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Volunteers needed: PA hosts successful community relations program

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. David J. Murphy
  • Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Public Affairs
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  A group of more than 200 Airmen gathered near Madison Square Park in New York City on the morning of Nov. 11 to march in America's largest Veterans Day parade, according to the United War Veterans Council.

On the same day in Toms River, N.J., Tech. Sgt. Jessica Mohney, a 87th Force Support Squadron Kish Airmen Leadership School instructor, visited the Veterans Club at Lake Ridge to pay tribute to servicemembers.

Two days earlier, in Marlboro, N.J., Tech. Sgt. Alvin Arguello visited Frank Delfino School, where he spoke to elementary school students about patriotism in the military.

All of these Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst representatives are members of the Community Outreach Volunteer Experience.

COVE is a 10-month-old program established by the JB MDL Public Affairs office to help align motivated servicemembers with community engagements they can best fulfill.

"Because of the growing nature of the joint base and the large number of volunteer opportunities flowing our way we had to find a way, to gather a group of qualified servicemembers to grow and spread the joint base message," said 1st Lt. Carolyn Glover, JB MDL deputy public affairs chief.

Unlike the speaker's bureau, which consists solely of speakers, the COVE provides a database of trained and qualified servicemembers who are capable of not only being speakers, but also tour guides and official representatives of JB MDL at public events, said Glover.

Volunteers must attend an hour-and-a-half long training session. There, they learn how to engage the media, address different audiences and deliver effective messages.

The public affairs staff matches the trained members with the best suited volunteer opportunities.

"I enjoy telling people my Air Force story," said Arguello. "I think a lot of people are interested in what we do, and I enjoy speaking to people about it."

Arguello, like other active COVE members, has participated in a number of COVE events to include marching in Independence and Veterans Day parades and acting as a tour guide to JROTC members.

"I would recommend the COVE program to others," said Arguello. "It provides the unique experience of communicating with the local population, while also giving you the ability to express pride in what you do in the military."

All COVE opportunities are unique and each provides an exceptional experience for each servicemember.

"My COVE experiences have stood out from other volunteer events, as each engagement served as a way to either tell my story or form connections with community members and civic leaders," said Mohney. "These are once-in-a-lifetime events, which seem like a perfect fit for military members to interact with our community without feeling overwhelmed or lost in the shuffle. COVE events afford military members the opportunity to share our personal and professional views about our service and answer questions honestly, providing the community a chance to interact with 'real Airmen,' not a watered down, scripted message or commercial."

The Joint Base Public Affairs office holds COVE training sessions quarterly. The next training session is set for 10 to 11:30 a.m. Dec. 5 at the Tommy B's Community Activities Center Liberty Room.

Anyone interested in attending should email the Joint Base Public Affairs Office at 87.abw.pa@us.af.mil, or call 754-2008.