The Faces of Agent Orange

“The Faces of Agent Orange” is a nationwide VVA effort to help people see those who were affected by Agent Orange in Vietnam.

After the United States established that Agent Orange could be linked as the cause of many Vietnam veterans’ medical conditions, the veterans want the research to be done on how their children and grandchildren may have been affected. Committees have been formed to share stories and discuss possible health links to Agent Orange.

Maynard Kaderlik, member of VVA Chapter 470 in Minoka, MN , is also the chair of a Vietnam veterans national Agent Orange committee. He was stationed in the Mekong Delta and his exposure there to Agent Orange eventually led to prostate cancer. But, beyond his own suffering, his involvement in the committee is to share the story of his own son, who was born with a dislocated hip and a severe learning disability, and his granddaughter who was diagnosed with autism.

Kaderlik, along with many others, are trying to find things that might be considered out of the ordinary, that are more prevalent in veterans’ descendants than in the general public. Hundreds of meetings, like the ones Kaderlik leads in his and surrounding areas, have taken place in the U.S in the past several years.

The Toxic Exposure Research Act of 2015 was presented to the U.S. House and Senate. The Veterans Administration would designate a VA medical center as the national research center for the effects of veterans’ exposure, should the bipartisan bill be passed into law. This research could potentially benefit not only those involved in Agent Orange, but many others who have been affected by exposure and radiation.

 

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