Dear Sgt. Shaft:
I'm sitting in tears writing this letter after spending my usual six-to-eight hours a day making phone calls, sending e-mails, and writing letters regarding accumulated fraudulent debt, all while battling terminal blood cancer.

My husband has been in the U.S. Army for 17 years. Approximately three years ago, someone took our personal information and used it -- stolen identity. They used our social security numbers, birth dates, checking account numbers, made fake military IDs in our names, reopened credit card accounts that we had closed, opened utility accounts in our names, stole money from our checking account, opened loans in our names, and tried to destroy my husband's military career. Our credit is completely shot; we can't even buy a house or anything using credit. In life today, credit is everything, which means we have nothing. For the past three years we have not had a life; we have lived in a black hole of hell, being harassed by creditors for bills that are not even ours, along with my every day trying to straighten out this mess by writing letters, making phone calls, and sending e-mails to creditors, senators, members of Congress, and army officials (which are the worst people to deal with).

We contacted the authorities when we found out about the fraud, and, after we researched this situation, it became clear to us that it had to be someone in the military that did this horrible thing to us for a lot of reasons. To make a long story short, we went through the whole chain of command and when it reached my husband's commanding general, he denied a Section 15-6 (military Inspector General) investigation to help prove if a military person (or persons) were involved in this fraud. We were told by commanders, JAG officers, IG section personnel, CID section personnel--everyone that we contacted that a Section 15-6 investigation was definitely warranted, but still, the general in command denied our request. Why? I called the general at home to ask for his reasons and he said that he was sorry that this situation had happened to myself and my husband, but that the odds were that we would never find the person involved or get our money back, so we should just get on with our lives. I asked him what he would do if this situation was reversed and had happened to him and his wife, but he had no comment. Since then I have filed congressional letters, talked to senators, contacted the U.S. Attorney General's office, spoken with reporters and TV. stations, and every military person you can think of. So where do I go next? I feel that the next person in the military chain of command that I need to reach out to for help is the Commander-In-Chief, President Clinton. Will he help? Is someone listening?

Wendi Stuchel-Garza
Pittsburgh, PA

Dear Wendi:
I know that if President Clinton reads this column, "he will feel your pain". You and your husband have been put through a military bureaucratic circus, walking a never-ending tightrope with no help nor end in sight. I have made numerous calls to the callous clowns at the Departments of Defense and Army, and it seems they have no procedure to assist you and other military families faced with your situation. Be assured that the Sarge will continue to attempt to push the right buttons that will relieve your heartaches and pain.

Dear Sgt. Shaft:
Many ex-U.S. Air Force personnel and others who served in the Vietnam War in the Thailand-Laos-Cambodia area felt a need to form an organization wherein there was a greater sense of unity and brotherhood. We've banded together and recently held our second reunion of this TLC group -- "The Call of the Wild."

As stated on our web page, "The Brotherhood stretched across Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. We were civilians, military (all branches of the service). We were pilots, mechanics, navigators, weathermen, drivers, security police, and cooks. We were on or over the front line, on bases that you saw on TV and at some that few people even knew existed. We fought the war you heard about and the war you didn't. We didn't look for glory or ask for medals, we were called and we went. A lot of us didn't return ..."

Please ask your readers to check out our web page at www.tlc-brotherhood.org/right.htm

John Pierre-Benoist
Left Bank, Paris

Dear John:
I encourage my readers to check out your web site and also the new web site of the Blinded American Veterans Foundation - (www.bavf.org). I am sure both contain invaluable information to our nation's vets.

Shaft Kudo

Hats off to the VA for its new toll-free telephone number which helps veterans and dependents get that latest information on veterans benefits. By dialing 1-888-GI BILL (1-888-442-4551), veterans, dependents, school officials, veterans service officers, and others can receive education benefits information, including detailed eligibility criteria and general background information on VA programs, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. VA Under Secretary for Benefits Joe Thompson said, "VA is committed to providing the nation's veterans with the very best in customer service. This automated help line will provide accessible and efficient information about these popular VA services and programs." Veterans, reservists, and National Guard members receiving education benefits under the Montgomery GI Bill may also obtain detailed information on their personal benefits account through the new automated system. Callers can get specific questions answered by education case managers during regular business hours. Education benefits information is also available on the VA's home page on the Internet at www.va.gov/education.