President's Page
The Question: How can I become more involved with some of the programs that Southern Maine Chapter supports?
The Answer: There are several ways that you can give time and
energy to projects that need your expertise. A couple of examples:
On September 17th, the third annual Military Scholarship Golf
Tournament will tee off at Sable Oaks in South Portland. This
event, in its third year, has become a great way to raise money and
have a good time. The money raised supports our efforts for ROTC
and JROTC programs. Col. Doug Scott, the Chair of the Tournament,
has received gifts from many local businesses to be used as
prizes. He has established accounts at book stores located on
both the University of Maine and Maine Maritime Academy, to establish a
program so that books on a military reading list will be given to
deserving ROTC graduates. Money will also be used to give
one-year memberships to National MOAA for all graduating seniors in the
ROTC programs. We could use your help this year with the golf
tournament to ensure it’s continued success. Please call Doug to
volunteer for a worthy cause (207) 222-2317 (dscott2@maine.rr.com) and
spend the day out in the sun.
We are also planning to have a page in the Newsletter and Web site that
you may use to advertise your special skill(s) to help other Chapter
members.
Our May Speaker, MG Thomas D. Kinley
The Southern Maine Chapter,
MOAA, gathered once again at the lovely Woodlands Club on May 9th to
listen to one of our own members, MG Thomas D. Kinley, USA (Ret.) who
enlightened us on little known facts about the Automobile Association of
America (AAA). Tom was introduced to
the chapter by Col Bill Hall, our First Vice President. Tom served his country in the Army for 33 years,
16 as a commander. He thanked the
retired officers present for their years of service to the country.
Tom smoothly delivered a host of
interesting facts about AAA during his talk.
There are over 868,000 members in AAA Northern New England as of
February 2009, who can obtain services from 24 branches throughout Vermont (3), New Hampshire
(6) and Maine
(15). We were surprised to learn that
AAA NNE employs over 560 personnel.
Providing emergency road service to members is the most popular service
within AAA. Last year they responded to
over 500,000 calls for road service in Northern New
England.
The Portland
office alone received over 3 million phone calls in 2008. The most active growing arm of AAA is in the
insurance division. Emergency road
service is the main reason most members joined AAA (95 percent). The second most popular reason for joining
AAA is to get the available discounts through
Our August Speaker, Walter A. Anderson, D.Sci
Maybe the damp, soggy weather we have
had thus far this summer will let up some and we can enjoy a sunny day
at the Woodlands at our next quarterly brunch gathering. We can
only hope! Nevertheless, you can count on our guest speaker,
Walter A. Anderson, D.Sci., will be there to brighten our day on the
peculiarities of Maine’s geology. Dr. Anderson served for 27
years (1968-1985) as the Director and State Geologist for the Maine
Geological Survey, Department of Conservation. In this capacity
he was responsible for the supervision and administration of the
programs of the Maine Geological Survey, to include mapping,
evaluating, and publishing land, water, mineral and coastal resources
for the Sate of Maine. He has also provided professional advisory
assistance to the state and general public. Walt acquired a BS degree
in geology at U. Mass in 1954, an MS in geology in 1956 from the U. of
Rochester, and a Doctor of Science from the U. of Maine. His
career spans a wide variety of positions in both the government and
private sectors. An author, researcher and scientist, Dr.
Anderson is well known in his field around the country. Join us
and learn more about Maine’s unique geology. You’ll be glad you
did! The reservation form can be found on page 7 of this issue,
as usual. Hope to see you all at the Woodlands on Saturday,
August 8th for a delicious brunch.
Reservations Form
Welcome Aboard
We want to extend a warm “Welcome Aboard” to the following new members of the Chapter:
LCDR Thomas Fair, USN, from Litchfield
Mrs. Muriel Holloway from Gardiner
LTC Michael Morgillo, USA, and Elaine from York Beach
LCDR Mary Hoffman, USN, from Hollis
CAPT Ronald Blake, USCG, from West Boothbay Harbor
1LT Steve Kane, USA, and Laura from Standish
CPT Earl McCormick, USAF, and Darlene from West Gardiner
1LT Kris Rosado, USA, and Jennifer from Bryant Pond
CDR Ronald Lubatti, USN, and Mary from Lebanon
We very much appreciate your support of the Chapter. And we look
forward to meeting you at one of our future Quarterly Meetings at the
Woodlands. (Col Rob McAleer, Membership Chair)
TRICARE and Health Care Reform
Health care reform in the spotlight in
Washington, DC, today heightens the uncertainties surrounding
TRICARE. But so far, the emphasis has been on fixing what’s
broken, i.e., lack of access to affordable health care for millions of
Americans, not on what’s working. TRICARE has not yet been rolled
into any of the schemes for a possible government-run insurance
option. Furthermore, the proposed tax on employer-provided health
care that Congress is considering is set to such a high value (taxing
as income plan benefits worth more than $17,000 annually to individual
enrollees) that most TRICARE beneficiaries would not likely be affected.
That said, health care reform promises to be an expensive
proposition. How the changes will be paid for, once those changes
are decided, will impact all of us. A combination of tax
increases and cost cuts will be required. On the cutting side,
reductions in payments to doctors and hospitals under revised Medicare
rules could reduce the number of providers interested in taking TRICARE.
On a more positive note, reform is intended to bring about improvements
to health care delivery in general: more emphasis on primary and
preventive care, better coordination of medical services, focus on the
effectiveness of treatments, and promotion of electronic health
records. These initiatives promise better experiences for all
patients and hopefully better outcomes.
Regarding an older story not directly tied to health care reform,
Congress has ruled out increases for TRICARE fees during Fiscal Year
2009. The Department of Defense, however, will continue to push
for higher “cost-sharing” by beneficiaries – you and me. Some
increases to enrollment fees for TRICARE Prime, co-payments for medical
care and perhaps for prescription medications seem likely in the near
future. Fees might be added to TRICARE Standard and to TRICARE
for Life.
The Military Officers Association of America’s representatives in
Washington continue to state the case for preservation of our health
care benefits. Stay in touch with the organization and respond
when our MOAA officers ask for your help and involvement. (Col
Bill Hall, First Vice President)
New Membership Directory
With all of the new members who have recently
joined the Chapter, our 2008-2009 membership directory (yellow cover)
is now out of date. We are working on an updated version and hope to
have that to you in the near future. Many of you also provided contact
information changes with your dues letters. Those changes should be
reflected in the revised directory (green cover) that you should be
receiving this summer. (Col Rob McAleer, Membership Chair)
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(President's page cont.)
The next time you fill in your renewal
form for Chapter membership, consider checking the box to join the
Board of Directors. This is a great way of volunteering for
important committee work.
Have you considered sharing your military history at your local school
department? You have a great audience who would be interested in
your part of history and many schools would like to have you speak to
their students.
For those that feel that age might keep us from volunteering, consider
the list of people who did not let age interfere in their lives:
Michelangelo was 70 when he painted the Sistine Chapel; Ted Williams
was 42 when he hit a home run in his last time at bat; Winston
Churchill was 65 when he was elected Prime Minister; Benjamin Franklin
was 81 when he helped frame the Constitution; and Col. George Benjamin
(one of our founding Chapter members) at 90+ continues to be very
active in MOAA and does 100 crunches every morning during his daily
exercises!
Please consider adding your name to the above list of distinguished
people. You’ll be glad you did and our Chapter will also benefit
from your efforts.
Robert B. Woood
Captain, USA
President
May Speaker (cont.)
membership (such as motel/hotel,
dining, museums, pharmacies, retail stores and entertainment discounts). Tom noted there are over 150 places in NNE
where a member can use AAA discounts.
AAA receives a small offset from these vendors to help reduce AAA member
dues each year.
A few years ago the Trip Tic service
(providing manually generated highlighted maps to members wishing to take a
trip out of the area) was very popular.
Now such services are provided on-line by computer, address to address,
with reservations made along the way at hotels or motels. Tom stated that AAA now has an application
for an I-phone as well.
One of the most popular features of the Portland area is the driving school offered by AAA NNE for
teenagers, including hearing-impaired kids from the Baxter School. The same office also offers seniors
refresher/improvement training that can earn seniors an insurance
discount. A motorcycle safety course is
also quite popular. Tom concluded by
adding that AAA has always had a long history of public service, striving to
provide a look into important safety, consumer, automotive and travel issues. His presentation was well received and he was
able to respond to a number of member questions following his talk.
Third Annual Military Scholarship Golf Tournament
The 3rd Annual Military Scholarship
Golf Tournament will be held at Sable Oaks Golf Club on September 17,
2009, rain or shine. Last year the event raised over $1,000 for
the ROTC scholarship program. Col. Doug Scott has again been
working tirelessly to make sure that sponsors are lined up for the
event and that the myriad of details involved are all attended
to. He is looking for a few good volunteers to assist with
registration and other events involved. If you’re a golfer, don’t
miss this fun and worthwhile event, so round up your teams now and plan
to participate.
7:45 Sign-in and Tee Assignments
8:15 Shotgun start; Four Player
scramble format; Putting Contest Qualifier (during round)
1:00 Buffet Lunch and Tournament Awards
Registration Fee includes: Greens fees with cart; golfer goody
bag; lunch buffet; beverages (beer and wine extra); putting contest
cash prize; men’s closest to pin prize; ladies’ closest to pin prize;
men’s longest drive prize; ladies’ longest drive prize; team first,
second, and third prizes.
Team (foursome) is $260. Individual is $65. Make checks
payable to Southern Maine Chapter, MOAA. Send to Doug Scott, 20
Cooper’s Way, Gorham, ME 04038.
Annual Dues Drive
We are currently wrapping up our
annual dues drive after a very successful year. Because of your
continuing strong support to the organization, we have collected $4,050
in dues, $2,095 in voluntary contributions to the General Fund, and
$1,765 in contributions to the ROTC/JROTC program. Given the
tough economic times we are all experiencing, these totals are a
remarkable indication of your dedication and generosity to the
Chapter. (Col Rob McAleer, Membership Chair)
Military Members Get Free Passes to Maine Parks (The Associated Press)
AUGUSTA, Maine. A new law gives active military personnel and
veterans access to free day passes to Maine state parks and historic
sites. On Tuesday, June 30th, Governor John Baldacci marked
enactment of the bill with a ceremonial signing. The bill
authorizes the state of Maine to issue free day passes to Maine
residents who are active military personnel or veterans. Their
children and spouses must still pay to get into the parks. The
new law, which resulted from a pair of bills passed during this year’s
legislative session, is in effect in time for the summer season.
The passes have no expiration date.
TRICARE and Martin’s Point Military Advisory Council
The Martin’s Point Military Advisory
Council met on June 9, 2009. Dr. David Howes opened the meeting
with kind words for Mack McLintock who is retiring from the
Council. Mack has been a member of the Council since it’s
inception and has been a tireless advocate for increased and more
efficient, effective health care for all veterans. His advice and
concern for veterans will be missed by the Council.
Paul Arsenault, Martin’s Point Quality Advisor, gave a presentation on
a new program called Triple Aim. This program’s aims are:
(1) Health of the population
(2) Experience of health care
(3) Cost per capita of health care
Many health organizations are participating in this program and will
share their experience and expertise with others. The goal of
Martin’s Point in this process is to achieve the highest level of trust
and distinction in the communities it serves because it will have
improved their patients’ care.
Krist Mora, Director of Member Services, discussed the upcoming member
services seminar to be held in Portsmouth, NH, on July 22nd.
Invitations will go out to U. S. Family Health Plan members in southern
Maine and southeast Hew Hampshire.
The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 8, 2009. (Col Doug Scott, Medical Issues Committee)
Gremlins, etc.
Anyone who has ever worked with computers knows that they sometimes
seem to have a mind of their own. When we prepare mailing labels or
letters for mass mailings, I go through a process called “merging,”
which takes information from our membership database and places it into
a letter or address label form. For reasons that remain unknown to me,
that process sometimes results in a mix-up of information. As a
result, on occasion an incorrect rank or service designation is placed
in the document. I apologize for any such errors that have occurred
and encourage you to let me know when it does happen so that I can make
sure the database does not have incorrect information. (Col Rob
McAleer, Membership Chair)
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Military Officers Association of America 
