BG(Ret) Kennard Higgins will be presenting a talk entitled “America’s Anchor: A Naval History of the Delaware River and Bay” at the Delaware Military Museum located at First Regiment Road, Wilmington, Delaware, on Saturday, April 13, 2019, at 1:00 PM. The talk is free and open to the public and the museum will be open at 12:00 noon.
Category: News
Army Must Get Back to Basics
The Army must regain its expertise in maintenance and sustainment as it prepares to fight on a fast-paced, austere and deadly battlefield, a panel of senior Army leaders said during the Association of the U.S. Army’s Global Force Symposium and Exposition.
Soldiers have seen their skills atrophy after more than 17 years of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, where they could rely on contractors and the safety of large, sprawling bases.
“We have raised midgrade officers and NCOs who didn’t know what a LOGPAC was,” said Maj. Gen. Glenn Curtis, the adjutant general of the Louisiana National Guard, referring to a logistics package. “So, we forced our units back into the field, and we throttled back on the high-speed training, as we perceived it, and we had sergeants major and colonels teaching what a LOGPAC is and what’s the field craft you have to go through.”
A unit that’s unable to sustain itself will quickly get bogged down on the battlefield, and that’s evident at the Army’s combat training centers, said Lt. Gen. Laura Richardson, deputy commanding general of the U.S. Army Forces Command.
“If a unit doesn’t come in with the basic foundation of knowing their business and knowing sustainment, it will eat their lunch in terms of the operational tempo of their rotation,” she said, adding that Gen. Robert Abrams, who relinquished command of FORSCOM in October to lead U.S. Forces Korea, believes that “sustainment is training.”
Annual Renewal Time
We sincerely hope you will renew your AUSA membership and your membership with our Delaware chapter. Because we don’t have an active duty army base in our state, our chapter’s focus is on our National Guard and Reserve Soldiers and their families, retirees in the state of Delaware, and our veterans. We also annually support “Our Community Salutes” (OCS) which acknowledges those young women and men who have volunteered to serve in our nation’s Armed Forces.
We appreciate your past support and we are always looking for people to help and new ideas for our chapter events. AUSA is the only organization focused on all Soldiers and their families regardless of their status or rank. We hope you will join us in supporting Delaware’s Soldiers, their families, our retirees, and our veterans. Check out all the member benefits available to you.
2019 Soldier Pay Increases Set
[From AUSA National: Wednesday, December 26, 2018]
A 2.6 percent across-the-board pay raise in basic pay and drill pay is set to appear in mid-January payroll deposits for Regular Army, Army National Guard, and Army Reserve soldiers, along with an average 2.55 percent increase in basic allowance for housing for those who receive this payment.
There is no increase in 2019 in basic allowance for subsistence payments.
The basic pay hike is the biggest increase in nine years. It matches last year’s average private-sector pay increase.
Military retirement, Social Security and veterans’ disability and survivor benefits increased 2.8 percent, effective Dec. 1. Those increases, based on the increase in consumer prices, will first be paid in January.
Negotiations over the 2019 federal civilian pay raise have not been resolved.
Chapter Meeting and Air Mobility Command Museum Tour
Delaware Chapter Association of the United States Army
Members Meeting and Museum Tour
Continental Breakfast, Chapter Update, Tour of the Air Mobility Command Museum,
and Overview of Aircraft on Display
…………………………………………..
Saturday, October 27, 2018
Air Mobility Command Museum
Dover Air Force Base
Time: 0930-Noon
Breakfast and Museum donation – $10.00
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Please RSVP by October 24, 2018
Checks payable to DE Chapter, AUSA
Mail check and portion below to:
James C. Vavala
2628 Longfellow Drive,
Wilmington, DE 19808-3710
(302) 339-0025 or jcvav@comcast.net
!
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Sign-up for Delaware Chapter, AUSA Breakfast Meeting – 27 Oct 2018
Member / Guest Name_______________________________________________ Email _________________________________________________________ or,
Phone _________________________
Number Attending ______ x $10.00 per person = Amount Enclosed $ __________
Bring a new member; they attend as our guest!
Happy Birthday, U.S. Army!
First Annual Charity Golf Event
On Friday, May 18, 2018 the Chapter conducted its first Charity Golf event to raise funds for the Delaware Veterans Trust Fund. 60 golfers signed up but a steady rain prohibited players from venturing out as some tee boxes were under water. The Golf Course offered a rain-check for all those that came out, and we distributed awarded prizes, awarded money to the 50-50 winners, and auctioned off some of the larger donated prizes. Lunch was served early (10:30).
Ft Miles Tour and Lunch
The Delaware Chapter held a Members luncheon following an orientation and tour of Ft Miles, a WWII Army Coastal Defense Fort in Lewes, on April 21, 2018. The tour included the coastal guns at the Fort and the interior of Battery 519. Twenty-eight members and friends attended, and we presented a check for $100.00 to the President of the Ft Miles Historical Association, Dr Gary Wray. The photo is the group in front of the 16” gun, similar to those housed in one of the coast artillery bunkers at the Fort. This barrel was actually the middle gun on the #2 turret from the battleship U.S.S Missouri.
Delaware Chapter Lunch and Tour of ** Fort Miles **
The Delaware Chapter is having the next Chapter Members Lunch meeting on April 21, 2018 at Fort Miles in the Cape Henlopen State Park. As you may know, Ft Miles was an active Army installation constructed in World War II to protect the Delaware coast and shipping near the Delaware Bay. It was linked to the many observation towers along the Delaware shoreline.
Over the past 12 years the Ft Miles Historical Association has worked to engage the community, local businesses, and State government to preserve and restore a portion of this facility. Battery 519 is the centerpiece of this restoration and is currently the Museum. The Association staff
will meet at 10am, have a site overview from a member of the Ft Miles Historical Association, followed by a tour of Battery 519. This battery, the last one constructed, was built to house two 12-inch guns, a railway, and a chart room. It now serves as the Museum.
After the tour, we will have lunch with a Chapter update. The cost of the lunch and tour is $15.00. (Reduced, thanks to sponsor support).
Please RSVP with your check + contact info to CSM (Ret) Jim Vavala, 2628 Longfellow Drive, Wilmington, DE 19808 by April 10, 2018.
Welcome EANGUS Members!
Happy New Year! As you may know, the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States (EANGUS) recently partnered with the Association of the United States Army (AUSA), so that for the next year, members of one are members of both.
So, welcome to the Delaware Chapter, Association of the U.S. Army. AUSA represents all components of the Army; Active, National Guard, and Reserve, and their families. AUSA is part of the military coalition in Washington that supports military pay and benefits, and funding for readiness, new equipment, and military construction.
The Delaware Chapter AUSA supports ROTC, Junior ROTC, and conducts “Our Community Salutes,” a program that recognizes and thanks, Delaware high school seniors who have chosen to join one of the military services after graduation. The seventh annual event is scheduled for 23 May 2018 at Cavaliers Country Club. See www.ocsde.org
We meet 2-3 times per year, send out a Newsletter regularly, and encourage attendance at the Association of the U.S. Army Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington each October. Visit AUSA at www.ausa.org, and our Chapter on Facebook.
Association of the U.S. Army, Delaware Chapter 