CHAMPAIGN, IL (05/10/2013)(readMedia)-- Today the U.S. military honors those who do not wear the uniform but who stand beside their servicemembers everyday: military spouses. May 10, Military Spouse Appreciation Day, was established by Ronald Reagan in 1984 and is celebrated the Friday before Mother's Day each year.

Sgt. 1st Class Sean P. Broderick said his wife, Donna K. Broderick, both of Fisher, has proven herself as a spouse who goes above and beyond to make her husband's service to his country possible. Broderick, along with his daughter, Pfc. Kierstin M. Broderick of Urbana both serve in Company B, 634th Brigade Support Battalion in Champaign.

Just four months after they married, Sean deployed to Afghanistan with the 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team in 2008. Donna was left to run the house and take care of their now combined five children.

"I thought deployment, from my perspective, was harder on my wife than it was on me," said Broderick.

Despite the family dynamics, deployment and any other stressors, Sean said Donna held the family together while he was overseas.

"She's pretty awesome," said Sean. "For someone who has never dealt with anything like a deployment, she really held it together. I was really impressed with how she held herself together and dealt with everything."

Donna said the family transition and the deployment was difficult at first, but over time she adapted.

"It was hard enough with our family dynamics because we were combining families, trying to find boundaries with the older kids, working, not knowing what (Sean) was getting himself into, especially after what happened in Iraq in 2005," said Donna.

Sean, a purple heart recipient, was injured in a rocket attack during the 2005 deployment that put him in the hospital for several months.

Donna took on even more responsibility when she took charge of the Family Readiness Group (FRG) just five months ago after the previous leader abruptly stepped down.

"The FRG was so helpful while our Soldiers were gone," said Donna. "It's not like being at a normal military base where your neighbors have Soldiers deployed. You're kind of out there on your own."

Although Military Spouse Appreciation Day has been around for nearly three decades, many servicemembers are not aware of its existence.

"I think it's incredible," said 2nd Lt. Anastasia M. Flanagan of Danville, acting commander of Co. B, 634th BSB. "I think military spouses, especially on the Guard side, are often overlooked. I think this is an excellent program to get the word out that as an Army, in the National Guard, we do appreciate our spouses and we do think they are an invaluable members of the team."

Donna has made progress to improve the FRG after only five months in the leadership role.

"I was immediately impressed with how she brings her ideas into the FRG meetings and is working outside of the two hours that we have our meetings," said Flanagan. "She's working toward trying to have our meetings run efficiently and bring new and fresh ideas. That's been incredible."

Donna is just one of hundreds of thousands of military spouses being honored on Military Spouse Appreciation Day. But to one unit, one husband, and five children, she's invaluable.

Friday, May 10, 2013

Grassley Reminds Agencies of Key Whistleblower Protections, Seeks Compliance Details

WASHINGTON - Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa today wrote to 15 government agencies, reminding them of recently enacted whistleblower protections and seeking information on their compliance with the new law.

"Whistleblowers risk their careers to point out government waste, fraud and abuse," Grassley said.  "Without them, the public wouldn't know about a lot of problems that had to be exposed to get fixed. Our government would be the weaker for it.  Protections for whistleblower communications with Congress and agency watchdogs are critical for whistleblowers' good work to continue."

Grassley wrote to the major executive branch agencies about the recently enacted Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, which codified an "anti-gag" provision he introduced every year.  The provision makes explicit that agency nondisclosure agreements do not apply to communications with Congress or reporting violations and/or misconduct to an Inspector General, or any other whistleblower protection.  Agency nondisclosure agreements must include specific disclaimers to that effect, and those disclaimers must be posted on agency websites.

Grassley asked each agency for information including all forms, policies, or agreements mentioning communications with Congress used within the last five years and a detailed statement of the various efforts taken to post the "anti-gag" provision on the agency website.

Grassley wrote to the Department of State, Department of the Treasury, Department of Defense, Department of Justice, Department of the Interior, Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, Department of Labor, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Department of Transportation, Department of Energy, Department of Education, Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Homeland Security.

Grassley is a long-time advocate for whistleblowers.  He was the Senate author of the 1986 whistleblower updates to the federal False Claims Act.  Since 1986, these provisions have recovered more than $30 billion that otherwise would be lost to fraud.

The text of Grassley's letter follows here.  The text is the same for each of the 15 agencies.

May 10, 2013

VIA ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION

The Honorable Eric K. Shinseki

Secretary

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

810 Vermont Avenue NW

Washington, D.C. 20420

Dear Secretary Shinseki:

Time and again, whistleblowers courageously identify, often at great risk to their professional careers, waste, fraud, and abuse.  Unfortunately, as a result of their actions, whistleblowers often face intimidation, retaliation, and are subjected to prohibited personnel practices despite proscriptions against such action under federal law.[1]

As part of my efforts to protect whistleblowers, starting in 1988 I introduced an amendment known as the "anti-gag" provision to the Treasury, Postal Service and General Government Appropriations Act.[2] This provision was adopted and has been included in every appropriations bill signed into law since 1988,[3] most recently in March 2013 as part of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act of 2013.[4] In addition the recently passed Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA) codified the anti-gag provision as a prohibited personnel practice and thereby eliminated the need for annual revision.[5]

The new federal law now requires every U.S. Government nondisclosure policy, form, or agreement to contain an explicit statement notifying employees that nondisclosure requirements do not supersede their rights and obligations created by existing statute or Executive Order relating to classified information, communications to Congress, reporting violations and/or misconduct to an Inspector General, or any other whistleblower protection.[6] Moreover, the law requires any agency using a nondisclosure policy, form, or agreement to also post the aforementioned statement on the agency website, as well as a specific list of controlling Executive orders and statutory provisions.[7]

As the author of this rider and an original cosponsor of the WPEA who worked closely in drafting this provision with Senator Akaka, I want to ensure that this law is fully implemented.  Accordingly, please provide the following information:

1)      All forms, policies, or agreements which mention communications with Congress used within the last five years, including those with either non-disclosure or non-disparagement provisions.

2)      All forms, policies, or agreements which include the statutorily-defined statement informing employees of their rights on every nondisclosure policy.

3)      All forms, policies, or agreements which purport to limit a current or former employee's ability to communicate directly with Congress, whether explicitly or as a part of a general prohibition without a specific Congressional exemption.

4)      A detailed statement of the various efforts that your department has taken to post the "anti-gag" provision on its website, along with a specific list of controlling Executive orders and statutory provisions.

Thank you in advance for ensuring your response arrives no later than May 24, 2013.  Should you have any questions regarding this letter, please contact Chris Lucas of my Committee staff at (202) 224-5225.

Sincerely,

Charles E. Grassley

Ranking Member                               

Committee on the Judiciary

See 5 U.S.C. § 2302(a) (2006) (outlining prohibited personnel practices).

Treasury, Postal Service and General Government Appropriations Act, 1989, Pub. L. No. 100-440, 102 Stat. 1756 (1988).

See generally Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2012, Pub. L. No. 112-74, 125 Stat. 932 (2011); Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009, Pub. L. No. 111-8, 123 Stat. 685 (2009).

Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013, Pub. L. No. 113-6, Div. F, Title I, Sec. 1105 (referencing back to Pub. L. No. 112-74, Div. C, Title VII, Sec. 715).

Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012, Pub. L. No. 112-199, 126 Stat. 1465 (2012).

WEST BRANCH, IOWA– "Jazz and Pop" will kick off this year's Music on the Village Green concert series in West Branch, Iowa. The award-winning West Branch High School Jazz Band, followed by student a cappella singers, performs on Friday, May 24 at 7:00 p.m. Main Street West Branch will hand out free popsicles during "Jazz and Pop".

Following the May 24 performance Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, in cooperation with Main Street West Branch, invites visitors to a series of special musical events each Thursday night in June. The weekly performances feature folk band The Hollands (June 6), bluesman Kevin "BF" Burt (June 13), guitarist Scott Cawelti (June 20), and bluegrass band The Feralings (June 27). The concerts are free and begin at 7:00 p.m. at Herbert Hoover National Historic Site in West Branch, Iowa.

"We're excited about the bands coming to perform this year," said park superintendent Pete Swisher, "and about bringing the community together around events in Herbert Hoover National Historic Site."

The outdoor concerts will take place on the village green at the intersection of Parkside Drive and Main Street in historic downtown West Branch.  The village green provides a classic small town setting in which to enjoy an evening of free entertainment.  There is ample parking nearby, and people are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or ground blankets.

Scott Cawelti's performance on June 20 is courtesy of Humanities Iowa, a private, non-profit state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Herbert Hoover National Historic Site and the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum are in West Branch, Iowa at exit 254 off I-80. Both are open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central Time. For more information go online at www.nps.gov/heho or call (319) 643-2541.

Herbert Hoover National Historic Site

110 Parkside Drive

PO Box 607

West Branch, Iowa 52358

319 643-2541 phone

319 643-7864 fax

www.nps.gov/heho

Twitter: @HooverNPS

Facebook: HerbertHooverNHS

Rock Island, IL: The Rock Island Public Library will host a screening and discussion by Heritage Documentaries on Thursday, May 23 of "The Rock Island Civil War Prison: Andersonville of the North?" The screening starts at 6:30 pm in the Community Room of the Rock Island Main Library, 401 19^th Street. The event is free and open to the public.

The 30-minute documentary tells the story of the Rock Island Confederate prison camp using dramatic photos and other high-definition images.  It documents the life of prisoners using their own words from diaries and letters and demonstrates that the death rate at Rock Island was much lower than the astonishing death rate at Andersonville Prison in Georgia. The title, "Andersonville of the North," is derived from a passage in Margaret Mitchell's literary classic, Gone with the Wind.

Writers/directors Ed Isenberg and Ezra Sidran will be present to discuss the production and answer questions. The documentary is also available on DVD.

For more news about Rock Island Public Library events, visit www.rockislandlibrary.org, call 309-732-7323 (READ) or follow the Rock Island Library on Facebook and Twitter. A monthly calendar of library events is available online and at Rock Island Library locations.