This week’s roundup of Veteran news and resources:

• We often mention the Veterans Crisis Line and how it has saved lives, but this video really drives home the enormous effort from dedicated folks to staff the calls day and night. And as always, the Crisis Line can be reached at 1-800-273-8255, online through chat, and now by text at 838255.
• Sometime soon, the 20 millionth VA-backed home loan will be processed. Veterans have received loans for no down payment for decades. Check out the program if you’re looking to buy or refinance.
• There was a great segment on Sunday’s 60 Minutes on Veterans Treatment Courts, which help connect Vets in trouble with the law with VA resources and support. Check out the segment and more about the courts here.
• The US Chamber of Commerce has been holding Hire Our Heroes hiring fairs for months, and there are still plenty to come. Check out the national events through October, as well as the rest of the year here.
• Army Command Sergeant Major Basil Plumley, a Veteran of three wars who was immortalized by Sam Elliot in We Were Soldiers, died last week at the age of 92. He was a towering figure not just for the Vietnam generation, but all who have served. He led a truly remarkable life.

When President Roosevelt signed the GI Bill into law in 1944, he also approved provisions to begin low interest loans to Veterans looking to purchase their own homes, along with farming and business inventory. Soon, VA will guarantee its 20 millionth home loan, and the program is stronger than ever.

It’s not too hard to sell Veterans on the idea of a VA-backed home loan. As the only major loan type that doesn’t require a down payment, it also allows refinancing on existing loans, which was attractive to many Vets last year. Those who refinanced saved an average of $202 in 2012—a total of $300 million in savings.

Even in an unpredictable housing market, Veterans are finding their way to VA-backed loans. As the New York Times reports, VA-guaranty loans surged this past fiscal year:

Mortgages guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs surged by 50 percent in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, as tighter credit standards on conventional financing made these programs all the more attractive to current and former military members.

The department guaranteed almost 540,000 loans in fiscal year 2012, the most since 1994[…]

Since the loans are backed by the federal government, there’s no need for mortgage insurance, which can help Vets save even more. And if you’re a Veteran receiving disability payments, the funding fee, usually about three percent of the loan, is exempt.

Brandon Friedman, a Veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, bought a house in the Washington, DC area a few years ago using a VA-backed loan, and his exemption from a funding fee saved him around $10,000.

“VA’s home loan program is one of the best benefits the government provides for Veterans, especially disabled Veterans,” he said. “It’d be great if more Vets knew about it.”

Check out our home loan resource page for more information, our frequently asked questions guide, and our eligibility page for more information. Andif you have any additional questions about the program, the Veterans Benefits Administration will be holding a live Twitter Town Hall tomorrow, October  18 at 3:30 PM EST. Follow @VAVetBenefits and use the hashtag #AskVA to ask your home loan question.

It is often said that coming home from war can be more difficult than the war itself. While deployments are measured in months or years, reintegration is a lifelong event, often away from the battle buddies that watched their back. The pressure can be too great for some Veterans—and may lead to first time run-ins with the law.

That’s why Veterans Treatment Courts, tailored for Vets with first time felonies, have popped up all around the country. Judges offer leniency in exchange of a treatment plan, usually fulfilled at a VA facility.

The courts were highlighted in a recent segment on 60 Minutes, which traced the rise, fall, and rebirth of a Marine Veteran who found himself facing the justice system after a combat tour. The piece also delves into the story behind the bench, and how the treatment program is a tougher yet more promising option for Vets.

The system works for another Marine featured; he avoids jail by graduating from the program and is on his way toward another graduation—this time from college.

Throughout the year, the US Chamber of Commerce has hosted dozens of hiring events for Veterans across the country in an effort to drive down Veteran unemployment and help Vets find meaningful jobs.

Below, you’ll find a list of hiring events located throughout the country from October 13 through October 31, 2012. Double-check before heading off to the event because the date may be subject to change. Click on the state to find out when and where the event is being held. If you don’t see your state listed, don’t worry! We’ll put together a new list of hiring fairs for the month of October in a few weeks—so be sure to check back. You can also see a complete list of this year’s hiring events here.

October 16, 2012 – Bedford, MA

October 18, 2012 – Pittsburgh, PA

October 18, 2012 – Middleton, MA

October 18, 2012 – Glendale, AZ

October 23, 2012 – MacDill AFB, FL – Military Spouse Event

October 23, 2012 – Fort Riley, KS

October 23, 2012 – Bossier City, LA

October 23, 2012 – Louisville, KY

October 24, 2012 – Flemington, NJ

October 25, 2012 – Fort Collins, CO

October 25, 2012 – Greenwood, SC

October 25, 2012 – Atlanta, GA

October 30, 2012 – West Haven, CT

October 31, 2012 – Concord, CA

It’s often said that everyone comes back from war changed, even if you have no injuries. But thanks to advances in battlefield medicine and surgical procedures, troops are surviving their wounds at a higher rate than ever before. That means folks are coming home changed in ways never seen in history.

That’s why VA created a number of rehabilitative programs to help disabled Veterans get out of the house and get active. Every year, VA holds events like the National Veterans Summer Sports Clinic, the Winter Sports Clinic, the Wheelchair Games, the Creative Arts Festival, the TEE Tournament, and the Golden Age Games where Veterans gather from all over the country to compete in adaptive sports. Veterans typically report better health and a better quality of life when they join in, and the camaraderie they find doesn’t hurt, either.

VA’s National Veterans Sports Programs & Special Events Office is the first place to go if you’re looking to join fellow Vets in competition. Their site has information on how to connect with community-based programs to get you in the game, as well as more information on the national events. And there are grants available for folks looking to begin or expand opportunities for disabled Veterans to participate in physical activity in their communities.

One of the most impactful things we can do is help disabled Veterans find their way after they come home, so if you’re looking to get back out there, learn more about the benefits adaptive sports programs and get started.

With the stroke of a pen, President Franklin D. Roosevelt made a promise to our country’s Veterans by signing the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944. With the Act’s passage, the idea of obtaining a higher education didn’t seem so farfetched. The ability to move up the social and economic ladder wasn’t just a dream anymore for those who served our country during wartime. Instead, the Act, simply known as the GI Bill of Rights, was a sign of hope for a brighter future.

Since the GI Bill of Rights was passed, the number of Veterans enrolled in college and universities across the country has grown throughout the years. Fifty-one percent of World War II Vets used their benefits, 43 percent of Korean Vets dipped into the funds, and 71 percent of Vietnam Vets took advantage of their education benefits. Since the Post-9/11 GI Bill rolled out in 2009, VA has awarded more than $22 billion in benefits to over 822,000 individuals. Something worth celebrating!

Now, we want to honor all of those who have used their education benefits in pursuit of a higher education. We here at VA need your help to recognize the Veterans who’ve gone on to transcend the battlefield and successfully complete an undergraduate or graduate degree, vocational/technical training, on-the-job training, flight training, correspondence training, licensing and national testing programs, and entrepreneurship training.

Here is how you can help: Please send a photograph of yourself for a new Flickr set we’ll be creating—or a Veteran you’d like to acknowledge—on graduation day. We’d love to see the cap and gown, holding the diploma shot! You’ll need to include name, branch of service, dates served, school attended, what you received your degree in, and date of graduation or receipt of the licensing or certification. Please send all information to newmedia@va.gov by Friday October 12.

Earlier today, the American Legion released its 2012 System Worth Saving Task Force Report, which surveyed Veterans from 25 VA medical centers and 24 veteran town hall meetings in American Legion posts about quality of care and patient satisfaction at VA facilities.

Facility executive leadership, patient safety managers, patient advocates, and women veteran Veterans program managers were among those surveyed on the VA side. American Legion also conducted interviews about their experiences. Some concerns raised were localized, like wheelchair accessible facilities. Some were broad; Veterans at the Nashville VAMC suggested departments would benefit from information sharing, which is a priority for VA at a high level.

The whole report is worth the read to see what we do well, and what areas we need to improve. If you aren’t enrolled in VA care but want to see for yourself, you can determine your eligibility here and apply here. And if the words from Legion members aren’t enough, get the facts straight about the myths of VA care.

Yesterday and today, Dr. Tommy Sowers, our new Assistant Secretary of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs, walked the halls of the Chicago Regional Office to see for himself how claims are received, processed, and delivered.

Along the way, he tweeted photos and facts from his visit (you can follow him on Twitter at @sowers). His insight comes at a time when the disability claims backlog is making national news. Today’s New York Times front page story ran down the difficult truths on why it has grown in recent years, for reasons in and out of VA’s control.

Take a moment to check out the process from behind the scenes below, and if you’re looking to file a claim, check out this post that gives some helpful tips on how to make it a first time go. Hopefully some of the tips will be unnecessary soon; by the end of 2013, all 56 regional offices will roll out paperless processing technology to speed up the process and improve accuracy.

Missions, raids, patrols, clearing, firefights: no sweat. That was the daily rhythm of my unit’s deployment to Iraq. We were tasked with massive operations to root out insurgents, and in some cases undermanned and outgunned by an entrenched foe. We didn’t stop to think if it couldn’t be done. We simply moved toward the sound of gunfire.

But when conversation drifted to college—the post-military plan of most of the guys in my infantry company—an air of apprehension swirled around. Many of us didn’t do well in high school and figured it had been too long since algebra and English class. Ironically, higher education seemed like a risky move to a group of folks fighting in a brutal counterinsurgency campaign.

Veterans sometime limit themselves when going after higher education, but it doesn’t have to be that way, says Barbara Mujica, a professor at Georgetown University who also acts as a faculty adviser for the student Veterans chapter there. Read More »