Smaller population, which makes it harder. They are more of a minority. It is important we do these things to reassure them and the organizations. I need a point of order. [laughter] you can go on this time. I do not want to through do that again. It is not as ivy league schools. My College Public institution that serves the innercity section of york did away with rotc about 16 years after i graduated because of the vietnam war. They have decided to bring it back this year. [applause] i want to leave you with one story and one thought. I was in minnesota. They have the military appreciation fund. They collect money for rehab, college, and other things. It unifies the entire state. The speaker was a mother of a National Guardsman who had gone three times to iraq. She is a big executive at the target corporation. She did not want to be involved with her sons activities. She went off to see him often. She was named the chair of the parents left behind. Look at the Young Mothers with their children who were crying because her daddy had gotten on the airplane. She thought she owed it to her son and her country into the sun people. She gave me the most haunting line i have never heard i quickly learned when you are a military mother, you go home and draw the lines on the window that looked out across the driveway. You cannot bear the idea of the military arriving and a chaplain will get out. That was a template for what military families go through. The rest of us do not have that kind of fear. What we do have is not just the opportunity but the application to reach out to those families and these returning veterans. We could not have had two better representatives of the military services than general powell and general mcchrystal. Thank you all very much. [applause] [applause] one of the many privileges in my life is the range of people i am able to meet. Early on as these wars were not winding down, i have two young men talk to me about their mission. They had served in the military services. Paul rieckhoff is the founder and executive director of iraq and Afghanistan War veterans of america. He did not have to go into the army. He did not have to serve in iraq, he did as a first lieutenant. He went to am worse. He went to m. Hurst. He served as an army first he went to elmhurst amherst. He was a platoon leader in iraq in 2003 and 2004. From september 7, 2001, he left his job on wall street after 911 happened. He went to serve. He has dedicated himself to the issues that bring us here today. He will tell you firsthand what you need to know and we all need to know about the success they have had so far and the word that is still to be done. Paul. [applause] thank you. Thank you very much. I want to start by asking you all to please give a round of applause to mr. Brokaw, who has been an incredible voice for us our own. He talked passionately about the greatest generation. He set the groundwork for what now we believe can be the next great generation of veterans who come home and surf. And serve. General powell and mcchrystal have an incredible voice for us. Because of my unit said is easier than being getting shot at. [laughter] that is true. My story began in another big city in new york. Right before 9 11. I was working at j. P. Morgan at 60 wall street. I was in the New York National guard. I never thought my first mobilization would be at ground zero. I have come from a military family. My grandfather was drafted in World War Two in the bronx. He served three years in the south pacific. Vietnam. Back then, every family was a military family. I wanted to get back. I want to give back. I never thought it was dark in manhattan. I never thought it would start in manhattan. My story is not unique. Many people have answered this call. This generation of veterans is not a charity. They are an investment. It is one of the strongest investments we can make at a critical time in american history. I want to tell you a story via video about a man who grew up not far from chicago and is one of the many members of iava. I took the hard road. My story has been a story of success and survival. My name is nicholas. Colgan. I deployed to afghanistan from january 2007 until april 2008. It is hard to come home. War can transform you. The military does not train you to come back home and be an american citizen. That is where groups like the iava step in. On my right shoulder i carry my best friends name that was killed in iraq. He transformed my life. I would not have joined if it were not for him. On the same arm i would get the iava logo. Iava transformed my life since i got out of the military. I could have been a statistic. I could have committed suicide. I could still be unemployed. Iava did a lot for me. Are you sure you want this . Yeah. This symbolizes everything that was great about the military and carrying it forward. You do not always see it every day. You see it in the veterans of our becoming leaders in their communities, great husbands or wives, out there leading this nation and becoming the next greatest generation of veterans. That is nick. [applause] the tattoo shop that nick got that tattoo at was created by in iraq vet who use his g i bill money to get trained and started a Small Business that not the tattoos. That now does tattoos. Both of their stories underscore the opportunity that exists in this dynamic, dedicated generation of young men and women. Nick is one of 2. 4 million men and women who served in iraq. They represent less than one half of 1 of the overall population. In world war ii it was about 12 . Not everyone has someone in their household, classroom, but these people are coming home and facing challenges. Not everyone comes home from war wounded. Everyone does come home changed. Some of them are stronger for it. They do not view themselves as victims or villains. They are a tremendous resource waiting for this country to give how mr. Them opportunities to excel. 15 are women. 30 of them used the g. I. Bill. Over 700,000 are graduating across the country. They want to continue to serve. That is something you hear from the veterans. We want to continue to serve. That is the opportunity. We have challenges. Over 40,000 have been physically wounded. The Unemployment Rate for returning veterans is 12. 1 . 12. 1 . That is what we can track. In states like michigan, it is close to 20 . Not everyone else comes home with stress disorder. They want to get involved. They contribute to our nation and communities. What they need more than anything else is a connection. They need an on ramp into society when they return. That is what we can do. We cannot do it alone. Challenges. There are almost a million disability claims backlog. Folks are waiting to find out if they will get care, if they would get payment, what is next. That can be a burden. These are all solvable problems. The challenge is isolated to the veteran community. These conversations are branching out. You do not have to be a veteran to support the movement. It does not matter who you voted for or how you feel about the war. We can be united and reassured that we do not repeat the mistakes of vietnam. Last week there was a high profile debate on domestic policy. The two president ial candidates that together as americans watched. There was one word you did not hear in that debate veteran. Veterans w not considered a domestic policy priority. That has to change. In order for us to galvanize the country and around this issue, you need to get involved. The va cannot do it alone. A lot of folks tend to think maybe they will be robotic. I was an infantry guy. I have the stereotype. People assume wall street, turn left, turn right. They do not appreciate the entrepreneurial string of that come out of these folks. They are dedicated. They do adapt, improvise, and overcome. If you really want to support the troops, hire them. They are a tremendous work force that will not only serve communities. We have been working with Different Industries who understand that. We were in new york city for advertising. Week. Understood this was a tremendous resource for them to utilize. They did a job fair. We were in Silicon Valley where leaders are realizing this is the group they want in their workforce. When you leave, you will see incredible speakers. Remember that we are not a charity. We are an investment that can lead this country to do great things through tough times. George washington said and we assume a soldier, do not lay aside the citizen. That is what the lead. Thats what we believe. We are not partisan. We are frustrated with the in action and what looks like slow things happening in washington. These are the types of folks that can pass through and take this country to the next level. We need your help. When you leave, take this with you and think about veterans day. It is november 11. Every city will have a parade and events. Please step up and join. Be a part of this movement. Help us deliver a return from this generation. We are not a charity. We are an investment. Now is the time to invest. Thank you very much. [applause] imagine what it is like when paul comes into my office with one of his friends. I sit up at attention when he comes in. You have seen now three distinguished american male military officers who returned home on damage from this service. I want you to meet melissa stockwell. She was a lieutenant in iraq in april 2004. She was hit by an i. E. D. It was on her home. It was on herin a way, her new life began on that day. She is an expert on prosthetics, having lost her leg and had it replaced by what you would not describe as an artificial leg but just a different leg. Ladies and gentlemen, melissa stockwell. [applause] how did you go into the army . I love our country. I wanted to be in the military. Did you go in before or after 9 11 . After. I was in rotc at the university of colorado in boulder. We were told it was more a matter of when we were deployed. It became real. We were making the transition at that point women serving downrange in combat conditions. Was it difficult to be a female in a military . I was in a Service Support unit. I was transportation corp. We all wear the same uniform. Everybody got treated the same in the same uniform. Let us go back to that april day in 2004. It is cathartic. We ought not to be afraid to ask about these episodes. April 13, 2004. I was on humvee. I was behind the driver. We had no doors, no armor. 10 minutes into the right, a belascos off. A big blast goes off. What you see today is the last day i have ever stood, two legs. There was the last of the i. E. D. A lost my left leg above the knee. How did they treat to in the field . There was a medic. They were two vehicles back. They got and iv started. They did not tell me my leg was gone. I found that out later. I was flown to a hospital. I was rushed into a surgery. I woke up without my leg. Realized it . It sounds so cheesy i have always been positive. I remember thinking and knowing that everything was it was ok. I knew i had a strong support system. I would be able to get through it. I wanted to do that. I wanted to start the healing process. You transferred from baghdad to germany. How long were you there . For about five days. I was stabilized before making the long trip back. You are back to walter reed. You get the prostatic. The bad news is we have too many young people losing limbs. We have learned about how they can be replaced. Is this the latest model . Is it different from what you got from the first time . Yes, it is the latest model. At walter reed, we get the best prospects. Prosthetics. When i first got to walter reed, the prostatic i got was the latest and greatest. I was able to stand, walk, do pretty well early. In the american public, there are perceptions someone sees me walking and they say look at her. Poor her. Her life most be horrible. They think i said in a dark room and cry. They think i said in a dark room and cry. But they do not know is that i wake up the next day, put on my leg, and i do more in my life than i would have done with two. My life is more fulfilled. That day in 2004, it changed my life for the better. Thats one perception and the other perception is we have the power olympic games. The powerolympic games. They claim that those prosthetic legs gave him an unfair advantage. That is not really the case. They think it is a robot leg. I can do everything i want to do, but i have to work at it. Thanks to the media, you have heart breaking stories and the wonderful stories and the reality is somewhere in the middle. Were you a good athlete . Myself as athletic. I want to be an olympic gymnast when i was younger. You are a swimmer. Yes. It started out good. What about the people with you . Is there a different kind of bond as a result of the experiences you are going through . Take anyone in the games. They all have inspiring stories. Each one of them has gone through an incredible obstacles themselves better. You know that you have overcome hard obstacles. Having the prosthetic and having improved your life, what is it that they should know about them and how they can approach them and talk about it . Treat them like you would treat anyone else. We want to be part of reality. We want to be integrated back in life. We do not want to be treated differently. If you Start Talking across something i do not want to talk about, i will let you know. Treat them the way you would treat anyone else. Do you have a job . I do. What do you do . I work in prosthetics. Those who were born without limbs or due to trauma or disease. It is the visible spectrum. When you talk about your work, is it a demonstration of how life is much better . Absolutely. It is kind of an unknown field unless you know somebody or you have it. When i first joined the military, my dad asked if they let girls into the military. It was very unknown. It was a wakeup call butthey loved it. A lot of times it was reassuring them that life is ok and that i will be ok. We grew and thrived together. I think that they are proud. I think i can say on behalf of all of us that it is ok and we are glad to have you here and share your story with us. [applause] part of the big idea of this conference and the subject is that we want you to have exposure to a full range of people who have experienced the triumphs and the traumas of the war. This there is nothing harder than having lost someone. Michael davis. Was killed with their roadside bomb. His wife was back here in the United States, taryn davis. She was his Highschool Sweetheart and became his wife. She was stricken into solid grief, but she also knew there was a calling for her as well. Their other military widows. But there were other military ritas. She founded the american widow project. Dedicated to providing a wide range of services and support for those who have lost their spouses. Her project has served 1100 women altogether. She was named one of newsweek magazines 150 women who have shaped the world and a top 10 cnn hero. Were very pleased to have her as a guest here at the chicago conference on big ideas. [applause] can i talk . Yeah. As she describes her project, i want you to in some way to put yourself in her shoes. Britain you got the call in the to have gotten that call often in middle of the night, sometimes from a disconnected voice, and you are 21 years old. Life. Expand the moment into the to you. The audience is yours. On may 21, 2007, my life ended. It started out like any other day. I woke up to the ding ding of instant messaging. I ran to my computer and got to see my husband, michael, on the screen. I met him when i was a socially awkward clarinet player in the high school band. It made no sense to me that this gorgeous trombone player would talk to me, let alone to ask me out. But he did. We eventually did it all through high school and college and parted ways to until i received a call from him knowing that he decided to join the army. Total surprise to me. We wrote letters every day during his training. Three months after we got engage. A month up to that, we got married. He was the kind of person that if you walked up to him and said he would not laugh at you. He will look at you sternly in the eyes and say to bring back a rock. He was the kind of person who made you believe in yourself. He loved star trek and frozen pizzas and he was my shark week companion. He would watch antique road show with me even though i am pretty sure he hated it. He was my soul mate. We talked about mundane things. That morning. We did not talk about the missions that he was going on. We talked about what i ate for dinner the night before and what happened on greys anatomy. In this instance, we were talking about a laptop computer. After a month of deployment, you say i love you in so many ways. I typed it out. I do not know why, but i typed out, i hope you know that i love you more than life itself. I am glad that i wrote that. An hourandahalf later, my husband would be leading a convoy of vehicles to baghdad. There was stop over. When they stopped, they said up. There were explosives that killed my husband and a few other soldiers. I would be a my parents house and later and getting ready to head home. My mom was asleep and my dad was out of town. When the phone rang, my little sister would pick it up and handed to me. They said, you need to come home. That there are men that need to talk to me. Who are the men . I cannot tell you. You need to come home. My heart dropped as a drop the phone. We asked a neighbor if they could drive me to my house. It was the longest 10 minutes of my life. Dear lord, please let it be an injury. I stopped when returned on to my street. I saw the two man wearing the same uniform that my husband wore on our wedding. I got quiet. At that point, it was like a movie scene. I got out of the car and walked to our patio. I remember seeing two men. They were shaking. In my mind does said i cant wait to talk to michael tomorrow to about these two people. Michael was killed and i was the wife they were notifying. After that, it was a whirlwind of Memorial Service and writing the obituary. It became apparent to me that the world would keep turning. I could not die of a broken heart. I like to say that with time it became easy, but months later i hit rock bottom. People disregarded my grief is due to my young age of 21. It seemed better than being in a world where people this regard my husbands sacrifice because of their political views or because of his young age at 22. I thought about michael and what he would want. It would be the ability to stand here with me today and fulfillment teams to have for each other. Fulfill the dreams we had for each otheri had to try to live for michael until i could find a reason to live for myself. In doing that i would be embracing this title i had been given widow. I went to the one place where i could find answers. I went to google. [laughter] i typed in widow. I hit enter. Google came back w