releases: https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=c1d289a9-01f1-4c02-81b5-3cbb6037bbb8
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=c1d289a9-01f1-4c02-81b5-3cbb6037bbb8 | Heitkamp Calls for Standing up for Veterans on Veterans Day & Every Day | 2015-11-11 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | ND | Heidi Heitkamp | H001069 | www.heitkamp.senate.gov | legacy | BISMARCK, N.D. In observance of Veterans Day, U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp today spoke with North Dakota veterans, their families, and community leaders to honor the sacrifice and service of those who courageously served our country. Heitkamp gave the keynote address at the Veterans Day Event at the Heritage Center in Bismarck to honor all of our veterans. She also spoke at the AMVETS Veterans Day Ceremony and helped honor living North Dakota Vietnam veterans. During both events, she spoke about how over the course of six months, she told the stories of more than 160 North Dakota servicemembers who never made it home from the Vietnam War. She has been collaborating with students and teachers from Bismarck High School a project which culminated on Sunday when she joined some of the students and teachers to lay artifacts the students created at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Heitkamp also launched a new, interactive webpage to enable North Dakotans to easily learn about these servicemembers who lost their lives in the Vietnam War by easily viewing the servicemembers photos and information, and watching Heitkamps speeches on the floor of the U.S. Senate to honor them. Click here to view the new webpage. We should know more than how many servicemembers and veterans we have lost rather, we must know who the veterans were that bravely put their lives on the line to protect our nation, said Heitkamp. Telling the stories of the North Dakota servicemembers who never made it home from the Vietnam War has been one of the most meaningful projects Ive worked on in the Senate. Because of the efforts of students and teachers from Bismarck High School, these servicemembers stories will live on and continue to be part of history. Our veterans saved the world time and time again. And for those who made it home, they then built a country supporting communities and constructing schools, businesses, and community centers. For so many of them, their service never ends, and we must continue to make sure they have the support and resources they earned. This past Sunday, Heitkamp met with Bismarck High school students and teachers at the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C. to conclude an almost yearlong project to honor North Dakotans who lost their lives in the Vietnam War. Heitkamp collaborated with more than 150 eleventh-graders from Bismarck High School to gather information on these fallen North Dakotans and incorporated their research into a series of 15 speeches she gave on the floor on the U.S. Senate from March through August to share stories about these servicemembers lives. On Sunday, Heitkamp met with some of the students to help lay more than 30 artifacts the students made to honor North Dakotans who died in Vietnam beneath the servicemembers names on the wall of the Memorial. A staunch advocate for veterans, Heitkamp regularly attends public events with veterans to answer questions and connect them with resources. In 2013, she conducted a six-city tour of the state, holding roundtables with veterans to discuss obstacles they encounter to critical services. Heitkamps efforts to help veterans include: Connecting New Veterans to Resources This year, Heitkamp reintroduced her Connect with Veterans Act which would better connect new veterans with job opportunities in their communities, other veterans, and additional resources and benefits. Supporting Native American Veterans In October, Heitkamp hosted her second Native American Veterans Summit on the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indian reservation. The Summit brought together Native veterans, officials from the VA and Indian Health Service, and other advocates to help Native veterans learn more about ongoing initiatives to connect them with services and benefits. Her first Native Veterans Summit took place in June 2014 at United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck. Responding to Problems at the VA Heitkamp took immediate action to respond to disgraceful scheduling misconduct at VA facilities nationwide. Heitkamp worked with North Dakota officials to confirm that state VA facilities were not delaying services to veterans, and then worked to pass bipartisan legislation addressing the situation. The bill improves access to services, which Heitkamp pushed for in order to help veterans living in rural areas as well as Native American veterans access care more easily. Leading Efforts to Raise Awareness of Post-Traumatic Stress Heitkamp called on the VA and U.S. Department of Defense to raise awareness about challenges veterans encounter with post-traumatic stress. Understanding the need to provide support for mental health and traumatic stress, Heitkamp worked to reduce the stigmas associated with post-traumatic stress as well as encourage private partnerships so employers hire more veterans. ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |