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Morrisey praises work of West Virginia National Guard, Veterans Assistance

West Virginia National Guard Adj. Gen. James Seward points to his American flag patch in talking about how Guard members always move forward during a press conference Friday with Gov. Patrick Morrisey and Department of Veterans Assistance Secretary Ryan Kennedy. (Photo by Steven Allen Adams)

CHARLESTON – Gov. Patrick Morrisey and state officials highlighted the distinguished service and recent successes of the Department of Veterans Assistance and the West Virginia National Guard following a challenging year.

Morrisey was joined at a Friday press conference by Department of Veterans Assistance Secretary Ryan Kennedy and Maj. Gen. James Seward, the adjutant general of the West Virginia National Guard, as well as other Guard members.

“I want to really recognize the extraordinary accomplishments of our West Virginia National Guard and of our Department of Veterans Assistance over the last year,” Morrisey said. “We’re proud of the guard, we’re proud of VA, and we’re going to always stand by them. We are dedicated to their success now and forevermore.”

West Virginia’s Army and Air National Guard units have continued their normal training and overseas deployments including deployments in Africa and Europe. But activations for floods in southern West Virginia earlier this year and flooding in Ohio and Marion counties earlier this summer, as well as the recent activation of Guard units for deployment in Washington, D.C., have added to the burden of the state’s weekend warriors.

“When I was a kid, there was a commercial that talked about the National Guard. One weekend a month, two weeks a year. That’s 39 days a year,” Seward said. “The West Virginia National Guard, on average on the Army side, has done 80 days per year per soldier, and 157 days per year for each member of our Air Guard.

“It has been an incredibly busy year, but this team behind me and the 6,000 other members of the West Virginia National Guard that make all of these things happen, they are always ready and always there,” Seward continued.

During the southern West Virginia floods, Morrisey said more than 350 service members mobilized across 14 counties, conducting swift water rescues, providing water and supplies, and clearing more than 17,000 tons of debris. Twelve people died between the southern West Virginia floods and the Ohio/Marion County flooding.

The National Guard was also mobilized during the federal government shutdown toward the end of October when the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program ran out of money, working with West Virginia’s two largest food banks to coordinate the distribution of food to SNAP recipients, setting up mobile food banks, and providing logistics and support until SNAP benefits resumed in mid-November.

The service and sacrifice of the West Virginia National Guard came to the forefront in November after Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe and Spc. Sarah Beckstrom were ambushed and shot the day before Thanksgiving while on patrol at the Farragut Square Metro Station near the White House by Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, of Washington State. Lakanwal is facing multiple charges, including first-degree murder.

Morrisey sent approximately 400 West Virginia National Guard members to D.C. at the request of President Donald Trump in August as part of Operation D.C. Safe and Beautiful. Most of those Guard members have returned to West Virginia as of mid-November, with approximately 160 West Virginia Guard members volunteering to stay in D.C. until at least the end of December.

Beckstrom, 20, of Nicholas County, died on Thanksgiving Day of her wounds and was buried at West Virginia National Cemetery in Grafton on Dec. 10. Wolfe, 24, of Berkeley County, is transitioning from acute care to inpatient rehabilitation after being shot in the head. Morrisey said Friday that he has submitted both Beckstrom and Wolfe for the Purple Heart.

“Sarah and Andrew’s actions on that day, they meet the highest and clearest standards for the Purple Heart, a decoration that recognizes those wounded or killed in action against an enemy or during a hostile or terrorist act. This should qualify as a terrorist act,” Morrisey said. “While that process is still underway at the federal level, I want the families of Sarah Beckstrom and Andy Wolfe to know that West Virginia stands with you, and I couldn’t think of two more deserving service members for this award.”

The press conference also recognized the “outstanding work” of the Department of Veterans Assistance, led by Kennedy. Morrisey noted a $500 million increase in benefits that West Virginia veterans are receiving this year. Morrisey attributed this to the department’s organized and skillful advocacy, which helped veterans access assistance they were legally entitled to but often unaware of.

“This is incredible because the work you’re doing, that’s more money that’s flowing to our veterans; more money that’s flowing into our communities,” he said. “That’s what they’re supposed to get under the law and we’re just helping.”

Kennedy said the department is working in new ways to reach out to younger veterans. While focus continues on working through the veterans’ groups, such as the American Legion or the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Kennedy said the department is using social media, digital newsletters and blogs, and a podcast to get the message out about the services the state offers.

“We’re traveling to different places that are more remote to make sure the veterans there can have access to our services,” Kennedy said. “We are doing town halls and meetings with veterans in various places to make sure that we are doing whatever they need us to do. And also, we are moving into the cyber world.”

Morrisey is also working with the state VA and the National Guard to ensure that members transitioning to veterans have access to jobs.

“I know that the Guard and Veterans Assistance can make a big difference in that regard,” Morrisey said. “When you get trained and you spend time in the Guard, there’s an awful lot you can do after you’re done, and we’re really grateful to these wonderful men and women who are doing so much for our state.”

Steven Allen Adams can be reached at sadams@newsandsentinel.com

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