President's Message
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MAY 2016 VOL 63 Chapter 16 Newsleer Organizaon and Responsibilies: President’s Message Editor: Glen Craig This will be my final message to you as President of this Chapter. It’s been a six year run and I am very proud of all we have achieved during my Secons: tenure. I always felt that it was important for the President’s message live Message from the President: Dave Shell up to an SFA crical task, which is to be a voice for the Special Forces Treasurers Report: Kevin Paon community on all things that impact our force, veterans and families. I Sec. Rpt (Staff Meeng Minutes): Paul Bagshaw took on some of the most controversial issues of the day and tried to sort through the polics, emoon, and misinformaon in the hope that Sick Call/Obituary: Chaplain Butch Hall someone was listening, and that my analysis and thoughts would influence Blast from the Past: Glen Craig distant conversaons, and would be the catalyst behind the most raonal Special Recognion: Paul Bagshaw and salient of points there in. A few of the more notable subjects of my messages were: Upcoming Events: Paul Bagshaw ‐ Rules of Engagement in Afghanistan Calendar: Dave Shell ‐ The Bi‐Parsan Budget Act of 2013 Human Interest Story: Chapter at large ‐ Standards of performance in a gender neutral military ‐ The liing of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell SFA Na onal HQ Update: Dave Shell ‐ Keeping faith with and honoring brothers who have fallen on hard mes Aer Acon Report: Jim Lessler ‐ Alleged racism in Special Operaons Membership Info: Roy Sayer ‐ Congressional failings with regard to the military rerement system Direct combat exclusion for women Adver sements: Glen Craig ‐ ‐ Defining the SFA st Suspense: ‐ Charng the future of the 1 SFG(A) Reunion SF Heraldry st ‐ Newsleer published (Web): 1 of each For this last message I would like to express my both my sasfacon and odd numbered month my dissasfacon with the state of the Chapter. I owe this level of candor th to you as I exit and hope that no one is o ended by either. Input due to editor: 20 of each ff It was with more than a lile controversy that I moved the meengs onto even numbered month Ft. Lewis and into the 1st SFG(A) compound. For those of you who Dra due to President: 27th of each remember, when it was first suggested, the Group Commander, COL Rand Binford wanted nothing to do with us. We were just one of several great even numbered month th organizaons like the Family Readiness Group, and First in Asia that were Final Dra due 29 of each on his ‘burn this bridge’ list. We outlived him as I knew we would and even numbered month were welcomed home by COL Fran Beaudee. This didn’t set well with several of the well‐established and longme members of the Chapter mostly due to maers of personal convenience. It didn’t make any difference to me, because it I knew it was the right thing to do and we have enjoyed substanal success with regard to esteem and significance within the community ever since. To date, we have folks who are crical of the close relaonship I have forged with the 1st Group and they feel that we have dried away from our mission and purpose as a fraternal veteran’s organizaon. In fact, we do spend considerable me and treasure supporng the 1st Group, but by doing so we have increased our numbers, beer served them whom we pridefully call our own, and carved a place for ourselves alongside one of the great historical units in American history. In making these kinds of decisions I always kept the SFA mission statement in the forefront of my mind as a guide for the parameters we are obligated by SFA membership to adhere to: “The Special Forces AssociaƟon Serves as the Voice for the Special Forces Community; Perpetuates Special Forces TradiƟons and Brotherhood; Advances the Public Image of Special Forces and Promotes the General Welfare of the Special Forces Community.” To this end I feel I was true and that we as a Chapter have lived up to each Page 1 of the four specified tenets. The Chapter XVI Newsleer has been a success and was recognized as such in 2014 by SFA Naonal when our Chapter was presented the SFA Newsleer of the Year award. Glen Craig is to be credited for making us the best, and while we oen had heated debates over content he respected my editorial control and acquiesced at every contenous divide. I thank him for that and for scking with job in spite of our differences. In the end we hit a nice balance of material that included veteran’s affairs, SF current events, military history, Chapter XVI events, memorials, and SF legacy pieces. I send out the newsleer via email to more than 270 chapter members and am able to track how many of them actually click to open. We average beer than 60%, which is quite high for these kinds of mass email services. That tells me that most folks are interested enough to at least take a look at what we are pung out, and I would suppose that many pass the newsleer along to interested pares outside our network as well. I was always very careful to print only those kinds of news pieces that were bona fide and adhered to the highest standards of journalisc integrity. I refused to print chainmail, hate mongering of any kind, polical messages, tasteless jokes, or any piece that did not clearly idenfy the author and/or source. I hope that the next chapter president maintains the same standard. If we slip in this regard, we may never be able to recover, because our newsleer is in many regards our integrity. In is a permanent record that can never be denied, wiped, or sanized aer the fact. Our chapter website has been a success, though not to the extent I envisioned when I designed it. I had intended that it be a one‐stop shop for all things chapter related, and it is. What I hadn’t counted on was having to connue to spoon feed members informaon posted on the website in perpetuity, because they were in the mode of being served the informaon personally and were unwilling to shi to a self‐serve system. I could have responded to every member RFI by telling them to check the website, but that’s no way to win friends and influence people, so I bit my tongue and answered their quesons one by one. As a result the chapter website became a bit stale, but sll has great potenal and maybe with new leadership it might become a more important operaonal tool for us. Chapter solvency was and is one of our major accomplishments. We got good at raising money, which was key to our strong record of benevolence. We spent tens of thousands of dollars in the spirit of the SFA mission and in my recollecon, and Kevin’s chagrin, we never had to say “no” to anyone who needed our assistance. Of this I am proud. Where I failed was in having to work the few volunteers who were willing to step up for fundraising chores like they were Thai forkli drivers on an acve army airfield to meet our financial goals. I realized aer my first or second foray solicing volunteers that it was a waste of me and more work than payoff. Again, it was a leadership failure, and I accept that. I was not willing to alienate any of the chapter members by squeezing them in ways that would most likely have resulted in their withdrawal from the chapter. Before my me we lost some very important members to Chapter 43 (Hawaii) and I was always keenly aware that it was an easy out for folks who did want to be bothered with imposions on their me. To be fair, I know several Chapter 43 members who volunteer an enormous amount of me to veteran’s organizaons, so I never perceived it as a cop‐out. They just weren’t interested in the SFA. Again, I chose not to make anyone uncomfortable about their parcipaon, and oen said that if you’re SF, you have already given. As I menoned above, volunteerism was never our strongpoint. Maybe it goes back to our first days in the Army when words to live by were “never volunteer for nothing”. I thought that a bit ironic because every VIP speaker in those days always found a way to work in the “you are all three me volunteers” cliché. In any event, we have been fortunate that our chapter offices have always been filled unl now. Maybe the bar has been set too high and folks do not want to sign up for all of the iniaves that were implemented under my tenure. All I can say is that I defined the chapter as I saw fit and the next President is free to reshape it however he sees fit. You will never hear a crical work from me. I am very good at leng whoever is in‐charge be in‐charge and geng in step with that. In truth though, I cannot hide my disappointment that no one has anteed up other than Eric Heid the current Chapter VP who will connue to serve in that posion. Eric cannot do it by himself and no one expects him to.