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Pensacola Chapter Newsletter - May 2016 - Military Officers Association of America Pensacola Chapter Newsletter - May 2016 - Military Officers Association of America

What’s Inside…pg 1 President's Corner pg 1 PMOAA April Photospg 2 Legislative Affairspg 3 Legislative Affairs (Cont) pg 4 Legislative Affairs (Cont) pg 4 President’s Corner (Cont) pg 4 Coast Guard Headquarters Retiree Council pg 4 Military Recruiting - Coast Guard pg 4 Possible Recruiting Aid pg 4 Wreaths Across America pg 5 Member Spotlight

pg 5 A Bit of Triviapg 6 PMOAA April Photos (Cont) pg 7 Surviving Spouse Corner pg 7 PMOAA April Photos (Cont) pg 7 Scholarship Donation Form pg 8 Board of Directors Minutespg 9 Board of Directors Minutes (Cont) pg 9 PMOAA Scholarship Application pg 9 ROWWA pg 9 Singles Group pg 9 May Dinner Reservation

PMOAA Beacon is published by UPS Store 2927,

proud member of PMOAA4051 Barrancas Avenue, Suite G

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Immediate Past PresidentLCDR Dave Wilhite, USN (Ret)850-380-2767 [email protected]

DIRECTORS

CDR Joe Brewer, USN (Ret)850-453-9291 [email protected]

LTC William Derr, USA (Ret) 850-457-1987 [email protected]

COL Michael Cook, USA (Ret) 850-916-7338 [email protected]

Mrs. Iva Prosser, Auxiliary 850-485-5533 [email protected]

CAPT Walter Viglienzone, USCG (Ret)

850-492-5634 [email protected]

PresidentCPT William Clark, USA (Ret)850-380-0762 [email protected]

1st Vice PresidentCPT Dean Kirschner, USA (Former) 850-458-7988 [email protected]

2nd Vice PresidentMAJ Molly Werner, USA (Ret)850-474-1291 [email protected]

Secretary RADM Joan M. Engel, USN (Ret)850-473-9899 [email protected]

TreasurerLCDR Trumin Brown, USN (Ret) 850-932-0370 [email protected]

Chair, Survivor Assistance CommitteeCAPT Bill Mayer, USN (Ret)


heim and Dorothy Hinz, guests of Vann Milheim; and Jan Pierce, guest of George Bingham. Jimmie and Missy Pritchard are new members that were also first time guests. Jimmie, a chaplain in the Army, and his wife were also missionaries in Brazil.

Soon there will be another way to thank our veterans and that is with Wounded American Veterans Event (WAVE). While originated by the Navy Yacht Club, Pensacola, this event is now jointly presented by the Navy Yacht Club, Pensacola and the Pensacola Yacht Club. Sometimes it is difficult to thank all our military veterans who have risked everything and that is what WAVE is all about. A free day of sailing or fishing, barbecue, music, and raffle prizes isn’t a bad way to start. Volunteers will use their own boats to give cruises to our wounded warriors or those who have been disabled while serving in the armed forces. I am certain many of you know the veterans we are looking for and can help getting the message out. This program will be on 17 September with a rainout date on 18 September. Help spread the word.

You are a part of PMOAA. All of you should have re-ceived raffle tickets to help support our sponsorships. This is just one more very good reason why we are a part of PMOAA. Unfortunately, many of those tickets have

(Continued on page 4)

PMOAA April Photos Courtesy of Christine Frazier and Elaine Ciardello

PMOAA Beacon The City of Five Flags-Pensacola Florida

4 Star Chapter Award – 2002

A 5 Star Chapter Since 2003

http://www.pmoaa.org

PRESIDENT’S CORNER Our speaker in April was absolutely outstanding. He not only is a terrific speaker but he had a lot to say. He is a retired Navy veteran who is still working to assist veter-ans. Not only did he accomplish much while serving on active duty from 1976-2004, retiring from the US Navy Submarine Force as a Master Chief Petty Officer, but Marc Churchwell may have accomplished even more as the founder of the Military and Veterans Resource Center (MVRC) on the University of West Florida (UWF) Cam-pus. The MVRC serves as the hub for all veteran student support services on campus. As the primary advocate for military and veterans students, Marc coordinates with various offices on the UWF campus (including Emerald Coast) in areas such as enrollment, academic advising, counseling, tutoring, and disability accommodations en-suring these unique student needs are met.

The MVRC hosts three quarterly meetings from 0900 to 1100. I am on the email list of Pensacola Veterans Sup-port Organization Network (PVSON) and I have had the opportunity to attend several of those meetings in the past couple of years. They are quite organized and well done. Usually they have several speakers to keep mili-tary support groups, both at UWF and in the surrounding community, up to date on what is new and what has been updated. These meetings are very informative and allow much needed networking between each group sharing individual experiences describing personal needs the groups or veterans have identified. Marc and his employ-ees have been able to speak the lingo that the younger vets speak, understanding more clearly their problems so this helps tremendously in solving them. I wish I had him around when my kids were in their teens and twenties.

The VA has a full-time, experienced Vocational Rehabili-tation Counselor at UWF and this counselor acts as a one stop liaison for Veterans and active duty retired and eligible dependents alike that would like to further their education. They can receive counseling on all the bene-fits the VA has to offer. Don’t we wish we had such coor-dinated efforts thirty, forty, fifty, sixty and, well, we can stop there. To help back up the VA, the MVRC has the ability to direct students further to areas where they can find scholarship money or even part time employment. Sounds like our type of organization and what MOAA and PMOAA promote. Again, if you missed the dinner on 21 April, you missed a great presentation.

Guests at last month’s dinner included: Herb and Sallie Ellis and Carolyn Saul, guests of Joan Ferry; Joel and Teresa Fairbanks, guests of Sue Varenholt; Ryne Mil-

Nonprofit OrgU.S. Postage Paid

Permit No 326 Pensacola, FL

Pensacola Chapter, MOAAP.O. Box 17728

Pensacola, Florida 32501-7728

Return Service Requested

(Photos continued on page 6)

Mr. Marc Churchwell, Director, Military Veterans Resource Center, UWF

mailto:[email protected]














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The meeting comes at a critical time as lawmakers mull serious changes to military health care. The meeting began with a discussion of the budgeting process and the flow of funds through DHA to the ser-vices. The DHA staff provided a briefing on the ser-vices' efforts to increase appointments in military facili-ties and make progress toward the goal of “first-call res-olution” for appointment requests. Bono's staff also provided an update on TRICARE pay-ment rate changes for Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy for autistic children.

COLA Watch (Source: MOAA) In order for a positive COLA next year, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has to make pretty significant increas-es. The March CPI is 232.209, and remains .9 percent be-low the FY 2014 COLA baseline. Because there was not a positive COLA in FY 2015, the FY 2014 baseline is used. The CPI for April 2016 is scheduled to be re-leased on 17 May 2016. Note: Military retiree COLA is calculated based on the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Work-ers (CPI-W), not the overall CPI. Monthly changes in the index may differ from national figures reported elsewhere.

Will You Pay More at the Commissary? (Source: MOAA) 25 March 2016 The commissary continues to be a favorite benefit for service members, retirees, wounded warriors, and sur-vivors. Yet every year, we find the program coming un-der budget scrutiny. The money required to keep com-missaries operating is small in terms of the overall de-fense budget, but the desire to use that money else-where (approximately $1.4 billion annually) is high.


LEGISLATIVE AND BENEFITS UP-DATE

DoD Proposes UCMJ Changes (Source: MOAA) For the first time in 30 years, the Pentagon has proposed several changes to the Uni-

form Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). The UCMJ is the foundation of military justice, encompassing procedural and substantive criminal laws for the military. In the wake of military sexual assault incidents, a lot of atten-tion was drawn to the procedural statutes in the code, leading then-Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel to direct a full review in 2013. After an extensive two-year review, the Pentagon has proposed a number of changes, in-cluding: Publicly Accessible Court Documents. Unlike

the civilian justice system, filed court documents are not publicly available. The only way to cur-rently gain access to that kind of information is by filing a request under the Freedom of Information Act. DoD would make filed court documents pub-licly available and easily accessible.

Individualized Criminal Statutes. Many criminal offenses currently fall under one broad article. The Pentagon proposes breaking out criminal offenses into separate articles under the UCMJ to better distinguish crimes and “ensure each of-fense receives separate consideration.” The addi-tional articles expand legal protections for sexual assault victims. The proposals also explicitly pre-vent suicide attempts as being marked as a crime.

Stronger Sentencing Guidelines. Military sen-tencing procedures are very different from the civilian justice system. For most military crimes under the UCMJ there are no minimum or maxi-mum sentences, leading to considerable variance in sentencing for similar offenses. The Pentagon proposes sentencing guidelines established by the Department of Justice, to be carried out by military judges in all non-capital trials.

Right to Appeal. Judicial review is not currently a right in all cases for convicted service members under the UCMJ. The new proposals would mir-ror much of the civilian appeals process, giving service members the ability to determine whether or not to file an appeal. The appellate process would then focus on issues raised by the parties during the original court proceeding. The Penta-gon proposals also would allow the government to appeal sentences under certain conditions. It will still be up to Congress to enact the proposed changes.

Top Military Doc Discusses Health Care Issues (Source: MOAA) April 1, 2016 On March 28, Defense Health Agency (DHA) Director VADM Raquel Bono, met with association leaders to discuss various aspects of defense health programs.

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SINGLES GROUP

Thursday, May 26th will be our next meeting. Mertie isour hostess. We will gather at 5 PM at Carrabba’s Ital-

ian Grill, located at 311 N. 9th Avenue. We’ve beenthere before, so you do not need directions. Any singlePMOAA member who would like to join us for lunch iswelcome - just give Mertie a call (934-9446). Hope to see you all there and enjoy this beautiful weather, be

fore it gets too hot. Gisela Vogentanz

MAY DINNER MENUThursday, 19 May 2016

Skopelos at New World Landing

600 South Palafox Street. Pensacola

Social Hour - 1730 Dinner - 1830

Guest Speaker: Captain Sarah Martin, NC, USN

Commanding Officer, Naval Hospital Pensacola

MENU(1) Prime Rib served with Mashed Potatoes

and Vegetable Medley OR

(2) Margarita Grouper served with a Rice Side and Vegetable Medley

Iceberg lettuce wedge with cucumbers andtomatoes with a choice of balsamic vinaigrette

or buttermilk dressing Warm dinner rolls with whipped butter

Dessert: Skopelos Choice Coffee, iced tea and water - Cash bar available

Reservations must be received by

Monday, 16 May 2016 -- No Exceptions --

Meals are ordered on the basis of accepted reservations.

Phone/email reservations are considered committed and

are payable at the door.

RSVP to: Captain James Frazier, USN (Ret)7645 Brook Forest Place, Pensacola, FL 32514

Phone: 850-484-9162Email: [email protected] or www.pmoaa.org

Reservations for ____ at $27.00/person

Total Enclosed ______ Make check payable to PMOAA

_______ Check here if you would like a Singles Table

Member Name _______________________ Menu 1 or 2 Circle Choice

Spouse Name ________________________Menu 1 or 2 Circle Choice

Guest Name(s) _______________________Menu 1 or 2 Circle Choice

PMOAA BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING 26 April 2016

(Continued from page 8)

CAPT Viglienzone reported that LtCol Landfair has a military blog and it might be a good idea to invite him to a Board meeting.

Other: The Naval Aviation Symposium will be held atthe Museum the first week in May. The focus is cele-

brating the 100th anniversary of Coast Guard Aviation.CAPT Viglienzone will have several other items of inter-est in the May edition of the Beacon.Beacon input is due NLT COB Wednesday, 27 April.

The next Board meeting will be on Tuesday, 24 May at1700 hours at the Pensacola Yacht Club. A motion was made by LCDR Brown, seconded by COL Cook, to adjourn the meeting at 1805. Motion carried.Respectfully submitted,

Joan M. Engel, Secretary

PMOAA SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION

PMOAA will be awarding scholarship grants to children,stepchildren, spouses or grandchildren of active duty orretired military personnel (both officers and enlisted). To be eligible, applicants must be a resident, dependentof a resident, or grandchild of a resident of Escambia,Santa Rosa or Baldwin (AL) counties, and must have completed a minimum of one year at a college/university, with at least a 3.2 GPA, if an undergraduate,or 3.5 if a graduate student, for the two preceding se-mesters (fall of 2015 and spring of 2016 as a full time student). Applications must be submitted no later than 15 June 2016 and may be downloaded atwww.pmoaa.org. For more information or to request assistance in applying, contact CDR Vann Milheim, UDN (Ret) at 850-969-9715 or [email protected].

Vann Milheim

RETIRED OFFICERS’ WIVES AND WIDOWS ASSOCIATION

The Retired Officers’ Wives and Widows Association (ROWWA) will meet for lunch on Thursday, May 12,

2016, at the Mustin Beach Club aboard NAS Pensaco-la for the installation of officers and our final meeting of

our organization’s year. The cost is $20 per person. Guests are invited to attend. Membership in ROWWA is open to wives and widows of retired officers and re-tired women officers of all military services. For lunch-eon reservations, please call Mary Chase at (850) 995-

4466 or send your check to Mary’s address listed in themembership book by Monday, May 9, 2016. For new member information, contact Molly Werner (850) 292-9756. There will be no meetings during June, July andAugust. The first meeting of our new ROWWA year will be September 8, 2016. Have a safe summer.

Bunny Cummins, ROWWA President, (425) 870-6149

http://www.moaa.org/Content/Take-Action/Top-Issues/Currently-Serving/TRICARE-Reform,-or-Just-Fee-Increases-.aspx







President Clark called the meeting to order at 1700hours with the following members present: CPT Clark,

CPT Kirschner, MAJ Werner, RADM Engel, LCDRBrown, COL Cook, CAPT Viglienzone, Iva Prosser, Past President, LCDR Wilhite and Scholarship Chair, CDR Milheim. Members absent: LTC Derr and CDR

Brewer.

March Minutes: A motion was made by LCDR Brown,seconded by COL Cook, to approve the March board minutes. Motion carried.

Treasurer Report: LCDR Brown presented the2/24/16 to 3/23/16 report showing all bills have beenpaid and most of the dues have been received. Schol-

arship balance is unchanged from last month. A motion was made by CPT Kirschner, seconded by LCDR

Wilhite to approve the treasurer report. Motion carried.

COMMITTEE REPORTS Recruiting and Membership: MAJ Werner has beenbusy contacting current members who have not re-

newed their dues for this year. Thirty eight members have not renewed. She will continue to contact delin-quent members. We do not want to lose anyone butthere comes a time when dues are overdue. One new member has been recruited. Remember – recruiting iseveryone’s responsibility. If a new member joinsMOAA as a life member, they automatically get twoyears of free Chapter dues.

MAJ Werner received kudos from Mrs. Michele Nash for the support that was provided to her by Captain Mayer.

SCHOLARSHIP: CDR Milheim reported that infor-mation regarding the PMOAA scholarship program has

appeared in the Gosport but nothing in the Pensacola News Journal. He will follow up on the PNJ. To date,no response has been received from his request forLET dollars from the Sheriff’s Department. A request was made for $4,000 to sponsor two scholarships. A question was asked whether letters of recommenda-

tion for scholarship applicants were acceptable. CDR Milheim said the letters are not required, but would cer-

tainly be given due consideration by the evaluators. Ifthe applicant is an ROTC student, extra credit is given.

ROTC/JROTC Support: CPT Clark mentioned that most of the ceremonies have been held. He has re-ceived support from LTC Ed Boegle and Maj Charley Booton in presenting the awards. The University ofSouth AL in Mobile will be dropped from our cogni-zance and they will be deleted from our web site. They will be covered by the Mobile MOAA Chapter. CPT

Clark will get clarification from Mobile as to whether they will pick up the high schools in Foley and GulfShores. CPT Clark recommended we consider how wecan support the Nursing program at UWF. They re-

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LEGISLATIVE AND BENEFITS UPDATE (Continued from page 2)

Last year, Congress wrote a requirement into the defense bill for the Secretary of Defense to submit a report to achieve budget-neutrality for the commissary and ex-change benefits no later than March 1, 2016. Then, the Department was tasked to begin pilot projects to achieve that goal - while also maintaining current levels of patron savings and satisfaction and product quality.

Recently, Defense Chief Management Officer, Peter Lev-ine, acknowledged budget neutrality couldn't be achieved while still meeting those criteria. But, the requirement to proceed with the report remains.

1 March 2016 has passed, and the report release has been delayed, but is expected later this year. After the report is submitted, DoD will be allowed to begin pilot pro-grams using concepts such as variable pricing.

Commissaries currently are not allowed to sell items for less than cost or more than cost. The variable pricing pilot would allow them to selectively modify product prices, up or down, for up to five years (or more if it works to reduce requirements for tax dollar support).

Although the pilot still requires DoD to meet benchmarks for savings, product quality, and customer satisfaction, variable pricing could change the way commissaries de-liver those savings. Civilian stores use variable pricing to create “loss leaders” - basic products that may be priced at a loss to the store, but attract patrons to buy other products with higher profit margins.

Variable pricing could also lead to varying commissary prices by location. For example, in areas where costs out-side the gate are higher, commissaries could adjust pric-ing upward, so long as the patron experiences the equiv-alent level of savings compared to local groceries. Ac-cordingly, if the local groceries are typically priced lower than the national average, the commissary would have to adjust their prices downward, potentially at a loss, to pro-vide savings. Therefore, some assignments may result in higher or lower out of pocket cost to the patron to put the same food on the table.

The commissary isn't just a store inside the gates of a military installation. It's one of the key mechanisms through which the Defense Department delivers a military benefits package intended to sustain long-term retention and readiness.

2.1% Pay Raise, More Troops, Commissary Changes in Draft Defense Bill (Source: Military.Com) 20 Apr 2016 by Amy Bushatz Troops would receive a 2.1 percent pay raise in 2017 un-der a plan released by House lawmakers this week. The draft legislation from the House Armed Services Commit-tee's Personnel Subcommittee was among the first to be released as part of the process to amend, or mark-up, the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act, which sets poli-cy goals and spending targets for the year beginning 1 October.

3

cently graduated two nurses who were commissioned as

Ensigns.

UNFINISHED BUSINESSAudit: CDR Paula Judd and LCDR Ray Judd conductedan audit (February 2013 through December 2015) to comply with the PMOAA Bylaws. No discrepancies were found and all state and federal financial reports were

filed. The scholarship investment account balance was unknown. A recommendation was made to have theTreasurer report to the board projections of availablescholarships based on fund management. To meet this recommendation, LCDR Brown will incorporate the quar-

terly reports from Edward Jones on the status of the An-na Johnson Fund on the treasurer report. CDR Milheim stated he sends a letter to the President requesting mon-ey be released from the fund.Another recommendation was that two signatures be

required on the checks, both the Treasurer and another

Board Officer. A motion was made by CPT Kirschner, seconded by CAPT Viglienzone, to require two signa-tures on any checks over $100. Motion carried.A motion was made by MAJ Werner, seconded by CPT Kirschner, to approve the audit. Motion carried.

CHALLENGE COIN: No progress. LEVELS OF EXCELLENCE AWARD: RADM Engelpresented CPT Kirschner a copy of the 2015 submission.

DIRECTORY ADDENDUM: MAJ Werner, ElaineCiardello and RADM Engel are working this to ensure allinformation is correct. We will hold off until the member-

ship issues are resolved.

NEW BUSINESSMemorial Day: The ceremony will be held on Monday,30 May at the NAS base Chapel starting at 0900. Veter-an organizations are to assemble at 0830 with their unit

flags and stands. Names of deceased members will beread. PMOAA participants will decide at the board meet-ing next month.

ROWWA: Iva Prosser asked whether anyone was aware of a parent group for this organization. They would like to revise their Bylaws to have a more inclusive

membership to include officer wives, not just retirees. Since PMOAA has no affiliation with ROWWA, they can do whatever they want with respect to revising their By-laws. A word of caution – be careful not to impinge on PMOAA membership with respect to Surviving Spouse

and Auxiliary members.

JROTC Support: One request has been received from LtCol Landfair, USAF (Ret), Senior Science Instructor atGulf Breeze High School, asking for money to be usedtoward purchasing a plaque for Silver Eagles (top 3%who completed AFJROTC) for the last 20 years.

Amount requested was $1,000. Captain Clark will follow up with other JROTC units to see if they are going to ap-

ply for PMOAA funds. Decision tabled until nextmonth.


The White House had requested a 1.6 percent pay raise for 2017, which is higher than the 1.3 percent increase received by troops this year, but lower than the 2.1 per-cent raise called for by law to match private-sector wage growth. The legislation also calls for adding 27,000 more active-duty troops than the Defense Department has re-quested for 2017, resulting in personnel levels closer to what has been authorized for this year.

In February the Pentagon requested funding for 1.3 mil-lion active-duty troops in the next fiscal year, a decrease of 19,400 troops from the current period. It also asked for money to support 811,000 reservists in the same period, a decrease of almost 10,000 reservists from this year.

While the subcommittee is responsible for drafting mili-tary health care legislation, it didn't include any changes to the Tricare program in the language released this week. The bill would allow the Defense Department to increase prices at commissary stores almost immediate-ly, while shortcutting a pilot program ordered by Con-gress for this year designed to test raising some prices while lowering others at some stores. Currently, commis-saries are required to sell items at cost, plus a 5-percent surcharge.

Under the pilot, test stores will base their new price schemes on a still undetermined "cost savings" baseline established by comparing prices to nearby civilian mar-kets. For example, the savings point could be set at 20 percent, meaning goods at the commissary would be re-quired to be that much less than the average prices found at grocers outside the gate. Specific details on where and when it will be conducted are not yet available.

But the proposal included in the newly released draft, would allow officials to instead roll out the pricing struc-ture "in response to market conditions and customer de-mand," system-wide without finishing the test. To do that, officials would be required to establish a savings baseline as well as specific, measurable benchmarks, the bill states. The system would also be converted from appro-priated, taxpayer funding to a non-appropriated, self-sustaining status while providing lawmakers with quarter-ly status updates.

Also as part of the change, new commissary employees would be hired under a non-appropriated funding status, which carries a different pay structure and benefits than current commissary employees receive. Those positions would convert when current employees leave or retiree, and no current employees would be forced to take a pay cut as a result of the change, the bill says.

But the plan also contains safeguards in case changing to the new structure results in losses and the system can-not pay for itself after all. If that happens, the bill says, officials would be permitted to grant the Defense Com-missary Agency appropriated funds to keep it running in the black.

(Continued on page 4) B

http://www.military.com/benefits/military-pay

http://www.military.com/benefits/tricare


COAST GUARD HEADQUARTERS RETIREE COUNCIL PUBLICIZES MOAA

At annual National Retiree Council meeting held in

Washington, DC on April 19 – 21, MOAA was compli-

mented. “MOAA has four good publications: Military

Entitlements; Aging into Medicare; Survivor Benefit

Plan; and Help Your Survivors Now.” Have you re-

quested one and read one or all lately? The PMOAA

Board is considering the cost/benefit of these publica-

tions to be used as recruiting/marketing aids. http://

www1.moaa.org/infoexchange/ The Coast Guard also

has a Survivor Benefits Guide: Information for Survi-

vors of USCG, USCGR, USPHS, & NOAA Retirees.

MILITARY RECRUITING – COAST GUARD

The Coast Guard is hiring: Future recruiting goals

are 3750 with a reduced number of recruiting offic-

es. Help out by counseling good candidates and re-

ferring them to http://www.gocoastguard.com/ or to

PMOAA member Walt Viglienzone, USCG (Ret),

[email protected]. Walt Viglienzone

POSSIBLE RECRUITING AID WHILE AT THE NAVAL AVIATION MUSEUM

Any PMOAA member, who volunteers or attends the

many events at the Naval Aviation Museum, or Blue

Angels practices, might consider wearing a MOAA

nametag, shirt or ball cap, and carrying member pam-

phlets. If you meet an officer you know, or an officer

identifying self as military vet or retiree, why not start a

conversation: e.g. Thanks for your service. Where

were you stationed last? Where do you call home

now? Have you heard of MOAA or PMOAA? We’d

love to have you come to a monthly meeting.

WREATHS ACROSS AMERICA – BARRANCAS NATIONAL CEMETERY 2016

The Philanthropic Educational Organization (PEO) la-

dies have asked Kiwanis Club of Big Lagoon to accept

responsibility for coordinating the Pensacola area do-

nations, and ceremony, to honor and remember those

Veterans interred at Barrancas National Cemetery:

http://barrancaswreaths.com/barrancas-photo-

album.html. We welcome all who previously spon-

sored wreaths through the Philanthropic Educational

Organization (PEO) and thank the PEO for their dedi-

cation to “Remember, Honor, and Teach” over the past

several years.

Walt Viglienzone, USCG (Ret) is a member of PMOAA

and Kiwanis. Walt Viglienzone

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Please support the elimination of the SBP/DIC offsetby asking your congressional representatives to co-sponsor H.R. 1594 in the House and S. 979 in the Sen-ate. Also, seek support for H.R. 4519. Use the toll-freeCapitol Hill line (866) 272-MOAA (6622) to call yourcongressional representatives today.

For additional information regarding the SBP/DIC off-set, visit the Survivor Advocacy Issues section ofMOAA’s Web base.

Kathy Prout, SSAC Advisor



SCHOLARSHIP DONATION FORM

Please accept my/our gift of $_______ to support thePMOAA Scholarship Fund. This gift is being made in honor of or, in memory of ____________________________________________

Donor Information ____________________________________________Name____________________________________________Address ____________________________________________Phone ____________________________________________Email

Please send an acknowledgement to: ____________________________________________Name_________________________________________Address

Your gift is tax deductible to the extent allowable by law.

Mail your donation payable to:

PMOAA, P.O. Box 17728 Pensacola, FL 32501

Thank you for your support!

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SURVIVING SPOUSE CORNER - Special Survivor Indemnity Allowance (SSIA)

The Special Survivor Indemnity Allowance (SSIA) was established in October 2008 as a first step toward elimi-nating the Survivor Benefit Plan/Dependency and In-demnity Compensation (SBP/DIC) offset. SBP is anannuity purchased upon retirement to ensure thespouse will continue to receive income (55 percent ofthe retiree’s elected amount of coverage) in the eventthe retiree pre-deceases his or her spouse. SBP also isawarded automatically to:

surviving spouses of retirement-eligible service members (i.e. with 20-plus years of service)who died on active duty before 11 Sep 2001; and

surviving spouses of all service members(regardless of length of service) who died on active duty after 11 Sep 2001.

If the service member’s death was caused by a service-connected illness, then the surviving spouse is eligiblefor DIC from the VA in the amount of $1,254 per month.DIC is deducted from SBP dollar-for-dollar, up to the full amount of SBP. Congress agreed this offset was wrong but was unable to come up with the funding to fully eliminate the offset. They instead created SSIA. It was a 10-year allowance, which started at $50 a month, iscurrently $275 a month, and will increase to $310 by2017. The problem is current statutory authority to pay the SSIA is set to expire 1 Oct 2017. It is important for SSIA to be extended and increased inthis year’s Defense Authorization Bill if the funds to eliminate the SBP/DIC offset are not found. Otherwise,63,000 surviving spouses affected by the SBP/DIC off-set will see a $3,720 reduction in compensation in 2017. Two bills, H.R. 4519 and H.R. 4493, were introduced byRep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) in the House of Represent-atives to increase and extend SSIA as follows:

H.R. 4519 would increase SSIA over five years: $400 in 2018; $475 in 2019; $600 in 2020; $700in 2021; and $800 in 2022.

H.R. 4493 would increase SSIA to $400 a month for one year in 2018. This bill is a backupbill to H.R. 4519 in case funding for the five-yearbill cannot be found. SSIA then would end in 2019 and again have to be addressed if the off-set was not eliminated.

If monies to eliminate the SBP/DIC offset cannot befound, it is imperative SSIA not only be extended butalso increased. Pursuing SSIA increases does not re-move the goal to eliminate the SBP/DIC offset com-pletely. SSIA’s principal purpose is twofold: (1) to pro-vide at least partial, immediate reimbursement to SBP/DIC survivors until full repeal of the offset can beachieved, and (2) provide an additional option to attain repeal of the offset through a phased-in approach, with steady increases to the annual SSIA amounts.


Thoughts to Ponder Which should select a Presidential Candidate, the

party elite or party voters?

Does having rules mean that a process guided by

those rules is not corrupt?

What are the elements that define a Nation? Hint:

common language, enforceable borders, laws

equally applicable to all within a given jurisdiction,

and etc.

Why should international borders exist everywhere

except the United States?

Is there any Federal Official who is above Federal

Law? Compiled and Edited by Colonel Bob Pappas,

USMC(Ret)

PRESIDENT’S CORNER (Continued from page 1)

not as yet been paid for. We are certainly hoping

that we will be at least able to support one or two

more scholarships through this raffle. Please send

in your check at your earliest convenience. The fi-

nal date for buying raffle tickets is 11 May. Last

year we sold about $3,000.00 worth of tickets which

is split four ways: 1st place 25%, 2nd place 15%,

3rd place 5%, and 55% goes to discretion of the

Board of Directors. Of course, we also take dona-

tions to the Scholarship Fund. Remember, 4 Au-

gust is the date for our Scholarship Awards Ban-

quet. Applications may be downloaded at

www.pmoaa.org and must be submitted no later

than 15 June 2016.

Our speaker next month will be CAPT Sarah Martin,

Nurse Corps, and the former chief of staff at Walter

Reed National Military Medical Center. She took

command of Pensacola Naval Hospital on 21 Au-

gust 2015. She was commissioned as an ensign in

the Navy in 1987. She has previously served at Na-

val Hospitals Yokosuka, Japan; Bremerton, Wash.;

and Camp Lejeune; N.C. She earned a bachelor’s

degree in nursing from Gustavus Adolphus College

and a master’s degree in nursing from the University

of Washington. Don’t miss our next dinner if you

want to be updated on what to expect at Navy Hos-

pital Pensacola and in Military Medicine.

Our next meeting will be on 19 May, again at

Skopelos at New World Landing. You do not want

to miss this festive evening. We also will be having

the drawing for the raffle mentioned above. I hope

to see all of you next month at Skopelos. Bill Clark

CAPT Frazier, Estelle Kirschner, RADM Carmen Ciardello and CAPT Lathe Bowen

http://www1.moaa.org/infoexchange/


http://www.gocoastguard.com/


http://barrancaswreaths.com/barrancas-photo-album.html


http://capwiz.com/moaa/issues/bills/?bill=64926801


http://www.moaa.org/Content/About-MOAA/Meet-our-Leaders/Surviving-Spouse-Advisory-Committee/Survivor-Advocacy-Issues.aspx

Pensacola Chapter Newsletter - May 2016 - Military Officers Association of America

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT – CDR SUSAN McCORD,

NURSE CORPS, USN (Ret)

Susie, the newest recruit to the wonderful world of PMOAA, was born in rural West Virginia and attend-ed nursing school at Kentucky Baptist Hospital in Louisville, graduating with a Registered Nursing de-gree in 1979. For the next ten years, she worked in the private sector nursing jobs in Michigan, Pennsyl-vania and Virginia. Along the way she sought and received a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army Reserve Nurse Corps in March 1985, and four years later was promoted to 1st Lieutenant. She al-so met and married the love of her life, Bill, in 1988. .

In late 1989, she decided to trade in her Army green for blue and gold and transferred to the Navy Nurse Corps as an Active Duty Lieutenant, Junior Grade (LTJG). Following a brief stay at Knife and Fork School, otherwise known as the Officer Indoctrination School, she commenced her Navy career at Naval Hospital Portsmouth, VA. A year later she was de-ployed to Fleet Hospital 5, Saudi Arabia and was promoted to Lieutenant (LT) during her six month tour. It was during this tour that her dad died.

When Susie returned to Portsmouth, VA, her mom came to live with her and Bill, and has been with them ever since. Bill retired from the Navy as a Mas-ter Chief Radioman, and Susie applied for Duty Un-der Instruction (DUINS). She was accepted and en-rolled in Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA in 1992 to complete a Bachelor of Science, Nursing degree. Following graduation in 1993, she trans-ferred to the Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton, serv-ing her utilization tour as the Division Officer for the largest Family Practice Residency Program in the Navy. While in sunny California, Susie completed a Master of Arts, Health Services Management degree.

Next up was an unaccompanied tour to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba in 1996 as a Department Head. While there, she completed a Master’s Degree in Public Administration before returning to Portsmouth Naval Hospital in 1998.

In 2001, the newly minted LCDR McCord was or-dered to the Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune, NC as the Division Officer of the multi service ward and subsequently was selected as the division officer to “stand up” the newly designed Family Practice Resi-dency Program. During this tour, she was again de-ployed to Fleet Hospital 20, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to serve as the Division Officer of the Inpatient De-tainee Hospital for six months. She was promoted to CDR while deployed.

5

Shortly after returning to Camp Lejeune, she accepted “hot fill” orders to the Naval Hospital Pensacola, arriv-ing in December 2003. She served as the Associate Director of Medical Services and then as Interim Di-rector. Her follow-on assignment was with the Naval Service Training Command, NAS Pensacola as the Medical Programs Officer for the NROTC program.

In 2009, Susie completed her Doctorate in Health Ad-ministration. She called it a career a year later having served twenty-one years in the Navy and four and a half years in the Army Reserves. Following retire-ment, Dr. McCord joined Norwich University as an adjunct faculty member in the School of Graduate and Continuing Studies, Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) Program and taught Health Systems Analysis for four years.

To make her life interesting, the Vermont Board of Nursing, in 2014, required all instructors in the MSN programs to hold an MSN degree. This new require-ment forced Dr. McCord to return to college to com-plete an MSN program. She received her degree in 2015. Immediately following her graduation, she re-sumed her duties as an online teacher in the MSN program at Norwich University.

Susie and Bill are members of the Perdido Bay Bap-tist Church, participate in the Pensacola Veterans Day Parade, look after her 89 year old mother and enjoy the company of their four fur babies (Bruiser, Buddy, Bella and Freddy). Susie also is the current President of the Gulf Coast Navy Nurse Corps Association.

We are extremely happy that they have decided to become part of PMOAA and hope that our members will make them feel welcome when they attend our functions.

LCDR Ray Judd

A BIT OF TRIVIA Captain Walter Viglienzone found this monument at Barrancas. Does anybody know its history? If so, contact Captain Viglienzone at: [email protected].


Pensacola Chapter Newsletter - May 2016 - Military Officers Association of America

PMOAA April Dinner Photos Courtesy of Christine Frazier


6


Maj David and Col Susan Morgan and Reverend Bill and Therese Broach

Dondy and CDR Henry Buckley Donna Clark and Lt Dan Grace Judy and CDR Paul Dickson

Jean and Maj Charley Booton, CDR Vann Milheim and

mother-in-law Dorothy Hinz

CPT Jimmy and Missy Pritchard - new members

Kathy Champagne and CAPT Walt Viglienzone

LTC Ed Boegle and Marc Churchwell Ryne Milheim and CDR Ron Cummins LtCol Paul Shrader, Kathy Champagne, Polly Shrader and MAJ Ken Champagne

Barbara and CDR Joe Brewer, Barbara and LtCol Chuck MacDonald

MAJ Rod Miller, LTCOL Ed Boegle and Judy Miller


COAST GUARD HEADQUARTERS RETIREE COUNCIL PUBLICIZES MOAA

At annual National Retiree Council meeting held in

Washington, DC on April 19 – 21, MOAA was compli-

mented. “MOAA has four good publications: Military

Entitlements; Aging into Medicare; Survivor Benefit

Plan; and Help Your Survivors Now.” Have you re-

quested one and read one or all lately? The PMOAA

Board is considering the cost/benefit of these publica-

tions to be used as recruiting/marketing aids. http://

www1.moaa.org/infoexchange/ The Coast Guard also

has a Survivor Benefits Guide: Information for Survi-

vors of USCG, USCGR, USPHS, & NOAA Retirees.

MILITARY RECRUITING – COAST GUARD

The Coast Guard is hiring: Future recruiting goals

are 3750 with a reduced number of recruiting offic-

es. Help out by counseling good candidates and re-

ferring them to http://www.gocoastguard.com/ or to

PMOAA member Walt Viglienzone, USCG (Ret),

[email protected] Viglienzone

POSSIBLE RECRUITING AID WHILE AT THE NAVAL AVIATION MUSEUM

Any PMOAA member, who volunteers or attends the

many events at the Naval Aviation Museum, or Blue

Angels practices, might consider wearing a MOAA

nametag, shirt or ball cap, and carrying member pam-

phlets. If you meet an officer you know, or an officer

identifying self as military vet or retiree, why not start a

conversation: e.g. Thanks for your service. Where

were you stationed last? Where do you call home

now? Have you heard of MOAA or PMOAA? We’d

love to have you come to a monthly meeting.

WREATHS ACROSS AMERICA – BARRANCASNATIONAL CEMETERY 2016

The Philanthropic Educational Organization (PEO) la-

dies have asked Kiwanis Club of Big Lagoon to accept

responsibility for coordinating the Pensacola area do-

nations, and ceremony, to honor and remember those

Veterans interred at Barrancas National Cemetery:

http://barrancaswreaths.com/barrancas-photo-

album.html. We welcome all who previously spon-

sored wreaths through the Philanthropic Educational

Organization (PEO) and thank the PEO for their dedi-

cation to “Remember, Honor, and Teach” over the past

several years.

Walt Viglienzone, USCG (Ret) is a member of PMOAA

and Kiwanis. Walt Viglienzone

4

Please support the elimination of the SBP/DIC offset by asking your congressional representatives to co-sponsor H.R. 1594 in the House and S. 979 in the Sen-ate. Also, seek support for H.R. 4519. Use the toll-free Capitol Hill line (866) 272-MOAA (6622) to call your congressional representatives today.

For additional information regarding the SBP/DIC off-set, visit the Survivor Advocacy Issues section of MOAA’s Web base.

Kathy Prout, SSAC Advisor



SCHOLARSHIP DONATION FORM

Please accept my/our gift of $_______ to support the PMOAA Scholarship Fund. This gift is being made in honor of or, in memory of ____________________________________________

Donor Information ____________________________________________ Name ____________________________________________ Address ____________________________________________ Phone ____________________________________________ Email

Please send an acknowledgement to: ____________________________________________ Name _________________________________________ Address

Your gift is tax deductible to the extent allowable by law.

Mail your donation payable to:

PMOAA, P.O. Box 17728 Pensacola, FL 32501

Thank you for your support!

7

SURVIVING SPOUSE CORNER - Special Survivor Indemnity Allowance (SSIA)

The Special Survivor Indemnity Allowance (SSIA) was established in October 2008 as a first step toward elimi-nating the Survivor Benefit Plan/Dependency and In-demnity Compensation (SBP/DIC) offset. SBP is an annuity purchased upon retirement to ensure the spouse will continue to receive income (55 percent of the retiree’s elected amount of coverage) in the event the retiree pre-deceases his or her spouse. SBP also is awarded automatically to:

surviving spouses of retirement-eligible servicemembers (i.e. with 20-plus years of service)who died on active duty before 11 Sep 2001;and

surviving spouses of all service members(regardless of length of service) who died onactive duty after 11 Sep 2001.

If the service member’s death was caused by a service-connected illness, then the surviving spouse is eligible for DIC from the VA in the amount of $1,254 per month. DIC is deducted from SBP dollar-for-dollar, up to the full amount of SBP. Congress agreed this offset was wrong but was unable to come up with the funding to fully eliminate the offset. They instead created SSIA. It was a 10-year allowance, which started at $50 a month, is currently $275 a month, and will increase to $310 by 2017. The problem is current statutory authority to pay the SSIA is set to expire 1 Oct 2017. It is important for SSIA to be extended and increased in this year’s Defense Authorization Bill if the funds to eliminate the SBP/DIC offset are not found. Otherwise, 63,000 surviving spouses affected by the SBP/DIC off-set will see a $3,720 reduction in compensation in 2017. Two bills, H.R. 4519 and H.R. 4493, were introduced by Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) in the House of Represent-atives to increase and extend SSIA as follows:

H.R. 4519 would increase SSIA over five years:$400 in 2018; $475 in 2019; $600 in 2020; $700in 2021; and $800 in 2022.

H.R. 4493 would increase SSIA to $400 amonth for one year in 2018. This bill is a backupbill to H.R. 4519 in case funding for the five-yearbill cannot be found. SSIA then would end in2019 and again have to be addressed if the off-set was not eliminated.

If monies to eliminate the SBP/DIC offset cannot be found, it is imperative SSIA not only be extended but also increased. Pursuing SSIA increases does not re-move the goal to eliminate the SBP/DIC offset com-pletely. SSIA’s principal purpose is twofold: (1) to pro-vide at least partial, immediate reimbursement to SBP/DIC survivors until full repeal of the offset can be achieved, and (2) provide an additional option to attain repeal of the offset through a phased-in approach, with steady increases to the annual SSIA amounts.


Thoughts to PonderWhich should select a Presidential Candidate, the

party elite or party voters?

Does having rules mean that a process guided by

those rules is not corrupt?

What are the elements that define a Nation? Hint:

common language, enforceable borders, laws

equally applicable to all within a given jurisdiction,

and etc.

Why should international borders exist everywhere

except the United States?

Is there any Federal Official who is above Federal

Law?

Compiled and Edited by Colonel Bob Pappas,

USMC(Ret)

PRESIDENT’S CORNER(Continued from page 1)

not as yet been paid for. We are certainly hoping

that we will be at least able to support one or two

more scholarships through this raffle. Please send

in your check at your earliest convenience. The fi-

nal date for buying raffle tickets is 11 May. Last

year we sold about $3,000.00 worth of tickets which

is split four ways: 1st place 25%, 2nd place 15%,

3rd place 5%, and 55% goes to discretion of the

Board of Directors. Of course, we also take dona-

tions to the Scholarship Fund. Remember, 4 Au-

gust is the date for our Scholarship Awards Ban-

quet. Applications may be downloaded at

www.pmoaa.org and must be submitted no later

than 15 June 2016.

Our speaker next month will be CAPT Sarah Martin,

Nurse Corps, and the former chief of staff at Walter

Reed National Military Medical Center. She took

command of Pensacola Naval Hospital on 21 Au-

gust 2015. She was commissioned as an ensign in

the Navy in 1987. She has previously served at Na-

val Hospitals Yokosuka, Japan; Bremerton, Wash.;

and Camp Lejeune; N.C. She earned a bachelor’s

degree in nursing from Gustavus Adolphus College

and a master’s degree in nursing from the University

of Washington. Don’t miss our next dinner if you

want to be updated on what to expect at Navy Hos-

pital Pensacola and in Military Medicine.

Our next meeting will be on 19 May, again at

Skopelos at New World Landing. You do not want

to miss this festive evening. We also will be having

the drawing for the raffle mentioned above. I hope

to see all of you next month at Skopelos. Bill Clark

CAPT Frazier, Estelle Kirschner, RADM Carmen Ciardello and CAPT Lathe Bowen



http://www.gocoastguard.com/






http://www.moaa.org/Content/About-MOAA/Meet-our-Leaders/Surviving-Spouse-Advisory-Committee/Survivor-Advocacy-Issues.aspx



President Clark called the meeting to order at 1700 hours with the following members present: CPT Clark,

CPT Kirschner, MAJ Werner, RADM Engel, LCDR Brown, COL Cook, CAPT Viglienzone, Iva Prosser, Past President, LCDR Wilhite and Scholarship Chair, CDR Milheim. Members absent: LTC Derr and CDR

Brewer.

March Minutes: A motion was made by LCDR Brown, seconded by COL Cook, to approve the March board minutes. Motion carried.

Treasurer Report: LCDR Brown presented the 2/24/16 to 3/23/16 report showing all bills have been paid and most of the dues have been received. Schol-

arship balance is unchanged from last month. A motion was made by CPT Kirschner, seconded by LCDR

Wilhite to approve the treasurer report. Motion carried.

COMMITTEE REPORTS Recruiting and Membership: MAJ Werner has been busy contacting current members who have not re-

newed their dues for this year. Thirty eight members have not renewed. She will continue to contact delin-quent members. We do not want to lose anyone but there comes a time when dues are overdue. One new member has been recruited. Remember – recruiting is everyone’s responsibility. If a new member joins MOAA as a life member, they automatically get two years of free Chapter dues.

MAJ Werner received kudos from Mrs. Michele Nash for the support that was provided to her by Captain Mayer.

SCHOLARSHIP: CDR Milheim reported that infor-mation regarding the PMOAA scholarship program has

appeared in the Gosport but nothing in the Pensacola News Journal. He will follow up on the PNJ. To date, no response has been received from his request for LET dollars from the Sheriff’s Department. A request was made for $4,000 to sponsor two scholarships. A question was asked whether letters of recommenda-

tion for scholarship applicants were acceptable. CDR Milheim said the letters are not required, but would cer-

tainly be given due consideration by the evaluators. If the applicant is an ROTC student, extra credit is given.

ROTC/JROTC Support: CPT Clark mentioned that most of the ceremonies have been held. He has re-ceived support from LTC Ed Boegle and Maj Charley Booton in presenting the awards. The University of South AL in Mobile will be dropped from our cogni-zance and they will be deleted from our web site. They will be covered by the Mobile MOAA Chapter. CPT

Clark will get clarification from Mobile as to whether they will pick up the high schools in Foley and Gulf Shores. CPT Clark recommended we consider how we can support the Nursing program at UWF. They re-

8


Last year, Congress wrote a requirement into the defense bill for the Secretary of Defense to submit a report to achieve budget-neutrality for the commissary and ex-change benefits no later than March 1, 2016. Then, theDepartment was tasked to begin pilot projects to achieve that goal - while also maintaining current levels of patronsavings and satisfaction and product quality.

Recently, Defense Chief Management Officer, Peter Lev-ine, acknowledged budget neutrality couldn't be achievedwhile still meeting those criteria. But, the requirement to proceed with the report remains.

1 March 2016 has passed, and the report release has been delayed, but is expected later this year. After thereport is submitted, DoD will be allowed to begin pilot pro-grams using concepts such as variable pricing.

Commissaries currently are not allowed to sell items forless than cost or more than cost. The variable pricing pilotwould allow them to selectively modify product prices, upor down, for up to five years (or more if it works to reduce requirements for tax dollar support).

Although the pilot still requires DoD to meet benchmarksfor savings, product quality, and customer satisfaction,variable pricing could change the way commissaries de-liver those savings. Civilian stores use variable pricing to create “loss leaders” - basic products that may be pricedat a loss to the store, but attract patrons to buy other products with higher profit margins.

Variable pricing could also lead to varying commissary prices by location. For example, in areas where costs out-side the gate are higher, commissaries could adjust pric-ing upward, so long as the patron experiences the equiv-alent level of savings compared to local groceries. Ac-cordingly, if the local groceries are typically priced lower than the national average, the commissary would have to adjust their prices downward, potentially at a loss, to pro-vide savings. Therefore, some assignments may result in higher or lower out of pocket cost to the patron to put thesame food on the table.

The commissary isn't just a store inside the gates of a military installation. It's one of the key mechanisms through which the Defense Department delivers a military benefits package intended to sustain long-term retention and readiness.

2.1% Pay Raise, More Troops, Commissary Changes in Draft Defense Bill (Source: Military.Com) 20 Apr 2016 by Amy Bushatz Troops would receive a 2.1 percent pay raise in 2017 un-der a plan released by House lawmakers this week. Thedraft legislation from the House Armed Services Commit-tee's Personnel Subcommittee was among the first to bereleased as part of the process to amend, or mark-up, the2017 National Defense Authorization Act, which sets poli-cy goals and spending targets for the year beginning 1 October.

3

cently graduated two nurses who were commissioned as

Ensigns.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS Audit: CDR Paula Judd and LCDR Ray Judd conducted an audit (February 2013 through December 2015) to comply with the PMOAA Bylaws. No discrepancies were found and all state and federal financial reports were

filed. The scholarship investment account balance was unknown. A recommendation was made to have the Treasurer report to the board projections of available scholarships based on fund management. To meet this recommendation, LCDR Brown will incorporate the quar-

terly reports from Edward Jones on the status of the An-na Johnson Fund on the treasurer report. CDR Milheim stated he sends a letter to the President requesting mon-ey be released from the fund. Another recommendation was that two signatures be

required on the checks, both the Treasurer and another

Board Officer. A motion was made by CPT Kirschner, seconded by CAPT Viglienzone, to require two signa-tures on any checks over $100. Motion carried. A motion was made by MAJ Werner, seconded by CPT Kirschner, to approve the audit. Motion carried.

CHALLENGE COIN: No progress. LEVELS OF EXCELLENCE AWARD: RADM Engel presented CPT Kirschner a copy of the 2015 submission.

DIRECTORY ADDENDUM: MAJ Werner, Elaine Ciardello and RADM Engel are working this to ensure all information is correct. We will hold off until the member-

ship issues are resolved.

NEW BUSINESS Memorial Day: The ceremony will be held on Monday, 30 May at the NAS base Chapel starting at 0900. Veter-an organizations are to assemble at 0830 with their unit

flags and stands. Names of deceased members will be read. PMOAA participants will decide at the board meet-ing next month.

ROWWA: Iva Prosser asked whether anyone was aware of a parent group for this organization. They would like to revise their Bylaws to have a more inclusive

membership to include officer wives, not just retirees. Since PMOAA has no affiliation with ROWWA, they can do whatever they want with respect to revising their By-laws. A word of caution – be careful not to impinge on PMOAA membership with respect to Surviving Spouse

and Auxiliary members.

JROTC Support: One request has been received from LtCol Landfair, USAF (Ret), Senior Science Instructor at Gulf Breeze High School, asking for money to be used toward purchasing a plaque for Silver Eagles (top 3% who completed AFJROTC) for the last 20 years.

Amount requested was $1,000. Captain Clark will follow up with other JROTC units to see if they are going to ap-

ply for PMOAA funds. Decision tabled until next month.


The White House had requested a 1.6 percent pay raise for 2017, which is higher than the 1.3 percent increase received by troops this year, but lower than the 2.1 per-cent raise called for by law to match private-sector wage growth. The legislation also calls for adding 27,000 more active-duty troops than the Defense Department has re-quested for 2017, resulting in personnel levels closer to what has been authorized for this year.

In February the Pentagon requested funding for 1.3 mil-lion active-duty troops in the next fiscal year, a decrease of 19,400 troops from the current period. It also asked formoney to support 811,000 reservists in the same period,a decrease of almost 10,000 reservists from this year.

While the subcommittee is responsible for drafting mili-tary health care legislation, it didn't include any changesto the Tricare program in the language released this week. The bill would allow the Defense Department to increase prices at commissary stores almost immediate-ly, while shortcutting a pilot program ordered by Con-gress for this year designed to test raising some priceswhile lowering others at some stores. Currently, commis-saries are required to sell items at cost, plus a 5-percent surcharge.

Under the pilot, test stores will base their new price schemes on a still undetermined "cost savings" baseline established by comparing prices to nearby civilian mar-kets. For example, the savings point could be set at 20percent, meaning goods at the commissary would be re-quired to be that much less than the average prices foundat grocers outside the gate. Specific details on where and when it will be conducted are not yet available.

But the proposal included in the newly released draft, would allow officials to instead roll out the pricing struc-ture "in response to market conditions and customer de-mand," system-wide without finishing the test. To do that, officials would be required to establish a savings baseline as well as specific, measurable benchmarks, the bill states. The system would also be converted from appro-priated, taxpayer funding to a non-appropriated, self-sustaining status while providing lawmakers with quarter-ly status updates.

Also as part of the change, new commissary employeeswould be hired under a non-appropriated funding status, which carries a different pay structure and benefits than current commissary employees receive. Those positionswould convert when current employees leave or retiree, and no current employees would be forced to take a pay cut as a result of the change, the bill says.

But the plan also contains safeguards in case changingto the new structure results in losses and the system can-not pay for itself after all. If that happens, the bill says, officials would be permitted to grant the Defense Com-missary Agency appropriated funds to keep it running in the black.

(Continued on page 4)B

http://www.military.com/benefits/military-pay

http://www.military.com/benefits/tricare


2

The meeting comes at a critical time as lawmakers mull serious changes to military health care. The meeting began with a discussion of the budgetingprocess and the flow of funds through DHA to the ser-vices. The DHA staff provided a briefing on the ser-vices' efforts to increase appointments in military facili-ties and make progress toward the goal of “first-call res-olution” for appointment requests.Bono's staff also provided an update on TRICARE pay-ment rate changes for Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)therapy for autistic children.

COLA Watch (Source: MOAA) In order for a positive COLA next year, the ConsumerPrice Index (CPI) has to make pretty significant increas-es. The March CPI is 232.209, and remains .9 percent be-low the FY 2014 COLA baseline. Because there was not a positive COLA in FY 2015, the FY 2014 baselineis used. The CPI for April 2016 is scheduled to be re-leased on 17 May 2016. Note: Military retiree COLA is calculated based onthe CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Work-ers (CPI-W), not the overall CPI. Monthly changes in the index may differ from national figures reportedelsewhere.

Will You Pay More at the Commissary? (Source: MOAA) 25 March 2016The commissary continues to be a favorite benefit forservice members, retirees, wounded warriors, and sur-vivors. Yet every year, we find the program coming un-der budget scrutiny. The money required to keep com-missaries operating is small in terms of the overall de-fense budget, but the desire to use that money else-where (approximately $1.4 billion annually) is high.


LEGISLATIVE AND BENEFITS UP-DATE

DoD Proposes UCMJ Changes (Source: MOAA)For the first time in 30 years, the Pentagon has proposed several changes to the Uni-

form Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). The UCMJ is thefoundation of military justice, encompassing proceduraland substantive criminal laws for the military. In thewake of military sexual assault incidents, a lot of atten-tion was drawn to the procedural statutes in the code,leading then-Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel to direct a full review in 2013. After an extensive two-year review,the Pentagon has proposed a number of changes, in-cluding: Publicly Accessible Court Documents. Unlike

the civilian justice system, filed court documents are not publicly available. The only way to cur-rently gain access to that kind of information is by filing a request under the Freedom of Information Act. DoD would make filed court documents pub-licly available and easily accessible.

Individualized Criminal Statutes. Many criminal offenses currently fall under one broad article. The Pentagon proposes breaking out criminal offenses into separate articles under the UCMJ to better distinguish crimes and “ensure each of-fense receives separate consideration.” The addi-tional articles expand legal protections for sexual assault victims. The proposals also explicitly pre-vent suicide attempts as being marked as a crime.

Stronger Sentencing Guidelines. Military sen-tencing procedures are very different from thecivilian justice system. For most military crimesunder the UCMJ there are no minimum or maxi-mum sentences, leading to considerable variance in sentencing for similar offenses. The Pentagon proposes sentencing guidelines established by the Department of Justice, to be carried out by military judges in all non-capital trials.

Right to Appeal. Judicial review is not currently a right in all cases for convicted service membersunder the UCMJ. The new proposals would mir-ror much of the civilian appeals process, giving service members the ability to determine whether or not to file an appeal. The appellate process would then focus on issues raised by the parties during the original court proceeding. The Penta-gon proposals also would allow the government to appeal sentences under certain conditions. It will still be up to Congress to enact the proposedchanges.

Top Military Doc Discusses Health Care Issues(Source: MOAA) April 1, 2016On March 28, Defense Health Agency (DHA) DirectorVADM Raquel Bono, met with association leaders to discuss various aspects of defense health programs.

9

SINGLES GROUP

Thursday, May 26th will be our next meeting. Mertie is our hostess. We will gather at 5 PM at Carrabba’s Ital-

ian Grill, located at 311 N. 9th Avenue. We’ve been there before, so you do not need directions. Any single PMOAA member who would like to join us for lunch is welcome - just give Mertie a call (934-9446). Hope to see you all there and enjoy this beautiful weather, be

fore it gets too hot. Gisela Vogentanz

MAY DINNER MENU Thursday, 19 May 2016

Skopelos at New World Landing

600 South Palafox Street. Pensacola

Social Hour - 1730 Dinner - 1830

Guest Speaker: Captain Sarah Martin, NC, USN

Commanding Officer, Naval Hospital Pensacola

MENU (1) Prime Rib served with Mashed Potatoes

and Vegetable Medley OR

(2) Margarita Grouper served with a Rice Side and Vegetable Medley

Iceberg lettuce wedge with cucumbers and tomatoes with a choice of balsamic vinaigrette

or buttermilk dressing Warm dinner rolls with whipped butter

Dessert: Skopelos Choice Coffee, iced tea and water - Cash bar available

Reservations must be received by

Monday, 16 May 2016 -- No Exceptions --

Meals are ordered on the basis of accepted reservations.

Phone/email reservations are considered committed and

are payable at the door.

RSVP to: Captain James Frazier, USN (Ret) 7645 Brook Forest Place, Pensacola, FL 32514

Phone: 850-484-9162 Email: [email protected] or www.pmoaa.org

Reservations for ____ at $27.00/person

Total Enclosed ______ Make check payable to PMOAA

_______ Check here if you would like a Singles Table

Member Name _______________________ Menu 1 or 2 Circle Choice

Spouse Name ________________________Menu 1 or 2 Circle Choice

Guest Name(s) _______________________Menu 1 or 2 Circle Choice



CAPT Viglienzone reported that LtCol Landfair has a military blog and it might be a good idea to invite him to a Board meeting.

Other: The Naval Aviation Symposium will be held at the Museum the first week in May. The focus is cele-

brating the 100th anniversary of Coast Guard Aviation. CAPT Viglienzone will have several other items of inter-est in the May edition of the Beacon. Beacon input is due NLT COB Wednesday, 27 April.

The next Board meeting will be on Tuesday, 24 May at 1700 hours at the Pensacola Yacht Club. A motion was made by LCDR Brown, seconded by COL Cook, to adjourn the meeting at 1805. Motion carried. Respectfully submitted,

Joan M. Engel, Secretary

PMOAA SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION

PMOAA will be awarding scholarship grants to children, stepchildren, spouses or grandchildren of active duty or retired military personnel (both officers and enlisted). To be eligible, applicants must be a resident, dependent of a resident, or grandchild of a resident of Escambia, Santa Rosa or Baldwin (AL) counties, and must have completed a minimum of one year at a college/university, with at least a 3.2 GPA, if an undergraduate, or 3.5 if a graduate student, for the two preceding se-mesters (fall of 2015 and spring of 2016 as a full time student). Applications must be submitted no later than 15 June 2016 and may be downloaded at www.pmoaa.org. For more information or to request assistance in applying, contact CDR Vann Milheim, UDN (Ret) at 850-969-9715 or [email protected].

Vann Milheim

RETIRED OFFICERS’ WIVES AND WIDOWS ASSOCIATION

The Retired Officers’ Wives and Widows Association (ROWWA) will meet for lunch on Thursday, May 12,

2016, at the Mustin Beach Club aboard NAS Pensaco-la for the installation of officers and our final meeting of

our organization’s year. The cost is $20 per person. Guests are invited to attend. Membership in ROWWA is open to wives and widows of retired officers and re-tired women officers of all military services. For lunch-eon reservations, please call Mary Chase at (850) 995-

4466 or send your check to Mary’s address listed in the membership book by Monday, May 9, 2016. For new member information, contact Molly Werner (850) 292-9756. There will be no meetings during June, July and August. The first meeting of our new ROWWA year will be September 8, 2016. Have a safe summer.

Bunny Cummins, ROWWA President, (425) 870-6149

http://www.moaa.org/Content/Take-Action/Top-Issues/Currently-Serving/TRICARE-Reform,-or-Just-Fee-Increases-.aspx






What’s Inside… pg 1 President's Corner pg 1 PMOAA April Photos pg 2 Legislative Affairs pg 3 Legislative Affairs (Cont) pg 4 Legislative Affairs (Cont) pg 4 President’s Corner (Cont) pg 4 Coast Guard Headquarters Retiree Council pg 4 Military Recruiting - Coast Guard pg 4 Possible Recruiting Aid pg 4 Wreaths Across America pg 5 Member Spotlight

pg 5 A Bit of Trivia pg 6 PMOAA April Photos (Cont) pg 7 Surviving Spouse Corner pg 7 PMOAA April Photos (Cont) pg 7 Scholarship Donation Form pg 8 Board of Directors Minutes pg 9 Board of Directors Minutes (Cont) pg 9 PMOAA Scholarship Application pg 9 ROWWA pg 9 Singles Group pg 9 May Dinner Reservation

PMOAA Beacon is published by UPS Store 2927,

proud member of PMOAA 4051 Barrancas Avenue, Suite G Pensacola, FL 32507-3482

Tel (850) 457-1099 Fax (850) 457-1022

1 10

Immediate Past President LCDR Dave Wilhite, USN (Ret) 850-380-2767 [email protected]

DIRECTORS

CDR Joe Brewer, USN (Ret) 850-453-9291 [email protected]

LTC William Derr, USA (Ret) 850-457-1987 [email protected]

COL Michael Cook, USA (Ret) 850-916-7338 [email protected]

Mrs. Iva Prosser, Auxiliary 850-485-5533 [email protected]

CAPT Walter Viglienzone, USCG (Ret)


President CPT William Clark, USA (Ret) 850-380-0762 [email protected]

1st Vice President CPT Dean Kirschner, USA (Former) 850-458-7988 [email protected]

2nd Vice President MAJ Molly Werner, USA (Ret) 850-474-1291 [email protected]

Secretary RADM Joan M. Engel, USN (Ret) 850-473-9899 [email protected]

Treasurer LCDR Trumin Brown, USN (Ret) 850-932-0370 [email protected]

Chair, Survivor Assistance Committee CAPT Bill Mayer, USN (Ret)


heim and Dorothy Hinz, guests of Vann Milheim; and JanPierce, guest of George Bingham. Jimmie and Missy Pritchard are new members that were also first time guests. Jimmie, a chaplain in the Army, and his wife were also missionaries in Brazil.

Soon there will be another way to thank our veterans and that is with Wounded American Veterans Event (WAVE). While originated by the Navy Yacht Club, Pensacola, this event is now jointly presented by the Navy Yacht Club, Pensacola and the Pensacola Yacht Club. Sometimes itis difficult to thank all our military veterans who have risked everything and that is what WAVE is all about. A free day of sailing or fishing, barbecue, music, and raffleprizes isn’t a bad way to start. Volunteers will use theirown boats to give cruises to our wounded warriors orthose who have been disabled while serving in the armedforces. I am certain many of you know the veterans weare looking for and can help getting the message out. This program will be on 17 September with a rainout date on 18 September. Help spread the word.

You are a part of PMOAA. All of you should have re-ceived raffle tickets to help support our sponsorships. This is just one more very good reason why we are a part of PMOAA. Unfortunately, many of those tickets have



PMOAA Beacon The City of Five Flags-Pensacola Florida

4 Star Chapter Award – 2002

A 5 Star Chapter Since 2003


PRESIDENT’S CORNER Our speaker in April was absolutely outstanding. He not only is a terrific speaker but he had a lot to say. He is a retired Navy veteran who is still working to assist veter-ans. Not only did he accomplish much while serving onactive duty from 1976-2004, retiring from the US Navy Submarine Force as a Master Chief Petty Officer, butMarc Churchwell may have accomplished even more asthe founder of the Military and Veterans Resource Center(MVRC) on the University of West Florida (UWF) Cam-pus. The MVRC serves as the hub for all veteran studentsupport services on campus. As the primary advocate formilitary and veterans students, Marc coordinates with various offices on the UWF campus (including Emerald Coast) in areas such as enrollment, academic advising, counseling, tutoring, and disability accommodations en-suring these unique student needs are met.

The MVRC hosts three quarterly meetings from 0900 to 1100. I am on the email list of Pensacola Veterans Sup-port Organization Network (PVSON) and I have had theopportunity to attend several of those meetings in thepast couple of years. They are quite organized and welldone. Usually they have several speakers to keep mili-tary support groups, both at UWF and in the surroundingcommunity, up to date on what is new and what has been updated. These meetings are very informative and allowmuch needed networking between each group sharingindividual experiences describing personal needs thegroups or veterans have identified. Marc and his employ-ees have been able to speak the lingo that the youngervets speak, understanding more clearly their problems so this helps tremendously in solving them. I wish I had him around when my kids were in their teens and twenties.

The VA has a full-time, experienced Vocational Rehabili-tation Counselor at UWF and this counselor acts as a one stop liaison for Veterans and active duty retired and eligible dependents alike that would like to further theireducation. They can receive counseling on all the bene-fits the VA has to offer. Don’t we wish we had such coor-dinated efforts thirty, forty, fifty, sixty and, well, we canstop there. To help back up the VA, the MVRC has theability to direct students further to areas where they canfind scholarship money or even part time employment. Sounds like our type of organization and what MOAA andPMOAA promote. Again, if you missed the dinner on 21April, you missed a great presentation.

Guests at last month’s dinner included: Herb and Sallie Ellis and Carolyn Saul, guests of Joan Ferry; Joel and Teresa Fairbanks, guests of Sue Varenholt; Ryne Mil-

Nonprofit Org U.S. Postage Paid

Permit No 326 Pensacola, FL

Pensacola Chapter, MOAA P.O. Box 17728

Pensacola, Florida 32501-7728

Return Service Requested

(Photos continued on page 6)

Mr. Marc Churchwell, Director, Military Veterans Resource Center, UWF












