As the Chairman of the Missouri Association of Veterans Organizations, I’m grateful for new leadership in Missouri that fights for our veterans. These men and women deserve dignity, respect, and quality care. Unfortunately, too often, government fails them.

Families came forward with worries about conditions in the St. Louis Veterans home. The bureaucracy said everything was fine. Governor Greitens took action and found the truth.

These veterans needed someone to hear their stories and fight on their behalf. That’s what Governor Greitens did. He took on the bureaucracy, at the state and federal level, to demand answers for these families. He took strong action to bring new leadership in when his investigation showed that these veterans were being mistreated.

When veterans’ safety and lives were in jeopardy, he refused to listen to excuses. He demanded results. It would have been easy to accept the answers that they got from the VA and the head of this home. He didn’t. He kept pushing.

There’s more work to be done. The government has let down too many veterans too many times for too many years. Today we know, there are leaders who won’t accept the status quo. Change like this often ruffles some feathers. Strong action can upset some people. Clearly, the Governor is OK with shaking things up if he believes it’s the right thing to do for veterans. That’s what leadership looks like.

Thomas W. Mundell
Chairman, Missouri Association of Veterans Organizations
Past State Commander, Missouri VFW