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Lorraine Holland

President’s Message – May 2025

Presidents Message / By

President’s Message

It is with great pride I announce that our 2025 JROTC Scholarship Selection Board chose 8 of the finest cadets in Central Florida! We are now up to 37 JROTC High Schools in our catchment area. Without the generosity of our chapter members to contribute to our scholarship fund, our ability to issue a check for $1,000 to each cadet would not be possible. I thank you for seeing the goodness of our program and supporting the future leaders of our military! I would be remiss if I didn’t thank members of our chapter for making our scholarship program a reality on April 12th: LTC Dean Ptaszynski, COL Kin La Fate, LTC Mike and Vicki Gillett, CDR Randy Fiebrandt and our photographer Nita Seng. I hope you take the time to read the attached bios of each of the 8 cadets. We honored the cadets, their family and cadre on April 12th with a luncheon, and each year I remind myself that this is the most celebrated luncheon of the year with our members. I want to also thank COL Bob Brogan for overseeing and keeping track of the MOAA JROTC Leadership Medal program with our 37 JROTC High Schools (no easy task to keep up with). Several of our chapter members continue to present the MOAA medal to the Junior Cadets, and it’s always exciting to see the delight on the cadets faces as they cheer on their fellow cadets!

This Memorial Day on the 26th day of May, it’s up to all of us to honor the legacy and memory of our fallen noble heroes who we memorialize on what makes our nation exceptionally extraordinary, For some of us, every day is Memorial Day as we accept the deaths of those we know who gave their lives for love of country and democracy we so cherish. We look upon them as our own beloved sons and daughters knowing their patriotic sacrifices live on through safeguarding their memories by future generations to come. President Reagan reminded us that “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.”

I want to welcome CPT’s Ashley and Stephen Orf who joined our MOAA family (both West Point graduates). Ashley is active in the veteran community as the VFW Auxiliary Senior Vice President of Winter Springs Post 5405. We all send her and Stephen our best wishes to welcome their first bundle of joy this September (their baby will be our newest Honorary MOAA family member).

I encourage you to attend our May 13th Chapter Luncheon to help celebrate LT Ted Goodwin and COL Carol Reagles 95th May birthdays and hear informative information from our Central Florida Quilts of Valor representative Valerie Philon, who will honor Ted and Carol with a Quilt of Valor to thank them and honor them for their years of service. For those of you that will be taking vacations during the upcoming months, please make memorable memories, and safe travels on your journeys!
Cheers, Lorraine

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Surviving Spouse Pat Green

Surviving Spouse Corner – March 2025

Surviving Spouse / By

MENTAL PROWESS AND CHALLENGES
By Pat Green
Most of us have noticed a mental decline in a close friend or family member. This person is not as sharp, witty or speedy as they once were. We may wonder if we also seem so, to others.
Mental decline is not just a phenom of aging. Some as young as 40 speculate about this topic. Stress, emotions, and poor diet and sleep reduce cognitive skills, and affect all ages.
If you have had a stroke, a brain injury, or if you are concerned about a perceived mental decline, speak to your family doctor. If the doctor recognizes an issue, a Neurologist can provide a detailed cognitive skills evaluation.
Physical health and emotional health correlate with mental health. If you are consumed with grief or anxiety or dealing with a disease, deal with that first. If serious grieving extends more than two years, seek some grief counseling for help. Complicated grief is seen in 9% of widows in the 60-75 age range. A smaller percentage of men are affected.
If you want to improve your mental skills, there are some mental Strengthening Exercises that can be built into daily activities. Even a schedule of exercises a few times a day result in improvement. When you are ready, try the mental gymnastics below:

RECALL: Practice memorizing names, phone numbers, vocabulary words, MLB standings, NCAA March Madness lineups, or TV program schedules. Look at a magazine photo for a few seconds, close your eyes and try to recall items in the photo.

ANALYSIS: Read a newspaper article. Set it aside, then try to write a recap or summary of the article. Try to remember the “who, what, when, where, and why”.

SPATIAL: Rearrange a linen closet, pantry or garage. Look for the most pragmatic and yet economical use of space. Do the same exercise with drawers in kitchen, bed, or bath. While you’re at it, set aside some donation items and throw out expired items.

SOCIAL: Have a conversation every day. If you live alone, this may be a challenge. Practice small talk at the checkout line of stores. Initiate a phone call or an invitation. This is a must. Accept any invitations you receive. Try to remember a joke you can tell at your next social event.

FOCUS: Stay focused on whatever activity you are engaged. It may be a conversation, gardening, dancing, chores or workouts at the gym. Focus on listening, strength, the number of repetitions, muscles involved, posture, and breathing. Be in one with your thoughts. Meditation and prayer are very good options of mental focus.

FUN and GAMES: This can be all manner of social get-togethers. But there are some good solitary options.
Spatial: Jig saw puzzles provide color and form discernment. Manipulation of the pieces is also good hand-eye coordination practice.
Analysis: Sudoku uses number grids, but it is not a math game. It is a logic exercise. Start with easy grids and progress to expert status.
Recall: Using computer sites, you can play Bridge, Gin Rummy, or Hearts with robots. These games require a memory of cards played and the counted.
Once your skills have improved, socialize and play games with others and remember to have FUN!

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MOAA Florida Council of Chapters

Florida Council of Chapters Communique’

Communique' / By

The February Edition of the MOAA Florida Council Communiqué is available on the Council Website (www.flmoaa.org). The Council Communiqué has items of interest including our Legislative Advocacy efforts, activities of the State’s 39 Chapters, and much more. The Communiqué is published on the even numbered months (February, April, June, August, October, and December) to keep Florida MOAA members updated and engaged on events. There is usually a topical quiz on various issues. (The first one to tell me the January answer at the next luncheon gets a prize). Randy

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MOAA CFC Board President

President’s Message – March 2025

Presidents Message / By

President’s Message
With all the delightful warm weather we are having, the new green buds on our trees lets us know that Spring has Sprung! Luckily, we are turning our clocks forward on March 9th to give us an extra hour of sunshine for all the new growth that is occurring. I’m wishing you all the luck of the Irish on St. Patricks’ Day on March 17th, and don’t forget to “Welcome Home” our Vietnam Veterans on their special day on March 29th. Mark your calendar for March 11th as we are having our monthly luncheon with special guest speaker Brittany Parks, the Strategic Director for Concerned Veterans for America (CVA). CVA has been a supporter of our MOAA Florida Council of Chapter (FCoC) and our organizations have much to learn from each other. I went into their website www.cv4a.org and discovered both MOAA and CVA are supporting the ACCESS Act (Assuring Critical Care Expansions to Support Servicemembers) to expand veterans’ community care options. Like MOAA, the CVA website makes it very easy for anyone to sign a prepared letter that is sent to our federal legislators in support of veteran legislation. If it’s been a while since you’ve attended one of our Chapter luncheons, please reserve April 12nd (our only Saturday luncheon) to come out and celebrate our JROTC Scholarship recipients, their family and cadre. This is my favorite luncheon event as it’s an opportunity to showcase our future military leaders and recognize them with the generous financial donations from our chapter members for their achievements. Lastly, I know there are chapter members who don’t always come to our luncheons and thus may not get a reminder that the $20 dues we each pay to support our chapter are now overdue. We rely on the dues to help pay for items such as meals for our guest speakers, and medals for our JROTC/ROTC cadets. Please note that we have changed our mailing address for our Chapter: MOAA CFC, 10151 University Blvd, PMB 145, Orlando, Fl. 32817-1904. You will see the form at the end of Our Newsletter or go to this website to pay your dues online using the donation button at the top of every page and put dues in the description. We need your support, and while you are at it, please update your information (especially your spouse) so we can keep in touch! For those celebrating Easter, I wish each of you a joyous Easter celebration in April!
Cheers, Lorraine

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Chaplain's Corner

Chaplain’s Corner

Chaplain's Corner / By

By Tom Love

Thanksgiving

The times are tough for many people. Unrest seems to be rocking the world. Families are
Fanning Island during one of Randy’s “cruises” separated by miles and around the Thanksgiving table and there may be a vacant seat. This is certainly true of our men and women deployed around the globe. Can we still offer thanks to God even though we are so far apart? I believe we most certainly can. In fact, as children of God, we must do so no matter what.

“Praise the Lord! O give thanks to the Lord for He is good; His steadfast love endures forever!”

Just consider how people of God responded with thanksgiving in the past. The first American Thanksgiving Day was celebrated within sight of the forty graves in the Plymouth cemetery, while fifty-five survivors of the original band of Pilgrim exiles gathered to praise God even after the epidemic and deaths of the first crushing twelve month period.

Despite the separation from loved ones, despite the setbacks, despite the hardships we face, each and every one of us still has plenty in life for which to thank God. We can have a blessed Thanksgiving as we take the time to give thanks and as we take time to remember our loved ones in prayer. We have so much to be thankful for.

“Now thanks we all our God, with heart and hands and voices, who wondrous things has done, in whom the world rejoices.

Who, from our mother’s arms, has blessed us on our way, with countless gifts of love, and still is ours today.”

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Lorraine Holland

Veterans Day Matters

Presidents Message / By

Veterans Day Matters to Central Florida, and you will find plenty of dates below to attend an event to honor our Veterans. It’s a busy time of year as we gear up for the November month of activities surrounding this annual day of honoring our Nation’s Veterans. I will be proudly representing our MOAA Chapter at several functions, and I encourage you to participate in Veterans Day activities in your respective areas to honor those who have honorably and selflessly served. I know many of our members are very active in their veteran community and we would like to hear your stories at our November 12th luncheon!
This Focus newsletter covers both November and December, and I would be remiss if I didn’t wish all of you a wonderful day with family and friends on Thanksgiving, and a Merry Christmas full of magical festivities with your loved ones! Let’s not forget that as our world is swirling in unrest overseas, we have deployed military personnel stationed in harm’s way. Please keep our brave men and women in your thoughts and prayers, as they are the reason we have a peaceful and safe home in America. For our November 12th Luncheon, we are very fortunate to have our own CDR (ret) US Coast Guard Randy Fiebrandt as our guest speaker. After retirement, he worked in the cruise industry for 13 years. Randy will briefly discuss the cruise industry, note how cruise ships operate and many of the environmental issues they face, and for all you cruisers out there, he can answer all your “behind the scenes” questions.
It’s that time of year again when we need to review our Board of Directors and Chapter Leadership. Like any successful organization, we need new eyes and ears to help steer us into the future to keep our Chapter alive and vibrant. Please make yourself known at the November and December Chapter events so we can put your name forward to fill Chapter positions of leadership. I’m looking forward to seeing you at our luncheon on November 12th!

Cheers …. Lorraine

Next MOAA CFC Event November 12th @ 11:30 am $24 per person Our next Chapter meeting is a luncheon on November 14 at 11:30 am and will be held at the DoubleTree Orlando East – UCF Area. The DoubleTree is located at 12125 High Tech Ave, Orlando. Please note the hotel sits back off the road and may not be immediately visible. The price is $24 per person, and we accept cash, checks, credit/debit cards. Are you curious about taking a cruise or wonder what goes on behind the scenes to keep the cruise lines running smoothly? We are very fortunate to have our own CDR (ret) USCG Randy Fiebrandt as our guest speaker. Randy’s topics include his unique experiences serving 22 years in the Coast Guard, and his 13+ years employment with 2 different Cruise Lines. Please see a short bio below. The DoubleTree is serving Chicken Franchise, Parmesan Orzo, and Flavorful Broccoli. Dessert will be the Chef’s Choice and a warm Doubletree Cookie. RSVP NLT November 8th to this email, or email lorraineholland@hotmail.com or call 407-221-1388. Please come out to enjoy a wonderful event with your fellow chapter members!
Save the Date – Next month’s luncheon will be held on December 10th at 11:30am. Our Christmas luncheon will include a special briefing by recently “retired retired” from both active duty and as the Senior Air Force JROTC Instructor at West Orange High School (Winter Garden) COL US Air Force Sandy Rhoades. Learn the ins & outs on what it takes to mold our high school students to prepare them for active service or become better citizens if they choose to go that route.

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