Vol. XXXIV No. 6 MOAA FIVE STAR AWARD 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 JUNE 2009

KOS KOMMENTS

Jim Chandler, CDR. USN Ret.

Chapter President WHY SHOULD CONGRESS

GRANT A CHARTER TO

MOAA? Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) and

Representative Chris Van Hollen

(D-MD) and Walter Jones (R-NC)

have recently introduced legislation

to award a Federal Charter to

MOAA. A federal charter provides

for the mission, authorities, and

restrictions that will apply to a

chartered organization. So far, 91

patriotic and national organizations

have been chartered under Subtitle

II, Title 36, or the U.S. Code.

A charter is a public recognition

and an honor for MOAA in

recognizing our members’ service

to the nation, and highlighting the

services MOAA provides to them

and to the wider military and

veterans’ community. Also, a

federal charter is required under

state law in at least eight states for.

participation on state-level

veterans’ advisory panels-

Alabama, Illinois, Maryland,

Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio,

Pennsylvania and Louisiana .

Chartered veterans’ organizations

are often considered “first among

equals” at official Memorial Day,

Veterans Day and other public

observances of veterans’ service to

our nation.

The House Judiciary Committee

imposed a moratorium on granting

new federal charters in 1992,

stating that charters were

unnecessary for the operations of

any charitable, nonprofit

organization and falsely implied to

the public that a chartered

organization and its activities

somehow carried a congressional

“seal of approval”. However, since

that moratorium was imposed,

Congress under its plenary

authority has awarded four federal

charters to veterans groups-The

Fleet Reserve Association, The Air

Force Sergeants Association, the

American GI Forum, and the

Korean War Veterans Association.

MOAA is the largest military

association in the country and the

fourth largest veterans association.

It co-chairs The Military Coalition,

a consortium of 34 military and

veterans associations, and has been

publicly recognized by the Armed

Services and Veterans Affairs

Committees for providing

important assistance to the

committees in developing policies

to support and sustain the all-

volunteer force and America’s

military readiness. If there were

ever an association warranting an

exception to award a charter, it is

MOAA. Please consider

supporting Senator Nelson’s

legislation to honor MOAA.

Since your board of directors put

out a proposed schedule for the

2009 program year, we have had

(Continued on page 2)

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER

17 - KOS Board Meeting, No KOS Meetings, 3 - KOS Luncheon Meeting, Elks Club,12:00, July or August Elks Club, 12:00 Social,

12:30 Luncheon

18 - KOS Dinner Meeting, 20 August- KOS Plus Board 16 - KOS Board Meeting,

(Scholarships) Elks Club, Meeting, Elks Club, 10:00 Elks Club, 12:00

6:00 P.M. Social, 6:30 PM A.M.

Social 17 - KOS Plus Board Meeting

No KOS Plus Meetings, Elks Club, 10:00 AM.

June or July STUFF THE BUS!! KOS Plus Luncheon

11:30 A.M., Elks Club

SUNBEAMS PAGE 2 JUNE 2009

KINGDOM of the SUN CHAPTER, MOAA P.O, BOX114,

0CALA FL 34478-0114

SUNBEAMS is published monthly for the

information of the members of Kingdom of the

Sun KOS) Chapter, an affiliate of The Military

Officers Association of America (MOAA). The

views expressed do not necessarily reflect the

views of either organization.

SUNBEAMS is printed by the Concord Press

of Ocala, Florida. KOS is a nonprofit

organization, incorporated under the laws of the

State of Florida on 13 April 1976. It is not

associated with the Department of Defense. It is

mailed as Third Class bulk mail at the U.S. Post

Office, Ocala, FL under Permit #122.

EDITORS:

LTC. Philip Johnson (Army), 854-3403

Email: pjohnson130@cfl.rr.com

COL. Tilford Smith (Army), 237-8726

Email:cynford@stonecreekfl.com

CHAPTER OFFICERS:

President: CDR James Chandler, (Navy)

237-3139

1st V.P.: Lt. Col. Lewis (Lew) Jones (Air Force)

259-1074

2nd V.P.: CPT. John Rose (Army)

307-6130

Secretary: CDR Robert Buerger (Navy),

368-6752

Treasurer: LCDR Kathryn Oswald, (Navy)

694-2639

DIRECTORS:

CAPT Tyke Furey (Navy), 489-3209

CW2 Jerry Furlong (Army), 342-0855

LTC. Phil Johnson (Army), 854-3403

MAJ. Louis Share (Army) 873-0969

Immediate Past President

LTC. Kendall (Ken) McIntyre (Army)

753-4542

MEETINGS:

The Kingdom of the Sun Chapter (MOAA),

meets monthly on the first Thursday of the

month. Dates, times and occasions are

announced in advance in the SUNBEAMS.

Members are encouraged to attend and guests

are always welcome. Meetings are usually

suspended during the summer months of July

and August. The KOS Board currently meets

monthly on the third Wednesday of each month

at 12:00 P.M. at Ocala Elks Club. Officers and

Board Members are required to attend.

KOS PLUS

Betty Hayes

KOS Plus President The annual CO-meeting, in

April at Stumpknockers, was a

pleasant event. The food was hot

and tasty, the service was swift

and efficient, and the comradeship

was abundant. Our thanks to KOS

for their sponsorship of this

luncheon.

At our April KOS PLUS Board

meeting, your Board approved

sending a donation of $200.00 in

your name to: Honor Flight of

Marion. Honor Flight of Marion,

chaired locally by Rose Clements,

is partnered with the Florida VFW

to send WWII veterans to

Washington, D.C. to visit the

World War ll Memorial. Veterans

and their caregivers will be flown

to D.C., visit the Memorial, have

lunch, and be flown back to Ocala.

Terminally ill veterans will receive

first priority. All of this will be

provided, with no cost, to veterans

through donations to Honor Flight

of Marion

We felt this would be a great

way to honor those members of

the "Greatest Generation" who are

with us in Ocala. Especially

during this month of May, when

we solemnly celebrate Memorial

Day.

Our Nomination committee

members will be at work during

the summer break. We will have

several positions to fill on the

Board. So step up, don't be shy,

consider helping your organization

if called upon. The Board meets

for approximately one and a half

hours before each luncheon. This

will help minimize your time and

travel commitment. We know

many of our members have served

in the past. Some have done

double and yes, even triple duty.

We appreciate their participation

and leadership. Now won't

someone who has not held a

position raise your hand and say,

"I WILL?"

NO LUNCHEON IN: JUNE,

JULY, AUGUST.

* * * * * *

President-continued from page 1

to do some tap-dancing (it’s good

to keep the board on its toes).

Please adjust your schedules to

reflect a change from a luncheon

meeting on June 4 to a dinner

meeting on June 18, so that we

can better present our

scholarship awards.

Have a productive summer!

Some of us will be travelling to St.

Pete on June 6-7 for the state

convention, and many of us will be

volunteering for Operation Stuff the

Bus during the last three Saturdays

of July and the first Saturday of

August. Then, look for your next

Sunbeams in late August to start

our new program year. This year

has been a good one for KOS, and I

expect next year to be even better.

* * * * * *

Lowe’s Military Discount Ed. Lowe’s lumber/hardware stores

now offer a 10% military discount.

It applies to active duty, retired and

reserve/national guard personnel.

Just show your military ID card at

checkout.

* * * * * *

Operation Stuff the Bus Our esteemed personnel chair for

OSTB, Kay Chandler, was still

looking for additional volunteers

for several pick up points as of the

May 7th dinner meeting. If you

wish to volunteer for this very

worthwhile cause to help

underprivileged school children in

Marion County, please call her at

237-3139. This is an opportunity to

help these kids and it’s even fun.

We supervise the young volunteers,

estimate the value of donated items,

receive money and distribute and

collect flyers. See you there.

* * * * * *

CHAPLAIN’S

CORNER Alan J. Heniesen,

Chaplain,

MAJ USAR Ret.

(tkd12ocal@earthlink.net)

Sometimes I enjoy watching the

performances of the contestants on the

TV program “American Idol”,

[harmony]. At other times they can

perform badly [discord] and then are

“voted” off of the program. Are our

outward displays of life indicative of

discord or harmony? Philippians 2:

tells to be of “one mind”, [unity].

In the Old Testament, the prophet

Micah suggests a three step approach to

embody unity “to do justly, to love

mercy, and to walk humbly with your

God;” Micah 6:8. This three-step

approach finds its greatest fulfillment in

the joy of the Lord. When I was

younger, I used to sing a first verse of a

little chorus “The Joy of the Lord is My

Strength.” (You repeat the phrase 4

times). Let's investigate each one:

“to do justly” - I’m driving my vehicle

and I see a policeman. What do I do?

Almost always I tap my brakes and

watch. Why? If I am obeying the laws

of the land; then why the reaction? Is it

because I am speeding now; or, do I

have a guilty conscience that three days

ago I was going over the speed limit?

“to love mercy”- Why is it that we

always think the worst of people instead

of the best? What about forgiveness?

Wasn't King David in the Old

Testament guilty of murder and yet God

said that he was “a man after mine

[God’s] own heart” (Acts 13:22).

“to walk humbly with your God” - If we

follow the three step approach as Micah

outlined, then we will not have to battle

the “hidden agendas” when we come to

worship. Our outward walk should

match our inward talk, so says verse 8.

May we strive for the goal to be always

like-minded.

* * * * * *

Board Meeting Summary

By CDR Robert Buerger

The KOS Board of Directors met on

15 April at the Ocala Elks Club.

President CDR Jim Chandler called the

meeting to order at 1210. Those

present, in addition to CDR Chandler,

were Lt Col Lew Jones (1st VP), CPT

John Rose (2nd

VP), LTC Ken McIntyre

(Immed. Past Pres), CDR Bob Buerger

(Secretary), and the following Directors:

MAJ Louis Share, CAPT Tyke Furey,

COL Tilford Smith, and LTC Phil

Johnson. The following non-voting

members were present: Chaplain (MAJ)

Alan Heniesen and CW5 Dick Russell

(Membership Chairman).

The minutes of the March Board

meeting were approved.

President Chandler (a) appointed Col

Smith and CDR Buerger to a committee

that is to meet with the President of the

Scholarship Board., (b) called attention

to the Memorial Day service planned for

25 May, (c) the June KOS meeting

originally planned as a luncheon

meeting should be an evening meeting

since the program is Scholarship

Awards and the parents of recipients

will be invited to attend. This change

was approved by motion of the board.

(d) the board approved placing an ad in

the 2009 Florida Council of Chapters

handbook.

1st V.P. Lt Col Jones complimented

the editors of Sunbeams for the

improved appearance of the publication.

2nd

V.P. CPT Rose attended a meeting

at the Marion County School Board

where the topic of students being asked

vs. required to stand for the pledge and

National Anthem was discussed.

Past President LTC McIntyre reported

that the audit of the KOS operating fund

was completed with no discrepancies

noted.

Director CAPT Tyke Furey reported

that all Sunbeams advertisers except one

have renewed their advertising

agreements.

Chaplain Heniesen asked to be

informed of any hospitalized or

seriously ill members.

Director LTC Johnson asked for

Sunbeams material not later than 10

May. He noted that the electronic

distribution of Sunbeams is going well.

Director COL Smith said the KOS

website is up and running. Go to

www.KOSMOAA.org.

Membership Chairman CW5 Russell

stated that all Board members should

consider themselves members of the

Membership Committee.

The next Board meeting is 20 May.

The meeting adjourned at 1310.

* * * * * * *

SUNBEAMS PAGE 3 JUNE 2009

LEGISLATIVE

AFFAIRS (Excerpts from MOAA’s email

updates, Copyright © 2004

Military Officers Association of America

(MOAA) or from other sources as cited)

Defense, VA Budget Details

Defense and VA officials had

telegraphed the “big picture” contents

of the FY2010 president’s budget a

couple of months ago, but the details

weren’t finalized until Thursday.

(May 7th-Ed,)

Thankfully, there were no

unpleasant surprises. The defense

budget formally lists taking care of

military people as the topmost

priority – “a long-term commitment

by the department to take care of our

people.” To that end, the budget

includes:

Manpower plus-ups.

It fully funds planned increases to

the Army and Marine Corps and

would halt planned reductions for the

Air Force and Navy, according to

Under Secretary of Defense

(Comptroller) Robert Hale.

Full funding for the TRICARE

program.

The good news is that this is the

first time in four years that the budget

hasn’t included formal proposals for

big hikes in TRICARE fees for

retirees under 65. The bad news is

that Pentagon leaders still want to

raise TRICARE fees. A key

difference is that this year, they’re

going to ask Congress to do that

rather than cutting the budget on the

assumption that it will happen.

Further progress on concurrent

receipt.

We still don’t have the specific

details, but the general descriptions

offered make it appear that the

proposal would extend current

eligibility rules for retirees with 20 or

more years of service to members

forced into medical retirement before

attaining 20 years. As soon as we

confirm the details, we’ll pass them

on.

A 2.9% military pay raise.

MOAA supports a modestly larger

3.4% raise to continue to shrink the

military pay gap, and both the House

and Senate Armed Services

Committees have endorsed the higher

figure.

Troop shifts from Iraq to

Afghanistan.

Under Secretary Hale said the

budget assumes that the 130,000

troops in Iraq as of Oct. 1 will shrink

to 50,000 a year later, offset in part

by planned increases in troop levels

in Afghanistan. For FY2010, the

budget assumes the cost of operations

in Afghanistan will exceed the cost

for Iraq.

The FY2010 VA budget of $113

billion is more than a 15% increase

over current year spending, due in

large measure to enactment of

increased GI Bill benefits and

increased numbers of disabled

veterans qualifying for VA benefits.

Specifics include:

Gradual expansion of VA

health care eligibility to an

additional 500,000 “category

8” vets (nondisabled vets

whose incomes are currently

above regional ceilings) by

2013

$144 million to begin

implementing a paperless

claims processing system

Adding staff, improving

procedures and using

technology to reduce

Continued on page 5

SUNBEAMS PAGE 4 JUNE 2009

Budget continued from page 4

claims backlogs and reduce

claims processing to 150 days

(vs. an estimated 168 for

FY2009)

Nearly $6 billion to expand

long-term care services

$4.6 billion to expand mental

health programs

* * * * * *

MOAA Hill-Stormers Get

Results

MOAA Council and Chapter

Presidents from the 50 states and

Puerto Rico, accompanied by members

of the national Board of Directors and

headquarters staff, plus members of

MOAA’s active duty, Guard, Reserve,

spouse and auxiliary advisory

committees, swarmed Capitol Hill on

April 22 to visit representatives’ and

senators’ offices on key MOAA

legislative initiatives.

The annual event ensures that

legislators and staffs are personally

aware of our issues and solicits their

cosponsorship of selected key bills.

Cosponsorship increases in the wake

of those visits are a clear indication

that they had the desired effect:

* * * * * *

House Leaders Host Military

Spouses

On Tuesday, in anticipation of

Military Spouse Appreciation Day

(today, May 8), MOAA’s deputy

director of the benefits information

department attended a roundtable

discussion on spouse issues hosted by

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi

(D-CA).

A dozen other legislators were in

attendance, including Armed Services

Committee Chair Ike Skelton (D-MO),

Military Personnel Subcommittee

Chair Susan Davis (D-CA), and

Military Construction/Veterans Affairs

Appropriations Subcommittee Chair

Chet Edwards (D-TX).

Legislators met with 15 military

spouses, including MOAA’s Sue

Hoppin, to discuss the results of a

recent life issues survey, which

indicated that 94% of the participating

military families felt “disconnected”

from America. Legislators asked what

could be done to remedy the situation.

Participants brought up several

issues, including needs for:

More time at home for service

members between

deployments

Elimination of the SBP/DIC

offset for survivors

More financial support for

volunteers to offset the costs

of childcare and professional

training

Better access to mental health

and medical care

* * * ** *

Reps. Buyer, Walz Seek

Survivor Fix

Early this week, Reps. Steve Buyer

(R-IN) and Tim Walz (D-MN)

announced the introduction of their bi-

partisan Survivor Benefit Improvement

Act of 2009 (H.R. 2243). MOAA

President VADM Norb Ryan (USN-

Ret) joined them at their Capitol Hill

press conference to voice MOAA’s strong support.

The proposed legislation has two

benefits for survivors. First, it would

increase the amount of VA

Dependency and Indemnity

Compensation (DIC) payable to

survivors of currently serving

members or veterans who die of a

service-connected cause. It would set

the DIC rate at 55% of the disability

compensation paid to a totally disabled

veteran. As a practical matter, that

would be $1,470 monthly, vs. the

current rate of $1,154.

In addition, the bill would modify

statutory language governing the DIC

offset to Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP)

annuities to ensure that whatever court

decision is rendered in a currently

pending lawsuit by certain SBP-DIC

survivors would apply equally to all

Continued on page 6

SUNBEAMS PAGE 5 JUNE 2009

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Ocala, Florida 34476 Telephone 352-873-6999

WWW.DRZANER.COM DIPLOMATE, American Board

of Periodontology

STUMPKNOCKERS

Restaurant

Featuring Our Famous

ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT Catfish

Casual Dining on the

Scenic Withlacoochee

Fresh Grouper, Snapper, Shrimp,

Scallops, Oysters, Crab Legs, Frog

Legs, New York Strip, Ribeye,

Grilled Chicken Breast

Full Liquor Bar

Highway 200, at the Withlacoochee

River in Dunnellon

Phone 854-2288

Survivor continued from page 5

SBP-DIC widows.

Various military and veterans

service organizations, as well as

several original cosponsors of the

bill, attended the press conference to

express their support for the new

legislation. Please contact your U.S.

representative and send a MOAA-

suggested message to ask them to

cosponsor this important bill.

* * * * * *

As I See It — Tighten Up the

Yellow Ribbon

By Col. Steve Strobridge, USAF-Ret.

Extensive call-ups of America’s

new “operational reserve” forces

have been the salvation of our

national defense for the past decade.

From a military standpoint, the

integration of Guard and Reserve

units into the operational mission has

been a tremendous success. From a

human standpoint, it’s been much

less successful, despite sincere

efforts by military and defense

leaders, Congress, and others.

That’s because nobody fully

understands yet how huge an impact

this fundamental change in military

operations is imposing on the lives

and future well-being of hundreds of

thousands of Guard and Reserve

troops and their families.

But wait, you say — that’s true of

all returning Iraq and Afghanistan

veterans, not just the Guard and

Reserve.

True, but regular and reserve

component troops come home to

completely different worlds. Regular

troops reintegrate with their families

in an active duty environment,

usually near military installations.

Reserve troops typically leave active

duty to reintegrate with their families

in a civilian-community, civilian-

employer environment.

And there’s the rub, from the

human standpoint.

Both types of service members

mostly want to get home to their

families. But the reserve troops have

to go through a major out-processing

and change of status before that

happens. And the rush to get home

incentivizes all kinds of

administrative corner-cutting that

could — and will, in many cases —

come back to bite them severely in

the future.

Multiple studies show 20 percent or

more of returning troops exhibit

some form of traumatic brain injury,

and the percentages increase

significantly with multiple combat

tours.

If these and other conditions aren’t

properly documented, they might not

be deemed service-caused if they

worsen in the future. Unfortunately,

an “I’m OK, just let me get home

ASAP” mentality causes many to

underreport existing symptoms — or

even fail to realize they have any

symptoms until they struggle to fit

back into their family and civilian

employer environment.

Congress approved Yellow Ribbon

reintegration programs to combat this

problem, to let Guard and Reserve

units establish special programs to

help returning troops and their

families readjust their lives. In model

programs implemented in some

states, travel and accommodations

are funded for service members and

their families to assemble for a

weekend at each of the 30-, 60-, and

90-day points following

redeployment.

In addition to offering assistance

and briefings on a wide variety of

Continued on page 7

SUNBEAMS PAGE 6 JUNE 2009

Strobridge Continued from page 6

readjustment topics, these gatherings

provide opportunities to screen and

document any previously unreported

medical or psychological conditions that

might require further treatment or

counseling for service members and/or

their spouses and children.

But management and funding of such

programs is inconsistent among

components, units, and states, leaving

many troops and their families to fend

for themselves.

In some states, Guard and Reserve

organizations offer independent programs

that might be held in different locations

on the same weekend, straining the

capacity of medical and support

organizations to be in multiple places at

once. If we’re serious about making

these programs work — and that’s a

crucial human priority — the government

must provide consistent funding and

support and designate a single

coordinating activity for Yellow Ribbon

programs in each state. It might be the

Guard chief in one state or the leader of a

major Reserve unit in another, but

somebody has to be put in charge with

the responsibility and authority to make it

happen. These troops and their families

cannot be treated as a “fire and forget”

resource.

* * * * * *

State Convention For information on the MOAA state

convention , please go the web at:

www.MOAAStPeteArea.com.

* * * * * *

KOS DINNER MEETING

OCALA ELKS CLUB

(702 NE 25th

Ave., Ocala)

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Social 6:00 P.M.

Dinner 6:30 P.M.

Menu

Swiss Steak

Pasta Salad

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Broccoli

Rolls and Butter

Pumpkin Crème Pie

Iced Tea and Hot Coffee

PROGRAM

Scholarship Awards Presentations

Reservations Required

NLT Monday, June 15, 2009

$17.00 per person

RESERVATION POLICY: Reservations must be made no later than

Monday, June 15, 2009. For reservations, please call CPT. John Rose at

Telephone 307-6130. Please remember that a reservation made is a

reservation to be paid.

THIS IS A CHANGED DATE AND TIME FOR THIS MEETING

SUNBEAMS PAGE 7 JUNE 2009