WEBVTT 00:00:05.200 --> 00:00:09.060 All across America and around the world, this 00:00:09.060 --> 00:00:15.160 is Veterans Radio. This is Veterans Radio. Good 00:00:15.160 --> 00:00:18.600 day. I'm Jim Fossone. I'm the Officer of the 00:00:18.600 --> 00:00:20.699 Deck today here on Veterans Radio and thanks 00:00:20.699 --> 00:00:23.469 for joining us. We've got some interesting stories 00:00:23.469 --> 00:00:25.649 for you. We always want to remind you you can 00:00:25.649 --> 00:00:28.750 find more about Veterans Radio at its Facebook 00:00:28.750 --> 00:00:32.429 site or at the web, veteransradio .org, where 00:00:32.429 --> 00:00:35.270 we're on the web 24 -7. You can find a lot of 00:00:35.270 --> 00:00:38.310 our podcasts there as well. We post new ones 00:00:38.310 --> 00:00:42.490 every Tuesday, so you can get a new story, a 00:00:42.490 --> 00:00:45.229 new interview, something you didn't know before 00:00:45.229 --> 00:00:49.219 by going to VeteransRadio .org. 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We were recently identified 00:02:20.340 --> 00:02:25.120 as the in the 15th spot, if you will, of the 00:02:25.120 --> 00:02:30.080 top 100 veteran -centric podcasts by Feet Spot. 00:02:30.639 --> 00:02:33.020 So really pretty proud of being in the top 15. 00:02:33.659 --> 00:02:38.400 So listen in wherever you're at to veteransradio 00:02:38.400 --> 00:02:42.789 .org and its podcasts. We want to welcome to 00:02:42.789 --> 00:02:46.069 Veterans Radio today two gentlemen who are deeply 00:02:46.069 --> 00:02:51.590 involved in Detroit's efforts, successful efforts, 00:02:52.050 --> 00:02:55.150 to bring the Medal of Honor Society Convention 00:02:55.150 --> 00:02:58.810 to Detroit in October of 2026. One of the things 00:02:58.810 --> 00:03:01.330 you know if you listen to Veterans Radio is we 00:03:01.330 --> 00:03:03.310 kind of get the information before other people 00:03:03.310 --> 00:03:05.870 do and we get to pass it on to you so that you're 00:03:05.870 --> 00:03:09.030 in the know. So we're really happy to talk about 00:03:09.159 --> 00:03:13.740 What's coming a year from now when the living 00:03:13.740 --> 00:03:16.819 Medal of Honor recipients gather in Detroit for 00:03:16.819 --> 00:03:21.460 their annual convention? First up, we have Russell 00:03:21.460 --> 00:03:24.159 Schomburger, who is the chair of the committee. 00:03:24.280 --> 00:03:26.439 Russ, welcome to Veterans Radio. Well, thank 00:03:26.439 --> 00:03:28.280 you, Jim, very much. Appreciate it and looking 00:03:28.280 --> 00:03:30.180 forward to sharing more about the conference 00:03:30.180 --> 00:03:34.099 to the audience. We want to welcome to Veterans 00:03:34.099 --> 00:03:39.250 Radio Adrian Kozakov. who is a committee member 00:03:39.250 --> 00:03:44.550 that's working on this huge effort to bring the 00:03:44.550 --> 00:03:46.969 Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient's convention 00:03:46.969 --> 00:03:50.729 to Detroit in 2026. Adrian, welcome to Veterans 00:03:50.729 --> 00:03:53.810 Radio. Thank you for having me, Jim. Very excited 00:03:53.810 --> 00:03:57.449 to share about the convention. Well, Russ, let's 00:03:57.449 --> 00:04:02.870 start with you. How did you get yourself involved 00:04:02.870 --> 00:04:07.400 in this? You know big task of pulling off the 00:04:07.400 --> 00:04:10.479 National Convention Well, I don't know how much 00:04:10.479 --> 00:04:16.399 time you have but to make it simple I am also 00:04:16.399 --> 00:04:19.019 on the board of the Detroit Public Safety Foundation 00:04:19.019 --> 00:04:23.040 and I've been supporting first responders for 00:04:23.040 --> 00:04:27.060 some time and I just I met some folks that are 00:04:27.060 --> 00:04:31.040 involved the recipient community and said, you 00:04:31.040 --> 00:04:33.000 know, we've never had this in the city Detroit 00:04:33.000 --> 00:04:36.579 it would be cool to have. So I started working 00:04:36.579 --> 00:04:40.180 with Detroit Public Safety Foundation and the 00:04:40.180 --> 00:04:44.420 society to win the award or to bring it to Detroit, 00:04:44.540 --> 00:04:47.800 which we were successful on doing. And now I 00:04:47.800 --> 00:04:50.420 find myself having the tiger by the tail, which 00:04:50.420 --> 00:04:54.360 is a labor of love. You know, I'm very fortunate 00:04:54.360 --> 00:04:56.420 in my position to be able to give back to the 00:04:56.420 --> 00:04:58.939 community, but doing so for about seven years 00:04:58.939 --> 00:05:02.410 for Detroit Public Safety Foundation. And it's 00:05:02.410 --> 00:05:05.790 just all about Detroit, the veteran community 00:05:05.790 --> 00:05:09.170 and giving back. Well, why don't you expand a 00:05:09.170 --> 00:05:12.870 little bit more on the Detroit Public Safety 00:05:12.870 --> 00:05:16.850 Organization, because folks can go there and 00:05:16.850 --> 00:05:20.790 donate for this particular Congressional Medal 00:05:20.790 --> 00:05:25.329 of Honor Convention. And really, I don't think 00:05:25.329 --> 00:05:27.269 most folks would go, I don't know what the Detroit 00:05:27.269 --> 00:05:29.819 Public Safety Organization is. Well, the Detroit 00:05:29.819 --> 00:05:34.240 Public Safety Foundation is a 501 C3. It is the 00:05:34.240 --> 00:05:37.500 charity of record for this conference. And what 00:05:37.500 --> 00:05:41.939 we do is we take care of fallen first responders, 00:05:42.779 --> 00:05:44.819 their families and things of that nature. We 00:05:44.819 --> 00:05:48.540 do things for youth groups within the city and 00:05:48.540 --> 00:05:54.379 we provide things to the first responders. It's 00:05:54.379 --> 00:05:56.220 just simple little things, creature comforts 00:05:56.220 --> 00:05:59.000 for the fire department, you know, their housing, 00:05:59.160 --> 00:06:01.860 things of that nature. But our main focus is 00:06:01.860 --> 00:06:03.879 giving back to the community and taking care 00:06:03.879 --> 00:06:08.319 of youth programs and first responders who are 00:06:08.319 --> 00:06:11.060 injured or fallen in line of duty. Well, clearly 00:06:11.060 --> 00:06:13.480 the Detroit Public Safety Foundation is a very 00:06:13.480 --> 00:06:18.680 worthy cause and is sort of the base here around 00:06:18.680 --> 00:06:22.500 which this Medal of Honor Convention is building. 00:06:22.730 --> 00:06:26.149 And as you say, it's the financial arm of it 00:06:26.149 --> 00:06:32.649 as well. You can make 501C3 charitable deductions, 00:06:32.649 --> 00:06:37.170 contributions to the Detroit Public Safety Foundation 00:06:37.170 --> 00:06:41.430 for the purposes of supporting the Medal of Honor 00:06:41.430 --> 00:06:43.550 Convention, if I understand it right. Exactly. 00:06:43.790 --> 00:06:46.509 That's perfect. It's perfectly stated. Well, 00:06:46.790 --> 00:06:49.490 Adrian is... fairly clear that Russ just stumbled 00:06:49.490 --> 00:06:51.930 into this, you know, the guy with a good idea 00:06:51.930 --> 00:06:55.689 always finds himself being voluntold. Oh good, 00:06:55.790 --> 00:06:59.670 you're gonna lead it. Jim, I say no good deed 00:06:59.670 --> 00:07:02.870 goes unpunished. Absolutely, absolutely. Adrian, 00:07:02.930 --> 00:07:06.449 how did you get involved? You know, I, similar, 00:07:06.629 --> 00:07:10.810 in a similar fashion, I was voluntold to get 00:07:10.810 --> 00:07:14.980 involved in this and thought one of the employees 00:07:14.980 --> 00:07:18.180 and directors at the Medal of Honor Society said, 00:07:18.459 --> 00:07:21.899 hey, Adrian, you'd be a good fit for this, and 00:07:21.899 --> 00:07:24.720 talked with Russ. And Russ said, yes, we could 00:07:24.720 --> 00:07:27.220 use the help. Let's figure out a way to get involved. 00:07:27.620 --> 00:07:30.920 And from there, I started getting more involved 00:07:30.920 --> 00:07:33.959 and seeing how I could help. Well, your committee 00:07:33.959 --> 00:07:38.879 has a number of influential people on it. We 00:07:38.879 --> 00:07:43.819 have a mutual friend in Volley Garcia. with the 00:07:43.819 --> 00:07:47.139 NDIA, with the Michigan Military and Veterans 00:07:47.139 --> 00:07:51.079 Hall of Honor, former state senator and I know 00:07:51.079 --> 00:07:53.860 he's really excited about this as well. Are there 00:07:53.860 --> 00:07:55.500 other committee members you'd like to mention? 00:07:56.779 --> 00:07:59.759 There's none at this time and we have some feelers 00:07:59.759 --> 00:08:04.800 out what we're doing is we have this year's conference 00:08:04.800 --> 00:08:08.100 coming on next week. So that's in Chattanooga. 00:08:08.220 --> 00:08:11.060 And what we wanted to do is go sit down, go through 00:08:11.060 --> 00:08:13.079 the whole thing. We'll be there all week. We're 00:08:13.079 --> 00:08:15.620 going to set A to Z and talk to everybody and 00:08:15.620 --> 00:08:19.579 say, let's learn from lessons learned. What went 00:08:19.579 --> 00:08:22.160 well? What didn't? How should we restructure? 00:08:23.290 --> 00:08:27.870 straw person, we have roles identified, we have 00:08:27.870 --> 00:08:31.189 task and duties identified, we have some names 00:08:31.189 --> 00:08:34.049 penciled in. But before we pull the trigger in 00:08:34.049 --> 00:08:36.029 that, what we wanted to do is just go make sure 00:08:36.029 --> 00:08:39.070 that we've done all of our due diligence before 00:08:39.070 --> 00:08:43.509 we go asking people for, you know, time, energy 00:08:43.509 --> 00:08:46.710 and effort. The Congressional Medal of Honor 00:08:46.710 --> 00:08:50.210 Society is a sort of standalone organization 00:08:50.210 --> 00:08:54.879 itself. And It's a way in which people can connect 00:08:54.879 --> 00:08:59.039 with living Medal of Honor recipients and learn 00:08:59.039 --> 00:09:02.940 more about those who have deceased. But do they 00:09:02.940 --> 00:09:06.860 have conventions every year? Yes, they do have 00:09:06.860 --> 00:09:09.360 conventions every year, and they pick a city. 00:09:10.000 --> 00:09:13.480 You go and make a pitch, if you will. And so 00:09:13.480 --> 00:09:18.090 Valdé and some others went down last year. in 00:09:18.090 --> 00:09:21.769 San Antonio to do the pitch. And there's really 00:09:21.769 --> 00:09:26.429 three purposes for this. And I'm, I'm non military. 00:09:26.629 --> 00:09:30.210 So I'm just a Detroit fellow that's trying to 00:09:30.210 --> 00:09:34.389 do a good job for the city of Detroit and veterans 00:09:34.389 --> 00:09:40.210 causes, right? I'm often flabbergasted by the 00:09:40.210 --> 00:09:43.330 fact that very few people know anything about 00:09:43.330 --> 00:09:47.740 the society. very know very little about recipients. 00:09:48.519 --> 00:09:51.299 When I booked the venue and it's going to be 00:09:51.299 --> 00:09:55.740 at the Motor City Casino Hotel next year, you 00:09:55.740 --> 00:09:57.120 know, some of the people there were saying, well, 00:09:57.200 --> 00:09:59.379 tell me more about what the society is, even 00:09:59.379 --> 00:10:02.600 visit Detroit. And so the main purpose of this 00:10:02.600 --> 00:10:06.940 is to go and communicate all about the medal, 00:10:07.360 --> 00:10:10.899 all about service. all about, you know, what 00:10:10.899 --> 00:10:16.080 this stands for. The second thing is really to 00:10:16.080 --> 00:10:20.600 educate the national audience about Detroit. 00:10:21.539 --> 00:10:24.200 And then finally, what we come along with is 00:10:24.200 --> 00:10:30.080 to raise funds for the society itself and for 00:10:30.080 --> 00:10:32.419 veterans and youth programs within the city. 00:10:33.279 --> 00:10:35.779 So those, I would say in general, are the three 00:10:35.779 --> 00:10:39.039 legs of the stool. Adrian, did I forget anything? 00:10:39.679 --> 00:10:42.419 I often get carried away and get excited in my 00:10:42.419 --> 00:10:46.139 exuberance. Yeah, I think that covers it very 00:10:46.139 --> 00:10:50.360 well. One item I would like to add more to was 00:10:50.360 --> 00:10:53.100 especially the youth programs. It's to help inspire 00:10:53.100 --> 00:10:55.879 our youth to live by not only youth, but the 00:10:55.879 --> 00:10:57.779 people of Detroit, the people of Michigan, to 00:10:57.779 --> 00:11:01.399 live by the values that the medal instills in 00:11:01.399 --> 00:11:06.090 people. Yeah, you know, it's really interesting. 00:11:06.230 --> 00:11:09.669 I think it's one of the things that you're going 00:11:09.669 --> 00:11:13.549 to be able to do is remind the nation of the 00:11:13.549 --> 00:11:16.090 contributions that have been made in Southeast 00:11:16.090 --> 00:11:20.730 Michigan and really Michigan as whole to national 00:11:20.730 --> 00:11:27.710 defense. The arsenal of democracy, right? World 00:11:27.710 --> 00:11:31.950 War II was largely successful because of our 00:11:31.950 --> 00:11:37.120 industrial production and what companies like 00:11:37.120 --> 00:11:42.639 Ford were able to do in turning out necessary 00:11:42.639 --> 00:11:46.960 defense equipment, planes, tanks, the famous 00:11:46.960 --> 00:11:50.419 Jeep, right? So it kind of goes both ways. We're 00:11:50.419 --> 00:11:53.779 going to learn what their lives were, what their 00:11:53.779 --> 00:11:56.720 sacrifices were, but hopefully we're also being 00:11:56.720 --> 00:11:59.299 able to pass on that message about what Detroit 00:11:59.299 --> 00:12:02.590 and the area has done for the nation. Yep, it's 00:12:02.590 --> 00:12:06.009 all about education and expanding, you know, 00:12:06.129 --> 00:12:10.149 the reach, the knowledge base of who knows about 00:12:10.149 --> 00:12:11.929 this stuff, right? I mean, there's really just 00:12:11.929 --> 00:12:15.269 a small group that's, I would hate to say fading, 00:12:15.529 --> 00:12:18.730 but it is in some ways, right? And so we're the 00:12:18.730 --> 00:12:22.429 champions, you know, if you don't remember history, 00:12:22.679 --> 00:12:25.600 it will repeat itself in the future right and 00:12:25.600 --> 00:12:28.580 so learning those things sharing those things 00:12:28.580 --> 00:12:32.240 and at the end it's really about um you know 00:12:32.240 --> 00:12:34.600 youth programs and veterans programs as well 00:12:34.600 --> 00:12:39.480 so it's just a very worthy cause and like you 00:12:39.480 --> 00:12:44.340 said we do um have lots of needs coming up over 00:12:44.340 --> 00:12:47.779 the next year so you know you could mention our 00:12:48.510 --> 00:12:51.990 website or put that in part of your You know 00:12:51.990 --> 00:12:54.450 announcements. It is the Medal of Honor Detroit 00:12:54.450 --> 00:12:57.950 calm It'll be that's where you find all of your 00:12:57.950 --> 00:13:00.610 information about what what's coming up coming 00:13:00.610 --> 00:13:04.970 up events We will have somebody I do believe 00:13:04.970 --> 00:13:10.940 coming in for the Navy ball on October 16th I 00:13:10.940 --> 00:13:12.860 don't know, Adrian, do you want to talk about 00:13:12.860 --> 00:13:15.399 your event coming up? Is it too soon to bring 00:13:15.399 --> 00:13:18.820 that up? I think actually just prior to this, 00:13:19.320 --> 00:13:22.360 I received confirmation from the University of 00:13:22.360 --> 00:13:26.240 Michigan that we will have a Medal of Honor recipient 00:13:26.240 --> 00:13:28.960 or two on the field and honored at the November 00:13:28.960 --> 00:13:32.019 1st Military Appreciation Game against Purdue 00:13:32.019 --> 00:13:35.200 at the Big House. Now, some of the details are 00:13:35.200 --> 00:13:38.980 still being finalized on if we'll be speaking 00:13:38.980 --> 00:13:41.080 or the Medal of Honor recipients will be speaking 00:13:41.080 --> 00:13:43.460 or they'll be speaking on our behalf, but this 00:13:43.460 --> 00:13:47.159 will be a great opportunity to kickstart publicly, 00:13:47.419 --> 00:13:49.779 right? And our veterans here are hearing it first, 00:13:50.159 --> 00:13:52.919 but publicly announcing that the convention is 00:13:52.919 --> 00:13:55.960 coming to Detroit to showcase Detroit, the people 00:13:55.960 --> 00:13:58.419 of Michigan and instill the values of the medal 00:13:58.419 --> 00:14:01.919 and the people here in front of over 100 ,000 00:14:01.919 --> 00:14:04.870 people. And that's the way you get the word out, 00:14:05.230 --> 00:14:10.429 going out to the public. And here on Veterans 00:14:10.429 --> 00:14:12.590 Radio, we've had the opportunity to talk to a 00:14:12.590 --> 00:14:14.769 number of Medal of Honor recipients, and they 00:14:14.769 --> 00:14:18.289 are the most humble guys you'll ever find. There 00:14:18.289 --> 00:14:23.230 are approximately, I think it's 35, 3 ,600 who 00:14:23.230 --> 00:14:29.899 have received the award. You don't, it is, You 00:14:29.899 --> 00:14:33.720 don't earn it, you receive it. There's a big 00:14:33.720 --> 00:14:37.620 difference here. I've learned what verbiage to 00:14:37.620 --> 00:14:42.720 use. I've been schooled. One thing that I would 00:14:42.720 --> 00:14:46.860 say in the world today, this is something that 00:14:46.860 --> 00:14:53.279 transcends politics, religion, race. These gentlemen 00:14:53.279 --> 00:14:56.440 did what they did for love of their brothers. 00:14:58.359 --> 00:15:01.279 And something that you really got to understand 00:15:01.279 --> 00:15:04.460 is that they've done this not because of who 00:15:04.460 --> 00:15:07.700 you are or what you are, but because they're 00:15:07.700 --> 00:15:11.440 your brother and they've gone above and beyond 00:15:11.440 --> 00:15:16.779 in unsurmountable odds for that love. There were, 00:15:16.899 --> 00:15:21.120 and this is a historical line that again, we 00:15:21.120 --> 00:15:24.320 don't teach much history in grade school or high 00:15:24.320 --> 00:15:28.340 school anymore, let alone college, but In Michigan, 00:15:28.580 --> 00:15:30.679 I think there were something like 69 Medal of 00:15:30.679 --> 00:15:34.860 Honor recipients in the Civil War. I think overall 00:15:34.860 --> 00:15:38.659 Michigan's had 125 maybe Medal of Honor recipients. 00:15:38.799 --> 00:15:42.019 I think there's only one living Medal of Honor 00:15:42.019 --> 00:15:43.860 recipient in the state of Michigan at the moment. 00:15:44.440 --> 00:15:47.860 So when you start looking at these stories, I 00:15:47.860 --> 00:15:50.019 suppose this is part of what you're trying to 00:15:50.019 --> 00:15:55.700 get across to the general public, Adrian, when 00:15:55.700 --> 00:15:58.470 you bring the convention The town is like this 00:15:58.470 --> 00:16:02.230 long history that exists. Yes, the long history 00:16:02.230 --> 00:16:06.429 and how truly special and rare it is, right? 00:16:06.710 --> 00:16:09.450 As your point earlier, fewer than 3 ,600 medals 00:16:09.450 --> 00:16:12.470 have ever been awarded in, well, we're coming 00:16:12.470 --> 00:16:15.570 up on 250 years here of the United States of 00:16:15.570 --> 00:16:18.169 America. And there's only one living Medal of 00:16:18.169 --> 00:16:22.149 Honor recipient left in Michigan, 61 as of today. 00:16:22.360 --> 00:16:26.039 living, and 45 of them are from the Vietnam War 00:16:26.039 --> 00:16:28.860 era or later, where they're in their 70s or older, 00:16:28.940 --> 00:16:32.240 where in the next five, 10, 15 years, we may 00:16:32.240 --> 00:16:37.059 be down to 10, 15, 20, maybe 30 living Medal 00:16:37.059 --> 00:16:43.360 of Honor recipients. It really is quite an amazing 00:16:43.360 --> 00:16:46.919 club. The price you have to pay to get into the 00:16:46.919 --> 00:16:50.990 club is unimaginable. And if you want to know 00:16:50.990 --> 00:16:54.269 more about the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, 00:16:54.870 --> 00:17:00.250 you can go to their website, which is cmohs .org, 00:17:00.570 --> 00:17:06.170 cmohs .org, just to learn more about the Congressional 00:17:06.170 --> 00:17:10.369 Medal of Honor Society and the things that they 00:17:10.369 --> 00:17:15.369 stand for. You have a new website up. We mentioned 00:17:15.369 --> 00:17:18.210 it a minute ago. I actually found two pages I 00:17:18.210 --> 00:17:22.569 wanna promote. One is detroitpublicsafety .org 00:17:22.569 --> 00:17:27.210 slash about dash five dash one. Real catchy title, 00:17:27.250 --> 00:17:30.789 but if you go to detroitpublicsafety .org and 00:17:30.789 --> 00:17:32.710 search for it, you'll find the Congressional 00:17:32.710 --> 00:17:34.789 Medal of Honor page that they have up and how 00:17:34.789 --> 00:17:38.549 you can donate. And there's also one that the... 00:17:38.599 --> 00:17:42.319 Your committee's got up now on medalofhonoredetroit 00:17:42.319 --> 00:17:45.819 .com that we referenced a little earlier. And 00:17:45.819 --> 00:17:51.339 I assume that over the course of time, the public 00:17:51.339 --> 00:17:53.579 will be able to go to those websites and learn 00:17:53.579 --> 00:17:57.200 more about what's coming a year from now. Yeah, 00:17:57.240 --> 00:17:59.700 you can do that today. Actually, there are links 00:17:59.700 --> 00:18:02.140 from our site to the Congressional Medal of Honor 00:18:02.140 --> 00:18:05.920 Society. You know, you can call that one stop 00:18:05.920 --> 00:18:07.880 shopping, if you will. There's ways to reach 00:18:07.880 --> 00:18:12.200 out to say if you want to volunteer in some way, 00:18:12.220 --> 00:18:15.960 you can contact us for more information. There's 00:18:15.960 --> 00:18:18.420 ways to contribute. So that will link you to 00:18:18.420 --> 00:18:22.160 the Detroit Public Safety Foundation website. 00:18:22.380 --> 00:18:26.079 That's all filled out for you already. So it 00:18:26.079 --> 00:18:31.000 is the easy button, if you will. And I think 00:18:31.000 --> 00:18:34.299 the only thing that right now that we don't have 00:18:34.299 --> 00:18:37.339 on there that we want to share is a little bit 00:18:37.339 --> 00:18:39.740 more about some of the sponsors. We've already 00:18:39.740 --> 00:18:45.259 gotten some good sponsors that we want to highlight 00:18:45.259 --> 00:18:48.480 and articulate and some of the upcoming events 00:18:48.480 --> 00:18:51.579 because they're relatively new. The site's been 00:18:51.579 --> 00:18:54.740 up in full for a week maybe or something like 00:18:54.740 --> 00:19:00.329 that now so you know there's a You know lessons 00:19:00.329 --> 00:19:02.170 learned we got to put in there yet, you know, 00:19:02.170 --> 00:19:04.730 there might be some additional bits of information 00:19:04.730 --> 00:19:07.289 So anybody looking at it, they have suggestions, 00:19:07.289 --> 00:19:09.809 you know, they can make suggestions as well things 00:19:09.809 --> 00:19:13.089 that we may have forgotten But it's pretty much 00:19:13.089 --> 00:19:16.670 the one -stop shop Medal of Honor Detroit dot 00:19:16.670 --> 00:19:19.309 -com and we can link you to all those places 00:19:19.309 --> 00:19:23.369 So let let me ask the dates of this or September 00:19:23.369 --> 00:19:30.279 30th to October 3rd 2026 Have you guys at the 00:19:30.279 --> 00:19:33.599 committee level sort of said, hey, we need 100 00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:37.980 volunteers or 50 volunteers or I would think 00:19:37.980 --> 00:19:41.960 you need boots on the ground getting people in 00:19:41.960 --> 00:19:44.440 the right places at the convention to different 00:19:44.440 --> 00:19:46.660 events. Do you have any idea how many volunteers 00:19:46.660 --> 00:19:50.700 you want? We have classifications. We don't have 00:19:50.700 --> 00:19:54.480 numbers. And what we wanted to do again is get 00:19:54.480 --> 00:19:58.690 back to see what's going on in Chattanooga. and 00:19:58.690 --> 00:20:00.450 come back and just say, you know, how did this 00:20:00.450 --> 00:20:03.789 work? How did that work? We do have a lot of 00:20:03.789 --> 00:20:07.349 resources from the Motor City Casino Hotel, because 00:20:07.349 --> 00:20:12.029 it is a casino as well as the hotel area, but 00:20:12.029 --> 00:20:13.890 they have a lot of people there. So they do have 00:20:13.890 --> 00:20:19.950 like EMTs. They do have security staff. We do 00:20:19.950 --> 00:20:23.759 have to check with, you know, The city of Detroit 00:20:23.759 --> 00:20:26.900 is going to provide some support. So basically 00:20:26.900 --> 00:20:29.779 it's, it's we're at the point where we're herding 00:20:29.779 --> 00:20:33.059 cats. And to be honest, when this first came 00:20:33.059 --> 00:20:34.940 out, when I first got engaged, this has been 00:20:34.940 --> 00:20:38.339 going for over a year now, right? Uh, we said, 00:20:38.859 --> 00:20:42.180 Hey, you know, we need help. And we got inundated 00:20:42.180 --> 00:20:47.380 and we were totally unprepared, you know, for 00:20:47.380 --> 00:20:51.839 the eagerness to help. And so what we're trying 00:20:51.839 --> 00:20:54.099 to do is put a little bit more method to the 00:20:54.099 --> 00:20:58.799 madness. And when we come back from Chattanooga, 00:20:59.099 --> 00:21:02.019 we get to the first part of October, we're gonna 00:21:02.019 --> 00:21:05.900 put together those numbers and those plans and 00:21:05.900 --> 00:21:08.700 have an idea how we wanna go about this, right? 00:21:08.740 --> 00:21:12.650 And fill the main roles. other committee. Like 00:21:12.650 --> 00:21:14.609 I said, we've got people we've been talking to, 00:21:14.750 --> 00:21:17.670 we got finance, we got, you know, logistics being 00:21:17.670 --> 00:21:24.670 done, we got, so we just don't know the numbers 00:21:24.670 --> 00:21:28.690 at this point in time. And we picked the Motor 00:21:28.690 --> 00:21:31.950 City Casino Hotel, we're doing this, you know, 00:21:32.049 --> 00:21:35.289 blame this on me, if you will. We're picking 00:21:35.289 --> 00:21:39.569 local companies, you know. you know things of 00:21:39.569 --> 00:21:41.529 that nature people have done stuff for the city 00:21:41.529 --> 00:21:45.650 of Detroit locally owned businesses if you will 00:21:45.650 --> 00:21:49.390 and then we also picked it because of we could 00:21:49.390 --> 00:21:53.789 fit everything in one building right so we have 00:21:53.789 --> 00:22:00.000 room for the gala on October uh third that's 00:22:00.000 --> 00:22:02.119 the big black tie event that will be everything 00:22:02.119 --> 00:22:04.819 going to accumulate into that we can fit that 00:22:04.819 --> 00:22:07.259 it's convenient for the recipients in case they 00:22:07.259 --> 00:22:09.740 got to shuttle up and down during any of the 00:22:09.740 --> 00:22:12.519 events and stuff like that um so we're going 00:22:12.519 --> 00:22:15.180 to be we we have a lot of resources there it's 00:22:15.180 --> 00:22:18.299 not like we're going to be traveling from venue 00:22:18.299 --> 00:22:20.900 to venue to get the things but there will be 00:22:20.900 --> 00:22:24.720 logistics there will be uh uh people trying to 00:22:25.460 --> 00:22:28.180 you know, guide folks from different events. 00:22:28.579 --> 00:22:31.579 We'll post the full schedule sometime after October. 00:22:31.859 --> 00:22:35.640 We have main events that are required for the 00:22:35.640 --> 00:22:38.579 convention. You know, the board meeting, there 00:22:38.579 --> 00:22:41.059 will be a memorial service or some things that 00:22:41.059 --> 00:22:45.539 are for the recipients only. And then now that 00:22:45.539 --> 00:22:47.299 we've got that schedule nailed in, we're going 00:22:47.299 --> 00:22:49.539 to be putting other events. So we would like 00:22:49.539 --> 00:22:53.259 to host a veterans event. Sure that that taken 00:22:53.259 --> 00:22:55.160 care of so we're still working out some of those 00:22:55.160 --> 00:23:00.279 details Adrian Throw this one to you, which is 00:23:00.279 --> 00:23:02.859 this costs a lot of money. You got to have big 00:23:02.859 --> 00:23:06.230 sponsors and little sponsors. Don't you? Very 00:23:06.230 --> 00:23:09.450 true, very true, Jim. And yes, and we've made 00:23:09.450 --> 00:23:12.190 great headway with some of the support too, right? 00:23:12.190 --> 00:23:14.869 Where we have an outpouring of support. And of 00:23:14.869 --> 00:23:17.410 course, monetary support is always great to help 00:23:17.410 --> 00:23:20.150 put on this convention and be able to fund more 00:23:20.150 --> 00:23:24.230 educational programs for our city and our state. 00:23:24.809 --> 00:23:29.170 Where so far, NDIA Michigan chapter, Others First, 00:23:29.349 --> 00:23:32.470 General Dynamics, Simmons and Clark, Visit Detroit, 00:23:33.009 --> 00:23:35.809 the Michigan Veterans Trust Fund. Michigan Veterans 00:23:35.809 --> 00:23:39.509 Affairs Agency, Berkshire Capital, BBC Title, 00:23:39.750 --> 00:23:42.589 and Motor City Casino Hotel have stepped up to 00:23:42.589 --> 00:23:45.369 partner or sponsor with us already before even 00:23:45.369 --> 00:23:48.569 being publicly announced, where we are actively 00:23:48.569 --> 00:23:52.049 looking for sponsors here that could help bring 00:23:52.049 --> 00:23:55.230 this event to life and help make themselves or 00:23:55.230 --> 00:23:58.029 their business affiliated with the Medal of Honor 00:23:58.029 --> 00:24:01.009 Convention and support the values that the Medal 00:24:01.009 --> 00:24:04.640 of Honor instills and stands for. Well, the Metro 00:24:04.640 --> 00:24:09.680 Detroit business community is very veteran friendly, 00:24:09.680 --> 00:24:12.599 and I'm sure you're going to find the support 00:24:12.599 --> 00:24:17.299 as the word gets out even more. What's the best 00:24:17.299 --> 00:24:19.460 way of folks who are listening here on Veterans 00:24:19.460 --> 00:24:21.420 Radio and say, this is something I want to get 00:24:21.420 --> 00:24:23.660 involved in, I even want to financially support 00:24:23.660 --> 00:24:26.720 it, or I'd like to get involved and be a volunteer, 00:24:26.839 --> 00:24:29.079 whether it's just directing folks to the right 00:24:29.079 --> 00:24:33.220 rooms or helping people out? How do they get 00:24:33.220 --> 00:24:35.720 in touch? How do they stay in touch and offer 00:24:35.720 --> 00:24:39.079 those kind of services? I would say go to our 00:24:39.079 --> 00:24:42.200 website, medalofhonoredetroit .com and keep that 00:24:42.200 --> 00:24:46.000 in mind for updates on the volunteer side as 00:24:46.000 --> 00:24:49.000 we, Russ had mentioned that as we formulate a 00:24:49.000 --> 00:24:52.119 plan and heard the cats to figure out the best 00:24:52.119 --> 00:24:56.359 ways for people to volunteer and as we ask gratefully 00:24:56.359 --> 00:24:59.099 for their time. and any financial support or 00:24:59.099 --> 00:25:01.440 any ways to sponsor or partner with us, go to 00:25:01.440 --> 00:25:04.640 the website, learn a bit more about it, and shoot 00:25:04.640 --> 00:25:09.299 us a contact or email us at info at medalofhonoredetroit 00:25:09.299 --> 00:25:13.579 .com. So that's just info at our website. Russ, 00:25:13.960 --> 00:25:16.900 you know, I got you down on tape here, so I want 00:25:16.900 --> 00:25:19.380 to get a commitment from you that you'll come 00:25:19.380 --> 00:25:21.759 back in three or four months when the details 00:25:21.759 --> 00:25:24.400 are more fleshed out. And we can give our veteran 00:25:24.400 --> 00:25:27.900 radio listeners even more specific information 00:25:27.900 --> 00:25:29.960 about this really exciting conference a year 00:25:29.960 --> 00:25:32.539 from now. You have my commitment. It would be 00:25:32.539 --> 00:25:35.380 my greatest honor to do so. And I'd like to thank 00:25:35.380 --> 00:25:38.079 the audience for their service as well. We we 00:25:38.079 --> 00:25:41.539 appreciate that very much. Well, we're glad to 00:25:41.539 --> 00:25:44.859 have both of you on. And this is one of those 00:25:44.859 --> 00:25:47.579 things that you want to know ahead of time. You 00:25:47.579 --> 00:25:50.940 want to mark your calendar and let's let's round 00:25:50.940 --> 00:25:53.539 up the troops to help out. So this is a hugely 00:25:53.539 --> 00:25:56.880 successful conference. Thanks, gentlemen. Thank 00:25:56.880 --> 00:26:19.279 you. Thank you. You can follow Veterans Radio 00:26:19.279 --> 00:26:22.559 on Facebook and listen to its podcasts and internet 00:26:22.559 --> 00:26:27.039 radio shows by visiting us at veteransradio .org. 00:26:27.299 --> 00:26:30.680 That's veteransradio .org. We would again want 00:26:30.680 --> 00:26:33.680 to thank our national sponsors, the National 00:26:33.680 --> 00:26:37.619 Veterans Business Development Council, nvbdc 00:26:37.619 --> 00:26:42.700 .org. Legal Help for Veterans, a veterans disability 00:26:42.700 --> 00:26:46.710 law firm with a national practice before The 00:26:46.710 --> 00:26:50.410 VA can help you on your claims and your appeals. 00:26:51.509 --> 00:26:54.690 It can be reached at LegalHelpForVeterans .com 00:26:54.690 --> 00:27:02.150 or 1 -800 -693 -4800. And PuroClean, a leader 00:27:02.150 --> 00:27:06.349 in property emergency services. It's the paramedics 00:27:06.349 --> 00:27:10.130 of property damage, providing water damage remediation, 00:27:10.430 --> 00:27:13.710 flood water removal, fire and smoke damage remediation, 00:27:14.140 --> 00:27:18.180 mold and biohazard cleanups, you can reach them 00:27:18.180 --> 00:27:25.900 at puroclean .com or 800 -775 -7876. We also 00:27:25.900 --> 00:27:28.859 want to thank our local sponsors. This would 00:27:28.859 --> 00:27:34.660 include the Charles S. Kettles chapter of the 00:27:34.660 --> 00:27:37.900 Vietnam Veterans of America, that's chapter 310, 00:27:38.220 --> 00:27:42.940 VFW Graf O 'Hara Post 423, the American Legion, 00:27:43.160 --> 00:27:46.240 Erwin Preskin, Post 46 in Ann Arbor as well, 00:27:46.839 --> 00:27:49.900 the VA Ann Arbor Health Care System, and certainly 00:27:49.900 --> 00:27:53.039 the National Vietnam Veterans of America Association. 00:27:53.660 --> 00:27:56.319 You can be a sponsor by going to veteransradio 00:27:56.319 --> 00:28:00.700 .org, clicking on the About Us in our sponsors, 00:28:00.900 --> 00:28:04.019 and help us out. Keep this program alive for 00:28:04.019 --> 00:28:08.559 the 21 and 22 years. Keep us going for another 00:28:08.559 --> 00:28:09.839 20. Thank you.