Director's Message September 1, 2023

This continues to be our priority, and VA has created a resource page for Veterans affected by the devastating wildfires in Maui, and Veterans who need assistance can also call 1-800-214-1306 to speak with someone about resources that are available to them.

Veterans impacted by the Maui Wildfires can call or walk-in to the VA Maui Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) for health care needs.

203 Ho’ohana St

Kahului, HI 96732

Phone Contact: 808-871-2454

Hours: Monday to Friday 7:30 a.m. -4:00 p.m.

VA Prescriptions/Medications for Maui Veterans

• Access to prescription medications needed urgently/emergently are provided through VA Maui CBOC
• Coordinate prescription pickup for routine medications through the VA Maui CBOC, or call 808-873-3680

VA Social Services for Maui Veterans

• If you are a Veteran currently staying at a hotel or temporary shelter in Maui, please contact the VA Maui CBOC at 808-873-3689. If you are currently not enrolled in VA medical care and would like to inquire about eligibility and registration, please reach out. CBOC staff continue to provide outreach in the community at shelters, hotels, and additional events to share resources, and provide medical care and supplies.

VA Contact Center (24-hours)

• For other information and services, Veterans may call 1-800-214-1306

Additional Resources:

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Disaster Assistance: All individuals who were impacted by the Maui fires should apply for FEMA assistance. Visit DisasterAssistance.gov or call 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) to apply. FEMA officials also advise that impacted individuals begin their insurance claims ASAP.

How should I call FEMA and what should I say?

1. Call 1-800-621-3362
2. Say "Agent"
3. Social Security Number, Date of Birth, and the Name of Homeowner/Rental Insurance
4. Bank Account information w/routing number
5. All Household members at the time of the disaster

Maui Emergency Management Agency can help with immediate needs, clothing, shelter, and food. Contact them at 808-270-7285 or 808-733-4300.Child & Family Service

VA Fox Grant - This grant offers case management services for non-VA participants.

Contact: Jane Covington, Phone: 808-753-7201

Red Cross - meeting critical needs, and access to financial assistance: If you are a Veteran survivor displaced by the Maui wildfires, please come to the VA Maui

CBOC on Sunday, August 20 between 0900-1200. The American Red Cross, and other resource tables will be available for Veterans to receive information.

Phone: 1-877-272-7337 | Online: redcross.org/HeroCareNetwork

DONATIONS

If you have questions about other ways you can help, please contact our Chief of the Center for Development and Civic Engagement (CDCE), Schoen Safotu at (808) 433-7725 or schoen.safotu@va.gov.

Veterans need these items:

• Non-perishable foods
• Men’s underwear, t-shirts, socks, & slippers
• Adult Disposable Diapers - all sizes but need L and XL, pull-ups.
• Hygiene products

If you’d like to donate items, the drop off location is at the VA Maui CBOC. Mahalo to everyone who has donated to help us serve our Veterans and the Maui community.  Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Maui in this difficult time.

Labor Day 2023 Closure

In observance of Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 4, 2023, all VA Pacific Islands Health Care System’s Clinics will be closed.

Next PACT Act deadline: Health Care Enrollment for Veterans Deployed to Combat Zones

Veterans who deployed to a combat zone, never enrolled in VA health care and left the military between Sept. 11, 2001, and Oct. 1, 2013, are eligible to enroll directly in VA health care through the PACT Act. This special enrollment period gives Veterans who served in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other combat zones an opportunity to enroll directly in VA health care without first applying for disability compensation benefits. 

VA encourages all of these Veterans to visit VA.gov/PACT or call 1-800-MYVA411 to learn more and sign up for VA health care before the deadline (September 30, 2023, at 11:59p.m. EST).

Even if you don’t need this care now, you may need it in the future. Apply today.

Hilo Community Call

The next PACT Act & Community Call event will be at The Arc of Hilo at 1099 Waianuenue Avenue, Hilo, HI 96720. Staff will be on hand to speak with Veterans and provide health services from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on September 7 & 8, 2023. Please call 1-800-214-1306 if you have any questions, or if you need more information.

These events are intended to give Veterans an opportunity to talk with staff in their communities. Veterans are still welcome to make an appointment and come see us at our clinic locations if they’d like to enroll under the PACT Act. They can also call or go online to enroll. Making services available in the community is just one of the ways we are making access to health care easier.

Memorial for Col. Ron Han, director, State of Hawaii Office of Veterans Services

Last week we lost a dear colleague and friend, Air Force Col (retired) Ron Han Jr., Director, State of Hawaii Office of Veterans Services. VAPIHCS honored his memory with a Final Salute. His wife Terry, son Ron Han III, and his daughter Shondie-Rose Takemoto attended to help us honor him.  Please keep the Han family in your thoughts and prayers. We are deeply saddened by this loss – Ron Han has been a part of our VAPIHCS ohana, and we will miss him dearly.

The family would like to share that there will be a Memorial Service for Air Force Col (Ret) Ronald P. Han, Jr., Director for State of Hawaii Office of Veterans Service on Thursday, November 30, 2023, at Mililani Memorial Park Cemetery -Mauka Chapel. Public viewing will be at 8:30 a.m. and services will begin at 11 a.m. Committal Service with full military honors at 2 p.m. at the Hawaii State Veterans Cemetery in Kaneohe.

Thoughts from Chaplain Richie Charles

For years prior to 1954, it was believed by many sports experts that it was simply impossible to run a mile in under four minutes.

But there was one individual, Roger Bannister, who sought to defy the odds and attempt to challenge that belief. On the morning of May 6, 1954, Sir Roger Bannister did the impossible, becoming the first person to run a mile in under four minutes! Before the announcer could even finish saying 3 minutes, 59.4 seconds, the audience erupted in a sea of applause.

He accomplished a great feat indeed. But what happened afterward is even more interesting.

Just 46 days after Bannister’s victory, John Landy, an Australian runner, not only broke the same 4-minute barrier again, but this time with a time of 3 minutes 58 seconds. Then, just a year later, three runners broke the 4-minute barrier all in a single race. And over the past half century, more than a thousand runners have conquered a barrier that had once been considered humanly impossible.

The question becomes, did human nature magically change just 46 days after Sir Bannister’s victory? Of course not. Instead, what changed was their mindset. That is, the runners of the past had been held back by a belief that said they could not surpass the 4-minute mile, and that artificial limit became the invisible barrier holding them back. Runners must have unknowingly adjusted their abilities to fit the popular belief of the time, leaving them to lose the race to beat the 4-minute time before the race even began.

Are there artificial limits that you have accepted as being true? Can those limiting beliefs have an impact on what you can accomplish?

Henry Ford once said: “Whether you think you can, or you think you can't -- you're right.”

One Team, One Ohana!
Adam M. Robinson, Jr., MD, MBA, CPE
Director, VA Pacific Islands Health Care System
VADM, MC, USN, (RET)
36th Surgeon General, USN

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