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IT IS MY PRIVILEGE TO JOIN YOU TODAY TO CELEBRATE THE ARMY’S BIRTHDAY. ON JUNE 14TH 2007 THE UNITED STATES ARMY CELEBRATES 232 YEARS OF ANSWERING THE CALL TO DUTY ON BEHALF OF THIS GREAT NATION. FROM THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION TO THE GLOBAL WAR ON TERRORISM – AMERICAN SOLDIERS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN WILLING TO PUT THEIR “BOOTS ON THE GROUND” AND FIGHT FOR THE FREEDOMS AND THE WAY OF LIFE WE ENJOY.

ON JUNE 14, IN 1775, COLONIAL SOLDIERS BANDED TOGETHER IN AN ALL-VOLUNTEER FORCE TO FIGHT FOR INDEPENDENCE AND A DEMOCRATIC WAY OF LIFE. 232 YEARS LATER, U.S. ARMY SOLDIERS ARE STILL VOLUNTEERING TO DO THE “HEAVY LIFTING” FOR OUR NATION, AND SOME PAY THE ULTIMATE PRICE TO DEFEND AMERICA IN THE 21ST CENTURY. FREEDOM IS CERTAINLY NOT FREE.

AS THIS NEW CENTURY DAWNED, THE AMERICAN SOLDIER WAS SENT TO DEFEAT AN ENEMY THAT HAD STRUCK OUR HOMELAND ON SEPTEMBER 11TH, 2001. THIS GLOBAL WAR ON TERRORISM IS ONE OF THE MOST DANGEROUS PERIODS IN OUR HISTORY, AND YET OUR SOLDIERS CONTINUE TO VOLUNTEER AND ANSWER THE CALL TO DUTY. THESE MEN AND WOMEN ARE THE STRENGTH OF OUR NATION – THE ULTIMATE INSTRUMENT OF NATIONAL RESOLVE. OUR SOLDIERS HAVE “BOOTS ON THE GROUND” IN ALMOST 80 COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD.

THE CONDITIONS OF WARFARE HAVE CHANGED IN THIS CENTURY. SINCE THERE ARE NO FRONT LINES IN TODAY’S BATTLEFIELD, WE MUST NOW EQUIP ALL OF OUR UNITS WITH THE CRITICAL ITEMS NEEDED TO PROTECT OUR SOLDIERS AND TO MINIMIZE THE RISKS TO WHICH THEY ARE EXPOSED. OUR HIGHEST PRIORITY IS TO PROVIDE OUR DEPLOYED SOLDIERS WITH THE BEST POSSIBLE EQUIPMENT AND PROTECTION.

IN ORDER TO MEET THE SUSTAINED DEMAND ON OUR FORCES IN IRAQ, AFGHANISTAN AND OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD, WE HAVE POOLED EQUIPMENT AND SHIFTED PEOPLE FROM ACROSS THE FORCE TO ENSURE OUR DEPLOYING SOLDIERS HAVE EVERYTHING THEY NEED TO DO THE JOB. THIS IS OUR COMPELLING PRIORITY.

HOWEVER, OUR REQUIREMENTS TODAY LIE NOT JUST IN THE QUALITY AND READINESS OF OUR DEPLOYED FORCES, BUT ALSO IN THE URGENT NEED TO RESTORE THE READINESS OF OUR SOLDIERS AT HOME. TO PROPERLY POSITION THE ARMY FOR THE SECURITY CHALLENGES OF A NEW ERA, WE MUST ACHIEVE FULL SPECTRUM READINESS. THAT MEANS WE HAVE TO BETTER MANAGE THE STRESS ON THE FORCE NOW, AND BUILD THE ARMY OF THE FUTURE.

THE ARMY RECENTLY RECEIVED APPROVAL TO RAMP UP OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. STARTING THIS YEAR, WE WILL ADD SIX BRIGADE COMBAT TEAMS, AND A DIVERSE RANGE OF SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS. THIS DECISION WILL ENABLE US TO PROVIDE A CONTINUOUS SUPPLY OF 20 TO 21 BRIGADE COMBAT TEAMS, PLUS TWO TO THREE COMBAT SUPPORT BRIGADES, TO MEET THE GLOBAL DEMAND.

SOME PEOPLE SAY THAT TO DO ALL THAT WHILE YOU’RE ALREADY ENGAGED IN THE GLOBAL WAR ON TERRORISM IS LIKE TRYING TO BUILD AN AIRPLANE WHILE YOU’RE ACTUALLY FLYING IT! IT’S A TOUGH CHALLENGE, BUT WE CAN DO IT. LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING ABOUT “ARMY STRONG.”

OUR INDIVIDUAL SOLDIERS ARE WHAT WE CALL ARMY STRONG. A SOLDIER WHO IS MENTALLY, PHYSICALLY AND EMOTIONALLY STRONG, IS ARMY STRONG. ITS INTERNAL STRENGTH AND PERSEVERANCE. JUST LIKE THE ARMY’S WARRIOR ETHOS, THE STRENGTH COMES FROM SAYING, “I WILL ALWAYS PLACE THE MISSION FIRST. I WILL NEVER ACCEPT DEFEAT. I WILL NEVER QUIT. AND I WILL NEVER LEAVE A FALLEN COMRADE.”

FOR 232 YEARS NOW, SOLDIERS HAVE FOLLOWED A WARRIOR ETHOS AND SYSTEM OF VALUES CENTRAL TO ALL THAT WE DO. THEY SYMBOLIZE THE NOBILITY OF SELFLESS SERVICE AND SACRIFICE, AND EVEN LOSS OF THEIR VERY LIVES, BY ANSWERING THE CALL TO DUTY AND PUTTING THEIR BOOTS ON THE GROUND WHEREVER THEY ARE NEEDED.

CAPT NICOLE POWELL-DUNFORD IS ARMY STRONG. AS A FLIGHT SURGEON BASED IN KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN SHE WAS TIRELESS IN HER CARE OF NOT ONLY HER FELLOW SOLDIERS, BUT ALSO OF AFGHAN CIVILIANS. SHE BROUGHT MODERN MEDICAL CARE TO AFGHAN VILLAGES, WHERE BECAUSE SHE IS A WOMAN, SHE WAS THE FIRST DOCTOR SOME AFGHAN WOMEN HAD EVER SEEN. UNDER TALIBAN RULE, MALE DOCTORS COULD NOT TREAT FEMALE PATIENTS, AND WOMEN WERE NOT PERMITTED TO PRACTICE AS PHYSICIANS. CAPTAIN POWELL-DUNFORD SAID SHE MOSTLY TREATED EVERYDAY ILLNESSES AND PROBLEMS BROUGHT ON BY CHILDBIRTH. “UNFORTUNATELY WE ARE SEEING A LOT OF LAND MINE INJURIES,” SHE SAID. “THIS COUNTRY STILL HAS A LONG WAY TO GO, BUT IT’S GETTING DONE.” CAPT. POWELL-DUNFORD IS ARMY STRONG.

SGT. MICHEAUX SANDERS EXEMPLIFIES ARMY STRONG. STRAIGHT OUT OF BASIC TRAINING, SANDERS DEPLOYED TO IRAQ IN 2003 IN THE EARLY STAGES OF THE CONFLICT. BUT IT WAS NOT UNTIL APRIL 4, 2004, THAT HE FACED HIS GREATEST CHALLENGE ON THE BATTLEFIELD. A PLATOON OF 20 MEN WAS TRAPPED DEEP WITHIN SADR CITY, WHICH WAS IN THE MIDST OF AN UPRISING. SGT. SANDERS’S TANK CREW AND TWO OTHERS FROM HIS UNIT WERE CALLED TO AID THE RESCUE. THE FIRST TWO ATTEMPTS FAILED, AND DURING THE SECOND, SGT. SANDERS TOOK A BULLET THROUGH HIS LEFT SHOULDER. SANDERS WAVED THE MEDICS AWAY, AND INSTEAD HOPPED ON ANOTHER TANK FOR A THIRD RESCUE ATTEMPT. THIS ONE SUCCESSFULLY PUSHED THROUGH NUMEROUS FIREFIGHTS AND BURNING ROADBLOCKS TO REACH THE STRANDED MEN. SGT SANDERS LATER SAID OF HIS WOUNDS, “ALL I NEEDED WAS A BAND-AID.” SGT. SANDERS WAS AWARDED THE SILVER STAR. HE IS ARMY STRONG.

COL. MICHAEL STOUT IS ALSO ARMY STRONG. WHILE HE WAS DEPLOYED TO AFGHANISTAN FROM SEPTEMBER 2002 TO APRIL 2003, HE REALIZED THAT REBUILDING THE WAR-TORN COUNTRY WOULD REQUIRE A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT. COL. STOUT MET WITH MILITARY, CIVILIAN, U.S. INTERAGENCY, AND AFGHAN LEADERS – AND SLOWLY HIS RECOMMENDATIONS CRYSTALLIZED. HE CREATED THREE PROVINCIAL RECONSTRUCTION TEAMS – IN GARDEZ, BAMYAN, AND KUNDUZ. HE CONDUCTED A THOROUGH ANALYSIS OF THE PROVINCES, AND THEN SECURED THE SUPPORT AND RESOURCES NECESSARY TO MAKE A TANGIBLE IMPACT. HIS INSIGHT HAS GROWN INTO ONE OF THE CENTRAL COMPONENTS OF THE WAR EFFORTS IN BOTH IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN. PROVINCIAL RECONSTRUCTION TEAMS ARE NOW DEPLOYED THROUGHOUT HOST NATIONS TO REBUILD AND REVITALIZE INFRASTRUCTURE AND INSTITUTIONS. THE FIRST THREE TEAMS THAT COL STOUT CREATED IN AFGHANISTAN ARE STILL CARRYING OUT THEIR WORK – AND ALSO GENERATING AN OPPORTUNITY FOR OTHER NATIONS TO HELP THE AFGHANS. BY HIS INTELLIGENCE AND CREATIVITY, COL STOUT IS ARMY STRONG.

SERGEANT FIRST CLASS PAUL SMITH WAS ARMY STRONG. HE WAS A MEMBER OF THE THIRD INFANTRY DIVISION, AND HE WAS THE FIRST TO RECEIVE THE MEDAL OF HONOR DURING THE GLOBAL WAR ON TERRORISM. ON APRIL 4, 2003, SERGEANT SMITH DEMONSTRATED THE ULTIMATE IN HEROISM AND SACRIFICE WHEN HE DIED WHILE PROTECTING HIS FELLOW SOLDIERS IN A FIERCE AMBUSH GUN BATTLE OUTSIDE BAGHDAD AIRPORT. EVEN THOUGH HE WAS OUTNUMBERED, SERGEANT SMITH STAYED AT HIS POST, RETURNING FIRE THAT ENABLED MANY OF HIS FELLOW SOLDIERS TO MOVE TO SAFETY—UNTIL HE WAS KILLED. IN PAYING THE ULTIMATE PRICE TO SAVE HIS COMRADES, SERGEANT SMITH WAS ARMY STRONG.

ARMY STRONG IS MORE THAN THE SUM OF ITS PARTS. AS THESE SOLDIERS DEMONSTRATE, IT IS MORE THAN AN INDIVIDUAL SOLDIER’S STRENGTH; IT IS ALSO THE TEAMWORK OF A WELL-TRAINED UNIT EXECUTING ACTIONS ON CONTACT.

WHETHER THE ACTION REQUIRED IS TO HELP A SICK CHILD IN AFGHANISTAN, TRAIN IRAQI SECURITY FORCES, OR TO RESCUE THE VICTIMS OF NATURAL DISASTERS LIKE THE ASIAN TSUNAMI OR HURRICANE KATRINA – SOLDIERS KNOW THAT THEY ARE MEMBERS OF A TEAM DEDICATED TO SOMETHING MUCH GREATER THAN SELF. SOLDIERS ANSWER THE CALL TO DUTY THROUGH THE CHARACTER OF THEIR SERVICE. AND THEY ARE RE-ENLISTING IN RECORD NUMBERS BECAUSE THEY BELIEVE THEIR SERVICE IS MAKING A POSITIVE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

SINCE 1775 THE U.S. ARMY HAS RISEN TO THE OCCASION TO ACCOMPLISH THE TOUGHEST JOBS OF THE TIME AND GENERATIONS OF AMERICAN SOLDIERS HAVE VOLUNTEERED AND ANSWERED THE CALL TO DUTY. THEY HAVE PUT THEIR “BOOTS ON THE GROUND” WHERE IT COUNTS, AND THEY HAVE FOUGHT FOR THE FREEDOMS THAT WE ENJOY AS AMERICAN CITIZENS.

ON THE OCCASION OF THE ARMY’S BIRTHDAY AND ON BEHALF OF THE SOLDIERS OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY, THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF OUR SOLDIERS AND THEIR FAMILIES. WE ARE ARMY STRONG BECAUSE WE DERIVE OUR STRENGTH FROM YOU, THE AMERICA IN PUBLIC.