(Radio Iowa) – Reports show nearly one in eight Iowans who take their own lives are veterans, and a new national campaign is being launched to encourage veterans to seek help — and for everyone else to lend a hand. Dave Berkenfield, a former Navy SEAL who lost his brother to suicide, says every day nationwide between 17 and 22 veterans kill themselves, depending on which study is being quoted. “Those numbers are hard to swallow,” Berkenfield says. “They’re terrifying, but then they’re also sort of dismal, and they don’t point to action. They just point to a problem.” The American Legion is launching a campaign in Iowa and nationwide that will be seen on billboards and in T-V and radio P-S-As called “Be The One.”

Be The One:
TO ASK VETERANS IN YOUR LIFE HOW THEY ARE DOING.
TO LISTEN WHEN A VETERAN NEEDS TO TALK.
TO REACH OUT WHEN A VETERAN IS STRUGGLING.

Berkenfield says, “It’s about individuals across the gamut of veterans, veterans’ caretakers, veterans’ spouses, veterans’ families, friends, concerned co-workers — really taking action and being the one to make a difference.” He says mental health is one of the toughest challenges facing veterans, as they’re trained to accept every challenge, to lead and be strong, but there’s a stigma surrounding a veteran who seeks help for the silent wounds of war. Berkenfield says that’s why this “Be The One” campaign is so important. “It’s be the one to reach out and ask for help,” Berkenfield says. “It’s be the one to get educated and connected with resources and then be supportive of a veteran. It’s really taking action is what Be The One is all about.”

Of the 475 reported suicides in Iowa in 2018, a report from the U-S Department of Veterans Affairs says 60 of them were veterans. Berkenfield says being “the one” means being present and available to ask the hard questions and to have those difficult conversations. “Really reinforcing a sense of community, because that’s a lot of what we as veterans have lost is this sense of community,” Berkenfield says, “and that, compounding with other factors, is really one of the big items that pushes people to make this decision to take their own life.”

Veterans who use the new national Crisis Lifeline should dial 9-8-8 and then press “1” to be connected to veteran-specific counselor.

On the web at betheone.org

(Williams, Iowa) – A crash during a pursuit between a car and a semi tractor-trailer Monday night in Hamilton County, resulted in two Washington State residents being flown to a hospital in Des Moines. According to the Iowa State Patrol, a 2019 Toyota Camry driven by 26-year-old Viliami Wight, of Auburn, WA, was eluding law enforcement at a high rate of speed and driving recklessly on Highway 20 westbound, at around 8:10-p.m., when the car crossed the median.

The Toyota struck a 2003 Kenworth semi driven by 52-year-old Joseph Ward, of Steamboat Rock, Iowa. Wight, and his passenger, 52-year-old Laurie Henke, also of Auburn, WA, were flown by Mercy One Airmed and LifeFlight helicopters to Mercy Hospital, in Des Moines. The crash remains under investigation.

The Patrol was assisted by the Hardin and Hamilton County Sheriff’s Departments, Williams Fire and EMS, Van Diest EMS, and Iowa DOT MVE Officers.

(Radio Iowa) – Republican Governor Kim Reynolds will be expanding her school choice plan for parents who want to send their children to a private K-through-12 school. “The right to place your child in an environment where they can thrive should not just be for families that have the financial resources,” Reynolds said. “It should be for every single parent and this is the year that we are going to get that done.”

Reynolds asked the 2022 legislature to provide 55 million dollars worth of state scholarships, to cover private school costs for 10-thousand students from low to middle income households — but the plan did not have enough Republican votes to pass in the Iowa House. During a speech to the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition, Reynolds made it clear that if she’s reelected, she’ll present the 2023 legislature with a new plan. “I think it’s beyond time to give parents the choice in their child’s education,” Reynolds said, to applause.

Reynolds mentioned the topic briefly during her speech, but did not unveil her new proposal. Arizona’s Republican governor signed a law this summer that lets Arizona parents take the state money set aside to educate their child in a PUBLIC school and use it to cover PRIVATE school costs or homeschooling expenses. Deidre DeJear, the Democratic candidate for governor, says the priority should be to fully fund public schools with public dollars. “We believe in a strong public education system in this state,” DeJear says.

DeJear made her comments during a speech this weekend at the Polk County Democrats Steak Fry.