Genevieve Chase - Army Strong Stories

Enough Already: DADT

Genevieve Chase — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 08:47:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
The other day, I received an email from a lesbian I served with several years ago. I first met her when we both joined the Army. She was unaccustomed to Army life and not used to having to hide who she was. Having grown up in the military, I knew she was going to have a difficult time adjusting. As she was several years younger than me, I pulled her aside one day and spoke with her about her openness in being a lesbian. I told her that not everyone was going to accept...read more

Open Letter to the Director, Army Continuing Education

Genevieve Chase — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 05:46:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
Ms. Rogers, If the system does not work, then we should work to a solution that does. If you mean to imply that TA is not something I have earned and is not mine to use at an accredited university of my choice, then please clarify that to me in no uncertain terms. The Post 9/11 GI Bill, which was dreamed up, drafted, fought for and passed by my colleagues and supported by the majority of the Members of Congress, was not meant to be used in LIEU of Tuition Assistance....read more

The Harvard - Army Conundrum

Genevieve Chase — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 12:05:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
I remember in Afghanistan in 2006, two of my senior officers were sending me back and forth to the other's office carrying on a debate that was far above my pay grade. I was exasperated at having to deliver those messages because GUESS WHO was getting yelled at on both sides? To this day, I can't remember what they were bickering like two old ladies about, but I do remember thinking (and please excuse the crassness of this next statement), "Why don't you two boys...read more

Soldier Bloggers, the Countermedia

Genevieve Chase — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 07:57:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
A couple of months ago, I did an interview on You Served - Blog Talk Radio about blogging on Army Strong Stories. I didn't really know what we were going to talk about but I had an idea that the hosts, Troy Steward and CJ Grisham, long-time Milbloggers (Military Bloggers) would be skeptical about a blog hosted by the Army. I understand their concerns because many people wonder how open a blogger could actually be while blogging for their boss. I think that it's easy...read more

Army Girl Commits to Six More

Genevieve Chase — Fri, 28 May 2010 07:16:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
"I, Genevieve Chase, do solemnly affirm that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice." And with those words, I signed up for another six years of service to my...read more

I'm Re-enlisting!

Genevieve Chase — Tue, 04 May 2010 07:40:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
Life has been quite hectic, which is just the way I like it. I'm finding time to get back in the gym and as of most recently, was looking for a new Reserve unit to transfer to. I currently reside in Washington DC and to stay in my Reserve unit in Arizona, I have to either find a local unit to drill with or fly back at my own expense, for drills. I do this for one reason... my unit is one of the best in the Army Reserve at taking care of soldiers. The biggest news of all? I'm...read more

All American Bowl Wrap Up

Genevieve Chase — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 08:16:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
The final days of the All American Bowl were quite exciting. We had some down time before the Awards Dinner with the Rotary Club to get all dressed up in our Class A's and Blues. We took quite a few pictures, mostly us ladies. The longer you're in the military, the more you come to appreciate having friends that are women! After the mini photo shoot, we headed to the banquet hall where the tables were spread out so far that it looked like the room was the size of a football field. The...read more

SWAG, MRE's, and other acronyms

Genevieve Chase — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 03:38:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
This morning we had breakfast with VIPs from around the country that are part of the Army's Centers of Influence. Before meeting up with them, we were able to do a short tour of the Army Strong Zone, located just outside of the stadium. This area was set up with booths and demos, not to mention a bunch of free swag. My mom and sister did their own tour and reported back to me what the coolest stops were. I was able to catch a picture of them, upside down in the Apache Flight Simulator....read more

Is it Game Day yet?

Genevieve Chase — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:16:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
It's been such a long day that I'm not sure where we started this morning...Wait. Oh yes! We had to report downstairs by 6:30 AM. That was fun. To add to the pleasantness of that, it was QUITE a cold day here in San Antonio. Many of the soldiers that are here didn't bring cold weather gear because they assumed the weather would be warmer than the northern posts and cities they came from. Normally, this isn't really an issue but the wind today literally took my breath away. I walked outside...read more

It's not an easy job and it's not meant for everyone

Genevieve Chase — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 23:51:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
My name is Genevieve Chase and I'm a proud member of the United States Army Reserve. I was born in Fort Campbell, Kentucky so I like to tell people that I did 18 years of involuntary service as a dependent to a service member, prior to my enlistment at the age of 25. In high school, Iwas a member of the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps and competed in Rifle, Pistol and Color Guard competitions. Having been born to a Korean mother and attending high school at Seoul American...read more

My All American - J.R. "Ego" Ferguson

Genevieve Chase — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 21:55:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
After my previous blog, I went downstairs to meet everyone for the bus rides over to the BBQ. The organizers split us up into our two teams East and West and that's where the competition began. I walked through the gate and found my player, J.R. Ferguson, #53, Team East. I had watched him on the videos I'd Googled so I knew I was getting a pretty talented and well-spoken player. I was not wrong but where I thought he couldn't surprise me, I completely underestimated him. J.R. is all the...read more

And My Football Hero is...

Genevieve Chase — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 21:53:00 GMT

By: Genevieve Chase
Yesterday was pretty uneventful. I arrived at the San Antonio airport without too much incident... other than the headache from hell, there was little complain about. OH wait. The weather. The cold must have followed me from DC because it definitely is not as warm outside as I'd hoped it would be. Last night, my sister and I took the trolley to Mi Tierra, a local Tex-Mex restaurant that seemingly everyone we met recommended to us. We love La Margarita but since they're both owned by the same...read more