August 25, 2009
VMFP to Cover Veteran and Military Family Coming Home Issues, Savings Bond Program Proposal at Upcoming Conference in Arlington, VA
Washington, D.C.:
Veterans and Military Families for Progress, a national membership organization advocating on behalf of veterans, active duty, and military families, is holding its biennial national conference at the Sheraton National Hotel in Arlington Virginia, Sept. 25-27, 2009. Several hundred members and other advocates from a myriad of other organizations around the country are expected to attend, as well as Members of Congress, appointed government officials and other high-profile speakers.
“Our 2009 conference is built around the framework of our white papers which call for a comprehensive national veteran and military family policy. Also, we are formally introducing a Veteran and Military Family Savings Bond program similar to World War II ‘War Bond’ program, to fund it,” said Matt Cary, president of VMFP.
To that end, VMFP is hosting informative and educational panels covering veteran and military family issues including housing and homelessness; educational and job opportunities; advocacy and outreach; and military family-specific issues. One session of the conference will provide an overview of the much-heralded Veteran and Military Family Savings Bond Program; there will also be an intergovernmental panel highlighting the best practices of certain government agencies that serve the veteran and military family community at every level of government.
Keynote speakers, including lawmakers and high-profile individuals within the veteran and military family community, will be released once details are finalized. In addition, VMFP will recognize individuals with the Max Cleland Lifetime Achievement Award, VMFP’s Public Service Award for coverage of veteran and military family issues, and the VMFP Torchbearer Member award.
“The 2007 biennial conference was a great success and we will be hard-pressed to top it,” said Maura Satchell, VMFP Conference Chair. “But between our team of volunteers, my co-chair, Shawn Van Doren, and myself, we’ll do our best. We expect to have substantive dialogue and break some new ground within the veterans and military family community with regard to policy and future initiatives surrounding ‘coming home issues’ during the conference.
Portions of the 2007 Conference are available via YouTube under user name VMFPOrg. Some clips have garnered thousands of hits, reflecting the keen interest in these issues. For more information or for registration and sponsorship details, please visit VMFP’s website at www.vmfp.org.
Veterans and Military Families for Progress is a 501(c)(4) organization headquartered in Washington, D.C. and recognized as a Veterans Service Organization by the Department of Veterans Affairs. It is made up of members from across the country, and from across the breadth of rank and military services, who served, are serving, or are members of families of those who have heeded the call to serve their country in the U.S. military.
