On Saturday, June 2, 2007, the Washington DC VAMC held a wonderful and successful event honoring returning combat veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts. This was a first-of-its-kind Welcome Home Celebration – a model for VA nationwide. This outreach and education event offered enrollment and eligibility services, health and mental health screenings, benefits advice and a wide variety of other services to military personnel and veterans residing in the metropolitan area who recently served in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), and Global War on Terrorism (GWT) theaters of combat. The event chairpersons were Paula Gorman, Chief, Voluntary and Recreation Service, Jean Langbein, OIF/OEF Point of Contact, and Steve Mason, OIF/OEF Social Worker. Nearly 500 combat veterans registered and began receiving VA services at the event. Many were Marines who served in the Ready Reserve. The success of this event was due in large part to the participation of the Marines, who held an Administrative Muster concurrent with the festivities. We are grateful to the many hundreds of volunteers, donors and supporters who helped to make this event so special and greeted our returning combat veterans so warmly. Based upon this success, the medical center plans to hold a Welcome Home Celebration next year.