During Tuesday’s Milton City Council meeting, Military Order of the Purple Heart Chapter 566 Commander Norman Chapman presented a plaque as an award to the council recognizing the city for its dedication and support honoring wounded veterans. After Chapman spoke, he shook every council member’s hand. Washington Sanchez Junior also took the podium, a retired Army colonel and chairman of the Florida Veterans Foundation, Inc. (FVF). He said he grew up in Milton attending T.R. Jackson Elementary and went on to graduate from Florida A&M University. He said FVF at the state capital provides financial emergency aid to veterans in need. Sanchez also shared with the council the Florida Veterans Walk of Honor program, which will replace all of the bricks at the capital in honor of a veteran of any military service.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Military Order of the Purple Heart Chapter 566