Cold War Veterans Blog

Assistant Secretary Duckworth Honored at Women to Watch Awards

WASHINGTON (May 6, 2009) - Yesterday, the Department of Veterans AffairsAssistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs, L. TammyDuckworth, was honored by Running Start at their annual Women to WatchAwards in Washington, DC. She spoke to a crowd of 300 young women at aceremony at the National Press Club.

"We make our Nation stronger by supporting the 200,000 women currentlyserving in the armed forces and the approximately 1.7 million womenVeterans in our country that need our help," Assistant Secretary L.Tammy Duckworth said. "It's time to stop being surprised that America'sdaughters are fully capable of doing their jobs and fighting for ourfreedoms. I recognize that I am here today because I stand on theshoulders of the men and women who opened the doors for women to serve."

Running Start is a non-profit organization dedicated to inspiring youngwomen to run for political office. It offers high school and collegewomen the unique opportunity to hear from today's leaders. By educatingyoung women about the importance of politics and giving them the skillsthey need to become leaders, they give them the running start they needto reach their aspirations.

Assistant Secretary Duckworth was introduced by State RepresentativeLinda Chapa LaVia from the state of Illinois. She was recognized as a"Woman to Watch" by Running Start along with Erin Issabelle Burnett,CNBC Television Anchor; Betsy Fischer, Executive Producer of Meet thePress; Julie Gilbert, Founder and CEO of Wolf Means Business; and MonaSutphen, Deputy Chief of Staff for the Obama Administration.