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Early in his tour, he said, his team drew a particularly dangerous assignment. Van Buskirk asked to go in place of one of the guys who had trained him and was close to going home.
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Roger Jensen , left gives a lesson on how to tune your guitar at the Tomah VA where vets recieved free guitars from Guitars for Vets to help them in their troubles . Dick Riniker photo |
They wouldn’t let him go, he said, because he was too inexperienced.
His comrades never made it back.
Van Buskirk made it home, to Nebraska, where he set about getting his life on track, starting a family and going to college.
But he was never the same. He suffered anxiety and had trouble focusing, as if a part of him never left the jungle. He spent a year in the hospital, unable to feed himself.
Back then, they called it shell shock.
Years later, Van Buskirk was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD. He said it cost him a marriage and many jobs.
About a year ago, the retired social worker bought a guitar. After years of never being able to slow down, Van Buskirk found solace in the baritone timbre of his Martin dreadnought.
“The guitar was something I could sit down with,” he said. “It helped me find some peace and calm.”
Last year, the 59-year-old and his guitar teacher, Patrick Nettesheim, formed a nonprofit company called Guitars for Vets. Van Buskirk hopes to help veterans like himself by providing them free guitars and lessons.
For Van Buskirk, it also is a way to honor his buddies who died in Vietnam.
The Milwaukee-based organization has handed out about two dozen guitars so far to vets in Milwaukee and Tomah. They eventually hope to serve vets in other parts of the country.
The need in Wisconsin alone is in the thousands, primarily from Vietnam-era veterans, Van Buskirk said. And demand likely will grow in coming years
More than 67,000 veterans of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have sought treatment for PTSD, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Guitars for Vets has a deal with a guitar maker to buy the instruments for about $60 each. They also accept donations. The plan is to raise money to pay instructors.
“This can be very draining, working with injured people,” Nettesheim said.
Vets get five weekly personal lessons with an instructor. After that, they can apply for more lessons. Those who don’t enjoy it are encouraged to pass their guitars on to other vets or return them to the company.
Wednesday, Van Buskirk greeted a roomful of veterans at the VA Medical Center in Tomah.
One by one, 14 vets — most of them in the VA’s 60-day PTSD treatment program — received a handshake, a welcome home, and a new acoustic guitar.
Mario Ramirez unzipped the black case on his lap, slipped his hand inside and strummed a few chords. Ramirez, 46, served in the Marine Corps from 1980 to 1984. Now he lives at the VA, where he works as a housekeeper. He played a little in the past, usually the blues.
“I was always wanting a good guitar,” he said. “Now I’m blessed with a new one.”
James Holcomb said he always wanted to play guitar like his grandmother did. He prefers old country tunes.
The 28-year-old from Rothchild, Wis., fought in Afghanistan and Iraq with the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division. Now he’s among about 15 veterans in the PTSD program.
“I always wanted to learn,” he said. “I don’t have a hobby.”
“Vets tend to isolate a lot,” said Jean Calhoun, the VA center’s music therapist. “This gives them something productive to do when they’re alone — and maybe draw them out.”
Steve Benirschke fought in Afghanistan in 2003 and 2004. His massive chest and blond flat top reflect his 22 years in the Army.
Benirschke, 42, said he’s never played guitar but would like to learn to play Hank Williams Sr. songs.
“I enjoy old country very much,” the retired sergeant from Sheboygan, Wis., said quietly. “It will help take my mind off some things.”
How to help
Guitars for Vets is a Milwaukee-based nonprofit working to provide military veterans with free guitars and lessons to help them cope with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Visit www.guitarsforvets.org to contact the organization, which accepts cash donations as well as instruments.
Chris Hubbuch can be reached at chris.hubbuch@lee.net or (608) 791-8217.
