Debbie Lamb Special Emphasis Program Manager for Individuals With Disabilities
EEO Taking care of people , one wounded warrior at a time
Jerry Majevitch found a rewarding career as a stockbroker after an IED blast in Baghdad left him with severe burns on his face , scalp , and body . He subsequently lost both ears , his nose , and fingers on both hands , but hasn ’ t let his injuries stop him from excelling in his civilian career field . ( Photo courtesy of woundedwarriorproject . org )
Modern medicine is a wonderful thing . Advances in medical technology in the last 25 years on and off the battle field has created one of the largest returning wounded veteran populations this country has ever welcomed home . Wounds are not always visible we have learned . Post traumatic stress disorder ( PTSD ) and traumatic brain injury ( TBI ) are the invisible scars many carry long after they take off their uniform .
Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta illustrated this when he acknowledged in testimony before a joint hearing of the House Committees on Armed Services and Veterans Affairs that “ the system ’ s … already overwhelmed .” And “ adding another 100,000 per year ” with the anticipated drawdown of forces will further overwhelm a Department of Defense system in which many now are not getting the care and benefits they should . The VA faces similar challenges , particularly in providing timely , effective mental health care and other services . Over 12 % of returning veterans are estimated to have PTSD or TBI , let alone the over 23 % with a physical injury .
In less than 10 years the Wounded Warrior Project ( WWP ) has become the major force in providing support and services to Wounded Warriors and their families . It took just one man to make a difference , starting with delivering one backpack to now providing services to over 29,000 returning Wounded Warriors .
Given this stark landscape , it is particularly important to confront systemic problems and barriers to returning warriors ’ successful reintegration to civilian life . The Wounded Warrior Project offers support to wounded warriors to find their new normal . The WWP has four goals ; mind , body , economic empowerment , and engagement . WWP expands these goals with objectives including ; closing gaps and eliminating barriers to improved mental health of warriors and their families and caregivers and fostering the economic empowerment of Wounded Warriors through policy initiatives to eliminate educational and employment barriers .
The Warriors to Work program was developed to help wounded warriors transition back into the civilian workforce by providing counseling , job placement assistance , and resume writing assistance . The program matches a warrior ’ s skills and experiences to the needs of hiring managers . The goal is to match the right person to the right job .
The Warriors to Work Program also supports employers by helping them connect with qualified candidates , providing information and education about combat-related injuries ( such as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury ), reasonable accommodations , facilitating a productive on-boarding process , and developing a long-lasting relationship throughout the life cycle of employment .
But this isn ’ t always easy . A company CEO often gets onboard and makes a commitment , but doesn ’ t always communicate with the company hiring managers and human resources . Often , a reasonable accommodation is needed that has not always been in the forefront of the company ’ s policies or day-to-day business practices . The hardest challenge that many Wounded Warriors face is the lack of understanding and acceptance of an uneducated workforce . Leading corporate hiring managers have told researchers they fear these veterans might fly into a rage or “ go postal .” As a consequence , veterans say they ’ ve seen blatant discrimination .
The WWP has been most visible in making connections with sports teams including Boston College ’ s baseball team and last year ’ s NBA playoffs . For the last two summers NFL team members have led week long camping trips for small groups of Wounded Warriors . All across the country , walk / runs are being held almost monthly in support of WWP . Soldier Ride is a four day event with several days of extensive bicycle riding for all held in several states .
Other programs available include family support , education grants , and emergency financial assistance and WWP just recently has started publishing After Action Report magazine .
My thanks to Duane DeVorak , Public Relations Coordinator for the WWP and Dan Lessard , Warriors to Work Director for their valuable time for interviewing them and answering my questions .
FINAL WORD Overuse tends to cheapen even the best words
Daniel J . Calderón
“ Are you sure you know what that word means ? Because I don ’ t think it means what you think it does .”
--Inigo Montoya from “ The Princess Bride ”
I don ’ t watch sports with any sort of rapt attention . I find it fairly tedious . There are games I do enjoy watching . When the Cowboys play , I do my best to tune in ; but , it ’ s just not the same as it was when I would go over to my grandmother ’ s house and watch the game with the rest of my family . There ’ s just something about a bunch of Calderóns crammed into a little living room with a belly full of barbacoa , pan dulce and Big Red ( or coffee in the case of some of my aunts and uncles ) yelling at the TV . I try to do that at my own house and my oldest son does his level best to keep up the volume with me ; but , I find I miss seeing my uncles , aunts , cousins and my grandmother as they both enjoy the game and make conversation . I guess it ’ s one of those growing up things that hurts the heart if you think too much about it .
But , back to the original point . I don ’ t watch sports too much . I watch sports news even less . But , the story of Jason Collins coming out and being hailed as a hero by everyone from pundits to the president was national news for a while . Wait . What ?
Yep . Coming out as a homosexual NBA player was reason enough to place this guy on the same pedestal as the Marines at Iwo Jima , the firefighters and other first responders on 9 / 11 and the “ tank man ” of Tiananmen Square . I wonder if people are so desperate for a hero , they are grasping at anything that even shows the remotest hint of being semi-heroic . And , I wonder if even the semi-heroic has become so diluted by what seems to be a general apathy people normally show each other ; but , that ’ s a whole different topic .
I ’ ll make it easy . Just so there ’ s no confusion . I don ’ t think Jason Collins is
a hero .
I don ’ t understand how it is heroic to say “ This is who ( or what or why ) I am .” He ’ s gay . Awesome . I ’ m Latino , or brown skinned , or Hispanic . Thirty years ago , I would have been labeled Chicano . I think there are some places where “ my kind ” still either use that term or have it used for them . Would it be heroic if I went to an LGBT convention and announced , “ I ’ m straight ”? Probably not . Some would consider that suicidal and foolish .
Again , in the interest of clarity – it ’ s not suicidal , nor is it foolish to come out in the NBA , the NFL , the NRA , the NCAA or the NAACP ( tried to think of a few acronyms beginning with N ) or any number of other organizations . To me , it ’ s the same as saying , “ I ’ m a man ,” “ I ’ m a woman ,” “ I ’ m a Republican ,” “ I ’ m a Democrat ,” “ I ’ m Independent ” or any of a host of things . Being gay is just a part of who he is . Coming out and admitting it doesn ’ t make him a hero . It just means he understands who he is , accepts himself and he ’ s honest about it .
Is there a stigma against being gay and a professional athlete ? I didn ’ t know there was if there is . I had no clue being a gay athlete was frowned upon in any circles ( other than those in which being gay at all is a bad thing ; but , again , that ’ s a separate issue ) in which athletes congregated . Is it as bad as being black was in the Deep South more than 50 years ago ( or today in some places – not necessarily just the Deep South – where marrying your twin sibling isn ’ t just not frowned upon , it ’ s almost expected )? Was there the potential for other athletes to take Collins , wrap him in chains and drag him behind a pickup truck until he died ? Was there any other imminent danger to Collins for admitting he is gay ? If not , then the only “ danger ” was in the court of public opinion .
I ’ m not trying to belittle being gay . I don ’ t think being gay is a choice any more than being born with two eyes , hair on your head or skin all over your body to cover your vital organs . I know there are differing opinions on this , though . I think I even read that an ESPN commentator was censured for saying he thought it was a sin , according to his own ( the commentator ’ s ) religious beliefs , to be homosexual when he discussed the Collins story . So , it ’ s alright for people to say Collins is a hero ; but , not alright for people to say they disagree with what they see as a lifestyle choice ? I find that sadly hypocritical . I think if there is someone saying it ’ s alright to be gay then there should be room in the public discourse for someone to say being gay is wrong . Debate is a healthy thing . It encourages ideas , thinking and tends to ( if done well and with willing and intelligent participants ) expand mental horizons . But , I still don ’ t think Collins is a hero for saying he is homosexual . According to Dictionary . com , a hero is :
1 . A man of distinguished courage or ability , admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities .
2 . A person who , in the opinion of others , has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal : He was a local hero when he saved the drowning child .
3 . The principal male character in a story , play , film , etc . 4 . Classical Mythology . a . A being of godlike prowess and beneficence who often came to be honored as a divinity . b . ( in the Homeric period ) a warrior-chieftain of special strength , courage , or ability . c . ( in later antiquity ) An immortal being ; demigod .
NOTE : In the interest of full disclosure , there is a # 5 – hero sandwich ; but , I didn ’ t think it applied here at all .
Do you know who I think is more heroic ? Dads . Generally speaking , a good father is more heroic on a regular basis than Collins .
I don ’ t know what kind of relationship you have with your dad , your father , your daddy , your papa or your old man . Whatever name you have for the
— see FINAL WORD , Page 14 —
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