Commissaries, Fisher House Offer Scholarships

By Gerry J. Gilmore


Dec. 1, 2006 – The Defense Commissary Agency and the Fisher House Foundation have teamed up for the seventh year to offer educational scholarships to children of military families and retirees. The Scholarships for Military Children Program helps children of servicemembers pay for college by providing at least one $1,500 scholarship for each of DeCA's more than 260 commissaries worldwide, DeCA spokesman Kevin Robinson said.

"We consider the commissary to be one of the pillars of the military community," Robinson said. "As such, it is important that we invest in the future of the families we serve."

Nearly 3,000 scholarships, totaling more than $4 million, have been awarded since the program began in 2001, he said.

Authorized applicants include unmarried children under age 21 of active duty, Guard, reserve, or retired military families, Robinson said. Applicants also may range up to 23 years in age if they are enrolled in school.

Scholarship eligibility will be determined using the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System database. Applicants should ensure that they, as well as their sponsor, are enrolled in the DEERS database and have a current ID card.

The application period for this year's DeCA-Fisher House scholarship program began Nov. 1 and closes Feb. 21, 2007, Robinson said.

Application forms for the program are available for pick-up at commissaries worldwide and for download via the Internet at www.commissaries.com, www.militaryscholar.org or www.dodea.edu.

A significant number of scholarships, about 10 percent each year, go to high school students attending DoD schools overseas.

"Every cent that community organizations can mobilize to support college-bound students is an investment in the future," Joseph Tafoya, director of the Department of Defense Education Activity, said.

The Fisher House Foundation administers the scholarship program, Robinson said. Funding for the program is provided by manufacturers and suppliers of groceries and services in the commissary system.

"We're excited to see this worthwhile program gaining recognition and funding from the community at large, Jim Weiskopf, vice president of communications at Fisher House Foundation, said. Increased public support helps ensure that the Scholarships for Military Children program will continue to benefit the military community for years to come.

Fisher House is renowned for building and managing living quarters on the grounds of major military installations and Veterans Affairs medical centers so military family members can be close to hospitalized loved ones. The organization is a member of the Defense Department's America Supports You program, which highlights grassroots and corporate support for U.S. military members and their families.

Donations for the scholarship program can be made through the program's official web link at militaryscholar.org.

Completed applications must be turned in at a commissary by the close of business on Feb. 21, 2007. The application includes an essay section where applicants are to describe how and why they'd change a historical event.

Eligible applicants must be planning to attend or already attending an accredited college or university full time in the fall term of 2007, or be enrolled in a program of studies designed to transfer directly into a four-year program.

(Bonnie Powell, chief of marketing at the Defense Commissary Agency, contributed to this report.)

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Guard Chief: Relief on Way for Guard's Equipment Shortages

By Donna Miles

Dec. 1, 2006 – The National Guard Bureau chief assured members of the Army and Air National Guard during a visit here earlier this week that relief is on the way for the Guard's chronic equipment shortages. The Army National Guard alone will receive almost $29 billion during the next five years to reequip its units, and the Air National Guard will receive a similar sum, Army Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum told National Guard troops serving here along the southwestern U.S. border in Operation Jump Start during his Nov. 29 visit.

That's "almost 29 billion with a 'b,'" Blum said for emphasis.

It also could be "b" for "bravo" for Blum, who's been on something of a crusade -- drawing top-level focus on National Guard equipment shortfalls. He's called the issue one of his biggest challenges, particularly in light of the Guard's vital role in both combat and domestic response missions.

During the National Guard Association's general conference in September, Blum reported that Guard troops "want for nothing in combat," but return home to a "dangerously low resourcing level" for their stateside missions.

This week, Blum told troops serving here of the challenges the Guard faced when Bush announced in mid-May that 6,000 National Guard troops would support the U.S. Border Patrol as it recruits and trains more agents. The operation, expected to last two years, uses National Guard members for support missions, freeing up more Border Patrol agents for front-line law enforcement missions.

"Look, half the problem with this mission was getting equipment, because most of it was overseas, ... and we didn't have that much back here to move around to you," Blum told the group, made up of volunteers from throughout the country.

The good news, he reported, is that there's now "a very real recognition" among Pentagon and congressional leaders of the need to reequip the Guard's worn-out equipment -- and it's being backed up with desperately needed funding.

Congress is "absolutely adamant that the Guard has to get reequipped" and is watching the issue "like a hawk," Blum said.

"They know how important you are, day to day," he told the troops, pointing to the wide range of missions the National Guard is carrying out throughout the United States and overseas.

"The Guard is busy," he said. "We have 55,000 of us in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Balkans, (the) Sinai (and) the Horn of Africa, a couple of hundred of us down at Guantanamo (Bay, Cuba), 6,000 of us on the southwest border this morning."

In addition, some 8,000 to 10,000 Guard members are serving throughout the United States, providing critical infrastructure protection and responding to disasters ranging from floods to forest fires, he said. In addition, just as hurricane season has come to an end, the National Guard already is geared up to respond to winter-weather emergencies, he said.

"It is unbelievable what the Guard is doing today," Blum told the group. "And you are part of the best Guard that this country has ever put on the ground in its 368 year history."

But all that activity has taken its toll on the National Guard's equipment, he quickly acknowledged. Gear, vehicles and other equipment is wearing out far faster than normal -- as much as five times faster, by some Pentagon estimates.

In addition, many Guard units return from Iraq and Afghanistan without their equipment, leaving it behind for replacement troops. Blum supports that measure, noting that it saves time, money and strain on the logistics system. But the flip side of the coin, he said, is that returning units often lack the equipment they need for training or to respond to a domestic crisis.

States across the country have entered into an agreement to share their National Guard resources to fill in gaps as needed. The Emergency Management Assistance Compact proved its value during the multistate response in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when several states mobilized their National Guard assets and sent them to help the Gulf states.

But Blum has long emphasized that this kind of cooperation is not a long-term solution to the Guard's chronic equipment shortages. His big concern, he said, is that when the president or one of the 53 U.S. governors calls on their Guard troops, they won't have the equipment they need to provide the "Minuteman" response that's expected of them.

"It is a problem, and we are working it very hard," Blum told the Operation Jump Start troops.

While assuring them that relief is on the way, Blum counseled patience. "We didn't get here overnight," he said. "It took us three to five years to get here, and it will probably take us that long to get out of the hole we are in."

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Illinois Group Working Hard at Holidays

By Samantha L. Quigley

Dec. 1, 2006 – With its 4th annual "Holiday Hugs to Our Heroes" drive officially concluded, the SI Yellow Ribbon Campaign is unofficially still working to meet the group's goal of providing holiday packages to 1,000 troops. SI Yellow Ribbon Campaign is a member of America Supports You, a Defense Department program highlighting ways Americans and the corporate sector support the nation's servicemembers.

"Our goal was to try and hit about 1,000 troops, but it doesn't look like we're going to make that," Amy Oxford, the group's founder, said. "It's just so important to me not to give up on this."

The campaign has benefited from several groups' drives to collect gifts for the care packages and has enough to ship to at least 1,000 troops, but postage is a concern.

Working with flat-rate boxes that ship for $8.10 each, the group has cut its postage costs nearly in half from last year.

"I've got a lot of Christmas items here, and we even had a bunch more come in yesterday," Oxford said. "My problem is it just doesn't look like we're going to have the postage to get it out."

On the bright side, she said she anticipates getting boxes of holiday cheer -- candy, comfort and entertainment items -- to a number of troops. Oxford said the group will comfortably be able to send boxes to about 500 servicemembers.

The group's campaign started in March 2003 by sending packages tailored to the servicemember receiving them. The database of those requesting packages hovers between 2,000 and 2,300 servicemembers serving overseas.

Oxford said she likes to include phone cards in the boxes all year, especially at Christmas. The cards, as well as CDs and DVDs -- Christmas package staples -- are in short supply and she said she'd love to have enough to include in every package she sends out.

"We're going to ship as long as we can, and if they're late, I still think it's the thought that counts," Oxford said.

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DoD Promoting Businesses Owned by Wounded Vets

By Sgt. Sara Wood, USA

Dec. 1, 2006 – In an effort to increase the supplier base in key acquisition areas and smooth the transition of wounded veterans into the civilian business world, the Defense Department is showcasing its program aimed at small businesses owned by service-disabled veterans. DoD's Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Program, developed in response to a 2004 executive order and subsequent legislation, helps wounded veterans start their own businesses, get certification to bid on DoD contracts as a prime or subcontractor, and network with other DoD prime and subcontractors. The organization is sponsoring a conference to showcase what they do in Dallas Dec. 4 to 7.

"I think that if there's any program that I have to manage here that has the greatest amount of job satisfaction and purpose of being in this position, it's the service-disabled veterans program," Frank Ramos, director of small business programs for DoD, said in a media roundtable yesterday.

Ramos, whose family has a rich history of military service, said the veterans of today's conflicts come home to a much more welcome reception than those of other decades, and DoD is trying to make sure they have business opportunities as well.

"When I reflect on what we're trying to do with the service-disabled veteran program, there's a vast difference in terms of how the country, and the public, and the Department of Defense, and the federal government, and the Congress, and the president are seeking to find innovative and fresh approaches to giving these warriors a sense of a transitional role for them to come back into the mainstream community," Ramos said. "We're trying to find niche industries that this new era of service-disabled veterans can come into the entrepreneurial mainstream."

Under this program, DoD drafted a five-year plan to reach a goal established by Congress to have 3 percent of DoD contracts go to service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. The plan was stretched over five years because DoD officials knew it would take time to build a base of veteran-owned businesses with the expertise and knowledge to supply to DoD, said Charles Cervantes, director of the Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Program.

To qualify for the program, businesses must be at least 51 percent owned and controlled by a service-disabled veteran.

Since its inception, the program has achieved some significant accomplishments, Cervantes said. In the past year, the organization grew from 5,000 member businesses registered in DoD's centralized contractor registry to more than 12,000. The contracts landed by these companies grew from $513 million to $1.1 billion, he added. This is still only a fraction of the 3 percent goal, he noted, but is still strong progress.

Another notable accomplishment in the first year was the beginning of the Mentor-Protege Program, in which a small, veteran-owned business is matched with a large corporation, Cervantes said. In the first year, two small businesses -- one in information technology, the other in construction -- participated in this program. Their success stories will be on display at the conference to encourage more participation, he said.

Also under this program, DoD is encouraging teaming agreements, which are partnerships between multiple small businesses to increase capacity and capabilities, Cervantes said. Army Materiel Command recently took a $1.2 billion contract for bullets and split it between five small service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses, he said.

At the conference in Dallas, DoD plans to focus on the three major niche areas for service-disabled veterans: information technology, manufacturing and construction. Many veterans bring unique expertise to these fields, and DoD has a large need in these areas, Ramos said.

The conference will feature many high-level experts in procurement and acquisition, Cervantes said. "This is a terrific faculty, and it shows the commitment of our director ... to make these numbers go up dramatically within our five-year plan," he said.
For those small-business owners who can't make it to the conference, the eight key training modules will be taped and put into the Defense Acquisition University's online catalogue, Cervantes said. All of this is part of the effort to educate more service-disabled veterans about how to do business with DoD, he said.

"We want people to know that they can come back, they can have a serious disability and do business," he said. "This statute, this executive order, this plan is not going to go away. It's here for the long term; it's here for people that haven't even been born yet that will fight wars that we haven't even conceived of yet, and they will be beneficiaries of these programs."

In addition to the conference, DoD is working with other agencies and veterans service organizations to promote the service-disabled veteran-owned small business program, Ramos said. Each of the military services has a robust program to educate veterans and servicemembers about their opportunities in doing business with DoD, he said.

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AAFES Civilians Voluntarily Deploying to Middle East

By Judd Antsey

DALLAS, Dec. 1, 2006 – While most Americans plan to spend the next few weeks eating, shopping and generally having a great time with friends and family, many Defense Department civilians will be leaving their homes and families for 6- to-12 month voluntary deployments to support Army and Air Force Exchange Service post and base exchanges throughout Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Friends for more than 25 years, graphic designers Gloria Michael and Kelly Northcutt have talked about deploying to live and work with the troops. With Michael getting closer to retirement, the two friends who live only six houses away from each other in Red Oak, Texas, decided now was the time to trek more than 7,000 miles to support troops half a world away.

Considering it will be her first time to travel outside the United States, Michael is understandably anxious. "I'm a bit nervous, because I haven't traveled a whole lot, but it is important that I take my support to our soldiers, airmen, sailors and Marines on the front lines before I retire."

With an itinerary that calls for the two "battle buddies" to depart for the Middle East on Dec. 17, both Michael and Northcutt are coming to terms with the fact that this upcoming holiday season will be their first away from spouses, children and grandchildren.

"We made the most out of Thanksgiving and loaded up on holiday cheer," said Northcutt. "Hopefully, we can take some of that warmth and caring we shared to our troops in Iraq or Afghanistan."

While Northcutt and Michael prepare for their first deployment, some civilians, like Kadena Air Base, Japan, Burger King manager Marjorie Granvle, will be redeploying this month. A 13-year AAFES associate, Granvle's last deployment to Bosnia in 2000 was so rewarding that she signed up to spend the first half of 2007 with troops in the desert.

A wife and mother of two who has served the armed forces from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., to her current position in Okinawa, Granvle says her family is supportive of her decision to deploy again. "They are sad to see me leave, but with the faith, love and support that we share in our hearts, we will be together for the holidays. This is my opportunity to support the troops and my country."

More than 450 volunteer AAFES associates like Granvle, Michael and Northcutt are deployed in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. To date, 1,800 AAFES civilians have deployed to provide comfort items and necessities in combat and contingency locations. Servicemembers depend on the PX/BX facilities these associates support for day-to-day health and comfort items such as soap, shampoo, toothpaste, snacks, beverages and entertainment items.

The merchandise assortment in the deployed environments typically includes basic health and hygiene items and snacks. Over time, that assortment is expanded to other items needed and requested by troops downrange. Today, AAFES stocks electronics, magazines, DVDs and even small appliances at its 58 PX/BX locations scattered throughout the contingency theater.

(Judd Antsey is assigned to the Army and Air Force Exchange Service.)

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Cadets, Midshipmen Gear Up for Annual Army-Navy Gridiron Showdown

By John J. Kruzel

Dec. 1, 2006 – Thumps from bass drums marked the cadence of the Army and Navy marching bands and cheerleaders as they made their rounds through the halls of the Pentagon in the buildup toward the 107th Army-Navy football game tomorrow. The processions, today and yesterday, respectively, capped off a week of celebration building up to the big game at Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field.

The U.S. Naval Academy Midshipmen and U.S. Military Academy Black Knights will face off tomorrow, continuing a rivalry that dates back to 1890.

The Midshipmen lead the series 50 wins to Army's 49, and will attempt to extend their three-year winning streak tomorrow.

On the other hand, tomorrow's game represents the final opportunity for West Point's graduating class to secure the coveted bragging rights that accompany a victory. The Black Knights are 20-point underdogs going into the game. If the cadets lose, the class of 2007 will graduate without having beaten Navy during its four years at the Military Academy.

During the lead-up to the Army-Navy Game, tradition and ritual are visible across both campuses, and school spirit is running rampant.

Teams of marathon runners from both schools are on their way to Philadelphia to deliver game balls in time for the 2:30 p.m. kickoff. West Point's runners left New York last night following the school's "Spirit Dinner," Frank DeMaro, a spokesman for the academy, told American Forces Press Service.

Today, a team of midshipman marathoners left Bancroft Hall, on the academy's Annapolis, Md., campus, en route to Philadelphia, carrying a ball dedicated to those who have served and continue to serve the nation in wartime, Naval Academy public affairs officials said.

A full schedule of activities at both schools has boosted enthusiasm for the upcoming game.

"There's always excitement," DeMaro said. "It's the biggest game of the year; it's our bowl game."

At West Point, cadets held the annual "Go Engineer" event last night, pitting the top 20 percent of the corps of cadets against the bottom 20 percent in a game of tackle football. Following the game (in which the top 20 percent team won), the cadets enjoyed a Spirit Dinner in the mess hall.

The Naval Academy sponsored its traditional pep rally and bonfire with fireworks at the academy's Farragut Field Nov. 29. A group of midshipmen met with the chairman and vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Pentagon yesterday.

Students at both schools said they welcome the festivity and fun surrounding the annual Army-Navy games. "A midshipman once told me, 'This is the only week of the year we're allowed to act like college kids,'" said Frederick Smith, a former Naval Academy instructor.

For alumni, the tradition of the Army-Navy Game -- which emboldens one academy with a year of bragging rights and deprives the other -- often runs deeper than the good-natured ribbing between academies.

"It's a chance to see what your military counterparts are made of," said Lt. Cmdr. Joe Carpenter, who graduated from the Naval Academy in 1992.

But Carpenter said it also offers a chance for students at the two schools to share their common values. "There's a greater sense that you are enjoying a break from reality with other people who have volunteered to take the difficult task of defending our country," he said.

For Army Lt. Col. Brian Maka, a 1987 West Point graduate, the Army-Navy Game conjures up fond childhood memories that led him to a military career. "I wear my (West Point) ring because it was a privilege to go there and fulfilled my dream as a kid," he said. "And I got that dream growing up and watching the Army-Navy Game. It resonated with me."

Maka, a Pentagon spokesman, said he's developed close friendships with many Annapolis graduates during his career and recognizes the similar experiences they've shared -- experiences he said are unique from those most Americans have had.

He enjoys the friendly rivalry between the two services, but said that, ultimately, it doesn't really matter which team wins.

"There's a lot of friendly jabbing and rivalry and trash-talking that happens," Maka said, "but it's all in good fun. In few other college games will you see as much mutual respect for each other's schools."

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Soldiers Missing in Action from the Korean War Are Identified

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of eight U.S. servicemen, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and returned to their families for burial with full military honors.

They are Master Sgt. Alfred H. Alonzo Sr., of Tampa, Fla.; Sgt. 1st Class Robert C. Bucheit, of Hamilton, Ohio; Sgt. Francis E. Lindsay, of Esther, Mo.; Cpl. Joseph Gregori, of West Pittston, Pa.; Cpl. Darrell W. Scarbrough, of Fayetteville, W.Va.; Cpl. Homer L. Sisk Jr., of Ducor, Calif.; Cpl. Charles E. Sizemore, of Rushville, Ind.; and Cpl. William E. Wood, of Moorhead, Minn.; all U.S. Army. Gregori was buried in August; Bucheit was buried in September; Scarbrough, Sisk and Sizemore were buried in October; Alonzo was buried in November; and Lindsay and Wood's burial dates are being set by their families.

Representatives from the Army met with the next-of-kin of these men in their hometowns to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.

The soldiers were assigned to the U.S. 8th Cavalry Regiment and attached units (1st Cavalry Division), when their unit came under attack by Chinese forces near Unsan, North Korea on the night of Nov. 1-2, 1950. During the battle, these eight and nearly 400 others from the 8th Cavalry Regiment were declared missing or killed in action.
In 2000, a joint U.S. and Democratic People's Republic of Korea team, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), interviewed a farmer living in the vicinity of Unsan who told the team that while doing land reclamation work, he uncovered remains he believed were those of U.S. soldiers.

The team excavated the burial site and uncovered the remains of at least 10 different individuals. They also recovered other items and identification tags belonging to these eight men.

Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains. Some of the remains could not be identified and will be held for further research and analysis. For additional information on the Defense Department's mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.

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