Medina County Veterans Newsletter

Transcription

1 MEDINA COUNTY VETERANS SERVICE OFFICE Medina County Veterans Newsletter Special Extra Earnings for Military Service From Social Security Since 1957, if you had military service earnings for active duty (including active duty for training), you paid Social Security taxes on those earnings. Since 1988, inactive duty service in the Armed Forces reserves (such as weekend drills) has also been covered by Social Security. Under certain circumstances, special extra earnings for your military service from 1957 through 2001 can be credited to your record for Social Security purposes. These extra earnings credits may help you qualify for Social Security or increase the amount of your Social Security benefit. Special extra earnings credits are granted for periods of active duty or active duty for training. Special extra earnings credits are not granted for inactive duty training. If your active military service occurred From 1957 through 1967, we will add the extra credits to your record when you apply for Social Security benefits. From 1968 through 2001, you do not need to do anything to receive these extra credits. The credits were automatically added to your record. After 2001, there are no special extra earnings credits for military service. How You Get Credit For Special Extra Earnings The information that follows applies only to active duty military service earnings from 1957 through Here's how the special extra earnings are credited on your record: Service in 1957 Through 1977 You are credited with $300 in additional earnings for each calendar quarter in which you received active duty basic pay. Continued on Page 2 FALL 2011 Medina Veterans Meet - Explore County Organization INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Food Program 2 Soc. Sec. (cont.) 2 Service Officer Comments Senior Section 4 Correction (Vet Org) 4 Burial Allowance Increase 5 VA Update 5 Calendar 6 Tomb of the Unknown 7 Our Mission 8 Happy Birthday! US Marine Corp 236h Nov 10, 1775 US Navy 236th Nov 13, 1775 NEED HELP WITH YOUR VA CLAIM? Contact us, we will apply our specialized knowledge in the best way suited to the needs of every individual veteran or other beneficiary who comes to the office for assistance. 3 On September 24th Veterans from nine out of the seventeen veterans organizations in Medina County held a fact finding meeting at the Veterans Hall in Downtown Medina. The purpose of the meeting was to come together and explore the possibility of forming a joint committee amongst all the organizations. The discussion was whether or not we need a group of this sort within the county and if we do what should it really look like. A representative from the Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery was on hand to discuss how all the groups interact with the cemetery located in Rittman, Ohio. More importantly the discussion turned to how the various veterans groups throughout the county need to share information amongst each other. The one thing everyone agreed upon was having another meeting at 11:00 am on October 29, 2011, at the Veterans Hall in Medina. The discussion on that day will be how to support our very own Ohio National Guard Unit here in Medina while they are deployed as well as the future of a county group. The representatives from the groups that were present agreed to contact their fellow veterans from those organization that were not able to attend, in hopes of having them at the next meeting. We re on Facebook Medina County Veterans Service

2 PAGE 2 Food Assistance Program Changes Start November 1st, 2011 As of October 15th, 2011 we will no longer issue food vouchers for Giant Eagle Inc. Giant Eagle has changed their policies and will no longer offer a voucher program. This will leave our selection of grocery stores to Hawkins Market and Buehlers Grocery Stores. All vouchers issued by the Medina County Veterans Service Office for Giant Eagle will expire on October 31st, 2011 and be invalid. our policies and is in fact a policy of Giant Eagle INC. The Medina County Veterans Service Office is exploring alternative options to meet the needs of our veterans when it comes to food assistance. If you have any questions feel free to contact our office. FREE FOOD DISTRIBUTIONS will be held at the Community Center at the Medina County Fairgrounds, on the Third Thursday of each month. November 17, 2011 December 15, Dates January 19, 2012 February 16, 2012 Any household or individual under the 200% of Federal Poverty Guideline is eligible! Anyone receiving benefits from Job and Family Services is under 200% of poverty. Food will be distributed on a first come first serve basis. Please bring your own bags. This was not due in any part to The Marine Corps Ball here in Medina County will kick off the annual Toys for Tots Sponsored by Marine Corps League Medina Detachment #569. Last year the Detachment helped more than 1325 children have a memorable Christmas throughout Medina County. Drop off points in Medina County, First Merit Banks and Whiteys on the Square as well as our office. Contact: Call Bob (330) or John (330) for more details. Have you applied for your Ohio Bonus yet? Special Extra Earnings for Military Service From Social Security Continued from Front Cover Service in 1978 through 2001 For every $300 in active duty basic pay, you are credited with an additional $100 in earnings up to a maximum of $1,200 a year. If you enlisted after September 7, 1980, and didn't complete at least 24 months of active duty or your full tour, you may not be able to receive the additional earnings. Check with Social Security for details. This program is designed to educate disabled veterans and their families on specific veterans' benefits and services. This outreach program generates considerable claims work on behalf of veterans and their families. NSOs, often aided by Department and Chapter Service Officers, travel to communities across the country to counsel and assist veterans with development of evidence, completion of required applications and prosecution of claims for veterans benefits administered under federal, state and local laws.

3 MEDINA COUNTY PAGE 3 Poppy Drive - American Legion Brunswick Area November Medina County Veterans Service Office Out-Reach Program - Wadsworth The Medina County Veterans Service Office provides an outreach center in Wadsworth the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of every month from 1:00 to 3:00 PM, at the Center for Older Adults in Wadsworth IT S TRIVIA TIME... Who chose the remains to be used as America's Unknown Soldier representing those lost by the U.S. during World War I. Answer on page 6 Inpatient and Outpatient Care is Available at the Following Hospitals Wade Park Center East Boulevard Cleveland, OH Phone: (216) Fax: (216) For appointments or medication: (800) Brecksville Center Brecksville Rd Brecksville, OH Phone: (440) Akron Community Based Clinic 55 W. Waterloo Akron, OH Phone: (330) EMERGENCY ROOM CARE IS AVAILABLE AT WADE PARK 24 HOURS A DAY, SEVEN DAYS A WEEK. If you have an emergency you may want to consider going to the local hospital Marching in Step! Veterans Day at the fair was a huge success this past year and we intend on growing it even more next year. Thank you for all your support in making it a great event and I hope we can really get some entertainment for next year. A Message From the County Veterans Service Officer With the summer well behind us we now turn our focus to Veterans Day which will be here in no time. There are many local events throughout the county. Whether you re at the County Home raising the Flag or eating prime rib at the American Legion in Wadsworth take time to remember those that are off protecting our freedoms. Take time to thank your fellow veteran for the sacrifices we have all endured. And mostly if your sitting at home, get off your duff and get on out and have some fun at one of the local Veterans Organizations. They support us and we must support them. I want to thank all of the groups that came out for the meeting on September 24th. No matter what the outcome we need to continue to work together on all issues that effect our veterans and the community. I hope to see you all at our next meeting. Many of our local veterans have come out to support the free food distributions held at the community center once a month. I cannot thank you enough for your contributions and hard work. Cheryl Mason Eligibility Services Administrator of Job and Family Services continues to express her thanks. If it were not for the many volunteers that assist each month, many would go hungry. Again thank you. With the Holiday Season coming we here at the Medina County Veterans Service Office want to wish all of our Veterans and their Families a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year. No matter the holiday you may be celebrating remember those that have given their all so that we may be a free people in a free land, One Nation Under God. Sincerely Veterans Service Officer Medina County, Ohio

4 PAGE 4 PARADE REST Veterans and Their Benefits Edward Zackery The Social Security Administration has had no cost-of-living adjustments in the last two years, because the consumer price index has not risen since 2008 when the last Social Security increase occurred. Like recipients of Social Security and other federal benefits Veterans, their families and survivors have also not seen a costof-living adjustment in two years to their compensation and pension benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Under federal law, the costof-living adjustments to VA s compensation and pension rates are the same percentage as for Social Security benefits. It has been estimated that there may be as much as a 3.5 % increase coming in The third quarter CPI (consumer price index) is scheduled to be released on October 19th, this will determine the increase for the upcoming year. So the 3.5 estimate is based on data released in September based on Augusts and Julys CPI numbers. Many of us ask how the COLA is calculates for Social Security. How is a COLA calculated? The Social Security Act specifies a formula for determining each COLA. According to the formula, COLAs are based on increases in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). CPI-Ws are calculated on a monthly basis by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. A COLA effective for December of the current year is equal to the percentage increase (if any) in the average CPI-W for the third quarter of the current year over the average for the third SENIOR SECTION quarter of the last year in which a COLA became effective. If there is an increase, it must be rounded to the nearest tenth of one percent. If there is no increase, or if the rounded increase is zero, there is no COLA. COLA Computation The last year in which a COLA became effective was Therefore the law requires that we use the average CPI-W for the third quarter of 2008 as the base from which we measure the increase (if any) in the average CPI-W. Last month we ran an article about all the Veterans Organizations throughout the county and in printing it left some information out of our newsletter. We want to make sure all of our readers have the contact information for our organizations in Medina County. Sincerely, MCVSO So next time you pass by one of the many Veterans Organizations Post Homes, remember that a lot more goes on in there than you might think. In fact, you just might like to stop in and introduce yourself at the next meeting and see Medina County Veterans Organizations Meeting Times and Places 1. American Legion Post #234 Skyview Lodge Pearl Rd. Brunswick 7:00 PM - First Thursday of each month 2. American Legion Post # Bank Street, Lodi Lodi, OH 7:00 PM - Second Thurs days of each month 3. American Legion Post # N. Broadway St. Medina, OH 7:15 PM - Fourth Mon day of each month 4. American Legion Post #608 North Main St Spencer, OH 8:00 PM - First Monday of each month 5. American Legion Post # Main Street Wadsworth, Ohio 7:00 PM - Second Mon day of each month 6. AMVETS Post # N. Broadway Street Me dina, OH 7:30 PM - Third Wednesday of each month 7. Disabled American Veterans Chapter # N. Broadway Street Me dina, OH 7:00 PM - Second Tuesday of each month 8. Forty et Eight Voiture #601 Coppertop 5740 Center Valley City 9:00 AM - Second Satur day of each month 9. Korean War Veterans Chapter # N. Rocky River Dr. Rocky River, OH 7:00 PM - Fourth Tuesday of each month 10. MARINE Corps League DET # Pearl Rd Medina, OH 7:30 PM - Third Tuesday of each month 11. Medina County Women of the Military PO Box 1812, Medina, OH mcwomili tary.weebly.com 12. Military Order of Purple Heart # N Broadway St Medina, Oh Meet quarterly - Call for times 13. Veterans of Foreign Wars Post # S. Carpenter Road Bruns wick 7:00 PM - Second Mon day of each month 14. Veterans of Foreign Wars Post # Avon Lake Rd., Chatham Twp. Spencer, OH, 8:00 PM - Second Tuesday of each month 15. Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #5137

5 MEDINA COUNTY PAGE Pearl Rd Medina, OH 7:00 PM - First Tuesday of each month 16. Veterans of Foreign Wars Post # F Main St. Seville, OH 8:30 PM - Third Thursday of each month 17. Veterans of Foreign Wars Post # Center Rd. Valley City 7:00 PM - Second Monday of each month 18. Veterans of Foreign Wars Post # Main Street Wadsworth, Ohio 8:00 PM - First Tuesday of each month 19. Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter # N. Broadway, Medina, Ohio 7:00 PM - First Wednesday of each month (no meeting in July) B URIAL ALLOWANCE INCREASE ANNOUNCED BY VA O VERVIEW OF PERTINENT C HANGES FROM PUBLIC LAW TITLE V BURIAL AND CEMETERY MATTERS Section 501. INCREASE IN CERTAIN BURIAL AND FU- NERAL BENEFITS AND PLOT ALLOWANCES FOR VETER- ANS. Title 38, United States Code (U.S.C.), Section 2303 (a) is amended to increase the burial allowance from $300 to $700 for Veterans who die while properly hospitalized by VA. Section 2303 (b) is amended to increase the plot allowance for all eligible Veterans from $300 to $700. In addition, this amendment provides for an annual increase in the burial and plot allowances beginning in fiscal year 2013 based upon the Consumer Price Index for the preceding 12-month period. The increases from $300 to $700 will apply to deaths occurring on or after October 1, The first opportunity for an annual increase is October 1, VA s Telephone Service Helps Family Members Encourage Veterans to Seek Medical Care WASHINGTON The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has launched a telephone service, Coaching into Care, to provide assistance to family members and friends trying to encourage their Veteran to seek health care for possible readjustment and mental health issues. Those closest to Veterans are often the first to recognize when Veterans are having difficulties, said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. Family members and friends may not know what to say to encourage their Veterans to seek much needed readjustment and health care. The Coaching into Care line will help them find the right words. To help Veterans address prob- lems and support Veterans in making decisions about getting care, the Coaching into Care program offers unlimited, free coaching with family members or friends over a series of telephone calls. The priority is connecting Veterans with VA care in their community through the family member s help and encouragement. Callers receive professional coaching on solving specific logistical obstacles and encouraging sometimes reluctant Veterans to seek care while still respecting the Veteran s right to make personal decisions. Coaching into Care, launched in March 2011, has had more than 650 calls with family members or friends of greater than 175 Veterans to encourage them to seek care. This phone line is connected to VA s Veterans Crisis Line, Caregiver Support Line, and the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans. This way, if the caller or Veteran is in an immediate crisis, or has concerns regarding caregiving for a disabled Veteran, or seeking assistance regarding homelessness, there is no wrong number for families to call. Callers can reach VA s Coaching into Care program at the toll-free number , 8 a.m. 8 p.m., Mondays through Fridays, and online at As always, Veterans can reach immediate help at the Veterans Crisis Line at , press 1 for Veterans.

6 PAGE 6 Medina County Veterans Organizations Meeting Times and Places Organization Post # Address City, State Meeting Times American Ex-Prisoners of War Chapter #8 244 West South Street, Wooster, OH 2:00 PM - 1st Sunday of each month American Legion Post #234 Skyview Lodge Pearl Rd. Brunswick 7:00 PM - First Thursday of each month American Legion Post # Bank Street, Lodi Lodi, OH 7:00 PM - Second Thursdays of each month American Legion Post # N. Broadway St. Medina, OH 7:15 PM - Fourth Monday of each month American Legion Post #608 North Main St Spencer, OH 8:00 PM - First Monday of each month American Legion Post # Main Street Wadsworth, Ohio 7:00 PM - Second Monday of each month AMVETS Post # N. Broadway Street Medina, OH 7:30 PM - Third Wednesday of each month Disabled American Veterans Chapter # N. Broadway Street Medina, OH 7:00 PM - Second Tuesday of each month Forty et Eight Voiture #601 Coppertop 5740 Center Valley City 9:00 AM - Second Saturday of each month Korean War Veterans Association Chapter # N. Rocky River Dr. Rocky River, OH 7:00 PM - Fourth Tuesday of each month MARINE Corps League DET # Pearl Rd Medina, OH 7:30 PM - Third Tuesday of each month Medina County Women of the mcwomilitary.weebly.com or Military PO Box 1812, Medina, OH mcwomilitary@yahoo.com Military Order of Purple Heart # N BROADWAY ST MEDINA, OH Meet quarterly - Call for times Rolling Thunder Chapter # Pearl Rd. Medina, OH 2-4 PM - Second Sunday of each month Veterans of Foreign Wars Post # S. Carpenter Road Brunswick 7:00 PM - Second Monday of each month 6299 Avon Lake Rd., Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #6892 Chatham Twp. Spencer, OH, 8:00 PM - Second Tuesday of each month Veterans of Foreign Wars Post # Pearl Rd Medina, OH 7:00 PM - First Tuesday of each month Veterans of Foreign Wars Post # F Main St. Seville, OH 8:30 PM - Third Thursday of each month Veterans of Foreign Wars Post # Center Rd. Valley City 7:00 PM - Second Monday of each month Veterans of Foreign Wars Post # Main Street Wadsworth, Ohio 8:00 PM - First Tuesday of each month 7:00 PM - First Wednesday of each month (no Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter # N. Broadway Medina, Ohio meeting in July) *** If the information above is not correct please contact our office so that we may update it. NOVEMBER Dates to Remember DECEMBER JANUARY Nov 7 Medina City, Veterans Day at Saint Francis Xavier Church 7:00 pm Nov 8 Election Day Nov 10 USMC, 236th Birthday Nov 11 Veterans Day Nov 13 US Navy, 236th Birthday Nov 24 Thanksgiving Day Veterans Service Office Closed on: Nov 11, Veterans Day Nov Thanksgiving Day Dec 2 Hanukah Dec 7 Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day (1941) Dec 15 Bill of Rights Day Dec 20 Invasion of Panama: "Operation Just Cause" (1989) Dec 25 Christmas Day Dec 31 New Years Eve Veterans Service Office Closed on: Dec 26, Christmas Day Jan 1 New Years Day Jan 16 Martin Luther King Day Veterans Service Office Closed on: Jan 2, New Years Day Jan 16, Martin Luther King Day Van Service to Akron Clinic Monday through Thursday, please schedule your appointments in the morning....and we still got to Wade Park & Brecksville Another Famous Quote "A good Navy is not a provocation to war. It is the surest guaranty of peace." President Theodore Roosevelt, 2 December 1902 Answer from page 3: Sergeant Edward F. Younger U.S. Army.

7 PAGE 7 Few military monuments equal the impressions felt in your heart and mind as when you visit the Tomb Of The Unknowns. The history of the monument is perhaps lesser known to many veterans, the following is courtesy of Voyager Militaire Earnest "Wally" Bolton The idea of honoring the unknown dead of World War I originated in Europe. France and England first paid such honors on 11 November 1920, and Italy and other Euro-pean nations soon followed. On March 4, 1921, Congress approved the burial of an unidentified American soldier from World War I in the plaza of the new Memorial Amphitheater. The body of an unidentified American was exhumed from each of four American cemeteries-aisne- Maine, Meuse-Argonne, Somme, and St. Mihiel on 22 October Each was examined to ensure that the person had been a member of the American Expeditionary Forces, that he had died of wounds received in combat, and that there were no clues to his identity. In the City Hall building of Chalons-sur-Marne, U.S. Army Sgt. Edward F. Younger, who was wounded in combat, highly decorated for valor and received the Distinguished Service Medal in "The Great War, the war to end all wars," selected the Unknown Soldier of World War I from four identical caskets, on Oct. 24, Sergeant Younger, a member of Headquarters Company, 2d Battalion, 50th Infantry, carried a spray of white roses as he led a delegation from the main hall to the caskets. As a French band in the courtyard played a hymn, Younger walked around the caskets several times before placing the roses on one to indicate his selection. He then saluted the chosen unknown American, after which the officials in the hallway, came forward to present their respects. (The roses that had been placed on the casket remained there and were buried with the unknown American in Arlington.) The remaining three unknown soldiers were interred in the Meuse Argonne Cemetery, France. The Unknown was transported by railway to the Port of Le Harve where another ceremony was held. The French representative a Monsieur Maginot, Minister of Pensions, addressed the Unknown: Unknown Soldier, valiant son of noble America, fallen on our soil in the cause of right and civilization, it is all of France that inclines before your casket, on which I have been ordered by the Government of the Republic to place the Cross of the Legion of Honor at the moment when your glorious remains, enveloped in the flag of your country, are leaving the land which your sacrifice has helped to save. It is the entire French nation which pays you this last and supreme honor. She cannot forget, she never will forget, what you have done for her in the hour of peril, France who had sided with the newly-born America, the France whom in its turn the United States would not permit to lose her liberty. We do not know your name, just as we do not know the name of the 'Poilu Francais Inconnu,' who rests in Paris under the Arch de Triomphe, but our gratitude turns toward you as toward him, and when our steps lead us to the Temple of the Etoile, to that sacred slab where worships the patriotism of an entire nation, some of our most fervent thoughts will be found at the cemetery at Arlington, for our worship must associate in the same cult the two soldiers whose blood has been spilled together on our soil for our country and for humanity. You two, who have been the valiant workers in our common victory, your anonymity permits the symbolization of the hidden sacrifice, and we honor you, the two men of our nations united in the one ideal of peace and liberty. We can no more separate you than we can separate the two flags which the enemy brought together. The speaker ceased. The band began playing softly "Ouvrez le Ban, and Minister Maginot walked over to the casket and decorated the Soldier Unknown with the Cross Chevalier de la Legion d'honneur. Then "Fermez le Ban" and the "Marseillaise" by the band -the ceremonies were at an end. An honor guard then placed the Unknown Soldier aboard the USS Olympia for the voyage to the United States. The Unknown Soldier lay in state in the Capitol Rotunda from his arrival in the United States until Armistice Day, On Nov. 11, 1921, President Warren G. Harding officiated at the interment ceremonies at the Memorial Am-phitheater at Arlington National Cemetery. The crowd was filled with military and government dignitaries, family members Interment ceremonies conducted at Arlington National Cemetery of veterans and many placed wreaths or mementos on the casket.. Chief Plenty Coos, head of the Crow Nation, representing the Indians of the United States, stepped out from the crowd, slowly and with native dignity he laid his war bonnet and coup stick on the sarcopha-gus. The artillery burst forth in salvos and when the last reverberation had died away, the plaintive notes of "Taps" - lights out! - rose upon the quiet air, farewell to the Soldier Dead. Our Unknown had come home!

8 Medina County Veterans Newsletter Medina County Veterans Service Office Our Mission This newsletter is provided as a courtesy only. The Medina County Veterans Commission does not endorse the content of these newsletters or of other organizations' policies or products. The information provided here is for your personal use only and is in some cases reprinted for the sole purpose of the Veterans of Medina County. Our Pledge When you come into the County Veterans Service Office you will be assisted by one of our knowledgeable associates. The people that work in the Medina County Veterans Service Office have a compassionate understanding of the problems which confront veterans, widows, widowers, and their families. We provide two basic services: 1. Temporary emergency financial aid and assistance to eligible veterans and family members who have demonstrated a need as set fourth by the commission Assist veterans, family members and survivors when applying to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for benefits. Our assistance includes but is not limited to: Financial Assistance: a. Rent and mortgage payments b. Utilities: Gas, Electric and Water c. Food and personal Hygiene items d. Medical e. Transportation to and from VA Hospitals in Brecksville and Cleveland, Ohio f. Grave markers and flags Service Assistance: a. Preparations of forms and paperwork b. Documentation of claims and pertinent data c. Proper submission of claims to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs thru a service organization d. Submission for awards decorations and medals e. Notary Public & DD 214 Certification Our services are FREE of charge! Contact the Medina County Veterans Service Office at 210 Northland Dr. Medina, Ohio Call: veterans@zoominternet.net Medina County Veterans Service Office 210 Northland Dr. Medina, Ohio Your Address could be here! Your Newest Edition of The Medina County Veterans Newsletter Would you rather receive this in you in-box? Send us an at veterans@zoominternet.net and tell us. Simply put NEWSLETTER in the subject area and tell us to stop regular mail delivery. And it ll be in full color!