U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs CWV – News Update

When considering a change in life, no matter what it is, we start by asking ourselves two questions: Is it worth it? (importance), and Can I do it? (confidence). Whole Health begins with a focus on your mission, aspiration and purpose, often referred to as your MAP. [From VAntage Point]

During Women’s History Month, today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Army Veteran Elsie S. Ott, who served as a flying nurse during World War II. Elsie S. Ott was born in Smithtown, New York, in 1913. After graduating high school, she attended Lenox Hill Hospital School of Nursing in New York City. [From VAntage Point]

We honor her service.

During Women’s History Month, today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Navy Veteran Nora Wingfield Tyson, the first woman carrier strike group commander. A native of Memphis, Tennessee, Nora Wingfield Tyson graduated with an English degree from Vanderbilt University in 1979. After graduating, she attended Officer Candidate School before commissioning in December 1979. [From VAntage Point]

We honor your service, Nora!

The percentage of women serving our country – and joining our Veteran population – never has been higher. And it’s no coincidence our military never has been stronger. Today, women comprise roughly 10% of the total Veteran population. Unfortunately, women Veterans also account for 10% of the Veterans in America experiencing homelessness. [From VAntage Point]

Employees at the Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System participated in a March 16 observance designed to highlight the increasing role of women Veterans in VA. The Women’s History Month observance was a forum centered around challenges women Veterans face and methods through which employees could impact change. [From VAntage Point]

During Women’s History Month, today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Army Veteran Virginia Lee Dornheggen, who served as a nurse during the Vietnam War. Virginia “Ginny” Lee Dornheggen was born to a family with an extensive military background in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. When the Vietnam War began, she was working on her nursing degree and listened to news broadcasts about the war over the radio. [From VAntage Point]

We honor your service, Ginny!

The Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) appointed four new members to serve on the VA Advisory Committee on Women Veterans (Committee) in early March. The Committee advises the secretary on issues impacting women Veterans and makes recommendations regarding VA policy, benefits and services created to meet their current and projected needs. [From VAntage Point]

In partnership with America’s Veterans, VA is on a mission to advance medicine and improve care for all those who served our country. Army Veteran Kafi Joseph is one of those enrolled Veterans. “I joined the Million Veteran Program because I serve as an EMT – as a volunteer EMT,” she said. “And I know the importance of having representation and advocacy in medicine. For me personally, as a woman – and a woman of color, a black woman – and recognizing that certain things present differently, my DNA will help with research and maybe pinpoint things that are specific to people in my group.” [From VAntage Point]

Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Air Force Veteran Merryl Tengesdal, whose accomplishments include becoming the first and only black female U-2 Dragon Lady pilot. Air Force Veteran Merryl Tengesdal was born in the Bronx, New York, in 1971, where she dreamed about becoming an astronaut. She graduated from the University of New Haven with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. [From VAntage Point]

We honor your service, Merryl!

This week’s America250 salute is Navy Veteran Ann Agnes Bernatitus, a World War II nurse who was the first Legion of Merit recipient. Ann Agnes Bernatitus was a Navy nurse serving in the Philippines where she treated wounded soldiers during World War II. For her actions there, she received a Legion of Merit, becoming the first American woman to do so. [From VAntage Point]

Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Army Veteran Julia O. Flikke. She was the sixth Superintendent of the Army Nurse Corps and the first woman in the U.S. Army to hold the rank of colonel. Julia O. Flikke was born to Solfest and Kristi Otteson in Viroqua, Wisconsin, in March 1879. After she graduated from Viroqua High School, she worked as a teacher. [From VAntage Point]

We honor her service.

During Women’s History Month, today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Army Veteran Julia Catherine Stimson, a superintendent of the Army Nurse Corps. Julia Catherine Stimson was born to Reverend Henry A. Stimson and Alice Bartlett Stimson in Worcester, Massachusetts, in May 1881. She had five siblings and was first cousins to Henry L. Stimson, the secretary of War under Presidents William Howard Taft, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman. [From VAntage Point]

We honor her service.

While everyone is looking forward to the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pittsburgh VA clinicians have their eye on a long-term issue with the disease – a health condition known as “long COVID.” In January, Pittsburgh VA opened a clinic for Veterans who have recovered from the acute stage of COVID but who continue to have debilitating symptoms of the disease. [From VAntage Point]