The Vidette (vol 1 issue 4) 20130401

given an opportunity to eat Mansaf,
the national dish. It was also a chance
for leaders to become acquainted
with each other and share their
standards and expectations of the
mission.
During the ceremony the outgoing
and incoming Commanders perform
the “casing” and “uncasing” of their
perspective Units Colors and have an
opportunity to speak to the Unit’s
affected by this transfer of authority.
JORDAN- (February 20, 2013) – 1st
Bn 623d Field Artillery officially took
the reins of their mission with the
departure of the transfer of authority
(TOA) ceremony and the departure of
181st
Field Artillery Regiment. After the
transfer, 1st
Bn 623d FA took charge of
the camp as well as operations and
training of their Jordanian counterparts.
The formal ceremony between the
outgoing and the incoming units was
followed by a local, but formal,
luncheon in which the Soldiers were
TTHHEE VVIIDDEETTTTEE
1st
Bn 623d Field artillery
Individual Highlights:
Cover Story 1
Commander 2
Sergeant Major 2
Law & Order 3
Rear Support Team 3
S3 3
Chaplain’s Corner 4
Top Secret 4
First Aid Station 5
Motor Pool 5
Genius Bar 5
Cover Story Cont. 6
Captain Carter 7
Military Child 8
Mil Ch Registration 9
TSP APP 10
Post 911 G.I. Bill 11
01 APR 2013
Vol. 1 Issue 4
Morgan’s Men Take Control of the Reins
PhotosLayout/Design/Photographer
LT Gordon Deming
Writer/Photographer
SGT Bryan Ploughe
Editor in Chief
MAJ John Holmes
Continued on Page 6
CSM Neathery, 1-623d FA Command Sergeant Major, assists Lt. Col. Fanter, 1-623d FA Commander, with the
uncasing of the Regimental colors as SPC Dennis, a paralegal specialist, diligently holds the Colors for the
unveiling during the transfer of authority ceremony (TOA).

COMMANDER’S WORDS
LTC Timothy Fanter
“A good leader takes a little
more than his share of the
blame, a little less than his
share of the credit.”
- Arnold H. Glasow
COMMAND SERGEANT MAJOR
CSM Robert Neathery
Greetings to our Soldiers, families, friends, and supporters of Morgan’s
Men. As you read this message, many of the Morgan’s Men Leadership and
our partnered brothers of Task Force 222 India and Task Force 240 Bravo
Leadership are conducting our Pre Deployment Site Survey (PDSS). Our
training and validation of the Jordanian Armed Forces is progressing and the
next phase of our deployment will be here soon.
Our Soldiers are continuing to receive weekly mail shipments from our
support cell and it is a great morale booster. I encourage everyone to continue
the open communication of letters and care packages…your Soldier greatly
appreciates it.
I will close with a few words on position improvement. CSM
Neathery and I have seen constant improvements at the Joint Training Center,
especially in the maintenance area. We are very pleased with what has been
accomplished, but we know we have not achieved the end-state we desire and
have a long-term calendar of tasks and events that will be completed in the
upcoming months. As a team, we will continue to work toward that goal.
Morgan 6
I would like to take this chance to thank all of our family and
friends back in Kentucky for all of their support for the soldiers of the
623d. To this point, we have received many care packages and they are
greatly appreciated by everyone here. I know everyone here looks
forward to mail call. The Soldiers of this battalion could not do this
mission without the love and support that they receive from home. I
would also like to thank all of the employers that support our Soldiers as
well. We appreciate every one's support greatly.

MARCH SELF-DEVELOPMENT
The Doctrinal Network- Promoting understanding, training, and education in the joint doctrine of the Armed
Forces of the United States
http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/docnet/index.htm
RECOMMENDED COURSES
• JP 2-0 Joint Intelligence
• JP 4-0 Joint Logistics
• 3-16 Multinational Operations
• 3-09 Joint Fire Support
• 3-09.6 Close Air Support
• 3-06 Urban Operations
• 3-57 Civil-Military Operations
• 3-60 Joint Targeting
LAW & ORDER
Since arriving in Jordan, many Soldiers have needed a Power of
Attorney (POA) to allow someone stateside to act as their Attorney-in-Fact
to handle transactions. During July and December ATs, legal briefs were
given about the risks of POAs. Steps can be taken to reduce those risks.
Name two people who your trust and require both to sign any
transaction. With two Attorney-in-Facts there’s a greater chance for
reasonable actions. A POA can limit the Attorney-in-Fact’s ability. Many
only allow the Attorney-in-Fact to pay certain bills or specific payments.
S3
CPT Jimmie Warinner
Others only allow the Attorney-in-Fact to buy or sale a house or car. Naming one Attorney-in-Fact and
giving them free rein over all your money is dangerous. They can take all your money and it would be
completely legal. I recommend naming two people you trust, and require both to sign any transaction.
Also limit what the POA allows them to do.
CPT Nicholas Carter

CHAPLAIN’S CORNER
CH (CPT) W. Ryan Steenburg
A Quiet Place
Community living can be grand, at times. The
memories that are created through a band of brothers
are irreplaceable. There does come a time, however,
that we need to find a quiet place. In a recent Sunday
night Chapel Service we examined Mark 1:35 where it
reads, “And rising very early in the morning , while it
was still dark, he (Jesus) departed and went out to a
desolate place, and there he prayed.” The surrounding
context of this verse demonstrates that Jesus was busy
with his mission. He was often crowded by people;
strangers and disciples alike. He knew that in order to
refresh and revitalize he must find a quiet place. I
think it is interesting and important to recognize that
the quiet place did not just happen for Jesus; he had
to go find it. And while he was there he engaged in
something peaceful. Have you found your quiet place?
Have you been looking for it? It will not necessarily
be easy to find your quiet place while living so close
to your brothers and sisters in arms, but I believe it is
of extreme importance. So, for your own sake as well
as the sake of others, strive to find a quiet place where
you can go to refresh and revitalize, to pray, read a
book, or quietly enjoy the rolling hills of Jordan.
.
As we begin our spring season,
the S2 section has over came some
struggles to get fully operational.
Although when getting boots on
ground our section had many
questions; we are finally starting to
make our connections and answers are
beginning to flow our direction. Many
of our tasks have come before us over
the last month and we are working long
hours to achieve all requests assigned;
while assisting with the training. From
preparations for Commander's Update
Brief and covering multiple boundaries
across southern Asia, we have also been
working on physical security and
spinning up on military intelligence
tactics. As the situation and operation
may or may not change, we continue to
spearhead operations on the battle field
as well as protection of our location.
S2
SGT Jeremy Jordan
Transportation and Sustainment Team
SGT Cody Zimmerman
The TST continues to provide top notch support for our world class Soldiers. The late days or super early
mornings, depending on how you look at them, have been paying off in big ways for us. Our big push is US Mail
because everyone loves to get mail. Of course, that will be slowing down with new APO but that doesn’t mean that
we will be slowing down anytime soon. Besides our normal jobs, we have been keeping busy with some cool
opportunities like attending Modern Army Combatives (MAC) level one (1) course. We are looking for the second
phase after recovering. Plus, we have educational opportunities here. A couple of us are taking a General
Mathematics class.

“Combat medics never
stand taller than when
they kneel to treat the
wounded saving lives in
the midst of utter chaos.”
-Unknown
FIRST AID STATION
MOTOR POOL
S6
Every Soldier and dependant needs to know how the Tricare Overseas
process works and why it is so important to them.
Soldiers with medical issues (sniffles, aches, pains, etc.) are seen at the
Battalion Aid Station (BAS) and treated by CPT Hayden. If “Doc” cannot fix it with
his skills and credentials, the Soldier has to be treated somewhere else. This is why
Tricare Overseas is so important. We have a great medical team but they cannot do
it all. When “Doc” needs to send a Soldier to a hospital for treatment, he starts the
referral process by having the Soldier enroll in Tricare Overseas (no changes are
made to family’s coverage). The referral, itself, generally takes four days to get
approved. After we receive the approved referral, we call the hospital schedule the
appointment and then take you to your appointment. All the Soldier has to do is
digitally sign (that is ID card signing) the forms.
Emergencies are done completely different just like at home. Just think of
the Emergency Room at home.
2LT Gordon Deming
The Maintenance Section continues to run and we are
gaining momentum. Some of the equipment here is new to us but
that hasn’t stopped our team from conquering the challenge of
keeping our equipment operational and taking care of our Soldiers.
If you didn’t know, the US Army doesn’t give units “extra stuff;” so,
we have to make certain all of our “stuff” is working all the time.
The Soldiers care about their equipment, ranging from individual
assigned gear to vehicles, and each Battery’s leadership support the
maintenance effort during weekly Command Maintenance. Our
Soldiers equipment is always mission ready and we are improving the
time it takes to fix equipment. MSG Young, SFC Long, SSG Boller,
SGT Johnson, SGT Fox, SPC Nichols, and SPC Masden are the best
maintainers of the KYARNG. I am confident that the experience
and dedication of our maintenance crew along with great PMCS
practices will yield a safe and successful maintenance mission.
WO1 Melissa Propes
The Signal Section is hard at work maintaining the network and
constantly improving our infrastructure and wiring. We’ve re-wired the
TOC and supported other units that work with us. We’ve been standing
up an entire domain with Sharepoint, McAfee, and a webfilter to help
maintain bandwidth with so many users.
You can talk about us, but you can’t talk without us!
1LT Matthew Speer

Each Commander also addressed the
Jordanian leadership to reiterate their
sense of accomplishment and satisfaction
(from the outgoing Commander) and the
eagerness and desire to get started (by the
incoming Commander).
The Kentucky State flag as well as the
1- 623d FA Regimental Colors will be
displayed for the duration of the
deployment. Kentucky’s 1-623d FA will
continue the same mission that the 181st
performed, and will look to continually
improve upon it.
The Transfer of Authority (TOA)
ceremony and uncasing of the Colors was
conducted on 20 February with MG
Cheek (ARCENT Deputy Commander),
COL Johnson (3-3 ABCT Commander),
COL Tyler (1-4 ABCT Commander), BG
Hussein, BG Basca, and BG Bosher (JAF)
in attendance. The Colors of 1-623d FA
have been home in Kentucky for more
than 20 years since the Battalion
deployment of Desert Shield/Storm and
now fly proudly overseas again.
Transfer of Authority Cont.
Photo by SGT Bryan Ploughe
Lt. Col. Stewart, the outgoing Commander of the 1-181st
, and Lt. Col. Fanter, the incoming Commander of
the 1-623d, share the honors of cutting the first pieces of the cake that was a part of the transfer of authority
ceremony.

Jordan. (March 5, 2013)- Often times our Citizen
Soldiers are required to place their civilian
occupations or careers on hold while they perform
their military duties that they have been called
upon to do.
This is also the case for CPT Nick Carter
of the 1-623d Field Artillery, who is currently
deployed in support of Operation Enduring
Freedom, to Jordan. CPT Carter has been able to
find a “work around” to be able to perform both
duties. You see, CPT Carter owns and operates his
own private law practice in his hometown and
serves as a Judge Advocate General for the
Kentucky Army National Guard.
Although conducting business as a private
attorney and performing JAG duties are very
different, they are somewhat closely related. On
the military side of things, the JAG has a
responsibility to inform and protect American
Soldiers from conducting activities that can
potentially be detrimental to their careers or
possibly even their lives, in the foreign land in
which they are conducting their missions. And on
the civilian side he educates and defends his clients
on civilian laws. Although military and civilian
laws are different, many of them are the same.” It
is my responsibility to make these differences in
law, very distinct and clear for our Soldiers.”
CPT Carter went on to say, “On the other
side of the coin, I own and maintain a
professional, private practice. I have a paralegal
and she is important to me, and I have a
responsibility to provide a secure environment for
her and her family as well. So, in order to do so, I
still work some special cases and perform certain
procedures from my current duty location, thanks
to technology.”
Personal Obligations Cross Paths with Professional Responsibilities
SGT Bryan Ploughe
Recently, CPT Carter was able to make an
appearance in a courtroom thanks to Face Time.
Carter was able to speak with the Judge and
consult with other professionals during that time
and was able to represent his law practice from a
half a world away.
“Right now, my first priority and focus is on the
Soldiers that I represent; but, I take great pride in
knowing that I can still be accessed and called
upon from the civilian sector as well and will be
able to fulfill their needs and wants as well.”
Carter stated.
1LT Michael Dubree, resides in the same
community as CPT Carter and said, “I think it is
terrific that we have competent young men who
are capable of performing multiple roles in
serving their community. He is such an intelligent
young man.”
Captain Nick Carter, Judge Advocate for the 1st
Bn 623d FA,
owns his own law firm and is able to perform his civilian duties
while deployed thanks to modern technology. Pictured- CPT
Carter utilizes the Face Time application to consult with a
Judge in a civilian court room.
Photo By SGT Bryan Ploughe

1LT A. Jaggers proudly awards First Lieutenant J.
Simpson a combat patch for duty that has been
performed in a combat zone for over 30 days.
CPT M. Allen presents SGT H. Lay with his first
combat patch, for his period of more than 30 days
served in a combat zone, during a ceremonial
formation.
SPC K. DeWolf takes special care while
searching a vehicle that desires to come onto
the Units area of operation at their ECP.
CPT K. Shingledecker proudly presents SGT J.
Carter, during a ceremonial formation, with his
combat patch for serving in a combat zone for
over 30 days.
SPC D. Dixon and SGT R. Thompson take great care
and pride when sorting the mail for the Soldiers of the
623d.
Photo By 1LT Shannon Price

This is the original site where
Jesus was baptized by the Jordan
River, a site that was visited by
several members of the Unit on
Good Friday.
A solemn view, on Good Friday, of a
cross on a hill, looking through the same
type of thorns that were placed on the
head of Jesus during his crucifixion.
MSG A. Young extended a hand to
congratulate SSG R. Long whom was just
promoted to Sergeant First Class.
Photo By CPT Kevin Massengill
A large group gathered by the Jordan
River to take part in a service and to
witness several individuals getting
baptized on Good Friday.

REGISTRATION
Military Child Appreciation Day
April 27, 2013
American Legion Post 34
725 West Broadway
Lawrenceburg KY 40342
First name: ___________ Last name: ___________
Street address: ____________________________
City: __________________State: ___ Zip: _______
Home phone: __________ Cell Phone: __________
E-mail address: ____________________________
Service member/Unit assigned: ________________
Number of children: _________
Name: _______________ Age: _____ Gender: _____
Name: _______________ Age: _____ Gender: _____
Name: _______________ Age: _____ Gender: _____
Name: _______________ Age: _____ Gender: _____
Name: _______________ Age: _____ Gender: _____
Name: _______________ Age: _____ Gender: _____
Deadline to apply: April 15, 2013
Applications can be faxed or e-mailed at the contacts listed below:
Cindy Culver at cynthia.r.culver.ctr@mail.mil or 502-607-1751
Linda Jones at linda.s.jones36.ctr@mail.mil or 502-607-1593
Fax number: 502-607-1570

Warning: Third-Party Mobile Applications —
There are a number of mobile applications that reference the Thrift
Savings Plan and may prompt you for your TSP account
credentials.
These applications are NOT sponsored by the TSP.
The TSP cannot endorse any information or advice provided by
third-party applications. More important, providing your TSP
account credentials to third-party applications may jeopardize the
security of your account.
For more information on keeping your account safe, see the
Security Center on the TSP website or contact the ThriftLine at 1-
TSP-YOU-FRST (1-877-968-3778)
WARNING

EDUCATION AND TRAINING POST-9/11 GI BILL:
TRANSFERABILITY
Disabilities determined by VA to be related to your military service can lead to monthly non-taxable compensation,
enrollment in the VA health care system, a 10-point hiring preference for federal employment and other important
benefits. Ask your VA representative or Veterans Service Organization representative about Disability Compensation,
Pension, Health Care, Caregiver Program, Career Services, Educational Assistance, Home Loan Guaranty, Insurance
and/or Dependents and Survivors’ Benefits.
WHAT IS TRANSFERABILITY?
The Post-9/11 GI Bill allows service members (officer or enlisted, Active Duty or Selected Reserve), on or after
August 1, 2009, to transfer unused education benefits to immediate family members (spouse and children). The
service member must have at least six years of service, and commit to an additional four years of service in order to
transfer benefits to a spouse or child. Because of the potential impact of this benefit on recruiting and retention,
transferability policy is determined by the Department of Defense (DoD) and the military services.
The following DoD Fact Sheet on Post9/11 GI Bill can be found by clicking this link.
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FACT SHEET ON POST-9/11 GI BILL TRANSFERABILITY
While the Post-9/11 GI Bill offers a very generous post-service education benefit, a special provision of the program
allows career service members the opportunity to share their education benefits with immediate family members.
The department has established the policies and procedures for this important program. These policies and
procedures are described below:
APPLICATION PROCEDURES
The effective date of any transfer will be no earlier than August 1, 2009, regardless of application date. All
applications will be submitted through the milConnect website, located here .
Service members will be able to securely access this site with a Common Access Card, a DoD Self Service User ID, or
a DFAS PIN.
ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS
Any member of the Armed Forces (Active Duty or Selected Reserve, officer or enlisted) on or after August 1, 2009,
who is eligible for the Post-9/11 GI Bill, and:
· Has at least 6 years of service in the Armed Forces on the date of election and agrees to serve 4 additional years
in the Armed Forces from the date of election.
· Has at least 10 years of service in the Armed Forces (Active Duty and/or Selected Reserve) on the date of election,
is precluded by either standard policy (service or DoD) or statute from committing to 4 additional years, and agrees to
serve for the maximum amount of time allowed by such policy or statute, or
· Is or becomes retirement eligible during the period from August 1, 2009, through August 1, 2013. A service
member is considered to be retirement eligible if he or she has completed 20 years of Active Duty or 20
qualifying years of reserve service.
ELIGIBLE FAMILY MEMBERS

An individual approved to transfer an entitlement to educational assistance under this section may transfer the
individual’s entitlement to:
· The individual’s spouse.
· One or more of the individual’s children.
· Any combination of spouse and child.
· A family member must be enrolled in the Defense Eligibility Enrollment Reporting System (DEERS) and be
eligible for benefits, at the time of transfer to receive transferred educational benefits.
· A child’s subsequent marriage will not affect his or her eligibility to receive the educational benefit; however,
after an individual has designated a child as a transferee under this section, the individual retains the right to
revoke or modify the transfer at any time.
· A subsequent divorce will not affect the transferee’s eligibility to receive educational benefits; however, after an
individual has designated a spouse as a transferee under this section, the eligible individual retains the right to
revoke or modify the transfer at any time.
NATURE OF TRANSFER
An eligible Service member may transfer up to the total months of unused Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits, or the entire 36
months if the member has used none. Family member use of transferred educational benefits is subject to the following:
· Spouse:
o May start to use the benefit immediately.
o May use the benefit while the member remains in the Armed Forces or after separation from Active Duty.
o Is not eligible for the monthly housing allowance or books and supplies stipend while the member is serving on
Active Duty.
o Can use the benefit for up to 15 years after the service member’s last separation from Active Duty.
· Child:
o May start to use the benefit only after the individual making the transfer has completed at least 10 years of
service in the Armed Forces.
o May use the benefit while the eligible individual remains in the Armed Forces or after separation from Active
Duty.
o May not use the benefit until they have attained a secondary school diploma, or equivalency certificate, or
reached 18 years of age.
o Is entitled to the monthly housing allowance and books and supplies stipend even though the eligible individual
is on Active Duty.
o Isn’t subject to the 15-year ending date, but may not use the benefit after 26 years of age.
For more information, call toll-free 1-888-442-4551 (1-888-GI BILL 1) or visit our website at http://www.gibill.va.gov

Submitting a Transfer Request
1. Use your CAC card, DoD Self-Service Logon, or DFAS pin (myPay) to log on to the DoD
Transfer of Education Benefits (TEB) Web application: https://www.dmdc.osd.mil/TEB/.
When the Submit Transfer Request (Home) page displays, your family members are listedinthe
table under the List of Family Members section.
2. If a family member is not eligible for DEERS benefits, and thus is not eligible to receive
transferred benefits, an N/A instead of a Yes link appears in the Transfer column for that family
member.
3. To transfer benefit months to a family member, locate the name of the appropriate family
member in the table and click Yes in the Transfer column. The Transfer Months page displays.
On the Transfer Months page, specify a Transfer Begin Date, an optional Transfer End Date, and
the number of Transfer Months, then click OK. Repeat this process for each of your family
members.
Spouses can use their benefit for 15 years after the member separates/retires; children can use
their benefits until their 26
th
birthdays.
4. Once you have transfer months assigned to each family member, you must submit your transfer
request for approval by doing the following in the Submit Transfer Request (Home) page:
Select the “Post-9/11 GI Bill Chapter 33” check box in the Education Benefit Program section.
Select all the boxes in the Transferability of Education Benefits section to indicate that you have
read and understand each statement.
Click the Submit Request button.
If the submission is successful, a Submit Confirmation page displays. Click the Return to Editing
button in this page to return to the Submit Transfer Request (Home) page.
After you have submitted your transfer request, the Information section at the top of the
Submit Transfer Request (Home) page updates to show that the Status is now ‘Submitted’. The
Status Date is blank and will remain blank until a Service Representative approves, rejects or
sets your request to a pending status.
How to Transfer to Post 9/11 G.I. Bill

5. To track the status of your request, you will need to return to the TEB Web Application to check
the ‘Status’ in the Information section. Once your request is approved, the status will be updated to
‘Request Approved’ and the approval Status Date will be set to the date the Service Representative
approved the request. An Approval Form also becomes available once your request is approved:
Click Approval Form to view or print the approval confirmation.
6. Once your transfer request is approved, your request data is sent to the Department of
Veterans Affairs (DVA). Each family member must first apply for a certificate of eligibility
from the DVA before they can use their transferred benefits. Once the DVA receives the
request data and VA Form 22-1990E, they will be able to process your family members’
requests to use their benefits. The application for the certificate of eligibility (VA Form 22-
1990E) can be found through the Department of Veterans Affairs’ VONAPP Web Site
(http://vabenefits.vba.va.gov/vonapp/main.asp). A paper form is also available at
http://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/VBA-22-1990e-ARE.pdf. Or you can call the DVA for
Education Benefits information at 1-888-GIBILL1.
7. After receiving their certificates of eligibility from the DVA, your family members must
provide the certificates to the school.
8. If your family members do not receive their certificates of eligibility from the DVA before
they enroll in school, they should ask the veterans’ certifying official at the school to submit to
the DVA an enrollment certification for the academic term.
Tuition funds will be sent direct from the DVA to the school. Children using months of transferred
benefit will receive the monthly living stipend and the books and supplies stipend. A spouse using a
transferred benefit will only receive the monthly living stipend. A spouse may also be eligible for the
books and supplies stipend if he/she uses the benefit after you separate from active duty.

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