Currently browsing: Events

Welcome Home Alabama’s Heroes!

Courtesy of the Birmingham VA site, I’ve learned that the Birmingham VA Medical Center will be sponsoring a Welcome Home Celebration for Alabama’s veterans this month. These brave men and women will be returning from military service in Iraq and Afghanistan. This event takes place Saturday, April 26, from 11 AM to 2 PM at the Huntsville Space and Rocket Center. Additionally admission to the Space and Rocket Center is free for all OEF/OIF Veterans and their families!

For more information about this event, click here.

What can $25,000 buy?

I’ve asked on here a few times, I’ve emailed friends, I’ve posted on forums and boards, heck I’ve even asked on my personal blog. I’ll ask again: Have you voted for Patti today? Are you remembering to vote every day?

A friend of mine quipped, “What would y’all do with all that money if she wins?”

Oh, I think Soldiers’ Angels could do a lot! Shelle Michaels covered this topic very well in this post on the SA blog — SA could do a LOT of good with the prize money if when Patti wins:

“…$25,000 can buy 425 Valour-IT lap tops for our wounded heroes. It can buy 5000 wounded hero backpacks to send to those most in need. It can buy 50 airline tickets for families and soldiers in need to get back and forth in emergency situations. To an organization like Soldiers’ Angels that solely relies upon donations and sponsors to step forward with generous commitments to our programs, a gift like $25,000 will go a long way…”

So, what are you waiting for? Go vote!

Listen up, Lady Vets!

Courtesy of the SA blog:

Summit planned for women veterans

The fourth National Summit on Women Veterans Issues will be June 20-22 in Washington. Sponsored by the Department of Veterans Affairs, the summit will offer sessions specifically for the reserves and National Guard, information on military sexual trauma and readjustment issues, and other programs and exhibits.

VA offers a variety of services and programs for the needs of women veterans, including high-quality primary health-care services. VA’s mental health care for women includes substance-abuse counseling and evaluation/treatment of military sexual trauma and post traumatic stress disorder.

Specific VA initiatives for 2008 include:

• Enhancing skills of primary care providers who treat women veterans.
• Examining other women’s health issues, including cardiac care, breast cancer and colo-rectal cancer.
• Focusing on family issues and avoiding birth defects through enhanced pharmacy practices.

About 1.7 million women veterans make up 7 percent of the veteran population, and a quarter-million use VA health-care services. Today, more than 200,000 women serve in the U.S. Armed Forces.

VA is reaching out to women veterans who suffer problems related to sexual trauma or harassment while in the military. Programs are also available for women veterans who are homeless or victims of domestic violence. The department operates 50 women’s health centers, which develop new and enhanced programs; some also conduct research on medical and psychosocial issues. The largest women’s center is at the James A. Haley VA Medical Center in Tampa, Fla., with more than 20,000 women veterans enrolled for care.

More information on the National Summit on Women Veterans Issues can be found at www.va.gov/womenvet. For questions about VA benefits, call 1-800-827-1000. For questions about VA health care, call 1-877-222-8387 or go to www.va.gov.

Have you been voting?

The America’s Favorite Mom contest has been extended and Patti needs our help and our VOTES now more than ever!

Voting ends April 25th, and you can vote once per day so bookmark this link and go vote!

SA Alabama coming to Magnolia Festival

I filed the paperwork this morning and have already begun gathering the necessary materials, supplies, etc. for the booth (space) I will be occupying at the upcoming Magnolia Festival in Gardendale, April 19th! Any area Angels in the area (or passing through) are welcome to come by and see me!

For information and directions, visit www.magnoliafestival.org

Two AL Guard units training for Iraq deployments

Per The Birmingham News:

An Alabama Army National Guard quartermaster unit is now training for an upcoming tour in Iraq. Army Guard spokesman Norman Arnold said about 15 members of the 1207th Quartermaster Detachment (Water Distribution) from Goodwater have been training at a military post for several weeks and should deploy by late spring or early summer.

“They can literally push water 10 to 15 miles out from a central point,” Arnold said.

Meanwhile, members of the 158th Maintenance Company, with headquarters in Tallassee and a detachment in Dadeville, also are preparing for an Iraq deployment and should begin intensive training at an out-of-state military post in the near future, Arnold said.

About 650 Alabama Army Guard members are currently on duty in and around Iraq and are slated to return home in the next two to three months.

Soldiers’ Angels Salutes the Nation’s Military Children

The following press release was posted to the SA Forums. I think it would be a great idea for us to contact local news media, city mayors, and state governors and request that April be designated Month of the Military Child.

April marks a very special month in the lives of the military families. Soldiers’ Angels joins the US Department of Defense in recognizing April as the Month of the Military Child, a time to applaud military families and their children for the daily sacrifices they make and challenges they overcome. Secretary of Defense, Caspar Weinberger, established April as the Month of the Military Child in 1986, underscoring the importance of military children and their role in military families.

“Military families learn to be flexible, but extended hours and long deployments often prove to be difficult for America’s military children. I feel this month provides those of us (here) a time to celebrate the unique lifestyles of our military youth and the adjustments that families make during deployments and wartime.” says Patti Patton-Bader, founder of Soldiers’ Angels.

“Being a parent, it breaks my heart to leave my wife and kids behind when I am called to (deploy),” said Cpt. Mark McEvers NDARNG HHC 164 ENG BN SECFOR. “But that is what we do when we are called. We have sworn to support and defend and that is what we do. Our families know this, respect this, and stand by us. When we deploy forward and leave that hole in the family, it’s important for me to know that the nation has not forgotten about my family, and I am grateful that they are honored and supported this month.”

These children make sacrifices and serve their country as much as anyone in uniform does, quietly shouldering part of the burden, making their mom or dad understand that what they are doing is important. Military parents often have to miss holidays and special occasions, and children are left home to worry while parents go on difficult missions. Active duty military families also have to move every two or three years, making the children uproot, change schools and say goodbye to friends. Because military children have to transition and adapt a lot, they gain great life experience and maturity at a young age. April serves as a reminder for military families that there is support available to them with resources to help.

“I don’t think our children are told often enough how important and supportive it is to us when we come home from a difficult day and we see them smile,” Lt. Dan Murphy, North Dakota National Guard JFHQ Deputy Public Information Officer said. “It is my children (who) give me the energy and desire to put this uniform on each day to protect and defend this great nation for their future way of life.”

Soldiers’ Angels encourages the nation to stand up and support the military families in their surrounding area by getting involved in a variety of ways. Throughout the month of April, the military will be hosting special programs and events to salute military children, to include, carnivals, health screening for children, youth talent shows, and more. Please contact your local military facility to see how you can best utilize your time and talent to show your appreciation during the Month of the Military Child. To all of the military children in our nation- thank you for your service to our country, you are a very important part of our freedom.

Soldiers’ Angels currently supports tens of thousands of American service members stationed wherever the American flag is raised. Soldiers’ Angels is dedicated in supporting the military during and after their deployment. In the time honored tradition of civilian support of American soldiers, Soldiers’ Angels sponsors programs which provide support to American soldiers and their families. Soldiers’ Angels’ programs include first responder packs, support, and laptop computers to wounded soldiers who are receiving treatment at American military hospitals; care packages, letters, and support to deployed soldiers; armored blankets to military ambulances; items shipped for deployed soldiers to give children in the war zone; and memorial trees for the families of soldiers who have died in the service of their country. There are several ways to support our troops through Soldiers’ Angels, for more information please go to our national website www.soldiersangels.org or contact Soldiers’ Angels at (615)676-0239 or soldiersangels @ gmail.com.

Remember to vote for Patti!

There’s a little over a week left in the America’s Favorite Mom contest and as of this writing, Patti is in the lead! Voting ends March 31st, and you can vote once per day so bookmark this link and go vote!

New VA fund raiser

Lori with the Soldiers’ Angels VA teams just emailed me about a fund raiser they’re having. Need to renew a magazine subscription, or looking to pick up a new one? Now’s the time! Magazines will be offered at a discounted price. Best part is: the Veterans Support Team will receive 40% of the profits!

Please take a moment and go look at the link below to check out the magazine offers. Renew or order a magazine and help them help our Veterans!

Link: http://www.freewebs.com/soldiersangelsveteranssupport/