VA Director of Optometric Service to Address BVA Virtual Session

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Director, Optometric Service, John C. Townsend, OD, FAAO, will speak at a Blinded Veterans Association (BVA) virtual session via Zoom September 28 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. BVA members, their families, VA employees, and other stakeholders in the field of blind rehabilitation are invited to attend Dr. Townsend’s briefing. During the hour-long session, he will address the status of VA eye care and the vital role optometrists play in […]

Yonaka Trent Honored as District 3 Member for the Month of September

Ms. Yonaka Trent is a United States Army veteran who served eight years as a Military Policewoman. Yonaka’s duty stations consisted of the following: Fort McPherson, Atlanta Georgia; Hunter Army Airfield, Savanah, Georgia: Kelley Barracks, Stuttgart, Germany; and Kaiserslautern, Germany as a Military Customs Inspector. Currently, Ms. Trent resides in Clayton, North Carolina, where she is loved by her two children and five grandchildren. Yonaka joined BVA this year and is an asset to this […]

Pauletta “PJ” Sisk Honored as Women’s Veteran for the Month of September

Pauletta (PJ) Sisk is a former United States Army Medic. Pauletta is a Life Member of the Blinded Veterans Association and an active member of the Tennessee Regional Group. She is also an alumni member of the Outta Sight Clinic Kayak Team of Montana. Pauletta resides in Kingsport, Tennessee, where she participates with Washington County Disabled Veterans Chapter, volunteering countless hours with her service dog Pilot. Pauletta has lost a great deal of vision but […]

Veterans Urged to Take Precautions Against Flu

As the summer winds down, medical professionals are becoming increasingly concerned aboutthe onset of the flu season as COVID-19 diagnoses and complications persist. Although the science as to how the two viruses may co-exist is still not established with anyreasonable certainty, significant COVID-19 interventions such as hand washing, masks, anddistancing are believed to be just as valid for influenza as they are for COVID-19. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is launching an aggressive influenza […]

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August Virtual Sessions Enlighten BVA Members and Friends

BVA’s 75th National Convention became a causality of COVID-19 when the decision to cancel the gathering was made on May 8. In lieu of the annual convention, BVA hosted a series of successful virtual Zoom webinars on Zoom on August 10, 12, and 18-20 that were also live streamed on Facebook and drew audiences in the hundreds. We kicked off the series with an Introduction to Zoom on August 10 in order to help our […]

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Resilience in Living the Army Values: Eric Marts

The acronym is LDRSHIP and the uppercase letters stand for Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, Personal Courage. These are the values of the United States Army to which Master Sergeant Eric Marts of Moorhead, Minnesota first committed himself when he enlisted in the Army National Guard in 1985. They are values to which he has remained devoted and true, notwithstanding the adversities he encountered as he fought for the freedom of millions and […]

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Marine Corps Values as Important Guideposts – by Darryl Goldsmith

As veterans of the U.S. Military, we are proud to have trained to defend our nation and then to have served honorably in whatever capacity and wherever we were assigned. Although we hold in special esteem the branch of the military in which we served, in my case the Marine Corps, the values promoted by each branch overlap and have many of the same themes. These are the values we have taken with us to […]

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Auxiliary Supports BVA’s Mission, Values – by Patti Hail

Values: Specific or general, there are positive values embedded in our organizations, our military, and our Constitution. They are hopefully enduring values. “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness” are just the basis for values and freedoms such as independence, courage, leadership, integrity, honor, etc. As a blinded veteran or family caregiver, empower yourself and others through courage, integrity, independence, and dignity. How is this done? By standing up for yourself and your fellow “man” […]

Davis-Lilly Honored as WVG Member of the Month for August

Davis-Lilly Honored as WVG’s Member of the Month for August Marlene Davis-Lilly, U.S.Navy, Veteran, Captain Buddy Spivey,U.S. Navy Veteran, Captain, Buddy Spivey (Razorback).Regional Group. Marlene Davis- Lilly served in the United States Navy as an Aviation Boatswains Mate and was stationed at Naval Air Station Sigonella Sicily. Marlene leads a kayak team in Little Rock Arkansas and is married with two children and three grandchildren. Mrs. Davis-Lilly has served as a police officer and a […]

District 3 – Member of the Month – Doris Jones

District 3 – Member of the Month – Doris Olivia Jones Doris Olivia JonesMid-Atlantic Regional Group – Doris is a veteran of the U.S. Airforce and has been an active member of the Blinded Veterans Association since joining. Soon after joining, BVA Doris began participating in Adaptive Sports, Recreation Therapy, and Women’s Group Programs at Hunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center in Richmond, Virginia. She held dual leadership roles by serving as the Mid-Atlantic Regional […]