Salvatore A. Giunta, in the din-

ing area.

Our fourth annual Corporate

Sponsor Social Mixer was hosted

by one our local Hotels, The

Holiday Inn and Suites, on 4 De-

cember. A nice group of

nearly 30 Corporate Sponsors

and members of the Executive

Committee attended. All en-

joyed a wonderful Holiday buffet

of hors d’oeuvres and compli-

mentary drinks. Several current

and expired members pledged

their renewal, and one new ap-

plication was received. Thanks to

Carolyn Wingard, Lisa Craig, and

Jeri Briggs for assisting with invi-

tations, name tags, and hosting

our Corporate Sponsors.

In March 2011, we will have our

first Luncheon General Member-

ship Meeting. It will be held at

the Courtyard By Marriott on

State Road 16, one of our Cor-

porate Sponsors. This will be a

“come as you are” event -

whether in ACUs, casual, or

business dress. No advanced

payment needed, simply pay at

the Bistro Restaurant. There will

be no formal program - perhaps

an innovation, pledge of alle-

giance and just a few Chapter

announcements. LTC Rob

Keating is our project officer and

he will be getting a flyer out in

mid-February.

Continued on page 2

On behalf

of the

Chapter

Executive

Committee,

we hope

everyone

enjoyed the

Holiday Season with family and

friends and we wish you all a

very happy and prosperous New

Year! Our thoughts and prayers

are always with our military ser-

vice men and women especially

those currently deployed in our

local area, the 3/20th SFB and

1153rd Financial Management De-

tachment. A very welcome home

to the 53rd Infantry Brigade lead by

Colonel Rich Gallant after a very

successful 11 month deployment

to Kuwait and Iraq.

Our chapter had a very busy year,

especially this last quarter. I will

highlight some significant events

that occurred. Our first ever Mili-

tary Family Appreciation Day held

on 9 October at the Mark Lance

Armory exceeded our expecta-

tions. We had an attendance of

over 225 from the Army, Navy,

Air Force and Marine services

with family members. It was a

great day with a free cookout,

music by “3 Up/3 Down“, informa-

tion booths, and activities for chil-

dren. We were supported by

cadets from the Youth Challenge

Academy and JROTC students

from St. Augustine High School. A

big thanks to three of our long-

time members for their support

and participation in opening

ceremonies: BG(Ret) Richard

Capps, Past Chapter President;

County Commissioner and

SGM (Ret) Ray Quinn, and Sher-

iff David Shoar. This entire event

was not only put on free for all

in attendance, it raised over

$3,000 for our operating fund

thanks to generous donations

from private and Corporate

Sponsors. The tireless work

and commitment by our project

officer, CSM (Ret) Carolyn Win-

gard and her volunteers made

our first Military Family Appre-

ciation Day a big success.

Our November General Mem-

bership Meeting at the Officers

Club at St. Francis Barracks set a

record attendance with Major

General Emmett Titshaw, The

Adjutant General of the Florida

National Guard as our distin-

guished Guest Speaker. It was a

fast paced evening of activity

with a superb barbeque dinner

catered by the Stavelys, an ex-

cellent presentation and video

by Maj Gen Titshaw, announce-

ment of the of the Chapter

Awards and Streamers for FY

2009-10 received at the Na-

tional Conference, and recogni-

tion of several volunteers and

Corporate Sponsors. CSM

(Ret) Gary Wingard entertained

us with his guitar in the bar and

fireplace room. Other members

saw a video of the Army’s first

living Medal of Honor recipient

since the Vietnam War, SSG

Message from Chapter President • COL (Ret) Don Workman

January 2011 Volume 1, Issue 1

Association of the United States Army

First Militia Chapter

Highlights:

Chapter Presi-

dent’s Message

Military Family

Appreciation Day

February General Membership meet-

ing and dinner

2010 National

Conference

Awards

experience in Kuwait and

Iraq. Back by popular

demand, Stavey Caterer’s

will be serving their fa-

mous fried chicken with

all the trimmings. BG

(Ret) Capps will also be

making a presentation to

show us how we can

raise some additional

funds involving our entire

Please come join us on

Thursday, February 17,

2011 at St. Francis Bar-

racks for our next Gen-

eral Membership Meeting.

Our guest speaker will be

Colonel Rich Gallant,

Commander of the 53rd

Infantry Brigade. Colonel

Gallant will speak about

his Brigade’s mission and

membership. More about

that in his comments in

this newsletter. The

information flyer and res-

ervation request will be

out in mid - January.

Please get your paid res-

ervations in early because

we expect to fill the 90

seats available very

quickly.

Chapter President’s Message Continued

General Membership Meeting and Dinner

Voice for the

Army,

Support for the

Soldier.

Page 2 Association of the United States Army

I want to once again thank our individual members and Corporate Spon-

sors for their support over the past year --- for your membership, sup-port of our golf tournament fundraiser, the Military Family Appreciation

Day, our General Membership Meetings, and your private donations in support of our events, and Soldier and Family Programs. It has been a

fantastic year and I look forward to an-

other year leading our chapter in support of

Soldiers and Families in

Northeast Florida.

Our outstanding chapter

treasurer, LTC Carol

McClure has taken a new

position at the National

Guard Bureau in Ken-

tucky and will be leaving

in mid-January. Carol will

really be missed, not just

because of the excellent

work she has done over

the last three years but

also because of her al-

ways positive and team

player attitude and the

wonderful person she is.

. Anyone interested in

this volunteer position

with an accounting, audit-

ing or comptroller back-

ground should contact

First Vice President, LTC

Matt Johnson,

(daniel.johnson1@us.arm

y.mil) or Don Workman

at mrdwork-

man@aol.com as soon as

possible.

We are also looking for

someone to help with

finding new volunteers

and coordinating all vol-

unteer efforts at our

events. Please contact

one of the chapter offi-

cers above. Come join

us! You will work with a

nice group of committed

volunteers supporting

our Army, Soldiers and

Families. I think you will

enjoy it!

ADDITIONAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

COL Gerald F. McMullan, Mr. Tibbins E. Gunsallus, Frederick Nunes, BG Huba Wass-de-

Czege, COL Joseph Welker, LTC (Ret)Lonnie Gardner, CPT (Ret) Jerry Ramsey, MSG

(Ret) Roger Hayes, Dr. Edgar Johnson, COL (Ret) Joseph Stock, Mrs. Helen Schleh, COL

(Ret)Julian Stevenson, LTG (Ret) Daniel Schroeder, LTC Lawrence Crimmins, LTC Mark

Tolzmann, SFC Wayne Forgie, COL (Ret) Carl H. Smith, CW5 William Young, BG (Ret)

Jimmy Watson, COL (Ret) John Davis, COL Elizabeth Masters, SGM (Ret) Joe Camit,

CPT (Ret) William Kubon, MSG Scott Parker, CSM (Ret) Greta Penor, LTC Vaughn

Brown, CSM (Ret) Cecil Fox, Mr. John Hornberger, CPT Robert Bellomo, SGM George

Barthelmes, LTC (Ret) Bartholomew O’leary, COL (Ret) Melina Le Duc, COL (Ret)

William Cousins, MAJ (Ret) George Cassady, MAJ (Ret) Sigfred Matson, COL (Ret)

Charles Myers, Joan R. Martin, COL (Ret) John Porter, LTC (Ret) Dennis Pounder, MSG

(Ret) Ray Pearson, LTC (Ret) Howard Parks, SGT (Ret) William Bailey, COL (Ret)

Jesmond Balmer, Mr. Julim Barbot, COL (Ret) E.M. Brisach, Col James Ralph, SGM (Ret)

Angel Garcia-Candal, LTC (Ret) Joseph Gayhart, MAJ (Ret) John Halpin, COL (Ret) Darel

Johnson, Ms. Rosabelle, COL (Ret) George Taylor, MaJ (Ret) Morgan Goring, Maj. Gen.

(Ret) Douglas Burnett, COL (Ret) Patrick Flynn, CW3 Bill Lock, LTC Jeffrey Greenhut,

Mr. Carl Kelle, CSM (Ret) Bert Rowell, LTC (Ret) Ivan Juric, SGM (Ret) George

Macarages, COL (Ret) B.H. Berrey, MAJ Lewis Covin III, MAJ Gray Johnson, COL (Ret)

Walter Mealor, COL (Ret) Fernand Thomassy, COL Lloyd Small, Mr. Benjamin Willis, SPC

George Reyna, CPT(Ret) Juan Villalobos, COL (Ret) Joe R. Miller, CSM Robert Hosford,

COL David Rogers, CSM (Ret) Tommy Williams, LT Thomas Wynn, 1SG (Ret) Ray

Wood, LT Amy King, MD George Corvin, Mr. Clayton Treska, LTG(Ret) Chuck Mahan,

MAJ (Ret) William Almas, COL (Ret) Thomas Sandlin, LTC Cecil Cauley, and LTC

Stephen Dowdie.

FIRST MILITIA CHAPTER AUSA LIFE TIME MEMBERS

whether young or old, retired, Veteran

or still serving, NCO, Officer or Civil-

ian. Thank-you! As of 1 December

here are our 84 Life Time Members:

First Militia salutes our life time

members who have made a long

term commitment to the Association

of the United States Army, and a

member of First Militia Chapter

Association of the

United States

Army

AUSA is a

private, non-

profit

educational

organization that

supports

America’s Army—

Active, National

Guard, Reserve,

Civilians, Retirees

and family

members. AUSA

Chapters

worldwide

develop programs

and activities

that provide

community

support for

America’s Army

through

individual and

corporate

members.

Page 3 Volume 1, Issue 1

Henry is a former Marine,

Staff Sergeant, Korean

Veteran who loves talking

about the good times back

in the 1950s when he

served his country. He

recalls, with a smile, the

day there was a fire in the

kitchen and everyone was

running around trying to get it out. He remembers

the barracks and how he

shared with many men from

different walks of life “but it

didn’t matter”; they were Ma-

rines!

Henry joined the Marines on

24 May 1950 in New York

City, NY and during his four

years of service he worked as a

Jet Mechanic, serving in Korea.

For his service, he received the

Korean Service Medal, the

United Nations Service Medal,

the Good Conduct Medal, the

National Defense Service Medal and the Navy Commen-

dation Medal for Combat with

“V” device. He was discharged

honorably on 23 May 1954 at

Cherry Point, North Carolina.

Henry retired 18 years ago

from PSE&G (Public Service

Electric and Gas) with 36 years

of service. Henry moved to

St. Augustine in July relocating

from New Jersey.

Henry Kuziola is 80 years old

and suffers from Alzheimer’s,

residing at the Emeritus Care

Center on Mariner Health

Way, Suite 114. The First Mili-

tia Chapter, AUSA, Family Pro-

grams has “adopted” Henry

and I encourage you to visit

him from time to time. Henry

only has one family member in

town and visits from others will

lift up his spirits, especially if he

military-pay/cost-of-living-

allowance

Officials announced that the

2011 Cost of Living Adjustment

(COLA) for military retirees,

disabled veterans, and social

security recipients will be zero

for the second year in a row.

Note: Retiree COLA differs

from the Active Duty Cost of

Living Allowance which is paid

based on the cost of living in a given high-cost locality. This

number will be released in late

December. For more informa-

tion, click here: http://

www.military.com/benefits/

Meet Henry

No COLA for Retirees …. Again

Message from the Board of Advisors

awards were presented. The

Chapter excelled in support of

soldiers and their families. The

scholarship program again

awarded outstanding young

men and women toward their

pursuit of higher education.

The Military Appreciation Day,

under the leadership of CSM

(ret) Carolyn Wingard was a total success with over 200

members of all services partici-

pating. The November General

Membership meeting had over

89 attendees and enlightened

by the presentation from MG

Titshaw (TAG-FL) about the

current status of the FLARNG.

Again thanks to Col (ret) Don

Workman and his staff for

furthering the accomplishments

and continued support to the

soldiers and their families. The

Chapter has even higher expec-

tations and plans for 2011.

BG (Ret) Richard G. Capps

Chairman of the Board

Just a few words from the

Board of Advisors as we close

out 2010. What a year it has

been for the First Militia Chap-

ter. The Chapter has again

achieved new levels of per-

formance which was recog-

nized during the AUSA Na-

tional Conference in October

2010. During the November General Membership meeting

the steamers for each of those

AUSA works

diligently on Capital

Hill ensuring that

our soldiers and

their families are

taken care of. AUSA

is also a watch dog

for government

civilian’s issues. To

learn more about

the work on Capital

Hill go to:

http://www.ausa.org/

legislation/

Page 4 Association of the United States Army

During the 2010 Association of the United States Army’s (AUSA) Annual Meeting and Exposition, Army leaders expressed their commitment to providing long-term sup-port to survivors of the fallen military and will continue to create and expand programs and resources to help achieve this goal. Army General George W. Casey Jr., U.S. Army Chief of Staff, accompanied by his wife, Sheila, spoke on the impor-tance of survivor care during a two-hour family fo-

rum. Survivors expressed a need to continuously stay connected with the Army, rather than be cut off from the people and organization they had come to see as family. The Army needs to raise mental fitness to the same level as physical fit-ness so seeking care for an emotional issue becomes comparable to seeking help for a physical wound. Doing so will make inroads into combating the stigma which is preventing people from seeking help. To read this

article in full, please go to: http://www.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=61460

Article from January Issue AUSA News.

Casey Pledges Ongoing Support of Survivors

A Special “Thank You” to our Corporate Sponsors

Andy’s Taylor Rental, 1005 Pope Road, St. Aug, FL 32080; (904)471-2991 Arnett HIG & Air Conditioning, Inc, 83 Orange St., St. Aug, FL; (904)829-3071 Atlantic Automotive & Quick Lube Ctr, 155 A1A Beach Blvd, St. Augustine, FL; (904)471-9790 Bed Bath & Beyond, 320 C B L Drive, St. Augustine, FL; (904)829-1901 Century 21 St. Augustine Properties, Inc., 2820 A, US HWY 1 South, St. Aug, FL; (904)797-6000 Climate Masters Heating & AC, Inc., 5275 US Highway 1 S #B, St. Augustine, FL; (904)797-5353 Courtyard by Marriott/Fairfield Inn, 2075 SR-16, St. Augustine, FL; (800)238-767 Craig Funeral Home, 1475 Old Dixie Highway, St. Augustine, FL; (904)824-1672 Elegant Events, 3940 Barbara Terrace, St. Augustine, FL; (904)797-2352 Gregg T. Russell, DMD, PA, 2535 U.S. 1 South, Suite 2, St. Augustine, FL; (904)97-7901 Herbie Wiles Insurance, 400 N. Ponce De Leon Blvd., St. Augustine, FL; (904)829-2201 Jim’s Drywall, 68 S. Dixie Highway, St. Augustine, FL; (904)824-0836 KJ’s Products LLC, Mr. Kenny John’s, P.O. Box 861025, St. Augustine, FL Knox Insurance Network, 1578 U.S.1 South, St. Augustine, FL; (904)825-1233 Leonardi’s Nursery, 902 Anastasia Blvd., St. Augustine, FL; (904)829-5909 Luvata, Inc. National Guard Association of Florida, Ms. Mary Paul, P.O. Box 3446, St. Augustine, FL Navy Federal Credit Union Roddy Custom Carpentry Runk Properties, Inc, 1985 Mizell Rd., St. Augustine, FL; (904)471-8272 SafeSmart Inc., 2385 Pellicer Rd., St. Augustine, FL San Marco Terrace Rehabilitation & Care, Mr. Doug Hernandez, 189 San Marco Ave.,St. Aug, FL Snap-on Industrial, 4374 Island View Lane, King George, VA St. Johns Family Funeral Home & Crematory, 385 SR 207,St. Augustine, FL; (904)824-1625 Steve Chapman All American A.C., St. Augustine, FL; (904)461-0070 The NCO Club of St. Augustine, SGT Susan Bush, 190 San Marco Ave, St. Augustine, FL Trusted Advisors Flagler LLC, Suite 206B, 1301 Plantation Island Drive, St. Aug, FL; (904)501-000

Visit the First

Militia Chapter on

the Web: http://

www.firstmilitia.org

Page 5 Volume 1, Issue 1

“AUSA’s Corporate Members are local

businesses, large corporations, civic groups,

veteran’s organizations, societies and local community groups.

This program provides Corporate Members the

opportunity to demonstrate to the community

that they support Soldiers and their families while

strengthening their own business opportunities.

CSM (Ret) Carolyn D. Wingard receives $1,000.00 check from Sheriff David Shoar for the First Militia Chapter's Scholarship Program. Sheriff Shoar was the guest speaker at the Military Family Appreciation Day at which time he promised the donation from the St. John's Country Sheriff's Department. COL (Ret) Don Workman was also in attendance and pre-sented Sheriff Shoar with a "Warrior Award" certificate of appreciation and a First Militia Chapter coin.

activity books, videos, toys, games

and give-aways. Door prizes were

also given and every child won at

least one item.

National and local vendors

supported the event and pro-

vided services to the military

members and their families.

They included the Yellow Rib-

bon Program, FLARNG Family

Programs, Military One Source,

ESGR, FLARNG Transition

Assistance, FLARNG Education

Office, Essential Knowledge

Military Program, American

Military University, SafeSmart, Inc,

Bellevue University, Troops to

Teachers, Veteran’s Administration,

Century 21 Real Estate and Navy

Federal Credit Union.

Professional organizations to include

the Enlisted National Guard Associa-

tion of the US, the Florida National

Guard Enlisted Auxillary and the

National Guard Association of Flor-

ida were present and provided infor-

mation to families about the impor-

tance of membership.

CSM (Ret) Carolyn D. Wingard, Fam-

ily Programs Coordinator for the 1st

Militia Chapter and Mrs. Mary Paul,

Executive Director for the National

Guard Association of Florida, planned

and coordinated the conduct of the

event. Members of the executive

council of the 1st Militia Chapter sup-

ported the event and included COL

Lisa Craig, LTC Carol McClure, SGM

(Ret) Bob Carroll and Ms. Jeri Briggs.

More than 200 residents of the First Coast

from all services (Army, Navy, Air Force,

Marine and Coast Guard) attended Military

Family Appreciation Day on Sat 9 Oct. 1st

Militia Chapter, Association of the Army,

hosted the event at the Mark

Lance Armory, San Marco Ave-

nue, St. Augustine, Forida.

The St. Augustine High School Jr

ROTC opened the event by post-

ing the colors. The President of

the Board of Advisors for 1st Mili-

tia Chapter, BG (Ret) Richard

Capps, welcomed everyone to the

event and then introduced the

Sheriff of St. John’s County, Sheriff David

Shoar who spoke to the crowd about pa-

triotism. County Commissioner Ray

Quinn provided remarks regarding the

importance of military families.

Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and

Coast Guard enjoyed an afternoon of chil-

dren’s activities, free food, live music, door

prizes and had the opportunity to bid on

silent auction items. Happy attendees

walked away awesome items to include a

Disney weekend that included 2 night stay

at the Crowne Plaza Hotel as well as a 2

night stay at the Casablanca Bed & Break-

fast in St. Augustine. All proceeds from

the silent auction will be used by the 1st

Militia Chapter’s scholarship program

which awards scholarships annually to

family members of the Association of the

US Army. Over $700 was raised on the

silent Auction.

Door prizes, donated by local merchants,

were announced every 15 minutes to lucky

ticket holders. More than 30 door prizes

were given away which included restaurant

gift certificates, baskets of goodies, an an-

timicrobial tie, golf balls, and gift certifi-

cates from stores such as Bed, Bath and

Beyond.

Live music was provided by the benefit

band 3UP3Down comprised of military

personnel and family members and led

by CSM (Ret) Gary Wingard. Local

singer and song writer, MSG Randy

Dukes, made a guest appearance and

performed his latest single.

Food was donated by the Cheney Broth-

ers and included BBQ chicken, beans and

coleslaw. Hot dogs and chips were also

available for the younger attendees. St.

John’s Foods donated 10 cases of water

and the NCO Club of St. Augustine do-nated sodas. Six cadets from the

FLARNG Youth Challenge Academy at

Camp Blanding, FL helped serve the food

and provided a friendly smile to all.

Anastasia Baptist Church Quilting Minis-

try donated a patriotic quilt that atten-

dees purchased tickets for a chance to

win. The proceeds from this drawing

($163.00) were donated to the

Wounded Warrior Project. The Na-

tional Guard Association of Florida sold

cookbooks and raised $80.00 for the

Emergency Relief Fund.

Children’s activities included pedal cars

donated by the Recruiting and Retention

BN of the Florida National Guard,

bounce house made possible by Leo-

nardi’s Nursery located in St. Augustine,

and face painting by Air Force 1LT Mike

Supinger and his wife Ashlee. There was

a “kid’s room” filled with coloring books,

Military Family Appreciation Day 2010

First Militia Chapter 2010 …. Our year in photos

Page 7 Volume 1, Issue 1

Chapter Officers

Chapter President

Don Workman, COL (Ret)

First Vice President

Matt Johnson, LTC

Secretary

Lisa Craig, COL

Treasurer

Carol McClure, COL

VP for Individual Membership

Vacant

VP for Corporate Membership

CSM (Ret) Allen Crosby

VP for Scholarship & Awards

Rob Keating, LTC

VP for Operations

Bob Carroll, SGM (Ret)

VP for Soldier Support

Mike Hossford, SCSM

VP for JROTC Program

Gray Johnson, MAJ

VP for Veterans Affairs

Ray A. Quinn, SGM (Ret)

VP for Public Affairs

Vacant

Family Programs Coordinator

Carolyn Wingard, CSM (Ret)

Volunteer Coordinator

Ms. Jerri Briggs

Newsletter Editor

Rhonda Rickards, CPT

First Militia Chapter received a record 14 streamers dur-

ing the National Conference in recognition of the achieve-

ments accomplished from 1 July 2009 to 30 June 2010.

Streamers awarded to the Chapter included: Continuous

Star Chapter for 20 Months(Membership above target

goal); Family Programs; Support to United States Recruit-

ing Command; Presidents Gold Club for Membership;

Merit, Superior, and Chapter of Excellence; Take the Hill

(Elected Officials supporting the Chapter); Army Birthday,

Army History; Year of the NCO; Special Awards Stream-

ers for Corporate Sponsor Mixer, Golf tournament Fund-

raiser, and Army Birthday; Best Chapter Support for

JROTC, and Institute of Land Warfare Honor Roll.

The Chapter also received Recognition for our work in sev-

eral other areas. We were the First Runner-up for Corporate

Sponsorship for Small Chapters. Our Chapter Web Site,

www.firstmilitia.org run by our outstanding webmaster, De-

nise Olson, was Runner-up in the small chapter category.

Lastly, Our Chapter was the runner-up for "Best Small

Chapter" in the Nation.

Thanks again to our immediate past president, Colonel (Ret)

Carl Smith for his dedicated leadership and bringing together

a hard working Executive Council team during his tenure as

our President.

See pictures on page 7

Boyette, Major Walker, Captain Lawrence Fischer, Damaris

Torres, and SFC Tony Hartley.

Their Team had a superb showing , finishing 13 of 29 teams.

The Chapter provided Running shirts and the registration fee

for their participation. Chapter coins were presented to the

team at the November membership meeting and dinner.

See picture on page 2

Eight members the Florida Army National Guard ran as a

team in the Army Ten Miler in Washington D.C. during the

National AUSA Conference on xx October. The team was

composed of Team Captain Colonel Dave Rogers, LTC Tom

Cogdall, and SGM James Kendrick of Joint Headquarters

in St. Augustine. The other team members of the 164 Air Defense Artillery

Brigade deployed in Washington D.C. were Major Sean

CHAPTER AWARDS RECEIVED AT 2010 AUSA NATIONAL CONFERENCE

FLORIDA ARMY NATIONAL GUARD TEAM

RUNS ARMY TEN MILER

Page 8 Association of the United States Army

First Militia Chapter, AUSA Post Office Box 3883 St. Augustine, FL 32085-3883