FORT HOOD, Texas - Students and faculty members at Meadows Elementary School and 2nd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, their Adopt-A-School partner, received a visit from a longtime friend Nov. 23.
Holleyanne Milley came back to her former home for a two-day visit to the Great Place along with her husband, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, who previously served as the III Corps and Fort Hood commanding general.
Milley, along with Linda McFarland, wife of Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland, the current III Corps and Fort Hood commanding general; Lt. Col. Ryan McCormack, commander of the 2nd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division; and Christine Hall, Fort Hood's Child, Youth and School Services school liaison officer, toured several classrooms and discussed the faculty's focus on ensuring the well-being of the students.
On the tour of the elementary school, Milley saw three pre-kindergarten 3 classes in session, interacted with the children, and spoke with the staff and faculty.
While stationed here from 2012 to 2014, Milley saw the concept of a pre-kindergarten program for 3-year-olds start to take root. Now, back for the first time since their move to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in 2014, Milley said she's glad to see the program has moved from an idea to a reality.
"I'm very excited to be here at Meadows," Milley said. "I think when you come to a school like Meadows, and you're a Soldier and you have a Family who's here at Meadows, I think it gives them confidence and peace of mind that their children are being cared for, and it allows him or her to focus on the mission."
In addition to sneaking a peek inside the Pre-K3 classrooms at Meadows, Milley also watched a presentation on the school's relatively new relationship with its adopted unit, 2-82 FA, and the events and partnership opportunities the school and the unit have taken advantage of.
Since the inaugural Adopt-a-School event, A Day in the Life of a Soldier, back in August, the unit and the school have paired up for many other events ranging from their Veterans Day parade to their live-fire training exercise, during which the staff and faculty were bussed out to a range to watch Abrams tanks and Bradleys fire.
"Our unit has been incredible," said Nancy Duran, Meadows' principal. "This is a very new relationship, but both sides have just embraced it wholeheartedly. We've done so many things together since then."
The positive sentiments regarding the partnership are in no way one-sided.
"It's been very much reciprocal," said McCormack. "We all know that one of the hardest things is volunteerism, getting people bitten by the bug, and that's been one of the benefits to our Soldiers. They see the investment of their time and how enjoyable it is. It's been very, very mutual."
After getting to sit down and talk with some students, participate in some classroom activities and discuss the Adopt-a-School partnership, Milley was impressed with the care, compassion and dedication of the Meadows staff and faculty.
"Our number one priority is Soldiers, families and education, health, counseling, and ideas that facilitate caring for Soldiers and families," Milley said. "You definitely feel the energy and the passion and how committed these teachers and administration are in their care and concern for our families and our children."
In addition to her visit at Meadows Elementary, she had many other stops on her whirlwind tour of the Great Place - including Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center and the Exchange, both of which were still under construction when they moved to North Carolina.
"I'm so happy to be back at Fort Hood," Milley said. "We love Fort Hood. We love all of our good neighbors, and this is a special place, and to see how the community just wraps their arms around Fort Hood. As my husband said when he was here, 'It's not the Great Place. It's the greatest place," and you really do feel that the minute you arrive at the airfield. I truly felt that we were home."
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