The Association for all Military Officers
Companion Bulletin- March 2012

Words from the Commander:   As a native Texan, March is special to me, especially 2 March. This date was instilled into our memory as students because it is the anniversary of Texas' independence from Mexico. March is also identified for several sayings such as, "March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb". Also the warning "Beware the Ides of March" was introduced to some via Shakespeare. According to Wikipedia, "The word Ides comes from the Latin word "Idus" and means "half division" especially in relation to a month. It is a word that was used widely in the Roman calendar indicating the approximate day that was the middle of the month. The term ides was used for the 15th day of the months of March, May, July, and October, and the 13th day of the other months. The Ides of March was a festive day dedicated to the god Mars and a military parade was usually held." There are many interesting stories associated with days in March. For instance, did you know that 8 March, our meeting date, is also known in certain circles as Popcorn Lovers Day and International Working Women's Day? So much for March! At our February meeting, we were served great food by the hotel and heard wonderful harmonic music delivered by TAKE FIVE. Of course, the usual warm camaraderie was ever present throughout the evening. We once again send kudos to companion Bullard for ensuring we had our traditional Valentine program. This month we are honored to have Companion Tom Anderson sponsor our speaker, Retired Chief Petty Officer Bob Steinmann, who will share experiences from his submarine tour days.

This will be an excellent opportunity to hear about the intriguing life aboard a submarine. As a point of business, I will ask three companions to serve on the nomination committee to select officers for the following year. Stay tuned! As I stated last month, we need to increase our membership and we always welcome program suggestions. The viability of the chapter depends on our combined energy, interest and support. I thank all of you for your kind words and support throughout the year. Remember, "staying in touch with one another is not a contest."    ---COL Leon Holland, USA (Ret.)  Next Meeting.   March 8 at the  Holiday Inn   for: $ 20.    Please join us to hear CPO Bob Steinmann who was underwater for up to 90 days at a time.   A two-minute memory test can uncover many cases of dementia that otherwise go unnoticed by doctors,  The test, known as the “mini-cog,” was given to more than 8,000 older veterans to see if it could work as an early warning sign for Alzheimer's and other memory disorders. Nearly 11 percent of the patients aged 70 or older were diagnosed with some form of cognitive impairment.  People with memory problems may have trouble following medical advice or taking their pills The Gregorian calendar omits those three leap years every 400 years on centurial years. For example, 2000 was a leap year, so 2100, 2200, and 2300 will not be. Remember it this way: Centurial years that are not divisible by four are not leap years.

 

MOWW Scripture and Commentary March 2012 (Chaplain Ernie Dean) "Filled with God's Spirit" For it is by God's grace that you have been saved through faith. It is not the result of your own efforts, but God's gift, so that no one can boast about it. (Ephesians 2:8-9) We are brought to life and lifted up by our God who cares dearly about us. What a precious gift, a gift right out of God's steadfast and everlasting love. We believe we are brought to life as we are filled with the Spirit of God. This is how we journey on the path of holiness. There are countless paths open to us in our lives, but only one acceptable path for any of us, one path of true spiritual wholeness. Knowing our happiness and wholeness lies in our following the one true path, and knowing our frequent difficulty in doing so, God chooses to shower grace upon us, for God can do no other. That is simply an attribute of God, one God continues to share in mercy and forgiveness. Now, how about our sharing. The world starves for a good word, a kind word, an uplifting word. There is a tremendous need for a counter to the wild political and religious talk that is passed off as true and honest, but, in fact, is often untrue and dishonest, always divisive and hurtful. Folks who rattle on and on about their conservative or liberal posture, their holier than thou faith positions, help no one. They are "noisy gongs and clanging bells." (I Corinthians 13:1) They are denying the Spirit of God within them. We make ourselves look downright silly and ignorant when we rant and rave about issues rather than show patient and kind behavior that is reasonable. Take a few moments now to read Chapter 13 of First Corinthians. Let us be filled with this spirit, the spirit of God's love, not a spirit of argument or hard feelings. And let us be willing to help others assume just this very same mature and caring attitude for life.

The best way to get crucial vitamins and mineYou shouldn't need vitamin supplements if you've got a proper diet. Your body can only use so much of a nutrient, and getting too many vitamins is actually unhealthy.rals is by eating the right balance of healthy foods.  “Have you ever used a P-38, Opener, Can, Hand, Folding According to an article by Maj. Renita Foster in the Pentagon's newspaper in 1986, the P-38 could clean muddy boots, screw screws, open letters, strip wires, trim threads on uniforms, and sharpen pencils. The P-38 can be used to open cardboard boxes, including the cartons containing Meals Ready to Eat. Some claim that the P-38 could be used to set the points on a car engine, because the thickness of the steel was just right for the point gap. Many a soldier hung his P-38 with his dog tags around his neck. The P-38 disappeared as an issue item in the Army, but some still carry them today, often on a key ring after acquiring it from a family member or friend or purchasing it. Despite the fact that the Civil War ended April 9, 1865 (53,630 days ago, for reference), the government is still paying out veterans' pensions. Records from the Department of Veterans' Affairs show that two children of Civil War veterans, as of SEP 2011, are receiving pensions from their fathers' service.

 

Chapter Officers Commander Col Leon Holland 335-1224 Vice Commander Treasurer Col Andrew McVeigh 261-6272 Adjutant Mrs. Patricia Egan 750-1399 Chaplin LtCol Ernest S. Dean 477-5390 Youth Leadership Conference LtCol Thomas W. Anderson 445-4480 ROTC Awards Col Leon Holland 335-1224 Newsletter & Web Site LtCol J. Robert Howard 848-0285

Schedule: 1830-1900 - Social 1900-1905 - Invocation & Salutes 1905-1945 - Dinner 1945-2000 - Break 2000-2045 - Program 2045-2100 - Adjourn.  How Do You Get Holy Water? You Boil The Hell Out Of It

   

Life insurance has only one purpose: to complete your financial responsibilities if you die. That‘s it. If you have no dependents you don‘t currently need life insurance. Don‘t fall for a common trap: life insurance is not an investment. If you do have dependents you should buy term rather than whole life.  One rule of thumb is to multiply your income by 17 and buy that amount of insurance. What Do You Call a Boomerang That Doesn't work? StickWhat Do You Get From a Pampered Cow? Spoiled Milk. Once, during prohibition, I was forced to live for days on nothing but food and water. *** W. C. Fields

. The Consumer Bankruptcy Project has published reports based on statistics from court filings between 1991 and 2007. It found the rate of personal bankruptcy filings among those ages 65 to 74 jumped by 177.8 percent. Filings among those age 75 and older jumped by a staggering 566.7 percent. The study also noted that fi lings among those ages 18 to 44 actually went down an average of 50 percent during that same time period. Professor John Pottow, an expert on bankruptcy law at the University of Michigan Law School, has analyzed the CBP‘s data to determine the major causes for this crisis among older adults. He concludes that credit card debt, with high interest rates and fees, is a primary cause for this rise in filings. He called uncovered medical costs a primary factor behind the credit card debt.

 

 

The military incursion into Panama began on 20 December 1989, at 0100 local time. The operation involved 27,684 U.S. troops and over 300 aircraft—including C-130 Hercules tactical transports flown by the 317th Tactical Airlift Wing (which was equipped with the Adverse Weather Aerial Delivery System or AWADS) and 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, AC-130 Spectre gunship, OA-37B Dragonfly observation and attack aircraft, C-141 Starlifter strategic transports, F-117A Nighthawk stealth aircraft flown by the 37th Tactical Fighter Wing, and AH-64 Apache attack helicopter. The invasion of Panama was the first combat deployment for the AH-64, the HMMWV and the F-117A. Panamanian radar units were jammed by two EF-111As' of the 390th ECS, 366th TFW. These aircraft were deployed against the 46,000 members of the Panamanian Defense Force (PDF).     The operation began with an assault of strategic installations such as the civilian Punta Paitilla Airport in Panama City, a PDF garrison and airfield at Rio Hato, where Noriega also maintained a residence. U.S. Navy SEALs destroyed Noriega's private jet and a Panamanian gunboat. A Panamanian ambush killed four SEALs and wounded nine. Other military command centers throughout the country were also attacked. The attack on the central headquarters of the PDF (referred to as La Comandancia) touched off several fires, one of which destroyed most of the adjoining and heavily populated El Chorrillo neighborhood in downtown Panama City. During the firefight at the Comandancia, the PDF downed two special operations helicopters and forced one OH-6 Little Bird to crash-land in the Panama Canal.     Fort Amador was secured by elements of the 1st Battalion (Airborne), 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment and 59th Engineer Company (sappers) in a nighttime air assault which secured the fort in the early hours of 20 December. Fort Amador was a key position because of its relationship to the large oil farms adjacent to the canal, the Bridge of the Americas over the canal, and the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal. There were key command and control elements of the PDF stationed at Fort Amador. C co. 1st Battalion (Airborne) 508th PIR was assigned the task to secure La Commandancia.     Furthermore, Fort Amador also had a large US housing area that needed to be secured to prevent the PDF from taking US citizens as hostages. This position also protected the left flank of the attack on the Comadancia and the securing of the neighborhood El Chorrillos, guarded by Dignity Battalions: Noriega supporters the US forces sometimes referred to as Dingbats.     A few hours after the invasion began, Guillermo Endara was sworn in at Rodman Naval Station. It is generally agreed that Endara would have been the victor in the presidential election which had been scheduled earlier that year. The 1138th Military Police Company of the Missouri Army National Guard set up a detainee camp at Empire Range to handle the mass of civilian and military detainees. This unit made history by being the first Guard unit called into active service since the Vietnam War.     Operation Nifty Package was an operation launched by Navy SEALs to prevent the escape of Noriega. They sank Noriega's boat and destroyed his jet at a cost of 4 killed and 9 wounded. Military operations continued for several weeks, mainly against military units of the Panamanian Army. Noriega remained at large for several days, but realizing he had few options in the face of a massive manhunt, with a one million dollar reward for his capture, he obtained refuge in the Vatican diplomatic mission in Panama City.  He surrendered on 3 January.     Reports suggest that the U.S. lost 23 troops, and 325 were wounded (WIA). The U.S. Southern Command, at that time based on Quarry Heights in Panama, estimated the number of Panamanian military dead at 205, lower than its original estimate of 314. For nearly two weeks after the invasion, there was widespread looting and lawlessness, a contingency which the United States military indicated it had not anticipated.This looting inflicted catastrophic losses on many Panamanian businesses, some of which took several years to recover.... Wikipedia