{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.murray.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/newsreleases?ContentRecord_id=19f03a38-f842-49c3-aea9-34246957b2a1", "JBLM: Murray Keynotes Ceremony for Military Grads of Microsoft Training Program", "2013-12-02", "2013", "2013-12", "Democrat", "House", "WA", "Patty Murray", "M001111", "www.murray.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "(Washington, D.C.) \u2013\u00a0Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray, a senior member of the Senate Veterans\u2019 Affairs Committee, delivered the keynote speech at a graduation ceremony to honor the first graduating class of military students from Microsoft\u2019s Software & Systems Academy pilot program at Saint Martin\u2019s University in Lacey, WA.\u00a0 The 22 graduates, currently active duty service members from JBLM, will be hired into entry-level roles as software testers at Microsoft or Launch Consulting.\u00a0 The Microsoft Academy was inspired by Senator Murray\u2019s \u201cVOW to Hire Heroes Act.\u201d\u00a0\r\nKey excerpts from Senator Murray\u2019s speech: \r\n\u201cAs we stand here today unemployment among recent veterans is way down - on par with the rest of the country, post-9/11 veterans are being hired at a faster rate than non-veterans, and at JBLM, where 45% of service members once participated in transition assistance programs - 90% of the men and women transitioning to civilian life are getting the help they deserve.\u201d \r\n\u201cNow, these programs have been a huge success - but they\u2019re only part of the puzzle. Because no matter how much we do to prepare our veterans for the workplace - we can\u2019t succeed in fully transitioning them to civilian life without strong, lasting partnerships with businesses, labor organizations, \u00a0colleges, and universities. \r\n\u201cAnd that\u2019s why this program and this ceremony today are so special - because right here, we have top-ranking military leaders from JBLM, executives from Microsoft - one of our nation\u2019s most successful businesses, and educators from Saint Martin\u2019s University all working together to create a seamless, successful transition for men and women who\u2019ve worn the uniform. I can tell you - when I wrote the VOW Act, this is exactly what I hoped and envisioned for all our nation\u2019s veterans...and let\u2019s also give credit where it\u2019s due: because the transition program at JBLM is setting the standard for military bases around the country. That\u2019s something for Col. Hodges to be proud of, but it\u2019s also something that Saint Martin\u2019s, Microsoft, and all of us in the Puget Sound\u00a0can be proud of.\u201d \r\n\u201cLet\u2019s take a good look at the accomplishments of the men and women here today and replicate it, not\u00a0only for every transitioning service member at JBLM, but for all of those in Kitsap, Everett, Spokane, and across the country.\u201d \r\nFull text of Senator Murray\u2019s remarks below: \r\n\u201cThank you so much, Dr. Heynderickx, for that introduction, and thank you for hosting us here at Saint Martin\u2019s. \r\n\u201cI\u2019d like to first thank Colonel Hodges, the Base Commander at JBLM - he has been so instrumental in making today a reality. \r\n\u201cI\u2019d also like to thank our partners from Microsoft and Launch Consulting who are here today. \r\n\u201cAnd most importantly, I\u2019d like to thank the friends, family, and colleagues who are all here to support the service men and women we\u2019re honoring today. \r\n\u201cAll of us - whether we\u2019re business owners, educators, or elected officials - are working hard to support your sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, and moms and dads who serve in the military, but there is no greater support structure for veterans and members of the military than their families and loved ones\u2026.so before we honor these graduates - I also want to thank all of you: for supporting them \u00a0and for the sacrifices you\u2019ve made, too, to make today possible. \r\n\u201cAnd you know, speaking with all of you here today is really a special moment for me. I\u2019ve been in the US Senate for more than 20 years now. I\u2019ve lived around military families here in Washington state for my entire life, and I\u2019m the daughter of a World War II veteran, so, speaking with veterans, service members, and their families is something I\u2019m used to. \r\n\u201cBut throughout my career, and really, throughout my entire life...I\u2019ve mostly seen what veterans and their families go through when they don\u2019t have access to the care they need after serving, when they don\u2019t have support and opportunities to start new lives as a civilians, and when they don\u2019t have support from the communities and institutions that make up the places they call home. \r\n\u201cSo today - really - is one of the very few opportunities I\u2019ve had to stand with members of our military, veterans, and their families, to celebrate something we\u2019re doing right. \r\n\u201cNow - everyone here knows well - probably many of you know firsthand - that military service is tough. It\u2019s not for the faint of heart\u2026but transitioning from military to civilian life isn\u2019t easy, either. \r\n\u201cAnd I really believe that right now, we\u2019re living in a defining moment when it comes to the treatment of our nation\u2019s veterans and helping current service members transition out. It\u2019s a time when our older veterans population \u2013 including so many of our Vietnam veterans \u2013 are increasingly relying on VA care. \r\n\u201cBut we\u2019re also at a pivotal point - an opportunity we cannot afford to miss - \u00a0to properly care for an entire generation of post-9/11 veterans, who have endured a decade of repeated deployments, unbelievable stress on their families, \u00a0and the visible and invisible wounds of war.\r\n\u201cThat challenge - to meet the needs of these brave men and women not decades down the road, but from the moment they begin the process of transitioning to civilian life - is truly one of our nation\u2019s great tasks at hand. \r\n\u201cAnd right here, in the backyard of our country\u2019s most important military bases - all of you know that better than most. \r\n\u201cSince 9/11, nearly 3 million Americans have served in the military, and every year 6,000 men and women from JBLM transition to civilian life, and combined with others from across the country, 13,000 veterans begin their civilian lives here in Washington state each year...and each one them faces a job market that is uncertain and highly-competitive. \r\n\u201cIt\u2019s a problem that they face along with millions of other Americans...but for veterans, many of the barriers to employment are unique. \r\n\u201cMost of these men and women have spent the last decade being shuttled back and forth to war-zones half a world away\u2026 \r\n\u201cAnd when it\u2019s time to make big changes and start new careers the road home isn\u2019t always smooth, the red tape is often long, and the transition from the battlefield to the workplace is never easy. \r\n\u201cSo for too long, veterans have often been left behind by their peers who didn\u2019t make the same sacrifices for their nation at a critical time in their lives. \r\n\u201cFor too long, many veterans haven\u2019t realized the skills they possess and their value in the workplace. \r\n\u201cAnd for too long, they\u2019ve been discouraged by a job market that is unfamiliar to them after their service. \r\n\u201cBut all of us here know that\u2019s not right. \r\n\u201cWe know the men and women here today and all our veterans have the leadership ability, discipline, and technical skills to not only find work, but excel in growing industries and jobs of the future. \r\n\u201cYou know, a few years ago, I became the Chair of the Senate Veterans\u2019 Affairs Committee, and one of the first things I did was criss-cross Washington state to different worker retraining programs, VA facilities, and veterans halls to hear first hand from veterans what challenges they were facing. \r\n\u201cAnd over a few months, I had some heartbreaking and frustrating conversations. \r\n\u201cI heard from veterans who said they no longer wrote that they\u2019re a veteran on their resume because of the stigma they believed employers attach to the invisible wounds of war. \r\n\u201cI heard from medics who returned home from treating battlefield wounds and couldn\u2019t get certifications to be an EMT or to drive an ambulance. \r\n\u201cI talked to veterans who told me that the military spent countless hours getting them the skills to do their job in the field, but little time teaching them how to translate those skills into the workplace. \r\n\u201cSometimes - the problems were very complicated. Other times - they were simple issues. \r\n\u201cBut what struck me the most was that more often than not - these issues were preventable. \r\n\u201cWe were patting our veterans on the back to thank them for their service, but then we just sent them out into the job market alone - without the basic help they needed. \r\n\u201cAnd it showed. \r\n\u201cDouble-digit unemployment for veterans was the norm, the status quo. In 2011, the average unemployment rate for returning veterans was over 12 percent. And one out of every four veterans between the ages of 20 and 24 was without a job. \r\n\u201cSo I got started working with members of both parties - Republicans and Democrats - to write the VOW to Hire Heroes Act - which, I\u2019m proud to say, became the law of the land just a few months later. \r\n\u201cThe VOW Act, as we call it, created ways to ease the transition from the battlefield to the working world. \r\n\u201cFor the first time, it required broad job skills training for every service member as they leave the military as part of the military\u2019s Transition Assistance Program. \r\n\u201cIt allowed service members to begin the federal employment process prior to separation and have a truly seamless transition from the military to jobs in government. \r\n\u201cAnd it required the Department of Labor to take a hard look at what military skills and training should be translatable into the civilian sector in order to make it simpler for our veterans to get the licenses and certifications they need. \r\n\u201cMost importantly - it helped military bases across the country, like JBLM, start their own programs to help service men and women transition. \r\n\u201cAnd as we stand here today unemployment among recent veterans is way down - on par with the rest of the country, post-9/11 veterans are being hired at a faster rate than non-veterans, and at JBLM, where 45% of service members once participated in transition assistance programs - 90% of the men and women transitioning to civilian life are getting the help they deserve. \r\n\u201cNow, these programs have been a huge success - but they\u2019re only part of the puzzle. \r\n\u201cBecause no matter how much we do to prepare our veterans for the workplace - we can\u2019t succeed in fully transitioning them to civilian life without strong, lasting partnerships with businesses, labor organizations, \u00a0colleges, and universities. \r\n\u201cAnd that\u2019s why this program and this ceremony today are so special - because right here, we have top-ranking military leaders from JBLM, executives from Microsoft - one of our nation\u2019s most successful businesses, and educators from Saint Martin\u2019s University all working together to create a seamless, successful transition for men and women who\u2019ve worn the uniform. \r\n\u201cI can tell you - when I wrote the VOW Act, this is exactly what I hoped and envisioned for all our nation\u2019s veterans... \r\n...and let\u2019s also give credit where it\u2019s due: because the transition program at JBLM is setting the standard for military bases around the country.\r\n\u201cThat\u2019s something for Col. Hodges to be proud of, but it\u2019s also something that Saint Martin\u2019s, Microsoft, and all of us in the Puget Sound \u00a0can be proud of. \r\n\u201cTrust me - I\u2019m going to brag about this to my colleagues back in Washington, DC. \r\n\u201cSo, to the twenty-two graduates here today and to your families - congratulations - you deserve all the opportunities and successes that lay ahead of you. \r\n\u201cAnd for the rest of us - let\u2019s take a good look at the accomplishments of the men and women here today and replicate it , not\u00a0only for every transitioning service member at JBLM, but for all of those in Kitsap, Everett, \u00a0Spokane, \u00a0and across the country. \r\n\u201cSo thank you again - I\u2019m thrilled to be here as the first class graduates from this program, but I\u2019m even more thrilled that this is only the beginning. \r\n\u201cThank you.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.murray.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/newsreleases?ContentRecord_id=19f03a38-f842-49c3-aea9-34246957b2a1"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7293149828910828, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}