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Tracers Rounds with AMVETS Post Cdr Tony Goodesmith · Military Broadcast Radio | MBR Talk

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MBR giving veterans a voice. And welcome back to Teresa
1:16
Rounds. And we're on military broadcast
1:17
radio where we're giving veterans a voice.
1:19
And tonight's voice is to ambeds post Commander of Post 12, Tony
1:24
Goodsmith. Welcome, Tony.
1:27
Thank you for having me, Terry. So excited for you to be here.
1:31
Yeah. Happy Tuesday.
1:32
So we know you're a veteran as well as being the post
1:36
commander. Can you tell us a little bit
1:37
about your military service, what branch and maybe how many
1:41
years and some of your highlights of your career?
1:44
Well, I'm in the the original branch U.S.
1:49
Army. Go Army.
1:51
Go Army. Yeah.
1:53
And I was enticed to go into the military by my father.
2:01
You know, he's a immigrant. I'm a son of an immigrant
2:07
Jamaican father and and American mother.
2:12
I said tell everybody I'm half coconut and I'm half Peach.
2:16
But the coconut part of me wanted me to to join the
2:21
Marines. I said, well, I don't know if
2:23
I'm ready for the Marines yet. But you know, he said, just why
2:27
don't you try the Army? You know, go in the Army and
2:30
stay there for 20 years and become a general.
2:33
So I did that. I didn't become a general.
2:36
I didn't stay for quite 20 years.
2:38
I did 19 years and six months and worked my way up from
2:45
Regular Army to the Army Reserves, served in the the New
2:50
York 99 Signal Battalion. And then I also went over, took
2:56
a break, and then went over to the National Guard, the New
2:59
Jersey National Guard, where I started out, enlisted, and then
3:04
I went into office of Kennedy School there and then got out in
3:09
2002, started when I was about 17 years old, right after high
3:16
school. And my mother weepingly had to
3:21
sign me over to Uncle Sam. So I did learn a lot when I was
3:27
in boot camp. And then after AIT and Signal
3:31
School went overseas to to Germany and did my first tour
3:36
there and got to see a whole lot of from a different perspective,
3:42
you know, from a young kids coming from the city of New
3:45
York. It was a very, very eye opening
3:48
experience. Yeah, I can only imagine.
3:51
Germany is a good first assignment, first of all.
3:54
I mean, I was in Germany too, and I really loved it.
3:56
It's beautiful countryside and the people are genuinely very
4:00
friendly and nice, especially the older ones that remember
4:04
World War 2 and remember, you know what, what America did back
4:08
in the day for them, the younger ones, and maybe they're a little
4:11
more removed from that experience unless they have
4:15
family that, you know, talks about it often.
4:17
But it definitely was a great assignment.
4:20
And it is very eye opening because it's very different from
4:22
the US. You know, it's they, they move
4:27
slow, but fast all at the same time.
4:28
And when you come back from Germany, it seems like people
4:32
move really slowly. It's like around here, it's like
4:35
what it why is everyone so slow? We've got things to do.
4:37
It's like when you're active duty military and you're in that
4:41
environment where everything is, you know, move professionally,
4:44
move quickly, you know, keep keep the mission going and then
4:47
you come back and it's pretty seems like slow paced.
4:50
You're just not ready for it. Yeah, I said, what's wrong with
4:53
these people? They're just moving like they
4:55
got the rigor mortars. Right.
4:58
Like they've got nowhere to go and nothing to.
4:59
Do yeah, The first word that I I learned in Germany was schnell,
5:04
Schnell. But that means fast move fast.
5:06
That's right, let's go. And then even driving on the
5:10
Autobahn, you just love it because there's no speed limit
5:14
and you can drive as fast as you, you, you're capable, but
5:19
come back to the US and you definitely will rack up some
5:22
speeding tickets. So I, I learned quickly not to
5:27
change my my need for speed, but it was a great experience.
5:34
Also, I got a chance to go behind the the Iron Curtain when
5:38
I was stationed in Reese concern in Augsburg, Our first Sergeant
5:44
picked me for a special mission, quote UN quote, to go to East
5:49
Berlin. And so I took a train overnight
5:54
to, over to East Berlin at Checkpoint Charlie, which was,
5:58
was absolutely eye opening because you, you're, you're
6:02
going through, there are two different worlds where one is
6:05
free and one is not free, especially in the 80s.
6:08
And you, you can see the stark differences when you, you
6:13
crossover to Checkpoint Charlie into East Berlin and you see the
6:18
meager, meager existence of the, of the people there.
6:21
And they don't have all the choices of food groups and
6:25
molding and cars. And they're like living in the
6:29
the 1940s or 30s, you know, versus we were in the 80s.
6:33
So that was very much a a eye opening experience to show me
6:38
that freedom is really not free. Right.
6:43
Yeah, there's a there's a price to be paid one way or another
6:45
for that freedom. Yeah, I was over there in the
6:48
80s as well. And I was a dependent at the
6:51
time, but I was over there and we took a tour over to the
6:54
Berlin Wall as well. And so the guy that took us, he
6:58
had a pistol on his side and he said, and he said, see that guy
7:02
over there in that building right across the the the wall?
7:06
He said he's over there, you know, just taking note of who's
7:10
all here and looking if there's any dignitaries, any of that.
7:13
And he said, and he's telling people on his side that the
7:16
reason that I have a gun is because we need to keep you from
7:19
going over to the other side because everyone wants to come.
7:22
And I was like, OK, that's interesting.
7:25
You know, way to spin that is that he's trying to keep us at
7:28
Bay because we're we're really wanting to go over there really
7:31
badly. And I was.
7:35
Like, yeah, OK, yeah, well, I saw the I saw the East German
7:38
guards actually goose stepping like you see in the movies.
7:42
And I said, wow, this is this is real.
7:47
And those guys weren't playing, but it was, like I said, it was
7:53
to see it up front and close and not just watching in a black and
8:00
white movie. It was something that you can
8:04
really appreciate. Yeah, definitely.
8:07
It's very eye opening. So we were talking a little bit
8:10
before the show and I asked you which you preferred, active duty
8:14
Army component or the reserves or National Guard, and you said
8:19
that you preferred the active duty Army versus Reserves.
8:23
Why did you say that? Because the active duty is
8:28
really like varsity football or baseball.
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If you just to connect it to sports, you know, no, no, I
8:44
don't want to judge the, the, the reserves or the national
8:47
card, but the active duty is really like the major leagues.
8:52
It's like varsity playing on the varsity team versus second
8:57
string or I would say a minor league team.
9:03
So having to having that experience first hand as a young
9:09
tender soldier, there's nothing better.
9:13
The training is, is top notch. The, the exposure to different
9:20
countries, the different personnel is, is elite to say
9:29
the most. So I think anybody who has
9:32
served in active duty would probably have the same feeling
9:36
that when you are on active duty, it's, you know, it's
9:39
really the real deal because you are really prepared, you know,
9:44
for the fight. If, if there has to be the call,
9:48
you are definitely trained and ready to go.
9:51
So yeah, I would say my active duty experience was the best out
9:58
of the three. And what do you think it taught
10:01
you that being military service in general?
10:04
What do you think your biggest take away was from that time?
10:08
Absolutely, without a doubt. It's the discipline that you
10:13
have to, to have to be on active duty because you know without
10:19
that discipline lives could be lost, your life or your buddy's
10:26
life. So you have to be on point and
10:29
you have to be pretty much serious and take your job very
10:37
seriously and, and the commitment to be, you know, a
10:41
soldier, sailor, airman or Marine.
10:45
And I, I do see that with a lot of my comrades.
10:48
We're a little bit different than civilians in that in that
10:53
respect that our mission and we take very seriously because our
10:59
lives and our compatriots lives depend on us being the best that
11:06
we can possibly be at her job. Yeah, that's true.
11:09
I agree with that, definitely. So after you got out of the
11:13
military and then transitioned to civilian work, what did you
11:17
do? What was your next role?
11:20
Well, I went back to, I went to college.
11:24
I was in college while I was in the service in in the Army.
11:29
Big Bend Community College is kind of like UMGC, but I got out
11:38
in the 86 and then I went into the Army Reserve and then I went
11:43
to another Community College and then worked my way up to Long
11:47
Island University where I studied the marketing and I
11:51
studied also legal studies. So did that for about four years
11:59
and got my bachelor's degree in marketing.
12:02
And then after that I went to get my social's degree in
12:07
paralegal studies. And then after that I went
12:12
joined the the New Jersey National Guard and met the love
12:15
of my life in New York and moved it back to New Jersey.
12:18
And she, she didn't like going back to New Jersey, but that's
12:22
where I bought my first home in, in the in the mid 90s.
12:26
And we met in the Bronx, of all places, S Bronx.
12:31
And she was a young college student herself.
12:38
And we met at a real estate office where she worked.
12:43
I was also, you know, being a, a crazy entrepreneur.
12:48
I had so many different jobs. People say, I mean, you, you
12:51
really a Jamaican? You got 16 jobs.
12:53
I said, yeah, it's my father's fault.
12:57
He said, if you have one job, you're a lazy lime of bean.
12:59
You got to have at least 16 jobs, man.
13:02
So I was a real estate broker. I was a mortgage broker.
13:07
I was a, yeah, pharmaceutical sales salesman.
13:13
And so when I met my lovely bride, she said I really would
13:20
love to meet a guy who speaks different languages.
13:24
So she studied over in Germany as well.
13:28
So she couldn't believe that she would meet a man that spoke
13:34
German. So that was like, that was
13:39
probably a deal, not a deal breaker, but a deal maker for
13:43
her. And so we got together and we've
13:48
been together, married for the last 26 years.
13:53
That's awesome. Yeah.
13:55
It's a legacy for sure. Yes.
13:59
So what led you to Ambitz? And can you tell us a little bit
14:02
more about what Ambits are for Ambitz is for people that maybe
14:06
aren't familiar with the organization?
14:08
I mean, obviously it's about veterans, but can you really
14:11
tell us how it came to be and then what the mission set is of
14:15
Ambitz? Well, it's pretty much like the
14:22
other Bsos out there. You heard of Veterans of Foreign
14:27
Wars, VFW's, you heard of DAV, Disabled American Veterans and
14:37
you heard of, of course, American Legion.
14:39
But AMVETS is a little different because it encapsulates all of
14:47
the, the veteran groups and, and different branches, Army, Navy,
14:52
Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard and even Space Force.
14:56
We take all the veterans that have served into our, our
15:02
family, if you will. If you look at DAV, they just
15:10
primarily focus on the disabilities of veterans.
15:14
VFW, they look at veterans that have served in foreign wars
15:20
overseas and we kind of like the American Legion.
15:25
They take take all branches too. But our our VSO just celebrated
15:32
its 80th convention. We just had it down in Orlando,
15:36
FL about a week a couple weeks ago.
15:41
And we have been in existence since 1944.
15:45
We been charted by Congress since 1944.
15:52
So if you, you look at the, the AMVETS national website, you'll
15:56
see that Harry Truman, our former president, received the
16:04
silver helmet award from an AMVET.
16:08
So we go way, way, way back. OK, wow, Kennedy as well.
16:14
He's he received he was an AMVET as well.
16:18
OK. Well that's awesome to know then
16:20
a little bit about the history. And so it's pretty much a VSO
16:26
type organization where you're helping veterans learn about
16:30
their benefits and really engage with the different programs that
16:34
are out there for them. Can you tell us a little bit
16:36
about some of the some of the little known benefits that maybe
16:42
somebody would not know about? I mean, obviously, you know
16:45
about filing VA claims, and that process is very tenuous and it's
16:49
difficult sometimes to navigate because you're turned down more
16:52
than you're accepted and you have to keep fighting for a
16:55
little more, a little more. So you get where you think maybe
16:59
I don't know if the word deserved is quite the right
17:02
word, but where you should be in ratings, I guess.
17:06
But what are some of the other benefits that maybe somebody
17:09
doesn't know about besides the claims process?
17:13
Well, once you go through the claims process and you are even
17:20
at 0% disability, once you file a claim, you are connected what
17:26
they call service connected to the VA.
17:28
So you can get the VA hospital services.
17:33
They may be prorated based on your your income, but it's
17:39
really a minimal charge and the VA has great services.
17:46
I've been using the VA since I was separated in the 1980s and I
17:54
received all types of services from, you know, services for
18:05
dental services for hearing services for, you know, just
18:12
basic checks and vaccinations and you name it.
18:16
It's, it's 100% full service. And, and the, the staff is
18:22
unbelievable. They really do bend over
18:25
backwards to help veterans. So I would I would give it
18:29
pretty much a A rating. And a lot of the people, at
18:35
least around here in the area that I am, I'm in the DFW area,
18:39
a lot of the people that work at the VA are veterans themselves,
18:43
you know, And so they really understand what it's like to be
18:47
on that side too, as a patient. And so they're a little more, I
18:51
guess, passionate about helping you and making sure you have
18:55
what you need because they've stood in those same shoes and
18:59
understand how difficult sometimes that process may be in
19:02
some, in some areas. I mean, other times some of the
19:06
VA clinics and hospitals and whatnot are, you know, very
19:09
accommodating and will help you and are very welcoming.
19:12
I know the, the one here in Fort Worth is you walk in and they're
19:17
ready to help you. You know, they're not trying to,
19:19
you know, push you to the side, they're trying to engage you.
19:22
So I, you know, I'm hopeful that other VAS around the country are
19:25
similar where they're really bringing in the, the veterans
19:29
and really wanting to help. And like you said, I think I
19:31
think VA is getting much, much better.
19:34
Do they have work to do? Yes.
19:36
But does any organization have work to do?
19:38
I would say yes. So I think they're doing what
19:41
they can do with with the guidance they have in place
19:45
right now. I think it could they do more,
19:47
Yeah, they could. But I think we're getting
19:49
better. Yeah, I think we need to also
19:53
probably increase and focus on community care.
19:57
So if some some type of service is not available in the VA
20:02
hospital facility that there are partners, clinical
20:07
HealthPartners outside of the VA and that's where community care
20:10
comes in. So if you.
20:13
Don't have, they don't do, let's say dental implants.
20:18
You can hook up with a community care partner outside of the VA
20:23
and get your your dental implants done.
20:26
So I think that's something that is available, but we need to
20:31
also work on the VA increasing that community care reach for
20:37
every veteran. Yes, I think so too.
20:39
I think that would alleviate some of the backlog and care
20:42
because you know, sometimes an appointment is a month or two
20:46
out and it and it should be a little more timely based on what
20:50
what it is. It's not like a routine check.
20:52
It's something that needs to get treated and it's still like
20:55
you're going to be two or three or four, maybe six weeks out.
20:59
So in that case, I think like you said, it should be where you
21:02
could go to a civilian Dr. and still seek care and get in
21:07
probably a lot faster than you would at the VA.
21:10
So I think that should obviously be an option as well as getting
21:13
treated at the VAI. Totally agree with that.
21:16
Right. And also like the opportunity
21:19
that the VA is, is offering veterans that, you know, are
21:23
suffering from, let's see, PTSD or mental illness, they're
21:30
looking at other alternatives other than just straight
21:36
pharmaceuticals or angiolytics or any depressants.
21:40
And they're looking into natural alternatives like I believe it
21:47
is cycles, cycles, I forgot the name of it, but it's has to do
21:55
with a more of a natural psychedelic, natural medicine
22:04
medicine rather than just the the medicine that has been used
22:10
for a long term of time that has side effects.
22:14
And a lot of veterans really seem not to do well on.
22:20
But it's good to have other choices.
22:22
Natural choices. Yes, I, I think because, I mean,
22:27
when it comes to somebody having PTSD, one solution doesn't fit
22:32
every soldier or, or you know, service member that doesn't
22:37
treat them all because maybe it's totally different what they
22:40
need, their needs aren't the same.
22:41
So what once it's not a one-size-fits-all solution, it
22:45
should be that you're looking at the individual and what their
22:48
needs are versus OK, globally, we just give them meds and, and
22:52
everyone's good. And so it should be you're
22:54
looking at the person versus you're looking at what the
22:57
diagnosis. Is right?
23:00
Definitely. So when you walk into an AMVETS
23:05
and you you join or you're, you're just coming in for
23:08
services and and filing a claim, what does that look like?
23:12
How easy is that? Is that just as simple as I go
23:15
in and I say I'm looking to file a claim I think I have?
23:21
Maybe I have PTSD or maybe I have some hearing loss or maybe
23:25
I have sleep apnea which is maybe a byproduct of PTSD.
23:29
What is the process look like when you go into an Ambitz
23:32
organization and set your claim into motion?
23:37
Well, Terry, I'm glad you asked because we have a our benefits
23:42
officer as our second Vice commander, Steve.
23:47
He's dedicated to that. So we have a veterans claims
23:53
clinic every Wednesday at our office here in Rockville, MD.
23:58
And he goes over the full gamut of, of questions as an intake
24:03
person to ask all the questions that are are necessary to start
24:08
your claim to find out, you know, what are your ailments,
24:12
what have you suffered during your time in the service and
24:19
also how you can receive the benefits that you've earned
24:26
through the disability ratings chart.
24:28
So I think I had a, a sheet right here that shows all of the
24:34
different, different ratings here.
24:37
So this is exactly what we usually ask these questions
24:42
right here. So how VA disability ratings
24:46
work is that you come in at 0%, so 10 point of federal hiring
24:55
preference, which like I mentioned before, even at 0% you
25:02
still are eligible for healthcare prescriptions for
25:05
service connected conditions, whether that be tinnitus,
25:09
hearing loss, sleep apnea, PTSD, any of the respiratory problems
25:18
that that have occurred from burn pits or being exposed to
25:23
toxic exposure during your service, you would get that.
25:29
And also you would also have even at 0% you would have travel
25:33
allowance for all your VA appointments.
25:37
So from 10 to 20% disability ratings you would be eligible
25:45
for a home loan funding fee waiver.
25:49
Also burial and plot allowance 10 point federal hiring
25:53
preference and veteran readiness and employment may apply.
25:59
So at 30 to 40% direct hire to authority may apply additional
26:05
compensation and and you're eligible for dependence and
26:11
commissary and exchange privileges.
26:14
So at 50%, there's no cost to healthcare and prescription
26:18
medications, additional dependent compensation, travel
26:22
allowance to all your VA appointments again.
26:25
And then from 60 to 90%, you may qualify for individual
26:31
unemployability, possible dependent education and health
26:34
benefits. In some cases, concurrent
26:40
receipt of retirement pay may apply.
26:44
So at 100%, there's no cost to dental care.
26:50
As I mentioned before, dependence on educational
26:54
assistance may apply. CHAMP VA may apply in qualifying
26:59
permanent cases, and you also receive a uniformed services ID
27:05
card, which will get you onto most of the military bases, you
27:11
know, around the United States and around the world.
27:13
So these benefits are really earned by each and every
27:20
veteran. And it just hurts my heart that
27:24
there's a lot of veterans out there that don't know about it.
27:27
They leave this information, which is goal, on the table.
27:30
So it is my job really day in and day out as a post commander
27:35
to get this information out to every veteran that I I touch and
27:40
see. Well, we definitely appreciate
27:44
that because I know that there's a lot of organizations out there
27:46
that want to charge to do that and then they recoup some of
27:51
what the veterans earned, which you know, that's not the best
27:54
way to get your claim enter. It is paying someone else like
27:58
that to do your claim and to, you know, assist with that.
28:02
You know, there should be an organization like yours or
28:05
others or VS OS in other states if there's not an and that's in
28:09
your state to help with that process and so you're not having
28:12
to pay a third party to work that claim for you.
28:16
Exactly. And that is actually it should
28:21
be illegal for, you know, it's because we have VS OS like ours
28:25
that don't charge a dime. And you know, we do it freely
28:30
because it's like you said, it's veterans helping veterans and
28:35
that's our credo. Yeah.
28:37
And I love that because we were talking a little bit before the
28:39
show to saying veterans do need to help one another, not put
28:43
obstacles in the way. And so if an obstacle is like,
28:46
well, you pay me first and then I'll help you, that's an
28:49
obstacle because a lot of veterans don't have the
28:52
resourcing behind that. And so then they're trying to
28:55
guarantee if we get a claim that's filed, then that person's
29:00
going to get some of that money and that's how they're going to
29:02
pay that person versus I have the money on the front end to to
29:05
pay you for services. But they shouldn't have to give
29:08
up any of their money at all to get that claim filed and to be
29:12
considered for a rating. It just doesn't make any sense
29:16
to me. So we were talking a little bit
29:20
before the show too, about the Richard Starr Act and about some
29:23
other legislation that's getting ready to pass.
29:25
Can you tell us a little bit more about that and about how
29:28
it's going to impact veterans going forward?
29:32
Yes, we have a very busy legislative year behind us and
29:40
we're getting ready to start a a new fiscal year, actually today,
29:44
September 1. And a lot of the legislative
29:48
priorities like the Richer STAR Act is on our agenda, which is
29:56
coupled with the Take Care of America's Act, which has a lot
30:01
of these different bills all gobbled up together.
30:05
So I think it's about maybe about 30 different legislative
30:11
bills that have all been packaged together into what we
30:15
call Takava or Take Care of America's Veterans Act.
30:19
And the Richard Starr Act is one of them, which basically has
30:26
been on the books and has been stalled in Congress for for
30:31
years now. And it basically is like if a
30:34
veteran like myself has retired, medically retired, didn't do a
30:41
full 20 years, but did let's say 19 years, six months, just like
30:48
Major Richard Starr, they won't be eligible for full retirement.
30:54
If they're getting disability, that disability stands by
30:58
itself, but the retirement is separate and they don't get the
31:03
same retirement as a government employee would get for 20 years
31:07
of service. Actually, they would get maybe I
31:10
would think about 50% of their their earnings, their, their
31:15
annual earnings. So the Richard Starr Act wants
31:18
to really change that. So veterans will receive their
31:22
full retirement and their disability will not be impacted
31:28
as well. So we've worked very hard on the
31:34
Hill in the last legislative session and we'll be back on the
31:41
Hill if it doesn't pass. But I'm, I'm hoping and praying
31:46
that the Take Care of America's Veterans Act will pass.
31:52
I think it has passed in the House.
31:55
We're waiting for the Senate to vote on it and that will affect
31:59
32,000,000 veterans. So we really are hoping and
32:07
praying that it does pass the House of sending the president
32:11
to sign it into law. Yes, definitely.
32:15
We're, we've been waiting on some of that legislation, like
32:18
you said, far too long. It's just been stalled for one
32:21
reason or another. But it just needs to happen.
32:24
People need to step up and start taking care of America's heroes,
32:29
you know, because we took care of the nation.
32:31
So now the shoes on the other foot, take care of the soldier
32:34
or the Airman or the Marine or, you know, sailor, whoever,
32:39
whoever is applying for their benefits, they should get them
32:41
and they should get them, like you said, if they're military,
32:45
if they're if they retired prior to getting their 20 for whatever
32:50
reason, because their medical retirement, then they should
32:52
still get a retirement because they didn't intend to end their
32:55
service early. It was, you know, there was
32:57
something that caused the career to end early.
33:01
So I don't think they should be penalized for that.
33:03
And I think they should get both.
33:05
I don't see a reason why they shouldn't.
33:08
Absolutely. Yeah.
33:09
And some veteran groups are against passing the Take Care of
33:16
American Veterans Act because they said it downgrades, you
33:21
know, 2 disabilities, tinnitus and sleep apnea.
33:26
But I think the only reason why they're against it and that, you
33:32
know, I don't want to speak for them, but this is what I've
33:34
heard in the veteran community is because in their constitution
33:37
and bylaws, if there's any downgrade in benefits, they have
33:44
to be against it. So I, I, I understand that, but
33:50
as I mentioned to you before, Terry, is that we should not let
33:54
the perfect be the, the enemy of the good and the good would be
34:01
32,000,000 veterans receiving all of these great benefits from
34:10
a myriad of these bills that have been held up in Congress
34:14
for years, like the Richard Starr Act, the the love love
34:20
act. Was it Lib love act that even if
34:26
you got a widow or you know a spouse who you know, God forbid,
34:33
and this has happened, the the veteran has, you know, died in
34:37
in combat or gave the ultimate sacrifice, that widow cannot
34:44
remarry until she's 55 years of age.
34:51
Yeah, that's, that's different. I understand some of that like,
34:57
you know, maybe maybe they weren't on good terms when the
35:02
veteran passed. And so maybe they're thinking,
35:04
oh, she was just waiting for him to pass so that she can move on
35:08
as now she's remarried within a year or two.
35:12
And or he in that case, because it could be a, a male as well.
35:16
But I think at some point you just have to say, OK, you know,
35:20
if it's if it's five years down the road, that's enough time or
35:24
four years down the road or even 3 years down the road.
35:27
I mean, I get immediate like getting remarried into a new
35:30
relationship and then maybe you don't get the benefits in that
35:32
case. But waiting until a specific
35:35
age. I'm not sure if that's the right
35:36
answer either. I think there's got to be a
35:39
compromise in there somewhere that that they wouldn't lose
35:43
their benefit because they were married to that person for how
35:46
many, how many every years they were they were part of that
35:49
military family and they should be afforded some of those
35:52
benefits as well, since the service members not there to
35:55
collect it should be followed to their beneficiary.
35:59
And so, you know, I think they shouldn't be penalized by age
36:05
for sure. So what all those Amvets do in
36:10
the community, there's some other priorities, I guess that
36:15
the AMVETS does in the community to help veterans as well.
36:20
I know that there's a couple of fundraisers or other things that
36:24
your different posts are involved in.
36:26
Can you tell us about some of the other things that AMVETS
36:28
does besides just the claims process?
36:31
Yes, Terry, we, we have a myriad of resources.
36:35
If you go to our, our website amvetspost12dc.org you can see
36:43
that we have what we call a veteran resource hub tab and it
36:48
shows that we have what we call a never forgotten Fund.
36:52
So that helps veterans who are going through financial
36:57
difficulties, whether or not they, you know, they are, are
37:01
homeless or in between housing, we help them to, to get into
37:07
permanent housing. And we also help veterans with
37:13
short term financial hardships like say if they, they can't pay
37:21
their monthly rent, we have the for never forgotten fund that
37:24
helps alleviate that financial gap.
37:28
If they just go through our website and apply for a, a, what
37:33
we call the NFF fund. We have a a post executive
37:39
committee that looks at each and every case and we approve that
37:45
that veteran for an allotted amount of financial assistance
37:50
and that could be for on a monthly basis or or a one time
37:56
grant for that that particular veteran in need.
38:00
We also have a financial literacy program through our
38:04
partner D5 Tax that helps veterans with filing their
38:11
taxes, learning about, you know, cryptocurrency and also the
38:18
compliance with that with the the IRS and the federal
38:22
government. So we also help with state
38:26
planning. We don't, but our partner Defy
38:29
Tax does. And we also have a partnership
38:32
with Vantage Alliance that helps veterans develop their family
38:41
insurance plan as well as take care of their final expenses
38:47
through IUL planning. Well, that's great to have those
38:51
resources. Do they cost do the tax filing
38:56
and the information there and the state planning, do those
38:59
cost the service member? No, not at all.
39:02
No, those are all free services. And I forgot to mention also
39:06
that we have a partnership with our education partner,
39:12
University of Maryland Global Campus, where we're offering 17
39:17
scholarships, free scholarships to veterans and their caregivers
39:21
as well. Oh wow.
39:24
So do you have to live in that area?
39:26
Is it like an online type thing or it would it be in person?
39:30
Yes, it's on. It's online university actually
39:34
they're, they're very close to our history.
39:39
I think UMUC it was called back in the 1940s and 50s where they
39:47
offered online education for veterans.
39:50
And I'm actually a recipient of a of a master's degree in
39:56
biotechnology management from UMGC and.
40:01
They're in actually in the DMV area.
40:04
They're located right here in Adelphi, MD, but they offer
40:09
courses 300 / 350 courses around the world on three continents.
40:14
So they're in the United States, they're in Asia, they're also in
40:21
in Europe and South America. Oh wow.
40:25
They cried, Yeah, they cried a lot of students.
40:29
Yeah, that sounds like a really great thing to have, you know,
40:34
in your hip pocket if you do need some education or you want
40:37
some additional training on something, so.
40:41
Also on the the alumni board. So just full, just Full
40:45
disclosure, I'm a little biased. I'm a UMUMGC fan.
40:53
Well, I would be too if I had, you know, been able to take
40:56
advantage of that type of thing. That's a really great resource
40:59
for veterans. Yes.
41:01
So when you were talking about those scholarships, do you have
41:04
to live in the DC area or can anybody apply for those?
41:09
You have to live in, yeah, the DC area in Maryland.
41:13
And I believe there's another state, I believe it's Iowa, but
41:19
there's two states that you have to domicile if you want, if you
41:24
want to qualify for the free scholarships.
41:27
But they do have veteran discounted tuition for veterans,
41:34
you know, all across the world. So you can also look at their
41:38
website umgc.edu. You can put that in the
41:44
chatungc.edu. That's one of our hosts that has
41:55
a show on Mondays at 9:00 Eastern.
41:57
The world of conscious positive thinking.
42:01
Cool, I know, positive thinking. Me too.
42:05
I think, I think everybody would benefit from kind of losing
42:09
that, that optimistic approach to everything where well, I'm
42:13
probably, I mean, nothing optimistic is good, but the
42:17
approach with it's half empty or half full.
42:20
You know, if you say, well, it's half full, like I, you know,
42:23
that that's a, a mindset that sells your attitude across the
42:30
day versus it's half empty. I, you know, you do much better
42:34
if you're, if you're on the positive side of that.
42:36
So that's my take on it too, for sure.
42:40
So how does somebody in help do like either volunteer at an
42:47
Ambitz event or how do they enroll or register to be a
42:52
member? They just go to the website.
42:54
Do they go to a local office? What's the process that somebody
42:57
could take if they want to be part of that or your
43:00
organization? They can do both, Terry.
43:02
They can go to our website, whichisambitzpost12dc.org or
43:09
they can come by office, which is located in the Washington, DC
43:15
area in Rockville, 1700 Rockville Pike Executive Suite
43:21
400. And we were glad to to serve
43:25
them with our Marriott of services.
43:28
And also we have sponsor every year of rolling to remember here
43:35
right here in the nation's capital.
43:38
And we're starting a new adaptive sports program through
43:44
I saw on our website thetirebootcamp.org.
43:51
You can look take a look at our website and that is free
43:55
adaptive training for all veterans and it comes with an
44:00
app. So you don't have to be here in
44:04
Maryland or even Hawaii, but you can do online training with one
44:11
of our Amvets comrades. His name is Coach Alene.
44:15
And he would gladly help you get back into shape.
44:20
And I'm, I'm going to try my best to be disciplined again to,
44:28
to get back into that shape, military shape that I was in
44:32
about 40 years ago. I hear you.
44:36
I've I've tried to make myself commit to that too.
44:39
I'm like, OK, just let's just start with 30 minutes a day
44:42
walking. Let's try that first and I'm
44:44
still struggling to find that 30 minutes.
44:46
I know it's. There just trying to.
44:47
Struggle to to juggle everything else in that too.
44:50
So I get the challenge there. But you know, I think that just
44:55
being in that mindset of I need to be healthy and well will
45:00
serve you well as in your in your life ahead and in
45:04
everything that you do, you know, just trying to get back
45:06
into shape and, and physically be fit, fit to fight, as we say,
45:11
and fit to fight the day. So I think that's a good thing
45:15
to really plug into those types of resources and really get
45:18
yourself in a good place physically, and then the mental
45:21
hopefully follows. Exactly.
45:24
Yeah, the mental follows because, you know, we also have
45:28
fun and we have adaptive rowing. So we made a partnership with a
45:36
company with a organization called the Unity Boat Club.
45:39
So we just get into their boats and a bunch of veterans.
45:45
We row down the Potomac River or the Anacostia River in the area
45:49
here, and it's just a lot of fun.
45:51
It's relaxing, it's peaceful and it really helps, you know, keep
45:56
give you a sense of calm. So we are, we're planning an
46:01
event hopefully late this year and November or early next year,
46:08
it's going to be called instead of we'll have Rowing to
46:12
remember. We're going to add Rowing to
46:14
remember as well, where we have a bunch of veterans, you know,
46:19
wearing their favorite branch Gar, rolling down the Potomac
46:23
River to remember the sacrifices that we all have been through
46:31
as, as veterans. So look out for that.
46:34
That's going to be. Yeah, that's going to be.
46:37
Hopefully, hopefully you'll get some media coverage for that
46:40
because I think that will be a very prominent event and that
46:46
people should really take notice of it.
46:48
So I think that's a really neat idea.
46:50
I love that. So MJ is asking, does it do
46:53
training like Tai chi walking or low impact for handicapped?
46:57
So do on that you, you said on that, that you can log into the
47:04
online portal. Do they do some adaptive type
47:07
sports where it's lower impact? Yes, they do.
47:10
Absolute, absolutely. They have veterans that are
47:15
physically disabled, so they have adaptive different types of
47:21
workouts and calisthetics And Coach Aleem, you can go on the
47:27
on the website tirebootcamp.com and connect with Coach Aleem and
47:33
he will run you through all of the different adaptive creative
47:37
sports programs that we have. That sounds good, she said.
47:41
I find there are quite a few organizations looking for vets
47:44
to get as healthy as basic. Interesting.
47:48
Which one though understands the handicaps are specialized fit
47:52
training. So yeah, I mean there has.
47:55
To be some that entire bootcamp.com, they definitely
47:59
understand that and that's their mission.
48:04
They received a grant from the VA, so they don't charge a a a
48:07
penny for this. And Kochelim is a certified
48:13
trainer and nutritionist and he knows what he's doing.
48:18
I met him out there at our National Convention in Orlando
48:22
and he's a super guy, very nice guy.
48:25
And he's super fit. And you see this guy, he's like
48:30
Adonis. He's chiseled and and jacked up.
48:33
So I was like, man, when I grow up, I want to be like you.
48:37
I want to be the opposite, not grow up.
48:39
I want to go back in time. Right, I hear you.
48:42
Definitely, definitely, she said.
48:47
That is awesome. Please post the link so the link
48:55
to tap into that. Yeah, if you just go to our
48:59
website Ambitz post 12 DC, that's.
49:03
Post 12 DC and what's the rest of it?
49:10
Dot ORG. Dot ORG.
49:13
OK, there we go. I got that in there.
49:20
But you could type much faster than I could.
49:22
Yeah, except for I realized I mistyped the the name of the
49:27
college and I put an extra E on there and I think I had an extra
49:30
keysoitsays.edu with an E, So it doesn't have an E on it.
49:35
Folks, if you're trying to go to ititsumgc.edu with no E, so
49:39
sorry about, sorry about. My fingers weren't working at
49:42
that moment. That's OK.
49:47
Is there anything else you'd like to talk about tonight?
49:49
I know we've talked about a lot of different things.
49:51
Is there something else you'd like to put out to the audience?
49:54
Maybe if there's somebody on the fence about trying something new
49:58
or getting into an organization, What would be your advice?
50:03
Or what else would you like to to put out to our audience
50:06
tonight? I would say that veterans
50:12
understand. Veterans don't go it alone.
50:16
You know, there's resources out there for you.
50:18
There's help if you need it. You know, we serve together in
50:25
the trenches and we are serving together outside of the
50:31
trenches. Like I said earlier, my greatest
50:37
time in the service was active duty service.
50:40
You know, when I first was that that very inquisitive young
50:45
young man, 1718 year old going into the military in the service
50:52
and now as an old salty dog, it's the other flip side of
50:59
that. This is the greatest time for me
51:02
to continue serving in this capacity as a post commander,
51:07
helping my fellow soldier, airman, Marine, Coastie, or you
51:13
know, even I don't know what they call the space people, what
51:15
they call them species. I'm, I'm not sure if they're
51:19
still called Airman or if there's another service term for
51:24
that. I'm not exactly sure.
51:25
I don't know what we've even had any.
51:27
Oh, I know what it's called. Guardians.
51:30
That's it. You're right, Guardians.
51:32
That is so right. I have heard that.
51:34
I just forgot. But I don't even know if we have
51:36
any retirees from the Space Force yet since it's so new, you
51:41
know, unless somebody with a bunch of service transferred
51:43
over and then is retiring. But you know, I don't know if we
51:46
have a lot of ones that would be retiring out as a guardian, Yes,
51:51
so MJ says so the VA to assist, is that by state?
51:56
So yes, that would be by state rank.
51:59
Yes, that's by state. Yeah.
52:02
And I would just say that, you know, get in contact with a VSO
52:08
like Ambitz or you can, if you're in the DMV area, you can
52:13
definitely contact me or any of our post executive committee
52:18
staff members. And we'd be glad to walk you
52:22
through the process of, you know, filing your claim or
52:26
getting any of the, the benefits that you deserve and earn as
52:30
long as you served honorably. DD214 We can help.
52:35
And that's what we do day in and day out is to help veterans.
52:42
And we, like I said, we have fun.
52:43
We have our gala, which is coming up on October the 24th, I
52:49
believe. Yeah, at the, it's called the
52:52
Never Forgotten Fun Gala and Awards Dinner, and that's going
52:57
to be at the Andrews Air Force Base Club, so you can mark your
53:04
calendar for that. Tickets are available online,
53:07
$50 and all the proceeds will go to the Never Forgotten Fund to
53:12
help veterans. So what does the Never Forgotten
53:17
Organization do? Or what does that fund do?
53:20
It helps veterans in need pretty much like a Make a Wish campaign
53:28
or help veterans that are financially hardship or if they
53:34
are, you know, have a a serious commitment financially that they
53:39
cannot meet due to unforeseen circumstances.
53:48
The Unforgotten, the Never Forgotten Fund team steps in and
53:53
helps that that veteran with a financial donation or financial
53:58
grant. And that's why donations are so
54:01
important for our organization. So anybody out there who would
54:06
love to to donate to Amvis, Post 12 DC and the Never Forgotten
54:12
Fund, you could do that on our website as well.
54:16
And so I was just going to ask you, how can civilians and
54:18
community members get involved in?
54:20
So you've just told us they can go and donate in person.
54:24
Can they also help work different events that you host
54:28
or do you need volunteers to come out?
54:31
From the. Community to help with different
54:33
things. Yes, like that, that Rowing to
54:38
remember event that we're going to have in November.
54:42
We do need volunteers for that to help, you know, set up the
54:47
boats and the the rowing veterans and the adaptive rowing
54:54
that we would need assistance in helping those disabled veterans
54:59
to dock into the boats and get out of the boat.
55:02
So the more the merrier. So we all welcome volunteers
55:09
for, you know, for all these different events, Rowing to
55:11
remember and Rowing to remember and Rowing to remember those two
55:16
events which will be happening in November and Memorial Day.
55:22
That sounds great. I'm looking forward to seeing
55:25
something about that. I'm sure there's going to be
55:27
some news that it's going to cover this and really going to
55:30
showcase what you're doing. Because, you know, I think like
55:33
you said, being out on the water for one thing is very peaceful.
55:36
And then working as a team again, because you have to work
55:39
as a team if you're rowing, because if one person is out of
55:42
sync, it messes up everything. So you're really getting into
55:46
working as a together as a team like we used to do and really
55:51
kind of helping us all get to a, a good place.
55:53
And, and, you know, doing that type of work really helps you
55:56
mentally as well. You know, just being active and
55:59
just engaging with other people and being in that mind frame
56:03
that I'm part of a team, I'm part of an organization that's
56:06
making a difference. It really will help your mood
56:09
too and your mindset. I think it really goes a long
56:11
way to healing your soul and healing the person that maybe
56:16
lost something when they came out of the uniform, they they
56:19
couldn't find where they fit anymore.
56:21
They've lost that connectiveness to a group of people that really
56:26
had the same mission and really had the same passion for
56:29
service. And so being part of AMVETS or
56:33
other organizations like that and doing these different events
56:36
is really important I think to overall mental health and
56:40
physical health. Thank you so much, Terry.
56:43
You could be a spokesperson for our rowing event.
56:46
You, you hit it. You hit it right on the on the
56:49
on the nail. Well, I'd love to come.
56:52
I wish I could. That sounds.
56:54
Like. An amazing, you know, amazing
56:55
time and amazing organization that's hosting.
56:58
So yeah, I'm really happy to learn more about Ambits because
57:02
I knew of Ambits, but I'd never really, you know, dug into the
57:07
details. And I'm really glad that you are
57:10
on tonight to give us more information because hopefully
57:12
now you'll get some more new members.
57:15
Absolutely, Yeah. And we're like one of the lowest
57:21
registration membership dues have just increased by $5.00.
57:26
So it's only $35 annually to join AMVETS.
57:31
That's not bad that that's doable.
57:34
Yeah. And look at all the benefits
57:36
veterans receive from that that $35.
57:40
Right, yeah. And they can be helping other
57:42
veterans as well through the organization.
57:45
So not only are you helping yourself, you're helping your
57:47
fellow veteran through maybe some tough times that they're
57:51
going through. So it's a win, win.
57:54
It sure is, yeah. Is there any final thoughts that
57:58
you want to put out before we get off the air?
58:00
We've got like 2 minutes left and so if there's anything else,
58:02
I didn't ask you, anything else you wanted to say, here's your
58:06
few minutes to put that out there.
58:08
Well, thank you so much for having me, Terry.
58:11
This has been a great experience.
58:14
I also wanted to give a shout out to our veteran that we just
58:21
recruited is, is our ambassador and he's 102 years old.
58:27
He's a World War 2 veteran. His name is Doctor R Lester
58:32
Brown, You may have heard of him.
58:35
He served at the 599th Quartermaster Brigade during the
58:41
Battle of the Bulge. And he's a, a recipient of of,
58:48
of a one of, well, not the, the, the award that was given by the
58:53
president of France, Emmanuel Macron, the French American
58:59
Legion award. And he's been to Normandy five
59:02
times. So I'm planning to go to
59:05
Normandy with him next June. I missed last June, but this
59:10
June will be heading on, God, God willing.
59:13
That is a great experience. And he got a standing ovation at
59:18
our at our convention as being the oldest Amvet ever at 102.
59:26
And if he you wouldn't believe it because he has no cane, no
59:31
Walker, wheelchair, I mean, he's a spry healthy 102 year old.
59:39
So we'll have to have him on the show next time.
59:42
Yes, absolutely. That's amazing.
59:44
I, I love that. I'm glad you let us know about
59:47
that. That's exciting.
59:49
Yeah, he's on our website too. If you go to the landing page,
59:52
you'll see a picture of him. All right, we'll have to do
59:55
that. Yeah.
59:57
Definitely. Well, it's been a pleasure
59:58
having you on, Tony. I thank you so much for sharing
1:00:01
your message and sharing the information that you did with us
1:00:03
tonight, and I'm looking forward to seeing more about your rowing
1:00:07
event. Yes, indeed.
1:00:09
We'll definitely keep you posted.
1:00:11
Thank you, Terry. Thank you, this is tracer round
1:00:14
signing off. Hi, I'm beaker with military
1:00:17
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