Dear Sgt. Shaft:

I served in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and was discharged in 1967. I cannot find my discharge papers. Who should I write to secure this document?

Vin D
Via the Internet

Dear Vin:

I referred your request to the powers that be at Marine headquarters. By now, you should have received this response from the acting director personnel management division, M&RA headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps:

"We have located the military records on Vincent D. Our research shows that he served in the Marine Corps Reserve from Feb. 16, 1961 to Feb. 15, 1967 with 3rd 105 Howitzer Battery Force Troops, Fleet Marine Force, Marine Corps Reserve, Providence, R.I.. Because he was never on Active Duty except for training, there is no DD-214."

Shaft notes

A package of bills that honor our nation's veterans recently won approval in the House of Representatives. Chairman Bob Filner, California Democrat, congratulated the members of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee for their leadership on the issue of mental health care for our veterans, specifically legislation to implement a veterans suicide prevention program at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The House of Representatives have acted on the following legislation:

H.R. 327 — The Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act to direct the secretary of veterans affairs to develop and implement a comprehensive program designed to reduce the incidence of suicide among veterans

H.R. 1808 — To designate the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Augusta, Ga., as the "Charlie Norwood Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center"

H.R. 2408 — To designate the Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic in Green Bay, Wis., as the "Milo C. Huempfner Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic"

H.RES. 680 — Condemning the actions of Sept. 7, 2007, resulting in damage to the Vietnam Veterans War Memorial

H.RES. 237 — Supporting and encouraging greater support for Veterans Day each year

H.R. 327 was passed by the House as amended by the Senate and will be sent to the president to be signed into law.

"One of the most pressing issues facing our returning service men and women is mental health care and I believe that H.R. 327 provides help to those in need," Mr. Filner said. "If we send our men and women off to war, we must, as a nation, do all we can to address their health care needs when they return."

H.RES. 680 says of the damage to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial: "This memorial was conceived and designed to make no political statement about the war H. Res. 680 was approved by the House of Representatives. This resolution condemns the actions that resulted in damage to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. "

• Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs Gordon H. Mansfield recently announced the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will convene a "consensus conference" with the Department of Defense and the National Institutes of Health to improve the designs and methodologies all three agencies will use in future research studies regarding post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

On Oct. 18, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) released a report that concluded exposure-based therapies such as prolonged exposure therapy and cognitive processing therapy have proven to be effective treatments for PTSD, while more research is needed on pharmacotherapy to determine its effectiveness.

"IOM's findings have important implications for the future of PTSD treatment for veterans and all Americans," Mr. Mansfield said. "We will use their report as a blueprint to guide our future research and treatment efforts."

• The Pennsylvania House of Representatives unanimously passed legislation sponsored by Rep. Frank Andrews Shimkus, Lackawanna Democrat, that would designate March 19 of every year as "Pennsylvania Military Heroes Day" to honor Pennsylvanians serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. The bill now moves to the state Senate for consideration.

"So many of our young men and women answered the call to fight terrorism after the 9/11 attacks and are doing battle in Iraq and Afghanistan," Mr. Shimkus said. "It is only fitting that we take one day a year to recall their service and sacrifice."

Send letters to Sgt. Shaft, c/o John Fales, P.O. Box 65900, Washington, D.C. 20035-5900; fax 301/622-3330; call 202/257-5446; or e-mail sgtshaft@bavf.org.