USAG HUMPHREYS

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Proudly Serving Camp Humphreys and the Pyeongtaek Communities

Volume 2 Issue 2

What’s Inside Page 2

Smith Youth

Center

Page 4

‘Hello

Humphreys’

Page 5

Smith Youth Center

photos

Page 6

Camp Humphreys

Happenings

By Peter Cho and Sophia Lee

USAG Humphreys Public Affairs Interns

FAP, continues on page 3

Domestic Abuse Victim Advocacy Justice Symposium

For USAG Humphreys Army Community Service Family Advocacy Program, Domestic Violence or assistance, please call

DSN 757-2363/2372 or 0503-357-2363/2372. For 24 hour assistance, please call the Domestic Abuse Victim Advocate Hot-

line, DSN 153 or 0503-357-8913.

CAMP HUMPHREYS, Republic of Ko-

rea -- A Domestic Abuse Victim Advocacy

Justice Symposium was held, in the

Maude Hall Army Community Service

conference room, here, Jan. 30.

The Family Advocacy Program part-

nered with various community speakers,

from on and off post, during the sympo-

sium to educate participants on the FAP,

Korean law and the Military Justice Sys-

tem.

More than 20 key members from the

USAG Humphreys community attended

the event. These members included or-

ganizations such as Sexual Harassment

Assault Response Prevention, Equal Em-

ployment Opportunity, Criminal Investi-

gation Division, legal, and military police.

“We are very excited about our sym-

posium," said Valencia Hunt, USAG Hum-

phreys Family Advocacy Program spe-

cialist. "We know there will be a lot of

valuable information put out to the com-

munity members to help us better serve

our families."

The guest speaker was Capt. Kim

Beom II, a 30-year veteran police officer

and human rights lecturer at the Nation-

al Human Rights Commission of Korea. In

the past, he has been recognized for his

knowledge of handling domestic vio-

lence and sexual assault.

"This symposium served as a platform

for many community leaders and mem-

bers to learn more about domestic vio-

lence, child abuse, and sexual assault

from the Korean law, Military Justice,

and Family Advocacy Program," Hunt

said. "Participants were also able to

learn about Transitional Compensation

and Problematic Sexual Behavior in chil-

dren and youth. Everyone that attended

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Col. Michael F. Tremblay Command Sgt. Maj. Antonio Lopez Steve Hoover Maria Gallegos Garrison Commander Garrison Command Sergeant Major Public Affairs Director Editor - Chief, Command Information Submit stories, nominations, photos to USAG Humphreys CONNECTIONS to: usarmy.humphreys.imcom-korea.mbx.usaghumphreyspao@mail.mil The Connection is an unofficial publication published under the provisions of AR 360-1 for members of the Department of Defense. Contents of the Connections are not necessary the official views of, or endorsed by, the U.S. Government, Department of the Army or the USAG Humphreys. The Connections is a free bi-weekly publication distributed via email every other Friday, except when that day is an American holiday, then the Connections will be published on Thursday. All items are subject to editing for content and to insure they conform with DoD guidelines.

The new teen center offers a place to ‘hang out’ By Peter Cho and Sophia Lee

USAG Humphreys Public Affairs Interns

The Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith Youth Center, also known as the new Teen Center, officially opened its doors, here, Feb. 7. (U.S. Army photo by Peter Cho,

USAG Humphreys Public Affairs Intern)

CAMP HUMPHREYS, Republic of Ko-

rea – The Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith

Youth Center, also known as the new

Teen Center, officially opened its doors,

here, Feb. 7.

The center was relocated from Bldg.

570 to the new location in Bldg. 6350, to

accommodate the growing student pop-

ulation and to place it closer to the

schools.

This new facility provides a place for

Humphreys Middle and High School stu-

dents to hang out after school, where

they can engage in multiple activities,

learn and grow, and make new friends.

The center offers game rooms, with

board and electronic games, ping pong

and pool tables, computer rooms, lead-

ership clubs, field trips, and volunteer

opportunities, to name a few. On aver-

age, more than 170 students visits the

center everyday.

“The purpose of this new facility is to

give middle school and high school stu-

dents an opportunity to be engaged and

do activities after school,” said Brett

Meehan, the USAG Humphreys Youth

Center director. “We also have student

clubs, where they are able to build their

college resumes and get volunteer

hours.”

Last year, students who were in the

Keystone Club had more than 600 volun-

teer service hours.

“The high school students earned

their volunteer hours by helping and

assisting the Jacob’s Home, an orphan-

age in Pyeongtaek,” he said. “They also

wrote letters to kids who lived in a small

village in Kenya.”

Meehan said that getting to know the

kids and seeing how they grow from the

leadership programs, is a huge part of

making his job interesting.

“The most interesting part about my

job is being with the kids and helping

YOUTH, continues on page 5

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KOREAN PHRASE

the symposium left enlightened and ed-

ucated, to better serve our Soldiers and

family members."

A FAP specialist is a trained profes-

sional that provides education and train-

ing to the community on domestic vio-

lence and child abuse. In addition to ed-

ucation, the specialist works towards the

prevention of abuse to ensure the safety

of the community.

According to Hunt, the most im-

portant part of her job is making a differ-

ence in the lives of the Soldiers, their

Family members and the community.

"What's important is being able to go

out to educate the community about

domestic violence and make sure they

have information and resources," she

said. "They need to make informed deci-

sions and to see how the work that we

do in FAP impacts the lives of Soldiers,

civilians, families, and contractors that

work and live in our community."

Melissa Werlau, a USAG Humphreys

Domestic Abuse victim advocate, agreed

with Hunt and noted that they are here

to educate the community on domestic

violence and support services.

A victim advocate is a trained profes-

sional who provides non-clinical advoca-

cy services and support to Soldiers and

their Family members, who are experi-

FAP, continued from page 1

More than 20 key members from USAG Humphreys community attended the symposium held at the

Maude Hall Army Community Service conference room, Jan. 30. The Family Advocacy Program part-

nered with various community speakers, from on and off post, during the symposium to educate

participants on the Family Advocacy Program (FAP), Korean law and Military Justice System. (U.S.

Army photo by Peter Cho, USAG Humphreys Public Affairs Intern)

encing domestic abuse.

"We provide non-clinical counseling

and can connect them [victims] with

counseling, assist them to different ap-

pointments, such as to the hospital for a

medical appointments, legal appoint-

ments, or if they have a trial -- we will go

with them to court," Werlau said. "We

are here to help and support them

through that system and hopefully we

can help empower them to become

more independent in their lives.

"I think that we hear more about do-

mestic violence now because more peo-

ple are aware of the different reporting

options," she said. "I think, awhile back,

people were a little bit more hesitant

and scared to say that they were in an

abusive relationship, because they didn't

want to hurt their career or their hus-

bands' or their wives' careers.

"So, being able to provide education, I

think, has been beneficial in reaching out

to them so they know that there are

support services for them," she said.

For more information about the ACS

Family Advocacy Program, Domestic

Violence or assistance, please call DSN

757-2363/2372 or 0503-357-2363/2372.

JUNG JI

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‘Hello Humphreys’ tour open to newcomers

Sarah Valle, a Hello Humphreys tour guide, demonstrates how to purchase public transportation during a Hello Humphreys tour, at AK Plaza, Jan. 16. (U.S.

Army photo by Sameria Zavala, USAG Humphreys Public Affairs)

By Sameria Zavala

USAG Humphreys Public Affairs

CAMP HUMPHREYS, Republic of Ko-

rea —“Hello Humphreys,” a Religious

Services support program, offers a short,

guided tour of the installation and the

Pyeongtaek City.

The volunteer tour guides show the

newcomers on how to use transporta-

tion on and off post, including the red,

blue and green bus lines on post, along

with the city bus, train and subway. They

also take tour members on visits to local

markets and businesses.

These tours are by R.S.V.P. only and

accept around 10 participants, to keep a

balance of adults, children and tour

guides, said Shannon Jones, a volunteer

tour guide. Even though this is a pro-

gram provided by Religious Services, no

specific church membership is required

to participate.

The tour meets in the lobby of Hum-

phreys Lodge, to help newcomers who

might not have vehicles yet. But, it is

open to anyone interested in attending.

From there, tour goers use the Hum-

phreys bus line to travel to the Pedestri-

an Gate.

Outside the Pedestrian Gate, the tour

guides show the participants on how to

use a T-money transportation card, and

take the 20 Bus to Tong Bok Market and

AK Plaza.

Along the way and during lunch, tour

goers can ask questions and listen to

helpful information on South Korean

culture and how to navigate the penin-

sula.

“This tour was so helpful,” said Made-

line Dickinson, a Humphreys’ newcomer.

“We only have two years here, so as

soon as we got here, we wanted to hit

the ground running.”

Those interested in attending are en-

couraged to bring Korean Won [money]

with them to purchase lunch, transpor-

tation and any additional items.

Folders given to participants usually

include valuable information about the

Humphreys area and a free face mask.

For those interested in attending Hel-

lo Humphreys, please sign up via email

at hello.camp.humphreys@gmail.com or

through their Facebook page at https://

www.facebook.com/Hello.Humphreys/.

In addition to this program, Army

Community Services offers a Spouses’

Orientation on the first and third Mon-

day of each month, starting at 9 a.m.

For more information about that pro-

gram, please call DSN 757-2363 or 0503-

357-2363.

5

them grow,” said Meehan. “They

come in everyday, and share

their stories about what hap-

pened at school or what hap-

pened over the weekend, or we

just spend time playing games.

“I also get to do leadership

programs with them,” he said.

“Last year, I took a student to

Okinawa for a competition. It’s

amazing to see them mature

from being students at Hum-

phreys and then seeing them

getting ready for college.”

The Teen Center also has

hands-on cooking clubs, such as

the Korean Cooking Club, where

the students learn authentic and

fun ways to cook Korean meals.

They also go on field trips to food

academies in Seoul, to learn

more about the different kinds of

food and various cooking classes.

“We have cooking, baking, and

art clubs for students and these

activities are designed for them,”

said Jennifer Balunsong, a Child

and Youth Program assistant.

“The way they interact or give

the eagerness to do activities in

the facility, makes me feel that

we are building good relation-

ships with each other. There are

so many fun things to do at this

center. It’s a great place to be.”

Students receive one guest

pass for their first visit to the

center. However, after that first

visit, they must be registered

with Child and Youth Services to

return to the facility.

For more information about

the center or registration, please

call DSN 755-1077 or 0503-355-

1077.

YOUTH, continued from page 3

Middle School Zone

Presentation /Work Area

E-Sports Room

Stage ‘Drop the Mic’ Area

U.S. Army photos by Peter Cho and Sophia Lee, USAG Humphreys Public Affairs Interns

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HELPFUL LINKS

USAG Humphreys

USAG Humphreys Facebook

USAG Humphreys Flickr

USAG Humphreys

Family and MWR

USAG Humphreys YouTube

Eight Army Newcomers Page

SAVE THE DATE:

Humphreys Family

and MWR

March 7 Duke Memorial Library TIME: 10:30 a.m.

March 21 Morning Calm Center TIME: 6—11 p.m.

April 4 Burke CYS SKIES Center TIME: 11 a.m.—2 p.m.

April 12 Morning Calm Center TIME: 11 a.m.—3 p.m.