The following is an excerpt of a letter written to the citizens of Florida by James S. Hartsell, Executive Director, Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs:
We observe Memorial Day on Monday. All Floridians will have the opportunity to honor the selfless service and sacrifice of those who preceded us so that we may retain the freedoms we cherish today. As you see the flag at half-staff on Monday morning, remember that freedom is not free. Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed the annual Memorial Day in Florida proclamation, which you’ll find later in this edition.
As part of Memorial Day, FDVA is the proud co-sponsor of the 2025 PBS special, “National Memorial Day Concert,” which airs live in all nine Florida Public Broadcasting markets on the evening of May 25. We’ll honor our more than 423,000 Vietnam Veterans in Florida with the airing of our public service announcement prior to the opening titles. Join us beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern.
Several Veteran-related bills have cleared the legislature and will be sent in the coming days and weeks to the Governor’s office for consideration. The proposed budget for our agency is also making its way through the legislative process, and I’m confident our agency’s budget will be voted on favorably. You can find the status of Veteran-related legislation in the current session by visiting our website at https://floridavets.org and clicking on “Veteran Legislation.” We’ll have more to report in next month’s edition.
