I hope this report finds all of you well! While I regret that we cannot render our state of the Association “live” as usual at our now cancelled annual meeting, I am happy to say that the 14th Cavalry Association is on solid footing and well positioned to move forward.
We had a great turn-out at our reunion last September at Fort Reno, and those of you in attendance may recall that my priorities were increasing membership and posturing our finances to maintain the Association. You will find more details in the information attached and provided by the secretary, treasurer, and supply room officer, but the bottom line is that I am satisfied with our progress over the past year.
Membership
From a membership perspective we have grown by 3% since last October (from 357 members to our current membership of 369). While this growth was smaller than I would have liked, we did manage to reverse a 2018-2019 trend when membership declined 16%. Over the past year we have simplified the membership dues structure, increased our mailings and email communication, launched a Facebook site, re-vamped our Association webpage and partnered with Together We Served in an effort to reach more Veterans. We need all hands to help us keep this trend going and improving, and I appreciate the feedback we received on our absentee ballot. It is imperative that we retain our current members (41 are up for renewal over the next year) and expand our membership to include more Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) veterans and active duty members. Rest assured that no idea or recommendation will be dismissed as we make every effort to keep our Association viable and on the march.
Finances
On the financial front, I am extremely pleased and continuously impressed by the generosity of our membership. Many of you give freely and go above and beyond to keep our organization healthy, especially in regard to our monument obligations at Fort Benning. We have nearly $30,000 in the bank and $13,500 in CD’s. The general fund, from which we support our active duty Troopers, has a balance of $1,480 and the Monument Fund has a balance of $5,200. We made a substantial investment in our website, but we have no major forecasted obligations beyond costs required for the reunion next year in our Nation’s capital (projected to be $10,500) and the recurring yearly payment of $500 to the National Armor Cavalry Heritage Foundation for grounds maintenance at our monument.
Aside from dues and donations that come from maintaining and growing our membership, we would like to increase our brick sales for the monument. We also could use two more benches for enjoyment and reflection for those visiting our monument (ideally $10K each), so if anyone knows of a corporation or benefactor seeking a worthy cause please let them know about our ongoing work at Fort Benning. Again, as I do not feel that I can say it enough, we are blessed to have amazing financial support from our members and greatly appreciate your willingness to contribute to support our mission and objectives.
Supply Room
Our Regimental Supply Room is a bright spot, thanks to your support. Sales in 2018 totaled $7,143 with nearly $4,000 of that taken in at the reunion. Last year’s sales topped $3,572 with $924 raised at the 2019 reunion. This year thus far, sales are about $500 off last year’s pace. Since a large portion of sales historically occur at our reunion, I would ask that you consider a “virtual visit” to the supply room at 14thcavsupplyroom.com (or follow the link our Association webpage) and purchase an item. I personally stocked up on some coins and a new shirt to help raise our awareness – I have been stopped by one person that did not know a 14th Cavalry Association existed! All profits go to sustainment and new products, so the more we buy the more we can add as a unique offering.
2021 Reunion
We are continuing to plan (again) for our 2021 reunion to take place in Crystal City, Va./Washington, D.C., 1-5 September. The program will be similar to what we planned to offer this year, with the National Museum of the U.S. Army as its centerpiece. There is plenty of time to discuss the 2022 reunion location and we will vote on it next year, but the overwhelming results of the balloting this year were New Orleans and JBLM. We are in the early stages of planning a ‘mini-reunion’ at both JBLM and Fort Benning in the spring of 2021, so details will be forthcoming if we can bring those to fruition. Another notable point is that someone expressed an interest in a reunion in Fulda “one last time” so I believe that is a location that should be heavily considered to honor the legacy of our ACR membership.
Election Results
The election, as you have probably already deduced, was nearly unanimous in confirming all three incumbents for another term. I cannot overstate the value and service that all three of these great men, Gordy, Max and Jerry provide to our Association. The future livelihood and appeal of our Association depends in large measure on the sweat equity, financial support and persuasive powers of its members. I applaud volunteers who help make things go: Rich Eagan, Historian; Ray Egan, our Gallery guru; Bill Robbins, Membership committee; Jim Pocock, Nominating committee chair; Frank Varljen, Monument committee chair, and Jim Vahle, Fund-raising committee. They are valued “right arms” to our Executive Council members. I would personally be remiss if I did not mention the outstanding efforts of Brian Shover, who has made tremendous progress in establishing connections with our active duty Squadrons and many of our GWOT veterans. Again, I cannot thank all of these fine individuals enough for what they accomplish on behalf of our Association. While their willingness for continued service is appreciated, we also have to acknowledge that more volunteers are needed for these roles to keep our Association viable. If you have any interest at all in participating, even as an assistant, please do not hesitate to reach out!
Distinguished Member(s) of the Regiment
It is my intent to utilize and expand the Regimental system to increase the designation and awarding of “Distinguished Member of the Regiment” (DMOR) to deserving individuals. This year, given his relinquishment of Honorary Command Sergeant Major, along with past and continued service to the 14th Cavalry and our Association, we have bestowed DMOR status upon CSM(R) Ralph “Lew” Miller. In addition, while MG(R) Tom Cole is already a DMOR given his status as Honorary Colonel of the Regiment by regulation, we will formally have his service recognized as a DMOR on our roles.
I would like to recognize at least one DMOR each year at our reunion, so please message myself or any member of the Executive Council if you know of a deserving member. We will request nominations again early in 2021 as a reminder of this unique honor within the regiment.
On the Horizon
Our priorities and the challenges ahead suggest we should sharpen our communications and emphasize outreach. We adopted a tagline: Honoring You, Honoring Our Regiment. It now appears on our website and Facebook and will be applied to products from the Supply Room. We also created Vision, Mission, Objective and Goal statements for your review and feedback (please review the link below). Most of these are verbatim or implied in our bylaws, but I would really like your thoughts and feedback if you have any to share. One proposed objective is the formation of a 14th Cavalry scholarship that could perhaps benefit the recruitment of active duty or younger veterans into the Association. The devil would of course be in the details and management of the endeavor, but it is something I have observed as an incentive in both the 2nd and 11th Cavalry associations. I realize both of those outfits have more members (many of us are dual/tri members), but it is something I would ask you to consider and either veto or endorse. If you see anything that we are missing please advise.
As always, thank you for your commitment to the 14th Cavalry Association! Your support keeps our Regiment’s heritage and our Association’s activities alive. I truly look forward to seeing as many of you as possible in 2021 at one or all of our events. If there is any way I or anyone on the Executive Council can be of service over the next year please do not hesitate to ask.
Suivez Moi!
Jim Dunivan, Association President