www.wmmoa.org MARCH 2017 President's Comments WMMOA is an organization of folks who are proud of their service to our country and proud of each others' service. Some of us meet in PROGRAM OF ACTIVITIES FOR other venues such as churches or community service organizations, MARCH but it is always a treat to meet and greet with you at our Social Hours and Luncheons. Everyone has experiences to share and stories to tell. FRIDAY, MARCH 10TH This year's presentations at both the Social Hours and Luncheons have been terrific. Our special thanks to MAJ (USAF Ret) John SOCIAL HOUR MacDonald for his recent inspiring discussion of perseverance as a Japanese POW in the Philippines. Plan to join us at future events. DOUBLETREE HOTEL Recently I had the chance to discuss burial options with one of our 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. members. It's a subject that we all should be planning for because it's a fact of life. Do we want to be laid to rest in a family plot or in a $9.00 PER PERSON military cemetery? If we do choose a Veteran’s cemetery , how is that NO HOST/CASH BAR handled? What about military honors or spousal benefits? Prompted by this recent discussion, your board has decided to collect pertinent “AND THERE I WAS…” information and post it on our website. We hope to have a comprehensive listing in the next few months. If you haven't checked CAPT FRED WELDON out the WMMOA website at wmmoa.org, this is just another reason US ARMY to be familiar with this great source of information. “COLD WAR DUTY AND THE The month of March brings us closer to the Army ROTC Cadet IRON CURTAIN IN BERLIN” Battalion at the University of Montana. We have a chance to attend their Dining-Out on Friday, 10 March at the Ballroom at the UM Center. In addition, I will present the MOAA Cadet Leadership Medals and certificates to several outstanding cadets from Carroll College and UM at their awards ceremony on 29 March. The board has decided to recognize the Cadet Battalion Commanders with a special award as she and he prepare for positions of leadership in their military careers. I will also attend their Spring Commissioning on Saturday, May 13th. FRIDAY, MARCH 17TH Former US Army Captain Fred Weldon will be our Social Hour LUNCHEON speaker on Friday evening, 10 March discussing duty behind the Iron Curtain in Berlin during the Cold War. Mr. Owen Sirrs, a former DIA DOUBLETREE HOTEL Analyst, will be back for our March 17th luncheon to discuss America's relationship with Russia during these challenging times. 11:30 a.m. -1:00 p.m. Your board is finalizing the details of our annual banquet on Saturday, $15.00 PER PERSON 29 April. Please plan to join us for an evening of tradition and BUFFET LUNCH SERVED comradeship. There will be more information in our April newsletter. As we wrap up our program year, we will add a new Second Vice GUEST SPEAKER President and farewell the current President. We currently have one volunteer, but if you'd like to be considered for a position on the OWEN SIRRS board, please talk to one of the board members at one of the March “TODAY’S RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN events. AMERICA AND RUSSIA… I hope to see you at our events! WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?” Gary Swartz, President REMEMBERING WMMOA was saddened to hear the news about the passing of our member LTC (Ret) Thaddeus (Tot) Mayer on February 6th in Milwaukie, Oregon. He had a long and distinguished career serving in both the U.S. Air Force and Army, retiring in 1972 as a LTC Colonel and his last duty station was at the University of Montana , ROTC program. His nickname Tot stood for “Time on Target”, proudly earned during his service as a field artillery officer. Tot’s memorial service will be Friday, March 24th, 10 a.m. at the Messiah Lutheran Church. Interment service will be at 3 p.m. at the Montana State Veteran’s Cemetery. Our heartfelt condolences to Tot’s family. WMMOA IS HONORED TO HAVE AS OUR BANUQET SPEAKER BRIGADIER GENERAL COLLEEN L. McGUIRE U.S. Army, Retired Brigadier General (Ret.) McGuire is a 1979 graduate of the University of Montana and a 2010 University of Montana Distinguished Alum. She received a Regular Army commission as a Military Police officer through the Reserve Officer Training Corps. She holds a Master of Military Arts and Science from the Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, KS and a Master of Strategic Studies from the Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, PA. Brigadier General McGuire retired August 1, 2012. Brigadier General McGuire commanded the United States Army Criminal Investigations Command (CID) from January 2010 to September 2011 and the United States Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas from 2002—2004 where she earlier commanded the 705th Military Police Battalion from 1998—2000. Her deployments include Iraq where she served 18 months as the Provost Marshal, Multi National Corps-Iraq and Multi National Force-Iraq from December 2006—July 2007; and Somalia as the Task Force Public Affairs Officer, October 1993—February 1994.. She last served at the Pentagon as the “J-1”, Director of Manpower and Personnel on The Joint Staff. Colleen also established and served as the director of the Army’s Suicide Prevention Task Force As a military police officer, BG McGuire accomplished many “firsts”: --She is the first woman in the history of the U.S. Army to hold the highest law enforcement office, Provost Marshal General of the Army; --first woman to command the U.S. Army’s premier felony investigative organization, Criminal Investigations Command; --and the first woman to command the Department of Defense all-male maximum security prison at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, the United States Disciplinary Barracks. We hope that you can all join us for a wonderful evening with BG McGuire. Please make your plans today for our Annual Banquet, Saturday, April 29th. The RSVP form is on the following page. WMMOA OFFICERS FOR 2015-2017 President Gary Swartz 542-1978 [email protected] First Vice President Mike Schauf 215-3231 [email protected] Second Vice President Jack Babon 549-9835 [email protected] Secretary Cindy Babon 549-9835 [email protected] Treasurer John Angwin 543-7430 [email protected] Personal/Survivor Affairs Tottie Parmeter 543-5002 [email protected] WMMOA ANNUAL BANQUET SATURDAY, April 29th 6 pm Social ~ 7 pm Dinner Doubletree Hotel $35.00 per person Name ________________________________________________________ Spouse name ___________________________________________________(if attending) Guest name (s) _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Total attendees ______X $35 = $__________(Am’t Pd or Am’t Owed) Enclosed is my check #________________ Amount _________________ Phone #________________ I am reserving a table for 8 ~ Please give us the name for the table sign ________________________________________ ARE YOU A WWII VET? ________ YES To reserve a table, payment for all 8 guests must be received before April 21st.. Before April 21st, send check and RSVP form to “WMMOA” P.O. Box 3762, Missoula, MT 59806 .