1-Color
June 20, 2014
75 cents Arapahoe County, Colorado Volume 94, Issue 18
englewoodherald.net
Page 8
A publication of
VA failures rub salt in vets’ wounds Legislation aimed at changing current standards in system By Vic Vela
vvela@coloradocommunitymedia.com George Claggett was a Marine who lived by his own definition of karma. The Vietnam veteran believed that treating others well wasn’t about reciprocation; rather, it was a belief that his goodness would show up elsewhere, even if he wasn’t the one reaping the benefit. It’s a good thing that Claggett wasn’t expecting anything in return for his actions toward others, or for fighting in a war of which many wanted no part, because karma wasn’t there for him during the last months of his life — much of which was spent in frustration over his dealings with the Department of Veterans Affairs. “It was hell, absolute hell,” said Michael O’Brien, a close friend and Claggett’s power of attorney, when asked what it was like dealing with the VA system. According to O’Brien, Claggett would
Michael O’Brien thinks about his late friend George Claggett as he sits in a booth inside a bar that Claggett often frequented. On the table sits the cap that Claggett, a Vietnam veteran, often wore. Photo by Vic Vela spend several weeks just trying to schedule an appointment to see a doctor at the VA hospital in Denver. When he would finally
obtain appointments, he would sometimes have to wait for hours to see a doctor. Claggett, of Denver, also waited several
weeks to receive lab results of a tumor that contributed to his death on May 2. He was 66. “It just seemed like all he was doing was waiting,” O’Brien said. Claggett’s story is one of many that have surfaced in recent weeks regarding systematic failures and corruption within the VA department. “I am absolutely stunned, particularly as a combat veteran, that this agency that’s entrusted to meet our obligations for those who served in uniform can be so incredibly incompetent... and be so corrupt,” said 6th Congressional District Rep. Mike Coffman, a Republican who served in the Iraq War. Last week, Coffman joined every other member of the House in voting for a bill that aims to address some of the issues that have caused veterans like Claggett to receive substandard care from their government. The legislation is a start, say members of Congress, to restructuring a governmentVets continues on Page 22
Service dogs may be on move Nonprofit could relocate to spot near McLellan Reservoir By Tom Munds
tmunds @coloradocommunitymedia.com
Sergio Gallegos holds tightly to his teddy bear as he and his family prepare for the June 11 story time at Englewood Public Library. The 2-year-old followed the theme and wore his nightclothes for the special event called the Pajama Jam. Photo by Tom Munds
Pajama Jam rocks out library Children stung by reading bug while learning about bees at special evening out By Tom Munds
tmunds@coloradocommunitymedia.com The sun still shined brightly June 11 as about a dozen boys and girls filed into the Englewood Public Library in their nightclothes
for the Pajama Jam. “Our Pajama Jam is a fun event for our families and for us,” said children’s librarian Hillary Davis as she set up for the event. Davis had families assemble in the story room for pizza. When pizza time was over, everyone gathered around Holly Love for story time. Many of the children brought blankets, pillows and teddy bears. They each found a spot on the floor to stretch out and listen to the story.
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Love, an Englewood High School graduate, is an accomplished storyteller. For the June 11 session, she told about keeping bees. She showed them a honeycomb, her beekeeper’s suit and she loves to just sit with her bees. “I like to go out in the yard and talk to the bees in my hive,” she said. “I also like to listen to them and, today, I am going to tell you a story a bee told me.” Most of the children listened intently as Love told the story about the life of a bee named Melissa. She passed around pictures of bee items as she created word pictures of the activities inside and outside a hive of honey bees. Eva Kurk, 11, curled up in a chair as she listened to Love. “I liked the story,” she said. “She told the story well and it was interesting. Maybe the bee did tell her the story. That would be cool.” Eva said the story was educational and the biggest lesson she learned was that bees are helpful and needed and people shouldn’t kill bees.
A proposed move by Freedom Service Dogs would take the organization out of Englewood city limits, to a site in Douglas County that Englewood owns. Freedom Service Dogs, located at 2000 W. Union Ave., is a nonprofit organization that rescues dogs from shelters and trains them to provide specialized services to people with disabilities. Sharan Wilson, Freedom Service Dogs director, said a lack of space makes the move necessary. “When we began looking at moving, we didn’t want to leave Englewood, and the people in the city didn’t want us to leave. So Englewood officials talked to us about leasing a piece of property they own in Douglas County. We have signed a letter of intent and negotiations are going to complete the details of the lease.” Englewood Mayor Randy Penn said city officials tried to locate a new site for Freedom Service Dogs within the community. “We wanted to keep Freedom Service Dogs in Englewood because we wanted to support their mission,” he said. “The problem is there isn’t five acres of vacant land available in the city. But we do own vacant land in Douglas County, and city officials are working with FSD representatives on the details of a long-term lease agreement for the site.” The land under consideration for the new Freedom Service Dogs facility is one of the parcels of property in Douglas County near C-470 that Englewood acquired in the 1950s, when the city bought vacant ranch land to build McLellan Reservoir. The reservoir only took up part of the property, and for about half a century, the remaining land remained undeveloped because of a lack of access. Roads built for develDogs continues on Page 21