Marine Corps major general speaks for veteran care at Rumshock Gala

Marine Corps Maj. Gen. James Everett Livingston was the special guest at Rumshock Veterans Foundation Second Annual Gala at Walden Firehouse on Oct. 18.

“This thing is emotional for me because it’s about taking care of our brothers and sisters, who have worn the cloth of the nation,” said Livingston. “And when you go all over the country and see organizations willing to take care of those who have served and sacrificed, that is the American spirit, the America we all dreamed to live in.”

More veterans are lost to suicide than to combat, according to recent research provided by the Veterans Administration, which is one of the reasons that Rumshock has initiated its program in Orange County. The need for affordable housing, employment and mental health care are other issues that Rumshock is trying to address.

Rumshock Veterans Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit founded in February 2019 to provide military members with post-service support, received $400,000 that was secured and announced by New York State Sen. Jen Metzger’s in 2020. That funding will go toward purchasing land and eventually breaking ground in Port Jervis for one of the first projects of affordable housing for veterans in Orange County.

Rumshock’s program, a collaborative community maintained by Village residents, will include employment, transportation to assist Village residents in getting to healthcare providers and other necessities, and canine companionship for needed emotional support.

According to the Dept. of Defense, Livingston became a trusted commander during his more than three decades in the service. He learned leadership skills early in his career and put them to good use in 1968 when he helped liberate a Vietnamese village and save stranded Marines. For that, he earned the Medal of Honor. His story is commemorated in the book, Noble Warrior, published by Zenith Press.

Story contributed by Peter Lyons Hall