“ The Tibor Rubin medical center means that we should all be proud of the fact that the facility is named after a Jewish war veteran. It makes me proud to be an American. ” ÑLeonard ÒJoeÓ Penner Delli-Bovi had submitted three claims before a Jewish psychologist at the VA met with Penner, read through his paperwork and confirmed that the ongoing abuse and harassment caused by anti-Semitism could be causation for post-traumatic stress. The fourth and final submission for Penner finally granted him the overdue rating for post-traumatic stress. Perhaps most importantly, Penner finally sought out medical attention for his invisible wounds, and he attends group therapy with fellow veterans weekly. “In every era, men and women who served have sus-tained both physical and invisible wounds,” said National Service Director Jim Marszalek. “Too often veterans suffer in silence for years—and, in Joe Penner’s case, decades—before getting the assistance they need. I commend Rafe for his determination and tenacity in con-necting a veteran with the benefits and services he earned that could help him on the ongoing road to recovery.” The renaming ceremony, which he attended with Delli-Bovi, brought an additional perspective about Penner’s own experience as a Jewish veteran. “The Tibor Rubin medical center means that we should all be proud of the fact that the facility is named after a Jewish war veteran,” he said. “It makes me proud to be an American.” ■ Tibor Rubin Born to a Jewish family in Hungary, Tibor Rubin was sent to a concentration camp in Austria during the Holocaust. He was liberated 14 months later by American soldiers and swore he would one day give back to the country that saved him. After immigrating to the United States, he joined the Army and served in the Korean War. Rubin’s actions in close contact with the enemy and commitment to his fellow service members after becoming a prisoner of war for 30 months in North Korea led to eventually receiving the Medal of Honor. Due to anti-Semitism that was still prevalent in the 1950s, Rubin, who was a DAV member, did not receive the military’s highest honor until 2005. Rubin had been submitted several times, but it was denied by the same sergeant who reportedly assigned Rubin to the most dangerous missions. VA Long Beach, which serves more than 50,000 veterans each year and where Rubin passed away in 2005, renamed its medical center in his honor during a ceremony May 10. DAV.ORG | FACEBOOK.COM/DAV | @DAVHQ | @DAVETERANS 11