Yet Another Goodbye

After all, by my age I should be used to saying goodbye to friends, but why is it always difficult to have close friends leave your small spot on this earth? I know that this goodbye will inevitably allow for another hello...another enrichment for my life...but for now, for a while, there will be that hole, that emptiness that no one else will ever fill. I will look on that friendship as a gift that I enjoyed for a time and that will always have a place in my heart, but still, for now, for this while, I will feel the vacuum, the void left by a presence moved away.

Farewell, friend and ally. Soon our only contact will be via the internet or telephone. I wish you the very best in your new community, new friends, new life. You have that way about you, and I have no doubt that you will bring new friends into your world, swiftly and surely, as you did when you entered my part and time on this earth, this very earth that you will always fight to protect.

"may the wind always be at your back..."
(from and old Irish blessing)

Fifteen Minutes for a Veteran

The doorbell rang. It was 8:00 on Sunday night. He stood quietly at our front door with two pieces of paper folded in his hand. He looked down at the papers, then up at me. He seemed tired and worried.

"I stopped at the ministerial place but no one was there. Then I remembered Mary and I came here because I didn't know what else to do."

This veteran had driven from Rosebud Reservation. Because he lived over 75 miles away from his medical appointment he was entitled to receive a discounted rate for his motel room before his surgery the next day in Rapid City. He needed to get his voucher from the Hot Springs VA and he was going to stay in a motel in Hot Springs because it would be less expensive than one in Rapid City. When he went up to the VA he was told that he was 15 minutes too late to receive his discount for the motel. He had to have his appointment by 10:00 and they had scheduled him for 10:15.

"She told me at the desk that she had to save the VA money." He sighed, "I can't drive back to Rosebud tonight. It is too far to make my appointment tomorrow and I can't afford full price for a motel. I thought you could help."

I made a call to another veteran who knew the ropes. He made a call and called me back.

"Tell Alfred to meet me at Motel 6" was the message.

One veteran helps another. Is this the story now days? The VA schedules a veteran fifteen minutes too late to receive a motel discount. The VA saves some money. Who gets the money? I suspect it is not the taxpayers. I can't imagine our senators or representatives being treated in a similar fashion....

"I'm sorry, Senator, you will be losing some of your health care benefits because we have to save the taxpayers money."

Do you think one senator will help another? I really don't know the answer to my question, but this I do know, when a veteran is in trouble, there will likely be another veteran to come to his aid. They learned in the service to work as a "band of brothers" and that spirit follows them throughout their lives.

Hello, to our politicians out there! You ask for their service and then snip away at their benefits. My question to you is, "Is this the only way you know to save money?"

Really? Get real!

"Two for the Show..."

In this small community located in "the boonies" of the Black Hills, we actually had two hearings by the federal government: the first being the field hearing on our VA that we have been fighting to save for over two years, and the second, less than a week later, was the hearing by the NRC regarding allowing a permit for in-situ uranium mining in our county.

Once again, as I said about the first hearing in my last blog, "I was there!" It was an honor to witness ordinary citizens fighting to preserve the purity of their water with extraordinary testimony, frequently backed by scientific facts plus their personal connections to the issue.

For many individuals, public speaking is one of the most intimidating experiences, but this group of residents, most in opposition to the permit, faced their fears and stood before the group from
Washington and shared their concerns over the strong possibility of contamination to our water by this mining process intruding into our aquifers.

One of the supporters of this mining stated that we rely on electricity for the lights and air conditioning that we were enjoying at the moment in the auditorium in Hot Springs; ergo, he supported mining for uranium which could supply electricity. (Omitting the fact that our country does not need the uranium and the yellow cake from the mines would be shipped to China or other countries).

Before I made my testimony in opposition to a project that would consume enormous gallons of our water, with a strong possibility of contamination of that same water, I made an observation to the judges. "One of the previous speakers mentioned the need we had for electricity. I think that we could exist without electric lights and the comfort of air conditioning, or encourage the use of renewable energy, but what would we do without the water that I see before each of you?"

You have heard it before, but "water is life". Truly it is needed for our very existence. Each judge sitting before us had a bottle of water. They would not be drinking it if it was filled with heavy metals. They would prefer not to face a long, slow painful death.

I was honored to be at this hearing. I was proud of those who spoke up for their belief that pure water is sacred and is needed for our generation and those to follow. Even the slightest possibility of contamination for years to come is not worth the risk of some temporary employment. Passion for purity versus greed and bribery....it never changes, and I suppose it never will. Perhaps that is what life is about; the fight, the struggle, and those who take one path or the other, and those who study and search for ways to benefit our planet and all of those who rent a space and a brief time on this earth we call home.

"You Had it Coming to Y'a"

Twenty citizens, at the most, usually attend the federal Congressional Field Hearings. Here in Hot Springs, SD we had almost 500! Unprecedented! A bus load of veterans came from Nebraska, about 50 Native veterans from Pine Ridge reservation, and the majority were from Hot Springs, the Veterans Town.

Our five from Save our VA presented data to support keeping our VA where it is to benefit the veterans and the taxpayers. They were direct, factual and passionate. (especially Amanda Campbell when she demanded the removal of Steve Distasio.) When questioned by the congressionals, Kristi Noem from SD and Adrian Smith from Nebraska, all answered with back-up data.

In part two of the sessions Noem and Smith questioned the director of Black Hills Health care, Steve Distasio and Dr. Steven Julius, the medical director for the Black Hills VA facilities. These two, leaders of our two VA facilities could not respond to the questions put to them. It is best put by Representative Noem when she said "Frankly I am offended that Black Hills Health Care did not bring the numbers with them; they had nothing to show. Save the VA had all of its data and answered every question asked of them."

I was proud of everyone of our people testifying. I was proud of our congressional representatives who asked the difficult questions, not backing down before the arrogance of the representatives from the VA and I was proud of our townspeople who listened carefully, responded appropriately and showed restraint for the most part when their anger was seething at the deception and dodging by the leaders of the VA.  Oh, yes, to be fair, one admitted that he received his bonus.

I am grateful that I was part of the meeting. The feelings flowing throughout can not be captured by the media, no matter how well they reported the hearings. I was there, I was there! How fortunate that in this time, at this place, at this historic meeting, I was there. We are making history important to all of our veterans and I am thankful that I was there!

For those who are interested in following this in detail, there will be articles in the Hot Spring Star, the Rapid City Journal and the entire proceedings on www.theveteranstown.com.

"Hooray and Halleluia!"

Has it really been almost three years since our battle began to save our VA in Hot Springs? Actually, it has been 2 years and 8 months since the announcement of the proposed closure. After months of meetings, letter writing, sign making and on and on, we are finally having our day in the sun, our moment of truth, our chance to be heard by the decision makers from Washington, with a congressional hearing in Hot Springs.

Our community members have written a proposal that will benefit the veterans, our town and the taxpayers. Save the VA committee members met with former Secretary Shinseki in Washington but were largely ignored. He refused to see for himself what our VA has to offer veterans. We know, we have the numbers to make our proof and we have 5 presenters who will make our case this Thursday before the chairperson and vice chairman of the House Committee of Veteran's Affairs.

Will we win? Time will tell. Will we be heard? If we are, we will win. We have everything in our favor for the benefit of the veterans, present and to come. If you are interested you can follow our battle on www.theveteranstown.com. We may be a small community in the "boonies" or the "fly-over zone as we are known to both coasts, but we have spirit, compassion, common sense and a willingness to fight for what we know is right. We are Hot Springs, SD, the veterans town!

We Knew

We have proven over and over that we are "The Veterans Town". My book, Reveille in Hot Springs shows again and again in the different stories from both veterans and townspeople that we are committed to our VA, our State Home for Veterans and our veterans. Both the veterans and our VA are part of the heart and soul of this community. For a second time our American Legion, together with the help of the city, county, chamber and individuals have brought the Vietnam Wall back to our town. It has a place of honor here as I write these words. Hot Springs is largely made up of veterans who have chosen to make this place their forever home. One of the largest factors contributing to this decision is our very special VA that offers loving, personalized care to our veterans.

Well, no surprise to those of us deeply involved in the battle to save our VA, the Rapid City Journal headlined the story of the long delays for veterans to receive their care, and the cover up of the true situation by some who worked at those institutions. Throughout the United States the percentage of those who altered the numbers was 13%. How did our VA facilities in the Black Hills rank%? It was 14%! Wow, we are above the national average. Do those of us who, according to some, "cried wolf", feel vindicated? I guess in an upside down way, we do. We knew that many of our veterans were being treated shabbily, but, on the other hand, it is rather sad to face up directly to the proof. It would be better for all if none of this cover up had occurred in the first place.

So the administrators took their bonuses while the regular veterans took their cuts and long wait times. Much of the bonus money appears to have come from the cuts to veterans and VA closures. I may feel some vindication, but my anger and pain over the injustices to our veterans outweighs any "I told you so" feelings. Any "I" disappears in the weight of the neglect to those who served. Shame on those who accept the money at the expense of anyone or anything who may get lost in the shuffle of that money and power!

It is not a new story I write. It is as old as time itself. Greed and ego take over above humanity and love. But in the long run it is not the movers and shakers who will have the most impact. It is those who care about others above their own ego and self-righteousness. Their influence will endure.