Commanding General: resiliency is key Published April 12, 2011 By Maj. Gen. William D. Razz Waff 99th Regional Support Command JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- As the Commanding General of the Army Reserve's 99th Regional Support Command, it is my duty and privilege to provide base-operations support to the Soldiers and Families living and working in my 13-state area of responsibility. Serving as a "Virtual Installation," the 99th RSC provides services such as personnel administration, finance, facilities management, logistics management, maintenance, public affairs and legal support to those who have earned these benefits both on the battlefield and on the home front. Additionally, I am honor-bound to provide for the psychological, emotional and spiritual health of the 50,000 Army Reserve Soldiers serving from Maine down the Atlantic coast thru Virginia. This holistic approach to Soldier fitness is necessitated by the fact that our nation has been fighting a war in two major theaters for nearly a decade, and this protracted state of conflict has undeniably taken its toll on our warfighters and their families. Since September 11, 2001, nearly 200,000 Army Reserve Soldiers have been mobilized or deployed for contingency operations around the globe, and we owe the best care possible to these heroes who have fought so valiantly to defend our freedoms. One of the keys to total Soldier fitness is building RESILIENCY, which is the ability to "bounce back" from adversity. All of us have some innate level of resiliency that can be strengthened through training, experience, and relationship building. A resilient Soldier is not only better equipped handle all the stressors of military service, but will also make a better citizen, civilian employee, and - perhaps most importantly of all - a better parent, spouse, and/or sibling. To this end, the 99th RSC hosts two ongoing series of events designed to build resiliency in our Soldiers and family members while simultaneously caring for their needs. The first is the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program, whose two-day weekend events provide redeploying Soldiers and their Family members with the resources, services and benefits they need to re-establish their lives together after prolonged separations due to deployments. These events offer Soldiers and Family members classes on sexual-assault prevention, resiliency, pay and finances, at-risk behavior, suicide awareness and prevention, substance abuse awareness, post-traumatic stress and combat-related stress, personnel policies, legal matters, post-deployment health assessments, and other services designed to help the returning Soldier reintegrate into his family and society. The other ongoing program hosted by the 99th RSC is the Army Strong Bonds Program, which offers chaplain-led weekend retreats for Soldiers and their Families that help them strengthen their relationships while offering training in communication, intimacy, conflict management and other topics relevant to bringing the Soldier closer to his or her Family. Strong Bonds events ultimately produce stronger, more resilient Soldiers, which leads to better retention rates, improved unit readiness and heightened mission success. Besides these positive military statistics, we owe this service to our Soldiers and Family members simply because it is the right thing to do. Finally, while the Army Reserve is changing the way it meets Soldiers' and Families' needs by taking the holistic approach to Soldier fitness described above, it remains every Soldier's and leader's duty to take care of his or her brothers- and sisters-in-arms at the platoon, squad and individual level. It is my sincere belief that seeking help is not a sign of weakness, but rather a mark of personal strength and character, and for every Soldier who musters up the personal courage to come forward and ask for help, I promise that individual will be treated with the dignity, honor and respect he or she deserves. Dauntless!