Area Iraq veterans get a hand from those who know

It was a spaghetti dinner and a chance to welcome home young men and women who served in Iraq.

But the gathering at the Veterans of Foreign Wars post in the Spokane Valley on Saturday evening was about more than sharing food and showing thanks. It was a chance for the gray-haired veterans to pay the kind of tribute many of them didn’t get when they returned home from war.

And it was a chance for the older generation to give advice that they wish someone would have given them.

Like not to hide the emotions they’re feeling. To get counseling now if they need it rather than 30 years down the road. To know that there’s help available for everything from paying bills to filling out military paperwork and claims forms.

“They need support from their communities and, of course, the VFW is here to support them,” said Spokane Valley VFW Commander Dave Guinsler. “We’re trying to get them something we never received when we returned. It’s working.”

The Washington Department of Veterans of Foreign Wars sponsored Saturday’s dinner to welcome home three military units that recently returned from Iraq: The 659th Army Reserve Engineers, the 70th RRC Army Guard and the Air Force 92nd Air Refueling Wing.

The event also aimed to provide the new veterans with information on the VFW’s Military Assistance Program, which provides assistance – and even no-strings-attached financial help – to veterans.

Army Spc. Matthew Van Hook, 21, said the VFW has helped him complete paperwork and find the counseling he needs.

Transitioning from “combat mode” to everyday life has been difficult, he said.

For 26-year-old Army Sgt. Jaime Cardenas, of the Tri Cities, one of the most difficult things about coming home (other than remembering to pay bills on time) is hearing what he says are negative and inaccurate reports of what’s really happening overseas.

“People that are saying the negative things are the loudest people,” he said.

“You don’t see all of the good stuff on the news,” Van Hook said. During his final mission, Van Hook said an Iraqi was on his knees, begging the American troops not to leave.

Also disappointing for the two men is the tendency of people to associate an entire group of soldiers – or even an entire branch of the military – with the bad actions or decisions of a few troops.

“If a club of Boy Scouts goes out and rob banks, it doesn’t mean all boy scouts are bad,” Cardenas said.

The troops said the support and gratitude they’ve received from the community has been overwhelming. Saturday’s dinner was one of many “Welcome Home” events held in their honor.

“It’s a good feeling to know the community’s appreciative of what we’ve done,” Van Hook said.Both Van Hook and Cardenas have become members of the VFW since returning home.

Doug Reid, vice commander for the District of Washington, said the two groups of veterans might be generations apart, but they share an understanding.

“We’ve been there, done that,” he said. “When we sit down and talk, we know where they’re coming from.”