All invited to Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Day Event in Murrieta – March 26
MURRIETA, Calif., — With the date of this year’s annual Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Day Event swiftly approaching, event organizers and City of Murrieta officials are excited to invite veterans and all throughout the community to attend.
The event, which will be held at Murrieta’s Town Square Park on March 26, from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m., is being held in honor and recognition of the many sacrifices and achievements made by our military personnel during their nearly ten-year involvement in the more than 20-year-long war.
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Headlining this upcoming event will be guest speaker, Executive Vice-President of the Distinguished Flying Cross Society and retired USAF Colonel Warren Eastman. Eastman, who has a Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics from the University of Washington and several technical Masters degrees, was commissioned as an AFROTC Honor Graduate at New Mexico State University in 1969 where he was Cadet Wing Commander.
An outstanding Graduate of USAF Navigator Training in 1970, he served as a fighter aircraft Weapons System Officer (WSO), flying the F-4 Phantom II in the active-duty Air Force, the Air National Guard, and the Air Force Reserve, and the F-15 Eagle in the Air Force Reserve.
He flew 270 combat missions in the F-4E in two combat tours in the Vietnam War, based at Korat and Udorn, Thailand, and was awarded two DFCs. He was also part of the first AF Reservist aircrew to fly the F-15E Strike Eagle in flight tests and served as a Deputy Operations Group Commander/Director of Flight Operations at Edwards AFB.
He retired from the AF Reserve in 2000 and his civilian career was in aerospace engineering, primarily in flight tests at Edwards AFB.
In addition to Eastman, Murrieta Mayor Jon Ingram, Temecula Mayor Matt Rahn, Supervisor Chuck Washington, Representatives from Senator Melissa Melendez and Congressman Ken Calvert will also be speaking to the veterans and others in attendance.
From Left to right; Lori Stone – Murrieta City Council Member, Sandi Foreman – “Paws 4 Laws” Foundation, Raven Hilden – “MilVet” founder/ CEO, Cindy Warren – Murrieta City Council Member, Christi White – Murrieta City Council Member, Jonathan Ingram – Mayor Murrieta City Council, Jim Foreman – “Paws 4 Laws” Foundation, Warren Eastman – “Distinguished Flying Cross Society” Executive Vice President, John Hernandez – “Veterans of Foreign Wars” District 3 Senior Vice Commander
All Vietnam Vets who pre-register for this event will be formally and individually recognized for their service by the city of Murrieta as well.
Murrieta-based MilVet, which provides military and veteran support services to all branches of the military, will be hosting the check-in table at the event and providing swag bags filled with resources and goodies for all veterans and attendees.
“MilVet is proud to partner with the VFW to honor our Vietnam Veterans,” Raven HIlden, CEO and Founder of MilVet told RCNS today. “We have much to learn from their generation and we shall ensure that our brave service members are always supported and appreciated.”
Free bottled water will be available to all attending this event and a free lunch will be provided for all Vietnam Veterans and guests at VFW Post 1508 in Wildomar after the event.
“Over the last several years I have been honored to be able to organize this prestigious event in order to recognize our veterans of what is now referred to as the American war or, in full, the war against the Americans to save the nation,” event organizer John Hernandez, VFW District 3 Senior Vice Commander, told RCNS in anticipation of this event. “Approximately 2.7 million American men and women served in Vietnam and today it is estimated that the number of living Vietnam war–era veterans to be less than 850,000.”
“Today we are losing an estimated 530 Vietnam veterans every day,” he continued, adding, “So, we have to treasure and honor them by recognizing every chance we get!”
This event, which is being sponsored by VFW District 3 California, MilVet – Military and Veterans Support Services, Jim and Sandi Foreman of Paws 4 Laws, and Veteran Nation Motorcycle Club, is scheduled for March 26, from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. at Murrieta Town Square Park, located at 11 Town Square in Murrieta. For more information about this event or to pre-register as a veteran for personal recognition during this event, contact Sandie Foreman at (951) 663-0143.
The after-event lunch, which will be provided free of charge to all veterans and their guests, will be held at the Wildomar VFW Post 1508 at 21180 Waite Street. For more information, visit them on Facebook or contact them at (951) 674-4735.
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Trevor Montgomery, 51, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and operates Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS). Both are stringer organizations, providing breaking news coverage and community interest stories for other mainstream media organizations throughout the two regions they serve.
Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.