Top 5: help 50,000 disabled veterans, fly over Iraq, remember veterans lost to suicide
1. Show your support to 50,000 disabled veterans
The American Legion can play an instrumental role in securing the passage of the Major Richard Star Act legislation which would benefit veterans who were medically retired due to combat-related injuries before they were able to serve 20 years. These veterans would receive full retirement pay and disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
Right now, there are 319 co-sponsors in the House who have signed onto the bill, with 122 Republicans and 197 Democrats. In the Senate, there are 66 co-sponsors who have signed on, including 22 Republicans and 42 Democrats. This type of bipartisanship is needed for this legislation to become law.
Contact your members of Congress via this easy-to-use online form and tell them to pass this legislation immediately.
File a claim: If you need help filing a service-connected disability claim, American Legion service officers are available to help veterans and their families free of charge. Locate a service officer near you here.
2. The American Legion wants to remember those lost to suicide
September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and The American Legion wants to put a face with the crisis that is veteran suicide and families and friends left behind.
We’re asking for those who have lost a veteran to suicide to share with us who that person was so we can honor him or her during September while also sharing resources available through the Legion’s Be the One suicide prevention initiative and other entities.
Please send an email to sbrooks@legion.org with the following information: a photo of the veteran, in uniform if possible; the veteran’s name, branch of service and time of service, and date of birth and death; and who that veteran is remembered by, e.g. “Loved and missed by his family.”
Be the One: American Legion Post 180 in Vienna, Va., hosted its third annual Celebrate America 5K, which was combined with The American Legion Be the One initiative.
3. “Ghosts of Baghdad”
This week’s special guest on the American Legion Tango Alpha Lima podcast is retired Marine Col. Eric “Ferris” Buer who shares his experience flying attack helicopters during Operation Iraqi Freedom and his book that recounts that deployment.
Buer completed multiple deployments throughout the Persian Gulf, Norway, Somalia and the former Yugoslavia. His 2003 deployment to Iraq with Amphibious Task Force gave him the inspiration for his first book, “Ghosts of Baghdad.”
“I decided to open a door that was an otherwise closed door,” he said. “And when you step through that door, hop in our cockpit and see what we did, in this case for about 27 days, you get to experience and ride along with us. As Jimmy Buffett said, ‘Some of it is magic, and some of it is tragic.’ And that is just the truth. The story is timeless and represents every veteran who served.”
There’s more: The podcast hosts also offer their thoughts on a Marine’s fight against the entire Sicilian force; a sentencing in a large GI Bill fraud case, estimated at $105 million in government funds; the success of Arkansas veterans at the 2023 National Veterans Golden Age Games; and more.
4. The benefits of DDPY
U.S. Army veteran Scott French discovered Diamond Dallas Page Yoga (DDPY) after years of suffering from bad knees, back issues and depression.
“My body was busted up” from injuries sustained in airborne school, said French, a member of American Legion Post 34 in Cave Creek, Ariz. “Then on September 17, 2018, I had my aha moment. I got sick and tired of it, and I tossed my walking cane across the room and I said, ‘I'm gonna do something about it.’”
For three months every single day, French did DDPY. He lost 30 pounds, “supported my lumbar from the inside out doing DDP yoga and avoided a spinal fusion surgery.”
It's been five years now of doing and instructing DDPY, and French is “going strong. I've still avoided the back surgery. I've avoided the knee replacement surgery. I've modified my behavior. I try to eat better. I move more as a result my mindset.”
In the virtual Training Tuesday session on June 27, presented by the Internal Affairs & Membership Division, French shared his journey with Diamond Dallas Page Yoga, its benefits and how to participate in it. Listen to the recording here.
Hear more: Scott French shares more about DDPY, how it’s not your typical yoga, in this story and video.
5. Share your opinion
The American Legion Media & Communications team is looking for feedback on your preferences for digital media. A survey of eight questions focuses on newsletters, podcasts and social media. It will only take a few minutes to complete and is completely anonymous.
After the survey is completed, The American Legion Media and Communications Commission and Division will use the feedback to further develop, plan and implement its strategy for digital media going forward.
Please visit and take the survey by July 10.
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