Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM MAY 2018 64 M emorial Day is fast approaching. Many will be planning picnics and family celebrations for the holiday weekend. I am sure, as the great Americans that you are, you will want to remember our service men and women who died in battle throughout the years sacrificing their lives for the freedoms we all enjoy today. After all, that is what Memorial Day is all about. So with that in mind, what about the warfighters who have not sacrificed their lives but have sacrificed just about every other aspect of what was normal to them before being injured? What do I mean? Picture this — a stable and healthy warfighter, someone's husband, mother, father, son or daughter going off to war and returning a completely different person. They say that war never changes — only the men and women who fight it change, and that is completely true. Soldiers from WWI and WWII came back with what was deemed "shell shock". Vietnam solders came back with "Vietnam syndrome" and Gulf War, Iraq and Afghanistan warfighters came back with "post-traumatic stress disorder" ( PTSD). The Department of Veterans Affairs estimates that about 17% of the veterans returning from the wars in the Gulf, Iraq and Afghanistan currently are affected by PTSD. For comparison, a veteran of those wars is four times more likely to develop PTSD than someone in the civilian population. In my circle of understanding I prefer to use the term PTSI, post-traumatic stress injury instead, when referring to veterans and first responders. The term "disorder" does not do the veteran justice. Because of our lack of understanding and viable treatments, many of our warfighters with PTSD become severely depressed. Mission 22 (www.mission22.com) estimates that every day 22 American veterans commit suicide. Most have been diagnosed with PTSD. According to the American Fact Finder, there are a total of 18,496,937 veterans still living in the U.S.A. as of 2016. Going back to the Vietnam War and counting through The Gulf War, Iraq , and Afghanistan, there are a total of 8,371,000 veterans still of working age here in the U.S. If the calculations are even near correct, then we can assume that we have at least 1,423,000 veterans who have come back with PTSD. That is an epidemic, if you ask me. So what is my point? It is time that the American people become aware of the tragic consequences of having mid- to high-level PTSD. While so many of us are focused on the Opioid crises, there is another crisis evolving in the nation — PTSD. Like drug addiction, PTSD destroys people, their families and their future. Our industry is made up of hard working Americans who value service and leadership. Losing 22 of our comrades daily or over 8,000 annually is not something we can or should ignore. Currently there are over two million Veterans owned business in the USA. Of those 297,026 are classified as NAICS code 81, service and repair. Service franchise companies like Mr. Appliance and industry associations like PSA/NARDA, along with many other companies and associations, recognize the value of the technical training, discipline, team work and leadership skills our veterans receive in the military. They also recognize the sacrifices that were made by these veterans and have taken steps to honor their service. So while Memorial Day is to honor the warfighters who have died in our various wars, and Veterans Day is to honor anyone who has served, I encourage you to leave a little place in your thoughts for the disabled veterans throughout the year. IMPORTANT VETERAN STATS YOU MAY NOT WANT TO KNOW S E R V I C E D E P A R T M E N T RO Ralph E. Wolff PSA Industry Relations Vietnam Veteran, U.S. Navy

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