My fellow Veterans, your service to our Constitution and our way of life is one of the highest measures of devotion from one person to another, and this sacrifice, to complete strangers is ever inspiring. I know firsthand the long deployments, the missed celebrations, graduations, birthdays and births you have all missed. These are just a measure of your devotion to your country, and I will ever be thankful to each of you.
However, as many of you know, many times the service and sacrifices are not recognized by some, and unfortunately by some in the very positions who should be the first to recognize your service and sacrifice.
This blog will attempt to provide a sounding board and source of information for our Veterans and for our general population. It is through information and knowledge that we can learn and bring about changes to the many challenges facing our Veteran Community and to our County.
Many of the issues our Veterans face in Merced County are not unique. What is unique is the fractured relationship some of our Veteran Organizations have with one another. This, in my opinion, is unique to Merced County. However, none of the issues are insurmountable and should be resolved for the betterment of all our Veterans. Some of the solutions or roadmaps to the solutions are found in the mission statements found in the organizations themselves. Some require a simple application of leadership by those in positions to do so.
Thes are just some of the items I look forward to exploring with you, and through a cohesive approach, resolving.
I look forward to learning from you and passing along meaningful information which can be used to address some of the issues facing our communities.
A little about me:
I am 56 years old, have resided in Los Banos since 1992.
I enlisted in the Marine Corps in April of 1984 and shipped off to San Diego on June 16, 1984.
I went Open Contract based on the Recruiters insistence that this would guarantee me the 0311 Infantry MOS. Well, needless to say this was not accurate. The needs of the Marine Corps had me assigned to be a Fire Control Instrument Repairman, and after Basic, shipped off to Aberdeen, Maryland.
This was my first experience which taught me to do my research. I will provide a little more on some other life lessons in further posts. For now, I would like to thank Eli for her dedication and hard work in assisting our veterans and specifically, for coordinating this blog endeavor for our mutual benefit.
Respectfully,
Refugio Llamas
Retired Marine GySgt. 0369 (I made it!)
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