Fort Bliss News

The Veterans Affairs exclusion of benefits for veterans with less than honorable discharges has significant consequences on those veterans. To meet the VA definition of veteran, the former service member must have “separated under conditions other than dishonorable.” The VA makes this determination through a process called Character of Discharge determination. Administrative discharges must be distinguished from “punitive” discharges (i.e., a discharge imposed by a court-martial). Punitive discharges include bad conduct discharge, dismissal, and dishonorable discharge. The focus of this article, however, is on administrative discharges and its effects on educational benefits.

With his family by his side, Junior Armendariz’s haircut was sharp on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, 2021, in El Paso, Texas. When the Soldiers and First Responders filed past him from his parade vantage point, he held his half of the American flag high and snapped off what seemed like a couple of dozen prideful hand salutes with quiet reverence and respect. Junior isn't a veteran–he’s not even 12.

Clad in a navy blue industrial smock and bubbled safety glasses, thick-fingered Anthony Nall, a 23-year old South Texan, deftly assembles a circuit system based on intricate schematics, meanwhile a seasoned instructor with a furrowed brow paces the floor and looks on behind him, judging his every move. Nall is in the fourth phase, or gate, of a seven-week Renewable Energy and Communications Tower Technician course given by Airstreams Renewables, Inc., a renewable energy career training school with campuses throughout the United States.

Most people seem to understand the importance of creating a Last Will and Testament. Doing so allows loved ones to more easily navigate the often-complicated matter of settling a person’s estate and affairs in the event of their death. However, oftentimes service members do not always fully grasp the importance of properly setting up their Servicemembers Group Life Insurance Beneficiary Election benefits.

With help from Soldiers from the 11th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, Fort Bliss Family and Morale, Welfare, and Recreation is running "The Massacre," their annual haunted house, weekends throughout October. FMWR Special Events prides itself on offering a full-scale haunted house experience at a fraction of the price Soldiers and families would pay for comparable haunted houses off post.