Veterans 'Stand Down' helps many apply for benefits

Richard Whitmarsh survived the horror of the Vietnam War, including an ambush that left most of his platoon dead.

But after coming home in 1971, the Oyster Bay native never enrolled in federal veterans care programs, spiraled into mental illness, and found he could not care for himself.

"I said to hell with it, keep the money," said Whitmarsh, 61, who spent years in psychiatric institutions and now lives in a Hempstead group home.

With veterans like Whitmarsh in mind, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is stepping up efforts to encourage troops leaving the military to register when they are discharged, making them eligible for psychological, medical and disability benefits.

Aid during transition key

Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki has said helping wartime troops make the often difficult transition from military lives to civilian ones can prevent battlefield anxieties from metastasizing into more serious problems, such as substance abuse, divorce, homelessness and mental illness. An estimated one-third of homeless adults are veterans, and about half of homeless veterans served in the Vietnam War, according to the VA.

"Access and homelessness are two of his top priorities," said Drew Brookie, a spokesman for Shinseki.

Whitmarsh took a big step toward his goal of reclaiming his life earlier this week, when he attended a Nassau County-sponsored veterans "Stand Down" in Freeport. There, nearly 40 years after he first became eligible, Whitmarsh sought help applying for VA benefits.

"Once you do, it's a whole new ballgame," said Rick Gales, a service officer with the Military Order of the Purple Heart who was at the stand-down to help shepherd veterans through the VA's acceptance process. The Military Order of the Purple Heart is a nationwide organization of recipients of the Purple Heart that helps other veterans receive the help they need. "I feel very confident that he'll get his claim granted."

Whitmarsh was drafted in 1969 and served in Vietnam from Jan. 26, 1970, to April 3, 1971. Two days after leaving Vietnam, he was back in civilian life.

Fighting battles at home

His eldest brother, Jim Whitmarsh, said Whitmarsh's life then careened out of control. He said his brother often ran into woodlands in Oyster Bay to hide from imagined enemies.

"He would ask, 'Do I have to go back to Vietnam?' and I would say, 'No, it's over,' " said Jim Whitmarsh. "He came back from the war totally different."

Jim Whitmarsh said his brother eventually was placed in a state mental hospital in Kings Park. He now receives daily psychological counseling through the Mental Health Association of Nassau County.

Veterans who fail to enroll with the VA miss out on subsidized care for service-connected psychological problems or physical ailments, and for cash disability benefits. Most don't enroll.

Only about a third of the more than 23 million living veterans are enrolled in VA health care, according to the VA.

Experts say enrollments are low in part because war-weary troops often leave the service determined to put military ties behind them. They say veterans troubled by post-traumatic stress disorder worry seeking psychological help from the VA could become public, stigmatizing them. Critics say that the military does not always do a good job of encouraging discharging soldiers to sign on with the VA.

VA officials point to initiatives to encourage veterans to take advantage of VA services.

John Javis, the Mental Health Association of Nassau County's project manager, said improved VA outreach has made a difference. "They were seeing these behaviors back in the '70s, but didn't understand their seriousness," said Javis, who arranged for Whitmarsh to attend the stand-down. "If he had access to these services 40 years ago, he probably would have had a different life."