about it at: https://www.facebook.com/Welcome.Home.Vietnam.Vets

Do you want to improve your employability?  Yavapai College has a six-week evening management class in Business Ethics, beginning March 28 (Thursdays from 5:30-9:00) at Cliff Castle Casino.  Check out BSA132 and register online before 3/28, or check out more about the program for your future at: www.yc.edu/fast-track

An estimated 45% of veterans returning from recent deployment are filing disability claims, according to this article in the Salt Lake Tribune: http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/world/54192254-68/veterans-claims-percent-disability.html.csp There are a lot of reasons for this high rate: Soldiers survive injuries that would not have been survivable years ago, and there is increased/earlier awareness of TBI and PTSD injuries that may have escaped notice in earlier conflicts.

The results are in and the winners in the Military Photography Contest of 2012 are shown here: http://www.stripes.com/top-military-images-for-2012-1.213319

Hero 2 Hired Mobile Job Store in Cottonwood March 25, Yoga & PTSD, Charity Research

Hot News: Hero 2 Hired Mobile Job Store will be at the Cottonwood Public Safety Building at 191 S.6th Street today (3/25) from 9-2.  If you are a veteran with questions about getting a job, stop by and see them as they travel the nation – see the full article at: http://verdevalleynews.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=53246&TM=53460.97

The VA has recognized that yoga may help with symptoms of PTSD, see the full article at: http://www.theworld.org/2013/03/yoga-veterans-ptsd/ There are some modifications for the Veterans classes, such as not touching or approaching a student from behind, and more emphasis on breathing and less on the philosophical side of yoga practice.  Though initially skeptical about yoga, many Veterans are now studying to become yoga instructors in Veteran-centered classes – see more at: http://veteransyogaproject.org/ As a side note, Yavapai College offers yoga classes, including online classes, so you can learn in the privacy of your home by video.

Research before you Give: Organizations purporting to help veterans seem to be on every corner, and many of them are in the news for negative reasons, such as excessive fund raising expenses or administrative costs, inadequate services, or just plain fraud.  Before you give or volunteer to any charitable organization, do some research; larger organizations may be reviewed at one of the charity watch sites, like: http://www.charitynavigator.org/

Medal of Honor Histories, Hiring our Heroes Job Fairs, Casualty Report, Get Skills to Work Graduates, Cultivating Empathy

Hollywood couldn’t even come close to these true stories of heroism.  The Video of the Day is the inspirational story of Medal of Honor Recipient Joe Jackson (currently 90 years young), who served in WWII, Korea and Vietnam, see it at: http://youtu.be/7hcISjvEdOI For more about Colonel Jackson’s story, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_M._Jackson And for the rest of the amazing true stories of our Medal of Honor recipients, see this YouTube channel’s living history in video format at: http://www.youtube.com/user/MedalOfHonorBook and share this channel with your friends.

Here’s the upcoming April dates for the Hiring our Heroes job fairs throughout the nation (there is one in Phoenix on April 25), see the full list at: http://www.blogs.va.gov/VAntage/9009/veterans-employment-hiring-our-heroes-events-through-april/

There are many ways to view the cost of war, here is one from the Congressional Research Service, showing injuries and deaths from OIF/OND/OEF missions as of February 5th, 2013 (see the full report at: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RS22452.pdf)
Total OEF/OIF/OND Killed in Action:            6,640
Total Wounded in Action:                             50, 450
Total Active Duty w/ PTSD diagnosis:         103,792
Total diagnosed with TBI:                            253,330
                Mild TBI:                                    194,561
                Moderate TBI:                              42,063
                Severe or penetrating TBI:              6,476
                Severity TBI not classified:            10,210
Amputations:                                                   1,715
                Major (whole limb):                        1,493
                Minor (toe, finger, partial):                222
Quite a sobering review of the last ten years.

Get Skills to Work program celebrates first veteran graduates of manufacturing career training, see more at: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/03/14/program-helps-veterans-find-jobs/1988493/ 

Here’s an interesting article about cultivating empathy in order to combat feelings of isolation and anxiety.  Like any new sport or exercise, it takes time and effort to practice empathizing with others.  It will take honing your observation skills, adjusting your perspective, and reflective listening techniques – try them to see if they help you.  Whether you are naturally shy, or your social skills are rusty, or you’re transitioning out of active duty, this article may provide some insights.  See the full article at: http://negarkhaefi.com/articles/the-importance-of-empathy-in-decreasing-social-anxiety.html

Goofy Dog Healing, Storm the Hill, Scholarships and Taxes, Soldier's Reunion, One Million Caregivers, Farmer Veteran Resources

Photo of the Day - Another heartwarming story about a dog and a soldier, healing together, from Pets for Patriots: http://blog.petsforpatriots.org/purple-heart-veteran-uplifted-by-goofy-rescue-dog/

The Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans Association (IAVA) proposes to Storm the Hill with a petition to end the backlog of VA benefits – see more at: http://iava.org/sth2013-home

Are your scholarships tax-free?  Military.com provides timely tax information for students at: http://www.military.com/education/keys-to-success/tax-rules-for-scholarships.html?ESRC=education.nl

Stripes.com tells the feel-good reunion story of an Arizona resident and Air Force veteran, Richard Cadwallader, who helped a burned Korean girl sixty years ago.  The two, now 81 and 72 years old, will meet in person next month, see the full story at: http://www.stripes.com/news/pacific/korea/former-airman-to-be-reunited-with-burned-girl-he-helped-60-years-ago-1.210672

Stripes.com also reports that there are a million caregivers, mostly family, taking care of wounded veterans in the U.S.  See the story at: http://www.stripes.com/news/us/military-caregivers-for-injured-vets-often-family-number-up-to-a-million-1.210812

The Farmer Veteran Coalition has some great stories, resources, and info at: http://www.farmvetco.org/ The goal is to match the unique skill sets of veterans to the nation’s need for sustainable farming: a new mission in which everyone wins.  Do you know where YOUR food comes from?

Gratitude Campaign, VUB Free Modules Start, Ten Years After, Female Soldiers, Homes for Vets

The Video of the Day is about the Gratitude Campaign to thank our service members for the sacrifices they make, see it at: http://youtu.be/gr9Zb3sTfYg

March 18th is the start of our Veterans Upward Bound Spring Session II of free veteran-only pre-college modules in math, writing, computers and more.  If you are a Northern Arizona veteran, contact us at 928-717-7686 or www.yc.edu/vub to see if you qualify to get a jump start on your college career.

The New York Times online blog features reports from a variety of service members who served in Iraq, ten years after OIF: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/03/16/a-war-before-and-after/

NPR discusses the differences and difficulties of female soldiers’ return from deployment at: http://www.npr.org/2013/03/17/174301855/female-soldiers-face-tough-switch-from-front-lines-to-homefront

Fort Snelling will house homeless veterans in rehabilitated historical buildings, see the article at: http://www.stripes.com/news/veterans/fort-snelling-buildings-to-house-homeless-vets-1.212117

Duckworth on Inclusiveness, Tuition Assistance Cancelled, Veteran-Owned Businesses, Milk Madness

Todays’ inspiration is again provided by Congresswoman and OIF/OEF Veteran, Tammy Duckworth, who is an avid bicyclist, despite losing both her legs in Iraq.  Duckworth spoke at a recent bicycling convention about including disabled bicyclists in their group rides and improving accessibility.  See the full story at: http://bikeportland.org/2013/03/04/inspiring-words-from-congresswoman-veteran-amputee

Tuition Assistance news for active duty Marines:  According to the SVA, “Due to sequestration, the U.S. Marine Corps recently announced that they will no longer enroll Marines in the Tuition Assistance (TA) program, a benefit that provides servicemembers with funding for college credit and degrees.”  SVA President, Michael Dakduk’s full press release regarding this news is here: http://www.studentveterans.org/index.php/media-news/81-sva-responds-to-marine-corps-cutting-tutition-assistance.html

Veteran-owned businesses must complete an eligibility determination process prior to being allowed to bid on 'Veterans-First’ contracts with the VA.  The Center for Veterans Enterprise (CVE) is reducing some of the red tape and delays for veteran-owned businesses by allowing minor corrections to their applications for eligibility.  The average wait time was reduced from 130 days to 46 with this change in policy, see the article at: http://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=2431

Health Notes: Every so often, do you read something that makes you ask, “What were they thinking?”  Here’s one of those: the Dairy lobby is asking the FDA to ‘change the definition of milk,’ so that they may add artificial sweeteners that do not have to be listed on the label.  Consider the impact on children (and adults) and read the full story on Nutrition Expert Tana Amen’s blog at: http://tanaamen.com/blog/item/the-scary-new-milk-ingredient-artificial-sweeteners?category_id=9

Focus on Abilities, SVA: Student Veteran Graduation Rate 68%, VUB Can Help You Graduate

Focusing on Abilities is the theme of the Video of the Day.  The Wounded Warrior Regiment Archery Trials showcase Marines’ talents at target shooting with a compound bow: http://youtu.be/yivgQPGBH0I

Student Veterans of America has released the first of several research-based initiatives to combat the misinformation about student veteran graduation rates. "Viewed together, these surveys indicate that completion rates are much higher than 12 percent," said Dr. Chris Cate, research director of Student Veterans of America. "According to the NSV, approximately 68 percent of veterans who responded reported they received the degree or certificate for which they were receiving VA educational benefits. The ACS survey reveals that approximately 61 percent of veterans reported attending some college or higher. In contrast, approximately 56 percent of nonveterans reported some college or higher."  See the article at: http://library.constantcontact.com/download/get/file/1102247846799-456/Research+Brief+2013-1.pdf  The great work of SVA is ferreting out the truth about student veterans – check out their webpage at: www.studentveterans.org

Let Veterans Upward Bound help you become a college graduate – whether you still have GI Bill benefits or not, there are affordable ways to get a certificate or degree.  Furthering your education can help you improve your employment outlook or contribute to your promotion potential.  Find out more about how VUB can help you and our March 18th classes starting at: www.yc.edu/vub or call 928-717-7686.