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Illinois veteran, student among State of the Union guests

Posted January 19, 2015 10:00 pm

The Associated Press

CHICAGO (AP) - An Air Force veteran and a community college student will be among guests from Illinois attending President Barack Obama's State of the Union address.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin says retired Air Force Captain Anthony "Tony" Simone and his wife, Andrea, will join him for Tuesday's speech.

Tony Simone suffered a traumatic brain injury during his third deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan, and Andrea serves as his caregiver. The couple was featured in a pro-Durbin advertisement during his 2014 re-election bid.

Durbin has invited Illinois veterans or service members to be his guest for the annual address since 2005.

U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth has invited Homira Wardak of Elgin. Wardak is a student at Harper college. Duckworth says they met through a nonprofit program that provides help to low-income, highly-motivated students.

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