VFW Action Corps Weekly

VFW Tells Subcommittee to Streamline Appeals Process: VFW National Veterans Service Director Michael Figlioli testified at a House Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs oversight hearing to examine the VA appeals process. Figlioli stated the VFW’s views on how to improve decision-making processes at the VA Board of Veterans’ Appeals (BVA) and the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. “It is the VFW’s position that communication and coordination between the BVA, Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), and accredited representatives are critical during the remand process,” he said. “Clear and concise directives that the decision-maker must comply with from the BVA to the VBA help streamline the further development of cases.” He continued, “Effective collaboration between these entities is essential to ensure that the remand process serves its intended purpose without unnecessary complications and needless delays.” Read the testimony or watch the hearing, which begins at the 7:43 mark.

MIA Update: The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced seven burial updates for service members who have been missing and unaccounted for from World War II and the Korean War. Returning home for burial with full military honors are:

Army Air Force 2nd Lt. Kenyon Brindley, 23, of Little Rock, Arkansas, was assigned to the 703rd Bombardment Squadron, 445th Bombardment Group, 8th Air Force. He was killed in action on Feb. 24, 1944. He will be buried on Dec. 18, 2023, in Conway, Arkansas. Read about Brindley.
Navy Mess Attendant 1st Class Ralph M. Boudreaux, 20, of New Orleans, Louisiana, was assigned to the battleship USS Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft on Dec. 7, 1941. He was among 429 crewmen killed that day. He will be buried on Jan. 29, 2024, in Slidell, Louisiana. Read about Boudreaux.
Army Cpl. Daniel De Anda, 22, of Pico, California, was a member of G Company, 2nd Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, 8th U.S. Army. He died while a prisoner of war in March 1951. He will be buried on March 15, 2024, in Whittier, California. Read about De Anda.
Army 2nd Lt. Gene F. Walker, 27, of Richmond, Indiana, was assigned to Company H, 3rd Battalion, 32nd Armored Regiment, 3rd Armored Division. He is believed to have been killed in action in November 1944, and the War Department issued a presumptive finding of death in April 1945. He will be buried in San Diego, California, in early 2024. Read about Walker.
Army Sergeant George F. Bishop, 22, of Centralia, Washington, was a member of Battery K, 3rd Battalion, 59th Coast Artillery Regiment. He died while a prisoner of war on July 28, 1942. He will be buried in his hometown on a date to be determined. Read about Bishop.
Army Air Force Staff Sgt. Franklin P. Hall, 21, of Leesburg, Florida, was assigned to the 66th Bombardment Squadron, 44th Bombardment Group. He was killed in action on Jan. 21, 1944. He will be buried in his hometown on a date to be determined. Read about Hall.
Army Air Forces Staff Sgt. Robert J. Ferris Jr., 20, of Long Island, New York, was assigned to the 401st Bombardment Squadron, 91st Bombardment Group, Eighth Air Force. He is believed to have been killed in action on Dec. 20, 1942, and the War Department issued a finding of death on Sept. 23, 1943. He will be buried in New Bern, North Carolina, on a date to be determined. Read about Ferris.

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