Iowa National Guard Officers Association

1. NEWS LETTER Vol. 1:3 November 2012 Iowa National Guard Officers Association **********ACTION NEEDED**********NGAUS Legislative Alert #12-15 - Authorizing Veteran Status for National Guard and Reserve Members Entitled to Reserve Retirement Pay was published today. Contact your Senators at: http://www.capwiz.com/ngaus/issues/alert/?alertid=62169626&type=CO and ask them to support the inclusion of S. 491 in any end-of-year veterans omnibus bill that may emerge. S. 491 would authorize National Guard and Reserve members entitled to reserve retirement pay the honor of claiming veteran status. This cost-neutral bill would not bestow any benefits other than the honor of claiming veteran status for reserve component members who completed a 20-year career, but were never ordered to Title 10 active service other than for training purposes. ******************** President’s Message As the clocks fall back the INGOA Board springs forward toward the objective with the 2013 Recognition Dinner weekend squarely in our sights. The board and various committees are hard at work planning and coordinating the details for what promises to be a very memorable event at the Des Moines Marriot Downtown. I am happy to report that the Marriot has a seating capacity of up to a 1,000 seats in the Des Moines Exhibit Hall. Last year, we had nearly 620 in attendance which unfortunately had to be separated in two rooms. Although many agenda items remain unchanged, there will be a few changes this year along with the venue. The Enlisted Association of the National Guard of Iowa (EANGI) will also be hosting its annual meeting the same weekend at the Downtown Marriot in the Iowa Ballroom. Another change this year is the 34th Army Band will provide a Jazz Ensemble Friday night during the Icebreaker and a Rock Band Saturday night following the Recognition Dinner. INGOA is also engaged in several other initiatives ranging from overhauling our website to expanding our professional development program. If you would like to become more involved in INGOA just contact an Area President or an INGOA Boardmember. Todd Essing, President, ingoa-president@iowaofficers.org Membership Matters The Close of 2012 and the Beginning of 2013 As we close the 2012 membership year I hope this message finds you refreshed and at the same time ready to start the 2013 year. I would like to offer a sincere “thank you” on behalf of the membership committee for all the support the area presidents and their teams offered during 2012. The membership committee relies completely on the area teams to be able to accurately and timely assist in the membership participation of the INGOA. In 2013 we will continue to improve the overall membership participation and continue to improve ways to relate the INGOA and NGAUS message to our members. Without your hard work and constant communication, none of this would have been possible. Recently, I completed the updates to the 2013 INGOA Membership Handbook and forwarded it to the area presidents prior to the November meeting. In addition, the 2013 membership tracker was completed and provided to the Area President at the same time. The intent in providing these documents is to get a jump start into the 2013 membership year. All units and areas should focus on meeting the first deadline, 15 March 2013, to receive the early bird 5% discount. Have a great month! Don Mosinski, Membership Chair, ingoa-membership@iowaofficers.org Legislative Update Greetings All: The Legislative Committee continues to facilitate legislative relationships, actions and initiatives on behalf of our members. Your involvement through CAPWIZ and INGOA Meetings will be critical in the coming months as new members of Congress are seated and the National Guard is examined as the best value for America. Recent items of interest from NGAUS are Legislative Alerts and the list of Current Legislation bills found at http://capwiz.com/ngaus/issues/?style=D. Please take a moment and familiarize yourself with these items of interest and TAKE ACTION as you desire on specific legislative alerts and on current legislation. CAPWIZ is a great feature provided by NGAUS which allows all of us to communicate our positions and concerns to our elected leaders in Congress. As we prepare for the new legislative season, we will be contacting our elected officials to thank them for their support of the Iowa National Guard and our Airmen, Soldiers, and Families. Lastly, please let us know how we can better serve you as we execute our legislative roles and responsibilities. Phil Turner and Mark Williams, Legislative Co-Chairs, ingoa-resolutions@iowaofficers.org “PARTNERSHIP FOR A BETTER NATIONAL GUARD” WWW.IOWAOFFICERS.ORG