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What We Are Doing To Help Our
Veterans...
It
is always a pleasure to keep you all informed on the
activities of the USEF. We
had a busy
week in San Diego working with the Navy and Marine Bases in the Area. We are also talking to
different individuals
to come aboard the Advisory Board. I had two meetings with some
Admirals to
introduce them into the USEF and what we are doing for our Military
community. From San
Diego I found
myself out at El Centro Naval Air Facility. This is the winter command
for the
Blue Angels. A lot of training is done on the base for all of our Air
Wings.
There is a place on the tarmac where they have a design of the deck of
an Air
Craft Carrier where the pilots can do touch and go’s and they
have a computer
program which rates them and lets them know if they landed correctly or
they
missed the deck. It is always interesting to see and learn about the
training
we have for our Armed Forces.
These
last few weeks we have seen the Army stop and take a
good look at the suicide problem we are having, not only in the Army
but also the
Marines. The Army
went as far to stop
activity on their base and take a good look at why this is happening
and then
working with their Commanders down to the Privates in educating them on
the
resources available should you start having these feelings. The USEF
has been
involved in working with those who see no way out except the ultimate
decision
which cannot be overturned, it’s final. We are happy to see
that this kind of
attention being brought to this horrible problem.
We
are working on this year’s Stand-down for our homeless
Vets and their families. We
are asking
for donations to help us provide food and clothing for these
individuals who
have stood up for us in protecting our freedoms.
The USEF will also help with the
entertainment at the Stand down.
Our own Dizzy Gillespie will be coming in from Texas to perform for
this event.
We are also expecting VIP’s to show up from the Governor to
Senators and the
Mayor. This is the time to put the homeless Vets and their families
first In
line to receive the help they need and are entitled to. When we look at
those
who are getting the resources of this State and they are not even
Citizens it
makes you mad that we have ignored those who have put their life in
danger for
you and your family members. We must not ever forget them and we must
be there
for them. If you are one of those who does not stand behind our Troops
then why
don’t you stand in front of them? People our Freedoms do not
come free, we must
fight for them and never give them up.
Until
next time, remember our Veterans and when you see one
of our military go up say thank you for what you do and let them know
we are
there with them and we support them in what we have asked them to do.
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Ways
You Can
Directly Help Us Help Them...
Visit the Wall of Honor
To see the names of those who have helped the USEF by donating and signing
guitars for our Veterans! |
<<<<<<<<<< >>>>>>>>>>
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Here's another way you can help Jerry and the USEF help our Vets. 50% of all sales are donated directly to the USEF!
choose the "full service" option.
THANK YOU!
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If you have an
interesting or funny story from your time on active duty, or as a
Veteran, please send it to Jerry at the following email address, and he
will consider adding it to this newsletter for everyone to read!
Please send all
entries to: vetnews@unitedstatesentertainmentforce.org
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News From Our Web
Site
A Problem We All Need To Be Aware Of
as recently reported by CBS News...
CBS News
recently did an investigation - asking all 50 states for their suicide
data, based on death records, for veterans and non-veterans, dating
back to 1995. Forty-five states sent what turned out to be a mountain
of information. And what it revealed was stunning. In 2005, for
example, in just those 45 states, there were at least 6,256 suicides
among those who served in the armed forces. That’s 120 each and
every week, in just one year.
Dr. Steve Rathburn is the acting head of the biostatistics department
at the University of Georgia. CBS News asked him to run a detailed
analysis of the raw numbers that we obtained from state authorities for
2004 and 2005. It found that veterans were more than twice as likely to
commit suicide in 2005 than non-vets. (Veterans committed suicide at
the rate of between 18.7 to 20.8 per 100,000, compared to other
Americans, who did so at the rate of 8.9 per 100,000.) One age group
stood out. Veterans aged 20 through 24, those who have served during
the war on terror. They had the highest suicide rate among all
veterans, estimated between two and four times higher than civilians
the same age. (The suicide rate for non-veterans is 8.3 per 100,000,
while the rate for veterans was found to be between 22.9 and 31.9 per
100,000.)
“Wow! Those are devastating,” said Paul Sullivan, a
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former VA analyst
who is now an advocate for
veterans rights from the group Veterans For
Common Sense. “Those numbers clearly show an epidemic of mental
health problems,” he said. “We are determined to decrease
veteran suicides,” Dr. Katz said. “One hundred and twenty a
week. Is that a problem?” Keteyian asked, “You bet
it’s a problem,” he said. Is it an epidemic? “Suicide
in America is an epidemic, and that includes veterans,” Katz
said. Sen. Murray said the numbers CBS News uncovered are significant:
“These statistics tell me we’ve really failed people that
served our country.” Do these numbers serve as a wake-up call for
this country? “If these numbers don’t wake up this country,
nothing will,” she said. “We each have a responsibility to
the men and women who serve us aren’t lost when they come
home.”
An update: Another member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen.
Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, responded to the CBS News story Tuesday.
“The report that the rate of suicide among veterans is double
that of the general population is deeply troubling and simply
unacceptable. I am especially concerned that so many young veterans
appear to be taking their own lives. For too many veterans, returning
home from battle does not bring an end to conflict. There is no
question that action is needed.”
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Upcoming Events...
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A very special Donor is donating his skills
in guitar building to help us with our Guitar For Soldiers Project.
Jimbo is now custom building our Guitar and you can watch his progress
at http://www.guitarwhirled.com.
We Thank Jimbo for his support of our men and women of the Armed
Forces. We encourage all to join with us in support of our Causes.
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TheUSEF.org, Jerry Payne ~ All Rights
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