Under the leadership of retired U.S. Navy vice admiral Michael Franken, the process of recovering and identifying the remains of missing U.S. military personnel was reorganized under the DPAA, a U.S. Defense Department agency formed in 2015 through the merger of other agencies.

Lt. Donald H. Steffen of Hamilton, Ohio, was the pilot of a C-47 that flew paratroopers to Normandy the night of the landing. He successfully carried a "stick" of about 15 soldiers from the Third Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry of the 101st Airborne Division to their Drop Zone D behind Omaha Beach.

“I know most people don’t, they don’t know how to properly retire them or they don’t properly retire them, so having a place they can bring them and get them properly retired in respect of our soldiers, country and America and do it the right way (is important),” Brayden Lockling said.

Sgt. Adam Hartswick and RJ Shirey, State College Area High School alums who graduated nine years apart, were brought together after two accidents and dozens of surgeries that left them both amputees.

The fundraiser met the $5,000 goal on Tuesday, and then the goal increased to a $25,000.

DOD documents show the Pentagon knew troops were exposed to multiple toxins at a base in Uzbekistan known as K2, and that exposure to those toxins caused hundreds of cancer cases. But the VA has denied many of the sick veterans care and disability benefits.

A lawsuit involving more than 229,000 veterans with hearing problems that they claim are linked to faulty earplugs issued by the military begins its first trial Monday in a Florida federal courtroom.

More than 800,000 people served in Afghanistan in the U.S. military, and many of them are reflecting anew on what the war achieved and the meaning of their individual parts in it.

The combat pilot earned 15 medals over a 24-year military career, which ended in 1963. He flew over 50 aircraft models, including fighters, helicopters, patrol bombers and sea planes; fought in two wars; and saw action in nine major naval engagements.

The Veterans Crisis Line mishandled an interaction with a veteran who shot and killed a family member after the call ended, a federal watchdog reported Thursday.

A hearse carrying the body of Wallace Anderson Taylor is bound for the Arch L. Heady Resthaven Cemetery in Louisville, Kentucky, where he will be buried with full military honors at 2:30 p.m. Sunday.

Andre Shelby, 54, of Jeffersonville, Ind., will compete against 15-20 other archers in a qualification tournament next month that will see three selected to travel to Japan with the U.S. Paralympic team.

"Colonel" Wallace Anderson Taylor loved John Wayne movies, packed a .45 Colt revolver as an enlisted man, owned a restaurant in Miami and toured the country with a "Colonel Taylor's Fly By Night" carnival concession stand.

"While nobody's really traveling, we can get all this learning done, we can attend all these webinars and videos with different cruise lines and the different suppliers around the world, and then, when people are ready to start traveling, we will have learned a lot" Von Schlichten said.

The relocation of the flag last summer from over the White House to a less visible spot on the South Lawn had infuriated some veterans groups and lawmakers.

President Joe Biden is proposing an $8.5 billion boost for the Department of Veterans Affairs under his 2022 budget plan released Friday.

White Ribbon campaign

The pledge was part of the White Ribbon campaign, a worldwide movement that asks men and boys to help end gender-based violence and promote gender equity.

When questioned about the budget increase Thursday, Denis McDonough cited the cost of the VA Mission Act, a bipartisan measure approved in 2018 to expand veterans’ access to private doctors.

Houston Congressman Dan Crenshaw, a former Navy SEAL who lost an eye in Afghanistan, underwent emergency surgery on Friday for a detached retina, leaving him blind for at least a month. Prospects for recovering his vision remain uncertain.

Comedian Jon Stewart became a fierce advocate for 9/11 responders who developed illnesses after working at the World Trade Center site. He recently turned his attention to veterans suffering from diseases caused by similar toxic exposure.

On both sides of the political aisle, lawmakers in Washington are ramping up efforts to expand care for veterans who became sick after breathing the toxic fumes from burn pits.

Ray Lambert, an Army medic who survived multiple wounds on D-Day, took part in the Allied invasions of North Africa and Sicily before his war came to an end June 6, 1944, on the sands of Omaha Beach.

The military had been prioritizing the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for overseas locations because of its single-dose and not requiring the ultra-cold storage necessary during shipping as do some of the other coronavirus vaccines.

Obituary

Charles Henry Coolidge, Sr., the country's oldest Medal of Honor recipient, died peacefully on Tuesday at CHI Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga. He was 99.

U.S. veterans who were exposed to radiation while responding to a 1966 hydrogen bomb accident in Spain would be made eligible for disability benefits that have been denied to them for decades, under legislation introduced in Congress on Thursday.

After having its 2020 tour cut short in August due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund's Wall That Heals will return to the road April 8 in New Bern, N.C.

For two years, a steady effort to find a photograph of a Georgia soldier killed in the Vietnam War failed to provide an image. But recently, a series of conversations between cousins and a former classmate ended the long search.

Dave Parramore, an Army veteran, said his trip raised about $23,000 in donations for Wounded Warrior Project, and he said another $10,000 grant could be coming to the nonprofit as part of the trip.

On Tuesday, Korean War veteran Victor M. Rosario and fellow Borinqueneer and World War II veteran Antonio Morales were honored by the city for their service. Congress passed legislation on Jan. 3 that designated April 13 as National Borinqueneers Day.

More than 3,000 veterans were surveyed between November 2019 and March 2020 — before COVID-19 had been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization — and again in November and December 2020 when the pandemic was in full swing.

The family's attorney said someone at Memorial Veterans Hospital in Madison, Wis., failed to make sure Vance Perry got in a cab that had been called for him.

World War II veteran Eddie Hill has seen plenty in his lifetime. As he plans to celebrate his 100th birthday on Tuesday, Hill wants to enjoy every day to the fullest by staying active and helping others as long as possible.

The twinkle in the eyes of Walter Sommers shone brightly Friday as the 100-year-old U.S. Army veteran sat outside Westminster Village with family and friends.

Elliott R. Corbett II, a 22-year-old U.S Army “bazooka man” and scion of Portland’s most-prominent political and commercial dynasty, disappeared in November 1944 during the Battle of Hurtgen Forest. It would be months before his family — and his girlfriend, Ellen “Sudie” Zinsser — knew whether he was dead or alive.

For more than 14 months during the Nazi invasion, Charles H. Coolidge Sr. served in Europe, starting with a treacherous boat ride from North Africa to Italy.

World War I veteran James Barry's discharge certificate was discovered as part of an ongoing project by the Veterans Services office in Beverly, Mass., to digitize thousands of Beverly-related military records. As of last week, the office had scanned 6,739 items.

Vietnam veteran Thomas Rockroads Jr.'s contribution to the Billings Gazette’s "Vietnam Voices" series turned up in a search by one of his old platoon members, Dennis Joanethis, a former private first class in the 173rd Airborne Brigade. The two reunited recently.

A U.S. Veterans Affairs police officer charged with murder in the shooting death of a Navy veteran earlier this year appeared in court Friday once again free on bond.

Decorated Vietnam veteran and retired Marine Lt. Col. Oliver North will bring a family military history to Sunday's closing 1 p.m. ceremony for the traveling Vietnam Memorial Wall at New Bern's Lawson Creek Park.

U.S. Army veteran Kevin Hughes and his wife, Kathy, are part of the first Cape Fear Habitat For Humanity Veterans Build home in Wilmington. The estimated closing date for their home is August.

Marine Corps veteran James "Cowboy" Johnson, 70, credits his military instincts for what sent him dashing toward a blazing building.

It is a day set aside nationally to recognize those who were held captive, forced into separation from everyone and everything they loved, and tortured and mistreated at the hands of the enemy.

The 88,675 square-foot clinic will provide primary care, mental health, female veterans care, physical therapy, dental and other services.

Douglas P. “Doug” Burtell, the last North Dakota National Guard World War II soldier known to be residing in North Dakota, died in Bowman, N.D., on April 3, just weeks shy of his 97th birthday.

Soon after the 9/11 attacks, disease researchers at the Department of Veterans Affairs began internal discussions on how to prepare for the war-related illnesses they knew would follow, agency officials told McClatchy.

Honor Flight Syracuse threw Central New York trailblazer Margaret “Peg” Bandy quite the 100th birthday celebration.

Through a program designed to help wounded veterans, a specially adapted home is being built for retired US Army Sgt. Justin Callahan, who lost his left leg in an explosion 17 years ago while serving in Afghanistan.

In addition to claiming the lives of at least 77 veterans and sickening dozens of staff, the catastrophe also revealed a historically dysfunctional facility with a flawed governing structure.

About 3% of veterans have refused coronavirus vaccines when offered them by the Department of Veterans Affairs – an amount lower than the agency anticipated, a VA official said Thursday.

U.S. Army veteran Jose Martinez urged California lawmakers to advance a bill that would decriminalize psychedelic drugs such as mushrooms and LSD. He told the Senate Public Safety Committee the therapies could be used to prevent suicides.

The documentary “Wounded Heroes” includes interviews with about two dozen veterans and first responders who detail their struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Friday, April 9, is the beginning of the virtual Bataan Memorial Death March hosted by White Sands Missile Range, honoring the American and Filipino soldiers who were taken in as Japanese Prisoners of War during World War II.

Rep. Elaine Luria, a 20-year Navy veteran, introduced legislation Thursday that would expand care and disability compensation for veterans made sick after breathing in toxic fumes on overseas deployments.

Walter A. Smead spent a good part of his short life in the Army. He served in Europe at the end of World War II and was called up again for Korea. He was reported missing in action on Dec. 6, 1950.

To recognize World War II veteran James Ingargiola's military service and recent health battles — COVID-19 and a lung cancer diagnosis — East Bridgewater, Mass., held a ceremony at the Council on Aging Tuesday and presented him with a certificate of appreciation.

Countless service members are coping with health conditions that doctors believe are tied to years of exposure to highly toxic, cancer-causing chemicals found in firefighting foam.

The Saves Lives Act grew the population that the VA is responsible for vaccinating from about 9 million to 33 million. The department will need an increase of about 400,000 doses each week to vaccinate everyone.

The Toxic Exposure in the American Military Act improves access to health care by providing consultation and testing through the Department of Veterans Affairs for eligible veterans exposed to toxic substances.

The Saves Lives Act removes legal barriers that prevented the VA from vaccinating veterans who aren’t enrolled in the department, as well as their spouses and caregivers.

Deborah Evans-Bell was reported missing on Feb. 8, 2015. She left home for a doctor's appointment but never returned, according to her husband.

Under the new bill, veterans would need to prove only that they deployed to parts of the Middle East, southwest Asia and Africa since 1990 and suffer from a condition associated with toxic exposure.

Congress approved a bill Friday that makes all veterans, as well as their spouses and caregivers, eligible for a coronavirus vaccine through the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Catherine Starr, a voluntary service specialist at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Tucson, and nine other VA employees across the country were recognized for creating the Compassionate Contact Corps program in their area and were honored by the Department of Veterans Affairs with its ICARE award.

Joe Bartlett learned late last year he had been awarded the Purple Heart, a U.S. military decoration for service members wounded or killed in action, after over a year of behind-the-scenes work documenting his injury.

Liddy was convicted of conspiracy, burglary and illegal wiretapping for his role in the Watergate burglary, which led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon. "I'd do it again for my president," he said years later.

Legislation that would prohibit the Department of Defense from clawing back the final retirement payment to a veteran in the month of that veteran's death has bipartisan support.

On March 29, 1973, combat and combat support units withdrew from South Vietnam, and the Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Act of 2017 permanently designates that date every year as National Vietnam War Veterans Day.

An Ohio congressman plans to visit the head of the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis Monday to express concern about what he says has been the glacial pace at which crucial veterans' records have been made available during the pandemic.

A judge has ordered the federal government to pay a Manchester couple $9.47 million compensation for life-threatening injuries and long-term disabilities caused to the husband by what the judge found to be medical malpractice during abdominal surgery at the Veterans Administration Hospital in West Haven in 2015.

Neil Goldman wasn't your typical 75-year-old ... unless the average 75-year-old is a buffed-up personal trainer who can do pushups with a person sitting on his back, leg presses 800 pounds and goes on 500-mile bike rides.

The collection is an informal hall of fame for generations of male and female drummers, horn players, flag spinners, baton twirlers, rifle throwers, and saber wielders.

For the first time ever, veterans gathered just after sunrise Monday morning at USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park to observe National Vietnam War Veterans Day.

Healing Heroes Network, Inc. was formed in Palm Harbor in 2008, according to court records, and sought donations through telemarketing and direct mail. But “very little of the charitable contributions” went toward care for wounded veterans, the Attorney General’s Office said.

The Wounded Warrior Project has launched a partnership with the Boston-based Concussion Legacy Foundation to boost research into traumatic brain injury in veterans and help determine the best ways to diagnose and treat the disorder.

Vietnamese and Filipino children are finding their GI dads through online searches.

Hundreds of thousands of veterans are waiting for their earned benefits because of a backlog of compensation and pension exam requests that grew during the coronavirus pandemic.

Bill Thompson, a retired Army staff sergeant, suffered catastrophic lung damage from breathing incinerated waste burned in massive open-air pits and probably other irritants during his tour of duty in Iraq.

On a single night in January 2020, 37,252 veterans were experiencing homelessness — an increase of 167 veterans, or 0.4%, from January 2019, according to the Annual Homelessness Assessment Report released Thursday by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

A high school band was assembling outside Atria Bay Spring Village. U.S. Sen. Jack Reed and U.S. Rep. David N. Cicilline were headed toward a meetup point where a parade of vehicles was taking form. Rear Admiral Shoshana Chatield, president of the Naval War College, was on her way, too.

After leaving the military, Stephanie Gattas was homeless and suffered from mental illnesses, such as PTSD. She struggled to find resources to help, the Navy veteran told House lawmakers.

George Hood doesn’t believe in doing anything halfway. He already has set a record for the longest plank. On Saturday, he will be attempting a world record for pushups, which currently stands at 2,919.

In a rare show of dissent, the veterans services community has been splintered by a debate over Gov. Charlie Baker's $400 million bond bill for a new Holyoke Soldiers' Home.

Growing up, David Bass knew his uncle Alfred "Fred" Turgeon only by the photo on his grandmother's dresser.The 23-year-old airman from Cordova was lost when his plane was shot down in 1943 over Romania.

The World War I exploits of Sgt. Alvin C. York netted Gary Cooper a best actor Academy Award and Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano a degree, a book deal — and academic backlash.

Health care professionals for the Department of Veterans Affairs saw a large decrease in opioid use among veterans with chronic pain who participated in a pilot wellness program, a VA doctor told House lawmakers Friday.