2024-12-20 IAVA Cavalry Update
Blog
Support Meredith Burns' Efforts
We can’t do this alone, we need your support to ensure that VA provides service to veterans who gave everything for this country.
Meredith Burns
2024 Fellowship; 2022 Virtual Fly-In; Storm the Hill 2019 – Fall
Name: Meredith Burns
Hometown: West Pittston PA
Branch: Marines
Years Served: 2002-2007; 2009-2012
Rank: E-5, Sergeant
Military Occupation: Aviation Support Structures & Pneumatics Mechanic; CAG NCO; FET Team Leader
X (Twitter) Handle: @justopinions13
Tell us a little about you outside of the military: I live in Alexandria VA with my boyfriend. I am the Veterans Services Program Manager & Senior VSO at a non-profit life insurance company and VSO. I have been an accredited VSO representative for almost 5 years. I also teach classes on financial security to the members of the military both as they are joining (N)ROTC and as they are leaving at TAP classes. I have a large family in the area that I am forcing to get into D&D with me. I enjoy volunteering for various causes and I will be an election poll worker on election day.
What do you hope to gain from the fellowship? : I hope to expand my network and learn more about what services and opportunities are available for Veterans. I look forward to the opportunity to speak with legislators about issues that I encounter daily through my work with servicemembers and veterans
What does advocacy mean to you?: From the perspective of advocating for issues and policies, it means bringing more than just awareness to an issue. An advocate must be able to bring a full knowledge of both sides of the issue so that they may understand how best to support it. It can often mean being tireless in the pursuit of the passage of legislation that supports the advocate’s view of the issue. In my work as a VSO Representative it means ensuring my veterans and survivors get all that they are entitled to as fast and as smoothly as we can make it happen. That can mean educating VA employees on the merits of the US Public Health Service, advising veterans why they are not eligible for a benefit, or advising them why they are eligible and encouraging the veteran to claim what they are entitled to.
How did your military experience shape you to be the person you are today? I think joining the Marines made me self-reliant much faster than other 18 year olds. I learned how to lead through transparency. I learned responsibility and teamwork and to keep pushing even when things get hard. It taught me that bad times don’t last forever and if you give your all during that bad time, it might end sooner.
Which one of IAVA’s policy priorities do you believe is the most pressing? Repealing the AUMFs Why? I think we need to rein in where we send our troops and strengthen the barrier to sending them. It seems we have resorted to inserting ourselves wherever we choose under the guise of stopping terrorism. In my opinion, this creates more enemies than it removes. When a more robust explanation of why we are sending troops to become involved in a regional conflict is required, it may be more difficult to get that authorization. If force is not allowed, necessarily other ideas on how to resolve the conflict may arise. I believe this is preferable to the US deciding who the ‘bad guy’ is, usually without enough cultural context, and acting according to our own direction. I believe this also drives the military industrial complex, preventing our government from having the funds to address challenges within our own borders. It could save lives, health, time, and treasure.
Which one of IAVA’s policy priorities do you have the strongest personal connection to? Access to reproductive care post Dobbs decision. Why? This is affecting pregnant women every single day. As each day passes the window allowing a woman to take control of her choice to carry a child to term closes just a little bit more. As this law stays in place, doctors who practice gynecological care are fleeing states that restrict their ability to provide care to women who need it. This puts all women in those areas in danger. As a woman of childbearing age, the thought of being pregnant in those states is terrifying. If my partner or I could be stationed in Texas or Idaho, for example, I’d be strongly considering the option for me or us to leave the service. Women must be made certain that their health, not just their lives, is worth saving and that though they may be carrying a child, they are still a separate and valuable person aside from their ability to carry that child. We may be losing valuable talent in women who do not believe they’d be supported in their choice on whether and when to have children.
