Trampus Miller lost a leg to an improvised bomb in Iraq in 2008. His recovery at Walter Reed took three and a half years and more than 100 surgeries. Later, he attended a deer hunt through Jason’s Box, a Paris, Kentucky, nonprofit that provides free outdoor activities for severely injured veterans.
Miller recalled “just realizing you’re not alone” during that first hunt. He stayed on as a volunteer and now helps coordinate activities for other veterans.
Here in eastern Kentucky, we understand the value of having good people around you when times get hard. Whether it’s helping a neighbor put up hay, checking on someone after a storm or lending a hand to a family in need, that’s just how we were raised. Miller’s story reminds us that sometimes the greatest help we can offer is simply making sure someone knows they aren’t alone.
Veterans Day is an opportunity to recognize the men and women who served our country, but it’s also a time to remember that their lives and contributions don’t end when they hang up their uniforms.
In the General Assembly, we have a responsibility to make sure Kentucky remains a place where veterans can find meaningful work, raise their families and enjoy the freedoms they helped defend.
Through successive budgets, we have supported Kentucky VALOR, a program connecting transitioning service members and their spouses with Kentucky employers. The program helps turn military experience into civilian credentials and careers. In its September 2026 update to lawmakers, Kentucky VALOR reported nearly 250 job placements across the commonwealth.
Kentucky law also helps eligible veterans and military spouses with equivalent out-of-state credentials obtain Kentucky credentials within 30 days of a completed application, subject to necessary safeguards. Another law allows qualifying military training and experience to count toward professional licensing requirements. Someone who has spent years serving our country shouldn’t have to start from scratch when they come home looking for work.
This year’s state budget also includes $300,000 annually for emergency financial assistance to homeless veterans, along with funding for additional positions at the Thomson-Hood and Western Kentucky veterans’ centers. These resources should reach the people who need them, and we must make sure they do.
But government alone can’t provide everything veterans need. Sometimes it’s a local employer willing to give someone a chance, a church inviting a veteran to get involved or a neighbor asking an old friend to come along on a hunting trip.
As America celebrates 250 years of independence, we ought to remember that the freedoms we enjoy were secured and preserved by generations of Americans willing to serve.
Our veterans don’t owe us anything more. They’ve already answered their country’s call. Whether they want to start a business, raise cattle, spend time with their grandchildren or simply enjoy a quiet life back home, they’ve earned our respect and gratitude.
This Veterans Day, I’m thankful for every Kentuckian who has worn our nation’s uniform. May we always be the kind of neighbors who make sure those who served know they have a place to call home.
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Sen. Robin Webb, R-Grayson, represents the 18th Senate District, which includes Boyd, Carter, Greenup, and Lewis Counties. She serves as co-chair of the Disaster Prevention and Resiliency Task Force. She is a member of the Interim Joint Committees on Agriculture, Appropriations and Revenue, Families and Children, and Natural Resources and Energy. Webb is a liaison member of the Budget Review Subcommittee on Justice and Judiciary. Additionally, she serves on several statutory committees, including 2026-2028 Budget Preparation and Submission, Capital Projects and Bond Oversight, Tobacco Settlement Agreement Fund Oversight, and as a non-voting ex officio member of the Juvenile Justice Oversight Council.
