Celebrities Who Served In The Armed Forces

Some People Live An Entire Lifetime And Wonder If They Made A Difference In The World, The Marines Don't Have That Problem...Ronald Reagan

My respect for many celebrities is conspicuous by its absence. Nevertheless, there are a host of celebrities who deserve our thanks and respect for having served this great nation. Although the number of celebrities who served in recent times is scarce, the number who served from previous generations is exceptional. We honor them here:

Audie Murphy, Medal of Honor Recipient

Steve McQueen, USMC and coolest actor in the history of Hollywood

Clint Eastwood, US Army and second coolest actor in the history of Hollywood

James Earl Jones, US Army and the best voice in Hollywood

Elvis, US Army and the King of Rock and Roll

Morgan Freeman, USAF, and adds meaning to cool.

Drew Carey, USMC

Jimmy Stewart, Brig.General U.S. Army/USAF Reserve WWII Bomber Pilot and flew on a B-52 mission in Vietnam

Paul Newman, US Navy. Always about the eyes, the blue eyes.

Kirk Douglas, US Navy. Makes Russel Crowe look like a chump.

Chuck Norris, USAF and only guy to almost beat Bruce Lee

Richard Boone, U.S. Navy

Jackie Robinson,  US Army and #42. One of the greatest baseball players of all time.

Charles Bronson, US Army, WWII vet and a Hollywood bad ass.

Gene Hackman, USMC and one of the best character actors in the history of Hollywood

Telly Savalas U.S. Army. Served during WWII

Lee Marvin, USMC WWII Vet and Purple Heart recipient and another bad ass.

Pres. Ronald Reagan, US Army Air Corps WWII Vet

Clark Gable U.S. Army, WWII Veteran

Yogi Berra, US Navy and Normandy veteran. And known for such gems as, "You can observe a lot by watching," "If you come to a fork in the road, take it," "Nobody goes there anymore; it's too crowded" and the now famous: "It ain't over till it's over."

Joe Lewis, US Army and one of the best boxers in history.

Jimmy Hendrix, US Army

Pat Tillman, US Army Ranger and former NFL Arizona Cardinal. Killed while serving in Afghanistan

Other celebrities who served:  Bogart, James Arness, Tony Curtis, Henry Fonda, Clark Gable, Burt Lancaster, Jack Lemmon, Rod Serling, John F. Kennedy, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush.

Yep, he served too.

RIP Police Officer Sean A. Collier; 10 First Responders Die In Texas Fertilizer Plan Explosion; My HealtheVet

"The legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example."  Benjamin Disraeli

In Memoriam: MIT Police Officer Sean A. Collier


MIT Police Officer Sean A. Collier, 26, was  allegedly slain by the Boston bombing suspects last week.

Officer Collier was found in his police vehicle with multiple gunshot wounds. Earlier, he was responding to a disturbance near the MIT campus in Cambridge. His gun was not drawn.

"He was born to be a police officer, " said MIT Police Chief John DiFava. Officer Collier was a member of the MIT police department since January 2012.

Officer Down Memorial Page + NY Post


Ten First Responders Die In Texas Fertilizer Plant Explosion

It is now believed that of the 14 people killed in last Wednesday's West Texas plant explosion, ten were first responders. All were members of local volunteer fire departments, five from West, Texas volunteer FD.

"We have lost our friends and neighbors," said Rev. John Crowder of the First Baptist Church in West, Texas.

AP + CBS News


My HealtheVet

My HealtheVet is new tool gives veterans more control over their health care. It helps veterans plan and focus on what is important to them.

My HealtheVet is simple, easy to use, private and secure. Veterans can view their VA appointments anytime, anywhere. It allows veterans to view all of their VA appointments. It also allows veterans to view and print their appointments. In addition, it gives veterans appointment details such as x-ray, blood draws or EKG's.

For more information, simply access www.myhealth.va.gov.


Job Fairs For Veterans

For a complete listing of up-coming job fairs, visit www.military.com and access "veteran jobs."

Father Emil Kapaun To Be Awarded Medal of Honor 62 Years After His Death; Army Pushing VA To Process Disability Claims Faster; Philadelphia Fire Captain Dies In Blaze; Up-Coming Job Fairs

Go Forward Without Fear...Abe Lincoln

Father Emil Kapaun: An Angel To Many

Army Chaplain, Fr. Emil Kapaun, will be awarded the Medal Of Honor on April 11, 2013, for his heroic service to his fellow soldiers as a prisoner of war during the Korean War after his capture in 1950.

Even as he own body was racked with illness, he continued to minister to his fellow prisoners. He was remembered for his humility, bravery and kindness. Even before his capture, he continuously went out under heavy mortar fire and shelling to rescue wounded soldiers.

Father Kapaun died from pneumonia on May 23, 1951, at age 35 still a prisoner of war.


VA Experiencing a 900,000 Backlog In Disability Claims

The pressure keeps mounting on the VA to process disability claims faster. To date, 900,000 disability claims are pending from veterans of all past and present wars. On average, it takes over 400 days for military personnel to go through medical examination, evaluation boards, VA rating and out-processing before finally receiving disability checks as civilians.

VA Secretary Eric Shineski has promised that his transformation plan will end the VA backlog by 2015. We'll be watching Mr. Secretary.

Philadelphia Firefighter Dies Fighting Blaze