The conference will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
CNMI Military and Veterans Affairs Executive Director Ruth Coleman told the Variety yesterday that there about 50 women veterans on Saipan, Tinian and Rota but the conference is not restricted to veterans only — it is also for their spouses, family members and even non-veterans in active military duty or have been involved with the armed forces.
“This conference provides a window of opportunity not only for women veterans but also for their families. If you can make it, the door is open and I encourage you to grab this chance,” Coleman said.
No similar conference has been held in the CNMI yet, but they are looking to host it in the future, she added.
The presenters at the conference on Guam are Naoko Shimizu, attorney and wife of Guam Lt. Gov. Ray Tenorio; CMSgt. Margarita Overton, USAF, 36th Wing Command Chief; CDR Maureen Chase, USN; Lt. Col. Aisha Bakkar, USMC; Ron Lux, 1st Command Financial Services; Dr. Joan Gill, VA staff psychiatrist; Tricia Lizama, MSW, Ph.D. and VA social worker; and Mr. and Mrs. Michael Quitugua, Global War on Terror Veterans.
The conference, dubbed “Her Story is Our Strength,” is sponsored by the Guam Vet Center, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Purple Ribbon Campaign and the Guam Department of Labor in cooperation with the US Department of the Army, the Department of the Air Force, the Department of the Navy, the Coast Guard, and the U.S. Marine Corps Department of the Navy.
Conference registration fee is $25 including lunch. Mail your completed registration form and payment to Norma Castillon, the Purple Ribbon Campaign, P.O. Box 326114, Hagåtña, Guam, 96932 or fax to 671-734-4025 not later than Feb. 23, 2011. Checks should be made payable to the Purple Ribbon Campaign.
For more information, call the Guam Vet Center at 671-472-7161, call Norma Castillon or leave a message at 671-483-0184 or send an e-mail to [email protected] or [email protected].
