 Ladies and gentlemen, the Army leadership. Ladies and gentlemen, please remain standing for the presentation of the colors and the singing of the national anthem by the United States Army Band Pershing Zone conducted this morning by their leader and commander, Colonel Bruce Pulver. Please remain standing for the invocation by Chaplain Colonel James Foster, the US Army Military District of Washington's Command Chaplain, followed by the retiring of the colors. This morning to a creator God, to the God of our forefathers, I lift up my voice in this place and humbly request that you, oh God, refresh and renew our minds. Continue to bring visions and dreams that inspire creativity and possibilities. Open up the windows of heaven and the doors of opportunity here on earth so that men and women can continue to make a difference in the lives of those around us and for those who have yet to be born. Oh Lord, I believe that you have given gifts unto us and in this room are people that have given of those gifts to make an impact for the Army. God, they're doing more than just saying, go, be warmed and filled. So bless them, lead and direct them. Oh Lord, use us if you will, especially in these next few days for America's Army. Now be with those around the world deployed and serving in harm's way. Protect them and help them to know your presence in that heavenly name, in the name above all names I pray. Amen. Please be seated. Ladies and gentlemen, the President of the Association of the United States Army, General Robert Brown, United States Army, retired. Well, welcome to the 2022 annual meeting of the Association of the United States Army. We at the Association of the United States Army never forget why we're here. To support America's Army and its soldiers, regular Army, Army National Guard and Army Reserve, their families and our dedicated Army civilians. Your Association supports retirees, veterans and the incredible businesses large and small who provide the technology and material and services which ensures our soldiers have the best equipment in the world. For over 247 years, American soldiers have fulfilled their duty and service of our nation. For the past 72 years, the Association of the United States Army has been privileged to be recognized across the nation as the Army's premier association and the foremost supporter of the total Army. Today in our audience, there are many soldiers who have served in harm's way, defending America's freedom. We are honored to have all of these brave men and women with us. We are honored this morning to welcome several Gold Star families. Your courage inspires us and we promise you that we will never forget. Welcome to our Secretary of the Army, our Chief of Staff of the Army and our Sergeant Major of the Army and all of the Army leadership. If I went through it all, we'd be here for two extra hours. So thanks for being here, great to have you. We also have a room, this room is full of leaders and whose footsteps we follow. Former Secretaries of the Army, Honorable Robert Speer is here, former Chiefs of Staff of the Army, General Retired Dennis Reimer, 33rd Chief of Staff is here, thanks for being here. Former Sergeant Major of the Army, Jack Tilley, Ken Preston, Dan Daly. Thank you all of us, all of you for joining us. Let's now watch, listen and learn from the soldiers of the Military District of Washington. For 247 years, our Army has fought and won our nation's conflicts on battlefields both at home and abroad in all terrains. Whether in small teams or large scale combat operations, there is no obstacle we've failed to overcome. Now, as we look towards building the Army of 2030, what do we require to meet these new challenges? While the six modernization priorities may seem like an unimaginable technical progression from the muskets and horse cavalry of earlier wars, the truth is, the success of the modern Army is founded on principles that reach back to the Revolutionary War. As you will soon see, evolving to meet new threats, recruiting and training qualified talent, remaining resilient and cementing the bond among soldiers are things that transcend any one period of our Army's history. So, before we can look into the Army's future, let's take a brief look at the Army's past through the eyes of our soldiers. Martin here, at your service. I was born in Massachusetts, but at the age of 14, I was sent to live with my grandparents in Connecticut. My friends there began to enlist. I too wanted to experience the glory that people were always talking and writing about and I wanted to help defend my home for British control. So, I enlisted. And now we find ourselves in Pennsylvania at this winter encampment at Valley Forge. It's been difficult, but we've committed ourselves to seeing this through. The constant freezing and thawing along with the shortage of provisions has been trying, but has made us more resourceful. We're building cabins for shelter and piecing together what we have for clothing and gear. General Washington remains confident that conditions will improve. Can I share that optimism? We will prevail. From humble beginnings, the Continental Army laid the foundation for our modern Army. Resilience, discipline, bravery of spirit became the trademarks of a successful American soldier and remain so today. Whether it was moving from smoothbore muskets to long rifles or the creation of unconventional warfare tactics, the U.S. Army has led with innovation. Today, we continue that tradition by placing a strong emphasis on education and training. Formal academic institutions like West Point and development programs like the Reserve Officer Training Corps, Officer Candidate School, and MCO academies helped to build an adaptive, agile, and diverse Army by continually evolving enlisted and officer professional military education. I'm gonna introduce myself. I'm Major Sylvania Stair, Superintendent of the United States Military Academy of West Point, or as some might call me, the father of the Military Academy. But I'm hardly the father. I'm actually a graduate back in 1808. As an engineer officer, I realized the importance of formal training. And as a superintendent, I improved academic standards and implemented numerous traditions and policies regarding the value of honor and discipline and leadership. After all, this school was created to formalize the training and development of officers. I am very proud of our graduates, many of whom have been playing vital roles in helping our nation's ongoing West Point expansion. United States Army is a trusted institution, and the nation knows we will answer every call with professionalism. Training and development of our personnel remains a foundation of the Army as it fosters a culture of diverse ideas and critical analysis and improves our proficiency in individual and organizational task readiness. While the nature of war does not change, the character of war does. During the 20th century, the U.S. Army became a critical partner with our allies in the effort to secure peace around the globe. As the Army moved onto the world stage, increased demands required reexamining its policies at home. By embracing diversity and inclusion, the Army was able to transform its ranks to draw on the great talents of all Americans. I'm Henry Johnson here. I'm Medal of Honor recipient. I fought off a dozen German soldiers in World War I and was stabbed over 20 times and survived. I'm a member of the 369th Infantry Regiment, the Harlem Hellfighters. The Army gave us that nickname because they said our all African-American unit fought like the devil. We served over 191 consecutive days on the front line in Germany. My name is Betty Chambers, and I am one of over 1,000 women who joined the Wasp in World War II. Most of us were already pilots, but we trained in additional 27 weeks on every type of military aircraft that existed. Later, we instructed the male pilots in ground school and flight training. We flew pains from factories to U.S. military bases all across the country. Heck, we even delivered the planes that were used in the D-Day invasion. My name is Chaplain Amal Kapad. The men call me Padre. I served as a military chaplain in World War II and the Korean War. Unsan is a far cry for my childhood home in Kansas. But as the son of Czech immigrants, I saw what the United States could mean to people who wanted to build a new life, and I was eager to do my part to support it. When our regiment was attacked by 20,000 Chinese PVA soldiers, I ran from Fox Hall to Fox Hall, dodging enemy fire to bring 40 of my men out of harm's way. In the end, I was captured, but even in the prison camp, I found ways to resist, sneaking food to hungry soldiers and leading them in in prayer. Though my strength is failing, now, more than ever, I feel my calling to serve the soldiers around me, no matter the cost. I'm Richard Ziemba, a warrant officer and dust off pilot from the Vietnam War. I flew over 400 missions, saving hundreds of lives with my team. I had no hesitation in flying. We did what was necessary to get the ground forces out. The profound impact of the Army Air Mobile Doctrine wasn't just seen in our revolutionary dust off missions. The use of helicopter gunships and the rapid movement of combat troops around the battlefield changed the way we fought. The Army needed to innovate, to deal with the challenges presented at Vietnam, and as always, we succeeded. As our country evolved, so did our Army, accelerating the transformation in how it fights. After Vietnam, the Air Land Battle Doctrine emphasized the three dimensional nature of modern battle, spurring on developments in new equipment and revamped training in large scale combat. Today, by implementing new technology, the Army is maintaining combat credible, ready formations while expanding our range of capabilities in the land, sea, air, space, and cyber domains. At home, the Army continues to supply defense support to civilian authorities. Lieutenant Mark Castle, tank platoon leader of Second Armour Brigade 24th ID, and after Sudamni Shane's invasion of Kuwait, have just been deployed to Saudi Arabia with support of Operation Desert Shield. Iraq may have the fourth largest Army in the world, but I'm confident that our fighting platforms are second to none. Thanks to the Big Five, the Apache and Blackhawk helicopters, the Abram Stank, the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, and the Patriot Missile, we are better positioned to support our allies and partners in this fight. United Nations Coalition Forces have gathered together to liberate Kuwait, to restore peace to our allies in the Middle East. I'm Chief Foreign Officer Kevin Dairs, Louisiana National Guard. When Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, my unit acted quickly and decisively. The risks we faced this time around were 125 mile an hour winds and rising floodwaters. The conditions were intense, but training for combat prepared us for anything that Mother Nature could throw at us. Our helicopter pilots took to the skies and conducted search and rescue missions, and once the storm had passed, we dealt with rising floodwaters from breached levees. Hurricane Katrina was one of the most catastrophic natural disasters in American history, but we persevered and rescued thousands of American citizens. I'm Sergeant Brian Smith, an infantryman deployed to Afghanistan. The enemy here doesn't fight conventionally, so we're using a combination of conventional and unconventional tactics to counter the guerrilla warfare and terrorist tactics utilized by the Taliban. I've conducted air assault missions from Black Hawk to Chinook helicopters to gain access to remote mountainous regions in order to combat the enemy. We've also developed improved communication technology to deal with the austere terrain and ramped up our use of drones to find the enemy and reduce risk to our soldiers. We remain committed to free Afghanistan from terrorism. I'm Sergeant First Class David Gonzalez. When we first started planning for missions here in Syria, one major concern was the use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime. We're trained from conventional warfare, but our goal is to aid those seeking freedom, nation building and humanitarian assistance. Our presence here has allowed us to almost eliminate ISIS. We've driven them from their claimed capital of Raqqa and even reclaimed Mosul and Iraq. New technologies and weapons systems, we've been able to take the fight to the enemy and prevail. The US Army provides the Joint Force trained and ready forces to preserve regional security with our partners and allies. Through the employment of security force assistance brigades, we strengthen our partnerships and interoperability. Our Army is also committed to the quality of life at work and at home. Through ongoing efforts to build positive command climate and through continuous improvement of soldier and family programs, such as housing, medical care, childcare and spouse employment. My name is Sergeant First Class Lipset and I'm from Monterey, California. I serve as an air defense soldier. Now, once I completed high school, I really wasn't sure where I was headed, but I knew I was looking for a challenge and the Army sure has delivered. Over the past year, soldiers have served in units just like mine among some of the most deployed units in the Army. So that usually means you spend a majority of time away from your family, but the Army has been good to us. Take for instance when my wife was sick a few years ago, the Army was there for me and my family through all the doctor's visits, the surgeries and the rehab sessions. To me, that's what people first really means, taking care of soldiers at home and on the battlefield. My name is Specialist Mordez from Miami, Florida and I serve as an infantry rifleman. I joined the Army straight out of high school. I want to serve a purpose bigger than myself and also honor the legacy of my grandpa who fought in Vietnam. Before I enlisted, I had never even left my home state, but now the Army has taken me all over the world. I've been to Alaska, Europe, even Asia. I got into training and experience that most people my age could only dream about, whether it's leading a team in a high stress environment or a hidden center mass at 300 meters. My name is Private First Class Stephen Dix from San Antonio, Texas and I serve as a network systems operator in the Army Reserves. The Army was the first service to offer cyber careers to its soldiers and civilians. And when someone told me that working with sophisticated military systems and equipment can help me in my civilian career, I signed up. As we shift into a data-centric environment, my job is becoming more important than ever. I'm on the front lines of a digital war to protect our Army's updated network capabilities and I am proud to serve with integrity. My name is Sergeant First Class Adam Jay from Cincinnati, Ohio and I'm an infantryman, now serving as a recruiter for the United States Army. My job is attracting the nation's most talented, competent and committed people, which allows the Army to build cohesive teams that are highly trained, disciplined and fit and prepared to fight and win. We're all ambassadors for the Army and bear responsibility for communicating the opportunity and satisfaction that come from raising your right hand to serve. Hearing Johnson, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. That I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States. And the orders of the officers appointed over me according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God. Hearing the Army of 2030 means reaffirming our commitment to being trusted professionals. It means taking a hard look and changing how we approach combat with new technology, battle systems and doctrine. As we assess our greatest current and future threats and how to mitigate them to dominate the battlefield. We'll continue to take a hard look at policy and doctrine to determine required changes and ensure our Army is capable of operating in all domains during campaign, crisis or conflict. Building the Army of 2030 also requires that the Army care for its greatest asset. It's people. We are committed to facing the realities of the future with the values and ideals that have sustained us throughout our history. Whether a near peer adversary or an insurgent threat, the U.S. Army remains ready to fight across the full spectrum of operations today in 2030 and beyond. And whatever the future brings when winning matters the strength of our Army will always be as people. People first. Winning matters. Army 2030. Well, let's hear it again for the soldiers of the old dismissed. The men and women of the old guard, our nation's United States Army band, Secretary of the Army, Christine Wormuth joins us for her second annual conference. And she's honored to serve alongside the men and women of the world's premier land fighting force, the United States Army. In the past year, our Army has answered the nation's call to reassure our NATO allies and provide support to our Ukrainian partners. At home, we maintain momentum on modernization to build the Army of 2030 and we work to improve the quality of life for our soldiers and their families. And provided much needed support to communities hit by natural disasters and in need of COVID-19 relief. She is no stranger to the world of national security, formerly serving as a special assistant to the president of the United States and senior director for defense at the National Security Council, as well as having served as a deputy undersecretary of defense for strategy, plans and forces and then serving as undersecretary of defense for policy. We are very fortunate to have her with us today to launch the 2022 AUSA annual meeting. Ladies and gentlemen, please give me a warm welcome to the honorable Christine Wormuth, 25th secretary of the United States Army. Good morning, everyone. It is terrific to be here. It's great to be back for a second time. And what a terrific, inspiring opening ceremony to kick off this year's annual meeting. Thanks, General Brown, for the warm introduction and thank you to the entire AUSA and Army teams for all of the hard work to make this event possible. Teams form the foundation of our Army and I am fortunate to work with the highest caliber Army leadership team, starting with General McConville, our new Vice Chief General Randy George, my undersecretary Gabe Camarillo, and of course the SMA. Coming together here at AUSA gives us the opportunity to reflect on important Army accomplishments, take stock of where we are and where we're going and look ahead to the future. It's a time to identify challenges and get inspired about everything that is possible for the U.S. Army. As I reflect and take stock of where we are, I'm confident that the Army is on the right track to realize our vision for the Army of 2030 and enable our soldiers, families, and civilians to excel and thrive. Just look at all that the Army has done this year. Since the day Russia invaded Ukraine, the Army has answered the President's call without fail, reassuring our NATO allies and helping Ukraine in its fight to defend itself. I've seen for myself, in trips to Europe, the tremendous work our Army is doing under the leadership of the new SACUR, Army General Chris Cavoli, and the tremendous leadership we have in theater. In Latvia, I was able to meet with the 1st Infantry Division Artillery and the 4th Security Force Assistance Brigade Campadasi, where I heard about the valuable training they are conducting with Latvian forces. 4th SFAM has been doing a phenomenal job in the European theater, deploying advisory teams on short notice to Bulgaria, Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania. They are the tip of the spear for security cooperation, and their efforts are paying significant dividends along NATO's eastern and southern flanks. In Lithuania, I met with soldiers from the 166 Armor Battalion at Camp Herkess. These soldiers are among the many supporting Operation Atlantic Resolve, demonstrating their proficiency in real time while downloading equipment from multiple ports, drawing vehicles from preposition stops, and transporting all of it across Europe to reinforce our NATO allies and partners. While training, the soldiers from the 166 Armor successfully completed a wet gap crossing exercise, which as you all know is no easy feat. In Germany, I met with special operations forces, and in Poland, I met with soldiers from our renowned 101st Airborne Division who are taking in equipment from all over Europe and getting it to our Ukrainian partners who so urgently know it or need it as we saw from what happened just in the last several hours. And on the other side of the world, the Army has been busy in Indo-Pacom as well, building partnerships through the multiple exercises that comprise Pacific pathways. Reflecting the Army's strategic focus on the Pacific, we will stay busy in that region because China is our pacing challenge. We must strengthen deterrence in the Pacific by building out our logistics and sustainment support over the region's vast distances and by demonstrating what ready combat credible Army forces can do working in concert with our allies and partners. Closer to home, our National Guard and Reserve soldiers have helped communities in need, whether as part of the pandemic response at the Southwest border or in Florida in the wake of Hurricane Ian just a couple of weeks ago. All of this shows that this year, like the last few years, the Army keeps rolling along, doing amazing things. But even as our Army deploys all over the world, training, exercising, and conducting missions, we are working hard to build the Army of 2030, the theme of this year's annual meeting. Despite the many other things the Army does, the Army exists to fight and win the nation's wars. We cannot lose sight of that fundamental purpose. And to make sure we remain the dominant land force on the battlefields of 2030, the Army is undergoing a once in a generation transformation that will position the Army to deter and defeat future threats. Transforming into the Army of 2030 means adopting new operational concepts, reorganizing our forces, and developing new capabilities so that we maintain superiority over any future adversary. And we are well on our way there. To succeed on the future battlefield and continue to dominate the land domain, the Army of 2030 needs to do six basic things. First, we need to see and sense more, farther and more persistently at every echelon than our enemies. Second, we have to concentrate highly lethal, low signature combat forces rapidly from dispersed locations to overwhelm adversaries at a time and place of our choosing. Third, we've got to win the fires fight by delivering precise, longer range fires as part of the joint force to strike deep targets and massing enemy forces. Fourth, we have to protect our own forces from air missile and drone attacks. Fifth, we have to reliably and rapidly communicate and share data, not just with ourselves, but with our sister services and our coalition partners. And sixth, we've got to sustain the fight across contested terrain for both short, sharp operations as well as protracted conflicts. Field Manual 3-0, our newly released capstone doctrine, elaborates on these six main ideas and will reshape the way we organize, develop, train, conduct exercises and build out our formations. To realize this vision and build the Army of 2030, we are transforming our force structure and evolving how we fight. We must do this to prepare for the challenge of large-scale combat operations, strengthen deterrence in the Indo-Pacific, and to be ready if deterrence fails. After two decades of counterinsurgency and counterterrorism operations in Iraq and Afghanistan focused on brigade and below operations, the Army is shifting its organizational focus to larger formations, more capable of integrating with our sister services and our allies and partners around the globe. Our study and analysis of recent conflicts, exercises, simulation and training tells us that brigade commanders must focus fully on winning the close fight. To allow frontline leaders to concentrate on the close fight, division and corps commanders will have the responsibility and capability to visualize the larger picture. To ensure they can do this, our theater armies, corps and divisions will gain the personnel, organizations and equipment they need to disrupt and defeat peer adversaries on the future battlefield. These force structure redesigns go well beyond building SBAPs and additional multi-domain task forces. By consolidating fires, engineer and military intelligence at the division level, we will maximize the division's ability to shape the fight and enable brigades to close with and defeat enemy threats. At the corps level, we will provide the additional personnel and organizations necessary to fully converge effects across all domains. Our corps will be joint task force certified capable of commanding and controlling joint and multinational formations. And these organizational investments will be multiplied by leveraging advances in commercial data analytics to improve the speed and accuracy of our leaders decision making. As we make these organizational changes, the Army of 2030 must also equip its forces with new and different capabilities. We are working closely with all of you in industry to develop advanced equipment that incorporates cutting edge technologies. With systems like Artemis, Aries, Titan, and air launched effects, we are developing a network of manned and unmanned sensors that will enable us to sense more farther and more persistently than our enemies. With platforms like AMPV and mobile protective firepower, we will deliver more lethal and more survivable maneuver forces across the battlefield. With systems like ERCA, Prism, mid-range capability, and the long range hypersonic weapon, we will deploy new missiles able to reach new distances, increasing the range of our fires and their ability to defeat traditional air defense systems. And speaking of air defense systems, we are modernizing our own air defense capabilities, M-Shorad and IFPIC, using a new battle command system that integrates L-TAMs and other sensors. And we are harnessing the potential of directed energy to protect our forces from air, missile, and drone attacks. With new modern watercraft fleets and experiments like the hybrid striker vehicle, we will push ourselves to embrace the challenge of contested logistics. To ensure we can meet this challenge, I've asked General Daley at Army Materiel Command to lead a comprehensive effort to strengthen the Army's ability to provide logistics and sustainment in support of the Joint Force in the Indo-Pacific. Leveraging experimentation, war games, and exercises, this effort will bring together our logistics community with the commercial sector to look at our requirements and focus on the opportunities presented by autonomous distribution, energy efficient combat systems, and predictive data analytics. In the last year, we have made real progress towards building these new capabilities. We have prototypes on factory floors. We are testing and experimenting with new technologies, not by ourselves, but fully with our sister services and industry partners during events like project convergence. And for some of these capabilities, we are already signing contracts to begin low rates of initial production. We've been able to sustain momentum across all six of our modernization portfolios because we've been consistent in our priorities across two administrations. And with support from Congress, we've applied consistent funding to our efforts. We are getting new systems into the hands of our soldiers. 2023 will be a big year for Army modernization. We will deliver prototypes or begin fielding 24 new systems. So I am particularly pleased that General Jim Rainey has just taken command of Army Futures Command in Austin. There is no shortage of work to do, and we will do it as one Army team. While we continue to deliver these capabilities to support the Army of 2030, we must push ourselves to think even farther out in time. How should we be thinking about warfighting in 2040? What next generation capabilities will that warfight require? Given evolving threats and the pace of technological change, we always have to think about what the Army will need next. So I've asked General Rainey to lead and accelerate our efforts to begin developing next generation operating concepts defining gaps and requirements for our next generation weapon systems and leading the design of the Army of 2040. We will need to take the long view to determine what foundational investments in technology are needed today so that we are ready tomorrow. As we make these generational investments to prepare for the future fight, we must do so sustainably, maintaining readiness while transforming at a pace informed by the resources that we have. As I said last year, this will require some hard choices about the pace of our modernization versus maintaining our ability to respond to crisis while taking care of our people. And speaking of our people, a critical part of realizing the vision for the Army of 2030 is ensuring our soldiers and their families are well taken care of. Where our soldiers live and work is a fundamental part of their quality of life. And it's something that as Secretary of the Army, I am especially focused on. As I visited our installations all over the country this year, I've heard a lot about the rising costs of housing, substandard barrack conditions and difficulties getting children into our child development centers. I am committed to fixing these issues and I know that every Army leader shares that commitment. We are building on initiatives like Secretary Austin's recent decision to increase BAH across 28 military housing areas where rental costs have sharply increased. We are working with OSD to look at how BAH is calculated so that it accurately reflects the real housing market. We are investing one and a half billion dollars in the next five years to build and improve Army-owned housing. We are investing $3.1 billion through fiscal year 26 to replace, renovate, and build new privatized housing. After visiting Fort Bragg in July and hearing about the barracks at Smokebomb Hill, which we will demolish and rebuild, I am more committed than ever that we must stay committed to investing at least $10 billion for the next eight years to improve our barracks for active national guard and reserve soldiers. To realize the Army of 2030, yeah, let's hear it. To realize the Army of 2030, we also have to make sure that our Army families have access to quality childcare. I know how important this is as a mom myself. I know how hard it can be to find it and I know how expensive it can be when you do find it. We have funded five child development centers in the last five years and one is already under construction. And I am pleased to announce this morning that working closely with the Air Force, we now have plans to build a new CDC at Camp Bull Simons in FY25 for our seven Special Forces Group families. Once these CDCs are built, we will significantly increase childcare capacity and we're also working hard to hire great staff for our CDCs. Our goal is to increase staffing at our CDCs to 90%, which would help get families off the wait list more quickly. We know housing and contracting costs are rising and the labor market is tight, but our Army is working hard to adapt to these challenges. Supporting parents who serve in the Army is critical to the recruitment, retention, and the readiness of our force. But let there be no mistake, taking care of our people isn't just about housing and childcare. It's also about making sure that we're creating positive command climates and building cohesive teams that are highly trained, disciplined, and physically fit. In talks with soldiers across the country from Fort Drum to Fort Wainwright, I've heard how important it is to have access to mental health resources and to rebuild confidence in the Army's ability to prevent and respond to sexual harassment and sexual assault. In the last year, we've made multiple changes to help us reduce harmful behaviors in our Army and better support soldiers who need our help. This year in Alaska, we've surged behavioral health resources, specialists, chaplains, and military family life counselors to ensure the soldiers of the newly re-established 11th Airborne Division have the support they need to thrive in the unique and demanding environment that is the Arctic. Other commands across the country are also conducting 100% wellness checks to promote resilience. Our efforts are beginning to show results. One suicide is still too many, but this year, we have seen fewer suicides than last year and that is welcome news. In addition to redesigning the Army's SHARP programs, this summer, we also established the Office of Special Trial Council, which will be led by a one star and who will report directly to me who will take the lead in trying cases of sexual assault. As part of Secretary Austin's Independent Review Commission, we are building a specialized prevention workforce to assist our commanders in their efforts to reduce harmful behaviors and to get resources to soldiers and their families who may be struggling. We have already hired over 80 prevention specialists who will serve in three Army commands and five installations. We plan to hire another 200 prevention specialists next year and by FY 27, we will hire more than 1300 specialists across all three Army components. We are committed to taking care of soldiers and families, but I know that more work remains and we will keep working these issues. The Army of 2030 not only has to ensure its families thrive, it also has to unlock the full potential of our soldiers so they can excel. We must transform the way we train, educate, and prepare America's sons and daughters for an increasingly complex future battlefield. The Army is investing in programs and professional military education to improve how leaders identify their own strengths and weaknesses and to add to their intellectual kit. Whether it's a year spent at one of the nation's premier war colleges or a top civilian institution, the Army is committed to helping soldiers further their intellectual pursuits as they prepare to face the increasingly complex threats of the future battlefield. We're also reinventing how we unlock the talent of our soldiers, better empower our NCOs and officers to manage their own careers and select the best leaders for command. It's taking time, but we are building a 21st century data-driven personnel management system to transform how we develop and manage the talent that is the bedrock of our military advantage. Complimenting this new personnel management system, the talent marketplace allows officers and NCOs to express their preferences for open assignments. The ability to express preferences for units and locations based on individual skills, as well as family preferences has been a game changer. The marketplace lets everyone play a more active role in managing talent for the Army and has increased trust in the assignment process. And that helps keep talent right here in our Army where our nation needs it. And finally, we have profoundly changed how we're selecting individuals for command, giving us more ability to develop and select leaders who are truly ready for these demanding assignments. The new selection process ensures that those going into critical leadership positions are strong communicators, physically fit, able to effectively develop those around them and achieve results through productive leadership styles. We are well on our way to building the Army of 2030. And like our Army today, it will be the best trained, best equipped, and best led Army in the world. It will be an Army that takes care of its soldiers and families and ensures that everyone in it can be all that they can be. But we have to do a better job telling Americans about what's possible in our Army today and in the future. We have got to do more to get the word out on just how much the Army has to offer young Americans. And we need to debunk some of the misperceptions that are out there about what it means to serve in our Army. Only 9% of young Americans aged 16 to 21, even express interest in serving in the US military. In this kind of recruiting landscape, we need a full court press to get out into communities around the country to talk about the US Army. We have to reach not just young people who already know about the Army because they're part of a military family, or they live near a big post in the South, or they have a JROTC program in their school. We need to reach young Americans and their parents who don't know about us, who live in the Northeast or the Midwest, and who don't come from military families. But we are not waiting to get out there and tell the Army story. ForceCom has already partnered with TRADOC and USREC to align five of our great divisions with our recruiting brigades. This will help USREC extend its reach into communities all around the country. Going into the next fiscal year, we're going to build on recruiting initiatives we started in FY22, most notably the future soldier prep course at Fort Jackson. The prep course demonstrates the Army's commitment to invest in young Americans who do wanna serve, offering them the chance to raise their academic and physical fitness qualifications so that they can join our ranks. And so far, the early results look very promising. We've also launched a recruiting task force led by a two-star general that will report directly to me and General McConville to give us actionable recommendations to improve how the Army recruits its future talent. The task force will look at everything from how we select, train, and incentivize our recruiters to what we can do to interest far more than 9% of young Americans to serve in the military. We've told the task force to think big and think outside the box because we won't solve this problem by just doing more of the same old, same old. This will be a longer-term effort, but given the significant demographic and generational changes that are underway in our country, we cannot afford to accept the status quo. Today's Army now more than ever needs data scientists, coders, and engineers as much as we need our tankers, aviators, and infantry soldiers. We need to reach a new generation of Americans and share with them the life-changing opportunities that come with service in the U.S. Army. The trends that have reshaped the recruiting landscape didn't develop in just a year, and it will likely take more than a year to put all the needed changes in place, but I am confident that we are going to get this right because we cannot afford not to. And we need all of you in this room to help us tell the Army story and inspire more Americans to serve. Before it even became a nation, America had an army, and for the past 247 years, America's Army has fought and won our nation's wars. Our Army has weathered the challenges of world wars, the end of the Cold War, the war on terrorism, and today we are ready to defend this country as we once again face nuclear-armed, near-peer competitors. We are living in challenging times. Social, economic, demographic, and climate changes are reshaping our country and countries all around the world, and we face a wide and sobering range of national security threats. But I have confidence that our Army can and will meet these challenges. We will forge ahead, building the Army of 2030 so that we are ready for the stark realities of the future battlefield, and we will look beyond 2030 to start preparing today for what lies ahead in 2040. I am inspired each and every day as Secretary of the Army by what I see our great American soldiers doing all around the world. Their commitment, their grit, their ingenuity, and their trust in each other and their leaders cannot be found anywhere else. Because of all I see in them, I am confident we will remain the world's greatest land-fighting force for many generations to come. Well, thank you, Madam Secretary, for those inspiring and memorable words. This morning we'll recognize many individuals and organizations very well deserving for their service to the nation, the Army, and the Association of the United States Army. To assist in presentation of AUSA's National Awards, Brigadier General Jack Haley, United States Army retired, chair of the annual meeting, will join General Brown on the stage. With the Honorable Christine Wormuth and the Honorable Sherwood Woody Goldberg, please join us on the stage. The General Creighton W. Abrams Medal is presented to the civilian aides, to the Secretary of the Army, CASA program, as it celebrates its 100th year of service to the United States Army. Established in 1922, the CASAs are business and community leaders appointed by the Army Secretary to advise and support Army leaders across the country. They come from many professions, including business, education, finance, medicine, and public service, and each is actively involved in his or her community. As the Army's ambassadors, the CASAs have bridged the gap between the American public and our great Army, and they have done it as volunteers. While the program has evolved over the years, the core mission remains the same, representing every state and territory. The CASAs help to tell the Army story, support the total Army workforce, and support transitioning soldiers and their families. On this, the program's 100th anniversary, it is only fitting that we recognize the tremendous impact the CASA program has had, and will continue to have in making the U.S. Army the finest in the world. In grateful recognition, we proudly present the General Creighton W. Abrams Medal to the civilian aides, to the Secretary of the Army, in their centennial year. Would Lieutenant Colonel Johnson please join us on the stage? The Major General Anthony J. Drexel Biddle Medal is presented to Lieutenant Colonel Ronald Johnson, U.S. Army retired, for his outstanding contributions to the Association of the United States Army. Lieutenant Colonel Johnson has served at the national, region, and chapter levels of AUSA for over 30 years. A longtime volunteer leader whose tireless efforts have helped AUSA achieve its vision of being recognized as the Army's premier association. Ron has served as the second region's president, executive vice president, and treasurer. He also led the Potomac Liberty Chapter for two years, helping the chapter achieve chapter of excellence recognition. Ron also volunteered at the national level, serving on the finance committee and the national scholarship evaluation team, helping select the best qualified applicants for AUSA's national scholarship program. In recognition of his selfless service to further AUSA and its mission, we proudly present the Major General Anthony J. Drexel Biddle Medal to Lieutenant Colonel Ronald Johnson, U.S. Army retired. With Major General Farris, please join us on the stage. The Lieutenant General Raymond S. McClain Medal is awarded to Major General Jill Farris, Director of the Office of the Joint Surgeon General for the National Guard Bureau, for her exemplary service and outstanding contributions to the advancement of the Association of the United States Army's goal of a seamless multi-component Army. Farris distinguished herself during the COVID pandemic when she was asked to lead the daily operations, plans and training for the U.S. Army Medical Command Army Surgeon General's Office. Farris integrated the Army's medical enterprise as it responded to the pandemic, navigated reforms to the medical health system and weathered the turbulence of medical command restructuring. Farris and her team created and deployed the first urban augmentee medical task forces across the U.S. to help hospitals overwhelmed with COVID patients and also led the effort to increase the Army's ability to test for COVID, expanding the nine existing laboratories to 46 and deploying hundreds of testing machines designed to test for COVID in rapid sequence. Farris worked with the Army National Guard and the U.S. Army Reserve to deploy guard soldiers and reserve medical soldiers who were recalled from retirement to help fight the pandemic, assigning planner and logisticians to work on operation warp speed. Her presence, steady guidance and direction contributed to the successful execution of the nation's pandemic response. In addition and in appreciation of her outstanding service and dedication to our nation and the Army and the National Guard, we proudly present the Lieutenant General Raymond S. McLean Medal to Major General Jill Farris. Would Command Sergeant Major Leak please join us on the stage? The Major General James Earl Rudder Medal is awarded to Command Sergeant Major Arthur Leak, U.S. Army retired and Reserve Ambassador for Indiana for his outstanding contributions to the advancement of the Association of the United States Army's goal of a seamless multi-component Army. Command Sergeant Major Leak, a member of AUSA's Indiana chapter, is a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom who served in the Army and Army Reserve for 39 years before retiring in 2016. In 2017, Leak was appointed Army Reserve Ambassador for Indiana, where he represents the Army Reserve Chief at local functions and celebrations and served as another set of eyes and ears for the Chief with local and statewide units and organizations. He is also an associate minister of the Friendship Baptist Church and the Sherman Street Church of God. And he is completing his sixth term as a member of the Edgewood Town Council in Indiana. Command Sergeant Major Leak has consistently shown excellence in leadership in the performance of his duties in the Army, in his contributions to his community and church, and in his leadership as registrar at Anderson University. Wherever he has been assigned in the Army or in his community, he has quickly risen to the top. In appreciation of his outstanding service and dedication to our nation and the Army Reserve, we proudly present the Major General James Earl Rudder Medal to Command Sergeant Major Arthur Leak, U.S. Army, retired. Would Command Sergeant Major Gibbons please join us on stage? The Sergeant Major of the Army, William G. Bainbridge Medal, is presented to Command Sergeant Major W. Douglas Gibbons, United States Army, retired, for his exceptional service to the Non-Commissioned Officer Corps. Command Sergeant Major Gibbons who joined the Army in 1966 and served in the Army Reserve until his retirement in 2001, is an active supporter of the Army and its soldiers. A long-time volunteer leader with the Association, he has served at the chapter level with the Indiana chapter and the region level with the second region, serving two terms as the region president and currently serves at the national level as an AUSA senior fellow. Recently inducted into the Indiana Military Veterans Hall of Fame, he has served in support of the employer support for the Guard and Reserve as an Army Reserve Ambassador for Indiana and on the Army Recruiting Command Grass Roots Council supporting recruiters in Indiana. Gibbons continues to support his local AUSA chapter as a mentor to the chapter board, helping with annual chapter fundraising and supports the chapter's other activities throughout the year, including the scholarship program and other community outreach efforts. In grateful recognition of his demonstrated leadership, we proudly present the Sergeant Major of the Army William G. Bainbridge Medal to Command Sergeant Major W. Douglas Gibbons, U.S. Army, retired. Would Sergeant Major Engbrecht please join us on stage? The Joseph P. Gribbons Medal is presented to Sergeant Major David Engbrecht, U.S. Army, retired, Director Homeland Defense Civil Support Office at the Army's Maneuver Support Center of Excellence at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri for his exemplary service to the U.S. Army. Engbrecht, a retired Sergeant Major with almost 20 years' service as an active Army civilian, has spent more than a decade working in the Homeland Defense Civil Support Office, becoming its director in 2021. He has consistently risen to the challenge of finding solutions to the Army's needs. Dave's superb leadership and technical skill have made the support office an indispensable part of the policy, training and capability development activities related to Army support operations in the homeland. David Engbrecht is recognized across the Army for his leadership and technical expertise in this critical mission area. Actively engaged in the community around Fort Leonard Wood, Dave serves as a volunteer, mentor, and guide to other organizations working with soldiers and veterans. In recognition of his commitment to the highest ideals of service as a Department of the Army civilian, we are proud to present the Joseph P. Kribbins Award to David Engbrecht. Would the Tomasura family please join us on stage? The Association of the United States Army Volunteer Family of the Year Award for promoting the well-being of soldiers and their family members is presented to the Tomasura family. Sergeant First Class Tomasura, his wife Amanda and their three children, Timothy Jr., Zoe, and Mackenzie, the Tomasura family, embodies the phrase staying ready together, while selflessly sharing their time and talents to enhance organizations in the Fort Jackson Army community and in the surrounding Columbia community. The Tomasuras have dedicated countless hours to helping others, including hosting events for Gold Star teams and organizing reunions for Vietnam veterans. The Tomasura family is also actively involved in the Battalion Soldier and Family Readiness Group. Volunteering to lead, Amanda organized fundraising efforts to raise money that supported events for families in the battalion. The Tomasura family understands the skills and discipline needed to make serving others possible, and they always strive to give their best within their family and to others. In recognition of the commitment the Tomasura family shared with the Army community, we present our Volunteer Family of the Year Award to this remarkable family. Would Joseph Newberry please join us on stage? The John W. Dixon Award for Outstanding Contributions to National Defense by a member of the industrial community is awarded to Joseph Newberry, President and CEO of Redstone Federal Credit Union. Formed on Redstone Arsenal in 1951, the Credit Union has been a strong community partner of the Association's Redstone Huntsville chapter since 2004. And more recently, AUSA's largest contributing association partner. Newberry's proposal to offer AUSA membership to new Redstone Federal Credit Union members has resulted in a membership expansion of more than 110,000 individuals in three years. Newberry maintains close ties with AUSA's Redstone Huntsville chapter, regularly sponsoring chapter events, including its local Veterans Day celebration, athletic events for wounded warriors, and an ROTC luncheon. The Credit Union is also a generous donor to the National Museum of the United States Army and supports other veterans and military groups in the Huntsville area. In recognition of his philanthropic support for the men and women of our armed forces and their families, we present the John W. Dixon Award to Jews of Newberry. Accepting the award for Bass Pro Shops, would Johnny Morris please join us on stage? The Association of the United States Army National Service Award is presented to Bass Pro Shops and their founder and CEO, Johnny Morris for exemplary service and demonstrated enduring support to the American soldier and the United States Army community. Motivated by his father, who served in World War II and fought in the Battle of the Bulge, Morris is a true patriot who has instilled a culture of giving and patriotism in all his organizations. This year, the Bass Pro Shops donated a home to Marine Sergeant Joe Bartel, an amputee, and paid the mortgage for Army Staff Sergeant Dan Barnes, a wounded warrior, and Mr. Morris pledged to pay for 25% of the next 100 donated homes through the Helping a Hero organization. Morris also offered a free day at the Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium to more than 500 soldiers at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, who were not able to be with their families during last December holidays. His company also donated funds to establish a series of memorials honoring heroes. He recruits veterans for the company workforce and hosts events for disabled and recovering veterans. In appreciation of their dedicated service to the men and women in uniform and their families, we are honored to present the National Service Award to Bass Pro Shops. Next, it gives us great pleasure to present AUSA Chapter Awards. Ladies and gentlemen, the AUSA Award for the largest membership for the 2021-2022 operating year goes again to the Fort Bragg Chapter, accepting the award for the Fort Bragg Chapter. Major General retired Al Ancock, Chapter President. Major General Brian Menace, Deputy Commanding General, 18th Airborne Corps. And Command Sergeant Major Thomas Holland, Command Sergeant Major 3 Corps. And CW3 retired Ariel LaPonte, Immediate Pass, Chapter President. We would now like to recognize our Army's divisions for their outstanding membership accomplishments this past year. This year, the Active Duty Division Award for the largest active duty membership goes to the 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, accepting the award for the 82nd Airborne Division. Major General Christopher Lanieve, Commanding General, 82nd Airborne Division. Command Sergeant Major David R. Pitt, Command Sergeant Major 82nd Airborne Division. And Major General retired Al Ancock, Chapter President. We have two awards to honor reserve components that through their participation and membership have been outstanding in support of the Association's mission of keeping America's Army strong. The award for the National Guard Division with the most AUSA members goes to the 29th Infantry Division, Fort Belphora, Virginia, accepting the award for the 29th Infantry Division. Colonel Dan Collins, Chief of Staff, 29th Infantry Division. And Command Sergeant Major Darryl Pluge, Command Sergeant Major, 29th Infantry Division. The award to the Major U.S. Army Reserve Command with the greatest support to AUSA as measured by membership and active support to and from the chapters within the command's footprint goes to the 84th Training Command, Fort Knox, Kentucky. Accepting the award, Brigadier General Patricia Wallace, Commanding General, 91st Training Division. And Command Sergeant Major Scott Hinton, Command Sergeant Major, 84th Training Command. And now, presentation of the Best Chapter Awards. These awards recognize those chapters whose outstanding service to their members, their communities and the Army earned them the distinction of best in their class this past year. Their successes represent a team effort by the chapter and their local military and business leaders. We categorize our best chapter competition based upon size. Individuals accepting the award will do so on the stage. The AUSA Board of Directors Awards that recognize the best chapters overall from all categories go to the following chapters. For first place in the largest category, chapters which began the year with over 1,000 individual, life, and community partner members, the winner is the Fort Bragg Chapter. Accepting for the Fort Bragg Chapter, Major General retired Al Acock, Chapter President, accompanied by Major General Brian Menace, Deputy Commanding General, 18th Airborne Corps, Command Sergeant Major Thomas Holland, Command Sergeant Major, 18th Airborne Corps, and CW3 retired Ariel Aponte, Immediate Past Chapter President. In the category of chapters with between 600 and 999 members, the winners is the greatest Augusta Fort Gordon Chapter, Augusta Giorgio. Accepting for the greater Augusta Fort Gordon Chapter, Kerry Bridges, Chapter President, accompanied by Major General Paul Stanton, Commanding General, Cyber Center of Excellence, Command Sergeant Major Belia Quintero, Command Sergeant Major, Cyber Center of Excellence, and Colonel retired Kelly Nitter, Immediate Past Chapter President. In our category of chapters with between 350 and 599 members, the winner is the Texas Capital Area Chapter. Accepting for the Texas Capital Area Chapter, Colonel retired Gary Patterson, Chapter President, and General James Rainey, Commanding General, Army Futures Command, and Brigadier General, Monty Euless, Deputy Adjutant General, Texas. In the category of chapters starting the year with between 200 and 349 individual, life, and community partner members, the winner is the Dicks Chapter. Accepting for the Dicks Chapter, Command Sergeant Major retired Arthur Maggs, Chapter President, Major General Rodney Falk, Commanding General, 99th Readiness Division. In our category for chapters with less than 200 members, the winner is the Puerto Rico Chapter. Accepting for the Puerto Rico Chapter, is CW-4 retired Christina Lazada Cruz, Chapter President. In the Best Overseas Chapter category, the winner is the General Creighton Abrams Chapter. Accepting for the General Abrams Chapter, is Gemma McGowan, Chapter President, Command Sergeant Major Jeremiah Inman, Command Sergeant Major, US Army Europe and Africa, and Colonel retired Dave Fulton, AUSA European Region President, and Immediate Pass Chapter President. With the representatives from the following chapters who were selected as runners up for Best Chapter Awards, please stand and be recognized. George Washington, North Texas, Audie Murphy, and Coastal, South Carolina. And this concludes the award presentations. Please give everyone a hand. Well, these chapters we just recognized are located across our nation, in Europe and the Pacific, and have worked hard to support not only soldiers, families and veterans, but members of all of our armed services and the civilians who support them. And chapters are absolutely key to AUSA's mission to educate, inform, and connect America with its Army. So once again, just join me in congratulating these chapters for the many years of support to the America. Now I do wanna acknowledge some special attendees in the audience. Our Army represented some over 90 nations and 15 Chiefs of Army from our allies and our partners. Well, our allies and partners, please stand, thanks for being here. Please stand. Well, yesterday, runners from around the world competed in the 38th annual Army 10-Miler. Glad to see it back out on the road again. It was, of course, hosted by the U.S. Army Military District of Washington. And so we wanna celebrate and recognize the third largest 10-mile foot race in the world known as the Army's Race. And your association is a founding sponsor of this tradition of excellence and proudly celebrates its 38th year as co-lead sponsor along with KBR and AUSA National Partner. All race proceeds, by the way, go to benefit family and morale, welfare, and recreation programs. So for all of you who are not able to attend the race, we have a special video that highlights the Army's annual premier athletic event. Ladies and gentlemen, the 38th annual Army 10-Miler. Eight years of running excellence, you are at the number one 10-mile race in the elected states of America, the Army 10-Miler. Good morning. Soldier, it's a great day to run with 20,000 of your friends. Have a great race, and remember, winning matters. Hooah! Copies of the video can be found on army10miler.com if you're interested. Will the outstanding soldier athletes who ran in the race please stand to be recognized as I call your name and or your team? The winner of the 10-Miler in the male category for the overall fastest time is Makarabando Selicombo with a time of 50 minutes and 14 seconds. Great job. The winner in the female category is Colette Rampf with a time of 57 minutes and 23 seconds. The top U.S. military men's team and winner of the commander's cup is the Fort Carson men's team. The top U.S. military women's team and winner of the commander's cup is the Fort Carson women's team. Great job by all the runners. Again, just a perfect day and great to see the race back. Well, this year's theme of building the Army of 2030 is the perfect focus given the ongoing challenges in our world and the need for a strong army. We have superb educational programs throughout the conference. Take time to attend the contemporary military forums that are focused on people, readiness, and modernization. There are also over 25 educational and professional forums and development programs available over the three days. We have a series of new initiatives with the U.S. a cyber world, a first ever junior leader, solarium, and a human performance pavilion. We've got over 700 exhibitors, including eight international pavilions. And these exhibits highlight the latest in technology and showcase innovative ideas to ensure our soldiers have what they need for any contingency worldwide. Make sure you get to the exhibit floor and take advantage of this opportunity. This is also an exciting time as we all know membership matters. And AUSA is rapidly approaching half a million members. And we're introducing a no cost basic membership at this meeting. So take advantage and join the team to support your army. Thanks for joining us. I'm certain this will be the best annual meeting ever. Ladies and gentlemen, we present to you Sergeant R. Hero and Corporal M. Power. As our opening session concludes, Sergeant Hero will lead the line to the exhibit halls with the World War II battle cry. Follow me. The serene with the view of the beautiful ride.