Local Hospice Agencies Team to Host Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day March 30, 2019

CENTREVILLE — Coastal Hospice and Palliative Care, Compass Regional Hospice and Talbot Hospice recently teamed up to organize a free event for veterans — Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day, which will take place March 30, 2019 in Easton.

The ceremony will begin at 1 p.m. Saturday, March 30, at the Easton High School cafeteria, 723 Mecklenburg Ave. Event organizers said the day is a way to recognize and commemorate the sacrifices of Vietnam veterans and their families. It is part of a national effort to recognize the men and women who were denied a proper welcome upon returning home more than 40 years ago.

The special guest speaker will be Maj. Gen. James A. Adkins, who was born in Cambridge and grew up on the Eastern Shore. Adkins has nearly 40 years of military service with the U.S. Army. He is a retired senior military officer and former cabinet-level official in state government and served as Maryland’s Adjutant General and Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

Adkins has received many military decorations, including the Legion of Merit and the Distinguished Service Medal. Among his many scholarly accomplishments, he has received senior military education at the U.S. Army Command; General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas; and the U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. He also is a graduate of Washington College in Chestertown, where he received his master’s degree in history.

Adkins is a member of many veteran-centric organizations, including the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion and the Vietnam Veterans of America.

In addition to special guest speakers, the event will include special music; local, state and national resources for veterans; a pinning ceremony; and light refreshments. Trained grief counselors will be on hand from each hospice agency, in order to offer support to those who may wish to seek comfort during the day, as it is not uncommon for many veterans, their families and community members to experience a high degree of emotions when recalling times of war or military service.

Other special inclusions during the day will be a performance from the Easton High School Color Guard and a visit from the Hogs and Heroes Foundation MD-8 Salisbury, a community of motorcycle riders that support public safety, the U.S. military and Wounded Warriors.

The event is free and open to anyone who wishes to thank our Vietnam veterans for their service. To learn more about the event or to register, visit www.bit.ly/WHVV2019 or call Katie Willis at 443-262-4100, ext. 177.

All three organizations are partners in the We Honor Veterans program, a campaign developed by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, in collaboration with the Department of Veterans Affairs. Through the We Honor Veterans program, Coastal Hospice and Palliative Care, Compass Regional Hospice and Talbot Hospice gratefully acknowledge their military and service men, women and families. The mission of the program is to serve the nation’s veterans, who have served their country so selflessly, during their end-of-life journey.

Coastal Hospice and Palliative Care serves Dorchester, Wicomico, Somerset, and Worcester counties; Compass Regional Hospice serves Queen Anne’s, Kent and Caroline counties; and Talbot Hospice serves Talbot County.

# ## #

~ Compass Regional Hospice – Care on your terms
Compass Regional Hospice is a fully licensed, independent, community-based nonprofit organization certified by Medicare and the state of Maryland and accredited by the Joint Commission. Since 1985, Compass Regional Hospice has been dedicated to supporting people of all ages through the challenge of living with a serious illness and learning to live following the death of a loved one. Today, the organization is a regional provider of hospice care, palliative care, and grief support in Queen Anne’s, Kent and Caroline counties. “Care on your terms” is the promise that guides staff and volunteers as they care for patients in private residences, nursing homes, assisted living facilities and the residential hospice centers in Centreville and Chestertown. Grief support services are offered to children, adults, and families of patients who died under hospice care, as well as members of the community who are grieving the loss of a loved one. For more information about Compass Regional Hospice, visit compassregionalhospice.org.