Rep. Maxine Waters Announces Local Veteran as 2018 State of the Union Guest
Rep. Maxine Waters Announces Local Veteran as 2018 State of the Union Guest
WASHINGTON – Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-43), Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, announced today that U.S. Army Veteran Sherrod N. Conyers, Senior Vice Commander for the 4th District of California's Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), will be her guest at the 2018 State of the Union on Tuesday, January 30.
Sherrod Conyers is a resident of Gardena, CA and is a former U. S. Army officer who was deployed twice during his nearly five years of active military service to Jordan (2003) and Iraq (2005). In addition to his role as Senior Vice Commander of the 4th District VFW, Mr. Conyers also serves as the Post Surgeon of the Inglewood VFW (Post 2122) and Assistant Sargent-At-Arms of the National VFW. He is also a member of American Legion Post #188.
Congresswoman Waters has worked closely with Mr. Conyers on a number of issues including securing federal funding for the Westside Residence Hall II, which houses nearly 200 Los Angeles County veterans, handling constituent services and casework through her Los Angeles office for veterans residing in the 43rd Congressional District, and an ongoing effort to relocate the Inglewood VFW.
"Sherrod Conyers is a young man who fought for our country abroad and has displayed outstanding leadership in our community, and though I will not be attending the State of the Union, I am more than willing to accommodate any veteran from the 43rd Congressional District who would like to attend using my guest ticket," said Congresswoman Waters. "At a time when so many of our nation's service men and women are struggling to find good paying jobs, to identify affordable housing, and to secure full disability benefits and timely access to healthcare, Sherrod will represent thousands of veterans and military families in my District who are concerned about the future and the direction of this country under Donald Trump – a president who thus far has failed to display the type of leadership, compassion, and respect that is expected of the commander-in-chief."
"I am truly honored to be Congresswoman Maxine Waters' guest at this year's State of the Union," said Mr. Conyers. "For more than a decade, I have worked closely with Congresswoman Waters, and I have witnessed firsthand how she has always made veterans a priority. Whether it is fighting to strengthen the Post 9/11 G.I. Bill, procuring federal funds to provide housing to homeless veterans, or helping local military families, Congresswoman Waters, in my opinion, embodies our VFW motto ‘No One Does More for Veterans'. I am so grateful that she is giving me an opportunity to represent the more than 300,000 veterans in Los Angeles County at the State of the Union."
As an advocate for veterans and military families, Congresswoman Waters has a long and strong history of working with a number of local and national veterans' organizations including New Directions for Veterans, which honored her with their 2017 Legacy Award, the American Legion, and the United States Veterans Initiative (U.S. Vets). Congresswoman Waters is also the architect of the legislation that created the Department of Veteran's Affairs (VA) Center for Women Veterans, a special bureau within the VA that advocates for women veterans by ensuring healthcare benefits and other programs are effectively meeting women's needs. In the 115th Congress, she has also introduced legislation to protect the Department of Veterans Affairs' Individual Unemployability program, which assists disabled veterans who are unable to work, to curtail the predatory lending practices of for-profit colleges that target veterans, and to address the homelessness crisis, which is particularly acute for veterans and military families.