WHEELER ARMY AIRFIELD, Hawaii -- Garrison's last Facebook Town Hall for 2012 is scheduled 6-7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 27, at www.facebook.com/usaghawaii.
"The quarterly event opens the door and encourages real-time interaction between the Soldiers, families and civilians living and working on Army installations, and the subject matter experts who can address questions about garrison services and programs," said Col. Daniel Whitney, commander, U.S. Army Garrison-Hawaii.
Anyone with a question or concern should log into Facebook using a personal account, visit the USAG-HI page and click on the "Events" tab, located in the upper tool bar.
Queries can be posted both prior to and during the actual town hall timeframe. Questions posted after the town hall is completed at 7:30 p.m., or posted on the garrison's wall, will not be addressed.
Subject matter experts from Island Palm Communities and the directorates of Emergency Services; of Public Works; and of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation will monitor the event page and answer as many concerns as possible.
All questions posted before or during the town hall will be answered in the days following the event, if they are not addressed that evening.
"The USAG-HI Facebook Town Hall allows attendees to easily participate without impacting their busy social and family lives or making them rearrange their schedules," said Command Sgt. Maj. Philip Brunwald, garrison's senior enlisted leader. "They can post a question on the page, before Nov. 27, and come back to see the answer, at their convenience, in the days following the event."
Attendees visiting the digital town hall are reminded to provide as much detail as possible, so questions can be understood and addressed without requiring follow-up questions. For example, if asking about road conditions, provide the street name, installation and the closest cross streets, buildings or landmarks. This method will help DPW pinpoint the location in question exactly, which will pave the way for a faster response.
The same applies for questions directed to DES, DFMWR or IPC.
"Some of the local concerns for residents can't be addressed at the garrison level -- as we've seen in the recent Army Family Action Plan conference and previous town halls -- and must be fixed at a higher level of command," said Jim Duttweiler, deputy garrison commander. "However, we encourage residents to still bring those issues to our attention, so we can hear the voice of the community."
Examples of issues that need to be addressed at the Department of the Army level include policy changes on how residents are charged for electricity, vehicle decals for access to military installations, policies banning sexual offenders from living on post, the lack of benefits for same-sex civil unions, and referral processes across military treatment facilities.
"USAG-HI's mission is to support warriors, families and the community, and the Facebook Town Hall is a great tool to ensure our services are doing just that," Whitney said.
Get Connected
Catch all the action at www.facebook.com/usaghawaii, under the "Events" tab, 6-7:30 p.m., Nov. 27.
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