A Window Into The Holidays…
It is Thanksgiving morning and I am so excited I can’t hardly wait! We are going to Grandma and Grandpa’s for dinner and it is going to be so much fun and oh my, all the yummy food to eat. There are chores to be done before we can leave and every time I look at the clock, it doesn’t look like it has moved at all and it feels like it is taking forever to get through them. My Great aunts and Great uncles will be there and my cousins will be there, my Uncle Vernon is always so jolly, he makes me laugh.
I take my shower and change into my Sunday best, as we always dress for special dinners like Thanksgiving and Christmas, and it is finally time to leave. I help my mom to carry things to the car and we are on our way. It is a cold November morning, drizzling rain and a little snow too, maybe it will turn into all snow by tomorrow. We get to the house and when we get to the back door, the outer porch windows are steamed up, you can see the little drops of water streaming down the glass. I prepare myself to open the door for that smell. I know when I open the door that I am going to be enveloped in all kinds of good smells. Turkey, dressing ( 2 kinds, oyster and regular for those of us that think that oysters are gross!), pies, mashed potatoes, and so many other things, YUM!! I was not disappointed when I opened the door when that warm, yummy air hit me right in the face, it was like Heaven. Grandma is in front of the stove and Aunt Katie is by the sink and everyone else is in the dining room, setting the table. I give hugs and run into the living room, where my cousins are and we watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade together and talk like we haven’t seen each other in a year. Grandpa had started a fire in the wood burner that morning so it was nice a cozy so I settle in his big red rocker to watch TV til dinner.
It is time to eat. My eyes are as big as my stomach. I don’t know what I want first. We say grace and then dig in, everyone starts to pass the food and it slowly makes its way to the kids table where the 4 of us a relegated to. It is delicious as always. I look around the table and I see my Grandparents, my parents, my brother, my aunt and uncle, my 2 cousins, my 3 Great Aunts, my 2 Great Uncles and my 93 year old Great Grandmother and I truly feel blessed to be there! There is football on the TV, laughter and talking all around the room and the warmth of a family breaking bread together. It is the best Thanksgiving ever and I will never forget it as long as I live!!
That is a glimpse into my childhood, thank you for letting me share it with you. I would have been about 9 when that happened. The Christmases at Grandma and Grandpa’s were just as wonderful. We would gather in the middle room around a beautiful tree to open gifts and be together. I hope that you spend this holiday season with your friends and family. The most important thing in this world is love. We can possess all sorts of material items, we can have all the money that the world can give us, we can even be the most famous people in the world but if there is no love in your life, there is nothing.
If you are in need of something to do to remember one that you have lost in your life, there are things that you can do this holiday season. I have done some of these things as most of the people in this story have passed and I miss them dearly. It can be a very lonely and sad time of year for some because they are missing loved ones, whether they have passed, whether they have parted ways for various reasons, you can make a difference in someone’s life. You are never alone.
* You could go to a friend’s or loved one’s house and celebrate with them. It is important that you not isolate at this time of year.
* You could go to a nursing home and “adopt” a grandparent. Some of the people that are in these facilities either don’t have families or they have them and they are dumped there and forgotten about. They are lonely and would love to have the company.
* You could volunteer at a Food Pantry or a Soup Kitchen. I did this my Senior Year in High School. We threw a dinner for the kids at the Domestic Violence Shelter, we had a Santa for them and we made dinner for them and it was one of the best Christmases of my life.
* You could find a church that you are comfortable in and take part in the activities that they are having. You can meet some wonderful people at the churches and it would be a wonderful way to spend the day.
* You could volunteer at a Veterans Organization. Find a Veterans Home in your area, go to your local VVA chapter, see if the VA has any Volunteer Opportunities.
* You could “adopt” children that don’t have anything and be their Santa. The best Christmas of my life was the year that my mom died. My dad worked with a lady that was married to a minister. She came to me and said that she had these 2 children in her church and they didn’t have anything and was wondering if I might be willing to help them out. They were 10 and 7, what really broke my heart about these 2 children was that the little girl stopped believing in Santa because she asked for a doll for Christmas and it wasn’t there because they didn’t have the money to get it. Between myself, my best friend, my dad, and her grandmother, we got $ 300 together and went and bought them clothes, toys, bath stuff, Krogers donated gift certificates for both kids, we had 6 full size trash bags full of gifts for these kids by the time we were done. Their mom cried when she came to pick the stuff up, my mom was with me that day, it is no less than she would have done!
* If you don’t feel like leaving and being a little more private, you and your family could set a place at the table for your loved one so that they are “still with you,” kind of like a memorial. We used to do that after my Grandpa passed. It made my Grandmother feel better.
* Turn to a support group, COVVHA, a grief support group in your community, an online support group, etc, so that you have someone that knows how you are feeling and can give you feedback and support. Some of my very best friends have come from online support groups!
So you see, there are things that you can do to get through the holidays so that they aren’t quite so lonely. It is my hope that you have plenty of love and support around you and that you have the love that I had in this wonderful memory to share. The holidays can be a very hard time of year but they don’t have to be. You are never alone and we here at COVVHA wish you the very best that this Holiday season has to offer. Happy Holidays!
Karen Y. Wengert
©Children of Vietnam Veterans Health Alliance
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Agent Orange Dioxin & GMO News September – October
For Immediate Release
Children Of Vietnam Veterans Health Alliance
COVVHA@GMAIL.COM
www.Covvha.net
Agent Orange In Ohio
Boardman, OH – October, 13 2012 – Two Generational Victims of Agent Orange who founded the Non-Profit Organization ‘Children Of Vietnam Veterans Health Alliance’ will host a meet & greet and educational seminar on October 13th starting at 6pm at Ohio Naturopathic Wellness Center, 755 Boardman-Canfield Rd., Suite D- (Southbridge West), Boardman, OH. Appetizers and beverages will be served, followed by the seminar at 7pm. Please make your reservations at COVVHA@Gmail.com for attendance since seating is limited. The event is free and open to the public and can also be joined through Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/
Heather A. Bowser (39), Daughter of Bill Morris, of Canfield Ohio and Kelly L. Derricks (37), Daughter of Harry C. Mackel Jr., of Bucks County Pennsylvania are both daughters of deceased Vietnam War Veterans. Each of their father’s were exposed to the deadly herbicide Agent Orange/Dioxin while serving with the United States Military resulting in their untimely deaths. Heather and Kelly were both born with multiple birth defects and illnesses which they still suffer from Today. In early 2012, after many years of independent advocacy, they came together to form ‘Children Of Vietnam Veterans Health Alliance’ a Non-Profit organization seeking justice and providing assistance for the tens of thousands of sons and daughters also suffering from the generational effects of Agent Orange that occurs during the conception of a child.
Karen Y. Wengert (38), Daughter of surviving Vietnam Veteran George Ridgeway, of Newark Ohio, will also be attending the event. Karen’s mother, Barbara Ridgeway (Dunn), who is now deceased, was a key proponent in starting the area’s local VVA chapter. At the age of 8, Karen accompanied by her parents on November 11, 1982, stood in attendance at the official opening of the Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial Wall in Washington D.C. As a surviving Vietnam Veteran, Karen’s father now suffers the severe health effects that Agent Orange / Dioxin is known for leaving in its destructive wake. Recently, Heather and Kelly were very pleased when Karen graciously accepted the position of Secretary as an Official COVVHA board member. Karen has worked tirelessly over the last several months, despite her suffering with numerous illnesses, to ensure COVVHA’s ability to reach the 2ND generation victims of Agent Orange.
Nicknamed COVVHA, Kelly and Heather stress four simple words that have reached millions, not just in the American community, but also the international community of those exposed including Vietnam, Australia, Korea, Japan, Guam, and Canada; “You Are NOT Alone.” COVVHA has vowed that no Vietnam Veteran, Child, Grandchild, or those who were exposed to Agent Orange by other circumstances, will ever feel like they are waging the fight for their lives alone. The event which is being hosted by Kelly and Heather on October 13th starting at 6pm at Ohio Naturopathic Wellness Center, 755 Boardman-Canfield Rd., Suite D-(Southbridge West), Boardman, Ohio, Is intended to educate the general public and those exposed about the generational health and medical effects of Agent Orange. They also hope to meet other Sons and Daughters of Vietnam Veterans who may have interest in volunteering any extra time to COVVHA.
Before his Death at the age of 37, Kelly’s father stated, “I know I have a bomb ticking inside of me, I know that bomb is Agent Orange.” Before his death at the age of 50, Heather’s father stated, “If I only knew I was taking my children to war, I would have dodged the draft.” Please join Children Of Vietnam Veterans Health Alliance on Saturday evening, October 13, 2012 to help COVVHA raise awareness. R.S.V.P. by email at COVVHA@GMAIL.COM At the conclusion of the evening’s events, A brief memorial tribute will be held in honor of Kelly’s father marking the 30 year anniversary of his death on October 14, 1982. Kelly was only 7 years old when her father died. Agent Orange was not just a Vietnam War Era tragedy. In fact, Agent Orange was used globally long before the war began. To people like Kelly and Heather and the millions they fight for, the Vietnam War never ended. The battle ground and weaponry have simply changed.
Visit Children of Vietnam Veterans Health Alliance at their main website www.CovvHa.net Support COVVHA’S Facebook Page by clicking the “LIKE” button at https://www.facebook.com/
The possibility of long-term health effects includingadverse reproductive health outcomes resulting frommilitary service in Vietnam has been a subject of researchinterest in the United States over the past two decades [CDCVietnam Experience Study, 1988; Stellman et al., 1988].The U.S. Congress, responding to concerns of many womenVietnam veterans, legislatively mandated a comprehensive health study of women Vietnam veterans.
This mandate ledto three separate but related epidemiologic studies of women Vietnam era veterans: (1) post-Vietnam servicemortality follow-up; (2) assessment of psychologic healthoutcomes; and (3) reproductive health outcomes. Resultsof the ®rst two studies were published or submitted to Congress previously [Thomas et al., 1991; Dalager andKang, 1996]. The present report deals with the thirdstudy.
The studies of reproductive outcomes among maleveterans have been mostly negative in that service inVietnam was not associated with the risk of fathering a childwith birth defects, spontaneous abortion, stillbirth orneonatal death [Erickson et al., 1984; Donovan et al.,1984; Aschengrau and Monson, 1989, 1990]. However, inthe recent “Ranch Hand study”, neural tube defects (spinabi®da, anencephaly) were reported in four children of U.S.Air Force personnel who sprayed Agent Orange and other herbicides in Vietnam, while none was observed among children of control veterans [Wolfe et al., 1995].
Further-more, when the CDC birth defects study was reanalyzedusing the exposure opportunity index based upon interview data, the risk of spina bi®da was signi®cantly associatedwith the highest estimated level of Agent Orange exposure[Erickson et al., 1984]. Based on these data and others, anInstitute of Medicine panel suggested an associationbetween herbicide exposure in Vietnam and an increased risk of spina bi®da in children [IOM, 1996]
Moms and food activists have been fighting genetically modified foods for years. Now, they have a new ally.
Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) sent a letter to President Obama just before Memorial Day asking for his assistance in delaying approval of a new breed of corn that’s genetically modified to resist heavy applications of the herbicide 2,4-D, one of the two active ingredients in the infamous Vietnam-era defoliant Agent Orange.
The corn and 2,4-D are both being manufactured by Dow Agro Science, which has named its new corn “Enlist,” a name the veterans said in the letter was “a slap at all Vietnam veterans.” Multinational seed company Monsanto also manufactures 2,4-D.
Most of the health problems caused by Agent Orange during the Vietnam War have been attributed to unintended dioxin contamination of the two active ingredients, 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T. Dioxin builds up in the fatty tissue of humans and animals and can cause damage for years after exposure. The government continues to add to the known health conditions related to Agent Orange’s dioxin poisoning, but currently they include diabetes, neuropathy, Parkinson’s disease, heart disease, liver dysfunction, numerous cancers, and birth defects in the children of exposed soldiers and Vietnam residents. Studies in recent years have found that 2,4-D is just as likely to be contaminated with dioxin when used alone as it was when used in combination with 2,4,5-T.
Adding to that danger, 2,4-D itself has been linked to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, cell damage, hormonal disruption, and reproductive problems, according to the nonprofit Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), which petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) earlier this year in an effort to ban the substance permanently. The EPA denied the NRDC’s petition.
“Although there is a lot that science has learned about the effects of dioxin on the human organism, there is still a lot that science has yet to learn,” writes VVA. “Now, Dow and Monsanto wish to release genetically modified corn that has increased resistance to 2,4-D. What will this mean to Vietnam vets, who have already been exposed to this chemical through our military service? To our progeny?”
The group’s letter went on to state that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) conclusion that 2,4-D–resistant corn would have no “significant” impact on the environment was inaccurate and “raises more questions than it answers.” The vets are asking President Obama to push for more research by independent scientists, not those affiliated with Dow Agro Sciences.
“We are not calling for a complete ban of this new product at this time,” the group writes. “We are simply not willing to be lied to or withheld information from again. Vietnam veterans were lied to about our exposure to chemicals which claimed many lives long after our troops left Southeast Asia.”
The VVA isn’t alone in its attempts to get Obama’s attention. Children of Vietnam Veterans Health Alliance, another group made up of veterans’ children who were impacted by dioxin poisoning and Agent Orange, is endorsing the California ballot initiative that would require labeling of genetically modified ingredients. That initiative will be voted on in the November 2012 election.
The USDA has closed the public comment period on Dow’s 2,4-D–resistant corn, but the nonprofit Center for Food Safety continues to pressure the EPA to ban 2,4-D altogether. Take a minute to sign the center’s petition and to protect your family from the potential for more toxic pesticide exposure.
Originally Posted On Infinitymuscle.com
© Heather A. Bowser
Agent Orange & Dioxin The VVA Veteran — May 2012 Table Of Contents
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The young men smile back from their black-and-white yearbook photos or look gung-ho in their nation’s uniform. That was before Vietnam, before they became names on a wall.
Eighty-four called Staten Island home. Pictures of 63 are placed on the fence surrounding the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in West Brighton each summer during the annual Day of Remembrance. Danny Ingellis, first vice president of the Thomas J. Tori Chapter, Vietnam Veterans of America, made it his mission to find the remaining 21. He received 13 after the Advance published a story last month detailing his efforts. Now, he is after the final eight photos.
“You go to all these ceremonies, you look at a name, it’s nice,” said Ingellis, a New Springville resident who was in Nam for the Tet Offensive and later served in Operation Desert Storm.
Dennis Heitner, who was killed June 13, 1970, will also have his photo displayed at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in West Brighton each summer during the annual Day of Remembrance.
Never forgotten The Thomas J. Tori Chapter, Vietnam Veterans of America, is seeking photos of eight Staten Islanders killed in Vietnam. If found, the group will have photos of all 84 borough men killed in combat. Contact first vice commander Danny Ingellis at 646-823-7205 to send photos.
Never forgotten
The Thomas J. Tori Chapter, Vietnam Veterans of America, is seeking photos of eight Staten Islanders killed in Vietnam. If found, the group will have photos of all 84 borough men killed in combat. Contact first vice commander Danny Ingellis at 646-823-7205 to send photos.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The young men smile back from their black-and-white yearbook photos or look gung-ho in their nation’s uniform. That was before Vietnam, before they became names on a wall.
Eighty-four called Staten Island home. Pictures of 63 are placed on the fence surrounding the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in West Brighton each summer during the annual Day of Remembrance. Danny Ingellis, first vice president of the Thomas J. Tori Chapter, Vietnam Veterans of America, made it his mission to find the remaining 21. He received 13 after the Advance published a story last month detailing his efforts. Now, he is after the final eight photos.
“You go to all these ceremonies, you look at a name, it’s nice,” said Ingellis, a New Springville resident who was in Nam for the Tet Offensive and later served in Operation Desert Storm.
Dennis Heitner, who was killed June 13, 1970, will also have his photo displayed at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in West Brighton each summer during the annual Day of Remembrance.
Never forgotten The Thomas J. Tori Chapter, Vietnam Veterans of America, is seeking photos of eight Staten Islanders killed in Vietnam. If found, the group will have photos of all 84 borough men killed in combat. Contact first vice commander Danny Ingellis at 646-823-7205 to send photos.
Never forgotten
The Thomas J. Tori Chapter, Vietnam Veterans of America, is seeking photos of eight Staten Islanders killed in Vietnam. If found, the group will have photos of all 84 borough men killed in combat. Contact first vice commander Danny Ingellis at 646-823-7205 to send photos.
