Dear #VA, Im now at home with a husband... my very own hero... A man who chose on the morning of 9/11/01 to enlist because to the very core of him he knew of no other choice than to stand up for his country. Im at home with that wonderful man... Who now, yet again, feels abandoned and thrown away by his country. We fought for loooooong years to finally get his benefits in place. Before he served his country he worked on days when he was sick, when he was so tired from working 50-60 hour weeks and going to school that he could barely hold his head up. He worked. He was one of THOSE guys. And then he spent 27+ months in Iraq and was blown up more than two dozen times and breathed pounds upon pounds of toxic crap and watched horror and death and war. He came home... My hero... A man who had done a lifetime of work in those 27 months in Iraq and whose body and spirit had been turned over to that service... To the country he loved. And tonight a simple letter from the VA saying that we hadnt returned a form (we never received) and that now we have to fight all over again for such tiny benefits in light of his sacrifice... And yet they are the benefits hes earned with blood and sweat and tears that keeps food on our table and a roof over our head,,. That simple letter has left him feeling once again thrown away by the very organization whose only job is to care for him as he has cared for his country. And his wife... His caregiver... The woman who has known him (and loved him) since she set eyes on him at 16 and now spends her days and nights trying her best to offer one ounce of the sacrifice he laid out so selflessly... What do I think? Im ashamed. Im pissed off. And holy crap Im tired of watching our incredible heroes and the families that love them get screwed while people play politics with their lives. Freedom is paid for, each and everyday, in the homes and hearts of our veterans and families. And until our country truly realizes that I will continue to be ashamed. ~Brannan Vines (President & Founder of Family of a Vet... But also sooooo proud to be a veteran wife tonight and every night... Even when it means pulling my boots on for yet another fight)
Posted on: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 02:29:40 +0000
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