It’s been 40 years since the Vietnam War ended, but the fight continues for many veterans and their progeny suffering from the laundry list of diseases presumed to have been caused by the American military’s use of a controversial herbicide known as Agent Orange.
That battle will come to Oxford on Saturday, Oct. 24 when Christ the King Church (CTK), located at 1550 W. Drahner Rd., will host an Agent Orange Town Hall meeting.
‘The biggest thing is trying to educate Vietnam veterans and their families because a lot of them don’t even know (about) the (health) consequences of all these herbicides that were sprayed or that there’s (medical and monetary) help out there for them,? said Dick Lash, a Clarkston resident who’s president of Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) Oakland County Chapter 133.
Registration for the town hall opens at 11 a.m. and the meeting begins at 12 p.m. Advance registration is available by sending an e-mail to vva133ao@gmail.com.
This event is free and open to all veterans, families, medical staff and the general public. It’s being presented by VVA Oakland County Chapter 133, Associates of VVA Oakland County Chapter 133 and the CTK Veterans Ministry.
A panel of six speakers ? a mix of Vietnam veterans and the children of Vietnam veterans ? will share their extensive knowledge and personal experiences regarding Agent Orange and its effects.
‘I don’t think there’s enough attention given to this,? said Lash, who served in Vietnam with the U.S. Army from December 1966 until June 1967 and is now considered 100 percent disabled as a result of his exposure to Agent Orange. ‘We need to keep it in (the public eye), so it doesn’t get put on the back-burner and we forget about it. That’s how I feel about it.?
Agent Orange is a blend of tactical herbicides sprayed by the U.S. military from 1962-71 during the Vietnam War in an effort ‘to remove trees and dense tropical foliage that provided enemy cover,? according to the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) website.
The VA says more than 19 million gallons of various herbicide combinations were sprayed, but Agent Orange was the most widely used. Its name was derived from the orange stripes used for identification purposes on the 55-gallon drums in which the herbicide was stored.
Any veteran who served on land in Vietnam or on the country’s inland waterways is presumed by the VA to have been exposed to Agent Orange. Outside of Vietnam, the VA says veterans may have been exposed in the Korean Demilitarized Zone between April 1968 and August 1971, on Thailand military bases between February 1961 and May 1975, on military bases in the U.S. where Agent Orange was tested and/or stored, and via residue in airplanes used in the Vietnam War.
Agent Orange is a combination of equal parts of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid, which contained trace amounts of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), an unwanted by-product of herbicide production, according to the VA.
TCDD is the ‘most toxic of the dioxins,? which are ‘pollutants released into the environment by burning waste, diesel exhaust, chemical manufacturing and other processes,? the VA website states. TCDD is classified by the Environmental Protection Agency as a human carcinogen.
A long list of cancers and other health problems is presumed by the VA to be associated with exposure to Agent Orange and other herbicides. As a result, the federal government offers benefits to those impacted by it.
Diseases include AL amyloidosis, chronic B-cell leukemia, chloracne, diabetes mellitus type 2, Hodgkin’s disease, ischemic heart disease, multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Parkinson’s disease, peripheral neuropathy, porphyria cutanea tarda, prostate cancer, respiratory cancers and soft tissue sarcomas.
‘It is paramount that (veterans and their families) at least be aware of what this horrible toxin does to the human (body),? said Vietnam veteran Bob ten Bosch, leader of the CTK Veterans Ministry. ‘Unfortunately, it carries on for a few generations and that’s the real horror of it all. Sometimes people just dismiss certain things and not realize that it could be related to Agent Orange.?
The VA recognizes spina bifida in Vietnam veterans? children is associated with their exposure to Agent Orange or other herbicides. Spina bifida is a birth defect that results in the incomplete closing of the spine in developing fetuses.
There is a list of 18 birth defects in the biological children of female Vietnam veterans which the VA presumes was caused by their military service, but not their exposure to herbicides. At this point, the VA doesn’t recognize that Agent Orange causes any birth defects or illnesses in the children or grandchildren of male Vietnam veterans unless it’s spina bifida.
A number of companies produced Agent Orange including the Midland-based Dow Chemical, which to this day, maintains there’s no definitive proof of a link between the herbicide and veterans? health problems.
‘The very substantial body of human evidence on Agent Orange does not establish that veterans? illnesses are caused by Agent Orange,? states the Dow Chemical website.
Lash has his share of health problems presumed to stem from Agent Orange exposure.
‘I’ve got diabetes and I’ve got peripheral neuropathy in my lower legs and in my arms,? said the 71-year-old.
Peripheral neuropathy is the result of nerve damage and causes weakness, numbness and pain, typically in the hands and feet. Those who are afflicted with it generally describe the pain as a stabbing or burning.
‘I have tremendous pain in my legs,? Lash said. ‘I used to go out in the yard and work all day on Saturday. Now, I go out and I maybe work for a half-hour, (then) I’ve got to come in and sit down for a half-hour because of the pain.?
‘I probably have as much pain in one day as some people may have in six months,? he noted. ‘It’s just something I’ve got to live with.?
Lash said he’s lost 40 percent of the use of each leg and 20 percent of the use of each arm.
His eyesight has also diminished by 20 percent as a result of retinopathy, a disease of the retina that results in vision impairment or loss. His retinopathy was caused by his diabetes, which he was diagnosed with in April 2002.
As for how Lash might have been exposed to Agent Orange during his military service, he remembers seeing planes flying overhead and spraying herbicides.
Lash also recalled 55-gallon drums being cut up and used as both toilets and barbecues at Camp McDermott, where he was stationed in Vietnam. Often times, drums that once held Agent Orange were reused for these purposes and others such as storing diesel fuel.
Lash encourages Vietnam veterans and their families to attend the town hall at Christ the King, so they can get all the facts about Agent Orange and learn what government benefits they may be entitled to because of their health problems.
For example, he noted that because he’s considered 100 percent disabled as a result of his military service, Michigan law exempts him from paying property taxes on his primary residence.
‘The state does recognize that we’ve got problems and they’re giving us a couple benefits (because) of that,? Lash said.
He’s also receiving financial assistance from the VA for the assortment of prescription drugs his various conditions require.
‘I probably wouldn’t be taking most of what I’m taking right now because I couldn’t afford it,? Lash noted.