By Amy Nielsen

In my recent reentry into the world of work after an absence for motherhood, I have been casting about for a specific purpose. I am starting a new career in a different field than I had BM – Before Motherhood. I chose the career I did because I can’t help doing it every day. I fall into the service of health and healing with each conversation I hold. I am proud that I have been able to build a structure around something as amorphous as “wellness”.

However, translating that concept into a solid paying job has been a bit tougher. I finally figured out why. I have up to this point not had a specific job that I knew would fit what I am capable of doing. My pre-mom careers had nothing to do with my current profession. So while I have decades of experience, it’s not exactly the right experience. Then there’s that 10 year gap in my portfolio to deal with.

While I say I have gaps in my timeline, those gaps are only of a professional nature. I spent that time very actively volunteering for several organizations. That experience is valid and worthy of mention. I was still engaged in community and working with large non-profit organizations. So while the topics may not have been specifically tied to the work I am doing now, it can be used to support my current desire to work with a non-profit.

I have been networking over the last year in our local community in an effort to discover where the needs are and where I might be able to fit to fill them. What I have found is a good base for growth, but a deeply entrenched apathy for change. The will is there to jog but the butt can’t get off the couch, as it were.

I volunteer with a community activism non-profit organization which has begun the process of creating a spin off sister non-profit working to farther the exact campaigns I want to spearhead. It was announced late last year that they are in the active search for an executive director for the spin off. BINGO!

Now, I am nowhere near ready for prime time or executive directorship. I have read the requirements and description put out by the head hunting agency. With the gaps in my timeline and my previous unrelated career experience, there is no way I would even be considered as a candidate. Applying would be shear folly and probably make more than a few people question my sanity.

However, what I can do is make sure to stay close to those folks who are the movers and shakers creating the structure of the organization. By continually putting myself in the path of this group, I hope to be tapped to join the supporting team, eventually moving up once my degree is conferred.

I know it will take at least another year before the organization is ready to launch public programs, things typically move slowly in the non-profit world as grant funding is a long process.  To that end I will continue to volunteer and perhaps work in a supporting capacity in another like-minded organization until I am better positioned to apply for a position with more organizational responsibility. I know that I have time to work through the beginning semesters of graduate school without being worried that I will compromise my focus on my studies or my career.

My plan of study is two years long. By the time I finish the Master’s, the new spin off organization should be just about ready to jump into high gear, putting me in a good place to move up the food chain into a more senior position.

Two years from now seems like a hugely long time, but as I have kids, I know that two years is the blink of an eye and I had better be ready to hit the ground running if I want to keep up and be in the best place possible to launch into a full time position upon completion.

So while I work through school, and continue to volunteer, I have my sights set on a very specific job. It gives me purpose and drive to make sure I am the best positioned candidate when it comes time to apply. By joining the organization in its infancy, I can follow it through the early growing pains and be in a better place to help it move forward to greater heights.

So what if it happens that when I am ready for the job, the job isn’t ready for me? Well, I will have spent two years developing a career path and reputation within the community that will allow me to apply to other similar organizations. I will have watched this one grow and evolve and I can use that experience to build upon for other organizations. Heck, I might even feel ready at that point to start my own, filling a specific niche that the others don’t.

For now, I have clarity of purpose and a goal to drive towards which is more than I had a week ago. I can begin my Master’s program with a direct intention for its use. I know what I shape if not what color this is going to take and I can now formulate a plan to gather the best set of personal resources I can to make it happen. Today, I will hang the job description post on my bathroom mirror so I can keep it in my focus.

By Amy Nielsen

When I graduated from my professional certification program I hadn’t finished the legal business part of starting a business. The course I took was specifically about the coaching part of the business.

My next step is to finish up business process. This is the part that scares the heck out of me.

What I mean to say is it makes me feel like a real live adult. With responsibilities. It means I have to step up to the plate and be seen. It means owning the good and the bad, because there will be mistakes along the way. It will take courage to make it through this next few steps. Courage, the root word means heart and the word entire means to live your story with your whole heart.

The whole process of starting a small business is nothing more than taking a microscope to your core personal beliefs and offering them up for others to discuss. Whether you are a hair stylist, accountant, or candlestick maker, your business must follow your core beliefs or it won’t last very long. If you are conflicted about what you are offering, your client base will be confused as well. Clarity in your vision is imperative.

Thus the being seen part. I have always made an excellent second. I can see another’s vision and get to the nitty gritty of the flow of it and make it relatable to other people. Which is to say, I am a great follower. I know what I believe in and I find people who tell that story well. I am good at clarifying other’s ideas. But being a follower means I don’t have to examine my story very hard if I use someone else’s voice to speak it.

These next formal legal business formation steps force me to speak my own story. I have to choose what narrative I want to live. I have lived a bit of an unbelievable life. I have been afforded some extraordinary opportunities. I have lived several narratives already. In some ways this new piece feels very much like a coming of age, a rite of passage, and a milestone of momentous proportions even among those experiences. I feel like this next narrative is somehow weightier than those before.

I come from a line of entrepreneurs, both successful and unsuccessful – though that never stopped ‘em. My family is full of CEOs, COOs, Chairmen (and women), Foundation Presidents, and all and sundry positions in every imaginable part of a not-for-profit one could imagine. Some of these are very large well known organizations, some are tiny little niche projects.

My dad even taught the subject for a large state university while I was in college. I have a long history from a very young age of volunteering and being voluntold to participate in these organizations. The vast majority of them were founded by said family members.

Yet, somehow, I haven’t the slightest idea how the business and organizations actually get started or run on a day-to-day basis. I feel like I am the worker bee who just can’t figure out how to get into the hive door. I feel like somehow I should just - know. By osmosis I guess. Somehow I feel like I wasn’t paying enough attention to the details. Of course I was busy growing up and stuff, but it’s a tape I hear play when I think about starting my own organization.

This weird “you should know” fear is so large that I have spent hours reading things online rather than seeking out actual human beings to ask for help. Because somehow from my history, I should know this stuff, right? I honestly don’t think I would feel this way if my family members worked for other people for their career paths. Sometimes living on the cultural fringe brings up strange reflexes.

This is the part where the universe says, girl, how much do you really want this? Are you a man or a mouse? Are you going to pout about all the fruit hanging in the high branches of the tree next door or are you going to dig deep and water your own roots?

My current convenient procrastination from jumping off the legal business cliff is my financial aid package for graduate school. This week I finalize the application for financial aid for my Master’s degree, another step closer to fitting the pieces of the larger business puzzle together. Part of my business plan involves needing credentials that stand up as the leader of the kind of organization I want to build. Taking the step to accept the admissions offer for this fall felt like the beginnings of a big step into being recognized, into being seen and heard for my own ideas.

Once I have that in place and know if I am going to school in the fall or if I will be less encumbered, then I can move forward with the business. I feel like it’s a bit of a procrastination to say I have to wait to hear from school, but I don’t want to expend the slim resources I have. Here’s where the library is going to come in handy.

When I turn to my community to search out all of the assistance I keep hearing about online and in advertisements, I find that our rural area only wants to talk to someone with larger aspirations than I have at this current juncture. I’m heading to the library to check out the “Small Business Start Ups for Dummies” book in hopes that finally I might find a starting point. Our library also offers occasional free classes on small business topics.

At some point I will have to face my story, decide my voice, and use it. Whether it is now or later, I feel the personal pressure to get this out to the world will outweigh the fears I have about how much I really don’t know about the business of business. I know that I will have to face this fear if I want to succeed in supporting those people I want to reach. Until then, I will start desensitizing myself to the idea by reading up on the subject. Preferably in the dark, under the covers, with a flashlight.

By Jenna Moede

Students need to have a way to let off steam after a long hard semester. Summer vacation provides an opportunity for that.

However, before you just sleep in late or relax inside, think about all the ways the outdoors can provide relaxation.

NPR recently released a study about the Japanese tradition of forest bathing. Forest bathing doesn’t literally involve bathing, instead someone who forest bathes focuses on immersing themselves in the forest with no preplanned destination while taking in the sights and smells and involving all their senses.

Why do it? Simple. Studies have shown that forest bathing reduces stress, reduces blood pressure and helps people incorporate physical activity into their lives leading to some other health benefits.

We all understand the stress of juggling the military life with college so reducing stress and relaxing (with the bonus of health benefits) can only help us handle it all.

I like to visit state and national parks as a way of getting outside and relieving stress, and as it turns out, they offer excellent places to forest bathe.

If you want to give forest bathing a try, seek out a park in your area. Don’t worry, if you don’t feel forest bathing calling your name, you can find so many other activities to help you refocus or reduce stress.

First, if you don’t know how to locate a park near you, check out stateparks.com. On this website, you can select a state and then choose your park on a list of state parks, national parks, national forests and national recreation areas among others.

When you select a park, the site offers information about the history, directions, activities and even lodging. Talk about making it easy!

Along with the opportunity to try forest bathing, state parks have a vast variety of other activities to enjoy including hiking, fishing, biking, boating, camping and even special events.

The closest state park to my home, Curt Gowdy State Park, provided a guide-led New Year’s Day hike bright and early in the morning. Needless to say we showed up nice and early to start our new year with some relaxation and head clearing activities plus a few falls into some fresh snow.

They even have a special event in the summer where they give out free fishing poles to kids and teach fishing workshops. The special activities always blow me away so once you pick a state park to visit, take the time to look into their upcoming events.

Some state park systems run discounts for military so make sure to ask when you pay your entrance fee.

If you chose to visit a national park, military members have free admission to the national park system. If you don’t already have a National Park Pass, the military member can ask at any park entrance and will need to show his or her ID card. The passes stay active for a year before you’ll need to ask for a new one.

While I plan to give forest bathing a shot during the last month or so of summer vacation, I encourage you to open the door and visit a state park even if just for the sake of exploring.

Head into the forest and let go of your semesters in the past, enjoy the present moment to reduce stress and think about how to make the next semester smooth and successful. I know I reflect best in the quiet of the woods.

By Amy Nielsen

Never in a million years did I think I would be going to graduate school. But here I am, with an acceptance letter in my inbox and the FAFSA application open in the next tab over. Now what? How is this all going to fit in to the already topsy-turvey life we lead?

I recently completed a professional certification with the intent on following on with this master’s program. I specifically went through the certification so that I could do a follow on school through one of their many articulation agreements with institutes of higher learning who have complete online master’s programs to support my professional goals.

However, the state of New York made the decision to disallow online master’s programs for accreditation midway through my certification schooling. The institute I was to follow on to was such a program.

This left me hanging. I had to either find a program with a partial residency program that would accept my certification, continue on with my career plans and sort out a different solution to credentialing, or sit tight and wait for the illustrious state of New York to get its act together. In early June, the institute completed compilation and accreditation for a new partial residency program that meets New York States requirements.

HUZZAH! So when was it going to be open for us to apply? When were the residency dates? What courses of study were accepted into the partial residency program, since not all of the master’s programs met the requirements. Time to sit back and wait again.

I received an email from the institute’s registrar 16 days before the application due date. Nothing like making a fast decision about the next two years and a whole lotta debt to incur in a very short amount of time.

Luckily my husband was home when I opened and read the email and we were able to take a collective family breath and decided I had to go for it now and not defer. It means we will have two adult fulltime students in the house at the same time, but since we homeschool our kids, it means we all sit at the table and school together.

Once we made the decision that I would bite the bullet and apply I realize the logistical nightmare I had just waded into. I had done nothing yet to apply to this school as we had no idea when or if New York would ever accept this program.

Not to mention I needed transcripts and it was the Friday before July 4^th. Every office I needed to contact was operating on a different schedule.

In the end it was painless to apply to graduate school. When I last applied for college, you had to rip the application out of the book, type in the answers or – gasp - handwrite them, and then send it with three sealed letters of recommendation, sealed official high school transcripts, a typed essay, your SAT score reports ,and of course the money order deposit, in one package, in the mail.

Now, online autofill applications are a breeze. That is nothing to say for electronic official transcripts and letter of recommendation portals.

Within seventy-two hours of opening the letter I had a fully submitted application to a master program I wasn’t sure was ever going to be able to happen.

Within thirty-six hours of the application deadline, a week after submitting my application, I had my answer.

I’m going to graduate school for a master’s of science!

Now the real fun begins, because in the week that I was waiting to hear about my application, I met with the owner of a small studio space. I wanted to rent out time in her office to see my clients and hold small classes. She needs someone to use the space in the morning and my schedule preference is in the morning. It is a perfect fit - schedule wise. We hit it off great and have very similar philosophies in practice. I pick up my key next week and can begin seeing clients in the space the following week.

The universe just couldn’t leave well enough alone though.

Last night my darling husband messaged me that the long awaited and much anticipated schedule change at his place of employment is in fact really happening and our whole day, not to mention year, will need to be reworked to accommodate this new rotating schedule. That will begin next week.

Um.

I teach breathing - so breathe.

HUM.

Today I plan to finish writing this blog, fill out the FAFSA federal student loan application, try to understand this weird rotation thingy, then take a very long walk in the woods.

Tomorrow I will pull down the calendar, write out the new work schedule, which is always a moving target, and see where the chips fall.

Regardless, we have two adults in undergraduate or graduate school, two kids in elementary school and a business on the verge or tipping into something real if I can just hang on to the roller coaster.

So watch this space. A lot more is coming down the pike, and I think the breaks are out.  As my dear compass mentor taught me, “Sempre Gumbi” (Always be flexible).

By Salute to Spouses staff

Thousands of military members have been evacuated from Texas, Georgia and Florida for Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. Many have and will return home to destruction.

As families try to assess the damage, salvage what they can and return to a new normal, there is lots of help in place from military organizations. Here is a rundown of information from Blue Star Families and Military.com.

Evacuation Entitlements

Military families ordered to evacuate (including those in the Florida Keys) will be reimbursed for mileage, lodging, meals and accidentals. However, this is only true if the proper authorities ordered a family to evacuate. For more information on evacuation entitlements visit

https://paycheck-chronicles.military.com/2017/09/03/evacuation-entitlements/

Tricare

During natural disasters, Tricare regularly puts in place a "state of emergency" in impacted areas.

Tricare users in all counties in Louisiana, Florida, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, Georgia and some counties in Texas can access emergency prescriptions refills at any Tricare network pharmacy.

Those counties are: Aransas, Atascosa, Austin, Bastrop, Bee, Bexar, Brazoria, Brazos, Burleson, Caldwell, Calhoun, Cameron, Chambers, Colorado, Comal, DeWitt, Fayette, Fort Bend, Galveston, Goliad, Gonzales, Grimes, Guadalupe, Hardin, Harris, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Jim Wells, Karnes, Kerr, Kleberg, Lavaca, Lee, Leon, Liberty, Live Oak, Madison, Matagorda, Montgomery, Newton, Nueces, Polk, Refugio, San Jacinto, San Patricio, Tyler, Victoria, Waller, Walker, Washington, Wharton, Wilson and Willacy.

Specialty care referral requirements have also been waived for all Tricare users all counties in Florida in some counties in Texas.

To be seen by a medical provider, beneficiaries simply need to make an appointment with a provider wherever they are. Those Texas counties are: Aransas, Austin, Bastrop, Bee, Brazos, Burleson, Calhoun, Chambers, Colorado, Brazoria, DeWitt, Fayette, Fort Bend, Galveston, Goliad, Gonzales, Grimes, Hardin, Harris, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Jim Wells, Karnes, Kleberg, Lavaca, Lee, Leon, Liberty, Live Oak, Madison, Matagorda, Montgomery, Newton, Nueces, Polk, Refugio, San Jacinto, San Patricio, Tyler, Victoria, Waller, Walker, Washington, Wharton and Wilson.

In South Carolina those counties are, Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester, Georgetown, Horry, Jasper.

In Georgia those counties are Bryan, Camden, Chatham, Glynn, Liberty and McIntosh.

The situation is constantly changing so check the Tricare website for up-to-date details.

GI Bill

Typically, Post-9/11 GI Bill housing allowance payments require that you are in school continuously. When school breaks or classes are out, the housing payment is prorated to reflect that change.

Officials with the Department of Veterans Affairs announced that most people using the GI Bill at a school that has been temporarily closed due to the hurricane will still receive housing allowance payments as if nothing had happened.

VA Hospitals, Clinics

Hurricane Harvey

Across impacted areas in Texas, some community health and outpatient Department of Veterans Affairs clinics are closed as a result of the storm. The Houston VA Medical Center, however, is open and fully operational, officials posted on that facility's website.

A series of mobile vet centers to provide counseling services were being deployed to impacted areas, such as Corpus Christi, or have been placed on standby, according to VA officials. Within the area impacted by Harvey are over 510,000 veterans and 115 VA clinics, they said.

A series of mobile vet centers to provide counseling services were being deployed to impacted areas, such as Corpus Christi, or have been placed on standby, according to VA officials. Within the area impacted by Harvey are over 510,000 veterans and 115 VA clinics, they said.

The VA has also put in place their Pharmacy Disaster Relief Plan. Eligible veterans with a VA ID Card who need an emergency supply of medications can go to any CVS or HEB pharmacy with a written prescription or active VA prescription bottle to receive a 14-day supply. Veterans who need assistance can also call the Heritage Health Solutions Veterans Help line at 1-866 265-0124 to speak to a representative, officials said.

Hurricane Irma

Veterans from storm-affected areas who require immediate assistance may contact the Health Resource Center Disaster Hotline at 1-800-507-4571.

For the latest updates on operations at specific VA facilities and associated clinics, please visit your facility’s website and the Facebook pages listed below. Information provided on the facility pages may be more current than what is posted here.

Caribbean facilities:

• VA Caribbean Healthcare System (website)  –  VA Caribbean Healthcare System (Facebook page)
  • With the exception of the St. Thomas clinic, all VA Caribbean facilities have resumed normal operating hours. More Details
• San Juan Regional Benefit Office (website)
  • The VA San Juan Regional Benefit Office has reopened
• Puerto Rico National Cemetery (website)
  • Puerto Rico National Cemetery will has reopened.

Florida, Georgia, South Carolina medical facilities:

• Miami VA Medical Center (website) – Miami VAMC (Facebook page)
  • Beginning Wednesday, Sept. 13, the Bruce W. Carter VA Medical Center (the main hospital) will be fully operational. More Details
  • William “Bill” Kling VA Clinic in Broward County – Beginning Wednesday, Sept. 13, the clinic will be fully operational with the exception of GI procedures
  • Hollywood VA Clinic – Primary Care, Mental Health for walk-ins only
  • Pembroke Pines CBOC – Open for normal operations.
  • The following community clinics remain closed through Tuesday, September 12:
    • Deerfield Beach CBOC
    • Homestead CBOC
    • Key West OPC
    • Key Largo CBOC
    • Flagler Street
• West Palm Beach VA Medical Center (website) – West Palm Beach VAMC (Facebook page)
  • The West Palm Beach VA Medical Center is fully operational.More Details
    • Delray Beach CBOC – Closed
    • Stuart CBOC – Closed
    • Clewiston CBOC – Closed
    • Moorehaven CBOC – ClosedThe following clinics remain closed.  All others are operational
• North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System (website) – North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System (Facebook page)
  • Gainesville VAMC and Lake City VAMC are fully operational. More Details
  • Clinic Status:
    • Jacksonville (all locations) – Beginning Wednesday, September 13, fully operational
    • Lecanto CBOC – Open
    • Marianna CBOC – Open
    • Ocala West – Open
    • Ocala Cascades – Closed
    • Palatka CBOC – Open
    • Perry Outreach Clinic – Closed
    • St. Augustine CBOC – Beginning Wednesday, September 13, fully operational
    • St. Marys (GA) CBOC – Beginning Wednesday, September 13, fully operational
    • Tallahassee HCC – Open
    • The Villages OPC – Open
    • Valdosta CBOC – Beginning Wednesday, September 13, fully operational
    • Waycross CBOC – Beginning Wednesday, September 13, fully operational
• Bay Pines VA Medical Center (website) – Bay Pines VAMC (Facebook page)
  • The C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center (main hospital) outpatient services, elective procedures and surgeries remain suspended.  The emergency department remains closed. More Details
  • All clinics remain closed.  Patients with appointments will be rescheduled as soon as possible.
• Tampa VA Medical Center (website) – Tampa VAMC (Facebook page)
  • The James A. Haley Veterans Hospital (main hospital) is fully operational. More Details
  • The New Port Richey Dental Clinic is open.  All other New Port Richey VA facilities remain closed.
  • In Tampa, the Mental Health, Audiology and Outpatient Physical Therapy Clinics remain closed.
  • All other clinics are open for normal operations.
• Orlando VA Medical Center (website) – Orlando VAMC (Facebook page)
  • The Lake Nona hospital and campus are fully operational. More Details
  • The following clinics remain closed.  All others are operational.
    • New Port Richey Eye Clinic – Closed
    • Tampa Audiology and Outpatient Physical Therapy Clinics – Closed
• Charleston VA Medical Center (website) – Charleston VAMC (Facebook page)
  • The Charleston VAMC Emergency Department will be fully operational during the weather event along with the required staff to support remaining inpatient care for approximately 70 inpatients. All outpatient clinics and non-essential services will remain closed through Tuesday, Sept. 12 in order to ensure the maximum safety of our Veterans, staff, and their families. The main facility in downtown Charleston and its outpatient clinics, with the exception of the Goose Creek VA Outpatient Clinic, are expected to reopen for normal operations on Wednesday, Sept. 13. More Details
• Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System (website) – Gulf Coast Veterans HCS (Facebook page)
  • The Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System’s outpatient clinics near Eglin Air Force Base, in Panama City Beach and in Pensacola will be closed Sept. 11. More Details
• Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center – Augusta (website) – Augusta VA (Facebook page)
  • The director of the Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center has ordered the closure of the Statesboro, Ga., clinic Tuesday, Sept. 12, and a limited closure of the Athens, Ga., clinic on the same day.The Athens clinic will open at 1 p.m., Sept. 12, and is not a full-day closure. More Details
• Atlanta VA Health Care System (website) – Atlanta VA (Facebook page)
  • The Atlanta VA Medical Center and its outpatient clinics anticipate reopening for normal operations on Wednesday, Sept. 13 though impacts of weather may delay some openings. All previously cancelled appointments will be rescheduled.Clinics Opened
    • Trinka Davis Veterans Village
    • Ft. McPherson VA Campus
    • Fulton County VA Clinic
    • Newnan VA Clinic
    • Stockbridge VA Clinic
    • Austell VA Clinic
    • Gwinnett County VA Clinic
    • Lawrenceville VA Clinic
    • Rome VA Clinic
    • Blairsville VA Clinic

Clinics Closed – due to continued power outage

• Atlanta VA Clinic (Arcadia)
• Henderson Mill VA Clinic
• Oakwood VA Clinic

• Carl Vinson VA Medical Center – Dublin, Georgia (website) – Dublin VA (Facebook page)
  • The Brunswick VA Clinic is CLOSED to evacuate for Hurricane Irma and is expected to re-open Sept. 13 or 14. All community clinics will be closed Monday, Sept. 11 but are expected to re-open Tuesday, Sept. 12. The Dublin VA Medical Center is cancelling outpatient appointments for Monday Sept. 11 but expects to resume normal operations Tuesday, Sept. 12. More Details
• Central Alabama Veterans Health Care System (website) – VA Central Alabama (Facebook page)
  • All of Central Alabama Health Care System hospitals and clinics will be fully operational Tuesday, Sept. 12. More Details.

VA Regional Benefits Offices

• Atlanta Regional Benefits Office (website)
  • The Atlanta Regional Benefit Office outbased locations in Fort Stewart/Savannah, GA and Fort Gordon/Augusta, GA are closed Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2017. We will continue to monitor this weather system for Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2017 and update information soon as possible.  The Atlanta Regional Office (main office) will remain closed at this time.  More Details
• St. Petersburg Regional Benefit Office (website)
  • The St. Petersburg Regional Officeand all outbased offices will reopen to employees on Wednesday, Sept. 13. All locations will reopen to Veterans and their families on Thursday, Sept. 14.

VA National Cemeteries

• Sarasota National Cemetery (website)
  • Sarasota National Cemetery is closed on Tuesday, Sept. 12.
• Bay Pines National Cemetery (website)
  • Bay Pines National Cemetery is closed on Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept. 12 and 13.
• Florida National Cemetery (website)
  • Florida National Cemetery is closed on Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept. 12 and 13.
• Cape Canaveral National Cemetery (website)
  • Cape Canaveral National Cemetery  anticipates reopening on Tuesday, Sept. 12 at 8 a.m.
• Beaufort National Cemetery (website)
  • Beaufort National Cemetery is closed on Tuesday, Sept. 12.

Vet Centers

• VA Vet Centers –  updated information on Vet Center operating status in the affected region.
  • U.S. Virgin Islands:
    • St. Croix – Open
    • St Thomas – Closed
  • Puerto Rico:
    • San Juan – Open
    • Ponce – Open
    • Arecibo – Providing Services at Arecibo CBOC
  • Florida:
    • Miami Vet Center – Closed
    • Naples Vet Center – Closed
    • Fort Lauderdale Vet Center – Closed
    • Pompano Beach Vet Center – Closed
    • Palm Beach Vet Center – Closed
    • Jupiter Vet Center – Closed
    • Melbourne Vet Center – Closed
    • Tampa Vet Center – Closed
    • St. Petersburg Vet Center – Closed
    • Sarasota Vet Center – Closed
    • Clearwater Vet Center – Closed
    • Fort Myers Vet Center – Closed
  • Georgia:
    • Savannah Vet Center – Closed Sept. 9 thru 12
  • South Carolina
    • Charleston Vet Center – Closed Sept. 9 thru 12Myrtle Beach Vet Center – Closed Sept. 9 thru 12

VA Pharmacy Disaster Relief Plan

VA has activated the Pharmacy Disaster Relief Plan for Veterans in Hurricane Irma impact areas. Eligible Veterans in the affected areas with a VA ID Card needing emergency supply of medications will be able to go to any retail pharmacy open to the public with a written prescription or active VA prescription bottle (not older than 6 months and with refills available) to receive at least a 10 day supply. Note: This does not include controlled substances. Patients must present a valid VA ID Card.

The Heritage Health Customer Care Line is available for VA patients in the affected areas at 1-866-265-0124, option 1. Heritage’s hours of operations for hurricane coverage: Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. ET, Saturday and Sunday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET

VA Benefits

VA’s Veterans Benefits Administration has mechanisms to help Veterans receive their benefit payments if their normal mail cannot be delivered:

• Veterans can sign up for direct deposit on eBenefits.
• Veterans can call 1-800-827-1000 to sign up for direct deposit.
• The Direct Express Cardless Benefit Access program is offering beneficiaries who use Direct Express and reside in the affected area the option to obtain cash without their card, up to $1,000.
  • The service is being offered free of charge; however, due to system limitations, a fee will be charged and then refunded to the beneficiary. The beneficiary will be asked to go to a MoneyGram store to retrieve the funds.  If the beneficiary is unable to locate a MoneyGram store in operation in his/her area, the funds will be placed back on the Direct Express card.
  • MoneyGram agents will require ID before releasing funds.  They will accept a passport, driver’s license, military identification card, social security card and/or state identification card.  The beneficiary must also have a MoneyGram reference number (provided by the Direct Express Call Center).
  • Contact the Direct Express Call Center toll-free number, 1-888-741-1115, and offer to transfer the caller.  Callers must choose the “Direct Express Cardless Benefit Access” option on the IVR.

By Jenna Moede

Even though I don't consider myself new to the military lifestyle, I still find curve balls hard to deal with. People say "it gets easier," but I have discovered that without a few coping mechanisms to overcome disappointment, it just seems to stay the same.  

I received a quick reminder of this over the spring and summer. My husband left for a retrain and we expected his follow-on orders before he left. We waited and waited, but they didn't come. He left for his retrain and again we waited and waited, and they didn't come.  

Finally we heard, but the news came as quite a surprise to us. He didn't receive orders to PCS. He had to return to the base we have already lived at for over 4.5 years.  

I have talked quite a lot about how to enjoy the base you live no matter where the location, but we really felt excited about experiencing something new. Needless to say, the news shocked and disappointed us.  

Luckily, I had a few tricks up my sleeve for dealing with this kind of disappointment because at the end of the day, even when you count on something, the military can deal you a totally different hand.  

First, I let myself think about my disappointment. I hear it all the time that in situations like this, you just have to let it go and forget it, but I like to think about what specifically disappoints me.  

I wanted to know if I felt sad because we had to stay in the same place, the weather, the location, the lack of new experiences, or whatever other reason because allowing myself to experience the disappointment helps me zero in on a couple of real and raw reasons that I feel let down.  

After I figure out exactly where the disappointment stems from, I make a plan. I take all of the negatives and find something good.  

Like this: we don't have a new location, but at least we know the best restaurants and have great friends that always want to go with us or we have hiked that trail a bajillion times, but at least we will finally have time to do it in the winter!  

I have found it incredibly helpful to spin the disappointment if not into a complete positive, at least into seeing a silver lining. Let me tell you, sometimes I have to really want to see it!  

Next, I take the thoughts that let me down the most, and I find new ways to satisfy those unfulfilled ideas.  

When we found out we would continue living at the current base, I felt the saddest because of, you guessed it, lack of new experiences. So, to overcome that, I had to think outside the box.  

I realized that we could finally do some of the activities that we always talked about that we had found too expensive when we first got married or that would have taken a three day weekend when I couldn't afford the time off.  

New experiences might not exist right at our fingertips but I know that if I look hard enough, I can always find them. Pinterest helps a little too... 

I also surprised myself when thinking about the new activities because I found myself getting really excited. I didn't think our area had anything excite-worthy left but those gems do still exist. 

Lastly, I remind myself that everything and anything can change. At the end of the day, what happens in our lives depends on the needs of the military at any given moment.  

While sometimes I find it really hard to avoid feeling upset when the sticks don't fall my way, I have to remind myself that anything can change. 

I can only control my attitude a lot of times, and I find that approaching any situation with optimism can really help to overcome anything that may not line up perfectly with my perfect ideas.  

I know that other events and situations will disappoint me in the future, but just as much as I feel disappointed, I feel excited even more often because the good situations really do overwhelmingly outweigh all the others. 

By Amy Nielsen

I am beat. I spent all day yesterday cooking up nine and a half dozen cookies to sell at a bake sale today. I held the bake sale at our local community, monthly fundraiser Flea Market. The bake sale is part of a summer campaign for a large national not-for-profit started by a guy I think is really cool.

I have been searching for ways my business could support a few specific niche organizations that give back to my local, national, and global communities. I believe in putting your money where your mouth is and supporting organizations doing the work you get paid to do for those who can’t afford you. If that means volunteering as the Veterinarian on the Neuter Scooter if you are a Vet, or participating in the weekly Poker Runs wearing your business golf shirt, or planning a day a month to pick up trash in town with other area professionals. It means participating in Rotary or going to the Shrine Rodeo. It means participating in the charity work your business participates in.

The point is there are lots of ways in which to give back using your professional status. Yes, you. You have professional status if you operate a business no matter how small. Take pride in being able to give back even just a little bit, even if it is just you, your time, and your business name.

Earlier this year I started holding an information booth about topics in my field at the local Flea Market. This particular Flea Market is hosted by several town somebodies to support each-other’s community giving organizations. The first month our booth fees and 50 percent of the fifty-fifty raffle went to help buy the Firehouse equipment and this month the funds went to our new animal shelter. The vendors who participate are a mix of the textures of our rolling hills and back country crags. All and sundry stuff can be found from toothpaste to tires to our town lawyer selling her husband’s Harley at her yard sale.

Recently I received an email from a national, professional, not-for-profit organization I have belonged to since I went to culinary school. It detailed the summer fundraising campaign. The campaign is a national bake sale to raise funds to help feed hungry kids.

BINGO! I teach health and wellness education with a focus on kids. This was a perfect match and I knew exactly where to hold the bake sale; at the monthly community Junk in the Trunk.

Today was a very successful day. While we didn’t sell out of cookies, we did make a right smart penny to remit. Many would consider our total paltry, not even breaking three figures, but for our community that is a bang up haul. I made as much in cookie money as the fifty-fifty raffle donated to the animal shelter.

Seeing as we have a few bags of cookies left, I promptly sent out a Facebook missive to my Tribe about extra cookies. Within ten minutes, all but four bags are spoken for by far flung friends with promises of donations including shipping via the donation link I posted. GEESH but I love technology.

Charitable giving is easy these days. It is as simple as googling your profession. Someone somewhere has started a 501(c)3 for underwater basket weavers and you too can join to help your fellow artisans spread awareness. Paypal, gofundme.com, and so many others are out there to make simple to create a campaign, target an audience, and collect funds.

Specifically because it is so easy to produce a slick professional looking campaign, it is also equally important to look carefully into the charitable organization you are putting your hard earned dollars, your limited time, and your professional reputation behind. There are many tools to be able to check out a purported not-for-profit, the first being ask to see a copy of their charitable organization paperwork. If they can’t produce it or they are too small to have it, perhaps think about a larger organization for the first community project you do.

Some of the organizations I support are only loosely tied to my profession and others are directly supportive. The breadth of those organizations helps to define my business’ place in the larger professional sphere. It is some of what helps set me apart from my peers. Who and what a business supports what tell you about the soul of a business rather than the practice of the business.

So as you are building your business start thinking about what you want to support and why. Do you want to support the organization on a professional level because it ties well with your mission or perhaps it is better to support from a personal level? I feel it is important to participate professionally inasmuch as possible on a local, reginal, national, and global scale. We are all on this one marble together and it behooves us to act as such by participating.

I hear you out there; but I don’t have time to donate time to anyone else but my burgeoning business. I can’t make my cash flow let alone give any of it to anyone else.  I am too small a fish to join a global pond. No, you are not. Every big fish started out as a small fish. So seek out who and what you want to support and join those organizations.

I sincerely believe that grace, gratitude and abundance beget grace, gratitude and abundance. By which I mean, if one is sincerely grateful and abundantly give of that which they have to give, that grace and abundance will return in due time. Using ones business clout to support others gives a business depth and deeper purpose and in the end I feel makes them more successful because they are more connected to the pulse of the local, regional and global field.

Anyone want some cookies?

By Amy Nielsen

It’s been a year. A solid full year since I went cray cray. When I took off flying after a dream, rising to the sun like a rocket. That sun burned me hard and crispy, and I’m still reeling and learning from it daily.

Last summer I went on a girls weekend trip with my then bestie. I was going out to hang out with her, check out our favorite band, hike, and maybe even relax a bit.

I arrived early in the morning on Friday, planned to spend the weekend and return home on Monday. We had planned to go to two different events culminating with a glorious hike to a beautiful peak.

Everything went wonky that Saturday. I met an individual working a career that was and is still my biggest dream. Working on the road, doing what he loved, connecting with all manner of people, teaching and selling his products. He was a charmer for sure with an infectious smile and a vulnerability that made me melt.

I couldn’t help myself. I was in a state of mind where my grasp on rational thought was tenuous at best. Coupled with the freedom of the support of my best friend, I took flight. I returned home and immediately started planning our takeover of his business.

Do you know the story of Icarus and Dedalus? It’s a Greek myth that goes like this: Dedalus was a famous inventor for King Minos in ancient Greece. Dedalus made the king angry and he and his son Icarus were banished from the island. In order to leave, Dedalus built wings made of feathers attached to a frame with wax.

As he and Icarus took off for their new homeland, Dedalus warned his son that he shouldn’t fly too close to the sea or the feathers would get wet, and if he flew too high the wax would melt in the heat of the sun. Stay in the middle and we’ll make it to the shore of our new homeland, he cautioned.

Icarus, being a young lad, got over enthusiastic in his flying and flew too high. The sun melted the wax and he fell from the sky, dying in the sea. In his grief, Dedalus flew on to Sicily, where he built a temple for Apollo, protector of the young, in dedication to his lost son.

I soared. I was like Icarus. I had new wings, new freedom, the ability to be exactly what I had held deep inside my soul for so very long.

I refused to heed the warnings of my friend. Go easy and let’s see where this might go, she said. Let’s not rush into a project we are not quite ready to support, she cautioned. Maybe we can do a few projects with him this summer and over the winter we can build this into a proper plan, she postulated. We don’t really know this guy, she implored.

But I was off. I had a dream to catch. I was a screaming eagle ready to make my swoop and catch the fish. I felt like I could to loop-di-loos with my new wings. This was what I had wanted to do for my whole life. I felt like the universe was leading me higher to the promised land of the perfect career for me. It was everything I ever wanted.

Except that it wasn’t mine. It was his. And I, we, were nowhere near ready to take it over in that short time frame.

I tried so hard to cram my life into that dream. I convinced my family to support me. I pushed hard to make them fit into this scenario they were not even remotely interested in. I did everything to make it happen and nearly destroyed my family in the process. I did, in fact, destroy my friendship in the end.

I spent money we didn’t have and that we can never repay to my mother. I made trips when I couldn’t find proper child care – leaving that mess up to my beloved husband to figure out. I even got a tattoo without thinking of the ramifications of the design.

After two months of beating my wings as hard as I could I had melted the wax and dropped like a stone to the sea. I drowned in the despair of not reaching the sun, of losing my dream. I wallowed in my anguish and threw it all out onto those closest to me.

So where am I now, a year on from this bout of insanity?

In pain. Emotionally and psychologically. I miss my best friend desperately. I still dissolve into tears when I think about the opportunity that I crushed in my desperation to reach my dream. I shudder at the wake of my reputation in that community.

I know that if it ever comes to pass that the universe gives me another chance - another chance at my dream, another chance at my friendship, another chance to soar - I will hopefully not be so scared as to fear the journey again. I hope that I am able to take flight, with new wings made of grace and abundance rather than prayers and shear willpower.

Until then I will continue to miss my best friend desperately and wish her well in all of her endeavors. I hope the business I went after is thriving. I learn new things every day that help me put myself in a place that might shoot me into orbit again This time under my own power, to a new, bigger, more suited dream; to build a temple to my lost Icarus.

By Jenna Moede

Okay, I know you might not love me after this, but I have to give you the skinny. At some point, you will lose money on your college textbooks.

But, before you throw tomatoes at me, I have some good news too. You can search out the most competitive price on your books.

If you haven't experienced your freshman year yet, you might not know this, but if you have, especially on campus, you have probably figured out that most freshman choose to buy their books at their college bookstore.

I did the same thing. I walked up to the counter, picked up my pre-ordered books and signed a nice slip authorizing some 800 dollars charged to my student account.

I didn't really give it another thought until I went to sell those very same books 16 weeks later. I thought I'd make enough to buy some groceries, gas to drive home for winter break, and maybe a few extra dollars for Christmas presents.

I had a rude awakening when they offered me about $100 for all of the books. I think my jaw may have hit their counter. $100? Several books, they told me, they didn't even want to buy back so I thought I would receive nothing for them.

I learned over the next few years that I didn't have to take what the bookstore offered. I had options on how to squeak out the money on the books I had to buy. I never got back what I paid when selling to a buyback program, but I did find some that paid better than others.

I did a little legwork to figure out just how college bookstores determine their buyback prices and whether or not they try to set the students up for zero extra Christmas money. I feel confident now - they don't do it on purpose.

I talked to a few bookstores and the consensus for book buyback seems simple: supply and demand.

One call helped the most, and the woman on the line told me that first they consider the book edition. She informed me that if a new edition of the book I had used came out before the next semester, the professors would likely switch to that edition and no longer use the one I had purchased.

That's a quick way to lose a lot of money. Second, she told me that if the bookstore already had a lot of copies of the book I needed to sell, they wouldn't offer very much for it.

Last, she let me know that the bookstore typically sets one price for the book. It doesn't matter if the books have writing in them or highlighter or torn pages, they still sell back for the same price.

The bookstores would, however, not buy books that had water damage or so much damage they considered them unreadable.

So by the time I hung up with that bookstore, I knew that I had done it right by finding other places to sell my books during my latter years of college.

First, understand you probably won't make top dollar, but you can eek some value back out.

To sell your books, first do a little research. Search the ISBN online and see what the book sells for currently.

Of course it never hurts to check the college bookstore, but don't pack up shop after that.

I recommend typing the ISBN into a book comparison website. Think of them as the Travelocity of college textbooks.

I found two sites that I liked to do this.

First I tried www.bookscouter.com. I thought it made searching the books and seeing the best offers really easy. It cut out a ton of the legwork.

A similar website, www.bookfinder.com, seemed a lot like the first. I didn't like the landing page as much as the first, but the site offered the same exact prices which I took as a good sign.

While I found the comparison sites more effective and efficient, if you'd rather search individual websites, I have included four that I received consistently high offers from in my research.

I had never seen the first two sites, TextbookRecycling and Buyback101 before, but I discovered them in my search.

They seemed similar. Both clearly laid out the terms and conditions on the website and explained the process for selling textbooks. TextbookRecycling's website referred to payments with checks, and Buyback101 mentioned payments to PayPal.

You can also check out Amazon as another credible buyer. Amazon offers a gift card for the value of the books, but the terms make it seem like a fairly straightforward process. .

Lastly, you can use Chegg as an option. The buyback program seems similar to the first two listed. Again, the website explains the shipping policies and payment terms.  

It seems that most buyback programs provide a free shipping label that you just need to print, and each site typically explains how to package the books.

Overall I found tons, and I do mean tons and tons and tons, of buyback programs out there, but comparing prices on a book comparing website seemed like the best use of my time. 

Remember to check the payout method so you won't run into any surprises no matter what buyback program you use.

Don't just settle for what the bookstore will offer you, and remember, you can always list your books online or sell them to classmates.

By Amy Nielsen

Graduate level accreditation can be tricky. The course of study becomes much more focused, leading you to smaller niche schools.

Unfortunately, schools in some niches are hard to come by, so when I found out that my career changing vocational school had an accredited follow-on master’s degree program at an online school that fit in my budget and my schedule, I was ecstatic - until my state yanked the accreditation midway through my principle year.

I have a bachelors that I earned in the dark ages in a career that has absolutely no bearing on my current path. To that end, I set about rectifying the lack of paper trail I have supporting my current career choice. I found an excellent vocational school that wrapped up all of my side steps into one neat career leap to the left.

The initial program I chose is geared toward people who are moving from one career to another. The field I chose is health care related but not part of the health care conglomerate. My focus sits squarely on the line between traditional health care and supportive wellness care.

While my career choice is certainly not one that requires a higher degree, because of the nature of the field, I feel it behooves me to have an accredited degree as our government grapples with what health care will look like in the future.

When I was looking for schools to bridge to my new career, I specifically looked for ones that had either articulation agreements with major universities or ones that were hosted by larger institutions. The program I chose had an agreement with a university I knew well, and was looking forward to continuing on to.

That is until my state decided that the program I was enrolled in and half way through no longer met the state’s requirements for accreditation. This means I could finish my studies, but, I wouldn’t be able to complete the other part of the course - the follow-on master’s program. My state now no longer accepted degrees from solely online learning institutions, unless they had a physical presence in our state or students completed a low residency portion of the program at the institution requesting accreditation.

What the heck is a low residency program? Basically you take all of your classes online, except for a few weekends that you must physically be on campus to meet with professors face to face for in-person classes. Great idea, except that I live in New York and the school I was intending to apply to as my follow on school is in Maryland. Better than California, I suppose. I have a shot at driving to Maryland, this could never work if the school were in California.

Now, I happen to have a lot of friends that I would very much love to see over the next year who happen to live in Maryland not too far from the school with the master’s program I want to complete. Going to Maryland for a few weekends to complete school and hang with dear friends is not an onerous task. It’s the principle of the thing that is killing me.

There was only one problem. This particular master’s school didn’t have a low residency program.

Until Friday. The deadline for applications to the master’s program is Tuesday. It’s Sunday and it’s Fourth of July weekend.

Yes, you read that right. They have so many students who were planning to take this online follow on master’s that the school cobbled together a low residency program to meet the requirements of New York state so that all of us who were planning to do the online one could complete our education in the time we planned.

When I got the email that this program had been created specifically for us, I jumped on the phone to verify that it was in fact happening and that we only had three days to apply. The admissions counselor I spoke to assured me that it was in fact happening. However it was such a new program she couldn’t tell me the dates or subjects for the campus-based sections of the program.

Whateves, they are in Maryland – I can do that.

So, now I am madly applying to graduate school. On July fourth weekend. I am trying to craft an appropriate and compelling essay, and figure out how to get my transcripts from my ancient bachelor’s and my certificates to them in the time allotted, and celebrating with cookouts and fireworks. So far the essay is going great and I filled out the application in three seconds flat thanks to autofill on forms. The cookout is going gang busters and my hot dogs are almost ready.

I needed to have three sets of transcripts sent to arrive by the close of business next Friday. So far I was able to order my undergraduate transcripts and send it wholly online and it has been received. Thanks Outlook for the confirmation email. The other two transcripts might be harder. At my culinary school, the office team is on vacation until Wednesday, and the articulation school has to mail an original to the requesting institution. It is going to be tight to get everything in for the deadline.

So away I go! From not having a follow-on option and scrambling to sort out how I was going to reach my final goal of earning a master’s degree in integrative nutrition, community health education to applying to grad school in three days flat. On a holiday weekend.

Now I just have to figure out how to pay for this. I currently have no school loans. Time to join the ranks of the permanently indebted.