This past week, I had a conversation with a combat veteran who retired after 20 years in the military.
“Transitioning from military life to civilian life is the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” he said. “There is little and inadequate support to help you navigate the drastic change.”
While I was a civilian, I knew it to be true in my experience caring for a wounded post 9-11 combat veteran. It was simply an illusion that most Americans and I held as true. Billions of our tax dollars are spent to create a different reality, but it is contrary to a smooth, supportive, and sustaining process that honors our warriors and families.
In fact, those billions of dollars sustain very fragmented duplications of services and properties that create the illusion that our veterans and families are served.
If you’d like to read a personal account that describes the gravity of this issue and spanned 17 years, pick up a copy of Unfiltered: An Iraq Veteran and Family Coming Home Story by Margaret Suman.
Taking the time to read about what is happening may be one of the best ways to honor our veterans and families this upcoming Independence Day.
