"Finish Strong:" VFW Leaders Converge on Washington to Advocate for Veterans

This morning the VFW kicked off its fall legislative conference, telling the 112th Congress to “Finish Strong For Veterans.”

VFW National Legislative Director Ray Kelley briefed all 70 members of the VFW’s National Legislative Committee this morning at the Hilton Crystal City in Arlington, Va., outlining the VFW’s expectations for Congress and outstanding issues from the last two years.

Armed with the VFW’s “Finish Strong For Veterans” brochure, explaining each outstanding issue, VFW National Legislative Committee members are now scheduled to meet with every Congressional and Senate office over the next three days, calling on Congress to act before the end of the current term.

To learn more about the fall conference and VFW’s outstanding legislative issues, click here.

The VFW Capitol Hill blog will follow legislative committee members around to their meetings, posting photos and highlights as they are available. Check back regularly over the next three days for updates.

(Image: VFW National Legislative Director Ray Kelley briefs VFW National Legislative Committee members as this week's conference kicked off. Photo by Bob Hunter.)

Field Report: New Mexico VFW Hosts Congressional Town Hall

Members of Congress are home in their districts this week, and VFW advocates have taken the opportunity to meet directly with their leaders on veterans’ issues.

On Tuesday, March 13, VFW Post 7686 in Alamogordo, N.M., hosted a veterans’ town hall forum where post members and area veterans had an opportunity to meet with Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., and State Rep. Yvette Herrell, R-Alamogordo, to candidly discuss a variety of veterans’ issues like VA benefits-delivery and health care.

VFW National Legislative Committee Vice-Chairman B.J. Lawrence, who helped to organize the event, was able to utilize the forum as a follow-up visit with Pearce, after meeting with him on Capitol Hill during last week’s VFW National Legislative Conference.

Pearce reiterated that he was opposed to any cuts to our nation’s active duty military and would continue to support legislation in favor of both the military and veterans.

The congressman also co-hosted a veterans’ job fair on Tuesday in Alamogordo, where employers were prepared to offer approximately 3,000 jobs to veterans. Veterans from the area and from neighboring states came out to participate in the event.

To submit your Field Reports for consideration on the VFW’s Capitol Hill blog, simply fill out our online form here, or send photos and stories directly to vfwac@vfw.org.

(Images: Top: Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., fields questions from veterans during the recent veterans’ town hall meeting at VFW Post 7686 in Alamogordo, N.M. Bottom: VFW National Legislative Committee Vice-Chairman B.J. Lawrence and Congressman Pearce commended U.S. Air Force Tech Sgt. Priscilla Chavez for her service in Iraq during the recent veterans’ town hall at VFW Post 7686. Chavez currently serves in the 49th Maintenance Squadron at Hollman Air Force Base in New Mexico. Story and photos courtesy of B.J. Lawrence.)

McKeon Receives VFW Congressional Award

The VFW selected House Armed Services Committee Chairman Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-Calif.) to receive its 2012 VFW Congressional Award for his outstanding service to the nation’s military and to a strong and secure America.

“The chairman fights to strengthen our military and to invest in a force that can meet and beat any threat,” said VFW National Commander Richard L. DeNoyer. “He also led efforts to keep terrorist detainees off of U.S. soil, increased missile defense funding, restored the tradition of keeping nondefense social issues out of the defense bill, and is a leading voice to keep the military intact in this budget-cutting era. Our military and veterans’ communities of past and present have no better friend in Congress than Chairman McKeon.”

The Tuesday afternoon award presentation is part of the VFW’s annual legislative conference that sees almost 300 VFW members visit their elected officials to discuss issues important to the veterans, service members and their families. Topmost this year is to protect the Department of Veterans Affairs budget from mandatory cuts if sequestration occurs, and to defeat the Defense Department’s negative quality of life proposals that would restrict military pay, substantially increase Tricare costs on military dependents and retirees, and overhaul a military retirement system into something more suitable for civilian companies.

“There is no military personnel issue more sacrosanct than pay and benefits,” said DeNoyer, a retired Marine and Vietnam combat veteran.

“A secure America needs a strong military, which is one of many reasons why Chairman McKeon was selected for this year’s award,” he said. “Messing with military pay and benefits is a clear signal to the troops and their families that the budget is more important than people. That money-first mindset is going to seriously hurt recruiting and retention, and potentially end the all-volunteer force.”

These and other important issues will be addressed in detail Wednesday when DeNoyer testifies before a joint hearing of the Senate and House Veterans Affairs Committees. Other high-interest topics range from military transition and employment assistance programs to education, the proper care and treatment of wounded warriors, women veterans, the 1.7 million VA claims workload, and combating veteran suicides and homelessness, among others.

Check www.vfw.org/vfwlivestream early Wednesday afternoon to watch the delayed stream of the testimony. The testimony will also be available for viewing on-demand later Wednesday.

VFW Takes the Hill: An Advocate's Point of View by Army Veteran Phil Patterson

Our next advocate's submission leading up to the 2012 VFW National Legislative Conference comes from Department of Michigan's Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Committee chairman and Iraq war Army veteran Phil Patterson. Be on the look-out for more stories from VFW advocates coming to Washington tomorrow to meet with leaders in Congress leading up to VFW Commander-in-Chief Richard L. DeNoyer’s testimony before a special joint session of the House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees on March 7:

I feel coming to Washington is one way that I can carry on the messages for those who cannot be here to express their concerns themselves. I am here to help promote the ideals of our organization by visiting our legislators on Capitol Hill; to explain to them the needs of our active military veterans such as housing, family care, education and medical [care] just to name a few.

I need to be here to stress the importance of the VA’s budget; we need to explain the importance of our funding and why we cannot afford to have it reduced. We are training our [veterans service organizations] and their service officers; educating them and now we are being told that our budget is being cut once again. We need this funding to keep going, to keep providing our veterans with the services that they deserve. Without proper funding this will only cause our service officers who we have invested in and trained to turn elsewhere for better paying jobs.

I would like to ask why it is that veterans have to fight to keep everything that we have been told that will be an entitlement, or to fight so hard for what we need? We have fought for this country and now we come home to battle with our own administration for what we have earned and are now trying to keep.

As a Desert Storm and [Operation Iraqi Freedom III] veteran, this is why I came to Washington. After all, if we do not help ourselves then who will? This is why we “Honor the dead by helping the living.”

Phil Patterson is a retired Army master sergeant as a vehicle maintenance supervisor in both Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2005. Since leaving the military, Patterson continues to serve his fellow veterans as a life member of David A. Huhn VFW Post 12082 in Ionia, Mich. He has served as his post commander and captain and earned an Outstanding Community Service award for his post. Patterson is joining the VFW in Washington as a national co-chairman of the VFW Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Committee.


(Images: Top: Phil Patterson as a Post All-American Commander in 2011. Bottom: Patterson, left, working on a vehicle in Al Taqaddum, Iraq in 2005. Photos courtesy of Phil Patterson.)

VFW Takes the Hill: An Advocate's Point of View by Army Veteran George Creighton

Our next advocate's submission leading up to the 2012 VFW National Legislative Conference comes from Department of Maryland's National Legislative Committee member and Vietnam Army veteran George C. Creighton. Be on the look-out for more stories from VFW advocates coming to Washington tomorrow to meet with leaders in Congress leading up to VFW Commander-in-Chief Richard L. DeNoyer’s testimony before a special joint session of the House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees on March 7:

When I returned home after two combat tours in Vietnam as an infantry officer, I felt disillusioned by what had become of my country. After my first tour, which ended in 1967, I was greeted by my family at McGuire [Air Force Base] in New Jersey. After my second tour, ending in 1969, I entered the [United States] in California. I avoided the negative sentiments of the American people towards Vietnam veterans by taking the red-eye flight from San Francisco to Baltimore in civilian clothes. For years after returning, I remained aloof of veteran affairs and activities; even did not attend the prestigious Officers of the First Infantry Division annual banquet.

When the victory of Desert Storm occurred, my wife and I visited a seriously wounded friend of my nephew in Walter Reed hospital. I saw the great effort that was required to help our soldiers and decided I needed to get involved. At the local level, I went through the chairs to become post commander of Bowie, [Md.,] Memorial Post 8065, and then went on to become commander of Maryland VFW District 17. At the same time, my regular work was in the pharmaceutical industry as a salesman and lobbyist in Washington, D.C. My eyes were opened again when my friend, VFW Department of Maryland Past Commander Ray Shipley, started a VFW program to meet and greet [troops] going to and from Iraq at the Baltimore airport. Once again I saw quite clearly the need to help our veterans. With no end in sight to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and with my lobbying experience through my professional career, I realized that I could get things done on Capitol Hill. I was appointed to represent Maryland on the VFW National Legislative Committee. I was fortunate to receive excellent support from the Maryland congressional delegation. I continue to serve on that committee.

As a result of my work and the help of many Maryland VFW members and other service organizations, I became chairman of the Joint Veterans Committee of Maryland. My work with all the veteran service organizations in Maryland to protect and improve entitlements to veterans culminated in 2008 with my honor of the appointment as Maryland's Veteran of the Year. At the same time, I continued my work on the VFW National Legislative Committee.

In addition to mobilizing support for the VFW goals in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate, I was able to get many bills through the Maryland General Assembly which assured adequate resources for VA benefits and compensation, and assured a better quality of life for veterans. Some of that legislation included ensuring that the Charlotte Hall Veterans Home received adequate funding; the POW/MIA flag be flown at all Maryland highway rest stops; and that funerals of our veterans not be disturbed by protesters. Other legislation I worked hard for established an increase of the tax exemption on military retired pay from $2,500 to $5,000 and provided benefits for disabled and war wounded veterans in areas not covered by the federal benefits program. All these successes were supported by Maryland Governors Robert Ehrlich and Martin O'Malley, and by Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. My wife, Laudine, and I had the honor of meeting President Obama when he visited the VFW Washington offices in 2007 when he was senator from Illinois and was serving on the Senate Veterans [Affairs] Committee.

I continue to support veterans issues and legislative efforts in the Maryland General Assembly, and the agenda of the VFW National Legislative Committee. My motto is “Leave no veteran behind.”

George C. Creighton is a former Army infantry officer who served two tours in Vietnam. Today, Creighton represents the VFW Department of Maryland on the VFW National Legislative Committee. In 2008, he was honored by the state of Maryland as its Veteran of the Year.

(Images: Top: George C. Creighton, right, stands behind then-Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich, signing veterans' legislation into law. Bottom: Creighton, right, meets with then-Sen. Barack Obama at the VFW Washington office in 2007. Photos courtesy of George C. Creighton.)

VFW Takes the Hill: An Advocate's Point of View by retired Navy Corpsman Joe Lumsden

Our third advocate submission leading up to the 2012 VFW National Legislative Conference comes from Department of Vermont Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Committee Chairman and retired Navy Corpsman Joe Lumsden. Be on the look-out for another story tomorrow from a VFW advocate who will be coming to Washington on March 3 to meet with leaders in Congress leading up to VFW Commander-in-Chief Richard L. DeNoyer’s testimony before a special joint session of the House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees on March 7:

What really matters when you come to Washington, D.C., are issues concerning veterans. Your rank, political affiliation, sex, or the color of your skin play no role. What makes a statement, however, is unity. In a time where many different organizations form to represent a single conflict, the Veterans of Foreign Wars remains focused on fighting for all.

This March will be no different as generations of combat veterans "Storm the Hill" to address issues like healthcare, education, retirement and budget cuts. This is my second visit to our Nation's Capitol representing the state of Vermont as their Iraq and Afghanistan chairman.

I spent the last year traveling around my state listening to hundreds of veterans and their families while doing my [college] senior internship promoting the VFW. The conversations started out with [Voice of Democracy] and the Patriot's Pen essay contest, or teacher awards and college scholarships. Then conversations shifted to stories of the VA and the backlog of claims, or unemployment; and what shocked me more were the tears of frustration.

I made a promise that I would continue to be their voice and continue to fight for what's right. Some said they had no fight left in them, some wanted direction and leadership to continue the fight.

"What's in it for me?" -- a question asked many times about joining the VFW. This was asked of my state commander during a Yellow Ribbon ceremony by a young returning veteran. He turned him around to face the VA hospital and said, "That's for you, but it takes fighters like us to keep it."

Joe Lumsden is a retired Navy hospital corpsman who deployed during Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and returned to serve in Iraq again in 2003. In 2011, Lumsden served as a national co-chairman of the VFW Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Committee. He continues to serve today as Vermont's Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Committee chairman and membership chairman. Lumsden was also recently appointed as Vermont VFW National Deputy Chief of Staff by the department commander. Lumsden will also graduate this spring with Bachelor of Arts degree from Southern Vermont College with a minor in history and politics. 

(Images: Top: Joe Lumsden during the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Committee meeting at the 2011 VFW National Convention in San Antonio. Official VFW photo. Bottom: Lumsden, far right, and his fellow chairmen of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Committee speak with Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. 1st Class Leroy Petry during the 2011 VFW National Convention. Photo by Ryan Gallucci.)

VFW Takes the Hill: An Advocate's Point of View by Navy veteran Bob Hunter

Our second advocate submission leading up to the 2012 VFW National Legislative Conference comes from Department of Connecticut Legislative Chairman and Navy veteran Bob Hunter. Be on the look-out for more stories from VFW advocates who will be coming to Washington on March 3 to meet with leaders in Congress leading up to VFW Commander-in-Chief Richard L. DeNoyer’s testimony before a special joint session of the House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees on March 7:

When I joined the VFW in 2006 I had no idea what role I might take by joining; I only knew I wanted to serve. I looked back on my time in service and thought I could have made more of my experience than I did, and becoming active in the VFW helped me to do more for my fellow veterans.

I came home in good shape compared to some of my comrades who came home profoundly injured, or had even laid down their last great measure of devotion in their country's service. In that regard, I felt I had to do more. When I got out I saw vets who had no concept of the benefits they had earned or how to file a claim with the VA to receive them. There were vets who needed help and they weren’t getting it.

For me it was a learning process, but I wanted to be involved. By dumb luck, I was seated alongside [VFW Executive Director] Bob Wallace and [VFW Adjutant General Allen] “Gunner” Kent at our state convention. I learned in a very brief period of time everything that the Washington office does. They inspired me to continue helping. I thought, “I like that. That’s the root of what we do at the VFW.”

I have been attending the [VFW] legislative conference since 2008. It was my first year as commander of VFW Post 9086 in Torrington, [Conn.,] and I wanted to learn as much as I could about the work the VFW accomplishes every day in our nation's capitol. Moreover, I wanted to bring back word to my post about the VFW’s work, and why our role in supporting those efforts is so important.

Not long after my first conference I met a few comrades who sensed my interest in developing my advocacy skills, and I was immediately taken under their collective wing. Each year I attend the conference I learn and contribute more toward furthering the goals that ensure our brothers and sisters are looked after by the country they took an oath to defend.

In many ways, my service in the VFW is a perpetuation of the oath I took when I enlisted. I've learned the work is continuous, that many hands make for light work, and no effort is too small as long as it helps the VFW remain a leader in their comrade veterans' advocacy.

Bob Hunter served as an electronics technician in the U.S. Navy from 1980-1984. During his time in service, Hunter earned his eligibility to join the VFW as part of the multinational Lebanon Peacekeeping Force aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower. During his deployments, Hunter's unit responded to the barracks bombing in Beirut and repeated aggression from Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Today Hunter serves as the legislative chairman for the VFW Department of Connecticut. Hunter's VFW post, Post No. 9086 in Torrington, Conn., helps to finance his trip to Washington each year to participate in the legislative conference on behalf of Connecticut's veterans.

(Images: Top: Navy veteran Bob Hunter during the 2008 Pratt & Whitney Veterans Day Celebration in Connecticut. Bottom: Hunter on the signal bridge of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower while underway in 1984. Photos courtesy of Bob Hunter.)