Our day started quite early as we lined up with representatives of groups who serve members of the Armed Forces and veterans outside the White House for the first of several thorough security screenings. This called to mind the times we live in. Those who seek to destroy this great nation not only operate from the other side of the world but some are also right here in this country, plotting acts of terrorism. This is why we all need to observe the “see something, say something” television ad, run in my home area by our local transit authority.

The breakfast at the White House was really good but having the opportunity to shake the hand and have a brief conversation with the President of the United States and the First Lady was one of the highlights of my life. Both President and Mrs. Obama thanked me for my service. I took away from this opportunity how lucky I was to be there on Veterans Day, and could not get out of my head one simple thought: how few citizens in our nation of 300 million people actually get to meet and chat with the President and the First Lady.

My wife also had the chance to meet the Obamas, and she did not hesitate to tell them that she was my caregiver. The President thanked Daisy for being my caregiver, and Mrs. Obama urged my spouse to continue to take good care of me. I thought that Daisy helped to put a face on the improved caregiver benefits legislation that VetsFirst advocated so strongly for. The President and the First Lady witnessed first-hand this important legislation at work.

Then we were off for a short subway ride to Arlington National Cemetery and to the Ampitheater at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, where President Obama laid a wreath. This was a very emotional ceremony for everyone in attendance. For me, it brought back memories of my uncles, long since deceased, who fought valiantly against the Nazis in World War II, and of contemporaries from my youth who were killed or died from wounds received in Vietnam.

Afterwards, each veterans group in attendance had the opportunity to place their wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Daisy carried the United Spinal Association/VetsFirst wreath, escorted by me and a Veterans of Foreign Wars Honor Guardsman. This is a very humbling experience, and a tremendous honor to be involved in. I prayed for all those who lost their lives in defense of our country, for those who they left behind, and for all veterans who still deal with the physical and/or emotional scars of their valiant service to our nation.

Our final stop of a very busy day was at a National Veterans Day Reception, sponsored by The Military Order of the World Wars. We were grateful to arrive there and to have a little bit of time to relax in an otherwise very busy day. As tired as I was on the train ride home, I was mindful of the events of the day, and the fact that we must continue as an organization to work hard to insure that veterans and their spouses, dependents and survivors (and caregivers) continue to receive the benefits they need to live fruitful and productive lives.

Terry Moakley
Chair of the VetsFirst Committee

How Do I Request Military Awards and Decorations?

For the Veteran: In general, the military services will work replacement medal requests for the veteran at no cost. This includes family members with the signed authorization of the veteran.

For the Next-of-Kin: The process (and cost) for replacement medals requests differs among the service branches and is dependent upon who is requesting the medal, particularly if the request involves an archival record.

For the General Public: If the service member separated from military service before 1950, the public may purchase a copy of the veteran’s Official Military Personnel File (OMPF) to determine the awards due and obtain the medals from a commercial source. If the service member separated after 1949, the public may request such information from the OMPF via the Freedom of Information Act (see Access to OMPFs by the General Public).

Who is the Next-of-Kin (NOK)?

• For the Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps & Coast Guard, the NOK is defined as: the un-remarried widow or widower, son, daughter, father, mother, brother or sister
• For the Army, the NOK is defined as: the surviving spouse, eldest child, father or mother, eldest sibling or eldest grandchild

If you do not meet the definition of NOK, you are considered a member of the general public.

ARMY

Where to write for medals:

National Personnel Records Center
1 Archives Drive
St. Louis, MO 63138

Request medals online

Where medals are mailed from:

U.S. Army TACOM
Clothing and Heraldry (PSID)
P.O. Box 57997
Philadelphia, PA 19111-7997

Where to write in case of a problem or an appeal:

U.S. Army Human Resources Command
Soldier Program and Services Division – Awards and Decorations Branch
ATTN: AHRC-PDP-A
1600 Spearhead Division Avenue, Dept 480
Fort Knox, KY 40122-5408

AIR FORCE (includes Army Air Corps & Army Air Forces)

Where to write for medals:

National Personnel Records Center
1 Archives Drive
St. Louis, MO 63138 or

Request medals online

Where medals are mailed from, and where to write in case of a problem or an appeal:

For Active Duty Veterans:

Headquarters Air Force
Personnel Center
AFPC/DPPPR
550 C Street West, Suite 12
Randolph AFB, TX
78150-4714

For Reserve & Air Guard Veterans:

Headquarters Air Reserve
Personnel Center
(ARPC)/DPSVN
6760 E. Irvington Place
Denver, CO 80280-4000

NAVY

Where to write for medals, and where medals are mailed from:

Navy Personnel Command
Liaison Office Room 350
1 Archives Drive
St. Louis, MO 63138

Where to write in case of a problem or an appeal:

Chief of Naval Operations
(OPNAV 09B33)
Awards & Special Projects
Washington, DC 20350-2000

MARINE CORPS

Where to write for medals, and where medals are mailed from:

Navy Personnel Command
Liaison Office Room 350
1 Archives Drive
St. Louis, MO 63138

Where to write in case of a problem or an appeal:

Commandant of the Marine Corps
Military Awards Branch (MMMA)
3280 Russell Road
Quantico, VA 22134-5100

COAST GUARD

Where to write for medals, and where medals are mailed from:

Navy Personnel Command
Liaison Office Room 350
1 Archives Drive
St. Louis, MO 63138

Where to write in case of a problem or an appeal:

Commandant U.S. Coast Guard
Medals and Awards Branch
(PMP-4)
Washington, DC 20593-0001

Source of information: National Archives at St. Louis and www.archives.gov

Keith Reimers
Regional Service Director

Joseph Ambrose, an 86-year-old World War I veteran, attends the dedication day parade for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in 1982. He is holding the flag that covered the casket of his son, who was killed in the Korean War. Photo originally from en.wikipedia.

Veterans Day is just one day to honor the courageous men and women that have made the ultimate sacrifice to protect our freedom. It is also a day to recognize the myriad of challenges many veterans face when they return home.

Sadly, these issues get very little public attention except on national holidays like Veterans Day. Many Americans tend to forget that there are thousands of veterans struggling every day to rediscover themselves and reintegrate back into their communities.

We would like our veterans–as well as their spouses, dependent family members and survivors–to know that we are on their side.

VetsFirst will continue to help disabled veterans transition back to their families and communities and we will continue to ensure they receive healthcare, compensation, rehabilitation, and other benefits offered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

May God bless all of our Nation’s veterans and those that care for them.

The VetsFirst Staff

I can tell you that I have thought about this brave and very tough young man on every Memorial Day and Veterans Day since he passed away. I look in the mirror today and I see a slightly crooked, aging quadriplegic, but my cousin’s husband’s cousin is as youthful in my mind as the day that we first met.

Fast forward about 30 or more years, and I’m sitting at my kitchen table reading my high school alumni news magazine. There’s a long story about a young graduate of my high school who lost his life during the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom. I also notice a separate box on the same page, which is a list of all my high school’s graduates who have paid the ultimate price while serving their country. A familiar name jumps out of the box of a young man who I became friendly with in my last year of high school. I am shocked to read his name on that page.

I did a little research on a site created by Vietnam veterans that provides whatever information is known or recalled about the passing of as many soldiers as possible in country. All that I found was a sentence confirming that my high school friend was KIA shortly after arriving there.

So, I remember the one day in our American Government class in our senior year when our teacher was lecturing, but my friend and I were busy having our own conversation across the aisle. Suddenly, we hear our last names spoken in anger, followed by the order, “out the back door!”

I remember that my buddy went out into the locker-lined hallway first, mainly because I saw him flying across the hall into the lockers. I barely moved out the back door turning to the left when I received my punch and my flight into the lockers. All I heard after that was one sentence, briefly, from our teacher: “Vice-principal’s office, now!” Translation – seniors or not, we were going to work for free cleaning something in the high school and our parents will know all about our transgression.

Like my cousin’s husband’s cousin, I now add my high school friend to my thoughts and prayers on Veterans Day, another young man in his early twenties who paid the ultimate price.

Most recently, just a few weeks ago, came the news from a friend that a soldier serving in Afghanistan with my friend’s son was killed by an improvised explosive device. The young man who died was in his 14th deployment overseas. I did not know him but I did receive a photo of him. On this coming Veteran’s Day, I will pray for him and for the family he leaves behind, and I will look at his picture in silent prayer.

Many of our best and brightest men and women have been killed or injured in service to their country. Whatever higher power you believe in, on Veteran’s Day please pray for our service members who have made the ultimate sacrifice.

Terry Moakley
Chair of the VetsFirst Committee

On Sunday October 23rd,1983 at approximately 6:20am Lebanese time over 241 U.S. Marines,Sailors and Soldiers were killed,hundreds were wounded or disabled. This was the result of a suicide driven truck laden with over 12,000 pounds of explosives that detonated in the BLT 1/8 24th MAU headquarters barracks in Beirut,Lebanon. Others died years later from the results of their service. This makes a total of 273 Marines, Sailors and Soldiers that died. These fallen comrades were on a peacekeeping mission when this terroist activity occurred. We have been requesting a stamp,to no avail from the Postmaster General and the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee in Washington,D.C.for the past 19 years.
Read the entire article from the Beirut Stamp Initiative

This project is being sponsored by Coast Guard organizations of the 14th Coast Guard District. The published mission is to: “To design and dedicate two memorials in honor of Coast Guard Veterans of the Pacific Theater.
Read the entire article from the Coast Guard Combat Veterans Association