Director’s Message May 2, 2025

VA Pacific Islands Health Care System (VAPIHCS) employees are one component of that, but a Veterans’ friends, families, and caregivers are also important. In programs like recreation therapy and whole health, we try to help Veterans create bonds and form a support system so that - even when times are hard - they will always have people around them to lift them up. Remember that community and connections are vital to a healthy life, so nurture your relationships to grow a better future. 

New FINVET Program

Research has shown financial well-being is tied to better mental health and lower suicide risk. FINVET is a one-stop website for Veterans to access trustworthy financial tools and resources to help Veterans learn about and manage their finances. Managing money well is a key to success, and VAPIHCS wants all our Veterans to be happy, healthy, and successful. 

Caregiver Support Program

The VA Caregiver Support Program (CSP) is committed to ensuring caregivers are recognized as essential partners in your health. CSP aims to engage and empower caregivers as partners by fostering successful collaboration between the Veteran, their caregiver, and their health care providers. Visit our website for tips on ensuring a successful health care appointment for the Veteran in your care: https://www.caregiver.va.gov/.

Suicide Prevention

Suicide Prevention is our number one clinical priority at VAPIHCS. If you are ever struggling, please reach out. VAPIHCS has programs to help with a variety of issues, from legal trouble to forbearance on a mortgage so you can stay in your home. No matter what challenges you face, VAPIHCS will do all we can to connect you with community partners who can help provide a comprehensive mental health experience. For the Veterans Crisis Line, call 988, then press 1. 

Thoughts from Chaplain Richie Charles

In the city of Enterprise, Alabama stands a statue of a woman holding above her head a giant insect. This monument immortalizes the deep gratitude the people of Enterprise hold for this bug, and the positive impact this insect had on the city’s prosperity. But the story behind the city’s success may surprise you.

The insect is called the “boll weevil”, and though its name may sound unfamiliar, by the 1920’s, the boll weevil already held the reputation for being the most destructive agricultural pest in all of American History, resulting in billions of dollars in losses. Boll weevils are small, voracious pests of cotton plants, and have been known to decimate much of a farmer’s cotton harvest. In the early 1900’s, the South had an economy heavily reliant on cotton as their cash crop, and the destruction of cotton growth by the boll weevil devastated the South’s livelihood and became a matter of public anxiety.

So why would a city build a monument to the very creature that nearly destroyed it?

Because something remarkable happened in Enterprise. Faced with crisis, local farmers realized they couldn’t keep doing what they had always done. Cotton was no longer reliable. They had to adapt and innovate for survival. They started planting peanuts instead — a crop the boll weevil wasn’t drawn to. By 1917, Enterprise was producing more peanuts than any other place in the nation. As a result, the local economy didn’t just recover — it thrived. The very creature that brought farms on the brink of ruin became the very creature that placed the city of Enterprise on the path to success. What made the difference? Their willingness to see opportunity in the midst of adversity.

We all face “boll weevil moments” — disruptions we could not foresee, changes we did not expect. But with the right perspective, we may see that those moments may hold potential to become the very catalyst that can help propel us toward new growth.

It’s often true that blessings come in disguises, and if we’re willing, we can unearth them with the right perspective.

One Team, One Ohana!
Thandiwe (Tandi) Nelson-Brooks, MPH, FACHE
Interim Medical Center Director
VA Pacific Islands Health Care System

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