Today, I am writing the diary for Netroots for the Troops 2012. I am so proud of this organization and all of those helping with the care packages. All of the volunteers are giving their time and substance to remember those troops who are serving and who have served. They care.
Our small organization at UVA has a motto and it is "We Really Care" and Netroots for the Troops does on a large scale what we do in smaller ways, but caring and giving back is what it is about for those who Borne the Battle. This will bring me to the letter I have written to the FLOTUS regarding caring for our veterans.
jump below the squiggly.
Last night I posted a diary of something I feel is of such importance, that I was prompted to write a letter. This letter is to the FLOTUS. It is not going email. This letter is going certified mail to 1600 Pa Avenue.
Dear First Lady Obama,
Please accept this letter as a thank you for your tireless efforts on behalf of
our military troops and veterans. The sacrafices that our troops and veterans make are not measured by time or era. The sacrafices that a military family makes cannot be measured by any scale of which I am aware.
As the wife of a disabled Vietnam Veteran, I can assure you, the family and caregivers cannot even begin to tell you what a sacrafice the caregiver of that veteran endures. We are proud of our soldiers who have given so much of their lives to an effort they felt honorable. Many have come home broken people.
It does not matter if the veteran has recently been discharged from a world of war in the desert, or the jungles of Vietnam, or served in projects of military intelligence or in the snow of Korea or the Battle of the Bulge or any battlefield on behalf of their nation's call. All veterans had jobs to do and all made committments and sacrafice from all wars and years.
The veteran made the sacrafice but when the uniform comes off and the troop becomes a vet, a new battle begins. The soldier leaves the war but the war never leaves the soldier. We have made many improvements in the care for our nation's former warriors but not enough and not equally.
A caregiver of the broken soldier's entire life will change and they too will become activists for benefits, They will work tireless to make sure the vet has his wheelchair handy, his bath safely taken, his prosthetic device attached. That caregiver will not sleep as other people sleep as they become the watchers of the night. They will endure and hurt every time they hear the trauma of war come to life before their eyes with emtional scars that cannot be described and time knows no limit. For veterans suffering from PTSD, the war is as fresh in their minds today as was years past, after leaving the battlefield..
The caregiver many times will become isolated to regroup and his or her duties are not just confined to taking care of the wounded warrior but this caregiver has other duties. The caregiver will put aside any of their own issues to help those that borne the battle. They will suffer in isolation and more times than not, their own well being becomes neglected , to care for that one who stood when they now cannot now stand and in many ways have become as fragile as anything imagined. The caregiver walks on eggshells.
They must be experts at multitasking and throwing 10 balls in the air and keeping them in the air as they walk their tightrope of care and emotion while trying to have a normal life as well as provide one as comfortable as possible for the veteran. They try to have normal lives for their children and grandchildren. Some of this caregiving which is ongoing stresses the veteran who served young and proud now feels helpless watching his loved ones care for the soldier who now bears the scars of war. Some even do the unthinkable and end their lives rather than feel they are a burden. We love them more than any burden they think they may have become but sometimes they don't think straight. We need your help.
This enitre description of caregiving, which does not touch the surface is to ask you to reach out to the soldiers from the past as well as the present regarding the Caregiver Act of 2010. There should be no differences shown between the young soldier's love at home and the older love, who now walks a little slower to care for his or her vet. I would venture to say the respite services included in that legislation should zero in on the aging caregiver. It does not. It basically direregards the older veteran and this is something we all promised ourselves after Vietnam that should not happen. We promised ourselves that no one will ever be left behind.
Mrs. Obama, We older caregivers from older wars are delighted that this legislation honors these young brave men and women who will need every single bit of help they can get without standing at the gates of authority begging for help. We just believe that all veteran caregivers should be included in that piece of legislation. There should be no differences shown between eras of war and the veteran who proudly served. I encourage you to please get on board with help for pre 9-11 veterans and their caregivers. We will not be here very long as our eyes are growing weaker, and our veterans are fading fast as our walk is a little slower and our memories a little shorter but in the time that we have with our broken vets who struggle for breath, quality of life, we too should have some of the privileges outlined the Ominous Caregiver Act of 2010.
Thank you for listening and I trust you to step up to help right this injustice, especially since the President wanted this year and the next 13 to be the time to say Welcome Home to those who did not get a parade or a thank you many years ago. I know I speak for caregivers from wars past who are tired and feel we just were dismissed and This should never happen between theatres of wars. We honor all service. Please join the cause to include all who have borne the battle and this time, make sure NO one is left behind.
Sincerely,
Amanda Kato
wife and caregiver of a 100 percent disabled VN combat veteran
Advocate for all veterans
This was the letter I have written Michelle Obama and I encourage you to write your congressmen and women including the President and not only remind him that this is right and just but could be a political football and could cause division when this can be avoided. This is in reference to the Caregiver Legislation of 2010 signed into law.
This law only includes the OEF/OIF veterans. The link is below with all of the information regarding te Ominous Cargivers Act and some of the changes that need to be made to include ALL veterans.
The conversation between Dorrie Bailey and myself went like this. We just did not understand how we could so easily be disregarded as caregivers. I heard her anger and I am sure she heard mine as well. We are only human and get frustrated of having to be the ones to beg the VA's and legislators for something that should have been a promise kept to those who have served and worn the uniform proudly and honorably.
We talked about how the anger was growing among the older veterans who are already hurting. We talked about how good it was just to talk to another wife of a disabled veteran. I told her of groups that I had attended only to be told to leave my veteran. These were held in hospital settings. Wonder why so many PTSD sufferers spouses leave? This is one reason. My love was stronger than any group meeting speaker who was not encouraging the caregiver to be strong but to abandon them when times get rough. We talked for three straight hours and vented and wanted the best for our veterans without an uphill battle every single day. We needed respite.
We needed encouragement. Dorrie Bailey and myself were very angry with the thought of being left behind as she and I have both been active for all veterans. Mike Bailey, known here as Testvet has been a tireless crusader for veteran rights. He is sick. He is tired. I am tired. His wife is tired and the fight continues for we older generations of military families. Dorrie told me and I will share with you what it feels like as a caregiver to just go to the store. You hope and pray the hour you may be away that the ambulance that just passed is not headed towards your home. Yes. I knew exactly how she felt. There are more and more of us including Swampyankee who holds these same feelings of betrayal from a nation who seems to forget more than appreciate. First off all, let me be clear about something. These men and women of former wars are not given anything by the government. They earned any compensation they receive. They also have to fight to get it and to keep it. They paid the price. They lost their lives or quality of life. The caregivers are the substance of their existence in many ways.
As we honor the volunteers who are packing the boxes today in Providence, let us jump forward a bit in time and see that troop returning home, but in years to come as new wars come forth and rest assured, they will. Know that these fine young men and women will be old and crippled, suffering from PTSD and will not want to lose anymore to any new wars.
I am so very happy that some had the foresight to take steps to make their lives easier but it was the veterans of wars past that paved the way and no matter which war the Americans are involved in, there should be no difference in treatment of the veteran. The United States of America promised healthcare for all veterans and they should not be categorized and they promised if injured they would intervene with compensation and pension for a sacrafice they have made to form a more perfect union. I urge all is reading this to either petition the White House, call your congressman, or make aware that ALL disabled veterans and their caretakers need their help and support.
The link to the diary of classwar in legislation regarding veterans written last night
http://www.dailykos.com/...