As the daughter of a disabled Vietnam veteran, veterans' issues have always been close to Heather French Henry's heart.

During her reign as the 2000 Miss America, she traveled more than 300,000 miles around the country speaking on veterans' issues and founded the Heather French Foundation for Veterans, a nonprofit organization offering financial and educational support to veterans in the areas of homelessness, health-care and housing.

The foundation's newest wellness initiative, Operation Veterans' Health, will have its first event, a free informational dinner, at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 22, at the United Auto Workers Hall Local 862, at 3000 Fern Valley Road.

"We want to get awareness out to veterans about what their health risks are," she said.

Veterans of all ages are invited to att/files/storyimages/the dinner that will feature speakers addressing health issues that face veterans such as diabetes, prostate cancer and high cholesterol, which is a major factor in heart disease - the No. 1 cause of death among Kentuckians.

Speakers will include Dr. Jahangir Cyrus, an endocrinologist who will speak on diabetes and cholesterol, and Dr. Steve Henry, former Kentucky lieutenant governor and Heather's husband, who will speak on prostate cancer from his own perspective as a survivor of the disease.

Information also will be distributed to let veterans know how they may go about applying for veterans' benefits.

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