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Task force to focus on veterans' return home from war Friday, Jul 4, 2008 Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - Gov. Mike Beebe announced Thursday the formation of the Arkansas Yellow Ribbon Task Force, which will study issues faced by veterans returning home from war. George Westmoreland of Rogers, who serves as Arkansas' civilian aide to the Secretary of the Army, will serve on the task force along with legislators, business leaders and representatives of the National Guard, the Department of Veterans Affairs, state agencies, state universities and nonprofit organizations, Beebe said. The task force will make recommendations about actions the state can take to ease veterans' reintegration into civilian life. "I have witnessed the difficulties some of our troops can face when returning home: Friends and family who can't relate; a community that is ill-equipped to respond; a bureaucracy that doesn't provide adequate, timely benefits. These are just a few of the roadblocks that I want this task force to investigate and address," Beebe said in his weekly column and radio address. Arkansans are especially aware of and grateful for the sacrifices of the men and women of the armed forces as they celebrate the nation's birth on this July 4 holiday weekend, the governor said. Since Sept. 11, 2001, the Arkansas National Guard has supported the mobilization of more than 8,000 troops to Iraq and Afghanistan. |
