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MOAA is proud to support the Real Warriors campaign! They provide tips, resources and advice to servicemembers and their families learning to cope with the aftereffects of war.

In their latest newsletter, Real Warriors offers a new weekly podcast series in which servicemembers, veterans and military families highlight the importance of seeking care for invisible wounds and offer tools and tips on building and maintaining psychological resilience.

The first podcast, “Reaching Out for Support,” discusses how challenges coping with traumatic experiences can impact mission readiness.

The second podcast, “Leaders Can Make an Important Difference,” discusses how leaders can help strengthen force readiness by promoting psychological health, as well as encouraging and assisting those who need support to seek appropriate care.

Access and download selected episodes or subscribe to receive weekly updates automatically. And if you  know someone in need of help, please share these resources!

Have you checked out the podcast? Let us know what you think!

Our servicemembers, veterans, and their families all work on causes worthy of an award. Consider nominating a deserving government program or group you work with!

Applications are now being accepted for the $100,000 Innovations in American Government Award.

Offered by the Harvard Kennedy School’s Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, the Innovations Award is heralded as the nation’s premier award for the public sector. It recognizes programs that demonstrate creative and effective government at its best.

This year, the Center’s Innovations Program will also continue to identify and promote promising government efforts and partnerships through the Bright Ideas program.

All units of government — federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial — from all policy areas are eligible to apply for recognition.

The top winner of the Innovations in American Government Award will receive a $100,000 grant to support replication and dissemination activities. Top finalists will also receive monetary grants.

Applications and additional information for both initiatives are available at www.innovationsaward.harvard.edu.

Hurry, applications are due March 1, 2012!

Military.com’s Spouse Summit is a first-of-its kind event aimed at informing and empowering military spouses. The Summit brings together Subject Matter Experts to address the most pressing issues facing military families today. Whether it’s learning how to overcome obstacles that stand in the way of career or education goals, or how the state of the economy could affect military pay and benefits, the 2012 Spouse Summit will cover the substantive issues which are crucial to maintaining the mental, physical and financial health of our military families.

Check out the Spouse Summit flyer for more details on the conference, and to register for the March 2-3 event in Arlington, VA!

Say what?! DangerRoom blog has the scoop on some new miltech that could really do some damage, courtesy of Sandia Laboratories:

Each self-guided bullet is around 4 inches in length. At the tip is an optical sensor, that can detect a laser beam being shone on a far-off target. Actuators inside the bullet get intel from the bullet’s sensor, and then “steer tiny fins that guide the bullet to the target.” The bullet can self-correct its navigational path 30 times a second, all while flying more than twice the speed of sound…

Even with an ace marksman, researchers found that a typical unguided bullet — operating in real world conditions that might include crosswinds or changes in air density — would miss a target that was a half-mile away by nine meters. A guided bullet, however, could get within eight inches of that same target.

First Lady Michelle Obama announces measures to increase support for caregivers of wounded, ill and injured service members at the Labor Department in Washington, D.C., Jan. 30, 2012. These proposed rules would, in part, enable more military family members to take the time they need to care for their loved ones without fear of career repercussions. DOD photo by Elaine Sanchez

First Lady Michelle Obama today announced a series of measures intended to increase the nation’s support for caregivers of wounded, ill and injured service members.

Joined by Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis and senior military leaders, Obama announced the Labor Department’s proposal to expand military family leave protections under the Family and Medical Leave Act.

These proposed rules will, in part, enable more military family members to take the time they need to care for their loved ones without fear of career repercussions, the first lady said.

The Labor Department’s proposed expansions of the Family and Medical Leave Act will help more caregivers of troops and veterans tend to their wounded loved ones, Solis explained. FMLA, enacted in 1993, enables eligible employees of covered employers to take unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons.

The proposal will, in part:

• Extend the 26-week unpaid leave entitlement to family members caring for recent veterans with a serious injury or illness incurred in the line of duty, including conditions that may arise up to five years after leaving the military;
• Allow family members to take time off from work before, during or after a spouse, child or parent’s deployment to tend to service-related matters, such as military briefings or making financial and legal arrangements; and
• Increase the amount of time an employee may take to spend with a loved one who is on rest or recuperation leave from five days to up to 15 days.

The Labor Department’s proposal is just a few of many steps the Obama administration is taking to support caregivers, the first lady noted, citing legislation the president signed to help caregivers receive stipends, training, counseling and other assistance. The Defense and Labor departments also have strengthened their caregiver support, she said, working together to support caregivers whose loved ones are dealing with TBIs and post-traumatic stress.

Additionally, she added, the VA has helped caregivers receive health insurance and helps connect them with support coordinators who can direct them to resources.

But the government can’t do it alone, Mrs. Obama said, citing examples of how other individuals and organizations are stepping up to help.

Building on successful pilot programs at Fort Belvoir, Va., and Fort Carson, Colo., the USO, Hire Heroes USA and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce plan to host 14 career opportunity days focused on the employment of wounded, ill and injured warriors, their spouses and caregivers.

The Chamber of Commerce’s new Military Spouse Business Alliance has committed to hosting a career forum and hiring fair exclusively for wounded warriors, their spouses and caregivers at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., in May.

Finally, Operation Homefront and the Semper Fi Fund, both nonprofit organizations, have added volunteer opportunities that support caregivers and their families to the Joining Forces website.

Read the full release from the Department of Defense.

African American Diversity Concerts – free, live performances by the U.S. Navy Band held at the United States Navy Memorial in honor of Black History Month. The first performance, on Friday, February 17, will feature the Brass Quartet with guest soloist Musician 1st Class Cory Parker in a concert that tells the story of the integration of African-Americans in the U.S. Navy. The second performance, on Monday, February 27, will feature the U.S. Navy Band’s premier jazz ensemble, the Commodores, and include a narrative lecture component by MUCS Michael Bayes.

African Americans have had a major presence in the U.S. Navy since the 19th Century. Their role grew tremendously during the Civil War when many newly freed slaves joined forces with U.S. sailors in working towards a common goal.

The concerts are part of a series that celebrates different ethnicities in the Navy. Upcoming performances will pay homage to women and Asian-Pacific Islanders.

• Friday, February 17, 2012 at 12:00pm
  Monday, February 27, 2012 at 12:00pm
• United States Navy Memorial
  Burke Theater
  701 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
  Washington, D.C. 20004
  www.navymemorial.org
  Metro: National Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter (Green and Yellow lines)
• COST: Free and open to the public. No RSVP required, but seating is limited.

For more information about the U.S. Navy Band, please call 202-433-3366 or visit www.navyband.navy.mil.

The U.S. Navy has moved into full rate production of its underwater Littoral Battlespace Sensing-Glider (LBS-G) program, calling for the manufacture of 35 gliders from a Huntsville, Ala., company.

Teledyne Brown Engineering Inc. will make the gliders, with the option of producing an additional 100, under a contract with the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command worth up to $53.1 million for 150 units. Teledyne already has delivered 15 gliders to the Navy’s Program Executive Office.

The LBS-G, 8 inches in diameter and 6 feet long, is driven in a saw-tooth vertical profile by variable buoyancy using the ocean’s own temperature and pressure differences and has the ability to move both vertically and horizontally.

The LBS-G can dive to 3,280 feet and has a range of 24,000 miles and a projected endurance for its thermal engine of three to five years. It can navigate using GPS, a magnetic compass, an altimeter, or subsurface dead reckoning. Its sensor package includes conductivity, temperature, and depth modules, and it can communicate via RF modem, Iridium satellite and Argos, a worldwide tracking and environmental monitoring system.

Clayton Jones, senior director for Teledyne Webb Research in East Falmouth, Mass., says the core technology of the glider is “all about the displacement of water around it. When the displacement is collapsing, the glider becomes more dense and sinks; if it expands, the glider becomes less dense and rises.”

A piston pump assembly in the nose cone of the LBS-G functions to change the volume of seawater in the vehicle. The LBS-G has wings that can be deflected to translate some of the glider’s vertical motion to the horizontal plane, so it is effectively flying up or down at an angle in the water. Steering is accomplished through a tailfin rudder.

“The glider might be programmed to sink to 2,000 feet, stay there for 10 days, then rise up through the water column taking measurements of conductivity, temperature and depth,” Jones says. “At the surface, it would transmit its information, then return back down to its assigned depth.”

The glider typically is programmed to submerge, perform a mission, and come to the surface to communicate, Jones notes. It then can be returned to its current mission or sent on a new mission that might be programmed with a series of way points of when to surface and communicate again.

Information from the gliders is useful not only for weather predictions but also for submarine commanders, who want to know where thermal boundaries are located to enable them to better hide their subs from detection.

About the author: Alan M. Petrillo is a Tucson, Ariz., freelance writer who works in a wide variety of fields, writing for national and regional magazines and newspapers. He’s also the author of the mystery novel, Full Moon, and several books on historical military small arms.

In honor of the dedicated service of U.S. troops, The Washington Auto Show® will present a special military tribute on Tues, Jan. 31.

The Washington Auto Show, produced by the Washington Area New Automobile Dealers Association (WANADA), will offer free admission for all active-duty military and veterans on Tues., Jan. 31. The program centers on a 6:15 p.m. press conference to announce vehicle discounts and career opportunities being made available by automakers to military personnel and speeches by celebrity guests star J.R. Martinez, winner of “Dancing with the Stars” and others.

• J.R. Martinez, the latest winner of “Dancing with the Stars.” Martinez, a former U.S. Army infantryman who was wounded in Iraq, has visited the troops overseas on a consistent basis.
• Former U. S. Marine and WWE® Legend Sgt. Slaughter™;
• Performance by the world-class Downrange pop ensemble from the U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own.”

Event details:
6:15 p.m.: Press conference featuring celebrity guests.
6:00 – 7:00 p.m.: Special reception for military personnel and their families, with treats provided by Georgetown Cupcakes.
At the Walter E. Washington Convention Center

Automakers will provide information about the specific opportunities they are making available to military at their show booths.

The 2012 Washington Auto Show opens to the public from Jan. 28-Feb.5 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and is advanced by two Public Policy Preview Days.

This 70th edition of The Washington Auto Show offers a showcase of more than 700 vehicles from over 42 domestic and import manufacturers and a special 65,000-square foot exhibit, “The Advanced Technology SuperHighway,” of the latest innovations in safety and sustainability.

For more information about the show and details about the “Welcome Home Troops!” tribute, please visit: www.washingtonautoshow.com.

With George Lucas’ Red Tails soaring at the box office, The National WWII Museum announces its acquisition and restoration of a P-51 Mustang, the aircraft depicted in Hollywood’s drama about the courageous fighter pilots known as the Tuskegee Airmen.

The Tuskegee Airmen were the first African-American aviators in the United States military. They comprised the United States Army Air Forces 99th Fighter Squadron and 332nd Fighter Group and were trained at Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama.

The Museum’s P-51 D, an aircraft replete with authentic “Red Tail” markings, will hang in the new US Freedom Pavilion: The Boeing Center.

The 96 ft. tall structure, built to house the institution’s spectacular collection of macro artifacts, opens on the Museum’s New Orleans campus November 11, Veterans Day, this year.

“The P-51 with ‘Red Tail’ markings should be a symbol of pride for all Americans,” said Wendell Pierce, actor and spokesperson for the Museum’s initiative to restore the plane. “But it is of special importance to black Americans as it embodies the patriotism of these pilots, who did, indeed, prove that courage has no color. I am proud to help in the Museum’s efforts to honor all African-Americans who fought for their country during WWII.”

Pierce’s father, Amos Pierce, was drafted into the US Army in 1943 and was assigned to the famous 24th Infantry Division – the African American “Buffalo Soldiers” attached to the US Marines that took Saipan from the Japanese in 1944.

With Black History Month approaching, the Museum is making a special effort to remind Americans of African-Americans’ contributions in WWII with a series of programs. These include an opportunity for children to build their own P-51 model plane as well as a lunchtime lecture about African-American veterans and their struggle for civil rights. Other highlights include:

• A display depicting the exploits of the Tuskegee Airmen as well as those of drivers for the “Red Ball Express,” which at its peak delivered over 12,000 tons of vital supplies per day to Allied forces rapidly advancing across France. The display opens January 20 and will be exhibited throughout the month of February.
• A free Electronic Field Trip for grades 7-12 called Fighting for a Double Victory: African Americans in WWII. Students will meet Pearl Harbor hero Dorie Miller, the Montford Point Marines, and the Tuskegee Airmen, learning of the struggle for racial equality in war factories and in the barracks and tracing the historic path from segregation to integration in the military and beyond.

For more information on the Museum’s Black History Month programming as well as lesson plans for educators visit www.nationalww2museum.org.

Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11) announced today that 23 Representatives, 13 Democrats and 10 Republicans, will participate in her bipartisan initiative to invite a veteran of the Iraq War to President Obama’s State of the Union Address tomorrow evening. Veterans will sit in the House gallery for the annual address. This initiative is in collaboration with the National Guard and Reserve Caucus and Reps. Jeff Miller (FL-01), Tim Walz (MN-01) and Spencer Bachus (AL-06).

“I believe we as a nation need to recognize the men and women who bravely fought to protect our way of life. We need to remember that many of our veterans return to civilian life with post traumatic stress or physical injuries, and many have difficulty finding a job and permanent housing once they return from active duty. Inviting our vets to the State of the Union is one way to shine a light on their sacrifice and their needs, but we must stay committed to seeing that they have the resources and support available to aid them in assimilating back into our communities,” said Congresswoman Fudge.

Congresswoman Fudge invited Marine Sergeant Joseph Collins, an Iraq War veteran and resident of Cleveland, who is currently unemployed.

23 total participating members:

• Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge, Democrat from Ohio
• Congressman Spencer Bachus, Republican from Alabama
• Congressman Jeff Miller, Republican from Florida
• Congressman Tim Walz, Democrat from Minnesota
• Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee, Democrat from Texas
• Congressman John Carney, Democrat from Delaware
• Congresswoman Gwen Moore, Democrat from Wisconsin
• Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, Democrat from New York
• Congressman David McKinley, Republican from West Virginia
• Congressman Roscoe Bartlett, Republican from Maryland
• Congressman Bill Huizenga, Republican from Michigan
• Congresswoman Sandy Adams, Republican from Florida
• Congresswoman Donna Edwards, Democrat from Maryland
• Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer, Republican from Missouri
• Congresswoman Shelley Berkley, Democrat from Nevada
• Congresswoman Diane Black, Republican from Tennessee
• Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick, Republican from Pennsylvania
• Congressman Tim Bishop, Democrat from New York
• Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Democrat from Florida
• Congressman Ben R. Lujan, Democrat from New Mexico
• Congresswoman Grace Napolitano, Democrat from California
• Congressman Dennis Kucinich, Democrat from Ohio
• Congressman Steve Stivers, Republican from Ohio