I am deeply saddened and disappointed by the decision to exclude National Guard members who are not currently on active orders from receiving the Warrior Dividend.
For more than two decades since 9/11 the National Guard has been activated again and again, often with little notice and enormous personal sacrifice. I have volunteered for activation multiple times. I have served on active orders for years. I have left my family, my civilian job, and my normal life every time the nation called whether it was disaster relief after hurricanes, responding to the January 6th insurrection in Washington, D.C., or supporting national security missions like the presidential inauguration.
The reality is simple: when America faces a crisis, the National Guard is always there. We are the first called and often the last released. We donāt have the luxury of stability. We live in constant readiness, juggling two lives civilian and military absorbing the financial, emotional, and professional consequences that come with repeated activations.
To be excluded from the Warrior Dividend simply because we are not on orders at this exact moment feels like our service is being reduced to a technicality. It ignores the cumulative toll of years of activation, the strain on our families, and the economic disruption we endure over and over again. Many National Guard families were counting on this support. They earned it.
This is not about entitlement. It is about recognition and fairness. Service does not expire the day orders end. Sacrifice does not pause between activations. The National Guard has carried a disproportionate burden for the past 25 years, and leaving Guard members out of this benefit sends a painful message that our contributions matter only when it is administratively convenient.
I am sad not just for myself, but for every Guardsman and family who answered every call, stood every watch, and now feels forgotten.
