Maryland Council (MD MOAA)

Last Update: Jan 2022

BREAKING NEWS:

Free COVID-19 Tests: The Government website, COVIDtests.gov - Free at-home COVID-19 tests, is now active. You may order four test kits at no cost. (18 Jan 2022)

Unaccompanied Veterans’ Burial: The Maryland Department of Veterans Affairs Cemetery Program will be hosting two dignified burial ceremonies in order to honor and pay respects to a number of unaccompanied veterans.

The ceremonies will take place January 28 at 2:30 PM at Crownsville Veterans Cemetery and February 4 at 1:00 PM at Garrison Forest Veteran Cemetery.

All are welcome to attend. Please see this announcement for more information. Questions may be directed to the Cemetery Program at 410-923-6981.

(21 Jan 2022)

Women Veterans Inclusion Program: The Maryland Department of Veterans Affairs is conducting a Women Veterans Inclusion Program in early February 2022. The contact at the Department is Roslyn Jones, Roslyn.jones1@maryland.gov. The purpose of the program is to gain an understanding of the needs of all veterans in various populations in four regional areas. They ask that veterans sign up by region. Here are the dates and Registration Links:

3 Feb 2022 - Central Maryland

4 Feb 2022 - Eastern Shore

10 Feb 2022 - Southern Maryland

11 Feb 2022 - Western Maryland

For each session women veterans are invited from 0900-1100 and all veterans from 1300-1500. (19 Jan 2022)

Durable Medical Equipment: If you or anyone you know has excess Durable Medical Equipment (DME) or needs some, the State of Maryland has a deal for you. DME includes walkers, wheelchairs, scooters, lift units, hospital beds, etc. The Department of Aging has a program to accept donations, refurbish them, and provide them at no cost to any Maryland resident (wheelchairs, scooters, beds, and lifts require a medical provider to complete the form). Please visit Pages - Maryland Durable Medical Equipment Re-Use call 240-230-8000 or email dme.mdoa@maryland.gov for details. (18 Jan 2022)

Maryland Veterans’ Commission: Notes from the latest meeting of the Maryland Veterans’ Commission are below. (18 Jan 2022)

We Are on Facebook and Twitter: The MOAA Council of Chapters is now on both Facebook and Twitter. The page name for each is “MDMOAACoC” Please visit each of them if you are a Facebook and/or Twitter user and click Like. (15 Jan 2022)

Maryland Military Coalition (MMC) Update: Here is the first MMC Legislative Update of the 2022 session. (15 Jan 2022)

MOAA Changemaker: Our own Transition Liaison, Mrs. Annie Brock was featured in the January issue of Military Officer as Changemaker for her advocacy on Tricare Young Adults. Here's a link to the page in the virtual Jan 2022 edition. (You may have to log into your MOAA account):

https://www.qgdigitalpublishing.com/publication/?m=53666&i=731020&p=48&ver=html5 (11 Jan 2022)

Maryland Military Coalition 2022 Legislative Goals: From Maryland Military Coalition (MMC) President COL Bob Norton, USA (Ret):

Wearing my "other" hat as the President of the Maryland Military Coalition (MMC), I am pleased to send you our initial list of legislative objectives for the 2022 Legislative Session in the Maryland General Assembly (MGA). The email below was sent to every Member of the Maryland General Assembly today. These goals are just the beginning--a stepping off point for the beginning of the Assembly. We hope to pique interests early and get substantive legislation passed this year, especially in the areas of reducing or eliminating the tax on retired pay and improved mental health services. But to do so, we need your HELP, by writing letters, sending emails and contacting YOUR representatives. Stay tuned and watch for our emails. Share them with your friends. Let's get going! (15 Nov 2021)

Maryland Veterans’ Commission: See below for a summary of the 19 Oct meeting of this Commission. (20 Oct 2021)

There is a new link to a Quick Reference Guide from the Maryland Department of Veterans Affairs. (21 Dec 2021)

Welcome to the Web Pages of the Maryland Council of Chapters, an affiliate of the Military Officers Association of America. The Maryland Council was awarded a Five Star Level of Excellence for 2020 (as of May 2021).

The Maryland Council is composed of ten chapters, spread geographically across the state. Here is a list of the Chapters, with links to their individual Web Pages. All Chapters have an informational page here or a separate chapter-hosted page (Stars indicate the Level of Excellence rating earned by the Chapter for 2019 – as announced in August 2020.):

· Annapolis

· Ft George G Meade

· _{* * * * *} Star Spangled Banner (Winner of 5 Star Col Marvin J Harris Communications Award for 2020, as of May 2021 – newsletter and website)

· General Smallwood

· _{* * * * *}Montgomery County (Winner of 5 Star Col Marvin J Harris Communications Award for 2020, as of May 2021 – newsletter)

· Prince Georges County

· Southern Maryland

· _{* * * * *}Susquehanna – Chapter Site at MOAA (Winner of 5 Star Col Marvin J Harris Communications Award for 2020, as of May 2021 – newsletter and website)

· _{* * * *}Upper Eastern Shore

· _{* * * * *}Upper Potomac – Chapter Site at MOAA

Council Officers

Here are the Council officers for 2021 – 2022 (as of 13 Jan 2021, updated 25 Nov 2021):

President	Norton	Bob	COL		USA	rfcknorton@verizon.net
1st Vice Pres	Gary	Palmer	Lt Col		USAF	gtdbpalmer@verizon.net
2nd Vice Pres	Cathy	Hampton	MAJ		USA	cathyhampton51@gmail.com
Secretary	Dave	Peterson	CAPT		NOAA	kmpdhp@comcast.net
Treasurer	Jim	Campbell	Capt		USAF	jim@jrcampbelljr.name
Webmaster	Jim	Shiffrin	Maj		USAF	jim.shiffrin@gmail.com
Chaplain	Jim	Campbell	Capt		USAF	jim@jrcampbelljr.name
Immediate Past Pres	Bryon	Hartzog	LTC		USA	bkhartzog@gmail.com
Legislative Director	Lynn	Nash	CAPT		USPHS	Lynn.Slepski@outlook.com (This is the correct email)
Transition Liaison	Annie	Brock				mdmoaatransition@gmail.com
Spouse Liaison	Cheryl	Glang				glanghaus@comcast.net
Md Veterans Commissioner	Jim	Shiffrin	Maj		USAF	Jim.Shiffrin@gmail.com
MOAA Director – Maryland Military Coalition	Harvey	Kaplan	COL		USA	htkaplan@verizon.net

Annapolis	Andrew	Fallon	COL		USA	fallonajf@aol.com
Ft Meade	Bryon	Hartzog	LTC		USA	bkhartzog@gmail.com
Gen Smallwood	Daniel	Donohue	COL		USMC	dadonohue@hotmail.com
Montgomery Co	Dave	Peterson	CAPT		NOAA	kmpdhp@comcast.net
Prince Georges	Steve	Regner	Col		USAF	shreg01@aol.com
Southern MD						Combined with Gen Smallwood
Star Spangled (Interim)	Chuck	Rishell	CAPT		USMC	clrishell@comcast.net
Susquehanna	Cathy	Hampton	MAJ	USA		cathyhampton51@gmail.com
Upper Eastern Shore	Mike	Johnson	CW5		USA	mjnmi1@verizon.net
Upper Potomac	Guy	Everhart	CAPT		USN	gfeverhart@gmail.com

The Southern Maryland Chapter is currently functioning as an affiliate of the Gen Smallwood Chapter.

Here are the Maryland Council Bylaws, updated on 12 Jan 2019. (13 Mar 2019)

Here are the Maryland Council of Chapters Goals for CY2019-2020, approved by the Council on 12 Jan 2019. (19 Jan 2019)

Annual Congressional Luncheon

The 2021 Congressional Luncheon was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Jun 2021)

Who Can Join:

MOAA membership is open to all current, former, and retired officers of any of the seven Uniformed Services. Visit the Why Join MOAA page at the MOAA Web Site for details on the three classes of membership, and to join.

There is a “Why MOAA” video produced by the MOAA National Office. Please use the following link to access the video:

https://youtu.be/42YD9d8WI5Q

For those concerned about embedded links and cyber security, please do the following:

1) Go to the YouTube website by typing: www.youtube.com in your web browser

2) Type MOAA in the search bar

3) Click on the link to the MOAA channel

4) Once the MOAA channel comes up, you will immediately see the “Why MOAA” video.

5) If you want to cut and paste the video web address for others, click on the “Videos” link, then select the “Why MOAA” Video

6) Once the video begins playing, highlight and then copy the web address at the top of the screen. It should exactly match the hyperlink listed in this email.

If you are a MOAA member who is not a member of a Maryland Chapter, please click here to find the chapter in your area.

Council Calendar

The Council officers and Chapter Presidents meet quarterly, on call of the President. Meetings are currently held at O’Loughlin’s Restaurant, 1258 Bay Dale Drive, Arnold MD 21012, starting at 1130. Here are the recent and upcoming dates, with links to the minutes of each, as they are available (older minutes are available here)

Jan 16, 2021 (Virtual) - Minutes

April 3, 2021 (Virtual) - Minutes

July 10, 2021 (In-Person) - Minutes

October 15, 2021 (In conjunction with MOAA National Annual Meeting) - Minutes

January 15, 2022 (Virtual)

Spouse and Surviving Spouses Newsletter

Below are recent newsletters from the Spouse and Surviving Spouse Liaison Officer. (25 Feb 2021)

- Nov 2020

- Feb 2021

Maryland National Guard Unit of the Year

BG Sean Casey, USA (Ret), President of the Star Spangled Banner Chapter and COL Andy Fallon, USA (Ret), President of the Annapolis Chapter presented the delayed 2019 Maryland National Guard Unit of the Year to the 175^th Operations Group on 2 May 2021. Here are some pictures. The officer accepting the award was the Unit Commander, Colonel Drew E. Dougherty, Col, MDANG. There were approximately 50- 60-unit members present. In addition, MG Gowen, the Maryland Adjutant General, and BG Paul Johnson, Commander 175^th Wing, were also in attendance.

BG Sean Casey, Col Drew Dougherty, COL Andy Fallon Closeup of the award

Photos courtesy of the 175^th Wing Public Affairs office. (7 May 2021)

Stay tuned for the announcement of the National Guard Unit of the Year for 2021. (8 Jan 2022)

Highlights of recent and upcoming Chapter activities

Nothing at this time. Chapters are encouraged to provide inputs to the Webmaster. (8 Jan 2022)

Legislative Priorities

From Maryland Military Coalition (MMC) President COO Bob Norton, USA (Ret):

Here is a list of Points of Contact for the Maryland Congressional delegation (both Senators and all eight Representatives). This list has been updated to include phone numbers for the District offices. (Updated 13 Jul 2021)

Property Tax Relief in Anne Arundel County: On 4 Jan 2021 the Anne Arundel County Council passed legislation establishing a real property tax credit for disabled veterans and their surviving spouses. For details, see this link. The credit will be 50% of the Property Tax if the Veteran is at least 75% disabled, and 25% for Veterans with a disability rating of 50% to 74%. (14 Jan 2021)

The Maryland General Assembly has a web page listing the members of the Senate and House Veterans’ Caucus. (15 Nov 2021)

Make MOAA's One Powerful Voice® heard in Maryland. It will take each MOAA member living in Maryland to make this happen. Act now to do your part!

· From time to time, we will suggest messages we would like Maryland members to send to Annapolis on upcoming bills of interest to all of us. There are two web-based methods you can use to contact your State Legislators:

· The Maryland Legislature maintains a Web Site that you can use to contact your Senator or Delegate. To use it, visit http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/webmga/frmmain.aspx?pid=legisrpage&tab=subject6, and select the legislator’s name. You will see a link to Contact Online. Click on that link. Enter your identifying information, and type or paste the text into the Message box.

· Another method is to visit http://mdelect.net/. This site, run by the Maryland State Archives, allows you to enter your address (Zip+4 will do, unless district lines go through your Zip+4 area – then enter your full address), and it will tell you who your Federal and State legislators are. There are links to their web sites. Some have e-mail tools built in; others will link into your mail tool, as above. (21 Jan 2013)

· Here is a link to a roster provided by the Legislature with office locations and phone numbers for all of the State Senators and Delegates.. (26 Jan 2018)

You can find information on MOAA’s national legislative priorities at the MOAA Take Action web page.

Maryland Veterans Commission

Here are some of the key points from the Maryland Veterans’ Commission meeting 18 Jan 2022.

- From Secretary of Aging, Rona Kramer:

- If you or anyone you know has excess Durable Medical Equipment (DME) or needs some, the State of Maryland has a deal for you. DME includes walkers, wheelchairs, scooters, lift units, hospital beds, etc. The Department of Aging has a program to accept donations, refurbish them, and provide them at no cost to any Maryland resident (wheelchairs, scooters, beds, and lifts require a medical provider to complete the form). Please visit Pages - Maryland Durable Medical Equipment Re-Use call 240-230-8000 or email dme.mdoa@maryland.gov for details.

- They have collected over 7000 items in 2021, preventing 263,000 pounds of material from going to landfills.

- All items are sanitized and refurbished before being distributed.

- There is a program called Serving Together for military, veterans, and their families

- They work in collaboration with public and non-profit partners to streamline efforts connecting veterans, active duty, guard, reserve, caregivers, and military spouses with a coordinated network of care for all of life’s needs. From employment to benefits navigation, education to mental health and wellbeing supports, our strategic partnerships are vital to serving our extraordinary military-connected community and their families, before, during, and after service. (from their website, Veteran Services - : (servingtogetherproject.org))

- There is another program, called the 108 Organization supporting men getting out of abusive relationships. It is a program that supports men who are abused, garnering resources to facilitate their healing and to help bridge the gap of services available to them. Most men who are abused feel embarrassed, disheartened, and emasculated because of social stigmas associated with abused men. Therefore, the mission of 108 is to provide support for men of all backgrounds and nationalities that are victims and survivors of abuse and to increase the education, awareness, and resources that will help facilitate their healing. (from their website, About 108 – 108 Organization). (18 Jan 2022)

Here are recent minutes from the Commission:

Job Search

Contact our Transition Liaison Officer, Mrs Annie Brock, at mdmoaatransition@gmail.com for any transition-related questions. (11 Jun 2020)

Here is a link to sign up for a MOAA Transition newsletter: http://eepurl.com/g6Swtj (15 Jan 2022)

Looking for a new job, or know someone who is? Visit the MOAA Transition and Career Center for Career Information.

Veterans’ Benefits

For further information on Veterans’ Benefits, please visit any of the following Web Sites:

United States Department of Veterans’ Affairs

Maryland Department of Veterans’ Affairs

Quick Reference Guide from the Maryland Department of Veterans Affairs

Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS)/TRICARE

Editorial Policy

MOAA, the Maryland Council of Chapters and the individual chapters in Maryland are non-partisan. Information on this web site reflects the position of the Maryland Council of Chapters only.

Please send any comments and suggestions to the Webmaster using the email address shown in the listing of Council Officers above.

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