Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–October 7, 2013.  Earlier today, Secretary Hagel convened a meeting of the department’s top leadership – including the Service Secretaries and Service Chiefs – to receive an update on the impact of the ongoing government shutdown on the Department of Defense. He is pleased that most DoD civilians are[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–October 7, 2013.  The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Lance Cpl. Jeremiah M. Collins, Jr., 19, of Milwaukee, Wis., died Oct. 5 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to Combat Logistics Regiment 2,[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–October 5, 2013.  Today I am announcing that most DoD civilians placed on emergency furlough during the government shutdown will be asked to return to work beginning next week. Immediately after President Obama signed the Pay Our Military Act into law, I directed DoD’s Acting General Counsel to determine[Read More…]

Illinois National Guard, Reserve Units, DoD Civilians Impacted; Bipartisan letter signed by half the Senate WASHINGTON–(ENEWSPF)–October 4, 2013.  U.S. Senator Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) today joined a bipartisan group of 50 Senators led by Senators Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) in sending a letter to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel urging that[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–October 3, 2013.  On Thursday, October 3, 2013, Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth (IL-08) spoke out against $6.2 billion in cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs budget . Cuts would include programs like medical and prosthetic research for wounded Veterans, national Veterans cemeteries, the Veterans appeals board and resources to reduce[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–October 2, 2013.  Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Congressman Bill Enyart (D-IL) and Congressman Tim Walz (D-MN) today decried attempts to play politics with our nation’s Veterans who have been caught in the middle of the reckless government shutdown. Rather than pass a clean, non-political bill to fully fund and[Read More…]

Chicago—(ENEWSPF)—October 3, 2013. The Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs (IDVA) recognized Michael V. LaRocco, a U.S. Marine Corps Vietnam veteran and 33-year professional educator at University of St. Francis (USF) in Joliet, as the Illinois Veteran of the Month for September 2013. “Far too often the public narrative regarding veterans[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–October 1, 2013.  The Army released suicide data today for the month of August 2013. During August, among active-duty Soldiers, there were 12 potential suicides: Two have been confirmed as suicides and 10 remain under investigation. For July 2013, the Army reported 19 potential suicides among active-duty Soldiers: three[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–October 1, 2013. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE CHUCK HAGEL: I know you have — or I think you just recently here in the last few minutes met with Admiral Locklear, General Thurman. So you’re up to date on, I think, that, and I’d be glad to respond to anything you[Read More…]

University Park, Illinois—(ENEWSPF)–October 1, 2013 – Governors State University invites veterans to the Fall meeting of the Veterans Writing Group, where Veterans can engage in the craft of narrative writing in a small group setting. Veterans will enhance and learn new skills and share camaraderie with other vets in a[Read More…]