Filmmakers Amy Seimetz and Kelly Parker have created a short video for the nonprofit organization Veterans in Transition. Here's an email we received from Amy, and the video is embedded below.
Kelly Parker and I made a video for a nonprofit called The VET Foundation. It is an organization that helps soldiers returning from the war transition back into civilian life. Whether you are for the war or against it, the fact is their are men and women coming back either injured physically, suffering from a traumatic brain injury and/or coping with PTSD. The government does not have and effective transition program for these soldiers once they come back and we've already seen what not dealing with these issues leads to from Vietnam and even in recent headlines of suicide, unemployment and homelessness. The homeless rate among veterans is 1 in every 4.
The VET Foundation is a fantastic organization aimed at teaching the veterans skills needed to compete with in the civilian workforce, how to access their benefits from the government, and it also builds a support network for these men and women who are coping deep emotional wounds and feel alienated upon returning because they do not feel like they can relate to the civilian population. The VET Foundation is made up of men and women who have served either in this war or in previous wars, and so they understand what these men and women are going through. Their mission, though it seems daunting, is quite practical. It is a very action oriented solution, and not just a band aid or a feel good idealistic hope for a better time.
Please pass this on to your friends or family that may need help transitioning. And if you or someone you know may like to make a donation, visit www.vetfoundation.org.
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posted by Scott Macaulay @ 8/10/2008 06:45:00 PM
