State of the Union Address by President Donald J. Trump February 5th, 2019
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Sen. Murray Tours Naval Air Station Whidbey Island WIC Office That She Fought to Keep Open

Naval Air Station Whidbey Island WIC office offers critical services to military families, such as nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and health screenings and referrals

In 2016, WIC office served 1,091 people in the local military community

 
Senator Murray meets with staff in the WIC office on base.

(SEATTLE, WA) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) visited the Naval Air Station Whidbey Island to tour the base, meet staff members, and learn more about the services offered to Navy personnel and their families, including the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) office. In 2015, the Navy planned to close the WIC office on base in a Department of Defense-wide decision to remove non-federal organizations from military bases. Senator Murray fought back against this closing, working with the WIC office to prevent the closure and ensure these critical services continued to be offered to families at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island. In December 2015, the Navy offered the WIC office a five-year lease without the previously-required fees that would have been expensive for the organization running the WIC office to compensate, allowing the office to remain open.

“After visiting base today, I can see the services offered here are clearly an important part of the Naval Air Station Whidbey Island community,” said Senator Murray. “Making sure our military families have the support they need to put food on the table is the least we should be doing. I was proud to fight to reverse the decision to close the WIC office on base, and I will keep up the fight along with the strong support of the Navy to ensure we are doing everything we can to support the military community that sacrifices so much for their country.”

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