By John Toth

Can you talk a bit about your military experience?

I commissioned as an officer through ROTC. I spent 21 years in the army as an infantry officer. I spent time with the 82nd airborne division and the 101st airborne division; I did a tour in Korea, a tour in Egypt. I spent two years in the pentagon and I was actually there during 9/11. I did a year-long combat tour in Iraq with the 101st. I ended my career as a professor of military science at the University of Colorado, Boulder and that’s how I ended up here in Denver.

By Tom Philpott

With the backlog of compensation claims at the Department of Veterans Affairs having ballooned in recent years, one would expect major veterans' service organizations to be among VA's harshest critics.

If so, they would join a rising chorus. Recently network news programs have turned cameras and commentary on the mountain of 598,000 overdue claim decisions, suggesting bureaucratic neglect of returning ill and injured vets from Iraq and Afghanistan. Time magazine columnist Joe Klein even asked VA Secretary Eric Shinseki to resign.

New TRICARE Prime rules will force retirees to use TRICARE Standard

Defense officials announced that military retirees and their dependents living more than 40 miles from a military treatment facility or base closure site will lose access to TRICARE Prime on October 1, 2013.

This would force as many as 171,000 retirees to shift to TRICARE Standard, their fee-for-service insurance option, which would mean an increase in out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries who are frequent users of health services.

Erik Cline's job search since he left the Marine Corps in February has been a mixed bag.

He went on a website that matches military skills with civilian jobs. He entered his experience training people in nuclear, biological and chemical defense. It didn't list any jobs for him.

Yet Cline, 29, received two offers from contractors in Quantico and Japan. He rejected both because he is committed to sharing an apartment with his sister in Chesapeake for a year.

His latest plan if he doesn't get a job: enroll in Tidewater Community College to become a paramedic. But he also has his eye on the apprenticeship program at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth.

Cline doesn't worry. "My experience will help me find a job and do well," he said.

"Veterans leading in the classroom, on campus, and in the community"
Date: Saturday, April 6^th, 2013
Time: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Location:
The Hub Cira Centre
2929 Arch Street
Mezzanine Level
Philadelphia, PA 19104

Meet companies hiring in your home town at the Philadelphia, PA Job Fair.

The Philadelphia Veterans Multi-Service & Education Center cordially invites you to our HIRE ONE VET luncheon.


The focus of this luncheon is to discover employer’s needs as well as encouraging local employers to realize the benefit of hiring just one veteran in their organization.

With your participation, we can make a difference in the lives of veterans who gave so much for us.

Please RSVP to Linda.Kahlert@pvmsec.org or 215-238-8081

PVMSEC is a non-profit organization dedicated to serving our nations Veterans since 1980.

Date: April 20th, 2013

Time: 9am – 2pm

Location:
Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church
2800 W. Cheltenham Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19150

- The job fair is free and open to the community.

- Candidates of all ages, experience levels and industries are encouraged to attend.

- Please come prepared with resumes and dress professionally.

Meet with over 30 employers:
AmeriHealth Mercy Family of Companies/KMHP
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP)
Drexel University
Graduate! Philadelphia
Johnson & Johnson
PA CareerLink Philadelphia
Philadelphia Fire Department
Philadelphia Gas Works
Shoprite
Target
And More

All proceeds will benefit local veterans via The Philadelphia Veterans Multi-Service & Education Center.


CLICK HERE for Brochure & Registration Form

Presented & Sponsored by:
Exelon Militaries Actively Connected (E-MAC)

Date: Monday, May 13, 2013

Registration: 8:00 AM

Shotgun Start: 9:00 AM

Location:
Ron Jaworski’s Valleybrook Country Club
200 Golfview Drive
Blackwood, NJ 08012

Phone: 856-227-3171
www.valleybrookgolf.com

Cost: $100.00 per Golfer
** $5.00 off for payments received by Sunday April 21, 2013 **

Price Includes:

- Golf & Cart
- Draft Beer or Soda (1 hour before golf, during 18 holes, & 2 hours after golf)
- Lunch after Golf

We have great news for all you coffee lovers out there. Now you can purchase our new “GI’s Joe” ( www.thegisjoe.com ) premium gourmet coffee and support your military veterans.

Our “Commander-in-Chief” blend is 12 ounces blended with the finest prime, washed Arabica coffees from Central America, Colombia and Brazil. It is medium acid with a full body blend that is perfectly balanced. Our price is $7.00 for a 12 ounce bag and $84.00 for a case of 12 bags.

Our "VP" Decaffeinated Blend is a fragrant premium 12 ounces of coffee that is 97% caffeine free and reflects over 250 years of the artistry of coffee blending in the tradition of one of Philadelphia’s oldest and finest Coffee Companies. Our price is $8.00 for a 12 bag and $96.00 for a case of 12 bags.

When you purchase our blend of “GI’s Joe” 100% of the profit will be used to provide critically needed services to Veterans in the Philadelphia area.

Visit our “GI’s Joe” website at www.thegisjoe.com to purchase our gourmet coffee!

Or order by phone by calling Rose McGee at 215-923-2600 x125.

How to Fund Raise for Your Veteran's Organization:

If you would like to Fund Raise for your Veterans Organization or for a Veterans Organization in your area we can help you.

It's as Easy as 1, 2, 3!

1. Go with the tried and true way: We will provide you with an order form to direct sell with family, friends and neighbors, you would collect the money and we would send the coffee directly to you and you would deliver to your customers.

2. You would advertise and have people order from our web site. Just put your organization info on the check out page, the customer would pay with credit or debit card and we would ship the coffee directly to them. Then we send you your profits! (This could be an easy ongoing fund raiser, when your customers reorder just tell them to enter your info and you will receive the profit).

3. Do a combo of the first and second options.

By Errin Whack

RICHMOND — Sen. Timothy M. Kaine says he will file his first bill as soon as next week, aimed at helping veterans looking for civilian jobs to get professional credit for their military expertise.

Kaine's bill would prevent credential fraud by setting standards and reestablishing an oversight committee in the Department of Veterans Affairs and would expand a Defense Department credentialing pilot program to include the information technology industry.

Iraq and Afghanistan veterans discharged from active duty on or after January 28, 2003, may be eligible for five years of medical care. The Department of Veterans Affairs is trying to reach out to eligible veterans who served “in a theater of combat operations” to let them know that they may be eligible for complete health care coverage for five years post service.

To determine eligibility, visit the Veterans Health Administration website at:
http://www.va.gov/healthbenefits/resources/eligibility_check.asp

VHA website provides comprehensive health benefits and includes a link to their fully developed Veterans Health Benefits Guide. For more information, visit www.va.gov or call 1-877-222-VETS (8387), 8 a.m.-8 p.m. EST.

The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and the Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) Programs offer free tax help for taxpayers who qualify.

VITA
The VITA Program generally offers free tax help to people who make $51,000 or less and need assistance in preparing their own tax returns. IRS-certified volunteers provide free basic income tax return preparation with electronic filing to qualified individuals in local communities. They can inform taxpayers about special tax credits for which they may qualify such as Earned Income Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, and Credit for the Elderly or the Disabled. VITA sites are generally located at community and neighborhood centers, libraries, schools, shopping malls, and other convenient locations.

This is a great law for Pennsylvania veterans who want proof of veteran status but are not able to obtain a "Veterans ID Card" through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

HB 2428 - "V" Designation on Driver License (Rep. Jeff Pyle / PRESENT) - requires that PennDOT issue a license / ID card with a "V" for Veteran identifier (at no additional fee) to persons that have served in the U.S. Armed Forces and were discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable. The "V" identifier is EXTREMELY important to PA Veterans and provides long overdue recognition for those who may not participate in other programs or have other military ID, will allow them to qualify for discounts / other benefits and will be useful in the ID of Veterans in a variety of circumstances.

Participation is voluntary and will require Veterans to provide documentation (DD Form 214, military ID, etc.)

Bill Text: PA House Bill 2428 - 2011-2012 Regular Session