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Jim Pasqualini’s search for his uncle’s final moment landed him in Normandy, France, face-to-face with an old stone church sitting at the center of a roundabout and guarded by two oak trees towering over its steps.    Jim Pasqualini in November stands near where his uncle, Frank, was believed to have died back on July 11, 1944, in Saint-Georges-d’Elle, about six miles northeast of St. Lo, France. He stood there, studying a World War II battle map that had taken him on a route through a swath of old farm homes flying both the French and U.S. flags across Saint-Georges-d’Elle, a small village about six miles northeast of St. Lo, France.    “I couldn’t take my eyes off of this old stone church,” said Pasqualini, a retired Army lieutenant colonel and member of the VFW Department of Virginia residing in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania. “I just knew that my uncle had seen this church on the day he died.” Frank Pasqualini had lived through D-Day, being one of the first on the shores of Omaha along the coast of Normandy with the 741st Tank Battalion. But unlike the U.S. troops that would later bask in the glorious sea of Parisians welcoming their saviors during a parade across the Champs Elysees, he met his fate on July 11, 1944 — a month and 18 days before the liberation.  “He was the only one of my four uncles that died in battle during WWII,” Pasqualini said. “I remember my grandma, Dina, speak fondly about him. I always wanted to honor him by visiting the site where he died 75 years ago.” Prior to his trip to France in November 2019, Pasqualini had previously honored his uncle Frank by arranging a memorial ceremony at Richmond National Cemetery in Virginia, where a joint grave held his uncle and two other men, Thomas R. Fair and Willis E. Nixon.  At Saint-Georges-d’Elle, however, Pasqualini came full circle. The locals in Saint-Georges-d’Elle, a community of about 200 residents, showed Pasqualini and his girlfriend around, helping him decipher the exact location where in 1944 a German rocket obliterated his uncle’s M4 Sherman tank — taking the lives of four of the five soldiers inside. During a dinner visit with a French couple residing in one of the 20 modern townhomes in town, Pasqualini found his answer. The couple happened to live behind a ravine dubbed “Purple Heart Draw” by the Americans during the war, a nickname attributed to the loss of many U.S. soldiers that died fighting to overtake Hill 192 from the Germans.  “We started to line the roads up with the map at dinner, and it turned out that their house was exactly where two of the four Sherman tanks were destroyed. Now I’m not entirely sure if my uncle was in one of those two, but we were at least within 100 yards of where he was killed,” Pasqualini stopped. “I had seen what he saw on his last day of life.”

American Legion Fenton / St. Louis, MO You never know what you might find when you request a copy of either your or a family member's past service records. A military records check revealed that one of our deceased American Legion members received a Bronze Star that neither he nor his family ever knew about.Edward F. Ucinski Sr, a past commander and a 51-year member before his passing, was recently recognized for his actions during the second world war. Edward Sr. was a combat infantryman who saw action during Operation Overlord at Normandy and the Ardennes Counteroffensive at Bastogne, where he was captured.No one knew of the award, since it had not been awarded until after the end of World War II. This was part of an initiative started by Gen. George C. Marshall to recognize those whose sacrifices went undocumented, by the awards process.The Bronze Star medal was presented to Edward Sr.'s great-grandson, Edward Kirk Ucinski IV, at the Rockwood Summit High School Veterans Day ceremony in St. Louis County. The presenter was SFC Lagermann, United States Army.It was an honor and a recognition that was long overdue. Submitted by:Edward Ucinski III

In continuing an eight-year relationship between an Oregon VFW Post and Junior ROTC program, one VFW member recently accompanied her son’s JROTC group to Normandy in commemoration of the 75th anniversary of D-Day.  Shannon Ferreira, a member of VFW Post 1324 in Oregon City, Ore., accompanies her son’s JROTC group to Normandy, France, for its participation in D-Day commemoration events. Ferreira said the Post and the JROTC have good relationships in the community.  Photo courtesy of Shawn Dachtler. Shannon Ferreira, a member of VFW Post 1324 in Oregon City, Ore., served as a chaperone to the group of 13 cadets. The cadets participated in two ceremonies, one on June 6 at Brittany American Cemetery and the following day at Normandy American Cemetery. “My favorite part was being able to talk to the veterans,” Ferreira said, “and while I was there made a point of speaking to as many of them as I could – the WWII veterans – and taking pictures with them. And getting their names and a little piece of their stories. To me, it was amazing. It was also emotional because many of those men were the same ages [when they deployed] as my son. Or within the same age frame.” Ferreira, who served two tours in Bosnia (December 1995-November 1996 and June-September 1998) in the Army’s 501st MI Bn., 1st Armd. Div., as a signals intelligence analyst, said the cadets were invited about a year and a half ago. She said she joined them because it was a “once-in-a-lifetime” experience. “While I was in the Army, I was in 82nd Abn. Div., as well, but I never deployed with them,” Ferreira said. “But I know they played a huge part in WWII. And I love the history of it and my son is a huge WWII history buff.” The biggest takeaway from the trip, according to Ferreira was the opportunity itself. “That generation is dwindling, and it’s so important to be able to take young kids, the high schoolers, over there to interact because they are the future generation,” Ferreira said. “And so to be able to chaperone and go with those kids and have them interact with that generation, it was impactful for the kids.” Ferreira said the Post and Oregon City’s JROTC program have worked together prior to this trip.  Post 1324 Public Information Officer Shawn Dachtler said the relationship between the Post and the Oregon City High School JROTC was initiated by two past Post commanders who reached out to Major Doug Thomas. “Essentially, the conversation was that we should work together,” said Dachtler, who served in the Navy from 1993 to 2002 in electronic warfare and was with the Armed Forces Expeditionary Service aboard the USS Normandy in the Persian Gulf in 1998. “We see your kids doing good things and we want to help support them.” The Post, Ferreira said, supports JROTC financially every year and offers the Post for fundraising events at no charge, while the JROTC provides a color guard for various events. “Our post and our JROTC are supportive of each other,” Ferreira said. “To me, it’s important to have that bond.” The relationship between the Post and JROTC gives the cadets, who could also go into the military, a chance to meet the older generation of veterans and learn from them. Dachtler said the Post’s work with JROTC is similar to its outreach at the college level. “We are doing our best to make sure we're engaged in all age groups,” Dachtler said. “The local JROTC currently has four students that have committed to the Army. We see that as being right in line with our missions and goals.”

By Wyatt Olson/Stars and Stripes   Service members who suffered moderate to severe traumatic brain injury in combat have significantly higher incidence of mental health disorders in following years as compared to warfighters who sustained other traumatic injuries, a study found. The study, published in the current issue of the journal Military Medicine, examined almost 5,000 cases of traumatic injury experienced by Marines, soldiers, airmen and sailors during combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan from February 2002 to February 2011. Among the study’s findings is a clear relationship between moderate and severe brain injury and a greater risk for post-traumatic stress disorder, a link that contradicts a theory posited by some previous researchers. Traumatic brain injury has been the scourge of U.S. combatants during the extended war on terrorism, particularly the decade after the September 2001 World Trade Center attack. Improvised explosive devices were the weapon of choice by enemy guerrilla fighters in Afghanistan and Iraq. Improvements in body armor and medical treatment saved the lives of many blast victims who would have died in earlier conflicts. By 2010, 7,832 warfighters had survived severe traumatic brain injury, the study said. The new research compared two groups — one that sustained moderate to severe brain injury, the other experiencing general, critical injury — and looked for associations with anxiety and mood disorders, adjustment reactions, schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, cognitive disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. The study found that most of these patients, 70.6%, were diagnosed with at least one of those five mental health conditions during multiyear follow-up periods. That is “considerably higher” than the 42% found in a much smaller 2012 study, “even though our mental health diagnoses were defined more narrowly,” the study said. However, patients who suffered traumatic brain injury were at “consistently greater” risk for diagnosis of those five conditions than the group of patients suffering general trauma, the study found. “If you have severe TBI, you are at risk of having something undesirable,” said David Chin, the study’s co-author and a professor at the School of Public Health and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts-Amherst. Previous studies found links between mild and moderate traumatic brain injury and adverse mental health outcomes in combat veterans, but such research was usually limited to examining only a one-year post-injury period and primarily focused on PTSD and loss of mental function from physical injury. The new study includes patients from all four service branches and examines mental health outcomes over longer periods of time, a median length of just over four years. Chin said the study likely underestimates mental health outcomes for a few reasons. Health records were available for care provided within a Defense Department health care facility or tied to the DOD’s Tricare system. Encounters with health care providers outside that were not available for the analysis, he said. The culture of underreporting mental health issues among service members likely skews the data, he said. Finally, an examination using longer follow-up periods would probably reveal more mental health diagnoses, he said. “I think this illustrates that we just don’t have enough information to really get at how big the problem of mental health care actually is for these patients,” he said. The study’s findings contradict a hypothesis by earlier investigators theorizing that patients with moderate and severe traumatic brain injury could not develop PTSD because impaired consciousness confers a sort-of “amnesiac effect” that precludes “encoding” the memories necessary for PTSD development, Chin said.

WASHINGTON – Ten Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) members and Student Veterans of America (SVA) leaders were selected for the 2020 VFW-SVA Legislative Fellowship Program Sunday at the SVA National Conference in Los Angeles, California. The 10 fellows will now join more than 500 VFW members on Capitol Hill in early March to advocate on behalf of all veterans, service members and their families.  “The VFW prides itself on working with our student veterans nationwide to help build tomorrow’s leaders,” said VFW National Commander William “Doc” Schmitz.  The VFW-SVA Legislative Fellowship is a semester-long academic experience that involves researching, coordinating, reporting and advocating on behalf of one of four veterans’ policy areas: student veteran success on campus and beyond, improving veteran’s health care and benefits, transitioning from military to civilian life, and challenges for service members and military families.  Each selected fellow submitted a policy proposal to address one of these issues through federal legislative action.  “SVA has partnered with the VFW for five years to host the annual VFW-SVA Legislative Fellowship Program,” said SVA President and Chief Executive Officer Jared Lyon. “The opportunity provides exceptional student veterans the chance to make their voices heard on Capitol Hill and with other organizations in the veterans’ advocacy space. “We are fortunate to have a strong partner in the VFW to offer this program, and are grateful for their support to empower tomorrow’s leaders,” said Lyon, a VFW Post 3308 member.  During their visit to Washington, each fellow will be paired with a VFW mentor and accompany their VFW state delegation around Capitol Hill for in-person meetings with their members of Congress. The fellows will receive briefings from federal officials regarding ongoing policy initiatives, as well as learn techniques to work with the media when advocating on veterans’ issues.  Upon returning home, each of the fellows will also be responsible for executing a community action plan, to include delivering their individual research papers directly to their respective congressional delegations.  The 10 fellows selected for the 2020 class are: Tom Baker, Navy veteran, Arizona State University Katherine Cassell, Army retiree, University of Nevada, Las Vegas Carl Chen, Air Force active duty service member, Trident University International Clifton Clevenger, Army veteran, Wayland Baptist University Ashley Dent, Air Force veteran, New York Institute of Technology Sasha Georgiades, Navy veteran, Hawaii Pacific University Blake Hite, Navy veteran, Georgetown University Matthew Jenkins, Marine Corps veteran, University of South Florida Randy Purham, Army active duty service member, American Public University Jack Ratliff, Army veteran, University of South Florida The VFW-SVA Legislative Fellowship Program continues a legacy of collaboration between the two organizations that was formalized in 2013. To interview any of the selected fellows, contact Gabriella Kubinyi at gkubinyi@vfw.org.

“Rep. Phil Roe played a critical role in the most comprehensive overhaul of the Department of Veterans Affairs this nation has seen in generations. His legacy includes writing the bill that gave Veterans real, permanent choice; putting us on a path to modernizing our electronic health records; and making sure VA remains accountable to the Veterans it serves,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie.  “The work he did during his time leading the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee has reshaped VA for generations to come and will positively impact the lives of millions of Veterans,” Wilkie added. “All of us are grateful that Dr. Roe had the drive to come to Congress and make such an important contribution to the lives of our Veterans. More importantly, he is a true gentleman with an unfailing love for his country and family.”

WASHINGTON —  The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will begin deciding claims for the  Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2019 at 12:01 a.m., Philippine Standard Time, Jan. 1, 2020. The Philippines is the farthest east VA regional benefits office. The Act extends the presumption of herbicide exposure, that include toxins such as Agent Orange, to Veterans who served in the offshore waters of the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Signed into law Jun. 25, the law specifically affects Blue Water Navy (BWN) Veterans who served no more than 12 nautical miles offshore of the Republic of Vietnam between Jan. 6, 1962 and May 7, 1975, as well as Veterans who served in the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between Jan. 1, 1967 and Aug. 31, 1971. These Veterans can now apply for disability compensation and other benefits if they have since developed one of 14 conditions that are presumed to be related to exposure to herbicides. Veterans do not need to prove that they were exposed to herbicides. The specific conditions can be found by searching the term “Agent Orange” on www.va.gov. “For six months, VA worked diligently to gather and digitize records from the National Archives and Records Administration to support faster claims decisions,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “These efforts will positively impact the claims process for Veterans filing for these benefits.” To be eligible a Veteran must have served in the identified locations during the specified time period and currently have a condition(s) associated with herbicide exposures, such as Agent Orange. Blue Water Navy claims are being processed under current prioritization criteria; however, special priority is being given to Veterans who are over the age of 85 or have a terminal condition. Qualifying recipients include affected Veterans who are still living and certain survivors of deceased BWN and Korean DMZ Veterans. Survivors can file claims for benefits based on the Veteran’s service if the Veteran died from at least one of the 14 presumptive conditions associated with herbicides such as Agent Orange. The law also provides benefits for children born with spina bifida if their parent is or was a Veteran with certain verified service in Thailand during a specific period. The Act includes provisions impacting the VA Home Loan Program. Veterans have more access to obtain no-down payment home loans, regardless of loan amount, and the home loan funding fee is reduced for eligible Reservists and National Guard borrowers who use their home loan benefits for the first time. VA’s website describes the eligibility of certain Purple Heart recipients who do not have to pay a funding fee as well as other benefits. Veterans who want to file an initial claim for an herbicide-related disability can use VA Form 21-526EZ, Application for Disability Compensation and Related Compensation Benefits or work with a VA-recognized Veterans Service Organization to assist with the application process. Veterans may also contact their state Veterans Affairs Office. BWN Veterans who previously filed a claim seeking service connection for one of the 14 presumptive conditions that was denied by VA may provide or identify any new and relevant information regarding their claim when reapplying. To re-apply, Veterans may use VA Form 20-0995, Decision Review Request: Supplemental Claim. As a result of the new law, VA will automatically review claims that are currently in the VA review process or under appeal. Visit Blue Water Navy Veterans benefits for more information or call 1-800-749-8387 for special issues. ###

From left: Terry Hamby (Post 5, Nashville, Tenn.), Sen. John Warner (Post 295, Middleburg, Va.), Jack Monahan (La Place-Champlin Post 18, Essex, Conn.) and David Bernhardt. (Photo via Jack Monahan) By The American Legion By The American Legion   On Dec. 12, key leaders gathered on the site of the new National World War I Memorial in Washington, D.C., to mark the start of construction, after the U.S. World War I Centennial Commission received a building permit from the National Park Service (NPS). Those leaders included commission chair Terry Hamby, U.S. Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt, National Park Service acting director David Vela, commission special advisers Sen. John Warner and Adm. Mike Mullen, and American Legion representative to the commission Jack Monahan. The first phase of construction will be a 360-day project to rebuild the former Pershing Park, and prepare the site for the eventual installation of the memorial bronze sculpture when it is completed. The building permit was awarded after the memorial design was approved by the Commission of Fine Arts and the National Capital Planning Commission earlier in 2019. The memorial is being built under the commission's authority by the Doughboy Foundation. Hamby was very pleased with the receipt of the building permit and start of construction. "Finally, the 4.7 million Americans who left their homes to deploy to a country most had never visited, fight in a war they did not start, and were willing to die for peace and liberty for people they did not know, will be honored at this magnificent spot in our nation's capital," he said. "The new, national World War I Memorial will join the other war memorials in Washington, D.C., each serving as a fitting tribute to the sacrifices that American men and women made to defend freedom throughout the world," Bernhardt added. The memorial design of architect Joseph Weishaar, featuring a monumental bronze by sculptor Sabin Howard, was selected as the winner from among five finalists after an international design competition in 2015 which received over 350 entries from around the world. "It's wonderful to see construction beginning at last," Weishaar said. "It's been a tireless effort by the design team and the commission to see this project through, and I'm proud of all we've been able to accomplish. This memorial is a century overdue, but here we are, and we're doing it." The two were profiled in The American Legion Magazine in 2016. The bronze, entitled "A Soldier's Journey," is being sculpted in clay by Howard and his team at his Englewood, N.J., studio, and will be cast in bronze at the Pangolin Editions sculpture foundry in the United Kingdom before being installed at the memorial site, along with the existing sculpture of John J. Pershing, General of the Armies of the United States, who commanded the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I. As well as the sculptural and landscape works in the park, the memorial will feature extended reality elements to enhance and extend the visitor experience. A detailed document of the approved National World War I Memorial design is available to the public; it can be downloaded as a PDF at ww1cc.org/memorial-design. The commission’s VSO/Military Affairs Director David Hamon added that the groundbreaking marks a "great opportunity for American Legion posts to be a part of this historical moment … by making a donation to the memorial in the name of your post, you can forever be part of this great legacy by becoming an AEF Memorial Corps post.” About 22 posts nationwide have joined in 2019. For more information contact Hamon at (540) 379-8584 or david.hamon@worldwar1centennial.org.

WASHINGTON – After a nearly half-century long fight, the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and its veterans service and survivor organization partners claimed victory with the termination of the contentious and embattled Military Widow’s Tax as part of the presidential signing of the FY2020 National Defense Authorization Act today.  “This is a momentous victory for the more than 65,000 military spouses who endured the tragic loss of their husband or wife who paid the ultimate sacrifice,” said VFW National Commander William “Doc” Schmitz. “Without these extraordinary spouses fighting in the trenches with us, the termination of the Widow’s Tax may not have been possible.”  Prior to today’s presidential signing of the NDAA that included the Military Widow’s Tax Elimination Act of 2019, recipients of both the Department of Defense Survivors Benefits Plan (SBP) and the Department of Veterans Affairs Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) faced a reduction of $1,319 – the current payout for DIC benefits. For many survivors, this offset completely eliminated their SBP payments and threatened their financial security. “There is no justifiable reason why money should have ever been stripped away from our military spouses,” said Schmitz. The VFW led the first SBP/DIC Offset Roundtable in May with other veterans’ service organizations, congressional staffers, and widows and widowers to create a legislative campaign to eliminate the nearly half-century old Widow’s Tax. Soon, surviving spouses of troops will keep their SBP payments, even if they are eligible for DIC. VFW National Legislative Service Associate Director Kyle Kalman said the signing of the FY2020 NDAA rights a wrong for our military widows and widowers. “We commend senatorial and congressional leadership and the coalition of veterans and survivor organizations who fought alongside us for their commitment to the 65,000 surviving military spouses who were unjustly forced to endure a dollar-for-dollar offset of their Survivor Benefit Plan payments and Dependency and Indemnity Compensation,” said Kalman. “Our military widows and widowers deserved this victory.”

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), in partnership with the Association of Military Banks of America (AMBA), launched the Veterans Benefits Banking Program (VBBP), available starting Dec. 20. The program will provide Veterans and their beneficiaries the chance to safely, reliably, and inexpensively receive and manage their VA monetary benefits through financial services at participating banks. “VBBP offers another way to simplify banking choices to help eligible Veterans select the right bank for themselves and their families,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “The VA and AMBA are proud to provide this opportunity to connect veterans with banks that understand their needs.” VA’s collaboration with AMBA will leverage its consortium of military-friendly financial institutions that cater to service members. AMBA is the only trade association representing banking institutions specializing in providing services for military personnel, Veterans, and their families around the world. VBBP leverages participating AMBA institutions and banks operating within the gates of installations of all branches of service and National Guard and Reserve components. “AMBA and its member banks welcome the opportunity to provide our nation’s Veterans additional financial services options to help them achieve greater financial independence, resiliency, and literacy,” said AMBA president and Air Force Veteran Steve Lepper. “We hope that as Veterans recognize the benefits of working with the banks to achieve financial stability, more Veterans, banks and credit unions will join this effort.” The current available banking options include direct deposit into an existing bank account, electronic funds transfer into a Direct Express pre-paid debit card and mailing of a paper check for pre-approved beneficiaries. VBBP introduces new financial resources to Veterans and their beneficiaries. The program is an effort to address the problems some Veterans experience using these payment methods. VBBP offers these VA beneficiaries – including many who have been unable to open bank accounts in the past – the opportunity to deposit their benefit funds directly into existing or new bank accounts offered by participating AMBA member banks. Neither VA nor AMBA is endorsing any particular bank or requiring Veterans and other beneficiaries to use them. It does not require Veterans who are satisfied with their current financial situation to change how they receive their VA monetary benefits.  All Veterans and other beneficiaries – who currently receive more than $118 billion in financial benefits through VA – are eligible to access this program. There are approximately 250,000 Veterans and beneficiaries who receive their VA benefits through a pre-paid debit card or paper check who may not have a bank account. VA’s Veterans Banking Benefits and AMBA’s Veterans Benefits Banking Program websites have details for identifying participating banks. To have your federal benefits electronically transferred to a Veteran’s designated financial institution (e.g. bank), VA beneficiaries interested in changing direct deposit options can also call 1-800-827-1000 with their relevant banking information. VA financial literacy information is an additional resource available to Veterans and VA beneficiaries.