The Serving Those Who Served (STWS) Conference is a two-day, Veterans resource providers’ conference aimed at establishing better collaboration and connection, as well as providing a wealth of knowledge from industry experts in areas that impact the lives of our Veterans and their families. This conference provides collaboration with professionals from a variety of state agencies and community partners from across the state and includes breakout sessions surrounding arts, employment, Veterans benefits, and wellness.
Hosted in Wenatchee this year, the STWS Conference saw hundreds of attendees from across the state come together. As caught in the snapshot photos shared via Flickr and across social media, it was a reunion of familiar faces mixed with many new friendships and partnerships being formed – just look at all those hugs and smiles!
This year, STWS was sponsored by Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington State Arts Commission (Arts WA), and the Employment Security Department. Additional sponsors included USAA, Gold Star Families of WA, Nine9Line Veteran Services, and Evergreen BizLink.
Both days started with a central keynote – the first day included a fun icebreaker activity and trivia game. Thursday’s keynote speaker, Retired Army Command Sergeant Major John Wayne Troxell, got our day started with fun stories and a powerful message about FUELing our life and living with intention. Thank you, Sir, for coming out to Wenatchee and sharing your wisdom and energy with this crowd!
After the opening keynotes, attendees were released to “choose your own adventure” from the variety of available breakout sessions. These were loosely grouped by 4 main areas of interest, like Arts, Employment, Health and Wellness, and Veterans Benefits. Speakers also covered a wide range, from prestigious and well-known in the WDVA circles to first-time presenters getting to shine in both their excitement and nervousness. No matter how you serve veterans or what kind of information you enjoy (hat tip to the data nerds geeking out over charts and graphs!), there was something of value presented during these two days.
[Editor’s note: it looks like some of the sessions were recorded and will be available at the WDVA STWS website in the near future. For those who couldn’t make it, or those who had to make a hard choice between sessions, have a watch once the videos are posted!]
Additionally, thanks to the support of American Legion Post 10, VFW Post 3617, Vets Serving Vets, and Sweetwood BBQ, the Wednesday evening after hours networking social at Pybus Market was a fantastic way to really connect with some new faces in a more casual and less structured setting. Jim Cook also distributed drinks and collected donations for the Alatheia Warriors & Horses Program. I couldn’t stay for the whole event but I heard everyone that showed up had a great time.
All in all, it was a fantastic time, great to see both new and familiar faces, learn about different veteran-focused programs across the state, and generally just connect with others who are working towards the same goal. Wenatchee is looking forward to hosting again in the future!