Making it in the MilLife

Along with our co-sponsor, the U.S. Naval Institute, the Military Officers Association of America is presenting the 2010 Defense Forum Washington (DFW) on Friday, September 10, at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill. MOAA members receive a registration discount, and registration is free for those currently serving!

 
This is the fourth year of highlighting the challenges and efforts concerning the needs of our combat wounded. The day-long forum, “A New Normal: How Is the War within Transforming our Force and Families?” will feature keynote speeches by Senator James Webb; General George Casey, Army Chief of Staff, and Mrs. Sheila Casey; and the Honorable Tammy Duckworth, assistant secretary of Veterans Affairs.

In addition, military, federal, and private sector experts and beneficiary advocates will join wounded servicemen and their families in three discussion panels to tell compelling stories about their long road to recovery:
• Navigating Recovery: Are we Meeting Needs & Expectations?
• Confronting the Reintegration Process – Embracing the Experience
• The New Normal: Hope for the Future

Many citizens of this country are unaware of the toll being paid by our military personnel since September 11, 2001. About 45,000 servicemembers have been wounded or killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and countless more may have suffered trauma that will appear in unseen ways. To them, the sergeant who lost both legs or an arm while defending our freedoms, others with current or future psychological injuries, and the family members who must care for them—often at great personal and financial sacrifice—are distant thoughts lost in the rush of our daily lives.

 I hope you agree with me that we must keep the public informed about this important issue and continue to improve the care and support of our wounded. Please join me on September 10th in Washington, D.C., from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., so you can be a part of this important effort. If you cannot attend, I urge you to forward this to others who you think might be able to be there with our heroes.

 
Admission is free for active duty, but pre-registration is desired by Sepember.2. For more information and to fill out the registration form, visit www.defenseforumwashington.com . To register after September 2, please call (800)-234-6622 ext 542.

 
Thank you for your support and I hope to see you on the 10th!

VADM Norb Ryan Jr., USN (Ret)
President

*This letter from MOAA president VADM Ryan appeared in this week in the Army Times, Navy Times, Air Force Times and Military Times publications.

 Inequity and MyCAA

We at the Military Officers Association of America are deeply disappointed in the way that the restructured My Spouse Career Advancement Accounts program was reopened by the Defense Department (“MyCAA resumes applications in fall but sets limits,” Aug. 2).

Designed to support the portable careers of military spouses, the MyCAA tuition assistance program has proven to be hugely beneficial to military families and the quality of life of our overstressed armed forces.

MyCAA provides resources to help mobile spouses gain the skills, education and certifications needed to begin or restart employment after a military-directed move.

After an abrupt halt to MyCAA in February, DoD recently reopened it, but the funds will now go only to spouses of first-term enlisted and younger officers. These groups clearly can benefit from MyCAA, but spouses who have experienced multiple moves are left behind.

About 70 percent of Army and Marine troops leave the service after the first hitch; the rules miss the point. And covering courses that lead to associate degrees—but not the degrees essential for nursing, teaching, and other portable careers—seems incongruous.

We recognize cost is an issue, but believe that DoD must come up with a better solution that would equitably address the needs of all military spouses without hurting longer-serving spouses. That way, everyone benefits—the spouses, the military services, their communities, and our nation.

Vice Adm. Norb Ryan, Jr, (ret.)
President, Military Officers Association of America Alexandria, Va.

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2010 Defense Forum Washington with Senator Jim Webb, The Honorable Tammy Duckworth and many more.