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Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009

State military affairs commission meets in Atlanta

The Georgia Military Affairs Coordinating Committee met with its board of directors Tuesday to discuss what they are calling its “state strategic plan” to deal with closing bases and quality of life issues for Georgia’s sizable military community.

With Fort McPherson set to close, “the community has to show how they will redevelop that land,” said retired Army Brig. Gen. Philip Y. Browning, executive director of the committee. “The government just won’t give it away.”

Other issues they discussed included the influx of troops at Fort Benning.

“Fort Benning is having sizable growth and its having a significant impact on the community,” Browning said, citing infrastructure issues.

In looking at supporting businesses in military communities, the committee looked toward North Carolina for guidance. “We think that North Carolina has an excellent organization called the North Carolina Military Business Center,” Browning said. The committee looked at what North Carolina was doing and how it could replicate their tactics in Georgia.

The Georgia Military Affairs Coordinating Committee meets with its board of directors several times a year to manage issues at the state level central to Georgia’s military communities. Browning and James Balkcom Jr., the committee chairman, are the only two full-time employees of the committee.

Gov. Zell Miller chartered the organization in 1994 “to help Georgia’s bases deal with Base Realignment and Closure,” according to the committee’s Web site.

TOPS IN BLUE COMING TO WARNER ROBINS

The Tops in Blue World Tour will swing through the Warner Robins Civic Center at 7 p.m. Nov. 5. Tickets for the event are free.

One Robins Air Force Base airman, Senior Airman Jennifer Frost, is performing with the group. Two other Robins airmen are technicians, according to the Robins base newspaper, the Robins Rev-Up.

Tops in Blue is a troupe of active-duty airmen selected for their performing abilities, deployed around the globe to entertain the troops.

They could be considered the military’s version of “American Idol.” Each year, thousands of applicants are culled down to 35 members. The group has performed for the past 55 years, including a performance in the 1985 Super Bowl halftime show.

ROBINS UNIT GETS PUBLICITY IN AIR FORCE MAGAZINE

The 402nd Maintenance Wing will be featured prominently in the January/February edition of Airman Magazine, according to the Robins Rev-Up. An Airman Magazine photographer followed the unit for three days this month.

Airman Magazine is produced by the Air Force. It is widely considered the best intra-military publication in the entire Department of Defense.

CHARITY MATCH FOR WORLD WAR II RIFLE WILL BENEFIT AMERICAN LEGION

The Marion Road Gun Club in Macon will be holding an M1 Garand Rifle Charity Match on Nov. 7. The M1 Garand rifle was the rifle most frequently carried by American ground troops in World War II. The proceeds for the event will go to benefit the American Legion Post in Macon. Details on how to participate in the event can be found at marionroad.com.

To contact military writer Thomas L. Day, call 744-4489.