2015 Was Great Year for Chapter

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1 Winter Was Great Year for Chapter Chapter Leaders receive Best Chapter Award from GEN Sullivan and LTG Thompson. Here s a list of some of our accomplishments during this calendar year: 2015 Best Chapter Award Oct 2015 National Tradeshow and Summit streamers earned in Special award streamers for regional meeting and leadership program, Army History, 240 th Army Birthday Celebration, Take the Hill, Excellence Reserve Component Growth, Best Chapter Support of ROTC, Excellence in Corporate Member Growth, ILW Honor Role, Support for Recruiting Command, Family Program, Merit Chapter, Best Newsletter, Member Communication, Vietnam War Commemoration, Star Chapter, Continuous Star Chapter, Superior Chapter, Greatest % Government Civilian Growth, Greatest % Increase in Retiree Membership, President s Club Gold, Chapter of Excellence Exhibited at AUSA National Trade show and Summit Oct Washington DC took 8 members and 4 spouses to event only chapter to exhibit displayed Leadership videos. Received two Grants from National - $5,000 for Housing Summit and $7,500 for Leadership Program Army Magazine article June issue Normandy trip in March Army Magazine back inside page photo November issue ROTC cadet at Normandy Education Program - Leadership program, one trip to Normandy France in March, Two trips to Vicksburg, MS in Fall of 2014 and Spring of 2015, Multiple Leadership and a Movie nights. Scholarship Program Donation to Army Scholarship Foundation (ASF) for multiple scholarships, bought two tables at first luncheon for ASF. Housing Summit Secured Arlington Convention Center for 29 Oct 2016 North Texas Veterans Housing Summit. The Credit Union of Texas is our Presenting Sponsor Alberto and Devon Reyes are our Co-Chairman s for the event. Accomplishments continued on page 3.

2 Winter 2016 North Texas- Audie Murphy Chapter Page 2 Passing the Torch Leadership Program Update Left, a Living History Role Player tells visitors about the Battle of San Jacinto that won Texas independence.. At right, John Antal and JP Hogan, our Leadership Program leaders, say We Want You at Vicksburg! Our Passing the Torch leader development program continues to expand its reach. ROTC cadets from the University of Texas at Austin will be joining us at Vicksburg in April and we recently partnered with the AUSA Houston Chapter to support ROTC programs at the University of Houston, Prairie View A&M and Sam Houston State University. We re also supporting the USAR 300 th Sustainment Brigade s OPD and NCOPD programs in Grand Prairie. Additional AUSA Chapters in Texas are exploring how they can create similar programs using the North Texas- Audie Murphy model. In mid January COL (R) JP Hogan conducted a Leadership and a movie event at the University of Houston (UH) for more MS IV (Seniors soon to be commissioned) cadets. The following day he supported more than 60 MS IV cadets and cadre from the UH as well as Sam Houston State and Prairie View A&M at a joint training event at the San Jacinto Battlefield. Cadre from these 3 universities partnered with our chapter to complete a new Cadet Command requirement for all MS IV cadets testament to the impact of our program. The events in Houston were conducted in partnership with the AUSA Houston Chapter whose leadership is working to create a leader development program in their area. Our team completed a reconnaissance of the Vicksburg Campaign area in Mississippi in January in preparation for our upcoming events March we will be taking ROTC cadets as well as business teams on a 5 day Vicksburg Campaign Battlefield Leadership Experience (VCBLE) and we will be conducting a 3 day Vicksburg BLE 1-3 April. Look for addition details on our Facebook and chapter web sites. - JP Hogan, COL, USA (Ret)

3 Winter 2016 North Texas- Audie Murphy Chapter Page 3 Chapter President s Message Rich Kaniss Recruiting Meeting with both Ft Worth and Dallas ISD JROTC departments gained over 20 new members. Signed Licensing Agreement with Hey You Signs receive $1 donation for each sign sold nationwide Provided dessert for lunch to the Texas Military Family convention in Dallas in June Signed Donation agreement with Liberty Mutual Insurance receive donations from individual employees payroll deduction and corporate donations. Presented Check to Miss Texas Pageant Organization for $1,000 Scholarship 4 th of July Eric Affeldt Award Breakfast honoring AUSA corporate support 100+ attendees Admiral Walsh as guest speaker Miss Texas Pageant Representatives Visit AUSA Wounded Warrior events 1. Oct 7, 2015 Wounded Warrior Golf Classic Grossed $85,000 largest tournament within AUSA worldwide 211 golfers, 2 courses, Charity Supported Operation Once in a Lifetime and Equest. Miss Texas sang National Anthem and Mrs. International Farabe Algor volunteered. 2. Grand Prairie Air Hogs Baseball game July 25 Miss Texas (Shannon Sanderford) signed autographed photos and sang the National Anthem. Over 12 other charities were in attendance. This 2016 event is scheduled for the 23 rd of July, The Oath of enlistment to be performed by LTC Adam Kimmich Army Recruiting BN Cdr. Housing Summit Secured Arlington Convention Center for 29 Oct 2016 North Texas Veterans Housing Summit. The Credit Union of Texas is our Presenting Sponsor Alberto and Devon Reyes are our Co-Chairman s for the event. Alamo Drafthouse 2 movie nights Private Benjamin in Jan and Miss Congeniality in Sept with Miss Texas (Shannon Sanderford) and 4 Miss Texas Pageant ladies doing a Pageant contest. Army Birthday Party - In Conjunction with Town of Fairview Several Miss Texas Pageant ladies in attendance to cut and serve cake. Coordinate with the University of Texas at Dallas on intern program for 2016 to support Housing Summit and leadership Program. I hope everyone has a prosperous and rewarding I d also like to thank everyone who makes the North Texas-Audie Murphy Chapter a success; we ve accomplished so much with only a small fraction of our membership being involved. I m also making a plea to our membership that isn t involved but would like to be, we can use your help. Please consider making 2016 the year you give back more. Richard Richard Kaniss, Chapter President AUSA Chapter Members TL Holden, Ross Cox and Richard Kaniss lay wreaths purchased by the Chapter at the National Cemetery.

4 Winter 2016 North Texas- Audie Murphy Chapter Page Veterans Day Parade A cadet color guard passes in front of Dallas City Hall on Wednesday, November 11 th, 2015 to participate in the annual Greater Dallas Veterans Day Parade. At right, Morris Paulk, in his 50 Mission Crush Hat and JP Hogan in the Flag Room atop City Hall. Despite predictions of rain, the weather cooperated. The theme of the Parade was Commemorating 70 Years Since the End of World War II. Grand Marshals represented all branches of service, including our own Morris Paulk, who represented the US Army Air Corps in the European Theater. The Parade had excellent coverage on TV and in the press, thanks to John & Mary Lester. Approximately 5800 marched in the Parade and 28,000 attended the festivities. Your Chapter provided the judges for the Parade who had to select the winners in such diverse categories as JROTC units and High School Bands, Veterans and Patriotic Organizations, Corporate and Political entries, and Military Units. The awards were presented at Frontiers of Flight Museum on January 21 st to the winners of the various entry categories. North Texas Audie Murphy Chapter members are judging the passing units and bands based on their uniforms, precision, cadence and music. From left, JP Hogan, Richard Kaniss, Christopher de Garza, Sam Wilder, and Ron McElroy. Kevin Wentz and Woody Alexander tallied the results and posted them on the website listed below. Woody only made one mistake this year he awarded a trophy to the Military Order of the Purple Hearts. This veteran organization was not in the Parade this year! Members of the Chapter also serve as officers on the parade s organizing committee and foundation. For more on the parade and its results, go to its website:

5 Winter 2016 North Texas- Audie Murphy Chapter Page 5 Chapter & Army Scholarship Team Continue Partnership in Support of Army Families In the picture at left, Jeff Gault stands with PFC Marty Nance and his wife Samantha at the Army Scholarship Foundation fund raising lunch. Samantha is a 2015 scholarship winner and is featured in the article below. Your Chapter and ASF continue to work together to make funds available to Army dependents and spouses to help them go to college. Jeff and his wife Rose are active in the Chapter and other veterans support organizations. To learn more about the challenges faced by our Army family members in pursuing their educational dreams, or to make a tax deductible donation to the Foundation, please visit the web site for the Army Scholarship Foundation at - Editor Our big event this past quarter was the Army Scholarship Foundation Stand Up for Heroes Luncheon in Dallas on 27 October at Brook Hollow Golf Club. The Chapter participated and assisted in a big way, with two tables full of chapter members participating, as well as many other chapter members in attendance among the over 200 military, civic, and community leaders at the event. The Chapter's own Chaplain Wes Geary gave the invocation, and our supporter Miss Texas, Shannon Sanderford sang the National Anthem. The keynote speaker was General John Abizaid, USA retired, former commander, US Central Command, who spoke on the current national security situation as well as supporting our Army families at a time when our soldiers continue to serve around the globe in harm's way in defense of our freedom. He emphasized that part of our responsibility to our Army is in helping to educate their family members for our future, which is the mission of the Army Scholarship Foundation. General Abizaid was introduced by Lieutenant General Jay Garner, USA retired, and former Director for Humanitarian Assistance and Reconstruction in Iraq. Samantha Nance of Fort Worth, a 2015 Army Scholarship Foundation scholarship recipient, provided a personal testimonial as to the importance of the Army Scholarship Foundation in helping her education. Samantha is the wife of Private First Class Marty Nance who is stationed at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. She is a senior majoring in Human Relations at Texas Womans University in Denton. In addition to her full time studies, Samantha and her husband have two young children, and she works full time in Denton. She emphasized the many challenges faced by Army spouses and family members in pursuing their education, and that without the support of the Army Scholarship Foundation's scholarship and financial assistance. Our next joint event between Army Scholarship Foundation and our Chapter will be the annual scholarship evaluation days on June Please join us in helping to score the many applications received and get to better know and understand today's Army family members. Contact us to volunteer. Investing in Army families through assisting in their education is one small way of saying "thank you" to those who have sacrificed so much for us, and to invest in our nation's future. - Rose and Jeff Gault, ASF Chaplain Wesley Geary gives the invocation at the ASF fund raising luncheon and preaches on the need to give freely to the great cause we were all there to support. This newsletter will not have a Chaplain s Corner as Wes has been undergoing medical treatment. - Editor (aka Army Brat)

6 Winter 2016 North Texas- Audie Murphy Chapter Page 6 Ross Cox Remembers 9/11 This is part of a continuing series called Members Remember; Ross Cox is a retired Staff Sergeant and works for Elbit Systems of America as a marketing specialist. 9/11 is a day we all know and a day we will never forget. It is a day that will generate stories for generations to come and it is a day that is forever engrained in my spirit, mind, and body. On September 11 th, 2001, I was a Private First Class in the U.S. Army. I had just graduated basic training and reported to Fort Drum, NY, the latter part of August. Shortly after I reported, terrorists invaded our country, high-jacked four planes and killed 2,996 men, women, and children. Three weeks later I was on a plane to Afghanistan where I would become one of the first of 28 conventional ground troops and participate in the first air assault in that war. In all, I deployed 3 times into Afghanistan over the course of twelve years. It was on my third deployment that I stepped on an IED during a dismounted patrol, resulting in the loss of my left foot. Above left, Ross stands by Stryker armored vehicle in Afghanistan. Above right, Ross and his family at the National Cemetery participated in Wreaths Across America. In September of 2015, I was in Boston attending a business related marketing conference. A friend of mine, having lived in the area before, took me sightseeing on our last day. As we were walking, we saw the Boston and Seattle Police Department s Gaelic Columns prepare for a memorial honoring the families of Boston area victims killed on 9/11. In my thirteen years of service, this was my first interaction with families who lost loved ones on the September 11 th terrorist attacks. I was able to put many faces to my efforts in the War on Terror, seeing first hand that my efforts were not in vain. In this interaction, I reassured kids, who never knew their father, that American soldiers made sure those responsible for 9/11 were held accountable, no matter the cost. During the ceremony, I noticed two younger kids in the audience. Having four children of my own, I was curious as to who they were. It turned out their dad was on the 99 th floor of the World Trade Center s north tower. At that moment, I was overtaken with emotion and I explained that weeks after their father died, I was in Afghanistan taking the fight to the enemy. I also expressed how much pain and loss over the years I too experienced from that fateful day but I told them what I tell countless other kids, You were worth it. Only this time the significance hit me like a brick and is engrained in my mind forever. - Ross Cox

7 Winter 2016 North Texas- Audie Murphy Chapter Page 7 High Performance Brain Training for Warriors How far could we take the abilities of our brains if we focused on training them like we do our bodies? LT. MORGAN LUTTRELL, U.S. NAVY SEAL (RETIRED) What is it? The Brain Performance Institute is the clinical arm of the Center for Brain Health at UTD, a scientific research facility committed to discovering ways to build resilience against brain decline, reverse losses in brain capacity and retrain the brain to maximize performance. The high performance brain training program, known as Strategic Memory Advanced Reasoning Training (SMART), is based on more than 25 years of innovative scientific study by cognitive neuroscientists, physicians and research clinicians. The strategy based program is delivered through interactive, small group sessions. Scholarships provided by private philanthropy allow this top tier training to be available at no cost to warriors, military spouses, caregivers, and first responders. Recalibrating Minds Outcome measures from participants indicate improvement in trained brain areas as well as real-life improvement in untrained areas. Trained Areas of Brain Improvement Real life Improvement in Daily Activities Attention - Managing finances Reasoning - Sustaining an active social life Decision-making - Maintaining a home Problem solving - Improving organizational skills Innovation - Successfully retraining a job - Chris Talcott, COL, USA (Ret) ----The chapter will be organizing a "Smart Brain Training event (no cost) in near future. Contact JP Hogan if interested.

8 Winter 2016 North Texas- Audie Murphy Chapter Page 8 What is Texas Hazelwood Act? THE HAZELWOOD ACT UNDER ATTACK Texas veterans currently enjoy one of the best benefits in the country. It is called the Hazelwood Act. No other state offers such a generous benefit to its veterans. It is wildly popular with many veterans. However, the last session of the Texas State Legislature almost passed legislation that would have gutted some of the best aspects of this benefit. The reason, as you would suspect, is that now it is deemed too expensive by many legislators What is the Hazelwood Exemption? The Hazelwood Act is a State of Texas benefit that provides qualified veterans, spouses, and dependent children with an education benefit of up to 150 semester hours of tuition exemption, including most fee charges, at public institutions of higher education in Texas. This does not include living expenses, books, or supply fees. Current qualifications include: Have entered service in Texas, or was a Texas resident (Note: There is currently a court challenge to this requirement.) Have received an Honorable Discharge or general discharge under honorable conditions or a Certificate of Release as indicated on his DD214. Served at least 181 days of active service (including training). Not be in default of a student loan guaranteed by the State of Texas. Enroll in classes for which the college receives tax support Meet the GPA requirements established by the institution. Legacy Act: One of the most popular, and most expensive, aspects to this benefit is the so called Legacy Act. This specifies that Eligible veterans may assign hours of exemption eligibility to a child under certain conditions. If veterans do not use all of their 150 hours of free tuition, they may assign all or part of their unused hours to their children. Many veterans have used the GI Bill benefits for themselves and then used the Hazelwood Act benefits to pay for their children s college education. Understandably, those colleges are complaining that the large number of students using the Hazelwood benefits deprive them of tuition that they would otherwise be receiving. Equally understandable is the fact that veterans do not want to lose this provision of the Legacy Act. We have begun working on a compromise that would be considered in the next Legislature in So, stay tuned. We ll have to fight to save as much of the benefit as we can. So, buckle up, we may be in for a bumpy ride in 2016 and may have to work hard to make our VOICE FOR THE ARMY heard loud and clear by our Congress and Legislature. - - Sam Wilder

9 Winter 2016 North Texas- Audie Murphy Chapter Page 9 Chapter Officers PRESIDENT Richard Kaniss president@ausanorthtexas.org Phone: SECRETARY Woody Alexander woodynkath@att.net Phone: STATE PRESIDENT JP Hogan jp@northtexasausa.org Phone: Chapter info@ausanorthtexas.org AUSA Chapter Meetings Coming Up Executive Committee meetings, which are open to all, are now being held on the second Tuesday of the month at Texas Land & Cattle Steak House, South Central Expressway in Richardson from Upcoming Events in 2016: Veterans Job Fair 25 Feb at Irving Convention Center Corporate Vicksburg Battlefield Leadership Experience 10 to 16 March ROTC Vicksburg BLE 1to 3 April Army Birthday Observance 14 June at Fairview Town Hall Chapter Officer Elections - June Army Scholarship Foundation application evaluation 11 & 12 June at Gaults home Grand Prairie Air Hogs Military Appreciation Day 23 July Wounded Warrior Golf Classic Date & Location TBD AUSA Housing Summit preceded by VIP event on Friday night - 29 October Chapter Toll Free Telephone Number = (866) Extension 1 for President Extension 2 for Leadership Program Extension 3 for Housing Summit Extension 4 for Golf Tournament Extension 5 for Air Hogs Military Appreciation Day