Veterans Day: A Time to Reflect on Our Nation’s Heroes

As this Veterans Day draws closer, many Americans will have the effects of Superstorm Sandy on their minds.  The devastating storm killed more than 100 people up and down the East coast and points further west.  Many of our staff members and members of our organization were among those affected by the devastation.

All is not doom and gloom, though, as our nation’s veterans continued to serve.  For instance, some volunteered in Team Rubicon, a non-profit that sends veterans to specific disasters where they can be of use.  Team Rubicon volunteers assessed the effects of the storm and even helped to rescue a man and his dog from an attic in Brooklyn.

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On Veterans Day, this country will celebrate the service of all veterans, those who have passed away during service or since, those in Team Rubicon and all of the more than 22 million brave men and women who are still living and contributing in their own ways.  Just as there is every year, there will be Veterans Day sales, parades, speeches, and some of us will even get the day off from work.  While it’s important to celebrate the contributions of those who have served, Veterans Day is also a day to remember, especially when times are rough for so many who have served.

Here are some basic facts to reflect on for the day: 3.5 million veterans have a disability related to their service[ii], twenty-six percent of all veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have reported having a service-connected disability[iii], more than half a million veterans deal with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder[iv].  Too many veterans are coping with severe depression and suicide rates in the military are at all-time highs, with nearly a suicide a day in the first half of this year[v].

While I am grateful that the country has begun the slow climb back from a recession that resulted in high rates of unemployment and homelessness, we must not forget that nearly 120,000 veterans will experience homelessness this year (1/5th of the total homeless population[vi]).  In addition, while the jobless rate for all veterans in 2011 was 8.3 percent, 12.1 percent of recent veterans were without jobs.[vii]

On this Veterans Day, I will celebrate the contributions of all veterans and I will pray for all those affected by the storm, for those struggling to cope with the hardest times, to find work and housing, and for those wounded. Most importantly, VetsFirst will continue to fight every day to ensure that veterans receive the services they need to allow them to continue to serve a grateful nation.

Terry Moakley

Chair of the VetsFirst Committee