1
The Star Spangled Banner
Chapter
BALTIMORE
JULY-AUGUST NEWSLETTER
OUR CHAPTER WILL RECEIVE FIVE-STAR LEVEL OF EXCELLENCE AWARD!
BATTLE OF BALTIMORE TOUR – A GREAT OUTING
FIFTY YEARS AGO, OUR CHAPTER BEGINNINGS (Part 2)
NOMINATIONS & VOLUNTEERS SOUGHT FOR 2015-16
MAJ. GEN JOSEPH LYNCH, USAF (Ret.) of MOAA at SEPTEMBER MEETING
FIVE STAR LEVEL OF EXCELLENCE AWARD
For an outstanding level of performance in calendar year 2013, the Star Spangled Banner Chapter
will receive MOAA’s Five Star Level of Excellence Award. A streamer with five stars for our chapter
flag will be presented at the National Conference of MOAA in Arlington, VA, at the awards dinner on
Monday evening, October 27, at the Pentagon Sheraton Hotel.
NOMINATIONS and VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for all offices, board, and committee chairs
Terms are up for all positions this year. We need to fill President, First VP, Second VP,
Secretary, Treasurer, a Board Representative from each service, and committee chairs for Legislative
Affairs, Personal Affairs, Veterans Transition Assistance, Membership, and ROTC Support. Raise your
own hand and/or suggest nominations to COL Tom Seybold, tkseybold@hotmail; or CAPT Mike
DeHaemer, [email protected]. The Nominating Committee will contact all interested parties.
CHAPTER EVENT CALENDAR
SEPT. 23, 2014 Tuesday, 6 p.m.
Dinner meeting at Canton Dockside Restaurant, 3301 Boston Street, Baltimore, MD 21224. Maj. Gen. Joseph Lynch, guest speaker, to present Fiftieth Anniversary Certificate. Reservations…see flyer at end of newsletter.
NOV. 18, 2014 Tuesday, 6 p.m.
Star Spangled Banner Chapter’s 50th Anniversary Banquet. Guest of honor and speaker will be Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum, USA (Ret.), former Chief of the National Guard Bureau, President of the Maryland Military History Museum.
Find us at StarSpan.org
2
JUNE EVENT REPORT --- Tour of the Battle of Baltimore, September 12, 1814
On a delightful, sunny Saturday, June 7, members and guests of the Star Spangled Banner
Chapter and the Susquehanna Chapter spent the day in an engaging and educational tour that traced the
path of the invading British army. From the mouth of the Patapsco River at Fort Howard until the
remains of the earthworks and artillery line at Hampstead Hill, Patterson Park, our guide Glenn Williams
turned back the clock and made the events of 1814 come back to life. We learned the leaders’
personalities --- both the British officers and the Baltimore defenders. We saw the British strategy to
combine the use of their fleet and their army to destroy Baltimore, and we gained admiration for the
foresight of Baltimore’s city leaders and the willing patriotism of the citizen defenders. We had lunch at
Cactus Willy’s in Dundalk (not available to redcoats) as we went by bus visiting sites along the North
Point to Baltimore road. Many compliments were given to Glenn Williams, U.S. Army Historian from
Fort McNair, and COL Randy Everett, USA (Ret.), Chapter 2nd Vice President, who assisted in the
narrative and was the tour organizer.
Imagine 100 ships, tall sails reaching ten stories, thousands of redcoats landing.
Battle Acre in 1814 and 2014. Gaining appreciation for the defense of Baltimore by the Fifth Regiment of Maryland Militia.
Patterson Park. Left is School Children of Baltimore Memorial of 1914, commemorating the Star Spangled Banner. Center is Hampstead Hill line of defense, where British decided to withdraw.
Randy Everett and Glenn Williams enjoy presentation of bust of Francis Scott Key.
MORE PHOTOS of June battlefield tour are at the end of the electronic version of this newsletter, found also at StarSpan.org.
StarSpan.org
3
LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS REPORT: CAPT Bud Wanner, USPHS (Ret.) Liaison, [email protected]
Over this summer the Maryland Retired Veterans Task Force (MRVTF) of our state MOAA
Council has been meeting with the staff of the Maryland State Comptroller to review and update the 2003
study on the impact of income tax relief for military pensions. The General Assembly ordered the 2003
study and has used the same report, unchanged for the past decade, as the basis for consideration of tax
exemption to military pensions. Results have been less than a major success.
MRVTF and the Comptroller Staff expect that current facts will present a more convincing
position. We believe that eliminating the income tax on pensions will improve the desire of retired
military to remain in Maryland and that overall there will be significant economic advantage, as well as
the advantage of gaining more capable and willing community leaders.
The draft of the updated study will be available to the MOAA State Council this month. The
final report will be forwarded to the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee and the House Ways and
Means Committee to bolster the veterans’ position in the 2015 session of the state legislature.
There is hope (that if he is elected Governor) Anthony Brown will support the retired pension
relief, since he has been recorded on several occasions in his campaign to promise positive action.
HAVE LUNCH WITH YOUR SENATORS AND CONGRESSMAN This will be the Fourth Annual Maryland MOAA Council Congressional Luncheon.
We do this to honor our legislators for support of our uniformed services and to show
that there is significant voter interest among our state’s military. As in past years, we
hope to fill the meeting room with more than a hundred military, spouses, and friends.
Date: Thursday, 11 September 2014 Location: Room 2168 Rayburn Building
Time: 1130 to about 1430. Cost: $38.00 per person. Information: 410 439-9584
Reservation: Make check to Star Spangled Banner Chapter, send to
CAPT Charles Wanner, USPHS (Ret.)
8209 Parkway Road, Clear Water Beach, MD 21226
MOAA Helps Win for Student Vets
Over half of the states require veterans to establish residency, which can take 6 months to a year,
before the vet is eligible for in-state tuition at state colleges. New Federal legislation alleviates that
problem for veterans and their dependents.
The VA will now reimburse the cost of schooling at the in-state rate for all veterans using GI Bill
benefits at any public college or university, regardless of where the veteran resides. A provision included
in legislation to address the backlog in VA facilities requires states to accept the in-state reimbursement
rate for all student veterans as a condition of maintaining VA approval of coursework. Many states
require transitioning veterans to meet strict residency requirements before they can be considered in-state
residents.
The law-change mandates the in-state rate for all student veterans using either the Post-9/11 or
the Montgomery GI Bill at two- and four-year public colleges or universities.
Dependents using Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits under the “transferability” program are also eligible for the
in-state rate for three years after their sponsor’s discharge.
MOAA strongly supported the underlying in-state tuition legislation, H.R. 357 (Rep. Jeff Miller,
R-Fla.) and S. 257 (Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark.), and is grateful for their leadership and support for our
nation’s veterans and their families.
4
A STORY I GOTTA TELL !!
In the spring of 1987, as Commanding Officer of the Navy ROTC at Rensselaer, I was privileged
to hand commissions to approximately 30 new Naval Ensigns and Marine Corps 2nd Lieutenants.
Twenty-seven years and a few months later, Judy and I had the wonderful experience of attending the
retirement ceremony and departure from command of one of those officers---CAPT George Norman,
USN. George is the terrific looking, and beaming career submarine officer in the photo. He had
command of the USS Maine (SSBN 741) several years ago. After a tour with the Joint Staff, he was
assigned to command the USS OHIO, recently converted from a Trident ballistic missile submarine to a
multiple mission submarine---surveillance, Seal Team/diver operations, cruise missiles, torpedoes etc.
George made her ready and took OHIO to sea in support of the Pacific Fleet.
The ceremonies took place at the Trident Training Facility, Bangor, Washington, on a ceremonial
platform that is the sail and deck of the decommissioned ballistic missile submarine USS Woodrow
Wilson (SSBN 624). Picture, if you will, 50 state flags flying, music from the Northwest Navy Band,
side boys and piping of the principals across the quarter deck. My name was mentioned by the admiral
representing the sub force! An experience to cherish…and a joy to be remembered! Mike
Fireworks: Inner Harbor & Fort McHenry
Blue Angels Show: rehearsal on Friday,
shows on Saturday and Sunday
Events all over the Baltimore Area
See schedules at StarSpangled200.com
FIFTY YEARS AGO ***Early history of the Star Spangled Banner Chapter ***Part 2
By Maj Dick Martiny, USA, author of Military Beginnings: Early Development of American and
Maryland Forces, which may be found on amazon.com.
The officer slate for 1966, proposed in November 1965, included some new and/or renamed positions and
some new officers, both old and new faces. BG Catron was replaced as President by the former 1st VP,
Col Blakely. It is possible that BG Catron was in ill health because Col Blakely had represented him and
USS OHIO (SSGN 726) underway in Puget Sound
September 10-16, 2014
5
run most of 1965’s meetings of the Board and General Membership. The Vice Presidents went from 2 to
3, with LTC Slaughter, former 2nd VP, as senior VP; Col Stegner, former Membership Chair, as VP for
Membership; and COL Foote, member of the original Board, as VP for Programs and Publicity. Col
Brundick, CDR Baughman and MAJ Katowski continued as Treasurer, Secretary and Assistant Secretary,
respectively. The Board also changed. Col McGrayne and LTC Garrett remained. COL Foote and WO
Trattler were replaced by MAJ W. W. Thomas, USAF (ret) and LTC Bernard Kuder, USAR (ret). In
1967 LTC Slaughter moved from Senior VP to President, replacing Col Blakely. Col Foote became
Senior VP and he was replaced as VP for Programs and Publicity by Col Frank Milani, USA (ret). LTC
Kuder and MAJ Thomas remained on the Board. COL McGrayne and LTC Garrett were replaced by BG
Catron, surfacing again, and CDR A. E. De Pra, USCG (ret).
In February 1970 changes were proposed to the Constitution and Bylaws. The most significant was the
elimination of a $1 per member annual contribution to the MROA to assist the state in organizing and
financing new chapters statewide. In 1969 TROA had initiated a program of regional representatives in
each state to recruit and organize new chapters. This eliminated the need for the Chapter’s contributions.
It became discretionary on the part of the Board. Since it had represented 25% of the Chapter’s
anticipated annual dues income, it allowed the dues to remain at $4.00 per year, the same amount since
the Chapter’s founding. The officer titles and structure were also changed. The officers now consisted
of: President, 1st and 2nd Vice Presidents (reverting to the original number and titles), Secretary, Assistant
Secretary, Treasurer, Judge Advocate (subsequently Legal Officer), Custodian of Permanent records
(subsequently also Historian), and Chaplain. Standing Committees were designated: Membership,
Legislative, Survivor Benefits, Programs and Publicity, Reservations, Sick and Welfare, Auditing, and
Nominating (to be appointed NLT 1 October each year.).
Meetings were held regularly and frequently in the early years of the Chapter. Initially, Board and/or
General Meetings were held almost monthly. In February 1974 the Bylaws were amended to eliminate
the January meeting due to inclement weather. In the future Chapter meetings would be held on the 4th
Tuesday of March, May, September, and November.
The initial membership, on October 21, 1964, was 36, those of the 44 present who had filled out and
signed membership applications. They were: CDR Arden E. Baughman, USN; COL Eugene Blakely, Jr.,
AUS; COL Leroy Brundick, AUS; BG Thomas B. Catron, USA; COL Daniel M. Chesterton, II, USA;
Commodore Milton R. Daniels, USCG; LTC William J. Darcough., AUS; LTC James H. Davis, AUS;
CDR A. E. Del Pra, USCG; LTC Albert F. Drake, ASUS; COL Raymond A. Egner, AUS; COL Donald
C. Foote, USA; COL Alfred M. Fort, USA, MAJ Donald M. Hoischer, Sr., USAF; CPT Howard R. Hair,
AUS; LTC Robert D. Hodge, AUS; COL George M. Hunt, AUS; COL Charles J. Jeffus, AUS; MAJ Eva
Katowski, ANC; COL Donald McGrayne, USA; 1LT William J. Palm, AUS; CPT David R. Phoebus,
USNR; CPT William E. Pratt, USCG; LTC Floyd A. Rice, USAF; COL Ford Richardson, USA; LTC
Charles L. Ringgold, AUS; LTC Fred J. Ritter, USAR; CPT Jacob V. Safer, MC AUS; COL Lloyd E.
Stegner, AUS; LCDR Daniel J. Strauss, USN; LCDR Noble L. Taber, USN; WO Abraham Trattler,
USCG; and CPT Richard MacC. Walsh, Jr., USA.
Membership quickly grew. At the January Board meeting membership had increased in 2 ½ months to
75. On 26 January Col Wellington B. Searless was recognized as the 100th member. At the end of
February it had risen to 139; by March to 148 and by April to 153.
6
In April 1967 the Board extended associate membership in the Chapter to wives and widows of current
members. A women’s auxiliary had been considered and rejected. TROA was requested to recognize the
associates. However, regardless of the outcome of the request, the Chapter would proceed to “take the
ladies in.” As previously noted, full membership was open to female officers and warrants. The
associates’ dues were set at $1.00, while the full members’ dues remained at $4.00. Both rates remained
the same through 1987.
Membership increased to over 300 in the early 1970s with an annual ratio of 2 to 1 officer members to
associate wives/widows. As the seventies progressed membership began to decline slightly and the
Chapter was dealing with regular nonpayment of dues. A policy was established and enforced that
nonpayment would result in being dropped from the roles. This happened regularly on an annual basis.
However, later in the decade, membership rebounded, and by March 1976 the Chapter had over 400
officer and associate members.
Despite their apparent strong membership, the leadership was concerned about finding new members and
asked for assistance in doing so at a General Meeting in January 1974. They were concerned because
TROA was no longer providing lists of new retirees in the Chapter’s area. This omission was eventually
rectified. As a sign of General Meeting costs, after 23 years at one price, in 1987 annual dues were
increased to $6.00 for officer members and $3.00 for associates. They remained at this level at least
through October 1994.
Membership started to fall again in the 1980s with 140 officer members and 130 associates in 1989. The
decline accelerated and was attributed to an aging membership with increased mortality, and a lessening
of interest among younger military retirees who were still in the workforce. By 31 August 1994 strength
was down to 100 members and 92 associates. A decade later, in 2004, total membership stood at 89,
officer, associate, and honorary members. As indicative of the overall diminution of the Chapter, for
1994-1995 there were 12 officer positions and 9 Board members. For 2004 there were 5 officer positions
and 3 Board members.
Although obviously much lower than previously, 2004 represented a resurgence for the Chapter. After
the original 14 March 1966 charter had lapsed, the Chapter reincorporated in 2002. On 27 September
2002 the Chapter was reincorporated as the Baltimore area Military Officers Association (BMOA).
When TROA changed its name to MOAA, a new charter was granted on January 1, 2003. This was
followed on 6 January 2003 by the IRS issuance of a letter of exemption for the Chapter as a 501(c)(19)
nonprofit, exempt from federal income taxes.
VISIT YOUR LEGISLATORS THIS MONTH (while they are in recess and in home districts)
MOAA suggests a push on these three key issues and provides single sheet talking points at
http://www.moaa.org/augustrecess/#sthash.V0Igyhh3.dpuf. Also specific links below.
1. 1. Provide Servicemembers with the Pay They’ve Earned (PDF) 2. 2. Don’t Reverse Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) Improvements (PDF) 3. 3. Reject TRICARE Pharmacy Fee Increases (PDF)
7
3301 Boston Street, Baltimore, MD, 21224
Guest Speaker
MOAA GENERAL COUNSEL and CORPORATE SECRETARY
Maj. Gen. Joseph Lynch, USAF (Ret)
On behalf of National MOAA, Maj. Gen. Lynch will present
the Fiftieth Anniversary Certificate to our chapter.
As guest speaker he will update us on issues
o For MOAA, the organization
o For protection of benefits
o For national defense
o For service members and families
Maj. Gen. Lynch is a 1969 graduate of the Virginia Military Institute. He entered active duty in the Air Force in 1972 following graduation from law school at Emory University in Georgia. He served 10 years on active duty as a judge advocate followed by 22 years in the Air Force Reserve. His final Air Force assignment was mobilization assistant to the Judge Advocate General of the Air Force while serving in the Air Force Reserve. His civilian position was assistant general counsel (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) for the Department of the Navy, a career senior executive service position (Level 5).
Maj. Gen. Lynch joined the MOAA staff in 2010. As the corporate secretary, he supports the board of
directors and performs other duties associated with the operation of a large corporation. As the general
counsel, he advises the board of directors, president, and staff and directs MOAA's legal affairs.
RESERVATION REQUIRED. Clip or provide the information on the Reservation
Form on next page. Please mail to arrive by September 16, 2014. Chapter members, MOAA members, spouses, and guests are invited at $30 per person. Fixed Price Menu. See menu on registration form. Order when you are seated at table. Cash bar with complimentary non- alcoholic beverages. .
8
CHAPTER DINNER MEETING, SEPTEMBER 23 (Continued) FOR INFORMATION and/or last minute reservations: COL Jim Shelley, 443 570-5775; or MAJ Russell Allen, 443 388-8745. MEETING will be in the Hamilton Room, Canton Dockside Restaurant, 3301
Boston Street, Baltimore, MD 21224, 410 276-8900. Ample parking on the
street or in the lot.
MEETING AGENDA
1800 Social hour, cocktails. Cash bar. Complimentary sodas, ice tea, coffee. 1900 Meeting call to order. Pledge of Allegiance. Brief reports and business meeting. 1930 Invocation. Dinner. 2015 Presentation of Fiftieth Anniversary Certificate. Maj. Gen. Lynch Speaks. Q&A. 2115 Final remarks. Adjourn
______________________________________________________________________________
RESERVATIONS FOR MEETING AT CANTON DOCKSIDE RESTAURANT, SEPT. 23
FIXED PRICE MENU @ $30 per person. CASH BAR, complimentary soft drinks Name_________________________ Guest Names ______________________________ Your email to receive confirmation ____________________________________________ Total number for reservation __________________ Check Amount ________________ Add $5.00 or $10.00 for the MOAA Scholarship Fund ______________________
Make check to “The Star
Spangled Banner Chapter” and
send with your name and
guest(s)’ names to:
COL James Shelley, USA
142 Glyndon Trace Drive
Reistertown, MD, 21136
MENU
Salad or Soup: House or Classic Caesar or Crab Soup
Entrée Selection:
New York Strip
Crab Cake
Shrimp and Crab Marinara
Chicken Parmesan
Dessert, Coffee, Tea
CASH BAR. Complimentary soda, ice tea, coffee.
.
The Star Spangled Banner Chapter
Newsletter and Archives online:
http://starspan.org
Newsletter Production
President, CAPT Mike DeHaemer USN (Ret) Editor and Producer, CDR Wally Dann (Ret) Distribution, LtCol: Charles R. Meyer USAF (Ret)
The STAR SPANGLED BANNER CHAPTER
9
PHOTO GALLERY: JUNE 7, 2014
British came ashore here..
Fifth Regiment, Sept. 12, 1814 Battle Acre in June 2014
Along North Point Rd….”In the skirmish… Maj. Gen. Ross, commander of the British force, received his mortal wound.”
Church on the battlefield
babBattlefied==
10