STEWART AIRPORT – Assemblyman Brian Maher (R, C – Walden) arrived back in the Hudson Valley Saturday after a nine-month stint as a U.S. Navy reservist in Africa and the Middle East.

Maher touched down at Stewart International Airport late in the morning, and family members, friends and constituents greeted him as he made his way to the baggage pick-up.

“The time away was an experience I’ll never forget,” he said. “When operation Epic Fury and the war with Iran and its proxies began and was sustained for the last six months, it bought a lot of different challenges. And I got to serve with a group of thousands of sailors, Marines, soldiers and service members from every branch of the military.”

Maher is home and ready to serve his constituents again, and he heads to Albany when the legislative session begins again in January.

“So, the issues are the same issues, affordability and making sure we do everything as legislators to work to together and really overcome the polarization,” he said. “For me that’s a priority. Just going overseas and serving in the military, you have people from all walks to life, all socioeconomic backgrounds serving together to accomplish a mission, and I’d like to bring that sentiment to Albany and get some things done.”