By Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Mikelle D. Smith, Emerging Media, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, Sept. 1, 2010 – Balancing military and personal life involves sacrifices. At times, this balancing act can cause sailors to become extremely overwhelmed and even depressed.
Some sailors might seek guidance from shipmates while others can let feelings fester. Unresolved emotions can become unbearable and, like a pot of boiling water, the sailor overflows. Seeing no way out, 46 sailors took their lives last year. Suicide is the third-leading cause of death in the Navy, accounting for 13 percent of fatalities in 2009, officials said. Any loss of a sailor’s life can be devastating for a family and command. It’s important that sailors are familiar with the signs and symptoms of suicide so identifying a shipmate contemplating suicide is easier. The Navy recognizes the seriousness of suicide and has developed additional training methods to help sailors acknowledge they are front line supporters of suicide prevention efforts. Sailors, from pay grades E-1 to O-10, are key players in the suicide prevention process, something that begins with the chain of command, with coworkers and with friends of the sailor experiencing negative thoughts.
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Monday, August 16, 2010
By Greg Block, SDSU Newsletter
SDSU offers critical programs and services for veterans and active-duty military.
The door is wide open—literally—at the circular-fronted building on the southwest corner of Fraternity Row. In the bright, clean lounge, the television broadcasts FOX News. One young man studies quietly while another wanders into the kitchen for a snack. As more students arrive, they spill outside into the shady courtyard, where a giant American flag drapes part of the wall. This is Veteran’s House at San Diego State University, the country’s first university residence hall for student veterans. With its perpetually open door and casual ambiance, the former fraternity house has become a popular meeting place for SDSU’s growing community of student veterans and future veterans.
For the entire article, click here.
is a local nonprofit organization that focuses on computer reuse. It is partnering with NC National Guard State Family Programs to make refurbished PCs available to
NCNG military families at no cost!
These Internet-ready computer systems include:
Desktop or tower PC
1 GHz or greater
RAM of 512 Mb or higher
Hard drive of 40 GB or higher
Mouse
Keyboard
CRT Monitor
Windows XP Professional operating system
For more details, contact contact Kristi Wagner,
NCNG Child & Youth Assistant at 1-800-621-4136 ext
8820, line 23 or email kristi.wagner@us.army.mil
More details on the Purple Elephant can be found at
www.PurpleElephant.org
By Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 31, 2010 – The Veterans Affairs Department is making great strides in its efforts to reduce the backlog of veterans’ claims, VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki today told thousands of veterans attending the 92nd Annual American Legion National Convention in Milwaukee.
“We intend to break the back of the backlog this year,” Shinseki said. The average time taken to process claims in VA is about 160 days. But by the end of the year no claim will take longer than 125 days, Shinseki said. VA doesn’t plan to stop once the claims are processed by that mark, he added. “Our goal is not an average,” Shinseki said. “It’s not just going to be faster; also better and more accurate. There’s nothing magical about 125 days, especially because when we get there, we’ll be looking at another target.”
For the entire article, click here.
By Jim Garamone, American Forces Press Service
RAMADI, Iraq, Sept. 1, 2010 – The war in Iraq is over and the United States is entering the final phase of the U.S. engagement in Iraq, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today. U.S. combat operations have ceased, the secretary said. American forces are still participating in some counterinsurgency operations with the Iraqis, and they are training and advising and assisting Iraqi forces, but the United States is not at war in Iraq. Gates said a lot has changed in Iraq since he took office in December 2006. Then Iraq was in desperate straits. Ethnic violence – encouraged by al-Qaida in Iraq – threatened to tear the country apart. Sunni and Shia Arabs were at each other’s throats and both groups distrusted the Kurds. Insurgents were planting roadside bombs and driving car bombs into Iraqi and coalition forces.
For the entire article, click here.
