it was a period of mass confusion. >> byron pitts: record keeping wasn't a priority at the time? no. record keeping was not any type of priority at the time. >> byron pitts: in recent years, pitts says he tried to find his former commanding officer from korea, plus a hometown friend he says he ran into while in vietnam, but both had died. without corroboration or records, pitts never applied for the benefit. then, in november of 2008-- out of the blue- the v.a. sent him this letter. it says, "according to records with the department of veterans affairs, you were stationed in the republic of vietnam during your military service." >> david pitts: right. >> byron pitts: and you got this letter, you thought what? >> david pitts: well, somebody has found something. >> byron pitts: based on the letter, pitts filed a claim. it took the v.a. ten months to review it before denying it. it's an example of the complexity that both the v.a. and veterans face in establishing what happened, years, sometimes decades, after events have taken place. the v.a. says it needs evidence to grant a claim,

they are-- as our byron pitts has discovered-- best understood through the eyes of the people who havefer help. much of what they're seeing is difficult to watch, but this is the reality of haiti tonight. >> pitts: dr. paul farmer arrived on a small jet airplane friday night; loaded with medical supplies and a team of doctors that haiti desperately needs. >> dr. paul farmer: i've never seen anything like this. so, i've never seen a disaster of this magnitude, personally. >> pitts: no one has. and though dr. farmer has been working in the poorest country in the western hemisphere for 25 years treating patients and training doctors, nothing could've prepare him for devastation like this. how much more can haiti take? a few years ago, three hurricanes, and tropical storm in a short period of time. now this. >> farmer: i mean, it seems to me entirely unfair that so much misfortune be visited on one place. that's how the haitian feel, too. >> pitts: dr. mark hyman of lenox, massachusetts was one of the doctors on board who headed straight to port-au-prince's general hospital. dr. hyman came

here is byron pitts talking about how he grew up unable to read and about the father who abandoned theoften think there but for the grace of got go i. we've reconciled to some degree in recent years as we speak now as men. >> but now you're a successful network star and now when he met you for the first time in a long time, he wanted something from you, right? >> sure. >> what did he want? >> he wanted money. >> what did you say to him? >> i said no. i used some choice words that i won't use on television. it was my way to pay him back for i thought ignoring me all these years. one of the things i learned and the point i make in the book is there's real power in forgiveness. as long as i was angry with my father, it did me more disservice because he went on with his life. when i told him i for gave him, that not only, some may say, let him off the hook, but freed me. >> it was a touching moment when robin roberts talked about why she was especially happy to go to l.a. for the os sdars. >> this is part of the reason why i also accepted this because this time last year, completely bald,

people know this and, byron pitts, cbs news, transfixed. or 25 million people will watch me on television. the book is about though more than that. it's about the journey from there to here and the importance of the journey. and the realization that i would not eat on transfixed at 7:00 on sunday night if not for those struggles. i tell my wife sometimes and i mention this in the book that when you see me on sunday nights at 7:00 sitting in the chair in my best sunday suit, that in my late father in moscow for links that i always wear. i know when i'm sitting in that chair my mom is there, my brothers there,, my grandma mr. pete is there, all these people who stepped on nothing to help me. and so in the book i say i want to encourage people, parents, teachers, seniors, people who spent much of their day encouraging other people, 18 seeds of kindness and other people to let you know that what you do matters. your kindness matters. you don't know what it will mean to a child in our church, a child of montclair and newark who had a person look

[applause] >> byron pitts is an emmy award winning journalist and contributing correspondent to the news magazine 60 minutes. for more information, visit us.macmillan.com/stepoutonnothin g. >>> coming up next, book tv presents "after words," an hourlong discussion between >> guest: stand the author of a new book to read this week, wall street journal economics editor david wessler talks about his book quote cohen said we trust." in the book mr. wessler looks the world played by federal reserve bin bernanke following the 2008 economic collapse. he discusses his book with alice rivlin, first director of the congressional budget office and current senior fellow with the brookings institution. >> host: llo. ibm alice rivlin, and it is my pleasure to be talking to david wessle and his book and said we trust ben bernanke is war on the great panic which has the subtitle, not every book has to subtitles, david. how the federal reserve became the fourth bank branch of government. it's a fascinating book. >> guest: thank you. >> host: how i loved it and i think i should make that clear at the outs