a. AUSA Moderator – “What do you think is the National Guard’s most important mission?”
“The National Guard is the oldest military force in the Department of Defense. The National Guard will celebrate its 380th birthday on December 13, 2016, continuing to answer the call since 1636 when the first militia regiments in North America were organized into three permanent regiments: East, South, and North Regiments. It is symbolic of the founding of all the state, territory, and District of Columbia militias that collectively make up today's National Guard.”
b. NCO and Soldier Programs – “Is there an entrée you would like to have added to the Meals Ready to Eat?”
For everyone who has worn an Army uniform one of the most colorful memories, good and bad we all share, is food. Field rations is always an inviting war story among fellow veterans we can share. In an effort to keep Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) fashionable and appeasing for everyone, the Army is introducing some new flavors that include a burrito bowl MRE. Check out the article below and let us know which meals you would like to add or x-out of the current menu.
c. Veterans and Retiree _ “Should President-Elect Trump keep Sec. McDonald as the Veterans Affairs Secretary?”
“A coalition of 20 veterans groups on Wednesday upped their efforts to keep Veterans Affairs Secretary Bob McDonald on into the next administration, warning President-elect Donald Trump that ‘we cannot afford to start over’ given department reform progress in recent years.
“These efforts to transform and modernize the VA are showing early signs of success in the form of a better veteran experience and, if continued, we believe they have the potential to eventually make VA a model agency,” group members said in a letter to the incoming commander in chief. “It is therefore of the utmost importance that you select someone willing and able to continue prioritization of this work. We believe that person is Sec. McDonald.”
d. AUSA Five Things – “Almost 60% of Soldiers are married. Is this too much?”
AUSA Five Things: A Weekly Tip Sheet for AUSA Members, dated December 12, 2016: “Most Married Service.”
“The Army has the highest percentage of married service members of all branches. In the Regular Army, 58.2 percent are married, more than the 57.7 percent marriage rate in the Air Force and 51.4 percent rate in the Navy. In the Marine Corps, just 43.8 percent are married. Fifty-three percent of Marines, 48 percent of the Navy, 36.4 percent of the Army, and 35.7 percent of the Air Force have never been married, according to a Defense Department profile of the military based on 2015 data.
What to watch: While the Army is the most married of the services, it isn’t the most divorced. That distinction goes to the Air Force, where 6.4 percent are divorced. In comparison, 5.3 percent of the Army and 3.1 percent of the Marine Corps are divorced. The Navy didn’t supply divorce data.”
e. Industry Affairs – “AUSA has special benefits for Sustaining Member designees.”
“Member companies of AUSA benefit from the organization by connecting with Army while also furthering their own business objectives. One way for a member company to stay well connected to AUSA and the Army is to make sure that employees are members of AUSA.
Sustaining Member Companies are allotted 50 designees slots to fill with employees and/or consultants. These designees are not only considered Individual Members of AUSA, but they are also granted access to various networking forums and events on today and tomorrow’s Army. Each Sustaining Member Designees has full access to all individual member benefits and services, such as an AUSA Membership Card, an Online Membership Account, the ARMY Magazine, and other reports and publications from our Institute of Land Warfare. In addition to these benefits, Sustaining Member designees are invited to join us for our monthly ILW Breakfast Series where top Army leadership comes to speak to our Sustaining Member designees, head at AUSA Headquarters in Arlington, VA. Sustaining Member Designees also receive deep discounts at out Monthly Hot Topic Series as well as registration for our two domestic shows: Global Force in Huntsville and LANPAC in Hawaii.
Do you know if you have a full roster? To find our more on our program and to obtain your current roster, please visit our website or contact Lauren Hensley at LHensley@ausa.org.
THIS WEEK'S POLL QUESTION:
(To Vote: Scroll down to the footer of the page)
Does the Army need radical change?
o Yes
o No
o Not sure