The VFW 119th National Convention will be held this July 21-25 in Kansas City. It has been a long-standing tradition at the VFW National Convention to present the incoming National Commander with a handcrafted Veterans’ Ring from the Northwest Indiana based American Veterans Collection. On Wednesday, July 25, Mr. James Chancellor, president and CEO of American Veterans Collection and 2016 Inductee into the Indiana Veterans Hall of Fame, will address the thousands of VFW and Auxiliary members in attendance and present the ring to the newly elected National Commander.
This year’s convention focuses on the mental trauma that war has on veterans. Mr. Chancellor will attest to the urgency to help our younger veterans adjust to military life through mandatory education after deployment. He also will present why there is a need to educate America’s high school and college students on the full price our heroes pay for America’s freedom.
“Addiction, divorce, isolation and depression are only a few of the demons faced by our veterans. Every day twenty American veterans, that were willing to give their life for our freedoms, die by suicide. I hope to leave all in attendance with a call to action, to take this message home to our local VFW's and colleges—we must all pledge to do something, no matter how small it is, to help our veterans,” states Chancellor.
James Chancellor is a U.S. Army combat veteran who served as a Door Gunner in Vietnam from 1969-1970 and has received the Purple Heart and Heroism Medal of Valor. Shortly after returning home from war, Chancellor was driven to educate America on the psychological toll war has on our veterans.
As president as CEO of the American Veterans Collections, a non-profit organization providing tangible pride to all combat veterans, Chancellor has made special presentations to both Bob Hope and Toby Keith and has worked with Congressional Medal of Honor recipients Sammy Davis and Gary Wetzel. James shares his experience and how he has successfully overcome PTSD with veterans and schools throughout the nation. As an advocate for veterans and a national featured speaker for PTSD, he has been featured on the same agenda as President Ronald Reagan, Colin Powell, Vice President Al Gore, Ross Perot, Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama. For more information, please visit: http://www.veteranscollection.com.