West Bend, WI – Vietnam veteran Michael Orban of West Bend head the Orban Foundation and is host of the podcast Stigma Free Vet Zone. On Monday, August 23, 2021 at the War Memorial Center in Milwaukee, Orban will be heading an event: The Afghanistan Conversation – a gathering of veterans and veteran families to discuss the impact of the withdrawal from Afghanistan.
The War Memorial Center will host The Afghanistan Conversation on Monday, August 23, 2021 from 12 p.m. – 1:30 p.m., presented by the Orban Foundation for Veterans, Advocate Aurora Veterans Program and Healing Warrior Hearts.
This will be the first of two events, with a second follow-up event set to occur Monday, August 30, 2021 also over the noon hour.
The Afghanistan Conversation – is a gathering of veterans, military and Gold Star families designed to discuss the impact of the withdrawal from Afghanistan.  A panel of Afghanistan and Vietnam veterans will open the event, sharing their experiences, camaraderie of support and efforts of healing.
Keynote speaker Dr. Gregory Burek of Aurora Veterans Program and Iraq combat veteran will discuss the difficulty of this situation currently impacting Afghanistan veterans along with a panel discussion made up of Vietnam and Afghanistan veterans.
Following the presentations will be an opportunity for veterans to ask questions and interact in an open mic “town hall” type conversation with the panelist. Additional resources, veterans and organizations will be available to field questions and offer support for all attendees.
August 23, 2021 Event timeline:
- 11:00 am – Doors Open 3rd Floor Memorial Hall
- 12:00 pm – Event Begins: Introductions and panel presentations (veterans from Vietnam, Afghanistan, Gold Star family representative)
- 12:30 pm – Dr. Gregory Burek presentation
- 12:50 pm – Open mic discussion participants panel discussion
- 1:30 pm – Conclusion
Click BELOW to listen to the Stigma Free Vet Zone podcast –
Afghanistan and More: Extreme Challenges & Resiliency
Support teams will be on-site from Healing Warrior Hearts, Advocate Aurora Veterans Program, the Milwaukee VA Mental Health Division and the Captain John D. Mason Veteran Peer Support Program with the Medical College of Wisconsin.  Support staff will remain on-site until 3:00 pm to provide additional help as needed for attendees.
To learn more of the support available to all members of our community, go to BeThereWIS.com for a listing of community resources available to veterans, family members and all members of our community.
