By Debbie Gregory. The Defense Department has announced a milestone for the Military Spouse Employment Partnership program. In just under five years, the program, launched by second lady Jill Biden, has now partnered with more than 300 employers. The Military Spouse Employment Partnership program is an employment and career partnership that connects military spouses to […]
By Debbie Gregory. In an effort to ensure that veterans continue to receive the same annual cost-of-living increase as Social Security recipients, lawmakers are pushing for legislation that would permanently tie the two rate increases together. The house has already adopted the “American Heroes COLA Act,” which provides an automatic cost-of-living adjust for benefits such […]
By Debbie Gregory. They say it takes a village. And we are hoping that those of you who honor our servicemembers for their service and sacrifices will close ranks to help a veteran in need. Navy veteran Aaron Robinson is battling cancer. Not just any cancer, but Glioblastoma Multiform, the most malignant and aggressive form […]
By Debbie Gregory. The government does offer some special tax perks so that those who serve don’t have to add income taxes to their list of worries. When it comes to filing tax returns, military service members have circumstances that differ from civilian tax payers. Due to the varied types of pay service members receive, […]
By Debbie Gregory. Did you know you can receive both Social Security benefits and military retirement? Under most circumstances, there is no reduction of Social Security benefits because of your military retirement benefits. You’ll get your full Social Security benefit based on your earnings. Since 1957, if you had military service earnings for active duty […]
While many of us wouldn’t think twice about calling out from work if we had the flu, we often postpone taking much needed vacations. Time off is medicine. Taking a vacation can cut the risk of heart attack in men by 30 percent and in women by 50 percent. Vacations alleviate stress, and time away […]
By Debbie Gregory. It was Police Officer Ashley Guindon’s first day on the job as she responded to the domestic disturbance call in the usually quiet suburban neighborhood. Army Sgt. Ronald Hamilton had been fighting with his wife, Crystal, all day. The fight escalated after Crystal called 911. Guindon’s service with the Prince William County, […]
By Debbie Gregory. The challenges that our young combat veterans face when they transition back to civilian life, such as readjusting to family life, finding a job or going to school, and in many cases, dealing with post-traumatic stress (PTS) and/or physical injuries, can be daunting. Often times, this struggle is solitary, because the military […]
By Debbie Gregory. Patrick Murphy was recently sworn in as Secretary of the Army. He holds the distinction of being the first veteran of the Iraq War to be elected to the United States House of Representatives. He was also the leading advocate for repealing the Pentagon’s don’t-ask-don’t-tell policy in 2009, enabling gay soldiers to […]
By Debbie Gregory. The Pentagon is looking for a few good computer hackers. But it may not be what you think. In an effort to test the security of its web pages and networks, the cyber bug bounty program is aimed at finding and fixing cybersecurity vulnerabilities. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said he will be […]
