West-Point.ORG, The West Point Connection

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How Can I Help WP-ORG?

Donate to one of WP-ORG's semi-annual fund drives.

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Fund Drive 44 is underway! Please help WP-ORG through a voluntary donation to the current fund drive.

42.4%

As of now, 530 donations have been made, raising $31383.31 towards our goal of $74104.

Kona’s Youngest Competitor

USMA 2020 Cadet Wolfgang Drake

Baltimore, Maryland native Wolfgang Drake is the driven—some might say overachieving—type, an asset that serves him well in both triathlon and in his studies at the United States Military Academy.

"In high school, I was very involved in cross-country, track, and swimming," says Drake. "As I was entering West Point, I knew I wanted to join the triathlon team. I’d heard so much about the professionalism and the general culture."

But Drake's first attempt at getting a spot on the team was fruitless. He quickly realized that he wasn't the only one at West Point with a strong fitness base.

"I was surprised to see how incredibly fit they all were!" says Drake. "They were absolute studs." But instead of feeling deterred by not making the cut, Drake doubled down on his desire to become a member of the team. He worked harder, not only on his swim-bike-run, but in building a reputation as a solid team member by joining West Point’s obstacle-course racing team. Within a semester, his hard work had paid off. His initiation into the team was quintessentially triathlon:

The team captain congratulated me on making the team while simultaneously informing me of 5:30 swim practice the next morning!" Drake laughs.

UPDATE:
BIG BITES, CADET DRAKE
Completed Ironman time: 13:02:18

Bob Magruder, USMA1964 Be Thou at Peace

Past WP-ORG Chairman, Bob Magruder '64 passed away September 17, 2018. His family wrote the following memorial message:

"The quintessential soldier's soldier, West-Point class of 1964, career soldier, artillery, and three time All-American swimmer, passed away on Monday, September 17, 2018. Robert was the son of the late Peyton Magruder and Julia Motley-Magruder. Loving husband to Angie for 50 years; father to Cynthia Magruder, and Scott Magruder (Venus); Brother of Marshall Magruder (Lucy) and the late Douglas Magruder, KIA Vietnam. A kinder man there never was."

Bob was a All-America Swimmer at USMA. Part of his legacy, are his contributions and work for the team throughout the years. He always wished to ensure that the swimming program needs, unfulfilled by the Army budget, were met. He was a career artillery officer, retired as a Colonel, and subsequently worked on Enterprise Transformation and Business Process Re-engineering with the Logistics Management Institute for five years. He served on the AOG's Board of Trustees for four years in the Communications Committee and supported the Alumni Support Committee, when needed. Bob was the first Chairman of WP-ORG Inc. Later, he took a less active role in WP-ORG to go back to full time work at the Institute for Defense Analyses where he was an Adjunct Staff Member in the Strategy, Forces & Resources Division. He worked on special projects in support of DoD and loved his work. He actively pursued and supported the quick development of a high energy laser and relay mirror system for warfighters.

WP-ORG is indebted to Bob for his steadfast work for this organization, and for the greater West Point community. WP-ORG is better for having had Bob serve as our first Chairman. We are saddened by his death, and will always miss his winning smile and endless exuberance.

His eulogy may be found here: http://defender.west-point.org/service/eulogies.mhtml?u=25392

In lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Wounded Warrior project, or to the B-26 Marauder Historical Association for that was so dear to Bob's heart- since his Dad designed and built the B-26 bomber.

The WP-ORG Board of Advisors

Veterans Month in Palm Beach County, FL

Cpl Burt Richards has November declared Veterans Month in Palm Beach County, FL

In Palm Beach County, Florida, Corporal Burt Richards has gained attention for various awards and commendations he has received for his hard work and determination to educate on American War Veterans. On July 7th, 2011, Corporal Burt Richards, Congressman Ted Deutch congratulated Corporal Richards in the House of Representatives in Washington DC.

Ted praised him for being awarded the American Red Cross Community Courage Award for his work in educating the youth about service of Veterans. Corporal Richards and the local chapter of the Jewish War Veterans spearheaded the campaign to close Palm Beach County schools in remembrance of Veterans Day.

On November 1st, 2011 at the Headquarters of Palm Beach County Commissioner, Priscilla Taylor, Cpl. Burt Richards was honored for his outstanding service to Palm Beach County, his Veterans Speakers Forum and the School Education Deed to close all Palm Beach schools on Veterans Day. Three Palm Beach County mayors signed the proclamation and let it be known that the entire month of November is called Veterans Month.

In addition to their successful efforts to close schools, The Veterans Speakers Forum was created. American Veterans visit schools and libraries across Palm Beach County to educate students on American War Veterans in a program called Honoring Those Who Served. NOW founded the Veterans Memorabilia Museum and Education Center looking for Memorabilia donation to display at the location - posters, etc - advise if you care to send.

Anyone interested in the Veterans Speakers Forum program please email Cpl. Burt Richards at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Police ask for help in soldier's murder

RE: USMA 2012 Graduate CPT Daniel C. Lehman

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.

Police are requesting the public help investigating the murder of a Fort Carson soldier.

Captain Daniel Chamberlain Lehman, 28, was shot near South Nevada Avenue and Costilla Street. He was a graduate of West Point Academy and stationed at Fort Carson.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Colorado Springs Police Department.

Detectives say a man found dead in downtown Colorado Springs Saturday morning was a homicide victim.

CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. -- The Virginia National Guard has more than 1,300 personnel staged and ready to support local and state emergency management officials with response to Hurricane Florence Sept. 12, 2018. VNG Soldiers, Airmen and members of the Virginia Defense Force are staged at key locations across the commonwealth in order to rapidly respond if needed.

"I am incredibly proud at how quickly and safely our personnel were able to get in place and be ready to provide support to Hurricane Florence if needed," said Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia. "Our state agency partners count on us to be able to rapidly respond and provide the capabilities they need, and we have done that extremely well. We also owe a special thanks to our families and employers because we couldn't accomplish our mission without their critical support."

The VNG is closely monitoring the weather situation, so personnel, vehicles and equipment can be repositioned to different locations if needed.

Potential missions for the VNG include high water transportation, debris reduction, commodity distribution, shelter management assistance and rotary wing aviation search and rescue.

No shutdown at VA

Congress passes department’s budget on time

WASHINGTON — House lawmakers finalized the fiscal 2019 Veterans Affairs and military construction budgets on Thursday, sending the full-year spending plan to the president ahead of the new fiscal year deadline for only the second time in nine years.

The plan contains a funding boost of more than 6 percent for VA next year, pushing the department’s total budget over $200 billion for the first time. At $209 billion in total spending, the department’s budget has nearly quadrupled over the last 17 years.

The House vote — 377 to 20 — came a day after Senate lawmakers offered similar overwhelming support for the measure, and just a few hours after congressional leaders announced a plan to finalize the fiscal 2019 budgets for the Defense Department and several other non-military agencies by the end of this month, avoiding a government shutdown.

WPAOG is pleased to announce that Patrick Ortland ‘82 has joined us as Chief Operating Officer. Prior to joining WPAOG, Ortland worked for over 27 years at IBM, most recently as the Senior Real Estate Program Manager for the Northeast Region, where he managed the acquisition, disposition and build out of IBM leased properties, including negotiating real estate leases and managing construction.

FED relocates to Camp Humphreys

Seoul, South Korea- After a week of cloudy days and rain, the sun shined bright over the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Far East District (FED) compound as many employees, guests, and friends of the district gathered to commemorate a monumental event in the district's history.

The FED held a colors casing ceremony Aug. 31 to mark the closing of the district's headquarters in Seoul (Dongdaemun) and its relocation 40 miles south to Camp Humphreys.

A casing of the colors is a traditional ceremony when a unit is deactivated or relocates, and is held to commemorate the unit and its history.

After more than 60 years of being nestled in the heart of Seoul, the district has reached its milestone of relocating as a part of the Yongsan Relocation Program which relocates U.S. forces to Camp Humphreys.

Col Teresa Schlosser, FED commander, opened the ceremony by thanking everyone for joining the district for its color casing ceremony.

"The unit's colors represent people, though you can't see all of them today the colors represents all the civilians and Soldiers who have served in the Republic of Korea (ROK)," said Schlosser. "All volunteers determined, tough, and intelligent.

Schlosser went on to thank the local community for its openness and generosity to FED and the bond they have created throughout its history near the East Gate.

"We have enjoyed being a part of the Dongdameun community and making kimchi with our neighbors in the fall," said Schlosser. "Although we are officially moving our headquarters and we are preparing to close our gates in the coming month, Dongdameun and the East Gate will always be a part of our history and we'll be forever grateful for the friendship and experiences we've had here"

Army Is Getting Back To Its Big Guns

...as it prepares for the near-peer fight

After nearly two decades of counterinsurgency warfare, the Army’s artillery and missiles — once the core of the modern Army’s way of land warfare — withered in quantity, quality and manpower.

During that decline, voices within the Army called for a shift in priorities, training and technology.

And while those calls were in some ways heeded, they also were, in other ways, ignored.

Until now.

Last year, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley established Cross Functional Teams centered around key Army priorities as the service prepares for near-peer threats such as China and Russia.

While they all play an important role in modernizing the Army, one that has emerged as a top priority, given current competitors and real-world readiness, is near and dear to the hearts of old soldiers: fires.