AAFES
Personal Shoppers Deliver Comforts of Home
by Anstey
Judd, AAFES
DALLAS
– Since troops made their way to the Middle East
after 9/11, AAFES has aggressively extended the
Armed Forces’ exchange benefit to the
frontlines. Beyond the Operation Iraqi and
Enduring Freedom theaters, AAFES has also
delivered support to Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors and
Marines at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center as
part of Public Law 1559 since 2003. Now, with the
opening of the Center of the Intrepid at Brooke
Army Medical Center (BAMC) at Ft. Sam Houston,
AAFES is taking lessons learned in service to
troops recovering from injuries received in a war
zone to BAMC, where the military’s oldest and
largest exchange service is ensuring that
America’s “wounded warriors” have access to
all of the essentials available at the BX/PX
through a dedicated personal shopper program.
“Because
many of these service members are unable to leave
their rooms, we are bringing the exchange benefit
to them through their very own personal
shopper,” said Fort Sam Houston General Manager
Darryl Porter. “The shopping service allows
troops recovering from amputations, burns and
other serious injuries at BAMC to concentrate on
their rehabilitation instead of worrying about how
they are going to get a clean pair of socks or
comfortable T-shirt.”
AAFES’
personal shopper program relies on a clothing
request form that indicates each service
member’s sizes, such as waist and length for
pants, shoe size and shirt size. The service
members can also request special items that make
their injuries more comfortable such as sleeveless
shirts for arm and shoulder injuries, loose shorts
or zip away pants for leg injuries, and hats or
scarves for head injuries. Most request
comfortable clothing such as athletic shorts,
T-shirts and wind suits for stays in the hospital
and jeans and a polo shirt for the trip home. The
Ft. Sam Houston Exchange is even taking steps to
expand the BAMC personal shopper program by
creating a “catalog” highlighting basic
merchandise available to those unable to visit the
BX/PX.
Section
1319 of Public Law 1559 allows AAFES to allocate
$250 towards the purchase of civilian clothing to
qualifying service members who arrive at several
military hospitals. To qualify for the allotment,
service members must be medically evacuated from
OEF and OIF. While the Army bears the expense of
the physical merchandise, the manpower and costs
associated with making this program work are the
responsibility of AAFES.
“The
resolve to dedicate personal shopper positions to
various hospitals is indicative of AAFES’
commitment to America’s troops,” said AAFES’
Senior Enlisted Advisor Chief Master Sgt. Bryan
Eaton. “Whether they’re at their home station,
deployed overseas, providing support in the wake
of a natural disaster or even in the hospital,
AAFES will be there to serve and support.”
In
addition to their very own personal shopper, an
AAFES barber regularly makes the rounds to cut the
wounded patients’ hair. Also, many celebrity and
“retailtainment” events sponsored by AAFES
include a visit to BAMC to visit with the troops.
The
PX’s relationship to recovering troops doesn’t
end at the Intrepid or Landstuhl. In fact, once
service members are able to leave their own rooms,
they are encouraged to shop or go to the food
court as part of their rehabilitation. In many
cases, an AAFES personal shopper goes along to
assist with any needs that may arise.
Nation
Safer Now Than Before 9/11, DoD Official Says
By Fred W. Baker
III
American Forces Press Service
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ARLINGTON,
Va., Feb. 2007 – America is safer today than
before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the
Defense Department’s top homeland defense
official said today.
It
is no accident that America has not suffered
another terrorist attack on its home soil since
9/11, Acting Assistant Defense Secretary for
Homeland Defense Peter F. Verga said after
delivering opening remarks at the department’s
first Homeland Defense Conference here.
“My view is that the only reason we haven’t
been attacked is the enemy has not been able to do
it,” Verga said. “They’re not waiting for
some strategic opportunity. They’re going to
attack us when they can, however they can do it.
The fact that they have not been able to is a
direct result of what we’ve been doing around
the world.”
Verga warned, however, that although America has
made much progress, more can be done, and he said
he doubts there will ever be a time that a
terrorist threat no longer exists.
“There is no doubt in my mind that we are
safer,” he said. “I’m not sure that we will
ever be safe from this particular threat. This is
one of those threats that is so difficult to deal
with. You can’t protect every place, every time
from every conceivable threat.”
Verga said DoD wanted to bring together officials
who work homeland defense issues from across the
services, defense agencies and combatant commands.
He said he hopes the conference broadens the
understanding of the department, brings to light
any issues outside Washington and identifies any
needed policy guidance.
“We get ideas … by talking to people out in
the field and seeing what they are doing on a
day-to-day basis and what we can do to help,”
Verga said.
Verga noted that DoD Homeland Defense also
responds to natural disasters on behalf of the
department. DoD is doing a better job planning for
all types of emergencies, Verga said, working with
civilian and interagency counterparts such as
Department of Homeland Security and Federal
Emergency Management Agency.
This will help the agencies work together in the
event of major disasters, he said.
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Related Sites:
DoD
Homeland Defense
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Bush: NATO Is
'the' Vital U.S. Security Relationship
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Feb. 2005 – President Bush called NATO "the
vital relationship for the United States when it comes to
security." Bush spoke during a press conference today at
NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.
During a press conference with NATO Secretary-General Jaap de
Hoop Scheffer, Bush said NATO has worked in the past, and all
nations must work together to ensure the alliance works in the
future.
The secretary-general said that all countries in NATO
expressed strong support for operations in Afghanistan, and
"strong support for the training mission in Iraq, where we
have further ambitions in setting up the training academy, and
where we have now fully manned and financed what we committed to
do."
The secretary-general said government leaders discussed a
stronger political role for the alliance. "NATO is a
political/military alliance, and that we should not shy away
from discussing political subjects of relevance," De Hoop
Scheffer said.
Bush is in the midst of a trip to Europe to stress the
importance of the transatlantic alliance and to mend fences with
allies who disagreed with the coalition decision to liberate
Iraq. Bush said NATO is the most successful alliance in history.
"Because of NATO, Europe is whole and united and at peace,
… and that's a milestone in the history of liberty," he
said.
Bush highlighted the changes NATO is making. "In order
for NATO to be vital, it's got to be relevant," he said.
"And if it stays stuck in the past, … it's slowly but
surely going to fade into oblivion."
The alliance has formed the NATO Response Force and the
Chemical and Biological and Radiological and Nuclear Battalion.
The military side has streamlined NATO's command, and the
alliance is involved in the Middle East.
Bush thanked the NATO countries for their support in
Afghanistan. Many nations participate in the International
Security Assistance Force, and others support provincial
reconstruction teams.
The president also addressed the Iraq rift in the alliance
during the meeting. "First, many member countries have sent
troops into Iraq as a part of the liberation of Iraq, and I
thanked them there and I reminded them that, you know, every
life is precious and we appreciate the sacrifices being made by
their citizens," he said. "But 26 nations sat around
the table saying, you know, let's get the past behind us and now
let's focus on helping the world's newest democracy succeed. And
I appreciated the contributions."
The NATO training mission is an important mission because,
"the success of Iraq depends upon the capacity and the
willingness of the Iraqis to defend their own selves against
terrorists."
The president said the meetings were important and he was
glad to have attended. "It gave me a chance to say that the
relationship between the United States and Europe is a vital
relationship, a necessary relationship, an important
relationship, and our relationship within NATO is the
cornerstone of that relationship."
North Korea
Poses Double Threat, Rumsfeld Says
By John D. Banusiewicz
American Forces Press Service
NICE, France, Feb. 10, 2005 – With regard to nuclear weapons,
North Korea poses a two-fold threat, Defense Secretary Donald H.
Rumsfeld said here today.
During a news conference at NATO's informal meeting of
defense ministers, the secretary said that country has had a
behavior pattern of being one of the world's leading
proliferators of ballistic missile technology.
North Korea's proliferation pattern makes it a
"worrisome" threat, Rumsfeld said, noting the country
also has a history of violating international agreements.
The second aspect of the threat, he said, stems from North
Korea's leadership. "Given their dictatorial regime and the
repression of their own people, one has to worry about weapons
of that power in the hands of leadership of that nature,"
he said. "I don't think that anyone would characterize the
leadership in that country as being restrained."
The secretary was careful to point out that he can't confirm
authoritatively that North Korea has nuclear weapons. "I'm
told that today in the press they indicated they do, but they've
indicated other things from time to time that haven't
necessarily proved out," he said.
Rumsfeld said some intelligence reports indicate the claim is
true. "I know there are countries whose intelligence
(estimates) say that they have them, and they say that they have
them, and they may have them," he said, "but I don't
want to confirm that because I just can't do that."
Homeland
Security One Year Later
By Sgt. 1st Class Doug Sample, USA
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, February 2004 -- The Department of Homeland
Security will turn 1 year old March 1, but the past year has not
been without challenges, one official said today.
Janet Hale, homeland security undersecretary for management,
told members of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics
Association that the past year has been extraordinary and that
standing up the department has been one of the "largest
management challenges the federal government has ever
seen."
Hale was the keynote speaker for the opening day of AFCEA's
2004 Homeland Security Conference here. She said when the
department was stood up in March 2003, some 180,000 employees
had to be "fired, then rehired" and that 22 agencies,
including the Coast Guard, had to fit under one umbrella. Hale
noted that over the past year the department set out to merge
and create new organizations with new capacities better
integrated for the department's post- 911 mission.
"When you look back over the last year, she pointed out,
"we are thrilled about what we've accomplished, but far
more thrilled about where we are going."
She offered an example from customs and border protection
area, where there is now one face at the airport "that will
not be an INS line, not a customs line, not an agricultural
line, but one face, one set of missions."
Hale also pointed to several major initiatives undertaken by
the department. She said the department has taken "steps
forward" to better communicate with the public through
"information sharing," an effort she added would
enable the public to be more prepared. She called this
initiative a cornerstone of the department and one that Homeland
Security Secretary Tom Ridge cares tremendously about.
Hale said that in the next three to four months the
department plans to have in place a secure communications
network that will operate between state governor offices across
the country. The network will offer two-way interactive secure
video conferencing.
She said the department has also moved forward with the
creation of several public web domains such as Ready.gov, which
also offers information in Spanish, and DisasterHelp.
Hale said the nation's preparedness against a terrorist
attack is "a national problem with national partners."
"From the front line of the citizens, to the corporate
board rooms, to the conference rooms inside the department, to
the caucus rooms on Capitol Hill," she explained,
"this is a partnership that we are all engaged in
strongly."
Biography:
Homeland
Security Secretary Tom Ridge
Janet
Hale
Related Web Sites:
Department of Homeland Security
DisasterHelp
Ready.gov
Related AFPS Articles:
Ridge
Announces New System, Database
President
Says America Is Making Progress in War on Terror
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