Author Archives: Jeff Jardine

A combination piece including two photos of Magdalena Leones and the Silver Star she earned.

YES, TEACHER, GRANDMA REALLY WAS A SOLDIER, SPY, GUERILLA, AND SILVER STAR RECIPIENT

As the story goes, when Corporal Magdalena “Maggie” Leones’ granddaughter wrote a report about her grandma for a school assignment, the teacher simply didn’t believe it. Believe what? Or, was the girl simply a grandchild with an overactive imagination? Prove it, the teacher told her. Prove it, Maggie’s granddaughter did. She brought the Silver Star […]

Photo of President Obama with Delphine Metcalf-Foster, includes CalVet Logo

IN DAD’S FOOTSTEPS, DELPHINE METCALF-FOSTER BUILT A MARQUEE NAME FOR HELPING VETERANS

Each Tuesday, when Delphine Metcalf-Foster walks through the doors to volunteer at the VA Medical Clinic at Mare Island, she thinks about her father. Joseph Robert Taylor died in 1949, when she was only five years old. As she grew up and learned more about him—that he served in the U.S. Army’s all-Black 9th Cavalry […]

Military photo of Kelly.

PATRICIA JACKSON KELLEY: MAKING HISTORY EVERY DAY FOR DECADES

At a recent veterans event in Los Angeles, a woman approached Patricia Jackson Kelley and offered words of appreciation. “I don’t know if you are aware of the difference you made in my life,” the woman told her, referring to a moment that occurred roughly two decades ago, when Kelley worked as a program coordinator […]

A look down the entryway into the veterans new home.

CALVET SAVES VETERAN’S HOME DEAL BY APPROVING LOAN IN RECORD 48 HOURS

Veteran Julian Saenz waited for his commercial lender to fund his loan so that escrow could close and he could move his family into their new home in Riverside County. The seller, meanwhile, had scheduled movers to transport her possessions to her new home in another state. With their closing date of February 3 looming, […]

Headshot of U.S. Army veterans Rankin.

THE GAME OF HIS LIFE PRODUCED MAJOR RESULTS

Larry Rankin faced a big decision after graduating from high school in Michigan more than two decades ago. Go to college? “I wasn’t ready for college,” he said. OK, then, follow in his Navy dad’s footsteps by joining a branch of the military? “Not for me,” Rankin said. “Never.” Then, a funny thing happened on […]

Head and shoulders photo of veteran Ed.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: GRATITUDE FROM VENTURA HOME’S NEWEST VETERAN RESIDENT

Ed Gafford gave rave reviews to his lunch earlier this week at the Veterans Homes of California-Ventura. “The vegetable soup was as good as I’ve ever had,” the 89-year-old U.S. Army veteran said. “A hoagie sandwich, and I had that with a kale salad. A wonderful meal.” Ah, life’s simple pleasures, with his appreciation enhanced […]

Photo of the veteran designation on a CA drivers license.

FOR WHOM THE TOLLS DON’T APPLY: ELIGIBLE VETS WON’T PAY FOR BRIDGE CROSSINGS AMONG NEW LAWS IN 2023

When the clock struck midnight and rang in 2023, it brought several new laws that will honor and benefit many of California’s 1.6 million military veterans. All were signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2022. Perhaps the most notable of them? We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it – literally, figuratively, and seriously. […]

WWII glider in flight over California.

GLIDING INTO 2023, 70 YEARS TO THE DAY MILITARY GLIDERS SAILED OFF INTO RETIREMENT

As we glide into 2023, we pay tribute to the military glider – one of America’s silent weapons of World War II – that was removed from the U.S. Army’s air fleet on this day 70 years ago. Gliders were lightweight, engineless airplanes towed by cables into the skies by much bigger, motored aircraft, then […]

A soldier walks in one of Saddam Hussein’s former palaces.

WHEN THEY CELEBRATED HANUKKAH, OTHER JEWISH HOLIDAYS IN SADDAM’S OLD DIGS

Shortly after U.S. troops captured Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in December 2003, a Jewish-American woman serving in the U.S. military received a care package from home. It included a menorah, candles, and a “Happy Hanukkah” card. That she received it isn’t unusual. Military personnel frequently receive packages from family members or friends in time for […]

CalTAP staff gathered at CalVet Headquarters.

WEBINARS OF INTRIGUE: HOW CALTAP WENT VIRTUAL DURING THE PANDEMIC TO KEEP VETERANS CONNECTED

When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in early 2020 and shut many things down, CalVet stepped up. When other offices stopped answering their phones or were unable to reply, CalVet picked up. When military bases, college campuses, and other community-based points of connection closed, CalVet booted up and took vital information right into the veterans’ homes […]