San Antonio Express-News (Sunday)
Burn pit vets can’t wait, yet Congress dithering
WASHINGTON — Chloe Hazelwood’s first trip to the nation’s capital as an adult should have been a vacation.
Instead, the 21-year-old from Knoxville, Tenn., was in D.C. this past week representing her father, Frank Hazelwood, a Marine combat veteran of Iraq. Five years after returning home, he fell ill from toxins he was exposed to overseas. He died of cancer in 2012 at age 50.
Chloe was 11 when doctors diagnosed her dad. He “passed away a year later on my mom’s birthday, which is two days after my birthday,” she said.
In a 2012 interview, Frank mentioned his “very grim” prognosis and reflected on his time in Iraq. “I’ve never had a problem with that,” he said. “I always felt like what I did was worthwhile as long as you look at the big picture.”
When you look at the big picture, Chloe should not have had to visit D.C. to advocate for health care for the estimated 3.5 million veterans exposed to toxins or burn pits.
If we cared about the big picture, America would have already honored its “sacred obligation,” as President Joe Biden has said, to care for its veterans and their families.
In the big picture, there’d be no quibbling over price or process — our lawmakers would take care of veterans.
But the big picture in our country is fractured. The system meant to uphold that “sacred obligation” has let down many.
That’s why a grassroots group of veterans, families, New York City firefighters, organizations, businesses and comedian Jon Stewart are advocating for reform so all vets poisoned by their service get care.
At the forefront of this movement is Robstown couple Rosie Lopez Torres and Le Roy Torres, who head the advocacy group BurnPits360. Le Roy’s military service has cost him his health and career, but not his spirit.
Tuesday, the fight to save veterans from toxins stretched from the Supreme Court to the Senate.
The Torres’ and their legal team huddled with their arms around one another at the top of the Supreme Court’s stairs. They prayed before lawyers stepped into the courtroom.
Torres resigned from his state trooper job after the Department of Public Safety would not accommodate his military serviceconnected health conditions. He sued the state, but Texas claimed sovereign immunity, and the case bounced around courts for five years until landing in the nation’s highest court.
Chloe watched from the sidewalk in the 28-degree weather under a bright blue sky. Tim Jensen, co-owner of the San Antonio-based apparel brand Grunt Style and board president of its nonprofit, served with Chloe’s dad in Iraq. He invited her to join the group in D.C.
“I’m just really thankful I got to go, honestly, and be around people who get it,” she said. “It’s really hard to communicate with people more my age about stuff like this because a lot of people haven’t been through it, so it’s nice to, like, hate the same system.”
Later, at a press conference on the Capitol lawn, Chloe stood with sick vets, widows, children, parents, friends and advocates. They held flags and pictures, and stared into the cameras with somber faces.
Stewart voiced his support of the Honoring our PACT Act, a comprehensive bill approved by the House despite strong Republican opposition. The bill is now in committee in the Senate.
He said Kate Hendricks, an ill veteran, had planned to speak but couldn’t because she’s in hospice. “We can’t wait any longer,” he said. “This delay is unconscionable.”
Then he railed against those in Congress who don’t support the bill because of its financial cost and potential impacts to Veterans Administration services and programs.
“Here’s the bottom line: You cannot be America first when you put veterans last,” he said.
Chloe said the whole experience — cameras, media attention, Stewart — felt weird.
“I don’t get to talk about stuff like this often,” she said. “And to also have somewhat influential people who aren’t involved in the government behind this really kind of shocked me.”
After the presser, Chloe met Stewart in New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s conference room.
In the afternoon, the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs met with VA Secretary Denis McDonough about the PACT Act. The veterans and their loved ones and advocates filled the room’s empty chairs. Some senators left after they asked their questions.
“I felt kind of disrespected because a lot of these people took time to come all the way out here, and (the senators) would just either leave early or didn’t show up at all,” she said.
Chloe wants to come back to D.C. at the legislation’s next crossroads.
“I just hope the bill passes and people get what they want because I grew up in a time where this wasn’t even like a thought in people’s minds,” she said.
May her next trip to D.C. be a celebration.