A disturbing piece of news...

There was a major spike in suicides in the Army in the month of January (see story here: http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/02/05/army.suicides/index.html).

We may be looking at the jagged tip of a very big iceberg here. Soldiers are dealing with multiple deployments and the stresses that causes. PTSD is a serious issue for many Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. Add to that severely reduced prospects coming out of the service due to a tanking economy and there’s a recipe for trouble.

The folks I know who work with veterans say the coming years are going to be tough ones and whatever help can be given is welcome.

If you are interested in getting involved locally, contact Central Oregon Veterans Outreach at centraloregonveteransoutreach@yahoo.com. Visit http://mypeoplepc.com/members/jackdiamondback/centraloregonveteransoutreachinc/index.html.