President Barack Obama sent

Rec Notes FY11 Budget Request Increases Support for Families, Wounded Warriors President Barack Obama sent to Congress in February a proposed defense budget of $708 billion for fiscal 2011. The budget request for the Department of Defense (DoD) includes $549 billion in discretionary budget authority to fund base defense programs and $159 billion to support overseas contingency operations (OCO), primarily in Afghanistan and Iraq. The proposed budget also includes a record $8.8 billion for military family support programs, and $2.2 billion to improve treatment and other services for wounded warriors to fund a dramatic increase in mental-health professionals, while advancing research on traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress. This proposal continues the reform agenda established in last year s DoD budget request and builds on the initiatives identified by the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) and 2010 Ballistic Missile Defense Review (BMDR). The fiscal 2011 budget request builds on the reforms begun in last year s defense budget, said Defense Secretary Robert Gates. These substantial changes to allocate defense dollars more wisely and reform the department s processes were broadened and deepened by the analysis and conclusions contained in the Quadrennial Defense Review. The critical thing about both the budget and the QDR is that they put the troops first, added House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-Mo.). You have set absolute the right priority by focusing on servicemembers and their families. The budget includes a military pay raise, a large housing allowance increase, no increases in healthcare fees and numerous initiatives to help military families. Second, you lay out in the QDR and in this budget how we are going to fight and win both today s wars and future conflicts we do not yet foresee. Skelton pointed out that the fiscal 2011 base budget request represents an The FY11 Defense Budget includes a record $8.8 billion for military family support, including more opportunities for spouses to get to the gym and stay fi t. increase of $18 billion over the $531 billion enacted for fiscal 2010. This is an increase of 3.4 percent, or 1.8 percent real growth after adjusting for inflation. The DoD needs modest real growth to maintain, train and equip the forces that sustain our wartime efforts. The choices made and priorities set in these budget requests and strategic defense reviews reflect America s commitment to succeed in the wars we are in, while making the investments necessary to prepare for threats on or beyond the horizon, said Gates. Also accompanying the 2011 budget proposal is a fiscal 2010 supplemental request of $33 billion to support the added costs of the President s new strategy in Afghanistan and strengthen U.S. force levels with approximately 30,000 additional troops. To make sure we have the resources needed to support our troops deploying to the Afghanistan theater, I will be asking the Congress to enact the supplemental by spring 2010, said Gates. FAMILY FUNDING The fiscal 2011 budget request calls for a record $8.8 billion for military family support programs, a 3 percent increase over current funding. The budget request will include $1.3 billion to reduce shortages in military child care and increases funding for youth programs. In addition, $439 million is proposed to build 10 new DoD Education Activity Schools. Directed by Gates, this measure is part of a major five-year effort to renovate or replace 103 of the schools by 2015. In announcing this unprecedented funding for families, first lady Michelle Obama told military spouses at Bolling AFB, D.C., on Jan. 26, We cannot forget that military kids also serve in their own special way. They re just like any other child in this country except their lives are turned upside-down every time their mom or dad is gone halfway around the world, risking their lives so that all our children can enjoy the freedoms of our democracy. The fiscal 2011 budget request also will include $84 million for spousal career development, including tuition assistance and a federal internship program. These are all major investments, and they are the result of military families speaking up and being heard, the first lady said. They are part of a larger, ongoing commitment to care for our troops and their families after the fighting ends. You put your own priorities aside. You take care of one another. You take care of this nation, she continued. So, as first lady, I can t thank you enough for that sacrifice, and I promise you that I will use every ounce of my energy to make sure that America always takes care of you. 8 GOVERNMENT RECREATION & FITNESS MARCH 2010

Rec Notes Approximately 1,200 Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation (FMWR) professionals converged on Louisville, Ky., for the Soldier Family Action Plan Symposium, held Jan. 25-27 at the Galt House. With Change and the Human Dimension as the symposium s theme, the overall focus was on finding new and meaningful ways to provide quality programs to reduce stress on soldiers and their families. Attendees participated in three days of intense training based on expert advice and best practices from the field. The goal for conference participants was to create new strategies to infuse the human dimension into FMWR programs at the garrison; create ways and means to communicate these strategies to the internal and external customers at the garrison; and develop an individual action plan on what they can do for their customers, their employees and themselves. Lt. Gen. Rick Lynch, USA, Army Installation Management Command, (IMCOM) commanding general, told attendees: When you go back to your garrisons with what you ve learned here, you will make a difference. The purpose of the symposium is to provide training, professional development and education to you FMWR Gorman greets Jones during the Soldier Family Action Plan Symposium. Army s Best Meet for Soldier Family Action Plan Symposium Maj. Gen. Reuben Jones, USA, FMWRC commanding general, signs the FMWR Employee and Customer Covenant as FMWRC Executive Director Rich Gorman (on far right), former FMWRC Chief of Staff and Deputy Commander Col. J.C. Abney, USA (Ret.), and the 15 newly hired customer service coordinators look on. professionals, providing the current Army focus and an IMCOM enterprise view, added FMWRC Executive Director Rich Gorman. You had the opportunity to attend 139 training sessions designed to help you create new strategies to infuse the human dimension into family and MWR operations on the garrison. Through the Army Family Covenant we made a promise to soldiers and their families. I know that when you return to your jobs you will implement the ways and means to communicate your new strategies to your internal and external customers. Lynch told the gathered team that there would be no negotiation when it comes to fully funding Family and MWR programs. Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey, USA, said we will fund, 100 percent, to take care of families and we will do it in this cost-saving culture without impacting families, he said. We will synchronize Army programs by taking a close look at them and eliminating or consolidating some in order to save money, while adapting others. The Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program, which now supports both soldiers and their families (starting in January), was also high on the agenda. We spend too much time fixing problems when families break and not enough time helping them before they break, Lynch said. We need to build resiliency in our families through emotional, physical and spiritual programs. Our families need comprehensive fitness just as much as soldiers do. While the symposium provided an intense program of training and education, many awards were presented to FMWRC s best during an exciting and fun-filled banquet. The highest of FMWR distinctions, the Order of the White Plume, was awarded to: Thomas Hlavacek, Headquarters IMCOM Europe; David B. Harmon - Fort Jackson, S.C.; Barbara Trower-Simpkins - Fort Bragg, N.C.; and Robert A. Kant Southeast Region. They have all demonstrated through their service the commitment and the culture of Family and MWR employees to serve those who serve, said Gorman during the award presentations. Their dedicated service, high-quality standards and programs set the standards that we should all hope to achieve. 10 GOVERNMENT RECREATION & FITNESS MARCH 2010 PHOTO BY EDUARDO ALEJANDRO, FMWRC MARKETING DIRECTORATE VISUAL INFORMATION SPECIALIST.

Rec Notes First Lady Launches Let s Move to Strengthen Children First lady Michelle Obama announced a new national campaign Let s Move with the ambitious goal of stomping out childhood obesity. The Let s Move campaign will combat the epidemic of childhood obesity through a comprehensive approach that builds on effective strategies, and mobilizes public and private sector resources. Let s Move will engage every sector impacting the health of children to achieve the national goal, and will provide schools, families and communities simple tools to help kids be more active, eat better and get healthy. The physical and emotional health of an entire generation and the economic health and security of our nation is at stake, said Mrs. Obama. This isn t the kind of problem that can be solved overnight, but with everyone working together, it can be solved. So, let s move. To support Let s Move and facilitate and coordinate partnerships with states, communities and the non-profit and for-profit private sectors, the nation s President Barack Obama signs a memorandum on childhood obesity, Feb. 9, 2010, in the Oval Offi ce of the White House, Washington, D.C. Standing, from left are, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, fi rst lady Michelle Obama and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. leading children s health foundations came together to create a new independent foundation the Partnership for a Healthier America that will accelerate existing efforts addressing childhood obesity and facilitate new commitments towards the national goal of solving childhood obesity within a generation. Almost a year ago, Mrs. Obama began a national conversation about the health of America s children when she broke ground on the White House Kitchen Garden with students from Bancroft Elementary School in Washington, D.C. Through the garden, she began a discussion with kids about proper nutrition and the role food plays in living a healthy life. That discussion grew into the announcement of the Let s Move campaign. Over the past three decades, childhood obesity rates in America have tripled, and today, nearly one in three children in America are overweight or obese. One-third of all children born in 2000 or later will suffer from diabetes at some point in their lives; many others will face chronic obesity-related health problems like heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer and asthma. A recent study put the health care costs of obesity-related diseases at $147 billion per year. This epidemic also impacts the nation s security, as obesity is now one of the most common disqualifiers for military service. Let s Move is comprehensive, collaborative and community-oriented, and will include strategies to address the various factors that lead to childhood obesity. It will foster collabora- 12 GOVERNMENT RECREATION & FITNESS MARCH 2010

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Rec Notes Luke AFB Opens New Combat Training Center Luke AFB, Ariz., officially opened a new Combat Physical Training Center Jan. 21 in front of more than 200 members of the base community. The unveiling of the facility marks the fourth combat-oriented physical training venue the base has built or renovated in just over a year, and adds 8,000 square feet of indoor physical training space to the base. This is a typical facility you ll see in the area of responsibility when we deploy, said Lt. Col. John Thomas, USAF, 56th Civil Engineer Squadron commander, speaking to those gathered for the grand opening about the semi-permanent structure. In the AOR this could be used not just for PT but also to house aircraft or perform maintenance. Senior Airmen Jeremy Card and Jose Hoskins work out with kettlebells as part of a demonstration during the grand opening of the new combat physical training center Jan. 21, 2010 at Luke AFB, Ariz. Airmen Card and Hoskins are from the 56th Security Forces Squadron. AIR FORCE PHOTO/STAFF SGT. STEVE NABOR, USAF The Combat PT Center is air conditioned and has a translucent roof designed to let light in and be energy efficient. Fitness equipment lines the inside of the structure and includes squat racks, dumbbells, medicine balls, kettle bells and rowing machines among other equipment. The floor is comprised of rubber mats and inside the ring of equipment lies open space for individual or unit workouts. Fitness center officials will provide functional fitness and martial arts training in the facility. Along with regularly-scheduled training classes, they will also provide Luke airmen with training in Air Force Combatives and in the USMC Martial Arts program with instructors from Luke s Marine Corps Reserve 14 GOVERNMENT RECREATION & FITNESS MARCH 2010

6th Engineer Support Battalion, Bulk Fuel Company Charlie. Also planned are wrestling, boxing and self-defense clinics. Other events at the Combat PT Center include inviting guest speakers to teach proper nutrition, preparation for the Air Force PT test, and proper gymnastic and weightlifting techniques. The venue impressed airmen who saw the center and a demonstration of some of the exercises that can be performed. This looks just like the facilities I saw when I deployed, said Senior Airman Jose Hoskins, USAF, 56th Security Forces Squadron patrolman. This facility will be great with the weather conditions in Arizona. Lt. Col. Thomas agreed, stating that the average daytime high at Luke last July was 105 degrees, and noting that temperatures on the flight line can reach 123 degrees. Staff Sergeant Abel Telles, USAF, 56th Logistics Readiness Squadron fuels specialist, recently returned from Iraq and described the new venue with the word, Awesome. When I deployed I got to work with other branches of the military and they have facilities like this, he said. That facility brought the branches together and was great for unit PT. It was also great for dealing with the heat. The 56th Civil Engineering Squadron (CES) built the venue in just over three months. The challenge here at Luke was to provide a combat PT capability, Thomas said. Our squadron took that on and what we have is a facility that was 100 percent constructed by the 56th CES. It s a great undertaking and a proud day to be one of our civil engineers. With reporting by 2nd Lt. Ryan DeCamp, USAF, 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Members of the 56th Equipment Maintenance Squadron work on their endurance with the new rowing machines in an early- morning physical training exercise Jan. 26, 2010, held at the Luke AFB combat PT center in Arizona. MARCH 2010 GOVERNMENT RECREATION & FITNESS 15