Letter From The President

I would ask everyone if they had a good time at our 51st NCNGA Annual Convention but how could you not have enjoyed our event.  Let me explain, we were away from work, had great fellowship, great hospitality rooms, we were at the beach and we accomplished important Association business.  With that said, let us hear from you, I am very interested in your input and especially how we can improve.

I would like to recognize all who ran for Office this year.  This is not an easy decision to make and one that I truly recognize.  Let’s be honest here, you put your name on the ballot because you cared enough to put your personal concerns aside and your North Carolina National Guard Association appreciates your service before self attitude.   It’s what makes our Association so great.

So, what are our goals for this coming year?  I have shared a detailed account with our incoming and existing Executive Council, what was discussed this time last year, concerning our goals.  With the invitation to review and make suggestions of where we are now, and where we want to be this time next year, these are our goals.

Junior Enlisted Council (JEC)
Support and Develop a plan of action for our JEC to work on the issues and address the concerns of our younger force.  Now that the Junior Members have a seat at our table, I am even more excited about the direction and possibilities of our Association.

Membership
Some would say that we are doing very well, and we should be satisfied with 82% membership. Our Membership is what gives us the voice that is heard by our Legislators. The larger the membership, the louder OUR VOICE. This is why we need everyone to belong to not only our State Association but our National Associations, EANGUS and NGAUS.

Finance
We must continue the course of financial security and at the same time allow our Association to prosper and grow. This is of course a long term plan of action, but one that we have begun and must continue to travel for the sake of all our Soldiers and Airmen.

Legislative
Our goal here is to continue to inform and gain support for our NCNGA State Legislative Action Plan.  We also need a greater support of all Legislative alerts from EANGUS and NGAUS.  To make this happen we must encourage our Soldiers, Airman as well as our friends and family to contact their state and federal Legislators.  I would first ask you to find out who your Legislators are for where you LIVE and where you DRILL. It does not require a whole lot of conversation, only that you are a constituent within their district and a member of the North Carolina National Guard, and you would like their support.  You will find that they want to hear about your experiences as a Guard member and anything they can do to help.  Please go to our website ncnga.org and click on LEGISLATIVE ISSUES.

I am very honored to lead our Association for a second term.  I promise to keep our Association moving in a direction that is beneficial for all our members.  If you ever have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to let me know.