By Michael Schindler Eighteen veterans a day commit suicide. Unfortunately, this is not “new” news, nor is it encouraging. Despite the increase in education and dollars, some of America’s finest men and women continue to lose hope as well as their sense of purpose and call it quits. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki,…
By Michael Schindler The numbers don’t lie – Post 9-11 veterans have a high unemployment rate compared to their civilian counterparts. Some of that is attributed to employers who are fearful of hiring veterans because of PTSD-related issues. According to a 2011 survey of 831 hiring managers by the Apollo Research Institute, 39 percent of…
By Michael Schindler While Senator Patty Murray works the legislative angle on helping veterans with their housing needs, local agents are also stepping to the plate. Puget Sound veterans and their families have an opportunity to reach for a helping hand with their housing needs, thanks to a new program for all real estate-related services,…
By Elaine Mattson May has arrived! And the lovely weekends are scheduled to continue! Beautiful. The most important thing that happens in May is, of course, Mother’s Day! Spoil your mother! There are all kinds of great new books that Mom would love: Fiction: the new Jim Lynch is “Truth Like the Sun”; new Anne…
By Michael Schindler We’ve all read the headlines that highlight a tragic story of one of our heroes coming home only to face challenges that stem from unemployment or foreclosure. The numbers of veterans facing foreclosure continues to climb, despite measures in place designed to prevent such, and the unemployment among our Post 9/11 veterans…
By Michael Schindler For those who don’t know what DFAS is, let me shed some light; DFAS, which stands for the Defense Finance and Accounting Services, is the military’s payroll company. To put it in simple terms, they provide the payment services to the Department of Defense. And someone is trying to work our service…
By Michael Schindler Amen. The deadline to apply for Retroactive Stop Loss Special Pay has been re-instated and extended to Oct.21, 2012. The majority of those eligible have separated from the military and thus, many eligible service members, veterans and their beneficiaries are not aware of the benefit. But fear not, those of you who…
By Michael Schindler The recent incident involving the Afghans and Staff Sgt. Bales certainly doesn’t help returning veterans in their job search when they come back to the states. Research shows some employers are wary of hiring veterans because of potential mental health issues. Are these concerns justified or is ignorance getting in the way…
By Elaine Mattson Welcome April! Maybe someday soon we will get to have spring…? In the meantime, I have heard that there are spring vacations looming, and luckily, there are a bunch of books, just out in paperback, that will make great vacation reading. Even if you don’t get to actually go anywhere, they can…
By Michael Schindler An official salute from the White House occurred on Thursday, March 29, as the President announced that day as Vietnam Veterans Day. Now, if you live in the city of Edmonds, our Mayor actually beat the president to punch with naming Feb. 29 as the official day to celebrate and honor all…
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By Michael Schindler Despite the Afghan killings, presumed to be performed by Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, a decorated combat soldier and reportedly strong family man, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta holds firm to his position that the U.S. military should not be dismantled. Bottom line: Success in Iraq and the drawdown in Afghanistan do not mean…
Next Tuesday, March 27, KING-TV’s “New Day Northwest” show will feature My Edmonds News Military Wire columnist Michael Schindler and Edmonds Mayor Dave Earling discussing the city’s unique military and veterans promotions (MVP) network. Edmonds residents are invited to be in the audience during the program. You will need to arrive at 9:30 a.m. and…
By Michael Schindler In the wake of the lone Staff Sergeant going on an alleged killing spree, it is reported that more than 50 percent of Americans want our troops out of Afghanistan. It is also worth noting that some of our troops embedded in Afghanistan think the mission is no longer effective. As some…
By Michael Schindler The past few years have been some of the most difficult economic years in our country’s history. With unemployment riding at a real time high between 14 and 17 percent (yes, I’m aware that the “official” unemployment rate is recorded as 8.3 percent, but it fails to include several key factors) and…
By Michael Schindler It is that time of year – nope, not March Madness yet…tax time. In addition to Edmonds’ Military Veterans Promotion network participant Puget Sound Tax Services, located at 514 5th Ave. S., the IRS also offers free tax return preparation assistance for eligible military members and their spouses. The IRS and U.S….
By Elaine Mattson Welcome March! The bonus February day was crazy! Cold and snow! Who else is so ready for Spring? I’m going to start planting in a couple of weeks, no matter what! With March coming in like a quite ferocious lion, we should have a really lovely end of the month! Some great…
By Michael Schindler There comes a point when one stops reporting the news because it is all the same – last week there were talks of budget cuts; this week there are talks of budget cuts. (Oh, and let us not forget that those making the budget cuts are not usually the recipients of the…
By Michael Schindler Dan Doyle is unassuming and appears somewhat quiet when you first meet him. At least he did to me when I first crossed paths with him at the local Starbucks. He was sitting at a table with his grandchild sharing one of those special grandparent moments, when he stopped doing what he…
By Elaine Mattson February seems to be beginning nice and calmly – made all the sweeter by our surviving the exciting week of snow and ice in January. Amongst all the excitement, how go the New Year’s resolutions? If you are in need of one that would be easy (and fun!) to accomplish, how about…
By Michael Schindler It’s not often we can point to the lottery and attribute specific good that comes from purchasing a ticket. Sure, we know that some funds go toward education construction (repairing schools), stadium debt reduction (still a bit controversial) and the General Fund (the black hole). But how often can we say, “I’m…
By Michael Schindler Over the years, my wife and I have been involved in several alcohol-related interventions involving family members. Each one brought with it a certain degree of anxiety, as we were never certain what the outcome would be — would our loved one fight it or go along? Would he/she resent us? Those…
By Michael Schindler Very rarely do I publish anything that is “opinion-related.” Come to think of it, this is likely the first time so I feel a bit like the recently deceased Andy Rooney doing this. But in light of the recent “uprising” over a few Marines urinating on a few Taliban corpses, I thought…
By Michael Schindler If you live in Seattle, you just experienced what some are calling the “biggest snow fall in a decade.” As a matter of fact, the recent storm caused a bit of back-n-forth between Seattle-ites and the L.A. elitists (did I just write that?). For the record, it did actually shut down the…
By Michael Schindler Those of us in business the past few years have no doubt learned how to get creative just to stay in business, and when it comes to growth, well… no secret that navigating today’s marketplace has been challenging for everyone. But I’d make the case that is has been even more difficult…
By Michael Schindler Our friends at VetJobs.com clued me into this next story: The Department of Labor has announced a new partnership with Microsoft Corporation that will provide veterans with vouchers for no-cost training and certifications, which can lead to important industry-recognized credentials. This is a good thing, especially in light of the economy. We’ve…
