Lightships Did Cause Hearing Loss! (USCG LSA)

Lightships Did Cause Hearing Loss!

by Rick Bennett, former LSA Secretary

Well the answer to that is Tinitis. Maybe you have Tinitis and are not aware that you do. So listen up. I mean really listen up to yourself. Go to a quiet space in your home and listen. Hear that high pitched tone in your ears. If your like me, you have had that for so long that you don?t actually hear it unless you listen specifically for it. So maybe it doesn?t bother you. What is it doing to everyone around you? You turn up the radio, or the TV. Now it is blasting everyone else and you can finally hear it comfortably.

Hearing loss and ringing in the ears is all too common to Lightship Sailors. The Veterans Administration recognizes hearing loss as a disability, and if your hearing loss can be proven to be caused by your service you rate a service connected percentage of a disability. Any percentage including ZERO is a big deal. How can zero percent be a big deal? If your hearing got worse and you required hearing aids they pay for them.

We have put together a seventeen page document that can be electronically transmitted in the Adobe Portable Document Format commonly called a .pdf file, or we can mail it to you. With this file you can begin a VA claim using the file to document your claim. Not everyone has a hearing loss now, but you might soon enough. Request the hearing loss package if you cannot be there and begin your claim. The process from start to finish can take upwards of a year so don?t delay!

If you were stationed on a Lightship you DO qualify for hearing loss V.A. Benefits. This is a fact.

This just in... The Veterans Administration Hearing Package for use in making a hearing loss claim to the VA due to extended Fog Signal use while serving onboard Lightships has been finished and available for use NOW. Our thanks to Mr. Bernie Byrnes, Chairman Hearing Loss Committee, for the research and development of this package. Email Rolland (New Director) for a copy if you will in fact use it. We can scan it into a .PDF file if you wish, all you need is Adobe PDF reader.

Lightship Sailors Speak Out!

Below is an example of the comments we receive from Lightship Sailors.

I am not requesting a form for hearing lose, I am letting you know of my experience with my claim. I submitted my information to my power of attorney who is the AMERICAN LEGION Service Officer at the VA Hospital in Togus Maine. I opened my claim in July of 2004 and just received my reply this month of January 2005. I received a 100% disability for Bilateral hearing loss and a 10% Tinnitus. If a veteran has a on going disability when they apply for the hearing disability they should what is known as a New service connected condition. They should receive some forms with the notice but they should read them over very careful or have their service officer help them when filling out any forms.

I served on the LV 116 in 1943 as examination vessel. My name is Donald H. Ward U.S.C.G.R. SM3/CI hope this will be of some help to those who are hesitating to apply for a claim. Good Luck & SEMPER PARATUS .

NOTE: This information has appeared on the web site for a number of years. We do NOT know of any former Lightship Sailor who has been turned DOWN for this disability. So apply today!

Please fill out Name, Address, City. State, and zip code and send it to, Rolland Holloway, LSA Director of Veteran Affairs

Please "Click" here to mail Mr. Holloway ~

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