Two stories caught my eye on this the eve of Veterans Day.

Unfortunately both have to do with the dishonor that vets and their families are going through.

One was reported on both Fox News and the Washington Post having to do with the unidentifiable remains of our war dead being cremated, incinerated; and eventually dumped in a landfill in Virginia from 2003 to 2008, without the knowledge of their family members.  The report cites that this will be the target of a federal investigation. Air Force officials claim that the practice was treated as though they were disposing of medical waste, yet was abandoned eventually in favor of disposing the ashes in the sea.

Still you can imagine the horror of those family members who now live with the thought that the sacrifice their loved ones had made has been dishonored by placing what would have been their remains in a landfill.

The other has to do with the plight our homeless vets.

Thankfully there are projects like a program called Operation Chillout which assists homeless vets, distributing food, backpacks, and water to those vets that they find living in squalor.  Organizers say that most vets aren’t aware of the services available to them once they reenter civilian life.

It should come as no shock that many return having to deal with PTSD, something that many feel comes attached with a stigma.  The condition takes its toll on families and leads to drug dependence and eventually homelessness.

Those volunteers that step up and do the work in seeing to it that these vets are well taken care of deserve as much of our admiration and respect as those who’ve put their lives on the line for us.

Thanks for all you’ve done, and continue to do!