AN INDEPENDENT PUBLICATION OF COMPRINTMILITARY PUBLICATIONS AT JOINT BASE ANDREWS,MD.DCMILITARY.COM FRIDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2013 | VOL. 2 NO. 50

Youth Centerstudents bakefor Airmen

5Shoppers stuffCapital AreaFood Bank truckwith donations

3 Pentagon offersfree Fit to Winwellness program

7

Arrange for prescriptionrefills nowMalcolm Grow Medical

Clinics and Surgery Centerwill be closed on the follow-ing dates:Dec. 25 – Christmas DayDec. 26 – Family DayJan. 1 – New Year’s DayJan. 2 – Family DayThere will be no appoint-

ments on these days. TheEmergent Care Center atJoint Base Andrews will re-main open. The pharmacywill be closed.Prescription refills called

in BEFORE noon Dec. 24will be available for pick-upafter 12 p.m. Dec. 27.All other refills request-

ed after noon Dec. 24 will beavailable for pick-up Dec. 31after 12 p.m.Prescription refills called

in BEFORE noon on Dec. 31will be available for pickupafter 12 p.m. Jan. 3.All other refills request-

ed after Dec. 31 will beavailable for pick-up after12 p.m. Jan. 6.If an urgent need arises,

patients are welcome to usethe Emergent Care Center.If the illness is not an emer-gency and the condition canwait, the medical group willbe open for full services Dec.27-31 and Jan. 3.U.S. Air Force photo/

Tech. Sgt. Tammie Moore

Holiday closuresat Malcolm Grow

BY YVONNE JONESTROOP #5600 LEADER

The Christmas spiritled Girl Scout Troop #5600to a nursing home in FortWashington, Md. to spreadholiday cheer. The mem-bers of the troop preparedmore than 120 holidaygreeting cards, along withassorted stocking stuffersfor distribution Dec. 15,2013.The Girl Scouts spent

over an hour walking thehalls of the nursing home,alongside a local churchgroup that sang Christ-mas Carols. They knocked

on doors and asked resi-dents if they could comein to drop off their holidaytreats, bringing smiles tothe faces of many.“Some of them looked re-

ally sad until we arrived,”said Girl Scout JasmineBurks.The troop plans to visit

again in the new year sothat the residents of thenursing home are awarethat they have not beenforgotten.When asked “How does

it feel to help others,” bytheir troop leader, they allreplied with the same an-swer: “Great!”

Local GirlScouts bringholiday cheer

PHOTOS/ROSE HUNT

BY CHRIS BASHAMSTAFF WRITER

Each Wednesday eve-ning, a small group ofyoung, budding musiciansgathers in the Joint BaseAndrews Youth Centerto study how to play gui-tar. The students, usuallybetween the ages of 12and 16, learn the parts ofthe guitar, how to play ba-sic chords and songs, butthere’s a lot more to it thanthe class, provided for freeby volunteers with Musi-c4Life, a nonprofit organi-zation which offers musiclessons to young people atno cost. It’s an opportunityto focus on creative expres-sion, and concentrate onbeautiful, meaningful mu-sic of their own devising.It’s a skill, and a joy, volun-teer Kevin Kremer hopestoday’s crop of young musi-cians will carry throughouttheir lives.The program is officially

eight weeks long. Studentsreceive a guitar, tuner andlessons aimed at the abso-lute beginner. Music4Lifehas classes offered acrossthe region, generally aim-ing to reach children whomight be otherwise unableto take advantage of musicclasses outside of the schoolday, explained Music4LifePresident Skip Chaples.Volunteer instructor

Kevin Kremer has been partof Music4Life since 2008,when he started teachingguitar at a Boys and GirlsClub in Alexandria, Va.The self-taught guitaristand former service memberthought of the many chil-dren of deployed parentsin our area and decided tofocus on teaching youth af-filiated with local militarybases. He taught classes atFort Belvoir for two years,before moving to Clinton,Md. and launching Musi-c4Life classes at Andrewsmore than three years ago.Though he is serious aboutteaching proper techniqueand musicality, he knowshe’s there for more thanjust passing down the skillshe has developed as a gui-tarist.“The great thing about

Music4Life is to engage

and mentor kids throughmusic,” Kremer said.After an eight to 12-week

series of classes, studentstake a test which, if theypass, allows them to keeptheir guitars, provided forfree.“The costs are borne by

the program,” said Kremer.“Skip does work with theRotary Club and music fes-tivals (to raise funds) andthe teaching is all volun-teer, so the only costs arethe guitars and tuners.”Keeping the classes and

guitars free for any inter-ested youth makes musi-cal expression possible for

children who might not feelable to pay for an instru-ment and the introductory

lessons which will allowthem to test their interestin guitar.

Music4Life puts guitarsin the hands of youth

PHOTOS/CHRIS BASHAM

Music4Life volunteer Kevin Kremer leads a group ofyoung guitar students through introductory lessons.

Josiah Wiggins, 12, practices new chords during Music4Life class.

BY CHRIS BASHAMSTAFF WRITER

On Dec. 14, dozens ofvolunteers gathered at theMaryland Veterans Cem-etery in Cheltenham, Md.to honor veterans and theholiday season with a sol-emn wreath laying ceremo-ny outside the cemetery’schapel. Accompanied by aRevolutionary War honorguard from the Sons of theAmerican Revolution andthe playing of Taps by anArmy Reserves bugler, rela-tives and community mem-bers laid wreaths for theArmy, Navy, Marines, AirForce, Merchant Marine,Coast Guard and prison-ers of war/service membersmissing in action.After the formal ceremo-

ny, volunteers placed more

than 160 wreaths, pur-chased through a fundrais-er coordinated by CalvertonSchool parent Kelly Urtso,atop grave markers andat the base of columbariathroughout the cemetery.“We thought it would

be a great twofold expe-rience, both a fundraiserand a community serviceproject for the students,”said Urtso, who added thatmany Calverton Schoolstudents and parents wereamong those present for thewreath laying on WreathsAcross America Day, whichwas also honored at ap-proximately 900 othersites around the countryand abroad, according toan email from nationalWreaths Across Americaleadership.“Our family has been in-

volved withWreaths AcrossAmerica for about fouryears, now,” said Col. GregUrtso, husband of Kelly

Urtso and former vice com-mander of Joint Base An-

Wreaths Across America honors veterans at local cemetery

PHOTOS/CHRIS BASHAM

After laying wreaths, a volunteer takes a quiet momentto reflect.

Maj. Tom Vineer of the Civil Air Patrol Maryland Winghands former Joint Base Andrews Vice Commander Col.Greg Urtso a wreath to be placed on a grave site at theMaryland Veterans Cemetery in Cheltenham, Md.

see WREATH, page 7

2 Friday, December 20, 2013Andrews Gazette

HOTTICKETSAround Town

Andrews Gazette is published by Comprint Military Publications,9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, Md., a private firm in no wayconnected with the U.S. Air Force or any branch of the UnitedStates military. The appearance of advertising in these publications,including inserts or supplements, does not constitute endorsement

by the Department of Defense, the Department of the Air Force or the prod-ucts and services advertised.

Everything advertised in this publication shall be made available for purchase,use or patronage without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin,age, martial status, physical handicap, political affiliation or any other nonmerit factor of the purchases, user or patron.

COMPRINT MILITARY PUBLICATIONS

Maxine Minar, presidentmminar@dcmilitary.com

John Rives, publisherjrives@dcmilitary.com

Chris Basham, editorcbasham@dcmilitary.com

Deirdre Parry, page designdparry@gazette.net

Bobby Jones, photographerbjones@dcmilitary.com

December 24Tuesday Night Open Mic PoetryBusboys and Poets, 2021 14th Street N.W., Washing-

ton, D.C.9 p.m.Hosted by GowriA. For information visit www.busbo-

ysandpoets.com.

December 27Military BowlNavy – Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, 550 Taylor

Ave, Annapolis, Md.2:30 p.m.Support the USO at the first college football bowl game

ever played at Navy - Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.For information visit www.militarybowl.org.

Through January 19GypsySignature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington,

Va.Tuesdays - Sundays; showtimes varyShowbiz mom Rose shoves her daughter through a ca-

reer in burlesque in this classic musical. For informationvisit www.signature-theatre.org.

Through January 26AquariumImagination Stage, 4908 Auburn Avenue, Bethesda,

Md.Tuesdays - Sundays; showtimes varyChildren ages 1 - 5 and their caregivers can enjoy a

theatrical production featuring gentle music, puppets andprops. For information visit www.imaginationstage.org.

COURTESY OF THE RETIREEACTIVITIES OFFICE

Mental health servicescan helpMaking sure people know where

to turn for help during a time of cri-sis is the continuing goal of the De-fense Department’s suicide preven-tion program. DoD has a plethora ofresources specific to service mem-bers and their families who havethoughts of suicide. The Pentagonhas worked diligently for severalyears to erase the stigma of seekinghelp for mental health issues, andit appears to be paying off. “We’re

seeing more people access helpthrough the Military Crisis Line,and an increase in users for mentalhealth help across the department,”a spokesman said. Trained counsel-ors are available 24/7 at 800-273-8255. In addition, help is availableat www.veteranscrisisline.net/Ac-tiveDuty.aspx, with access to coun-selors in person and through onlinechats and text messaging. The De-partment of Veterans Affairs alsooffers help.

New Belvoir ExchangegrowsThe new Army & Air Force Ex-

change Service facility at Fort Bel-voir, Va., is the largest brandedstore in the continental UnitedStates. It incorporates the mainstore, food court, home and gar-den, military clothing sales, conces-sions and a satellite pharmacy inone shopping complex. Its 22 mallstores are 12 more than were in theprevious building. Included are fournew outlets in the food court. Theformer exchange building will bedemolished to make room for a newcommissary, now located next door.

Retiree Corner

see RETIREE, page 6

BY CHRIS BASHAMSTAFF WRITER

Jas Boothe, founder of Alexan-dria, Va.-based nonprofit FinalSalute, Inc., was surprised by theemail she received from one of herorganization’s supporters, asking ifshe knew that one of Final Salute’stransitional group homes for home-less, female veterans and their chil-dren was being sold at public auc-tion.“We’d been paying our rent each

month, and RPJ Housing cashedthe checks, but they didn’t pay themortgage. They used our rent mon-ey to pay their organization’s pay-roll and operating expenses, untilthe house went into foreclosure, andnever told us,” Boothe said.This is not the first time RPJ

Housing, an Alexandria, Va.-basednonprofit founded by the Presbyte-rian Church to provide low-incomehousing across Northern Virginia,has gotten into trouble because ofshady financial practices. In 2010,RPJ Housing?s former director,Herbert J. Cooper-Levy, resignedafter being accused of forging azoning document in Fairfax Countyto secure more than $700,000 in

public loans. In June 2011, the Al-exandria City Council voted to bailRPJ Housing out of $9.5 million inBB&T loans to preserve the city’sinterests in three low income hous-ing properties for which RPJ wasdelinquent.Boothe said that when she

learned that one of the homes FinalSalute, Inc. has been renting fromRPJ Housing Inc. to provide tran-sitional housing for homeless, fe-male veterans was up for auction, “Ithought, ‘That can’t be right.’ So, wereached out to RBJ, and their phonenumber was disconnected. Theydid not respond to our emails. Wereached the lender, who said RPJhad not been paying their bills formonths, so the lender had no choiceto foreclose, but the mortgage is notwith us. It’s with RPJ. That makesour lease null and void.”Boothe asked the mortgage hold-

er what options she had. Since theproperty was already on the pub-lic auction list, “they said to showup to the auction and bid for it,”Boothe did. Final Salute, Inc. wonthe house at auction, but now hasto find a way to fund its $455,000mortgage.“I just basically broke into tears.

Where am I going to get that moneyfrom?” Boothe said of the momentshe realized that saving the homewas possible, if she could raise themoney for it.Boothe said Final Salute, Inc.

considered filing suit against RPJto recover their lost rent, but hasbeen informed that the organiza-tion has several other properties inforeclosure.“They’ve been lining their pock-

ets, not paying the mortgages onany of their nonprofits,” Boothesaid. “We’d just be wasting our mon-ey, to sue. When we (first moved in-to) the house, it was not nabitable.We put a lot of work and money intoit. They understood that. They justtook the money and ran.”The Andrews Gazette’s calls to

RPJ Housing were not answered.Boothe is working to raise a sub-

stantial portion of the $455,000mortgage in donations, throughher organization’s web site, by Jan.15. “We hope that if we can raise$200,000 by then, we can get amortgage for the rest,” Boothe said.To contribute, visit www.finalsa-

luteinc.org.

CommentaryRPJ Housing fails homeless, female veterans

1041017B

3Friday, December 20, 2013 Andrews Gazette

BY TRACEY P. WOODMOUNT VERNON-LEE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Military spouses and personnel: Do youever wonder what it would take to startyour own business? Attend a free businessstart-up roundtable with the SoutheastFairfax Development Corporation on Fri-day, Jan. 10, 2014.Three entrepreneurs will share their

business start-up success stories and an-swer your questions. The three speakersare:TraceyWood—an Army wife for 26 years

and business owner for 23 years. Founder,President/CEO of Inkwell Duck, Inc., abusiness-to-government communicationsconsulting firm that assists businesseswith government contract award wins.Wood enjoys talking with other militaryfamilies about the entrepreneurial optionof making a living.Sonja Caison—a former Wall Street ex-

ecutive who investigated several franchisesas a door to entrepreneurial success, ownerof The Cleaning Authority franchise. Cai-son is also a member of Community Busi-ness Partnership, a non-profit organizationthat offers support and training for busi-ness owners.Vik Patel—the event host and a hospi-

tality entrepreneur who owns the Spring-hill Suites. He will share how and why hechose to enter the hospitality field and les-sons learned through his start-up journey.Mark your calendar to attend this free

event that could make 2014 a financialgame change.8:30 a.m. – 10 a.m., Friday, Jan. 10, 2014

Springhill Suites, 6065 Richmond Highway,Alexandria, Va.For more information contact Edythe

Kelleher, Executive Director of the SouthFairfax Development Corporation, atedythe.kelleher@sfdc.org, 703-360-5008or 703-867-5697.

Learn to start yourown business

BY AMY MILORCHARLOTTESVILLE, VA.

I look around at my community and Ilook hard at myself. I look at our govern-ment. I look at the world at large. I am akeen observer. And what I come to at theend of the day is that many of us needto grow up a bit and get over ourselves.I say that to no one louder than I say itto myself. I am able to do that now, at theage of 53, with an empty nest and lots oftime to self-examine. My job has certain-ly helped me to take this look at things ina new way.I am blessed with a job as an Instruc-

tional Assistant in an inner city elemen-tary school. I work in a preschool classroomwith three-year-olds, many of whom havespecial needs or disabilities. What I am re-learning as an adult is so very simple and

yet vital: I want to always be the kind ofperson that I am teaching these little onesto be. I see my own failings some days.Our school rules are this:Be Kind.Be A Thinker.Be Respectful.Be Considerate of People, even if they

are different than yourself.Be Safe.In the classroom where I work we have

certain goals for our students over thecourse of the year, and while many arepurely academic, and that is important,the others carry as much weight, in myopinion.We teach our children to get in touch

with their emotions and express them ap-propriately. We teach them to ask for help

Readers speak outIt’s time to grow up

see GROW UP, page 5

BY CHRIS BASHAMSTAFF WRITER

The Washington, D.C.-based Capital Area FoodBank provides nearly 30million pounds of food tomore than 478,000 peoplein the Washington metroarea, including on andaround Joint Base An-drews, through partner-ships with local food pan-tries, soup kitchens, freshproduce “mobile market”distributions and otheravenues of aid to peoplewho are struggling to feedtheir families. For the pasttwelve years, as part oftheir effort to reach out tothe community, CAFB hasoperated an annual Stuff ATruck one-day fundraiser,collecting food and mon-etary donations at grocerystores around the region.This year, Stuff A Truckwas held Dec. 13 at storesin Northeast Washing-ton, D.C., Hyattsville andRockville, Md. and Fairfax,Va.“We’re getting people

who are very generously

donating, and also meetingpeople who say their foodstamps have been cut andthey need help, so it’s goodto tell them to give us allcall,” said Greenbelt resi-dent Shannon Bailey, whoworks as the executive as-sistant to CAFB CEO Nan-cy Roman, and who alsowas volunteering for StuffA Truck outside of a GiantFood store in Hyattsville.Shoppers were welcome

to contribute any foodthey thought suitable, butCAFB has a list of “mostwanted” items, prized fortheir high nutritionalvalue and popularity withfamilies, since most peoplewho rely on food assis-tance do so to feed theirchildren. Throughout theyear, CAFB requests thatdonors emphasize contrib-uting canned fruits in lightsyrup or juice, low sodiumor no salt added cannedvegetables, hot and coldcereals, pasta sauces, riceand pasta, canned chickenand tuna, soups, beans,100 percent juices, peanutbutter, whole grains and

granola bars and otherhealthy snack foods ap-propriate for children andtheir busy parents.“People come by with

their car trucks full ofdonations,” said Bailey’sdaughter, Alanah Bailey,who at 16 is a veteranStuff A Truck Volunteer.“Basically, at all events(CAFB) has, I volunteer.I have more than enoughhours for school. It’s a lotof fun, and I like to helppeople and be around peo-

ple. And at the end of theday, it’s good karma.”More than 21,000 CAFB

volunteers help collect,sort, package and distrib-ute food so that it can reachhungry area families.CAFB Communications

Manager Shamia Hollo-way said that this year’sStuff A Truck drive yield-ed $56,000.65 in cash do-nations, and 43,818 lbs. offood. Of that total, 8,246lbs. of food was collectedat the Hyattsville site.

Shoppers stuff Capital Area Food Bank truck with donations

PHOTOS/CHRIS BASHAM

Angela Yeoman of Hyattsville, left, donates groceries tothe Capital Area Food Bank as CAFB volunteer AlanahBailey, 16, of Greenbelt, looks on.

Millicent Lawrence of Hyattsville, left, hands grocerydonations to Capital Area Food Bank volunteer AlanahBailey, 16, of Greenbelt.

WASHINGTON (AFNS)-- Deborah Lee James willbe the next secretary of theAir Force, according to aSenate confirmation voteDec 13.James provided testi-

mony to the Senate ArmedServices Committee Sept.19, before the full Senatevoted on her confirmation.Now the president must ap-point her before she can as-sume her new position.“I view this opportuni-

ty as the privilege and anhonor of a lifetime. I willwork very hard to insurethat I live up to what is anenormous amount of trustthat may be placed in me,”

said James during her con-firmation hearing. “My goalwould be to leave our AirForce some years from nowon a path toward greatercapability and better af-fordability for our taxpay-ers, and with the peoplewho underpin everythingwho are second to none.”Undersecretary of the

Air Force Eric Fanning as-sumed the role of actingwhen then-Secretary of theAir Force Michael B. Don-ley stepped down in June.President Obama nomi-

nated James Aug. 1, 2013.At that time, she was serv-ing as president of the tech-nology and engineering sec-

tor at Science ApplicationsInternational Corporation.Pending the president’s

appointment, James will besworn into the position thismonth.

Senate confirms James as nextsecretary of the Air Force

U.S. AIR FORCE PHOTO/JIM VARHEGYI

Deborah Lee James

BY CAPT. CHASE GUNNELL11TH WING ASSISTANT STAFF

JUDGE ADVOCATE

Due to current budget and manningcuts, the 2014 JBA Tax Center here willno longer be able to offer full-fledged taxpreparation services as in years past.This year, the tax center will operate ona limited basis.The volunteers at the tax center will

serve as advisers to those who want as-sistance with their tax returns. The ad-visers will no longer be able to preparetaxes, but will be available to answer

any questions that might arise.The tax center will be open 8 a.m. - 4

p.m. every Friday starting Feb. 1, 2014, inroom 2550 of the Jones Building.In addition to the tax center, there

are many resources available to militarymembers and their families.For instance, www.militaryonesource.

mil offers a free tax filing service for mem-bers of the United States Armed Forces.Additionally, many companies offer freee-filing to the general public for federalreturns.For more information, call the legal of-

fice at 240-612-5750.

Budget, manning cuts furtherlimit base tax preparation center

For more news from other bases around the Washington, D.C. area,

visit www.dcmilitary.com.

01041279B

4 Friday, December 20, 2013Andrews Gazette

BY ZAMAWANG ALMEMARSPECIAL TO THE ANDREWS GAZETTE

To most people, Red Dawn is a movie from the 1980s;to me, Operation Red Dawn goes down as one of the mosthistoric events in my lifetime. Dec. 13, 2003 was the daythat changed the lives of millions of men, women, andchildren, when one of the world’s most violent dictators,Saddam Hussein, was captured and his atrocities wereput to an end. This operation carried out by the U.S. mil-itary special forces marks an unforgettable event thatwill forever be written into history books.Hussein, the dictator of Iraq, was unquestionably one

of the most violent rulers in the Middle East. Under hisregime, millions of men, women, adolescents and chil-dren were tortured, exiled and killed. He was a tyrantknown for killing his own people, including Kurds andArabs. He did not take religion or origin into account; hisultimate goal was to kill many so the world could real-ize his unmatched power. As a Kurd from the mountainsof Kurdistan, Iraq, I had no freedom of speech. Husse-in needed no reason to torture; often it could be just apasser-by who happened to be in the wrong place at thewrong time.Since his first day in office in 1979, as a ruler of Iraq,

his priority had been to make the Middle East awareof his endless power by putting his own people through

famine, embargo, war and massacre. This is all I knewgrowing up in Kurdistan. I believed I would never beable to learn the word democracy, let alone practice it.Such term did not exist in our dictionary … not until thearrival of the Americans in the early 1990s.With the American humanitarian organizations mov-

ing into Kurdistan, being one of the fortunate ones, myfamily was introduced to one of these organizations. In1997, as part of Operation Pacific Haven, the U.S. mili-tary gave us a chance at democracy. They helped us re-alize our rights as human beings and let us get a tasteof freedom that we all deserve. They brought us to theUnited States under asylum status and allowed us todiscover the opportunities that democracy could bringto a nation.The U.S. military helped us realize our freedom once

again when they moved into Iraq as part of OperationIraqi Freedom. On that glorious Saturday night of Dec.13, 2003, a tyrant’s hideaway was uncovered as Husseinwas pulled out of a rat hole. It is difficult to explain inwords this scene, but the magnitude of its impact onthe Middle East was incalculable. The news of his cap-ture soon went viral and people of all origins took to thestreets to celebrate the end of a dictatorship. Althoughsome people still had doubts as to whether or not the im-ages of the captive were factual, they were hopeful thatthe end of that regime had finally arrived.I knew in my heart that this day would lead to thou-

sands of doors of opportunities opening for the Iraqis ingeneral, and the Kurds in particular. Never in my life-time had there been a day when I could freely practicemy rights as a human being. My childhood was full ofliving in constant fear: Fear of my school being bombedthe next day, my brothers being forcefully enlisted inHussein’s army and then ultimately killed, and just con-stant fear of losing my whole family. This day changedall that and wiped away all my fear!The successes of Operation Red Dawn re-wrote his-

tory, and with the aid of the U.S. Coalition Forces andtheir Kurdish counterparts, the end was defined for adictator known for mass genocide.Fast-forward a decade, and this week we celebrated

the 10-year anniversary of one of the most extraordi-nary and remarkable events ever recorded in Iraq’s his-tory. Ten years later, my emotions still run wild, as thatday, the dreams of millions came true. Such an eventwould have never been possible without the immeasur-able bravery of the American Soldiers and their Kurd-ish counterparts - a true heroism and legacy of valor.So as you celebrate this holiday season with family andfriends, remember those who continue to fight on thefront lines and those who stand ready to protect our free-dom each and every day.

Operation Red Dawn: A decade of prosperity in Kurdisan, Iraq

CAPTION THIS

Send your silly captions for this week’s photo to cbash-am@dcmilitary.com. The funniest ones will be used in afuture edition of The Andrews Gazette.

From December 6“Now.. If I can just twist her head a little bit more, I won’thave to finish this.”

--Subrena Alford

01040906B

5Friday, December 20, 2013 Andrews Gazette

JBA BuzzWhat’s your favorite holiday food or refreshment?

Shandria Jones

Daunte Roberts Staff Sgt.Brandi Trem-mel, 99th AirliftSquadron Com-municationsSystem operator

Malik Lonon

“For me it’s thisholiday punch thatmy aunt makesduring the holidayseason. Because ofour South Americanroots she puts fruit init like grapes, pine-apple chunks, cin-namon sticks and alittle cloves. It’s verygood.”

“My favorite holidayfood is sweet pota-toes.”

“I grew up in theSouth and I have tohave some bourbonpecan pie during theholidays.”

“My favorite holidayfood is mac andcheese.”

BY STAFF SGT. BRANDON J. REED11 SFS CONFINEMENT NCO

Members of the 11th Security ForcesSquadron will be actively enforcing thedistracted driving policy starting Jan. 6,2014.The 11th SFS will issue an immedi-

ate suspension of base driving privilegesto offenders who are cited for distracteddriving, for example: using a cell phonewithout a hands-free device, using elec-tronic devices that distract the driver andconducting any actions that prevent thedriver from operating the vehicle in a safemanner. Security Forces will take intoaccount all surrounding circumstanceswhile determining if the driver was dis-tracted while operating the vehicle.Drivers who are ticketed will be issued

a citation for their violation, referenced inAFI 31-218 Motor Vehicle Traffic Supervi-sion. There will be an immediate, 30-daysuspension of driving privileges, startingfrom the date the letter was issued. If theoperator is cited for distracted driving

within one year of the original citation, a90-day suspension will be issued for thesecond violation. Additionally, if the oper-ator is cited for distracted driving whileon any type of distracted driving suspen-sion an additional two-year suspensionwill be issued. Per standard procedure,individuals can request restricted privi-leges, reinstatement, or a hearing to va-cate the suspension.Upon issue of the citation, patrolmen

will annotate that an immediate suspen-sion was issued for distracted driving. Ifan individual is cited for distracted driv-ing, no points will be assessed towardtheir on-base driving privileges. The op-erator will not be allowed to drive theirvehicle after the suspension has been is-sued.Members of the 11th SFS will follow

the same procedures for civilians, contrac-tors or any other non-military personnelwho receive a citation. These operatorsare further required to pay a fine or ap-pear in court for the Maryland traffic of-fense.

Distracted drivingwill get you stopped

The Security Forces Blotter is intendedto keep members of the Joint Base An-drews Community informed and awareof the crimes and offenses that occur thor-oughout the base each week. If you haveany information that may help the Se-curity Forces solve a crime or prevent acriminal act, please contact BDOC (BaseDefense Operations Center) at 301-981-2001, CRIME STOP LINE 301-981-2677(COPS), or the investigations section at301-981-5656.

4:01 p.m., Dec. 6, 2013: SF respondedto JBA Liberty Park housing for damageto personal property. This incident wasreferred to 11 SFS/S3I for further inves-tigation.

10:08 p.m., Dec. 6, 2013: A physi-cal altercation occurred on JBA LibertyPark housing area. Both individuals werecharged accordingly.

6:32 a.m., Dec. 7, 2013: An Airman

was arrested off base by Prince GeorgesCounty law enforcement officials for dis-orderly conduct. Individual was releasedto First Sergeant.

1:45 p.m., Dec. 7, 2013: An individualmade contact with BDOC and stated thathe accidentally struck one of the radiationbarriers while entering through PearlHarbor gate.

2:19 p.m., Dec. 7, 2013: SF respondedto a theft at the Base Exchange. Individ-ual was detained by the Loss Preventionoffice. The individual was charged accord-ingly. The price of the amount stolen was$33.00.

6:20 p.m., Dec. 9, 2013: SF respondedto damage of government property to agovernment-owned vehicle on the Westside flight line. SF determined that thedamage was due to a loading pallet thatstruck the vehicle, causing a dent in thevehicle.

Security Forces Police Blotter

when they need it. We teach them to al-ways be kind to their friends and class-mates. We teach them to think for them-selves and find strategies for solvingproblems. We teach them to be honest. Weinstill basic manners - please, thank you,you’re welcome, I am sorry. Those wordscan change a day from bad to good. We

teach them to be proactive, not reactive.We teach them how to resolve disputesin a healthy way. We teach them to calmthemselves when things get messy andthey need a break from it all. We do yogaand deep breathing with them daily. Andthey are learning to read and write andcount.I think I learn more from them some

days than they do from me. And I am notabove putting myself in the timeout chairin front of them, when I need a breather.

GROW UP, from page 3

BY CHRIS BASHAMSTAFF WRITER

When the Andrews Offi-cers’ Spouses Club put outthe call for baked goods todeliver a taste of holidaysfrom home to Joint BaseAndrews’ young Airmen liv-ing in the dorms, the teensand preteens involved inthe JBA youth center’sKeystone Club for highschool students and TorchClub for middle schoolerswere ready to fire up the ov-ens at the youth center andbake 360 cookies to contrib-ute to the effort. That’s 30dozen chocolate chip, sugarand peanut butter cookies,baked with the enthusiasmof youth--and a little super-

vision from Youth DirectorAnne Tierney Young andAssistant Director MatrisseAdger.For Keystone Club

Vice President ShanaziaThompson, 15, of Morning-side, Md., baking cookiesfor Airmen far from homefits right in with her rea-sons for joining the Key-stone Club.“I was curious, and they

were talking about volun-teering in the community,and I like volunteering,”said Shanazia. “The Key-stone Club is like a com-munity group. We get tovolunteer, plan stuff, trav-el. Everybody’s friendly,everybody laughs. No one’slike, ‘I don’t like you.’ It’s a

good atmosphere..”Youth Director Anne

Tierney Young said thatthere is no specific time ofyear when students join theKeystone Club or the TorchClub, which each meeton Wednesday eveningsthroughout the year.“You can join whenever.

The more involved you arein it, the more opportuni-ties you’ll have to traveland do more stuff,” saidYoung.After helping with the

cookie drive and last week-end’s Breakfast with San-ta on base, the KeystoneClub’s next big group activ-ity will take place on Mar-tin Luther King Day.“We’ll be making a Mar-

tin Luther King video,at the location where hegave his ‘I Have A Dream’speech, interviewing peopleabout the meaning of thespeech,” Young said. Thevideo will be shown on theKeystone Club’s Facebookpage and YouTube channel.Before the project has evenstarted, though, Shanaziais already thinking aboutthe impact King’s speechcan have on those who haveears to hear.“To me, a lot of kids don’t

use it, nowadays, and thatleads to them being igno-rant,” Shanazia said. “If wewere really listening to hisspeech, they’d be more in-telligent in their actions ineveryday life.”

Youth Center students bake for Airmen

PHOTOS/CHRIS BASHAM

From left, Destiny Bethea, 10, and Amoni Hawkins, 11, both of Upper Marlboro, pack freshly baked sugar cookies forenlisted Airmen living in the dorms on Joint Base Andrews.

From left, Destiny Bethea, 10; Troyvette Thomas, 11,and James Campbell, 13 place cookie dough on bakingsheets.

Keystone Club Vice President Shanazia Thompson, 15,of Morningside, prepares to bake Christmas cookiesfor enlisted Airmen living in the dorms on Joint BaseAndrews as youth activities coordinator Anne TierneyYoung observes.

6 Friday, December 20, 2013Andrews Gazette

BY SABINE LOPEZFITNESS AND OPERATIONS SPECIALIST

WEST FITNESS CENTER

When some people think ofyoga they think of stretching,funny looking poses, and maybeyoga pants. However, yoga ismore than mastering posturesand increasing your flexibilityand strength.Yoga has been practiced for

more than 5,000 years. In Hin-duism and Buddhism yogameans “spiritual discipline.”The traditional purpose of yogahas always been to bring about aprofound transformation. Eventhough people often associateyoga with postures and stances,those have been a part of yogafor “only” 2,000 years.Modern yoga is based on five

basic principles:Proper relaxationProper exerciseProper breathingProper diet

Positive thinking and medita-tionBased on these principles,

people who train with yoga canbenefit.Yoga will most likely make

you more flexible. That’s proba-bly a good thing. It will also helpwith everyday mobility and flex-ibility. That’s especially true forpeople who perform repetitivemotions, such as hunching overa computer. The stretching andstrengthening in yoga may helpmanage body imbalances, as wellas improve general flexibility.Yoga improves your balance

and body awareness. Many yogaposes can improve your stabilityand agility and your awarenessof where your body is in space.Those skills are enormouslyhelpful in sports, and in life.Yoga can strengthen your

core. Strengthening the musclesin your back, midsection, andbutt will give you the stability toimprove the power of your move-

ments and reduce injuries.Yoga provides a chance for ac-

tive recovery, preventing over-training. Yoga promotes activerecovery, due to relaxation, slow-er movement patterns, and timeoff from beating yourself up.Yoga improves your mental

state. The mental attention andmindfulness that yoga teachescan help people learn how to re-lax, focus, and control breathing.Beyond improving performance,yoga promotes balance in life aswell as body.A word of caution: Yoga has

the potential to hurt you, so takeit easy. Yoga can push the mus-cles past their functional rangeof motion so be careful. Don’t as-sume that your ability in othersports means you can jump intoan advanced yoga class. Start ina beginner class and make yourway up to an advanced class toenjoy the benefits of this 5,000year tradition.

Fitness TipDo you like your yoga plain or flavored?

Team Wins Losses Total Games Win %

779 MDG 3 0 3 100%

VR-53 4 0 4 100%

11 CES (a) 2 2 4 50%

D SQUAD 1 2 3 33%

779 MOS 1 2 3 33%

11 SFG 1 2 3 33%

744 COMM 0 4 4 0%

JBA IntramuralBasketball Standings

Monday/Wednesday

Tuesday/Thursday

Team Wins Losses Total Games Win %

459th ARW 2 0 2 100%

WSA 2 0 2 100%

FRC MA 2 0 2 100%

11 LRS 1 1 2 50%

89 COMM 1 1 2 50%

11 CES (b) 1 2 3 33%

PAG 0 2 2 0%

89 APS 0 3 3 0%

459TH ARW SOUNDLY

BEATS 89TH APS

PHOTOS/BOBBY JONES

Shaquille Luke, 459th Air Refueling Wing guard, navigates between89th Aerial Port Squadron teammembers during an IntramuralBasketball game at the West Fitness Center Dec. 11. The 459thARW soundly beat the 89th APS team, 49 to 21.

Rod Robinson, 459th Air Refueling Wing center, goes up strongfor two points during the second half of an Intramural Basketballgame against the 89th Aerial Port Squadron.

Code Talkers confused the enemyKnown as Code Talkers, Native Americans learned early on the

advantages of their tribal tongues, using indecipherable messagesto confuse the enemy. The code talker mission remained classifiedfor decades after World War II. Navajo Code Talkers created a codethat was within the Navajo language. Even another Navajo speakerwould not be able to understand it. Others tribes also coded theirlanguages. The United States did not consider native Americanscitizens until 1924. The military first enlisted native Americans torelay messages in their native languages during World War I. Theprogram was expanded during World War II. Soldiers from the Co-manche, Meskwaki, Sioux, Crow, Hopi and Cree nations took partin the effort. Out of more than 500 tribes, each with distinct lan-guages, about 200 to 250 dialects remain in use today. The NationalMuseum of the American Indian is one of 18 museums within theSmithsonian Institution. It has affiliate locations at the CulturalResources Center in Suitland, Md., the National Museum on theMall in Washington and in New York City.

The Retiree Activities Office is open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Mondaythrough Friday. Visit the office in Building 1604 at California andColorado Avenues or call us at 301-981-2726. Our e-mail addressis rao@andrews.af.mil. Call the office before your visit to ensure avolunteer is on duty. The RAO has a website at www.andrews.af.mil;Under “Helpful Links” click on “Retirees Activity Office” for informa-tion on retiree subjects, including past copies of “Retiree Corner.”

RETIREE, from page 2

For more news from other bases around the Washington, D.C. area,

visit www.dcmilitary.com.

7Friday, December 20, 2013 Andrews Gazette

BY LAURA PFLEDDERER779TH MEDICAL GROUP MEDI-CAL OPERATIONS SQUADRON

As part of Nation-al Drunk and DruggedDriving (3 D) Preventionmonth, all Airmen are en-couraged to stop by thedining facility to sign apledge stating they willmake responsible deci-sions regarding intoxicat-ed driving over the holi-days.Mental health tech-

nicians manned a table

earlier this month with 3D pledge cards and infor-mation on the financialburden of Driving WhileIntoxicated (DWI) or Driv-ing Under the Influence(DUI). Pledge cards willbe displayed at the DFACthroughout the month ofDecember.“The holiday season is

an especially terrible timeto ruin your fun or threat-en a life by driving whileimpaired or intoxicated.Be sure to have a planand a back-up plan to stay

safe,” stated Sue Scheddel,ADAPT Program Manager.During National Drunk

and Drugged Driving Pre-vention month and theholiday season, it is impor-tant to remind our peersto be vigilant regardingthe physical, emotional,and financial dangers thataccompany poor decisionmaking. Make your deci-sions while sober, to staysafe when you indulge insome holiday merry-mak-ing.

Pledge to drive sober this season

BY NATALIE HEDRICKDILORENZO TRICAREHEALTH CLINIC

Washington, D.C. — Inthe middle of the DiLoren-zo TRICARE Health Clinicin the Pentagon lays a goldmine of information andactivities aimed at assist-ing Pentagon employees inliving a healthier life.The Fit To Win Wellness

Clinic was establishedback in the late 1980s tooperationally implementthe Army’s health promo-tion regulation. Over theyears, courses have beenadded and altered to adaptto the military’s progress-ing wellness programs.These courses includeHealthy Base Initiative,Operation Live Well, andthe Army Surgeon Gener-al’s Performance Triad.Nutrition and exercise

are the foundations of thishealth promotion programand Fit To Win offers sev-eral classes and activitiesthat will help participantsenhance their fitness lev-

els, quit smoking and us-ing tobacco, recognize andmanage potential healthissues and achieve ahealthy weight.It’s not a secret that a

smoke- and tobacco-freelife is a healthier life. Thethree- part Tobacco Ces-sation class, “Quit to Win”will arm you with the toolsyou need to quit for life.Active duty service mem-bers will also get the op-portunity to meet with aprovider to discuss pre-scription assistance forquitting tobacco. Visit theDTHC website for monthlyclass schedules.Fit To Win offers an ar-

ray of tests to ensure youare functioning at yourbest when you exerciseincluding Aerobic Capac-ity testing, Lactate test-ing, Corrective Exercisescreening, UltrasoundBone Density testing andBodyComposition testing us-

ing the Bod Pod measuresyour weight and body fat.Fit To Win also offers a

Running Gait assessmentthat assist with findingthe right running shoebased on the results fromtests that measure yourgait, biomechanics andweight.Eating is a necessity

of life. Learn how to do itright. Fit To Win offers sev-

eral classes on how to fuelyour body to maximize itsefficiency, plan and cook ahealthy meal for you andyour family and manageweight. Visit the DTHCwebsite for monthly classschedules at www.dthc.capmed.mil.

Pentagon offers free Fit to Win wellness program

A service member walks on a treadmill while wearing amask as Roberto Ruiz, an exercise physiologist at the FitTo Win clinic located at the DiLorenzo TRICARE HealthClinic at the Pentagon. The mask directly measures aperson’s ventilation, oxygen consumption, carbon diox-ide production, and lactate threshold while they are putthrough a test that lasts about 15 to 20 minutes.

A service member sits in the “Bod Pod” at the Fit To Winclinic located at the DiLorenzo TRICARE Health Clinic atthe Pentagon. The Bod Pod is a device that measures aperson’s body composition. The person’s weight will betaken and body fat calculated during the process.

Finley Jordan, 9, of Huntingtown, Md., places a wreath onthe grave of Aaron Bing, who served as an Army privatefirst class during World War II.

drews. “Last year, we wereat Arlington National Cem-etery, and we’re honored tobe here, today.”Wreaths Across Ameri-

ca is most known for lay-ing donated wreaths at thegraves within ArlingtonNational Cemetery. Thosewreaths, according to anemail from a WreathsAcross America spokes-woman, are created eachyear from boughs tippedfrom trees grown throughthe Veteran RemembranceTree program, whichgrows memorial trees

tagged in memory of fall-en Solders in a 4,000 acreforest owned by the orga-nization’s founder, MorrillWorcester. Those trees,dedicated by the survivingfamily members of eachfallen Soldier, are nevercut down.Wreaths Across Amer-

ica Location Leader forthe Maryland VeteransCemetery at CheltenhamGeorge Sattterthwaitesaid that local Boy Scouts,Cub Scouts, schools andPOW/MIA support orga-nizations were part of theeffort, whether selling thewreaths or placing themthroughout the cemetery.

WREATH, from page 1

WASHINGTON (AF-NS) -- Air Force leadersannounced force manage-ment programs Dec. 11designed to reduce theforce by thousands of Air-men over the next fiveyears as a result of se-questration.Fiscal 2014 force man-

agement initiatives are inaddition to the announce-ment made in July, stat-ing the Air Force willimplement several forcemanagement programsto meet budget reductionrequirements.Air Force leaders made

the decision to announcethe overall strategic plannow so that Airmen havethe necessary time to con-sider all their career op-tions.During testimony to

the House Armed Servic-es Committee in Novem-ber, Gen. Mark A. WelshIII, the Air Force chiefof staff, said long-termimpacts of sequestrationcould force the service tocut about 25,000 Airmenover the next five years.“The difference from

years past is that weannounced voluntaryprograms first, then in-voluntary,” said Lt. Gen.Samuel Cox, the deputychief of staff for Manpow-er, Personnel and Servic-es. “This year, due to thelimited time frame, we’reannouncing all programsat once to allow Airmentime to consider theiroptions and ensure theirpersonnel records are up-to-date.”Several programs will

be announced in the com-

ing weeks. Boards willconsider an Airman’s en-tire record of performanceand will be conducted inaccordance with Air Forcepromotion board stan-dards. These programsonly apply to active dutyAirmen.The chief master ser-

geant retention board willinclude two phases. Dur-ing phase one, chiefs inspecific specialties mayapply for voluntary retire-ment in lieu of meeting aretention board. Chiefswith 20 years of total ac-tive federal military ser-vice from identified over-age career fields who donot apply for retirementbefore the phase one win-dow closes Mar. 15, 2014will be considered by theboard, Cox said.The quality force re-

view board will look atsenior master sergeantsand below with a negativequality indicator code.Negative codes includereporting identif iers,grade status reasons, re-enlistment eligibility, orassignment availabilitycodes. For a complete listof codes, Airmen shouldvisit the MyPers websiteonce the Personnel Ser-vices Delivery Memoran-dum for this program isreleased.Airmen who have de-

clined to obtain retain-ability for PCS, TDY, re-training/training, deploy-ments or promotion willbe looked at under theDate of Separation, orDOS, rollback program.Voluntary separation

pay applies to Airmen on

the active duty list withmore than six years, butno more than 20 years, oftotal active federal mili-tary service, and will beoffered to enlisted reten-tion board-eligible Air-men as a voluntary incen-tive prior to the retentionboards. The enlisted re-tention boards will lookat senior airmen throughsenior master sergeantsin overage Air Force spe-cialty codes with a dateof rank of Jan. 1, 2013 orearlier. Senior NCOs witha minimum of 20 years oftotal active federal mili-tary service by the man-dated retirement datewill also be considered bythe board.Force shaping boards

will consider active dutyofficers with more thanthree but less than sixyears of commissionedservice as of Dec. 31,2014 for separation andwill target career fieldsand year groups based onsustainment levels.Overages in the offi-

cer corps will require theforce to conduct an En-hanced Selective EarlyRetirement Board. AnESERB allows the serviceto consider retirement-el-igible active duty officersbelow the rank of colonel,lieutenant colonels oncedeferred for promotion,and colonels with two tofour years time in grade.By law, the Air Force willselect no more than 30percent for each gradein each competitive cat-egory.Voluntary separation

pay will be offered to ac-

tive duty officers with sixor more years total activefederal military serviceas a voluntary incen-tive prior to the meetinga board. A reduction inforce, or RIF, board willconsider regular officersbelow the grade of lieu-tenant colonel who haveserved at least one yearof active duty in theircurrent grade, are noton a promotion list, andhave six or more yearstotal active commissionedservice and less than 18years of total active fed-eral military service.Officers and enlisted

in over-manned careerfields with more than 15but less than 20 years ofservice will be eligible forTemporary Early Retire-ment Authority, or TERA,Phase II. The Air Forcewill offer TERA in fiscal2014 with the applicationwindow starting in Janu-ary 2014.These measures are

part of the Air Force’scomprehensive ForceManagement Programdesigned to shape the fu-ture force.For more information

on force management,force shaping, reductionin force and other per-sonnel programs, go tothe myPers website athttps://mypers.af.mil.

Air Force announces additional forcemanagement programs to reduce force size

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8 Friday, December 20, 2013Andrews Gazette

BY CHRIS BASHAMSTAFF WRITER

The Boys and GirlsClubs of America releaseda white paper Nov. 22,2013 detailing the resultsof the recent MilitaryGreat Think, a summitfor 80 national “thoughtleaders” who gathered inArlington, Va. this fall todiscuss the challenges fac-ing military youth and topropose measures that thepublic, private and non-profit sectors can take tohelp children from mili-tary families thrive, learnand lead. BGCA Presidentand CEO Jim Clark spokewith The Andrews Gazetteabout the Military GreatThink, upcoming efforts tosupport military childrenand plans for the next BG-CA Great Think.

AG: Why did you havea Great Think on mili-tary youth?JC: We’ve had a strong

partnership with all thebranches of the militaryservices for over 20 years.As we look at our strate-gic plan for the next 20years we wanted to focuson thought leadership forus as a country and as theBoys and Girls Clubs ofAmerica. So, we coveneda group to think throughservices for military youthand families, thefirst such type conven-

ing in the nation on thisimportant topic, and wegathered great informa-tion from the session.

AG: Military youthare seen as resilient andvulnerable: How canthey be both?JC: Obviously, by just

the nature of the situationthey are in, these kids are

resilient, dealing with ob-stacles that for some of usare unfathomable. But atthe same time they needadditional resources andsupport to stay resilientand handle the anxietyand stress of deploymentand rigors of a parent’smilitary career duringtheir formative years--moving town to town, tomultiple schools and dif-ferent environments andexperiencing the absenceof a parent on multiple de-ployments.

AG: What improvesresiliency in children?JC: Various things we

are looking at: Starting outearly for example, beingpreventative and proactiveahead of deployment andcontinuing through the du-ration of deployment--get-ting out in front of it. Cre-ating more access pointsfor all resources, publicand private, especiallyfor families living off theinstallation. After schoolprograms can integrateschool curricula and adultmentoring to overcome ob-stacles kids face caused byfrequent changes in school.Providing opportunitiesfor kids of military fami-lies whether it?s trainingor great programs for kidsto participate in--sports,academic, healthy lifestyle,character and citizenship--all of these are important.STEM and STEAM ca-reers, or Science, Technol-ogy, Engineering, the Artsand Math, especially forthe armed forces, are animportant career track forkids. We need to help kidsfocus on the future.

AG: Are BGCA pro-grams uniform aroundthe nation?

JC: There are differ-ences in programs. Of our4,100 club sites, 400 areaffiliated with youth cen-ters on bases. Many pro-grams are the same, likePower Hour: Each dayafter school completinghomework and getting as-sistance and special tu-toring. The Youth of theYear program is at everysite and every club andnow our affiliated youthcenters as well. New thisyear is the Military Youthof the Year program. It?sa competition on each in-stallation, and then theycompete with five otherregional candidates fromacross the country. Themilitary track is new in2013. We?re excited: Ourfirst Military Youth of theYear has already been ableto to do great things, in-cluding meeting the presi-dent of the United States.This is a baseline programacross our sites to recog-nize kids.

AG: How did youchoose your panelistsfor The Great Think?JC: We reached out to

individuals from the pub-lic sector as well as a fewfrom the private sector.Sloan Gibson --we wanteda representative from theUSO at the time, so thatwe can understand someof the different dynamicsand challenges that hisorganization faces andhow we can help integratewith and augment theprograms they have. Wewanted some expertise re-garding child psychologyand resiliency questions,as well as human develop-ment. We wanted a repre-sentative from the privatesector that?s been very in-volved in military support

and that was Coca-Cola(President and COO, GlenWalter). We included NavyChild and Youth ProgramsDirector Gregory Young,and Aerojet Rocketdyne,and a great moderator. Wechose based on disciplinesand areas of focus. Ofcourse you could have fourto five times the number ofpanelists we chose.

AG: The MilitaryGreat Think recom-mended the formationof an advisory board towork out its recommen-dations. Who will par-ticipate in the advisoryboard?JC: We are putting that

together to help us now, tobring to action or bring tolife the action steps result-ing from this convening.

AG: What will the ad-visory board’s goals be?JC: They will lay out an

action plan to specificallyidentify programs andservices that we need toimplement, and Boys andGirls Clubs of America willcertainly be a part of that.They will work on imple-menting starting early---what do we need to put inplace, to be in front of de-ployment? They will createa program step by step toaddress that. A centralizeddelivery system to make iteasier for military familiesto access programs doesnot exist today. Throughtechnology, promotion, andother different ways wewant to let families knowwhat is available. Howdo we bring more specificprograms to life for kidsof military families thatwe are serving? The fo-cus on STEM and STEAMprograms is a direct ac-tion item out of The GreatThink. This is a specificarea where military youthcan be a strong talent poolfor future careers. We’ll be

partnering with corporateas well as public entitiesto create a robust STEAMprogram after school,through youth centers ormilitary programs to rollout in the years ahead.

AG: Do military chil-dren benefit from mili-tary-focused, base-spon-sored activities morethan integrated onesheld in the civilian com-munity?JC: Military kids ben-

efit greatly from Boys andGirls Clubs of America pro-grams just as kids acrossthe nation do. That’s oneof the key driving reasonswe formed this partner-ship over 20 years ago--wehave great programs to of-fer all kids. We customizethat and tailor that to un-derstand the unique chal-lenges of kids who live inmilitary families, provid-ing critical adult relation-ships and mentors for kids.It works well for militaryfamilies because often aparent is deployed or ab-sent for significant peri-ods of time.. That’s whatwe specialize in. It’s reallya natural fit.

AG: What makes ahigh-impact youth de-velopment program?JC: There’s many com-

ponents. What makes ayouth program successfuland meaningful is a focuson quality youth develop-ment, a professional youthdevelopment staff memberwho can serve as a rolemodel, coach and counselorfor kids, coupled with ac-tivities that have outcomes,programs focused on spe-cific areas. We believe in afacility-based experiencefor kids that gives theman atmosphere conduciveto learning. And kids got-ta have fun. Otherwise,they won’t be there. Theyvote with their feet and if

they’re not having a goodtime they won’t be back.Kids affiliated with

Boys and Girls Clubs andyouth centers do betterin life. The statistics areclear. They are three timesmore likely to graduate,three times more likely tostay away from drugs, sexand brushes with the ju-venile justice system. Weknow our kids do betterin life. They do better aca-demically, they graduate,stay out of trouble, livea healthier lifestyle. Weknow it works.We’re extremely proud

of our partnership withthe armed services. In avery small way this is ourcontribution to our nationand to the families whoare sometimes making theultimate sacrifice. Fromthe bottom of my heart,and on behalf of my staff,we are extremely anxiousto do more. We stand readyto do more to help supportnot only these services butall the affiliated youthcenters and programs tomake sure kids have thebest access to programsand success in their lives.The whole notion of be-

ing more proactive was abrilliant evolutions fromearlier discussions--howcan we do more in advance?That was a really posi-tive advancement to earlythoughts. Also the opportu-nity for STEM/STEAM pro-grams for military families.That’s something we?vebeen wanting to do anyway.It’s great to hear the highlevel of interest.

AG: What is the nextGreat Think?JC: The next great

think will be focused onSTEAM/STEM programs.It will be held at Oracle inMay and will have a com-ponent from the MilitaryGreat Think. The militarywill have a piece of thatthought process as well.

The Military Great Think: An interview with Jim Clark

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