U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs CWV - News Update

This week from the CWV presents the Medical Legal Partnerships webinar.  Join us on November 16th at 3:00pm for this 60 minute webinar.

This week from the CWV presents the Community Veteran Engagement Board webinar.  Join us on November 14th at 11:00am for this 60 minute webinar.

Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is U.S. Army Veteran Margaret Easterly Canfield.  Margaret served from 1951 to 1975 during the Korean and Vietnam War. [From VAntage Point]

We honor your service, Margaret!

VA, together with the American Bar Association, The Veterans Consortium and National Law School Veterans Clinic Consortium, signed a memorandum of agreement today aimed at improving Veterans’ access to free legal services. [From VAntage Point]

I know what some of you are thinking:  social media isn’t a benefit.  You’re right, but social media is a way that VA communicates its benefits and news to our Veterans and their caregivers. [From VAntage Point]

Organizations like the VA, the VFW and American Legion weren’t set up to serve the needs of women. [From Press Herald]

We served, too.  But America still doesn’t know it. [From Marie Claire]

Not enough doctors focused on their needs.  Poor access to mammograms.  A hospital that feels more like a strip club than a medical center. [From NorthJersey.com]

For Jean Anderson, military service is part of her family history.  For Rebecca Evans, it was a way to escape an abusive home life. [From Idaho Statesman]

Commentary – More females than ever are joining the ranks of our nation’s armed forces.  As of April 2017, 15% of active duty military personnel were women–a 4% increase from 1990. [From Fortune]

“M,” an Army Veteran who deployed with Army Special Forces in the 1980s, cries when I ask her what she thinks the public should know about women Veterans.  She wipes tears from her eyes and laughs that she had put on mascara just for our interview. [From Task & Purpose]

When we think about some of the biggest issues facing our country’s Veterans, a few critical topics come to mind: homelessness, suicide risk and trauma.  But perhaps one of the simplest issues to confront and eliminate often goes unnoticed:  recognition of women who served. [From ABC 10]

The Springfield memorial honoring women Veterans is one of only a handful in the country. [From The Register-Guard]

Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is U.S. Navy Veteran Velma Hughes.  Velma served during World War II. [From VAntage Point]

We honor her service.

Every single day, one of the 2.2 million women Veterans in our country walks into her local Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital.  When she enters the building, she will likely be met with a sign on the door that reads:  “To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and his widow and his orphan,” the motto of the VA. [From The Hill]

We are grateful for every Marine, Soldier, Airman, Coast Guardsman, and Sailor that has served our nation. [From VAntage Point]

This week, the Bowser Administration launched Vets Ride, a new pilot program that will support the transportation needs of District Veterans.  Through this collaboration between the Mayor’s Office of Veterans Affairs and the Department of For-Hire Vehicles, Veterans in Washington, DC with an annual income of less than $30,000 will be eligible for free taxi rides to medical treatment and/or appointments, educational opportunities, and employment.  For more information, call (202) 724-5454. [From News from Mayor Muriel Bowser]

Today, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the Final Rule implementing the Honoring Investments in Recruiting and Employing (HIRE) American Military Veterans Act (HIRE Vets Act), signed by President Trump in May.  The rule establishes a new HIRE Vets Medallion Program, which will recognize qualifying companies with a HIRE Vets Medallion Award, for their commitment to recruit, employ, and retain America’s military service Veterans. [From U.S. Department of Labor]

David Abrams on seeing the individuality of Veterans. [From Literary Hub]

Veterans Day is an occasion to recall the service of our troops.  But women’s stories have often been absent from those recollections. [From The Washington Post]

This year, Veterans Day also marks the first day of Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, an annual initiative to educate the public on how they can help fix the critical but solvable problems of homelessness and food insecurity.  In recognition of this community-driven initiative, the VA is hosting 24 stand downs in communities from Hampton, Virginia, to Hanford, California, beginning Nov. 11 and running through Nov. 19. [From VAntage Point]

AWWA will reach out to its 43 Sections this month as part of a renewed push to connect Veterans and transitioning service members to jobs in the water sector.  SoldiersThe idea is to build a network of volunteers who will help smooth the way for military members to fill some of the thousands of water sector vacancies created by Baby Boomer retirements. [From American Water Works Association]

To me, being a Veteran means having an opportunity to serve your country in an unselfish and extraordinary way.  As a Veteran, I’ve spent my career doing just that. [From VAntage Point]

I separated from the Marine Corps in September 2011.  I thought I was all set to transition, but I ended up having a difficult time like many Veterans do. [From VAntage Point]

Female Veterans from the Vietnam War got recognized Tuesday for their service.  About 70 women gathered at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ honor annex in Kansas City and thanked for what they have done. [From KCTV5 News]

The VA Sierra Nevada Health Care System in Reno hosted an open house and town hall for female Veterans on Tuesday.  We learned how the group is reaching out to support women who have served in the military with a specialized program called Women Veterans Program. [From KVTN2 News]

Every day, there are on average more than 178 million daily active users on Snapchat.  Beginning this week, VA will be sharing Snaps, videos and stories with them at @deptvetaffairs. [From VAntage Point]

Petty officer 2nd Class Kareen Lacroix likes that she catches people off guard when she tells them about her career in the U.S. Navy. [From New York Daily News]

Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Army Veteran Grace Elizabeth Farley.  Grace served in the Army Nurse Corps as a member of the 231st Station Hospital in Norwich, England. [From VAntage Point]

We honor her service.

Despite serious military injuries, Wounded Warrior Project members have seen a steady growth in employment and college graduation rates in recent years, according to the group’s latest membership survey. [From Military Times]

Benefits Breakdown is a new series of programming coming alongside the newly titled Borne the Battle podcast.  Each Monday, I will look at a benefit, resource or program office offered at VA and talk about how Veterans can better use or explore that topic. [From VAntage Point]