Defense Affairs Committee

Have you met Andrew Sides? He joined the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce team this summer as DAC Program Manager. Learn more about Andrew in this month's Chamber Spotlight: https://www.cvillechamber.com/2024/08/13/chamber-spotlight-andrew-sides-defense-affairs-committee/

The Chamber and Defense Affairs community gathered at North Fork to celebrate with COL (Ret.) Lettie Bien as she transitions out of her role as Defense Affairs Committee (DAC) Program Manager.
https://www.cvillechamber.com/2024/06/20/dac-reception-for-lettie-bien/

Lettie was the first full-time DAC Program Manager and worked tirelessly to build connections among the region's defense & intelligence community stakeholders. During her tenure, the DAC commissioned the 2023 Defense Industry Economic Impact Study highlighting the sector's $1.2 billion economic impact.

Recently retired US Navy Admiral Charles "Chas" Richard shared his analysis of the Intelligence Community’s annual worldwide Threat Assessment at our quarterly DAC meeting in April.
https://www.cvillechamber.com/2024/05/01/dac-national-intelligence-threat-assessment/

ADM Richard’s final assignment was as commander of U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM); he is currently the James R. Schlesinger Distinguished Professor at the UVA Miller Center of Public Affairs.

October 27 at North Fork we celebrated this year’s outstanding NCOs from the National Ground Intelligence Center (NGIC), the Defense Intelligence Agency, The Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School and the U.S. Army Military Intelligence Readiness Command 2300 MIG, along with select cadets and midshipmen from UVA Army ROTC, UVA Naval ROTC and UVA Air Force ROTC.

The following individuals were recognized: MSG Oscar Perez, USA-NGIC; SSgt Joshua "Buz" Buzhardt, USAF-DIA; MSG Prince Roper, USA-The Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center & School; SFC James R. Roeser, USAR-2300 Military Intelligence Group; US Army ROTC Cadet Connor Wilson; US Naval ROTC MIDN 1/C Olivia S. Barr; US Naval ROTC (USMC Option) MIDN 1/C Kyle E. Widmark; and US Air Force ROTC Cadet Derek Sprincis.

Colonel Jason Bell, Commander, Det 890, UVA USAF ROTC, shared a keynote address on "Sustaining National Security – The Human Element."

Photos by Franklin Knox Photography

We look forward to honoring these outstanding local individuals at the third annual DAC Military Service Awards this Thursday. Seats are still available to join us! https://business.cvillechamber.com/events/details/dac-annual-military-service-awards-11246

MSG Oscar Perez, USA-NGIC
SSgt Joshua "Buz" Buzhardt, USAF-DIA
MSG Prince Roper, USA-The Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center & School
SFC James R. Roeser, USAR-2300 Military Intelligence Group
US Army ROTC Cadet Connor Wilson
US Naval ROTC MIDN 1/C Olivia S. Barr
US Naval ROTC (USMC Option) MIDN 1/C Kyle E. Widmark
US Air Force ROTC Cadet Derek Sprincis

Join us for the Annual DAC Military Service Awards, October 26 at North Fork:
https://business.cvillechamber.com/events/details/dac-annual-military-service-awards-11246

Come celebrate this year’s outstanding NCOs from the National Ground Intelligence Center (NGIC), the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center & School and the 2300 Military Intelligence Group. The event will also recognize select cadets and midshipmen from the Army, Naval And Air Force ROTC programs at UVA.

Keynote Speaker: Colonel Jason Bell, Commander, Det 890, UVA USAF ROTC - "How College ROTC Programs Sustain National Security"

Sponsored by: UVA Foundation

Two great events coming up this month!
Seas the Day - September 17 at Walnut Creek
Fluvanna Fun Fest - September 23 at Van der Linde Recycling - bring your electronics for donation to Tech For Troops

It's not too late to join the Leaders Lab of Greater Charlottesville this year! www.CvilleChamber.com/leaderslab

Application deadline extended! We don't want you to miss out on an extraordinary experience this year. The Leaders Lab of Greater Charlottesville will continue to accept applications through July 12.

The Leaders Lab trains leaders at all levels to tackle complex community issues together. Join us!
www.cvillechamber.com/leaderslab

- Learn deeply about our community
- Build skills for cross-sector collaboration
- Add new perspectives to your leadership toolkit
- Cultivate relationships with a diverse and energetic cohort

In partnership with
Center for Nonprofit Excellence
Institute for Engagement & Negotiation
Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia

Just released - the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia has assessed the defense industry's economic impact in our area at $1.2 Billion.
www.cvillechamber.com/dac-study2023

Many thanks to County of Albemarle, City of Charlottesville, Va - Government and UVA Foundation for funding this study.

Join us on Thursday 1/26 to discuss the Defense Affairs Committee's 2023 goals and work. Lunch will be provided by UVA Foundation. Registration is required: https://business.cvillechamber.com/events/details/defense-affairs-committee-full-meeting-10861

Guest Speaker: J. Miles Coleman, Associate Editor of Sabato's Crystal Ball, University of Virginia Center for Politics
Topic: Mid-Term Election Results and Potential Impacts for Defense/National Security

J. Miles Coleman is the associate editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball, the UVA Center for Politics' authoritative, nonpartisan newsletter on American campaigns and elections. He also serves as the Center’s Media Relations Coordinator.

A political cartographer, Miles has generated a portfolio of thousands of electoral maps. Previously with Decision Desk HQ, his collecting and analyzing election night returns work has been cited by the Washington Post, Politico and MSNBC among others. Miles has also worked with the FBI and the Intelligence Community. He is a 2014 LSU graduate.

**Veterans Business Roundtable** January 18 at North Fork

Military veteran business owners and military veteran professionals (attorneys, accountants, Realtors, consultants, etc.) are invited to an in-person Roundtable focused on marketing and business growth.

We want to help expand your business, and this is a starting point. Details & RSVP:
https://business.cvillechamber.com/events/details/veterans-business-roundtable-10906

Marketing Consultant Josephine Humphrey of CBS19 News: Charlottesville News First will discuss advertising. The Donut Kitchen, a local veteran-owned business, will provide coffee and donuts.

Veterans Business Roundtable The Chamber Defense Affairs Committee (DAC) invites Military veteran business owners and military veteran professionals (attorneys, accountants, Realtors, consultants, etc.) to an in-person Roundtable focused on marketing and business growth. We want to help expand your business, and this is a start...

The Chamber Defense Affairs Committee (DAC) Second Annual Military Service Awards event honoring local uniformed personnel and UVA ROTC cadets/midshipman was held on November 15 at UVA Foundation’s North Fork Meeting Center. The award criteria were based on the awardees’ robust service to country and community.

Over 60 attendees heard a very interesting presentation from Major General Tripp Bowles of the Defense Logistics Agency. Breakfast was sponsored by Hourigan.

Award recipients:

MSG Rodney Adams (2300 MIG), SFC Shawna Davis (NGIC), SFC Joseph Reynolds (JAG), SSG Timothy Sullivan (DIA)

Cadet Alexander Mosher (Army ROTC), Cadet Jessica Bachman (US Air Force ROTC), M/S 1C (USMC Option) Tiffani Burdick, M/S 2C Adam Rogers, both Naval ROTC

See more photos by Franklin Knox Photography: https://www.cvillechamber.com/2022/12/05/dac-presents-2022-military-service-awards/

At our late October DAC meeting, UVA Professor John M. Owen IV shared six reasons why we should be concerned about the consequences and significance of Russia’s assault on Ukraine.

You can see video of Owen's talk, along with his presentation slides and a summary of his points, at this link: https://www.cvillechamber.com/2022/11/01/dac-russias-assault-on-ukraine/

Please note, this information reflects a broad overview of the conflict rather than the very latest news from the region.

Thanks to Rudy Fernandez and Stephen Ryan of Northrop Grumman Corporation for showing us around the Mission Systems
Maritime/Land Systems & Sensors Division. The Charlottesville facility started as Sperry Marine, was purchased by Litton Industries and then acquired by Northrop Grumman.

Howdy, partner! We're pleased to welcome Northrop Grumman Corporation as a Chamber Partner in Trust.

This week, Chamber President & CEO Elizabeth Cromwell and Defense Affairs Committee Program Manager Lettie Bien met with Site Director Rudy Fernandez (left) and Director of Operations Stephen Ryan (right) for a tour of the maritime systems facility here in Charlottesville.

Their location on Seminole Trail is a buzzing facility of people working on the design, development, production and shipping of advanced navigations systems (among a lot of other things) for marine industry clients including those in the Department of Defense.

To learn more about our Partners in Trust, visit www.CvilleChamber.com/partners.

At the recent DAC meeting, we heard from Claudia Flores, Director of Policy and Planning at the Virginia Department of Veterans Services. Claudia shared a briefing on the bills that got passed this year in the General Assembly that affect veterans and military in Virginia.

Video of her talk is here:
https://www.cvillechamber.com/2022/08/03/dac-legislative-update-with-claudia-flores/

DAC - Legislative Update with Claudia Flores Claudia Flores of the VA Dept. of Veterans Services shared a briefing on bills passed in the General Assembly that affect veterans and military in Virginia.

Mark your calendar for Seas the Day 2022 - Sunday, August 28, 12-3pm at Walnut Creek Park. West Point Society - Monticello invites you to a FREE family-friendly event for all veterans, active-duty military of all Services, active/inactive Reserve, and Guard & families.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/seas-the-day-2022-registration-294915810127

Seas the Day 2022 2022 Seas the Day event! FREE event for all veterans, active-duty military of all Services, active/inactive Reserve, and Guard & families.

Military & Veteran Appreciation Night with Charlottesville Tom Sox is July 5!

DAC hosted a panel of local defense sector personnel to discuss the economic and social impact of the sector in Central Virginia.

Workforce issues were a key topic of conversation, with both private sector and military entities saying not enough students are going into STEM fields.

Read more: https://www.cvillechamber.com/2022/05/19/dac-economic-impact-panel/

Hosted by North Fork
Sponsored by County of Albemarle

DAC - Economic Impact Panel The Defense Affairs Committee hosted a panel of local defense sector personnel to discuss the sector's impact in Central Virginia.

We've added two more panelists for the Economic Impact Panel on April 28!
Northrop Grumman/ Mission Systems - Andrew Fraser, Director, Integration & Ship Services
Booz Allen - Barry Johnston

Sign up to join us: https://business.cvillechamber.com/events/details/defense-affairs-committee-dac-full-meeting-10566

Defense Affairs Committee (DAC) Full Meeting The mission of the Chamber Defense Affairs Committee (DAC) is to foster economic vitality by further strengthening the alliance of relationships among the Chamber, the Chamber network, the Central Virginia community, the regional defense intelligence community, and our veterans.

COL (Ret.) Lettie Bien, DAC Program Manager, recently gave a talk on the benefits of the Virginia Values Veterans (V3) program.

Check out the video! https://www.cvillechamber.com/2022/03/17/member-monday-virginia-values-veterans/

To support Virginia’s Veterans, the V3 Program helps employers develop and implement long term strategies and nationally recognized best practices in recruiting, hiring, and retaining veterans. Certified V3 companies have demonstrated to the Commonwealth of Virginia that they Value Veterans and have made a public commitment to hire Veterans into their workforce.

Member Monday: Virginia Values Veterans - Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce COL (Ret.) Lettie Bien of the Chamber Defense Affairs Committee discussed the benefits of the Virginia Values Veterans (V3) program.

About to start today's talk on the Virginia Values Veterans (V3) program - look for video later!

DAC hosted a very informative discussion on January 27 with Phil Potter and George Foresman of the National Security Policy Center. Video is on the Chamber website: https://www.cvillechamber.com/2022/02/02/dac-national-security-policy-center/