President Biden signed into law two VFW-supported bills. The Solid Start Act requires the VA to reach out to newly separated veterans three times within their first year of separation to check in and help connect them to VA programs and benefits. It is open to all newly separated veterans regardless the type or characterization of service. Supporting Families of the Fallen Act will increase the automatic maximum coverage under Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance and Veterans’ Group Life Insurance from $400,000 to $500,000.
VA Closes Gap for LGBTQ+ Veterans and Survivors
The VA will now allow certain survivors of LGBTQ+ veterans to apply for survivor benefits, such as Survivors Pension or Dependency and Indemnity Compensation. Due to past bans on same-sex marriages and previous VA marriage requirements, many survivors of LGBTQ+ veterans were not eligible for survivor benefits. Surviving spouses can now establish they had a “marriage-type” relationship by providing documents such as joint banking statements, joint purchase of a house, tax returns, insurance forms, lay statements, and more. These benefits are not retroactive, but those eligible who apply in the next year will receive benefits backdated to Oct. 11, 2022. Contact your veterans service officer to get your claim started.
POW/MIA Update
Army Cpl. David N. Defibaugh, 18, of Duncansville, PA, was assigned to C Company, 3rd Engineer Combat Battalion, 24th Infantry Division. He went missing in action on July 20, 1950, while his unit was forced to retreat near the vicinity of Taejon, South Korea. Defibaugh will be buried in Altoona, PA, on Nov. 4, 2022.
Army Cpl. William M. Zoellick, 18, of Des Plaines, Illinois, was assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He was captured on Nov. 30, 1950, after his unit was attacked by the Chinese People’s Volunteer Forces. He will be buried in Belvidere, Illinois, on Nov. 10, 2022.
Army Air Forces Sgt. Zelwood A. Gravlin, 21, was assigned to 343rd Bombardment Squadron, 98th Bombardment Group, 9th Air Force. On Aug. 1, 1943, the B-24 Liberator aircraft on which Gravlin was the armorer-gunner crashed as a result of anti-aircraft fire during Operation Tidal Wave. He will be buried in Avon, Maine, on Nov. 11, 2022.
Navy Seaman 2nd Class Floyd F. Clifford, 20, of Mulvane, Kansas, was assigned to the battleship USS Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor. He will be buried in Douglas, Kansas, on May 2, 2023.
Till next week, praying for all veterans.
– Charles Castelluccio
