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Let me introduce myself. My name is George Harmeyer and I proudly served in the US Army for over
34 years. During that service I had the  privilege
of being the Commanding General of Ft. Knox, and the Chief of Armor Branch.
In those roles it was my honor to be the custodian of the Armor and Cavalry
Heritage.
Today, I am writing to you as the Chairman of the National Armor and
Cavalry Museum Foundation (NACMF, the Foundation). And, in a few
moments I am going to ask you to join me in creating a new National Armor
and Cavalry Museum but before I do that let me
give you some information.
Since 1989 the Army has been transitioning from its Cold War force
structure to a leaner more expeditionary model. The process has been
accelerated by the Global War on Terror (GWOT) and the Base Realignment and
Closure (BRAC). As part of that effort the Armor
Center at Fort
Knox is scheduled to be moved to Fort Benning, GA and
a new National Armor and Cavalry
Museum is to be
constructed there as well. The move to Fort Benning
is already underway and is scheduled to be completed by 2011.
The NACM Foundation is focused on the creation of that new museum.
Our museum will be the permanent home for the lineage, history, and
heritage of the U.S Army's Armor and Cavalry Force. Our goal is to
create a place that honors the patriotic men and women that have trained,
served and fought in America's
mounted forces.
The museum will take a central role in supporting unit, organization and
Soldier history and heritage. It will also provide the public with a window
to the Army and in particular its mounted
warriors, their history, and their role in our national development. At the
same time this facility will play an increasingly important role in Army
recruiting and retention and provide resources in support of ongoing
research and development of doctrine, policy and equipment. The site for
this new facility is Fort Benning,
GA the home of the new
Maneuver Center of Excellence. Construction of the museum is scheduled to
begin in 2010.
The specific Mission
of the National Armor and Cavalry Museum Foundation is to finance and build
this dynamic and innovative multi-dimensional Museum facility.
This is our unique opportunity to create a modern state
of the art museum that captures a vision of excellence and relevance, meets
the needs of the future Army and preserves
our cultural heritage.
I am writing today to invite you to join us in this
exciting and challenging adventure!
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