 Good morning ladies and gentlemen. On behalf of Lieutenant General Gabe A. Ionan, Deputy Commandant, Manpower and Preserver Affairs, welcome to this year's Kate Cutting Ceremony celebrating the 246th birthday of our armed war. Almighty God, we gather today to pull up gratitude and a sense of honor. We are united by the stories and the legacy of great warriors, men and women of valor and integrity that inspire so many in this room to Marine Corps-wide to put on the uniform. It is one of the evil global anchor that has been and will be the symbol of national pride, courage and sacrifice. Well, Lord, more than ever, our nation needs a great Marine Corps with distinct leader people that embody honor, courage and commitment. 36th system come down at the Marine Corps and remain standing for the presentation of the code. Ferts and minds of all Marines past and present by deed and act, from Guadalcanal to Iwo Jima, from Incheon to the Korean Armistice, from the hard fights in Vietnam to desert shield, desert storm to this century's longest wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, any crisis. Just as Marines who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan over these past 20 years adapted to the demands of protracted counterinsurgency operations which would have been all too familiar to the Marines of 1970. The Marine Corps birthday cake cutting ceremony is important to all Marines as it is an annual renewal of each Marine Corps. General Eric M. Ten, 36th assistant commandant of the Marine Corps. The ideas that are nested in this building and in the Marsh building and across our Marine Corps has been pulled together to make the Marine Corps a better institution for the 23rd flight. So I thank you for that. I thank all the families for the support, for all you continue to do day in, day out, selfishly for the Marine Corps and I thank you. And you're actually taking care of Marines which is what we do, whether we pull them off of the battlefield, load them onto a medevac, an helicopter, you get to the line of departure with as much stuff, equipment, and as many people as you can. We can't afford to lose anybody and that's what they do. So I wanted to start by saying how you fit into this thing as a team at M&RA. Honor today is our oldest and youngest brain. What do you think about that? I've got Lieutenant Colonel, Lieutenant Colonel, I'm not calling you all the time. Lieutenant Colonel Martin, she's been here for 38 years. I've been here for 34 and a half. She's been promoted 11 times. And then we have local levels who were born on 9-11, September 11, 2001, the day we were attacked. We must be pretty good if we get somebody like him to come join us during the war. And that same concept applies to everyone in this room and to the families who keep saying, I'm with you, you might have read this time with you. M&RA is the main effort for this year going forward, frankly, always, because it's always about you. So I'm here at our children's school. Let me know what you need and I will come down on stuff like a ton of grits on your behalf. Make sure you get what you need so you can take care of our brains.