Author Archives: Jeff Jardine
With Pandemic Restrictions Eased, CalVet Homes are Eager to Rebuild Volunteer Ranks
Arlene Kepplin loved volunteering so much at the Veterans Home of California-Yountville that she did so for more than two decades. Her remarkable span began in 1998; she kept going strong until the pandemic in 2020 severely limited all volunteerism at Yountville—and at all other seven Veterans Homes. The majority of Kepplin’s volunteerism was at […]
The Black Civil War Veteran Who Cemented His Place in Sacramento History
Long before Marcus Langley made his reputation as a concrete contractor in Sacramento, he made history as a member of the 14th U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery unit fighting for the Union during the Civil War. The 14th was formed in North Carolina, his birthplace, in 1864. Langley, a 25-year-old who listed his occupation as a […]
Blindness Spurs Army Veteran to Swing into Music
Emmanuel Hodrick lets his fingers guide him whenever he plays the electronic keyboard at the Veterans Home of California-Redding. “I find the two raised black keys—D-Flat and E-Flat—and I know Middle-C is the key to the left,” Hodrick said. As we celebrate Black History Month, CalVet honors this resilient 60-year-old Army veteran who, blind for […]
Black History Month: Col. Allen Allensworth’s Vision Highlights U.S. Veterans’ Commitment to Building Strong Communities
In 1908, Colonel Allen Allensworth came to Tulare County in the southern San Joaquin Valley to create a town where African Americans could self-govern and be independent. Born in 1842, Allensworth was 12 years old when he defied a Kentucky law that prohibited enslaved people from learning to read or write. As punishment for learning […]
Women Veterans: Elevate Your Voice
Your experiences matter, and your voice is invaluable. CalVet is on a mission to enhance the support and services we provide, and your insights will help us better serve women veterans. By completing this survey, you’ll make a lasting impact on the support services we offer all California women veterans, now and for future […]
CalVet Employee Hollis Had a Say in Creating Martin Luther King Jr. Day
They, too, had a dream. In 1979, after Congress had yet again failed to make Martin Luther King Jr. Day a national holiday, a group of students from an Oakland high school refused to take “no” for an answer. To the contrary, the Apollos—members of Oakland Technical High School’s Class of 1981—became students on a […]
An Apple a Day and Then Some for 103-Year-Old in CalVet’s Ventura Home
Apple trees, Mack Edwards will tell you, can live for a very long time. “They have to be taken care of a bit,” said the World War II Army veteran, retired orchard owner, and six-year resident of the Veterans Home of California-Ventura. In fact, given the right conditions – climate, water and good soil among […]
Once-Homeless Marine Veteran Home for the Holidays and Beyond
Veteran James Mumma spent more than a half decade sleeping in an abandoned car in the northern Los Angeles County community of Littlerock. “To get out of the elements,” said the 59-year-old who relied upon the survival skills he learned in the U.S. Marine Corps to exist and resourcefulness to subsist. He took on odd […]
2024 Will Ring in New Laws Benefiting California’s Veterans
New Year’s Day 2024 will institute several new laws intended to benefit veterans of the United States Armed Forces. On the federal side, military retirees and disabled veterans will receive a 3.2 percent raise in 2024, mirroring the cost-of-living increase for Social Security benefits.
Navy veteran finds ‘Heaven’s Waiting Room’ at CalVet’s Lancaster Home
Soon after Lawrence Jones moved into the Veterans Home of California-Lancaster in 2012, a fellow veteran told him he was now in “Heaven’s waiting room.” It didn’t take Jones long to understand what the older vet meant. A U.S. Navy veteran, Jones soon discovered his own, once-elusive bliss there at the Home. A quality of […]
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