Download - Hurlburt Warrior

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Page 10 | Hurlburt Warrior | Friday, May 25, 2012 Friday, May 25, 2012 | Hurlburt Warrior | Page 11 Kids get KUDOS during mock deployment By Airman 1st Class Benjamin Kim Airman 1st Class Benjamin Kim | USAF Children inspect various insects that Airmen may encounter during deployment at the Kids Understanding Deployment Operations event at the base Deployment Control Center at Hurlburt Field, May 19. 1st Special Operations Wing Public Affairs B oys and girls donned camouflaged boonie hats as the war paint slathered on to their faces accentuated the excitement in their eyes. They eagerly put on Mission Oriented Protective Posture gear and struggle to put on the heavy metalplated vests. The children then looked in wonder of the giant metallic beasts that sat quietly on the air field as if they were awaiting battle. While these children will not be experiencing combat missions any time soon, for one day they had the opportunity to experience just a glimpse of what their parents go through during deployment. Nearly 140 children of Hurlburt Field Airmen participated in the Airman & Family Readiness Center’s Kids Understanding Deployment Operations event at the Deployment Control Center here May 19. The program, known as KUDOS, is an A&FRC initiative designed to give children an insight into what goes on when their Air Commando mothers and fathers say ‘goodbye.’ “It helps kids understand what their parents experience in deployment,” said Debby Lundblad, director of the A&FRC. “If they have any fears, it calms them.” KUDOS gives children an up close and personal experience through which they can feel as if they are part of the military, Lundblad said. After receiving a welcome statement from Lt. Col. Kirk Peterson, commander of 1st Special Operations Logisitics Readiness Squadron, the children traveled through different stations to learn about things that they may experience when their parents deploy. For instance, representatives from the 1st Special Operation Medical Group showed them a display of disease-spreading insects as an attempt to inform them of medically-related dangers their parents may face while on a deployment. The KUDOS experience did not stop at pre-deployment procedures. This day included a K-9 demonstration from the 1st Special Operations Security Forces Squadron, static displays of 1st Special Operations Wing ground vehicles and aircraft and explosive ordnance disposal robots. “It takes quite a while just to make it all come together, but it’s worth it,” said Nancy Prescott, school liaison for Hurlburt Field at the A&FRC and KUDOS coordinator. “Plus I had a lot of good volunteers who helped out and took the kids around. We couldn’t have done this without them.” While the KUDOS event is geared toward children, many of the more than 50 active-duty Airmen and civilians who volunteered their time said they also gained from the experience. “I thought it was important for them to see exactly what we go through and understand it so that they can be a better support to us as well as how we can be a better support to them,” said Airman 1st Class Ashley Coe, a pediatric technician at the 1st Special Operations Medical Operations Squadron and KU- DOS volunteer. “And it was easy to connect with the kids and teach them about what we go through. This was definitely a morale booster that I think everybody needs to be involved with.” The day culminated in a heroes return for the children, similar to those their parents received at Operation Homecoming, complete with American flags, cookies and hugs from their family. “This was so amazing,” said Tamika McKinney, a military spouse and mother of KUDOS participant Jasmine Dereje. “I think this was a great opportunity for the kids to see what their parents do.” Although she said children may generally be left in the dark regarding what goes on during a deployment, McKinney said KUDOS gave them a deeper appreciation for how their military parents keep their children and the country safe. “I commend the wing for putting this on and doing this for the families,” McKinney said. “It makes us feel important and like we’re part of the mission as well.” Airman 1st Class Benjamin Kim | USAF Senior Airman Amanda Osborn, a financial technician from 1st Special Operations Comptroller Squadron, issues play money to children at the pre-deployment line during the Kids Understanding Deployment Operations event at the base Deployment Control Center at Hurlburt Field. This booth teaches children about a part of pre-deployment finance where Airmen are issued money to cover various costs that may be incurred during the process. Airman 1st Class Benjamin Kim | USAF Above, children stand at the top of bleachers to observe a K-9 demonstration held by the 1st Special Operations Security Forces Squadron outside the base Deployment Control Center. The K-9 demonstration is one of many informative parts of the KUDOS event to show various aspects of deployment. At left, Airman 1st Class Ashley Coe, a pediatrics technician from 1st Special Operations Medical Operations Squadron, leads a formation of children. Airman 1st Class Benjamin Kim | USAF Tamika McKinney welcomes back her daughter Jasmine Dereje at the end of the Kids Understand Deployment Operations event at the base Deployment Control Center at Hurlburt Field, May 19. The homecoming wrapped up the KUDOS event, giving the children a glimpse of what returnees experience when coming back from deployment.
Page 12 | Hurlburt Warrior | Friday, May 25, 2012 Will Supreme Court review how states treat vets’ disability pay? A disabled veteran has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to consider anew whether states violate federal law when they allow divorce courts to count a veteran’s disability compensation in calculating spousal support. The petition also invites the justices to consider an issue that states are more sharply divided over: whether federal law bars state courts from considering VA disability benefits communal property to be divided in divorce like other marital assets. In dissolving the near 20-year marriage of Peter James Barclay, an Air Force veteran, and his wife Claudia Kay, an Oregon district court judge in 2010 considered the value of Peter’s VA disability payments in awarding spousal pay of $1,000 a month. His only income is VA benefits and Social Security Disability Insurance, a taxfree total of just over $4,400 a month. Barclay, 42, suffers from post-traumatic stress from his role as a Tinker Air Force Base first-responder to the 1995 bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City. Barclay cleared debris and helped in recovery the dead and wounded. In time, PTSD made him unemployable and eligible to draw VA compensation at the 100- percent disabled rate. Barclay argued at trial that to include his disability pay in calculating spousal support would violate federal law. The court ignored that argument and the Court of Appeals of Oregon affirmed its decision. His Washington, D.C., attorney, Michael D.J. Eisenberg, petitioned the Supreme Court this month to consider whether Title 38 U.S. Code, Section 5301(a), which makes VA disability benefits immune “from taxation, claims of creditors, attachment, levy and seizure,” doesn’t also bar inclusion of disability pay, directly or indirectly, in spousal support calculations. “We have two good reasons to be heard before the court,” Eisenberg said in an interview. “One is the fact that the states are ignoring federal law. And two, states are split on how they are executing federal law.” The petition concedes that most states have adopted the approach used in Oregon that disability Tom Philpott pay can be used toward alimony. This is based on the Supreme Court’s 1987 Rose decision, which said the legislative history of VA disability benefits shows that these payments are intended to compensate both the veteran “and his family.” Eisenberg disagrees. Disability pay, he said, is to compensate the veteran for loss of income due to a service-connected medical condition. If the veteran has a spouse, VA compensation tables set payments higher. But that extra amount, in recognition of the sacrifice the spouse makes in living with a disabled vet, stops if veteran gets divorced. That means the spouse has no direct claim on the compensation. “It’s not like the veteran’s disability caused the spouse a military-related disability,” Eisenberg said. If a former spouse has no disability, she “has an advantage over the veteran” that the Oregon court should have considered and not try, using VA compensation, to “even the playing field.” Doing that gives the former spouse an advantage over the veteran, he said. Barclay’s former spouse claims to have disabilities of her own. But Eisenberg said relief should come from a state or federal assistance program such as Social Security Disability Insurance, not the veteran’s benefits. Eisenberg acknowledged that a Supreme Court ruling in favor of Barclay would not be a happy result for many former spouses of veterans. “But let us not forget these VA benefits are to make persons whole for loss of either physical or mental disability incurred while they are serving their country. The spouse is deemed to have no disabilities, certainly no disabilities from military service … There’s nothing in the record to reflect she can’t go out and get a job.” Barclay and his former spouse are in their early 40s. He is a veteran but not a military retiree. She worked at home throughout their marriage, raising children who are now grown. The 1982 Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act (USFSPA) allows courts to distribute “disposable” military retired pay as marital property or as alimony or child support. But Barclay’s petition notes that the law also excludes disability compensation from the definition of “net disposable income” that can be divided under the USFSPA. The petition also points See disability page 13 B ob Kerrigan, listed in Best lawyers in America for the last ten years, Law Dragon’s top 500 lawyers in the country, Florida Trend magazine’s Elite lawyers and the highest legal and ethical rating by Martindale Hubbell... For 35 years attorney Bob Kerrigan has consulted with and represented military families when accidental injuries or death have occurred. Call for a consultation… Bob Kerrigan Attorney 2074323 244-3333 Kerrigan.com Florida Bar Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer...Ft. Walton Beach, FL
Page 1 and 2: Friday, May 25, 2012 hurlburtwarrio
Page 3 and 4: Friday, May 25, 2012 | Hurlburt War
Page 9: Friday, May 25, 2012 | Hurlburt War
Page 13 and 14: Page 14 | Hurlburt Warrior | Friday
Page 19: Page 20 | Hurlburt Warrior | Friday

Download - Hurlburt Warrior

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?