Spearheaded by the Michigan National Guard, with support from the U.S. Army Garrison - Detroit Arsenal and TACOM LCMC, the state of Michigan held a Military Family and Community Covenant signing ceremony on November 12.
Over the course of the past year, states across the nation have been conducting Community Covenant signing ceremonies. The Army Community Covenant is designed to forge a strategic alliance between state and community leaders, and the Army. The goal of this partnership is a collaborative effort to improve the quality of life for Soldiers and their Families, both at their current duty stations and as they transfer from state to state.
The Michigan signing ceremony was held in the Governor's Ceremonial Office at the State Capitol Building in Lansing, MI. State officials in attendance included Lt. Gov. John Cherry, Jr., and several Michigan mayors and legislators. The military delegation was led by Maj. Gen. Thomas Cutler, Adjutant General of the Michigan National Guard, and included MG (Ret) Bruce MacDonald, Civilian Aid to the Secretary of the Army for Michigan, in addition to numerous military leaders.
The Detroit Arsenal was represented by Col. Christopher Wicker, Chief of Staff, TACOM Life Cycle Management Command, Robert Graves, Garrison Manager, and Brenda McCullough, Deputy Garrison Manager.
Among those signing the Community Covenant document were Cherry, Cutler, state and local elected officials, and community and military leaders.
"It's a real honor for me to sign the Community Covenant on behalf of the state of Michigan," said Cherry. "The sacrifices that military men and women make always amaze me - they certainly don't do it for the money. The Covenant is a tangible way to leverage community support for our troops and their families. We owe them a huge debt of gratitude, and this is a small token of appreciation for all that they've done for our country."
Cutler echoed those sentiments. "The Covenant signing is an important step to show our Soldiers and their families that we are serious about supporting them. The knowledge that they have the full backing and support of the community is a source of great strength, and ultimately impacts their ability to successfully carry out military missions," said Cutler.
MG Scott West, CG TACOM LCMC was TDY at the time of the ceremony, and signed the Covenant on 18 November in his office at the Detroit Arsenal.
With the signing of the Michigan Military Family and Community Covenant, the real work now begins. While the signing was ceremonial, it is time to get down to the business of providing world class community support for Michigan Soldiers and their families. After all, it's the very least that we can do in return for their meritorious service.
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