FRAtoday March 2021
comunicaitons
FROM THE FANTAIL	3
SHIPMATE FORUM	5
On & Off captol hill	7
FEATURE  STORies	
MEMBERSHIP MATTERS19
SHIPMATE NEWS20
TAPS21
AUXILIARY OF THE FRA24
FINANCE MATTERS25

COMMINICATIONS

FRA Education Foundation Expands Scholarship Awards
The Education Foundation recently expanded its scholarship awards to now include students attending trade schools and community colleges. Education Foundation President Joe Barnes explained the changes to the program in the January FRAtoday, but I believe it’s worthy of mentioning again, especially since the application deadline is April 15 and many schools are returning to in person instruction. 
From a personal perspective, our four children, my wife and I all went to community college at some point in our climbs to receive bachelor’s degrees or higher. Online, virtual education was not an option, and cost was always a factor. One year, there were five of us attending postsecondary education, so affording this took a very well thought out plan regarding what we paid each month. This included living expenses on campus, an extra car and the associated insurance.
There was a time when student loans were necessary, however, those funds were always used very sparingly. I was raised to avoid debt for short term satisfaction. Purchasing homes and cars were definitely worth considering, and we always asked if a brand-new car is really what’s needed, or just something that was wanted (wants vs. needs).
The Education Foundation has existed since 2009 and many Shipmates, their spouses, children, grandchildren, etc. have benefitted from the program. Several award winners have received scholarships more than once. Some recipients have been older than others and there are numerous fields of study being pursued, however, one thing is certain — they all appreciate the financial support they received. Every award helps scholars advance toward achieving that degree, which is a lifetime investment and something that can never be lost or taken away. 
Now that scholarship awards can be applied to tuition at trade schools and community colleges, this benefit of FRA membership is even more valuable. It’s widely known that there is significant interest in the Foundation’s scholarships within the association and in target membership groups. The expansion will certainly be appreciated by those like my family, who attended community college, which proved to be a great place to start earning college credits. Trade schools are the key to a number of professions including electrician, plumber, dental hygienist and others. These trades are valuable and provide opportunities for lucrative and successful careers.  
In Loyalty, Protection and Service,
William D. Stevenson, Editor-in-Chief

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FROM THE FANTAIL

This Year’s Meetings and Conventions
I hope that everyone was able to celebrate the holidays in some manner that was both joyous and safe! I know I was ready to put 2020 in the rearview mirror, and I certainly hope 2021 brings us back to something close to normal. Hopefully, with two vaccines available that have been proven effective and a robust plan to get them distributed, by the time summer rolls around, we will be well on our way to digging ourselves out of this abyss. 

As we move toward the time of year that regions traditionally schedule their midyear meetings, please ensure that national headquarters gets the most current information so they can keep the leadership updated. I am certainly going to attempt to attend those meetings that are planned to be conducted in person, if travel restrictions allow. However, if the majority of the Shipmates in any region do not feel comfortable attending an in-person midyear regional meeting and it doesn’t make fiscal sense to hold one, don’t feel compelled to have it. The business and training that is normally conducted should easily be accomplished via Zoom. By the time the actual convention season starts coming into focus, the pandemic restrictions should be greatly eased, and it should be much safer to travel and gather as groups. 

As I write this column, the 2021 National Convention Committee and the leadership of the FRA and the LA FRA have already participated in a Zoom meeting to discuss the current political climate in the Portland, Oregon, area. They discussed the various input that the leadership, NHQ staff and the committee have been receiving from Shipmates and auxiliary members regarding their attendance at the convention if it was going to be held in Portland. Due to the overwhelming negative feedback received, it was the consensus of all parties to sever the contract with the Portland facility prior to the Feb. 1 date, which would have created a greater financial liability had the contract been left in place. The committee is diligently looking at some new options in the Spokane Valley and Boise, Idaho, areas. 

By the time this article is published, a decision will have been made and the information will be disseminated by the regional presidents. While the deal that was offered by the Portland facility remains to be the better of what was available, the chances of a sharp drop in attendance due to the political climate in the area would have placed too much financial liability on the committee and the FRA by not meeting room booking or food and beverage minimums. It would also make no sense to hold a convention to review two years of association business when the Shipmates who are assembled would have to ratify with minimal attendance.

PNP Mark A. Kilgore
It is with a heavy heart that I will attend the services for PNP Mark Kilgore from Pensacola Branch 22 on Feb. 23. Shipmate Mark was national president the year I was elected as southwest regional vice president and due to the regional president going AWOL right after the holidays, Mark installed me as regional president at the national board of directors midyear convention. 

He was a true friend who epitomized our three cardinal principles, and I was honored to call him Shipmate! Pensacola Branch 22 has submitted a resolution that is under consideration by the national board of directors to rename itself Mark A. Kilgore Branch 22. That is a most fitting tribute. 

Stay safe and keep your Shipmates in your thoughts and prayers.  
I remain always in Loyalty, Protection and Service, 
Mick Fulton

Mick is national president of the Fleet Reserve Association and may be reached by email at: FRANP@fra.org.

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sHIPMATE FORUM

Shipmates, Keep Everything
Take a word of advice, do not throw anything away. I had filed a claim with the VA for my cancer, pressing them that it was a result of my exposure to Agent Orange while in Vietnam. [My claim] was denied because I was never classified as boots on the ground and was on a ship out at sea, but I did have one letter of commendation for a short stint that I did in support of some ships in a port. 

It was not something on my DD214 but that one letter was the turning point in the VA’s decision to award me 100% disability for cancer.  So even if something is 50 years old, keep it. 
David A. Sager
Jacksonville, Ark.

Things Were Truly in Black and White
Thought I would share something interesting [with your readers]. I came across an issue of Naval Affairs magazine, from May 1991. Those were truly the dark days, meaning the contents of the magazine were black and white. The only color in the magazine was both sides of the front and back covers.
FRAtoday is truly a great improvement.
God Bless,
Wayne Barron, Branch 89

Send in Your Reunions!
You guys are the best! I just got my January edition and you already put our reunion in it. 
Thanks, we have had about six new members joining our reunions after they have read about us in the FRA magazine.

Our Squadron has seen sea duty on various carrier’s over the years since WWII, so hopefully a few of us have joined the FRA.
Jim Brady

FRAtoday: Hello Shipmate Brady, thanks for your email. We’re glad to hear that our magazine has helped more Shipmates reconnect at your reunions! The Shipmate Forum page was expanded to two pages for several months because we got so much feedback from the readers. We could sure use more reunion dates, but because of the COVID-19 travel limitations, most just did not happen. Maybe this year will be better?

U.S. Navy Does Not Have a Chief of Staff 
With regard to the January 2021 issue of FRAtoday: The article on past President George H.W. Bush, Page 28, there is a photograph of President Bush presenting battle streamers to the Navy.

The caption states the assistance of Navy “Chief of Staff” Adm. Frank B. Kelso. As I’m sure you know, the U.S. Navy does not have a “Chief of Staff.” Rather, the Navy’s leading officer’s title — and Adm. Kelso’s —­ is the Chief of Naval Operations.

Also, I see possibly an Air Force and Army officer in the foreground, but not CNO Adm. Kelso. Assuming he was mentioned in the caption to note he was a participant in the ceremony.
Proofreading error?
Thank you,
Robert Holzlohner, RM1 (Ret.)
Las Vegas, Nev.

FRAtoday: Hi Shipmate Holzlohner, you are correct, the Navy’s member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is called the Chief of Naval Operations, and we apologize for the error. As for the presence of Adm. Kelso, it seems likely that Kelso was involved in the ceremony, but is not pictured in the photo on Page 28. The photo and material for the caption came from the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, so we assumed the information was accurate; apparently it needed an additional layer of fact-checking! Our information can only be as good as our sources, and we appreciate having the wisdom and experience of our readers as one of them! 
Thank you for reading the magazine and I hope you found the article interesting.

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ON AND OFF CAPITOL HILL

Slow Start to 117th Congress
The new 117th Congress has been slow to start with its legislative agenda and start work on the FY2022 budget request due to a new administration taking the reins of power, the impeachment trial in the Senate and the COVID-19 pandemic. The 116th Congress (2019-2020) was marked by bitter partisan clashes, but had some significant legislative victories that include; enactment of the Agent Orange Blue Water Act, repeal of the SBP/DIC offset for military widows, expansion of Agent Orange presumption ailments, no new TRICARE fee increases, expansion of the Veterans Caregiver Act to include all badly disabled veterans, and the enactment of comprehensive veteran suicide prevention legislation, just to name a few. The FRA Legislative Team will work to promote the FRA’s 2021 legislative agenda.     

To keep up-to-date with legislative events on Capitol Hill, FRA members are strongly urged to sign up for NewsBytes, the FRA’s weekly legislative update. If you would like to subscribe, please email: NewsBytes@fra.org, and include your name and contact information in the body of the email. If you are a member of the  FRA or the LA FRA, please include your membership number.    

Active Duty/Reserve Issues
President Biden Sworn in as 46th President
Joe Biden took the oath of office for President of the United States in a ceremony dramatically redesigned by the Coronavirus pandemic. Threats of violence were still simmering in Washington, D.C., which cast a cloud over the celebration of American democracy. His swearing-in at the U.S. Capitol had an unprecedented level of security, with strict physical distancing measures in place as well. More than 200,000 flags were placed on the National Mall, in lieu of the typical crowd of people cheering for their new Commander-in-Chief. President Biden called for unity and an end to the “uncivil war.” He asked supporters of former President Trump to give him a chance. After the swearing in ceremony President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington National Cemetery. The FRA staff has already had virtual meetings with President Biden’s Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense transition teams and have provided them with the association’s 2021 legislative agenda.  

In related news, Senator Kamala Harris resigned from the U.S. Senate to be sworn in as Vice President. California Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Alex Padilla, the current California secretary of state, to serve as Senator until the 2022 election. Alex Padilla, age 47, is the first Mexican American to represent California in the U. S. Senate. He obtained a mechanical engineering degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1994 and worked for Hughes Aircraft in California. He was elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 1999 and in 2006, he was elected to the California State Senate. In 2014 he was elected California Secretary of State. 

SASC Hearing on Secretary of Defense Nominee
The Senate Armed Services Committee held a hearing on the nomination of retired Army General Lloyd Austin to serve as the next Secretary of Defense. Austin needed a waiver to lead the Department of Defense after leaving active duty four years ago, which is short of the seven-year delay required by law. The waiver requires approval by the House and Senate. Jim Mattis, who also was a recently retired four-star Marine general, required the same waiver when Donald Trump picked him to serve as his first defense secretary. Austin would be the first African American to lead the Pentagon. He led the U.S. Central Command until retiring in 2016 and has served in the military since graduating from the U.S. Military Academy in 1975. His appointment has run into bipartisan concern on Capitol Hill, where there are growing concerns about another former General leading the Pentagon in a nation that has a long tradition of civilian control of the military.

He was overwhelmingly approved for Secretary of Defense by the Senate. Congress granted him a waiver from a law restricting those who are retired from military service fewer than seven years from leading the Pentagon. He was swiftly sworn in as Secretary of Defense, filling a senior national security position in President Biden’s cabinet. 

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in his first directive since taking office, ordered his senior leaders to send him reports on sexual assault prevention programs in the military. SecDef Austin’s memo fulfills a commitment he made to senators during his confirmation hearings. He had vowed to immediately address the problems of sexual assault and harassment in the ranks. Several Senators demanded to know what Austin planned to do about the problem. Reports of sexual assaults have steadily gone up since 2006, according to department reports, including a 13% increase in 2018 and a 3% increase in 2019. The 2020 data is not yet available.

CFPB Enforcement of SCRA and MLA Critical for Success
The FRA, and several other like-minded organizations, have dispatched a letter to President Joe Biden and a similar letter to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Sens. Mike Crapo (Idaho) and Sherrod Brown (Ohio,) respectively, urging them to oppose proposals that would curtail the effectiveness of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The CFPB is the only entity tasked with monitoring the financial entities that may violate the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act and the Military Lending Act. The CFPB enforcement of these important statutes is of paramount importance to the financial safety of service members and their families. Military bases are often targeted by financial fraud and high-interest financial instruments of questionable value. But service members’ rights under these statutes become meaningless if they are not enforced. The CFPB has already recovered tens of millions of dollars for service members whose statutory rights to a low interest rate loan were violated.

Biden Voids Ban on Transgender Military Service 
President Joe Biden issued an executive order that requires both the Pentagon and the Homeland Security Department (Coast Guard), to allow transgender individuals to serve in the military. “The all-volunteer force thrives when it is composed of diverse Americans who can meet the rigorous standards for military service, and an inclusive military strengthens our national security,” according to a release from the White House.

The Executive Order eliminates the previous administration’s policy that began in July 2017, that prohibited transgender Americans to serve in the military. Biden’s order immediately shuts down any involuntary separations or denials of continued service based on gender identity, according to the release.

The White House  release stated, “Simply put, transgender service members will no longer be subject to the possibility of discharge or separation on the basis of gender identity; transgender service members can serve in their gender when transition is complete and the gender marker in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS) is changed and transgender service members should know that they are accepted throughout the U.S. military,” The Executive order requires the Department of Defense and Homeland Security to report their progress in overturning the ban to the White House within 60 days.

Retiree Issues
Oppose TRICARE Fee Increases
Some on Capitol Hill have argued that military retirees are using TRICARE at levels that exceed the original design of the program, often foregoing alternative insurance options — such as private, corporate or state-sponsored health care — because TRICARE fees are significantly lower. 

As FRAtoday goes to press, the new administration’s FY2022 budget has not been submitted and no legislation increasing fees has been introduced. FRA members are encouraged to use the Action Center to ask their legislators to not increase TRICARE fees. The FRA advocates that the Defense Department must sufficiently investigate and implement other options to make TRICARE more cost-efficient as alternatives to shifting more costs to TRICARE beneficiaries. The association stresses that military retirees have, in large part, earned their health care benefits with 20 or more years of arduous military service. Members can ask their legislators to oppose TRICARE fee increase by going to the FRA Action Center on the FRA website (https://www.votervoice.net/FRA/campaigns/79235/respond). 

FRA Staff Meet with President-elect Biden’s DOD Transition Team
National Executive Director Chris Slawinski and Director, Legislative Programs John Davis participated in a Zoom conference with key members of then, President-elect’s Department of Defense Transition Team, to discuss issues of concern. The FRA staff stressed that the DOD must sufficiently investigate and implement other options to make TRICARE more cost-efficient as alternatives to shifting costs to TRICARE beneficiaries. 

Furthermore, the FRA asked for immediate payment of concurrent receipt of full, military retired pay and veterans’ disability compensation for all disabled retirees. Concern was also expressed about the recent increase in active-duty veteran suicides. The association expressed concern over the delay in processing Reserve retired pay. These backlogs in the services’ retirement administration office are leading to Reserve Component retirees waiting as much as one year after qualifying to receive any of their retirement pay.

The FRA appreciated the opportunity to discuss issues of mutual concern with the DOD transition team, which was provided the FRA 2021 Legislative Agenda. The agenda is available on the FRA website (www.fra.org) if you click the Advocacy tab, you will find FRA Agenda as an option. 

Congress Overrides NDAA Veto
The FY2021 National Defense Authorization Act (H.R.6395) became law after Congress overrode the president’s veto. The vote was 81-13 in the Senate and 322-87 in the House. Key FRA supported provisions include:
•	Delaying cuts to military medical cuts for 180 days after passage so that beneficiaries will not be impacted.
•	Expanding the list of service-connected presumptions under the Agent Orange statute to incorporate bladder cancer, hypothyroidism and Parkinsonism.
•	Providing annual active-duty pay increases that keep pace with civilian pay (3%) and increasing hazardous duty pay.
•	Expanding military housing protections.
•	Better spouse employment programs.
•	Improving the Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP).

This is the 60th annual NDAA enacted by Congress. 

Democrats Double Win in Georgia Gives them Majority in Senate
After two narrow Senate election victories the Democrats gained control of the U.S. Senate. These victories give the Democrats 50 votes with the Vice President and President of the Senate, Kamala Harris, the tie-breaking vote. Pastor Raphael Warnock defeated incumbent Kelly Loeffer and Jon Ossoff defeated incumbent David Perdue in Georgia. Loeffer was appointed to fill the term of Senator Johnny Isakson who resigned for reasons of failing health. Ossoff, who is 33, will be the youngest Senator in the 117th Congress. Democrats now control the White House, the House of Representatives and the Senate. Although a super-majority of 60 senators is generally needed to pass major legislation in the Senate.

Keep DEERS Updated
Beneficiaries or your family member that have experienced a change last year, need to update your Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System information. The Defense Health Agency wants beneficiaries to be sure their family information is up to date with DEERS. If you do not keep your information current, it could delay access to health care. Errors can also cause delays with claims and prescription delivery. 

Beneficiaries should update your DEERS information anytime you experience a Qualifying Life Event (QLE). Some QLEs include moving, turning age 65, getting married, divorced or having a child. These life events mean TRICARE health plan options for beneficiaries and their family may change. 

“If you don’t keep your DEERS record up to date after QLEs, you may miss enrollment deadlines,” said Mark Ellis, chief of the Policy and Programs Section of the TRICARE Health Plan with the Defense Health Agency. “Another reason to keep your DEERS information current, like your address and phone number, is so you don’t experience a break in your coverage.”

Beneficiaries should also keep your DEERS information up to date, so you do not miss important information, such as current COVID-19 news ) https://www.tricare.mil/coronavirus). As more information around COVID-19 vaccinations becomes available, up to date information in DEERS will help make sure that you get the latest updates and then act accordingly.

Beneficiaries can make DEERS updates online, by phone, in person, or by mail. To add or remove family members, they must do so in person. If you are a sponsor or family member, you can make address changes and update other personal information. But only sponsors can add a family member in DEERS. You may need certain documents to do so, such as a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or birth certificate.

You can view and update DEERS information for you and your family members by going online, (https://milconnect.dmdc.osd.mil/milconnect/) calling 1-800-538-9552 (TTY/TDD: 1-866-363-2883) or fax updates to 1-800-336-4416. If you want to do this in person, you can find your local Uniformed Services ID card office (https://idco.dmdc.osd.mil/idco/) and make an appointment. You can also submit updates to the Defense Manpower Data Center Support Office
(Attn: COA), 400 Gigling Road Seaside, CA, 93955-6771.

The DHA urges beneficiaries to take command of their health this year and start the New Year with making sure your DEERS information (https://www.tricare.mil/deers) up to date.

Veterans Issues
President Trump Signs Veterans Omnibus Bill
Before leaving office, President Trump signed into law the Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act (H.R.7105). The bill includes major provisions of the FRA-supported Deborah Sampson Act, which assists women veterans with the creation of the VA Office of Women’s Health and other provisions. Some key provisions of the act include:

•	Increasing Fry Scholarship for children of deceased active-duty service members.
•	Enlarging the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) protections for Reserve component members on state active orders.
•	Expanding Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) to Coast Guard members under stop-movement orders.
•	Lowering the qualifying age that is currently 57 to 55 for surviving spouses who remarry to receive DIC benefits.
•	Increasing funds for Veteran Employment Through Technology Education Courses (VET TEC) program.

The FRA supported the bill but is concerned about using home loan fees to pay for these benefits.

SVAC Hearing on VA Secretary Nominee
The Senate Veterans Affairs Committee held a hearing to consider Denis R. McDonough, President Biden’s pick, to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs, as well as its first business meeting of the new Congress. Sen. Jon Tester (Mont.) will now serve as SVAC chairman.  He pledged to do the work of the committee in a non-partisan manner. The chairman challenged McDonough to address the growing backlog of claims at the VA, implement critical reforms consistent with Congressional intent, monitor the expansion of the caregiver program, implementation of the new Electronic Health Record system, support ongoing COVID-19 vaccine efforts, and live up to the promises made to veterans nationwide.

Veterans in the 117th Congress 
There are 91 members of the 117th Congress who have prior military service, which is only 17% of Congress. This number has steadily declined when compared from its peak in the 1970’s when the number of veterans in congress was around 75%. 

The veterans in the 117th Congress by the numbers: 
 • 17 will serve in the Senate, 74 will serve in the House. 
 • 28 are Democrats, 63 are Republicans. 
 • More than half (49) had overseas combat deployments. 
 • 15 are first-time lawmakers. 
 • 6 are female. 
 • 44 served in the Army, Army Reserve or Army National Guard. 
 • 15 served in the Air Force, Air Force Reserve or Air National Guard. 
 • 15 served in the Marine Corps or Marine Corps Reserve. 
 • 17 served in the Navy or Naval Reserve. 
 • None served in the Coast Guard. 

The 117th Congress begins with Democrats taking control of both chambers of congress by holding the majority in the House and flipping the Senate, providing Democrats a legislative advantage. The House currently stands at 222 Democrats and 211 Republicans, with two races still uncalled. Due to the recent defeat of 2 Republican incumbents in Georgia, the Senate now stands at 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans with the tie-breaking coming from Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. This gives a majority control of the Senate to Democrats, although most controversial decisions will require 60 votes to pass. 

Young Veterans Experience Higher Suicide Rate
Veterans ages 18 to 34 experience a higher rate of suicide than all other age brackets of veterans. The suicide rate for young veterans increased by 76% from 2005 to 2017, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs’ 2020 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report. A growing number of these veterans never experienced combat. In 2017, President Donald Trump signed a bill that created the Recovery Engagement and Coordination for Health – Veterans Enhanced Treatment (REACH VET) program, which expands mental health resources for veterans. The program screens all service members prior to leaving the military to help VA identify at-risk service members.

Nonprofit organizations and the VA are also collaborating to create a resource network to provide mental health services before and after service members leave the military. The FRA supports improvements and monitors the implementation of the VA and DoD suicide prevention programs that reduce the rate of suicide among veterans and active-duty service members. 

FEATURE  STORY

The U.S. Coast Guard’s Role at Normandy
Supporting History’s Largest Amphibious Operation

By W.D. Stevenson

World War II made a major impact upon all of America’s armed services — not just on the Army, Navy, Marines and soon-to-be Air Force, but also on the United States Coast Guard. Leading up to the U.S.’s entry into the war, the Coast Guard’s responsibilities increased. Their rank and file grew accordingly, to a record high of more than 170,000 guardsmen serving at one time. In fact, nearly 250,000 personnel served over the course of the war. The U.S. Coast Guard proved it was always ready, or “semper paratus” — ready to perform any maritime missions required by the war effort. It supported both combat and traditional service missions, including search and rescue, marine safety, convoy escort, port security, beach patrol, troop transport and amphibious operations. Yes, the USCG was even at Normandy and played a crucial role in Operation Neptune, the initial landing phase of Operation Overlord, the largest amphibious operation in the history of the world.

Operation Overlord
The D-Day landings at Normandy, France, took place on June 6, 1944, on the south side of the English Channel in the Bay of the Seine between the Cotentin Peninsula and the port of Le Havre. The bay was about 55 miles wide and 20 miles deep. Its waters were shallow with a broad tidal range. When the wind blew from the north, the waters were very choppy. The landing beaches for the U.S. forces comprised 45 miles of shoreline. The western area was Utah Beach, which stretched 8 miles south along the low-lying coast of the Cotentin Peninsula. Omaha Beach was just to the east and covered 12 miles of hilly terrain. The U.S. forces were assigned to those areas while British and Canadian troops would assault Gold, Juno and Sword beaches, which ran 20 miles east from Omaha Beach. 

The designated landing zones occupied a small portion of each area and were to provide enough of a foothold for rapid reinforcement and expansion inland. The attacking forces would then be able to create a continuous beachhead perimeter before a major counterattack. The plan was to have each area assaulted by one army division, with additional support from much smaller units. 

The assault started with the American zones at 6:30 a.m. and was followed one hour later by British forces. A bombardment of the shoreline with ships’ guns and aircraft ordnance followed, but only briefly to maintain the element of surprise. The plan, albeit a good one on paper, unfortunately left the German defenses pretty much intact, which was detrimental to both the landing forces and ships offshore.

The U.S. 82nd and 101st Airborne divisions descended by parachute and glider to help protect the invasion zone’s western end and support the Utah Beach landing force’s forward movement into the Cotentin Peninsula. Even though the airborne forces were scattered and lacked crucial gear, the paratroopers kept the Germans occupied and ensured the assault went relatively smoothly. The British and Canadian attacks were assisted by an air-dropped division on their eastern flank supported by a longer and more successful naval bombardment.

The USCG and Operation Neptune
The landing at Omaha Beach did not go as smoothly as those at the other zones. The deep beaches were backed by steep hills, exposing the U.S. troops that landed there to horrendously effective fire from enemy small arms, machine guns and artillery. The Allied warships came in as close as possible and provided direct gunfire support for the hard-pressed force. The casualties at Omaha were very heavy and the assault only succeeded after a day of some of the most brutal fighting seen in all of Operation Overlord. 

Prior to D-Day, President Roosevelt thought that Operation Neptune needed a rescue flotilla. The Coast Guard had 60 83-foot patrol boats, nicknamed the “Matchbox Fleet,” on anti-submarine duty. Although they were constructed of wood and had gasoline engines, which is where they got the nickname, they were available and had trained crews. Of course, they were renamed Rescue Flotilla 1, and rescued nearly 500 Allied personnel on June 6, 1944. During the first hours of the D-Day assault, they rescued 194 service members off Omaha Beach, 157 off Utah Beach, and 133 off Gold, Juno and Sword beaches. The total number rescued during the flotilla’s time at Normandy was 1,438 sailors, soldiers and Marines.

There were at least 98 cutters and Coast Guard-manned vessels that participated in Operation Neptune. It was the largest single combat operation that the USCG, to date, has ever undertaken. There were 60 cutters, three APAs (amphibious attack ships), 11 LSTs (landing ships, tank) and 24 LCIs (landing craft, infantry) that made up the Coast Guard’s amphibious support fleet during D-Day.

The plan had originally called for the Matchbox Fleet to stay away from the shores, and some ships did stay 2 miles out. It was not long, however, before many crews realized that they had to get closer if they wanted to reach the men who were in danger, so the cutters moved forward. They began sailing back and forth near the coast at 5:00 a.m. and rescued men out of the water by literally reaching over and grabbing as many as possible. In the first four hours, CGC-16, nicknamed the “Homing Pigeon,” rescued 90 sailors and soldiers. That was a rescue every three minutes.

The crews took the personnel they fished out of the water to the Navy’s USS DICKMAN, where the wounded were treated. Over the course of the day, CGC-16 would come to the aid of another 36 men, bringing the crew’s D-Day total to 126 rescued, the most of any single ship.

There were other crews who distinguished themselves at Normandy as well. The CGC-1 rescued 43 men and spent much of the day within 2,000 feet of the beaches. The CGC-34 pulled 32 British troops and sailors from the English Channel, and the CGC-53 rescued five men while taking some brutal fire from a German shore battery. The HMS RODNEY came to the cutter’s rescue by blowing up the German shore battery with its large naval guns.

A Costly Success
By nightfall on the sixth of June, the Allies’ military positioning was favorable, even on Omaha Beach.  But victory had come at a high price, and the crews of the Matchstick Fleet did not escape these losses. More Coast Guard vessels were lost or damaged that day than at any other time in the USCG’s history. The vessels that were destroyed in action were LCI(L)-85, 91, 92 and 93. The latter three were lost on Omaha Beach while the 85 sank offshore. Other vessels used the burning LCI wrecks as navigation markers. Fifteen Coast Guardsmen died in the invasion on D-Day. Most were crewmen from the landing craft that participated in the Omaha Beach assault. Six of those who were killed in action are buried in the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in France. 

After D-Day, the Matchstick Fleet continued their duties until December 1944, when they were disbanded.  There was one Navy Cross, 11 Silver Stars and one British Distinguished Service Cross awarded to Coast Guardsmen for their bravery, which saved the lives of so many of their fellow Americans. 

FEATURE

Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr.
The Accidental President

By Ann Norvell Gray

If you were looking for an example of how life can throw you a curveball and change everything, you’d find a good one in the career of Gerald Ford, gifted athlete, Navy veteran, congressman from Michigan and the 38th president of the United States. For 24 years, he was a reliable Republican fixture in the House of Representatives, with a reputation for fairness and not a whiff of drama. Then in 1973, a disturbance not of his making forced the resignation of the vice president and catapulted him into the vice president’s chair. A year later, a second, much larger scandal would deposit him in the Oval Office, making him the only American to hold both those offices without being elected to either one.

Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. was born Leslie Lynch King Jr. in 1913 in Omaha, Nebraska, to parents whose marriage dissolved weeks after his birth, and ended within the year. His mother went home to Grand Rapids, Michigan. When he was 2 1/2, his mother married Gerald R. Ford, and little Leslie Lynch King Jr. became Gerald R. Ford Jr.  The growing boy was something of a model son in his close family, excelling in the classroom and on the football field, working for pocket money in the family business, and becoming an Eagle Scout. At the University of Michigan, he was a football star. In 1935, he played in the All-Star game against the Chicago Bears. Although recruited by the Detroit and Green Bay teams, Ford chose instead to take his economics degree to Yale University, where he worked his way into the law school with a job as a boxing and football coach. 

After graduating in the top quarter of his law class, he set up a practice back home in Grand Rapids, continued coaching college football and got interested in politics. Just as his involvement in local Republican affairs was taking shape, the country entered World War II. In April of 1942, Ford was commissioned as an ensign in the U.S. Naval Reserve. Orientation at the U.S. Naval Academy was followed by an assignment teaching physical fitness at North Carolina’s preflight school, where he also coached nine sports. During that year, he was promoted to lieutenant junior grade, and then to lieutenant.

His application for sea duty in 1943 landed him aboard the new Independence-class light aircraft carrier USS MONTEREY (CVL-26), where he served as assistant navigator, athletic officer and anti-aircraft battery officer. During the next two years, the carrier participated in actions in the Pacific with the 3rd and 5th fleets, and suffered no battle damage, but took a crippling hit from a powerful tropical cyclone that struck in December of 1944. Operating on inaccurate information about the location and direction of the typhoon, Adm. William “Bull” Halsey Jr. sailed the 3rd Fleet right into the center of the storm. Young Lt. Ford’s experience is described by his Naval History and Heritage Command biography this way:
“Monterey was one of several ships damaged by the typhoon, which hit Admiral Halsey's Third Fleet on 18-19 December 1944. The Third Fleet lost three destroyers and over 800 men. ... Monterey was damaged by a fire which was started by several of the ship's aircraft tearing loose from their cables and colliding during the storm. … As Ford headed for his battle station on the bridge of the ship in the early morning of 18 December, the ship rolled twenty-five degrees which caused Ford to lose his footing and slide toward the edge of the deck. The two inch steel ridge around the edge of the carrier slowed him enough so he could roll and twist into the catwalk below the deck. As he later stated, ‘I was lucky; I could have easily gone overboard.’" 

Back in Grand Rapids after the war, the young lawyer, now a lieutenant commander in the Naval Reserve, was drawn back into civic engagement and politics. His war experience had altered his views, and with his internationalist leanings, he managed a surprising upset of the isolationist incumbent in the Republican primary. He was elected in 1948 to the U.S. House of Representatives by a comfortable margin. During that campaign, he made one of the wisest commitments of his life and married Elizabeth Anne Bloomer Warren, a divorced fashion model who had trained as a dancer. This was potentially politically risky, but after four children and 12 handily won reelections, this appeared to not have been a factor for voters. 

As the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum’s website notes, Ford once described himself as “a moderate in domestic affairs, an internationalist in foreign affairs, and a conservative in fiscal policy.” His reputation led him up through the internal congressional ladder, becoming chairman of the House Republican Conference by 1961. Two years later, President Lyndon Johnson appointed him to the Warren Commission investigating the Kennedy assassination, and two years after that, he became minority leader of the House.

Section 2 of the 25th Amendment to the Constitution reads, “Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress.” When then-Vice President Spiro Agnew’s long history of taking kickbacks and bribes and playing fast and loose with the IRS caught up with him and he resigned, President Nixon needed someone respected in Congress and upright enough to survive thorough investigation by the FBI. Gerald Ford was clearly the right man, and in December of 1973, he became the first person appointed to the vice presidency under the 25th Amendment. By then, however, the layers of the Watergate onion were already peeling away one by one. Less than a year later, Nixon resigned the presidency, and the new vice president, whose only ambition had been to become speaker of the House, became the accidental president of the United States.
For the next 2 1/2 years, Ford worked to restore public confidence in government after the disillusionment of the Watergate debacle. 

“Our long national nightmare is over,” he declared in his inaugural address. “Our Constitution works. Our great republic is a government of laws and not men.” 

A domestic energy crisis and a struggling economy, complicated by the challenge of working with a heavily Democratic Congress, made for mixed reviews of his performance in the White House. His vibrant and politically active first lady, on the other hand, maintained high approval ratings for her visible commitments to the rights of women. Her candidness in telling her own breast cancer story led women across the country into treatment and survival. The directness of perhaps the most respectable woman in the country about her own alcoholism and addiction opened the door of recovery to other people for whom maintaining respectability was a critical part of their lives. It also led to the creation of the Betty Ford Center in 1982. The Fords’ obvious respect and affection for each other comprised a model for marital success in the complicated arena of national politics.

Still, the pardoning of Richard Nixon continued to surface in the story of Gerald Ford’s presidency. Controversy over the pardon itself, and widespread suspicion that it was part of a deal to influence Nixon’s resignation, may have contributed to Ford’s 1976 election loss to Jimmy Carter. For the rest of his life, Ford never wavered in his insistence that there was no such deal. In his memoir, “A Time to Heal,” he described a moment at the beginning of August 1974 when Gen. Alexander Haig, who was Nixon’s chief of staff, came into Ford’s office and told him that the “smoking gun” tape was about to be released, the situation in the White House was collapsing and he’d better prepare to assume the presidency. Ford wrote that he replied that he would offer no advice to the president or his staff, would have no part in choosing among the several options being considered, and would not agree in advance to any course of action, whatever the president’s decision turned out to be.

In 1989, during a televised visit to West Branch, Iowa, with schoolchildren from across the state, Ford answered the question that remained on the minds of much of the nation. 

“Mr. President,” a young boy asked, “why did you pardon President Nixon?” 
Outlining the pile of domestic and foreign policy problems that had suddenly become his responsibility, Ford said, “I was spending 25% of my time on the problems of one man at a time when I should have been spending 100% of my time on the problems of 240 million Americans. … In the passing of time, I am more convinced now … it was the right thing to do.”1 

Historians seem to disagree on whether it was the pardon, the mixed reviews of his term or the probability that no Republican could have won the post-Watergate election, that cost Ford a second term. Some Navy veterans objected to the naming of the USS GERALD R. FORD (CVN-78), the first of the Navy’s newest class of aircraft carriers. What doesn’t appear to be in doubt is that Gerald Ford — Eagle Scout, naval officer and dedicated congressman —  was a calming influence whose primary objective was the righting of the national ship at risk of foundering in a scandal-ridden storm.  

1.	Iowa Public Television (IPTV), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmnuNjA0pxY

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MEMBERHSIP MATTERS

What is the FRA All About?

Have you ever found yourself confronted by the question, “What is the FRA about?”  Perhaps you were chatting with friends or maybe you had met other retirees or veterans at a public event?  In any case, we thought it would be handy to equip Shipmates with a simple description of the FRA’s mission and the activities that happen so the next time you’re in that situation, you are better prepared to answer that simple question.

The Fleet Reserve Association is an advocacy group. Nationally, the FRA’s primary mission is to represent the interests of Shipmates on Capitol Hill during the lawmaking processes that govern our nation.  The membership dues and donations raised for the FRA are used to deliver persuading messages to lawmakers on the behalf of our members and their families to ensure that the hard-earned privileges and benefits of service are preserved and expanded, rather than stripped down or canceled entirely.  

To complete this mission, the FRA stays abreast of political and policy making discussions in and around Washington, D.C., and weighs in whenever possible. Throughout the nearly 100 years of the FRA’s existence, we have scored many victories on behalf of Shipmates. Some of the most notable include supporting the TRICARE for Life initiative, protecting military retirement benefits and securing pay increases for career enlisted personnel.  

The FRA engages its membership through a network of branches, committees and leadership opportunities. Once a year, the association’s leaders meet for a national convention to review association business, including legislative priorities, improvements and amendments to the national bylaws, and the selection and installation of new personnel into key roles.  Through these efforts and the combined experience of hundreds of volunteers, the FRA pursues a vigorous agenda of legislative priorities. During the 116th Congress, which ran from January 2019 to January 2021, the FRA recorded at least 21 specific achievements in the interests of branch-affiliated Shipmates and Members-at-Large.  

The most powerful tool Shipmates have is the FRA Action Center.  During that same period, more than 73,000 emails were sent to elected representatives and other key personnel using the Action Center. The FRA’s national headquarters staff use this information to focus their efforts on the messages that are of greatest importance to Shipmates and their families. Shipmates can send as many messages as they want at no cost, so it is a great way to ensure voices are heard.  

Whether Shipmates served at sea or on land, they share a bond common to all the sea services — the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard — in that they learned to live and work in close quarters, where teamwork and a strict commitment to precision and discipline were of particular importance. The FRA’s national headquarters sees these traits borne out every day in its interactions with Shipmates and other constituents. We are proud to pursue their needs and priorities on their behalf.       FRA
Yours in Loyalty, Protection and Service,
Christina Hitchcock

Christina is the FRA’s director of membership. She can be reached at ChristinaH@fra.org or 703-683-1400, ext. 123.   
Shipmate News

1. Branch 226, Staten Island, N.Y.
On Nov. 16, 2020, a plaque was presented to Marine Science Technician 2nd Class Abigail Caudill, who was selected as the U.S. Coast Guard Sector New York Enlisted Person for the third quarter. (L to R) Command Master Chief Robert Riemer, FRA Branch 226 President James Brown, MST2 Abigail Caudill and Chief Petty Officers Association President Senior Chief Petty Officer Chris Martinez.

2. Branch 316, Springfield, Mo.
Shipmates of Ozark Empire Branch attended the 6th Annual Veterans Ball that was put on by the Student Veterans of Springfield, to honor the heroes of the Vietnam War. (L to R) Nolon Moody, Bernie Daum, Branch President Tom Newsom, Chuck Duff, Hugh Mills, RVPNC Maria Behm, Robert Behm and Branch Secretary Chuck Ewy.

3. Branch 208, Jacksonville, N.C.
Camp Lejeune Branch Shipmate Tim Manchester and his wife Jennifer are proud to announce their daughter Brittany has joined the United States Air Force and began her Basic Military Training in late 2020.  

4. Branch 40, CHESAPEAKE, VA.
FRA National Vice President Jim Campbell and LA FRA National President Jackie Scarbro placed a memorial wreath to honor the fallen at the Flag Retirement Ceremony held at the branch home. Boy Scout Troop 16 of Suffolk, Virginia, also participated in the ceremonies.

5. Branch 230, Roseville, CAlif.
A plaque recognizing his long and dedicated service to the FRA was presented to Shipmate Elmer Frank at his home. (L to R) Branch Secretary Jerry McColley, Branch Chaplain Harold Hayek, Elmer Frank, Branch President Don Goard and Mary Ann Frank. 

6. Branch 161, Kansas City, Kan.
Mo-Kan Branch delivered turkeys to several group homes in the Greater Kansas City area. This photo was taken at Every Child’s Hope, a transition home for youth.  (L to R) Tony Quintero, a facility assistant, Director of the Kansas City Steppingstone program Lynn Durbin, PRPNC Norm Combs, Honorary Branch Member Debbie Palmer and RPNC Jerry Lickteig.

7. Branch 98, Shreveport, La.
Shipmates attended the unveiling of the Women Veteran Monument on Veterans Day in Bossier City, Louisiana. (L to R) PRPSC Emmett Smith, Branch President Willie Hill, RPSC C. Ursula Gruetzner and Bill Davis. 

8. Branch 29, Bremerton, Wash.
Shipmate Larry Daley burned worn American flags during an official flag retirement ceremony that was held in Bremerton to honor Flag Day on June 14, 2020.

9. Branch & Unit 382, Nampa, Idaho
FRA Branch President and RPNW Danny Hunt and LA FRA Unit President Rose Hall (wearing their covers) were presented with a donation check from the GFWC Woman’s Century Club of Nampa on Nov. 23, 2020. Both were guest speakers at the Century Club luncheon.

10. Branch 14, Milwaukee, Wis.
Branch President Marcia Cunningham helped decorate the Navy tree in a challenge for the branches on Nov. 21, 2020, at the War Memorial. Center. (L to R) Aviation Boatswain’s Mate Aircraft Handling Chief Select Joshua Waraczynski, Marcia Cunningham and Logistics Specialist Chief Select Phillip Balistreri. Navy won second place.

11. Branch 208, Jacksonville, N.C.
Branch President Raymond Applewhite presented a certificate of Outstanding Achievement in the Americanism Essay Contest to Madisson Templeton, who was the second place winner for the East Coast Region. She was presented a $50 gift certificate. 

12. Branch 161, Kansas City, Kan.
The Mo-Kan Branch holds their Annual Gift Wrap each year. Several Shipmates gather each year to wrap and deliver Christmas gifts to several group homes in the area. This year was different because masks were worn and social distancing was practiced during the wrapping sessions.

TAPS
Name	Rating	Branch
Abraham, Richard	PNC, USN	93
Akkerman, Daryl J.	NCC, USN	29
Arflack, James D.	AMCS, USN	261

Ballard, Charles D.	STG1, USN	MAL
Barnett, Robert R.	USN	29
Bassi, Charles L.	PHCM, USN	MAL
Bennet Billy	MMC, USN	89
Bentien Dorothy E.	YNC, USN	MAL
Bishop, Robert D.	CMDCM(SW), USN	162
Bisson, Melvin L.	AMS1, USN	136
Bostedt, Gerald D.	MRCM, USN	14
Bowab, George P.	MMC, USN	72
Brantley, Charles T.	MRC, USN	194
Broderick, Michael J.	PS1, USCG	MAL
Buettner, Clayton L.	GMGC, USN	14
Butler, Raymond L.	RMC, USN	289

Casey, Robert	QMCM, USN	MAL
Comeau, George	CWO3, USN	40
Courtney, Thomas D.	IC3, USN	MAL
Covey, Paul A.	RMC, USN	MAL

Daniel, Charles W.	CS1, USN	MAL
Davis, Roy O.	ET1, USN	MAL
Dill, Walter H.	CWO4, USN	22
Dimick, Robert	LCDR, USN	MAL
Downs, Lee B.	NC1, USN	11

Eason, Franklin D.	RMCS, USN	187
England, Albert A.	GYSGT, USMC	MAL
Estes, Fletcher L.	PO1, USN	MAL

Feddersen, Vernon C.	AMSC, USN	MAL
Feltz, Roger H.	OMC, USN	MAL
Fernandez, Emmanuel S.	SKCS, USN	MAL
Fretwell, Richard A.	GMTCS, USN	MAL
Frost, Sergio M.	EMCM(SS), USN	289
Fry, Charles F.	PNCM, USN	115

Ganey, Walter F.	CWO4, USN	166
Gardner, Billy J.	SM1, USN	MAL
Goettlicher, Gary R.	ADRC, USN	273
Gunther, William C.	YNC(SS), USN	60

Hallowell, Richard C.	OSC, USN	MAL
Hardy, Edward J.	SKCM, USN	MAL
Harriger, Robert J.	SKC/CPO, USN	MAL
Hayes, Robert E.	LNC, USN	73
Hedren, Carl L.	SHC, USN	302
Hennessey, Michael J.	PO1, USA	MAL
Herbein, John G.	CAPT, USN	MAL
Hester, Robert Z.	ENC(SS), USN	259
Hindel, James	AT1, USN	269
Hines, Kenneth F.	LCDR, USN	90
Howard, John A.	EMCS, USN	20
Hugo, Demetrio S.	MS2, USN	127
Humphrey, Billy L.	SCPO, USN	MAL
Husby, Paul W.	ETC, USNR	276

Ireland, Francis D.	AQC, USN	261

Jenkins, Gordon K.	ADCS, USN	289
Jones, John M.	CTICS, USN	301

Keen, Huey E.	PNC, USN	MAL
Kessler, Theodore J.	TDC, USN	MAL
PNP Kilgore, Mark A.	RPCM(SW), USN	22
King, William B.	SCPO, USN	34
Kovach, Stephen K.	SCPO, USN	MAL
Kraemer, Orval L.	BTC, USN	377
Kyser, Larry O.	ABE3, USN	22

Lauraitis, Thomas	AWC, USN	MAL
Leaf, Carl S.	ASCS, USN	104
Lopeman, Michael	ICC(SS), USN	20

Maddox, Jackie K.	AWC, USN	86
Marquardt, Robert	ACC, USN	MAL
Martin, Daniel L.	BTCS(SW), USN	MAL
Martin, Charles E.	ETCM(SS), USN	MAL
Martinez, Esperison	CMSGT, USN	24
May, Brian	FTC, USNR	MAL
McConnell, James T.	LT, USN	118
McDonough, William J.	AWCS, USN	156
McMillen, Kenneth V.	LCDR, USN	MAL
Meisner, Maurice E.	AD3, USN	263
Melson, Robert A.	PRPNC, USNR	130
Miles, Lavor J.	MMC, USN	MAL
Minas, Jose V.	SD1, USN	84
Moffett, Carl L.	LT, USN	24

Nagle, John J.	A01, USN	MAL
Neal, Paul J.	FTGC, USN	MAL
Nielsen, Burdette G.	PO2, USN	364
Null, Christopher	OMC, USN	290

O’Rawe, John	MMCS(SS), USN	MAL
Odom, Gregg V.	ADCS, USN	289
Olsen, George E.	GYSGT, USMC	136

Pagnotta, Austin M.	DCCM, USCGR	38
Patterson, Perry S.	CDR, USN	MAL
Payne, Gordon E.	EN1, USN	MAL
Peck, David T.	MTC, USN	37
Pedroni, John J.	TMC(SS), USN	60
Pester, Fred J.	ENC, USN	136
Phelps, George R.	PHCS, USN	MAL
Pietrowski, Joseph A.	MMCS, USN	MAL
Pinson, Harold E.	PN1, USN	382
Pugh, Larry J.	BM1, USN	186

Rauch, Carl C.	HM1, USN	57
Risher, Barth A.	HMC, USN	MAL

Sansone, Joseph	RADM(SC), USN	MAL
Schaub, Leroy R.	AEC, USN	91
Schneider, Joseph J.	PN3, USN	214
Selleck, Maynard L.	EMCM, USN	290
Senior, Robert T.	HMC(SW), USN	01
Shuler, Gary R.	QM1, USN	106
Stithem, Charles K.	BMCM, USN	29
Sullivan, Gerald W.	EMC, USN	185
Sutton, John N.	CWO, USN	60
Sutton, William H.	STC, USN	MAL

Taguba, Rustico C.	DTC, USN	MAL
Taylor, Levon M.	HM3, USN	161
Thompson, Allen L.	YNC, USN	161
Thorp, Albert W.	MMCS(SW), USN	298
Tiernay, Terry W.	CDR, USN	274
Tregoning, John H.	ENCS (SS), USN	53
Troutman, Thomas A.	CPO(UTC), USN	MAL
Tucker, David S.	SA, USNR	290

Valere, Alexander F.	CSCS, USN	01
Vertrees, Gerald J.	AFCM, USN	90

Wappler, John F.	CTM1, USN	22
White, Edward R.	YNCM(SS), USN	291
Whitt, Gerald E.	ATC, USN	89
Whitten, James	CPO, USN	70
Wilson, Thomas	RMC, USN	40
Wolohan, Michael P.	AK1(AW), USN	67
Woods, Ernest C.	END3(SS), USN	275
Worth, Richard W.	UTC, USN	307

Zebratski, John J.	CWO2, USN	MAL
Zuber, Robert A.	EMC, USN	115

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A Message from the Southeast Regional President

Happy Valentine’s Day!
It is truly an honor to serve a second term as the LA FRA regional president for the Southeast Region. The Southeast Region does their best to perform charitable work for military service members, their families, the community and our America veterans. COVID-19 has really put a restriction on what we can do, but we are managing to deal with the circumstances.

During the holidays, units participated in holiday parades, prepared food baskets for the needy, helped fill shoe boxes with gifts for Operation Christmas Child, wrote Christmas cards for our military members overseas and were very involved with Toys for Tots. One of our units did a drive-by Toys for Toys campaign, which benefited children on Christmas. We also sent care packages filled with goodies and coupons for the families to use on base.
  Each year, our units also work with their branches and attend veteran events. One of the things we do is place flags or wreaths at the graves of our veterans.

Our region also has various fundraising events that include, but are not limited to, yard sales, bake sales, car washes, auctions and 50/50 raffles. 

To help increase the number of our members, we advertise, make telephone calls and are always sure to have membership applications in our possession. We could not make this happen without all our units. 

The 12 units in our region are: 
•	Unit 22 - Pensacola, Florida 
•	Unit 91 - Jacksonville, Florida
•	Unit 102 - St. Petersburg, Florida 
•	Unit 126 - W. Jacksonville, Florida                                                                
•	Unit 183 - Interlachen, Florida 
•	Unit 194 - Knoxville, Tennessee		
•	Unit 210 - Milton, Florida 
•	Unit 269 - Goose Creek, South Carolina 
•	Unit 290 - Atlantic Beach, Florida 
•	Unit 291 - New Port Richey, Florida 
•	Unit 294 - Crossville, Tennessee
•	Unit 346 – Panama City Beach, Florida
 The Southeast Regional Convention will be held in Jacksonville, Florida, this year at the Ramada by Wyndham Jacksonville Hotel and Conference Center from Aug. 23 to 27. 

The Southeast Region’s members are proud to serve our auxiliary and country in any way that we can.   FRA
In Loyalty, Protection and Service, 
Gale Nathan 

Gale is the LA FRA president of the Southeast Region.
FINANCE MATTERS

Managing Your Investments During Difficult Times
 
In recent times, a pandemic, economic difficulties, political unrest and natural disasters have all presented their respective challenges. Besides grappling with the near-term effects of these situations, investors may be wondering what effect these events could have on their investments. It’s helpful for investors to focus on three fundamental actions that could help them work toward meeting their investment goals — know yourself, build a plan and keep an eye on the long term.

Know Yourself 
When stocks drop by 20% or more, some investors might ignore the drop, others might feel the urge to sell, while still others might see it as a good time to buy. This range of reactions illustrates different levels of risk tolerance, or how sensitive investors are to market volatility. Risk tolerance varies from one investor to another, and no level of tolerance is considered the “right” level — there’s only the right risk tolerance for each investor. Talking with financial advisors or completing online questionnaires can help investors determine their risk tolerance.
While understanding your risk tolerance is essential, it should not be considered in isolation. Risk tolerance, goals and time horizon all play a role in setting an investment plan. 
Investing more aggressively may yield more rewards, but the length of time available for investing also plays a part. A longer time horizon could give investors the potential for compound growth.   And setting specific goals can help to determine how much an investor should accumulate to support their goals.

Build a Plan 
Dwight D. Eisenhower may have said it best — “Plans are worthless, but planning is everything.” Even though a plan may need to be modified to adapt to changes, the very process of setting a plan will help investors to discover and focus on their most important investment goals. 
For a plan to be useful, it’s important for investors to clearly detail which goals they are trying to achieve. Some of an investor’s goals will be shorter term, such as building a rainy day fund. Intermediate-term goals might include buying a house or paying for a child’s education. Longer-term goals might include planning for retirement and potentially leaving a legacy for charities or family. Investors’ assets can then be matched to those various goals. For example, an investor might own short-term bonds to meet a near-term expense, and a mixture of stocks and longer-term bonds to meet needs that are further in the future. The investor’s risk tolerance will help determine the ratio of more volatile assets, such as stocks, to less volatile assets such as bonds.

Keep an Eye on the Long Term 
Once a plan is in place, it’s important to maintain it over the long term. This process includes regularly rebalancing the portfolio if allocations move too far away from targets, a task that in many cases can be automated. Maintenance also includes revisiting plans as investor goals or situations change. A plan is meant to be a living document. 
While market drops can be troublesome, unpredictable economic events have presented challenges in the past. With resilience and creativity, America’s businesses and households have managed to overcome them. While there are no guarantees that past performance will repeat itself, history has shown us that investors who reach their goals are often those who stick to their investment plans and take a long-term view of the markets.   

This article was written by/for Wells Fargo Advisors and provided courtesy of Carl M. Trevisan, Managing Director-Investments and Stephen M. Bearce, First Vice President- Investments in Alexandria, Virginia at 800-247-8602.
Investments in securities and insurance products are: NOT FDIC-INSURED/NOT BANK-GUARANTEED/MAY LOSE VALUE
Wells Fargo Advisors is a trade name used by Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC, Member SIPC, a registered broker-dealer and non-bank affiliate of Wells Fargo & Company.
© 2020 Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. All rights reserved.