Hon. Patrick J. Murphy

Chairman

Patrick is committed to being an ambassador for veterans. In 2007, Patrick became the nation’s first Iraq War Veteran elected to Congress, representing Pennsylvania’s 1st congressional district. He authored several groundbreaking pieces of legislation into law including the 21st Century GI Bill, the Repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, and the raising of the federal minimum wage. Continuing public service today, he was appointed to the National US Cyberspace Solarium Commission, as well as Distinguished Chair of Innovation at West Point, and supports fellow veterans entering political public service through Kennedy Democrats and Taking the Hill. Patrick led the U.S. Army – a Fortune 2-sized workforce of 1.3 million, with a $148 billion budget, and the nation’s largest employer of millennials. He led the expansion of the Soldier for Life initiative, was instrumental in achieving recruitment goals for the first time in five years, and generated over $250 million in public-private partnerships. He initiated opening up over 2,500 AAFES retail stores for the first-ever, tax-free online shopping which has increased annual sales to over $6.7 billion. Patrick was born into a family of veterans. His father Jack served in the Navy, his uncles Joe and Bill served in Vietnam, and his brother J.J. served in the Air Force, with two post-9/11 overseas deployments.

Patrick continued this tradition, enlisting in the United States Army ROTC program at age 19. He would serve two deployments following September 11th—the first to Bosnia in 2002 and the second to Iraq from 2003 through 2004 as a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division. He received a Bronze Star for his service in Iraq, which included leading a Brigade Operational Law Team and successfully prosecuting two high-level terrorists in the Supreme Court of Iraq.

Elizabeth Murray-Belcaster

Executive Director

Elizabeth Murray-Belcaster is the President of EMB Consultants, Inc. Leading initiatives for Veterans’ and military families, Belcaster is an expert in strategic development of training to placement efforts across the country and an advisor for leadership and coalition building. She is responsible for networking with employers, military partners, and legislators as well as building independent partnerships with labor affiliates and with veteran’s service organizations across the country. She served as Task Force Committee member and lead panelist for the American Legion National Licensing and Credentialing Summits and continues to drive industry stakeholders, governing agencies, labor unions and military affiliations in collective spaces to further advance programming and policy for service members across the globe. Belcaster specializes in development of Military Training to Placement efforts with military leadership, industry, labor, academia and regulatory agencies and stakeholders across the country.

She’s had concurrent experience directing political campaign initiatives for the offices of Governor, State and National Congress, Senate, Aldermanic, and regional judicial positions. She has presented at the Clinton Global Initiative and has served as a board member on the Women For Wounded Warriors Foundation since 2016, and is a past recipient of United States Field Artillery Associations, The Order of Saint Barbara award.

Emily Haas

Emily Haas is the Chairwoman and Senior Policy Advisor for Health Care to Task Force Movement.   Ms. Haas brings a wealth of expertise in the U.S. and global health systems, often focusing on veteran and military care delivery. She has over a decade of experience in government relations, public affairs, and public policy development.

Ms. Haas’s career has revolved around helping healthcare organizations craft policy agendas while navigating complex regulatory environments. Before becoming a management consultant, she spent several years advising Congressional leaders on Capitol Hill. As Senior Policy Advisor to U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb (PA-17) and aide to U.S. Rep. Allyson Schwartz (PA-13), she played a key role in developing and implementing bipartisan healthcare initiatives. This work includes the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Medicare payment reform, and addressing the opioid crisis.  She also helped create the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Technology Modernization, which oversees a multi-billion-dollar electronic health record (EHR) project. Ms. Haas’s private sector experience includes advocacy in the medical technology industry and policy communications for a trade association.

Ms. Haas’s professional journey extends beyond domestic policy. She has also gained valuable international experience at the World Health Organization (WHO), where she worked closely with European Ministries of Health. Her role involved crafting comprehensive policy frameworks and ensuring that the WHO European policy platforms were in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This international experience showcases her adaptability and global perspective.

Ms. Haas holds an M.P.H. from Dartmouth College and an undergraduate degree in political science from Penn State University.

Ed Lewis

Edward Lewis served as a Machinery Technician and retired from the Coast Guard with 32 years of service, 16 as a Master Chief. His shipboard assignments included the USCGC MIDGETT, USCGC POINT DORAN, USCGC POINT SPENCER and the USCGC MANOWAR. Command Master Chief tours included Sector Guam in the Northern Mariana Islands, the Fourteenth District in Hawaii, the Deputy Commandant for Mission Support in Washington D.C., and Force Readiness Command in Norfolk, Va. He also served as the School Chief of the Chief Petty Officer’s Academy and led the Coast Guard’s largest engineering career field as the Machinery Technician Rating Force Master Chief.

In addition to assigned duties, Edward served on the Commandant’s Leadership Advisory Council, as an analyst on the Outlook Vision Team (10-year Strategy), Royal Navy and US Coast Guard future technical support study, and the core team for the Evergreen Project (25- year Strategy). He is currently a member of Green Advantage INC’s Education and Credentialing Board and is a member of Arizona State University’s Senior Enlisted Advisory Council. Edward is a graduate of the Army Sergeant’s Major Academy, Class 57, and holds a master’s degree in human service counseling / military resilience with distinction from Liberty University.

As Vice President for Business Development at the Maritime Institute, he focuses on staff recruiting, creating strategic business partnerships, and expanding Maritime Institute’s customer base. Edward has extensive experience with the Military-to-Mariner Initiative and is passionate about veteran and spouse employment. Edward has personal experience on Pacific Islands and saw firsthand the impact of plastics on wildlife, the culture of indigenous Oceana Peoples, and the environment. He spends his free time with his wife, Michelle, enjoying the outdoors and advocating for the maritime workforce.