Veterans and Military Support (VMS) Chair:
Cynthia Limoges
Email: cglimoges@gmail.com
The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Adopt a Unit (AAU) program enables VFW Posts and Auxiliaries to have a formal connection with their local military community before, during and after deployment. All VFW departments, including Rhode Island, now have at least one military unit adopted. If your VFW post or auxiliary has already adopted a unit of the Rhode Island National Guard (RING) or a unit of another service or component, then "Well done!" If you haven't, then I would invite you to review the unit listing below and consider the adoption of one of the following RING units.
RHODE ISLAND AIR NATIONAL GUARD
The following units are part of the Air National Guard Element, Joint Force Headquarters, Rhode Island:
102nd Network Warfare Squadron
143rd Airlift Wing
- 143rd Comptroller Flight
- 143rd Maintenance Group
- 143rd Medical Group
- 143rd Mission Support Group
- 143rd Operations Group
- 281st Combat Communications Group
- 282nd Combat Communications Squadron
- Recruiting & Retention (Air)
RHODE ISLAND ARMY NATIONAL GUARD
The following units are part of the Army National Guard Element, Joint Force Headquarters, Rhode Island:
- 13th Civil Support Team
- 43rd Military Police Brigade
- Headquarters & Headquarters Company
- 118th Military Police Battalion
- Headquarters & Headquarters Detachment
- 115th Military Police Company
- 169th Military Police Company
- 1st Battalion, 103rd Field Artillery Regiment
Headquarters & Headquarters Battery
- Battery A
- Battery B
- Battery C
- 56th Troop Command
- 1st Battalion, 126th Aviation
- Company C, 1st Battalion, 143rd Infantry Regiment
- Company A, 1st Battalion, 182nd Infantry Regiment
- Company A, 2nd Battalion, 19th Special Forces Group
- 861st Engineering Company
- 88th Army Band
- 110th Public Affairs Detachment
- 243rd Regional Training Institute
Joint Force Headquarters
Medical Detachment
Recruiting & Retention
Special Operations Detachment - Global
For those not familiar with the RING, it consists of the Joint Force Headquarters (JFHQ) commanding the Air National Guard and Army National Guard elements. Many of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Department of Rhode Island (VFWRI) members are former or current members of the RING. However, VFWRI would like to see more of them become members and join our ranks of our department. One way to do this is to get to know them better by working with them and their families.
Military Assistant Program (MAP)
The VFW Military Assistance Program (MAP) funded over 2,800 morale boosting events with almost 2.1 million service members and their families since 2005. MAP grants can be used by your VFW posts to help cover food and beverage costs for military members and their families at events supporting the adopted unit. I've attached a copy of a current VFW briefing that discusses both the Adopt a Unit Program and Military Assistance Program.
Thanks for all that you are doing for our veterans and their families.
