Secretary of State Kim Wyman did her first “Wyman Works for You” work day Thursday at the  Washington Veterans’ Home at Retsil in Port Orchard. She described it as a heart-warming opportunity to serve lattes and have great conversations with veterans like M. John Stanley, who served in WWII, Korea and Vietnam.

Wyman was fulfilling a promise she made at last year’s Combined Fund Drive’s Leadership Breakfast.  She threw down a challenge that she would work for a day for any agency that got 100 percent participation for CFD payroll contributions or for large agencies that more than doubled their participation. Five small agencies got to 100 percent, and the Department of Veterans Affairs was able to more than double their participation, jumping from 17 percent to 56 percent.

She’s made the same CFD challenge for this year’s campaign as well.

The Combined Fund Drive, part of the Office of the Secretary of State, empowers public employees and retirees to strengthen their communities through funding and support of charities, primarily through regular payroll deductions. Last year, CFD helped raise over $5 million and since it was created in 1984, has raised over $120 million.