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Its been a busy last several months for your Arizona Enlisted
Association and Im happy to report on some exciting news.
Most notably, the legislative effort that we embarked upon in
January with Representa-tive Mark Cardenas (a former AZARNG member)
to pass HB2240 was a success! You can read more about it on page 2,
but suffice it to say that getting any bill thru the legislative
process the first time around is a major accomplishment and we
couldnt have done it without YOU! I would like to thank all our
members, as well as your family mem-bers and co-workers, who took
the time to pick up the phone and/or email your AZ Representatives
and Senators in response to our HB2240 Call to Action email
mes-sages. Pressure from the Arizona Board of Regents and colleges
caused an amend-ment to the bill while it was in the Senate, but we
are still happy to report that the Gov-ernor signed it into law on
April 10th. The version of the bill that was signed provides even a
bigger benefit for AZNG members providing we find the necessary
funding, something were already working on!
We also had a great State Conference at the Arizona Grand Resort
on March 21st. While attendance was lower than hoped, we had a
great Q&A session with the TAG, our Senior Enlisted Leaders and
two Arizona Repre-sentatives. The conference was followed that
evening by the 2015 Outstanding Sol-dier and Airmen of the Year
(OSAY) Awards Banquet which was a great event. Congratulations to
all the winners. We are already working on plans for next year
stay tuned for more information as we plan a joint State
Conference with the Officers Association. We are hoping to include
a golf tournament on Friday, as well as a Professional Development
Program on Saturday, to be followed once again by the OSAY Awards
Banquet. If you have any ideas for the event, let me know.
Finally, I encourage you to take a look at our new and improved
EANGA website at www.eanga.org. Using the Multi-site WordPress
program and PaidMembership-Pro, we are able to offer some new
fea-tures and a new look for our state website. Although we still
have more work to do on it, we are excited about the website which
will allow easier communication with our members. One of the many
improvements we are planning to add to the website is the ability
for our members to submit scholarship applications on line. We hope
that will make it easier and increase the number of applicants.
Unfortunately, we did not receive any applications this year for
the two, $1,000 scholarships that EANGA offered so those funds will
be carried over into next years EANGA Scholarship Program.
I would also like to add my thanks to our current EANGA board
and the new officers that were elected at the State Conference -
see page 6. Your new EANGA board is motivated and ready to work for
you please contact us - wed love to hear from you.
Bernardo M. Acosta, MSG EANGA President
~Presidents Message~
SAVE THE DATE! What: The 2nd Annual Senior Enlisted Leader Golf
Tourney
When: Monday, August 3rd, check-in starts at 0600; shot-gun
start at 0730
Where: Sewailo Golf Club at Casino del Sol Resort, Tucson
Who: All are welcome!
See the attached flyer for the event on page 7. Registration and
payment by credit card can be completed on our web-site at
www.eanga.org and select Golf Info.
SUMMER 2015 VOLUME 5, ISSUE 2
NEWSLETTER OF THE ARIZONA ENLISTED ASSOCIATION
The Desert Chronicle
The Enlisted Association National Guard of the United States
(EANGUS) and the Enlisted Association National Guard of Arizona
(EANGA), exist to promote the status, wel-fare, and professionalism
of the enlisted members of the National Guard and to promote
adequate National Security. The Association lobbies to provide
adequate full-time staffing, adequate pay and allowances, adequate
health, medical, family and death entitlements, incentive benefits,
first line equipment, resources, and weapons systems, and military
construction.
Inside this issue:
Legislative Update - HB2240 2
2015 Outstanding Soldiers & Airmen 3
Member Spotlight 4
2015 EANGUS Conference - Race to Indy 4
Membership News 5
New EANGA Board Elected 6
2nd Annual SEL Golf Tournament 7
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The Senate amendment to the bill also stip-ulates that courses
can be made available at no cost to AZNG members only if monies are
available to offset the entirety of the costs incurred by the
public institu-tions of higher education. The monies used to offset
the costs of the tuition waiv-ers may be private donations, grants,
bequests and any other monies received for that specific purpose
and shall not be the basic operating monies of the public
insti-tutions of higher education. In addition, this act does not
become effective unless monies are available in fiscal year
2017-2018 which are sufficient to reimburse the public institutions
of higher education in Arizona for the cost of tuition for the
cred-its taken pursuant to section 26-179, of the Arizona Revised
Statutes.
Therefore, our work on HB 2240 is far from over. EANGAs
Legislative Commit-tee members have scheduled a meeting with
Representative Cardenas and the Arizona National Guard Legislative
Liai-son to either amend the law or to discuss a plan of action to
seek out and obtain the necessary funding to support this new
tui-tion waiver program. For more details on this bill, go to
http://www.azleg.gov//FormatDocument.asp?inDoc=/legtext/52leg/1r/laws/0304.htm&Session_ID=114
EANGA has come a long way to achieve this new benchmark, but it
didnt come easy. Thru our grassroots efforts, the voice of EANGA
was loud, but it must be louder as we have plans to introduce more
legisla-tion in the next State Legislative Session. We ask that you
talk to your fellow Guard members and tell them the importance of
membership in EANGUS/EANGA. Now more than ever, the voice of every
Arizona National Guard member is necessary both at a state and
federal level.
~Legislative Update: HB2240~
HB 2240,
National Guard
members,
Tuition Waivers
was signed into
law by Governor
Doug Ducy on
April 10, 2015...
Page 2 THE DESERT CHRONICLE
The Enlisted Association National Guard of Arizona has been
working since 2009 to find a way to replace the previous AZNG
Tuition Reimburse-ment Program which lost its funding that year due
to State budget problems. Through State Representative Mark
Cardenas office, this goal was met when Arizona House Bill 2240,
titled: National Guard members: Tuition Waiver, was signed into law
by Governor Ducey on April 10, 2015.
What does this mean? It means that starting with the 2017-2018
school year, any member of the Arizona National Guard may attend
regularly scheduled courses at any public institu-tion of higher
education in the State of Arizona toward the completion of a
bachelor's degree or a master's degree. Members may receive up to
sixteen credits per semester tuition-free, with a maximum of one
hundred twenty cred-its total for a bachelor's degree and
thir-ty-three credits total for a master's de-gree, if the member
meets all of the re-quired conditions. If you were follow-ing our
call to action messages, you can see that what was signed is
different than the original bill introduced by Rep-resentative
Cardenas. After a successful vote on the House floor, members of
the Senate who support the AZNG and HB2240 felt that the bill would
not make it thru the Senate without some adjustments.
For more information about our Legislative
work, contact our EANGA Legislative
Team:
Dean Miller
[email protected]
EJ Causbie
[email protected]
Brad Morse
[email protected]
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The Arizona Enlisted Association extends our congratula-tions to
the AZNGs Outstanding Soldiers and Airmen for 2015. Winners were
announced on March 21, 2015, at a banquet attended by more than 700
AZNG members, fami-lies, and guests.
Enlisted award recipients were: Soldier of the Year: SPC Aaron
Hoyt, 198th RSG ARNG NCO of the Year: SSG Robert Zapata, R&R Bn
ARNG 1SG of the Year: 1SG Edward Jimenez, 158th MEB ARNG Instructor
of the Year: SFC Matthew Langseth, WAATS Airman of the Year: SRA
Justin Klosterman, 161st ARW ANG NCO of the Year: TSgt Donald Byrd,
162nd Wing ANG Sr NCO of the Year: MSgt James Swanson, 161st ARW
ANG First Sergeant of the Year: MSgt Gregg Bacome, 161st ARW State
Command Chief Master Sergeant Award: TSgt Eugene Sanders, 162nd
Wing
Other award recipients who were recognized are: ARNG General
Douglas MacArthur Leadership Award:
CW2 Samuel Bowman and CPT Caleb Grandy, both from the 98th
Aviation Troop Command. ARNG WO of the Year: CW2 Jeffrey Joiner,
158th MEB. ARNG Jr Officer of the Year: CPT Brian Gaume, 158th MEB
ANG Maj Gen Donald L. Owens Junior Officer Award: Capt Amy ONeill,
162nd Wing Adjutant General's All Weapons Shooting Match Team: LTC
William Waddington, CSM John Salazar, MSG Travis Buch-mann and SSG
Jared McBain, and the Overall Shooting Com-petition winner: MSgt
Scott Erickson, 161st ARW
Congratulations to the best of the AZNG!
AZNG 2015 Outstanding Soldier and Airmen Named
Page 3 THE DESERT CHRONICLE
~ Grand Canyon University~
Grand Canyon University is a Yellow Ribbon school, so we
understand your rigorous military lifestyle often means long hours,
irregular schedules and frequent relocation. That's why you can
choose from more than 100 online degree programs to learn around
your schedule, from anywhere in the world while you receive a
high-quality, Christian values-based education. Join our innovative
digital classroom, connect with your small class-room of peers and
full-time faculty, and enjoy complete access to events, resources
and support from our vi-brant Phoenix campus community.
You'll gain essential knowledge, skills and immediate real-world
applicability needed for future employment in military, government
or private business sectors. Your military-centered program is
catered toward tomorrow's high-demand employment fields, including:
business, communications, education, entrepreneurship, health
services, justice studies, management, nursing, psychology,
sociology and more.
From admission through graduation your expert military
enrollment advisors and graduation team will guide your academic
journey every step of the way. They are often veterans that live
and work in your community to make your transition as seamless as
possible. You can transfer in up to 90 credits toward your program
(30 each from military training, alternative transfer credit
options and other higher education institutions). You'll also
receive a free, no-commitment Lopes Evaluation Service to help you
understand exactly which and how many credits will transfer, along
with your estimated schedule and time to completion using our 3-
and 4-credit courses. Receive a special military rate per credit
hour in order to help you complete your degree for less money, in
less time. These rates are availa-ble to all those currently
serving and their spouses, or those who have served in the military
and are able to utilize military educational bene-fits. You can
take advantage of the Military Tuition Assistance as a benefit paid
to eligible members of the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, National
Guard and Coast Guard. GCU military enrollment advisors are
educated on how to help you navigate the TA process and can
pro-vide counsel on your available benefits. Thank you for your
service and sacrifices, and let GCU help you find your purpose.
Grand Canyon University is regionally accredited by the Higher
Learning Commission. (800-621-7440; http://hlcommission.org/) For
more information about our graduation rates, the median debt of
students who completed the program, and other important
information, please visit our website at www.gcu.edu/disclosures.
Please note, not all GCU programs are available in all states and
in all learning modalities. Program availability is contingent on
student enrollment.
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EANGA is proud to recognize one of our newest board members, SFC
Rigoberto Andrade. Born in Tocumbo, Mexico, SFC Andrade enlisted in
the AZARNG in April 2001. He is currently assigned as the AGR
Readiness NCO for the 2220th Transportation Company in Tucson with
former assign-ments at the WAATS as a Flight Operations NCO and
Brigade S3 Operations NCO.
SFC Andrades military career also includes deployment to Iraq in
2003 as a Heavy Vehicle Operator (POL )with the 2222nd
Transportation Co.
He has completed numerous military courses to include Motor
Transport Operator (88M), Avia-tion Operations Specialist (15P),
the Warrior Leader Course, Avia-
tion Operations Basic NCO Course, Aviation Operations Senior
Leaders Course, Training NCO Course, Structured Self Development
Course Level 4, the Resilience Trainer Assistant Course, and
numerous others. He has attended Pima Communi-ty College and is
pursuing an AA degree.
Rigoberto is married to Jennifer, who is also an AZARNG member;
they have one daughter with an-other bundle of joy on the way.
SFC Andrade was elected as the EANGA Director At Large during
the Enlisted Association State Conference in March 2015. In this
role he advocates on behalf of both Army & Air NG personnel and
encourages their member-ship in the association.
In his full-time Readiness NCO position, SFC Andrade takes great
pride in taking care of Soldiers in his unit and helping his unit
succeed. When asked why he joined EANGUS, he stat-ed that President
Ben Acosta talked to him about contributing and helping the Guard
at a high-er capacity through his member-ship in the association.
He add-ed that seeing how EANGA worked with representatives to pass
HB 2240 influenced my decision to be an active partici-pant.
SFC Andrade now encourages others to join and added that As a
Solder who used to sit through EANGA briefs and never join, I now
realize just how important it is to be a member. Its all about
Member Spotlight - SFC Rigoberto Andrade
Race to Indy - 2015 EANGUS National Conference
ing the conference in Indy, please contact President Acosta as
soon as possible at bernardo.m.acosta@ gmail.com.
Conference meetings will be held at the Convention Center in
downtown Indy and lodging for Area VI (AZ) members will be at the
Westin where rooms rates are just $95 a night. Con-ference
registration is currently $175 for the whole week, however,
President Acosta has some registrations that were pre-purchased at
a lower rate. Other conference activities include a golf outing on
August 7th, the Welcome Night event at the Indiana War Memorial
& Veterans Memorial Plaza, and All State Hospitality Night at
Military Park. More infor-mation can be found on the EANGUS website
at www.eangus.org
The 2015 National Confer-ence will be held in Indianap-olis, IN
on Aug 8-13, 2015.
In addition to the EANGUS business sessions, NGB has once again
approved a Professional Development program for Soldiers and Airmen
E6 and below; the State CSM and CCMSgt will select those attendees
who get to attend the conference on paid military orders. EANGA
President Ben Acosta will also be attending along with two
delegates to represent us and we are looking forward to having
other enlisted members attend. If you participated in the EANGUS
Conference held in Phoenix last August and are interested in
attend-
Page 4 NEWSLETTER OF THE ARIZONA ENLISTED ASSOCIATION
strength in numbers. As times change and legislation becomes
reality, ,we need Soldiers and Airmen to be the voice of the Guard.
EANGA is the shield against changes that may negatively impact us
BE THAT SHIELD.
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In February, EANGUS made the deci-sion to change the national
website and consequently, they were able to offer each of the State
associations the oppor-tunity to have a corresponding State
website. Plans were immediately put in place to implement this
change for the Arizona association and our new EANGA website has
now been
launched!
Some of the features include:
The ability to JOIN/RENEW and pay securely with a credit card
on
our State website.
The ability for you to access and change your profile, update
your membership information, and print a copy of your EANGUS
Member-ship Card. Please make sure your email address is current so
you receive our updates...personal email
addresses are preferred over a mili-
tary email.
The ability for leaders to view and track the number of EANGUS
mem-bers in your unit. First Sergeants - let us know what your
units mem-
bership goal should be.
The ability to schedule events, such as our upcoming SEL Golf
Tourna-ment and take payment for it by credit card securely online.
Watch for other sales and raffles to be an-
nounced in the future!
The ability for EANGA to send email blasts or updates and
im-portant information to members
using our current membership list.
Dont forget that we recently reduced the price of a LIFE
membership to only $185.00 - pay that price once and youll
never have to renew again! For those wanting an annual
membership - its regularly $20 and you can also choose to have your
membership auto-renew
every year (or not)!
We are still working to improve the website and will be adding
more in-formation as time goes on, but we invite you to take a look
and let us know what you think. The website address is still the
same
www.eanga.org
If you have any questions or com-ments about the website, or
have a problem joining or renewing your membership online, you can
use the Contact Us feature to let us know, or contact our
Membership Chair, CSM-Ret Karen Craig at
[email protected].
To introduce members (and potential members) to our new website,
we are offering a special discount rate for the month of July you
can join or renew on line at our new website for just $15.00 (a
savings of $5 on an annual membership). This special rate will be
in effect starting on July 1st and will run thru the SEL Golf
Tournament on August 3rd. To take advantage of this special offer
just go to www.eanga.org and select Membership. Then se-lect
Join/Renew and chose Annual Membership Non-Auto Renewal. You can
then add the Discount Code of HOT15 to get this special rate.
Get it While Its HOT Membership Special: $15
The deadline to apply is NLT July 7, 2015. To apply on line, go
to: http://www.grantham.edu/scholarships/eangus-scholarship/
Membership in EANGUS/EANGA is required in order to apply for this
scholarship. If youre not a current paid member, go to
www.eanga.org, use the Membership tab, and follow the prompts to
become an EANGUS member in AZ its NOW just $15 with our discounted
rate above..
EANGUS Scholarship winners for 2015 will be announced in August
at the National Conference In Indianapolis, IN. .
On of the great benefits of your membership in EANGUS is the
ability for you and your dependents (spouse/children) to apply for
our scholarships. Most of this years EANGUS scholarship deadlines
have already passed, but there is one more op-portunity to apply.
Grantham University will award a full under-graduate or graduate
scholarship valued at approx. $38,600, to one EANGUS member. This
scholarship covers tuition costs, re-quired textbooks, software and
fees..
Page 5 NEWSLETTER OF THE ARIZONA ENLISTED ASSOCIATION
GET A FREE EANGUS MEMBERSHIP!
EANGA is proud to announce that GRAND CANYON UNIVERSITY
will pay for your membership in
EANGUS. just contact GCU at the special
phone number: (855) 428-9883 or at the
special website: www.gcu.edu/eanga
and inquire about their degree programs!
They will let us know you contacted them and
we will provide your free EANGUS member-
ship in about 30 days.
Grantham University Scholarship deadline approaching.
MEMBERSHIP - Check out our new website and special!
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EANGA
5636 E. MCDOWELL ROAD
PHOENIX, AZ 85008-3495
EMAIL: [email protected]
WEBSITE: WWW.EANGA.ORG
Legislation First, Membership Always Page 6
~ New EANGA Board Elected ~
Find us on Facebook:
EANGA and EANGUS
Modern Minuteman Shirts and Posters
Contact us if youd like to purchase one of these
items with a unique design made for EANGUS.
Shirts are available in tan or black$25 each; they may also be
ordered on
line at www.tacticaldrawings.com.
Posters are $10 each.
The Annual State Conference of the Enlisted Association NG of
Arizona was held on Saturday, March 21st. The business session
included a Town Hall featuring a Q&A Session with The Adjutant
General, Maj Gen Michael McGuire. Additional comments were provided
by State SEL CMSgt Shane Clark and our guests, AZ Repre-sentative
Mark Cardenas (District 19) and Representative Richard Andrade
(District 29).
Elections for several offices on the EANGA Board of Directors
was held. The following personnel make up your leadership for the
AZ Enlisted Association:
President Ben Acosta, [email protected] VP Air Mary
Thompson, [email protected] VP Army April Schneider,
[email protected] VP Jr Enlisted Bryan Adams,
[email protected] Treasurer Martha Dominguez, [email protected]
Secretary Mary Gonzales, [email protected] Director Army
Madlyn Flores, [email protected] Director Air Dena Hallaren,
[email protected] Dir At Large Rigoberto Andrade,
Rigober-to.s.andrade@[email protected] Director Retiree David Austin,
[email protected]
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to
contact your EANGA leadership above.
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2ND ANNUAL
Senior
Enlisted
Leader
HOSTED BY THE AZ NATIONAL GUARD
SENIOR ENLISTED LEADER
COMMAND CHIEF MASTER SERGEANT SHANE CLARK
Registration & Payment:
(DEADLINE IS JULY 20, 2015)
Mail to: Enlisted Association National Guard of Arizona 5636 E
McDowell Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85008-3495
GOLFER 1: ______________________________________________ ____
$60.00 ____ $75.00
GOLFER 2: ______________________________________________ ____
$60.00 ____ $75.00
GOLFER 3: ______________________________________________ ____
$60.00 ____ $75.00
GOLFER 4: ______________________________________________ ____
$60.00 ____ $75.00
Lunch Only (MUST USE FORM): ____ $30.00 ____ $45.00
Please mail check or money order payable to EANGA TOTAL:
__________
Note: Registration complete only when EANGA has received your
form and
payment. No refunds for withdrawal less than 14 days of
tournament date. You
will receive an email when payment has been received. Thank you
for partici-
pating.
_______ Check here for a chance to play golf with the Senior
Enlisted Leader
CCM Shane Clark & the Adjutant General Major General Michael
McGuire
WHO: Enlisted, officer, family members and friends are
welcome
WHAT: Four man scramble
WHERE: Sewailo Golf Club- Casino del Sol Resort, Tucson
WHEN: August 3, 2015 SAVE THE DATE
Check In: 0600
Shotgun Start: 0730
COST: $60 per person (cost includes golf, golf cart, other
amenities, & lunch)
$75 per person (cost includes golf, golf cart, other amenities,
lunch, & EANGUS membership)
BONUS: One junior enlisted soldier and airmen (E1-E4) will be
drawn to join
AZ SEL CCM Shane Clark as a foursome
Lunch will be served, awards presented, and raffle prizes
drawn
Name:____________________________________________ Phone#:
_______________________
Email:
___________________________________________________________________________
Address: ___________________________ City: ___________________
State: _____ Zip: ________
USE THIS FORM TO REGISTER OR
REGISTER ONLINE AT
https://eanga.org/2015-sel-golf-tournament/
The Desert Chronicle Summer 20152ND ANNUAL SEL GOLF TOURNAMENT
REGISTRATION
