Secretary of State
Secretary Grimes Speaks to Deploying Troops

On August 31, 2012, Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes was privileged to speak on behalf of the Commonwealth to soldiers in the 2nd Battalion, 138th Field Artillery, who are preparing deploy to Africa for nine months. The soldiers – 565 Kentucky National Guard members – and their families and friends were on-hand for the ceremony at the Frankfort Convention Center.

Grimes thanked the soldiers for their selfless service, telling them they “represent the best of Kentucky – duty, honor, sacrifice, pride, and love of freedom.” Grimes said, “You are not just heroes for today; to each of us in this room, you are heroes always.”

Maj. Gen. Edward W. Tonini, adjutant general for Kentucky, also attended the ceremony and addressed the troops.

Grimes previously met members of the battalion in June during their pre-mobilization training at the Wendell H. Ford Regional Training Center in Greenville. She told the soldiers that the impression that visit left motivates her as she fights “to ensure that all eligible Kentuckians – especially our men and women in uniform – have access to the ballot box.”

Grimes also said she would carry the troops’ voices with her during her upcoming trip to Afghanistan, Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, where she will help assess and make improvements to military voting procedures. During her trip, Grimes will meet with military men and women in the field and learn about the logistics of delivering ballot materials to deployed troops and returning ballots to the United States on a timely basis.

“These soldiers make incredible sacrifices and take tremendous risks to protect our freedoms,” said Grimes. “I am honored and humbled to have the opportunity to tell them how proud Kentucky is of them and to pledge to continue fighting for their rights.”

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