Getting Veterans the Help They Need

Hey again, Fam, get ready to salute because we are in “military mode” in this week’s edition of the Ryan Leckey Show! I get to talk to my favorite one-star General, Maureen Weigl! That’s right- we are talking red, white, and blue this week! “General Maureen” has been a true inspiration for me, and I know she’ll inspire you too, so grab your headphones and tune in for a really interesting and informative episode!

Maureen and I got to chat about her amazing experiences when she was on active duty. Maureen has an extensive, and pretty impressive, background as a one-star General. She has served in both the army, army reserves, and the army guard! Her love for her country really rings true! Her favorite part about being in the army, you ask? Simple: teamwork and workouts! No matter what happened to her, she knew that her team had her back, and that, she says, is what made the job so worth it! It’s no secret that joining the military is a tough decision, but Maureen explains once you do, you never turn your back on it… even after retiring from active duty.

Maureen may no longer be on active duty, but she is still heavily involved in the army and in the lives of so many veterans! Right now, she has the supercool title of “State Director of Veteran Affairs'' for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Maureen serves, get this, more than 720,000 veterans in PA, that’s a whole lot of people! On top of all that, she also runs the Gino Merli Veterans Center in downtown Scranton where she makes sure retired veterans get the proper care they need and deserve. Needless to say, “General Maureen'' is a very, very busy woman! But despite her super busy schedule, she still makes time for family! Maureen got married when she was on active duty and she and her husband went on to have two kids. She may love her job, but Maureen made it clear that she loves her family even more. In fact, a big reason she is no longer on active duty is her love for her family. Although they have been completely supportive or her military career, she didn’t want to miss out on her children’s lives. Her new job as head of Pennsylvania’s Veterans Affairs allows her to spend more time with her family and still be involved with veterans like herself…something she is very passionate about!

Maureen and I also spent some of our time chatting about a very serious issue in both Pennsylvania and the country as a whole: homeless veterans. Many of us know how hard a time some veterans have adapting to life after active duty. They’ve been through so much, but so many of them may not always know how to find the help they need and deserve. Maureen has played a key role in helping homeless veterans find their way back into the real world. Not only does Maureen provide veterans with a listening ear, she also provides a helping hand. She is in charge of a website called pavetconnect.com that allows veterans to connect with one another. She created this website to spread awareness of veteran homelessness, especially to employers so they know the amazing benefits of hiring veterans. She wants every veteran to know what benefits they are entitled to and what to do whenever things look bleak.

I want to give Maureen a giant THANK YOU for taking the time out of her busy schedule to talk with me not just about her amazing life as a General but also important issues regarding veteran homelessness. It is something that we ALL should be conscious of so that we can do our part in helping those who gave so much for all of us! Thank you so much, Maureen, for your service and for keeping all of us informed on current veteran affairs! For my peeps listening to this podcast, if you know someone who is struggling and can benefit from Maureen’s advice, please share this podcast, so they can get the help they need! Or, you can go to pavetconnect.com for more information!

FAM! Don't forget you can listen to every episode of The Ryan Leckey Show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and anywhere else you listen to your favorite podcasts!