Presidents Report June 2026
Nelson Mellitz gave me a large number of donated sundries at the last meeting that I believe came from Amazon, toothbrushes, tooth paste, baby powder, baby wipes, deodorant etc. I took them to our member Crystal Malsom of the 514th Air Wing who was able to get them downrange to our deployed troops. This is the kind of support our troops need and appreciate during difficult times.
Don Cammus and I attended and supported the BCMAC (Burlington County Military Action Committee) golf outing at Little Mill CC on May 18. All the money raised goes to support our Military at Joint Base MDL.
The Parade of Wreaths was held indoors at Tommy B’s on May 21. Marvel and I attended, and Doc Carson presented the AFHM, TB McGuire wreath to open the ceremony. There were at least 50 wreaths presented to honor the legacy of the T.B. McGuire at the Joint Base. The keynote speaker was a Gold Star Mother of a fallen Seal Team 6 member from the Gulf War. Her story did not leave a dry eye in the place. Two essay winners from Upper Middle School presented wonderful essays on “The Price of Freedom”. Doc Carson and I will be presenting them with gift cards at their award Ceremony on Monday the 22nd.
We are working with M&C Graphics to incorporate the AFHM, T.B. McGuire and the 250th US anniversary onto the door display signs of the Mobile Museum. They should be installed by the June 27th event in Riverside for their 250th Celebration.
I am now representing the AFHM in the planning for the “Birdies for the Brave” golf outing at Jasna Polana in Princeton on October 19th. The Committee Chairman is Retired General Maria Falca Dotson who was a good friend of Bob Dutko. Mark your calendar, it is a memorable event and always a lot of fun. The event raises money to support our Military in NJ.
We attended the BCMAC meet and greet on June 4 for the Military Leaders from Joint base and Civic Leaders from our area. Doc Carson, Al Kernagis, Regina Arcuri and I said good bye to some of the Commanders who are moving on to new assignments around the world. I had the pleasure of sitting with our Assemblywoman Carol Murphy and introduced her to our Base Commander Col. Mike Stefanovic who joined our table for dinner. Staying in the presence of these leaders allows us to discuss the community support they need and how our volunteer time and events benefit our Military.
I was invited June 5 by Commander 514th Air Wing Thad Amundson to attend the award ceremony for the aircraft maintainers for the 305th, 514th and 108th Air Wings at McGuire. The awards are called the “Knuckle Buster awards” They recognize and honor the maintainers selected by their peers for their dedication and “get it done” attitude in keeping our airplanes flying mission after mission. McGuire has just set a record for the number flights in the last three months, surpassing all records in the Base’s 89-year history. The dedication and support of the maintainers allowed those missions to be accomplished. We can all sleep better knowing these professional women and men are on duty 24/7/365 keeping our freedom strong.
On Saturday June 6th at the 513th Unit Training assembly, I met with the Command Chief of the Air Force Reserve, Command Sgt. Major Isreal Nunez from the Pentagon. We discussed the role of the Joint Base and local community involvement supporting our Military. He was also pleased to hear about the “no ego” cooperation among the Commanders on the Joint Base. I assured him that in my 4 years as an Honorary Commander, I have seen a total get it done attitude from everyone. Every branch of service is represented in the various organizations on MDL and they work as one team to accomplish the mission.
The Veterans Advisory Committee meeting for Assemblywomen Carol Murphy met on June 9 at her office. We discussed new bills before the Legislature affecting Veterans in NJ. There was a good discussion on an approved treatment for PTSD patients that is showing a lot of promise. Homeless Vets was a subject and we learned of available housing for them. I asked the entire group to share the assets they have available so when we see a need we can reach out and get help quickly. We meet again in September to continue supporting the Veterans of New Jersey.
The tournament for the “Friends of the Guard and Reserves” (FOGR) was held on the 11th. I attended to support the event for us in Bob’s memory. I was asked to say a few words in his honor at the luncheon which I did, it was hard to keep it together because Bob has been involved with that outing since the beginning over 20 years ago and he was missed greatly. Many people had nice memories to share.
On Sunday June 14th we attended the Burlington County 250th celebration in downtown Mt. Holly. Our Mobile Museum was a huge hit with the crowd, we had period dressed reenactors stopping and sharing that they were in some of the pictures that are in the new display. The general opinion is that our display was well done and we got many positive comments. Thanks to Marvel, Sandra, Joanne, John Lowden, Vic, Bob Gray for their support!!! It was a very long day but well worth the time. There were a few municipal and county folks who promised to reach out for our availability for their events.
Please remember that our personnel at Joint Base MDL are in need of household goods, furniture, gently worn clothes etc. We were able to help repurpose items from several households over the last month and everything is appreciated greatly. If you can help, the email to use is jbmdlatticdb@gmail.com
Thank you for your support.
