Donation to the Chambarak School in Armenia

Riding down the bumpy dirt road with a semi–truck trailing behind, a smile appears on my face. We approach several cows standing in the middle of the road that are in no hurry, of course. I honk the horn twice and they finally begin to amble on their way, except for one. He slowly raises his head, looks directly at me, and I swear I hear him say, “What’s your hurry?” I get the hint, sit back and relax as he wags his tail and slowly moseys along.

This paints a familiar picture of rural life in Armenia. Things are slower, simpler. I quickly forget the hustle and bustle of the capital, Yerevan, and settle into what I love about my job as the Bilateral Affairs Officer for the European Command State Partnership Program; getting to meet the unique, genuine, and hospitable people of this beautiful country, Armenia.

Furniture being offloaded at the Chambarak School in Armenia.

On behalf of the United States Embassy in Yerevan and the European Command Humanitarian Assistance office in Stuttgart, Germany, we were able to supply over $4000 worth of much needed furniture to Chambarak School Number Two. The U.S. Embassy’s Office of Defense Cooperation (ODC) has provided several such shipments in the past year, adding up to $15,000 worth of material donated to schools and orphanages in rural Armenian and several more are on the way. Many of these projects would not be possible without the many Non-Governmental Organizations and governmental organizations working together, sharing information, and coordinating their efforts to support the development of Armenia.

For instance, Save the Children completed the renovation of the Chambarak School in early 2009. To assist in furnishing the school, Armenian Relief Fund donated desks, and the United States Embassy’s ODC provided additional desks, chairs, and bookcases for the teachers. Although the donations are often small in monetary value, the impact is enormous. We could see the sincere gratitude of the local population from the look in their eyes, their vigorous handshakes, and their heartfelt, “shnorak’alutsyun,” (translation: “thank you”).

Captain Robert Sanders
Bilateral Affairs Office
U.S. Embassy Yerevan, Armenia

Three Key Steps to Social Media

Maj. Kristi Beckman is the Chief of Social Media for European Command Public Affairs

As Government 2.0 booms and social media grabs at us public affairs professionals in the military, we are having a blast branching out in ways we never have before. We are Tweeting, Flickring, Youtubing, Facebooking and blogging!

And the great part of all of it is the relationships we’re building and the ideas we’re sharing.

Today, the EUCOM social media team met with the Mercedes-Benz Germany social media folks. They are fantastic people in the same business we’re in of communicating with people on a global scale. And surprisingly they have a lot of the same issues we have in engaging in the social media realm. This is all part of the relationship building that makes social media so successful.

We want to branch out to more folks and share social media tactics, gripes, concerns, best practices, what-have-you.  So, here’s my first step to sharing:

THREE KEY STEPS to Properly Applying Social Media

(DISCLAIMER: I AM NOT A SOCIAL MEDIA EXPERT! Not sure there’s such a thing yet. If there is, it’s not me. But I’m learning what works for me, so here goes.)

1) LISTEN+RESPOND=I CARE – What I’ve found MOST important in social media is not just getting out there and putting your brand out there, but you have to LISTEN to what people are saying about your brand and RESPOND back to them. I don’t care if it’s good or bad, respond! This shows people that you care about their thoughts and you’re not just blasting info out there.

2) FIND BLOGS+COMMENT=RELATIONSHIPS – Seek out blogs that matter to you and establish relationships. Yes, we’re in a new era of the information comes to you, but that won’t happen unless you find those good blogs and set up your RSS feeds. Find a platform you like, I use Google Reader, and start following people. Listen to them and comment on their blog postings. You’ll be surprised how good it makes people feel to know they are being heard and that their content is important to someone!

3) NETWORK+SHARE=COMMON SENSE – Like I said, I am not an expert in this arena and not many folks are. But if we all share the love and grow together, think about how much more we can accomplish. Insert peace sign here :o) I see this happen all the time on Twitter as folks retweet the latest social media craze. So, keep it up! I will be!

I’ll be sharing more tips as there are so many more, but this will do for now. I’m sure a lot of you have some great ideas out there, so feel free to share with me as well! Thanks for reading!

Americans and British Gather Together to Pay Homage to American Veterans

Did you know there are over 23 million United States veterans still living today and more than 25 million who are no longer with us? Did you know more the 621,000 Americans gave their lives in battle?

Each of us owes our freedom to these warriors–heroes. The enormity of their sacrifice is truly numbing.

Americans and British service members and veterans at the American Cemetery at Madingley, England. (Photo by Staff Sgt. Javier Cruz)

As I stood in the American Cemetery at Madingley near Cambridge England Nov. 11 and witnessed young, old, men, women, service members, civilians, British and Americans gathered together to pay tribute to these heroes both present and past I was sincerely humbled.

There are 3,812 American Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines laid to rest at Madingley. The names of over 5,000 others who have never been recovered appear on the wall that surrounds the grounds.

Veterans at the American Cemetery at Madingley, England. (Photo by Staff Sgt. Javier Cruz)

The ceremony was moving. The Royal Air Force Molesworth Joint Honor Guard posted colors while the Royal Air Force Wyton Area Voluntary Band played God Save the Queen and The Star Spangled Banner. United States Air Force Maj. Gen. Mark Zamzow, Third Air Force Vice-Commander and Air Commodore K. L. O’Dea, Air Officer Commanding Directly Administered Units, Headquarters Air Command, addressed the crowd with words of remembrance. Wreaths were laid in honor of the fallen. There was a twenty one gun salute followed by the playing of taps. And finally a benediction for those past, present and future heroes.

After the ceremony folks lingered to talk to both American and British veterans and thank them for their service.

I hope you took some time on Veterans Day to show your appreciation for a veteran. And I hope you will be proud and grateful for them every day of the year. For it is their loyalty to our country, its values and its citizens—you and me, that ensures our rights and freedom.

Melony C. Angelilli
Commander’s Action Group
Public Affairs Officer
JAC Molesworth, United Kingdom

Your Questions on Afghanistan and Russia

One of you recently asked me in this forum two incredibly important questions: what am I doing to get more NATO countries into the fight in Afghanistan, and what am I doing to engage Russia?

First, let us clearly understand that EVERY nation in NATO is “in the fight” in Afghanistan. This is a committed alliance.

Second, as the Secretary General has said, “This Alliance is about sharing security, but that doesn’t just mean sharing the benefits. It also means sharing the costs and the risks.” The nations that comprise NATO of course need to make their own determinations as to what contributions they make to NATO operations in Afghanistan. My job is to provide them, through NATO leadership in Brussels, with timely, accurate information about the operational environment so that they can make well-informed decisions. I spend a lot of time in dialogue with Brussels and nations to ensure that they have the latest information on the current environment, the progress we’ve made, and the challenges that remain.

Third, I try to make the case everywhere I go that we are a team that is “stronger together,” and that no one of us — no one nation — is as capable as all of us pulling together. There is a real synergy in all of us pulling together and the sum truly is greater than the simple addition of the parts in Afghanistan.

On Russia, my belief is that we can and will find many zones of practical cooperation with Russia. I wholeheartedly second the Secretary General’s assertion that “we face many common security challenges [with Russia] and should develop a practical cooperation in areas where we are faced with the same security threats.”

The Secretary General is planning a trip to Russia later this year, and I hope that there will be opportunity in the next few years for me to make a similar trip in order to better define areas within the security arena in which we share common interests and may actively cooperate. This is ‘work in progress’ involving 28 nations and will likely include a set of cooperation activities for 2010.

From a personal perspective, I would suggest counter-piracy, arms control, Afghanistan, counter-proliferation, cyber activity, the High North, counter-narcotics, and military training are all potential areas of cooperation and dialogue.

Adm. James Stavridis
Commander, U.S. European Command and
Supreme Allied Commander, Europe

Our Veterans, Our Defenders of Freedom

Happy Veterans Day to all of those who are serving and who have served!

Maj. Kristi Beckman is the Chief of Social Media for European Command Public Affairs

I am proud to call myself a Veteran. From setting up a base in Kyrgyzstan, evacuating Americans out of Liberia; providing humanitarian aid throughout the Horn of Africa, and even providing aid to the victims of Hurricane Katrina in our own country; I can truly say I’ve done some amazing things and been around some incredible people all fighting for what we believe in and helping those who need it the most.

That’s what it’s all about, right? It’s about love of country, love of people, and love of freedom. It’s about helping those in need and protecting the weak from those who want nothing more than to destroy them.

There are many Veterans today who have given so much, not only for the price of their freedom, but incredibly for the price of others’ freedom. When service members come home to their families missing arms and legs because they’ve been blown up in another country while trying so desperately to bring change and hope to that country, THAT is selflessness.

And THAT is what being a Veteran is all about. Veterans face fear and trudge forward. Veterans give their last breath so others might go on breathing. Veterans fight those who would kill innocent civilians without pause. Veterans protect those who cannot defend themselves. Veterans are the most noble of creatures on this Earth.

On this Veterans Day, take a moment out of your busy day to pause and reflect on these brave men and women. Take a moment to listen to the stories of some of the Veterans who have given so much for so many. Wounded Warrior Diaries

And PLEASE, if you know a Veteran, tell me how that Veteran has touched your life or the lives of others.