Carnegie Medals Awarded to 21 for Extraordinary Acts of Civilian Heroism

In its fourth and final award announcement of 2010, the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission today named 21 individuals from throughout the United States and Canada as recipients of the CARNEGIE MEDAL.  The medal is given to those who risk their lives to an extraordinary degree while saving or attempting to save the lives of others.

The heroes announced today bring to 85 the number of awards made in 2010 and to 9,412 the total number of awards since the Pittsburgh-based Fund’s inception in 1904.  Commission President Mark Laskow stated that each of the awardees or their next of kin will also receive a financial grant.  Throughout the 106 years since the Fund was established by industrialist-philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, $32.9 million has been given in one-time grants, scholarship aid, death benefits, and continuing assistance.

Details of these heroic acts can be found at http://www.carnegiehero.org/awardees_recent.php.  More on the  CARNEGIE MEDAL and the history of the CARNEGIE HERO FUND COMMISSION can be found at www.carnegiehero.org

To nominate someone for the CARNEGIE MEDAL, write the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, 436 Seventh Avenue, Suite 1101, Pittsburgh, PA 15219, or call 1-800-447-8900 (toll free).

• Personal letters
• Hand-made cool-ties /scarves
• Beanie Babies/WebKinz/Trolls
• Financial donations to pay for postage.

Operation Gratitude

Other Ways to Help:
1. Donate Financially
2. Organize a Fundraiser
3. Collect:

• Beanie Babies/Webkinz/Trolls
• Girl/Boy Scout Cookies, Nuts, Popcorn
• 4. Hand-Made Craft Projects:
• Knit/Crochet Scarves
• Sew Bandanna or Cool-Ties
• Sew Neck Gaters
• Create Greeting Cards

5. Volunteering at Armory
6. Write Letters:

• To Currently Deployed Service Members:

Operation Gratitude/California Army National Guard

17330 Victory Blvd. Van Nuys, CA 91406

• To Veterans of Previous Conflicts

7. Fundraise through Recycling

8. Donate Your Vehicle
9. Fundraise by Searching the Internet and by Shopping
10. Spread the Word

View Operation Gratitude Posters Here.
Email OpGrat@gmail.com if you would like digital files to reproduce copies (designed to print out as 22″ x 28″).

Marc Popchak of the 876th Engineering Battalion currently stationed in Iraq said, “If you put that balm on overnight, the next day the sand flea bites were just gone!”

Sara Damelio, the Combat-Ready Balm creator continues to donate hundreds of care packages containing the products to U.S. Troops and said, “I’m delighted that my product is useful to our servicemen and women. It was intended to provide skin relief to different people with varying skin conditions without the use of harsh chemicals and preservatives.”

Combat-Ready Balm moisturizes dry skins and counteracts heat rash, blisters, bug bites, eczema, and sun burn with all-natural ingredients.

Combat-Ready Balm and other products are available at skincando.com.

Scholarships are offered to active-duty service personnel, honorably discharged U.S. military veterans, reservists, and National Guard personnel who are disabled because of wounds received during service in Enduring Freedom-Afghanistan or Iraqi Freedom Operations.

Applicants must be currently enrolled and attending either a two-year or four-year accredited college or university in the United States.  Students may also be enrolled in an accredited distance-learning or online degree-granting program affiliated with a major, accredited two-year or four-year college or university in the United States.

Candidates must be majoring in the following/related fields:

• electrical
• aerospace
• systems or computer engineering
• computer engineering technology
• computer network systems
• information systems security
• computer information systems
• information systems management
• technology management
• electronics engineering technology
• computer science
• physics
• mathematics
• science or mathematics education
• or majors directly related to the support of U.S. intelligence or national security

Academic excellence, leadership and financial need are factors that will determine scholarship winners.

Next deadline is November 1, 2010.

For official rules and eligibility requirements, read more about the Disabled Veteran Scholarship.

Military personnel need to print out the Storewide Savings Pass found in this flyer: http://www.sears.com/ue/home/8.28+Salute+Flyer.pdf, and they also need ID to prove their “local hero” status.

The sale is nationwide with the exception of these cities:  Boston, MA; Seattle, WA; Miami, FL; Raleigh-Durham, NC; Dallas, TX and Cincinnati, OH. Instead, these cities will will offer the same Sears discount September 4, 11 AM-2 PM in-store.

Ten (10) scholarships are awarded annually.

Applicants must be citizens of the United States, possess academic potential and leadership qualities, and show financial need.

The scholarship is an award of $1,000 sent directly to the recipient’s college or university of choice.

To receive a War Memorial Fund Scholarship application, applicants must submit a self-addressed, business-sized, stamped envelope and a $10 application fee between July 1 and February 1 to: JWMF, PO Box 7, Tulsa, OK 74102-0007. The check or money order must be made payable to JWMF.

Among the initiatives the College of William and Mary and the Mason School uses to engage active-duty military and veteran students are tuition discounts, in-state tuition without residency, a return from active service without penalty policy, a veteran’s club, advisors to help with career placement and a military-based section of the school’s website.

“The women and men of America’s military add a valuable dimension to business education here at Mason,” says Dean Lawrence B. Pulley. “Their experience, perspective and drive enrich the learning process for other students and faculty, so it is very much a win-win for all of us.”

Read more about William and Mary School of Business.

Dick Hrebik was born to a Czech immigrant family struggling to achieve the American dream. He joined the Marine Corps at age 18, beginning a lifelong tour of duty. Dick’s military career took him on secret missions during the Vietnam War and provided him the opportunity to serve with influential military figures. His personal story provides insight into the courage, pride, and grace of soldiers that serve the United States today.

There are steps employers should make to help those returning from military service, especially those in combat situations, shift to the workplace. “As our troops transition from the longest war in U.S. history, we must prepare for their return,” explains Ed Crenshaw, U.S. Navy veteran and president and CEO of DESTIN Enterprises, an employment services and consulting firm that developed the “Preparing Employers to Reintegrate Combat Exposed Veterans with Disabilities” (PERCEVD) diversity training program. “Many [veterans] have served multiple combat tours and the latest statistics reflect that one in five may now experience some form of combat-related mental health impairment.”

Two common combat-related mental health conditions are post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI), although neither is limited to veterans.

• PTSD is an anxiety disorder that develops after a person experiences or witnesses an extremely distressing event involving actual or threatened death or physical harm.
• A TBI is an injury to the brain caused by a person’s head being hit, shaken violently, or penetrated by an object.

It is important for employers to provide sensitivity training and make necessary accommodations for someone with PTSD, TBI, and other disabilities to be able to be comfortable in the workplace and maximize their work experience. Employee support is an essential ingredient toward recognizing diversity. Crenshaw says implementing diversity sensitivity training for all organization employees will help to raise awareness of the issues and create a baseline understanding of the various physical and hidden disabilities.

Here are some tips to help veterans transition to the workplace:

Create a workplace environment in which veterans can work comfortably:

• Provide flexible schedules.
• Paint cheerful colors in office and work areas.
• Write down instructions for cognitive impaired employees.
• Respect medication-related ups and downs.
• Encourage proper amounts of rest, exercise, and healthy living habits.
• Provide diversity sensitivity training.
• Allow employees the opportunity to sit facing doors and windows.

Implement supportive practices:

• Avoid discussions of war or related controversial subjects.
• Practice patience in employee and customer interactions.
• Acknowledge military experience during employment interviews.
• Acknowledge military customs and holidays.
• Provide mentors, employee assistance programs, and support programs.
• Include veterans and persons with disabilities in career fair activities.
• Include feedback from focus groups in business decisions.

Have strict policies that address persons with disabilities:

• Do not tolerate offensive jokes and remarks.
• Practice proper etiquette towards persons with disabilities.
• Emphasize respect and inclusive practices.
• Employees without disabilities should not use disability toilets or parking spaces, but should respect the disability-related infrastructure.

*Source: NACE

“Ashworth is proud to offer a wide range of programs to those serving in the U.S. military, their spouses and our military veterans,” said Gary M. Keisling, Ashworth College Chairman and CEO. “It’s our mission to ensure that each of our programs is of the highest quality, accredited, affordable and flexible”.

Read more about Ashworth College being a top military-friendly school.