Mission Statement

Gulf War Chemicals (GWC) primary mission is to assist active service men and women, veterans, civilian government employees and their families who are suffering serious health issues due to chemical exposure which occurred during their time of service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Intent Literally hundreds of our active service men/woman, veterans and civilian government employees are dealing with serious, even fatal, illnesses such as cancers, leukemia, lung diseases and other serious health complications that have been linked to chemical exposure.

We are dedicated to working towards stopping the expsoure dangers that we are aware of, such as the open burn pits, and changing the current VA regulations which are denying assistance to our veterans and their families. To do this we need public awareness and support.

Our research (and that of others) has shown that for the majority of our exposure victim the common thread is their service in Balad and Mosul on bases where burn pits were in operation 24/7. While the government is slowly recognizing the hazards of the burn pits and moving to shut them down and replace them with incinerators the effects of such toxic exposure has already taken it’s toll.

CDC

Diseases related to chemical exposure can take years to manifest after the initial exposure, this is a well documented medical fact. Unfortunately, the V.A. is not on the same page as the rest of us. The V.A. is denying service connection to every veteran we have spoken to unless their illness manifested within one year of their last date of service and even then the illness is not considered “service connected” but is treated as any other diseases would be if it occurred within that one year period.

While it appears that attention is finally being paid to these issues* unless some of the already existing rulings are changed or updated any new legislation or rulings created to assist veterans can not be effective. The old rulings are used as a Catch-22 and negate the effectiveness of the new rulings. It is our belief that the particular rulings must be updated or ruled invalid before the V.A. can or will move forward to assist these veterans. Therefore one of greatest priorities is to appeal to the D.O.D., the V.A., and anyone else who will work with us to change these rulings. In the meantime veterans who become ill and/or die are not receiving proper benefits. This is particularly critical for those with life threatening diseases and to the family members of those who have died.

This situation has been compared to the Viet Nam War and Agent Orange. It took over 40 years for the V.A. to acknowledge the hazards of Agent Orange and it’s effect on our veterans. We are hoping that our citizens and government will not allow such a traumatic error to occur again. Please review this site and then take the time to contact your representatives and ask them to support GWC in our work to help those who have served and paid such a heavy price.

*The VA recently send out a Training Letter regarding Environmental Hazards in Iraq Afghanistan and Other Military Installations in which they acknoledge "Service members can be exposed to environmental hazards in the course of their military duties, which may result in adverse health effects."

About Us

Gulf War Chemicals was begun as a research effort by the families of veterans who have died from diseases related to chemical exposure, in most of these cases the veterans died after suffering from Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML).

The tragic loss of our loved ones has been compounded by having to fight to prove service connection between the diseases and chemical exposure. Until such a connection is acknowledged by the V.A. and the D.O.D. those currently suffering and those who have paid the ultimate price are being denied benefits and services.

For many of us, the acknowledgement that these veterans did in fact give their lives for their country is as important as any other benefit. Their children, their wives, their parents, their loved ones deserve to have this sacrifice acknowledged and honored.

Dealing with a life threatening disease is certainly bad enough – dealing with V.A. denials and red tape while struggling to deal with the complications of such illness is more than anyone should have to bear.

As a country, as a community, we must honor our service men and women. It is our duty to assist them in every way possible when they, in the line of duty, are injured or killed. It is our duty to stand up and ask that those who have paid the ultimate price be remembered and their families cared for. It is our duty to prevent another Agent Orange situation.

Thank you, on behalf of all of the affected active service members, veterans and their families for your attention to this issue. I urge you to stand with us and contact your representatives and help us to spread the word. We, the people, have a voice, these men and women have fought and paid a heavy price for us to have that freedom – so let us now use that voice to help and serve them.

SSG. Matthew Bumpus	Laura Bumpus, Founder Stepmother of SSG. Matthew Bumpus laura@gulfwarchemicals.com
SSG. Steven Ochs	Stacy Pennington Co-founder Sister of SSG. Steven Ochs stacy@gulfwarchemicals.com