March 30th -- Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day In Virginia

In 2010, the Virginia Ancient Order of Hibernians (VAAOH) initiated action to recognize contributions of Vietnam and Vietnam-era military veterans residing in the Commonwealth. VAAOH promoted a bill to annually proclaim 30 March as "Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day" and encourage observance of that day with ceremonies and activities that recognize Veterans of the Vietnam conflict. It was on 30 March 1973, that the United States Armed Forces completed the withdrawal of combat troops from Vietnam.

District 30 Delegate Ed Scott championed House Joint Resolution Number 136 that designates March 30 as “Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day in Virginia to celebrate the service and numerous contributions of the Commonwealth’s Vietnam-era Veterans.” The resolution notes that more than 262,000 Vietnam veterans reside in the Commonwealth and 1,304 Virginians lost their lives in Vietnam. Delegate Scott presented a copy of the joint resolution at the VAAOH state meeting in April 2010.

(l to r) JJ Kelly, National Veterans Affairs Director; Delegate Scott;

Bill Halpin, Virginia Veterans Affairs Chairman; and State President Rich Alexy

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Vietnam education center gets $10 million grant from the Lilly Endowment

Washington Post, by Michael E. Ruane, Feb 22, 2017.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund has received a $10million grant for its proposed education center adjacent to its famous memorial on the Mall in Washington. The fund said the grant from the Lilly Endowment is the largest single cash donation in the fund’s 37-year history.

The fund has been trying to raise money to build the underground Education Center at the Wall since 2003. With the Lilly donation, the fund said it now has $42.5million of the $130million it needs to raise. The center will be a 25,000-square-foot building displaying thousands of artifacts left at the memorial over the years, first-person accounts of veterans and citizens, and a two-story wall showing the faces of the 58,000 people whose names are etched on the memorial.

A ceremonial groundbreaking was held in 2012, but costs and expenditures have risen and fundraising had been slow. “It’s incredibly encouraging that an organization like the Lilly Endowment, that is so well known and so well respected in philanthropic circles, sees the value and has confidence in this project,” said Jim Knotts, president of the fund. “I think that there are a lot of people or corporations that have been interested in this project in the past and they have been sitting on the sidelines,” he said. “We still have a long way to go, and the project is not certain,” he said in a telephone interview last week. “But I think receiving this kind of commitment from Lilly really indicates to others that this project is a real project, that we’re making great progress, and that it will happen with the support of others.”

Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the war’s landmark Tet Offensive by the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong, Knotts said. He noted, this September filmmaker Ken Burns is set to release a 10-part documentary about the war on public television stations. Knotts said he has seen six of the episodes. “I truly believe it will restart a conversation in this country to remember and honor our Vietnam veterans in a way nothing ever has,” he said.

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Best Ways to Get or Replace a Lost 1099R

Military retirees and annuitants receive a 1099R tax statement either electronically via myPay or as a paper copy in their mail each year. But there are times when a document is misplaced among your other credit card, bank or tax statements; or you may need a 1099-R from several years ago for pending financial business.

You can request copies of your 1099R tax statements in several different ways. The fastest and most secure way to obtain a copy of your 1099R is myPay. Just login to myPay and you can print your 1099R at home when you need it. You will find instructions for accessing your 1099-R using myPay .

Not a myPay user yet? If the mailing address you have on file with us is current, the fastest and easiest way to get a copy of your 1099R is to use our telephone self-service option. Telephone self-service requests are logged instantly and are sent to your current address of record within 7-10 business days. To use telephone self-service:

• Call 800-321-1080

• Select option “1” for Military Retired and Annuitant Pay

• Select option “1” for Self-Serve

• Enter your Social Security Number when prompted

• Your 1099-R should be in the mail within 7-10 business days to your address we have on record.

If the address you have on file with us is out of date and if you’re not a myPay user, you can request your 1099R be sent to your current address or a new address using one easy form. Plus, you can request prior year 1099R’s as well. Your transaction will be logged instantly and you will receive your 1099R in the mail in 7 to 10 business days. Find complete instructions

Do you prefer traditional mail? If so, send us a written request by fax or mail, and make sure you leave us time to reply. Keep in mind; it takes us 30 to 60 days to process requests received by fax or mail. Find complete instructions at http://www.dfas.mil/retiredmilitary/manage/taxes/getting1099r/viawrittenreq.html

Members with unique situations can speak directly to one of our customer care representatives. Depending

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Military exchanges plan to offer online access to veterans by Nov. 11

Military Times, by: Karen Jowers, February 16, 2017

The military exchanges have the green light to open their online doors to veterans by Nov. 11, an idea initially proposed by a top exchange official nearly three years ago. Defense Department officials notified the congressional oversight committees Jan. 11 of their intent to open up the military exchange online shopping benefit to all honorably discharged veterans. On Jan. 18, a memorandum went out with guidance for the military departments to implement the program by Nov. 11.

Congress had 30 days from the notification to lodge any protests, but "to date, the department has not received any concerns from the committees,” said Army Lt. Col. Myles Caggins, a DoD spokesman, on Wednesday. DOD will address any future congressional concerns, but "no further guidance to the military departments is necessary for them to begin preparation to implement this online exchange benefit," Caggins said. The new shopping privileges will apply only to online shopping, not to brick-and-mortar stores. Newly eligible veterans -- DOD estimates there are 15 million of them -- wouldn't be able to buy uniforms, alcohol or tobacco products.

While plans call for a Veterans Day launch, officials can approve an earlier start date if they deem it appropriate, according to the Jan. 18 memo. Preparations include ordering and stocking the increased inventory, and other operational requirements. The Army and Air Force Exchange Service, or AAFES, and Navy Exchange Service Command, or NEXCOM, have online shopping websites, but authorized shoppers can buy from either site, regardless of branch of service.

The Army's top enlisted soldier already has offered his support for the program. “It’s an outstanding ability to provide services to those who have served," Sergeant Major of the Army Dan Dailey told Military Times. "It’s in line with our Soldier for Life program. We believe that once you’ve served, you’re always a member of the Army team. We should recognize and value that service for your entire life. “So we’ve benefited our veterans for serving, giving them an online shopping benefit where they can buy products and goods from all over the United States, and simultaneously support the military directly,” he added. “It helps with the morale, welfare and recreation programs, and we don’t have to spend tax dollars to do that.”

HOW IT WILL WORK

As they do with other authorized customers, the exchanges will use data provided by the Defense Manpower Data Center to verify veteran eligibility for online shopping privileges. Veterans whose records are incomplete or don't appear in the Veterans Affairs Department database will need to register through VA, according to a letter to congressional committees with oversight over DoD and VA issues by Peter Levine, former acting undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness.

The exchange services will provide registration information on their online sites, and the AAFES call center will help veterans navigate the process. Veterans with honorable discharges will be authorized to shop online at any of the military exchange sites regardless of service branch, but they won't be able to receive a DOD identification card through the program, or gain access to DOD installations and other DOD property where exchanges are located. There are no plans to extend the benefit to these veterans' dependents because "it would be cost prohibitive to collect and track these individuals in the database used for verification of eligibility,” Levine wrote in the letter.

AAFES will invest about $1.8 million a year to cover costs associated with the expansion of their online platform, according to Levine’s letter. If 0.3 percent of the newly eligible veteran group – or about 45,000 veterans – shop online, that cost is expected to be recouped. AAFES CEO Tom Shull formally proposed the idea of expanding the benefit to honorably discharged veterans to DOD on May 14, 2014, noting that it would provide a modest benefit to those who had served but left the military short of retirement. Defense officials determined that it could be accomplished administratively, without a change in law.

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I’m a proud graduate of the Army Infantry School (The Benning School for Boys), so here are five things you didn’t know about the Army Infantry: http://www.military.com/video/forces/army/army-infantry-and-infantryman-five-things-you-dont-know-about/5339324088001?ESRC=army-a_170301.nl

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LTG Hal Moore, portrayed by Mel Gibson in 'We Were Soldiers,' dies at age 94

Military Times, February 11, 2017

Retired Lt. Gen. Hal Moore, whose book about his experience in Vietnam was made into the movie "We Were Soldiers," died Friday, just a few days short of his 95th birthday.

Moore, who the Army described as a "legendary combat leader," died at his home in Auburn, Alabama, according to the statement. He is survived by three sons, two daughters, 11 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. His death came after having had a stroke a few days before, according to one of his children.

The general is best known for his actions during the Battle of Ia Drang, where he served as the commander of 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment. Within 20 minutes of the first shot of that deadly battle, Moore's battalion was vastly outnumbered and assaulted by hundreds of enemy furiously determined to overrun the Americans, according to the Army. After a three-day bloodbath, the enemy quit the field, leaving more than 600 of their dead on the battlefield. Moore was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the nation's second highest award for valor, for his actions during that battle.

Moore was commissioned as a second lieutenant of infantry after graduating from West Point in 1945, according to the Army. He served with the 187th Glider Infantry Regiment in Sapporo, Japan, then was reassigned to the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. There, he volunteered for the Army's Airborne Test Section, where he jump tested experimental parachutes, making more than 130 test jumps in two years. During the Vietnam War, Moore commanded 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment. It was the actions of that unit during the Battle of Ia Drang in 1965 that became the basis of his book "We Were Soldiers Once, and Young." The book became a movie in 2002, with Mel Gibson portraying Moore.

Moore later assumed command of 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, and led it through several major campaigns in 1966, earning a Bronze Star Medal with Valor - the third of his career - for carrying wounded soldiers to safety under "withering small and automatic weapons fire," according to the Army. As a two-star, Moore commanded the 7th Infantry Division in Korea. He was later promoted to lieutenant general in 1974 and assigned to the Pentagon as the deputy chief of staff for personnel. Moore, a native of Bardstown, Kentucky, retired from the Army in 1977.

The funeral mass will be held at St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church in Auburn, followed by a memorial service and internment at Fort Benning.

Editor’s Note: If you haven’t seen the movie it is worth renting!

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American Legion Address to National Press Club (Ctrl/Click on Photo)

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Shulkin promises problematic VA workers will be fired

Military Times, by Leo Shane III, February 21, 2017

WASHINGTON—Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin promised to crack down on underperforming employees in his first televised interview since being sworn into the post last week.
“When you have one or two or three people who really aren’t doing their job, they bring everybody down,” he said. “And so the very best thing I know from my private sector experience is you’ve got to deal with that, you’ve got to get them out of the system, because it helps not only the veterans, but the people who work in VA who are trying to do the right thing for veterans.”
The interview, which will be shown in sections on the "Fox & Friends" morning show throughout the week, is the first real public comments from Shulkin since he became the first non-veteran in American history to oversee the federal veterans agencies.
He promised to work with Congress on new accountability legislation but also to be an advocate for VA workers, calling them “the best people in health care.”
Peter Hegseth. Host of Fox & Friends and an Iraq War veteran who was under consideration from President Trump for the VA secretary post, in the interview accused former VA Secretary Bob McDonald of being more interested in maintaining the status quo at the department than firing troublesome employees.

Shulkin pushed back on that accusation, saying: “What I heard (McDonald) saying is that it’s very important to have a due process. You don’t want to arbitrarily fire people.”
But he also promised different results than his predecessor. “Watch us,” he said. “People who don’t show up to work, who do cocaine or who are watching porn at work are going to be fired, because I’m not going to tolerate it, and they’re going to be out of our system. Watch our results there. “But remember, the vast, vast majority of our employees are dedicated. They could be working anywhere in health care, but they choose to be working at VA. And I’m going to support them, I’m going to be standing behind them.”