THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE [The following selection is an excerpt from the 14 January 1969 "Red Skelton Hour" printed in the May 2000 issue of the MOWW Officer Review.] I remember this one teacher To me, he was the greatest teacher, a real sage of my time. He had such wisdom. We were all reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, and he walked over.  Mr. Lasswell was his name.. He said: "I've been listening to you boys and girls recite the Pledge of Allegiance all semester and it seems as though it is becoming monotonous to you. If I may, may I recite it and try to explain to you the meaning of each word: I - me, an individual, a committee of one.  Pledge - dedicate all of my worldly goods to give without self-pity. Allegiance-- my love and my devotion.  To the Flag - our standard, Old Glory, a symbol of freedom. Wherever she waves, there is respect because your loyalty has given her a dignity that shouts freedom is everybody's job. Of the United - that means that we have all come together. States - individual communities that have united into 48 great states-48 individual communities with pride and dignity and purpose, all divided with imaginary boundaries, yet united to a common purpose, and that's love for country. Of America And to the Republic - a state in which sovereign power is invested in representatives chosen by the people to govern. And government is the people, and it's from the people to the leaders, not from the leaders of the people. For which it stands One nation - meaning, so blessed by God. Indivisible - incapable of being divided.

With liberty - which is freedom and the right of power to live one's life without threats or fear or some sort of retaliation. And justice -The principle or quality of dealing fairly with others. For all -which means it's as much your country as it is mine. Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country and two words have been added to the Pledge of Allegiance-"under God." Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said, "That's a prayer," and it would be eliminated from schools, too? COLIN POWELL'S 13 RULES TO LIVE BY 1. It ain't as bad as you think. It will look better in the morning.  2. Get mad, then get over it. 3. Avoid having your ego so close to your position that, when your position falls, your ego goes with it. 4. It can be done!  5. Be careful what you choose. You may get it. 6 Don't let adverse facts stand in the way of a good decision. 7. You can't make someone else's choices. You shouldn't let someone else make yours. 8. Check small things. 9. Share credit. 10 Remain calm. Be kind. 11. Have a vision. Be demanding. 12. Don't take counsel of your fears or nay sayers. 13. Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier. "A genius is a talented person                        who does his homework." -Thomas Edison

 

VETERANS AFFAIRS FAQ* Q. Where can I find the telephone number for the Department of Veteran's Affairs (VA) Regional office for my area? A. The VA now has one toll free number that will connect the caller to the VA Regional office for their area. The toll free number is: 1-800-827-1000. Q. What is DIC and when is it payable? A. Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) is payable by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) when the military member's death was due to service- connected causes. The monthly rate for this tax-free income for 2000 is $881.00. An additional $222 is payable for each child younger than 18. Also, an additional $191 a  month is added to the basic rate if the deceased service member had been entitled to receive 100% service-connected compensation for at least eight years immediately preceding death and the surviving spouse was married to the service member for those same eight years. For more information order TROA's "Help Your Surviving Spouse Now!" Q. Are there circumstances whereby DIC is payable to a surviving spouse where death by the military member was not due to service-connected causes? A. Yes. DIC is also payable if your death is not due to service-connected causes with the following provisions: *you held the VA total

service-connected disability rating continuously for 10 or more years immediately before death, or *  you held the VA total service-connected disability rating continuously since last release from active duty for at least five years, and you were married one or more years on the date of death.                   -TROA (Department of Veterans Affairs) DO YOU WANT TO DANCE?  You are invited!!! ROWC SWEETHEART TEA DANCE Sunday, 11 February 2001  1400-1700 hours  BAE Systems Dining Hall Music by Ken Ragsdale Cash Bar / Refreshments Admission $25-$30/couple? (TBA) [Contact Jean Main (288-9090 by 5 Feb] WELCOME, NEW MEMBERS! LTC RICHARD W. JONES, USAF (RET.) COL ROBERT LEAHY, USA (RET.)

TRAGEDY CHANGES OPINION OF ARMY (Editor's note: The following teller was written by Karista Kelly McNeil, 16, and sent to her brother's battalion commander as an open letter to the Army. Krista was the youngest sister of Spc. Michael J. McNeill of the 317th Engineer Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized). Following a rotation at the rational Training Center in the California Desert, McNeill was preparing vehicles for rail load back to Fort Benning. Ga., when he was struck by a car.)     It is amazing how a person's life can change in a matter of minutes. It is amazing how one incident can change your views forever.      In my case it was a death in the family. I lost my brother, Spc. Michael James (Hogue) McNeill on May 12. This incident has changed my feelings about the military and military life, forever.      I remember the day my brother got hurt very clearly. It was May 5, I returned home from school to see my father walking out the door with a suitcase in one hand and a plane ticket confirmation in the other. I was informed that my brother had been struck by a car. going full speed, while he was crossing a street on foot with two of his Army buddies. He was not expected to make it through the night.      My father left immediately. That is where it all began. From the minute my father and brother's wife arrived, they were treated like royally. The Army was right there by their side, no matter what they needed. The Army provided them with a place to stay, transportation and what was needed most of all: a shoulder to cry on.      Before this point, 1 never thought of military people as being compassionate and caring. But as I came to learn as things went on, they are more caring, understanding and compassionate than most civilian people.      A week passed, and suddenly, on May 12, my brother breathed his last breath. He had passed away. At this point, I thought that the Army would no longer be helpful or cooperative with my family. I figured they would think that since my brother had passed away, that there was no more use in trying to please anyone. I figured they would try to save money any way they could. But, as I later learned, this was not the case at all.      They helped my family return home and made them as comfortable as possible right up until the end. I would have thought that the military would think about nothing other than their own wants and needs, but once again, they proved me wrong.      Apparently, they put my brother on full retirement with total disability before he died so that his beautiful wife and their soon expected child would be taken care of. This touched me deeply.      The thing that touched me the most was my brother's funeral itself. The military paid for almost all of the expenses and helped a great deal with the planning of the services. The day of the funeral is imbedded so deeply in my heart. It was May 19 to be exact.         Everyone gathered at the funeral home to pay their last respects to my brother. Michael's body was soon being loaded into the hearse and proceeded, followed by many cars, to the Lakeview Cemetery.

As 1 followed the hearse, we entered the cemetery to see a lone man, in uniform, holding a bugle under his arm With great discipline and ceremony, he saluted the hearse as it went by and turned, with the hearse, 180 degrees as it proceeded to the burial site.      At the burial site, the preacher said a few more words, and a silence fell all about. After the passage of a few moments, seven soldiers in uniform with rifles shouldered came marching in perfect synchronization and stopped a short distance away. They raised their rifles and each of them fired three shots into the air with the sound of each shot piercing my heart, bringing out all the love and respect that was felt for my brother. Once again, silence fell about. Then off in the distance was heard a beautiful noise, rolling off the end of the young man's bugle. Each note slowly tearing away at me, making it easier to let go. Each note bringing the remembrance of my brother and how he served his country, his family, his God.      Intense is the only word to describe those few minutes of pain, remembrance and love that came with the playing of Taps. The playing stopped. Then the six soldiers, unarmed, came marching in unison without a single misstep up to my brother's casket. Perfectionists, they were, folding the flag ever so carefully that had once lain upon my brother's casket, making sure not so much as a thread ever touched the ground. A single Soldier marched up to my brother's wife, Jenna, and placed the flag upon her lap, presenting it to her on behalf of the president of the United States, and with great reverence and respect, he stood in a final salute to her. But then, something very unusual happened. As with Jenna, a single Soldier approached my brother's mother and my father and presented them with flags also, ones that were already neatly folded and placed in fine wooden boxes, decorated with the United States Seal and containing all of Michael's ribbons.      These did not come from the government's money. These came from the pockets of the men who served with my brother in his battalion. Knowing of Mike's beginnings and the strange turns his life had taken wherein he had two families, containing eight sisters, all of whom he loved dearly, they had raised the money to purchase these for his parents. This showed me that the military is one big family. In the military, whether you like the people you are around or not, you do everything in your power to protect one another and their loved ones. What an honor I found this to be, to have been a part of Michael's life, someone who had served his country so diligently.      This event has changed my life and touched my heart forever I have grown a deep love for the military and those who are a pan of it. I realized that they are there to help me. The military is one big family that I may hope some day to be a part of. I hope to one day walk in Michael's footsteps, my father's only son, on a path also taken by Mike's father and his father before him. My respect and admiration for the military has grown immensely, I want to say thanks to all of the people who have helped me, protected me and loved me enough to go to war for me, and a special thanks to the men who have helped my brother's memory live on. This is for you. -Krista Kelly McNeill, Johnson City, IL -armylinknews

DINNER MEETING  -  17 JANUARY 2001 Tracor Dining Hall - 6500 Tracer Lane (Highway 183, south of Webberville overpass, just off Ed Bluestein 1830 hours Attire: Coast & Tie or Military Uniform  Charge: $12.00 (Check payable to TROA) Note: Reservations may be made with your assigned caller or with your service representative by calling before 2100 hours on the Sunday prior to the Wednesday of the dinner. Cancellations should also be made by the aforementioned time. Individuals who do not honor reservations will be billed. ATTENTION TROA SINGLES! After making your dinner reservation with your military representative (page 7), please call Charlsie Knedlik (651-3649), Nadine Arnet (345-0071) or George McClure (345- 6520) to be included in the singles seating arrangement at the TROA dinner meetings. - -Ms. Charlsie Knecilik "Today's greatest labor-saving device is tomorrow."    ---Tom Wilson

 

"Honoring Veterans" Stamp Slated for May 2001 Issue WASHINGTON, Nov. 28, 2000 -- The US. Postal Service recently unveiled a new commemorative first-class postage stamp entitle "Honoring Veterans" that is scheduled to be issued here in May 2001. "The 'Honoring Veterans' stamp reminds us of the thousands of Americans, who have fought to keep our country free," said  Deborah K. Willhite,  the Postal Service's senior vice president for government relations and public policy, who unveiled the stamp. "It will serve as a 'thank you' to those who continue to serve as members of veterans service organizations."      She said many veterans organizations a veterans and their families, including assistant with benefit applications, transportation to Veterans Affairs medical facilities and burial at memorial services. The present population of U.S. veterans is estimated to be nearly 25 million, Willhite noted.      Designed by Carl Hermann of Carlsbad Calif., the stamp features a photograph of the American flag. The flag symbolizes veterans' patriotic service to the nation in peace and war The phrase "Honoring Veterans" is at the top of the stamp, and the phrase "Continuing to Serve" appears at the bottom.      The new stamp and other currently available philatelic items can be viewed and ordered at the Postal Service Website at www.usps.com. The also can be ordered by calling toll-free 1-800 STAMP-24, -Rudi Williams, American Forces Press Service

GUEST SPEAKER LT GEN MICHAEL NELSON TROA National President  PLEASE NOTE: If you are not bring called each month concerning the dinner meeting on the third Wednesday, please call your service representative (listed on page 7 of this newsletter) and ask him/her to add your name to the list. ORDER OF THE EVENING  1830-1900: Social Period Pay for Dinner,  Check in with Service Representative, Select Seats (sign form at end of table)  1900-1910 : Invocation Pledge of Allegiance National Anthem  1910-2000: Dinner and Door Prizes 2000: Speaker Menu Tossed Salad w/House Dressing  Roast Pork Loin w/Applesauce  Baked Yams  Buttered Peas  Rolls  Apple Pie  Coffee & Tea