VA Secretary to Address VVA National Convention

[boardman]

VA Secretary to Address VVA National Convention

(Washington, D.C.) -- The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Eric K. Shinseki, will address the delegates to the 15th biennial National Convention of Vietnam Veterans of America in Reno, Nevada, on the morning of Thursday, August 18th.

"Secretary Shinseki is one of us," said John Rowan, National President of VVA. "We are proud of him and we are pleased that he is able to speak before a gathering of his brother and sister veterans.

"He served two tours in Vietnam. He knows what it is like to be wounded in action, and he understands the insidious effects of the invisible wounds of war. As VA Secretary, he has worked tirelessly to transform the mammoth department he heads from a veteran"s antagonist to a veteran"s advocate. This," Rowan said, "is not an easy undertaking."

The retired general was sworn in as the seventh Secretary of Veterans Affairs on January 21, 2009. He was commissioned a second lieutenant of artillery upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in June 1965 and was attached to Company A, 1st Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division, as a forward observer from December 1965 to September 1966, when he was wounded in combat.

He returned to Vietnam in 1969. While serving as Commander, Troop A, 3d Squadron, 5th Cavalry Regiment, he was wounded a second time in 1970. He chose to stay in the Army and rose steadily through the ranks, reaching the summit of his military career when he was appointed Army Chief of Staff in 1999. He chose to retire in August 2003, after having testified that the United States would need 200,000 to 300,000 troops to succeed in Iraq.

Secretary Shinseki holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the U.S. Military Academy; a Master of Arts degree from Duke University; and is a graduate of the National War College. Among his awards are the Distinguished Service Medal; Legion of Merit (with Oak Leaf Clusters); Bronze Star Medal with "V" Device (with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters); Purple Heart (with Oak Leaf Cluster); Meritorious Service Medal (with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters); and Air Medal. He currently lives in Falls Church, Virginia, with his wife, Patty.