Leaders, organizations help veterans at expo

Serving the United States is Robert Ramirez’s lifeblood, having served in the U.S. Navy for 30 years, and now as President of the Palm Springs chapter of the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA).

“I have a granddaughter that’s in the Army currently, and that’s deploying for the third time in Iraq, and her husband is deploying for the fourth time to Iraq,” Ramirez said. “It’s always an honor to be part of an organization that does honor veterans, past and currently serving, because of the sacrifices not only do they give, but their families that they leave behind.”

Saturday, Ramirez and other organizations and local leaders spent their time serving those who serve us with a Veterans Expo at the Riverside County Fairgrounds.

“There’s a lot of veterans out there that are dealing with depression, anxiety, stress, and they don’t know what to do about those feelings that they’re having inside, and how to manage those,” Representative Dr. Raul Ruiz said. “Coming here to the Veterans Expo, there’s a lot of people that want to help.”

The event also honored veterans for their careers of serving our country, and late Riverside County Supervisor John Benoit for his service in the Coachella Valley.

“John Benoit was a Republican, and I’m a Democrat, and we often times were on opposite sides of campaigns, but there’s honor, dignity and respect,” Ruiz said. “I respect the man, and I respect the work that he did.”

Many said they’ll continuing fighting for those who spent their lives fighting for our country.

“You can rest assured that we’re here on the side of our veterans to stand with them, and fight with them, and make sure that they get the care and benefits that they deserve.”

CBS Local 2’s Tom Tucker and Kelley Moody served as the Master of Ceremonies for Saturday’s expo.

Ruiz said he will also be helping out with the second annual Veterans University, scheduled to take place at the Palm Springs Convention Center on May 20th.