Posted by Edwin Quiambao on August 29, 2002 at 14:47:29:
In Reply to: Re: Fwd: PETITION: Pass HR 491 WWII Vets Equity Bill posted by lanie sandoval on November 20, 2001 at 17:50:23:
My Dad served so proudly and bravely as a soldier, a POW, and a guerilla in the War, that I am now hesitant to disappoint him in his dimming years at 85, that I am still waiting for the VA to allow him to freely use its services, such as assisted living care, and regular medical checkups, which he now badly needs and can ill-afford. We, his family continues to be disproportionately burdened by his personal and medical care.
His present disabilities now do not directly stem from the war, though he did receive a Purple Heart citation for a wound he suffered then.
He was always particularly proud that he had fought in battle, marched the Bataan Death March, and suffered the concentration camp side by side with his American comrades. If anything, he recalls, Filipino soldiers like himself were treated more ruthlessly by the Japanese than his American comrades.
He brought his family to the US in 1971, to live here to become Americans, but somehow feels that he had not yet been given the full welcome by this Land for its hesitation to give him full recognition for his part in that heroically fought War.
My Dad may have just a few months left to live, but I dearly wish that he could enjoy this in the pride and comfort of knowing that those selfless years that he served this nation's welfare and glory have not turned out to be fully unappreciated.