DOVER — Senator Coons honored the memory of two beloved veterans and reasserted his commitment to veterans’ health and employment in remarks delivered to the annual convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Department of Delaware on Saturday.
Chris spoke fondly of his former colleague and friend, Senator Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey — the last World War II veteran in the Senate — who passed away earlier in the week. He also recognized the service and sacrifice of WO1 Sean Mullen, a medic with the Army 2nd Battalion 5th Special Forces Group. WO1 Mullen was on his sixth deployment when his unit was attacked with an IED in Afghanistan Sunday. Senator Coons urged those in attendance to remember and honor the memories of Senator Lautenberg and WO1 Mullen as “symbols of what it means to serve this nation with dedication.”
Senator Coons cautioned that veterans should receive more than just our admiration when they return home — they deserve a Department of Veterans Affairs that is better prepared to provide the care and support they have earned, including faster access to mental health services. Addressing the difficult transition back into civilian life, Chris noted that the suicide rate among veterans has risen from 18 per day in 2011 to a disturbing 22 per day now.
“It’s tragic enough to lose soldiers on the field of battle, but to lose them to the invisible, unhealed wounds of their time in combat is just heartbreaking,” Senator Coons said.
As of last month, more than 700 veterans who had filed first-time disability claims with the Wilmington VA had already waited more than 125 days for a decision, Senator Coons said. Yet even that number pales in comparison to the “unacceptable” national average of 321 days — a wait that “disrespects the service of our veterans.”
Senator Coons described veterans as an enormous asset to American businesses, praising them as highly skilled and tested leaders. Chris cited the Vow to Hire Heroes Act, which he cosponsored, as an example of what must be done to connect veterans with employers, but he said he knows there is far more work to be done. Senator Coons has worked with Senator Carper and Congressman Carney to host more than a dozen job fairs around the state these last three years, including three exclusively for veterans in partnership with Wilmington University. Chris said he intends to continue to organize and host these job fairs to help Delaware’s heroes find work.
Senator Coons also offered his support for the Stolen Valor Act of 2013, which President Obama signed into law earlier in the month. The law makes it a federal crime to claim to hold a military decoration or medal that one did not earn with the intent of profiting from that lie. “Our country needs real heroes, not fake ones, and I’m honored to be standing in a room full of honest-to-God heroes,” Chris said.
