Message Center

As a servicemember, you’ve learned countless lessons throughout your career — from mentors, leaders, subordinates, and even significant events — all of which have influenced your decision-making skills and shaped your leadership style.

MOAA wants to hear your stories! Submit your lessons learned by e-mail to profseries@moaa.org or by mail to:

MOAA Professional Series
201 N. Washington St.
Alexandria, VA 22314

*Please include “Lessons Learned” in the subject line of your email or letter. All submissions will be considered for publication, either in Military Officer or on the MOAA Web site.

Read past lessons learned, contributed by military officers just like you!

According to the NY Times, there is a new proposal under consideration, that will help veterans suffering from PTSD and other stress disorders seek treatment through the VA. Whether or not this will go through (there is more than one version of this right now, under consideration) remains to be seen. But if Congress or the VA can get this right, it will be a huge relief to the many veterans dealing with these issues now!

Under fire from veterans groups and Congress for its handling of disability claims, the Department of Veterans Affairs is proposing new regulations that it says will make it easier for veterans to seek compensation for post-traumatic stress disorder.

The proposal is intended to lower the burden on noncombat veterans who claim they developed PTSD in the service and to speed processing of those claims, which represent a significant part of the 82,000 disability claims the department receives each month.

Read the full article in the New York Times!

Need a little inspiration to do something great for the military community? Well, here it is!

Two teen girls started The Sisterhood of the Traveling BDUs when their own fathers deployed to Afghanistan. Their mission, as stated on their Web site, is:

…to bring together 400 girls ages 13 to 18 with immediate family members in any branch of the military and 100 female service members as mentors with the common purpose of boosting self esteem, growing in leadership and confidence, and uniting together in sisterly support.

Our objective for the conference is a two day event; mixer Friday night with attractions and Saturday conference with workshops, breakout sessions, and guests speakers.

They can also be found on the Web site DoSomething.org, which is an online activism tool that encourages youth to get involved in their communities through the power of social media.

I don’t know about you, but seeing these two young girls so passionate about their cause makes me want to get off MY couch!

Operation Military Brat presents FREE screenings of “BRATS: Our Journey Home” – the first documentary about growing up military, narrated by Air Force Brat Kris Kristofferson, written and directed by Army Brat Donna Musil. There will be town-hall meetings after the screenings. The tour begins in Washington, DC then rolls up the east coast with stops in Arlington, VA, Columbia, MD, Philadelphia, PA, New York City, Providence, RI and the Boston area.

Operation Military Brat is an educational outreach program sponsored by the 501 (c) (3) non-profit, Brats Without Borders. Its mission:

• to raise the awareness of the challenges facing Military Brats of all ages;
• acknowledge and celebrate their existence, sacrifices, and contributions;
• and improve the quality of their lives. Please see PDF.

Find a screening near you:

WASHINGTON, DC – WEDNESDAY – 23 SEPTEMBER – 6.30 PM – FREE SCREENING
West End Neighborhood Library
1101 24th Street NW @ L Street NW
Washington, DC 20037
202-724-8707
First Presentation of the Military Brat Library
Use the Foggy Bottom Metro Strop

ARLINGTON, VA / NORTHERN VA – THURSDAY – 24 SEPTEMBER – 8:00 PM – FREE SCREENING
Arlington Cinema and Draft House
2903 Columbia Pike
Arlington, VA 22204
703-486-2345
Theater has a parking lot

COLUMBIA, MD / FORT MEADE / BALTIMORE AREA SATURDAY – 26 SEPTEMBER- 8:00 PM FREE SCREENING
Slayton House at Wilde Lake – Columbia, MD
10400 Cross Fox Lane
Columbia, MD 21044
410-730-3987

PHILADELPHIA, PA / SOUTH JERSEY / FORT DIX / MCGUIRE AFB – 27 SEPTEMBER – 1:30 PM – FREE SCREENING
National Liberty Museum
321 Chestnut Street
Historic Philadelphia, PA 19106
215-925-2800
Some parking. Excellent public transportation available

NEW YORK CITY AND THE TRI-STATE AREA – 30 SEPTEMBER – 8:00 PM – FREE SCREENING
New World Stages – Theater #5
340 W. 50th Street
New York City
In the theater district
646-871-1730

PROVIDENCE / GROTON / NEW LONDON / NEWPORT – 1 OCTOBER – 6:30 PM – FREE SCREENING
Providence Public Library Theater
150 Empire Street
Providence, RI
401-455-8000
Location and parking

BOSTON AREA – 3 OCTOBER – 12 NOON – FREE SCREENING
Brattle Theater on Harvard Square
40 Brattle Street
Harvard Square
Cambridge, MA
617-876-6837
Directions

For directions and additional information, visit the Website for the film “Brats: Our Journey Home“.

The intensity of the chase.  The fear of capture.  Special operations are something so extreme and so covert that the public generally only sees snippets of fictitious missions played out in the movies. In Military Channel’s new series SPECIAL OPS MISSION, viewers are immersed in a diverse set of simulated scenarios to experience firsthand all of the danger, excitement and heart-pounding action of real-life special operations.  In each episode, special forces operator Wil Willis must complete a nearly impossible mission using his military expertise spanning over 15 years in special operations with both the U.S. Army Rangers and the U.S. Air Force Pararescuemen.  With audiences watching every move, his task is to complete a complex series of military objectives while trying to survive, evade and escape an Opposition Force that is determined to stop him.  Each episode introduces Willis to a new mission – ranging anywhere from infiltrating a terrorist camp high in the mountains, making his way through an enemy stronghold in an urban environment, or even climbing aboard a moored ship overtaken by pirates – and a new “Op For” team whose only objective is to stop Willis.  The closest most viewers will ever get to experience a genuine covert operation, SPECIAL OPS MISSION tracks Willis as he tests his marksmanship, instincts and military skills throughout these dramatic scenarios. 

The new six-part series, SPECIAL OPS MISSION, premieres Thursday, August 13 at 10 PM ET on Military Channel. Check your local listings for complete schedule.

Willis’s vast array of military training has earned him tactical skill sets that are unparalleled by most.  Willis shares this knowledge with viewers as he guides them through each episode of SPECIAL OPS MISSION, providing a first-person look at how special operation forces must take on a diverse set of challenges and game-time decisions to complete each mission.  Each new assignment includes tactical goals that will stretch his abilities to the utmost, requiring Willis to successfully maneuver through difficult terrain varying from arid deserts to steamy rain forests and snow-covered mountains to urban back streets – all while fighting to keep ahead of the “Op For” pursuit team hunting him down.  Documenting these operations is Willis himself, armed only with a handheld camera and another mounted on his gun, giving viewers the unique perspective of traveling alongside Willis and exposing them to some of the real-life dangers special operations forces can meet across the globe.

From the Associated Press.

Read the full transcript of President Obama’s remarks to the VFW National Convention from the Washington Post.

As part of the first offensive of the Gulf War in 1991, Navy Captain Michael Scott Speicher flew his F/A-18 fighter jet into Iraq. After completing their mission, his squadron returned to their aircraft carrier, the U.S.S. Saratoga, only to find that Speicher had apparently been shot down. After nearly two decades, Speicher’s fate continued to be shrouded in mystery, fueling Pentagon investigations and conspiracy theories alike.

Presumed evidence of Speicher being a prisoner within an Iraqi jail, reported sightings from questionable sources and rumors that he was being held captive by Saddam Hussein, in part, led the U.S. Navy to change Speicher’s status to “missing/captured” in 2002. This weekend, the case officially came to a close when the Pentagon confirmed that Speicher’s remains were uncovered by U.S. Marines, who were working with the help from an Iraqi familiar with the crash back in 1991.

PILOT DOWN: THE TRUE STORY OF CAPTAIN SCOTT SPEICHER builds upon the investigations presented in Military Channel’s Missing: Prisoner of Iraq and puts to rest the mystery surrounding this American hero’s final resting place.

Check your local listings for dates and times!

The United States Department of Defense just launched a revamped version of their Web site. They can now be found at Defense.gov.

New features include social networking tools, subscription services like RSS and podcasts, and the latest news from DoD. You can even give them your feedback on important issues, and submit questions to the Secretary of Defense. Check it out today!

What defense policy issues are most important to you?
What question would you like the Secretary to answer?
• Frequently Asked Questions

Love the new site? Hate it? We’d like to know what you think of the new Defense.gov site, too!

From the Washington Post:

Federal agencies will soon have the option of hiring certain military spouses without having them compete for federal jobs, under new guidelines the Obama administration issued Wednesday.

The rules apply to the spouses of military service members relocating for a new assignment, some physically disabled spouses, and those whose husband or wife was killed in the line of duty. The widow or widower must remain unmarried before getting a job.

Read the full article on WashingtonPost.com to find out if this new benefit will affect you!

Dear MOAA Members,

As Congress enters its month-long August recess, I want to clarify MOAA’s perspective on national health care reform and its possible implications for you and all members of the military and veterans’ community and their families and survivors.

Many MOAA members have strong opinions on the politicians involved, strong preferences for one political party or the other, and strong views on both the principle and the specific details of national health care reform.
From MOAA’s standpoint, our tax-exempt, nonprofit status precludes us from taking partisan stands for or against any politician or political party.

We take positions on issues. And in the interest of delivering our members the most bang for their membership buck, we devote our limited resources to addressing issues that directly affect our national defense and the military and veterans’ community.

For these reasons, our primary focus is on the aspects of the draft health care legislation that will affect you and the military community – military and VA health care, TRICARE, Medicare, and TRICARE For Life.

Our research and advocacy efforts on national health care reform are targeted at six primary goals:

1. Safeguarding military and VA beneficiaries’ health benefits;
2. Ensuring military and VA beneficiaries can choose other insurance;
3. Ensuring military and VA beneficiaries aren’t taxed on the value of those health benefits;
4. Preserving and improving military and VA beneficiaries’ access to providers of quality health care;
5. Ensuring long-term sustainment of Medicare (and TRICARE For Life) – and a fix for the broken Medicare payment formula that now poses annual threats of significant cuts that would erode providers’ willingness to see Medicare and TRICARE beneficiaries; and
6. Keeping our members apprised of how pending legislation could affect them and encouraging grassroots communications to their elected representatives to protect their interests.

We’ve sent a Military Coalition letter to every member of Congress, and thus far MOAA members have generated over 35,000 e-mails to their legislators using our alert. Every indication we’ve received from the Administration and congressional leaders of both political parties is that they share the goals listed above (read MOAA’s Aug. 7 legislative update for the latest specifics).

But there’s a long way to go in the legislative process, and hard experience tells us severe budget pressures can undermine the best intentions.

The bottom line: The entire MOAA staff and I are here to serve you. We will continue communicating with you, so we can let you know what we are working on and you can tell us what your concerns are. Please make sure you are signed up for our weekly Legislative Update and check our Health Care Happenings blog for the most up-to-date information.

I want to assure you MOAA will continue to be extraordinarily vigilant on this front. I encourage you to use MOAA’s national health reform alert to keep pressure on Congress to protect your interests. And please visit with your elected officials during this August recess.

Thank you for your continuing support and membership in MOAA.

All the best,

VADM Norb Ryan Jr., USN (Ret)
President