Latest / Brian Thomas / CCVS Steve Balczo - Independence Day
Transcript
- 0:00Speaker 1: The talk station here about k SEE talk station. I
- 0:05Speaker 1: love what the Klamat County Veteran Service Commission does for
- 0:07Speaker 1: the American veteran and Steve Belzo from Claimat County Veteran
- 0:11Speaker 1: Service in studio talk about the upcoming Independence Day. Steve,
- 0:14Speaker 1: it is always a pleasure to see you and have
- 0:15Speaker 1: you in my listener. I have you in the studio
- 0:17Speaker 1: and start off with appreciating what you do every day
- 0:20Speaker 1: for the American veteran.
- 0:21Speaker 2: Brian. It's a teamwork, so thank you for what you doing.
- 0:23Speaker 2: We couldn't do it without your support, So thank you
- 0:26Speaker 2: for being our voice.
- 0:27Speaker 1: I am a small, small little cog in the big
- 0:30Speaker 1: wheel of everything you're doing, and I'm happy to be
- 0:31Speaker 1: a part of it to spread the word. And I
- 0:33Speaker 1: got to ask you at least start off by pointing
- 0:36Speaker 1: out and everyone gets caught in the right of saying,
- 0:40Speaker 1: you're going to celebrate the fourth You're going to celebrate
- 0:42Speaker 1: you know, you're celebrating Independence Day. It just happened to
- 0:45Speaker 1: fall on the fourth of July. So I had a
- 0:48Speaker 1: friend of mine tell me that a long time ago,
- 0:49Speaker 1: what are you do for the fourth? What are you
- 0:51Speaker 1: going to do for Independence Day? So I try to,
- 0:53Speaker 1: you know, stick to that mantra. Yeah, it's Independence Day,
- 0:56Speaker 1: we're celebrating.
- 0:57Speaker 2: It is it's but yeah, can you understand about the
- 1:01Speaker 2: July fourth? In an essense, it's I'm divorcing you, Britain
- 1:05Speaker 2: announced on July fourth. Yeah, divorce wasn't finalized until seventy eight. Nonetheless, right, divorces,
- 1:14Speaker 2: can't they We celebrate it even took us two years
- 1:18Speaker 2: to divorce. There you go.
- 1:19Speaker 1: I got a lot of friends that would have loved
- 1:21Speaker 1: it to only have been two years. These things get
- 1:23Speaker 1: drug on. Yeah, yeah, my ex you fired her attorney
- 1:28Speaker 1: for the fourth time. You're going to start all over again.
- 1:31Speaker 1: I know that routine. So you're around the veterans all
- 1:33Speaker 1: the time, how do you what are they saying about
- 1:35Speaker 1: the you know, the excited about the two hundred and
- 1:37Speaker 1: fiftieth anniversary of our country? What is the veterans perception
- 1:40Speaker 1: on this upcoming uh celebration?
- 1:43Speaker 2: Absolutely? This is Patriot Day, right, This is the uprising
- 1:47Speaker 2: against the tyranny of another country to start anew and
- 1:50Speaker 2: afresh and to be you know we we I call
- 1:53Speaker 2: it quarter millennium. Everybody calls it two fiftieth or want
- 1:56Speaker 2: to whatever centennial. This is and I'm like, you know what,
- 1:59Speaker 2: it's just it's a quarter millennium. It's pretty fascinating. We've
- 2:03Speaker 2: made it to two fifty, where a lot of the
- 2:05Speaker 2: world governments in history have failed by now, oh clearly right.
- 2:09Speaker 2: So it's really one as veterans to know the cost
- 2:13Speaker 2: that's been spent both in lives finances by a republic
- 2:20Speaker 2: who has said we will secure our shores and we
- 2:23Speaker 2: will secure our allies. It means a lot to the
- 2:26Speaker 2: veterans that are out there across the United States.
- 2:29Speaker 1: Well, and I think it's truly important for all of
- 2:32Speaker 1: us to celebrate the veterans while we are celebrating Independence Day,
- 2:35Speaker 1: because let's face it.
- 2:36Speaker 2: Without them, we wouldn't be independent.
- 2:39Speaker 1: We wouldn't be independent, no were to start all the
- 2:41Speaker 1: way through modern times. We'll bring back Steve Bells that
- 2:44Speaker 1: to talk a little bit more about that at some
- 2:46Speaker 1: of the downsides about things that veterans go through and
- 2:49Speaker 1: what the Klaarmic County Veterans Service Commission is doing for
- 2:51Speaker 1: those veterans stick ground. I want to mention again, but
- 2:54Speaker 1: Herbert Motors they are the best when it comes to
- 2:56Speaker 1: lawn equipment, both commercial and rate.
- 2:58Speaker 2: Talk Station.
- 3:01Speaker 1: Fifty five krc DE talk station Happy Wednesday went off
- 3:05Speaker 1: on a tangent there over the break with Steve Bulls
- 3:07Speaker 1: on the crew for they haven't County Veterans Services hit
- 3:09Speaker 1: it up on a conversation about Pastrami. Anyway, let us
- 3:12Speaker 1: pivot over. It's Independence Day coming up, America's two hundred
- 3:15Speaker 1: and fiftieth birthday. And yet some of the veterans out there, Steve,
- 3:19Speaker 1: and this is what we want to pivot over, to
- 3:20Speaker 1: have kind of lost their independence. They are sure struggling with,
- 3:23Speaker 1: you know, post traumatic stress and other issues injuries from
- 3:26Speaker 1: war and combat. It's a real tragedy to have to
- 3:29Speaker 1: deal with because we want to be in a celebratory mood,
- 3:31Speaker 1: but we have to recognize that these problems do exist.
- 3:34Speaker 2: Correct, correct, Yeah, internal and external. Right, we're talking mental health,
- 3:38Speaker 2: We're talking physical health. We're talking mobility issues. And both
- 3:43Speaker 2: of those health issues, either internal external can pen a
- 3:47Speaker 2: member down. And one of the things that is so
- 3:51Speaker 2: resilient in any of our services are the intangible qualities
- 3:55Speaker 2: of our service members self confidence, self reliance, unselfishness, yes, knowledge, loyalty, enthusiasm, endurance. Right,
- 4:03Speaker 2: and so we so are positioned, infused that we become
- 4:10Speaker 2: that individual because those are our mantras, right, those are
- 4:14Speaker 2: the very principles that define us, that help us move
- 4:17Speaker 2: forward and battle that when we come home and we've
- 4:20Speaker 2: left the security of our family within the fence line
- 4:23Speaker 2: of the base, and we're injured, And how do I
- 4:27Speaker 2: find this fix that I need so that I can
- 4:31Speaker 2: become self reliant, self confidence? Where is my motivation again,
- 4:36Speaker 2: because I've got to get away from this fact that
- 4:39Speaker 2: I am injured in some fashion, but yet I will
- 4:43Speaker 2: rise and live the day because it's a glorious day.
- 4:46Speaker 1: Well, how does the Clemont County Veteran Services help the
- 4:48Speaker 1: veterans get back and regain their independence, notwithstanding the fact
- 4:51Speaker 1: that some of them have permanent injuries.
- 4:53Speaker 2: Sure, that's a great question. There's a couple of different
- 4:56Speaker 2: ways in which we assist veterans in Clermont County. First
- 5:00Speaker 2: of all, transportation to and from the VA and so
- 5:04Speaker 2: in order we have heard for years the VA's backlogged
- 5:06Speaker 2: by years. It's going to take so long. And so
- 5:09Speaker 2: Johnny's at home and he's suffering these injuries and it's
- 5:11Speaker 2: not been validated by the VA, and you're waiting for
- 5:14Speaker 2: your case to go through to be adjudicated approved, or
- 5:17Speaker 2: I've got to go to one appeals process. The VA
- 5:21Speaker 2: has eliminated the back law right by hiring third party
- 5:25Speaker 2: physicians or doctors out there within the community, not just
- 5:28Speaker 2: a community. It could be a great range, so the
- 5:32Speaker 2: cost on the veteran to get themselves there. We've put
- 5:35Speaker 2: up a transportation that's expected of us by the High
- 5:38Speaker 2: Revice Code doesn't say how, but that will transport, So
- 5:41Speaker 2: we transport veterans from their door to their doctor's appointment
- 5:45Speaker 2: that's been scheduled by the VA. There's also another way
- 5:48Speaker 2: in which veterans are really under the shackles of life,
- 5:52Speaker 2: and that's financial assistance. Inside the fence line of a base,
- 5:57Speaker 2: we have programs for financial assasstance for large families or
- 6:01Speaker 2: for those who have life issues, and we call those
- 6:04Speaker 2: relief funds, and each branch has their name of the
- 6:07Speaker 2: Army Relief Fund, the Navy and Marine Corpslief Fund. Back home,
- 6:10Speaker 2: there is no relief fund except all your county offices
- 6:15Speaker 2: have Immediate Emergency Assistance, which is a relief fund. So
- 6:20Speaker 2: if they're needing that assistance, sort of help them up,
- 6:23Speaker 2: shore them up for a short time. It's not a
- 6:26Speaker 2: welfare program, it's not repetitive month to month, but it's
- 6:29Speaker 2: just I can't get over this insurmountable wall without an assistance.
- 6:34Speaker 2: And it's what we're used to. That's how we go
- 6:36Speaker 2: through obstacle courses. It's look behind you and grab somebody up.
- 6:39Speaker 2: It's the same way here, and this is how we
- 6:42Speaker 2: engage with our veteran community to move them up and
- 6:45Speaker 2: over an insurmountable wall.
- 6:48Speaker 1: And that's beautiful. It just parenthetically reminds me what the
- 6:51Speaker 1: help squad on the West Side does. It's not they
- 6:53Speaker 1: provide that short term financial assistance. Like for example, a
- 6:57Speaker 1: working woman her car break down, she can't go to work, right,
- 7:02Speaker 1: they fix the car. She can then go to work,
- 7:05Speaker 1: one time fix, one time cash infusion. This is a
- 7:08Speaker 1: permanent thing. But that sounds me very much like what
- 7:10Speaker 1: the Clearmoric County very much.
- 7:11Speaker 2: She's doing very much. Absolutely, pin you up, move you
- 7:14Speaker 2: up so that you can go forward and do all right.
- 7:17Speaker 1: So a message to those veterans in the and I
- 7:19Speaker 1: know a lot of veterans, they're they're tough, they're strong.
- 7:22Speaker 1: I'm not. I don't need any damn help. I don't
- 7:24Speaker 1: need any assistance. I don't need to see a shrink.
- 7:27Speaker 1: They have that you know that they can handle their
- 7:31Speaker 1: own issues kind of thing, and we all know that
- 7:33Speaker 1: that's not necessarily the case. So what do you have
- 7:35Speaker 1: a message or or or a message you can provide
- 7:38Speaker 1: or a word you can give out to those veterans
- 7:40Speaker 1: who might be struggling but haven't yet reached out to
- 7:42Speaker 1: the climate.
- 7:42Speaker 2: Kind of you know, reaching out for help is not
- 7:45Speaker 2: a weakness, No, it's not. And many see it that
- 7:47Speaker 2: I am so reliant, I am self confident, especially our
- 7:52Speaker 2: older veterans that come from the depression era spheres right,
- 7:57Speaker 2: So parents, grandparents, great grandparents. It is part of the
- 8:00Speaker 2: DNA of the family set that we don't ask for help.
- 8:03Speaker 1: They view it as charity, right, and they're too proud
- 8:07Speaker 1: to accept charity. But this is not charity.
- 8:09Speaker 2: And yet, Brian, if they're on active duty and they
- 8:12Speaker 2: came and said, hey, sarm belso I didn't get paid,
- 8:15Speaker 2: Well I'm going to take them up to admin and
- 8:17Speaker 2: I'm going to ensure they get paid. Or hey, we're
- 8:19Speaker 2: having this issue in base housing, right, So they're used
- 8:22Speaker 2: to bringing issues to the command element to get it resolved.
- 8:25Speaker 2: View it in the same light. For those veterans who
- 8:27Speaker 2: say I'm not going to get hearing aids because there's
- 8:29Speaker 2: somebody behind me that might need them more, well, the
- 8:32Speaker 2: VA is only going to get more money if you
- 8:33Speaker 2: exhaust their hearing aids. So go get your hearing aids,
- 8:35Speaker 2: so then ten more can get them next year. If
- 8:37Speaker 2: you think that's the issue, but it's not, it's.
- 8:40Speaker 1: Not all right, how about a couple of our a
- 8:42Speaker 1: handful of Independence Day celebrations. Because you're involved and you
- 8:46Speaker 1: have so many opportunities being the head of the Climate
- 8:49Speaker 1: County or the executive director of the Climate County Veteran Services.
- 8:52Speaker 1: I'm sure you're in high demand for speeches at events
- 8:55Speaker 1: and things, but I know you had a list of
- 8:56Speaker 1: a few events you want to let the listening audience
- 8:58Speaker 1: and the veterans know about.
- 9:00Speaker 2: Oh yeah, yeah, there's I always have a chance to babble,
- 9:02Speaker 2: So I appreciate you keeping me within the the railroad
- 9:06Speaker 2: lines of Okay, Steve, we're gonna stay over here. Batavia,
- 9:09Speaker 2: July second, Starting about noon, they are closing off Main
- 9:15Speaker 2: Street and then from six to ten pm. Is all
- 9:18Speaker 2: the goodness of a fourth of July Independence Day celebration
- 9:23Speaker 2: with food trucks and musicians and I think fireworks later
- 9:27Speaker 2: on that evening. Oh yeah, July third and fourth, New
- 9:31Speaker 2: Richmond is just taking this thing to the wall. They
- 9:35Speaker 2: are having a matter of fact, a golf cart parade.
- 9:37Speaker 2: Have you ever hear such? Right?
- 9:40Speaker 1: I guess the the tractors something that would come from
- 9:42Speaker 1: a Florida retirement.
- 9:46Speaker 2: Well, that's when they're looking for Aunt Sally's teeth. They
- 9:48Speaker 2: all go out and deploy. However, in New Richmond from
- 9:51Speaker 2: four to eleven on the third, they're having a parade,
- 9:54Speaker 2: scavenger haunts tournaments, and then on the fourth they also
- 9:57Speaker 2: have a very large ross fireworks fireworks demonstration going on
- 10:03Speaker 2: from ten to eleven thirty.
- 10:04Speaker 1: So in addition, in addition to quote unquote much more,
- 10:08Speaker 1: also the legendary cardboard box races that ought to be
- 10:12Speaker 1: something to see.
- 10:12Speaker 2: It's gotta be right, that's just as good as the
- 10:17Speaker 2: red bull flying into the river event.
- 10:20Speaker 1: All right, well that's a bold statement. Steve Blsa from
- 10:22Speaker 1: the Comic County Veterans Services, real quick the website so
- 10:24Speaker 1: my veteran friends can get in touch with you and
- 10:26Speaker 1: your office.
- 10:27Speaker 2: Claremont County veterans dot Com.
- 10:29Speaker 1: Hit us up, get some help, folks. It's okay, it's
- 10:31Speaker 1: not charity, it's assistance and let's face it, your service
- 10:34Speaker 1: to our country earned you these benefits. Make sure you
- 10:37Speaker 1: sign up for your absolutely benefits as well, and Klaarmak
- 10:39Speaker 1: County Veteran Services can help you with that. Coming up
- 10:41Speaker 1: off top of the Iron News, J six Canada for
- 10:44Speaker 1: Congress in Florida's nineteenth and author John Strand with his
- 10:47Speaker 1: book