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VETERANS OF MODERN WARFARE REPORT
The Mission

BY JULIE MOCK, PRESIDENT
I’d like to thank the VVA leadership for this opportunity to address the VVA membership. Although I’m sure most of you have heard about Veterans of Modern Warfare, there may be some who haven’t.

VMW was formed with the mission of serving all veterans who have served since August 1990. The number and types of challenges that face this group of veterans is overwhelming. One has only to open a newspaper to see the impact service to their country is costing this generation. The physical and mental wounds these veterans are suffering will have to be dealt with for the next forty to fifty years. Not unlike VVA, which we modeled ourselves after, we will do everything we can to ensure that care, treatment, and support is there for current veterans.

Even though the VMW is a new organization, we have set our goals high. Some of our priorities for the coming year are:

• PTSD The occurrence of this disease is virtually universal. Our goal is to work with other veterans’ organizations to destigmatize this disease. Every veteran needs to understand that we often don’t come home when we come home.
  
• Female Veterans The sisters, daughters, and mothers in this era have faced and will face the greatest challenges of any serving group in the history of our nation.
  
• Homeless Veterans The percentage and number of homeless men and women veterans are climbing daily.
  
• Incarcerated Veterans VMW, along with other veterans’ organizations, is working to establish in every state a stopgap to intercede on behalf of veterans who are arrested.

As you can see, we have our work cut out. VVA chapters across the country, from New York to Washington, have been instrumental in the growth and development of VMW, the premier organization for modern veterans.
We want to thank the VVA leadership for its support. We look forward to seeing everyone at our first National Meeting, which will take place in conjunction with the VVA Leadership Conference in Greenville in July.