[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 19131]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  RECOGNIZING THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE COALITION TO SALUTE AMERICA'S 
                                 HEROES

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. TULSI GABBARD

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 12, 2013

  Ms. GABBARD. Mr. Speaker, as President Calvin Coolidge said, ``A 
nation that that forgets its defenders will soon be forgotten.'' I rise 
today to recognize the contributions of The Coalition to Salute 
America's Heroes, a group that recently invited me to participate in an 
event honoring the sacrifice and the service of our servicemembers. 
There, I had the privilege of meeting Corporal Donny Daughenbaugh, a 
Coalition spokesman who was severely injured during routine patrol in 
Iraq, as well as Sergeant Mary Herrera, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.), and 
Sergeant Jorge DeLeon, U.S. Army (Ret.). Herrera and DeLeon also were 
injured in the line of duty while serving our country overseas. Despite 
their injuries, these selfless heroes have weathered an extremely 
challenging recovery and are now using their own experience to help 
fellow veterans make the transition to civilian life. Like so many 
other veterans, their resilience and love of country endures after they 
return home and begin to face these tremendous challenges.
  The event focused on the growing, serious challenges facing young 
veterans, particularly, homelessness, which is fast becoming a crisis 
among female combat veterans. These veterans, who step up to serve and 
are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to protect our nation, all 
too often don't have the support they need when they return home.
  I have seen firsthand the overwhelming challenges our returning 
warriors face in Hawai`i and across the nation. Tragically, more than 
1,100 veterans in Hawai`i alone have experienced homelessness. While 
the overall number of homeless veterans is decreasing, homeless female 
veterans are the fastest-growing segment of the homeless population. 
Female veterans are also more likely to suffer post-traumatic stress 
disorder (PTSD) and frequently have children who also suffer.
  The Coalition, led by David Walker, is a national 501(c)(3), non-
profit, non-partisan organization, established in 2004 to address the 
needs of severely wounded veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, 
and their families. The organization provides emergency financial 
assistance and other support services to help them recover from their 
injuries, rebuild their lives, and successfully transition back into 
civilian life. In addition to its work to address homelessness, the 
Coalition's emergency aid services also aim to combat the troubling 
rates of suicide and domestic abuse among servicemembers and veterans.
  This week in Orlando, Florida, the Coalition is hosting 100 combat-
wounded veterans at its seventh annual Road to Recovery Conference and 
Tribute, a program that provides sessions on professional development, 
financial planning, and relationships.
  Hawai`i has a proud tradition of military service to our nation, and 
is the grateful home of thousands of veterans and their families. I 
commend the work of the Coalition to Salute America's Heroes to ensure 
that our nation's defenders are never forgotten.

                          ____________________