WEBVTT 00:00:04.780 --> 00:00:08.640 All across America and around the world, this 00:00:08.640 --> 00:00:15.019 is Veterans Radio. This is Veterans Radio. And 00:00:15.019 --> 00:00:19.039 now, your host for today's program, Dale Throneberry. 00:00:23.029 --> 00:00:26.109 Welcome to Veterans Radio. My name is Dale Throneberry, 00:00:26.350 --> 00:00:30.309 a CW2 helicopter pilot in Vietnam in 1969. I 00:00:30.309 --> 00:00:33.469 want to welcome you to our monthly benefits program. 00:00:33.890 --> 00:00:35.969 So if you've got a question for us today, you 00:00:35.969 --> 00:00:42.170 can call us at 734 -822 -1600. That's 734 -822 00:00:42.170 --> 00:00:46.310 -1600. Just a quick reminder that right now we 00:00:46.310 --> 00:00:48.409 are live, but if you're going to be listening 00:00:48.409 --> 00:00:50.909 at any of some of our affiliates across the country, 00:00:51.270 --> 00:00:54.130 normally those programs are Today's program is 00:00:54.130 --> 00:00:56.850 pre -recorded and we ship it out to you folks. 00:00:57.259 --> 00:00:59.799 But if you want to get in on this on the first 00:00:59.799 --> 00:01:02.560 Sunday of every month is when we have our live 00:01:02.560 --> 00:01:05.239 benefits program. So again, that number, if you're 00:01:05.239 --> 00:01:11.620 listening right now, is 734 -822 -1600. On today's 00:01:11.620 --> 00:01:13.640 program, we've got a couple of interesting things 00:01:13.640 --> 00:01:16.000 going on. We've got a guest who's going to be 00:01:16.000 --> 00:01:19.920 talking to us about guardian angel medical service 00:01:19.920 --> 00:01:22.719 dogs. We were going to talk about this last week, 00:01:22.840 --> 00:01:26.719 but snowstorm occurred all over our area. And 00:01:26.719 --> 00:01:30.000 so Brian was not able to make it. And of course, 00:01:30.120 --> 00:01:32.920 we've got Carol Ann Falzone from Legal Help for 00:01:32.920 --> 00:01:36.060 Veterans here to chat about things that are going 00:01:36.060 --> 00:01:39.219 on with the VA. We've got some VA news. There's 00:01:39.219 --> 00:01:42.099 a couple. I just got a thing this morning from 00:01:42.099 --> 00:01:44.980 someone that there's been a change near the top, 00:01:45.620 --> 00:01:50.329 not the top top of the. directors, assistant 00:01:50.329 --> 00:01:52.629 directors, and so on. So we're going to talk 00:01:52.629 --> 00:01:55.709 about that a little bit as well. The other thing 00:01:55.709 --> 00:01:58.689 is that we're going to be promoting the Medal 00:01:58.689 --> 00:02:01.370 of Honor Society's convention that's going to 00:02:01.370 --> 00:02:06.409 be in Detroit at the end of September, beginning 00:02:06.409 --> 00:02:08.830 of October. And I've got a little segment that 00:02:08.830 --> 00:02:11.629 we'll play later on that my partner Jim Fasone 00:02:11.629 --> 00:02:15.090 split together where he talks about what to look 00:02:15.090 --> 00:02:19.009 for. at that. So I am excited about that. Before 00:02:19.009 --> 00:02:22.550 I bring on Brian to talk about guard dogs or 00:02:22.550 --> 00:02:25.229 service dogs, I got to make sure we thank our 00:02:25.229 --> 00:02:27.469 sponsors. Can't do this program without them. 00:02:27.969 --> 00:02:30.509 So number one, of course, is Legal Help for Veterans. 00:02:30.830 --> 00:02:33.169 Legal Help for Veterans specializes in veterans 00:02:33.169 --> 00:02:35.949 disability claims. Give Legal Help for Veterans 00:02:35.949 --> 00:02:40.830 a call at 800 -693 -4800 or go to their website 00:02:40.830 --> 00:02:44.750 legalhelpforveterans .com. The National Veterans 00:02:44.750 --> 00:02:47.009 Business Development Council, better known as 00:02:47.009 --> 00:02:50.569 NVBDC, is the nation's leading third -party authority 00:02:50.569 --> 00:02:53.270 for certification of veteran -owned businesses. 00:02:53.849 --> 00:02:56.629 For more information, go to their website, nvbdc 00:02:56.629 --> 00:03:08.229 .org. Give them a call at 888 -237 -8433. 46 00:03:08.229 --> 00:03:10.650 and the Charles S Kettles Vietnam Veterans of 00:03:10.650 --> 00:03:14.129 America chapter 310 both of Ann Arbor If you'd 00:03:14.129 --> 00:03:16.250 like to support veterans radio, and we would 00:03:16.250 --> 00:03:19.750 love to have your support. Please go to our website 00:03:19.750 --> 00:03:23.229 That's veterans radio org and click on the donate 00:03:23.229 --> 00:03:28.250 button We can always use that you know it unfortunately 00:03:28.250 --> 00:03:30.590 it costs money to produce this program and get 00:03:30.590 --> 00:03:34.669 it distributed across the country so And your 00:03:34.669 --> 00:03:37.319 deductions may be tax deductible need to talk 00:03:37.319 --> 00:03:41.000 to your tax advisor about those things. All right, 00:03:41.099 --> 00:03:43.560 so right now let's bring it on the air with me 00:03:43.560 --> 00:03:46.979 is Brian DeLong. Brian is the regional coordinator 00:03:46.979 --> 00:03:52.719 for Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs. My 00:03:52.719 --> 00:03:55.280 mouth isn't working so well this morning or this 00:03:55.280 --> 00:03:58.539 afternoon. So anyway, so Brian DeLong regional 00:03:58.539 --> 00:04:01.199 coordinator for guardian angels medical service 00:04:01.199 --> 00:04:03.819 dogs He's retired Air Force first sergeant and 00:04:03.819 --> 00:04:05.740 I thought I was the only one that counted days 00:04:05.740 --> 00:04:08.479 in the service He said he was in for 30 years 00:04:08.479 --> 00:04:12.419 four months and 11 days. I Was only in for three 00:04:12.419 --> 00:04:14.639 years seven months and two days, but who counted 00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:18.019 so Brian. Welcome to veterans radio Thank you. 00:04:18.120 --> 00:04:21.420 Thanks for having me on It's a pleasure to have 00:04:21.420 --> 00:04:24.800 you on so tell us about guardian angels medical 00:04:24.800 --> 00:04:28.389 service dogs Well, we're guardian angels medical 00:04:28.389 --> 00:04:32.790 service dogs We breed rescue raise and train 00:04:32.790 --> 00:04:39.370 highly skilled service dogs to mitigate disabilities 00:04:39.370 --> 00:04:45.230 Our dogs are trained to help with diabetes seizure 00:04:45.230 --> 00:04:50.329 disorders traumatic brain injuries PTSD Mobility 00:04:50.329 --> 00:04:53.639 issues a myriad of other things We've been around 00:04:53.639 --> 00:04:55.899 for a little, just a hair over 15 years. Last 00:04:55.899 --> 00:05:00.819 year was our 15th anniversary. We have, when 00:05:00.819 --> 00:05:03.540 we connect these service dogs with these veterans, 00:05:04.160 --> 00:05:09.579 we have a 59 % reduction in symptoms, anxiety, 00:05:09.759 --> 00:05:14.180 depression. We have our recipients of our service 00:05:14.180 --> 00:05:17.740 dogs, there's only a 3 % divorce rate. And of 00:05:17.740 --> 00:05:22.379 all the dogs we've paired, just a hair over 450, 00:05:22.540 --> 00:05:25.779 I think we're at 452. There are zero veteran 00:05:25.779 --> 00:05:29.420 suicides, which as a veteran is the reason I 00:05:29.420 --> 00:05:33.199 took the job when they offered to me. You know, 00:05:33.259 --> 00:05:36.819 that speaks volumes to me. And if I can do anything 00:05:36.819 --> 00:05:39.420 to help with that in any way, shape or form, 00:05:39.899 --> 00:05:43.759 by golly, I sure will. So yeah, that's kind of 00:05:43.759 --> 00:05:47.670 what we do. We raise these dogs. We're a non 00:05:47.670 --> 00:05:51.670 -profit. We've been around for 15 years. A friend 00:05:51.670 --> 00:05:55.750 of your show, Keith King, always supported us, 00:05:55.750 --> 00:05:59.509 always took care of us. In fact, we've had quite 00:05:59.509 --> 00:06:03.189 a few donations rolling in in the past few weeks 00:06:03.189 --> 00:06:08.029 in honor of Mr. King. I see as they come in on 00:06:08.029 --> 00:06:10.269 my daily updates. So we appreciate all those 00:06:10.269 --> 00:06:13.250 who donated and we appreciate you remembering 00:06:13.250 --> 00:06:17.019 Keith, a really good guy. Absolutely. He was 00:06:17.019 --> 00:06:20.420 a good friend of Veterans Radio as well. NBVDC 00:06:20.420 --> 00:06:26.439 is one of our bigger sponsors. He was a good 00:06:26.439 --> 00:06:29.660 guy and I know that in talking with his wife, 00:06:30.060 --> 00:06:37.000 how much he supported the Guardian Angels program 00:06:37.000 --> 00:06:38.600 that you have out there. In fact, we have a board 00:06:38.600 --> 00:06:40.660 member on Veterans Radio who has one of your 00:06:40.660 --> 00:06:46.370 dogs. She just loves her dog. The dog's name, 00:06:46.689 --> 00:06:50.430 the dog's name is Kat. You know, I don't know. 00:06:51.009 --> 00:06:54.769 But anyway, and Kat goes everywhere, which is 00:06:54.769 --> 00:06:56.930 great. I know the dog. There's quite a few up 00:06:56.930 --> 00:07:01.389 there in Michigan. Yeah, I think so. Yeah. So 00:07:01.389 --> 00:07:05.509 tell me what does it take to get a service dog 00:07:05.509 --> 00:07:08.410 from Guardian Angels? So you have to have a valid 00:07:08.410 --> 00:07:11.759 disability that's been certified by a Buy a doctor 00:07:11.759 --> 00:07:15.439 can be a VA doctor has to be a licensed physician 00:07:15.439 --> 00:07:19.680 and you go on the website and apply. It's that 00:07:19.680 --> 00:07:24.180 simple and all of our dogs obviously are donated 00:07:24.180 --> 00:07:27.519 to to the veterans that get them. These dogs 00:07:27.519 --> 00:07:31.699 cost us about to pair to train a dog dog takes 00:07:31.699 --> 00:07:34.639 about two years to train to train a veteran and 00:07:34.639 --> 00:07:37.560 pair the pair the veteran meaning flying that 00:07:37.560 --> 00:07:40.160 veteran to Florida, housing them, feeding them. 00:07:40.199 --> 00:07:42.860 Whatever it takes for the the two weeks. They're 00:07:42.860 --> 00:07:44.879 going to be in training initial training with 00:07:44.879 --> 00:07:46.920 their dog It costs us about thirty seven thousand 00:07:46.920 --> 00:07:50.199 dollars for which a veteran never pays a dime. 00:07:50.240 --> 00:07:55.480 So it's as easy as applying and The ladies that 00:07:55.480 --> 00:07:58.959 are our recipient coordinators if for some reason 00:07:58.959 --> 00:08:01.360 you don't qualify for our program or it's not 00:08:01.360 --> 00:08:04.279 right for you They have lists and names and phone 00:08:04.279 --> 00:08:06.120 numbers of you know, hey, I don't really want 00:08:06.120 --> 00:08:08.470 a service dog you know, now that I've read up 00:08:08.470 --> 00:08:10.889 about it, even though I applied, I really just 00:08:10.889 --> 00:08:13.350 want a companion, you know, companion animal. 00:08:13.629 --> 00:08:16.970 And, you know, they do good referrals. So we 00:08:16.970 --> 00:08:20.149 help in any way we can with whatever we can. 00:08:20.529 --> 00:08:22.649 So when you're talking about a disability, are 00:08:22.649 --> 00:08:24.569 there certain disabilities that you're looking 00:08:24.569 --> 00:08:28.230 for? Or is it just anything that's service connected? 00:08:28.850 --> 00:08:31.329 And it doesn't even have to be service connected. 00:08:31.670 --> 00:08:34.389 You could develop non -service connected diabetes 00:08:34.389 --> 00:08:38.179 after you know after the service um because as 00:08:38.179 --> 00:08:40.179 we know sometimes with the VA nothing service 00:08:40.179 --> 00:08:45.220 connected but but but uh you could you could 00:08:45.220 --> 00:08:48.220 just be a diabetic and be a veteran that served 00:08:48.220 --> 00:08:50.779 three years flying helicopters risking their 00:08:50.779 --> 00:08:54.399 life every day for for three years and uh and 00:08:54.399 --> 00:08:57.000 you know we could we could hook you up with a 00:08:57.000 --> 00:09:00.580 dog we've done um we've done some you know outside 00:09:00.580 --> 00:09:04.980 the box stuff uh back in 2019 a young man was 00:09:04.980 --> 00:09:08.299 actually accidentally shot. He was eight years 00:09:08.299 --> 00:09:12.039 old. They had to they had to put up for lack 00:09:12.039 --> 00:09:14.019 of medical knowledge. They had to put a fake 00:09:14.019 --> 00:09:16.539 piece of skull on this young man. The problem 00:09:16.539 --> 00:09:19.279 was at eight years old, you have, you know, the 00:09:19.279 --> 00:09:21.720 energy, same energy I have is eight cups of coffee. 00:09:22.100 --> 00:09:25.139 Well, Carol, our founder, trained him a dog. 00:09:25.220 --> 00:09:30.220 The dog's name was Alice. Alice was by his side 00:09:30.220 --> 00:09:33.100 all the time and was trained to lay down underneath 00:09:33.100 --> 00:09:37.929 him if he fell. Okay Or if there were swelling 00:09:37.929 --> 00:09:41.090 to his brain the dog would alert so the parents 00:09:41.090 --> 00:09:44.529 could go get get him to the hospital and in 2019 00:09:44.529 --> 00:09:49.549 Alice dog that we trained was actually the national 00:09:49.549 --> 00:09:52.730 dog of the year as voted by like the American 00:09:52.730 --> 00:09:55.269 Kennel Club and and all the all the breeding 00:09:55.269 --> 00:09:58.929 associations and The police canine association. 00:09:58.929 --> 00:10:01.649 She was the hero dog of the year for the entire 00:10:01.649 --> 00:10:04.470 country. But yeah, we We can do things outside 00:10:04.470 --> 00:10:08.049 the box. The biggest thing is the zero suicides, 00:10:08.049 --> 00:10:10.509 but the other big thing is these folks regain 00:10:10.509 --> 00:10:14.029 their independence. If you're incapacitated, 00:10:14.090 --> 00:10:18.029 you're in a wheelchair. How humiliating it is 00:10:18.029 --> 00:10:20.269 that you're trying to watch the ball game and 00:10:20.269 --> 00:10:22.049 you drop the remote, you have to yell across 00:10:22.049 --> 00:10:23.769 the house, hey honey, can you come pick up the 00:10:23.769 --> 00:10:26.190 remote? The dogs are trained so well, they don't 00:10:26.190 --> 00:10:28.970 even have to be told. So if you're in a wheelchair 00:10:28.970 --> 00:10:31.210 and you drop something, the dog picks it up and 00:10:31.210 --> 00:10:35.090 gives it to you. Or if you need the house keys, 00:10:35.169 --> 00:10:37.529 the dog can go to the kitchen and get the keys 00:10:37.529 --> 00:10:40.090 off the counter for you. I mean, so, yeah, it 00:10:40.090 --> 00:10:41.990 doesn't have to be service connected disability. 00:10:42.149 --> 00:10:45.649 It could be it could be darn near anything. There's 00:10:45.649 --> 00:10:50.049 only a few things that we don't do. I mean, and 00:10:50.049 --> 00:10:53.110 they're all trained by by your sense. So it's 00:10:53.110 --> 00:10:57.669 it's it's a wonderful process. Yeah, maybe I 00:10:57.669 --> 00:11:00.509 can get maybe I can get the general up to Williston 00:11:00.509 --> 00:11:03.789 one day and we'll meet. And we'll take a tour 00:11:03.789 --> 00:11:08.009 of the campus. I would love that, Brian. This 00:11:08.009 --> 00:11:11.230 sounds extremely interesting. Being a nurse, 00:11:12.269 --> 00:11:16.629 how do you connect? Because I've been involved 00:11:16.629 --> 00:11:21.710 with some other service dog agencies. And they 00:11:21.710 --> 00:11:28.129 had a rule that they selected the dog that best 00:11:28.129 --> 00:11:33.860 complements So, you know, maybe I like that Bernadoodle 00:11:33.860 --> 00:11:36.299 over there, but they say, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, 00:11:36.340 --> 00:11:39.539 it doesn't have the personality like you. How 00:11:39.539 --> 00:11:44.000 do you match up the personality? So part of our, 00:11:44.000 --> 00:11:47.080 so part of our process is after you apply, we 00:11:47.080 --> 00:11:50.620 interview you, we say to you, so we're just going 00:11:50.620 --> 00:11:53.919 to tell you that you, you know, um, as many veterans, 00:11:54.059 --> 00:11:55.379 you've been shut in your house and you've had 00:11:55.379 --> 00:11:57.340 anxiety for two years, but you're going to go 00:11:57.340 --> 00:12:00.679 back. To a semblance of what you used to do. 00:12:00.720 --> 00:12:02.559 What does life look like? What do you really 00:12:02.559 --> 00:12:07.159 want to do once you can go outside and And so 00:12:07.159 --> 00:12:11.480 we kind of do that sometimes age pairs into it. 00:12:11.480 --> 00:12:16.600 So we have a gentleman up here he was 72 when 00:12:16.600 --> 00:12:19.179 he got his service dog and he said I'm just real 00:12:19.179 --> 00:12:21.220 laid -back, you know I like to go on walks and 00:12:21.220 --> 00:12:23.919 I like to sit on the side of the lake and fish 00:12:23.919 --> 00:12:27.200 and so You know, we had a dog in training that 00:12:27.200 --> 00:12:30.100 had a little bit less energy, wasn't so driven, 00:12:30.220 --> 00:12:32.059 didn't want to chase the ball all the time and 00:12:32.059 --> 00:12:35.779 things like that. So we do really fit the right 00:12:35.779 --> 00:12:40.509 person to the right dog. Another, because this 00:12:40.509 --> 00:12:44.230 is extremely interesting for me, I sometimes, 00:12:44.490 --> 00:12:48.990 how do you handle the veteran who lives by himself 00:12:48.990 --> 00:12:54.429 or herself, has no family around, and if there's 00:12:54.429 --> 00:12:58.549 an incident, what happens to the dog? How is 00:12:58.549 --> 00:13:02.330 the dog cared for if something happens to the 00:13:02.330 --> 00:13:08.129 veteran? How are you alerted? It depends on what 00:13:08.129 --> 00:13:11.710 happens. to the veteran. If you're talking about 00:13:11.710 --> 00:13:14.570 an injury, we've had one a couple of weeks ago, 00:13:14.590 --> 00:13:16.389 one of our older veterans here in Pittsburgh 00:13:16.389 --> 00:13:19.149 slipped and fell, had to go to the hospital. 00:13:19.190 --> 00:13:23.830 The dog's in the hospital with the veteran. On 00:13:23.830 --> 00:13:25.990 occasions, the dog's in the hospital bed with 00:13:25.990 --> 00:13:29.990 the veteran. So our dog's in our name says medical 00:13:29.990 --> 00:13:33.570 service dogs. Our dogs are licensed medical equipment. 00:13:33.669 --> 00:13:35.509 It's just like dragging an oxygen tank around. 00:13:35.610 --> 00:13:37.629 So if they got to pick you up in an ambulance, 00:13:37.730 --> 00:13:40.629 the dog goes with you. If not, there's a little 00:13:40.629 --> 00:13:43.509 card that most of our dogs or our recipients 00:13:43.509 --> 00:13:46.129 carry. If something happens, call this number. 00:13:47.509 --> 00:13:52.049 And I'm kind of, I have myself and we have, you 00:13:52.049 --> 00:13:54.370 know, all sorts of people all around the country 00:13:54.370 --> 00:13:56.710 that are always willing to help if something 00:13:56.710 --> 00:14:00.509 terrible happened. If there was a death, if the 00:14:00.509 --> 00:14:03.250 veteran became deceased, we would send one of 00:14:03.250 --> 00:14:06.289 our traveling trainers up to recover the dog. 00:14:07.230 --> 00:14:10.490 We're talking here with Brian DeLong. He's a 00:14:10.490 --> 00:14:12.769 regional coordinator for guardian angels medical 00:14:12.769 --> 00:14:16.830 service dogs and Just asking questions here as 00:14:16.830 --> 00:14:19.470 we go along Are there a certain types of dogs 00:14:19.470 --> 00:14:22.809 that that you folks use or does it is it any 00:14:22.809 --> 00:14:26.929 kind of breed? Well, we we breed German Shepherds 00:14:26.929 --> 00:14:30.909 and in the rescue program They will rescue just 00:14:30.909 --> 00:14:35.870 about any dog The German Shepherds the actual 00:14:36.800 --> 00:14:40.759 bloodlines that we've bred. There's 100 markers 00:14:40.759 --> 00:14:43.480 for what makes a good service dog. Generally, 00:14:43.600 --> 00:14:48.460 our dogs have 94 to 98 of those markers. But 00:14:48.460 --> 00:14:51.799 there are certain things we look for, like hunting 00:14:51.799 --> 00:14:53.539 dogs are really good at hunting and tracking, 00:14:53.620 --> 00:14:56.820 but they're not really good at alerting a diabetic 00:14:56.820 --> 00:15:00.100 that their sugar is low or high, that Carol's 00:15:00.100 --> 00:15:04.759 found over the years. Sorry, Carol's our founder. 00:15:05.289 --> 00:15:08.570 and CEO she started by by training a dog for 00:15:08.570 --> 00:15:14.129 her son who is an Iraqi War veteran her father 00:15:14.129 --> 00:15:16.929 was also a Korean War veteran and and so she 00:15:16.929 --> 00:15:18.909 she does do it from her heart for all the right 00:15:18.909 --> 00:15:22.389 reasons, but She also does what they call a temperament 00:15:22.389 --> 00:15:26.690 test. So we'll go and get a Labrador mix at the 00:15:26.690 --> 00:15:29.610 rescue at the shelter. We'll bring them back. 00:15:29.610 --> 00:15:33.539 They'll test them out for about Sometimes, if 00:15:33.539 --> 00:15:35.279 it goes bad, sometimes they'll know as quickly 00:15:35.279 --> 00:15:39.159 as two weeks, but up to a month. But on the plus 00:15:39.159 --> 00:15:41.700 side, if the dog doesn't make the program, they 00:15:41.700 --> 00:15:43.899 have a dog that's so well -trained, that's so 00:15:43.899 --> 00:15:46.539 easily adoptable that they're like, if it fails, 00:15:46.759 --> 00:15:48.639 call us back. Because then all of a sudden they 00:15:48.639 --> 00:15:51.980 have a dog that can sit, stay, down, heal the 00:15:51.980 --> 00:15:56.960 whole bit. So if it does go in the wrong direction 00:15:56.960 --> 00:16:01.360 with the dog. Other things like We we look at 00:16:01.360 --> 00:16:03.279 it as you know, a lot of the veterans are retired. 00:16:03.299 --> 00:16:05.279 We don't want dogs that need a lot of grooming 00:16:05.279 --> 00:16:08.899 We don't you know Huskies, you know, and especially, 00:16:09.080 --> 00:16:11.519 you know heck if you're a disabled veteran and 00:16:11.519 --> 00:16:13.799 you know It might be hard for you to get that 00:16:13.799 --> 00:16:17.620 that husky or that poodle to the groomers, you 00:16:17.620 --> 00:16:20.559 know every other week or so, so There's a lot 00:16:20.559 --> 00:16:22.320 of a lot of things we take into account. Like 00:16:22.320 --> 00:16:25.279 said miss Carol's she's she's wonderful. She's 00:16:25.279 --> 00:16:28.029 been doing it for 15 years. She's She's been 00:16:28.029 --> 00:16:31.269 involved with animals her whole life. So, um, 00:16:31.289 --> 00:16:34.190 yeah, we, we have a good way of picking them 00:16:34.190 --> 00:16:35.710 out and we have a good way of breeding them. 00:16:36.070 --> 00:16:38.649 So, so if I wanted to get a dog, could you kind 00:16:38.649 --> 00:16:40.929 of go through the process of, I know you mentioned 00:16:40.929 --> 00:16:43.470 it earlier on, but take me through the steps. 00:16:43.529 --> 00:16:45.970 If I want to apply to get a dog, if you want 00:16:45.970 --> 00:16:49.429 to apply to get a dog, you go to medical service 00:16:49.429 --> 00:16:55.779 dogs .org and it says apply. and you fill out 00:16:55.779 --> 00:16:58.279 a one -page application and usually within about 00:16:58.279 --> 00:17:05.539 36 hours Connie will call you and say okay we 00:17:05.539 --> 00:17:07.619 got your application now I need to send you the 00:17:07.619 --> 00:17:09.920 full application because we don't want you disclosing 00:17:09.920 --> 00:17:11.980 stuff up front on that first application we're 00:17:11.980 --> 00:17:15.380 just asking you are you disabled name address 00:17:15.380 --> 00:17:18.839 phone number type things and then they start 00:17:18.839 --> 00:17:25.049 the process and you know like I said it It's 00:17:25.049 --> 00:17:28.089 very thorough. They're very good at what they 00:17:28.089 --> 00:17:30.750 do. I've only worked for them for two years. 00:17:30.789 --> 00:17:32.670 I've been raising money for them for about six 00:17:32.670 --> 00:17:38.369 or seven through my VFW post. But yeah, it's 00:17:38.369 --> 00:17:41.109 as simple as that. And they'll call you and then 00:17:41.109 --> 00:17:43.369 they'll email you the whole, the full application 00:17:43.369 --> 00:17:45.490 packet. What's your disability? Send us a copy, 00:17:45.630 --> 00:17:47.910 a letter from your doctor, things like that. 00:17:49.049 --> 00:17:51.450 And then they move on from there. You go on a 00:17:51.450 --> 00:17:54.009 waiting list right now. Right now our waiting 00:17:54.009 --> 00:17:58.490 list is about a year to a year and a half because 00:17:58.490 --> 00:18:02.829 the size of our our facilities in Florida We 00:18:02.829 --> 00:18:06.049 can only pair about 50 dogs a year out of there 00:18:06.049 --> 00:18:08.730 Which is also why I'll bring up. We're we're 00:18:08.730 --> 00:18:11.289 building a second campus here just on the outskirts 00:18:11.289 --> 00:18:14.890 of Pittsburgh We believe that we'll be able to 00:18:14.890 --> 00:18:18.690 do about 70 or 80 additional dogs a year with 00:18:18.690 --> 00:18:23.509 our ultimate goal being 90 days from the time 00:18:23.509 --> 00:18:26.869 you apply to the time you get your dog um and 00:18:26.869 --> 00:18:29.069 in 90 days is still reasonable because we still 00:18:29.069 --> 00:18:31.250 want to do a background check we still want you 00:18:31.250 --> 00:18:33.509 know you have to have financial means to be able 00:18:33.509 --> 00:18:35.869 to take care of the dog you have to you have 00:18:35.869 --> 00:18:42.950 to be able to feed it you know um so um so that's 00:18:42.950 --> 00:18:45.269 a review we know now we can just go to your website 00:18:45.269 --> 00:18:49.230 medicalservicedogs .org and i might have asked 00:18:49.230 --> 00:18:51.799 this already but Do you have to be a veteran 00:18:51.799 --> 00:18:54.920 to apply? No. Are you going to be an EMT, a police 00:18:54.920 --> 00:18:56.880 officer, anybody? You mentioned the young man. 00:18:57.799 --> 00:19:01.720 We technically will do anyone with a disability, 00:19:02.099 --> 00:19:04.380 meaning anyone. The way it breaks down though 00:19:04.380 --> 00:19:08.180 is 94 % of our applicants are veterans, about 00:19:08.180 --> 00:19:11.819 4 % are first responders, and the remaining are 00:19:11.819 --> 00:19:17.359 just regular civilians. Well Brian, thank you 00:19:17.359 --> 00:19:20.000 so much for being on the program and obviously 00:19:20.000 --> 00:19:23.259 it's it's a great idea It's a great service that 00:19:23.259 --> 00:19:25.619 you're providing not only to veterans but to 00:19:25.619 --> 00:19:28.059 anybody else who needs service dogs And there's 00:19:28.059 --> 00:19:30.200 a lot of people out there that need help and 00:19:30.200 --> 00:19:32.559 I keep thinking I can't remember the author's 00:19:32.559 --> 00:19:34.940 name but there was a book that I we covered a 00:19:34.940 --> 00:19:38.960 long time ago called until Tuesday and It was 00:19:38.960 --> 00:19:42.140 about a veteran whose dog was named Tuesday and 00:19:42.140 --> 00:19:45.980 it saved this poor guy's life And I'm sure there 00:19:45.980 --> 00:19:49.240 are many stories just like that. So thank you 00:19:49.240 --> 00:19:52.920 very much for our audience. It's MedicalServiceDogs 00:19:52.920 --> 00:19:55.460 .org. They're down in Florida, but they're also 00:19:55.460 --> 00:19:57.759 going to be out in Pittsburgh, hopefully, shortly. 00:19:57.920 --> 00:20:00.160 And Carol Anne's yelling at me. I got a question. 00:20:00.539 --> 00:20:04.339 OK, go ahead. I want to say Brian this is awesome, 00:20:04.359 --> 00:20:07.940 but can you tell our audience if if I want to 00:20:07.940 --> 00:20:12.220 donate and how Where should I send money to if 00:20:12.220 --> 00:20:16.279 I want to contribute to this building of this 00:20:16.279 --> 00:20:19.680 new place in Pittsburgh? So that's that was my 00:20:19.680 --> 00:20:22.940 comment Dale. Where can we go? Well, we'll go 00:20:22.940 --> 00:20:27.420 right back to medical service dogs org and It'll 00:20:27.420 --> 00:20:30.740 give you all your links to donate Whether you 00:20:30.740 --> 00:20:34.119 want to do a monthly donation, a lump sum donation, 00:20:35.099 --> 00:20:37.359 there's all kinds of ways to donate. Check with 00:20:37.359 --> 00:20:41.059 your tax advisor. RMDs are now fully tax deductible. 00:20:41.079 --> 00:20:43.180 If you have to take a required minimum distribution 00:20:43.180 --> 00:20:46.240 and you donate that to a 501c3 like ourselves, 00:20:47.339 --> 00:20:50.740 it's tax deductible. Excellent. Thank you. Just 00:20:50.740 --> 00:20:55.019 go to the website and you can donate there. Dale 00:20:55.019 --> 00:20:57.779 knows how to get a hold of me now. If all else 00:20:57.779 --> 00:20:59.799 fails, get with Dale and he'll get a hold of 00:20:59.799 --> 00:21:03.299 me. I've got the secret number. Yeah, you do. 00:21:04.400 --> 00:21:07.880 You do. And if you're in Pittsburgh and you'd 00:21:07.880 --> 00:21:11.319 like to help, June 6th, our VFW holds our annual 00:21:11.319 --> 00:21:14.140 service dog fundraiser. June 6th. All right. 00:21:14.420 --> 00:21:18.119 Should be thawed out by then. Yeah. One would 00:21:18.119 --> 00:21:20.559 hope. Thanks very much, Brian. Yeah, thanks for 00:21:20.559 --> 00:21:24.400 having me. Thank you, Brian. Okay. MedicalServiceDogs 00:21:24.400 --> 00:21:26.779 .org. That's the place to go to help out with 00:21:26.779 --> 00:21:30.700 these dogs. I'm going to play a little segment 00:21:30.700 --> 00:21:35.640 that Jim Falzone recorded talking about the Congressional 00:21:35.640 --> 00:21:37.339 Medal of Honor Conference that's coming up in 00:21:37.339 --> 00:21:41.339 Detroit at the end of September. So we recorded 00:21:41.339 --> 00:21:45.619 this, and he's talking about the event itself, 00:21:45.619 --> 00:21:47.799 and he's also talking about a Medal of Honor 00:21:47.799 --> 00:21:50.339 recipient. So Derek, whenever you're ready, you 00:21:50.339 --> 00:21:54.809 can go. The Congressional Medal of Honor Society 00:21:54.809 --> 00:21:57.369 Convention will be held in Detroit from September 00:21:57.369 --> 00:22:02.750 29th to October 3rd of 2026, featuring the largest 00:22:02.750 --> 00:22:05.490 gathering of living Medal of Honor recipients. 00:22:06.750 --> 00:22:10.210 It brings together as many as 60 living Medal 00:22:10.210 --> 00:22:12.369 of Honor recipients for a series of public and 00:22:12.369 --> 00:22:14.769 private events aimed at sharing their heroic 00:22:14.769 --> 00:22:17.369 stories and promoting the values of the Medal 00:22:17.369 --> 00:22:21.890 of Honor, such as commitment, integrity, courage, 00:22:22.269 --> 00:22:27.269 sacrifice, citizenship, and patriotism. This 00:22:27.269 --> 00:22:29.730 event will also include community engagement 00:22:29.730 --> 00:22:32.450 activities allowing recipients to connect with 00:22:32.450 --> 00:22:36.789 the local Metro Detroit students, veterans, and 00:22:36.789 --> 00:22:40.470 active military members. This convention represents 00:22:40.470 --> 00:22:43.190 a unique opportunity for the City of Detroit 00:22:43.190 --> 00:22:46.230 and surrounding area to honor its military heroes 00:22:46.230 --> 00:22:49.950 and foster a spirit of patriotism and community 00:22:49.950 --> 00:22:53.630 engagement. You can learn more about this upcoming 00:22:53.630 --> 00:22:57.670 convention at medalofhonoredetroit .com. You 00:22:57.670 --> 00:23:01.390 can go there to support it with financial resources 00:23:01.390 --> 00:23:05.029 and volunteer support. Let me tell you about 00:23:05.029 --> 00:23:09.930 one of these men, James Livingston. He grew up 00:23:09.930 --> 00:23:14.930 in rural Georgia at a time when the area was 00:23:14.930 --> 00:23:20.509 still recovering from desperate economic times. 00:23:22.410 --> 00:23:27.690 He went on to Auburn University in Alabama. He 00:23:27.690 --> 00:23:31.029 was admitted to the Naval Reserve Officers Training 00:23:31.029 --> 00:23:36.609 Corps. That's N -R -O -T -C. It allowed him to 00:23:36.609 --> 00:23:40.450 prepare for the future in his education and ultimately 00:23:40.450 --> 00:23:45.009 become a Marine officer. He earned a Bachelor's 00:23:45.009 --> 00:23:49.230 of Science in Engineering. and went on to do 00:23:49.230 --> 00:23:55.130 two combat tours in Vietnam. It was the events 00:23:55.130 --> 00:23:59.990 on May 2, 1968 in the hamlet of Dao Do that would 00:23:59.990 --> 00:24:03.970 define and place him in a military history. He 00:24:03.970 --> 00:24:07.769 was a captain commanding marines in a brutal 00:24:07.769 --> 00:24:11.930 engagement deeply entrenched in North Vietnam 00:24:11.930 --> 00:24:15.089 forces. The fight was savage and the terrain 00:24:15.089 --> 00:24:19.259 offered almost no cover. Captain Livingston repeatedly 00:24:19.259 --> 00:24:22.200 led assaults across open rice paddies swept by 00:24:22.200 --> 00:24:25.500 enemy fire, personally destroying enemy positions, 00:24:25.720 --> 00:24:27.980 rallying the Marines, evacuating the wounded 00:24:27.980 --> 00:24:32.500 under fire, and refusing medical evacuation himself 00:24:32.500 --> 00:24:36.660 despite serious wounds. For these actions he 00:24:36.660 --> 00:24:41.779 was awarded the Medal of Honor. Livingston's 00:24:41.779 --> 00:24:45.480 military career continued. He retired as a Major 00:24:45.480 --> 00:24:49.470 General. and he became a vocal advocate for veterans 00:24:49.470 --> 00:24:54.230 and improved military readiness. He co -authored 00:24:54.230 --> 00:24:57.609 a book called Noble Warrior, a compelling account 00:24:57.609 --> 00:25:00.950 not only of his upbringing, but the fight that 00:25:00.950 --> 00:25:05.710 focused him into history. Through these deployments, 00:25:06.029 --> 00:25:09.490 Livingston continued to have a strong family 00:25:09.490 --> 00:25:13.309 life, and to his daughters he is remembered not 00:25:13.309 --> 00:25:16.730 as a general, but as a father. And to his Marines, 00:25:16.930 --> 00:25:19.450 he is remembered not as a distant figure, but 00:25:19.450 --> 00:25:23.910 a mentor. You can learn more by going to the 00:25:23.910 --> 00:25:28.950 Congressional Medal of Honor Society site, cmohs 00:25:28.950 --> 00:25:33.230 .org, and remember to visit medalofhonoredetroit 00:25:33.230 --> 00:25:39.849 .com. Okay, so mark your calendars, folks. That's 00:25:39.849 --> 00:25:43.470 going to run from September 30th to October 3rd. 00:25:43.730 --> 00:25:46.450 It's the Medal of Honor Convention in Detroit. 00:25:47.369 --> 00:25:49.769 We'll be there. Hopefully we'll see you there 00:25:49.769 --> 00:25:52.430 as well. I think it's going to be a great opportunity 00:25:52.430 --> 00:25:56.549 for us to talk again to many of the surviving 00:25:56.549 --> 00:25:58.769 Medal of Honor recipients. There have been a 00:25:58.769 --> 00:26:02.210 little over 3 ,500 Medal of Honor recipients 00:26:02.210 --> 00:26:04.920 over the years. and luckily here at Veterans 00:26:04.920 --> 00:26:08.279 Radio over the last 23 years I think we've talked 00:26:08.279 --> 00:26:13.339 to 12 so far and I'm pretty excited to be able 00:26:13.339 --> 00:26:16.480 to maybe see some of these face -to -face that 00:26:16.480 --> 00:26:19.500 we had the opportunity to talk to earlier on. 00:26:20.280 --> 00:26:23.140 So today, as I mentioned before, is our benefits 00:26:23.140 --> 00:26:26.940 program and joining me right now is retired Brigadier 00:26:26.940 --> 00:26:29.079 General Carol Ann Faustone from Legal Health 00:26:29.079 --> 00:26:33.259 for Veterans. She is a nurse and she was, as 00:26:33.259 --> 00:26:35.359 I say, a retired brigadier general in the United 00:26:35.359 --> 00:26:40.000 States Air Force. Nurse person, very active locally 00:26:40.000 --> 00:26:44.119 in the veteran community. In fact, This is a 00:26:44.119 --> 00:26:46.519 little tootin' her horn right now, is that the 00:26:46.519 --> 00:26:49.279 women's clinic at the Ann Arbor VA, Charles S. 00:26:50.160 --> 00:26:52.559 Kettle's Medical Center, is named after her. 00:26:52.960 --> 00:26:55.299 So I think that's very cool. So you can tell 00:26:55.299 --> 00:26:57.640 she's had a big influence. So Carolyn, thank 00:26:57.640 --> 00:27:00.400 you for joining us again today. Thanks, Dale. 00:27:01.099 --> 00:27:03.160 And going back to when you started the program 00:27:03.160 --> 00:27:08.420 with Brian. So I served 36 years, 11 months, 00:27:08.420 --> 00:27:13.099 and nine days. And I think we remember those. 00:27:13.259 --> 00:27:15.900 And I think we would all, three of us, go back 00:27:15.900 --> 00:27:19.680 and do it all over again. Absolutely. Absolutely. 00:27:21.039 --> 00:27:23.759 Although I think I'm a little bit smarter now 00:27:23.759 --> 00:27:27.819 than I was then. You never know. No, absolutely. 00:27:28.809 --> 00:27:35.789 And just listening to Brian and Jim's presentation 00:27:35.789 --> 00:27:39.490 about the Medal of Honor, I sit back here and 00:27:39.490 --> 00:27:43.809 I think, how could we get the word out more and 00:27:43.809 --> 00:27:48.519 more about the benefits, education, and the opportunity. 00:27:48.980 --> 00:27:52.799 I mean, we're on the air all the time. Organizations 00:27:52.799 --> 00:27:55.859 are out there. Our veteran service communities, 00:27:56.299 --> 00:28:00.400 VFW, DAB, American Legion, they try to get the 00:28:00.400 --> 00:28:04.900 word out. But it seems like... you find out when 00:28:04.900 --> 00:28:08.960 it's too late that a spouse, a widow didn't know 00:28:08.960 --> 00:28:11.400 about the substitution and there were claims 00:28:11.400 --> 00:28:16.019 out there that now have died after a year because 00:28:16.019 --> 00:28:19.259 nobody told them that they could keep them alive. 00:28:19.640 --> 00:28:23.660 And that's always discouraging to me when somebody 00:28:23.660 --> 00:28:26.720 is struggling and they don't know about the benefits 00:28:26.720 --> 00:28:30.240 that are afforded to them. Well, I you know, 00:28:30.259 --> 00:28:33.059 I think what's be interesting and I was just 00:28:33.059 --> 00:28:35.380 thinking about that I don't know if we could 00:28:35.380 --> 00:28:38.440 ever get a commercial radio station to agree 00:28:38.440 --> 00:28:40.940 to you know Have us go, you know, wouldn't it 00:28:40.940 --> 00:28:44.359 be great to go on your local talk radio? Program 00:28:44.359 --> 00:28:47.039 wherever you live and you know have somebody 00:28:47.039 --> 00:28:50.220 like you or Brian or somebody else another VSO 00:28:50.220 --> 00:28:54.230 type type of person that can, you know, do a 00:28:54.230 --> 00:28:57.250 five -minute segment once a quarter or so on, 00:28:57.250 --> 00:28:59.910 you know, just to remind people that these things 00:28:59.910 --> 00:29:03.529 are going on because, you know, most of us don't 00:29:03.529 --> 00:29:07.470 pay attention a lot of times or we don't share 00:29:07.470 --> 00:29:11.509 the information that we have. And there's, as 00:29:11.509 --> 00:29:14.309 you mentioned, there's a lot of widows and widowers 00:29:14.309 --> 00:29:17.789 out there that could be missing out on things 00:29:17.789 --> 00:29:20.279 that they're entitled to. You know, I think the 00:29:20.279 --> 00:29:24.099 VA is trying more and more with the echelons 00:29:24.099 --> 00:29:29.200 of care, doing the clinics and the reach that 00:29:29.200 --> 00:29:33.220 it would be great to put out maybe something 00:29:33.220 --> 00:29:38.319 from on high down out there. So the veterans 00:29:38.319 --> 00:29:42.079 know what their benefits are and you know we 00:29:42.079 --> 00:29:44.140 think when they are leaving the service the young 00:29:44.140 --> 00:29:47.500 men and women today that they are briefed and 00:29:47.500 --> 00:29:50.799 I want to tell you I think if you ask a hundred 00:29:50.799 --> 00:29:55.740 of the veterans from my era global global war 00:29:55.740 --> 00:29:59.839 on terrorism Vietnam Korea all they want to do 00:29:59.839 --> 00:30:03.720 is get home and yeah they were probably briefed 00:30:03.720 --> 00:30:08.269 but who was really listening you know I don't 00:30:08.269 --> 00:30:10.769 think that ever happened. And then when you find 00:30:10.769 --> 00:30:13.509 out 20 years later, you know, Brian mentioned 00:30:13.509 --> 00:30:17.829 burn pits. I mean, that is huge, that exposure. 00:30:17.970 --> 00:30:21.309 And you never realize what it does to your health 00:30:21.309 --> 00:30:24.970 10, 15 years later or a traumatic brain injury. 00:30:25.309 --> 00:30:29.880 You know, all of the TBIs are not. initially 00:30:29.880 --> 00:30:33.420 acquired. Some are three years later, five years 00:30:33.420 --> 00:30:36.880 later when you're struggling. And just to hear 00:30:36.880 --> 00:30:41.779 Brian talk about the dogs and the suicide rate 00:30:41.779 --> 00:30:45.140 with his organization, that was such a blessing 00:30:45.140 --> 00:30:48.640 to hear that because the suicide rate is one 00:30:48.640 --> 00:30:54.359 of the fallouts from the PTSD and the lack of 00:30:54.359 --> 00:30:58.369 reintegration, let's say, into society. Well, 00:30:58.390 --> 00:31:00.470 yeah, I mean obviously that's true and I you 00:31:00.470 --> 00:31:03.170 know most of us when we got out of service it 00:31:03.170 --> 00:31:04.930 was the last thing we thought about all we wanted 00:31:04.930 --> 00:31:09.049 to do is get home and put all that behind us 00:31:09.049 --> 00:31:12.730 and Unfortunately in many cases, you know as 00:31:12.730 --> 00:31:15.390 you mentioned five ten twenty thirty years down 00:31:15.390 --> 00:31:17.809 the road Something comes up and they're going 00:31:17.809 --> 00:31:21.089 to did were you ever exposed to some toxic thing 00:31:21.089 --> 00:31:26.460 and you go? Yeah, well Here it is. You've got 00:31:26.460 --> 00:31:28.460 this now. And I think that that's something that 00:31:28.460 --> 00:31:31.099 we have to constantly remind people. I know the 00:31:31.099 --> 00:31:34.940 VA is doing, I don't know if they are doing some 00:31:34.940 --> 00:31:38.799 sort of podcasting. I saw on the website the 00:31:38.799 --> 00:31:42.720 other day, I don't know if they're doing podcasting 00:31:42.720 --> 00:31:44.819 like we're doing where they record it and they 00:31:44.819 --> 00:31:48.220 upload it to a particular platform, but there 00:31:48.220 --> 00:31:52.750 are some audio files. on the website that talk 00:31:52.750 --> 00:31:55.710 about certain types of issues. And I know that, 00:31:55.710 --> 00:31:58.250 like you and Legal Health for Veterans, you have 00:31:58.250 --> 00:32:02.650 a whole series of ebooks that you've got out 00:32:02.650 --> 00:32:05.950 there talking about every almost every conceivable 00:32:05.950 --> 00:32:09.089 question that a veteran could have. Well, you 00:32:09.089 --> 00:32:11.569 know, when I'm down in Florida, I'm teaching 00:32:11.569 --> 00:32:15.119 the veterans class and there's no charge for 00:32:15.119 --> 00:32:18.519 any of those. It's to explain to veterans all 00:32:18.519 --> 00:32:21.359 over what they're entitled to. And you know, 00:32:21.460 --> 00:32:23.839 the classes, I've been doing this now seven or 00:32:23.839 --> 00:32:28.430 eight years. And it's really interesting when 00:32:28.430 --> 00:32:31.410 the veteran comes, and I love it when the spouse 00:32:31.410 --> 00:32:35.250 comes, because they ask so many questions, and 00:32:35.250 --> 00:32:38.670 then I get the follow -ups. And the majority 00:32:38.670 --> 00:32:43.390 of those will seek help, whether it's at the 00:32:43.390 --> 00:32:48.069 local VA medical center, or a clinic, or a county 00:32:48.069 --> 00:32:53.269 counselor, a VSO. They will call and attempt 00:32:53.269 --> 00:32:55.609 to find out what benefits fits they're entitled 00:32:55.609 --> 00:32:59.410 to. So I think that's so important. And I know 00:32:59.410 --> 00:33:03.609 they call in to us at Veterans Radio to ask questions. 00:33:04.049 --> 00:33:06.509 And I think that's really important to do, too, 00:33:06.509 --> 00:33:10.609 to keep the lines always open to all of our veterans. 00:33:11.430 --> 00:33:15.390 Yeah. Well, Brian is still hanging around. And 00:33:15.390 --> 00:33:17.809 so I'm going to bring him back on because, Brian, 00:33:17.809 --> 00:33:20.269 you had mentioned before we went on the air that 00:33:20.269 --> 00:33:24.559 you're kind of the VSO for your local VFW. Oh, 00:33:24.559 --> 00:33:27.559 no, no, sir. I'm the actual commander, but our 00:33:27.559 --> 00:33:31.140 our VSO, but by VFW rules, we can't call them 00:33:31.140 --> 00:33:32.859 that anymore unless they're accredited. Ours 00:33:32.859 --> 00:33:35.200 is not accredited, but he does happen to work 00:33:35.200 --> 00:33:40.339 in the benefits section for the VA. Well, in 00:33:40.339 --> 00:33:44.740 Pittsburgh, with your group, what have been some 00:33:44.740 --> 00:33:48.619 of the most, not the most important one, but 00:33:48.619 --> 00:33:51.880 most consistent claims that your groups are making 00:33:51.880 --> 00:33:56.869 these days? Well, with the younger guys, it's 00:33:56.869 --> 00:34:01.250 a lot of the Vietnam Agent Orange, you know, 00:34:01.390 --> 00:34:04.009 impact stuff. I got a lot of guys, you know, 00:34:04.250 --> 00:34:08.389 developing COPD. And I get from what I heard, 00:34:08.449 --> 00:34:10.789 I didn't read up on it. But from what I understand, 00:34:10.989 --> 00:34:15.829 COPD wasn't wasn't covered on the in the PACT 00:34:15.829 --> 00:34:19.550 Act. But he did a little homework for himself 00:34:19.550 --> 00:34:21.949 and found out there was asbestos on his ship. 00:34:22.170 --> 00:34:25.150 So he was able to get help that way. So the older 00:34:25.150 --> 00:34:27.630 guys, it's a lot of the aged orange things. The 00:34:27.630 --> 00:34:34.349 younger guys, it's a lot of musculoskeletal problems, 00:34:34.949 --> 00:34:38.909 bad backs, bad necks, the leg meat, bad shoulder, 00:34:39.670 --> 00:34:43.889 things like that. A lot of them, you know, especially 00:34:43.889 --> 00:34:46.260 with a lot of our troops that... You know, I 00:34:46.260 --> 00:34:48.119 wasn't that was why I joined the Air Force is 00:34:48.119 --> 00:34:49.659 I wanted to fly in a plane. I didn't want to 00:34:49.659 --> 00:34:52.179 jump out at once. So yeah, a lot of the guys 00:34:52.179 --> 00:34:54.679 that are our younger veterans here at our VFW, 00:34:54.679 --> 00:34:58.260 they've got a lot of the musculoskeletal musculoskeletal 00:34:58.260 --> 00:35:03.400 issues, you know, backs, knees. Another one that's 00:35:03.400 --> 00:35:05.199 that's kind of become prevalent only because 00:35:05.199 --> 00:35:07.559 people didn't know about it was plantar fasciitis. 00:35:08.199 --> 00:35:10.780 You know, I've had foot pain since, you know, 00:35:11.059 --> 00:35:14.639 since a year after I got out. And you know, they 00:35:14.639 --> 00:35:18.039 don't they don't list foot pain in 38 CFR, but 00:35:18.039 --> 00:35:21.800 they do list plantar fasciitis. So even thought 00:35:21.800 --> 00:35:24.179 about those darn boots we had to wear all the 00:35:24.179 --> 00:35:28.519 time. Correct. You know, Brian, I think the importance 00:35:28.519 --> 00:35:32.539 that we always we bring it up here, going to 00:35:32.539 --> 00:35:36.500 an accredited, knowledgeable individual, because 00:35:36.500 --> 00:35:39.059 if you're working the cases all the time, now 00:35:39.059 --> 00:35:43.179 you brought up the COPD. So then those would 00:35:43.179 --> 00:35:46.320 say, okay, is there asthma related, the respiratory 00:35:46.320 --> 00:35:50.539 issues, cardiac issues? And I bet you with the 00:35:50.539 --> 00:35:54.239 agent -orn presumptives, we could help build 00:35:54.239 --> 00:35:58.679 a case to what you were exposed to. And so. You 00:35:58.679 --> 00:36:01.619 know, I think that's the experienced person that 00:36:01.619 --> 00:36:04.679 has been doing this, that knows how, as I would 00:36:04.679 --> 00:36:08.699 say, to peel the onion back, to do an assessment, 00:36:08.940 --> 00:36:11.880 just not do the one thing that the person walks 00:36:11.880 --> 00:36:15.139 in and says, you know, I can't hear, I need hearing 00:36:15.139 --> 00:36:18.849 aids. And the truth of it is we should be asking 00:36:18.849 --> 00:36:22.449 more questions. What was the era? What was your 00:36:22.449 --> 00:36:25.929 MOS? How many years did you serve? Where were 00:36:25.929 --> 00:36:30.050 you located? And to do the big picture. And everybody 00:36:30.050 --> 00:36:33.750 is different. And so I wanted to bring up with 00:36:33.750 --> 00:36:37.210 the respiratory issues, because Brian, I think 00:36:37.210 --> 00:36:40.090 you brought it up when we were talking offline. 00:36:41.030 --> 00:36:43.829 The VA is coming up. I haven't seen the final 00:36:43.829 --> 00:36:47.210 list of some things that they might be changing 00:36:47.210 --> 00:36:50.570 in the near future. And one of them, believe 00:36:50.570 --> 00:36:55.090 it or not, is sleep apnea. So if you're diagnosed 00:36:55.090 --> 00:36:58.969 today, I believe, if you're diagnosed with sleep 00:36:58.969 --> 00:37:03.530 apnea, the CPAP, the whole shooting match, you 00:37:03.530 --> 00:37:07.670 come out with 50%. They are looking at changing 00:37:07.670 --> 00:37:11.550 that. I don't know what that means. But there 00:37:11.550 --> 00:37:17.119 are several diagnoses in the past that would 00:37:17.119 --> 00:37:20.300 obtain a certain rating. That's why it's real 00:37:20.300 --> 00:37:23.800 important when you go for your exams to talk 00:37:23.800 --> 00:37:27.380 to the provider exactly what you're going through. 00:37:28.280 --> 00:37:31.219 Don't be afraid to talk about your pain. Don't 00:37:31.219 --> 00:37:35.579 be able to talk about your mobility, your limitations. 00:37:36.239 --> 00:37:40.780 And I just completed Dale, my, I think it's the 00:37:40.780 --> 00:37:47.300 34th ebook and it's all about the CMP exam and 00:37:47.300 --> 00:37:50.980 what to go in and do when you get the call or, 00:37:50.980 --> 00:37:53.940 you know, how to relate to your examiner. So 00:37:53.940 --> 00:37:57.099 I think that's really important that you really 00:37:57.099 --> 00:38:00.280 talk to the provider about what you're going 00:38:00.280 --> 00:38:02.940 through. Oh, it is important because we know 00:38:02.940 --> 00:38:05.380 from personal experience going off for some of 00:38:05.380 --> 00:38:09.079 those exams, they didn't do anything. You go 00:38:09.079 --> 00:38:12.739 in for a high blood pressure and you drive an 00:38:12.739 --> 00:38:16.059 hour to get this exam and you're not even arrested 00:38:16.059 --> 00:38:18.619 and they take your blood pressure and you're 00:38:18.619 --> 00:38:21.659 done and nobody asks any questions. I wanted 00:38:21.659 --> 00:38:23.980 to go in to ask a couple of questions of either 00:38:23.980 --> 00:38:27.739 one of you. It's not these major conditions sometimes 00:38:27.739 --> 00:38:31.869 that... That you may be entitled to compensation 00:38:31.869 --> 00:38:34.570 for it might be something like all right. Maybe 00:38:34.570 --> 00:38:37.349 you have high blood pressure But also that goes 00:38:37.349 --> 00:38:40.769 through, you know, you know eye problems it goes 00:38:40.769 --> 00:38:44.710 into Other issues, you know even in DED and those 00:38:44.710 --> 00:38:47.329 kinds of things that high blood pressure can 00:38:47.329 --> 00:38:50.829 cause You know problems with and so don't let 00:38:50.829 --> 00:38:54.010 it go away or don't let it end just if they say 00:38:54.010 --> 00:38:57.590 well Yes, or no as far as your high blood pressure 00:38:57.590 --> 00:39:00.250 claim is concerned There's so many different 00:39:00.250 --> 00:39:03.050 things that are involved with that see and and 00:39:03.050 --> 00:39:06.269 Dale that would be going back to what Brian and 00:39:06.269 --> 00:39:10.110 I would mentioned earlier an Expert or person 00:39:10.110 --> 00:39:12.969 that's been experienced in this, you know might 00:39:12.969 --> 00:39:15.570 ask the question. Okay, you have diabetes What 00:39:15.570 --> 00:39:19.170 else goes along with that? your vision, wounds, 00:39:19.869 --> 00:39:22.690 feet, the whole shooting match, your stomach, 00:39:23.010 --> 00:39:26.570 your GERD. So it's peeling that onion back. And 00:39:26.570 --> 00:39:31.250 those are called secondary diagnoses. And I'll 00:39:31.250 --> 00:39:34.710 tell you, those could add up very importantly, 00:39:35.210 --> 00:39:39.389 IBS, irritable bowel, you know, the GERD, the 00:39:39.389 --> 00:39:43.780 eating disorders. I mean, PTSD could cause a 00:39:43.780 --> 00:39:46.679 lot of issues that people don't even think about, 00:39:47.159 --> 00:39:51.099 but an experienced individual, a veteran service 00:39:51.099 --> 00:39:54.039 officer, somebody that's been dealing with this 00:39:54.039 --> 00:40:00.219 will know what questions to ask. Yeah, no, it's 00:40:00.219 --> 00:40:04.199 true. And I think, you know, we've here on Veterans 00:40:04.199 --> 00:40:06.219 Radio and we do these benefit things we've been 00:40:06.219 --> 00:40:08.820 talking about, you know, not to necessarily you 00:40:08.820 --> 00:40:10.840 know, just go on and fill out the form on the 00:40:10.840 --> 00:40:18.260 VA's website. Because as Brian mentioned, so 00:40:18.260 --> 00:40:21.360 many people we've talked to is that they don't 00:40:21.360 --> 00:40:23.519 get any, you know, they don't get any response. 00:40:24.000 --> 00:40:26.480 In many cases, or they, you know, it gets, it 00:40:26.480 --> 00:40:29.079 gets outright rejected because they forgot a 00:40:29.079 --> 00:40:33.150 particular form or you know background information 00:40:33.150 --> 00:40:35.550 from their doctors and so on and so forth and 00:40:35.550 --> 00:40:37.789 I and I'm agreeing with what you say Carol Anne 00:40:37.789 --> 00:40:41.030 is you know you you got to you know have a checklist 00:40:41.030 --> 00:40:43.530 that you have to go through and say is this form 00:40:43.530 --> 00:40:45.630 in there is that form in there and so on and 00:40:45.630 --> 00:40:47.969 so forth and talking to your even telling to 00:40:47.969 --> 00:40:51.469 your fellow veterans at your vfw hall or your 00:40:51.469 --> 00:40:54.570 american lesion whatever it is that's a great 00:40:54.570 --> 00:40:57.349 source of information for people that have been 00:40:57.349 --> 00:41:00.380 successful let's put it that way, and getting 00:41:00.380 --> 00:41:03.639 their disability claims approved. I just got 00:41:03.639 --> 00:41:06.699 an email from another organization, much like 00:41:06.699 --> 00:41:08.880 Legal Health for Veterans, wanting to know if 00:41:08.880 --> 00:41:11.340 they could come on and talk about some of the 00:41:11.340 --> 00:41:13.960 problems and issues that they've run into. So 00:41:13.960 --> 00:41:16.059 there are all kinds of sources out there for 00:41:16.059 --> 00:41:18.219 our listening audience. We're not just talking 00:41:18.219 --> 00:41:20.320 amongst ourselves here. This is to make sure 00:41:20.320 --> 00:41:23.599 that you, your veteran, and your family especially, 00:41:25.150 --> 00:41:28.389 aware of what you may be entitled to, or maybe 00:41:28.389 --> 00:41:31.610 they're aware of what you've already received, 00:41:32.230 --> 00:41:34.590 and you know that some of these benefits can 00:41:34.590 --> 00:41:39.630 continue going on. Right. Thank you. Speaking 00:41:39.630 --> 00:41:43.090 of which, I just got a little note here that 00:41:43.090 --> 00:41:45.030 says we didn't run our Medal of Honor segment 00:41:45.030 --> 00:41:48.579 yet. So we have to do that. So we're going to 00:41:48.579 --> 00:41:50.880 come right back. Again, we're talking with Carol 00:41:50.880 --> 00:41:52.920 Ann Falzone from Legal Health for Veterans. We're 00:41:52.920 --> 00:41:55.579 talking with Brian DeLong, who is from the Medical 00:41:55.579 --> 00:41:59.159 Service Dog Organization, but he's also with 00:41:59.159 --> 00:42:02.300 the VFW out there in Pittsburgh. So each week, 00:42:02.420 --> 00:42:04.599 we play a Medal of Honor segment honoring these 00:42:04.599 --> 00:42:07.460 men and women who have received America's highest 00:42:07.460 --> 00:42:13.519 award for valor. So here's this week's. The Medal 00:42:13.519 --> 00:42:15.699 of Honor is the highest award for valor in combat 00:42:15.699 --> 00:42:17.619 given a member of the Armed Forces of the United 00:42:17.619 --> 00:42:20.699 States. There had been over 3 ,400 recipients 00:42:20.699 --> 00:42:24.019 of the nation's highest award. This is one of 00:42:24.019 --> 00:42:26.840 them. P .S .E. Eugene Obregon pulled a fellow 00:42:26.840 --> 00:42:29.000 Marine to safety, then shielded his body with 00:42:29.000 --> 00:42:34.719 his own. Details after this. If you have a VA 00:42:34.719 --> 00:42:36.880 claim denied by the Board of Veterans' Appeals, 00:42:37.000 --> 00:42:39.960 contact Legal Help for Veterans at 1 -800 -693 00:42:39.960 --> 00:42:43.699 -4800. They're experts in handling cases before 00:42:43.699 --> 00:42:46.000 the U .S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. 00:42:46.079 --> 00:42:50.280 Their number again, 1 -800 -693 -4800. While 00:42:50.280 --> 00:42:52.219 serving as an ammunition carrier for machine 00:42:52.219 --> 00:42:54.420 gun squad that was temporarily pinned down by 00:42:54.420 --> 00:42:57.260 North Korean fire, Obregon observed a fellow 00:42:57.260 --> 00:43:00.360 Marine fall wounded. Armed only with a pistol, 00:43:00.699 --> 00:43:04.039 he unhesitatingly dashed from his covered position 00:43:04.039 --> 00:43:07.019 to the side of the casualty. Firing his pistol 00:43:07.019 --> 00:43:09.880 with one hand as he ran, he grabbed his comrade 00:43:09.880 --> 00:43:12.219 by the arm with the other hand, and dragged him 00:43:12.219 --> 00:43:15.760 to the side of the road. Still under enemy fire, 00:43:16.039 --> 00:43:18.239 he was bandaging the man's wounds when hostile 00:43:18.239 --> 00:43:21.099 troops of approximately platoon strength began 00:43:21.099 --> 00:43:24.420 advancing toward his position. Quickly seizing 00:43:24.420 --> 00:43:26.960 the wounded Marines' carbine, he placed his own 00:43:26.960 --> 00:43:29.400 body as a shield in front of him and lay there 00:43:29.400 --> 00:43:32.099 firing accurately and effectively into the hostile 00:43:32.099 --> 00:43:34.760 group until he himself was fatally wounded by 00:43:34.760 --> 00:43:38.159 enemy machine gun fire. Obregon enabled his fellow 00:43:38.159 --> 00:43:40.880 Marines to rescue the wounded man and aided essentially 00:43:40.880 --> 00:43:43.320 in repelling the attack. The Medal of Honor series 00:43:43.320 --> 00:43:47.119 is a production of Veterans Radio. Military veterans 00:43:47.119 --> 00:43:49.559 touch everyone's life. I'm guessing right now 00:43:49.559 --> 00:43:52.059 you're thinking of a veteran, a close friend, 00:43:52.579 --> 00:43:55.719 relative. Maybe it's you. Even the toughest of 00:43:55.719 --> 00:43:58.300 us sometimes need help but don't know where to 00:43:58.300 --> 00:44:00.659 turn for support. You don't need special training 00:44:00.659 --> 00:44:02.960 to help a veteran in your life. We can all help 00:44:02.960 --> 00:44:05.179 someone going through a difficult time. Learn 00:44:05.179 --> 00:44:08.739 how you can be there for veterans. Visit veteranscrisisline 00:44:08.739 --> 00:44:12.860 .net. VeteransCrisisLine .net, a message from 00:44:12.860 --> 00:44:21.829 the U .S. Department of Veterans Affairs. We're 00:44:21.829 --> 00:44:23.730 back here on Veterans Radio and we're talking 00:44:23.730 --> 00:44:25.889 about benefits and we're talking about how do 00:44:25.889 --> 00:44:27.809 you apply for benefits and we're talking about 00:44:27.809 --> 00:44:30.050 how do you hopefully that you don't leave any 00:44:30.050 --> 00:44:33.349 of those benefits laying on the table. Our guests 00:44:33.349 --> 00:44:36.150 today are Brigadier General Carol Ann Falzone 00:44:36.150 --> 00:44:38.570 from Legal Health for Veterans and we've got 00:44:38.570 --> 00:44:41.710 a friend along Brian DeLong who is a regional 00:44:41.710 --> 00:44:45.750 coordinator for the Guardian Angels Medical Service 00:44:45.750 --> 00:44:49.909 Dog Organization. And so I don't know where Carol 00:44:49.909 --> 00:44:56.139 Ann went. I'm right here. We just lost our video 00:44:56.139 --> 00:45:00.519 connection there. Has there been any changes 00:45:00.519 --> 00:45:04.139 that either one of you are aware of for 2026 00:45:04.139 --> 00:45:09.380 that you've heard of? I think we're waiting. 00:45:10.579 --> 00:45:13.920 I've heard there might be some changes in leadership 00:45:13.920 --> 00:45:18.570 not with the secretary. But I'm waiting to see, 00:45:18.570 --> 00:45:21.449 Dale, as I spoke earlier, some of the rating 00:45:21.449 --> 00:45:25.130 changes, the scheduler, you know, what you're 00:45:25.130 --> 00:45:27.670 going to get coming out of the shoot. And the 00:45:27.670 --> 00:45:31.570 first one that I heard was sleep apnea. So we're 00:45:31.570 --> 00:45:37.329 watching that. Excuse me. But, you know, I think 00:45:37.760 --> 00:45:41.199 Just going back, tell our veterans to enroll, 00:45:41.679 --> 00:45:44.920 go into the VA Medical Center. If you are on 00:45:44.920 --> 00:45:49.320 a team or have a number or color, talk to your 00:45:49.320 --> 00:45:53.199 provider. Let them know what you're going through. 00:45:53.659 --> 00:45:57.579 Because I'm getting calls all the time regarding 00:45:57.579 --> 00:46:00.699 the aid and attendance, the caregivers, how could 00:46:00.699 --> 00:46:03.940 they get some of those additional benefits that 00:46:03.940 --> 00:46:07.219 are out there? That's a question that I was thinking 00:46:07.219 --> 00:46:09.420 about Brian when you were mentioning that that 00:46:09.420 --> 00:46:13.260 when you were looking for I guess people's financial 00:46:13.260 --> 00:46:16.380 ability to take care of the dog Self once you 00:46:16.380 --> 00:46:18.900 know once they've got that is there a program 00:46:18.900 --> 00:46:21.260 or I wonder if there is a program through the 00:46:21.260 --> 00:46:26.940 VA that that helps with that There is not current 00:46:26.940 --> 00:46:29.559 literature says that the VA will provide a service 00:46:29.559 --> 00:46:33.519 dog An actual fact they will provide you a list 00:46:33.519 --> 00:46:39.480 of service dog providers And our founder and 00:46:39.480 --> 00:46:42.159 our COO both work closely with a lot of the folks 00:46:42.159 --> 00:46:45.639 in Washington DC Trying to help change that to 00:46:45.639 --> 00:46:49.280 see if the VA will fund service dogs or a portion 00:46:49.280 --> 00:46:53.820 thereof or even if it's for Something as small 00:46:53.820 --> 00:46:57.500 as having the VA Fund the veterinary care for 00:46:57.500 --> 00:47:00.559 the dogs, which we take care of as well. So yeah. 00:47:00.559 --> 00:47:03.960 Oh you do already take care of that. Yeah Yeah, 00:47:04.019 --> 00:47:08.940 the the We're very, we're very transparent. The 00:47:08.940 --> 00:47:13.559 veteran pays a small monthly amount and then 00:47:13.559 --> 00:47:16.059 a deductible, but anything after that, I mean, 00:47:16.519 --> 00:47:19.280 we've had some dogs that have cost us, you know, 00:47:19.480 --> 00:47:22.179 $10 ,000 to get them fixed, but we pay that the 00:47:22.179 --> 00:47:25.300 veteran doesn't bear that cost. Okay. Well, maybe 00:47:25.300 --> 00:47:27.219 that's something that we can talk to our local 00:47:27.219 --> 00:47:29.880 representatives about to get them to, you know, 00:47:30.059 --> 00:47:32.920 to help. you know, defray the cost of having 00:47:32.920 --> 00:47:35.139 a dog in a house because, you know, dog food's 00:47:35.139 --> 00:47:38.260 not cheap. Nothing's cheap right now, it seems, 00:47:38.840 --> 00:47:42.139 but, you know, to get the proper care and everything 00:47:42.139 --> 00:47:45.920 else that these dogs deserve. You were mentioning 00:47:45.920 --> 00:47:49.059 that there was a change at the top a little bit 00:47:49.059 --> 00:47:52.460 and that of the Food chain at the Department 00:47:52.460 --> 00:47:55.340 of Veterans Affairs. They said that Chief of 00:47:55.340 --> 00:47:59.659 Staff Chris Cyrick is going to be leaving the 00:47:59.659 --> 00:48:01.780 VA for a private sector job, but he was talking 00:48:01.780 --> 00:48:05.500 about They were talking about what they've accomplished 00:48:05.500 --> 00:48:08.099 over the last year So, you know take some of 00:48:08.099 --> 00:48:10.260 this all this stuff with a grill good, you know 00:48:10.260 --> 00:48:12.440 a grain of salt But I think it's really important 00:48:12.440 --> 00:48:15.650 to look back. They've the VA is cut said that 00:48:15.650 --> 00:48:17.849 they've cut back the backlog of veterans waiting 00:48:17.849 --> 00:48:22.489 for benefits by almost 60 percent. They've eliminated 00:48:22.489 --> 00:48:24.710 the backlog of veterans families waiting for 00:48:24.710 --> 00:48:28.489 VA health care, said that they've processed record 00:48:28.489 --> 00:48:33.409 numbers of disability claims over what they say 00:48:33.409 --> 00:48:36.510 reaching an all -time fiscal year high of three 00:48:36.510 --> 00:48:39.889 million claims processed by September 30th of 00:48:39.889 --> 00:48:42.630 this year. They've opened 25 new health care 00:48:42.630 --> 00:48:48.429 clinics. They've got 1 .9 million appointments 00:48:48.429 --> 00:48:51.130 outside of the normal operating hours for veterans, 00:48:51.690 --> 00:48:54.230 meaning that they have appointments for early 00:48:54.230 --> 00:48:56.269 morning, evening, and weekend appointments, giving 00:48:56.269 --> 00:48:59.030 veterans more opportunity. And they've also stated 00:48:59.030 --> 00:49:02.349 that they've permanently housed almost 52 ,000 00:49:02.349 --> 00:49:06.090 veterans in physical year 2025. That's pretty 00:49:06.090 --> 00:49:09.809 good work. It's nice to see that there are things 00:49:09.809 --> 00:49:13.309 that needed to be changed. And I think they're 00:49:13.309 --> 00:49:16.250 working on it. There was an article about the 00:49:16.250 --> 00:49:19.389 case with the Los Angeles, I guess it's West 00:49:19.389 --> 00:49:22.750 Los Angeles VA, that they're being required to 00:49:22.750 --> 00:49:26.449 provide more housing for homeless veterans. Evidently, 00:49:26.449 --> 00:49:31.590 they have a huge campus out there. I was thinking 00:49:31.590 --> 00:49:34.090 about that when I read that article and saying, 00:49:34.889 --> 00:49:37.480 well, you know, here in Ann Arbor, Our VA hospital 00:49:37.480 --> 00:49:40.539 is landlocked. It's got two roads that go all 00:49:40.539 --> 00:49:43.260 the way around to get enough for the hospital, 00:49:44.059 --> 00:49:48.320 a fisher house and a parking garage. That's about 00:49:48.320 --> 00:49:52.239 it. But where I come from in New Jersey, the 00:49:52.239 --> 00:49:56.559 Lions VA hospital is huge. It's got enough room 00:49:56.559 --> 00:49:59.539 for a whole golf course on it. And I was going 00:49:59.539 --> 00:50:01.739 to ask a question for anybody out there, not 00:50:01.739 --> 00:50:04.039 today, but if you could send me an email, tell 00:50:04.039 --> 00:50:07.460 me a little bit about your VA. building and facilities 00:50:07.460 --> 00:50:10.099 that are available to you. If you're listening 00:50:10.099 --> 00:50:14.019 in, send me an email. That's dale at veteransradio 00:50:14.019 --> 00:50:17.340 .org. And I'd like to find out a little bit, 00:50:17.380 --> 00:50:20.440 kind of an unofficial survey of what the veteran 00:50:20.440 --> 00:50:23.139 VA hospital facilities are like in your area. 00:50:23.800 --> 00:50:26.500 So can you do that? Dale, you bring up an excellent 00:50:26.500 --> 00:50:29.139 point. An article that I read the other day. 00:50:29.420 --> 00:50:32.619 talked about billions of dollars that were going 00:50:32.619 --> 00:50:35.519 to be spent in different components. And one 00:50:35.519 --> 00:50:39.619 of those was literally to go out in those areas 00:50:39.619 --> 00:50:43.360 where the market the service area for the veterans 00:50:43.360 --> 00:50:47.420 was really high, and they were looking at redoing 00:50:47.420 --> 00:50:52.159 some facilities, getting the services up to a 00:50:52.159 --> 00:50:56.519 really high grade of service for those high populated 00:50:56.519 --> 00:51:00.059 areas. And that was really nice to see. I think 00:51:00.059 --> 00:51:02.860 if I'm not mistaken, it was something like two 00:51:02.860 --> 00:51:07.400 billion was going to be set aside for facilities 00:51:07.400 --> 00:51:11.659 and upgrades. And I thought that was pretty interesting. 00:51:12.780 --> 00:51:14.860 It was interesting and they're also looking to 00:51:14.860 --> 00:51:18.340 hire a uh where does it go they're looking for 00:51:18.340 --> 00:51:21.000 somebody to lead the Veterans Benefit Administration. 00:51:21.739 --> 00:51:27.420 We had a Deputy Secretary Paul Lawrence who had 00:51:27.420 --> 00:51:31.019 been on our program in between the Trump administrations. 00:51:31.019 --> 00:51:33.739 He says he can't talk to us right now because 00:51:33.739 --> 00:51:37.599 he's working for the VA but they're looking for 00:51:37.599 --> 00:51:40.909 a new Veterans benefits administration secretary. 00:51:41.769 --> 00:51:44.190 So things are happening, you know, and I think 00:51:44.190 --> 00:51:46.289 it's all good. And we just got to keep our voices 00:51:46.289 --> 00:51:49.289 coming out loud and clear and letting people 00:51:49.289 --> 00:51:52.050 know what veterans need and what we, you know, 00:51:52.130 --> 00:51:54.190 what we're trying to do for our veteran community. 00:51:54.760 --> 00:51:59.380 I agree. I agree. And please, if you're out there 00:51:59.380 --> 00:52:02.440 and you don't have a disability benefit, but 00:52:02.440 --> 00:52:06.539 you have served this country, go find a VSO, 00:52:06.860 --> 00:52:10.139 go into the VA. They have veteran service officers 00:52:10.139 --> 00:52:14.659 there. Enroll. Ask your provider. There's benefits 00:52:14.659 --> 00:52:18.239 out there for you. But if you don't ask, or for 00:52:18.239 --> 00:52:22.460 your family, if you don't ask, they're never 00:52:22.460 --> 00:52:25.619 going to just give you stuff. No, they don't 00:52:25.619 --> 00:52:27.980 voluntarily give you that. So we've got a minute 00:52:27.980 --> 00:52:30.300 to go. So I want to thank Brian DeLong here again 00:52:30.300 --> 00:52:32.460 for sticking around. He's with the Medical Service 00:52:32.460 --> 00:52:36.099 Dogs organization. That's their website, medicalservicedogs 00:52:36.099 --> 00:52:38.539 .org. Doesn't make a difference if you're a veteran 00:52:38.539 --> 00:52:40.679 or not. If you qualify, they'll give you a dog, 00:52:41.219 --> 00:52:44.639 which is great. They'll train you and the dog. 00:52:46.579 --> 00:52:48.840 Absolutely. Thanks for having me, Dale. All right. 00:52:48.880 --> 00:52:52.869 Thank you. Carol Ann, thank you. Thank you again. 00:52:53.130 --> 00:52:55.090 Thank you very much for being on again Carol 00:52:55.090 --> 00:52:57.610 Anne and we'll be talking to you soon. I hope 00:52:57.610 --> 00:53:01.150 okay Thank you. Have a great week in a month. 00:53:01.210 --> 00:53:04.030 No, I'll be back. All right, so today's great 00:53:04.030 --> 00:53:08.150 God bless America is sung by David Bray It's 00:53:08.150 --> 00:53:10.269 a little bit different version of it But you 00:53:10.269 --> 00:53:12.690 all know that I play God bless America or some 00:53:12.690 --> 00:53:14.989 other patriotic song at the end of all of our 00:53:14.989 --> 00:53:17.489 veterans radio programs So remember we're still 00:53:17.489 --> 00:53:20.400 living in the greatest country in the world Until 00:53:20.400 --> 00:53:22.199 next time, this is Dale Thromberg for all of 00:53:22.199 --> 00:53:24.880 us at Veterans Radio, you are dismissed.