U.S. ARMY WARRANT OFFICERS ASSOCIATION
50th ANNUAL MEETING OF THE MEMBERS
Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Oct 18 - 21, 2022
USAWOA 50th Annual Meeting of the Members
“50 Years of Professionalism, Representation, and Recognition”
By CW5 Nichole S. Rettmann
President, Fort Bragg Silver Chapter
July 2022
50th AMM News
Online registration for the USAWOA 50th Annual Meeting of the Members (AMM) opened on the 1st of June. This article will give you all the details you need to successfully register to attend and select events and activities for your spouse or guest to participate in during all the professional development sessions and interactive events throughout the three-day event.
Registration may be accomplished in the USAWOA portal online store. The portal is accessible from the main website, at https://usawoa.org. This form – and a manual, fillable version – are also available for download on the portal, together with the meeting’s business agenda, and detailed instructions for registering in the online store.
This year’s meeting will be held at the Ramada Plaza Hotel and Bordeaux Conference Center. Make your reservations now at the “Warrant Officer’s Association Meeting of the Members” group code “Silver” for the rate of $69/room per night. You can book your room at: Wyndham Hotels
Onsite check-in and registration will be conducted on Tuesday afternoon, 18 October 2022, from 1200 to 1700, in the hotel lobby. There, you will get your bag of swag, and all the details of exciting events planned for the meeting.
Festivities will begin that evening, at the National President’s Reception, which will be held in the Orleans room. This event will be hosted by the current national president, CW5 (Ret) Joachim Consiglio.
He will be accompanied by the entire USAWOA national leadership team. You will have the opportunity to speak with not only them, but all candidates running for national offices this year – a great opportunity for Members to meet these candidates prior to votes being counted and tallied (announcement and swearing-in of our new leadership team will occur on the last meeting day).
Meeting Day One
The official meeting will be gaveled into session on Wednesday morning, 19 October, in the Versailles conference room. As in previous years, we have invited several distinguished Army senior leaders to open our business sessions on each day (such as the Army Chief of Staff; Director, Army National Guard; Chief, Army Reserve; and the Commanding General, Forces Command).
Prior to traditional USAWOA national leadership, committee and foundation reports, a Veteran’s benefits briefing (with a Q & A session) will be led by the Fort Bragg Master Benefits Advisor, Ms. Wendy Robinson. The afternoon will be dominated by Warrant Officer Professional Development (WOPD) sessions. Following a personal financial planning panel we will receive update briefings from the Senior Warrant Officer Advisor to the Chief of Staff of the Army, the United States Army Reserve Command Chief Warrant Officer, and an update from the Army National Guard.
Spouses and guests participating in the interactive events planned will meet each day in the hotel lobby at 0930. On the first day, they will head to Hummingbird Candle Company to craft individualized, custom- scented candles they can take home. Then they will trek out to the Starrlight Meadery with plans for a light lunch, tastings, and the opportunity to make a personal body scrub with essential oils. This first day will wrap up for the spouses and guests at The Plant, where they can peruse specialty shops, get snacks or knickknacks, and drinks prior to returning to the Ramada.
Meeting Day Two
On Thursday, 20 October, the second day will start off with a spouse and guests’ breakfast, with our current National President,CW5 (Ret) Joe Consiglio and National Executive Director CW4 (Ret) Jack Du Teil.
Day two of official business will reconvene at 0830. Following senior leader opening comments, WOPD sessions will begin with an important update on ongoing Warrant Officer initiatives being worked, emanating from the Army Talent Management Task Force. This will feature input from key senior Warrant Officer leaders.
We will also receive an update on the exciting new Flagpole of Freedom Park, scheduled to open on our nation’s birthday in 2026.
That afternoon’s WOPD events begin with a Special Operations panel discussion. This will be followed by an update on the U.S. Army Warrant Officer Career College’s (USAWOCC’s) professional military education (PME) initiatives. These initiatives will be briefed by the USAWOCC commandant, and his deputy commandants.
Members will also receive an update on implementation of the Integrated Personnel and Pay System-Army (IPPS-A). The main session will wrap up with a discussion on the U.S. Army Warrant Officers Association structure realignment plan.
Your spouses and guests will once again meet in the hotel lobby at 0930, this time heading out to the Cape Fear Botanical Gardens, where they will have the opportunity to create a painting that they can take home, take part in an educational activity on gardening, or just enjoy exploring the gardens.
They will then make their way back to the hotel, with a stop along the way at the Airborne and Special Operations Museum.
Meeting Day Three
On Friday, 21 October, the final day of the 50th AMM begins with a Veteran’s breakfast hosted by The Military Coalition President (and National Executive Director) CW4 (Ret) Jack Du Teil. Joining him will be Veteran Service Officer Tab Brown, who will follow up on issues and questions raised at Wednesday morning’s Veteran’s benefits briefing.
The final day of official business will reconvene at 0830. Following senior leader opening comments, updates will be provided on the ongoing Membership Enhancement Project (MEP), provided by MEP Project leader CW4 (Ret) Misty Whetung.
The Fort Dix Doughboy Chapter will provide Members with an update on plans for next year’s 51st AMM, in Atlantic City, NJ. We will also hear proposals for the conduct of the 52nd AMM in 2024.
50th AMM official business will conclude with the announcement of election results for national offices, the swearing in of our new association leadership, and finally with the presentation of Chapter and Region awards. The day will wrap up early so all participants can prepare for the culminating social event, the Golden Anniversary Masquerade Ball, scheduled for Friday evening in the Grand Ballroom.
During the official business on the final day, spouses and guests are encouraged to explore downtown Fayetteville and other local attractions in small groups and return to the hotel in time to prepare for the Masquerade Ball that evening.
The Annual Meeting of the Members will culminate with the Golden Anniversary Masquerade Ball on the evening of the 21st, in the Grand Ballroom. This gala event begins with a cocktail hour at 1700. Masks for this event are included in the Ball ticket price and will be available for all. Attire for the event is black tie, suit and tie, dress blues, formal, or cocktail attire. Our very own CW3 Lori Borowski will be the master of ceremonies for this auspicious, funfilled evening.
The 50th AMM will be an epic event, celebrating the half-century of service provided by our great association. You do not want to miss this professional development event with the fitting theme: “50 Years of Professionalism, Representation, and Recognition!”
June 2022
50th AMM News
The Fort Bragg Silver Chapter is honored to host the 50th Annual Meeting of the Members (AMM) at the home of the Airborne and Special Operations forces! It is significant that we are to hold our association’s golden anniversary event at what many call the Army’s “Center of the Universe,” home to major Army commands including Forces Command, U.S. Army Special Operations Command, the 18th Airborne Corps, the U.S. Army Reserve Command, and the storied 82nd Airborne Division.
We are in the process of inviting many military senior leaders from the local major commands, as well as from the national capital region, to address the participants and be part of the professional development panels. The 50th AMM is scheduled for 18-21 October 2022, with online registration opening this June. This will be the professional development event you absolutely do not want to miss.
Location and Logistics
The main events will be held at the Ramada Plaza Hotel and Bordeaux Conference Center, in Fayetteville, NC. This location is within walking distance of various restaurants and is a straight shot on the All-American Highway from the main gate of Fort Bragg.
We have blocked 100 rooms at the hotel for AMM participants and their spouses and guests. Reservations will open in June 2022, with a deadline of 19 September, to take advantage of the AMM rate of $69/night.
The 50th AMM begins the afternoon of 18 October with registration in the Orleans conference rooms of the Bordeaux. It will continue in the evening, as Members and guests mingle with USAWOA’s National Board of Directors at the President’s Reception, also conducted in the same location.
The opening day of the AMM will be Wednesday, 19 October, beginning with the Retiree and Veterans Breakfast. At 0900 hours, our national president will gavel in the first official session of the meeting. Check in and registration for late arrivals will be available outside of the conference room, for those who could not arrive in time on Tuesday.
Outings for spouses and guests will begin in the hotel main lobby on both the 19th and 20th of October, at 0930 hours. Participation and pricing will be part of the online registration, to ensure an advanced estimate of total participants for the various events planned.
We will conclude the first day’s events with the Mid-Atlantic Region’s Reception. Thursday morning’s activities begin with the Spouses and Guests Breakfast. Day two official meetings will begin at 0900 hours and the additional schedule of event details is still to be determined.
Professional Development
The USAWOA AMM is the platform for premier professional development panels every year, geared specifically for our Warrant Officer Members. We plan to hold two main professional development panels this year, on day one and two of the meeting, respectively (19-20 October), with additional networking and professional development ongoing throughout the event.
I foresee one professional development panel, focused on talent management, including the topics of transforming Warrant Officer professional military education, mentorship, and career planning. The topic of the second main professional development panel is still being determined and might be focused on topics ranging from special operations and cyber security to sustainment.
Additional professional development events will likely focus on modernization, exploring topics involving emerging technology such as total sustainment, linking the Integrated Personnel and Pay System-Army (IPSS-A) to Enterprise Business Systems – Convergence (EBS-C) for personnel, financial management, and logistics.
As always, we will invite our distinguished senior Warrant Officer leaders to provide updates on key actions they are working from their foxholes. These will include the Senior Warrant Officer Advisor (SWOA) to the Chief of Staff Army, the SWOA to the FORSCOM CG, the Army Reserve CCWO, the Army National Guard CCWO, and other CCWOs from major commands in Army components.
Our Members who are retirees and Veterans will appreciate most of these professional development events, learning about the future of our Army and their currently serving brothers and sisters in our cohort. Having said this, where some planned events are likely to involve a deep dive into technical issues on systems they will never use, this will probably not be the case.
To offset such events that might be tedious to our retiree and Veteran attendees, there are plans underway for alternative Veteran and retiree breakout sessions, where topics more relevant to them will be discussed. Presenters will likely hail from the Veteran Support Center on Fort Bragg, and from other agencies to be determined. Greater detail on specific agenda items will be provided in future 50th AMM update articles in the coming months.
Social Events
As noted above, the first social event will be the National President’s Reception on Tuesday evening, hosted by National President CW5 (Ret) Joe Consiglio. Also in attendance will be the entire national leadership team, together with the candidates running for all national-level offices, who will be elected at and sworn in during the official meeting. That’s right folks, this is an election year!
The President’s reception will be an excellent opportunity to relax, enjoy a drink of your choice, and meet the next leadership of the association, while thanking current officers who might be departing for their leadership.
The Chapters of the Northeastern Region will host a reception on Wednesday evening, 19 October, in keeping with the association tradition of this event being conducted by the Region hosting the following year’s AMM.
The Fort Dix Doughboy Chapter will host the 51st AMM in October 2023. Officials from the Chapter also look forward to providing details about next year’s meeting on the last day of the 50th AMM. The attire for both receptions will be business casual and will feature hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar.
Various spouse and guest outings are being planned to include local sites (such as Cape Fear Botanical Gardens), Historic and cultural venues (including the Airborne Special Operations Museum, Poe House, Museum of the Cape Fear, and Arsenal Park). Special activities will include pottery making, painting, and candle making. Participants should plan to register their spouses and/or guests for events of interest during the online registration process, where associated costs will be identified.
The culminating event of this year’s AMM will be the USAWOA 50th Annual Banquet and Ball, a Europeanstyle masquerade ball in the grand ballroom of the Bordeaux Conference Center, on Friday evening, 21 October. The annual banquet and ball are the highlight for many, at any AMM.
The dinner and awards will be followed by a night of dancing. Look for more details on these spectacular events, which will be highlighted in future issues of the Newsliner, as well as in short videos on the Fort Bragg Silver Chapter and USAWOA national Facebook pages (https://www.facebook.com/FtBraggUSAWOASilver-Chapter and https://www.facebook.com/USAWOA, respectively).
We look forward to hosting the 2022 USAWOA 50th AMM and intend to not only provide a fun event, but also an informative and memorable one, packed with valuable professional development, networking opportunities, and Warrant Officer fellowship.
Agenda
An agenda for the 50th AMM will be available on the USAWOA website and is also scheduled for publication in the May edition of the Newsliner. Registration for the meeting and associated events will open in June 2022. As in the past, registration will be accomplished either electronically on the portal, or manually. manual registration forms will also be published in future Newsliner editions and will be available for download from the website.
