Tag Archives: veterans

California

California Unions Urge Support for State’s Veterans, Yes Vote on Prop 41

By Steve Smith

Over 200,000 California veterans live in poverty. More than a quarter of the nation’s homeless veterans are right here in our state. We see them on the street. Their injuries – both physical and emotional – are evident. Yet, far too little is being done to help the heroes who fought for our country find a roof over their heads at night. That’s simply shameful.

We can do better. We must do better.

Prop 41 directs $600 million of existing Proposition 12 (Veterans Bond Act of 2008) to housing options for veterans. On June 3, California voters have an opportunity to infuse much-needed funds into transitional housing for veterans, which would go a long way to providing a warm place to sleep at night for those who have sacrificed so much to defend the very freedoms many of us take for granted.

We proudly endorsed Prop 41 because it’s exactly the kind of thing we need to see more of here in California. The measure doesn’t ask voters for new money. It won’t cost taxpayers a dime. But what it will do is get veterans off the street. No one who has served our nation in uniform should live in poverty or be without a place to live.

So on June 3, cast a vote to curb homelessness among our state’s veterans. Cast a vote to give our heroes in uniform a chance to build a better life. Cast a vote for Prop. 41.

Learn more about Prop 41

Learn more about Veterans and Labor – Partners in Service

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California Labor Unveils New Policy Platform to Boost Struggling Veterans

by Rebecca Band, California Labor Federation

“Thank you for your service.”

It’s a line we hear and say a lot around Veteran’s Day, especially in California, home to 1.8 million veterans, more than in any other state.

But if we really want to show gratitude for our veterans, then we need to do more than utter a simple “thank you.” We need to help these brave heroes find a middle-class life when they return from serving our country.

According to the Department of Veterans Affairs annual survey of veterans, jobs are the biggest concern for our returning veterans, and for good reason — the unemployment rate for veterans of recent conflicts is an unacceptable 10 percent, and 1.5 million young veterans – many with families to support — currently live under the poverty line.

It hasn’t always been like this. According to Nick Berardino, Vietnam Veteran and General Manager of the Orange County Employees Association:

When we came back from Vietnam, they spit on us, but at least we could find a job. Today, veterans get a hand shake and a thank you, but a future that includes unemployment, low wages and no way for them to care for their families. We can and should do much better for our veterans.

Those who serve our country in uniform risk their lives to defend and protect the freedoms we all value. That’s why leaders from the California Labor movement and elected officials joined together with veterans in Sacramento today to unveil a new seven-point plan to put our state’s veterans on the path to good jobs and a middle-class life.

California Labor Federation Executive-Secretary Treasurer Art Pulaski:

Far too often, our nation’s veterans don’t receive the support they’ve earned or the services they need when returning home. California’s labor unions are taking the lead to change that. WWII veterans, along with their unions, helped build our nation’s middle class brick by brick. Veterans and labor unions are poised once again to partner to strengthen our economy and preserve the American Dream.

The seven-point plan focuses on:

1.    Creating and growing good jobs for veterans. Among states that receive grants for vets from the U.S. Department of Labor, California has one of the lowest rates of placing veterans in jobs. We must align our state resources – incentives, contracts, purchasing, hiring – to encourage and reward the hiring of veterans, who represent the best in possible employees.

2.     Matching training and skills to veterans. Veterans come out of active duty with significant skills that can be translated into a variety of careers. Too often, the language used to describe military job duties doesn’t match the language of those hiring in the civilian world. We support policies that capture and maximize the skills vets have acquired to gain them the best jobs in growing fields that pay living wages.

3.     Protecting jobs for veterans. Workers should be rewarded, not disadvantaged, when they go into active or reserve service. Vets should have guarantees that their jobs will be there when they return, that they be able to maintain their health care coverage, and that they will have recall rights should their jobs get eliminated.

4.     Streamlining veteran job services. According to multiple studies, California does not provide a coordinated, integrated system that streamlines employment-related services to veterans, and has failed to meet veteran employment goals set by federal grants. It’s time to streamline the delivery of job services to veterans and that tailor services to the special needs and skill sets of veterans.

5.     Providing more housing for veterans. Vets make up a disproportionate share of the homeless population and are significantly more likely than the general population to become homeless. No one should be forced to live on the street after serving our country, which is why we support policies and funding to build more housing, including rental units, for veterans.

6.     Ensuring veterans receive their benefits. California lags behind other states in the amount of benefits claimed by veterans. Even though veterans are eligible for federal pensions and health benefits, many California vets rely on public state programs rather than collecting the benefits they’ve earned and deserve. A 2013 Little Hoover Commission report estimates that California leaves between $500 million and $1 billion in federal dollars on the table due to veterans not signing up for benefits.  

7.      Providing services for diverse veteran populations. Currently, 70 percent of veterans in California are age 50 or over, but at the same time, large numbers of younger veterans — many of whom are women and minorities — are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Different groups of veterans will need different services for their transition to civilian life, which is why we support tailoring programs and policies to the needs of the diverse veteran populations in the state.

Yvonne Walker, U.S . Marine Corps Veteran and President of SEIU Local 1000:

We owe every man and woman who goes into service for their country a debt of gratitude. But gratitude isn’t enough. At the very least, they have earned the peace of mind that their jobs will be there when they return, that they be able to maintain their health care coverage, and that they will have recall rights should their jobs get eliminated.

In addition to the policy agenda, Labor groups also have identified needed projects and local opportunities where are coming together to provide service for veterans such as renovating, painting or improving the grounds at local VFW or American Legion halls; hosting food and supply donation drive to support veterans in need; and assembling care packages along with letters to be sent overseas.

Orange County unions led by the Orange County Employees Association (OCEA), along with veterans and community leaders, will hold a large Veterans Day special event to pay tribute to Veterans and their families following the “Day of Service” volunteer projects.

For more details on service projects and others actions taking place around the state, go to www.veteransandlabor.com

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Pan’s Resolution for Equal LGBT Veteran Benefits Gets Bipartisan Majorities

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Dr. Richard Pan for AssemblyResolution gets a few Republican votes

by Brian Leubitz

Republicans don’t go out of their way to support LGBT Californians. That being said, it is hard for them to vote against veterans, no matter the cause. So, it was quite the conflict when Richard Pan’s AJR 19 rolled through the Legislature. The resolution calls on the federal government to provide equal benefits for LGBT veterans. But the measure got several Republican votes in both houses.

“Today California is united in recognizing the service of every veteran and correcting the injustices our LGBT veterans have endured for so long,” Dr. Pan said. “I applaud recent efforts by the Obama Administration to provide equal benefits for all veterans, but there is still much work to do.  I am hopeful that our leaders in Washington will heed this bipartisan call for equality and do right by the veterans who have put their lives on the line defending our country.”

“AJR 19 raises all of California’s voice in demanding that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender veterans be treated equally,” said John O’Connor, EQCA executive director. “These veterans risk their safety to defend all of our equality, and California has a duty to demand equal treatment for them. We hope the rest of the country will follow.”

The biggest issue here is the punishment handed out under DADT, and its even harsher predecessor, while it was in effect. From 1980 until the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell in 2011, over 32,000 service personnel were separated from the Armed Forces of the United States under DADT and its predecessor policies. Because these discharges were sometimes characterized as “dishonorable” or “other than honorable,” many of these service personnel and their spouses became ineligible for veterans benefits.

In 2012, the legislature passed Dr. Pan’s AB 1505, establishing that that if the federal government acts to reinstate benefits to discharged veterans who were denied those benefits solely on the basis of sexual orientation serving in the Armed Forces of the United States, California shall also reinstate to those veterans any state-offered benefits.  The federal government has yet to broadly reinstate such benefits.

California, Election 2012

Consumer Group Calls On Insurance Billionaire To Withdraw Deceptive Prop 33 Advertisements

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Consumer advocates today called on the insurance company executive behind Proposition 33 to immediately withdraw new radio advertisements that mischaracterize the impact of the initiative on foreign service and military personnel in the wake of attacks on US embassies abroad.

In statewide radio advertisements paid for by Mercury insurance executive George Joseph, the Proposition 33 campaign erroneously claims soldiers will be able to keep auto insurance discounts they now lose, and that Prop 33 is about “supporting our heroes.” In fact, foreign service officers would be surcharged under the proposal for not driving while working oversees when they restart their auto insurance in California. Moreover, Prop 33 will not protect any current discount for soldiers.

In a letter sent to Mercury Chairman Joseph today, Consumer Watchdog wrote: “Out of respect for military officers and foreign service employees, who face life-threatening circumstances at our embassies abroad, we call upon you to immediately withdraw your deceptive and disrespectful radio advertising campaign in favor of Proposition 33.”

Download Consumer Watchdog’s letter here, or read text below

Listen to the Prop 33 radio ad here

A Los Angeles Times opinion staff blog published yesterday took the campaign to task for the deceptive ad: “The 30-second spot declares: ‘Proposition 33 protects our veterans and military families, and allows them to keep their discount on car insurance, saving them money.’ It would do nothing of the kind.”

Read the Times blog here:

Consumer Watchdog’s letter continued: “Your radio advertisement claims Prop 33 is about “supporting our heroes.” But under Prop 33, good drivers who have stopped driving for legitimate reasons – like serving abroad in our foreign service – would be hit with large surcharges if they decided to drive again and buy insurance in California. For political reasons, you exempted from Prop 33’s large rate increases a small segment of those who stop driving for legitimate reasons, active duty military officers. That certainly does not mean you are helping soldiers keep a discount. Moreover, foreign service officers, families of military officers, disabled veterans and others who stop driving for good reason, but cannot prove active duty military service is the reason for their coverage lapse, would get slammed under Prop 33 with big rate hikes.”

This month, Joseph also gave $195,000 to a nonprofit organization for its support of Proposition 33 in another attempt to mislead voters about the impact of Prop 33 and camouflage its insurance industry backing. Joseph gave 99%, $8.4 million, of the funds in support of Prop 33.

The measure would overturn a 24-year-old law banning discriminatory practices by auto insurance companies that were brought to light in a 1987 California civil rights case, King v. Meese. Proposition 103, passed by the voters in 1988, banned auto insurers from charging more, or refusing to sell insurance, to people who were not previously insured.

Read more about Proposition 33 at www.StopProp33.org

– 30 –

September 13, 2012

Mr. Joseph,

Out of respect for military officers and foreign service employees, who face life-threatening circumstances at our embassies abroad, we call upon you to immediately withdraw your deceptive and disrespectful radio advertising campaign in favor of Proposition 33.

You began your disingenuous “Heroes” radio advertising campaign for Proposition 33, the California ballot measure for which you have given 99% of the funding, the day after September 11th with the hope of fanning patriotic sentiments for your insurance company’s cause.   You could not have known that those cynical advertisements – which misrepresent your measure’s impact on our nation’s military, their families and foreign service officers – would air when American military and foreign service members are under grave threat worldwide.

Nonetheless, you now have an obligation not to betray the seriousness of the current circumstances our heroes face abroad with radio advertisements that lie about what Prop 33 does in their name.

As the Los Angeles Times editorial staff blog noted Wednesday:

“Proposition 33, an initiative to let auto insurers offer discounts to competitors’ customers, isn’t quite the same as Proposition 17, a similar proposal that voters rejected in 2010. But the campaign in favor of the measure seems to be following the same truth-distorting playbook.

“The Yes on Proposition 33 campaign has bought airtime on 19 radio stations in five cities for what appears to be its first commercial, which is due to begin broadcasting Wednesday. The 30-second spot declares: ‘Proposition 33 protects our veterans and military families, and allows them to keep their discount on car insurance, saving them money.’

“It would do nothing of the kind.”

As you well know, Prop 33 has nothing to do with military officers keeping any discount under current law. All your initiative does is legalize a now-illegal rating factor: Whether a driver has had auto insurance continuously or not.

Your radio advertisement claims Prop 33 is about “supporting our heroes.” But under Prop 33, good drivers who have stopped driving for legitimate reasons – like serving abroad in our foreign service – would be hit with large surcharges if they decided to drive again and buy insurance in California. For political reasons, you exempted from Prop 33’s large rate increases a small segment of those who stop driving for legitimate reasons, active duty military officers. That certainly does not mean you are helping soldiers keep a discount. Moreover, foreign service officers, families of military officers, disabled veterans and others who stop driving for good reason, but cannot prove active duty military service is the reason for their coverage lapse, would get slammed under Prop 33 with big rate hikes.

Mr. Joseph, you have repeatedly cited your experience as a veteran to justify why one insurance company billionaire should be allowed to change the insurance laws through Proposition 33.   We urge you to take a moment of silence to think like a veteran now and withdraw these advertisements.

Sincerely,

Jamie Court

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Carl Wood Invites Incumbent Paul Cook to Debate Series for 65th Assembly District

CHERRY VALLEY –  65th Assembly District Democratic challenger Carl Wood has invited Republican incumbent Paul Cook to a series of debates.  In a personal letter Wood declared it “our duty” as candidates “to make every effort to inform voters about our candidacies.”  In an election year where voters are said to be hostile toward incumbents Wood’s invitation includes his assurance that he will make “every accommodation” for Cook in order to make these debates happen.  

Wood’s campaign manager, Michael Kreizenbeck, hopes Cook will agree to the debates.  “A debate that discusses issues like jobs, home foreclosures and the substantial needs of veterans is certain to hurt Cook’s chances of reelection, but I don’t see how Cook can run from this opportunity to explain himself directly to voters,” Kreizenbeck said.

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IE Rising: Senator Barbara Boxer visits the SBCCC

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I was proud to attend the event held for Senator Barbara Boxer at the San Bernardino County Central Committee on Memorial Day. The mood was festive and lively as Senator Boxer laid into her opponents and defended her record on offshore drilling moratorium, the stimulus package (which is seen by the expansion and rework of the 215 FWY), and health care reform legislation. She is really trying to build a grassworks network here in the Inland Empire and I am glad that someone of such import has FINALLY paid attention to the Inland Empire aka the bastard step-child of the Democratic Party. However, we do need a new microphone system for the SBCCC because the one provided kept cutting off and was sometimes caught in an ear screeching feedback loop. Afterwards, Sen. Boxer attended the VA Hospital in Loma Linda to chat with veterans there and pay them the respect and honor they deserve for their service.  For full disclosure, I am running for the Central Committee of San Bernardino County and if elected I will raise funds to purchase a new mic system!  

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Asm. Mary Salas at Democrats of the Desert

Assemblymember Mary Salas (37th AD) is running for Senator Denise Ducheny’s seat in the 40th.  Salas already has the endorsement of Denise Ducheny and Manuel Perez (CA80AD), but she faces a GOP-funded primary opponent in Juan Vargas.  This is a safe Democratic seat if we pay attention to the primary.  More on Vargas over the flip.

Our club loved her, Mary is businesslike but warm, and very attractive, there is no way this lady can be 61.  

Salas emphasized her work on healthcare and veterans’ issues.  When asked about the Governor’s race:  she said she’s looking for a Governor who will have the guts enough to make the hard decisions for California.  Tired of political self-interest in that office.  She has seven bills on Arnold’s desk being held hostage to his blanket veto threat.  

Imperfect transcript over the flip.

 

Mary Salas 37th AD

On Manuel:  Brilliant young man, a real fighter, focused on jobs, jobs, jobs.  I serve on his Committee on Jobs and Economic Development and have seen him in action.  Thank you for all you did to get him to Sacramento.  He’s done terrific things for this community and all of CA.

You are being represented so well now, the difference is just amazing.

8 years in city council.  Very first Latina elected to the water board.  

Her uncles and father served in WWII and Korean Wars.  She serves on Cmte for Veterans Affairs, Salas is working on rental housing for veterans.

12% of our prison population is veterans.  25% of our homeless population is veterans.

Cycle of drug dependence due to PTSD.  Supports drug courts for veterans, wants diversion programs for vets.

Supports universal healthcare, serves on health cmte

Water Parks and Wildlife Cmte – still committed to getting water deal done in special session.  Ran out of time.  Affects not just farmers but all of CA, biotech companies are huge consumers of water, their needs critical, too.

Grateful for Manuel and Denise’s endorsement for Senate seat – but please don’t get complacent about this seat.

Republicans are identifying Republican- friendly Dems to challenge us.  

Juan Vargas is funded by JobsPac (CA Chamber, HMOs, Insurance Industry)  and Republican donors.  This race will be decided in June.   Mr. vargas has a record – against gay marriage stood up on the floor and fought to defeat Leno’s bill.  Insurance Cmte – Vargas eroded workers comp protection.  Made it harder for fire victims to be compensated for their losses.  

Vargas was Chair of Insurance Cmte – promised never to work for insurance company.  After Filner cleaned his clock, Vargas went to work as an insurance company lobbyist.

Here’s what I did:

Got a bill signed, hospitals can’t bill patients for emergency care.  Previously, if hospital wasn’t contracted with your HMO, you got billed the balance.  Salas got that stopped. Lobbyists came out of the woodwork and pressured our Democrats.

Was told not to bother, others have tried with this bill and failed.  She did it anyway.

Gotten a lot of legislation through relating to veterans and healthcare.  I’m a fighter just like Manuel is.

Hope you hear my message that this is a primary fight.  I’m 61 with a 42 year old daughter and three grandkids.  First grandson going to CalPoly right now.

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CA 10: Memorial Day and “The Ultimate Sacrifice”

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(Some thoughts for Memorial Day from CA-10 Candidate Anthony Woods… – promoted by Brian Leubitz)

Woods1The willingness to make the “ultimate sacrifice” in defense of our country stands as the enduring value which binds every active duty serviceman, servicewoman, and every veteran of the United States military.

Each Memorial Day we are reminded—and rightly so—of the courageous Americans who have given their lives in defense of our nation–between 1 million and 1.3 million since the American Revolution, depending on whose numbers you read.

Indeed the willingness to make that sacrifice is the pre-requisite-along with adherence to a strict code of conduct and respect for the chain of command—to joining an impenetrable fellowship as diverse as the nation every veteran has pledged their lives to defending.

As the son of a veteran, a West Point Graduate and Iraq War Veteran, Memorial Day will always be a day of gratitude, of solemn reflection, and remembrance for me.  

Gratitude for the courage and untiring loyalty of the 81 soldiers I was proud to command during my two combat tours in Iraq.  And a special appreciation for the fact that I was able to bring every one of them home alive.

Solemn reflection upon the near misses that are impossible to forget–like the roadside bomb attack 4 members of my unit narrowly survived during my first tour, the intensity of urban combat in Tal Afar, and the carnage of suicide bomb attacks on civilians in Baghdad.  

And remembrance of the friends I came to know at West Point, during officer training, or on the sands of Iraq—those who made the “ultimate sacrifice,” the families they left behind, and those who may have left Iraq, but are still a long way from really “coming home.”

At parades and ceremonies across our country this weekend, we will read names, recite stories of battlefield heroism, and recommit ourselves to the cause of keeping our nation’s promise to honor and care for all veterans, past, present and future.  And we must.

If we watch and listen closely this weekend, we’ll see that the capability to serve, and the willingness to make the “ultimate sacrifice” for America is not limited by era, branch, rank, age, gender, or the popularity of the mission they were called to serve.  The reading of the names of the fallen will make no mention of race, ethnicity, marital status, the number of children left behind, religion, political affiliation, or sexual orientation.

And why?

Because what matters in defending America has never been our differences, but the common cause, common values, common bonds and the shared sacrifices that unite all who serve.

That said, and in light of ongoing policy debates about who gets to serve in our military, it is important to remember, that among those who have given their lives for America, and among those who have stepped forward with a willingness to make the ultimate sacrifice in defending America today, are large numbers of every conceivable demographic group…

…including members of the LGBT community.

For example, the Urban Institute estimates that of the 27.5 million living American Veterans, about 3%, or 1 million, are gay or lesbian.  

If we apply this trend over history, that means that at least 35,000 of the 1-1.3 million Americans that have made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our country since the American Revolution were gay or lesbian.  That’s more than the total number of Americans Killed in Action during Iraq, Afghanistan, Desert Storm, Pearl Harbor, the War of 1812 and the American Revolution COMBINED.

Military leaders have reported that approximately 65,000 members of the LGBT community are currently serving in the Armed Forces —substantially more than the total number of U.S. troops currently fighting Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan.  

And every day, at great cost, two more servicemen and women who have volunteered to give their lives if necessary in defense of our country are forcibly discharged for reasons with no relation whatsoever to their capacity to fight for the freedom of others.

I would know.  I was one of them.

So as we honor our fallen heroes this weekend, and recommit ourselves to all who wear the proud uniform of our nation, I hope we can remember that for more than two centuries, protection of the land of the free has never been the responsibility of a narrow ideology, or a singular demographic—but by the willingness of brave Americans, from every walk of life, to step forward and if necessary, to make “the ultimate sacrifice.”

May God protect every single one of our troops.

Anthony Woods

Democrat for Congress, CA 10

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Arnold Schwarzenegger, Budget, Health Care

Inside Governor Hoover’s Budget Revise

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When you go beyond the headlines, there are several interesting elements of the Governor’s May Revise – which by the way, was illegally delivered, under the February budget agreement, but hey, what’s the law, right?

We know some of the major portions of the Governor’s plan – cutting education, thousands of state employee layoffs, lots of borrowing (something like 40% of the gap through revenue anticipation warrants), selling public landmarks, etc.  First of all, with respect to selling off public property, easier said than done.  

Case in point: the governor’s plan a while back to sell EdFund, the state’s student loan guarantee fund. It was projected to bring in $1 billion, but still hasn’t been sold (and was last valued at 50% of its original estimate). I mention that because in this proposal, the governor suggests $1 billion for selling off part of the State Compensation Insurance Fund. Maybe it’s an easier deal than EdFund (and others in the past), but…

Some other interesting pieces:

• Despite the fact that Schwarzenegger adamantly insisted there will be not tax or fee increases as part of any solution, there in fact are new fee increases included.  The Governor seeks higher fees, but significantly, those fees would hit some of the most vulnerable citizens in the state.  For example, he raises fees for residents living in veterans homes throughout the state, adding $2.8 million dollars.  What’s important here is that he betrays his own rhetoric by raising some fees inside his own revised plan.

• While the budget deficit exists because of an historic drop in revenue during this Great Recession, instead of temporarily cutting various services, the Governor’s revised budget would cut them permanently, particularly in programs like Medi-Cal, In-Home Supportive Services, SSI/SSP, regional centers, Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants.  This despite, once again, the Governor reconciled his raid of local governments by saying that “hopefully the economy comes back.”  But even if it did, the permanent cuts to programs serving the most vulnerable elements of society would remain.  The vast majority of those cuts would be implemented regardless of the outcome of the May 19 ballot measures.

• Never one to let an opportunity in crisis to slip by, the Governor would also allow the first new offshore drilling off the California coastline in 40 years, putting a major dent in any possible depiction of Schwarzenegger as some kind of environmentalist.  Despite not being able to tax the severance of oil from California land, the Governor would lease new offshore drilling sites to bring in $100 million from the state.  And this would nullify a ruling by the State Lands Commission that denied further oil leases.  As recently as last summer, Schwarzenegger vowed not to allow new drilling off the California shore.

You won’t read much of this fine print in the discussion of the budget, or the glorifying media profiles of the “Governator.”  But it’s important, because every aspect of this reveals him as a cheap fraud.

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Volunteer with VFA in California on Monday

As you probably know, President-elect Obama has called on all Americans to honor Dr. King by participating in the National Day of Service on January 19th, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, and the Presidential Inauguration Committee has asked Veterans for America to be part of this great volunteer effort.  

VFA recently released The American Veterans’ and Servicemembers’ Survival Guide, a free downloadable 599-page book that covers everything returning servicemembers need to know about serving as an active-duty member or being a veteran in the current age – from obtaining help with education or housing to getting benefits and treatment for psychological wounds of war and traumatic brain injury, the signature injuries of the post 9/11 period.

The New York Times recently lauded the Guide as “a powerful updating of that old tradition” of veterans helping veterans. The Times also stated that when it comes to navigating the maze of the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs, “it is heartening to see that one promising form of help has indeed arrived: a 599-page guide to veterans’ issues.”

While the book is available for free download, this information will not reach enough of the hundreds of thousands of returning troops – and their families – that need it if it stays primarily in the digital realm.

We all know the power of boots on the ground. That’s why we’ve asked volunteers to lace theirs up and take them down to Kinko’s, other copy shop, or local businesses with printing capacity, and print copies of the Survival Guide, and bring them to American Legion Halls, VFW posts, Vet Centers, on-base commissaries and PX’s, and National Guard Family Assistance Centers in your community. You can also print and distribute single-page flyers with instructions for downloading the Guide that can be distributed at these locations as well as at places of worship, coffee shops, grocery stores, and any of the hundreds of other places where members of our military and their families live and gather.

There are teams meeting on Monday in Eureka and Camino. Details:

Eureka

Time:   Monday, January 19 from 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM

Host: Jeff Peskoff

Contact Phone: 719-332-4225

Location:

Fedex-Kinko’s (Eureka, CA)

2021 5th St # C

Eureka, CA 95501

Camino

Time:   Monday, January 19 from 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM

Host: Leslie Vandever

Location:

2900 Proudy Lane

Camino, CA 95709

If you’d like to sign up to volunteer at these events you can do so at their pages on the Presidential Inauguration Committee site. (Eureka, Camino)

If you’d like to start a team in your area, sign up on VFA’s National Service Day page.

I hope that you participate in this, or any other volunteering activities to honor Dr. King’s legacy for National Service Day.