New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs

The Adjutant General, BG Glenn K. Rieth, conducted the First Officer Leadership Call on Saturday, 13 March 2004, at the Patriot Theater, the War Memorial, Trenton, NJ. Over 700 New Jersey National Guard (NJNG) Air and Army Commissioned and Warrant Officers attended. The focus of the Call was the Ten Year Future Reach Plan of the NJNG and the projected transformation that will take place in both the Army and Air Force structures during that time. TAG also stressed his top five priorities: Strength, Readiness, Homeland Security, Mobilization, and Joint Force. Governor James E. McGreevey and COL Rick Fuentes, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, addressed the Officers. Both took the opportunity to thank the NJNG for its efforts and support in both the Homeland Security arena and the mobilizations to fight the Global War on Terrorism. TAG presented COL Fuentes with a National Guard Minuteman Statue for his support to our organization. The Officers also received briefings from Maj Gen Clark Martin and BG Thomas Sullivan (Mobilizations), MG (Ret) G. Thomas Garrett (HSCOE), Brig Gen (S) Maria Falca-Dodson (Readiness/Family Support), COL Frank Carlini and COL (Ret) Michael B. Smith (Joint Force), and SGM Edward Goetschius (JOC). LTC Wayne Hunt coordinated the security for the event, which was supported by the 50th Brigade MPs, Homeland Security personnel, and the New Jersey State Police. Our young soldiers did an outstanding professional job! All attendees left the Leadership Call with a copy of the Future Reach Plan and material on Family Support Groups.

New Jersey National Guard Family Readiness Mobilization Guide – now available on the world wide web.

The guide was developed to assist you and your family in preparing for deployment, activation, and extended temporary duty. You will find helpful suggestions, pertinent information, and a summary of tasks that are essential for your family’s welfare. Interested individuals may also access the guide from links on both the DMVA Homepage and NJNG Family Support Programs website at http://www.nj.gov/military/familysupport/index.html

31 Mar 11 am	Distinguished Service & Meritorious Service Medals	Morristown Armory 430 Jockey Hollow Road Morristown, NJ
16 Apr	Distinguished Service & Meritorious Service Medals (for Residents of the Veterans Memorial Home at Vineland) Veterans Memorial Home	Vineland, New Jersey
28 Apr	Distinguished Service & Meritorious Service Medals Ocean County	Location TBD

NJ Army National Guard welcomes a new Warrant Officer Flight School Candidate.

CW5 Al Curving, Command Chief Warrant Officer of the New Jersey Army National Guard, and COL Paul Ciervo, State Army Aviation Officer, jointly announced the latest accession to the Warrant Officer Aviation Program.

From Sergeant to WOC Chad A. Weaver received temporary Federal recognition on March 6th, and will be attending Warrant Officer Candidate School in April, followed by Initial Entry Rotary Wing school at Fort Rucker, Alabama. Candidate Weaver was assigned to Headquarters of the 1st Soldier Support Battalion through September 2003, and more recently with the Recruiting and Retention Detachment at Fort Dix. He appeared before an Order of Merit List Aviation Selection Board and attended a Pre-Warrant Officer Candidate course at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania earlier in 2003.

Chief Curving noted that these are exciting times, and there has never been a better time in history to become an Army Warrant Officer than right now. Current Guard members can further explore Warrant Officer opportunities, including numerous technical service positions, by call Chief Curving at 609-562-0969. Non-members should contact a NJ Army National Guard Recruiter for further information or log onto www.1800goguard.com.

American troops serving in designated combat zones in support of the war against terrorism continue to get a tax break from Uncle Sam. Depending upon rank, eligible service members can exclude from federal income tax either all or some of their active duty pay – and certain other pays – earned in any month during service in a designated combat zone. Service members who serve one or more days in a designated combat zone are entitled to federal tax exclusion benefits for that entire month. Current designated combat zones include, Afghanistan, Iraq, and other specified parts of the Persian Gulf region – to include Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates – and parts of the Kosovo area. Service members in several other areas specified in law as “qualified hazardous duty areas” are eligible for the same tax breaks. Bosnia-Herzegovina, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Croatia have been listed since 1995. The downloadable Armed Forces Tax Guide for 2003 lists many, but not all, designated combat zones. It can be accessed on the IRS website www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p3.pdf or receive a hard copy by calling 1-800-829-3676.

NJ State Library accepting book donations for its 2004 Spring Used Book Sale.

The Friends of the NJ State Library are accepting book donations now through Saturday, 17 April 2004 for the 2004 Spring Used Book Sale. Drop off will be on Level 3 in the lobby of the NJ State Library, 185 w. State Street, Trenton, NJ. Books may be dropped off during Library hours, Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Used Book Sale is scheduled for May 5-8, 2004.

NJ Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial and Vietnam Era Education Center’s upcoming event schedule.

For more information about any of these events, please call the NJ Vietnam Veterans Memorial Foundation office at (732) 335-0033.

27 Mar	1 p.m.	“The Hidden History of the Antiwar Movement,” an Author Lecture Series presentation by Vietnam-era Veteran H. Bruce Franklin, author of Vietnam and other American Fantasies.
17 April	1 p.m.	Chapter One: The Story of Vic Charles (a novel) – An Author Lecture Series presentation by Vietnam Veteran Bob Staranowicz at the Vietnam Era Educational Center.
7 May	11 a.m.	New Jersey Vietnam Veterans Remembrance Day ceremony at the NJ Vietnam Veterans ’ Memorial

Congratulations to Ms. Kathy Hines, Procurement Technician for USPFO Purchasing & Contracting Division, for completing CON 210, Government Contract Law course at the Defense Acquisition University on 27 February 2004.

Birth Announcement – It’s a boy for USPFO Lead Military Pay Technician, SGT Crystal Burgess and husband Josh. Welcome to Josh Edward Burgess, 8 pounds, 2 ounces, 20”, born on 10 March 2004.

A Career Fair will be held at Club Dix on 24 March 2004 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Hiring representatives from local, national, and worldwide companies will collect resumes and conduct preliminary interviews for current and future positions. Visit or call 305th FSC at 609-754-3154 or Ft. Dix Army Community Services at 609-562-6727 for information about writing seminars and resources to make this opportunity a personal success!

Pregnant? Starting a family soon? The Family Advocacy Office at McGuire Air Force Base will sponsor a Community Baby Shower for Friday, 30 April 2004. The event will be held in Chapel 1, McGuire Air Force Base from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Community and Base agencies will provide information on local maternity units, pregnancy fitness, cord blood banking, childcare and many other issues. Representatives will be available to answer questions and provide you with free literature. Please stop by for food, fun, and raffles for free baby items! This event is open to all branches of the military (active duty, Reserves, National Guard) and DOD civilians. If you need additional information, contact the Family Advocacy Office at 754-9680.

Armory Happenings – Check to see what’s happening at an Armory near you.

19-21 Mar	Motorcycle Showcase	Atlantic City Armory
19-21 Mar	Craft Show	Morristown Armory
25-28 Mar	Antique Show	Morristown Armory
26-28 Mar	Quilt Show	Toms River Armory
28 Mar	Doll & Bear Show	Bordentown Armory
28 Mar	Circus	Cherry Hill Armory
31 Mar – 5 Apr	Piano Show and Sale	Cherry Hill Armory

Today is Friday, 19 March 2004 and the 79th day of the year. There are 288 days left in the year. On this day …

1831 – The first bank robbery in America was reported. The City Bank of New York City lost $245,000 in the robbery.

1903 – The U.S. Senate ratified the Cuban treaty, gaining naval bases in Guantanamo and Bahia Honda.

1994 – The largest omelet in history was made with 160,000 eggs in Yokohama, Japan.

2002 – Operation Anaconda, the largest U.S.-led ground offensive since the Gulf War, ended in eastern Afghanistan.

2003 – President George W. Bush announced that U.S. forces had launched a strike against “targets of military opportunity” in Iraq.

The seasons are a powerful force in our lives. They affect the activities we do, the foods we crave, the clothes we wear – and quite often, the moods we are in. We experience seasons because the Earth rotates on an axis that’s tilted in its orbit. That 23.5-degree tilt causes the different hemispheres to be at different angles to the sun at different times of the year. On Saturday morning at 1:49 Spring will arrive with the Vernal Equinox, the time when night and day are of equal length in all parts of the Earth.

§ Cranberries are sorted for ripeness by bouncing them; a fully ripened cranberry can be dribbled like a basketball.

§ The muzzle of a lion is like a fingerprint – no two lions have the same pattern of whiskers.

§ A full 7% of the entire Irish barley crop goes into the production of Guinness.

§ A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continually from the bottom of the glass to the top.

§ Mosquitoes are attracted to the color blue twice as much as to any other color.

§ Among the many words that Shakespeare invented are: assassination, bump, lonely, bloodstained, leapfrog, and mountaineer.