1. HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

2. STATE AND FEDERAL OFFICES WILL BE CLOSED ON MONDAY, 17 FEBRUARY 2003, IN CELBRATION OF PRESIDENT'S DAY.

3. NATIONAL SALUTE TO HOSPITALIZED VETERANS WEEK - 9-15 FEBRUARY 2003.

4. MOBILIZING SOLDIERS: A DISPLAY OF TEAMWORK AT ITS FINEST.

5. NATIONAL GUARD SPONSORED CAR WILL START SIXTH IN THIS SUNDAY'S DAYTONA 500.

6. AIR FORCE COMMENDATION MEDAL AWARDED TO LTC DENNIS W. DEVERY OF THE NJ ARMY NATIONAL GUARD.

7. DMVA'S 'YEAR IN REVIEW' AVAILABLE ON OUR DEPARTMENT'S WEBSITE at http://www.state.nj.us/military/publications/annrpt/2002/index.html.

8. REMEMBER THE FLOPPY DISK?

9. DISTINGUISHED SERVICE MEDAL PRESENTATION CEREMONY IS SCHEDULED.

10. ARMORY HAPPENINGS - CHECK TO SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING AT AN ARMORY NEAR YOU.

11. THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY….

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1. HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY! Every February, across the country, candy, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. But who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday? The history of St. Valentines Day - and its patron saint-is shrouded in mystery. We do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine's Day contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. According to one legend, Valentine, sentenced to death by the Roman Emperor Claudius II, actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself from prison to the jailor's daughter, who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From Your Valentine,' an expression still is use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legend is murky, the stories emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and most importantly, romantic figure.

2. STATE AND FEDERAL OFFICES WILL BE CLOSED ON MONDAY, 17 FEBRUARY 2003, IN CELBRATION OF PRESIDENTS' DAY. Until 1971, both February 12 and February 22 were observed as federal public holidays to honor the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and George Washington. In 1971, President Richard Nixon proclaimed a single federal holiday, the Presidents' Day, to be observed on the 3rd Monday of February, honoring all past presidents of the United States of America.

3. NATIONAL SALUTE TO HOSPITALIZED VETERANS WEEK - 9-15 FEBRUARY 2003. The purpose of this special week is to pay tribute and express appreciation to hospitalized veterans; to increase community awareness of the role of the Veterans Administration medical centers; and to encourage citizens to visit hospitalized veterans and become involved as volunteers. More than 98,000 veterans of the United States Armed Services are cared for every day at VA medical centers, outpatient clinics, nursing homes and other facilities. To commemorate the week, USO shows were held at the three New Jersey Veterans Memorial Homes. Students from local schools entertained the residents with patriotic songs and distributed Valentine's Day cards. The Cape May County Veterans Bureau visited all of the units at Vineland on Valentine's Day. There were also special programs held to celebrate Lincoln's birthday.

4. MOBILIZING SOLDIERS: A DISPLAY OF TEAMWORK AT ITS FINEST. The 253rd Transportation Company has been called to defend our nation, and thanks to the extraordinary esprit d' corps shown by the NJ National Guard, the 253rd has successfully deployed to its mobilization station, Fort Dix, NJ. The 50th Brigade Headquarters, the Combined Support Maintenance Shop (CSMS-A) in Bordentown, and units of the 3/112th Field Artillery in Morristown and Toms River, the 1-114th Infantry in Woodbury, and the Headquarters Company of the 50th Brigade in Fort Dix, joined forces and moved 20 medium frame tents and 78 vehicles to Fort Dix, New Jersey. CSMS-A replaced the engine on a HUMMWV in less than 24 hours, and the Directorate of Personnel and Community Services (DPCS) processed the 158 soldiers from the 253rd Transportation Company. CW4 Cwieka, Family Programs Coordinator, worked closely with the unit members and their families throughout the weekend providing them with family support briefings and counseling sessions, as well as issuing dependent identification cards to members of our soldiers' families. Mobilization care packages were provided to the soldiers containing stationary, envelopes and postcards. Good luck to CPT Michael Ciarrocca, Commander of the 253rd, and his soldiers. We will keep you and your families in our prayers.

5. NATIONAL GUARD SPONSORED CAR WILL START SIXTH IN THIS SUNDAY'S DAYTONA 500. The No. 54 car driven by Todd Bodine qualified sixth in a field of 43 cars for "The Great American Race." With a snow storm heading our way this weekend, you may want to tune into this Sunday's race and cheer on the Stars and Stripes of the National Guard.

6. AIR FORCE COMMENDATION MEDAL AWARDED TO LTC DENNIS W. DEVERY OF THE NJ ARMY NATIONAL GUARD. On 8 February 2003, Major General Clark Martin presented the Air Force Commendation Medal to LTC Devery for his outstanding achievement while serving as Public Affairs Officer of the NJ National Guard. LTC Devery initiated a media plan, which resulted in media coverage of every veteran medal ceremony across the state and highlighted veterans affairs personnel in their hometown newspapers. He developed a media orientation program, which educated the New Jersey print, radio, and television media to the role and mission of the NJ National Guard. His efforts resulted in extensive, favorable coverage of the NJ National Guard and the NJ Department of Military & Veterans Affairs.

7. DMVA'S 'YEAR IN REVIEW' AVAILABLE ON OUR DEPARTMENT'S WEBSITE at http://www.state.nj.us/military/publications/annrpt/2002/index.html. Visit our website for a detailed look at the Department's 2002 activities.

8. REMEMBER THE FLOPPY DISK? Most of us started out with the old 5 ¼" floppy disk that held 360,000 bytes of information or 360 kilobytes. The next step was the 3 ½" disk that held 1,200,000 of info, or 1.2 megabytes. The choice of removable media right now is the CD at 800,000,000 bytes. Back when the 5-¼ floppy was popular, the average hard disk on a desktop computer was around 10 megabytes. The hard disk on the average desktop computer today is around 40,000,000,000 bytes or 40 gigabytes of information. The storage servers on our network today hold 2,000,000,000,000 bytes or two terabytes of information. That's over five and a half million of the old floppy disks. Securing and managing all of this information is an enormous job ably handled by the people who run our networks at Lawrenceville and Fort Dix.

9. ARMORY HAPPENINGS - CHECK TO SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING AT AN ARMORY NEAR YOU.

10. DISTINGUISHED SERVICE MEDAL PRESENTATION CEREMONY IS SCHEDULED.

11. THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY, VALENTINE'S DAY, are on the subject of Love….

Y "We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love." -- Mother Teresa
Y "At the touch of love everyone becomes a poet." -- Plato
Y "Where there is love there is life." -- Mohandas Ghandi
Y "Better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all." -- Saint Augustine
Y "What the world really needs is more love and less paper work." -- Pearl Bailey