society of national association publications — award winning … article feb14... ·...

VOLUME 37 NUMBER 4 www.ausa.org FIFTY CENTS February 2014

Society of National Association Publications — Award Winning Newspaper

AUSA Opposes1-Percent COLA Cut

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Veterans Hiring Event atAUSA Winter Symposium

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Honors to the Nation: U.S. Army All-American Bowl East Team athletes, right to left, linebacker Shaun Hamilton, Carver High School, Montgomery, Ala.; wide-receiver Shaq Davidson, Gaffney High School, Gaffney, S.C.; and defensive back Nick Ruffin, St. Pius X Catholic High School, Atlanta, Ga., face the colors prior to the playing of the National Anthem at the Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas. See Special Report – 2014 Army All-American Bowl,

1. (Photo by: Pfc. Brian N. Lang, USAR, 205th Press Camp, Headquarters, 2014 Army All-American Bowl)

Pay, Benefits are Incentives to Join Army

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2 AUSA NEWS q February 2014 ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

Staff Sgt. Jason Peacock with Troop O, 4th Squadron, Combined Task Force Dragoon, drinks chai tea with the local Afghanistan Uniformed Police in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan. The troopers conducted a series of patrol missions with the Afghanistan Uni-formed Police at various security checkpoints throughout the province. (Photo Credit: Sgt. Joshua Edwards, Combined Task Force Dragoon Public Affairs)

‘Outlaw’ and ‘Palehorse’ troops patrol with Afghan Uniformed Police

Pay, benefits are incentives to join(Editor’s note: The following is a Let-

ter to the Editor published in the Wash-ington Post by Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, USA, Ret., president of the Association of the United States Army, which chal-lenges the erroneous assumptions made in a Post article regarding military pay and benefits.)

I read with dismay the December 26 article, “For Military, Benefits and Reform are Challenge,” which de-

monizes our troops as unworthy of the benefits they receive while ignoring the challenges, sacrifices and hardships mil-itary personnel and their families face while providing the nation’s defense as volunteers.

Military personnel costs, described as “burgeoning” and making up nearly half the Pentagon’s budget, are in fact approximately 30 percent of the budget as they have been for the past 30 years.

The growth in those costs that “must

be tamed” is in fact a ten-year catch up effort enacted by Congress to close a pay gap that had grown to 14 percent.

Parity has been achieved and that growth will level off.

Pay and benefits must be competi-tive because almost three of four re-cruitment-age Americans cannot qualify for military service, and those left have other career options.

If military pay and benefits are the same as those of civilians, there is little incentive to join an organization with the inherent risks of military life.

One of the world’s richest nations can afford a military compensation and ben-efits package that matches the dangers and hardships its defense personnel must endure.

Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, USA, Ret.PresidentAssociation of the United States Army

Sgt. Joshua EdwardsPublic AffairsCombined Task Force Dragoon

Troopers with Combined Task Force Dragoon continue their mission of advising Afghan Na-

tional Security Forces in preparation for the upcoming presidential and parlia-mentary elections.

Soldiers with O “Outlaw” Troop and P “Palehorse” Troop, 4th Squadron, Com-bined Task Force Dragoon, teamed up with Afghan Uniformed Police, known as the AUP, for a series of foot patrols at various checkpoints throughout Kan-dahar Province during the month of De-cember during Operation Alamo Scout.

The AUP has been conducting these missions to address security concerns they might face as they train and prepare for the 2014 elections and also to engage with local community elders near various checkpoints throughout the province.

With prayers being recited over loud-speakers throughout the night and smil-ing children playing and running up to the service members on patrol in excite-ment during the day, the AUP patrols are allowing the police to reach out to local village elders and inquire about how each area will participate in the upcom-ing elections.

The assessment allowed them to gain a firm grasp on how much security, if any, would be necessary for a safe and successful outcome.

“It’s an assessment of the strengths

and weaknesses of the various check-points and an indication of the support they would require to have successful

elections and provide enduring security to the villages,” 1st Lt. Joseph Brock-bank, platoon leader, 1st Platoon, Pale-horse Troop, said.

The elections have become an oppor-tunity for the AUP to estimate just how willing and involved the local population will be in the democratic system of gov-ernment.

In preparation they are assessing where there is a concern for security and conducting reconnaissance missions at each polling site to ensure its safety.

“Elections are important for unify-ing the nation of Afghanistan, and get-ting more people involved means more [building] faith in the government we are trying to support over here,” said Brock-bank.

Adding, “The more people feel safe about voting, and the more people that come out to vote, are clear indications of the stability of the government and the confidence people have in the govern-ment.”

Afghan police at each checkpoint welcomed the troopers, prepared fresh chai tea and sat down with them to dis-cuss local operations.

After each sit-down, the troopers and AUP set out on a foot-patrol from the designated security checkpoint to the

next one.The AUP and the National Directorate

of Security, or NDS, of Afghanistan, are in the lead for information gathering dur-ing military operations in the country as well as for security operations.

“The Alamo Scout series is really our partnering with the Dand District AUP and NDS,” Capt. Ryan Yaun, command-er, Outlaw Troop, said.

“They really lead and drive all the intelligence with everything we do out here. We just assist them with any securi-ty needs. We go out to all the checkpoints and partner and do dismounted patrols in and around the village population cen-ters based off what the AUP and NDS see where they want that partnership in the villages,” he added.

The Alamo Scout mission went as planned and the AUP look forward to working with the troops again in the fu-ture.

“We spoke to them about doing this again and they told us we can come any-time we want and really continue to part-ner,” Yaun said.

Adding, “Their policemen really en-joy working with our soldiers, so I kind of think it starts at the smaller level. The more we continue to work with them, that’s going to continue to develop.”

February 2014 q AUSA NEWS 3ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, USA, Ret.PresidentAssociation of the U.S. Army

AUSA, with your help, has fought since the beginning of sequestra-tion to end the arbitrary, cookie-

cutter approach to deficit reduction. Now, along with you, we will fight

with equal vigor to undo the provision of the new law that creates an enormous penalty for current and future military re-tirees who protect and defend this nation.

We will work with the many mem-bers of Congress who agree with us to

AUSA opposes 1-percent COLA reduction for military retireesNo gainwithout pain

Message from the President

eliminate the working-age COLA reduc-tion before its implementation in 2015.

There is an old saying that there is no gain without pain.

That saying certainly applies to the budget deal which was passed by the Sen-ate Dec. 13.

With the passage of the budget deal, we have made inroads into the nightmare that is sequestration.

We have restored budget certainty for the Army for the next two years and allowed for appropria-tions legislation that will provide much

more financial flexibility within Army accounts.

The Army will gain some significant budgetary advantage and certainty from the legislation but at a significant cost – the 1 percent COLA reduction for work-ing-age military retirees.

AUSA opposes that reduction and will work beginning now to get that provision of the budget deal repealed.

The administration and Congress have always vowed that any changes to the mili-tary compensation and benefits package would be grandfathered for the current force.

The budget deal breaks that vow and tar-gets a group within a group, creating some

retirees who are paying the price for the deal and others who are not – to say noth-ing of currently serving soldiers who, when they retire will be penalized as well.

This change in the retirement sys-tem is a breach of faith and a devas-tating financial blow to an earned de-ferred compensation component.

Those currently serving will look at how current retirees are treated and, as the economy improves, will vote with their feet and retention of battle-tested soldiers will diminish and national se-curity will suffer.

Please go to our website, www.ausa.org, click on the “Contact Congress” link, enter your zip code, and send the AUSA-suggested letter titled Repeal the Military Retiree COLA Cut.

Cyberspace warriors graduate, awarded Army’s newest MOSWilson A. RiveraPublic Affairs OfficeFort Gordon, Ga.

The network is under attack! Cyber attacks are a daily reality

and are growing in sophistication and complexity.

How does the Army keep pace with this evolving threat and defend its network?

Fifteen soldiers made history when they were awarded the newest Army mili-tary occupational specialty (MOS), – 25D – cyber network defender, during a gradu-ation ceremony held in Alexander Hall, Fort Gordon, Ga.

Soldiers completed a 14-week course, considered rigorous for its curriculum, to learn the skills needed to meet the de-mand for cyber warfare.

“Cyberspace is composed of hundreds of thousands interconnecting comput-ers, servers, routers, switches, fiber optic cables which allow our critical infrastruc-ture to work,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Ronald S. Pflieger, regimental sergeant major for the U.S. Army Signal Center of Excellence and Fort Gordon.

Pflieger was the guest speaker for the first-ever graduating class for the Cyber Network Defender course.

He added, “A functional and healthy cyberspace is essential to our economy and national security.”

He also noted, “With the need for edu-cated individuals to defend our network, so does the need to engage cyberspace.”

Through the establishment of the new cy-ber network defender, 25D MOS, there were changes made to the classification and struc-ture among the 25 career management field series for communications and information systems operation with other MOS revisions

– information technology specialist, 25B; ra-dio operator-maintainer, 25C; and telecom-munications operator chief, 25W.

Significant changes to the 25 career management field identify the positions and personnel to perform duties with cyber network defense, and selected functions for cyber network defender MOS positions transferred from previous MOS positions associated with cyber network defense.

Major duties a cyber network defender will perform include protecting, monitor-ing, detecting, analyzing, and responding to unauthorized cyberspace domain actions; deployment and administration of computer

network defense infrastructures such as fire-walls, intrusion detection systems and more.

Soldiers are also tasked to take action to modify information systems, computer network configurations in regard to com-puter network threats and collect data to analyze events and warn of attacks.

Cyber network defenders will be trained to perform assessments of threats and vulnerabilities within the network en-vironment, conduct network damage as-sessments, and develop response actions.

Increases in cyberspace operations training continue in key Army leader edu-cation programs.

“A gap was identified within the non-commissioned officers’ career field,” Pflieger said. “The next step was to iden-tify the right soldiers.”

Staff sergeants interested in becoming a cyber network defender must meet the requirements, such as having a minimum of four years information technology expe-rience, and an Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery of 105 in both General Technical and Skilled Technical scores.

They also must be a U.S. citizen, com-plete an in-service screening, and have a recommendation from their battalion or higher.

Graduates of the Cyber Network Defender course wait to receive their certificates and be awarded the newest Army military occupational speciality, 25D, during a ceremony at Alexander Hall, Fort Gordon, Ga. (Photo Credit: Bill Bengston, Fort Gordon Public Affairs Office)


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Reprinting of material appearing in the AUSA NEWS requires written permission from AUSA.

Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, USA, Ret.PresidentPeter F. Murphy Jr., EditorBill Rice, Production ManagerLuc DunnEditorial Assistant, Social Media Specialist

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□ AUSA NEWS, (ISSN 1075-458X) published monthly. Volume 37, Number 4. Subscription: $5.00 a year ($4.00 a year for AUSA members). Publication offices: Association of the United States Army, 2425 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Virginia, 22201-3385. Periodicals postage rate is paid at Arlington, Vir-ginia, and additional mailing office.

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1-pecent COLA cut for military retirees is ill-advised provision

AUSA Winter Symposium in Huntsville features veterans’ hiring event

Julie RudowskiAssistant DirectorGovernment Affairs

q AUSA needs you!! A last min-ute budget agreement passed by Con-gress included a provision that would negatively affect the calculation of the Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) for under-age-62 military retirees.

The bill would require a 1-percent reduction in COLA for military retirees until they reach age 62.

As you can imagine, this ill-advised provision has created a firestorm.

In addition to meetings on Capitol Hill with lawmakers determined to re-peal the provision, AUSA President Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, USA, Ret., has also sent letters to all members of Congress outlining his strong opposition to the provision and urging them to repeal it.

Sullivan’s letter said, “Both the Ad-ministration and the Congress have stated repeatedly that any changes to the military compensation and benefits package would be grandfathered for the currently-serving force and for current retirees.

“The Budget Act provision flies in the face of that pledge and breaks faith with those who have served their nation for 20 years and with those who will retire in the future, who until now had the expectation of a full COLA adjustment each year to match calculated inflation.

“As the economy rights itself, this dev-astating blow to an earned deferred com-pensation benefit will be an enormous disincentive for retention of battle-tested military personnel. Those currently serv-ing will look at how today’s retirees are treated and will leave active duty, dimin-ishing leadership in our defense forces and weakening our national security.”

It is critical that you add your voice to his. Visit our website, www.ausa.org, click

on the Contact Congress link, enter your zip code, and send the AUSA-suggested letter ti-tled “Repeal the Military Retiree COLA Cut.”

q Defense Authorization Bill clears Congress. President signs. The regular order for passage of the defense authorization bill is for each chamber to pass a bill, appoint negotiators to work out the differences and then agree on a fi-nal bill that the president will sign.

Once again, regular order failed. Yes, Congress did manage to hammer

out a final agreement and, yes, the presi-dent did sign it into law. But again this year, it was far from the normal process.

The House passed their version of the

CapitalFocus

bill way back in June. The Senate Armed Services Committee

worked together and passed their version at the same time; however, the full Senate could not get its act together and pass a final version.

Accordingly, defense leaders from the House and Senate combined parts of the House bill and the one approved by the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Instead of a formal conference com-mittee process, the compromise bill was passed by each chamber without any con-sideration of amendments.

As a result, many of AUSA’s top priorities were never brought to the floor for debate.

This means that we will continue to fight for issues such as full concurrent re-ceipt and an end to the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP)/Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) offset.

The bottom line is that we did get an authorization bill for fiscal 2014, and, along with our partners in The Military Coalition, were successful in our fight against administration proposals to in-crease or establish new TRICARE fees.

The bill authorizes $526.8 billion for the Defense Department’s base budget; $80.7 billion for overseas contingency op-erations – mainly the war in Afghanistan – and $17.6 billion for national security programs within the Energy Department.

The bill also: � Provides a 1-percent pay raise for

service members. � Includes over 30 provisions or re-

forms to the Uniform Code of Military Justice related to combatting sexual as-sault in the military.

� Directs that the operational re-serves receive a minimum 180 day notification before the cancellation of a deployment and a minimum 120 day notification before a deployment.

� Authorizes the commander of U.S. Special Forces Command to provide addi-tional family support services to U.S. Spe-cial Operations Forces and their families.

� Facilitates the development of more functional, lighter, and more pro-tective body armor.

� Recognizes that the formula for calculating allowable private sector compensation on DoD contracts has become dysfunctional and does little to protect the taxpayer or provide trans-parency in government contracting.

The NDAA rationalizes the cap to $625,000 and does away with the flawed formula.

� Prohibits DoD from initiating an-other round of BRAC.

� Provides additional funding for Abrams tank upgrades and heavy equip-ment improved recovery vehicles.

� Allows military retirees and fam-ily members to return to TRICARE Prime if they choose.

The Association of the United States Army (AUSA) has partnered with the American Freedom Founda-

tion to host the second Warriors To The Workforce Hiring Event for veterans, in conjunction with Still Serving Veterans, to be held at the 2014 AUSA Winter Sym-posium and Exposition.

This one-of-a-kind event, to be held Feb. 19 – 21, 2014, at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville, Ala., is part of the American Freedom Foundation’s nation-wide initiative to help veterans find jobs.

The first event was held at the AUSA 2013 Annual Meeting and Exposition at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center was a great success according to the hundreds of veterans who participated in this new program.

The hiring event in Huntsville will also bring together major companies from throughout the country to profile their ser-vices and provide employment opportuni-ties for veterans.

Veterans attending the Winter Sympo-sium and Exposition have the opportunity to talk with employers, submit qualifica-tions and even participate in job inter-views on the spot.

Warriors To The Workforce is unique in that the American Freedom Founda-tion will vet out resumes and match those qualified veterans, transitioning military service members and spouses with em-ployers with specific job descriptions.

In addition to the hiring event, Warriors To The Workforce will include workshops for veterans each day providing resources and information on subjects such as mental readiness, confidence building, networking and presentation skills, resume writing, in-

terviewing techniques, job searching, career planning through goal setting, translating military skills and training into civilian life and corporate experience, among others.

Attendance at the Warriors To The Work-force Hiring Event is free and open to veter-ans, military service members and spouses.

The 2014 AUSA Winter Symposium and Exposition will focus on preparing the Army for an unpredictable global se-curity environment to the year 2020 and beyond – while continuing the transition

from combat operations in the U.S. Cen-tral Command Area of Responsibility.

� To learn more, visit www.warrior-stotheworkforce.net and www.ausameet-ings.org/winter

� To download a PDF of the Warriors To The Workforce brochure, visit http://bit.ly/IAENaX

To Register for Warriors To The Work-force, visit http://bit.ly/1bOX38j

Event Partners � American Freedom Foundation –

www.americanfreedomfoundation.org � AUSA – www.ausa.org � SourceAmerica™ – www.sourceamerica.org � GES – www.ges.com � Still Serving Veterans – www.

stillservingveterans.org

Media ContactsTed HackerAmerican Freedom Foundation, Inc. [email protected](615) 330-9394

David [email protected](703) 907-2613

Veterans and those about to retire take part in the very successful Warriors to the Work-force Hiring Event at the 2013 AUSA Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington. A second event will take place Feb. 19 – 21 at the Association’s Winter Symposium at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville, Ala.


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Housing 1 Source program helps newly assigned soldiers and families

Sgt. Maj. of the Army Ken Preston, USA, Ret, left, rides newly named horse ‘Preston,’ while U.S. Army North and Fort Sam Houston command sergeant major, Hu Rhodes, rides ‘Van Autreve,’ named for the fourth sergeant major of the Army, Leon Van Autreve.

Sgt. Maj. of the ArmyKenneth O. Preston, USA, Ret.Director, Noncommissioned officerand Soldier Programs

Greetings from the Association of the United States Army (AUSA), our Army’s and our

soldiers’ professional organization.Special thanks to the Alamo Chap-

ter in San Antonio for hosting my visit to their wonderful city and the historic Fort Sam Houston in December.

The chapter and Housing 1 Source of San Antonio hosted an evening so-cial for all corporate sponsors.

The event gave me the opportunity to meet and speak to all the organiza-tions that support the chapter and all our soldiers and their families.

Maj. Gen. Russell J. Czerw, USA, Ret. and the Housing 1 Source leader-ship gave me a tour of their facilities and their mission.

Housing 1 Source is the best soldier and family sponsorship program for newly assigned personnel I have ever seen.

They are a one-stop shop for hous-ing, utilities, schools and everything new families need to integrate into the local communities.

My remarks to the corporate spon-sors centered on the current draw-down of the Army and the fiscal im-pacts of sequestration and the recent government shutdown.

Historically, our Army has gone through draw-down events after every major conflict in the last 150 years, but this transition is different.

Globally, the world is still very un-stable and we face an uncertain future.

For the Army, this challenge is mul-tiplied with the fiscal absence of a de-fense budget and sequestration.

Quality-of-life programs for sol-diers, retired soldiers, Army civilians and their families will face significant impacts.

For all of the members of AUSA and those corporate sponsors who seek opportunities to help our warriors, this is a window of opportunity.

A long time ago in an Army prior to 9/11, budgets were tight, especially for quality of life programs, and com-manders at all levels embraced their volunteers.

All of you are volunteers and you want nothing more than to help.

Now is the time to reach out to all commanders and senior leaders to help them understand the untapped assets in their community and seek out opportu-nities to do more with less.

Thanks to Command Sgt. Maj. Hu Rhodes, the Army North CSM, and Parry Delozier for hosting my visit to Fort Sam Houston.

One of the great highlights of the trip was spending about 90 minutes with all the officer and noncommissioned officer leaders of Army North in a leadership professional development forum.

The audience included young team leaders who have responsibility for their piece of the Army, two or three soldiers; to platoon leaders and sergeants; to se-nior leaders in command and staff posi-tions.

Leaders want to know what they can do to be competitive for promotions and key assignments as the Army gets small-er.

The older group of leaders wanted to know how to prepare for transition into the civilian workforce.

Others just wanted to know more about sequestration and the subsequent impacts on the Army.

All of these questions were expected and it is important for all of us to reas-sure our troops that we will get through this period of angst just as we have done many times in the past.

We have the greatest Army in the world right now and when the dust set-tles, we will still have the greatest Army in the world because we have the great-est soldiers.

I referenced a point made by the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. John F. Campbell, when he told the soldiers and noncommissioned officers at the Best Warrior Competition Awards Ceremony to let him and the Army leadership worry about money and budgets and for young leaders to focus on training their soldiers.

It is the young adaptive leaders who seek out and focus on opportunities to train their soldiers during these lulls in garrison who will demonstrate the po-tential to serve in positions of increased responsibility in the future.

I attended the change of responsibil-ity ceremony for the Installation Man-agement Command (IMCOM) where Lt. Gen. Michael Ferriter hosted the transi-tion between Command Sgt. Maj. Earl L. Rice and Command Sgt. Maj. Jeffrey S. Hartless.

For all of us here at AUSA, we wish Rice and his family the greatest success as he begins his transition for retirement and the next chapter in their lives.

We wish Hartless the greatest suc-cess as he assumes one of the most de-manding positions in the Army as the IMCOM CSM.

Before departing Fort Sam Houston I visited the Caisson Platoon where one of the horses was named in my honor.

I was very honored and humbled by this recognition.

The ceremony gave me the opportu-nity to say thanks to this small group of soldiers who perform one of the most important and dignified missions for our fallen warriors.

Last year this group of soldiers par-ticipated in more than 1,200 funerals.

With many of the soldiers support-ing these funerals coming from detailed units across the installation, this small unit is instrumental in helping with the

training and preparation to ensure each funeral is a success and a treasured memory for family and friends.

Now more than ever America’s Army needs AUSA and AUSA needs your membership support.

Still Serving, Still Saluting!


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Torchbearer Issue Paper

Cost of Living Allowance 1-percent reduction hurts retired military personnelView from

the HillBill LoperDirectorGovernment Affairs

AUSA has been leading the fight to end the draconian cuts in defense spending caused by sequestration

and to mitigate the devastating effect it has had on national security, military readi-ness, modernization and procurement.

Late last month, Republicans and Democrats finally worked together and produced a bill designed to break the stranglehold that sequestration has had on the Department of Defense.

The legislation restores budget certain-ty for the Army for the next two years and paves the way for appropriations legisla-tion that will provide much more financial flexibility within Army accounts.

The Army will gain some significant budgetary advantage and certainty from the legislation.

However, there is a provision in the bill that will negatively affect the calculation of the Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) for under-age-62 military retirees!

It requires a 1-percent reduction in COLA for military retirees until they reach age 62.

It effectively targets a group within a group, creating some retirees who are paying the price for the deal and others who are not – to say nothing of currently serving soldiers who – when they retire – will be penalized as well.

Both the administration and Congress have said repeatedly that any changes to

the military compensation and benefits package would be grandfathered for the current force, so we and our Military Co-alition partners are fighting hard to re-move this outrageous provision.

Here are some of the things we are do-ing to fight it:

� AUSA President Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, USA, Ret., and I met with Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., in her office.

She is one of several senators leading the fight to identify alternative funding to replace the provision. In addition to meeting with her, we visited with Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss.; Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; Richard Shelby, R-Ala.; and Jeff Sessions, R-Ala.

We also conferred with professional staff from the Senate Armed Services Committee.

� Sullivan and I joined other members of The Military Coalition at a press con-ference held by Senators Graham, Wicker and Ayotte.

All attending agreed to work together to ensure this provision is repealed before it takes effect in December 2015.

In fact, the members would like to see it repealed before the budget law takes ef-fect in mid-January.

AUSA completely supports this. � Sullivan and I also dropped by the

offices of Senate Armed Services Com-mittee Chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., and Ranking Member James Inhofe, R-Okla., to deliver letters from to both lead-ers that clearly outlines our position.

� Sullivan is sending 538 similar let-ters to all other members of Congress urg-ing a bipartisan solution to this breach of faith with military personnel.

AUSA, with your help, has fought since the beginning of sequestration to end the arbitrary, cookie cutter approach

to deficit reduction. Now, along with you, we will fight

with equal vigor to undo the provision of the new law that creates an enormous penalty for current and future military re-tirees who protect and defend this nation.

Please click here, enter your zip code, and send the AUSA-suggested letter titled “Repeal the Military Retiree COLA Cut.”

The good news is that we have time to fix this and we will not stop until it is fixed! Do your part to help and send a let-ter to your members of Congress.

There is some other news on the legis-lative front.

At last the FY 2014 Defense Authori-zation Bill has been voted and has been signed by the president.

The bill includes a one percent basic pay raise for military service members – less than AUSA and its Military Coalition part-ners advocated, but at least a pay raise.

As AUSA urged, the Congress main-tained the TRICARE fee increases at no more than the cost of living increases rather than the higher fee increases pro-posed by the administration.

Also by the time you read this, the sec-ond session of the 113th Congress will have begun and the president’s State of the Union address will be about to occur.

The Congress will be preparing to re-ceive the budget request for FY 2015 in early February.

One can only guess if Congress will be able to complete the appropriations process by the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30 since this fiscal year still is be-ing funded by a continuing resolution four months into the year.

If the past few years are any indication, it is not likely that the new congress will do any better.

Apparently nine months is just not

long enough to birth money, especially when you factor in the President’s Day re-cess, the Spring recess, the Memorial Day recess, the July Fourth recess, and the Au-gust recess which, in essence, reduce the nine months to six months.

Regardless of the speed with which Congress marches, AUSA will be offer-ing testimony, making visits to members of Congress, and joining with the many other organizations in The Military Coali-tion – all to make our voice for the soldier heard in the halls of the Capitol.

We will be working to promote enact-ment of legislation that will benefit our membership.

There are many issues that remain: � Maintaining pay parity between the

military and civilian sectors. � Full concurrent receipt for all dis-

abled retirees. � Ending the Survivor Benefit Plan/

Dependency and Indemnity Compensa-tion offset for survivors.

� Limiting increases in TRICARE fees/deductibles to COLA increases.

� Prohibiting TRICARE for Life en-rollment fees.

� Retaining the current retirement system. � Maintaining funded Army opera-

tional end strength sufficient to support our national defense strategy, Joint Force and Army mission requirements.

� Maintaining assured access to the reserve component.

� Increasing funding for spare parts, maintenance and training.

� Full funding for resetting the Current Force. � Maintaining defense spending of at

least 4 percent of GDP/Army share of at least 28 percent.

� Providing pay and benefits for re-serve component personnel and their

Lt. Col. Frank TurnerAUSA Army Fellow

The Association of the United States Army’s Institute of Land Warfare (ILW) has recently re-

leased a new publication. Titled “The Army’s Organic Indus-

trial Base: Providing Readiness Today, Preparing for Challenges Tomorrow” (Torchbearer Issue Paper, December 2013), the paper explores the path to sustaining a healthy Army Organic In-dustrial Base (AOIB) with the depth,

breadth and diversity needed to support the joint warfighter – today and in the fu-ture – in an uncertain, complex national security environment.

The AOIB consists of 23 geographi-cally dispersed government ammunition plants, manufacturing arsenals and main-tenance depots that provide materiel and equipment readiness to U.S. soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines.

Many of these installations provide one-of-a-kind capabilities that are diffi-cult to rapidly replicate elsewhere.

Over the past decade, the AOIB has reset the service life of millions of pieces of equipment and manufactured billions of rounds of ammunition and repair parts, de-livering combat materiel readiness to men and women in uniform and enabling them to respond rapidly to national emergencies.

Additionally, many of the AOIB in-stallations have deployed forward repair activities (FRAs) overseas to support U.S. maintenance requirements around the world.

The health of the Army Organic Indus-trial Base is a key aspect for the United States Army to retain the capacity and ca-pability to conduct future contingencies.

As the Army shifts focus from war-time production to sustainment opera-tions, it must ensure that critical capa-bilities are preserved in a way that will allow rapid expansion when needed.

The Army developed the Army Organ-ic Industrial Base Strategic Plan (AOIB-SP) to chart a path for the future of its or-ganic industrial base that considers risks while providing cost-effective solutions.

The AOIBSP focuses on four key ar-

eas: capacity, capital investment, mod-ernization and workload.

The Army needs timely and predict-able funding to fully implement the AO-IBSP. This will allow the AOIB to lever-age best business practices; maintain an experienced, skilled and specialized workforce; make prudent investments in modern, safe and capable infrastructure and equipment; and ultimately provide the capability for the joint force.

This Torchbearer Issue Paper may be read in its entirety at http://www.ausa.org/publications/ilw/DigitalPublica-tions/Documents/tbip-aoib/index.html.

Other ILW publications are available online at http://www.ausa.org/ilw, and may also be obtained by calling (800) 336-4570, Ext. 4630, or by e-mailing a request to [email protected].

see page 17

Path to a healthy Army Organic Industrial Base is examined

Society of National Association Publications — Award Winning Newspaper

ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

SPECIAL REPORT: U.S. Army All-American Bowl 2014 February 2014

Athletes, soldiers, ROTC cadets meet at 2014 Army bowl

The 2014 U.S. Army All-American Bowl East, left, and West teams gathering for group photos in their game day uniforms at the Alamodome in San Antonio. (Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Peter J. Beradi, 205th Press Camp Headquarters)

Staff Sgt. Peter Berardi

East and West 2014 U.S. Army All-American Bowl Teams met each other on the field for the first time

at the Alamodome in San Antonio in early January.

The American Family Insurance Dream Challenge pits the East vs. West and six sol-dier mentors against each other in multiple events including quarterback throws, a sled push and an obstacle course.

A variety of skills are tested as players go through the challenges as a team, and only East or West will prevail, said Doug Ber-man, chairman of the All-American Games.

Players were joined by some of the top soldiers in the Army, who were there to mentor them on the Army values and inform them of the many paths the Army offers.

“It integrates some of our Army sol-diers too, which is one of the things we like doing here at the All-American Bowl,” Berman said.

Adding, “It’s what makes it a very unique event.”

“The players all have a very strong set of values that parallel us in the military, to get to where they have in their football careers to this point,” Sgt. 1st Class Da-vid Stover, the 2013 Army drill sergeant of the year, said.

“They’ve got the team work, the loyalty, the duty, the selfless service, the same core values that the Army builds off of and it’s an amazing opportunity to see that,” he added.

After some group photos and talking time, soldiers and players were ready to get on the field together.

“It’s pretty cool getting to see [sol-diers] out here running around with [stu-dents],” said Brian Allen, from Hinsdale Central High School, Hinsdale, Ill., and offensive lineman for the East Team.

He added, “It’s pretty special. I’m just thankful for everything they do for us and it’s good to get to hang out with them.”

Maj. Gen. Jeff Smith, commander, U.S. Army Cadet Command and Fort Knox, Ky., presents an Army ROTC scholarship worth $150,000 to Colin Campbell. The scholar-ship will pay Colin’s four years of college at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Upon graduation, he will commission as an Army second lieutenant.

Brig. Gen. Maria Gervais, deputy commander, U.S. Army Cadet Command and Fort Knox, Ky., presents an award to Deionte Thompson for receiving the top evaluation in the Army National Combine. Thompson, a high school junior who plays defensive back, has committed to the University of Alabama.


High school athletes play to honor the Army, soldiers and veterans

see next page

Dwight Williams, from Juniperro Serra High School in Gardena, Calif., linebacker for the 2014 U.S. Army All-American West Team, renders a salute in honor of all members of the armed forces during a team pratice at Blossom Athletic Center in San Antonio. (Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Peter Beradi)

Staff Sgt. Peter Berardi

Selection as a player for the 2014 U.S. Army All-American Bowl is a prestigious honor for ath-

letes. While only the strongest are chosen

to wear the Army colors, the players have their own reasons to don the jersey representing the Army.

Some players choose to participate in the All-American Bowl over other bowl games because it is the top high school football game, pitting the best players from the East against the best from the West, while others see it as an opportunity to honor those who have served in the nation's largest fighting force – the Army.

One West team player made his de-cision based on how well the event is put together and the length of time the players get to spend with each other.

“It’s an original bowl, I felt it was the most well put together of all of them,” said Bijhon Jackson, from El Dorado High School in El Dorado, Ariz., and

defensive lineman for the West Team. Adding, “We get more practice time

here than the other bowls, getting that extra time to get in sync with guys that you’ve known for a couple of days and got more time to bond as friends. I felt like this bowl was a better decision.”

A teammate based his decision on en-tirely different factors.

“I chose to play in the Army Bowl be-cause it’s [about] a lot more. It’s not just for you and your family and the honor of being an All-American, it’s for the Army,” said Dwight Williams, from Juniperro Serra High School in Gardena, Calif., and linebacker for the West Team.

He added, “They shed their blood and give me the opportunity to out here and do this and they put their lives on the line and I just want to honor them.”

Regardless of why players chose to participate in the 14th Annual U.S. All-American Bowl, the climactic game of East vs. West at the Alamodome in San Antonio was enjoyed by the players and family members, the armed forces and the nation’s football fans.

Army ROTC cadets mentor and train high school band membersArmy ROTC Cadet Sarah Her-

rero, looking sharp in her Army combat uniform, stands outside

one of five tourist buses lined up against a curb in downtown San Antonio ready to form a gaggle of students into something worthy of representing the Army colors.

Herrero, who stands maybe a little over five feet tall, seems to magically sprout sev-eral inches as she calls out names of high school students lined up outside the bus.

The high school students, some still wak-ing up from a long night, quickly board the bus. They know who is in charge.

Herrero, who makes up for her size by the take-charge attitude of her command voice, later jokes that she can fit inside a standard Army-issue duffle bag.

But, her job right now is no joking matter as she takes this mission seriously.

She places great importance on taking care of, and mentoring, this bus full of color guard members.

The members, representing the nation’s best, will perform during halftime at the 2014 U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

Held annually in San Antonio’s Al-amodome, the bowl brings in 90 of the nation’s football players in a classic East vs. West match-up every January.

If the AAB represents top football tal-ent, the Army All-American Marching Band represents the nation’s best high school marching bands. This band is the equivalent of football players being se-lected by the NFL for “band kids.”

Participating in the color guard and rifle sections are an integral part of the halftime show.

The U.S. Army All-American March-ing Band has been a fixture at the bowl since 2008.

During bowl week, 125 band members receive instruction from top collegiate, high school drum and bugle corps in-structors from across the country as well as educational sessions with members of the U.S. Army Field Band.

Herrero, along with other cadets who are band alumni, also act as mentors. Each cadet draws on their skills and experience when

working with the current band members.Herrero has extensive performance ex-

perience. Hailing from San Antonio, she attended John Jay Science and Engineering Academy in San Antonio where she was a member of the marching band and served as color guard captain during her senior year.

Later, in 2009, Herrero was a member of the U.S. Army All-American Marching Band Color Guard. She has served as an ROTC mentor for the Army All-Ameri-can Marching Band since 2010.

She has been a member of the 2007 Rev-olution Drum and Bugle Corps Color guard.

Also, she was in San Antonio’s Cross-

men Drum and Bugle Corps Color Guard in 2008, 2009 and 2011, and aged out as its color guard captain in 2012.

Herrero is currently working toward a Bachelor of Science degree in university studies with concentrations in mathemat-ics, chemistry and general business at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.

She will graduate in May and commission as an Army second lieutenant in the summer.

While at Texas Tech, she has worked as a research assistant for the department of chemistry on a project involving bio-diesel fuels and has also been active in community service projects.

She was selected to be the Texas Tech University Corps of Cadets Ranger Chal-lenge commander in 2011 and 2012, bringing home first place trophies from 5th Army ROTC Brigade both years in the female and coed divisions.

Another band alumnus, Cadet Justin Ahn brings similar experience to the band. A student at New York University, Ahn is enrolled as a junior in ROTC at Fordham University. He is majoring in politics and would like to work in the Army’s civil af-fairs field as a commissioned officer.

Ahn is a relative newcomer to the band and played clarinet in 2011.

ROTC experience includes compet-ing in ROTC’s annual Ranger Challenge, belonging to his battalion’s color guard and the Pershing Rifles. His hometown is Hamden, Conn.

Army ROTC Cadet Sarah Herrero, a senior at Texas Tech, talks with color guard members of the Army All-American Band. (Photo Credit: Vickey Mouze, U.S. Army Cadet Command)


Shaun Hamilton, a linebacker for the U.S. Army All-American East Team is pic-tured here during his jersey presentation ceremony at Carver High School, Mont-gomery, Ala. (Photo Credit: Courtesy photo)

Top-ranking linebacker Shaun Hamilton plays ‘extra hard’ for Army dadYalonda WrightU.S. Army Recruiting Command

Alabama golden boy Shaun Hamilton will joined the ranks of great All-American line-

backers at the 14th Annual U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

Hamilton, a linebacker at Carver High School in Montgomery, Ala., recently committed to the University of Alabama.

He is ranked the number six line-backer in the ESPN300, 56th in the re-gion and seventh in the state.

Not only is he a top-ranking athlete, but is also carrying a 4.0 grade point average.

For more than a decade, the colors of the U.S. Army have heralded the premier high school football game in the nation, showcasing athletes like Hamilton who represent the Army values not just on the field, but in all aspects of life.

“I remember back in the ninth grade, me and my brother were working out and watching the Army All-American game and he said that if I worked hard and stayed ‘prayed up,’ it would be me play-ing in that game one day,” Hamilton said.

Adding, “Now, I am here and a lot of

hard work has gone into this.”Hamilton has an even closer connec-

tion to the Army. His father, Lt. Col. Shelton D. Hamilton,

has served more than 20 years in the Army Reserve, with two tours in Afghanistan.

“It is an awesome honor, with me be-ing in the Army,” said Shelton Hamilton.

He added, “Shaun has a work habit that makes him special. When he first started working toward this goal, he would get up at five o’clock in the morning and go work out in the park four days a week from the end of football season until February. That is just the kind of kid that he is.”

By recruiting the nation’s best qualified men and women, the Army is committed to selecting and developing youth who will become Army Strong, exhibit Army Strong values and will remain Army Strong mem-bers of their communities.

Hamilton and the more than 200 play-ers represent that strength, matching the All-American Bowl messaging campaign, “Only the strongest wear our colors.”

“I am going to play extra hard and with a chip on my shoulders knowing that he [Shaun’s dad] is a lieutenant colonel in the Army and he is serving our country,” Hamilton said.

Vickey MouzeU.S. Army Cadet Command

Like a seasoned leader, Travis Watson is barking out orders, moving back and forth and ges-

turing all at once as he directs a group of high school football players on the field in the Alamodome in San Antonio.

“Put your toe ON the white line, not OVER the white line or BEHIND the white line,” he said.

Satisfied, he jots down the players’ names and corresponding jersey num-bers as he moves down the line.

Right now, Watson is making sure that the football players are in the right place at the right time.

He is one of 20 ROTC cadets out on the field who, as marshals, are each in charge of a group.

Watson draws on his college football experience as he mentors these under-

classmen who are participating in the U.S. Army National Combine.

“I understand them and can coach them up,” Watson said during a break.

He played five years as a center at Sam Houston State University.

The combine focuses on measuring speed, strength, quickness, and football skill, while also providing educational seminars touching on the recruiting process, speed and strength improvement, and leadership.

Held annually in association with the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, the combine gives the nation’s top 500 underclassmen a chance to demonstrate their physical talent and compete against one another before top scouting organizations, as well as the All-American Bowl Selection Committee.

If Watson looks like a natural when leading people, it is because he is already an experienced leader off the field.

He is an Army ROTC cadet in ROTC’s Simultaneous Membership Program at

Sam Houston State University. He is also an infantryman in Company

B, 3rd Battalion, 141st Infantry Regiment, 72nd Brigade Combat Team, 36th Infantry Division, Texas Army National Guard.

Watson said football and the Army are a lot alike.

ROTC Cadet Travis Watson ‘marshalls’ athletes at Army bowl combine“The biggest thing that carries over

from football to the Army is the lead-ership aspect, discipline, structure and making decisions in adverse situa-tions,” he said.

His long-term goal is to join Special Forces so he can embed with local nationals.

To reach that goal, he has completed a bachelor’s degree in political science with a minor in history and Middle Eastern studies. Soon, he will begin a master’s in homeland security.

He also studied abroad in Jordan as an undergrad and plans to improve his Arabic.

While those goals are still a ways off, he is excited right now to lead as an infantry officer.

“I’ve always known I wanted to be a foot soldier, to be in the infantry.”

As for today, Watson is able to share

his passion for football and the Army with up and coming scholar athletes.

Cadet Andre Racanelli, who is major-ing in anthropology at James Madison University, is in ROTC’s Simultaneous Membership Program (SMP).

He is a private first class in the Virginia National Guard. He said he entered the

SMP so he could get some enlisted experi-ence before commissioning through ROTC as an officer. He is currently a sophomore.

Racanelli played tenor drums in 2012 in the band and is now serving as a band mentor for the second time.

He, along with the other cadet men-tors, said the most important thing they had learned from their band experience

is that a person gets out of life based on what they put into it.

“I played my heart out on that [foot-ball] field in front of 40,000 people at the 2012 game,” Racanelli said. “That that was one of the proudest and most fulfill-ing moments of my life.”

Each cadet spoke about how they have drawn from their ROTC experience to

be the best they can be, either in ROTC, band or color guard.

They all said that ROTC has made them become better leaders and look forward to mentoring soldiers one day, just as they are mentoring high school students now.

“We’re responsible for the best of the best high school musicians and performers,” Herrero said. “We owe our best to them.”

from previous pageBand

ROTC Cadet Travis Watson jots down notes at the Army National Combine. (Photo Credit: Vickey Mouze, U.S. Army Cadet Command)


Bank of America, N.A.AUSA Bank CardEarn points on everyday expenses with the AUSA Platinum Plus® MasterCard®. Call 866-438-6262.

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Dell Member Purchase ProgramAUSA members can now receive discounts on Dell PCs. Call 800-695-8133.

Apple Member Purchase ProgramApple offers AUSA members substantial savings on its computers. Call 800-MY-APPLE and mention that you are an AUSA member.

Book ProgramAUSA offers its members discounts on selected military books.

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Wear Blue – Run to Remember honors fallen heroes of Iraq, Afghanistan

Army wives Lisa Hallett, who lost her husband John in Afghanistan, and Erin O’Connor founded Wear Blue four years ago at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., and ran this year’s Army Ten-Miler and the Marine Corps Marathon.

Peter Slavin

One of the 26 miles covered by the giant Marine Corps Mara-thon in Washington, D.C., is

very different than the rest. For many who take part in or watch

the event, nothing is as moving as the Wear Blue Mile. This is mile 13, where the 30,000 or so runners pass posters showing the names and faces of hun-dreds of men and women who lost their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Mile 13 is also lined with hundreds of family members, friends, service members, and others silently display-ing large American flags bearing black streamers with the names of the fallen. Some runners are left in tears.

The mile is organized by Wear Blue–Run to Remember, an all-volunteer out-fit started four years ago by two Army wives, Lisa Hallett and Erin O’Connor, at Fort Lewis, Wash., to honor the fallen in the nation’s two recent wars. Hallett had just lost her husband, Capt. John Hallett, in Afghanistan.

Wear Blue’s estimated 5,000 mem-bers wear shirts with a wide footprint on the back inscribed “For the Fallen, for the Fighting, for the Family.”

Many members also imprint the names of particular deceased service members.

Since its founding, Wear Blue has continued to spread in both the military and civilian communities, with chap-ters at Fort Bragg, Redstone Arsenal, and Joint Base Lewis McChord, and informal “meet-ups” have begun at 20 to 30 other Army installations.

Part of what Wear Blue does, ex-plains Hallett, is “challenge people to run distances and speeds further and faster than they thought possible.

For some people, that challenge starts at three miles, and for others that means tackling their first double marathon!”

When AUSA’s Family Readiness director, Patty Barron, traveled to the Fort Lewis area in 2012, she was taken to a Wear Blue run and met Hallett. Barron was impressed and could relate to Hallett’s story, because she had lost her father suddenly at age five in an au-tomobile accident.

Barron invited Hallett to speak at AUSA’s Annual Meeting that fall.

AUSA also sponsored Wear Blue’s participation at the Army Ten-Miler,

enabling it to have a Hooah Tent and thereby increase its presence and people’s awareness of Wear Blue.

Barron calls Wear Blue “a celebration of life as well as a reminder of the fallen.”

Wear Blue members flock each year to the Army Ten-Miler, the Marine Corps Mar-athon and the Seattle Rock ‘n Roll Marathon and Half-Marathon and thousands turn out for local Memorial Day runs.

But the heart of Wear Blue are the less glamorous training runs on Saturdays, always preceded by a circle of remem-brance.

Runners gather and call out the names of every service member who died on that weekend since the wars began in Iraq and Afghanistan. By the end of the year, every soldier, marine, sailor, or airman who died in either war will have been remembered.

Runners can also call out and honor the name of friends or family from any era who died in a conflict.

For civilians looking beyond words like “Thank you for your service” to do something tangible for military families, Wear Blue offers an opportunity.

“There’s nothing quite as easy,” says Hallett, “as joining a circle of remembrance, whether or not one wishes to run. “There is a message spoken, without words, when we

stand in solidarity in the circle.” Every week, Wear Blue demonstrates

it can draw different communities and dif-ferent generations together.

On her Saturday mornings, Hallett says she and her three young children

“stand side by side with active duty, with other Gold Star Families, with civilian members who support us … and then we run.” Halfway through the three mile route near Fort Lewis every-one passes through Patriot’s Landing, a military retirement community, where every week people stand by small flags bearing the names of the fallen, cheer the runners, and hand out water.

Hallett recalls Wear Blue’s first din-ner of remembrance a few years ago. A Vietnam Navy veteran came at the urging of his daughter. There, she told Hallett, he had encountered a Gold Star mother, someone who has lived with this loss. He didn’t know what to say.

Until then, coming back from Viet-nam to an unfriendly reception had haunted him, but now he realized the worst thing was for someone not to come home at all. The next week he called his Vietnam buddies and arranged their first reunion in 20 or 30 years.

Once together, they set up a record-ing studio and each of them told his story of Vietnam. “It was” says Hallet “a safe place to let it all out. “

Anyone can join Wear Blue by join-ing a meet-up or a chapter and going on a run. At a simpler level, she says, “someone can get involved with Wear Blue by putting on a blue shirt and making their steps purposeful.

“Our service members have given all… it is powerful to take a moment, to pause, and to be grateful and then to live purposefully.”

To learn more, visit www.wearblu-eruntoremember.org.

Over 5,000 military and civilian runners now wear blue shirts that are inscribed on the back: ‘For the Fallen, For the Fighting, For the Family.’

AUSA Family Programs


CAPITOL HILL UPDATEBills AUSA is currently tracking

ACTIVE DUTY/GUARD & RESERVE ISSUESHouse Action

H.R. 55 (Prioritize Military Pay) Cosponsors: 13• Prioritizes pay and allowances to members of the Armed Forces in the event the debt ceiling is reached or there is a funding gap.• Introduced by Rep. Michael Fitzpatrick, R-Pa.• Referred to Committees: Armed Services; Judiciary; Transportation and Infrastructure; Ways and Means

H.R. 690 (Reserve Retirement Deployment Credit Correction Act) Cosponsors: 35• �Modifies�the�calculation�of�days�of�active�service�used� to reduce the minimum age at which a member of the National Guard or reserve may retire.• Introduced by Rep. Tom Latham, R-Iowa• Referred to Committee: Armed Services

Senate Action

S. 240 (Reserve Retirement Deployment Credit Correction Act) Cosponsors: 15• �Modifies�the�calculation�of�days�of�active�service�used� to reduce the minimum age at which a member of the National Guard or reserve may retire.• Introduced by Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont.• Referred to Committee: Armed Services

VETERANS’ ISSUESHouse ActionH.R. 241 (Veterans Timely Access to Health Care Act) Cosponsors: 24• Directs the secretary of Veterans’ Affairs to establish standards of access to care for veterans seeking health care from VA medical facilities.• Introduced by Rep. Dennis A. Ross, R-Fla.• Referred to Committees: Veterans’ Affairs

H.R. 357 (GI Bill Tuition Fairness Act of 2013) Cosponsors: 50• Requires courses of education provided by public institu-tions of higher education that are approved for purposes of the educational assistance programs administered by the secretary of Veterans’ Affairs to charge tuition and fees at the in-state rate.• Introduced by Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla.• Referred to Committee: Veterans’ Affairs• Voted out of committee on June 3, 2013. Sent to House floor for vote.

Senate Action

S. 6 (Putting Our Veterans Back to Work Act of 2013) Cosponsors: 25• Reauthorizes the VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011, to provide assistance to small businesses owned by veterans and improve enforcement of employment and reemploy-ment rights of members of the uniformed services.• Introduced by Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev.• Referred to Committee: Veterans’ Affairs

RETIREE ISSUESHouse Action

H.R. 303 (Retired Pay Restoration Act) Cosponsors: 81• Permits additional retired members of the Armed Forces who have a service-connected disability to receive both disability compensation from the VA for their disability and either retired pay by reason of their years of military service or Combat-Related Special Compensation.

• Eliminates the phase-in period under current law with respect to such concurrent receipt.• Introduced by Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla.• Referred to Committees: Armed Services; Veterans’ Affairs

H.R. 333 (Disabled Veterans’ Tax Termination Act) Cosponsors: 113

• Permits retired mmbers of the Armed Forces who have a service-connected disability rated less than 50 percent to receive concurrent payment of both retired pay and veterans’ disability compensation• Eliminates the phase-in period for concurrent receipt• Extends eligibility for concurrent receipt to chapter 61 disability retirees with less than 20 years of service.• Introduced by Rep. Sanford Bishop, D-Ga.• Referred to Committees: Armed Services; Veterans’ Affairs

H.R. 738 (Healthcare for Early Retirement Eligible Reservists Act of 2013) Cosponsors: 6

• Eliminates the requirement that certain former members of the reserve components of the armed forces be at least 60 years of age in order to be eligible to receive health care�benefits.• Introduced by Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C.• Referred to Committee: Armed Services

Senate Action

S. 234 (Retired Pay Restoration Act of 2013) Cosponsors: 20

• Permits certain retired members of the uniformed services who have a service-connected disability to receive both disability compensation from the VA and either retired pay by reason of their years of military service or Combat-Related Special Compensation.• Introduced by Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev.• Referred to Committee: Armed Services

SURVIVOR ISSUESHouse Action

H.R. 32 (SBP/DIC Offset) Cosponsors: 186

• Repeals the requirement for reduction of survivor annui-ties�under�the�Survivor�Benefit�Plan�to�offset�the�receipt�of�veteran’s dependency and indemnity compensation.• Introduced by Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C.• Referred to Committee: Armed Services

H.R. 1770 (Equal Benefits under Survivor Benefit Plan for Reserve Component Members) Cosponsors: 9

• Amends Title 10, United States Code, to eliminate the different�treatment�under�the�Survivor�Benefit�Plan�accorded�members of the reserve components who die from an injury or illness incurred or aggravated in the line of duty during inactive-duty training compared to members of the armed forces who die in the line of duty while on active duty.• Introduced by Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah• Referred to Committee: Armed Services

Senate Action

S. 735 (Survivor Benefits Improvement Act of 2013) Cosponsors: 0

• Allows surviving spouses to remarry at age 55, consis-tent with other federal programs, without losing their VA survivor�benefits�to�include�Dependency�and�Indemnity�Compensation (DIC) and health care.• Introduced by Sen. Bernard Sanders, I-Vt.• Referred to Committee: Veterans’ Affairs

HEALTH CARE ISSUESHouse Action

H.R. 288 (CHAMPVA Children’s Protection Act of 2013) Cosponsors: 15• Increases the maximum age for children eligible for medi-cal care under the CHAMPVA program.• Introduced by Rep. Michael H. Michaud, D-Maine• Referred to Committee: Veterans’ Affairs

H.R. 574 (Medicare Physician Payment Innovation Act of 2013) Cosponsors: 38• Amends the Social Security Act to reform Medicare pay-ments for physicians’ services by eliminating the sustainable growth rate system and providing incen-tives for the adoption of innovative payment and delivery models�to�improve�quality�and�efficiency.• Introduced by Rep. Allyson Y. Schwartz, D-Pa.• Referred to Committees: Energy and Commerce; House Ways and Means

H.R. 1971 (Keep Faith with TRICARE Prime Act) Cosponsors: 38• �Directs�DoD�to�provide�certain�TRICARE�beneficiaries�with�the opportunity to retain access to TRICARE Prime• Introduced by Rep. John Kline, R-Minn. • Referred to Committee: Armed Services

SPOUSE/FAMILY ISSUESHouse Action

H.R. 1620 (The Military Spouse Job Continuity Act)Cosponsors: 100• Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a credit against income tax for amounts paid by a spouse of a member of the armed forces for a new state license or certification�required�by�reason�of�a�permanent�change�in�the duty station of such member to another state.• Introduced by Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-Pa.• Referred to Committee: Ways and Means

H.R. 1333 (Military Family Leave Act of 2013) Cosponsors: 34• Amends Title 38, United States Code, to grant family of members of the uniformed services temporary annual leave during a deployment.• Introduced by Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-Pa.• Referred to Committee: Veterans’ Affairs

Senate Action

S. 759 (The Military Spouse Job Continuity Act) Cosponsors: 19• Allows a credit against income tax for amounts paid by a spouse of a member of the armed forces for a new state license�or�certification�required�by�reason�of�a�permanent�change in the duty station of such member to another state.• Introduced by Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa.• Referred to Committee: Finance

OTHERHouse Action

H.R. 293 (Army Combat Action Badge Eligibility) Cosponsors: 2• Expands retroactive eligibility of the Army Combat Action Badge to include members of the Army who participated in combat during which they personally engaged, or were personally engaged by, the enemy at any time on or after Dec. 7, 1941.• Introduced by Rep. Rich Nugent, R-Fla.• Referred to Committee: Armed Services


UPDATES AT ARMYTENMILER.COM OR LIKE US ON FACEBOOKDistribution of this announcement does not constitute endorsement by the Federal Government, the DoD or the Army.

TO BENEFIT SOLDIER FAMILY MWR PROGRAMS

A Tradition of Excellence

30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMY’S RACE12-OCT-14

The Pentagon Federal Credit Union Foundation (PenFed Foundation), a nationally rec-

ognized nonprofit organization work-ing to meet the unmet financial needs of military members and their families, announced Jan. 6 it helped more than 200 military families across 40 states last year alone attain the dream of own-ing their first home through its Dream Makers program by providing a record-breaking $1 million in grants to cover down payments and closing costs.

PenFed Foundation was the 2013 recipient of the newly established As-sociation of the United States Army National Service Award for “exemplary service and demonstrated enduring sup-port to the American soldier and the United States Army community.”

The award was presented at the open-

ing session of the AUSA Annual Meeting and Exposition in late October.

“Many families struggle to buy their first home, but for military families it can be even harder,” said Christopher Flynn, president and CEO of the PenFed Foun-dation.

Adding, “From frequent moves around the country and overseas to trouble saving money for a down payment, members of our armed services often have to postpone this important milestone. Our Dream Makers program helps bridge that gap.”

The program helps military families who are first-time homebuyers purchase their first home by offering grants for down payments and closing costs.

Service members and veterans of all branches of the military are eligible to apply including the Department of Homeland Se-curity and the Department of Defense. Wid-

ows of service members are also eligible.Other requirements include having a

gross annual income of $55,000 or less, or 80 percent of area median income, ad-justed for family size.

In order to receive a grant, the borrower must also attend an approved first-time homebuyer’s course by the U.S. Depart-ment of Housing and Urban Development.

“The Dream Makers program provides an incredible opportunity for many mili-tary families who have sacrificed so much to protect our nation to buy their very own home,” Flynn noted.

Adding, “There are so many ways we can thank the military community for their service and sacrifice and this pro-gram is one of the best.”

To learn more about the PenFed Foun-dation’s Dream Makers program and ap-ply online visit: http://www.penfedfoun-

families that are commensurate with their active duty counterparts.

These are just some of the legislative issues that will be part of the AUSA agen-

from page 10COLA da for 2014.

In the next few months, as the legislative session revs up, we will urge you to use the prepared letters in the “Legislative Action Center” of the AUSA website – www.ausa.org – to speak out on issues of importance.

We will keep you informed through

AUSA NEWS and ARMY Magazine, as well as through our electronic legislative newsletter -which will arrive via e-mail each week.

If you are not yet receiving the news-letter, just send an e-mail to [email protected].

The Directorate of Government Af-fairs hopes that you had a joyous holiday season and are well on the way to a glori-ous New Year.

AUSA’s holiday gift to you is our prom-ise to continue to be the Voice for the Army providing Support for the Soldier.

PenFed Foundation Dream Makers program provides grants for soldiersdation.org/dream_index.

The PenFed Foundation is a nation-ally recognized nonprofit organization working to meet the unmet financial needs of military members and their families through supporting wounded warriors and providing the military community with financial management assistance and home ownership aid.

Through a unique public-private part-nership, the PenFed Foundation joined with the Department of Veterans Affairs to fund the new Lee and Penny Anderson Defenders Lodge, a $17 million project.

PenFed (Pentagon Federal Credit Union) covers all labor expenses for the foundation so nearly every dollar donated goes directly to supporting its programs.

To make a donation or learn more about the foundation visit: http://www.penfedfoundation.org.


Officer Candidate School (OCS) offers path to become an Army officer

Delta Company soldiers at Officer Candidate School march to the field to begin their missions at Fort Benning, Ga. (Photo Credit: U.S. Army Photo)

Iowa native Kathryn Estep joined the Army with the mindset of serving her country and inspiring others.

The 23-year-old graduate from the Uni-versity of North Dakota knew the Army would fulfill her goal of helping build strong leaders for the U.S. Army and America while providing her with a solid career.

“I want to lead by example and show that being strong can help you in all as-pects of life,” Estep said.

Adding, “I knew I could come right into the Army and have that stable career.”

Like many college graduates, Estep joined the Army and pursued a spot at Of-ficer Candidate School (OCS).

OCS is one of three paths to becom-ing an officer along with the Reserve Of-ficers’ Training Corps (ROTC) and the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.

College Option soldiers on the road to becoming officers attend basic train-ing and then go on to Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, Ga.

Here they undergo two phases to com-plete training that test and push their men-tal, physical and emotional limits during the 12-week course.

Aspiring officers look to Officer Can-didate School as a path that will challenge them on a daily basis and provide a stable career after they graduate the program as second lieutenants and transition into various positions within the Army.

“The challenges coming out of college were I didn’t want to have any uncertain-ty,” said officer candidate Estep.

Adding, “I didn’t want to have a part-time job that didn’t actually benefit me.”

Joining the Army right out of college, Estep was surprised and grateful for the leadership opportunities she was provided.

“I’m twenty-three years old and the lead-ership we’ve taken on is very surprising be-cause I’ve been a platoon sergeant in charge of approximately 30 people,” she said.

To take the path and enter OCS as a non-active duty solider requires certain characteristics.

The OCS program recruits candidates who understand team dynamics and have management experience in different areas.

People from all backgrounds and skill sets are appreciated as long as they have shown leadership abilities and growth po-tential.

Capt. Richard Smothers, D Company commander at Fort Benning, sees officer candidates as future leaders who need to be shaped and molded.

“They came here because they wanted something more,” said Smothers.

“They wanted to lead and they want-ed to do it in an environment that really fosters growth. We are a very selective group. We are the profession of arms, and

we’re not open to all,” he added. The Army provides an active career

that is maintained through professional development, training and routine physi-cal fitness tests.

This type of career appeals to college graduates seeking a journey in life that is more than a 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. routine.

“You’re challenged physically and mentally,” said officer candidate Alexan-dra Bruer.

Adding, “That’s something you’re never going to get working in Washington, D.C.,

at a desk job. You really learn to work under pressure, work with deadlines and work with a variety of different people.”

Bruer, a Cornell University graduate, studied government in college and has an interest in Middle Eastern politics.

Before joining the Army, she consid-ered going the civilian route and was look-ing for positions related to the military.

With more research, Bruer realized that the best way to work with the mili-tary was to join the Army and become a soldier.

The first phase of Officer Candidate School teaches leadership skills that build onto what soldiers learned in basic training.

The knowledge taught in the classroom during Phase 1 is taken to the field in Phase 2 with mental and physical exercises.

With a majority of Phase 1 spent in a classroom environment, soldiers are taught subjects ranging from history to land navigation. They spend time study-ing and taking exams to familiarize them-selves with the information.

Applying classroom knowledge in a field exercise environment, OCS instruc-tors teach soldiers combat tactics like warrior tasks and battle drills.

These exercises give soldiers the op-portunity to perform as squad leaders dur-ing field training to give them the opera-tional experience and knowledge that will assist them as future platoon leaders.

“Walking out of here, I want to be an officer,” said Bruer.

Adding, “I’m hoping to go forth and lead others and help them see how they can capitalize on their potential.”

OCS instructors say Officer Candidate School is about refining leadership and giving officer candidates an avenue to put that leadership to the test to learn more about themselves and what they are going to be called upon to do as strong leaders in the Army or in future careers in the civil-ian world.

(U.S. Army Marketing and Research Group)

Officer candidate Paulette Prince leads her squad during a field exercise at Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, Ga. (Photo Credit: U.S. Army Photo)


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Winter Symposiumand ExpositionA Professional Development Forum

19–21 FEBRUARY 2014The Von Braun Center Huntsville, Alabama

Institute of Land Warfare

Nowhere will you find a more impressive display of innovations and

advanced technologies. Tap into the latest information and insights,

and network within the Army community.

For information, contact Alex Brody 703.907.2665

ausameetings.org/winter

AMERICA’S ARMY: Sustaining, Training, and Equipping for the Future

NEW RATES AND LOCATION FOR 2014 - HUNTSVILLE, ALEXCLUSIVE MID-DAY EXHIBIT HALL HOURS

National Guard celebrates 377 years of service to the nationSgt. Quentin Jones

Since Dec. 13, 1637, some early American settlers who formed mi-litias became minutemen – a highly

mobile, elite force of the military. These settlers would come together as volun-teers to form the U.S. National Guard to protect their land and homes.

Once again guardsmen came together with teamwork and esprit-de-corps during the U.S. National Guard Five-Kilometer Race and Minuteman Challenge on Ba-gram Airfield, Afghanistan.

This event concluded the guard’s three-day, 377th birthday celebration that con-sisted of a leadership dinner, a breakfast with soldiers and airmen, a cake cutting, a re-enlistment ceremony, a race and the Min-uteman Challenge, said Maj. Eric Luca.

Luca is from Cleveland and is an infor-mation officer for the 437th Military Police Battalion, Ohio Army National Guard.

U.S. National Guard Affairs-Afghani-stan hosted the event, and the 437th Mili-tary Police Battalion sponsored it.

The five-man team challenge was open to all U.S. service members and civilians on Bagram Airfield, Master Sgt. Edward LeDoux, senior career counselor/enlisted

adviser for National Guard Affairs-Af-ghanistan, said.

It consisted of six team events includ-ing: a 5k race, sit-ups, pull-ups, ammo can squats, tire flips and burpees – a leg and chest endurance exercise.

Twenty teams competed, scoring points for final placing in the race and complete team repetitions at each of the five other events, added Luca.

Teams, some mixed with different ser-vice members from different units, relied on each other for support and energy to complete each challenge, which was the basis for the challenge itself, said LeDoux.

“It was more than celebrating the guard’s birthday, but a chance to give back to the [Bagram Airfield] community,” Luca said.

“[The guard] opened the challenge to everyone. We are one team with one

fight,” explained LeDoux. Adding, “It’s an opportunity to bring

together service members who are spread across the U.S. to celebrate with healthy competition, building esprit-de-corps and teamwork while having fun.”

For the 2nd “Black Jack” Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas, it did just that, as three

A U.S. Army Ohio National Guardsman with the 838th Military Police Company and on Team Rogue performs ammo can squats during the U.S. National Guard 5k Race and Minuteman Challenge on Ba-gram Airfield, Afghanistan. The race and challenge concluded a three-day National Guard 377th Birthday celebration hosted by the Ohio National Guard 437th Mili-tary Police Battalion and National Guard Affairs-Afghanistan. (Photo Credit: Sgt. Quentin Johnson)


VCU and Army join to establish Supply Chain Management degree

In a ceremony at Virginia Commonwealth University, Dr. Michael Rao, VCU president, and Maj. Gen. Larry D. Wyche, Combined Arms Support Command and Fort Lee commanding general, signed a Memorandum of Understanding agreement to develop the new Master of Supply Chain Management degree program. (Photo Credit: VCU University Relations)

Public Affairs OfficeCombined Arms SupportCommand

Public Affairs OfficeVa. Commonwealth University

The Army Logistics University and Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) have part-

nered to create a new degree program to support soldiers.

The Master of Supply Chain Man-agement is slated to begin in fall 2014 and will emphasize innovation, critical thinking and logistics management.

In a recent ceremony at the Richmond campus, Dr. Michael Rao, VCU president, and Maj. Gen. Larry D. Wyche, Combined Arms Support Command and Fort Lee commanding general, signed a Memoran-dum of Understanding agreement to de-velop the program.

Combined Arms Support Command, known as CASCOM, a major subordinate command of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, is responsible for training over 185,000 students annually through more than 540 courses taught by the ordnance, quartermaster and transpor-tation schools, the Soldier Support Institute and the Army Logistics University (ALU).

The mission for the command is to train, educate and grow the sustainment community as well as develop and inte-grate innovative Army and joint sustain-ment capabilities, concepts and doctrine to enable unified land operations.

“I am proud to inaugurate an academ-ic program that will be critically impor-tant for Central Virginia,” Rao said.

Adding, “Central Virginia – led by VCU and Fort Lee – needs to be a na-tional model for innovative logistics and supply chain management. At VCU, we

understand this, and I’m so proud that my colleagues in the School of Business have become national leaders in this area.”

The signing of the memorandum rep-resents the culmination of a journey in partnership that began with a VCU lead-ership visit to Fort Lee in 2012.

That visit established the foundation that has developed into this new coopera-tive graduate degree program.

“We were so excited that VCU was not only interested in developing a joint grad-uate program in supply chain manage-ment but also in standing up a new teach-ing department to do so,” Wyche said.

Adding, “The program we have co-de-signed reflects our shared vision of the logis-tician who will master both the defense lo-gistics system and the business of logistics.”

He also said, “Together, we have designed a course of instruction that will, perhaps, be the best such program available to Depart-

ment of Defense officers and civilians.”The 12-month enhanced graduate degree

program in the VCU School of Business will place special emphasis on innovation and creative thinking as well as the use and ap-plication of SAP enterprise software.

Students will learn how to manage the complexities of global supply chains by using applied research programs, analyz-ing real-world problems and working with local firms and government agencies.

The program will draw students from the corporate sector as well as from the military, and provide both the unique op-portunity to learn from each other.

“The course reflects what the Army and defense department have wanted for years – a careful blending of govern-ment and business theories and practices involving the art and science of supply chain management and logistical support to our armed forces,” Wyche said.

VCU is a major urban public research university with national and internation-al rankings in sponsored research.

Located in downtown Richmond, VCU enrolls nearly 31,000 students in 223 degree and certificate programs in the arts, sciences and humanities.

Sixty-eight of the programs are unique in Virginia, many of them cross-ing the disciplines of VCU’s 13 schools and one college.

This program provides the Army a great opportunity, said Dr. Billy J. Davis, College of Professional and Continuing Education, Army Logistics University.

“The comprehensive curriculum will help prepare students for the rig-orous demands of being a supply chain and logistics professional.”

He noted that ALU students will also be able to combine their studies in the Theater Logistics Planners Program with additional coursework taken at VCU.

“This collaboration will educate and help prepare military and civilian sus-tainment professionals to become inno-vative logisticians who are competent, committed and adaptive to their field of professional practice,” Davis said.

Adding, “Collaborations, such as this, are instrumental in bridging and connecting the military sustainment professional to the intricacies of the global industrial base. The program will create an optimal learning environment where knowledge about supply chain and logistics throughout industries and applications can be shared.”

The program still requires approval from the VCU Board of Visitors and the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.

This new degree program represents the great teamwork between the defense and academic communities, Wyche said.

He added, “We are looking forward to a lasting and meaningful relationship.”

teams from the brigade were represented at the challenge, bringing their competi-tive spirits with them, said Lt. Col. Mark Huhtanen, Black Jack deputy commander.

“It was fun and challenging, with the different events playing to different peo-ples strengths,” added Huhtanen.

Huhtanen remarked on what he felt was the most important part of the challenge, which was remembering our military heritage.

“It was great to celebrate the National Guard’s birthday, after all the guard is an im-portant part of our heritage,” said Huhtanen.

Adding, “The challenge brought ser-vice members together, which brought out the Warrior Ethos and Army values.”

LeDoux said he was pleased over-all with the challenge that took almost 40 U.S. service members and months of planning to incorporate it on Bagram Airfield. His hopes are high another chal-lenge will take place in the states for next year's birthday celebration of the Guard.

Five committees contributed to the over-all setup of the challenge: National Guard Affairs-Afghanistan; the 210th Military Police Company, North Carolina; the 198th Signal Group, Delaware; the 437th Military Police Battalion and the 181st Field Artil-lery Battalion, Tennessee; and the National Guard Military History Detachment.

The winner of the challenge was team “Sappers In,” five members from the 130th Engineer Brigade, Schofield Barracks, Ha-waii, with a score of more than 1,500 points.

from previous pageNational Guard

U.S. service members and civilians start a five-kilomter race during the U.S. National Guard 5k Race and Minuteman Challenge on Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. The race and challenge concluded a three-day National Guard 377th Birthday celebration hosted by the Ohio National Guard 437th Military Police Battalion and National Guard Af-fairs-Afghanistan. (Photo Credit: Sgt. Quentin Johnson)


Army World Class Athletes are on their way to Winter Olympics in Sochi

Sgt. Matt Mortensen and Sgt. Preston Griffall of the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program earn a berth in the 2014 Olympic Winter Games by virtue of their World Cup performances, including this run to a ninth-place finish in luge doubles, at Utah Olympic Park in Park City, Utah. (Photo Credit: Tim Hipps, IMCOM Public Affairs)

Pave the Way for Army HistoryCelebrate your Army service or honor the Army service of a loved one

with this timeless tribute of an attractive Mesabi black granite brick prominently displayed on the grounds of the

National Museum of the U.S. Army.

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prime placement along the Path of Remembrance. The bricks will be installed in time for the Museum’s grand opening celebration.

Act Now! Visit www.armyhistory.org/bricksor call 855-ARMY-BRX

Tim HippsArmy Installation Management Command

Three soldiers from the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program earned nominations for the U.S.

Olympic Luge Team for the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

Team USA luge coach Staff Sgt. Bill Tavares will lead Sgt. Matt Mortensen and Sgt. Preston Griffall, who secured their spot with a ninth-place finish in doubles at the Luge World Cup stop, Dec. 13, at Utah Olympic Park.

The U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program, or WCAP, duo completed its first run down the 1,335-meter track that features 15 curves in 43.948 seconds, followed by a shakier slide down the mountain in 44.132 seconds – for a cu-mulative time of 1:28.080.

Germany’s Tobias Wendl and Bvias Arlt won the race with a 1:27.326 clock-ing.

“There’s always a little bit of pressure when you’re sliding, but for Preston and I, the main thing was just get down to the finish without walls – do something that you’ve done hundreds of times, and just do it OK,” said Mortensen, 28, of Hun-

U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program lugers Sgt. Preston Griffall, 29, of Salt Lake City, Utah, and Sgt. Matt Mortensen, 28, of Huntington Station, N.Y., flank WCAP and U.S. Olympic luge coach Staff Sgt. Bill Tavares after receiving their Team USA jackets at Utah Olympic Park in Park City, Utah. They will represent the U.S. Army at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games, scheduled for Feb. 6-24 in Sochi, Russia. Mortensen and Griffall secured their spot with a ninth-place finish in the World Cup Luge doubles event Dec. 13 at Utah Olympic Park. On Dec. 14, they anchored Team USA’s silver medal winning relay team. (Photo Credit: Tim HIpps, IMCOM Public Affairs)

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tington Station, N.Y. Adding, “Second run, I tried not to do

it OK, but we still managed to get down without any walls.”

Griffall, a 2006 Olympian who just missed making the team in 2010, had even more reason to be concerned.

As the bottom guy on a doubles team, it’s often difficult to see what is happen-ing.

“Our second run, like Matt said, we had some problems on the run,” said Griffall, 29, of Salt Lake City, Utah.

“There’s a big scoreboard, actually, behind curve 14 – because I can’t see di-rectly in front of me because Matt’s sit-ting there – so I was turned around and trying to look at the scoreboard to see what place we were in. And we’re still traveling at 60 or 70 miles per hour, and I couldn’t see where the place was on the board,” he added.

Another four years instantaneously flashed through the mind of Griffall.

“I had no idea what place we were in, and Matt wasn’t doing anything, so there was no reaction at first. I was like, ‘Oh, my God, maybe we didn’t get the place that we needed,’” he recalled.

Adding, “I finally was able to see around him once we got further up the outrun and I saw that we were in second place [at that point in the competition] and at that point I knew that we had met the place we needed to in order to qualify for the Olympics.

“I was just extremely excited,” Griffall said. “That was what we needed to do. I was happy for both Matt and I that we were finally able to do this after seven years. This is the goal that we had, and we finally met that goal.”

Adding “I’m just trying to enjoy it right now and we’re going to look for-ward toward Sochi, get there and try and go for it – give ourselves the possibility of going for a medal.”

Mortensen was “paralyzed by emo-tion” the moment he realized the WCAP duo’s second run was good enough to earn an Olympic berth.

“All that matters is that we qualified for the Olympics and we’re going to So-chi,” he said.

“We ended up in ninth place today, which is same as last week, so that’s re-ally, really good for us,” he noted.

The next day, Mortensen and Griffall enjoyed a “victory lap,” of sorts, by an-choring Team USA to a silver medal in the World Cup team relay, an event that will make its Olympic debut in Sochi.

Kate Hansen slid the women’s singles leg and Chris Mazdzer filled the men’s singles spot on the relay team.

USA Luge officially announced nom-ination of the 2014 Olympic Luge Team,

pending U.S. Olympic Committee ap-proval, during a gala at the Utah Olym-pic Park Museum.

Joining the WCAP lugers on Team USA: Mazdzer of Saranac Lake, N.Y., Tucker West of Ridgefield, Conn., and Aidan Kelly of West Islip, N.Y., in men’s singles; Erin Hamlin of Remsen, N.Y., Hansen of La Canada, Calif., and Sum-mer Britcher of Glen Rock, Pa., in wom-en's singles, along with Christian Nic-cum of Woodinville, Wash., and Jayson Terdiman of Berwick, Pa., in doubles.

“It’s unbelievable,” Mortensen said. “I get emotional thinking about it. It’s been almost 17 years that I’ve been work-ing toward this point, and for it to finally happen is like a dream come true.”

Griffall hopes his third go-round might indeed produce the charm.

“Emotionally, it’s a pretty powerful thing,” he said.

Adding, “This is the biggest event for our sport. It only happens every four years. We have World Cups and World Championships in between, but this is

from previous pageSoldiers to Sochi the big one, you know? Yeah, after Matt

and I missed it narrowly in 2010, this has been a long time coming.”

ausameetings.org/lanpac AUSA, Industry Affairs: 703.907.2665

Land Forces: Assuring Security and Stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific

A world-class international event highlighting the role of land power in the Indo-Asia Pacific region.

Be part of the discussion as Joint, Interagency and Multinational key leaders along with academia, industry and NGO’s examine:

• Information warfare and cyber activities• Leveraging training with technology• Humanitarian assistance and

disaster response

LANPACSymposium & Exposition

A Professional Development Forum

8–10 April 2014Sheraton Waikiki, Honolulu, HI

AUSA Institute of Land Warfare

FREE REGISTRATIONfor active duty military

and government personnel


Sunshine 193Gen. John Vessey Jr., MN 169Greater Kansas City 164Tobyhanna Army Depot 163Major Samuel Woodfill 150Arsenal of Democracy 130Rhode Island 123Rock Island Arsenal 129North Texas 131Redstone - Huntsville 123Columbia River 114Connecticut 107Space Coast 90Tri State 89Fort Leonard Wood – Mid-Missouri 83St. Louis Gateway 77Arizona Territorial 76Tucson-Goyette 70

Capital District of New York 66Aberdeen 66Gen. W. C. Westmoreland 66Texas Capital Area 62First Militia 61Carlisle Barracks – Cumberland Valley 54Mission Trails 53Central Ohio 52Kuwait 47CPL Bill McMillan – Bluegrass 33Fires 22GA Omar N. Bradley 22Northern New Jersey 19Western New York 18CPT Meriwether Lewis 13Polar Bear 11Stuttgart 4

Each month, in which a chapter achieves and retains a growth equal to or greater than its assigned membership goal, it will be classified as a Star Chapter. The chapter name will be listed on this monthly Star Chart with the number of consecutive months as a Star Chapter listed to the right.

Star Chart

Chapter Increase

Captain Meriwether Lewis 21

Corporate members provide the leadership, as well as goods, services and the financial means that assist chapters with their programs and projects designed to support our soldiers, civilians, retirees and their families.

The following chapters have increased their corporate member companies by 10 or more since July 1, 2013.

Corporate Member Growth

As of December 31, 2013

South Sudan Evacuation

A U.S. Army soldier with Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa’s East Re-sponse Force travels on an Air Force jet from Djibouti to support the departure and evacuation of the U.S. Embassy from South Sudan in December. (Photo by Tech. Sgt. Micah Theurich, USAF.)

To order these and other ILW publications, visit the Institute of Land Warfare at the AUSA website (www.ausa.org); send an e-mail to [email protected]; call (800) 336-4570, ext. 4630; or write to AUSA’s Institute of Land Warfare, ATTN: Publication Requests, 2425 Wil-son Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22201-3326.

All publications are available free of charge at:www.ausa.org/publications/ilw.

To order books, visit the AUSA website at www.ausa.org or contact Dr. Roger Cirillo at 800-336-4570 ext. 6653 or via e-mail at [email protected].

1 Available ONLY on the AUSA website at www.ausa.org/ilw.2 Lead story.3 Winner of the 2013 AUSA/Army Capabilities Integration Center (ARCIC)

writing contest.

Land Warfare Papers • LWP 98 – Army Adaptation from 1898 to the

Present: How Army Leaders Balanced Strategic and Institutional Imperatives to Best Serve the Nation by Robert H. Simpson and Mark C. Smith (September 2013)

• LWP 97 – Design, Mission Command and the Network: Enabling Organizational Adaptation by Todd A. Schmidt (August 2013)3

• LWP 96 – Institutionalizing Stability Operations: A Policy Analysis by Michael Kelly McCoy (June 2013)

• LWP 95 – Cyberspace Operations in Support of Counterinsurgency Operations by David W. Pendall, Ronald Wilkes and Timothy J. Robinson (April 2013)

• LWP 94 – Misinterpretation and Confusion: What is Mission Command and Can the U.S. Army Make it Work? by Donald E. Vandergriff (February 2013)

• LWP 93 – Strategists Break All the Rules by Adelaido Godinez (January 2013)

• LWP 92 – Leader Development, Learning Agility and the Army Profession by Brian J. Reed (October 2012)

National Security Watch • NSW 13-1 – Strategy and Policy: Civilian and

Military Leadership in the 21st Century by Nicholas R. Krueger (January 2013)

• NSW 12-4 – Earned Deferred Compensation by Nicholas R. Krueger (August 2012)

NCO Update • Odierno: Sequestration Would Make Even One

Major Operation Difficult2 (1st Quarter 2014)

• Recreation Centers Offer Value to Troops, Families2 (4th Quarter 2013)

Special Reports • Remembering a Sine Wave: A History of Feast

and Famine for the U.S. Army by Frederick J. Kroesen (October 2013)

• AUSA + Second Session, 112th Congress = Some Very Good News (January 2013)

• Profile of the U.S. Army 2012: a reference handbook (June 2012)

• Your Soldier, Your Army: A Parents’ Guide by Vicki Cody (also available in Spanish)

Torchbearer National Security Reports • Strategic Mobility: Enabling Global Responsiveness

for America’s Force of Decisive Action (July 2013)

• The U.S. Army in the Pacific: Assuring Security and Stability (April 2013)

Torchbearer Issue Papers • The Army’s Organic Industrial Base: Providing

Readiness Today, Preparing for Challenges Tomorrow (December 2013)

• Addition Through Subtraction: Empowering the Soldier by Lightening the Load (October 2013)

• U.S. Army South: Fostering Peace and Security in South America, Central America and the Caribbean (October 2013)

• The Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex: Winning the Future Fight (August 2013)

• Déjà Vu: Servicemembers’ earnings are under attack—again (June 2013)

Torchbearer Alerts • A Crisis in Military Housing: Basic Allowance

for Housing Under Attack (October 2013)

• Breaking the Faith (February 2012)

Defense Reports • DR 13-1 – The U.S. Army Capstone Concept:

Defining the Army of 2020 (January 2013)

Landpower Essays • LPE 13-4 – Strategizing Forward in the Western

Pacific and Elsewhere by Huba Wass de Czege (October 2013)

• LPE 13-3 – Cavalry in the Movement and Maneuver Warfighting Function by Frederic J. Brown (May 2013)

• LPE 13-2 – The Hard Truth about “Easy Fighting” Theories: The Army is Needed Most When Specific Outcomes Matter by Huba Wass de Czege (April 2013)

• LPE 13-1 – Military Ethic and the Judge Advocate General’s Corps: Legal Guardians of the Profession of Arms by Mari K. Eder (April 2013)

• LPE 12-1 – Just Don’t Take Away My Smartphone by Jeremy Rasmussen (October 2012)

• An Unsung Soldier: The Life of Gen. Andrew J. Goodpaster by Robert S. Jordan (Naval Institute Press, September 2013)

• Team 19 in Vietnam: An Australian Soldier at War by Lt Col. David Millie, MBE Ret. (The University Press of Kentucky, October 2013)

• Losing Vietnam: How America Abandoned Southeast Asia by MG Ira A. Hunt Jr., USA Ret. (The University Press of Kentucky, June 2013)

• Generals of the Army: Marshall, MacArthur, Eisenhower, Arnold, Bradley by James H. Willbanks, Editor (The University Press of Kentucky, April 2013)

• My Life Before the World War, 1860–1917: A Memoir, General of the Armies John J. Pershing by John T. Greenwood, Editor (The University Press of Kentucky, July 2013)

• Exposing the Third Reich: Colonel Truman Smith in Hitler’s Germany by Henry G. Gole (The University Press of Kentucky, August 2013)


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