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Vietnam era veterans graduate in spring 2009
BY CECILIA MENARD
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William Thomas
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Michael Lewis and William Thomas spent their formative years as soldiers during the Vietnam era. Like many others after the war they were angry, confused, sad, and even wounded. Both men will take a major step towards improving their lives when they receive their bachelor degrees from the University of the District of Columbia in the spring of 2009.
Why so many years between their military service to the country and their graduation? According to Lewis, “ it was an extremely difficult transformation from military to civilian life and the Veterans Administration has not helped us as much as they promised. There are programs for us but the V.A. does not promote them.”
One program, the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Service (also known as chapter 31), is specifically for Vietnam era veterans. It pays for their tuition, textbooks, and gives them a small stipend. Neither soldier said they knew anything about this program until the early 2000’s.
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Michael Lewis
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Lewis, who sometimes walks with a cane after suffering a back injury during his military service, also had alcohol abuse issues and was homeless off and on for 10 years. He traces many of his setbacks to the injury and subsequent treatment by the government.
“I served as a meritorious private first class in the United States Marine Core in 1974 and all of sudden, that was taken away from me. I was very angry.” In 1980 Lewis, who will receive a Bachelor of Science degree in architectural engineering, entered The Washington technical Institute and did receive his Associates degree however his GI bill ran out. Lewis says, “ I should have been able to finish school then.”
Meanwhile, Thomas who served in Vietnam as a private first class in the army from 1968-1969, will earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in education. When asked what brought him back to school after so many years he replied “I was too angry at Uncle Sam, it took me 20 years to realize that I wasn’t thinking like everybody else around me. It’s my time now.”
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