Author Archives: Jeff Jardine
ANSWERS TO VETERANS’ BENEFITS QUESTIONS JUST A CLICK AWAY WITH CALVET’S UPDATED RESOURCE BOOK
Are you a service member or among the nearly 1.6 million veterans living in California? Do you want to buy a home? Do you want to return to school or find a new career in the civilian world? Do you need help navigating the VA’s medical system, or need information about any of your other […]
PATTON TOOK MESSINA 77 YEARS AGO TODAY, BUT FILM GOT IT WRONG: NO SMIRK, NO MONTGOMERY
It is one of the most memorable scenes of the 1970 Oscar-winning film “Patton.” British Field Marshall Bernard “Monty” Montgomery rolls into the Sicilian town of Messina, expecting to bask in the glory of the moment. Instead, he finds a smug U.S. General George S. Patton waiting to see the look on his face, having […]
Navajo Code Talkers Day Remembers Those Who Saved Lives, Vital to Winning WWII in Pacific
In 1982, when President Reagan declared August 14 of each year Navajo Code Talkers Day, the recognition was long overdue. Not until 2000 did President Clinton sign the bill awarding the original 29 Code Talkers the Congressional Gold medals that President George W. Bush presented in July 2001. In total, there were 400 Navajo Code […]
CALVET PRAISED FOR PROTECTING RESIDENTS, STAFF AT VETERANS HOMES DURING COVID-19 OUTBREAK
Politico featured the California Department of Veterans Affairs in a story that posted Tuesday, explaining CalVet’s success thus far in protecting veterans, their spouses, and employees at its eight Veterans Homes of California during the COVID-19 outbreak. Reporter Maggie Severns describes in great detail the proactive steps CalVet and Secretary Vito Imbasciani took when the […]
JUST FOUR NAMES OF CALIFORNIA’S FALLEN NEEDED FOR VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL WALL OF FACES
Four faces, four photographs to go: Tommy R. Henderson, Los Angeles, U.S. Army John E. Magee, Los Angeles, U.S. Army Vernon P. Smith, Los Angeles, U.S. Navy Frank Spotwood Jr., San Francisco, U.S. Army The mission: To find their photos and submit them to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall’s virtual Wall of Faces. Ah, if […]
SPIRIT OF ’45 DAY CELEBRATIONS – IN SPIRIT ONLY
Each of the past several years, the Veterans Museum at Balboa Park in San Diego honored the area’s World War II veterans on its “Spirit of ’45 Day.” In 2010, Congress designated the second Sunday of August as a day to pay tribute to the men and women who comprised the “Greatest Generation” of Americans. […]
230th BIRTHDAY JUST “DUCKY” FOR VENTURA HOME’S ONLY COAST GUARD VETERAN RESIDENT
Pardon Richard “Ducky” Brace when he says there was no middle ground when it came to his service in the U.S. Coast Guard in the mid- to late-1960s: He was either hot or cold with it. Indeed, Brace stayed toasty warm down in the engine rooms where he served as an engineman for two years […]
CALVET’S WEBINARS KEEP INFORMATION FLOWING DESPITE COVID-19 CLOSURES
Over six years ago, CalVet began offering a series of webinars to provide information important to California veterans and their families. While important then, they are even more vital today. Consequently, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit and effectively shut down in-person outreach and veterans events, CalVet already had the experience, technology, and audience to expand […]
THIS MONTHS FIRE ABOARD A SHIP IN SAN DIEGO HAS COMPANY: DISASTER ON USS FORRESTAL IN 1967
Earlier this month, a fire burned for five days injuring 63 people aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard at Naval Base San Diego. The blaze is under investigation to determine the cause. Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) are assisting with the probe, and questions remain as to whether the ship can […]
EH, WHAT’S UP, DOC? THAT WASCALLY WABBIT WHO WENT ON TO BECOME AN HONORARY MARINE
Pardon Bugs Bunny if he gets a bit, well, animated when it comes to being an Honorary United States Marine. After all, fewer than 100 have received the honor, and that wascally wabbit is part of an elite group that includes the late entertainer Bob Hope, movie star and veteran advocate Gary Sinise, and TV […]
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