Fort Belvoir, Va. (May 30, 2014) - The Fort Belvoir USO Warrior and Family Center received the Top Stateside Installation Center -- Medium Division and the Most Improved Location awards at the USO Leadership Conference, May 21.
The Top Stateside Installation Center is awarded to the center that received the most positive feedback from troops and Family members who visit the center and use its programs and services. The Most Improved Location is awarded for the effort and support of the centers' volunteer corps, according to Pamela Horton, USO of Metropolitan Washington-Baltimore, Director of Warrior and Family Centers.
"Every year USO, Inc. conducts a comprehensive survey of military and Family members throughout the world to ensure that the organization is delivering on its promise to lift the spirits of America's troops and Families," said Horton. "The survey is conducted by an outside party and the results are tabulated for the USO as a whole and also by individual USO location."
For the center to have achieved so much during its first year of operation is a testament to the staff that works so hard to provide the best programs and services to its customers, according to Cheryl Hall, USO Metropolitan Washington-Baltimore, Vice President of Operations. The Belvoir USO opened in February 2013.
"Your goal is to always do the very best you can," said Hall. "To think we did it in year one is really a testament to some great planning, ideas, and the welcoming environment at Fort Belvoir for a center of this caliber to come here."
Volunteers at the Belvoir USO, like Ruth Daly and Denise Pierson, are honored to have contributed to the center winning the awards.
"I'm really proud to be a part of it," said Daly, who has volunteered since the center opened. "There's such camaraderie here and we're a very cohesive group."
The feeling of Family between the other volunteers and Soldiers is what makes the experience so gratifying for Pierson who began volunteering in October.
"It's becoming home to me," said Pierson. "We all support each other, and I feel I can pay back to the Soldiers while I'm here."
The nearly 250 volunteers at the Belvoir USO are what allows the center to fully service the Soldiers, said Hall.
"Our volunteers are some of the most incredible people you will ever meet," said Hall. "We thought it would be hard to find more volunteers to help run the center, and now we have close to 250. We couldn't do what we do here without them. We are open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. everyday and it's because of our volunteers."
Listening to the feedback of its customers is one reason Hall feels they were so successful in its inaugural year.
"We try to learn as much as we can from the survey, whether its better snacks at the snack bar and other amenities our customer is looking for," said Hall.
The National Capital Region has a Senior Enlisted Advisory Council that Hall said the USO meets with quarterly to discuss the needs of servicemembers. Listening to the council is another reason the center won both awards, according to Hall.
"We want to make sure we are up to date on the current challenges our servicemembers are facing, or will be facing," said Hall.
One of those challenges is moving to a new installation. Since most Permanent Change of Station moves take place in the summer, the USO has already put together a program to help arriving servicemembers and their Families adjust to the area.
"We bring local resources from outside the gates and resources on post to the arriving servicemembers," said Hall. "It's an opportunity for them to explore their new community."
The efforts of the Belvoir's garrison command team also helped the center have the success it has had this past year, according to Hall.
"They have taken this as seriously as we have," said Hall. "They've challenged us along the way. This is an example of how a private-public partnership can work with a military command and it's a testament to the post's leadership."
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