Post town hall meetings to expand to Facebook

Did you bust out your Christmas decorations during the Thanksgiving holiday?  Do your decorating skills rival Clark Griswold from Christmas Vacation? 

We want to see your Fort Benning home dressed up for the holidays.  Submit your photos or video (file size 5 megabyte or smaller, video usually 30 seconds or less) to benn.web@conus.army.mil, which will be loaded to a fortbenningphotos.com gallery. 

There, the public can vote on their favorite decorations and a select panel of distinguished holiday experts will judge too.  There will be two categories: picture and video, and two winners in each category.  The winning decorations will be featured in the Dec. 17 edition of The Bayonet.

The rules:     Entrants must live on Fort Benning.

                      E-mail family-friendly photos or videos to benn.web@conus.army.mil

including contact information (name, phone number, housing area).

Contest will be publicized through The Bayonet, Benning TV and facebook.

Voting is online and closes noon Dec. 15.

For more information, call 706-545-4622.

News

Maneuver Center takes shape

Army efforts to assemble the Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning took a giant step forward this year, but hurdles remain before the organization becomes fully operational next September, the deputy garrison commander for transformation said Tuesday at the monthly MCoE community update.

'Twin Towers' wrap up basic training

Inaugural class completes Maneuver Pre-Command Course

Annual military lounge opens for holidays at Atlanta's airport

Military working dogs uncover hidden stashes

Warrior Training Center's Air Assault Course prepares students for combat operations

 BRAC Milestones

BRAC planners reached several milestones in 2010. They included:

• The MCoE received its first Armor School Soldier Jan. 13 with the arrival of Col. Michael Wadsworth, the assistant commandant. New leadership took shape as Maj. Gen. Robert Brown became the MCoE's second commanding general in November. The command team includes Brig. Gen. Bryan Owens, the Infantry School commandant, and Col. Ted Martin, the Armor School's commandant.
• Eleven artifacts rolled in March 2 on a heavy equipment transport convoy as part of the first shipment by the Patton Museum of Cavalry and Armor. A new museum is planned near the National Infantry Museum. 
• In early spring, two new battalion training facilities opened on Sand Hill, housing 1,200 Soldiers each. The headquarters complexes feature a large dining facility, state-of-the-art classrooms, training spaces and barracks. When construction is completed, Sand Hill will have the capacity for12 battalions conducting basic combat or Infantry one station unit training.
• Three child development centers were completed in preparation for the influx of new families.
• The 197th Infantry Brigade moved its headquarters to Harmony Church. The Directorate of Training Sustainment, a new organization, was also stood up in the area.
• Work was finished on 1,439 new housing units under the Residential Communities Initiative, a $450 million program. Wolf said the focus has shifted to renovation efforts. In the end, there will be 4,000 new or renovated homes on Fort Benning, on-post housing accommodates only 25 percent of the Soldiers and families assigned here.
• The first Armor School tanks reached Fort Benning soil in the summer. Five M1A2 Abrams System Enhancement Package tanks, the first of 188 being transferred from Fort Knox, arrived Aug. 11 at the Ochille Rail Head.
• The Digital Multi-Purpose Range Complex became operational. Bradley fighting vehicle and tank crews from the MCoE fired on the range in late September as part of a validation test.
• The Armor School's first Bradleys made it to Harmony Church earlier this fall. Three M2A2 Operation Desert Storm Bradley fighting vehicles came in Oct. 22 at the new Vehicle Maintenance Instruction Facility, which opened in July. The building will be home to the first Armor School course at Fort Benning. The M2/M3 Bradley Fighting Vehicle System Maintainer class - advanced individual training for Bradley maintainers - kicks off Jan. 10.
• A site that was pine forest and dirt in 2009 materialized into the 194th Armored Brigade Barracks Complex this year. Fourteen buildings can house 3,360 Soldiers in training, and a walking bridge that opened over U.S. Highway 27/280 will allow easy access to training venues. About 200 MCoE instructors and cadre are living in nearby permanent party barracks, and that number is expected to reach 600 in 2011.

Where to get updates?

The monthly MCoE community update is open to the public and takes place at 3 p.m. the first Tuesday of every month in the National Infantry Museum. The next session is Jan. 4.

Celebrate the gift of freedom at the National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center

It looks a lot like Christmas at the National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center, but ever conscious of the mission, the museum is honoring soldiers with its holiday tribute.

This year one of the two 15-foot tall trees celebrates the gift of freedom. It is adorned with red, white and blue balls and trimmed with American flags. Visitors are encouraged to place notes written to soldiers on the tree. The public can stop by a table and write a message of support. When the tree is removed after Christmas the notes will be sent to Infantry soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Santa will also be present at the museum. His visits will coincide with the showing of the "The Polar Express" in the IMAX Theater. In addition to Saint Nick, the kids will be able to visit the Polar Express's conductor who will punch their golden tickets.  Another Christmas classic, "A Christmas Carol" is also showing during the holidays. Show times are listed online at www.nationalinfantrymuseum.org.

The National Infantry Museum also provides inspiration for gift giving. There are gift certificates for the theater and rifle simulator and lots of ideas in the soldier store. A forever gift is a granite paver commemorating your loved one's service. Proceeds go to support operations of the National Infantry Museum as do your donations and membership in Friends of the Museum