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TO WAR AND BACK

Afghanistan and Iraq: A New generation of veterans

Kelly Von Lunen, Editor Julie Knapp, Designer


ACTIVE DUTY
Iraq & Afghanistan
Table of Contents

4 New GI Bill Benefit Worth $80,000 42


VFW helped pass a monumental education assistance package Iraq War Chronology,
in partnership with Afghanistan and Iraq vets. 2003-2009

8 Traumatic Brain Injury:


44
An Exploding Problem Afghanistan War Chronology,
Here are treatments and technologies for the signature 2001-2009
wound of today’s war zones.

13 Finding Your Next Job Back Cover


Programs online and resources around the country help A Quick Reference Guide:
returning veterans find employment. Organizations and Resources

14 Treating PTSD in Non-Traditional Ways


Six methods help veterans cope with combat-related emotional trauma.

18 Wounds of War
Hearing loss, blindness and polytrauma can require a lifetime of care.

22 Matching Military and VA Disability Ratings


Efforts are under way to reassess and improve disability compensation for veterans.

23 Families Cope With Strains of War


From couples to large families with children, deployments place stress on relationships.

27 The Road Home


A Minnesota National Guard chaplain created a program to help soldiers
reintegrate into their civilian lives. The program is now nationwide.

30 Medals Recognize Overseas Service


Campaign medals recognize warriors for their sacrifices in the war zone.

31 Memorials Commemorate War Dead


State and private memorials to fallen Iraq and Afghanistan veterans can be seen at bases
and in communities around the country.

33 Memorial in Ink
Many service members get tattoos to honor their fallen comrades.

34 Women in Today’s Military are Paving New Paths


Overseas and stateside, the role of women in the armed forces continually evolves and expands.

38 Portraying War Veterans in Popular Culture


As in the past, vets receive mixed treatment from newspapers, movies and television.

40 Heroes of the War Zones


Six Medals of Honor, three Air Force Crosses, 19 Distinguished Service Crosses
and 29 Navy Crosses have been awarded for heroism in Afghanistan and Iraq.

55 42% of VFW’s Newest Members are Younger Than 40


VFW focuses on attracting younger members to ensure the organization’s future.
A Fitting Tribute
Advocating on Behalf
VFW magazine is the official publication
of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the
of Current War Vets
United States.
More than 1 million veterans of Afghanistan and
© 2009, by the Veterans of Foreign Iraq are eligible for VA care; others soon will be.
Wars of the United States.
Whether they have already re-entered civilian
VFW Magazine Staff life, are about to in the near future or choose
Publisher, Director of Publications to remain in uniform, they can count on VFW’s
and Editor-in-Chief
Richard K. Kolb support and assistance.

T
Art Director Senior Editor
Robert Widener Tim Dyhouse his booklet is a special tribute American vets. Home front events
to America’s newest genera- are a common feature of VFW
Associate Editor Senior Writer tion of war veterans. It covers troop-support activities, as are
Janie Blankenship Kelly Von Lunen virtually every aspect of the con- helping the families of deployed
temporary veteran’s experience. troops. We are ever-vigilant that
Contributing Writer Graphic Designer
Whether he or she served in Af- their service is portrayed in a posi-
Janice Arenofsky Julie Knapp
ghanistan, Iraq or some remote tive light. Moreover, we achieved
Contributing Writer theater of the global war on ter- a GI Bill commensurate with the
Heidi Russell Rafferty rorism, this edition is designed to costs of attending college in the
recognize and respect that service, 21st century. Promoting employ-
VFW: The Organization as well as inform about issues of ment opportunities and protecting
VFW’s National Headquarters is located in importance. job rights are part and parcel of
Kansas City, Mo. All administrative business By mid-2009, 1.05 million of VFW’s mission.
is conducted from there. In addition, an office
these veterans had become eligible Caring for the physically
in Washington, D.C., is responsible for
monitoring legislative and related national
for VA care. Some 480,324 had wounded, such as traumatic
issues of importance to veterans. actually sought care there. Unlike brain injury victims, has been
As of November 2009, 7,826 Posts com- some previous wars, those cur- the top priority from the start.
prise 54 Departments in the 50 states, District rently being waged have mobilized Nothing less than full funding
of Columbia, Latin America, the Pacific Areas forces across the full spectrum of for state-of-the-art medical fa-
and Europe. Posts form the local chapters. the defense network—active duty, cilities and in-depth research is
Membership includes 1.5 million veterans. National Guard and the Reserves. acceptable. Top-notch PTSD
Working in concert with VFW is its So when we say “active” here, it centers and adequate disability
Ladies Auxiliary, a national volunteer service
means all members of the armed compensation have long been our
association founded in 1914. It is the back-
bone of many local VFW volunteer efforts.
forces who have been called to goals.
The benefits of joining are both tangible serve tours of duty overseas. Recognizing and commemo-
and intangible. As a member, you will receive Society’s commitment to its rating war service in the form of
VFW magazine monthly and may also obtain warriors does not end after the medals, memorials and marked
the bimonthly newsletter Checkpoint. Also, shooting stops. In fact, in many milestones is on our list, too. Col-
20 benefits ranging from discounted car respects it is just beginning. That’s umnist Ralph Peters was right
rental fees to a credit union to a special where VFW enters the picture. when he wrote in the New York Post:
Member Honor Roll are available. Supporting our troops in the field “We should honor every fallen
Equally important is the sense of camara-
constitutes only a portion of the American. But we also must rec-
derie and pride you will share with veterans
of prior wars.
organization’s obligation. The ognize that, on this maddened
fight continues once that uniform earth, only the blood of patriots
comes off. “I served two tours in shed abroad allows us to live in
For more on Membership, contact:
Matt Claussen, Director
Afghanistan,” one veteran said, safety.”
VFW Membership Department but “coming home can be more Soon, veterans of Afghanistan
VFW National Headquarters difficult than going over.” and Iraq will assume responsibil-
406 W. 34th Street VFW exists to ease that transi- ity for VFW’s future. When they
Kansas City, MO 64111 tion. And on every front, we con- do, there will be a legacy to be
(816) 756-3390, ext. 208 tinue to fulfill our duty to young proud of.
3
army
ACTIVE DUTY
navy

08
August 20
Iraq & Afghanistan

officially
marines

“a new G
1998 wit
2 0 0 8
August tion’s lis
ational Congres
air force

V e t e r a ns Educ the goal


P o s t - 9 / 11
ge of the y receive.
“We
a d v a n ta l a c tu a ll im D yhouse
e ’l
ets can tak on about what they by T the effor
ib le v first-class
coast guard

e li g r a
2009, infor mati ity fo
pportun future as those
new GI
In August r e ’s s o m e o
Act. He al Lisicki. “
s is t a n c e e ducation uring WWII,”
As who serv
ed d -Va.),
strument
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o r th a bout said S e n
e d th e original out VFW
it’s w pos
t’s free, and who pro
I
national guard

s b e fo r e 2 0 0 7 . Denni
at it wa n in Com-
twice wh w. The new GI legislatio VFW National
e r
it’s now
la
P r e s ident Fo r m
h ie f George
ned b y n-C VFW wa
Bill—sig 3 0 , 2 008— mander-i ked Webb, say- the Mon
June a n
Bush on g. 1, Lisicki th GI Bill’s enact- establishe
e ffect Au rs n ew
will go
in to
supporte ing th e endous
n d it s t w a s “a trem eter- years, wh
2009, a l offer Iraq and men
reserves

erica’s v
o p e it wil e s a m e v ic to ry for Am their fami- significan
h
tan vets
th ry and VFW vow
Afghanis eir civilian live
s c Hillem
ctor Eri . Capitol a
an
ns, milita ad been lobby-
ir e W h e “We r
the U.S a new lies.” VF
th D
boost to mark WWII-era e
Deputy
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ti v ro v
Patrick ing for a
n
army

nd gis la fere ap p
as its la VFW Le t a press con ay Congress 998.
s s o r. - s p eaks a , 2008, the d . Also prese
nt were
A m erica
t c e n tu r y since 1 “Tuition
predec e h th e sim on June 26 21st century tan Veterans ) and Rep. 21s o f
an w it flation by
“We beg at those who GI Bill fo
e is A
r th Afghan b (D-V isla-
aq and en. Jim Web sored the leg
navy

, Ir Cullin
ept th p b e ll
since Cagmislative directo-T
S o n
ple conc
r; ebb sp
serving xas). W
b e e n e le a rd s (D e two-part
have h a v e th e sam d w
Chet E e Senate.
to make h
uld th
9/11 sho tion in
marines

and atta
and forem
Bill that w
tending c
air force

Montgom
T he new GI Bill contains all the total four-year
benefit will aver- VA may enter into an agree
ultimate
VFW
elements VFW pursued for 10 age some $80,0 ment
coast guard

00—about double to cover additional expen ning in 19


years. The new law repeals the the current ses.
value—for a veteran Under the Yellow Ribb benefits t
old Montgomery GI Bill’s $1,200 who serves on GI
36 months. The new Education Enhancement to help v
enrollment fee, which was a top GI Bill is expec option,
ted to cost some VA and the school would matc That fina
VFW priority. But most impor- $63 billion. h
funds to cover the difference be- ment of
tant, the new GI Bill will cover
national guard

The monthly living stipend is tween the highe erans Be


the entire cost of obtaining a based on the st in-state public
military’s basic al- college cost and the highe Dec. 8, 2
four-year college degree. r pri-
lowance for housing for an E-5 vate tuition. sue of VF
It will provide the amount of with dependen
ts. Vets will get up that “VF
the most expensive in-state tu- to 15 years after
separation—five securing
ition at a public college within a more than unde 3 Years Active Duty
r the Montgom- Also a
reserves

veteran’s home state, a monthly ery GI Bill— Equals Full Benefits


to use the new ben- staff wer
living stipend and an annual efits. Here’s how it breaks down: Lane Eva
book allowance. According to the According to VA, the housing Active Duty % of to boost
Army Times, these fees—which allowance and
books and sup- Service Monthly Benefit culminate
army

will vary widely based on the plies stipend 3 months 40


are not payable to H.R. 171
veteran’s location—will average individuals on 6 months 50
active duty. Improve-
about $1,450 monthly for tuition, 1 year 60
navy

If a veteran who has fulfilled 10, 2003.


$1,100 monthly for the stipend his or her
full three-year active 18 months 70 jected offi
and $1,000 annually for books. duty commitment opts to attend 2 years 80
The Army Times noted that the a private schoo 30 months 90
l, the school and
4 3 years 100
y began supporting what it called the action ultimately spurred Congress, heard when referring
Passagin to
GI Bill for the 21st century” e of thled e m by then-House Veterans Affairs the new legislation.
th publication of the T he part
organiza-
o st imepoChairman
rtant veter Rep. Christo-
VFCommitte
W playe ans legisla It appears VFW’s hard
st of legislative priority the Ggoals.
I Bill of pher Smith d in(R-N.J.), t o increase tion in hiswork of more than a decade
benefits
Rights a c h ie v ing tor y ca e
for the of
ce; far m has paidmoff.
ssional lobbying in support Ser by some, th 40% e poover erenyears. about beca
pulathe r nanext three
1944, wa vicemenThen, ’s Readin use f VF
worth othe
had begun a year earlier. Septembe m e , h o m
sc ju st ment Act r 2007, lo a VFW
ns; unem e
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have been at the forefront ultimate of riticcoordinat al to its d
eveloan
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passage. pmeorganized
nt and 0 a w e ek for 5 effort,” c o m p said.
ensation “When “I’m
rt on Capitol Hill to establish Under ath campaign on Capitol
e leader Hill. foJoinedr VA hby o s p it
the 2Presidentweeks; $ signed
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an
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W
Singer, R in-comVeterans manders f four war- lating to structioan;bottle a n d
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-iofn-cAmerica
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tal in the final realization this rilCom-mitt
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A. Brun arl J. Schoe- to e their senaofficially
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would not have happened to rs and “a b e rsBill ing a o r
for the their ner directly to lawmakers.
message
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to for the
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century”
osed leing 1998 with publi- the GI B s ig ned into
is Cullinan, VFW’s Adirector t VFWof sensus and recognitio n of pthe redeneed Scation
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’s 4 4 th c e s s o for
r V F the
W m organizati on’s list
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b hts, as it
Legislative Service, menaddedt, as cothat N a tionalGIE Bill,” Cullinan : “ T h is bill, in priority goals. a g a z ine’s e d b y w as
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Congres-
as an enthusiastic 3, Merril of tion
194supporter s then w VFW’s
combined e r e called, legislative to W experienc
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l su itte ed bills r in supportLof aw 3the
ntgomery GI Bill answhenprograitmwas bmwith d athe 1 0 enthusiasm
-p oint vete
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rans …
goal c o
had nstibegun
elating 46. s Public
th ed progr tutes aa w year earlier.Amo
de by Par fewat wewho
mawithin nt eyonbenefit r- am…” eatll- the forefrontng those a
ed in 1985. But esident F bwill d propodirectly.”
s a
Part of
th “We have been White H ttending
hen Congress didTh e provide
not r a n k lin Rooreputation
VFW’s ls “Vbeing
FW anatd the of e a p peathe ouse sig the
program s e v e for l’s heffort
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w a s to es- n in g cerem
nt increases tr inaintheing, benefits, covered of the . lt N Legion line said C ommand o ny
hospital forefront e ducation lobbying e w
effortB is well Jo
tablish in a new GI Bill fornthe , e r-i
wed to improve milit.itary care, co
ntinInuaaddition , fare.” ill Dealing wit Forces Behin d
ingelast r. W10 h e n
n-Chief
Schoe-
pay, co known. to Chief Lisicki’s years,” h Vsaid
eteraLisicki. R oosevelt
referenc benefits mpmeeting
realized the pmonthly
tion of n Wel- “Wethhave e ritubeen fi
e in emp ensation, with v e te rthe President, That Cullinanth e absolutely instrumen tal th in
e the
al, he h
final anded th nished
ot adequate,”expCullinan ansion o said. ym lo e n a n s to V F W V F W le e pen to
f VA pro and t,his pestaff
nsiontestified
s and before er to pro in arealization
gethCongress nd Legio of this goal.VItF would not
n worke
ad
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increases typically Afteroutpace
VFW ain- g r a m s. of Webb’s bill many to by Jotimes d u c e Shave d in develo n of
gram, S doptedsupport it
hn Steover ll e , th
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o ping the
y a 2-1 margin.” en. Ben 18 smonths.
10-point ti on e L ion d ar r king for new
n pro- w chair man, at a egDennis ’s rehCullinan,
abilita- VFW’s mely pro its passage. “We
e extredirector
nan says VFW uri, an A d aett ChaAs
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he told bill, h e
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e bill n to the added d of our con
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strategy nearly
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mandago e r a n
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directly ete the, public. omm NLS “We are of othe
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appeared ery hestablishe n c e
ans educ ill pro- oups [V appy to d in 1985. But within a
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most was to establish avideo
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er had GI he done on e g io television
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mery GI Bill sionbenefits b en ts a
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goal was realized. them VF d in Washingto separate n Times. e s t ve terans or
dationwere s o not adequate,in g a a d v o c a te
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Cullinan says VFW o pay, and d aressed for equa I,
n of formulate
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they wor pay the
to V price
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m strategy nearly N a ti 20 years ago to mendm a n a li z a -
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s in enact- they s rep- b y with the make
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bill.
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s 1 943 Nati ” aattainable
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after legis- onand al En foremost was Aptorilestablish
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FW magazine nal Leg noted much e V patience and n
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tending d e n ce allwas a y increase
islative FW ta , then a Bernacollege. rd d Second owato ncimprove s, de
FW playedanan dO essential
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testified rkMontgom
r ery GI isaBill
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ased leg at emore a n deadlock . ultimate goal was menrealized.
ts initiate other ac for
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r, met wand his la is d S enate co b d b y the orga hieve-
to with ith Legio tee tivhearings.
e di-
o n c nferees a etween VFW Houseled a four-year Other effort begin-
V F W nization
re meeting hammformer er out aRep. n leaVFW il e difCommitte tt emptinning -s po sored .
n
ders Legislativev e
ferences e mem-
b e tw g to rinec-1998prtoovtie idedMontgomdomiciliaery nGI le g
ans (D-Ill.) inTahbipartisan
e resultinpush ilbers e w b l. have visited House r s io n s, K and e e n the Bill W ry care a is la tio
g jointly Eddie R earneySenate enlisteof- bill’s benefits
two toWthe II veConsume
terans, r r Price nd buria n
monthly sGIoredBill bilrates.
l, S.17That ficespobuildings
n- an in ic
Washingto k e n n and within d th e Index o n
to help vetsefight th e te n ti o l for
lark with on7of
by Cintroducti
ed in Evans’ 6 , intro
their
ducehome d the po backer of Easte help of
states h a d
pensthe ion rate of in-n
rolls per of a veteran
d Rep “hundred
li c s
e of seve of times,” r n flation.
AirlinesThat finally b eenoccurred
on themwith the manentl
and in ery GI77Bill
13—the Montgom co-spaccording
onsors to VFW’s. John Washingto
S. Gibso n Office. ral state
s toenactmen 65Public
, more Law for the y if he
the Ho W n s p e e d t of m u 107-103, 1 0 years or
-ments Act43of572003—on u
, contain April as VFW s e a s h in o f G s te r in g out pa was
e d
H.R.even coinedgthe
a n
ton phrase
to cast “a h neweGI orgia bVeterans
ack to Benefits veteransImprovement
and $10 Act,y for ove
. Cullinanprsays
ovisthe th e G d b r in is ti e -b bat infan a month e r s ea
ionsbill forwas te re- IBill Bill’for
s the 21st century,” g the bilwhich is often
l to the fl reaking vote trymen. xtra for c s
ficially because of its cost,vebut rans pre
f- o or. o m -
According to
VA, about
450,000 veterans
attended college
VFW help
ed make his
-09
generation tor
of veterans y in partnership with for th e 20 08ion chairm
passage of from Afghan the newest August 2008
. mmi
at
Suar
lit
rk’sye
bi
Claol
ha
scho
a new mon istan and I s, gion’s re
umental ed hiraevq-iwngithththe GI Bill of Rightof he told b-co
u
plcay
atied in ac e
on assistane-men’s Readjustment A ct : “We
The part VFW ic c e p F in an ce Committee
A fter mor
e th
an the popular na
me for th e Se
by Tim
rv
developm Dyen
a
h t an
ckadgul
its
e.-ti-mate pass ag e.
and- groups
[VFW and Am
ouse e VFW comm
erica
im k is
tiring w
ork, VF 10 yea19 rs 44 , was critical to ar-tim ll, which I thin
its top le W reali o f u n- thefaleadersh ip of fo ur w
ll, C ar l J. Sc hoe- this bi ri be d th e bil
gislative zed oU n ender mily me Robert T. Merri
m
er , r th e C lark desc
goals. O o f ef— Sing bers add fo est ve
2008, P
resident n Juerns-ein3-c0hi aM n ax o t h e r nner — V FsW led the battle tio ns of the two larg
, . B ru d agre
law a g B
enuine G ush signenidngin er and $Je 10an .5 A bil- ns. ns th e two had met an
I to ve te ra nven tio the sub
century.
VFW lo Bill for thriegh2ts 1
of allliW onW toIIthe fi-ional En-camp-ment, as co te r- Ketchum told
bbying e s t na’sl 44th N at nt ve confo
absolute
ly instru fforts wA e t VFW price ta , Merrill submitted a 10-poi de nt pr ov isions “were in
in Cong m ental to r e lleild, in 19 g
43. Pres- i- Nationa
ress. its path ssen a g
wereIca t w l go inttobeyond proposals made by V FW at its 1943
e
t atAw
en der-in-
On June
1 9 , 2 an s progra effmecth
u g . ca re , Past Comman
proved 00 09.seveBlt.
1 , spita l tative
its versio 8, the HouseFraan p klin2R 0oo
e n e d ed uc at io n, training, ho -a ns N ew York represen
that pro n - cove ts fire vet- er lock
vides su of a Senate bilThe wprilog l rabm e m pa y, compensation, musns t iosen rv e at Tleo asbrt eak a dead
for the w p
q
ple
ars in Ira mental fundin
l
cogntinua retio
tronacti of mili de
v e to
a ta
th
ry
oy m en t, Epeib
lig n-lesionves tean radns expa
e du ty af te r Se
ee pt
s -tem
.at11 , pting to re
c
A section and Afgh dace
en te in Pr empl e three years of ac
tiv
Tshotw seo versions,
K
(S
2642) in ec. 3311) of that nistapr
a n.efersig theam esident
s. re cem iv
, eSe thn.e Bfuenll nebettnefitbi . ll’
ke nb ac ke
clu bill (H.Rof VA prno- gr
ed the b 2001, progra to ndd reie- R ic
on VFW des one of the . adilopl. ted its 10-point rve atLe- t thpa reste m naon - thsofcaE
’s wish li top item AfterMVoFnW th w ho
A m se
er ic an legiason
of se ve ra l states to spee
Bill. st: an up s wil lark lyofbeM n eis so uri, an fit s. a V FW- s
graded G Champl Caverag
e
fi ts
W I cet-ivere-a
ve
rt
pan, in ia l
tr be
od ne
uc ed
ho se rv ed
to Wthasreh-e ing-ton to ca
Originall I th n m$mander anore m d W 25at 0,io 00n.0 ve ts w
tionalaco 2,800. ing for vet-er-aSo nsmed e uc e flod or.
Jim Web y introduced id T tiv e du
on ty
so resind ce a 9/to11than po
b (D-Va
.) as S.22 by Sen. spon
c u r
sorre
endt Mo bi ll pr
ntg
ov h e
ne this m thonanththe Ls of egac io n sp
tgioom nsery GI“I’m Bill going to ex
2007, th G I er ha d o m
he e do
r y qu al ifyg w fo r
ith M
pr on
ov is n de cl ared
e le on No so B ill on bednne’tfits alon beG n-ibso
Post 9/1 gislation is kno Jan. 4, a mo inr-colu
p vides
d- ed $ 1ed,1 uc
0 1ational di s ar e no
th w
em elV igFibW le-sfoporn- the ne Bw ill,”
al .
1
tance Act. Veterans Educatio
wn as th bill thatnth fo
e wit r rate acbe ts,ne mfitost of ning approv
It provid nal Assis h ayt co
ad ves red vineteserp- ana- s efi ts. Riooon-sevelt signed
for hono es colleg - of al re le a t three y e m em
th e be
L rs io
eg ofn th Nate t
rably dis
charged
e fundin a
g sored. ve-duty sbi
c ti e a r s The wor
17, proved unrd anVdFR
y in cl
ka ud bl e,
, tro opats who dudi bbdn ed’t by a Hears
includin v “ T th is erll,v ic S.
e . 16 W es er
of ve
fic ia ls th
g Nation ete
al Guard rans— Mo Whee
h n
n and su alggGesua ted to steri- s wL hoaww34 ere6.
Reservis 20w-yith eadr r-oaw enng t feae,suofb-fic
ts—who smen an as ntgdoth
ke m at
e it be
ry GI B rep-re-sen-ta- ld pa tivy esth e
in ende rove llm
lopi
m en t Apam ong those atte
id
active du serve thr d go e th e govern
ty aft e e years of o d
they wpor w
eakcetime ith its il l w as inelig ib le be ca us
deserwveasOCffi om - -mander-in
“This b er Sept. 11, 200 ti o n , le g is ed uc at
m io
an n , th w ro
ho ug h
ch aiereR
th
thse ritual, he
the need ill properly res 1. tutebubi t ll.
it is no lo
n r-
la-
in
their Wol
-Chief Paul aining ps ormsearrvic
O B.e acad isheem d ie
so p e n o u g om m ang e de
r g o Tr ee C
, or
an d then of VFW’s
call of d f those who answ ds to who k Pa attraN
on h tost C
cta-n
od islativce
Leg e rs Committ 0 veditsrewctho or,enteog renid tio
e w
tio n-
r e al
c r ab ou t 10
le gi0, sl00
at iv e passage. “We
uty to o ered the thne oV wFthW a uits ing-an ton- d based
and have nofoed uca-
r its
who mo ur coun to go to ume,y th ree sVigFnW Wash- 19 85
ved tow try—tho
se C Ketch war, in g up hamm mer ilita ry
out a be nefo wre bi ll. passage of this
the gun ar
s—often d the sound o ommandwith” Lsaegidioth n lenad
e -V ers to be ne fit
16 s.
17 , in tr od uced by the
FW onsore dnbill, S.
tio en-
Webb sa at f Lisickm
et er-in-C sp ha. d4357 no,t coprn-eviously
id. “The great sacrifice,” i, wT h he
o re su hie
lti ngf joGinetly
met with ponsors and o r g e in th Tr
e H oo ou psse w as ho H.R
I Bi ll m ust
here. Th re are n
o politic Bush on 77 co-s Presiden inrath eprM efon
eren tgom ce; er fayrmG,
is is abou C M
la rka yw ith t ro
fo lle
r d
ve te ns lle ct be ne fit s.
people w t taking c s sup 21, 200B8ill’s pro-vi-sions . 1,m20 pe09 nsat , toioncoat
ho have are of th
e
port foinr ed th
ta a e G I , to voic
e mw ai
-p t
loun y- tilen
m Aug t co ed alV litathl ei
asr the GI B
The new taken ca L
new GI
B ne ss lo ans; un-e ns ws-ho
pi -t ha
al ve us io
GI Bill r e o f us. is ic ki m a e an d bu si il l. Also ,
ion for ve te ra
V A ho reteAraugns. legislat
cost of
attendin covers th ” gomery ho ddedeeth k a
fot r 52
th e w eeks; $500 millontgomery GI Bill benefits befove by C on gr
e full GI0 a w M M paessne agwe
state, pu g a fou about 70$2 Bill only accou ont- 09, will not be
eligible for th
for livin
blic coll
eg
r-year, in
- % o f the aver n ts fo r 1, 20 E ven before
g expen e, plus stipend public c
ollege tu a g e c prog ra m . apd- for equal
r se
tors. Fo ses, boo
ks and
s 30% ition an ost of 9/ 11 Ac t does not copr vees
r vetera a t private s d barely T he Po st- tio,na col r-Service L
private ns acce tu- m
embers chools. B an d on -the-job training
schools, pted in of e n efits pren tic es hi p
sungr-anor ce for tho
establish the
es the Y new legislation
to an
d Reserv the National G for on de nc e co ur ses, flight traini
es, he sa u resp 1942.
Educatio ell
n Enhan ow Ribbon GI cally” le
s s. id, are “ ard he r sim ng ilato r pr thogeserafa mcis.lities.
er postage
cement d r a s ti -her poin tsot re -l at -i and ar s or longFree
It provid Program “If the m n; an d ot ns w ho
ei r se
se rv
na eto10 rs ye
es a doll tr uc tio Ve te
to w rari te th tha-eibir l-i-tatio
match a ar-f
t those s or-dollar tuition
. com
pete aga arW
ilit co y nsis toans,uur gi ng V FW members be ableleg- to tr
-l antio
a- sfen,r w beronetefits to re-h
inst puol m c c ess will opos ed is wataled - by the
to partic
ipate in
chools th
at choos employe blic a-tna-dtivesfutollyvote for this pr se or ec de pe ndr: en“T chsild
t hi ll,n.inTheinlaiti
bire
r s whoreap- lsorew -sen private spous pred es so
II sharedOby ther VFW
Webb’s the prog
r a m
e Am
e r a n ic e, V FW magazine’ s tranbi rr ed la be
tin ne
g fitsWtoWbe
to
o riginal le . ic a ’s best inanFo reig n t Seto rvrecruit low red sfe lls re todVA bu,rial for
estimate
d to cos gislation military d brighn with ot he r VFW-spon-soe than o- on e pe rson
… ” . Accordingan
over 10 ta was m
somethin st offco
u ernj pun
ct io te st, the mord-ed
es a well-roun Defense
pr gr am
eniotnanJodinthe m peilinstaioryn rolls p
years. B bout $52 billion g otentia…
-ans ecruitsl r co ns tit ut e
th id, “V F W D ep
an ar
d tm
L eg
onwus ase65, mo
ment in
the fina
ut a Ho
use ame gible tha more ve attt-rer
active ath e ap -p ea l’s head-line sa ices will iss
anue W poel lic
fare .” tementsor
y sta
nd- S n
ee the W st a ‘JoPa
ju rt of n d n- rv
se ith V et -e r- $1th 0 s.a month
vets to
transfer
l version
allowing in the e-MhindtaN ew Bill Dealing wtransfera to bi
ge lit
th y erin to theprcood muc ineg mon
o rld’ saleFo s B ilitary, d
unused s prcit-e Legionofworke , the Le-
benefits
to
ch t th
Tha,” heesaVidF.W and es t- ed to by John Stelle
67 w as at -t
S.17
to $1,073. Rates
rate in creased from $894
effect in Au- m on th ly stance Program
I Bill rates go into e Res er ve Educational Assi
ecause the new G
B omery GI Bill
fo r th
09 , th e ra tes for the Montg For also increased 20
%.
gu st 20 hedn20% beginning Aug. 1, 2008. new
he ar in g on th
re
einbicrllea wse
tiv e du ty, o re in fo rm ation on the
man, at a we e e ye ar s ac o r m l.va.gov.
. F
tioonha th
ofve served at least th re
ittee on Veteran vets
s Legislawh
y th at th e tw o increased from $1,101 to $1,321 G I B il l, a cc ess www.gibil
y to th sae monthly ra te the
are very happ ed toos geethw erith on less than three years service,
n] ha ve jo in
Fo r th
an Legio
mportant…” enda-
dying recomm
ll as one “embo an said
zations.” Wolm
eterans organi ples.
s general princi Legisla o
tive
eed on the bill’ t of th e G I Bill’s V F W t
at mos ),
(IAVA sage directly
bcommittee th ra m ” ad op te d by e r i c a s
e prog of Am eir me
or mity with th terans resented th
en t. n V e gni-
al Encam pm
K ea rn ey , th en a A f g h a nist a
e m b e rs p
u s a n d reco .
rd W. ttee m nsens n said
-Chief Berna le . ll e
ew
d “a n e Commi s. e n eral co ill,” Cullina en-
cr iti ca l ro i t c a r a g B the
e, played a d Senate confer
-
t i n
t
g wha blication of
th ke
lawma hen, there w wartime G erience with ly.”
as I
H ou se an p o r u a l
k between betwee n thaen sup with p ression “By t d for a tive ex
p
t direc
t
ces lly beglp ry” in 1998 goals. Cong er. he nee FW’s legisla o will benefi nt of the
concile differen olisffitecdiathe che f t
VFW ntu rity ear li tion o
21estpoeliceislative prio egun a year ned V rs wh orefro
Kearney en- f o rant hde th le g b o n C apitol “ W e combi AVA membe eing at the f n to Lisicki’s
AI ir i
Blin ll es f
st o back e goal ha d or t f I b tio -
er of Eastern G so i z a t
of i o Gn’seolirg ia o f t h t o f the eff rs,” said pas
t
t h u s iasm o putation for wn. In addi his staff tes
S. G
o rib
g a n n p o r t
pg the bitllhe for e f r o n 0 y e a i n - ’s r e ll k n o n a n d a n y
ed Rep. John g dinbr suin last 1 olutely ot VFW fort is we , Culli
na
b’s bill
m
ing vo bbte yinan een at for the en abs ng ef he President port of Web
st his tie-break lo “We have b new GI Bill We have be l. It would n lo b b y i
shr athe GI Lisicki. “ a with t in sup ploy-
t
n’ o t e s
vo t ateblifo h i e f n o f this go m eeting e Congress F W em S
w ho do
H es
i ll i n - C
r- for lighta-l reali z a t i o t i v e e f o r s. i ll , V L
ose anyone
ed to
o m meanflo
th deor
e fi n ” i o n al Leg r of
isla tified b er 18 month d Webb’s b he public. N
he ad C t h W . a t e o v a t e o t id-
d. The bill ntal in out VF director of N stic support But times ongress deb age directly t eared in a v
strume pened witith as ’s us i a 85 . As C e s s a p p Lou
e G I B ill
h a of
v e hRaig p hts, as aw
u ll i n n, VFW was an enth lished in 19 cant o t o o k the m ic Hilleman n program “ a-
b fi ees als Director Er
into law th nniIt s Cwas PublicVFW as esta e signi io
televis n such news e
p
t, on JuneDe22., added that ill when it w id not provid t. ty CNN i
corresponden e IB ess d ove i D e p u
ed o n t h e
s qu o t e d
t an d T h
Servic tgomerymG o n g r i m p r u a t e , ” a t a i r d w a n P o s
oning cerearson wyhen C wed to t adeq eo th ght” a
n ashingto
e W hi te Houthsee M sign
w yevelt ,fin- fits, VFW vo fits were no ce inflation b b s Toni oday, T he W d
en di ng th
hin a f e
n Roose e bene ne a D o T en an
C hi ef Sc ho en inger. W withe
e s i n thin rec- monthly be ypically outp p e r s as USA es. d y o ung m id in
n- s er ases t n a
n to theinVcFr W e realiw
ea lead zed the
ngition incre early gton Tim g to s
e
man s
handed the pe w “ W
la w an d orki T u r t s t r a tegy n nd Washin ou’re willin way,” Hille to pay the
ng the ne “ to “If y o har m’s
role in developi said.tio wo-pa able a ing
be will y return.”
ou d of C ouullrincoanntribu r g i n
n”
. m u la ted a t n an afford estab- e n i nt h o u ld
e are extremel
y pr 1m a
r. ays VFW fo er educati
r o st o o m ou s nt e h t-
w ,” sa id Sc ho
b yen a in 2-ge
n s i g h fo r e m ost wa tending w ril 2008, “y r them whe ew GI Bill pa
t la a h a t p f o n
im po rt an C u ll i n m a k e rst a n d ost o f ts A ari n g lish a off d e r e
s ago to veterans. Fi er the full c I Bill benefi r i ce of c uest to estab legislation
20 y e a r r v G p q rk e and
Additional a b le goal fo hat would co ontgomery VFW’s the landma uch patienc em-
n I Beilloft o improve M .
attai ont- d after ired m aff m
Accomplishments li s h
th e a onnely w pi Gec
d w a s t a li z e d 1 9 9 8 to tie M elp terne vets has requ 97, VFW st ongres-
ns e h c
Bill was, it was
by no mea
llehigech . Sit ecoga n ed l was r
inte goa ning in ice Index to he WWII rk. Since 19 ore than 40
ca te d an d fo crow u lt i m a e f f o r t begin e r P r w i t h t
a r d w o d at m
r m e
on VFW advo e ea
until th led a four-y s to the Con nally occurr ts Improve-
su ed h testifi ngs. em-
. F W cc es sf ul ly n e fi t h a t fi e n e fi b e rs have mittee heari mmittee m f-
re ss V
FW su I Bill be .T ns B W om C o eo
e U .S . en te red WWII, V mertytoGth e N a- o f i n flation 3, the Vetera 2 issue of VF l sional c Legislative e and Senat in
th
and an amend- ts fig$5
gomen t the rate 7-10 200 ntia VFW Hous d with
lization of pay, e de h ,000 inu-blic Law 10 e February yed an esse e visited shington an imes,”
pr v
o- vi f P n t h p la h a v a
program to nt o
d eAprilD19 , 001. I VFW bers s in W ds of
t
Life Insurance O ct . 8, 1940 en, aanctm
o n ec. 8, 2 oted that “ e bill. t i n g with e b uilding ates “hundre ington Of-
ee n t, n t h e e fi c
ose killed betw ment Ac e, Cullinan on” on were m oost st
home VFW’s Was e phrase
h
a g a
-a z in -es and Senate acti and his staff san push to b c- their
nc g t o e d th
nd en ce al-l mow c u r ing ll i n an i p a rti n t r odu c o r din n c oin ntury,”
e, pay increase
s, de pe
e ot he ro
r le
ac
s e
n evementtstime,
ihi
h a
C u
(D - I ll . ) in a b
i n E van s ’ i
A c t o f a c
V F W e v e
r t h e 21st ce rring
er tt d nts .
on for disabled
veterans w s
Also a . Lane Evan at culminat ill Improveme jected fic ew GI Bill
e e fo en refe
r R e p s. T h G I B a s r e “ a n n h e a rd wh
iceiliaryGca re t e y w is ofte
e organization. dofom rm Bill ra ntgomer he bill rred n. f
ns or ed le gi sl ation provided o n t
-ah nlyonIthe 13—the Mo llinan says t ltimately spu tee which ew legislatio hard work o
W-spo n of a vem t- er .R . 1 7 3 . C u i o n u m m i t t h e n W ’s f f.
r WWII vetera
ns, retentio tionforof10 nyeA
H ars 10, 200 the act irs Co to F
ears V de has paid t,”
o
ha d be en on them — o pril
i t s c o st, but terans Affa ncrease ben- It app d e c a e f for
he 3 -ans anause o d f e i an a e
permanently if ov er -s ea s 2
ve 0t-0er
b e c - H o u s e V - N . J. ), to
o re t h
ell w o r t h th
Presi-
out pay for fficiall
y n
by the pher Smith
(R
ga-
m
been w When the d a
ore mustering en . o
ess , le d y e a r s . a n o r “ I t ’s “
t infantrym Congr n Rep. Chr
isto xt thre
e
inated said. opene
extra for comba m a v e r the ne VFW coord Capitol Hi
ll.
C u llinan h e b ill, we
i r o t
Cha
some 4
0%
ber 20
07,
paign
on f the signed ne.”
efits by , in Septem bbying cam m e m bers o and dent of champag
Then lo Joined
by Iraq bottle
nized
army
ACTIVE DUTY
by Janice Arenofsky
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Traumatic Brain Injury:


air force

An Exploding Problem
coast guard

The most perplexing wound coming out of the Afghanistan


and Iraq wars, TBI is receiving more attention. Here is a
rundown on treatments and technologies.
national guard

S ince the October 2006 attack on her Army


unit in Baghdad, Staff Sgt. Linda Brashears
cannot fall asleep at night without the comfort of
struggled with a traumatic brain injury (TBI).
As of November 2009, according to the De-
fense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, 70,000
reserves

a light, radio and TV. “It was a night of blasts,” service members have been diagnosed with TBI.
the mother from Louisville, Ky., says of the long But neurologists increased that number substan-
evening she and other frightened soldiers spent in tially. Physicians originally based their statistics on
the unit’s post office. “open” cases of TBI—incidents in which shrap-
army

In the morning, when Brashears poked her nel entered the skull, spewing blood, brain tissue
head out, the horror still had not stopped. Tear and other fluids. They failed to factor in “closed”
gas and other toxic fumes overwhelmed her. TBIs, which are invisible to the naked eye and
navy

“It was life-changing,” she says. “Nothing has can manifest serious symptoms many years later.
been the same since.” Counting these, the TBI tally skyrockets, as
marines

the Pentagon and Rand Corp. found. The Pen-


The Invisible Wound: tagon estimated in March 2009 that 360,000
‘Closed’ TBI service members may have experienced TBI
Soldiers stationed during deployment, of which 45,000 to 90,000
air force

in Afghanistan and have persistent symptoms and require specialized


Iraq constantly face care. Of returning service members Rand sur-
the perils of impro- veyed, 19% of reported that they experienced a
vised explosive de- possible TBI while deployed, with 7% reporting
coast guard

vices (IEDs), rocket- both a probable brain injury and current PTSD
propelled grenades or major depression.
and land mines. The All TBIs—whether from IEDs, accompany-
path of destruction ing debris, burns, falls and/or inhalation of gases
national guard

often leads to blind- and vapors—result from the shake-up and bleed-
ness, deafness and ing of the brain.
catastrophic injuries The reason why closed TBI injuries have
forcing multiple am- become the “signature” malady of recent wars
putations. In the first stems from “over pressurization waves” produced
six years following upon detonation of IEDs, says Dr. Elaine Date,
reserves

the beginning of the director of the Palo Alto Polytrauma Rehabilita-


war in Afghanistan, tion Center at Stanford University in California.
officially about 15% The waves travel hundreds of yards at the
of all wounded vets rate of 1,600 feet per second, writes Ronald
army

Marine Cpl. Tim Jeffers suffered severe wounds as a convoy


commander in Iraq on May 18, 2006, when an IED exploded three
navy

feet away. He lost both legs below the knee, plus part of his skull.
photo courtesy palo alto va medical center

8
Traumatic Brain Injury: An Exploding Problem

Glasser, physician-author of Wounded: sight,” she says, “you were not medically Army Staff Sgt. Linda Brashears is
Vietnam-Iraq (2006), who treated Viet- evacuated.” Later, she developed head- examined by a respiratory therapist
nam troops. aches, short-term memory loss, insom- for asthma. Brashears suffered a
moderate brain injury during an attack
According to the Defense and Vet- nia, balance problems and dizziness. in Baghdad in October 2006. Since
erans Brain Injury Center (DVBIC) in then she has experienced pain and
Washington, D.C., the primary blast Mild TBI: Mistakes and Misdiagnoses cognitive problems.
jostles the brain against the skull; a “sec- Many times, however, soldiers exhibit- photo by kylene lloyd © the courier-journal

ondary wind,” which pushes a tremen- ing anxiety, depression or irritability hear the diagnosis of moderate TBI. “I
dous amount of displaced air back into fall between the cracks. The symptoms felt vindicated,” she said. “It justified my
the skull, delivers another shock. The of mild TBI often are taken for signs of pain and feelings that something more
possibility for brain and other traumas post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was there.”
multiplies if the explosive force should or a personality disorder. One study re- Another factor complicating diag-
overturn a vehicle or trigger a fire. ported that 40 soldiers at Fort Carson, nosis is the common failure of MRIs or
Depending on the extent of neuro- near Colorado Springs, Colo., were mis- CT scans to pick up on brain injuries,
logical damage (mild, moderate or se- diagnosed with personality disorders. especially mild TBIs, says Date. This is
vere), symptoms at the time of impact Doctors tend to attribute similar symp- why physicians at Evans Army Com-
and later on can include everything toms to psychological rather than physi- munity Hospital at Fort Carson are test-
from headaches, nausea and memory cal causes, say brain experts. ing single photo emission computerized
difficulties to mood changes, cognitive That is what happened to Brashears. tomography (SPECT) to determine if
problems and loss of consciousness, ac- Initially diagnosed with PTSD only, she this imaging technique might spot more
cording to the Centers for Disease Con- was not re-evaluated until she returned brain injuries.
trol and Prevention’s National Center stateside to Ft. McCoy in Wisconsin. Date says imaging limitations height-
for Injury Prevention and Control. After a routine medical exam, physicians en the importance of screening. “The
Brashears says she knew immediately transferred her to Walter Reed Army DVBIC has developed a screening tool
that “something was wrong with me.” Medical Center in Washington, D.C., to use in the field to detect mild brain
Doctors observed her for several weeks where an MRI showed damage to the injury,” she says. “Questions cover such
for signs of a concussion. But “if you left superior cerebellum of her brain. areas as memory, attention and
are not bleeding or losing a limb or eye- Brashears was actually relieved to processing and are very helpful
9
in determining if the soldier should be loss (tympanic-membrane perforation) counseling and social support.
monitored and tested in greater detail.” is often associated with brain injury, and “We combine high-tech equipment
As of April 2007, VA facilities ad- thus is a good marker for it. The quicker with community-based athletic activi-
minister the Military Acute Concussion a diagnosis, the better the medical op- ties,” Sigford says. “Patients are evalu-
Evaluation. The first section, according tions. ated, and individualized strategies, exer-
to the American Psychology Association, Timing is important. Neurologists cises, devices and medications are used
deals with symptoms; the second draws now know that the brain possesses a cer- to improve the person’s functioning in
from the Standardized Assessment of tain flexibility or “neuroplasticity” and daily life.”
Concussion. Depending on the results, can repair and/or retrain itself within a For those who qualify for Vision Res-
patients can be referred to Walter Reed certain window of time, usually up to 24 toration Therapy (VRT), an FDA-ap-
or other DVBIC centers for follow-up. months following the injury. proved, cutting-edge treatment devised
Screening should help reduce the “At one time, it was thought there by the Boca Raton, Fla.-based medical
problem of soldiers and veterans who was limited potential for damaged brain company NovaVision, improvement
are unaware of their brain injuries. Take cells to recover,” Date says. “We now see may be significant.
Brett Miller, 31, a U.S. Army sergeant. that with proper early medical manage- VRT is being offered at the Tampa
Miller received medical care for knee, ment, there is a possibility of regaining a (Fla.) Polytrauma Veterans Rehabilita-
hearing and vision damage, but his TBI significant amount of function.” tion Center. It draws from the concept
went unrecognized for nearly a year. of neuroplasticity or self-repair of the
Results published in the New England Research and Rehab brain. Studies show VRT can be 70%
Journal of Medicine (Aug. 23, 2007) may Moderate and severe head traumas are effective in restoring vision to TBI pa-
significantly decrease diagnostic errors easier to spot and diagnose. The pa- tients.
such as Miller’s. It turns out that hearing tient experiences convulsions, seizures Over a six-month period, eligible pa-
or an inability to awaken tients receive a customized program of
from sleep, slurred speech, brain stimulation based on a computer
weakness or numbness, map of their visual field. Representatives
loss of coordination and at NovaVision say per-patient cost is ap-
increased confusion, rest- proximately $6,000. They are optimistic
lessness and agitation. that VA will cover the procedure should
Fine-tuning a TBI di- other VA centers across the country of-
agnosis as mild, moderate fer the procedure.
or severe using symptoms Speaking of costs, thanks to a $3 mil-
at the time of the injury is lion grant, the Memorial Hermann/
easier than predicting out- TIRR Foundation and the Michael
comes, says Barbara Sig- DeBakey VAMC in Houston have joined
ford, VHA national pro- together to offer Project Victory—a
gram director for Physical no-cost, special rehabilitation program
Medicine and Rehabili- for vets with moderate to severe TBI.
tation Services. “Often, The program aims to return 65 vets
people don’t seek help each year to their maximum level of
until a crisis comes along, functioning. One condition is a family
such as the loss of a job or member or caregiver must also partici-
the departure of a family pate. (For more information, call (713)
member.” 383-5604.)
Medical care stabilizes Beyond rehabilitative exercises, TBI
the patient and prevents patients also can take positive steps by
further injury. Physicians participating in related research trials.
work to control blood pres- Some trials evaluate different medica-
sure, maintain good circu- tions, such as sertraline, citalopram,
lation and ensure enough rivastigmine and valporate, for their po-
oxygen flows to the brain. tential effectiveness.
After CT scans and skull Others, for example, investigate the
Lance Cpl. Kenneth R. Ward, at the II Marine Expe- and neck x-rays, patients efficacy of computerized assessments or
ditionary Force Injured Support Unit, puts together start the arduous process the practicality of new helmet designs.
a 3-D puzzle to improve his hand-eye coordination. of rehabilitation—physi- The government Web site clinicaltrials.gov
Ward sustained brain injuries on June 29, 2006,
cal, occupational, speech shows more than 100 studies that recruit
when shrapnel from a rocket-propelled grenade sliced
through the back of his neck and pierced his skull. and recreational. They TBI patients. The trials include every-
marine corps photo by lance cpl. ryan m. blaich also receive psychological thing from gait training and cognitive

10
Traumatic Brain Injury: An Exploding Problem
therapy to telerehabilitation and therapy Therapy Off the Grid therapy is not toxic, is relatively safe and
for depression. Despite the excellent care Brashears improves the aerobic metabolism of
Research on TBI is alive and well and says she received from VA, she still has brain cells.
increasing, due mainly to the Iraq War. PTSD, headaches and back pain. Since “Growing evidence shows that
Patrick Kochanek, director of the Safar VA officially sanctions only evidence- HBOT may be a potential treatment
Center for Research at the University of based therapies, Brashears pays out-of- for patients with severe brain injury,” re-
Pittsburgh, is testing the use of nitroxide pocket for biweekly massage treatments searchers concluded.
resuscitation on TBI. Dalton Dietrich at to ease her pain. Other alternative/complementary
Miami University studies hypothermia, DVBIC, however, now explores non- treatments are food-based. UCLA neu-
or the cooling of the brain. Various sci- traditional avenues, including the treat- roscientists and Sepulveda VAMC re-
entists are experimenting with cellular ment methods of research psychologist searchers Gomez-Pinilla and Greg M.
transplant procedures. Catherine Harrison, employed at the Cole found that TBI patients, who as a
“The use of low brain-temperature Air Force Research Laboratory, Human group run a higher risk of developing

Some 80% of traumatic brain injuries


are “closed” and thus invisible to the
naked eye. These insidious wounds can
plague those suffering for years.
(hypothermia) can reduce inflammation Effectiveness Directorate at Wright Pat- dementia, should avoid high-sugar and
and damage,” says Fernando Gomez- terson Air Force Base in Ohio. high-saturated-fat foods.
Pinilla, a neurosurgery professor at While traditional therapies can re- They also should include the food
UCLA, as well as a researcher with the train patients to perform specific behav- spice curry (curcumin) in their diet.
VAMC in Sepulveda, Calif. “But when iors, Harrison believes that “enriched” When Gomez-Pinilla fed curcumin to
you’re hit in the head, brain damage environments (such as three-dimension- rats with concussion-like injuries, the
is diffuse [as opposed to localized] and al exploration and virtual acrobatics like curcumin reduced the negative effects of
makes transplant [of cells] difficult.” flying and climbing into buildings) stim- brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels,
Other projects focus on pharmaceu- ulate the brain to regain more general which determine cell synaptic strength,
tical, technological and physical thera- capacities that patients can apply to the memory and learning.
pies. Investigator Dr. Mark A. Dichter, learning of a variety of tasks. “The effects are doubled when exer-
professor of neurology and pharmacol- Harrison says the stimulation affects cise [30 minutes daily] is combined with
ogy at the University of Pennsylvania the hippocampus—that area of the a healthy diet,” says Gomez-Pinilla. He
in Philadelphia, is testing the drug topi- brain that controls learning—and may also stresses the need for Omega-3 fish
ramate as a method of preventing or allow patients to reform memories more oil because it reduces beta amyloid—the
reducing epileptic seizures in the up to easily. Besides using multi-sensory vir- plaque associated with Alzheimer’s.
30% of TBI patients who develop this tual reality experiences, Harrison uses Better known as equine therapy, hip-
disorder. Henry Lew, clinical associate tai chi. potherapy is gaining credibility with vet-
professor at Stanford University Medi- “We are deliberately trying to form erans. The program Horses for Heroes,
cal Center, is researching driving simu- alternative pathways in the brain,” sponsored by the North American Rid-
lation therapy. Because 40% to 80% of Harrison said in an article in the on- ing for the Handicapped Association, of-
TBI patients take up driving again—de- line magazine Military Medical Technology fers services to vets at the organization’s
spite doctors’ warnings—Lew hopes a (April 11, 2007). “We want to recover 700 centers.
driving simulator can improve patients’ the fundamental ability to learn.” Similarly, Back in the Saddle Bit by
cognitive abilities and predict long-term Another controversial technique is Bit, based in Broomfield, Colo., uses
outcome. hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). a nationwide network of ranches and
Also, Emory University researchers Patients lie in submarine-style com- therapists to provide services. Army
are using Constraint Induced Move- pression chambers, breathing higher- Reserve Spc. Claudia Carreon says her
ment Therapy, initially used with stroke than-normal amounts of oxygen. In a memory improved after equine therapy
patients, to test whether the forced use study in Neurology Research (March 2007), from Therapeutic Riding of Tucson.
of a “weaker” limb will strengthen University of Minnesota experimenters In an odd twist, botox, wide-
functioning. found that a one-hour dose of oxygen ly touted as a cosmetic aid for
11
wrinkles, also seems to help TBI pa- head-protection gear to sports players proposed H.R. 2199, which, if passed,
tients. It can reduce spasticity, enhances and soldiers alike. will provide for mandatory screening,
cortical reorganization and jump-starts So far, more than 250,000 head im- long-term rehabilitation of veterans and
motor function in the upper extremities. pacts in college and high school football an outreach program for rural vets. This
(Skeptics can read the October 2006 is- games have been collected using data- bill is presently in the Senate Committee
sue of Archives of Physical Medicine & Re- registering helmets connected to a com- on Veterans Affairs.
habilitation.) puter. Moreover, in April 2008, the Brain
TBI patients eager to avoid drugs Also, researchers in Canada and the Injury Association of America published
can try Holistic Approach to NeuroDe- United States are developing real-time a position paper calling for public and
velopment and Learning Efficiency portable devices to test soldiers’ cogni- private cooperation to deliver the “right
(HANDLE). Initiated by Dr. David Lew- tive abilities immediately after explo- treatment right now.”
is, associate professor in nuclear medi- sions. “The statistics from the United “The government doesn’t have to re-
cine at the University of Washington’s States suggested that [brain injuries] invent the wheel,” says Pat Radice, with
Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, are undiagnosed and underdiagnosed,” the BIA. “A continuum of care already
HANDLE provides physical and mental scientist-inventor Bob Cheung, with exists with the DoD and VA. We need to
activities patients can perform at home Ontario-based Defence Research and augment it with private contractors.”
to strengthen weak areas of sensory-mo- Development, told the Canadian press.
tor processing. Silent No More
(A small study in the Journal of Imag- Financial Fix Brashears hopes mandatory MRI/CT
ing’s July 2006 issue showed improve- According to a January 2007 report— scans before and after deployments will
ment in brain activity in five adults with “The Long-Term Costs of Providing become part of that continuum of health
chronic TBI.) Veterans Medical Care and Disability care. She receives behavioral therapy (in
Other alternative therapies include Benefits” co-authored by Linda Bilmes the form of electronic memory devices),
massage, dance, hypnosis, prayer, aro- of Harvard’s Kennedy School of Gov- takes anti-seizure medication for head-
matherapy, aquatics, herbal supplemen- ernment and Joseph Stiglitz of Colum- aches and uses an inhaler for asthma-
tation, vitamins, meditation, magnetic bia—combined treatment and health like symptoms.
fields, transcutaneous electrical stimula- care for TBI veterans over the next 20 “I still deal with symptoms [of
tion, chiropractic treatment, craniosacral years could cost as much as $14 billion. PTSD], but they are less intrusive on my
therapy, acupuncture, neuromuscular re- One reason is that Iraq and Afghani- daily life,” she says. “Some days I can
education, acupressure, physical therapy stan War veterans typically claim five to cope with almost anything, but other
and spiritual techniques. eight different disabling conditions, says days I seem to not be able to deal with
Bilmes. the smallest item.”
TBI Technology And cost is not the only worry. There Still, she calls herself “lucky” to have
Future technological innovations
may prevent or reduce the incidence
of TBI in war vets. Along those lines, “A lot of soldiers suffer ...
retired Navy captain Dr. Robert H.
Meaders, whose grandson served due to their own desire to
be silent about their pain.”
in Iraq, founded Operation Helmet in
2004. Meaders hired a manufactur-
er to upgrade the military’s helmets
with a shock-absorbing pad sus- —Staff Sgt. Linda Brashears
pension system. (See www.operation-
helmet.org). So far, Operation Helmet
has donated more than 40,000 upgrades is a shortage of TBI-trained health-care received good health care. “I think there
to servicemen and women. professionals to serve the large percent- are a lot of soldiers that suffer and go
Another technology player is Head age of injured troops who survive blasts untreated, sometimes due to their own
Impact Telemetry (HIT), a computer- and thus have the potential for brain in- desire to be silent about their pain,”
ized system developed by Lebanon, juries. she says. “No one that returns home
N.H.-based Simbex. HIT researched The good news, though, is Americans after being involved in an explosion or
the biomechanical factors that lead to are finally responding to this health cri- blasts should be discharged or returned
concussion and found that a weighted sis. A federal Task Force on the Future to duty without having at least an MRI
combination of several factors, includ- of Military Healthcare addressed VA’s or CT scan to determine if they have a
ing impact location, is more predictive financial and administrative problems TBI. And a six-month follow-up exam
of concussion than a single biomechani- in a December 2007 report. And the should be mandatory.”
cal measure. With information such as House Committee on Veterans Affairs,
this, Simbex intends to market better chaired by Rep. Bob Filner (D-Calif.),

12
army
ACTIVE DUTY
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Finding Your Next Job


air force

Even in a climate of high young vet unemployment, jobs still are


available for returning veterans. Programs online and around
coast guard

the country can help.

E mployment opportunities for Iraq and Af-


ghanistan vets have fluctuated dramatically.
As of October 2009, the unemployment rate for
recently discharged vets with employers and also of-
fers advice on VA benefits.
•VA’s Veterans Employment Coordination Service (www.
national guard

post-Sept. 11, 2001, vets stood at 11.6%, according va.gov/vecs) helps veterans—especially wounded
to the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor vets—who are interested in working for VA. Ser-
Statistics. vices include employment counseling, identifying
Widely varying unemployment rates may show transferable skills, a career assessment, resume and
that these individuals are having difficulty transi- job search assistance, and direct job placement as-
tioning to civilian jobs following Iraq or Afghanistan sistance.
reserves

deployments. “If you served in the military, you’re •Small Business Administration’s Veterans Business Out-
disconnected from the civilian workforce, you don’t reach Program (www.sba.gov) provides entrepreneurial
have contacts that a civilian person has,” Justin development services including business training,
Brown, VFW legislative associate, told USA Today. counseling and mentoring, and referrals for eligi-
army

Regardless of the cause of the documented high ble veterans who own or are considering starting a
unemployment rates, federal and private programs small business. Four organizations participate in this
exist to help vets find jobs after returning from war. cooperative agreement and serve as Veterans Busi-
navy

•VetJobs (www.vetjobs.com) averages more job post- ness Outreach Centers.


ings than any other military- or intelligence-related •Hire Vets First (www.hirevetsfirst.gov), coordinated
marines

job board. An employment assistance section in- by the Department of Labor’s Veterans Employ-
cludes information on how to organize a job search, ment and Training Service, offers links to online
write a resume, interview and identify a potential job search engines and resume assistance. Its near-
employer. Its monthly newsletter for veterans, the ly 2,000 One-Stop Career Centers assist with job
air force

Veteran Eagle, has information about employment search, resume writing, job placement, interviewing
and the job market. VFW partners with this job skills, career counseling, labor market information
board. and financial aid information.
•American Corporate Partners (www.acp-usa.org) helps •The Little Caesars Veterans Program offers a $5,000
coast guard

vets transition from the military to the workforce reduction of the franchising fee, financing benefits
through career counseling and networking with cor- and a $5,000 credit on the equipment order for
porate professionals. Some 300 mentors are avail- the veterans opening their first store in this chain.
able from Campbell Soup Company, General Elec- Service-disabled veterans are eligible for a total ben-
national guard

tric, Home Depot, Morgan Stanley, PepsiCo and efit of up to $68,000.


Verizon. Iraq and Afghanistan veterans—especially For reservists called to active duty, job protection
those who have been wounded—take precedence is afforded under the 1994 Uniformed Services Em-
for selection in the program. ployment and Reemployment Rights Act. The Employer
•Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans With Disabili- Support of the Guard and Reserve agency exists to
ties (whitman.syr.edu/ebv) provides entrepreneurship provide assistance in this regard.
reserves

training and small business management to disabled In November 2009, an executive order created
Iraq and Afghanistan vets. The Whitman School of the Council on Veterans Employment, charged with
Management at Syracuse University, UCLA Ander- increasing the number of vets hired by the federal
son School of Management, Florida State Univer- government. Each of 24 executive branch agencies
army

sity’s College of Business and Mays Business School must form a veterans employment program. The
at Texas A&M offer these free nine-day residency Office of Personnel Management is tasked with de-
programs. veloping a strategic plan for veterans recruitment
navy

•Texas Veterans Leadership Program strives to match and employment.


marines

13
army
ACTIVE DUTY
by Janice Arenofsky
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Treating PTSD
air force

in Non-Traditional Ways
coast guard

With the rise of psychological ailments among Iraq and


Afghanistan War vets, military and VA hospitals have
begun to rethink how they deal with this age-old scourge
national guard

of war. Here is a rundown on six methods of handling


combat-related emotional trauma.
reserves
army
navy
marines
air force
coast guard
national guard

George Gafner, counselor and hypnosis expert at the VA Medical Center in Tucson,
Ariz., treats Iraq veteran Claudia Carreon with hypnosis therapy. This is one of the
non-traditional means of treating PTSD now being explored.
photo by gary morris

T
reserves

he Iraq War veteran seated in George Gaf- traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with hypnosis.
ner’s office reported only minor wounds from “People are more receptive to suggestions
his time in the Middle East. But emotionally, under hypnosis,” says Gafner, director of family
the soldier was scarred. And traditional talk ther- therapy training and author of several books on
army

apy alone was not working to relieve the pain of hypnosis. “When you deal with the unconscious,
seeing his comrades killed from an explosion. you can get under the radar and help the per-
For Gafner, a licensed clinical social worker son.”
navy

at the VA Medical Center (VAMC) in Tucson, Gafner usually starts off by strengthening the
Ariz., the next step was treating his patient’s post- soldier’s self-esteem and lessening symptoms such

14
Treating PTSD in Non-Traditional Ways
as survivor guilt by floating the sugges- Turned off by talk therapy and medica- rather than “done to” the patient. Also,
tion that “you did the best you could— tion, some veterans have gone the alter- self-guided therapies can attract patients
it’s time to move on with your life.” native route. According to former Army who want to limit travel to and from VA
Gafner also provides his patients with a Spec. 4 William A. Roper, a Vietnam vet clinics.
physical “anchor” for triggering the re- who received a traumatic head injury, Strauss’ 12-week program empha-
laxation response, such as interlocking meditation helps him cope with survivor sizes guided imagery. After an initial
fingers. guilt and memories of war atrocities. session with a licensed clinical social
“It’s not a magic bullet,” Gafner em- “I do it twice daily, in the morning worker, the patient listens to audio re-
phasizes, “but it takes the rough edges and evening for 20 minutes,” Roper cordings of imagery instructions. So far
off, and the feelings become more man- says. “Meditation calms your raging the study shows that guided meditation
ageable.” Gafner says hypnosis achieves mind and allows peace to permeate your significantly reduces PTSD symptoms
a 70% success rate and is effective with very being,” he says. “In time, you heal, and compares favorably with the results
90% of men and women. But some pa- the awful memories subside and you get from psychotherapy.
tients hesitate to try it because of popu- back control of your life.” Roper also
lar associations with its practice, such as says a positive can-do attitude “internal- Music Therapy
the fear of “quacking like a duck.” izes the idea that you can overcome your Sherill F. Cross, registered music thera-
Unfortunately, absurd beliefs like this situation.” pist at Waco VAMC in Texas, runs a VA
have slowed the military’s acceptance Vietnam vet Claude Anshin, author music therapists network there. Although
of non-traditional therapies, despite of At Hell’s Gate: A Soldier’s Journey from Cross works with only 100 patients each
that alternative medicine is now part of War to Peace (Shambhala, 2004), agrees. year, similar music-therapy-directed re-
mainstream health care. After PTSD turned Anshin into an alco- laxation training is available at many VA
In fact, a 2006 Center for Disease holic and drug abuser, he sought relief hospitals, such as in Houston, Topeka
Control survey revealed that 36% of with Buddhist beliefs. Today, he spreads (Kan.), Milwaukee and New York.
U.S. adults use some form of alternative the word about meditation’s healing “They [soldiers] have just returned
therapy. According to USA Today (Oct. path by holding retreats for traumatized from a [combat] situation where they’ve
7, 2008) one in four soldiers with PTSD veterans. been hypervigilant and had screwed up
turn to herbs, chiropractors, acupunc- Soon to recruit volunteers are two sleeping patterns,” Cross says. “They
ture or megavitamins. VA clinical studies on mindfulness medi- need help in dealing with issues and re-

“Meditation calms your raging mind


and allows peace to permeate your
very being. In time, you heal the
awful memories subside and you
get back control of your life.”
—Former Army Spec. 4 William A. Roper
That’s one reason the Department of tation and directed meditation involv- setting their pattern to ‘default.’”
Defense funds the Complementary and ing Iraq/Afghanistan War veterans and Cross begins her 10-week program
Alternative Medicine Research for Mili- women veterans who have been sexually with individual sessions, teaching pa-
tary Operations and Healthcare Pro- traumatized (especially in Iraq and Af- tients to focus on breathing while listen-
gram. It has researched such treatments ghanistan). ing to slow and lyric-free music. Mean-
as manipulation, bioelectromagnetic de- “Mind-body approaches such as while, she instructs them in a 20- to
vices and acupuncture. meditation are noninvasive and, un- 30-minute relaxation exercise, such as
like medications, have no risk of side progressive muscle relaxation, or uses
Moving on With Meditation effects,” says Dr. Jennifer Strauss, with guided imagery (“put yourself in a bub-
Some 39% of Afghanistan and Iraq vet- VA’s Women Veterans Comprehensive ble,” “imagine yourself as a rag doll”).
erans screened in the VA health care sys- Health Center in Durham, N.C. The Cross has helped several women
tem between 2002 and 2008 have been principal investigator of the female vets by suggesting the use of simple
diagnosed with either PTSD (62,929) or PTSD study, Strauss says meditation is instrumental music while tak-
depression (50,432), according to VA. “empowering” because it’s “done by” ing a warm bath. The women’s
15
Treating PTSD in Non-Traditional Ways

up stress. Soldiers often talk over their


Veterans within the music therapy program from various VA medical centers war experiences with Triesch while they
participate in the VA National Creative Arts Festival held in Rapid City, South
Dakota, in October 2006. Music has been shown to relax patients and ease pet Jasmine or teach her a trick. “For-
emotional problems. mer snipers and special operatives touch
va photo
Jasmine and melt,” Triesch says. “Some-
times they cry.”
sleeping, communication skills and self- this old music,” she says. The team also lightens up the hos-
esteem improved. pital’s stark surroundings with outra-
“Ninety to 95% of PTSD patients Animal Therapists geous outfits that transform the caring
are clueless on how to relax,” Cross says. Carol Triesch may not be a licensed psy- canine into a rubber duck, for example,
“They’re afraid of intrusive thoughts chotherapist, but her golden retriever is. or a Christmas tree. David Frei, a vet-
and memories.” Certified by Delta, a Washington-based eran, American Kennel Club judge and
When they begin to feel emotions, organization that promotes the bond animal-assisted therapist, observed
“thorns” (problem areas) often emerge. between animals and people, Jasmine Triesch and Jasmine while he was film-
When this happens, Cross suggests pa- instinctively knows how to break down ing them for a TV program.
tients talk to their treatment coordinator vets’ emotional barriers. “Some of the “The dog was a wonderful motivator
or one of their peers. “I tell patients to soldiers [at Brooke Army Medical Cen- for rehab patients,” says the Westminster
let the music take you where you want to ter in San Antonio, Texas] are on the Kennel Club communications director.
go,” she says. “I give them permission to burn units and have open stumps that “After 21 months of rehabilitation, one
stand down.” smell different,” Triesch says. “But Jas- brain-injured patient whose left side had
Cross steers away from music popu- mine doesn’t sniff at them and make been paralyzed was able to pet the dog
lar during their deployment—for ex- them feel self-conscious.” with his left hand. Dogs can pick out the
ample, for Vietnam vets, Otis Redding’s To the contrary, Jasmine and Tri- neediest person, show their total accep-
“Dock of the Bay” and music from the esch, who together earned the title “top tance of that person and give a sense of
films Forrest Gump or The Big Chill. “A big therapy team in the U.S.,” seem to have normalcy to hospital-bound patients.”
step toward recovery is separating from a “cathartic” effect that releases pent-

16
Treating PTSD in Non-Traditional Ways
Emotional Freedom Technique Virtual Reality Treatment 60% to 70% of soldiers with PTSD who
Developed by engineer Gary Craig and San Diego’s Naval Medical Center funds decline treatment.
piloted at the Naval Medical Center San a high-tech alternative called Virtual Re- VRT sessions last approximately 90
Diego, Emotional Freedom Technique ality Treatment (VRT). PTSD patients minutes and take place once or twice a
(EFT) is “acupuncture without the nee- who do not respond to medication are week for a total of 12 sessions. There are
dles,” according to Susan Hannibal, an eligible for VRT, a computer program. two types of programs—one for front-
intuitive healer who uses this energy- It was created by psychologist Dr. Albert line personnel and another for support
based therapy in her practice. “Skip” Rizzo, a research scientist at the staff.
Instead of using needles, therapists Institute for Creative Technologies at
ask patients to tap with their fingertips the University of Southern California. Acupuncture
at certain acupoints on their face, hands Borrowing elements from the popular Studies show that acupuncture, in which
and trunk while they think of the trauma video game “Full Spectrum Warrior,” licensed health practitioners stick thin
or issue. “The tapping releases blocked “Virtual Iraq” immerses patients in the needles into certain areas of the body
emotions and restores the smooth flow sensory stimuli of war. to release negative energy, eases stress,
of energy,” Hannibal says. Patients wear virtual reality (VR) anxiety and pain.
A close cousin to eye-movement de- goggles attached to a helmet (the Vir- It also is another tool for patients re-
sensitization and reprocessing, which tual Emotion Sensor). From a raised luctant to seek help due to stigma, says
the VA has approved for treatment, EFT platform that vibrates to imitate riding Dr. (Col.) Charles C. Engel, who works
has not yet been approved. But accord- in a Humvee, the patient hears and feels at the DoD Deployment Health Clinical
ing to an article in the San Diego Union- exploding mortars, fighter planes and Center at Walter Reed Army Medical
Tribune, Jeannie Ertl, a senior clinical so- bullets. Center in Washington, D.C.
cial worker at the Naval Medical Center, Courtesy of a “smell machine” (En- Engel, principal researcher for an
learned EFT from Hannibal and tried virodine Scene System), the soldier also ongoing clinical study on the use of
the method on 15 PTSD patients. She can smell different odors tied to Iraq acupuncture, says veterans who prefer
found it lessened or eliminated anxiety experiences, such as garbage, weapons a lower cost, absence of side effects or
and other symptoms of stress for 12 of fire, spices, diesel fuel, burning rubber short-term commitment may opt for
those patients. and even body odor. acupuncture.
Maj. Brian Stoll, a reservist, returned “Entering VR is a stressful experi- According to the Samueli Institute for
from Iraq with ugly memories of mor- ence,” says Lt. Cmdr. Rob McLay, a Information Biology in Alexandria, Va.,
tars and ambushes. While PTSD symp- Navy psychiatrist and director of the which co-sponsors alternative medical
toms such as anger, agitation and poor VRT program. “So it can be hard to get research with the military’s Uniformed
sleeping tormented him, Stoll submitted people to try it or stay with it.” Services University of the Health Sci-
to two years of cognitive therapy rather VR therapy is used to treat PTSD at ences, acupuncture services are avail-
than take medication. Camp Pendleton in Oceanside, Calif., able at some veteran clinical sites, such
A classmate told him about Hanni- the Naval Medical Center San Diego as William Beaumont Army Medical
bal’s Web site, guidedhealing.com. “I prefer and Tripler VAMC in Hawaii. Center at Ft. Bliss, Texas, and the Cin-
a holistic, noninvasive approach,” Stoll McLay says the first woman VRT cinnati VA Medical Center.
says, “but I wasn’t sold on the idea at patient saw her nightmares fade. “Most Dr. (Lt. Cmdr.) Susan D. Harvey says
first.” patients are able to recover to the point doctors at the Naval Medical Center San
Still, due to Stoll’s exposure to East- where they can go back to work and Diego regularly provide acupuncture for
ern treatments such as acupressure and family,” he says. pain management, and she has treated a
massage when stationed in Southeast Although VRT is similar to tradition- limited number of patients with PTSD
Asia, he decided to give EFT a chance. al exposure therapy in which the patient to target symptoms such as irritability,
In 2006, in a 30-minute telephone mentally and repeatedly relives his or insomnia and pain.
session with Hannibal, Stoll finally got her war experiences until he or she can “I treated one combat medic with
relief. He was no longer disturbed by remain calm, VRT does not depend on two tours in Iraq,” Harvey says. “With
loud sounds that reminded him of artil- the patient’s abilities. six sessions of acupuncture, he experi-
lery. “She guided my tapping, and I re- And therapists can increase or lessen enced decreased anxiety and need for
peated messages of ‘acknowledgement’ the stimuli depending on the patient’s pain medication, and an increased sense
and ‘release,’ ” he says. “I’m not totally stress tolerance. Also, younger com- of well-being.”
cured, but she began to peel away layers puter-savvy soldiers with PTSD do not Alternative treatments can supple-
like an onion.” automatically equate VRT with mental ment traditional psychotherapy and
Stoll wanted to continue with EFT, problems and stigma. medications. Veterans should contact
but the local VAMC doesn’t offer it, even To encourage more soldiers to accept their health provider to check for insur-
though it is gaining popularity among help, psychologists may classify VRT as ance coverage and availability. The bot-
vets and service members. “post-combat reintegration training.” tom line: PTSD is a diagnosis—
This may be more acceptable to the not a life sentence.
17
army
ACTIVE DUTY
by Kelly Von Lunen
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Wounds of War
air force

As traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress


disorder receive more publicity, physical wounds have
coast guard

taken something of a back seat in awareness. More


“traditional” wounds, such as hearing loss and loss
of limbs, still occur all too frequently. Here is a look
at what is being done.
national guard

HEARING LOSS
VA’s National Center for Rehabilitative Auditory
Research (NCRAR) reports that among all veter-
reserves

ans, hearing loss is the most common disability,


and tinnitus ranks second. Nearly 850,000 veter-
ans receive compensation for service-connected
army

hearing disabilities, including tinnitus.


“The problem of hearing loss is an enormous
problem for the VA and for the military,” said Dr.
navy

Stephen Fausti, director of NCRAR.


Tinnitus is the No. 1 service-connected health
condition for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, with
marines

nearly 93,000 diagnoses, according to VA. This


is similar to the number of vets diagnosed with
post-traumatic stress disorder. Defective hearing
air force

is No. 3, with almost 60,000 cases. As many as


one in four Iraq vets have some level of hearing
damage.
Blast injuries may cause damage without
coast guard

breaking the skin or bones. “The kind of brain


injury we’re seeing now in Iraq is not a result of
penetration of the head—it’s a much more dif- Soldiers from D Company, 1st Battalion, 63rd
fuse kind of damage,” said Dr. Marjorie Leek, Armor Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team,
1st Infantry Division, fire a 120mm mortar
NCRAR senior investigator.
national guard

near Mahmadiyah, Iraq, on March 26, 2009.


But in blasts that cause traumatic brain injury Without proper ear plugs, such weapons can
(TBI), ear drums can be damaged and neuro- cause hearing loss.
structures in the brain may be stretched. Leek DoD photo by Sgt. Kani Ronningen

says that because TBI from combat blast expo- enough and inability to hear certain sounds at
sures is such a new phenomenon associated with all. Understanding conversation becomes com-
current conflicts, the link between it and hearing
reserves

plicated for a person with hearing loss, because


loss is not fully understood. the ear is not picking up all of the sounds to be-
Soldiers who survive blast exposure—even gin with. As a result, even people who don’t think
with hearing loss and bodily damage—are a new they have hearing loss will report difficulty un-
army

group of veterans. “We didn’t see these veterans derstanding speech.


before because they didn’t survive,” Leek said. Excessive noise, aging, infections, injury, birth
defects, genetics or damage caused by some med-
navy

‘Not Something We’ve Got a Pill For’ ications (ototoxicity) can cause hearing loss, most
Hearing loss consists of sounds not being loud of which is not reversible.

18
Wounds of War
“Hearing loss is typically gradual development. NCRAR researchers are aids or cochlear implantation can reduce
and builds up over time,” said Lynn Lu- working on more than 30 hearing loss or eliminate the tinnitus perception.
ethke, hearing program director for the and tinnitus projects, including the con-
National Institute of Health’s National nection between TBI. What You Can Do
Institute on Deafness and Other Com- In past wars as well as today, service Earplugs and headphones are effective
munication Disorders. “Once you have members have rejected their ear plugs in preventing noise-induced hearing loss.
hearing loss, it’s permanent. It’s not and other hearing protection because Basic earplugs can reduce sound levels
something we’ve got a pill for.” they felt that it would inhibit their ability by 30 decibels, and more specialized
Because hearing loss can be caused to hear quieter sounds when necessary. versions can block out even more noise.
by loud noises over an extended period According to Marine Corps Times, the The key is to insert them properly.
of time, such as construction equipment, Marine Corps signed a $27 million con- Once hearing loss occurs, most
many people do not realize that their tract with Norway-based Nacre to pro- people wait seven to 10 years after they
hearing has deteriorated. Sometimes, vide 48,000 QuietPro devices to Marines know they have a problem to do any-
the damage is done in one instance, in the field. These high-tech ear protec- thing about it. Those who start wearing
such as a single explosive sound during tion devices moderate sound entering hearing aids earlier on are better able to
combat. the ear. Normal sound and speech is not adapt.
“I realize that a lot of soldiers are affected, but the devices protect against Hearing aids have become more
coming back from war situations where loud sounds such as explosions. cosmetically appealing, less visible than
they’ve had blast injuries and they’ve bluetooth wireless phone devices. While
lost hearing or they’ve got tinnitus,” Treating Tinnitus a lot of improvements have been made
Luethke said. “Those types of injuries Tinnitus is defined as a sound, such as in hearing aids over the years, they’re
are not preventable. In everyday life, we buzzing, ringing or whistling, occurring still a long way from restoring normal
can prevent noise-induced loss by wear- without an identifiable external stimu- hearing.
ing ear plugs when mowing the grass or lus. While tinnitus treatments have been “Once the damage is done in the ner-
around loud equipment.” around for a while, no single method has vous system, no matter how high-fidelity
Young service members need to be emerged as being the most effective. A the sound coming into the ear, it still gets
aware of this danger, even early in life, variety of tinnitus management meth- garbled,” Luethke said. “While hearing
and take steps to reduce preventable ods are in use today and include the fol- aids help, it’s not like restoring vision
loss. lowing approaches: with eyeglasses, typically.”
“A lot of younger people don’t even Masking: This sound therapy is Individuals with hearing loss often
know that they’re starting to have hear- intended to lessen tinnitus effects. The find themselves depressed, isolated, anx-
ing loss,” Luethke said. “If they could person wears a device similar to a hear- ious, paranoid or emotionally unstable
get a hearing evaluation early in life, ing aid that emits a specific noise intend- as a result of how personal relationships
they can see if they have any hearing ed to decrease the prominence of the are affected.
loss and then if it’s affecting their ability sound, or maintains background noise. “Hearing loss is a health condition
to communicate.” Counseling: Some tinnitus patients that people need to pay attention to,”
are able to manage and accept their tin- Luethke said. “It’s one of the only health
What is Being Done nitus through various forms of one-on- conditions we know of that’s 100% pre-
One of VA’s 14 Centers of Excellence, one and group counseling programs. ventable. People just don’t think about
NCRAR, located within the Portland Hearing Aids: Many people with their hearing.”
VA Medical Center, conducts research tinnitus also have some degree of hear-
for hearing rehabilitation, education, ing loss. For tinnitus sufferers with a sig-
professional training and technology nificant loss, correcting this with hearing BLINDNESS
Army Sgt. 1st Class Jeff Mittman, who
Military Sound Levels was serving with the Iraqi Public Order
Brigade, was driving in Baghdad on
Researchers at VA’s National Center for Rehabilitative Auditory
July 7, 2005, when his crew was hit by
Research recommend hearing protection for sounds louder
a roadside bomb. He woke up in Wal-
than a lawn mower (90 decibels). Weapons and equipment
ter Reed Army Medical Center with no
used in the military often far exceed this level.
lips, no teeth, an injured right arm and
no memory of the incident.
Type of Equipment Position Decibels (dB)
Today, Mittman is largely recovered,
Apache helicopter Pilot 104
yet totally blind in his left eye and legally
9mm pistol Shooter 157
blind in the right.
Grenade 50 feet 164
“I was fairly upset,” he said in a 2008
105mm towed howitzer Gunner 183
interview. “I’m pretty lucky I
MAAWS recoilless rifle Gunner 190
really haven’t had too much
Source: U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine.
19
scanners identify canned goods in a cup- able to take these skills home and apply
board. Specialized computer programs them.”
can adapt computers for low-vision and Mittman, who lives with his wife and
even completely blind people. two daughters, has retained his inde-
Even without technology, blinded pendence. He credits the training he re-
vets can learn to live nearly like they ceived at Hines with helping him main-
did when sighted. Staff at the Hines VA tain his quality of life.
Blind Rehabilitation Center (BRC) near “I get around much better now,”
Chicago recommend marking house- Mittman said. “A lot of that has to do
hold items for identification by texture. with confidence. I can move about pret-
Sandpaper, Velcro (both sides) and puff ty well. I use a cane in public. I can get
paints can be used to identify key ele- out on my own.”
ments on phones, microwaves, stoves,
Army Staff Sgt. Henry Flores III, with
washing machines and other household What to Do?
2nd Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment,
appliances. Blind and low-vision veterans interested
2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th To pay for things, coins can be identi- in VA services can start getting help by
Infantry Division, wears protective fied by their size and the texture of their finding and contacting their local VA
eye gear while patrolling Diwaniyah, edges. Blind individuals can fold de- hospital at www.va.gov/directory, or call
Iraq, on Nov. 13, 2008.
DoD photo by Senior Airman Eric Harris
nominations of bills differently for quick Hines directly at (708) 202-2773.
identification. Some blind veterans also Through VA, vets will work with
trouble with it. I realize I’ll never drive choose to obtain guide dogs. Visual Impairment Services Team coor-
again. I can’t read without adaptive dinators, who act as case managers with
technology.” A Place to Turn responsibility for coordination of all ser-
Blindness and other eye injuries Located 12 miles west of downtown vices. Additional information on all of
among veterans are not new concerns. Chicago, Hines VA Medical Center’s VA’s vision services can be found online
But as the nature of warfare changes, BRC provides individualized programs at www1.va.gov/blindrehab.
so do the cause and incidence of facial that usually last from four to eight weeks.
wounds. Elements of the programs include:
In Iraq and Afghanistan, improvised
explosive devices (IEDs) are causing the
• Visual Skills are enhanced as POLYTRAUMA
staff members train veterans to use Mark Comporato has been quadriple-
incidence of eye injuries to skyrocket to their remaining vision and adaptive gic since a week after his son was born.
higher than ever before. In the current technology. Six months into his tour in Iraq with the
wars, IEDs have caused more than half • Computer Access Training Army, Comporato used his two-week
of all combat eye injuries. According to provides instruction on specialized leave to visit his newborn baby for the
the Associated Press, more than 100 troops hardware and software for blind first time. During that leave, he attended
have been blinded and more than 250 and low-vision veterans. a party with his brother, and was jumped
have lost sight in one eye in Iraq. • Orientation and Mobility by partygoers he didn’t know while try-
According to the American Acad- teaches veterans to understand ing to leave. The incident left him with
emy of Ophthalmology, 54% of sol- where they are and how to get multiple injuries, the most serious of
diers treated for traumatic brain injury around independently. which was a C4 spinal cord injury.
at Walter Reed Army Medical Center • Living Skills teaches veterans “All I remember is not being able
also report vision problems. Overall, up how to effectively adapt their to move,” he said of that night, Feb. 5,
to 16% of Iraq veterans have reported everyday activities, including 2005. “The next thing I remember is be-
significant vision problems. cooking, cleaning, dressing and ing in the hospital at UC Davis. I remem-
other daily chores in the home ber being here [at Palo Alto VA Medical
Learning to Adapt and outside. Center] and being overwhelmed. I re-
For blind individuals, many adaptive • Manual Skills instructs member waking up in the hospital feel-
items are on the market. For example, veterans in a variety of areas that ing angry that I let my brothers down by
Mittman uses a screen magnifier that al- primarily use hands to perform not going back to Iraq. I felt guilty.”
lows him to use his remaining sight to tasks. Veterans can learn leather- From Stockton, Calif., Comporato
read enlarged print on his computer. work, home mechanics, small- served in the Army for five years. He de-
Blind-friendly inventions can provide engine repair and how to play ployed as a sergeant to Iraq in October
assistance to veterans in their normal ac- musical instruments. 2005 with B Battery, 1st Battalion, 77th
tivities throughout the day. A hand-held “This is a safe, secure environment Field Artillery Regiment, 75th Field Ar-
device, the Colorino, identifies the color where veterans can explore their skills,” tillery Brigade. He worked as a truck
of any item it touches, allowing blind said Jerry Schutter, director of the Hines driver and heavy equipment transporter
veterans to match their clothes. Bar code BRC. “Our goal is to make sure they are in those four months overseas.

20
Wounds of War
After his stateside injuries, Compo- est expectation of what in their mind gram coordinator, says that the young age
rato recovered on bed rest. He watched is the highest quality of life,” Lai said. of polytrauma patients presents an “in-
movies, unable to move. “For some people it’s independence, for teresting challenge.” She works to make
“At first I was really down and de- some it’s communication, for others it’s sure these vets receive the same quality
pressed,” he said. “I used to cry a lot. to walk again.” of care despite generational differences
Before I got in the chair I really didn’t and different needs.
know what my life would be like. I’m Help at Home “Our job is to get them out the door
learning stuff all over.” Even after rehabilitation, VA offers care and get them going,” she said. “Then
Even during that time in bed, he for polytrauma patients. Dr. Graham they’ll get comprehensive testing for the
slowly became closer to his family, es- Creasey, Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Ser- rest of their lives.”
pecially his sister and father. His son’s vice chief, says his goal is to get people Like Hopkins, Ford says being a new
mother took him to the hospital to see to be independent and keep them that parent adds specific challenges. “Noth-
him regularly. way for the rest of their lives. “Some ing trumps a three-month-old,” she said.
VA staff members got him in a spe- people can be 100% independent even “A lot of them have brand-new marriag-
cialized wheelchair and adapted com- in a wheelchair,” he said. es, so they need to be the dad and be
puter equipment for his limited range of Karen Hopkins, who works for the the husband. Being disabled wasn’t their
movement. SCI Home Care Program, explained image of being a parent.”
Comporato says that getting through that most wounds have been around for Yet these staff members do what they
each day has been surprisingly easier a long time, especially in wartime. Since can to help vets like Mark Comporato
than he thought it would be. “I thought WWII, however, people started living a care for their children and live their lives
life in general would be hard,” he said. normal life span with their injuries. Her just like anyone else.
“I’m thankful to be alive, to sit and watch
my kid grow up.”
“I remember waking up in the
‘Highest Quality of Life’
Palo Alto is one of four VA polytrauma hospital feeling angry that I let
rehabilitation centers (PRCs). PRCs fea-
ture a team with specialties in psychiatry, my brothers down by not going
rehabilitation nursing, neuropsychology,
psychology, speech-language pathology, back to Iraq. I felt guilty.”
occupational therapy, physical therapy,
social work, therapeutic recreation, —Sgt. Mark Comporato
prosthetics and blind rehabilitation.
Sandy Lai, program director at Palo focus is on quality of life after
Alto, says that multiple traumatic inju- the patient leaves the controlled
ries are not a requirement for admission. environment of the hospital.
For example, TBI by itself is enough “Homes are not accessible,”
criteria. PRCs have assisted some of the she said. “Being able to see
871 Iraq and Afghanistan vets who lost what’s going on once a patient
one or more limbs in combat. leaves here is really the begin-
Recreation activities for patients are ning. Having a team to help
tailored to age-appropriateness, includ- them along the way is very valu-
ing the use of technology such as laptop able.”
computers. Wii, PlayStation and Xbox Hopkins works to make
video game systems also are available for homes accessible and helps vet-
rehab use. “We need to adapt and meet erans readjust to family life. “A
the needs of this newer population in- lot of them have small children,”
jured during combat,” Lai said. she said. “They’re coming home
The PRC mission is for each veter- to a wife and a baby. We help
an to obtain the highest quality of life. them cope with that, not just
However, the specific goals and methods with the spinal cord injury, but
vary for each person. also the family.”
“We want them to reach their high- Ellen Ford, home care pro-

Sgt. Mark Comporato gets around in a specially designed wheelchair since


being paralyzed in February 2005. The Iraq veteran served with the 77th
Field Artillery Regiment.
photo by kelly Von Lunen / VFW

21
army
ACTIVE DUTY
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Matching Military and VA


Disability Ratings
air force
coast guard

Efforts are under way to reassess and improve


disability compensation for veterans.
national guard

T he Pentagon and VA are expanding a pro-


gram to help recently discharged wounded
veterans get their benefits quicker. VA says
the Disability Evaluation System will eliminate
The disparity for mental conditions was even
greater. The military scored traumatic brain
injuries 11.9% lower; severe depression 24.5%
lower; and post-traumatic stress disorder 32.8%
duplicative, time-consuming and “often confus- lower.
reserves

ing” elements of the military’s and VA’s disabil- The end result of this ongoing evaluation
ity evaluation process. should be less confusion, less paperwork and
The single evaluation “will allow wounded less wasted time for wounded troops leaving the
warriors a smoother and more efficient transi- military.
army

tion to getting services from VA,” said Tom


Pamperin, deputy director of VA’s Compensa- Reassessing Ratings
navy

tion and Pension Service. Veterans can apply to have their military dis-
The initial pilot program began in November ability ratings reviewed by a panel that was
2007, adding locations a year later. Beginning in mandated by the 2008 Defense Authorization Act.
marines

January 2010, it will expand to an additional six The Physical Disability Board of Review will re-
installations, for a total of 27. More than 5,431 evaluate disability ratings of 20% or less handed
service members have participated in the pro- out since Sept. 11, 2001.
gram since November 2007. David S.C. Chu, then-Defense under secre-
air force

In previous practice, the Army, Navy and Air tary for personnel and readiness, said in June
Force examined wounded troops to determine 2008 that the board’s purpose is “to reassess the
if they were fit to return to duty. If not, the mili- accuracy and fairness of the combined disability
coast guard

tary procedure determined what conditions they ratings assigned service members who were dis-
might have had and if they were eligible for mil- charged as unfit for continued military service.”
itary disability benefits. After discharge, veterans A rating of 30% or higher provides lifetime
underwent a VA entry exam that examined the health benefits—as well as medical retirement
same conditions to determine eligibility for VA pay—based on the rating, years served and rank
national guard

benefits. when retired. A Military Times analysis of five


Not only was the process redundant, but the years’ worth of Pentagon budget records showed
military and VA often came to different con- discrepancies in average amounts awarded.
clusions on a veteran’s condition. The military Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Les Melnyk
tended to be more rigid in its assessment and less told Military Times in a July 7, 2008, article that
generous when compensating the condition. A certain conditions originally not rated because
reserves

2007 Center for Naval Analyses survey showed they were considered to be pre-existing would
VA rated disabilities 7% higher. be eligible for review.
A separate study performed in August 2007 To be eligible, a service member must have
by the nonprofit research group CNA compared been separated from the armed forces between
army

31,473 veterans who had been examined by Sept. 11, 2001, and Dec. 31, 2009, because of
both Pentagon and VA doctors. It found that for “unfitness for continued military service result-
navy

all conditions VA ratings were 8.6% higher. ing from a physical disability.”

22
army
ACTIVE DUTY
by Heidi Russell Rafferty
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Families Cope With


Strains of War
air force
coast guard

While much is written about the intensity of combat,


relatively little is devoted to the hardships suffered by
military families on the home front in wartime. Here’s
national guard

how a few couples cope with the perpetual stress.

S taff Sgt. Gabe Faulkner traded screeching


rocket-propelled grenades for a screaming
3-month-old baby and his superiors’ com-
families who have learned to take frequent sepa-
rations in stride.
Their reunion struggles are common, said
reserves

mands for his 4-year-old daughter’s demands Tanya Biank, author of Under the Sabers: The Un-
when he returned home in May 2006 from an written Code of Army Wives. As a newspaper re-
eight-month deployment to Iraq. porter, Biank covered the military at Fort Bragg,
army

His wife, Misty, who gave birth during his N.C., for five years and interviewed dozens of
absence, had warned her husband in advance couples. She also is the daughter of a Vietnam
that home life had dramatically changed. “Gabe War veteran and wife of an Iraq War veteran.
navy

normally doesn’t get stressed out, but little things “Overall, military couples are doing pretty
like the baby screaming now drive him over the well, considering that these are difficult times,”
edge,” she said. “He was home for two days, and Biank said. “We’re well into the global war on ter-
marines

he said, ‘I’m going back to Iraq.’ ” ror, and couples are facing their third and fourth
During their marriage, the Faulkners have deployments during a very short time period.
been through six deployments, including two to They have an understanding that deployment is
air force

Iraq—one six-month tour in 2003 and another finite. It’s going to end at some point. ‘Every day
from September 2005 to May 2006. Faulkner is brings us closer.’ ”
with the Army’s 249th Engineer Battalion, and Couples interviewed revealed surprising
his home is Schofield Barracks in Wahiawa, Ha- similarities, some of which they share with their
coast guard

waii. counterparts from the WWII and Vietnam eras.


They’re part of a growing number of military Wives still share worry. Holidays apart are bitter-

“I don’t recommend bringing your


national guard

spouse to war. I knew what was


going on in Baghdad, especially
in his sector, because that’s
reserves

where he was.”
army

—Maj. Maria Biank


Husband and wife Cameron Leiker and Maria Biank, both Army majors,
navy

deployed to Iraq at the same time. Being a military couple in the war
zone simultaneously can pose special problems.
photo courtesy cameron leiker
marines

23
Wartime Worries home for a 15-day R&R break from an
“Couples have to Iraq deployment.
deal with life-and- He said the small annoyances of daily
death issues that life at home could create emotional hav-
other couples their oc at war, like when Brenda, his wife of
age don’t deal more than 25 years, told him the stove
with,” Biank said. wouldn’t work. “It bums me out, be-
“I have heard that cause I can’t be there to fix it,” he said.
war is sheer bore- Wives also are bombarded with daily
dom mixed with news reports on television and the Inter-
moments of sheer net. Brenda had to learn to turn it off.
terror.” “It’s good to watch it,” she said, “but
Too true, said now I don’t focus on it like I used to.”
Chaplain Jeffrey
Militti, a captain Two In Theatre
assigned to the But wives who are at war alongside their
796th Military husbands can’t walk away, said Maria
Police Battalion. Biank, Tanya Biank’s sister and an Army
Militti was in Iraq major. She did two tours in Iraq—one
twice—once from solo, just 14 months after her April 2002
July 2003 to Febru- wedding ( June 2003-March 2004), and
ary 2004 and then the second in tandem with her husband,
from January 2005 Maj. Cameron Leiker ( July 2004-March
to January 2006. 2005).
His wife, Vera, The worst was knowing details of
played single par- Cameron’s whereabouts. They were at
ent to sons Blake camps about 12 miles from each other.
and Brandon. She was an executive officer for logistics
Militti noted at a command center; he was an op-
that “deep loneli- erations officer who planned raids with
ness” usually sets Marines. His battalion of 300 handled
in after the first more than 9,100 patrols in 12 months.
Staff Sgt. David Marlin and his wife Brenda have month. “I don’t recommend bringing your
experienced all the trials and tribulations common “Ironically, one spouse to war,” Maria said. “I knew
to a married couple in wartime. of the biggest prob- what was going on in Baghdad, espe-
photo by tom kimmell
lems is boredom,” cially in his sector, because that’s where
“It bums me out, he said. “When
you’re away from
he was.”
Sometimes it’s just as hard on the

because I can’t be there the fight and mill-


ing around a camp,
husbands. Sgt. 1st Class Willie Holloway
supervised five maintenance companies
while his wife, Staff Sgt. Linda Hollo-
to fix it [the stove].” it’s boring. It’s one
thing to be bored way, oversaw medical supply logistics.
here, but another They’ve been married more than a de-
—Staff Sgt. David Marlin to be bored over cade. They were in Baghdad for all of
there.” 2005. Willie worried because his wife’s
sweet. Strife unexpectedly accompanies At such times, the soldier can drift to camp had more mortar attacks than his.
joy at homecomings. Families have to incessant worry about what’s happening He also fretted when Linda hopped in
learn to be families again. at home, he said. “It’s unbearable for a helicopter for their monthly 24-hour
But in other ways, today’s couples some.” visits.
are unique. Webcams and online instant For Faulkner, the biggest worries “I’d hear that a helicopter was shot
messaging have replaced arduous letter were about his pregnant wife manag- down and would worry more until she
writing. Some couples are simultane- ing a rambunctious pre-schooler on her got back to her camp [safely],” he said.
ously neck-deep in war zones. own. “I know how stressed she is, and it
Here are some of the issues they face stressed me out,” he said. A Year Without Mom and Dad
and how they’re dealing with unrelent- Staff Sgt. David Marlin, with the Five-year-old Abbey Quinn lived with
ing challenges. 10th Combat Support Hospital at Fort her grandparents in Delaware from
Carson in Colorado Springs, Colo., was September 2006 to August 2007. Her

24
Families Cope With Strains of War
parents were out of the country—not August. la’s only responsibility was her job and
on vacation, but stationed in Iraq. They “Mentally, we weren’t prepared,” her soldiers. She didn’t have to worry
are one of the more than 47,000 joint- Angela said. “It was hard on me because about cooking, laundry or bills.
military couples in the armed forces. I knew I was getting ready to deploy and “I go to work and I go back and I
Abbey’s mom, Capt. Angela Quinn, I was okay with that. But I was okay be- don’t worry about feeding someone or
was deployed as a personnel officer with cause I knew she was going to be home putting somebody to sleep,” she said. “I
the Army’s 541st Combat Sustainment with daddy and they were going to have come back and I have to remember to
Support Bn., 1st Sustainment Bde., 1st each other.” take something out for dinner, get up
Inf. Div. Before she left, Angela dropped Then came the task of explaining to in time to get her ready for school. It’s
her teary-eyed daughter off with her their young daughter why they both had a very difficult transition. It’s worth it,
family. to leave: “We told her we had to go be- though.”
“That was probably the hardest thing cause the Army is doing a job over there In their first six years of marriage,
I’ve ever had to do,” Angela said of leav- to try to help the Iraqi people from the the Quinns have only lived together for
ing her daughter behind for a year. “It bad guys who are doing some not-so- two. They got used to communicating
was the hardest the first month or so. It’s nice things,” Angela said. “It’s the best on the phone, becoming stronger over
kind of sad to say, but you do get used to way we could phrase it. She probably time. John and Angela plan to stay in
it. You get involved with your work and doesn’t understand it, not like an older the Army for a while, but prefer to keep
where you’re at.” child would.” deployments separate if possible.
Abbey adjusted to her new life as Abbey’s mother and father moved “We both like it so much that we
well. After calling her mom three times her entire room to Delaware for her want to stay,” Angela said. “We’d rather
that night asking to be picked up, she stay. Even without her parents, the child be happy doing this job and deal with
settled down. had all of her possessions to make a new the hardship that it causes from time to
“She had a hard time at first,” state feel like home. time. I want to be a positive role model
Angela said. “But then she started school “My dad told me she had a very diffi- and show Abbey that she can do what-
out there and got very attached to her cult time adjusting,” Angela said. “After ever she wants to do and still have a fam-
grandparents. I have a brother and sister that she started school and everything. ily and do kind of a tough job.”
that are 14 years old that gave her a lot Life does go on. She met new friends John says that his time at home with
of attention. I looked forward to calling and got involved in her own life at the his wife and daughter makes all the hard
her once a week.” time.” times worth it: “Just sitting together on
Abbey’s parents called her almost ev- John had been deployed previously, the couch and watching TV is great,” he
ery Saturday. They tried to disrupt her but Abbey was able to stay with her said. “I feel like all the hard days we’ve
life as little as possible to make the situ- mother at the time. “This time around, both been through are worth it when
ation easier on her, while still staying in both of us were gone, and I felt it was we are able to spend quality time with
contact. much harder on our daughter not to our little girl. Also, knowing that we are
Capt. John Quinn spent the time as a have either one of us there to talk to, providing for her now and in the future
logistics officer with Military Transition learn from or to ask questions to on a makes what we do as a family easier to
Team 0511 attached to an Iraqi infantry daily basis,” John said. “Luckily, we have take in.”
battalion. The Quinns had known since a great extended family and Abbey is a
December 2005 that Angela would be well-adjusted little girl even at the age of Making the Connection
deploying, giving them almost eight five.” E-mail, instant messaging and Webcams
months to prepare. In July 2006, they The transition back to home life has keep couples in regular close contact,
learned that John would be leaving in been a challenge as well. In Iraq, Ange- despite the miles of separation. “The

“I’d hear that a helicopter


was shot down and would
worry more until she got
back to her camp [safely].”
—Sgt. 1st Class Willie Holloway
Staff Sgt. Linda Holloway and husband Sgt. 1st Class
Willie Holloway also served in Iraq at the same time,
increasing the stress on them both.
photo courtesy linda holloway
25
Families Cope With Strains of War
whole morale of the family was dif-
ferent for this deployment because of
When the Faulkners were first
married, their post-deployment ar- Deployment Divorces
the Web cam,” Misty Faulkner said. guments “were like World War III,”
“Cheyenne [our daughter] could ask Gabe said. With each successive Dbuteployments rock already-fractured marriages
seem to tighten the relationships of people
[Gabe] things and turn on the com- separation, they have learned how to
puter and call him. He didn’t feel he better negotiate the little things. But who start out strong, couples say.
missed seven months of her grow- there are still major readjustments. There were an estimated 27,312 divorces
ing.” “You’re gone a long time and are among some 765,000 married members of the
Christmas Day was like any other expected to either kill someone or active-duty Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine
workday for Gabe, but that evening, make sure no one kills you, and you Corps in FY2009, according to figures obtained
as he watched their morning activities think about it every single day,” he by the Associated Press. That’s a divorce rate of
in Hawaii, he felt like he was part of said. “Then they send you home and 3.6% for all services, up from 3.4% the previous
the celebration. Misty also told Gabe say, ‘Do whatever you want—drink fiscal year, according to the Defense Manpower
on the Webcam that she was in labor. yourself to death.’ A young guy’s Data Center.
Packages still prevail, especially at mentality is, ‘I have to protect myself,’ Female service members face divorces at
holiday time. The Marlins’ Christmas and that’s from everyone. It takes a lot nearly three times the rate of men: 7.7% for
Eve tradition is to have a Mexican to get out of that mindset.” women in 2009, compared to 3% for men. CDC
meal. “I can’t send him enchiladas,” Simple things can cause angst. statistics showed in 2005 that 43% of all first
Brenda laughs. “But I’m from Texas, Brenda Marlin eats Triscuits and marriages end in divorce within 10 years, the
so I’ve learned to make hot sauce very cream cheese for dinner while Da- most recent statistics readily available.
well. That’s what he gets.” vid is gone. David likes home-cooked However, RAND Corporation, a non-profit re-
As for letter writing, Militti said it’s meals. “I’m not used to this new search organization, concluded from a yearlong
“almost non-existent.” stove, and now I’m burning things!” study that divorce among military families is no
Gabe enjoys talking to Vietnam- she said during their R&R. higher today than during peacetime in 1996. Re-
era veterans about how things have It is a surreal experience for re- gardless, the Army devotes millions of dollars per
changed. “The only difference is turning soldiers when they’re sud- year to strengthen family relationships.
that we have it so much easier than denly thrust home. Maria Biank Tanya Biank, an author on the subject and
they did in every aspect,” he said. and Cameron Leiker jump at every longtime military journalist who has interviewed
“They only had letters, so they prob- loud bang, whether it’s from practice dozens of couples, said she doesn’t believe de-
ably meant so much more. We take rounds at Fort Hood or an obscure ployments cause problems. “There are already
e-mails for granted. We can’t even sound in the neighborhood. pre-existing problems that are amplified by the
comprehend not having that type of During their R&R last Septem- deployment,” she said. A deployment “gives you
communication.” ber, the Holloways went to Disney the opportunity [to cheat or leave], because you
World—a far cry from their violent are separated.”
Coming Home Isn’t Always Easy lives in Baghdad. Just being together Chaplain Jeffrey Militti, a captain assigned to
Homecomings are a mixture of a constantly was like a dream, let alone the 63rd Signal Battalion at Fort Gordon, Ga.,
euphoric honeymoon with a power vacationing at the Magic Kingdom, said although the divorce rate is high, “there are
struggle for domestic control. The Linda said. still a good number who are making it through
Holloways bought a house on their The most difficult reunion for some this.”
return. The problem: Willie got home soldiers is with their children. During He adds that infidelity is a huge problem
a month before Linda, and he made Militti’s most recent deployment, his when soldiers are abroad. “They’re antsy, and
some decisions that she didn’t like. older son changed dramatically. “It they want to get out and do fun things,” he said.
“Buying a house and furniture isn’t seems like I lost years of their lives, “They look for security, so it leads to cheating.”
really major stuff after you’ve been and now I can’t get it back,” he said. Staff Sgt. David Marlin of the 10th Combat
over in Iraq, but it still can cause His boys prefer playing computer Support Hospital at Fort Carson, Colo., advises
problems,” Linda laughs. games to going on errands with him. younger couples not to wait for deployment to
For Militti and many of the troops “Being over there taught me firsthand work on their marriages. He’s been married more
he counsels, becoming a two-parent that military service is a sacrifice,” than 25 years and attends marriage conferences
household is an adjustment. Vera Militti said. “You do sacrifice time with his wife before he deploys.
handled the checkbook while he was with your children. When you say it But not everyone is so proactive. Militti said
gone. “She continued making those off-hand, it doesn’t sound like a big many couples shun counseling on post with mili-
decisions and seemed defensive if I deal, but when you think about all the tary chaplains, for fear of besmirching their Army
had a question,” Militti said. “That little things you missed over a year’s career. Biank agrees that it’s a big problem.
can mean a lot, depending on what time, you’ve sacrificed quite a bit.” “There is a stigma to reaching out for help in
you think your role is. When those a culture that values not only physical but emo-
lines get crossed, it messes a lot of tional strength and stability,” she said. “We ex-
guys up.” pect soldiers to be tough, to do their job, but how
does that affect a troubled relationship?”
26
army
ACTIVE DUTY
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

The Road Home


air force

As the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division


of the Minnesota National Guard prepared to return
coast guard

home after a 16-month deployment to Iraq, a Guard


chaplain created a unique program to help unit
members reintegrate into their civilian lives.
national guard

W
hen it became clear that National Guard and partment plan for this,” said Morris, who served
Reserve troops would be used extensively in with the 4th Psychological Operations Group
the Iraq War, Minnesota National Guard (Airborne) in Fallujah in 2004, and is a member
Adjutant General Larry Shellito knew he didn’t of VFW Post 323 in Oak Park Heights, Minn.
want his state’s soldiers having the same prob- “We took the best practices from around the
lems he had returning from Vietnam. He decided country, listened to soldiers and their families and
reserves

to start a statewide program to help Guardsmen piecemealed it all together.”


reintegrate into society, and he hired Maj. John Morris describes the program as a three-
Morris, deployment deputy state chaplain, to legged stool: one leg is soldier training, one is
army

implement it. family training and the third is community train-


Called Beyond the Yellow Ribbon, the program ing. When all three groups are educated, they are
trains soldiers, families and communities to rec- able to support each other and thrive.
navy

ognize and meet the challenges faced by return-


ing service members. It is so comprehensive and Soldier and Family Training
has proven so successful that it served as a model The first tenet of the program is training the
marines

for what is now a national Pentagon program. Guardsmen before, during and after deploy-
“There was no Army doctrine or Defense De- ment. Pre-deployment instruction teaches the
soldiers and their families to rec-
air force

ognize, address and treat combat


stress. Education on the effects
of combat stress continues dur-
ing combat operations until the
coast guard

unit returns home.


Upon their return, Guards-
men go through demobilization
training, where each one is en-
rolled in VA and informed of
national guard

available veterans benefits. Then


they have two days of initial rein-
tegration training. They and their

Staff Sgt. Jonna Miller, a


member of the Beyond the
reserves

Yellow Ribbon team, speaks


to Jenny Ebel, wife of a
deployed National Guardsman,
following the Making Marriages
Work After Combat workshop
army

at Family Integration Academy


in Brooklyn Park, Minn.
photo by dawn villella
navy
marines

27
The Road Home
families attend briefings and workshops Union-Eagle. “I always hear something city council meetings.”
by Shannon Hanson
connecting them with service providers different each time.” According to Morris, “VFW in Min-
that can assist them in overcoming the The third one she attended, in March nesota has been a tremendous champion
challenges of reintegration. 2007 in Princeton, featured testimony of our efforts.”
All of this training is followed by from a woman whose husband had been Morris said that more than 10,000
sessions 30, 60 and 90 days after their on active duty in Iraq, a representative people around the state have attended
return to reconnect with service provid- from a VA Vet Center with reintegra- a community training session, and the
ers, revisit the effects of combat stress tion tips, and a soldier who had been in program holds two to three trainings a
and take post-deployment health reas- Iraq who related his homecoming expe- week, on average.
sessments. rience.
“Department of Defense medical ‘Saving Lives and Marriages’
authorities state that as many as 30% Tailored Community Training Naturally, Morris faced challenges
of returning Army Reserve and Guard Finally, the program presents commu- within the program. The first thing he
members struggle with significant men- nity reintegration training to educate wanted to change was DoD’s regulation
tal health issues four to six months after community leaders about the challenges that Guardsmen could not be ordered
returning from combat,” Morris said. of reintegration. It also lets them know into drill status for 90 days after return-
“And for most, the biggest challenge is what they can do to assist veterans and ing home. Because of this, his 30-, 60-
relational: rebuilding marriages, recon- their families in connecting with the and 90-day trainings could not be made
necting with children, rejoining the community. Tailored training is pro- mandatory.
global economy, or getting back to com- vided for individual groups, such as law- This forced isolation from their unit
munities of faith.” yers, doctors, law enforcement, social members was “stripping them from the
So while training the soldiers is essen- services, spiritual leaders, labor leaders families they went to war with,” Morris
tial, educating the families and commu- and human resources personnel. said, “and putting them in communities
nities also is of utmost importance. For example, doctors who attend the that may or may not know what they’ve
While the Guard members are de-
ployed, the program hosts Family Rein-
tegration Academies to prepare family
members for their homecoming. These
“Reintegration is a
three- to four-hour gatherings aim to
provide resources to family members
community process, not
and increase their knowledge of the re-
integration process to make the transi-
a government program.”
tion as easy as possible. —Maj. John Morris
The initial 30 to 60 days are dif-
ficult for many families, due to gaps in
TRICARE coverage and the complex- training are encouraged to become a been through.”
ity of the health care system, the lack TRICARE provider. Clergy are encour- Morris felt the rule was contributing
of VA family services, and the confus- aged to learn about the toll combat takes to higher incidents of problems among
ing plethora of services available to vet- on marriage and to reach out to military Guard members. So until the follow-up
erans. The workshops help sort out the families. Members of law enforcement training sessions could be made manda-
information so families don’t have to do learn what they can expect from combat tory, he made it as clear as possible that
it themselves. vets, such as a tendency to speed while it was in the Guardsmen’s best interests
Workshops presented in the train- driving, jumpiness and that they may to attend.
ings can include introducing VA, mar- carry a gun. The program is important, Morris
riage after combat, parenting as a single Program coordinators use local com- said, because it is bringing help to the
soldier, reconnecting soldiers with their munity agencies wherever possible to soldiers and their families, not wait-
children, returning to work and tax op- assist them in their presentations. “We ing for them to seek out help on their
tions, and TRICARE. Each workshop network with anyone who works with own. “We are bringing all active-duty
is facilitated by leaders in the respective veterans,” Morris said. services to them on the drill floor,” he
fields, such as social workers, veterans Jim Dalziel, a member of VFW Post said. “That’s how we’re saving lives and
service officers or individuals who have 6843 in Princeton, recruited other Post marriages.”
experience with the issue. members to help with the March 2007 And other states followed suit on their
Linda Anderson of Princeton, Minn., event. own. The Guards of Vermont, New
attended three presentations while her “VFW members were used in mak- Hampshire, Ohio, Georgia, Mississip-
husband, 1st Sgt. Randy Hatch, was ing sure the community was aware of pi, Louisiana and Oregon have similar
in Iraq. “Morris has always done such the event,” he said. “They took flyers to programs. “There is a broad consensus
a wonderful job,” she told the Princeton local polling places and brought it up at among the Guard components,” Morris

28
The Road Home
said. “Acknowledging this, saying we’re has been the biggest success of the pro- there is a difficult period of transition,
going to address it, not waiting for the gram so far—aligning the communities readjustment and hard work ahead for
Pentagon to tell us to do it.” with the returning service members. every soldier and his or her family.”
Morris says a federal law has been The program helps to normalize the
signed mandating Yellow Ribbon rein- experience for veterans. “Going to com-
tegration initiatives in each state for all bat and back is a significant challenge,”
Guard and Reserves. Of course, fund- Morris said. “It’s normal to have read-
ing is always a challenge for programs justment problems. It’s not easy. You State Resources
such as these. don’t necessarily have PTSD just be- Mississippi:
cause you’re struggling.”
www.beyondtheyellowribbon.com
‘It’s Not Easy’ What makes the Minnesota program
“Reintegration is a community process, unique is that veterans whole communi- Oregon:
not a government program,” Morris ties are waiting to help them when they www.orng-vet.org
said. And that really is the key to Beyond get back. Louisiana:
the Yellow Ribbon. People tend to think “The road home from war is lon-
www.la.ngb.army.mil/Reintegration
that if VA could be fixed, it would be ger, steeper and often more challenging
able to take care of all the GIs com- than the road to war for most soldiers Minnesota:
ing home. But it’s the community that and their families,” Morris said. “After www.minnesotanationalguard.org/
brings them all the way home. And that the joyful, long-anticipated reunions, returning_troops/btyr_overview.php

Maj. John Morris uses a canoe as a metaphor when speaking to participants of a Family Integration Academy in
Brooklyn Park, Minn. He describes how the leaving and returning of a deployed service member rocks a family the
same way getting in and out of a canoe destabilizes it. Everyone in the family must work to balance the canoe.
photo by dawn villella

29
army
ACTIVE DUTY
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Medals Recognize
Overseas Service
air force
coast guard

The importance of military medals for boosting morale


is well known. Campaign medals do so by recognizing
warriors for their service in war zones.

A
national guard

s of October 2009, 2,022,975 Americans had served at least once in either Afghanistan
or Iraq. A full 28% of these veterans were members of the National Guard or
Reserves. Many troops have deployed two and even three times or more.

Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal


reserves

Troops who have served 30 consecutive days or 60 non-consecutive days since Sept.
11, 2001, in one of 69 areas in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi
Freedom.
army

Iraq Campaign Medal


Campaign stars for four phases.
navy

• Liberation of Iraq:
March 19, 2003, to May 1, 2003
• Transition of Iraq:
marines

May 2, 2003, to June 28, 2004


• Iraqi Governance:
June 29, 2004, to Dec. 15, 2005
air force

• National Resolution:
Dec. 16, 2005, to present

Afghanistan Campaign Medal


coast guard

Campaign stars for three phases.


• Liberation of Afghanistan:
Sept. 11 to Nov. 30, 2001
• Consolidation I:
Dec. 1, 2001, to Sept. 30, 2006
national guard

• Consolidation II:
Oct. 1, 2006, to present

Combat Action Badge


GIs must be assigned to an Army unit and be actively engaged by the enemy while
performing satisfactorily in accordance with the prescribed rules of engagement.
reserves

Air Force Expeditionary Service Ribbon with Gold Border


Represents participation in combat operations by airmen who were
army

conducting or supporting combat operations in designated combat zones.

Air Force Combat Action Medal


navy

Recognizes airmen who go “outside the wire” on official duties—either in the


air or on the ground—and are at risk of grave danger from lethal enemy fire.
Ground personnel are eligible if they are attacked by bombs or IEDs.
30
army
ACTIVE DUTY
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Memorials Commemorate
War Dead
air force
coast guard

The national War on Terror Memorial in Hermitage, Pa.,


lists all the names of those Americans killed in Afghanistan
and Iraq, and some before. In addition, virtually every
military base has its own permanent tribute.
national guard
reserves
army
navy
marines
air force

1 2

1 War on Terror Memorial


Hermitage, Pa.
coast guard

Dedicated May 30, 2005, to all military


personnel who died in the war on
terrorism dating back to 1975. The
memorial is updated weekly with
etched names.
photo courtesy tom flynn / hillcrest memorial park
national guard

2 Middle East Conflicts Wall Memorial


Marseilles, Ill.
Privately built in 2004 and situated in
America’s heartland, this unique tribute
names all Americans killed by terrorists
dating back to Lebanon in 1982.
reserves

VFW Files

3 Ohio Fallen Heroes Memorial


Sunbury, Ohio
Dedicated June 30, 2007, to the
army

Ohioans who have lost their lives in


the war on terrorism. Ohio Fallen
3 Heroes Memorial, Inc., a private
navy

nonprofit, built the $450,000 memorial.


photo courtesy ohio fallen heroes
memorial, sunbury, ohio
marines

31
Memorials

4
4 Oregon Afghan-Iraqi Freedom Memorial
Salem, Ore.
Dedicated Nov. 11, 2006, to Oregonians
killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. The names
of all service personnel with ties to the
state are inscribed on the granite wall.
photo by dan long / oregon department
of veterans affairs

5 82nd Airborne Division Memorial


Fort Bragg, N.C.
Dedicated in 2005 to paratroopers killed in
Afghanistan and Iraq. Individual names
are featured on granite columns.
photo by pfc. mike pryor

6 Global War on Terrorism Wall of Honor


Sacramento, Ca.
Dedicated Sept. 11, 2006, and located at the
5 entrance of the California State Military Museum
in Sacramento, the Wall lists the names of
residents killed in Afghanistan and Iraq.
photo courtesy California State Military Museum

7 Warriors Walk
Fort Stewart, Ga.
Dedicated April 30, 2003. It is a walkway lined
with American redbud trees and stone markers.
The names and ranks of fort soldiers killed in the
recent wars are engraved on the markers.
u.s. army photo / sharon bass

6
Time for a National Memorial
TPennsylvania
hough all-inclusive memorials do exist in
and Illinois, there is not an Af-
ghanistan/Iraq memorial in the vicinity of the
national capital.
Such an honor is long overdue. As news-
paper editor John Hughes wrote: “That honor
should one day be translated into permanent
recognition in the shape of a memorial on the
Washington [D.C.] Mall.”
7
32
army
ACTIVE DUTY
by Kelly Von Lunen
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Memorial in Ink
air force

Surviving service members get tattoos


to honor their fallen comrades.
coast guard

W hen you think of memorials, you usually pic-


ture something carved in stone. But many
service members today have a different way
to remember the fallen: permanent body art.
a second tour. It was during that tour that the
explosion took his friend’s life. Hoyt, who later
joined the Army, was not present when Bradach-
Nall died but found out soon after while helping
national guard

Evan Hoyt, a former Marine from Neodesha, in the company headquarters.


Kan., served with Cpl. Travis Bradach-Nall dur- Almost immediately, Hoyt knew that he want-
ing two back-to-back ed to get a tattoo in memory of his friend, who,
tours in Iraq. Hoyt and by Hoyt’s estimate, had about 30.
Bradach-Nall served in “It was kind of a good tribute to him,” Hoyt
the same platoon until said.
reserves

July 2, 2003, when Bra- Three of the Marines in the squad followed
dach-Nall was killed through with memorial tattoos, all individually.
in a mine-clearing op- Hoyt got the first half of his tattoo on one leg
eration in Karbala. in December 2005, depicting a fallen-soldier me-
army

Three pieces of shrap- morial in the background behind a photo of Bra-


nel pierced his chest, dach-Nall, as well as his name and the date he
navy

and he was declared died. A few months later, Hoyt had the Marine
dead on the scene. anchor and globe tattooed on his other leg.
The two Marines “I think the two together say that he was a
marines

had known each other Marine, but that he has fallen,” Hoyt said. “I
for approximately one think the two of them together tell the whole
year. They had become story. They’re two parts of one tattoo.”
air force

close friends—Travis The memorial tattoo was a first for Hoyt, a


attended Evan’s going- member of VFW Post 852 in Lawrence, Kan.
away party before leav- “I’d never really intended to get a tattoo,” he
ing for Iraq. said. “It was really a shock to my family.”
coast guard

Following their first After two years of searching for the right art-
tour of duty with the ist, Hoyt selected his brother-in-law to tattoo him.
Engineer Detachment, The entire tattooing process took a total of six
Evan Hoyt, a former Marine with C 1st Combat Service and a half hours. “It did provide some closure,”
Company, Engineer Support Battalion, Support Group, Hoyt said. “It kind of made it permanent—in
national guard

1st Force Service Support Group,


honored his fallen friend and fellow Hoyt says he and more ways than one. It had been a long time
Marine, Travis Bradach-Nall, with a other squad mem- coming.”
memorial tattoo on his calves. bers convinced Bra-
photo by robert widener / vfw
dach-Nall to stay for
reserves

“It was kind of a good tribute


to him [Bradach-Nall].”
army

—Evan Hoyt
navy
marines

33
army
ACTIVE DUTY
by Janie Blankenship
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Women in Today’s Military are


Paving New Paths
air force
coast guard

Both at war and stateside, the role of women


in the armed forces continues to change and
grow. Here are just a few of their stories.
national guard

W omen may make up only 11% of the troops


who have been deployed to the war zones,
but they continue to prove themselves under
months old, Navy Lt. Cmdr. Heidi Squier Kraft
was deployed to Iraq as one of a four-person
combat stress platoon, assigned to the Marines’
reserves

pressure. Since the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq Alpha Surgical Company.
first began, service women have changed the way Kraft’s seven-month tour is chronicled in her
society has traditionally viewed females in war. book Rule Number Two: Lessons I Learned in a Com-
Here is a look at a few outstanding women bat Hospital. (Incidentally, Kraft’s book is the first
army

among the 231,683 who have gone to war. written from the perspective of a psychologist in
Iraq.) In it Kraft poses the question, “Who’s the
Navy Psychologist Tackles Grief in War Zone shrink for the shrink in the combat zone?”
navy

In 2004 when her twin boy and girl were only 15 A clinical psychologist, Kraft was charged
with treating Marines suffering from
marines

acute combat stress, as well as the


doctors and nurses caring for the
severely wounded. Often, she had
to tell Marines about the deaths of
air force

other Marines who died in the hos-


pital in Al Asad.
And more times than not,
coast guard
national guard
reserves
army

Heidi Squier Kraft, center, takes a break with Karen Lovecchio Clark and Katie
navy

Foster Saybolt, while serving with the Marines’ Alpha Surgical Company at Al
Asad, Iraq, in 2004. Kraft was a clinical psychologist in a combat stress platoon.
photo courtesy heidi squier kraft

34
Women in Today’s Military Are Paving New Paths
Kraft sat with dying Marines in the hos- she “wasn’t well.”
pital’s expectant room—the room where In her book, Kraft writes of coming
Marines were placed when nothing home and getting back to work in treat-
more could be done to save them. ing people in a “peacetime” environ-
It was in that room that Kraft met ment and how difficult it was.
Cpl. Jason Dunham, who would posthu- “I could not fathom the crises that my
mously receive the Medal of Honor for patients made out of their life events,”
throwing himself on a grenade to save she writes. “Only months before, I had
the lives of those around him. held the hand of a 22-year-old hero who
Although the doctors said he wasn’t gave his life to save two of his men. I
going to survive, Kraft held the young had witnessed courage in the face of in-
Marine’s hand and encouraged him to jury and pain, loyalty in the face of grief.
hold on. She noticed that he was re- Everyday psychological problems not
sponding to her voice and squeezing her only paled in comparison, they struck
hands so she yelled for the doctors. It was me as frankly absurd.”
a joyous moment for Kraft, as she held Aside from work, Kraft had to
his hand all the way to the Medevac. readjust to her life as a mom, as her
Army Capt. Maria Ines Ortiz was killed
Dunham made it to National Na- family became her No. 1 priority. July 10, 2007, in Baghdad’s Green
val Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., “It was too hard to have my children Zone. Ortiz became the first Army
where his family could be with him. in the forefront of my mind while I was nurse to die from hostile action
He later died. Kraft is now friends with in Iraq,” Kraft said. “I had to compart- during the Iraq War.
Dunham’s family. They asked her to at- mentalize them and I put my photos Family Photo

tend the Medal of Honor ceremony at away. I only called home once a week
the White House. and set aside time to think about my is very, very hard,” Maj. Gen. Gale Pol-
“Deb Dunham believes that her son children.” lack, the Army’s acting surgeon general
heard her voice when I spoke to him tell- Kraft said her twins, who are now told The Washington Post. “You feel like a
ing him to hold on,” Kraft said. “She’s school-aged, were so young at the time piece of your heart is gone.”
part of the reason I wrote this book. She of her deployment that they weren’t Ortiz had been serving in Iraq since
told me other mothers need to know really affected. Her husband and her September 2006. She previously served
there are people like me over there car- parents continually showed them pho- for 18 months as chief nurse at the Kirk
ing for their children.” tos of their mom. Plus, she had a DVD U.S. Army Health Clinic at Aberdeen
While Kraft said she read as much as made of herself reading stories so they Proving Ground in Maryland.
she could in preparation for her deploy- could see and hear her while she was “If there was such a thing as the
ment, nothing could have prepared her away. jewel of the clinic, she was the jewel,”
for the cases she treated daily. After nine years in the Navy, Kraft Renee Smith, who worked with Ortiz
“We had to rely on our instincts be- left active duty in 2005. Today, she is the at Kirk, told The Washington Post. “Her
cause we were the first such group in deputy coordinator for the U.S. Navy work wasn’t finished until everybody
Iraq,” she said. “We passed on every- Combat Stress Control Program in San was cared for.”
thing we had learned to our replace- Diego. Ortiz, 40, was born in New Jersey and
ments.” A couple of years removed from grew up in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. New
Kraft recalled the first Marine to be Iraq, Kraft says she will always miss the Jersey Gov. John S. Corzine recognized
killed after her unit arrived in Iraq. A “absolutely extraordinary sunsets and her “patriotism and dedicated service to
staff sergeant carried the dead Marine sunrises” in Iraq. What won’t she miss? her fellow soldiers.”
over his shoulder into the hospital. For “I do not miss and could live my Nurses like Ortiz have been serving
six months, he buried that incident in- whole life without having to hold the and dying in war since the early days of
side himself. But as the staff sergeant hand of a dying Marine,” she said. our country. One such nurse was Ellen
prepared to go home, the event resur- May Tower of Byron, Mich. Serving on
faced. ‘Jewel of the Clinic’ Puerto Rico in 1899, Tower contracted
“He came to me one day with his On July 10, 2007, Army Capt. Maria typhoid fever and died.
arms out in front of him,” Kraft said. Ines Ortiz became the first Army nurse Tower was the first Army nurse to
“He looked at me and said, ‘I see his to die from hostile action during the die on foreign soil. She also was the first
blood and his brains all over my uni- Iraq War. Serving with the Army’s 28th woman to receive a military funeral in
form.’ I sat with him and later arranged Combat Support Hospital, 3rd Medical Michigan. Thousands turned out for
for treatment when he got home.” Command in Baghdad’s Green Zone, the funeral in Byron on Jan. 17, 1899.
Kraft describes her readjustment in Ortiz was killed by shrapnel after a The village of Tower was named for the
coming home as “tough,” noting she felt heavy mortar attack. nurse when it was founded later
a very real disconnect. She also admits “Having one of the family go down the same year.
35
Women in Today’s Military Are Paving New Paths
destroyed it. The vehicle in front of and backed it up to Brown’s position so
the destroyed Humvee stopped. Brown the wounded could be loaded and trans-
jumped out amid insurgent fire and ran ported a few hundred meters away for
to the burning vehicle with her platoon medical evacuation.
sergeant, Staff Sgt. Jose Santos. “I did not really think about anything
Brown and the less-wounded sol- except for getting the guys to a safer lo-
diers moved the others away from the cation and getting them taken care of
flames and into a low stream bed. That and getting out of there,” Brown told
was still too close as rounds of ammuni- The Associated Press.
tion began exploding in the truck. More Smith and Spray were eventually
than once, Brown shielded the seriously flown to the U.S., where they recovered.
wounded with her body. Sgt. Zachary Tellier received the Bronze
They were caught between enemy Star for pulling Spray out of the burning
fire and blasts from the truck. But Brown Humvee, but was killed five months later
continued to treat Spc. Stanson Smith in a firefight.
In 2006, Navy Cmdr. Maureen and Spc. Larry Spray, both of whom “I’ve seen a lot of grown men who
Pennington was the first nurse to had life-threatening injuries. didn’t have the courage and weren’t able
lead a surgical company in the Iraq
Lt. Martin Robbins told The Wash- to handle themselves under fire like she
War zone.
dod photo by lance cpl. angela m. hitchcock
ington Post: “There was small-arms fire did,” Staff Sgt. Aaron Best, Robbins’
marforpac
coming in from two different machine- gunner that day, told The Washington Post.
gun positions, mortars falling … a burn- “She never missed a beat.”
‘She Never Missed a Beat’ ing Humvee with 16 mortar rounds in it, Brown, who turned 21 in May 2009,
At 18 years old, Army Spc. Monica chunks of aluminum the size of softballs was 17 when she graduated from Brazos
Brown found herself dodging bullets flying all around. It was about as hairy River Charter School in Morgan, Texas,
and using her body as a shield to pro- as it gets. I was surprised I didn’t get and also when she enlisted in the Army.
tect wounded troops in battle on April killed, and she’d been over there for 10, She joined at the same time her brother,
25, 2007, in the Jani Khail district of 15 minutes longer.” Justin, did. While he went into the infan-
Afghanistan. A medic, Brown received Santos got one of the unit’s vehicles try, Brown wanted to be a medic.
the Silver Star, the first for a woman
serving in Afghanistan.
A member of the 782nd Brigade
Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat
“I’ve seen a lot of grown men
Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Brown
was based at Camp Salerno, near the
who didn’t have the courage
Pakistan border. But when C Troop of
the 4th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regi-
and weren’t able to handle
ment, was set to go out on patrol, it
needed a medic because theirs was on
themselves under fire like she
leave. Brown was chosen.
Having been on patrol for a couple
did. She never missed a beat.”
of days, the five-truck convoy was re-
turning to base when the last truck hit —Staff Sgt. Aaron Best, Monica Brown’s gunner
an improvised explosive device, which

Female Silver Star Recipients


Since World War I, nine women have been awarded the Silver Star. They are:

World War I: World War II*: Iraq War: Afghanistan War:


Linnie Leckrone Mary Louise Roberts Wilson Leigh Ann Hester** Monica Brown
Jane Rignel Elaine Roe (She was an MP with (She was a medic
Irene Robar Rita Virginia Rourke the Kentucky National with the 82nd
(All were Army nurses.) Ellen Ainsworth Guard.) Airborne Division.)
(All were Army nurses.)

*All were earned at Anzio, Italy, in 1944.


**She is the first woman to receive the honor for actual combat.
Note: Virginia Hall was the only woman ever awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, for her OSS service in France in 1944.
36
Women in Today’s Military Are Paving New Paths
encouraged her to join the military. Her and be adopted by their handlers follow-
brother also took that advice and is a ing traumatic events.
Navy doctor. After her successful adoption of Rex,
Britt listened to her dad and attend- Dana holds no regrets about her military
ed the U.S. Military Academy at West service. “I wanted to be a part of it,” she
Point. Her class was just the fourth to said, “and I would go back to Iraq in a
allow women to attend. She also holds heartbeat if I could.”
master’s degrees from the U.S. Army In November 2006, she married Mike
War College and the Joint Military Col- Mangan, the flight medic she credits
lege in strategic intelligence and strate- with saving her life.
Brig. Gen. Maria Britt became the first
female general of the Georgia National
gic studies. No doubt, women will continue forg-
Guard on Dec. 1, 2007. After the ceremony, Britt said that ing new roles while serving proudly in
VFW file photo being a woman and a working mother the military.
of three has prepared her for her com-
mand and given her a style of leader-
ship that emphasizes good listening and
teambuilding.
“I don’t thrive on confrontation or Women Deaths in Iraq
ego,” Britt told the Savannah Morning
News. “But I don’t feel intimidated, and I and Afghanistan*
stand my ground when I feel I’m right.”
Iraq
‘We Almost Died Together’ Total: 103
Another milestone for female military Hostile: 59 (57%)
members involves “man’s best friend.” Non-Hostile: 44 (43%)
Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jamie Dana and
her bomb-sniffing dog, Rex, had been By Cause for Hostile Deaths
working together for three years when IED: 30 (51%)
After an act of Congress, former Air
Force Tech. Sgt. Jamie Dana was a roadside bomb exploded under the Indirect Fire (Mortar/Rocket): 13 (22%)
allowed to adopt Rex, the bomb- Humvee in which they were riding on Suicide Bomber: 6 (10%)
sniffing dog, with whom Dana had June 25, 2005, in Iraq.
worked for three years. The two were
Helicopter Shoot-Down: 6 (10%)
Despite collapsed lungs, organ dam- Direct Fire (RPG/Rifle): 4 (7%)
wounded together in Iraq in 2005,
but both fully recovered. age and internal bleeding, Dana was
concerned only for Rex, whom others
u.s. air force photo
said had died in the explosion.
By Type of Unit for Hostile Deaths
“At first, I didn’t think I could do it,” Miscellaneous Support: 43
But weeks later, while recovering at
she told Paraglide. “When I saw my first Military Police: 12
Walter Reed Army Medical Center, she
airway-opening operation, I threw up.” Aviation (Combat): 1
got the news that Rex had survived.
Vice President Dick Cheney pre- Explosive Ordnance Disposal: 1
“They told me he was coming down
sented Brown’s Silver Star on March 21, the hall,” Dana told NBC News. “So I
2008, in Afghanistan. whistled at him, and he came running
into my room. He jumped on the bed
Afghanistan
Total: 20
A First for Georgia Guard with me and got tangled up in my IV Non-Hostile: 12 (60%)
In November 2007, Brig. Gen. Maria line.” Hostile: 8 (40%)
Britt became the first female general of Rex was to be taken to a military dog
the Georgia Army National Guard. On training facility, but Dana had other Hostile deaths in Afghanistan were caused
Dec. 1, 2007, she took command of the plans. She started the process of adop- by IEDs and a suicide bomber. They were
273-year-old Georgia Guard. tion, but found it literally takes an act members of support, civil affairs and
“We’re not here to promote a female of Congress to allow a military working engineer battalions.
to general,” Maj. Gen. Terry Nesbitt, dog to retire early.
Georgia’s adjutant general, said during “We went to Iraq together. We almost In comparison, female hostile deaths
the promotion ceremony. “We’re here to died together. I mean, how do you top totaled the following in previous wars:
promote a fine soldier who has earned that?” she asked. Persian Gulf (1991): 6
the rank.” On Dec. 30, 2005, President George Vietnam: 1
Raised in Gloversville, a town in up- Bush signed the 2006 Defense Authoriza- WWII: 16
state New York, Britt had a conversation tion Act, which included a section allow- (All were Army nurses.)
with her father, a history teacher, who ing military working dogs to retire early *As of Oct. 31, 2009.
37
army
ACTIVE DUTY
by Kelly Von Lunen
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Portraying War Veterans in


Popular Culture
air force
coast guard

Afghanistan and Iraq vets have received


mixed treatment by various media outlets.

M
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ore than eight years have passed since launch- bat see a little more success. NCIS ranked No. 1
ing the first of our two current wars. In that in viewership among all television programs in
time, their veterans have seen newspapers, its seventh season in fall 2009. The show features
films and television shows portray them not only a fictional team of Naval Criminal Investigative
as victors on the battlefield, but often as victims Service special agents with plots, on occasion, fo-
and villains. cusing on the wars’ veterans.
reserves

Midsize newspapers often focus on disabled Lifetime’s Army Wives premiered in 2007 and
veterans as they reintegrate back into their lives has since won a handful of awards. “Army guys
and communities. A sampling of headlines reveals are getting hooked,” according to an article on
how vets have fared in papers, often as struggling U.S. News & World Report’s Web site. “One officer
army

individuals: “Suicide claiming more Utah Guard sheepishly tells us that he watches it to relax and
members than combat” (Salt Lake Tribune), “Local reveals that a lot of his foxhole buddies like the
navy

disabled vets struggle to rebuild their lives” (Buf- show. They say it’s realistic, especially in how it
falo News) and “A veteran finds a new battle com- depicts battle syndrome issues like post-traumatic
ing home” (Providence Journal). stress disorder.”
marines

Smaller newspapers often produce stories of Another exception is Taking Chance, an HBO
hometown heroes serving overseas. Articles on original movie. The film drew 2 million view-
political and military scandals and atrocities are ers for its February 2009 debut. An additional
air force

far more likely to garner front-page headlines estimated 5.5 million have watched subsequent
in prominent national publications such as the airings, an HBO spokesman told the Wall Street
New York Times, Washington Post and USA Today. A Journal.
three-part New York Times series in January 2008 NBC’s Tom Brokaw Reports: To War and Back in
coast guard

highlighted 121 killings committed by Iraq vets, 2005 followed the post-war lives of six veterans
including involuntary manslaughter. The paper of the Nighthawk Plt., C Co., 108th Inf. Regt., of
commended its own investigative reporting, but the New York Army National Guard after their
presented figures out of context. return to Glens Falls, N.Y. As Brokaw concluded,
Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay became “They should not have to feel they have to endure
national guard

synonymous with the war in Iraq and the struggle this stage of the war alone.”
against terrorism in general. Every misstep taken More than 30 documentaries also have been
by a GI is dutifully chronicled. made about various elements of the war on ter-
rorism. HBO’s Taking Chance told the story of the
Troops Scarcely Seen in Primetime care given to Americans who are killed and re-
Entire television programs devoted to troops in turned home in a dignified manner. It was the
reserves

the war zones have rarely been shown in pop cul- most-watched original movie on that network in
ture. Over There, which ran on the cable channel five years.
FX for 13 episodes in 2005, chronicled the life Among the newest films is Brothers At War, a
2009 documentary that chronicles a soldier’s two
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of an Army squad in Iraq. It received huge ad-


vance publicity, but mixed reviews from veterans civilian deployments and four embeds with com-
regarding realism even as it attempted to present bat units around Iraq.
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a positive portrayal of troops. “This is probably the most accurate portrayal,


Shows with military themes other than com- besides the movie Black Hawk Down,” he had seen,

38
Portraying War Veterans in Popular Culture
Spc. Hien Tran of the 222nd Infantry is still going on are inherently political coverage of our soldiers: All villains or
told Air Force Times. in nature. The recent crop of films fits victims, no valor.”
this bill. A New York Times editorial by David
War Doesn’t Sell in Hollywood “Either the soldiers are victims or Brooks supported this hypothesis. “Many
In 2008, Vietnam War spoof Tropic criminals doing something terrible like Americans—especially those who domi-
Thunder grossed nearly $190 million Redacted or victims like Home of the Brave nate the culture—are uncomfortable
worldwide, more than all Iraq and Af- or Stop-Loss,” producer James Jacks of with military valor,” he wrote. “This is
ghanistan war-related movies up until the Mummy movie series, told Variety. a culture that knows how to honor the
that time. One possible explanation for “But for most soldiers, it’s about mak- casualties and dead, but not the strength
this discrepancy is timing. ing sure their teammates get out alive. and prowess of its warriors.”
“People want to see something cheer- The best movies are about a single unit For much of the American public,
ing and uplifting right now,” press agent on a single mission. Otherwise, movies the issue is less political and more a lack
Fredell Pogodin told Variety in April 2008. get too big, into sweeping issues of poli- of interest in the ongoing wars. “I think
“The economy’s bad, and whenever you tics and morality.” there is a kind of apathy,” Laura Poitras,
turn on the news and see this stuff, you Staff Sgt. Ronald Pritchett believes director of the documentary My Country,
feel helpless. People don’t know what that maybe filmmakers “just don’t get My Country, told Slate. “It was clear to me
to make of this situation, and seeing a it.” “Maybe America wants to see their that there is a lack of engagement from
film about it throws it right back in your heroes portrayed as simply that by the American public.”
face.” Hollywood—more would attend mov- Correspondents and veterans have
But there is another reason. ies about Iraq,” he wrote in Army Times. wasted little time in recording various
Some 20 Iraq War-related movies “Nobody wants to see soldiers portrayed facets of the wars in Afghanistan and
have already been released in the six as hoodlums and lowlifes no matter who Iraq in books. Books in Print is listing
years since the start of the war in 2003. is in the starring roles.” more and more titles on Afghanistan
A few additional films have focused on One screenwriter underscored this and Iraq, many describing the heroism
the Afghanistan War. point. “Movie moguls gave … Ameri- of individual GIs and entire units. Yet
“Hollywood’s much more political cans no opportunity to admire the the challenge remains—getting these
now and less afraid to speak out,” said deeds of their own children, the men stories to the general public.
Lew Harris, editor of Movies.com. and women who fight for us,” Roger L.
“The filmmakers and actors themselves Simon wrote in The Washington Times.
are for more politicized than they were “Make some movies that sing the prais-
in the 1960s.” es of the bravest of our young men and
Warner Bros. expected its Body of women.”
Lies, with well-known actors Leonardo One movie that fit that bill was The
DiCaprio and Russell Crowe, to break Hurt Locker. Released in June 2009, it
out of the mold of unsuccessful recent tells the story of a demolition team in
war movies. Yet the film grossed only Iraq, circa 2004.
$13.1 million, not a hit by any measure.
“We thought we could break through Heroism Downplayed
the clutter with this one,” the studio’s Editorialists echo director
Dan Fellman told USA Today in October Jacks’ sentiments. Kat
2008. “But I think the climate out there O’Beirne observed in
makes for bad timing with anything National Review: “The
dealing with terrorism.” media’s line of at-
However, movies that include strong tack against the
war themes are still contenders to be- war is revealed
come blockbusters. Action flicks Trans- in its selective
formers (2007) and Iron Man (2008) grossed
$708 million and $582 million, respec-
tively. Both took place in Afghanistan
and prominently featured U.S. troops in
a positive role. The Air Force even lent
assistance to the producers of Iron Man,
a sign that the military approved of its
portrayal of service members.
Some observers in the movie industry
have also argued that the problem may
be that war films made while the fighting
39
army
ACTIVE DUTY
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

Heroes of the War Zones


air force

The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have produced their


share of heroes. These pages pay tribute to the recipients
coast guard

of six Medals of Honor, three Air Force Crosses, 19


Distinguished Service Crosses and 29 Navy Crosses.

Medal of Honor
Name Unit Date Location
national guard

*Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith B Co., 11th Eng. Bn., 1st BCT, 3rd ID Apr 4, 2003 Baghdad, Iraq
*Cpl. Jason L. Dunham 7th Marine Regt., 1st Marine Div. Apr 14, 2004 Karabilah, Iraq
*Lt. Michael P. Murphy SEAL Team 10 Jun 28, 2005 Asadabad, Afghanistan
*Petty Officer Michael A. Monsoor SEAL Team 3 Sep 29, 2006 Ramadi, Iraq
*Pvt. 1st Class Ross A. McGinnis C Co., 1st Bn., 26th IR, Dec 4, 2006 Adhamiyah, Iraq
2nd BCT, 1st ID
reserves

*Sgt. 1st Class Jared C. Monti


Jun 21, 2006 3rd BCT, 10th Mtn. Div. Nuristan Province, Afghanistan
army
navy
marines

Paul Smith Jason Dunham Michael Monsoor

Air Force Cross


air force

Name Unit Date Location


*Senior Airman 38th Rescue Sqdn. Mar 2, 2002 Shahi-Kot Valley,
Jason D. Cunningham Afghanistan
*Tech Sgt. John Chapman 24th Special Tactics Sqdn. Mar 4, 2002 Gardez, Afghanistan
coast guard


Staff Sgt. Zachary Rhyner 21st Special Tactics Sqdn. Apr 6, 2008 Shok Valley, Afghanistan
Jason Cunningham

Distinguished Service Cross


Name Unit Date Location
national guard

Maj. Mark E. Mitchell HQ & HQ Detachment, 3rd Bn., Nov 28, 2001 Mazar-e-Sharif,
5th Special Forces Grp. Afghanistan
Master Sgt. Donald R. Hollenbaugh Special Operations Command Apr 26, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
Staff Sgt. Daniel A. Briggs Special Operations Command Apr 26, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
Col. James H. Coffman, Jr. 3rd Bn., 1st Iraqi Special Nov 14, 2004 Mosul, Iraq
Police Commando Bde.
Staff Sgt. Timothy Nein 503rd MP Bn., 18th MP Bde. Mar 20, 2005 Salman Pak, Iraq
reserves

Cpl. Stephen C. Sanford C Co., 2nd Bn., 1st IR, 172nd BCT Nov 19, 2005 Mosul, Iraq
Master Sgt. Brendan W. O’Connor A Co., 2nd Bn., 7th Special Forces Grp. Jun 24, 2006 Kandahar Province,
Afghanistan
2nd Lt. Walter B. Jackson A Co., 1st Bn., 36th IR Sep 27, 2006 Al Anbar Province, Iraq
army

Sgt. Gregory Williams 17th IR, 1st BCT, 25th ID Oct 30, 2006 Baghdad, Iraq
Chief Warrant Officer 5 160th Special Operations Avn. Regt. Nov 27, 2006 Iraq
David F. Cooper
navy

*Chief Warrant Officer 4 A Co., 1st Bn., 227th Avn. Regt., Feb 2, 2007 Baghdad, Iraq
Keith Yoakum 1st Air Cav Bde., 1st Cav Div.
Spc. Christopher B. Waiters 5th Bn., 20th IR, 3rd BCT, 2nd ID Apr 5, 2007 Baqubah, Iraq Mark Mitchell

40 *Posthumous
Distinguished Service Cross, cont. Heroes of the War Zones
Name Unit Date Location
Sgt. Erik Oropeza 4th Bn., 9th Inf. Regt. May 22, 2007 Taji, Iraq
*Staff Sgt. Travis W. Atkins D Co., 2nd Bn., 14th IR, Jun 1, 2007 Abu Sarnak, Iraq
2nd BCT, 10th Mtn. Div.
*Sgt. Charles E. Wyckoff C Co., 1st Bn., 508th Parachute IR, Jun 6, 2007 Helmand Province, Afghanistan
3rd BCT, 82nd Abn. Div.
Staff Sgt. Erich R. Phillips C Co., 2nd Bn., 503rd IR, Aug 22, 2007 Nuristan Province, Afghanistan
173rd Abn. BCT
Sgt. Eric Moser C Co., 2nd Bn., 505th Parachute IR, Aug 26, 2007 Samarra, Iraq Donald Hollenbaugh
3rd BCT, 82nd Abn. Div.
Sgt. Christopher Corriveau 3rd BCT, 82nd Abn. Div. Aug 26, 2007 Samarra, Iraq
Sgt. 1st Class Jarion Halbisengibbs Op. Det.-Alpha 083, 10th SFG Sep 10, 2007 Samarra, Iraq

photo by Sgt. Timothy


Dinneen / DOD photo
Navy Cross
Name Unit Date Location
Chief Petty Officer Stephen Bass British Special Boat Service Nov 25-26, 2001 Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan
Senior Chief Petty SEAL Team 6 Mar 3-4, 2002 Shahi-Kot Valley, Afghanistan
Officer Britt Slabinski Christopher Corriveau
Sgt. 1st Class Justin D. Lehew A Co., 1st Bn., 2nd Regt., I MEF Mar 23, 2003 Nasiriyah, Iraq
Hospitalman Apprentice C Co., 1st Bn., 2nd Regt., Mar 23, 2003 Nasiriyah, Iraq
Luis E. Fonseca, Jr. RCT 2, I MEF
1st Lt. Brian R. Chontosh 5th Regt., 1st Marine Div., I MEF Mar 25, 2003 Ad Diwaniyah, Iraq
Lance Cpl. Joseph B. Perez 5th Regt., 1st Marine Div., I MEF Apr 4, 2003 Route 6, Iraq
Sgt. Scott C. Montoya Scout Sniper Plt., F Co., 2nd Bn., Apr 8, 2003 Baghdad, Iraq
23rd Regt., 4th Marine Div., I MEF
Cpl. Marco Martinez 1st Plt., G Co., 2nd Bn., 5th Regt., Apr 12, 2003 Al Tarmiya, Iraq
1st Marine Div., I MEF
Sgt. Willie Copeland III B Co., 1st Recon Bn., 1st Marine Div. Apr 7, 2004 Sunni Triangle, Iraq
*Capt. Brent Morel B Co., 1st Recon Bn., 1st Marine Div. Apr 7, 2004 Al Anbar Province, Iraq
Staff Sgt. Anthony Viggiani C Co., BLT, 1st Bn., 6th Regt. Jun 3, 2004 Siah Chub Kalay, Afghanistan
*Pfc. Christopher Adlesperger 3rd Bn., 5th Regt., 1st Marine Div. Nov 10, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
Sgt. Aubrey L. McDade, Jr. 1st Plt., B Co., 1st Bn., 8th Marines, Nov 11, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
1st Marine Div.
Sgt. Robert J. Mitchell, Jr. K Co., 3rd Bn., 1st Regt., RCT 1, Nov 13, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
1st Marine Div., I MEF
Sgt. Bradley A. Kasal 3rd Bn., 1st Regt., 1st Marine Div. Nov 14, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
*Sgt. Rafael Peralta 1st Plt., A Co., 1st Bn., 3rd Marines, Nov 15, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
RCT 7, 1st Marine Div.
Bradley Kasal
Lance Cpl. Dominic Esquibel B Co., 1st Bn., 8th Marine Regt., Nov 25, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
RCT 7, 1st Marine Div., I MEF
*Cpl. Jason S. Clairday 1st Sqd., 2nd Plt., K Co., 3rd Bn., Dec 12, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
5th Marines, RCT 1, 1st Marine Div.
Sgt. Jeremiah Workman Weapons Co., 3rd Bn., 5th Marines, Dec 23, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
RCT 1, 1st Marine Div., I MEF
Sgt. Jarrett A. Kraft Weapons Co., 3rd Bn., 5th Regt., Dec 23, 2004 Fallujah, Iraq
RCT 1, 1st Marine Div., I MEF
Lance Cpl. Todd J. Corbin Weapons Co., 3rd Bn., 25th Marines, May 7, 2005 Haditha, Iraq
RCT 2, 2nd Marine Div., II MEF Danny Dietz
*Gunner’s Mate 2nd Class SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 2 Jun 28, 2005 Asadabad, Afghanistan
Danny P. Dietz
*Sonar Technician 2nd Class SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 2 Jun 28, 2005 Asadabad, Afghanistan
Matthew G. Axelson
Petty Officer 1st Class SEAL Team 10 Jun 28, 2005 Asadabad, Afghanistan
Marcus Luttrell
Lance Cpl. Joshua Mooi F Co., 2nd Bn., 1st Marine Regt. Nov 16, 2005 New Ubaydi, Iraq
*Cpl. Jonathan Yale 2nd Bn., 8th Marine Regt., Apr 22, 2008 Ramadi, Iraq
2nd Marine Div., II MEF
*Lance Cpl. Jordan Haerter 1st Bn., 9th Marine Regt., Apr 22, 2008 Ramadi, Iraq Joseph Perez
2nd Marine Div., II MEF
Lance Cpl. Richard Weinmaster E Co., 2nd Bn., 7th Marine Regt. Jul 8, 2008 Helmand Province, Afghanistan
Lance Cpl. Brady Gustafson 2nd Bn., 7th Marine Regt. Jul 21, 2008 Shewan, Afghanistan

*Posthumous
41
army
ACTIVE DUTY
Compiled By Richard K. Kolb, Editor
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines
air force
coast guard
national guard
reserves

Members of Bravo Section, 2nd Brigade Recon Troop, brace


army

themselves in a security posture after being infiltrated by


a UH-60A Black Hawk helicopter during a mission in Iraq
on June 19, 2004. The Quick Response Force responds
to immediate action situations directed by a Tactical
navy

Operations Center commander.


DOD photo by tech. sgt. scott reed
marines

Iraq:
air force

A U.S. Combat Chronology, 2003-2009


coast guard

With the war in Iraq approaching the seven-year mark, significant


progress had been made along with a dramatic drop in U.S. casualties.
As of Oct. 31, 2009, 3,466 GIs had been killed by enemy action and
31,557 wounded. Another 879 Americans died from non-hostile
national guard

causes (accidents, disease, etc.).

Legend
ACR Armored Cavalry Regiment FA Field Artillery MD Marine Division
reserves

AD Armored Division FOB Forward Operating Base MEF Marine Expeditionary Force
APC Armored Personnel Carrier ID Infantry Division MEU Marine Expeditionary Unit
ARNG Army National Guard IR Infantry Regiment PIR Parachute Infantry
Bde. Brigade MAG Marine Aircraft Group Regiment
army

BCT Brigade Combat Team MAW Marine Aircraft Wing RCT Regimental Combat Team
CD Cavalry Division MCR Marine Corps Reserve RPG Rocket-Propelled Grenade
navy

Note: Though each individual hostile incident is not listed here, all American deaths are recorded on the pages of VFW
magazine under “A Final Salute” usually each month.

42
2003 Apr 3-9

Battle of Baghdad. The 3rd ID and 1st MD
capture the city after several hard days of fighting.
Mar 19 Operation Iraqi Freedom is launched to overthrow In the 3-week advance on Iraq’s capital, the 3rd
the regime of Saddam Hussein. The initial invasion ID loses 34 KIA and the 1st MD sustains 24 KIA.
force involves 150,000 U.S. troops. Apr 6 Battle of Debecka Pass. 2 Special Forces
Mar 19 5 teams of 20 SEALs each are inserted at the Faw A-Teams (Operational Detachment Alpha 391 and
oil refineries to prevent their destruction. 40 Iraqis 392) comprising 26 Green Berets, 3 Air Force
are killed; no Americans are lost. combat controllers and 2 other soldiers fight a
Mar 21 First U.S. KIA. 2nd Lt. reinforced Iraqi rifle company. At the “Alamo”
Therrel Shane Childers of between Irbil and Makhmur, they kill up to 50
2nd Plt., A Co., 1st Bn., Iraqis. No U.S. casualties.
5th Marines, 1st MD, is May 19 A Marine CH-46 helicopter of Sqdn. 364, MAG 39,
shot in the stomach while 3rd MAW, crashes into the Shat al-Hillah canal—
securing Pumping Station 4 die in crash, 1 in a rescue attempt.
No. 2 at the Rumaylah oil Sep 29 Firefight in Khaldiyah. Enemy ambushes 2
field in southern Iraq. U.S. convoys, provoking an 8-hour firefight.
Mar 23 Battle of Nasiriyah. 82nd Airborne sustains 1 KIA.
11 Army personnel, Nov 2 13 KIA in Helicopter Shoot-Down. CH-47
including members of the Chinook helicopter is shot down by an SA-7 missile
507th Maintenance near Fallujah, killing 13 soldiers from 5 units.
Company, are KIA during Nov 7 UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter is shot down by an
a 90-minute attack. 18 Marine 2nd Lt. Therrel RPG near Tikrit, killing 6 soldiers of various units.
S. Childers
Marines of C Co., 1st Bn., Nov 15 17 KIA in Helicopter Shoot-Down. 2 Black
2nd Marines, are killed— Hawk helicopters collide in mid-air and crash near
10 due to “friendly fire” from an Air Force A-10 Mosul, killing 17 and wounding 5 soldiers of the
and 8 “solely” to enemy fire. The battle rages until 101st Airborne Division. 1 of the helicopters had
March 27, claiming the lives of 29 Marines and been hit by an RPG or SA-7.
soldiers. Nov 30 Firefight in Samarra. 1st Bn., 66th Armd.
Mar 26 Airborne Assault in North. 1,000 paratroopers Regt., 1st AD, fights a 4-hour battle with 100
of the 173rd Abn. Bde. parachute at night to enemy, killing 54. U.S. sustains 5 WIA.
secure Harir Airfield near Bashur. Most troops Dec 13 Operation Red Dawn. Task Force 121—CIA
are members of the 2nd Bn., 503rd PIR, and 1st paramilitary forces, 40 special ops troops and 600
Bn., 508th PIR. They go on to protect the oil fields GIs from the 1st Bde., 4th ID—captures Saddam
around Mosul and Kirkuk. The 173rd suffers only 1 Hussein in Adwar, 10 miles south of Tikrit.
accidental death in the operation.
Mar 29

War’s First Fatal Suicide Bombing. 4 soldiers of
the 2nd Bn., 7th IR, 3rd ID, are KIA by a car bomb
2004
Jan 8 Rocket downs a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter
at a checkpoint in central Iraq. south of Fallujah, killing 9 members of various
Apr 2 An Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter is shot units.
down in Karbala, killing 6 soldiers of the 2nd Bn., Mar 31 Roadside bomb kills 5 soldiers of 1st Eng. Bn.,
3rd Avn. Regt. 1st Bde., 1st ID, in Habbaniyah.
April 1,200 men of 2nd Bn., 1st Regt., 1st MD,
assault Fallujah. Some 21 Marines are
killed around the city during the month and
25 more over the next 6 months.
Apr 4 Firefight in Baghdad kills 8 soldiers—7 from 1st
CD (5 in 2nd Bn., 5th Cav) and 1 from the 1st AD.
Apr 6 Ambush in Ramadi. 11 Marines are KIA—10 from
E Co., 2nd Bn., 4th Regt., 1st MD—and 30 WIA.
3rd Platoon alone loses 6 KIA (including a Navy
corpsman). Over 3 days, the Marines kill 250 of
the enemy. During the entire 5-day battle in
Ramadi, the 2nd Bn. sustains 16 KIA and 100 WIA.
Apr 9 A convoy of the 724th Trans. Co. (Illinois Reserve) is
attacked outside Balad, killing 8 and wounding 17
Americans: 2 soldiers and 6 civilian truck drivers
killed. Sgt. Keith M. Maupin is captured; missing for
four years, body is found in March 2008.
Apr 10 E Co., 2nd Bn., 7th Marines, engages in a 4-hour
Soldiers of the Rhode Island National Guard’s 115th Military firefight in the Sofia District of Fallujah. 4
Police Company prepares to search an Iraqi home in Fallujah
attached snipers kill 15 enemy personnel.
believed to be the site of bomb-making and weapons storage
on July 31, 2003.
Apr 13 Firefight in Karma. 3rd Bn., 4th Marines,
U.S. Army photo by Spc. Robert Liddy
kills 100 Iraqis during 14 hours of fighting.

43
Infantry and 1st Cavalry divisions. It is the most
intense urban combat for GIs since Hue in 1968.
Perhaps 1,500 enemy fighters are killed in the 17-
day battle. U.S.: 71 KIA and 609 WIA.
Nov 29 Iraq Campaign Medal. Executive Order 13363
establishes.
Dec 21 14 KIA. Suicide bomber hits a mess tent at FOB
Marez in Mosul, killing 13 U.S. soldiers (6 from
the 25th ID) and 1 Seabee, as well as 5 civilian
contractors. 42 GIs are WIA.

2005
Jan 6 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 7 GIs—1 of the
69th IR (New York ARNG) and 6 from C Co., 2nd
Bn., 156th IR, 256th BCT (Louisiana ARNG).
Soldiers from the 940th MP Company conduct a joint patrol
in the town of Al Hillah, Iraq, on May 14, 2005.
Jan 24 5 soldiers of the 1st ID die in a road accident
U.S. Army Photo by SGT arthur Hamilton when their vehicle rolls into a canal near Khan
Bani Saad.
Apr 17 4 Marines of 3rd Bn., 7th Regt., 1st MD, are KIA Jan 26 War’s Deadliest Single U.S. Loss.
in a single firefight in Al Anbar province. 30 Marines and a Navy corpsman die in an
Apr 24 Suicide boat (dhow) explosion kills 2 sailors and accidental CH-53E Sea Stallion helicopter crash
1 Coast Guardsman aboard the patrol coastal boat during a sandstorm near Rutbah. 27 men are from
Firebolt in the Arabian Gulf near the Iraqi Khawr Al the 1st Bn., 3rd Regt., 3rd MD, and the flight crew
Amaya oil terminal. The “Coastie” is the first such is from Sqdn. 361, MAG 16, 3rd MAW.
KIA since the Vietnam War. Feb 11 Combat Action Badge. Army creates for
Apr 24 Mortar rounds kill 4 soldiers of the 39th Support non-infantrymen.
Bn., 39th BCT (Arkansas ARNG) at their camp Mar 4 Roadside bomb kills 4 soldiers of the 1st Bn.,
in Taji. 9th IR, 2nd ID, in Ramadi.
Apr 29 Car bomb kills 8 GIs and wounds 4 of the 4th Bn., Mar 20 Soldiers of the 617th MP Co. (Kentucky ARNG)
27th FA, 1st AD, at Mahmoudiya. kill 27 enemy in a 25-minute firefight after their
May 2 Mortar attack near Ramadi kills 5 Reserve convoy is ambushed near Salman Pak.
Seabees of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 14. Apr 4 President Bush presents Medal of Honor to the
Jun 4 Roadside bombs and RPGs kill 5 soldiers of the widow of Army Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith for
2nd Bn., 162nd IR (Oregon ARNG), in Baghdad. saving 100 American lives by killing 50 Iraqis on
Jun 17 F Trp., 4th Cav, 3rd BCT, 1st ID, engages in a April 4, 2003. Smith belonged to B Co., 11th Eng.
12-hour firefight near Baqubah. Bn., 1st BCT, 3rd ID.
Jun 21 Ambush in Ramadi kills 4 snipers of 2nd Bn., Apr 8 Iraq Campaign Medal rules are released. It is
4th Marines, 1st MD. All 4 were shot repeatedly awarded for the first time on June 29.
in the head. Apr 26 Marines engage in a fierce house-to-house fight in
Jun 24 Battle of Baqubah. 3rd Bde., 1st ID, and A Co., the Jolan cemetery area of Fallujah.
1st Bn., 120th IR, 30th Separate Bde. (North Apr 28 Roadside bomb kills 4 soldiers of the 25th ID and
Carolina ARNG), fights a pitched 8-hour battle in 3rd ACR in Tal Afar.
city streets, killing 60 of the enemy. The 30th May 11 Roadside bomb kills 4 Marines and wounds 10
sustains 2 KIA and 6 WIA. of the 1st Plt., L Co., 3rd Bn., 25th Regt., 4th MD
Jul 8 Mortar attack on the Iraqi National Guard HQ in (MCR), in Haban.
Samarra kills 5 soldiers of the 1st Bn., 26th IR, May 23 Roadside bomb in Haswa kills 4 soldiers of C Co.,
1st ID. 1st Bn., 155th IR (Mississippi ARNG).
Aug 5-28 Battle of Najaf. 2nd Bn., 7th Cav, 1st CD, engages Jun 9 Roadside bomb in Haqlaniya kills 5 Marines—1 of
in intense combat around the Imam Ali mosque. the 1st Tank Bn., 1 of 4th Tank Bn. and 3 from the
Sustaining 29 WIA, the unit inflicts heavy losses 3rd Bn., 25th Marines, 4th MD (MCR Ohio).
on the enemy. Marines of the 11th MEU and GIs Jun 15 Roadside bomb near Ramadi kills 5 Marines of
from 5th Cav, 1st CD, clear the cemetery in brutal 1st Bn., 5th Marines, 1st MD.
combat, killing 300 enemy personnel. Jun 23 Suicide car bomb in Fallujah kills 5 Americans:
Sep 6 Suicide bomber kills 7 Marines of F Co., 2nd Bn., 4 Marines and 1 sailor.
1st Marines, 1st MD, traveling in a convoy near Jul 24 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 4 soldiers of
Fallujah. 3rd Sqdn., 3rd ACR.
Sep 9 Battle in Tal Afar. U.S. air power kills 57 Jul 24 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 4 soldiers of
enemy personnel. 2nd Bn., 121st IR, 48th BCT (Georgia ARNG).
Oct 30 Car-suicide bomber hits a convoy near Fallujah, Jul 30 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 4 soldiers of the
killing 8 Marines of B Co., 1st Bn., 3rd Marines, 2nd Bn., 121st IR, 48th BCT (Georgia ARNG).
3rd MD. Aug 1 6 snipers of H&S Co., 3rd Bn., 25th Marines,
Nov 8-25 Battle of Fallujah. Operation Phantom Fury 4th MD (MCR Ohio) are KIA in a firefight in Haditha.
involves 10,000 U.S. troops from 6 battalions of Aug 3 14 KIA. Roadside bomb hits an APC in Haditha,
all 3 Marine divisions and 3 from the Army’s 1st killing 14 Marines—9 from 1st Sqd., 3rd Plt., L Co.,

44
3rd Bn., 25th Marines, 4th MD (MCR Ohio) alone. Feb 22 Roadside bomb in Al Hawijah kills 4 soldiers of the
Aug 9 Mine and small arms in Bayji kill 4 soldiers of the 1st Bn., 327th IR, 1st BCT, 101st Abn. Div.
1st Bn., 111th IR, 28th ID (Pennsylvania ARNG). Feb 22 Roadside bomb near Balad kills 3 soldiers of the
Aug 18 Roadside bomb in Samarra kills 4 soldiers of the 1st Bn., 8th IR, 3rd BCT, 4th ID.
3rd Bn., 69th Armor, Apr 2 6 Marines—5 of 1st Marine Logistics Group and 1 of
1st BCT, 3rd ID. 3rd Marines—die in an accident when their truck rolls
Aug 25 Roadside bomb in over in a flash flood near Al Asad.
Husaybah kills 4 soldiers— Apr 2 3 Marines and 1 corpsman of the 3rd Bn.,
1 Ranger and 3 Special 8th Marines, 2nd MD are KIA in Anbar Province.
Forces personnel. Apr 11 Roadside bomb in Taji kills 3 soldiers of the
Sep 19 Roadside bomb in Ramadi 7th Sqdn., 10th Cav Regt., 1st BCT, 4th ID.
kills 4 soldiers—1 of Apr 15 Roadside bomb in Al Anbar province kills 4
the 42nd ID (N.Y. ARNG) Marines—3 of the 2nd Tank Bn., 2nd MD,
and 3 of the 28th ID and 1 of the 3rd Bn., 8th Marines, 2nd MD.
(Pennsylvania ARNG). Apr 22 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 4 soldiers of the
Sep 28 Roadside bomb/ambush Sgt. Paul Smith post- 1st Bn., 67th Armd. Regt., 2nd BCT, 4th ID.
near Ramadi kills 5 humously received Apr 23 Roadside bomb in Taji kills 3 soldiers of the
soldiers of the 1st Bn., the Medal of Honor 7th Sqdn., 10th Cav Regt., 1st BCT, 4th ID.
109th IR, 28th ID for his heroic actions May 5 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 3 Army reservists
on April 4, 2003. (civil affairs) attached to the 2nd BCT, 4th ID.
(Pennsylvania ARNG).
photo courtesy spc.
Oct 6 Roadside bomb near Al matthew hartley May Battle in Yusufiyah. A series of ferocious
Karmah kills 4 Marines of 14-15 firefights kills 40 Sunni Arabs. 4 U.S. KIA—
the 2nd Bn., 2nd Regt., 2nd MD. 2 of the 160th SOAR.
Oct 15 Roadside bomb in Ramadi kills 5 soldiers of the May 18 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 4
2nd Bn., 69th Armor Regt., 3rd Bde., 3rd ID. soldiers—3 of the 2nd Bn., 22nd Inf., 1st BCT,
Oct 17 Roadside bomb in Samarra kills 6 soldiers of the 10th MD, and 1 from the 352nd Civil Affairs
1st Bn., 15th IR, 3rd Bde., 3rd ID. Command.
Oct 28 Peak U.S. Troop Strength—161,000. Jun 16 An ambush at a checkpoint in Yusufiyah kills 3
Oct 31 Roadside bomb in Mahmudiyah kills 4 soldiers of soldiers of the 1st Bn., 502nd Inf. Regt., 101st
2nd Bn., 502nd IR, 2nd BCT, 101st Abn. Div. Abn. Div. They had been abducted first.
Nov Euphrates Valley Campaign. Operation Steel Jun 20 4 Marines—3 of the 1st Bn., 1st Marines, 1st MD,
Curtain seeks to clear the Syrian border of foreign and 1 from the 5th Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Co.—
terrorists. It involves 2,500 U.S. troops. are KIA in Anbar province.
Nov 7 Car bomb in Baghdad kills 4 soldiers of the Jul 8 Roadside bomb in Ramadi kills 3 soldiers of the
3rd ACR. 54th Eng. Bn., 103th Eng. Bde.
Nov 15 Roadside bomb in Taji kills 4 soldiers of the 1st Jul 27 4 Marines—3 of the 3rd Bn., 8th Marines, 2nd MD,
Bn., 320th FA Regt., 101st Abn. Div. and 1 of the 1st Bn., 1st Marines, 1st MD—are
Nov 15 Car bomb explodes in Ramadi, killing 5 men of KIA in Anbar province.
the 2nd MD. Aug 6 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 3 soldiers of
Nov 16 Firefight at a farmhouse in Ubaydi results in 4 the 2nd Bde. Special Troops Bn., 2nd BCT,
Marine KIA and 11 WIA from 2nd Bn., 1st Marines, 101st Abn. Div.
13th MEU. Aug 9 Roadside bomb in Ramadi kills 3 soldiers of the
Nov 19 Roadside bomb in Bayji kills 4 soldiers of the 1st 1st Bn., 37th Armor, 1st AD.
Bn., 187th IR, 3rd BCT, 101st Abn. Div. Aug 27 Roadside bomb in Taji kills 4 soldiers of the
Dec 1 Massive Booby-Trap in Fallujah. 10 Marines are 1st Bn., 66th Armor, 1st Bde., 4th ID.
KIA and 11 WIA by booby-trapped artillery shells at Sep 14 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 3 soldiers—
an abandoned flour mill after attending a promotion 2 of the 4th Support Bn., 1st Bde., and 1 of the
ceremony. They belonged to 2nd Bn., 7th Marines, 4th Bn., 27th FA, 4th ID.
1st MD. Oct 2 Roadside bomb in Taji kills 4 soldiers of the
Dec 13 Roadside bomb in Taji kills 4 soldiers of 2nd Bn., 7th Sqdn., 10th Cav, 1st Bde., 4th ID.
70th Armor, 3rd BCT, 1st ID. Oct 4 Small-arms fire in Taji kills 4 soldiers of the
7th Sqdn., 10th Cav, 1st Bde., 4th ID.
2006 Oct 8 3 Marines—2 of the 2nd Bn., 3rd Marines, and 1 of
Jan 5 Roadside bomb in Najaf kills 5 soldiers of the 3rd the 3rd Bn., 12th Marines, 3rd MD—are KIA in
Bn., 16th FA Regt., 2nd BCT, 4th ID. Anbar province.
Jan 7 UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter accidentally crashes Oct 9 3 Marines of the 1st Bn., 6th Marines, 2nd MD, are
near Tel Afar, killing 8 soldiers of the 3rd ACR and KIA in Anbar province.
1st Bn., 207th Avn. Regt. (Alaska ARNG). 4 U.S. Oct 14 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 3 soldiers of the
civilians also die. 1st Bn., 67th Armor, 2nd Bde., 4th ID.
Jan 20 Roadside bomb in Huwijah kills 4 soldiers of the Oct 17 Roadside bomb in Baqubah kills 3 soldiers of the
1st BCT, 101st Abn. Div.: 3 in 1st Bn., 327th IR, 1st Bn., 68th Armor, 3rd BCT, 4th ID.
and 1 in 1st Special Troops Battalion. Oct 18 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 4 soldiers of the
Feb 1 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 3 soldiers of the 1st Bn., 22nd Inf. Regt., 1st Bde., 4th ID.
1st Bn., 502nd IR, 2nd BCT, 101st Abn. Div.
45
Oct 21 4 Marines—3 of the 1st Bn., 6th Marines, and 1 Jan 20 UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crashes in Baghdad,
of the 2nd Tank Bn., 2nd MD—are KIA in Anbar killing 12 Army National Guard members from
province. 8 units.
Nov 2 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 3 soldiers—2 of Jan Battle of Najaf. In an apocalyptic 24-hr. battle
the 1st Bn., 506th IR, 4th BCT, 101st Abn. Div., and 28-29 at a nearby compound with 800 members of the
1 of the 2nd BCT, 2nd ID. radical cult called “Soldiers of Heaven,” the U.S. Army
Nov 11 Roadside bomb in Ramadi kills 3 soldiers of the kills 373, nearly half with gunships. Participating
16th Eng. Bn., 1st Bde., 1st AD. units include Special Forces Operational Detachment
Nov 14 3 Marines of 2nd Bn., 3rd Regt., 3rd MD, are KIA in Alpha 566, 512 and 513; combat controllers of the
Anbar province. 21st Special Tactics Sqdn.; Military Transition Team
Nov 26 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 3 soldiers—2 of 0810 of the 4th BCT, 25th ID; Cos. B and C of the
the 3rd Bn., 67th Armor, 4th Bde., 4th ID, and 1 of 3rd IR, 2nd ID; 4th Bn., 227th Avn. Regt., 1st CD.;
1st Bn., 8th Cav, 2nd Bde., 1st CD. and the 510th Expeditionary Fighter Sqdn. 2
Dec 6 Roadside bomb in Hawijah kills 5 soldiers—4 of Americans are KIA. Army issues 100 decorations,
2nd Bn., 27th Inf., 3rd BCT, and 1 of the 3rd Bde. including a DSC and 8 Silver Stars.
Special Troops Bn., 25th ID. Feb 7 5 Marines of Squadron 364 and Squadron 262
Dec 10 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 3 soldiers of are killed in a helicopter crash in Al Anbar province.
3rd Bn., 509th Inf., 4th BCT, 101st Abn. Div., Mar 5 Roadside bomb in Samarra kills 6 soldiers of the
attached to 25th Div. 2nd Bn., 505th PIR, 3rd BCT, 82nd Abn. Div.
Dec 11 3 Marines of Sqdn. 373, Support Grp. 37, Mar 15 IED in Baghdad kills 4 soldiers of the 1st Sqdn.,
3rd MAW, are killed in Anbar province. 8th Cav Regt., 2nd BCT, 1st CD.
Dec 16 Roadside bomb in Taji kills 3 soldiers of 1st Sqdn., Mar 17 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 4 soldiers of the
7th Cav, 1st Bde., 1st CD. 2nd Bn., 12th Cav Regt., 4th BCT, 1st CD.
Dec 23 Roadside bomb in Salman Pak kills 3 National Mar 25 Roadside bomb in Baqubah kills 4 soldiers of the
Guardsmen of 1st Bn., 125th IR (Michigan NG). 5th Sqdn., 73rd Cav Regt., 3rd BCT, 82nd Abn. Div.
Dec 25 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 3 engineers of Apr 1 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 4 GIs of 2nd Bde.
9th Eng. Bn., 2nd BCT, 1st ID. Special Troops Bn., 2nd BCT, 10th Mtn. Div.
Dec 28 3 Marines of 24th Regt., 4th MD (Reserve), are Apr 7 IED in Zaganiyah kills 4 soldiers of the 5th Sqdn.,
KIA in Al Anbar province. 73rd Cav Regt., 3rd BCT, 82nd Abn. Div.
Apr 23 IED in Sadah kills 9 soldiers of the 5th Sqdn.,
2007 73rd Cav Regt., 3rd BCT, 82nd Abn. Div.
Jan 15 Roadside bomb in Mosul kills 4 soldiers of the May 6 Roadside bomb in Baqubah kills 6 soldiers
2nd Sqdn., 7th Cav Regt., 4th BCT, 1st CD. of the 5th Bn., 20th IR, 3rd Bde., 2nd ID.
Jan 20 Roadside bomb in Karma kills 4 soldiers of the May 19 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 6 soldiers of the
3rd Bn., 509th Inf. Abn. Regt., 4th BCT, 25th ID. 1st Bn., 5th Cav Regt., 2nd BCT, 1st CD.
Jan 20 Patrol ambushed while conducting dismounted May 28 Roadside bomb in Abu Sayda kills 5 soldiers
operations in Karbala, killing 4 soldiers of the of the 6th Sqdn., 9th Cav Regt., 3rd BCT, 1st CD.
2nd Bn., 377th Parachute FA Regt., 4th BCT, 25th ID. May 30 Helicopter crash due to enemy fire in Upper
Sangin Valley kills 5 soldiers of the 3rd General
Support Avn. Bn., 82nd BCT, 82nd Abn. Div.
Jun 3 Roadside bomb in Thania kills 4 soldiers of the
1st Bn., 37th FA Regt., 3rd Bde., 2nd ID.
Jun 20 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 4 soldiers of the
1st Bn., 64th Armor Regt., 2nd BCT, 3rd ID.
Jun 21 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 5 soldiers of the
1st Bn., 26th IR, 2nd BCT, 1st ID.
Jun 23 Roadside bomb in Taji kills 4 soldiers of the
2nd Bn., 8th Cav Regt., 1st BCT, 1st CD.
Jun 28 Firefight in Baghdad kills 5 soldiers of the 2nd Bn.,
12th IR, 2nd BCT, 2nd ID.
Jun 30 Battle of Donkey Island. In an all-night fight near
the village of Tash, 9 men of C Co., 1st Bn., 77th
Armor Regt., kill 32 al Qaeda out of a force of 70
at the cost of 2 U.S. KIA and 11 WIA. This firefight
stops a suicidal attack on Ramadi.
Jul 6 Firefight in Baghdad kills 3 SEALs.
Jul 18 Roadside bomb/small-arms fire in Adhamiyah kills
4 soldiers of the 1st Bn., 26th Inf., 2nd BCT, 1st ID.
A Marine from Dam Security Unit III mans an automatic Aug 6 IED in Baqubah kills 4 soldiers of the 1st Bn.,
weapon aboard a small unit riverine craft during a 23rd IR, 3rd Bde., 2nd ID.
reconnaissance mission on Lake Habbaniyah in Iraq
Aug 11 IED in Arab Jabour kills 5 soldiers of the 1st Bn.,
on Jan. 10, 2007. Marines from the Security Unit were
deployed with 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. 30th IR, 2nd BCT, 3rd ID.
DoD photo by Sgt. Edward A. Reagan

46
Aug 14 Helicopter crash in Al Taqqadum kills 5 soldiers
of 1st Bn., 52nd Avn. Regt.
Aug 22 Helicopter crash in Multaka kills 14 soldiers of the
4th Sqdn., 6th Air Cav Regt, and 2nd Bn., 35th IR,
3rd Inf. BCT, 25th ID.
Sep 6 Roadside bomb in Al Anbar province kills 4 Marines
of 3rd Assault Amphibian Bn., 1st MD.
Sep 10 Vehicle rollover in Baghdad kills 7 soldiers of
1st Sqdn., 73rd Cav Regt., 2nd BCT, 82nd Abn. Div.
Sep 14 Roadside bomb in Mugdadiyah kills 4 soldiers of
6th Sqdn., 9th Cav, 3rd BCT, 1st CD.
Nov 1 Roadside bomb in Balad kills 3 airmen of Air Force
Office of Special Investigations.
Nov 5 Roadside bomb in Tal Al-Dahab kills 4 soldiers
of the 1st BCT, 10th Mtn. Div.
Airman 1st Class Kara Dykes, from the immediate reaction
Dec 25 On Christmas Day in Mosul, 18 Rangers engage in force of 332nd Expeditionary Security Forces, mans an
a 17-hour battle with al Qaeda. Without losing a man, M-107 sniper rifle at the entry control point of Joint Base
the 75th Ranger Regiment members eradicate the Balad, Iraq, on Sept. 24, 2008.
10-man terrorist cell, heralding an offensive against DoD photo by Staff Sgt. Aaron Allmon
the group in northern Iraq.

2008
Jan 9 IED in Sinsil kills 6 soldiers of the 3rd Sqdn., Iraq War Casualties
2nd Cav Regt., 1st AD. These casualty statistics cover the period from
Jan 28 Roadside bomb in Mosul kills 5 soldiers of the March 19, 2003, through Oct. 31, 2009.
1st Bn., 8th IR, 3rd BCT, 4th ID.
Feb 8

Roadside bomb in Taji kills 4 soldiers of the
2nd BCT, 25th ID. Total Killed
Mar 10 IED in Baghdad kills 5 soldiers of the 1st Bn., Air
64th Armor Regt., 2nd BCT, 3rd ID. Army Navy* Marines Force Totals
Mar 23 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills 4 soldiers of Hostile 2,521 65 851 29 3,466
Non-Hostile 652 36 169 22 879
the 4th Bn., 64th Armor Regt., 4th BCT, 3rd ID.
May 2 Roadside bomb in Al Anbar province kills 4 Marines Totals 3,173 101 1,020 51 4,345
of Combat Logistics Bn. 1.
Sep 18 CH-47 helicopter crashes near Tallil, killing 7 By Service Component
Oklahoma and Texas National Guard soldiers of the Active Duty 2,532 79 881 46 3,538
2nd Bn., 149th Avn., 36th Combat Avn. Bde. National Guard 487 N/A N/A 2 489
Reserve 154 22 139 3 318
2009 Totals 3,173 101 1,020 51 4,345
Jan 26 OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopters crash in Kirkuk,
killing 4 soldiers of 6th Sqdn., 6th Cav Regt., KIA by Year Year Number
10th Combat Avn. Bde., 10th Mtn. Div. 2003 319
2004 714
Feb 9 Roadside bomb kills 4 soldiers of 3rd Bn.,
2005 673
8th Cav Regt., 3rd BCT, 1st CD in Mosul. 2006 704
Feb 23 Insurgent attack in Balad kills 3 soldiers of 2007 764
5th Sqdn., 1st Cav Regt., 1st Stryker BCT, 25th ID. 2008 221
May 21 IED near Baghdad kills 3 soldiers of the 252nd 2009 72 (as of Oct. 31)
Combined Arms Bn. (N.C. NG) and Mo. NG. Total 3,466
Jun 29 Roadside bomb in Baghdad kills four soldiers
of the 120th Combined Arms Bn. (N.C. NG).
Jul 16 Insurgent attack in Basra kills 3 soldiers of Wounded in Action
the 34th MP Co., 34th ID (Minn. NG). Air
Sep 8 IED in Baji kills three soldiers of the 545th MP Co., Army Navy Marines Force Total
Arctic MP Bn. By Service 21,875 632 8,623 427 31,557
Apr 10 Vehicle-borne IED in Mosul kills 5 soldiers of the
1st Bn., 67th Armor Regt., 2nd BCT, 4th ID. By Service Component
Apr 12 Suicide bomber in Mosul kills 5 soldiers of 1st Bn., Active Duty 16,547 529 7,573 352 25,001
National Guard 4,044 N/A N/A 58 4,102
67th Armor Regt., 4th ID.
Reserve 1,284 103 1,050 17 2,454
Apr 30 Roadside bomb kills 2 Marines of 1st MD and
1 sailor of EODU 12 in Al Anbar province. Totals 21,875 632 8,623 427 31,557
* Navy totals include one Coast Guard death. N/A=Not applicable
Source: Defense Manpower Data Center

47
army
ACTIVE DUTY
Compiled By Richard K. Kolb, Editor
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines
air force
coast guard
national guard
reserves

Soldiers assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 505th Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne
Division, offload from a CH-47 Chinook helicopter. Their mission was to secure
army

the landing zone at Objective Deringer, in the mountains of Afghanistan during


Operation Mountain Sweep in 2002.
dod photo by SPC MARSHALL EMERSON
navy

Afghanistan:
marines

A U.S. Combat Chronology, 2001-2009


air force

America’s war in Afghanistan was under way for 8 years by


coast guard

November 2009. As of Oct. 31, 645 GIs had been killed by enemy
action and 4,434 wounded in action. 2009 was the deadliest year
yet for U.S. forces. IEDs have become the most feared enemy
weapon, inflicting some 75% of U.S. deaths in Afghanistan.
national guard

Legend
ACR Armored Cavalry ID Infantry Division PIR Parachute Infantry
Regiment IR Infantry Regiment Regiment
AD Armored Division MAG Marine Aircraft Group RCT Regimental Combat Team
reserves

APC Armored Personnel MAW Marine Aircraft Wing RPG Rocket-Propelled Grenade
Carrier MCR Marine Corps Reserve SFG Special Forces Group
ARNG Army National Guard MD Mountain Division SOAR Special Operations
BCT Brigade Combat Team MEF Marine Expeditionary Aviation Regiment
army

CD Cavalry Division Force STS Special Tactics Squadron


FA Field Artillery MEU Marine Expeditionary
navy

FOB Forward Operating Base Unit


Note: Though each individual hostile incident is not listed here, all American deaths are recorded on the pages of VFW
magazine under “A Final Salute” usually every month.

48
An F/A-18C fighter is launched from the aircraft carrier USS GIs with the 10th Mountain Division search the Dai Chupan
Carl Vinson against terrorist targets in the opening salvos of area of Zabul Province in Afghanistan for Taliban fighters
the war in Afghanistan on Oct. 7, 2001. and enemy weapons caches during Operation Mountain
U.S. Navy photo by Mate 1st Class Greg Messier Viper on Sept. 1, 2003.
DoD photo by Staff Sgt Kyle Davis

2001 2002
Oct 7 Air Campaign Begins against al Qaeda and
Taliban camps and bases. This includes strikes Jan 4 First U.S. Military KIA.
from aircraft carriers in the Arabian Sea and B-2 Sgt. 1st Class Nathan R.
bombers based at Whiteman AFB, Mo. Crews from Chapman of 3rd Bn., 1st
the 509th Bomb Wing fly 44 consecutive hours— SFG, is killed in a firefight
the longest mission in U.S. military aviation history. in Paktia.
Oct 15 2 AC-130H Spectre gunships of the Air Force’s 16th Jan 9 A Marine KC-130 tanker of
Special Operations Squadron attack 12 targets. Aerial Refueler Transport
Oct 19 Team 555 (12 men) is the first Special Forces Squadron 352 crashes in
A-team infiltrated into Afghanistan, at Bagram Pakistan, killing 7 Marines.
Air Base. Mar 1-16 Operation Anaconda.
Oct 20 Parachute Drop. 200 men of the 75th Ranger 1,700 U.S. troops (3 infan-
Regiment and special operators make a nighttime try battalions from the
drop on Kandahar airstrip. 10th MD and 101st
Sgt. 1st Class Nathan
Nov 16- Tora Bora. U.S. bombs mountain stronghold of Airborne, plus special ops
R. Chapman
Dec 16 al Qaeda. Afghan allies fight on ground. Some units) scour the Shahi-Kot
three-dozen U.S. special operators guide strikes. Valley near Gardez for
Arabs escape into Pakistan. Taliban and al Qaeda Intense fighting occurs at
Nov 18 Battle of Tarin Kot. U.S. fighter jets directed by Objective Ginger. U.S.: 23 WIA in initial assault.
U.S. Special Forces on the ground break the back Mar 4 Battle of Takur Ghar (Roberts Ridge). In the
of the Taliban. Over 6-8 hours, 1,000 Taliban are Shahi-Kot Valley, 7 members of special operations
decimated. units (75th Ranger Regt., 24th STS, 38th Rescue
Nov 25 First U.S. Conventional Forces on the Ground. Sqdn., 160th SOAR, SEAL Team 2) are KIA in a
500 Marines of the 15th MEU arrive at Kandahar. 17-hour firefight during Operation Anaconda.
They set up at Camp Rhino from which to conduct Apr 15 4 soldiers are killed clearing explosives in
offensive operations. Kandahar: 3 of the 710th Explosive Ordnance
Nov 25 First U.S. Death to Enemy Action. Det. and 1 from the 19th SFG.
CIA Special Activities May 19 1 Green Beret is KIA during a firefight in Shkin.
Division officer Johnny M. Jun 12 Accidental crash of an Air Force transport near
Spann is the first Ameri- Bande Sardeh dam claims 2 airmen and 1
can killed. He is murdered Green Beret.
by Taliban during a riot at Jul 27 5 special ops soldiers are WIA (1 mortally) in a
Qala Jangi Fortress prison firefight with Arabs at Ab Khail near Khost. The
in Mazar-e-Sharif. 16 4-hour firefight also includes 82nd Airborne Division
special ops troops fight elements.
500 POWs for 72 hours. Dec 21 1 U.S. soldier is KIA in an ambush in Shkin.


Air and gunship strikes kill
most of the rioting Taliban 2003
by Nov. 27. Jan 27-28 Battle of Spin Boldak. Heaviest fighting in 9
Dec 5 3 members of Op. Det. months. Rapid reaction force of 82nd Airborne
A, 3rd Bn., 5th SFG, are CIA Special Activities Division participates in the 12-hour firefight on
killed and 19 wounded Officer Johnny M. Adi Ghar Mountain with 80 enemy, 18 of
by “friendly fire” near Spann whom are KIA (mostly by air strikes).
photo courtesy CIa museum
Kandahar.

49
2 KIA in a 90-minute firefight in Paktika province
vs. 4 Taliban KIA.
Sep 4 Heaviest fighting to date since late 2001.
A 9-day siege in the Dai Chupan District ends with
124 Taliban KIA during Operation Mountain Viper.
Sep 14 Combined forces kill 15 Taliban in the Manif
District.
Sep 29 A Co., 1st Bn., 87th IR, 10th MD, engages a large
al Qaeda force east of Shkin firebase, losing 1 KIA
and 3 WIA.
Oct 25 2 CIA operatives are KIA in an ambush near Shkin.
Oct 30 1 Green Beret is KIA in an ambush near
Musa, Qala.
Sgt. Ryan West of 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 22nd
Nov 14 1 Ranger is KIA by a roadside bomb in Asadabad.
Marine Expeditionary Unit, yells for his unit to take cover Nov 23 5 Americans—4 special operations airmen &
from enemy sniper fire during a firefight with Taliban and 1 soldier—die in a MH-53M helicopter crash
al Qaeda forces near the village of Siah Chub Kalay, near Bagram.
Afghanistan, on June 2, 2004. The Marines killed 25
enemy fighters during a two-day period.
dod photo by Gunnery Sgt. Keith A. Milks
2004
Jan 29 8 soldiers (4 from the 10th MD and 4 Army
Jan 30 MH-60L Black Hawk crashes near Bagram Air reservists) are killed near Ghazni in a weapons
Base during a training mission—4 men of 1st Bn., cache explosion.
160th SOAR die in the accident. Mar 18 2 U.S. soldiers are KIA in a firefight in Deh Rawood.
Mar 14 Special Forces convoy is ambushed between May 7 2nd Marine Light Armored Recon Battalion is
Gardez and Khost—5 enemy are KIA. ambushed near Tirin Kot, losing 1 KIA—the first
Mar Operation Valiant Strike. In the largest operation Marine combat death in Afghanistan.
20-25 since March 2002, Special Forces (200) and 1st May 15 1 Green Beret is KIA in an ambush in Kajaki.
Bn., 504th PIR, 82nd Abn. Div. (800 men), clash May 29 3 soldiers (2 from 1st Bn., 3rd SFG, and 1 from
with the enemy in the Sami Ghar Mtns. in the the 329th Psychological Ops. Co., Army Reserve)
Kandahar area. 10 enemy fighters are KIA. and 1 SEAL are KIA in Kandahar when their vehicle
Mar 23 Air Force HH-60 helicopter crashes during a hits a land mine.
medical evacuation mission near Ghazni—6 Jun 2-3 1st Bn., 6th Marines, engages Taliban, killing 25
members of the 38th and 41st Rescue squadrons in the Dai Chupan District of Zabul province.
die in the accident. Jun 7 1 U.S. soldier is KIA by a roadside bomb near
Mar 29 2 U.S. special operations troops are KIA in Deh Rawood.
Helmand province vs. 15 Taliban during a Jun 24 2 Marines are KIA near Bari Khout.
convoy ambush. Aug 7 2 U.S. soldiers are KIA by a roadside bomb
Apr 2 45 Special Forces clash with Taliban in Tor Ghar in Ghazikel.
Mountains near Spin Boldak. Sep 20 2 Green Berets are KIA in an ambush in Shkin.
Apr 25 35 special ops & 82nd GIs engage 20 Taliban 1 GI is KIA by small-arms fire in Naka.
at Shkin. 2 U.S. mortally WIA and 4 WIA vs. 3
Taliban KIA.
Jun 3 500 GIs launch a large-scale operation in
Shahi-Kot Mountains.
Jun 10 GIs engage in a 3-hour firefight near Shkin,
killing 4 Taliban.
Jun 25 1 SEAL dies of wounds after a firefight near
Gardez.
Jun 26 1 special operations soldier is KIA and 2 WIA
near Gardez.
Jun 28 A gun battle near Shkin results in 10 enemy KIA.
Jul 20 Convoy/patrol of 12 special operations troops is
ambushed near Spin Boldak by 100 Taliban. Troops
and helicopters kill 22 Taliban in the firefight.
Aug 21 1 SEAL dies of wounds from a firefight near Orgun.
Aug 25 During Operation Warrior Sweep, U.S. air strikes
kill 14 of the enemy in the Zermat Valley.
Aug 26 Operation Mountain Viper is launched. Fighting
centers in the Dai Chupan area of southern Soldiers enter a building believed to be storing illegal
Zabul province. weapons during a combat raid in Zurmat, Afghanistan,
Aug 31 2 U.S. soldiers are KIA in a firefight near Shkin. on Oct. 16, 2004. The soldiers were assigned to the
82nd Airborne Division, B Company, 1st Battalion,
Sep 1 During Operation Mountain Viper, special
505th Parachute Infantry Regiment.
operations troops and 10th MD soldiers sustain DoD photo by Sgt. Michael A. Abney

50
Oct 14 2 GIs are KIA by a roadside bomb in Miam Do.
Oct 20 1 GI is mortally WIA by a roadside bomb in Naka.
Nov 1 1 GI is KIA by an RPG in Sharan.
Nov 24 2 GIs are KIA by a roadside bomb in Deh Rawood.
Nov 27 3 soldiers from the 3rd Sqdn., 4th Cav, 25th ID,
are killed in Bamian in an accidental aircraft crash.

2005
Jan 1 1 Green Beret is mortally WIA in a firefight
in Shindand.
Jan 3 1 Green Beret is KIA by a roadside bomb
in Asadabad.
Feb 11 Combat Action Badge. Army creates for
non-infantrymen. Senior Airman Michael Gibbs and Staff Sgt. Kary Mustin,
Mar 15 1 GI is mortally WIA by a landmine near Shindand. 25th Air Support Operations Squadron, communicates with
Mar 26 4 GIs from the Indiana National Guard’s aircraft while in the Shah Wali Kot District, Afghanistan,
76th Inf. Bde. (Separate) are KIA when their on April 5, 2005. Air Force combat controllers and Tactical
vehicle strikes a land mine in Kabul. Air Control Party members have been instrumental in
coordinating fire support on Taliban positions.
Apr 6 Deadly Helicopter Crash. 14 soldiers (5 from the
Army photo by SPC Johnny R. Aragon
159th Avn. Regt., 3 from the 508th IR, 2 from the
25th ID, 2 National Guardsmen, 1 from Southeast Aug 11 1 engineer is killed by ordnance at Orgun-E.
European TF, 1 Army reservist) and 1 Marine (4th Aug 18 1 Marine is KIA by small-arms fire near Taleban.
MAW), plus 3 civilians, are killed in a CH-47 Chinook Aug 18 2 engineers are KIA by a roadside bomb in
helicopter crash due to weather in Ghazni. Kandahar.
Apr 8 Afghanistan Campaign Medal. Rules released. Aug 21 4 soldiers from 2nd Bn., 503rd Inf., 173rd Abn.
Presidential Executive Order 13363 (Nov. 29, Bde., are KIA near Baylough by a roadside bomb.
2004) establishes it retroactive to Oct. 24, 2001 Aug 26 1 paratrooper is KIA by a roadside bomb in
(later Sept. 11). Khayr Kot.
May 3 Battle of Arghandab Valley. Soldiers of HHC Sep 25 5 crewmen—1 of the 7th Bn., 159th Avn. Regt.,
Co., 2nd Bn., 503rd Inf., 173rd Abn Bde., battle 30 and 4 from the Nevada National Guard’s D Co.,
Taliban, killing 17. 6 U.S. WIA; 3 Silver Stars awarded. 113th Avn. Regt.—die when their CH-47 Chinook
May 21 1 GI is KIA by a roadside bomb in Shinkay. helicopter is shot down near the Dai Chupan
Jun 3 2 Green Berets are KIA by a roadside bomb at FOB District.
Orgun-E. 1 dies of wounds on June 16. Sep 26 1 Marine is KIA by mortar fire at Camp Blessing.
Jun 8 2 GIs are KIA by small-arms fire in Shkin. 1 paratrooper is KIA by small-arms fire near
Jun 10 2nd Bn., 504th Inf., 82nd Abn. Div., and Special Kandahar.
Forces fight a 9-hour battle with the Taliban along Sep 30 1 paratrooper is KIA by an RPG in Shah Wali Kot.
the Pakistan border. U.S.: 1 KIA. Oct 7 1 paratrooper is KIA by a landmine in Helmand.
Jun 28 Deadliest U.S. Battle: 19 KIA. During Operation Oct 9 1 GI is KIA by a grenade and 3 WIA in a firefight
Red Wing, 3 SEALs are KIA in a firefight in Kunar at Qalat.
province with 25 to 50 Taliban. 8 SEALs (Team Oct 29 1 paratrooper is KIA in an ambush at Lwara.
10 & Delivery Team 1) and 8 soldiers from Nov 15 1 Green Beret is KIA by a roadside bomb at Orgun-E.
the 160th SOAR are KIA when their CH-47 Chinook Nov 22 1 paratrooper is KIA by a roadside bomb in Shah
helicopter is shot down by an RPG near Asadabad Wali Kot.
in a rescue attempt. 3 posthumous Silver Stars are Dec 4 In a firefight in the southern province of Kandahar,
awarded. SEAL Lt. Michael Murphy is awarded 13 enemy are KIA vs. 3 U.S. WIA.
(posthumously) Medal of Honor on Oct. 22, 2007. Dec 15 1 paratrooper is KIA in a firefight in Shah Wali Kot.
Jul 14 Taliban attack a U.S. outpost in Khost province: Dec 28 1 Army reservist is KIA by a roadside bomb
24 die. in Asadabad.
Jul 23 Firefight at Qal’eh-ye Gaz. Members of the 1st Bn.,


3rd SFG, are attacked by 15 enemy, engaging in a
7-hour gun battle. U.S.: 1 KIA, 1 WIA.
2006
Jan 25 1 Marine is mortally WIA by a roadside bomb.
Jul 25 1 GI is KIA by gunfire in Oruzgan. Feb 6 1 GI is KIA in a firefight near Mehtar Lam.
Jul 25-26 Firefight at Sayhcow. U.S. Special Forces drive Feb 13 4 GIs of the 3rd Bn. and Grp. Support Bn., 7th SFG,
enemy from town, losing 1 KIA. and 321st Civil Affairs Bn., are KIA by an IED near
Aug 4 1 Marine is KIA by a roadside bomb near Gardez. Deh Rawood.
Aug 7-9 Battle of Mari Ghar. During a 54-hour series of Feb 28 1 Green Beret of the 3rd Bn., 7th SFG, is KIA
running firefights, 12 members of A-Team, 1st Bn., by an IED in Tarin Kowt.
3rd SFG, and 16 Afghans engage 200 Taliban, Mar 12 4 soldiers of the Army Reserve’s 391st Eng. Bn.
killing 65. “The Spartans” lose 1 KIA. Two DSCs are KIA by an IED near Asadabad.
and 3 Silver Stars recommended. Mar 25 1 Green Beret of the 2nd Bn., 20th SFG (Mississippi
Aug 8 1 Green Beret is KIA by small-arms fire in NG), is KIA in a firefight in the Sangin District.
Deh Afghan.
Aug 9 1 GI is KIA by a roadside bomb in Ghazni.
51
Jun 25 1 GI of the 1st Bn., 32nd IR, 3rd BCT, 10th MD,
Army Special Forces KIAs is KIA at the Korengal Outpost.
Sgt. 1st Class Christopher L. Jun 28 1 GI of the 2nd Bn., 87th IR, 3rd BCT, 10th MD,
Robinson, 2nd Battalion, 20th is KIA by a mine in Helmand.
Special Forces Group, was killed Aug 11 3 GIs of B Co., 1st Bn., 32nd IR, 3rd BCT, 10th MD,
March 25, 2006, by small-arms are KIA in a firefight in Nangalam.
fire in the Sangin district of Aug 19 3 GIs of 3rd BCT, 10th MD, are KIA by a roadside
Helmand province. He was
bomb in Kunar. 1 airman of the 23rd STS, 720th STG,
posthumously awarded the
Bronze Star for valor. is KIA in an ambush in Oruzgan province.
u.s. army photo Sep 8 2 Army reservists of the 405th Civil Affairs Bn.
are KIA by a bomb in Kabul.
Sep Battle of Sperwan Ghar. Three Operational
11-14 Detachment Alpha teams of the 3rd SFG (Task
Force 31) and 123 men from the 10th MD kill
Staff Sgt. Eric Caban, B Company, 500 Taliban south of the Arghandab River during
3rd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Operation Medusa. 1 GI is killed.
Group, died on July 18, 2006,
Oct 2 2 GIs of A Co., 1st Bn., 32nd IR, 3rd BCT, 10th MD,
when his combat reconnaissance
patrol was attacked. He was are KIA in a firefight in Korengal.
posthumously awarded a Bronze Oct 5 NATO assumes full command of military operations
Star for valor. nationwide.
u.s. army photo Oct 31 3 Gls—2 from B Co., 1st Bn., 32nd lR, and 1 from
A Co., 3rd Bde., Spec. Troops Bn., 3rd BCT, 10th
Mar 28 1 GI of the 15th Civil Support Team (Vermont NG)
MD—are KIA by a roadside bomb in Wygal Valley.
is killed by “friendly fire” in a firefight in Lashkagar.
Nov 28 2 MPs of the 230th MP Co., 95th MP Bn., 18th MP
A U.S.-led retaliation kills 32 Taliban.
Bde., are KIA by a roadside bomb in Logar.
Apr 20 1 National Guardsman of the 149th Armor Bde.
Dec 15 1 GI of the 1st Bn., 102nd IR (Connecticut NG),
(Kentucky NG), 35th ID, is KIA in a firefight in the
is KIA by a roadside bomb in Mehtar Lam.
Deh Rawood District.
May 5

Deadly Helicopter Crash. CH-47 Chinook
crashes, killing 10 soldiers—6 of the 3rd Bn.,
2007
Jan 10 Marghah Outpost. U.S. forces kill 130 Taliban in
10th Avn. Regt., and 4 of the 71st Cav Regt.,
their attempted attack on the outpost near the
10th MD—near Abad.
Pakistan border manned by elements of the 10th MD.
May 19 1 Green Beret of the 3rd Bn., 7th SFG, is KIA in a
Combined air and artillery strikes took them
firefight in Oruzgan province. 6 other Americans are
out before they ever got close.
WlA in the convoy ambush.
Feb 18 8 GIs of the 2nd Bn., 160th SOAR (5); 3rd Bn.,
Jun 6 2 National Guardsmen of the 1st Bn., 188th Air
75th Ranger Regt. (2); and 24th STS (1), die in
Defense Arty (North Dakota NG), are KIA by an
a helicopter crash due to a mechanical
antitank mine in Khogyani.
malfunction in Zabol province.
Jun 11 1 GI of the 303rd MI Bn., 504th MI Bde., is KIA
Apr 12 2 paratroopers of the 2nd Bn., 508th IR, 82nd Abn.
in a firefight in Ghanzi.
Div., are KIA by an IED in Miri.
Jun 13 1 GI of C Co., 1st Bn., 32nd IR, 3rd BCT,
Apr 22 Firefight at Shudergay. Three members of
10th MD, is KIA in a firefight in Korengal.
2nd Plt., C Co., 1st Bn., 32nd Inf. Regt., 10th MD,
Jun 14 1 GI of B Co., Special Troops Bn., 10th
earn the Silver Star during a 17-hour engagement in
Sustainment Bde., 10th MD, is KIA in an ambush
Kunar province.
in Musa Qala.
Apr U.S. Special Forces call in air strikes in the Zerkoh
Jun 16 2 GIs of the 1st Bn., 32nd IR., 3rd BCT, 10th MD,
27, 29 Valley near the Iranian border 30 miles south of
are KIA in the Pech River Valley by a roadside bomb.
Herat, killing 49 Taliban in the first strike and 87
Jun 21 1 GI of the 3rd Sqdn., 71st Cav Regt., 3rd BCT,
in the second 14-hour battle/strike.
10th MD, is KIA in a firefight in Naray. Another GI of
May 30 5 GIs of the 3rd General Support Avn. Bn., 82nd BCT,
the 159th Air Ambulance Medical Evac. Co., 421st
82nd Abn. Div., are KIA in Upper Sangin Valley when
Med. Bn., accidentally dies attempting to retrieve
their helicopter is shot down. Troops sent to the site
his body.
are ambushed by the Taliban.
Jun 21 2 GIs of the 3rd Sqdn., 7th Cav, 3rd BCT, 10th MD,
Jun 17 3 GIs—2 of the 1st Bde., 1st ID, and one of the
are KIA in a firefight in Gowardesh.
3rd Bn.,156th IR (Louisiana NG)—are KIA in Panjway
Jun Operation Kaika. 18 U.S. special operations forces
by an IED.
23-24 and 48 Afghan soldiers fight 200 Taliban for a total of
Jul 5 2 soldiers of the 2nd Bn., 503rd Inf., 173rd Abn. BCT,
17 hours in several firefights. 125 terrorists are killed
are KIA in a firefight in the Watapor Valley.
vs. 2 Americans and 3 Afghan interpreters. One Green
Jul 23 Deadliest IED Attack.
Beret is awarded the DSC and four the Silver Star.
5 paratroopers of the 1st Bn., 503rd IR, 173rd Abn.
Jun 24 1 Green Beret of the 2nd Bn., 7th SFG, is KIA in a
Bde., are KIA by an IED in the Sarobi District.
firefight near Ghecko. 1 National Guardsman of
Jul 27 2 paratroopers of the 1st Sqdn., 91st Cav Regt.,
HQ Co., 53rd Inf. Bde. (Florida NG), is KIA in an
173rd Abn. BCT, are KIA in a firefight near Kamu.
ambush in the Panjaway District.
Aug 8 Taliban attack Firebase Anaconda, losing 20 dead,
mostly to airstrikes.

52
Aug 9 Raid on Kamdesh. 3rd Bn.,
71st IR, 10th MD, repels
Hezb-e-Islami attack, killing
19 while sustaining 2 WIA.
Aug 12 3 Green Berets of the 2nd
Bn., 7th SFG, and 2nd Psy.
Ops. Grp. are KIA by an
IED in Nangarhar province.
Aug 27 3 soldiers—2 of the 55th Bde.
(Pennsylvania NG), and 1 of
the 1st Bde., 1st ID—are KIA
when insurgents attack their
unit during combat
For his heroic actions,
operations in Jalalabad.
Lt. Michael Murphy
Aug 28 3 GIs of the 864th Eng. Bn., was posthumously
555th Eng. Bde. are KIA awarded the Medal
by a roadside bomb in Jaji. of Honor on Oct. 22,
Sep 6 Marine Special Operations 2007. See the entry
Company returns to Helmand for June 28, 2005.
province. u.s. navy photo

Sep 25 U.S. airstrikes and artillery


repel two large assaults on Musa Qala and
Deh Rawood, killing 165 Taliban.
Oct 25 2 GIs of 2nd Bn., 503rd IR, 173rd Abn. Bde.,
are KIA in a firefight in the Korengal Valley.
Oct 27 U.S.-led forces kill 80 Taliban in a six-hour battle A CH-47 helicopter prepares to lift off with two 155mm
near Musa Qala. howitzers during a mission at Forward Operating Base
Nov 6 Worst Suicide Bombing in Afghanistan. Fenty in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, on Dec. 20, 2007.
52 civilians are killed in Kabul by a terrorist. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Brandon Aird

Nov 9 Deadliest Ambush of Year. 5 soldiers of 2nd


Bn., 503rd Abn. IR, 173rd Abn. BCT, and 1 Marine Jun 18 2 sailors of Provincial Recon Team Sharana
are KIA by direct enemy fire in Aranus. are KIA in a rocket attack in northern Paktika
Nov 12 2 GIs of 1st Sqdn., 91st Cav Regt., 173rd Abn. Bde., province.
are KIA by an IED in Bermel. Jun 19 2 Marines of 2nd Bn., 7th Marine Regt., 1st
Dec 12 2 GIs of 1st Bn., 503rd IR, 173rd Abn. Bde., are KIA Marine Div., are KIA in a rocket attack in Farah
by an IED at FOB Curry. province.
Jun 21 4 GIs are KIA by an IED and small-arms fire in
2008

Kandahar City—3 of 2nd Sqdn., 101st Cav, and 1
of MTT, 1st Bde., 1st ID.
Jan 7 2 GIs are KIA by an IED in Laghar Juy.
Mar 3 2 paratroopers of the 1st Bn., 508th IR, 82nd Abn. Jun 26 3 GIs are KIA in a firefight near FOB Shank—2 of
Div., are KIA in the Sabari District. 2nd Sqdn., 101st Cav Regt., and 1 of 425th IR.
Mar 19 3,200 Marines begin arriving in Kabul. 1st Bn., Jun 29 3 GIs of 1st Bn., 7th SFG, are killed when their
6th Marine Regt., forms the core of the 24th vehicle rolls into a canal in Khosrow-E Sofla.
MEU, based in Kandahar province. Some of the Jul 10 2 GIs of 1st Bn., 294th IR, are KIA by an IED in
Marines later move into Helmand province. Babo Kheyl.
Apr 6 Green Berets of C Co., 3rd Bn., 3rd SFG, earn Jul 13 Deadliest Single Firefight of U.S. War.
10 Silver Stars in cliff-side firefight in Shok Valley. 9 GIs of 2nd Plt., C Co., 2nd Bn., 503rd IR (Abn.),
Nearly 200 enemy troops KIA. No U.S. KIA. 173rd Abn. BCT, are KIA in an attack at Vehicle
An Air Force Combat Controller is awarded an Patrol Base Kahler and OP Top Side near Wanat.
Air Force Cross. 11 Silver Stars are awarded.
Apr 10 101st Airborne Division (7,200 soldiers) takes Aug 1 4 GIs of 3rd BCT, 1st ID—3 of Special Troops Bn.
command of U.S. forces in eastern Afghanistan. and 1 of 6th Sqdn., 4th Cav Regt.—are KIA by an
Apr 15 2 members of Combat Logistics Bn. 24, 24th IED in Chowkay Valley.
MEU, are KIA by an IED during a supply Aug 14 2 Marines of 2nd Bn., 7th Marine Regt., 1st
run outside Kandahar. Marine Div., are KIA in Helmand.
May 1 32,500 U.S. troops are deployed to Afghanistan. Aug 15 2 GIs of 1st Bn., 506th IR, 4th BCT, 101st Abn.
May 7 2 GIs of 4th BCT, 101st Abn. Div., are KIA by an Div., are KIA by an IED in Wardak province.
IED in Sabari District. Sept 17 4 GIs of three units are KIA by an IED in
May 31 2 GIs of 173rd Special Troops Bn., 173rd Abn. Gerdia Seria.
BCT, are KIA by an IED in Jalalabad. Sept 20 2 GIs of 1st Bn., 26th IR, 3rd BCT, 1st ID, are
Jun 3 2 GIs—1 of 451st Civil Affairs Bn. and 1 of 228th KIA by an IED in Korengal Valley.
Bde. Support Bn.—are KIA by an IED in Zormat. Sept 29 3 GIs of 1st Bn., 7th SFG, are KIA by an IED
Jun 14 4 Marines of 2nd Bn., 7th Marines, 1st Marine in Yakchal.
Div., are KIA by an IED in Farah province.
53
Oct 14 3 GIs of 1st Bn., 26th IR, 3rd BCT, 1st ID, are
KIA by an IED in Qazi Bandeh.
Oct 22 2 Marines of 7th Marine Regt., 1st Marine Div.,
are KIA in Helmand province.
Oct 27 2 GIs—1 Green Beret and 1 Illinois National
Guardsmen—are KIA by a suicide bomber in
Baghlan.

2009
Jan 8 2 GIs of 2nd Bn., 2nd Inf., 1st ID, are KIA by
an IED in Maywand.
Jan 9 3 GIs of 1st Bn., 178th IR, 33rd IBCT, are KIA
by an IED in Jaldak.
Feb 8 2 GIs of the Illinois National Guard are KIA Pfc. Jason Hovater, of C Co., 2nd Bn., 503rd Parachute
Inf. Regt., pulls security while on patrol in the Chiriac
by an IED in Kabul.
Valley, Afghanistan, on Oct. 24, 2007. Hovater was KIA
Feb 10 2 GIs of 2nd Bn., 506th Inf., 101st Abn. Div., in the battle at Wanat on July 13, 2008.
are KIA by an IED in Salerno. U.S. Army photo by staff sgt. marcus j. quarterman
Feb 20 2 GIs of 3rd SFG and 720th STG are KIA
by an IED in Khordi.
Feb 24 4 GIs are KIA by an IED in Kandahar. Afghanistan War
Mar 21 2 Marines of 3rd Bn., 8th Marine Regt.,
2nd Marine Div., are KIA in Helmand province. Casualties
May 1 3 GIs of 1st and 3rd BCTs, 1st ID, are KIA in These casualty statistics cover the period
firefight in Nishagam. from Oct. 7, 2001, through Oct. 31, 2009.
Jun 1 3 GIs of 2nd Bn., 87th IR, 10th MD, are KIA

Jun 4
by a roadside bomb in Nerkh.
3 GIs of 1st Bn., 108th RSTA Sqdn., 48th BCT Total U.S. Killed
(Georgia NG), are KIA by IED and small-arms fire Air
near Kapisa. Army Navy Marines Force Totals
Hostile 501 33 91 20 645*
Jul 6 4 GIs of 48th BCT (Georgia NG), are KIA by a Non-Hostile 181 19 38 23 261
roadside bomb in Konduz.
Jul 20 4 GIs of 4th Bn., 25th FA, 10th MD, are KIA by Totals 682 52 129 43 906
a roadside bomb in Wardak province. By Component
Aug 1 3 GIs of 1st Bn., 12th IR, 4th ID, are KIA by IEDs Active Duty 528 50 123 41 742
and RPGs in Mushan Village. National Guard 123 N/A N/A 2 125
Aug 2 3 GIs of 2nd Bn., 20th SFG (Mississippi NG), are Reserve 31 2 6 0 39
KIA by an IED in Qole Gerdsar. Totals 682 52 129 43 906
Aug 6 4 Marines of 2nd Bn., 3rd Regt., 3rd MD, are KIA
by a roadside bomb in Farah province.
KIA by Year Year Total Number
Aug 25 4 GIs of 1st Bn., 17th IR, 2nd ID, are KIA by a 2001 3†
roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan. 2002 18
Sep 8 3 Marines of 3rd MD and Transition Cmd. and 2003 17
1 sailor of Combined Security Transition Cmd. 2004 25
are KIA in firefight in Kunar province. 2005 66
Sep 16 3 GIs of 3rd Bn., 7th SFG, are KIA by an IED 2006 65
in Helmand province. 2007 83
2008 132
Sep 24 3 GIs of 4th Bn., 23rd IR, 2nd ID, are KIA by
2009 236 (as of Oct. 31)
a roadside bomb in Omar Zai.
Total 645
Oct 3 Second Deadliest Firefight. 8 GIs of 3rd Note: 3 CIA operators were also KIA.
Sqdn., 61st Cav. Regt., 4th BCT, 4th ID, are KIA in

Oct 15
a firefight at Combat Outpost Keating in Kamdesh.
4 soldiers of the 569th Mobility Augmentation Co.,
Wounded in Action
Air
4th Eng. Bn. are KIA by an IED in Kandahar Army Navy Marines Force Total
province. By Service 3,480 79 758 117 4,434
Oct 26 11 soldiers and Marines, as well as 3 DEA agents,
die in two separate helicopter incidents. 5 By Component
members of the 3rd Bn., 160th SOAR along with Active Duty 2,817 79 756 107 3,759
2 soldiers from the 3rd Bn., 7th SFG die in a National Guard 579 N/A N/A 9 588
MH-47 helicopter crash at Darreh-ye Bum. 4 Reserve 84 0 2 1 87
Marines of MAG-39, 3rd MAW, die in a mid-air
Totals 3,480 79 758 117 4,434
collision over Helmand province. *Includes three Americans killed by terrorist attacks in Kuwait and the Philippines
Oct 27 Roadside bomb kills 7 soldiers of 1st Bn., 17th IR, in 2002. In 2009, two more GIs were KIA by a land mine in the Philippines.
† 3 “friendly fire” deaths.
5th Stryker Bde., 2nd ID in the Arghandab Valley. Note: Figures cover Afghanistan, Philippines, Kuwait and elsewhere.
N/A=Not applicable Source: Defense Manpower Data Center

54
army
ACTIVE DUTY
by Tim Dyhouse
navy

Iraq & Afghanistan


marines

42% of VFW’s Newest Members are


air force

Younger Than 40
coast guard

A large pool of young, eligible veterans and a focus


on image-shaping help attract younger members.

A
national guard

snapshot of VFW recruiting ef- Meanwhile, Danderson says, in being a part of an organization
forts in April 2009 revealed some VFW’s Membership Department has that recognizes me as an overseas war
encouraging numbers. One-fourth of completed new promotional materi- veteran.”
all new VFW members were younger als that appeal to younger vets. Improving the retention figure,
than 30 years old. In addition, veter- “Young troops expect diversity,” he says, involves better efforts from
ans younger than 40 account for 42% he said. “The military is diverse. You VFW National Headquarters down
reserves

of all new members then. have 18-year-olds deployed with 60- to Posts.
“The numbers are great,” said As- year-olds. Women are much more “We must improve VFW’s Internet
sociate Director of Membership Troy prevalent in the war zones than they presence,” he said. “And Post mem-
army

Danderson. “But considering that the were in past conflicts. Individuals bers have to make these new mem-
nation has been at war since 2001, continue to come from all over the bers feel welcome after they join.”
they’re not that surprising.” country with varied backgrounds.” Danderson says the Membership
navy

The Membership Department Danderson says the Membership Department has uncovered interest-
compiled new-member statistics from Department is updating images and ing trends with the younger vets.
July 9, 2008, to April 23, 2009. Not photos in recruiting brochures, offer- “We’re finding that vets from
marines

including reinstated members, VFW ing a more user-friendly online appli- ‘Generation Y,’ those who were born
recruiters signed up 57,212 new cation process and providing features in the 1980s, want to get involved,
members. like the “Post Locator” on the Mem- which counters some pre-conceived
air force

Of that figure, 14,391, or 25%, bership section of VFW’s Web site. notions about that age group,” Dan-
were 30 or younger. Another 9,654, Danderson says some posts and de- derson says. “But we’ve also learned
or 17%, were between 30 and 39. partments also are trying methods to that they don’t necessarily like the
appeal to the younger set. Post 8469 in meetings. They want to get involved
coast guard

Recruiting Practices Fairfax Station, Va., for example, has in volunteerism and actually do some-
Danderson says that younger vets an active Facebook Internet page and thing. They also like activities that are
respond best to traditional recruiting uses it to communicate with its mem- purely entertainment, but instead of
methods, just like their older counter- bers about upcoming events. A Post in centering around the bar or drinking,
parts. Clever, Mo., is made up of exclusively they enjoy physical activities like rock-
national guard

“Face-to-face recruiting works Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. climbing walls.”


best,” he said. “Greeting returning He says appealing to younger
units at airports or attending deploy- Retention Still a Problem veterans is a reality that must be em-
ment ceremonies builds goodwill Danderson notes that while the re- braced by all members at all levels of
with veterans. This, in turn, makes cruiting numbers for the under-40 VFW.
them much more receptive to joining crowd are encouraging, retaining “We want a young veteran who is
reserves

VFW.” them is less than stellar. He says that approached by a VFW recruiter to al-
Danderson, a 34-year-old vet of 75% of them do not renew their ready have a positive image of our or-
Iraq, Afghanistan and Korea, adds memberships after one year. ganization,” Danderson said. “When
army

that as more young vets join, it creates “As a young vet, I’m looking for I look at these numbers, I see young
a “snowball effect” where their peers something at a Post that will involve veterans who could potentially be
become familiar with VFW and what me and my family,” he said. “I like ac- VFW members for 40 years or more.
navy

it offers. This leads to them wanting tivities that will give something back These numbers are exciting.”
to join, too. to the community, and I’m interested
marines

55
A Quick Reference Guide: Organizations and Resources
Whether you’re staying in or getting out, here are resources
to contact and where to look online to answer all your military
and veteran-related questions. But start with VFW.
America Supports You
www.americasupportsyou.mil
Military Child Education Coalition
108 East FM 2410, Suite D
PO Box 2519
How VFW Is Helping You
Army Virtual Family Readiness Program Harker Heights, TX 76548-2519 Veterans of Foreign Wars
www.armyfrg.org 254.953.1923
www.militarychild.org 406 W. 34th St.
Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center Kansas City, MO 64111
Building 1, Room B209 MilitaryOneSource 816.756.3390
Walter Reed Army Medical Center 1.800.342.9647
6900 Georgia Ave. NW www.militaryonesource.com info@vfw.org
Washington, DC 20307-5001 www.vfw.org
1.800.870.9244 National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)
www.dvbic.org Veterans Resource Center National Veterans Service
Colonial Place Three
Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) 2107 Wilson Blvd., Suite 300 800.VFW.1899
www.dod.mil/dfas Arlington, VA 22201-3024 vfw@vfw.org
1.800.950.NAMI
Department of Labor’s Veterans Employment info@nami.org
and Training Service (VETS) www.nami.org National Military Services
200 Constitution Ave., NW 866.789.6333
Washington, DC 20210 The National Archives and Records Administration unmetneeds@vfw.org
(866) 4-USA-DOL 8601 Adelphi Rd.
www.dol.gov/vets College Park, MD 20740-6001 www.unmetneeds.com
1.866.272.6272
Deployment Health Clinical Center www.archives.gov Military Assistance Program
1.800.796.9699 816.756.3390 x221
www.pdhealth.mil National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
1.800.273.TALK map@vfw.org
Fisher House Foundation www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org
1401 Rockville Pike, Suite 600 Operation Uplink
Rockville, MD 20852 Operation Comfort 800.479.5228
1.888.294.8560 1.866.632.7868
info@fisherhouse.org www.operationcomfort.org uplink@vfw.org
www.fisherhouse.org www.operationuplink.org
Operation Military Child Care
The Fund for Veterans Education NACCRRA
One Scholarship Way Military Subsidy Department U.S. Department of Defense
PO Box 297 3101 Wilson Blvd., Suite 350 www.defenselink.mil
Saint Peter, MN 56082 Arlington, VA 22201
1.800.537.4180 x423 1.800.424.2246 VA Enrollment Form
www.veteransfund.org omcc@naccrra.org www.va.gov/1010ez.htm

GI Bill Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) VA National Center for PTSD
(888) GIBILL-1 910 17th St., NW, Suite 800 802.296.6300
www.gibill.va.gov Washington, DC 20006 ncptsd@va.gov
1.800.959.TAPS www.ncptsd.org
Give an Hour info@taps.com
PO Box 5918 www.taps.org VA Vet Centers
Bethesda, MD 20824-5918 1.800.905.4675
info@giveanhour.org Transition Assistance Program www.vetcenter.va.gov
www.giveanhour.org www.transitionassistanceprogram.com
Wounded Warrior Project
Hire Vets First TRICARE 7020 A.C. Skinner Pkwy., Suite 100
Veterans Employment Skyline 5, Suite 810 Jacksonville, FL 32256
and Training Service 5111 Leesburg Pike (877) TEAM WWP
200 Constitution Ave., NW, Falls Church, VA 22041-3206 www.woundedwarriorproject.org
Room S-1325 www.tricare.mil
Washington, DC 20210
www.hirevetsfirst.gov

For more information on how to join VFW, contact:


National Membership Department
Veterans of Foreign Wars
406 W. 34th Street
Kansas City, MO 64111
Phone: 816.756.3390 Fax: 816.968.2728
E-mail: membership@vfw.org www.vfw.org DECember 2009
56

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