Author Archives: Jeff Jardine
CalVet Women Veterans award winner Captain Elizabeth L. Hillman truly a trailblazer
In 2013, the U.S. House Armed Services Committee appointed former Air Force Captain Elizabeth L. Hillman, an expert on sexual harassment, assault, and discrimination in the military, to serve on a panel probing sexual assault in the military. The panel exposed how little progress had been made since the so-called “Tailhook” scandal of 1991, when […]
From sea to shining sea: United States Navy celebrating 244th birthday
Here’s a trivia question: Which is older – the United States Navy or the United States of America? If you guessed the Navy, you’d be correct. You might wonder, how did the creation of the Navy precede the formation of the nation? Why not? The Navy even preceded itself. In the summer of 1775, General […]
Governor Gavin Newsom appoints seven to leadership roles at CalVet
Governor Gavin Newsom announced a series of appointments this week, with the majority of them involving positions at the California Department of Veterans Affairs. Xochitl Rodriguez Murillo, 36, of Woodland, is the new deputy secretary of Minority Veterans Affairs. Murillo has a long history of public and military service. She is the mayor of Woodland […]
California Central Coast Veterans Cemetery to receive national honor for quality
SEASIDE – The Central California Coast Veterans Cemetery (CCCVC) in Seaside has been selected to receive the prestigious Organizational Excellence Award from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (USDVA). The cemetery, which opened in 2016, is operated by the California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet). It was jointly developed and constructed by the USDVA, […]
CalVet officials participating in California Native American Day at State Capitol
Native American and soon-to-be Oscar recipient Wes Studi will be the keynote speaker September 27 during the 52nd annual California Native American Day, on the west steps of the State Capitol. The celebration of California Native American culture begins at 10 a.m. and concludes at 2 p.m. The event is open to the public, and […]
CalVet’s Veterans Homes now among nation’s best skilled nursing facilities
Before he accepted the appointment from Governor Brown to head the California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) in 2015, Vito Imbasciani MD made his rounds to some of the Veterans Homes of California. “I wanted to see what I was getting myself into,” he quipped. With decades of experience as a physician, including 27 as […]
Yountville Home vet recalls World War II POW days, now exercises his freedoms daily
YOUNTVILLE – Most mornings, Albert Freitas climbs aboard his “buggy” and motors down to the bus stop in front of the Veterans Home of California-Yountville. The 98-year-old World War II veteran loads the electric chariot onto a bus and heads to a busy shopping center a few miles away in Napa. There, he sips a […]
United States Air Force celebrates 72 years of flying solo as a military branch
The U.S. Air Force celebrates its 72nd birthday today. But this birthday hardly represents the birth of aviation in the U.S. military. That actually began during the Civil War, when both sides used hot air balloons for aerial reconnaissance. It instead recognizes the day the Air Force became its own branch, free of control of […]
Though created by state legislature in 1946, CalVet’s DNA can be traced back 135 years
(NOTE: This is the first in a series of stories that will detail the history, functions, and mission of the California Department of Veterans Affairs.) The California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) has served California’s veteran population in a variety of ways since its creation by the California State Legislature in 1946. CalVet provides varying […]
Veteran at CalVet’s Redding Home puts heart, paint brushes to work for Carr fire victims
REDDING – As the Carr fire raged through Northern California in July 2018, residents of the Veterans Home of California-Redding began painting signs for the men and women fighting the conflagration. Vietnam-era veteran and artist Michael VanCleemput, was among those who was asked to contribute. “I agreed, but I needed an inspiration for an appropriate […]
