Eagle BELVOIR
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April 21, 2016
Up Front Retiree council meeting
Military retirees, surviving spouses and attending care-givers of all services are invited to the Fort Belvoir Retiree Council Meeting and Information Seminar. The meeting is at 9 a.m. today in the Commander’s Conference Room, 2nd floor of garrison headquarters, Bldg. 269, 9820 Flagler Road. For more info, call 540-7608013 or e-mail to Fort.Belvoir. Retiree.Council@gmail.com.
One-day training
Photo by Paul Lara
A school assembly at St. Bernadette Catholic School in Springfield, Va., turns to delight as Johan and Abigail Torres are surprised by the unexpected return of their father, Lt. Col. Jose Torres after a year-long assignment in South Korea.
Surprise! Daddy’s home Lt. Col. Jose Torres’ return helps celebrate Month of the Military Child
By Amanda Stewart Staff writer At the end of the day Monday, students at St. Bernadette Catholic School in Springfield gathered for an assembly. Assistant principal Beth Monroe told students the assembly was part of the school’s celebration for Month of the Military Child. About a quarter of the school’s 450 students have parents in the military and, last week, the school had a weeklong celebration of the Month of the Military Child, culminating in a USO Block Party, Friday. But, Monday’s assembly was something a little different. “How many of you have parents who are deployed?” Monroe asked the students at the assembly. A few hands went up throughout the crowd, including those of Abigail Torres, 12, and her brother, Johan, 8, who Monroe called to the front
of the room. Abigail and Johan’s father, Lt. Col. Jose Torres, served overseas for about a year, while stationed at Camp Humphreys, South Korea. “One of the real challenges of being a military child is a parent being deployed,” Monroe said. “These students are brave when their parents are away.” Monroe asked Abigail what she would do when her father returned. “I just want to go up and hug him and say how much I missed him,” Abigail said with a smile. Moments later, she got her chance. After the school choir sang “God Bless America,” Monroe revealed the big surprise: Torres was home. “Abigail and Johan, we are here to share in your joy as we say, ‘Welcome back, Lt. Col. Torres,’” Monroe said. “What?” Abigail said. “What?” The school’s curtain was then
pulled back to reveal Torres, waiting on stage to greet his children in a surprise homecoming. After a few seconds of shock, Abigail and Johan raced up to the stage to throw their arms around their dad in a long hug, while mom Wendy and her friend Caroline Cheatham, who helped arrange the surprise, watched from the side of the stage. “I was just very surprised,” said Abigail, after the big reveal. Their mother told Abigail and Johan that their father would be coming home at the end of the month. “I’m just so happy he’s home.” Before the assembly, Torres, who came to the school right after his 14-hour flight from Korea, said he was excited to be able to surprise his children. “This is something they are never going to forget,” Torres said. See FAMILY, Page A14
Defense Acquisition University’s Belvoir Campus hosts a one-day training symposium on Strengthening Cost Consciousness, Professionalism, and Technical Excellence April 27. The symposium features Frank Kendall, undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology, and logistics, as keynote speaker. Events include plenary and classroom training sessions focusing on the latest acquisition policy, practices and techniques that attendees can use on the job. Attendees will get six Continuous Learning Points toward their acquisition certification. Register through the DAU Alumni Association website at dauaa.org/Symposium2016.
CIF closure
Belvoir’s Central Issue Facility, Bldg. 766, will be closed for inventory next week. During that week, Fort Myer’s CIF on Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall is the alternate turn-in point. Myer’s CIF number is 703696-0815.
AER – half way there!
The annual Army Emergency Relief Campaign at Belvoir has, so far, collected almost $82,000 of its $160,000 goal, or 51 percent. AER, open until May 15, provides emergency financial assistance to Soldiers and their families, mostly from donations to the program. For information about AER and how to donate, visit www.aerhq. org. Belvoir’s AER officer is Toni Cuttino, 703-805-3130, toni.m.cuttino.civ@mail.mil.