California Veterans Memorial Dedication

Steve Dakota: Good morning ladies and gentlemen. On behalf of State Secretary of Veterans Affairs Lee Bennett, welcome to the dedication of the California Veterans Memorial. I would like to briefly quote the poet laureate of county music, Grammy-winning recording artist, veteran USO entertainer, and former Sacramento resident, Lee Greenwood. And I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free. And I won't forget the men and women who died, who gave that right to me. And I'd gladly stand up, next to you, and defend her still today. 'Cause there ain't no doubt, I love this land. God Bless the U.S.A. And God bless the master of ceremonies for this morning's event. You know, an Army has a commander, a circus has a ringmaster, and a movie has a director. Our MC for today, is a combination of all three. From 1956 to 1959, our master of ceremonies served as an intelligence analyst in the U.S. Army. From 1962 to 1964, he worked as a disc jockey and as news director at KROY radio in Sacramento. From 1960 to 1964, he supervised operations at Crocker Bank and Bank of America. From 1964 to 1976, he worked as the anchorman and news director of a CBS television affiliate in northern California. He retired as a California legislator in 1994 after 18 years of honorable service. As a state assemblyman, he authored the bill signed by Gov. Pete Wilson that removed the California Department of Veterans Affairs from the State and Consumer Services Agency and made CDVA a separate, freestanding department. You probably recognize him from television. He was the moderator of this year's televised debates between Gov.-elect Gray Davis and Attorney General Dan Lungren. Last but not least, he currently serves as executive officer of the California Broadcasters Association. Ladies and gentlemen, let's have a big round of applause for today's director, ringmaster, and commander, your master of ceremonies - and he is a veteran - Mr. Stan Statham!