Healey addresses Goldstar spouses – Boston News, Weather, Sports
They are members of “the club no one wants to join,” as Gov. Maura Healey put it.
Dressed in gold jackets and garrison caps, members of the Gold Star spousal community – survivors of service members who died serving their country – packed the Senate Reading Room Wednesday for a luncheon and a chance to hear government officials.
“We understand the mental health emergency right now … and that there will undoubtedly be more families in need of support and protection,” the governor told them.
Peggy Griffin, president of Gold Star Wives of America’s Greater Boston Chapter, said the surviving spouses would band together “to work for better accomplishments and better lives for us and our children.”
While the greatest loss is emotional, there are other realities to deal with.
“One of the things that happens to you when you lose your spouse is that you lose an average of 75 percent of your income,” Griffin said. “You lose your social status as a couple. And you no longer fit into the community.”
Gold Star Wives of America creates a “new community” for them and connects them with benefits to which they are entitled, she added.
Senator John Velis, a US Army Reserve major who has served in Afghanistan, said no group of people have sacrificed more than members of the Gold Star family.
“Something very bad happened in your life. And you’ve decided to come together, solidify and be an advocate,” the Westfield Democrat said
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