Gill to speak at annual Veterans Breakfast this Saturday

A Portageville veteran, Ryan Gill, will be the guest speaker this Saturday at the annual Veterans Breakfast, sponsored by the First Community State Bank. The breakfast will be held at the St. Eustachius Parrish Center, corner of Meatte Avenue and Fifth Street of the City.

Gill is the son of Glenn and Marie Gill, grandson of Henry and Alice Maclin, Florence and the late Bob Gill. He graduated from Portageville High School in 2006.

Upon graduation from PHS, he joined the Missouri Army National Guard and reported to Ft. Leonard Wood in February 2007 for Basic Combat & Advanced Individual Training as a 31Bravo-Military Police Officer. Upon completing initial training, he was assigned to the 1175th Military Police Company in preparation of deployment for Operation Iraqi Freedom. While deployed from 2008-2009, the 1175th MP Co. conducted combat operations in Samarra & Mosul, Iraq as a Police Transition Training Team (PTT). Their PTT mission was an effort to develop training and mission readiness of Iraqi Police so as to ensure order and security in Iraqi cities.

In addition, following the devastating earthquake that occurred on the island nation of Haiti in 2010, Gill was activated and deployed to assist in humanitarian efforts across the island. The primary mission was to establish security for engineering units amidst an effort to rebuild schools.

Gill was deployed once again to Qatar during 2011-12 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, as part of a security asset team providing base security screening for all vehicles and personnel entering and exiting the post.

Upon returning home from his final deployment, Gill attended the University of Missouri-Columbia where he obtained a B.S. in Agriculture with a concentration in Agriculture Economics & Education. In his time at MU, Gill served as President of the Mizzou Student Veterans Association, a student led group comprised of more than 350 returning student veterans. Also fulfilling a role in his local community,he served on the Board of Directors of Welcome Home Inc.; a non-profit homeless veterans shelter located in Columbia.

He also served as a Board Member of the Mizzou Military Veterans Alumni Association. His previous speaking engagements include addressing the University of Missouri Board of Curators as a student representative, the Inaugural Mizzou Law-Veterans Legal Clinic Symposium, Sept. 11 MU Patriot Day Event, 2014 Mizzou Veterans Day Ceremony, 2015 City of Columbia Veterans Day Vigil, & Community Issues Panel at Stephens College.

Gill is currently employed with Vessell bridges Murphy Law office in Columbia as a office assistant.