Conventioneering – Denver and Minneapolis-St.
Paul
A team of representatives from VVA attended the Democratic
and Republican National Conventions. President John Rowan and
Rick Weidman, Executive Director for Policy and Government
Affairs, attended the Conventions along with Don Overton, Executive
Director of Veterans of Modern Warfare. In Denver Carl Tuvin,
a VVA Senior Adviser who has a long history of working with
Democratic elected officials, joined them. In Minneapolis-St.
Paul the group included VVA Senior Adviser Jim Kuhn, a former
personal assistant to President Ronald Reagan, and Patricia
Trifunov, a VVA Executive Adviser on Health Care Sustainability.
[ Read
the report ]
Color Guard Pass In Review
November 11, 2008
Formation will take place at the top of the walkway to the
Vietnam Women's Memorial closest to the Park Service Station.
This Station is located across the street from the Lincoln
Memorial. The Three Fighting Men statue can be seen off to
the left from this Station. Members of the organizing committee
will be present by 10:00AM to direct the participating groups
with the formation.
The formation of the groups for the Pass In Review will begin
at 10:00AM with step off at 11:00AM sharp.
Thank you for participating in this unique and honorable
event in remembrance of the 15th anniversary of the dedication
of the Vietnam Women's Memorial.
NATIONAL VIETNAM VETERANS LONGITUDINAL STUDY
Status Report and Update
Background:
In response to a mandate by the Congress, the Department of Veterans Affairs initiated the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study in 1984. Utilizing a unique, nationally representative sample of male and female veterans, this study was considered a landmark in psychiatric epidemiology and moved VA to the forefront of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) research and public policy. To date, more than fifty research articles and one book have been published based on data collected for this study. This investigation has had a major influence on the scientific study of war and its consequences, and it continues to do so more than twenty years after its completion. This record attests to the outstanding quality of the methods and measures employed.
[ Read the report ]
VVA Testimony
Veterans, Combat Stress and the Family:
A Bipartisan Federal Issue Briefing hosted by Witness
Justice and supported by VVA. Panelists included VVA’s
Dr. Tom Berger; Kathryn Power, CMHS Director; John Baker,
Attorney; Todd Bowers, IAVA; and Gen. Xenakis, DoD
October 24, 2008
Good morning, distinguished guests and ladies and gentlemen. On behalf
of Vietnam Veterans of America, I am proud to be here today, and
I’d like to thank Witness Justice and the Veterans’ Initiative
Center & Research Institute for providing me the opportunity
to participate in today’s briefing on veterans, combat stress
and the family.
“We’ll always have Paris,” said Humphrey Bogart
as he parted from Ingrid Bergman in the film Casablanca. It’s
a great movie line and it says a lot about the amazing human gift called
memory. Like Bogey, you can keep your favorite places and people with
you simply by pulling up your happy memories of them – even if
they’re miles away or long-gone. Without flipping open a scrap
book or putting in a CD, you can conjure up your newborn’s first
smile or words, the ecstasy – or agony – of prom night,
or even the aroma of Mom’s freshly baked cookies.
But memories have a dark side also. They can make you feel devastated,
furious, or humiliated (many of you just thought about prom night again,
didn’t you?), even decades after something bad happens. What’s
more, bad memories seem to stick more than happy ones – and that’s
especially true for the terrible memories like the ones our combat
veterans have.
While many of us are aware of the prevalence of combat stress among
our Vietnam vets and returning OIF/OEF veterans, it is my sincere hope
that you will leave today’s briefing with a better understanding
of the impact of combat stress in the reintegration for our returning
troops, how this affects families, and how it potentially can lead
to family violence.
First, however, a very brief history of combat stress, or what we
know today as post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD. It is a very old
malady and as such, has been called a variety of names. In the 1670s,
Swiss military doctors described the symptoms as “nostalgia”.
During the Napoleonic wars of the early 19th century, battlefield surgeons
began calling it “exhaustion”, and by the time of the American
Civil War, it had become known as “soldier’s heart” and “the
effort symptom”. “Shell shock” became the term commonly
used in World War I, and this was succeeded by “combat fatigue” and “battle
fatigue” in World War II. By the time the war in Vietnam was
winding down in the early 1970s, the term “Post-Vietnam Syndrome” was
being used to describe veterans’ traumatic stress reactions during
and after their military service in Southeast Asia. Finally, in 1980,
the term “Post-traumatic Stress Disorder” appeared in the
third edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
(DSM III) and is still used today.
Read
or Print Complete Testimony
Vietnam Veterans of America, Victim of Email Hoax
An email hoax, “Stats From One State,” has been circulating the Internet for more than a year. Unfortunately, someone has taken his/her personal initiative to attach the Vietnam Veterans of America logo to this flyer after it had been in circulation. The content of this email has nothing to do with Vietnam Veterans of America. We regret this egregious misuse of our logo and appreciate your efforts in setting the record straight.
For information on the LA Times response to this email hoax, please see the linked article.
Thanks so much for your assistance in dispelling this email hoax.
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The Wall 25th Anniversary Commemorative book
To commemorate the anniversary and memorial events, Vietnam Veterans of America has teamed up with Boston Publishing Company, known to most of our members as the publisher of the Pulitzer Prize-nominated book series, The Vietnam Experience.
[Order The Wall Book] |
2008 VVA and AVVA membership Directory
Harris Connect has started to contact our members, by phone and email, regarding the Membership Directory. This message is intended to assure our members that the calls from Harris Connect are legitimate. Members do not have to respond if they choose not to. The Directory is scheduled for completion in Fall 2008.
To order the new 2008 VVA/AVVA member directory with color photos please contact Harris Connect at (800) 558-7915. |