Army veterans

11 Stories

She Was Getting Mauled by a Dog. He Grabbed a Toy Soldier

88-year-old Leonard Miller saves young neighbor in Ohio with plastic Christmas decoration

(Newser) - A young girl in Ohio is alive thanks to a quick-thinking man next door and a plastic Christmas decoration. Leonard Miller says he was in his Perry Township home Sunday when his 13-year-old neighbor started banging on his door, yelling that her 10-year-old sister was being attacked by a pit...

Deported Veteran Raises His Right Hand in Chicago

Miguel Perez has become an American

(Newser) - On Friday, Miguel Perez fulfilled a long-held dream: The Army veteran and deported drug felon swore an oath to affirm his US citizenship, CNN reports. A Facebook video shows him turning to the American flag and saluting. "It's been a long ... a long journey, a long battle,"...

Double-Amputee Army Vet Dies in Paddleboard Accident

(Newser) - A double-amputee Army veteran who was called an "adventure seeker" and "strong-willed man" by friends died Wednesday in the Chesapeake Bay while paddleboarding, NPR and the Washington Post report. Cody Iorns, 25, pushed off land near Annapolis, Md., around 6pm Wednesday with three other paddlers, but rough conditions—...

Facing Deportation, Army Vet Says He'd Rather Die

Miguel Perez Jr. began a hunger strike on Wednesday

(Newser) - An Army vet and longtime green card holder has begun a hunger strike after failing to block his deportation to Mexico, which could be imminent because of a felony drug conviction. Fearing drug cartels will kill him after a failed attempt to recruit him for his military background, 39-year-old Miguel...

You Can Make Dying Army Vet's Wish Come True

Iraq veteran Lee Hernandez is taking phone calls from strangers

(Newser) - The wife of a military veteran suffering from a terminal illness is soliciting calls from strangers to brighten her husband's last days. Lee Hernandez, an 18-year Army veteran who served in Iraq, is dying of an undiagnosed medical condition in hospice care at his home in New Braunfels, Texas,...

Army Veteran, 70, Fired for Confronting Shoplifters

Jim Tinney violated store policy at Home Depot

(Newser) - A 70-year-old Army veteran has been fired from a Houston-area Home Depot after trying to stop suspected shoplifters from taking thousands of dollars' worth of merchandise. Jim Tinney says he was fired last month from the store in Pearland. Tinney acknowledges he was trained to not confront shoplifters and knows...

Veteran Saves a Bald Eagle Officials Left for Dead

'Fourth of July, you know, that's our bird'

(Newser) - In one of the most American stories to surface on Fourth of July weekend or any other weekend, a military vet in Minnesota used his sharpshooting skills to free a bald eagle named Freedom. The bird had been entangled in rope in a tree for more than two days when...

Each Thought the Other Died in War. 47 Years Later, a Miracle

Herman Johnson and Fred Rivera reunited, and much more

(Newser) - Fred Rivera believed his best friend, Herman Johnson, died in his arms after a rocket hit them during a Vietnam War firefight in 1969. "Surviving comrades of that horrid day presented me a bracelet fashioned from the leather laces of Herman’s boots," Rivera writes of what followed...

Veteran Wants Military Burial for Dog Shot by Cyclist

Matthew Bessler doubts cyclist had to open fire

(Newser) - A US military veteran wants his service dog to receive burial with military honors after it was shot dead by a cyclist in Powell, Wyoming, USA Today reports. Matthew Bessler says Mike, his 10-year-old Belgian Malinois, was a combat dog who did bomb detection in Iraq before transitioning to civilian...

Army Vet Survives Afghanistan, Dies on LA Streets

Francisco Garcia was shot dead two days before Veterans Day

(Newser) - A young Army veteran who had recently returned from Afghanistan was shot and killed while at a party—two days before Veterans Day. Though the Los Angeles Police Department initially reported that Francisco Garcia, 21, had returned to his Los Angeles home two weeks earlier and on Saturday attended a...

Marines Head to Wall Street—to Protect Protesters

Veteran issues call to pals to shield demonstrators

(Newser) - NYPD cops better watch it when they get tough with Occupy Wall Street protesters from now on, because the Marines are coming—to help protect the demonstrators. "I'm heading up there tonight in my dress blues," announced a Marine veteran in a message reposted by another anti-war...

11 Stories