RecruitMilitary, a military-to-civilian recruiting firm, will present a free civilian employment, business-opportunity, and education event for job seekers who have military backgrounds at Hotel Murano in Tacoma on Thursday, May 5.

U.S. Bank will sponsor the event. RecruitMilitary is inviting veterans who already have civilian work experience, men and women who are transitioning from active duty to civilian life, members of the National Guard and reserves, military spouses, and other military family members. The event, called the RecruitMilitary Veteran Opportunity Expo, will take place from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m.

RecruitMilitary and U.S. Bank expect more than 35 employers, franchisors, and educational institutions to reserve exhibitor booths at the Expo. Already signed up are Argosy University, the Army National Guard, Army ROTC-Pacific Lutheran University, AutoNation, CruiseOne/Cruises Inc., DeVry University, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, First Command Financial Planning, G4S Secure Solutions (USA), General Dynamics Information Technology, Grand Canyon University, ICDC College, ITTTechnical Institute, Kaplan University, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Military Sealift Command, MultiCare Health System, the National Veterans Employment Program (NVEP) of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, New York Life, Northrop Grumman, Schnitzer Steel, The Art Institutes, The Home Depot, 20/20 Companies,USAA, VA Puget Sound Health Care Systems, Verizon Wireless, the Washington Army National Guard, Waste Management Inc., and Zones.

RecruitMilitary (http://www.recruitmilitary.com) will produce the Expo in cooperation with The American Legion (http://www.legion.org), an association of veterans who served during times of war. The Legion has about 2.4 million members in 14,000 posts throughout the world. Congress chartered and incorporated the association in 1919.

It's a big year for the Capt. Meriwether Lewis Chapter of the Association of the United States Army.  In the upcoming awards for AUSA's 6th Region, which covers AUSA chapters in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and North and Central California, the JBLM chapter took nine awards, including one for CSM Matt Barnes, JBLM's garrison sergeant major.

The Sixth Region Annual Meeting and Symposium, hosted by the MG William F Dean Chapter, is April 28-30. Award recipients will be formally recognized at the banquet on April 30. The recipients of the awards include:

General of the Armies John J. Pershing Distinguished Service Award

   TBA

Major General John A. Hemphill Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Region

   TBA

Sergeant Patrick Gass Award for Excellence

   CSM Matthew Douglas Barnes, Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter

Sixth Region Exceptional Civilian Service Award

   Mr. Michael Hayes, Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter (Mr. Hayes will be Region's nominee for national award consideration)

   Mr. Richard L. Fielder, MG William F. Dean Chapter

1LT Erik S. McCrea Memorial Award

   CPT Brian Forester, Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter

WO1 Adrian B. Stump Memorial Award

   CW4 Jeffery Heil, Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter

Sixth Region President's Medal

   SFC(R) Thomas David Clanton, Stilwell Chapter

   MG(R) Kent H. Hillhouse, Silicon Valley Chapter

   Mrs. Linda Johnston, Columbia River Chapter

   LTC(R) Scott W. Maryott, General William C. Westmoreland Chapter

   CW5 Lorie E. Noble, Mission Trails Chapter

   Mr. Ken Swarner, Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter

Sixth Region Certificate of Commendation

   TBA

Sixth Region Award for Outstanding Cooperative Success

   Columbia River Chapter

   PFC William Kenzo Nakamura Chapter

Sixth Region Award for Outstanding Recruiting Support

   Columbia River Chapter

Brigadier General Alex R. Cunningham Award

   TBA

Sixth Region President's Award for Outstanding Chapter Achievement

   TBA

Sixth Region Distinguished Unit Commendation

   3^rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2^nd ID, Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter 

   4^th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2^nd ID, Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter

   17th Field Artillery Brigade, Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter

Sixth Region Meritorious Unit Commendation

   Golden Bear ROTC Battalion, UC Berkeley, MG William F. Dean Chapter

   Sacramento Recruiting Battalion, MG William F. Dean Chapter

   Washington State Guard, PFC William Kenzo Nakamura Chapter

Sixth Region Exceptional Contributions Award

   Mr. Brice Barrett, Executive Director, Pacific Northwest Defense Coalition, Columbia River Chapter

Sixth Region Public Service Award

   Ranger Newspaper, Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter

   Mrs. Mary Valderrama, Silicon Valley Chapter

Sixth Region Certificate of Commendation

CW3 Peter J.B. Lawrence, U.S. Army Retired, PFC William Kenzo Nakamura Chapter 

CDR Don Morris, Mission Trails Chapter

CSM Bruce E. Proctor,U.S. Army Retired, PFC William Kenzo Nakamura Chapter

LTC Alexander A. Thole, USAR Retired, PFC William Kenzo Nakamura Chapter 

COL Robert L. Windus, U.S. Army Retired, Columbia River Chapter

Sixth Region Certificate of Appreciation

Oakes Dental, Columbia River Chapter

Pacific Northwest Defense Coalition, Columbia River Chapter

Portland Recruiting Battalion, Columbia River Chapter

Sheron Dental, Columbia River Chapter

Hire America's Heroes' Veterans Career Day is coming up Saturday, Feb 5. The event will be held at Qwest Field's West Club Lounge — a 15,000 sq ft, fully carpeted exhibit area with space for 60+ corporations and room for over 1,000 job-seeking veterans in attendance.

The morning program will provide value to corporations interested in hiring veterans. Representatives from military, government and corporate leadership - all committed to veteran employment - will participate.

The Career Day is differentiated from a typical job fair by its emphasis on networking and career preparation in addition to specific employment opportunities. Career Coaches at Resume Review Kiosks around the event area will help Job-Seeking veterans optimize their resumes for the corporate workforce. Many of these Career Coaches are former military service members themselves, now successfully employed in some of the Puget Sound Area's largest corporations.

Three categories of Career Day participants are invited to register for the event at http://www.regonline.com/HAH_Career_Day_2-5-11. For more information please visit Hire America's Heroes website at www.hireamericasheroes.org.

Exhibitors include Alaska Airlines, Allied Waste, Amazon.com, Amtrak, Boeing, Boots to Shoes, Comcast, Fluke Companies, Fred Meyer, IBM Global Services, Institute for Systems Biology, Microsoft, PATH (a catalyst in global health,) Port of Seattle, Puget Sound Energy, REI, Robert Half Finance & Accounting, Starbucks Coffee Company, TLG Learning, T-Mobile, Volt Workforce Solutions, Walgreens, WA Dept of Fish and Wildlife, Weyerhaeuser Company, WorkSource King County and Zones.

This from The Los Angeles Times: WASHINGTON - President Obama announced Monday that he wants to freeze pay for federal employees for the next two years, a move his team says would save more than $5 billion through 2012.

"The hard truth is, getting this budget under control is going to require some broad sacrifice, and that sacrifice must be shared by employees of the federal government," the president said. "After all, small businesses and families are tightening their belts.... Their government should, too."

The freeze would not apply to military personnel but to all other civilian employees on the federal payroll. Congress would have to approve the proposal in order for it to take effect.

The plan is part of Obama's effort to contain the $1.3-trillion federal deficit, and will be followed by more proposals for spending reductions over the next few months, White House communications director Dan Pfeiffer said Monday morning.

For more on the story, click here.

A job fair for young adults with employers such as Nordstrom, Safeway and Emerald Queen Casino will take place Oct. 21, 3-5:30 p.m. inside Tacoma Goodwill's new Milgard Work Opportunity Center, 714 S. 27^th St., Tacoma.

The event is free and open to the public and focused on those age 16-24. REACH, a partnership of nearly two dozen local organizations, will host the event. For information, contact REACH Peer Advocate Becky Plant at (253)573-7592 or online at bplant@reachtacoma.org.

Employers and agencies scheduled include: Nordstrom, city of Tacoma, Safeway, Emerald Queen Casino, Volt, TacomaCommunity College, Commercial Driver Services Inc., the National Guard, Continuant, Job Corps and JCS. As many as 20 employers and agencies are expected.

REACH, Resources for Education And Career Help, is a separate agency from Goodwill and provides workforce development services for young adults 16-24. REACH is located on the first two floors of the Milgard Center.

WASHINGTON - Mortgage giant Fannie Mae plans to give military families a break on their home loan payments if they are struggling because of the death or injury of a servicemember.

The Washington-based company says it will reduce or suspend borrowers' monthly payments up to six months. Fannie Mae is the largest buyer and backer of U.S. home mortgages, owning or guaranteeing about $3.2 trillion in home loans.

Fannie Mae also says it would suspend reporting to credit bureaus for up to six months to minimize the impact on the borrower's credit score.

To determine whether they are eligible, military members or their surviving spouses should contact their mortgage company. Or, they can call a special military phone number: 1-877-MIL-4566.

CAMP MURRAY, Wash. — The Washington National Guard hosts a career expo and resource fair for veterans and family members from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Building 33 on Camp Murray on Tuesday, April 13.

The Washington National Guard is partnering with Military.com and the Non-Commissioned Officers Association (NCOA) to host this free event.  The goal is to put veterans and family members in contact with employers seeking applicants with military training and experience.

The career expo and resource fair will feature an Apprentice Corner, resume reviews and tips and a chance to brush up on interviewing skills with experts.  Attendees without military identification and tabs will need to show the Camp Murray gate guard their driver's license, proof of insurance and registration.  

The Washington National Guard strives to bring a broad range of services and support to our service members and their families.  Our "J9" Directorate is responsible for Deployment Cycle Support and Reintegration (Yellow Ribbon)Programs, Veterans Transition Assistance, the Family Programs Office, Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) Coordinator, Suicide Prevention,Chaplain, the Employer Support to the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) office, and the Director of Psychological Health.

Col. Tommy Brittain, commander of Joint Base Garrison, and his deputy Col. Kenny Weldon gave a great briefing on the Joint Base today at the Lakewood Chamber of Commerce's Military Affairs Committee.  Everything is progressing well.  MAC meets the third Thursday of each month, 8 a.m. at Burs Restaurant in Lakewood.  Call Ken Swarner at the Ranger/Airlifter for more info - (253) 584-1212.

The Associated Press filed a story on the economy highlighting the Rosen's, a military family living in Roy.

Support America's Armed Forces received 140 gift baskets for the holidays which will be enroute to Fort Lewis tomorrow aboard a truck from CDS truck driving school.  For every car Toyota of Puyallup sold the past month, the dealership donated a $35 gift basket with turkey and the trimmings to needy families at Fort Lewis.

PHOTO CAPTION: Spc. Will Ross, 5th Stryker Brigade receives a gift basket from Kerry Bivens, owner of Toyota of Puyallup today at the dealership.

To see the complete story on the project, click here.