I am pleased to welcome all of you to this very important hearing today. Chairman Craig would be here to welcome you, however he has an amendment on the Floor this morning and will be unable to join us. I have enjoyed working with the Chairman and know that he would be here today if he could.
I am grateful for this opportunity to talk about what the Government is doing to care for transitioning servicemembers. George Washington said, "The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive the Veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated by their nation." I think these words ring especially true today. We must be doing all that we can for our soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines, as they transition from military to civilian life.
I thank all panelists for being here today.
I would like to especially welcome two of our nation's heroes - Mr. Tristan Wyatt, and Mr. John Fernandez - both veterans of the current conflict in Iraq.
Mr. Wyatt grew up in New Jersey and moved to Colorado in 1998. He enlisted in the Army in October 2002, attended basic training at Ft. Lennardwood, Missouri and became a combat engineer. After airborne school at Ft. Benning, Georgia, Mr. Wyatt was assigned to the 3rd Armored Calvary Regiment at Ft. Carson, Colorado. In late February, he was deployed to Iraq.
On August 25, 2003, Mr. Wyatt was wounded in action on a route from Fallujah to the city of Caldiah (cal-dee-a). During the fire fight, Mr. Wyatt took shrapnel and lost his right leg above the knee. He was awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart. On September 1, he arrived at Walter Reed Medical Center where he was treated until the middle of January. Mr. Wyatt was medically discharged on June 24, 2004.
Mr. John Fernandez is a 2001 graduate of West Point Military Academy and was captain of the West Point Lacrosse team. During Operation Iraqi Freedom, Mr. Fernandez was a member of Charlie Battery 3-13 Field Artillery, based out of Fort Sill, Oklahoma. He was deployed to OIF on January 20, 2003.
On April 3, 2003, 20 miles south of Baghdad, Mr. Fernandez was injured when a 500 pound laser-guided bomb hit in very close proximity to him. As a result of this "friendly fire" incident, both of his legs were amputated below the knee. Mr. Fernandez arrived at Walter Reed Army Medical Center on April 11. He was sent home from Walter Reed, upon his own request, on June 20, 2003. He officially left the service on August 11, 2004, 16 months after his initial injury.
Gentlemen, I look forward to hearing the testimony that you will give today. Both of you have special insight into how the Departments of Veterans Affairs, Defense, and Labor's systems are working. Please share your views with us so that we can better serve our newly separated servicemembers.
I applaud the work that VA, DoD and DoL have done to ensure a seamless transition for the men and women that serve. However, the Committee needs to know if these Departments are doing everything possible to guarantee that each servicemember is receiving high quality assistance.
Our servicemembers, including the men and women who are coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan, should have nothing less than a seamless reintegration into society and their lives.
We need to be particularly attentive to the challenges faced by the Guard and Reserves in their transition from military to civilian life. In my own state of Hawaii, more than 700 Guard and Reserve members have returned from active duty. And there are currently more than 3,200 on active duty who will be transitioning in the future. I am very concerned that these servicemembers have the appropriate services available to them upon their return from active duty.
Again, thank you all for being here today, and I look forward to your testimony.
