COMING TOGETHER
COMBATING COVID-19
For the USO, the war may be different, but the mission remains the same by by J.D. J.D. CROUCH II
At the USO, we say: “A strong America is a force for good in the world. And a strong military is necessary in the world we live in. The USO keeps our military strong by connecting them to family, home and country.” We are a global team, operating on five continents at more than 250 locations. Our mission of connection continues to be more critical than ever. So, how can the USO continue to be the Force Behind The Forces® of the five million active duty, Guard, Reserve and family members in the wake of COVID-19 — during a time of social distancing, quarantine and isolation -- when so much of the tempo of military life has changed? Our answer, “Change with it.” We set priorities: Protect our Force. Deliver our Mission. Enable our Partners. Plan for Change.
Protect Our Force Leadership requires recognizing what is most important and what must be protected at all costs. At the USO, that is our 600 employees and our 30,000 volunteers. Their personal health and safety remain our number one priority. But as important, without them, we cannot continue our mission. As the pandemic news hit, I kept asking myself, “What is the right thing to do for service members and their families?” We realized the USO could inadvertently become a vector for the spread of the virus among service members at one of our many airport locations and base centers. We determined we had to temporarily suspend traditional operations at these USO facilities and
RIPON FORUM May 2020
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