The 11 June function was well received by those who attended. Those who were unable to attend missed an excellent opportunity to hear Colonel Thomas Turlip describe his work in Iraq and the surrounding area. The 203rd' Red Horse Squadron was federally activated under Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom in January 2003 to support our nation's efforts in the war on terrorism and the liberation of the Iraqi people. During this activation, Colonel Turlip was assigned as the Commander, lst Expeditionary RED HORSE Group based at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar where he was responsible for contingency construction projects valued at over 20 million dollars throughout Southwest Asia including Qatar, Iraq, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates. Colonel Turlip was accompanied by his wife Debbie. Our next function will be a luncheon on the 10th of September at the Atlantic Shores Community Club Room. The program will be to get to know the residents who are retired Military Officers and their wives who may or may not be members of the local MOAA Chapter. Our function for October will be a picnic to be held at the 67th Street Club on 3 October from 1 pm to 5 pm. Hope to see you all at these functions. 

Again we would like to encourage any member, who is interested in becoming actively involved in MOAA operations, to attend our Board meetings, normally held on the 1st Saturday of every month at the NS Little Creek Amphibious Base Golf Course clubhouse. The meetings start at 0830. The next Board meetings will be held on 7 August and 4 September.

At the 9 July 2004 Virginia Council of Chapters (VCOC) meeting held at Ft. Lee, the VCOC Legislative Committee held its first meeting. There were eleven Chapter Representatives attending and five were absent for various reasons. The Committee reviewed National and State objectives and recommended support for the following, all of which were subsequently approved by the VCOC at its main meeting.

National Objectives: Support passage of full SBP at age 62 and beyond; Support elimination of concurrent receipt; Increase Army end strength by 50,000; and Increase the Veterans' Burial allowance from $300 to at least $500. The Legislative Committee discussed two additional, possible National objectives which were: Include the State Veterans Care Centers in coverage under the Veterans Health and Benefits Act and Oppose DOD variable pricing proposals for commissaries. The first was tabled, pending additional information, for further discussion at the October 2004 Committee meeting. The second, regarding variable pricing, was suspended because DOD has dropped it's proposal.

State Objectives (In order of priority): Increase funding for the Department of Veterans Services; and Support a 3rd and 4th Veterans Care Centers. The Committee also discussed five additional State objectives:

Making Virginia instate college/university tuition rates for active duty military dependents permanent. The legislation enacted in 2004 affords instate tuition rates for the first year of duty in Virginia, after which dependents are expected to become State citizens if they wish to continue receiving instate tuition. The Committee believed that the foregoing was an equitable solution and no further action is required. The VCOC concurred in dropping this objective.

Conforming Virginia college/university GI Bill full time student requirements to those of other states. It was noted that Virginia State law does not establish full time student requirements. These requirements, based on curricula, are set by the institution and it would be inappropriate to establish a "one condition fits all" rule. The VCOC concurred in dropping this objective.

Affording Virginia Unemployment benefits to spouses of active duty military who lose their jobs due to a military move, as is the case in some other States: This legislation was introduced during the 2004 General Assembly session. It passed the House by one vote but was held over in the Senate for further study. The Committee voted to table this objective pending additional information to be presented at the October 2004 Committee meeting.

Seeking a Veterans Cemetery for Southwest Virginia and preparation for the next BRAC round were both briefly discussed and tabled until the October 2004 Committee meeting pending receipt of additional information.

Should any Chapter member need additional information or wish to comment on the VCOC Legislative Committee's issues or procedures, please contact Jack Hilgers at 757-490-8383. Jack is our Chapter Legislative Representative and the Tidewater Area Coordinator (Hampton Roads, Northern Neck, Peninsula, and Portsmouth Chapters) for the VCOC Legislative Committee.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Moving Wall will be on display in Virginia Beach during 2004 Fleet Week. The only replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D. C. will be shared with the Hampton roads community from October 20 through October 26, 2004.  The sponsors are the African American Cultural Council of Virginia and the Navy League. The wall will be set up at 24th Street, is 240 feet in length and will have 58,219 names of veterans who lost their lives in the Vietnam War. Volunteers should contact Freddi Moody at 498-0230.

Again by special invitation of the U. S. Naval Institute (USNI) and your Chapter, you are invited to attend the subject symposium to be held 28-29 September 2004.  Admission is free but registration is required. Free lunch is served on the Exhibit floor. Your Chapter will again man a booth #811. Come see us in action! Watch your mail for details and the USNI brochure containing the speakers, the panels and a schedule of events. Don't miss this special event! Many of our members attended last year and it was a great event. You may register online at
http://www.usni.org/

Because funding has been cut the local bases have been cutting cost. To help offset these cuts, the commanding officer, Captain Garrat Cooper is asking military retirees and military families to help out on the Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base. He is looking for people to help with tasks wherever they can, such as answering phones to pounding nails, painting or plastering walls. Whatever your skills are they can be used. If you can help out please contact Master Chief Rudd at 462-8426. The Command Master Chief is coordinating the effort.

It will soon be time to select a nominating committee to develop a slate of new officers and directors to replace those whose terms expire at end-2004. If you are interested in this vital matter, and wish to serve on the committee, please contact Chapter President John E. Vermillion at 382-9843 or by email at vermillj@cox.net.

Use caution when mailing to of the armed forces who are deployed overseas. The U.S. Postal Service has advised that including the name of the destination country can slow delivery a great 
deal. Use only the designated unit address and APO, FPO, or whatever is correct, without any country name. This will assure quickest arrival at the intended destination.