• BVA Field Service Resource Center Team

    Veterans Claims, Benefits, and Services

    The Field Service Program Resource Center is a one-stop shop for services provided by BVA, featuring a dedicated toll free number which any blind veteran across the nation can call and receive services from any BVA National Field Service Officer regardless of where they live. This will streamline services and provide consistency to all veterans.

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  • BVA Members present wreath at Arlington National Cemetery

    British and U.S. Blinded Veterans Unite for OPS

    Operation Peer Support (OPS) is a program designed to support the hundreds men and women who are returning to the US blinded or experiencing significant visual impairment in connection with their service.

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  • Blinded Veterans hike up mountainsides at Appalachian Trail

    Blind Appalachian Trail

    Blind Appalachian Trail (B-A-T) program is run by the Blinded Veterans Association Operation Peer Support (BVA OPS) to get visually impaired veterans of various abilities out to experience the Appalachian Trail.

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  • BVA National Officers Visit the Hill

    Advocacy

    On Tuesday, March 20, BVA’s national officers held a series of very productive meetings with members of the House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committees, as well as members of the House Committee on Appropriations. We were pleased to see strong evidence of bipartisan support for an increase in appropriations for the Vision Research Program operated by DoD.

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  • The Reno Arch is a recognizable symbol of “The Biggest Little City in the World.” Constructed of steel and brilliant neon lights, the arch welcomes attendees of the BVA 73rd National Convention to the city’s vibrant downtown area. Photo courtesy of the Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority.

    BVA 2018 Convention

    The Blinded Veterans Association is pleased to announce that “the biggest little city in the world,” known as Reno, Nevada, will host the 73rd National Convention, August 13th-17th, 2018.

    Learn More!

The Blinded Veterans Association mission is to operate as a not-for-profit corporation exclusively for charitable, educational, patriotic, and civic improvement purposes; to promote the welfare of blinded veterans so that, notwithstanding their disabilities, they may take their rightful place in the community and work with their fellow citizens toward the creation of a peaceful world; to preserve and strengthen a spirit of fellowship among blinded veterans so that they may give mutual aid and assistance to one another; and to maintain and extend the institutions of American freedom and to encourage loyalty to the Constitution and laws of the United States and of the States in which they reside. We will be there with encouragement and support, to ensure no blinded veteran is left behind.

Learn More About BVA

Nov-Dec 2018

This year, 2018 marks the 100th anniversary of the end of the first World War. On Veteran’s Day, we have always recognized the men and women who have or are serving in America’s Armed Forces. A day to not only celebrate their heroism, service and sacrifice, but also to reflect and remember. 

 

 

 

In This Issue

President's Page  - by Joe Parker

Executive Director Message - by Joe Bogart

Legislative Update  - by Melanie Brunson

Operation Peer Support News

Around BVA  

Chaplain’s Corner - by Chaplain Jay McCleod

Auxiliary’s View - by Edna Dixon

District 2 Review - by Tim Hornik

From the Field Staff - by Ed Eckroth

Of Note

In Remembrance

Final Thought



 

     

    OPS Participants In Operation B.A.S.H.

    BVA Sergeant-At-Arms Dan Wallace

    Featured VeteranFeatured Veteran

    Past National Sergeant-at-Arms Dan Wallace

    A look at one man’s story may inspire many people, veterans or not, to help others overcome difficulties such as blindness. Consider the case of First Sergeant Danny Wallace (Ret.). He enlisted in the Army as an infantryman, completing one-stop training that included basic airborne school at Fort Benning, Georgia.

    He served for a total of 20 years as a rifleman, radio transmitter operator, team leader, squad leader, ranger instructor, platoon sergeant, company executive officer, and company first sergeant. During a tour in Iraq, Wallace’s life changed forever. Two weeks before Christmas, a car bomb attack in Tal Afar left him totally blind. After multiple surgeries—to attach both retinas, replace the cornea in his right eye, and stitch severe wounds to his face and neck—he was still blind in one eye but had limited vision in the other.

    Wallace remained on active duty for two years after his injury. Upon retiring, he struggled with the transition to civilian life. “I felt distant and unwilling to participate in any veterans organization,” he recalled.

    Read More of Danny's Story