Emily E. Emmons of Hilo was among the guest speakers at the Elizabeth Dole Foundation’s 2015 Hidden Heroes Coalition Summit: Progress and Promise on May 20 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C. ADVERTISING Emily
Emily E. Emmons of Hilo was among the guest speakers at the Elizabeth Dole Foundation’s 2015 Hidden Heroes Coalition Summit: Progress and Promise on May 20 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C.
Emmons was selected to represent Hawaii for the 2015 class of military and veteran caregivers chosen for the Elizabeth Dole Foundation Fellows program.
At the summit, Emmons spoke about the challenges caregivers face in finding education and training resources for learning how to properly care for a wounded veteran.
Emmons’ husband, John, an Army veteran, suffered for seven years from severe migraines, sinusitis and many other symptoms before being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury in 2014.
The Emmons’ also have two
daughters.
The summit also featured remarks from first lady Michelle Obama and Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert A. McDonald and Sen. Elizabeth Dole. There also was a special video message from actor Tom Hanks announcing his leadership of a national awareness campaign to call attention to the service provided by loved ones caring for wounded, ill and injured service members and veterans.
The summit marked one year since Dole launched the National Coalition for Military Caregivers. At the time of the coalition’s launch, Dole promised to report on the progress made on behalf of caregivers one year later.
The program opened with an impressive series of coalition partners describing the initiatives their organizations had launched or grown in the past 12 months to support military and veteran caregivers.
The most powerful moments of the summit came from the caregivers themselves. Emmons and the eight other Dole Caregivers Fellows spoke from the stage, sharing their personal stories of struggle and resilience. More than 60 other fellows attended the event to represent the 5.5 million loved ones caring for America’s wounded warriors.
While in Washington, Emmons also met with Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard to discuss the challenges faced by those caring for our nation’s wounded service members and what Congress and communities in Hawaii can do to help.
The mission of the Elizabeth Dole Foundation is to uplift American military and veteran caregivers by strengthening the services afforded to them through innovation, evidence-based research and collaboration.
To learn more about the foundation, at www.elizabethdolefoundation.org.
