Continuing to serve
Local veteran looks to end ‘epidemic’ of veteran suicides
BY REYNA IWAMOTO
A local veteran is working
to bring an end to “the epidemic
of veteran suicide” by
helping those active duty, veterans,
and fi rst responders
who suffer from mental health
issues.
Chief Master Sergeant Edward
Schloeman leads Operation
Warrior Shield (OWS), a
non-profi t organization working
to help veterans fi nd employment,
reduce veteran
homelessness, assist veterans
to obtain service dogs and offer
free transcendental meditation
training to reduce posttraumatic
stress disorder
(PTSD) symptoms.
“We work with fi rst responders,
veterans and military
members who have
stressful jobs, helping them
to handle the stress especially
when post-traumatic stress
disorder becomes a factor,”
Schloeman said.
Schloeman, the chairman
and president of OWS, is a Marine
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Vietnam Disabled Veteran
who served from 1960-
1966 and also served in the NY
Air National Guard from 1973-
1955.
“Being a Vietnam veteran,
our motto was ‘never again
will one generation of veterans
abandon another,’” Schloeman
said. “I feel very fortunate that
I am capable of providing this
type of assistance.”
The suicide rate among military
veterans is troublingly
high when compared to nonservice
members.
According to the Los Angeles
Times, veteran women ages
18 to 29 die by suicide almost 12
times more often than nonveterans,
while veteran men between
the ages of 18 to 29 years
old also died by suicide signifi -
cantly more than those who
did not serve — 83.3 for veterans
and 17.6 for nonveterans,
per 100,000 people.
Schloeman said he was inspired
to start his work when
his friend’s son was killed in
Iraq and after meeting the late
Jerry Yellin, a WWII veteran
who suffered from PTSD.
Yellin had introduced
Schloeman and Bob Roth, the
CEO of the David Lynch Foundation,
to the non-religious
form of transcendental meditation.
After learning the practice
with his wife, Schloeman
knew this was something he
had to spread to others suffering
from PTSD.
For eight years, Schloeman
and Yellin traveled across the
country speaking on behalf
of TM, partnering with organizations
and introducing the
practice to many who were
trying to overcome their “hidden
wounds.”
OWS now works with the
David Lynch Foundation in
partnership with the NY Open
Center to bring these holistic
measures to heroes and
work with them to “build the
strength to handle the stresses
of life.”
Some of the services that
are provided to these heroes
at no-cost besides TM training
include yoga, community acupuncture
and workshops that
address eating, sleeping, moving,
breathing and emotional
stability.
While OWS has been
awarded by the Brooklyn
Chamber of Commerce as
“The Best Innovative Non For
Profi t in 2017,” OWS’s most recent
initiatives include providing
comfort dogs to wounded
veterans and incorporating
TM into the police department.
The chief explained that
although it takes around six
months of training comfort
dogs, he hopes the organization
will soon be able to provide
veterans with at least
a dozen comfort dogs every
year.
While the organization continues
to work to accomplish
these two initiatives, Schloeman
emphasized the importance
of garnering the support
from corporate sponsorships.
“I hope that we get the necessary
support from corporate
America that would help us
continue this important mission,”
Schloeman said.
Unsplash/Sydney Rae
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