|
|
| THE HOME OF THE INFANTRY & THE ARMY'S BEST SOLDIERS, LEADERS AND FAMILIES! | |
|
|
|
Quick Links |
|
Twitter
|
 | |
 Tuesday is a red letter day for the Maneuver Center, our Infantry and Armor Soldiers. We've celebrated a number of milestones in our march toward September 2011.
I'm particularly enthused about this event, because our NCOs are out front and taking the lead as we partner our Maneuver forces to capitalize on the strengths and experience of our Infantry and Armor brothers.
Tuesday, we turn a corner with the passing of responsibility for the NCO Academy from one great senior NCO to another, from an Infantryman to an Armor Soldier, from Command Sergeant Major Zoltan James to Command Sergeant Major Mark Horsely. We are acknowledging that we train most effectively when we train as we fight - together.
I've made no secret of my conviction that today's NCO is fitter and finer than ever before in the history of this great nation. We made a point of spotlighting them in 2009, the Year of the NCO. From where I hunker down, in my foxhole, every year is the year of the NCO.
This year we selected for the first time a command sergeant major to serve as the commander of the US Army Sergeants Major Academy, a wise move that says so much about the strength of our NCO corps and the degree to which our senior leaders recognize that strength and value its potential.
That was a fine example of commanders empowering NCOs. What we have here is a fine example of senior NCOs empowering tomorrow's NCOs, through tough, relevant training and teamwork, to lead on a battlefield that looks very different than it did two decades ago, in an Army that looks very different than it did when some of us joined.
Putting combat proven Armor and Infantry NCOs in charge of training Armor and Infantry NCOs is a no-brainer. Putting Mark Horsely in charge of the NCO Academy just makes sense. His experience as an Armor leader will enhance the groundwork Zoltan James laid over the past two years as we transitioned this academy to reflect the Maneuver mission and adopted a policy of One Force, One Fight!
I don't have time to delve into the long history of the Infantry-Armor relationship, which started long before there was a Fort Benning or a Fort Knox. We as an institution are just now - or maybe I should say "once again" - endeavoring to capitalize on the strengths and abilities of the two greatest Maneuver forces in the world. How fitting that we should start at the NCO Academy.
One Force, One Fight! Hooah
Command Sergeant Major Earl L. Rice
Fort Benning, Georgia
Maneuver Center of Excellence
| |
News
 American businessman and former two-time presidential candidate Ross Perot visited Fort Benning troops Friday.
The billionaire and 1953 graduate of the Naval Academy spoke Friday during the Combat Leader Speaker Program, a quarterly event in which military dignitaries are invited to address Fort Benning commanders, cadre, students and trainees. Perot addressed more than 300 officers and noncommissioned officers at the National Infantry Museum to cap the one-day event, which included a visit to wounded warriors, a U.S. Army Ranger School graduation and a re-enlistment ceremony for 27 Soldiers._______________________________________________
Wadsworth: Move from Fort Knox a 'great new chapter in history of Armor School'
 Fort Benning's Maneuver Center of Excellence has received its first Armor School Soldier.
COL Michael Wadsworth, the Armor School assistant commandant, arrived here Jan. 13 from Fort Knox, Ky., and immediately went to work paving the way for future waves of Armor and Cavalry Soldiers. He said about 70 additional personnel will show up between July and September as part of the advance party.
The first Armor School course taught at Fort Benning is scheduled for February 2011, while the largest personnel increases will occur in July and August of next year
______________________________________________
 In the scientific world, it goes by the name Picoides borealis. But this is not your average bird, post officials said.
Due to a shrinking habitat, the red-cockaded woodpecker is the only federal endangered species of woodpecker in the Southeast, said Michael Barron, a wildlife biologist with Fort Benning's Conservation Branch. It was put on the Endangered Species list in 1973.
Rick Clapp, the garrison's Base Realignment and Closure program manager, said the Army has spent about $1 million each year since the late 1980s to manage and preserve the population at Fort Benning. About $1.3 million was set aside for fiscal year 2010 on protective measures for the red-cockaded woodpecker, with up to $2 million to be budgeted annually in the future.
 Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, the Training and Doctrine's deputy commanding general for Initial Military Training, spent some time at Fort Knox last week for a conference on reception battalions.
"We have a very unique generation of Soldiers coming into the force," he said. "They learn differently and (the Army) must train them differently."
Hertling has also asked for a review of combatives with a view to moving away from wrestling techniques. He expects a completely revamped program to be ready in the next two-to-three months, based on the work that the combative program's proponent, Maj. Gen. Michael Ferriter, has done with subject-matter experts in martial arts, fighting techniques, and rifle fighting.
______________________________________________
 An advanced rifle marksmanship concept developed at Fort Benning based on "lessons learned" in Iraq and Afghanistan might be instituted across all Army training centers later this year, officials said. COL Terry Sellers, operations officer for the Maneuver Center of Excellence, said Combat Familiarization Fire, or ARM 6, has not been formally added to the Army program of instruction, but that could happen around May as part of an overall POI review. New lesson plans are being drafted for the marksmanship field manual to include the CFF version standardized here.
 When CSM(R) Basil Plumley arrived at the National Infantry Museum Monday, he was prepared to see a Vietnam War print featuring him hanging on the wall for the first time.
The Columbus resident was not prepared, however, for the two-layer yellow birthday cake that was waiting for him in the museum's Warrior Conference Room.
"He was very surprised," said chief curator and museum acting director Mike Criscillis, who organized the event.
The decorated war hero who was featured in the film We Were Soldiers turned 90 years old Jan. 1, and Monday's celebration was Plumley's second birthday party, said his only daughter, Debbie Kimble.
_____________________________________________
 SGT Devin and SPC Alisha Potts took their oath of re-enlistment Jan. 13 at the 11th Engineer Battalion headquarters. The Potts family is the first married couple to re-enlist together since the battalion stood up three years ago.
"I liked the fact that they let us do it together," said Alisha, a mechanic with Forward Support Company. "It was cool. I got to do it with my husband - side by side, at the same time."
"We've done a lot of things together," said Devin, an engineer with 63rd Engineer Company. "We both went to the promotion board the exact same day. We both became promotable the exact same day. We deployed together twice. It's like (we're) one."
______________________________________________
 Operation Proper Exit made its third successful trip to Iraq and back and is gearing up to return a fourth time with a new group of injured veterans, along with one Soldier who participated in the most recent trip, Dec. 28 to Jan. 3. The program began in Iraq in the summer of 2009, sponsored by the Troops First Foundation based in Laurel, Md., and is designed to bring injured combat veterans back to the places they were wounded in an effort to help them gain emotional closure brought on from their injuries. One important part of the program is the military mentor, said Richard Kell, Troops First Foundation executive director. He added that the military mentor is the most significant structural change to the program since its inception. ______________________________________________
|
|
 You can watch Fort Benning Television at Fort Benning on Windjammer cable channel 4. The Benning Report can be also be seen on Columbus Consolidated Government Access Television (CCG-TV) channels at 6:30 a.m. & 6:30 p.m., 7 days a week. Charter - Channel 3
Knology - Channel 17 MediaCom - Channel 21. In Alabama watch the Benning Report on Troy University Television, Thursday & Friday evenings. To contact Fort Benning TV, email us at BENN.PAO@us.army.mil |
| Opinions needed!!!
 Do you have a couple of minutes? We want to know what you think about the Fort Benning Web Site. Your opinions and comments will be used to improve the site.
|
|
HEROES HONORED
By Borden Black
 550 more heroes are now being recognized at the National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center. During a moving ceremony last week, new commemorative pavers were placed along the 20-foot wide, flag-lined Heritage Walk. The granite bricks not only honor soldiers but also their wives, mothers, fathers, siblings and children.
"Each granite paver tells a story. Every story is unique and meaningful," MG Jerry White (ret) told the standing-room-only crowd.
Among those stories: ROTC cadets from Georgia Tech honored one of their own: 1LT Tyler Brown, who was killed in action on September 14, 2004. LTC Fabrizio Salerno, the Italian Liaison Officer at Ft. Benning, purchased pavers to honor 6 of his fellow Italian Soldiers killed fighting alongside U.S. Soldiers in Afghanistan. A group of Fort Benning ladies raised money to purchase a paver in honor of PFC Matthew Wildes who was killed in action.
They had only met his mother on line but bonded over their mutual experience of watching their sons graduate from Fort Benning.
More 4×8 custom engraved pavers are available to honor anyone, whether associated with the military or not.
Proceeds support the operation of the National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center. A miniature replica comes with each purchase.
|
Census Recruiters Hold Job Fair at Ft. Benning;
Then Test Job Applicants the Following Week
Census.gov
Counting America's population is a daunting task undertaken by the U.S. Census Bureau every 10 years. It is a tough but important task mandated by the U.S. Constitution that provides the federal government a portrait of America.
The Census Bureau will need over 1.4 million people for the 2010 census operation. In the Atlanta Region, which consists of Georgia, Florida and Alabama, over 110,000 jobs will be filled at the Region's 57 Local Census Office, including Columbus.
Ft. Benning, the country's largest TRADOC installation, will play a vital role in helping the Columbus census office gear up its staffing by holding a job fair. Ft. Benning's community club-houses at Patton Village and McGraw Village will host Census job information sessions Monday, January 25 thru Friday, January 29, from 1 to 5 p.m.
The following week, Census recruiters will administer Census employment tests Monday, February 1, thru Friday, February 5, daily at 1 p.m. at both locations. The testing session will be about three hours and will include the actual testing and documentation. Raul Brown, who serves as the Fort Benning Liaison to the U.S. Census Bureau, was instrumental in arranging the event.
Each local census office will hire between 1,000 and 1,200 to conduct the campaign. There is a wide variety of jobs. The Census Bureau needs people to be census takers, people who will supervise census takers, people who will handle the payroll for all census workers, people who will process the hiring of census workers, people to fingerprint census workers, people who will train them and people who will recruit all of these people.
Be Cautious About Giving Info to Census Workers
By Susan Johnson
With the U.S. Census process beginning, the Better Business Bureau (BBB)
advises people to be cooperative, but cautious, so as not to become a
victim of fraud or identity theft. The first phase of the 2010 U.S.
Census is under way as workers have begun verifying the addresses of
households across the country. Eventually, more than 140,000 U.S. Census
workers will count every person in the United States and will gather
information about every person living at each address including name,
age, gender, race, and other relevant data.
The big question is - how do you tell the difference between a U.S.
Census worker and a con artist? BBB offers the following advice:
If a U.S. Census worker knocks on your door, they will have a badge, a
handheld device, a Census Bureau canvas bag, and a confidentiality
notice. Ask to see their identification and their badge before answering
their questions. However, you should never invite anyone you don't know
into your home.
Census workers are currently only knocking on doors to verify address
information. Do not give your Social Security number, credit card or
banking information to anyone, even if they claim they need it for the
U.S. . Census.
REMEMBER, NO MATTER WHAT THEY ASK, YOU REALLY ONLY NEED TO TELL THEM HOW MANY PEOPLE LIVE AT YOUR ADDRESS.
While the Census Bureau might ask for basic financial information, such
as a salary range, YOU DON'T HAVE TO ANSWER ANYTHING AT ALL ABOUT YOUR
FINANCIAL SITUATION. The Census Bureau will not ask for Social
Security, bank account, or credit card numbers, nor will employees
solicit donations. Any one asking for that information is NOT with the
Census Bureau.
REMEMBER, THE CENSUS BUREAU HAS DECIDED NOT TO WORK WITH ACORN ON
GATHERING THIS INFORMATION. No Acorn worker should approach you saying
he/she is with the Census Bureau.
Eventually, Census workers may contact you by telephone, mail, or in
person at home. However, the Census Bureau will not contact you by
Email, so be on the lookout for Email scams impersonating the Census.
Never click on a link or open any attachments in an Email that are
supposedly from the U.S. Census Bureau. |
 |
|
DFMWR Events
All Fort Benning teens are invited to take a free college road trip to Auburn University in Montgomery, Ala., on Jan. 29 for a tour of the campus. Register by calling 706-626-0388.
Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers holds the monthly BOSS installation meeting on Jan. 27 at the Kelley Hill Recreation Center, Building 9079, at 2 p.m. All BOSS MSC representatives are required to attend or send an alternate to the event. Fort Benning strongly supports BOSS and allows all Soldiers who volunteer for BOSS activities, the time to participate in these events. BOSS events are open to all interested people, military or civilian. For more information about BOSS call 706-544-1411.
The next CG Golf Scramble is Jan. 28 at the Fort Benning Golf Course, with a shotgun start at noon. The cost is $30 if paid by the day before the event or $35 the day of the event, and includes cart, green fees, two mulligans, food and prizes. Stop by the Fort Benning Golf Course to register or call 706-687-1940 for more information.
Registration for youth soccer is going on now through Jan. 29 at the CYSS Registration office in Bldg. 104 on Marchant Ave. Open to youth 3 to 11 years old, participants must have an up-to-date sports physical. For more information call 706-545-2079.
There's no cover charge to listen to live Latin music from Grupo Candela at the Benning Brew Pub on Jan. 30. Doors open at 8 p.m. For more information call 706-687-1233.
Join the free paintball battle action in the Woodlands off Dixie Rd. on Feb. 2 from 1 to 5 p.m. Paintball equipment and supplies are available at Outdoor Recreation. For more information call 706-545-9636.
All Fort Benning teens are encouraged to attend the Teen Town Hall meeting on Feb. 11 at Youth Services, Bldg. 1056 at 5:30 p.m. This is your chance for your voice to be heard about the issues and programs that concern you! For more information call 706-545-3070.
Critically acclaimed R&B artist Leigh Jones and award-winning hip hop group Animate Objects perform a free concert on Feb. 13 at Wetherby Field. This I. A.M. Strong Tour is open to everyone in the tri-city community. Brought to you by the US Army, there is no ID check to attend this concert. Gates open at 6 p.m. and the show starts at 7. For detailed driving directions to Wetherby Field click on the maps link at www.benningmwr.com.
Celebrate Valentine's Day with a special gourmet brunch at the Benning Conference Center on Feb. 14. The cost is $14.95 per person. Children 6 to 12 are half price and children 5 and under eat for free. Brunch is served from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and reservations are requested. For more information call 706-682-0640.
Tryouts for the Fort Benning youth baseball teams will be held Feb. 16 to 19 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Sports Complex. All CYSS members 8 to 14 years old are welcome to try out. For more information call 706-545-1853.
The Uchee Creek Archery Club is holding a Pro/Am archery shoot March 5 through 7 starting at 8:30 a.m. at the Uchee Creek Activity Center. Interested archery competitors can register at usaarchery.com. The event is open to the public and there is no cover charge to observe the competition. For more information call 706-681-6995.
Reserve your spot at the Women's Conference on March 10 by signing up at the early registration kiosk at the Main PX on Jan. 16 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Space is limited and the cost is $20. Free childcare is available on a first-come, first-served basis. |
Thank you for taking the time to look through the Fort Benning E-Newsletter. We will continue to tell our Soldiers' great stories through this and other mediums. The Benning E-Newsletter will be sent out every Monday. Please support us by forwarding this email to a friend via the "forward email" link at the bottom of the newsletter.
Sincerely,
Fort Benning Public Affairs Office | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
