After serving 34 years in the U.S. Army, retired Col. Stephen Myers refuses to slow down.

He's not "taking it easy" like most people do after closing out a long, grueling career. Instead, he's jumping right back into serving his country, only this time, he's on the other side of the military - civilian line as the incoming president of the Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter of the Association of the United States Army (AUSA).

"This is an opportunity for me to continue to support our soldiers and the Army in the local area by providing them a first-class professional organization they can belong to," said Myers, who was sworn in as the Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter president July 26. "I want to continue to nurture and develop some great programs our chapter has with respect to families, young professionals and single soldiers. I want to be a part of that development."

Beth Ellis, the Community Ready and Resilient integrator at JBLM, was sworn in alongside Myers as the new vice president of AUSA's Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter.

AUSA is the Army's professional development association. It's also a nonprofit organization that provides educational opportunities and a means of connecting Army servicemembers and their families to their community. The local chapter fulfills that mission by holding monthly meetings and events, providing deployment care packages and organizing welcome-home ceremonies for JBLM servicemembers and their families.

"We're a part of the community, and I want to contribute to soldiers and our community through this organization," continued Myers. "I aim to use the leadership skills I gained from my early years of uniformed service and college to continue to be a leader in the local community. I plan to work on ... providing educational opportunities for our soldiers and their families."

In an AUSA statement of service, Myers also expressed plans to maintain strong relationships with JBLM leadership, foster new programs that support Army families in the local community, empower subchapters and increase membership.

"AUSA is as strong as the members that join," said Myers, "so, we're focusing on trying to bring up our number of volunteers and members."

Originally from Massachusetts, Myers retired out of JBLM last June. During his Army career as an officer and direct support artilleryman, he served as the chief of the Joint Training Division for the U.S. Pacific Command at Camp Smith, Hawaii; deputy commanding officer for Command Post North, 25th Infantry Division in Mosul, Iraq; and I Corps chief of staff at JBLM.

He's a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, and he holds a master's degree from Montana State University. Myers lives in Steilacoom with his family.

"We plan to stay here," he said, "to live and thrive in this wonderful community at Steilacoom and the JBLM area."

For more information about the Captain Meriwether Lewis Chapter of AUSA, call 253.988.9968 or visit ausa.org/chapters/captain-meriwether-lewis-chapter.