Chairman's Annual Report

As I prepared for this annual report-one which marks my departure as your chairman-I was hit by a feeling of melancholy.

I first attended a NGAUS conference as a young captain. I remember how impressed I was as I walked around, meeting and talking to my fellow Guardsmen. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be sitting at the head table of the greatest military organization in the nation.

We have traveled a lot of roads together and fought many battles, winning our share of them.

And that's why, despite the twinge of sadness, I am also happy as I reflect on the many successes during my tour of duty.

I made a list of these victories. It grew quickly. We have certainly seen a lot of progress on a number of issues critical to the Guard. And I will mention them later.

But as I examined the list, I thought about the people who made all this happen. It certainly wasn't me. As chairman, I have been only a conduit for our concerns and issues.

First, my fellow NGAUS members, you should pat yourselves on the back. When you were asked to contact your representatives ahead of a vote, you responded. Our voice is your voice and it came through loud and clear on Capitol Hill.

And I must mention here the wonderful work done by two states in particular Georgia and Tennessee. Whenever we ask for responses, they do so in numbers far beyond any other states. I salute the state associations and the officers in those states for their efforts.

I can't mention Capitol Hill without thinking of our good friends who have always put our issues and concerns at the top of their "to do" lists. Of course, I'm talking about familiar names to NGAUS members-Sens. Patrick Leahy of Vermont and Christopher Bond of Missouri and Reps. Gene Taylor of Mississippi and Tom Davis of Virginia. .

These men-two Democrats and two Republicans-prove that lawmakers can work across the aisle for the nation's common good. We are so fortunate to have them on our team.

And we all know who else to thank for our recent successes. Some of you may tire of me mentioning nearly every month the great men and women who serve in the Guard. Well, I never tire of talking about them.

As I looked at the list of accomplishments in my hand, it was crystal clear to me how we got to this point. Our citizensoldiers and airmen have performed magnificently on all fronts of the war on terror and when asked to defend or protect our states against both manmade and natural threats.

Our success in all of these missions has given the Guard a prominence that is absolutely impossible to ignore.

If you don't think our performance and the increased support in Washington, D.C., for the Guard are connected, think again. Had our soldiers and airmen not done their duty so convincingly in Iraq, Afghanistan and so many other hotspots around the globe, our message would not have resonated so well inside the walls of the Pentagon.

Had our brave men and women not answered the call so well when floods ravaged the Midwest or wildfires threatened lives and property in California or when the U.S. Border Patrol asked for our help on America's southern flank, it would have been harder to win Congress' support for issues such as better health care, more modern equipment, fulltime manning and other items on a long, long list.

It hasn't been easy. It never is. Our men and women spend long months away from their families and friends. They endure hardships. Many have suffered life-changing wounds and still others have given the ultimate sacrifice.

Let's not forget the civilian employers, who sacrifice, too, for the good of our nation.

But the wars we fight today are no longer fought by two armies smashing each other across a massive front. Today's wars involve nation building and winning hearts and minds of people. This is where the National Guard and the civilian acquired skills we take with us are important. From plumbers to chefs, from mayors to mechanics and from police chiefs to teachers, we are the best our nation has to offer and we make a difference.

We're citizens first and soldiers second. We know how to treat people. No one should be surprised that our men and women have done their duty so admirably.

Our accomplishments at NGAUS are directly linked to their ability to serve so well.

And I do realize that many of you reading this are the men and women I'm talking about. Many NGAUS members have withstood sandstorms half a world away and stacked sandbags on the home front. We simply can't thank you enough.

Now let's talk about those items on my list.

For starters, we can mention the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2008. At the time, I called this "one of the most significant pieces of Guard legislation in the last 100 years."

I still think that way. This act, signed by President Bush in January, does many things for the Guard. It raises our profile in the Pentagon, lowers the age for Guard members to receive retirement pay and maintains the Joint Cargo Aircraft as a joint program. And these are just a few.

Much of the NDAA came directly from the National Guard Empowerment Act which we and our friends on Capitol Hill have pushed.

It wasn't perfect. We still need improvements to the retirement part of the law, making it retroactive to Sept. 11, 2001. Legislation has been introduced to do just that and we must make this our top priority in the months ahead. We can accept nothing less than total success on this issue. The National Guard has earned it. Our families have earned it. We deserve it.

My list also mentions the historic decision to make the chief of the National Guard Bureau a four-star officer with a seat at the decision-making table alongside other service chiefs. I hope we are not awaiting still the confirmation of Lt. Gen. Craig R. McKinley as the first four-star NGB chief when we gather this month for the 130th NGAUS Conference in Baltimore. We congratulate him again for this honor.

That news was coupled with the decision to assign a National Guard general as deputy commander of U.S. Northern Command. Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum was nominated and should be confirmed as the second most powerful officer in this important command.

This gives the Guard a greater say in the defense of our homeland and we will have a man in that position who served so well as NGB chief for more than five years. General Blum's effective leadership in guiding the issues and concerns of the Guard was key to accomplishing many of the items on my list. We thank him and wish him well.

I am proud, too, of our success in making a streamlined TRlCARE Reserve Select health care program available to all Guardsmen. For as little as $81 per month, a soldier or airman can purchase health care coverage. Unfortunately, we seem to be slow getting the word out to these soldiers and airmen. Let's increase our efforts to let every eligible Guard member know of this hard-won benefit.

Early this year, the Commission on the National Guard and Reserve (CNGR) released its final report after nearly two years of gathering facts and hearing testimony, including an earful they received from your chairman. While there was a lot of complaining and criticizing of the commission during and after its effort, we should really take another look. True, there is much to complain about, but much to welcome, as well.

The CNGR actually validates many of our concerns, from retirement to fulltime manning. The attention they brought to these and other issues simply strengthened our arguments.

Another accomplishment on my list may surprise some of you. I listed the implementation of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure rulings, particularly those in the Air Guard. Yes, this was a controversial effort, taking away many of our traditional flying missions, in particular.

But we can be proud of how we have responded. The Air Guard has sucked it up and come through. Airmen went to school and learned new missions. Not too many organizations could change directions on a dime the way our colleagues did. It is not the way we like to do business, but our Air Guard showed the patriotism and can-do spirit required to accomplish even this unwelcome task.

I have another accomplishment on my list. It simply says, Oval Office. Last October, President Bush wanted to thank the Guard for its service to the country and ask what the Guard needed to continue its vital contribution to the nation.

For one hour, General Blum; retired Brig. Gen Stephen M. Koper, our NGAUS president; and 1 had the ear of the commander in chief and his top military advisers, including Defense secretary Robert M. Gates.

Think about it. When the president wanted to thank the Guard and hear its concerns, who did he call? NGAUS.

We all should be proud.

One problem with the list I made in preparation for this column is that it is too short. As much as we have done, we have more to do.

For example, we still have to convince the Pentagon that Army Guard brigade combat teams should serve in Iraq and Afghanistan as intact brigades. Too often, they remain a source of spare parts for die theater commander

Things have gotten better on this front, but more remains to be done. I doubt active duty commanders would tolerate such treatment. Neither should we.

Also, we need to work harder to get our adjutants general joint credit for their efforts on behalf of their states. This may not be a sexy issue, but it is important in recognizing the critical decisions our adjutants general make regarding both sides of our house.

Finally, before taking a look at our department reports, I'd like to encourage all of you to get involved with NGAUS. You've taken the first step by joining. But you can do more.

My father taught me a long time ago that the more you put into something, the more you get out of it. That's certainly true of NGAUS. You'll get back tenfold what you put in by joining a committee or task force or by getting involved in your state association.

Finally, before getting to the department reports, let me tell you again what an honor it has been for my wife, Rowana, and me to serve this great organization. Not a day goes by that I am not excited about the work all of us do.

I include in that the members of the board of directors, the task forces and committees, the NGAUS staff and our wonderful state associations. Thank you, too, to our fine corporate sponsors who are our partners in all that we do.

And even after nearly 40 years, not a day goes by that I'm not proud to be called a National Guardsman.

LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITIES

Many of the successes we celebrate are a direct result of the hard work of our legislative department. Rich Green and his staff have logged many hours with lawmakers to make the case for issues such as empowerment, retirement and the Joint Cargo Aircraft.

The fiscal 2009 defense authorization bill bears watching. It includes much related to the National Guard, such as money from both the House and Senate versions to fund 73 percent of our fulltime manning for the Army Guard, up from 68 percent. That's a success for our legislative folks and we'll keep an eye on it.

Also, the bill addresses issues such as equipment procurement and dental readiness, as well as joint credit for adjutants general and other issues. Rich and his team will follow these issues to what we hope is a happy ending.

As I said earlier, however, you, too, are important players in this process. The legislative department has hit you with 17 legislative alerts since our last conference, on issues like the JCA, Tricare and retirement. You responded with 30,540 e-mails to your lawmakers. The most active states were, in order, Georgia, Tennessee, Mississippi, Texas and Massachusetts.

That's good, but we can do better.

MEMBERSHP

Unfortunately, our membership rate has dropped slightly since last year We're down a percentage point to 64 percent.

This is too bad. We created a retention rebate program that we hoped would increase our membership, returning to states 25 percent of their dues if they retained 100 percent of their membership or met a prescribed growth goal.

The program, which was the idea of the NGAUS finance committee and is being done on a one-year trial basis, has returned $116,000 to states and territories meeting the program's goals. The board will look at die program after one year to assess its effectiveness.

Meanwhile, the Early Bird program that provides a 5 percent rebate to state and territory associations that send in national dues by March 30 has returned $57,000 this year. Paying dues ahead of the June 30 deadline streamlines the accounting and processing efforts.

Following on the first Train the Trainer Membership Workshop held in March 2007, the NGAUS membership committee held two more this past year. One in October 2007 attracted 36 states; another in May brought in 29 participants.

We have to do a better job of bringing new members into the fold. We have 16 states and territories at 100 percent. We need to get others to reach that level.

I encourage every member to ask others in your unit and your state to join. We need their business. Ask them for it.

COMMUNICATIONS

The communications department is at 100-percent strength for the first time in two years. With the addition of a staff writer this month, all five positions are filled in the department that produces our magazine and puts together NGAUS Notes each week for members. A production manager and senior writer/editor are new since our last conference.

Our magazine has taken readers from Alaska to Kosovo in recent months to tell the Guard story.

Plans are to update the Web site regularly now with news from Capitol Hill and die Washington, D.C., area that will be of interest to NGAUS members. Look for updates from congressional hearings and policy changes of importance to the Guard and its members.

FISCAL OPERATIONS

My appreciation for the effective financial operations of the association has increased enormously during my term as chairman. The financial health of NGAUS continues to improve because of the commitment that the Finance Committee, Special Building Committee, Board of Directors and especially the staff have made to keep NGAUS fiscally strong. I've had the pleasure of attending meetings of the Finance and Special Building committees and observed firsthand the hard work and decisions that go into ensuring that all of the entities under NGAUS management operate within balanced budgets. The staff and committees worked together to find areas where expenses could be lowered without jeopardizing the programs needed to best serve our members.

The long-range financial strategy crafted in the last two years will provide a strong foundation for generations to come. I have been fortunate to serve as chairman during financially rich years, but still remember the years when NGAUS was in financial jeopardy and had to make some very real sacrifices to keep our greatest asset, the National Guard Memorial.

The building continues to be self-sustaining and with the financial infrastructure that has matured through the years, I am confident that those financial hardships are behind us. However, I agree with the NGAUS finance committee that we need to grow our reserves to ensure that we have adequate funds to operate should we face another financial crisis.

Our principle sources of revenuesmembership, conference programs, magazine and Insurance Trust programs-continue to flourish because of the support we receive from our members and the corporate community.

The one entity that is not flourishing at this time is the National Guard Educational Foundation (NGEF). However, the board is committed to rebuilding the Foundation so that it can assist NGAUS in achieving its goal of preserving the history of the Guard and educating the public about this history and future Guard endeavors.

With the continued financial support of our members, NGAUS can continue to flourish.

For a more detailed review of our financial posture, I invite you to read retired Brig. Gen. Ken Ross' Treasurer's Report (page 98).

INDUSTRY RELATIONS

Now with more than 255 members, our corporate associate program continues to grow, bringing significant financial support to the association. Corporate members range from large manufacturing companies to small companies and consulting firms.

Relationships with our industry partners help NGAUS reach its goals by providing information on the ktest technology and equipment and by amplifying the association's voice on Capitol Hill.

The 12th Annual Industry Day will be held Dec. 3, 2008, in Washington, D.C. This event offers industry a chance to meet with key Guard leaders and senior defense industry executives. Participants learn how to do business with the Guard and get an insider's view of National Guard strategic requirements, priorities and programs.

A record number of corporate partners became members of the Legion de Lafayette or added to their previous contributions. The donations fund the operation of the National Guard Memorial Museum.

EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION

As I stated earlier, the NGEF has not prospered the way we'd like. The board plans to give this the attention it deserves in coming months.

However, there is good news. Jonathan Bernstein marked his one-year anniversary last month as foundation director and he is energetic and dedicated, too, to turning around the NGEF situation.

One of his priorities has been increasing the visibility of our wonderful National Guard Memorial Museum. Anyone who has visited in recent months has surely seen the exhibit dedicated to the 40th anniversary of the call-up of Army and Air Guard units for duty in Vietnam. Highlights of the exhibit are personal artifacts from veterans of that historic mobilization of the Guard.

This exhibit is the first of what will be a series of one-year temporary exhibits, each highlighting a different pan of the Guard's history.

A new computer system is being put in place that will greatly ease management of the collection and allow us to publish a "virtual archive" to the Web for research purposes.

We also have regular visits to the museum from the Senate Page Program. These high school students working on Capitol Hill for a few months are provided a guided tour of the museum.

An open house in June attracted tour guides and hotel representatives from D.C. to the museum. "This shouldn't be such a secret," one guide said after seeing the museum. I agree and hope this fine facility will become a regular stop for many visitors to the nation's capital city.

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