Thursday, May 22nd, 2008

This Memorial Day is the fifth for our nation dealing with the wars in both Afghanistan and Iraq. We are reminded that more than 4,000 Americans have made the ultimate sacrifice in these conflicts. This day is a day to remember and honor those who have given their lives in the service of their country most recently in this war and to recognize and give comfort to the families of our fallen heroes.

Some time ago Congress passed the National Moment of Remembrance Act. It asked Americans to pause for one minute at 3:00 p.m. local time and think about those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. It may seem like a small gesture, but it’s a way to, however briefly, keep faith with those heroes.

Memorial Day is also a time to honor those who have fought valiantly, returned alive, and yet continue to fight a war that no one can see. We are only now beginning to realize and deal with the devastating effects of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury), a 21st Century illness unique to this generation of warrior. These survivors deserve the very finest care from the country they serve. This week, we are honoring special Veteran counselors who participate in the national Give an Hour network, a 501c3 organization Veterans Advantage is supporting financially and through outreach services in communicating its mission to our members. Click here to read our HeroVet story.

We will be doing more special coverage, devoting resources and services to this critical area in the weeks ahead. For now, learn more and donate at www.giveanhour.org.

Tags: give an hour, memorial day, Note of Gratitude, PTS
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Tuesday, May 6th, 2008

You can call this your last-second Mother’s Day shopper edition, and I’ve rounded up some of the most-popular shopping ideas for you. There may still be time on getting some of these great offers in time for Mother’s Day, including shipping through 1800flowers.com, and getting an iPod discount at your local Apple Store – just show Apple your Veterans Advantage card!

Lots of great news from our leading partners, too. This Saturday is the first-ever National Train Day, sponsored by Amtrak. There are lots of events nationwide, including some really neat special events at New York’s Penn Station. Special offers, too, check out http://www.nationaltrainday.com.

For those who like traveling on the high seas, we are proud to announce our first special partnership in the cruise industry, with NCL, Norwegian Cruise Line. It is a very patriotic organization, based in Florida, and has a terrific new cruise ship – The Pride of America – that’s the first U.S. flagged cruise ship in 50 years. Check out more details on special Veterans Advantage/NCL cruise offers by visiting the NCL Members Only page at VeteransAdvantage.com.

More on Veterans Advantage benefits here.

Tags: Amtrak, mother's day
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