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NEWS | July 10, 2017

Army Reserve ambassadors enhance ready force

By Staff Sgt. Shawn Morris 99th Regional Support Command

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. – Two-dozen U.S. Army Reserve ambassadors attended the 2017 Army Reserve Ambassador Seminar July 6-9 at the Maj. John P. Pryor Army Reserve Center here.

The event was hosted by the Army Reserve’s 99th Regional Support Command, whose area of responsibility includes the 13 northeastern states stretching from Maine to Virginia.

“The most important thing we need to remember is that our Army Reserve is a ready force, and readiness is exactly what we need to focus on,” said Maj. Gen. Troy D. Kok, commanding general of the 99th RSC. “How do we make our Army Reserve more ready, more resilient and more practical than it has ever been before?”

Army Reserve ambassadors enhance Soldier and unit readiness by developing awareness and advocacy with community leaders and serving as bridges to communities across the nation. They function at the state and local level and voluntarily represent the Chief of Army Reserve without salary, wages or other benefits.

“You are the connective tissue between the Army Reserve and our communities,” Kok said. “That is the value of each and every one of you.”

The ambassadors were also briefed on Army Reserve priorities by Maj. Gen. Tracy A. Thompson, deputy commanding general (Support) for the Army Reserve, and JBMDL’s capabilities and relevance to the Army Reserve by Col. (P) Martin F. Klein, commander of U.S. Army Support Activity, Fort Dix and base deputy commander.

The ambassadors are key to ensuring America’s Army Reserve remains the most capable, combat-ready and lethal federal reserve force in the history of the nation.

“The Army Reserve of today is not the Army Reserve of yesterday,” Kok said. “Our Army Reserve is in 20 time zones around the world, and we are on a constant rotation in support of our country’s requirements and needs, protecting our freedoms and our way of life.”

The Army Reserve Ambassador Program was established in April 1998 for private citizens to promote awareness of the Army Reserve along with the goals and objectives of the Chief of Army Reserve. To learn more about the program, visit http://www.usar.army.mil/Featured/Ambassador-Program/.