131st Annual General NGAUS Conference (UNCLASSIFIED)

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE

The annual National Guard Association of the United States General
Conference; a grand title for a grand event. NGAUS, an association comprised
of nearly 45,000 current or former Guard members puts on quite the annual
conference, of which 4,000 members and guests recently attended. I wrote a
small write-up on the 130th conference in 2008 when I had the opportunity to
attend in Baltimore. Now, one year later, I am writing on the 131st General
Conference, which I had an amazing opportunity to attend in Nashville, TN.
Here are the reasons I still highly recommend attending the event (either on
TDY or on your own (tax deductible) dollar):

To kick off the conference for young officers there is a Company
Grade/Warrant Officer mixer. This year the Tennessee National Guard
coordinated a wonderful evening at the Wild Horse Saloon, Nashville's #1
dining and entertainment destination. There was delicious food, a talented
live band, line dance instructors, and a guest appearance by Jeff Gordon and
Dale Earnhardt Jr., our patriotic Nascar sponsors. And I can't forget to
mention that one of the conference exhibitors, Drash, opened up the bar for
two hours. Fun to be had by all!

The first day of the conference for the Company Grade officers started with
an OPD class from NGB-LL (National Guard Bureau- Legislative Liaison). Brig
Gen Demeritt is the current NGB-LL and I learned that the first NGAUS
conference took place in 1878. The Civil War had officially ended and the
National Guard leaders got together to discuss funding, personnel, and
logistics for the future. During afternoon brunch, we had the great privilege
of listening to Gen Craig R. McKinley; the first four star General in the
National Guard and the current Chief of National Guard Bureau. We had the
opportunity to ask questions, which sparked very interesting conversations.

The afternoon rolled into the first business meetings in the great ballroom.
This is a site to see as Maj Gen Bunting called the room to order, TN
welcomed us with guest speakers and the Charlie Daniels Band, and the roll
call of the states commenced. The roll call is one of my favorites as each
state has 60 seconds to brag, boast, and fact drop about their state, while
friendly jests are made between borders. Somehow we had the entire room
(including MG Nash from the 34th ID on VTC) debating over which state could
claim the birthright of Spam (MN won).

The Governor's Reception was a great way to end the evening. The Tennessee
Guard did something a little different this year and had the Reception in the
Exhibitor's hall. NGAUS broke records with over 800 companies and
corporations set up in the Exhibit hall where we found finger food, flight
simulators, and life-size warzone video games. It was great to learn about
the up and coming projects and be able to thank the exhibitors for their
support of the military.

Saturday began with recognition of the Junior/Senior Minutemen (newest and
oldest attendees). Congratulations to Col (Ret) Anton Johnson, a MN member,
for winning the Senior Minuteman award! Some additional speakers included the
NGAUS Treasury, AGAUS, NGEDA, and EANGUS. Particularly noteworthy was
listening to Gen. Norton Schwartz, the Air Force Chief of Staff.

Saturday afternoon's agenda was a luncheon with MG Carpenter, acting director
of the Army Guard. It was an intimate lunch where questions outnumbered the
time we had to discuss. We also spent a half hour picking our future Company
Grade Representatives through area elections. Following lunch, there was a
multitude of Task Force meetings to pick from and attend. I choose the C4I
brief, which stands for Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and
Intelligence.

Saturday evening was the usually crazy "Hospitality Night". Every National
Guard state and territory opened up their hotel hospitality room or planed a
party of their own. As always, dinner and drinks are included and with the
right plan of action you can visit every state in one evening. The highlight
of this year's hospitality night was the Area VI Bash (AK, AZ, CA, CO, GU,
HI, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, WA, and WY) held at the hotel's famous Jack Daniels
Saloon; great live band, great food, and two free drink tickets. I also can't
leave out the piña colada's from Puerto Rico, the 'Vermont Dollar' auction,
and the ozprano room put on by Kansas and New Jersey (Wizard of Oz and
Soprano theme).

Sunday morning consisted of additional OPD classes to include BG Wolf,
Director of Army Safety, Congressman Patrick Murphy from Pennsylvania, COL
Berry who spoke on Diversity, and another opportunity with MG Carpenter. The
third and final Business Session in the afternoon was comprised of the
Honorable Christopher "Kit" Bond, Co-Chair of the Senate National Guard
Caucus, the Honorable Janet Napolitano, Secretary of the Department of
Homeland Security, and GEN Peter Chiarelli, Army Vice Chief of Staff.

Sunday evening was the grand finale of the event and reason in itself to
attend the conference. The States Dinner is usually a very formal dining
experience. Again, the Tennessee Guard did something a little different.
Instead of Dress Blues, Dress Mess, or an evening gown, they determined the
uniform would be 'western wear'. Although the group donned their cowboy
boots, belt buckles, and hats, it did not downplay the decadent meal,
entertaining speeches, and wonderful company.

It would not have been an appropriate Nashville conference without a trip to
the Grand Ole Opry. Immediately following the States Dinner, all attendees
made the short hike from the hotel area to the "home of American music"; the
Grand Ole Opry. As a private, first come/first serve, NGAUS event the seats
filled up fast with western-wearing Guard members. We proceeded to be
awe-inspired by performances from Ricky Skaggs, Kellie Pickler, Craig Morgan,
Wynonna Judd, and Trace Adkins. To top it all off, these performers
volunteered their time to play for free!

To wrap it up, the National Guard Association of the United States General
Conference was again one of the best opportunities I have ever been awarded.
There is no doubt I will attend the conference in the future and persuade my
fellow officers to do the same. I have come away from the event with a wealth
of knowledge and some good friends. I hope to see you next year in Austin,
TX!
Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE