Provo plans send-off for councilwoman-soldier heading to Kuwait

PROVO — City officials are turning the public send-off for City Councilwoman Laura Cabanilla into a rally for a program designed to support military families with members serving overseas.

The send-off will be Tuesday, Aug. 3 from 6 to 7 p.m. at the Provo City Center, 351 W. Center Street.

Cabanilla, who is also a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserves, will be deployed to Kuwait for a year as a logistics specialist with the Third Army. She will give up her council duties for the time with the approval of the City Council.

Individuals scheduled to participate in the send-off include BYU President Cecil Samuelson and Utah Valley University President Matthew Holland, as well as several local government dignitaries, who will sign a Community Covenant encouraging support for military families.

"I'm flattered, and I'm a little surprised," Cabanilla said. "But at the same time I find all of the attention a little daunting."

Cabanilla, a partner in the Provo law firm Esplin & Weight, joined the Army Reserves in 1981, but this is the first time she has been deployed. She will leave Friday for Fort Benning, Ga., and will depart for Kuwait a week later.

— Marc Haddock