Courtesy Photo | A Basic Leader Course student with the Fort McCoy, Wis., Noncommissioned Officer...... read more read more
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BY DERRICK SMITH
Tomah Veterans Affairs Medical Center Public Affairs
Students and instructors with the Fort McCoy Noncommissioned Officer (NCO) Academy Basic Leadership Course (BLC) members and instructors spent an afternoon volunteering to assist and fraternize with veterans Nov. 20 at the Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center in Tomah, Wis.
The volunteer effort was promoted by a suggestion made by an NCO Academy instructor.
“We just changed to a new curriculum for the Basic Leader Course where there is a little bit of space at the end, so we started trying to find things in the community that they could do,” said Sgt. Dustin Reetz, small-group instructor for BLC. “I remember when I got back from Afghanistan, I was not in a good place and I hung out with a lot of veterans who were at the American Legion. … They helped me through my hard times. So, I thought, what better thing than to bring students here to learn from our past from the people who were there and possibly help them in their time of need.”
According to the NCO Academy, the BLC students receive basic leadership training and are instilled with leadership skills, knowledge, and experience needed to lead a team- or squad-sized element. BLC also provides the foundation for further training and development and builds functional leadership attributes and competencies.
The NCO Academy was activated at Fort McCoy in 1988. The academy is one of the largest tenant organizations at Fort McCoy, providing institutional training to more than 1,800 students; attending annually for the Battle Staff Noncommissioned Officer Course and BLC.
“It’s for junior leaders to develop to become NCOs, or, if they are already NCOs, to become future leaders to go back to the (Army) Reserve or the National Guard and become better leaders,” said BLC Instructor Staff Sgt. Alex Blas.
One Wisconsin Soldier said he was ready for the opportunity the training provides.
“My unit recognized that I was stepping up and helping a lot of the other people in my unit, and so they asked me if I wanted to go, and I said yes,” said student Spc. Gary Williams of Phillips, Wis.
After receiving a briefing from Jennifer Conzemius, the Tomah VA Voluntary Services officer, the 30 NCO Academy participants met with veterans for hours of conversation, bowling, games, and other interactions. For many, it was their first time at a VA medical facility.
Sgt. Travis Blocker, a BLC student from Fort Bragg, N.C., has served 14 years in the Army Reserve and plans to bring his family to his next visit with veterans.
“I don’t know how many people come and visit, but it is something I have never done,” Blocker said. “It is good talking to other vets. I would take my young children to get them familiar with what we go through for their freedom.”
“It was extremely fun,” said Spc. Ashley Wesley, a BLC student and a human-resources specialist from Fort Jackson, S.C. “It was eye opening. I definitely want to do it more often if I can. This was my first time coming to anything like this. Everybody here is a person. They want to have conversations and have somebody to talk to just like anybody else. The person I was with just wanted to talk. We watched a movie, and it was a good time.”
Spc. Torean Shaw, a BLC student from St. Paul, Minn., said he enjoyed his conversation with a veteran and was surprised by the outcome of a checkers match.
“I wasn’t expecting him to kick my butt. He was very skilled,” Shaw said. “The conversation I had a chance to have with him was very interesting. Being a veteran is something special to people who have served. It was a really good conversation.”
Spc. Zach Patrick, a BLC student from Galloway, Ohio, said he sees how this type of interaction is useful.
“This needs to be done more often as it continues to build that unit cohesion,” Patrick said.
“They are in here, and we live in such a fast-paced society that we often times forget that.”
The Fort McCoy NCO Academy is hoping to continue the VA volunteering with future classes, and some of the instructors are planning to return on their own time.
“This is the first time going, and I hope it turns into something that happens with every class,” said Reetz. “I know I plan on probably visiting here more. … It is really helpful.”
Learn more about the Tomah VA Medical Center by visiting www.tomah.va.gov. Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.
| Date Taken: | 12.12.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 12.12.2018 12:32 |
| Story ID: | 303210 |
| Location: | TOMAH, WISCONSIN, US |
| Web Views: | 237 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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