Friends,

It's been wonderful to have been home for two weeks in the District celebrating America's birthday and catching up with family and friends!

We head back to Washington, DC, today for a big week in the U.S. House, including voting on the House version of the National Defense Authorization Act. We'll be in session three weeks in a row. Stay tuned....!

Here's some of what we were able to accomplish while we were home...

Bringing In Top Brass to Examine Military Housing

Last week, I brought the Honorable Meredith Berger, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations, and Environment to tour multiple barracks at several military bases in the Hampton Roads area as part of my effort in Congress to address quality of life challenges facing our men and women in uniform. We also received several briefings, where we were joined by Rear Admiral Wesley McCall, commander of Navy Region Mid-Atlantic (NRMA) and Joint Expeditionary Base (JEB) Little Creek-Fort Story Commanding Officer Captain David Gray.

We saw everything from barracks that were non-livable due to mold to beautiful, newly renovated facilities. With quality housing playing such a crucial role in ensuring our servicemembers’ wellbeing and our military’s readiness, we can - and must - do better.

Specifically, we visited JEB Little Creek-Fort Story to examine tornado damage as well as an uninhabitable barracks with a focus on repair and demolition of structures that are unusable. Afterwards, we examined both government owned and privatized housing options in Norfolk, then joined sailors for lunch at Norfolk Naval Station, where we discussed their experience in the Navy as well as their living conditions, maintenance challenges within housing units, and food options on base.

To wrap up the day, I also visited NAS Oceana to discuss funding and projections for housing and base design, sailor amenities, and general infrastructure concerns. I saw the renovations at the bowling alley on base and toured the Child Development Center to discuss services available to military families.

Improving our servicemembers’ quality of life is one of my biggest priorities in Congress. We ask so much of our men and women in uniform. Providing them with quality housing is one of the most important steps we can take to ensure they’re properly equipped to accomplish their mission!

Thank you to base leadership for taking time to meet with us and for all that you do to keep our military operating and our country safe...!

Touring Virginia Wesleyan University

Last Friday, I toured Virginia Wesleyan University's beautiful campus and heard from both administrators and alumni about the many opportunities available to students…! I was especially impressed by their focus on cybersecurity majors, their adoption of technology in the classrooms, and how they incorporate environmental sciences into their curriculums! A big thank you to President Scott D. Miller for hosting me!

Veterans Resource Fair!

I think we can all agree that when our veterans come home, they deserve the best care and benefits we can provide. There are so many resources and organizations that support our veterans, but we need to do a better job connecting vets to these services - and that starts right here in our community! That's why last week my office hosted a Veterans Resource Fair in Virginia Beach to provide our local heroes with with information and resources on health care, housing, caretaking, employment, assistance with VA claims, and more...!

Thank you to all the groups and panelists who participated to ensure our veterans get the support and benefits they have earned…!

Inspired by the Young Women in Our Community

Thank you to my fellow Girl Scouts Morgan, Lillian, and Emerson for stopping by my Virginia Beach office! I enjoyed learning about their impressive Silver and Gold Award projects...! From organizing food pantries, to constructing rain barrels and compost bins, to making outdoor gardens more accessible for people with special needs, they are making impactful contributions to our community. Keep up the great work!!

Planning a Vacation? Need a Passport?

International travel is booming as everyone takes the vacations they were unable to take for the past few years! Unfortunately, this also means longer wait times to receive and renew passports. If you're planning to go abroad, be sure yours is up to date! Here are a few tips:

• Some countries require a passport that's valid for six months prior to your entry.
• If your passport expires in less than a year, apply for renewal as soon as possible.
• If you need to apply for or renew a passport to travel internationally, do so at least four months before you leave!
• Visit travel.state.gov/passport to check your passport's expiration date - and for more information.

If you're having trouble applying for or renewing your passport, my office is also available to help; in fact, this is one our most received requests! Please don't hesitate to reach out to my Virginia Beach Office at (757) 364-7650. To expedite the process, please click here to fill out our privacy release form before you call so that my office can begin helping you with the State Department - or any other Federal Agency - right away...!

Congressional Internships Are Available!

Last week we said goodbye to one of our district office interns, Nate! We will miss him but are excited to meet our next set of interns...! Nate is one of six VA-02 summer interns.

Congressional internships are a unique opportunity to gain invaluable work experience in the center of American politics and directly participate in serving the people in your community. Our internship program is open to high school graduates, college students, and young professionals interested in learning about the legislative process and assisting with the responsibilities of a Congressional office. Interns will work with staff and constituents on a wide range of tasks, including outreach, legislative hearings, casework, official correspondence, media relations, and more - with the possibility of earning school credit!

Contact my office for more information about our Washington, DC and Virginia Beach internship opportunities...!

Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient of the Week

This week, I want to honor Congressional Medal of Honor recipient Sergeant First Class Bennie G Adkins (Medal of Honor action date: March 9-12, 1966). 

Bennie Adkins was drafted into the Army in 1956. After finishing his basic training in Texas he was assigned as a Clerk-Typist in Germany before eventually being assigned to an Infantry Division in Georgia. Adkins served with the Special Forces groups for more than 13 years. During his time with Special Forces, he was deployed to Vietnam three times in 1963, 1965, and 1971. 

During one of Sergeant First Class Adkins' deployments in Vietnam, the camp his detachment was assigned to came under heavy attack in the early morning by the North Vietnamese. Adkins, with disregard for his own safety, manned a mortar protecting the camp. Upon discovering American soldiers were injured in a different location of the camp, he turned the mortar to another soldier and dragged several Americans to safety while under continuous enemy fire. Later in the day, Sergeant Adkins left the relative safety of the base to retrieve supplies from a supply drop. 

The next morning, the main Viet Cong force attacked the base. Within a matter of hours, Adkins remained the only soldier left firing a mortar. When he ran out of ammunition, Sergeant Adkins relied on his rifle to attack enemy positions. After being ordered to evacuate their position, Adkins remained in the last group to destroy remaining signal equipment and classified materials. When this task was completed, the group learned that the last helicopter had already departed. The men under the command of Adkins evaded enemy capture for two days before being rescued. 

During the 38-hour battle and 48 hours of escape and evasion, fighting with mortars, machine guns, recoilless rifles, small arms, and hand grenades, it was estimated that Sergeant First Class Adkins had killed between 135 and 175 of the enemy while sustaining 18 different wounds to his body. Sergeant First Class Adkins’ extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, Detachment A-102, 5th Special Forces Group, 1st Special Forces and the United States Army.

Bennie G. Adkins was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama on September 15th, 2014 at the White House. He was born on February 1st 1934 in Jefferson County, Oklahoma. He died on April 17th, 2020 in Alabama. He was promptly buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Five Fast Facts about VA-02!

1. The King Neptune statue at the intersection of the Virginia Beach Boardwalk and 31st Street stands 34 feet high and weighs 12.5 tons.
2. Virginia Beach is home to many festivals including, the Halloween Bootacular Fair, Oktober Brewfest, Virginia Beach Car Show, Virginia Arts Festival, Fair Trade Festival, Chocolate festival, Coastal Virginia Wine Fest, Blues at the beach, Caribbean Music Festival, and the Virginia Beer Festival!
3. The Amphitheater in Virginia Beach was built in 1996 and has been the home of many concerts for artists ranging from Taylor Swift to Kenny Chesney.
4. ​Virginia Beach is the most populous city in Virginia and the 39th largest city in the United States, with approximately 450,000 residents.
5. The famous Cape Henry lighthouse was the first federally funded lighthouse in the country!

As always, please don't hesitate to contact my D.C. Office at (202) 225-4215 or my Virginia Beach District Office at (757) 364-7650 with questions, concerns, or if you require assistance with a federal agency. And don't forget - if you’d like to stay up to date with what I’m working on, check out my website and follow my Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages (linked below) to stay up to date!

Take care,

Jen A. Kiggans

Congresswoman, Virginia's Second District