Lieutenant Governor Mike Stack and former state Adjutant General Wesley Craig announced the creation of a task force devoted to meeting the needs and improving the lives of military veterans in Pennsylvania.
The 21-member panel intends to bring together public and private resources, information, and strategies to address veterans issues – including but not limited to employment, housing, mental health, legal, and food security.
“Our goal is to talk with veterans, identify the most serious issues they deal with in their daily lives, and see how we can improve the services they are receiving. Once we find areas of need, we’ll develop recommendations for Governor Wolf and the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs,” said Stack, a former captain in the Pennsylvania National Guard.
Stack formed the task force and asked Craig to serve as chairman. Craig was adjutant general from February 2011 through January 2015, capping a 42-year military career that included 40 years in the Pennsylvania National Guard.
“I want to see how we can make a positive difference in the lives of men and women who have served our country in the military. We want to hear from veterans of all generations and all corners of the state to learn what kinds of problems they face and how we can help,” said Craig.
The task force includes people who have served in World War II, Korea, Vietnam and the more recent wars in the Middle East. It held its first organizational meeting today in the lieutenant governor’s office at the Capitol. They discussed the main issues on which they believe the task force should focus, and made preliminary plans to hold hearings throughout the state and talk to veterans about conditions in their communities.
The task force also delved immediately into one area of concern. Members heard a presentation from Christian A. Johnson, Dean of the Widener University Commonwealth Law School. Widener is creating a veterans legal clinic and will work in cooperation with the task force on legal issues that are particular to veterans. Johnson is also a task force member.
“I’m grateful to General Craig and all the members who have agreed to serve on this panel,” Stack said. “I hope our work will be a fitting testimony to the deep appreciation that Pennsylvania has for our veterans.”
Members of the task force, with their home counties in parentheses, are:
Angel Arizmendi (Montgomery)
Leroy Bachert (Lehigh)
Edward Chomko (Lackawanna)
Wesley Craig (Montgomery)
Judge Patrick F. Dugan (Philadelphia)
Harry Gobora (Montgomery)
Christian Johnson (Dauphin)
Kyle McChesney (Erie)
Jim McCurdy (Warren)
Bob McMahon (Delaware)
Joe Melendez (Philadelphia)
Timothy Muenkel (Lackawana)
George Perez (Philadelphia)
William Reinik (Lehigh)
Michael Santiago (Philadelphia)
Stacy Smith (Erie)
Lt. Gov. Mike Stack
Frank Sullivan (Cumberland)
John Vento (Allegheny)
Maureen Weigel (Dauphin)
Rob Wood (Erie)
