ROA is a long-term investment

As I write today, many people are still reeling from the effects of Hurricane Katrina. Untold numbers of service personnel, their family members and friends arc coping or struggling to rebuild their lives. ROA members from across the world arc sharing in their despair and will keep the victims, their families and their loved ones in their prayers. Some ROA members, joined by countless others and numerous organizations, are providing physical and financial support in the continuing recovery operations.

I also wish to acknowledge those servicemembers who have been deployed and are still mobilized in that region, performing numerous tasks that arc the result of the destruction. The completion of your daily missions has meant the difference of life and future hope for hundreds of thousands of human beings. We can be sure that the braintrust of America will ensure the rebuilding process, as it has in the past.

Hurricane Katrina is not the first catastrophic event to change the course of U.S. history. Thursday, October 24, 1929--Black Tuesday--marked the beginning of the collapse of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). At the close of business that day the market registered 299.5--a 21 percent decline from the high. The resulting loss of confidence in the stock market persisted for several generations for some individuals. This reluctance to invest can retard a nation's economic growth.

However, as the years passed, countless others put their faith and life savings back into the stock market. Many reaped great financial gains; others broke even; and unfortunately many had losses ranging from small amounts to everything. Yet in spite of its performance and all the prognosticators, the stock market has remained a symbol of strength and overall financial prosperity for the United States and its investors.

Another symbol of the nation's strength--the Reserve Officers Association--had its beginnings around this time. In 1922, in Washington, D.C., 140 military men came together to hold the first Reserve Officers Association meeting with its first president, BG Henry J. Reilly. Their main speaker was GEN John J. Pershing, a principal advocate for the formation of the Reserve Officers Association. From its beginnings, ROA members have been dubbed "Twice the Citizen." More importantly, ROA has contributed to America's strength through its support of national security,, which has ensured that the United States remains a viable nation.

Since 1922, ROA has focused on the basic tenets of membership and legislation. Like the stock market, the long-term trend line on membership has zigzagged from the original 140 to 75,000-plus members, as of August 1, 2005. Its financial net worth, with its major asset located at One Constitution Avenue, has duplicated the significance of the stock market closing above 10,000. The accomplishments of its legislative agenda could have the Board of Governors who administer the NYSE seeking advice and counsel flora ROA's Board of Trustees.

ROA has had measurable success in leading the charge for a viable Reserve structure with appropriate funding for training and equipment. In the 2006 legislative year, this will be ROA's number-one legislative objective. The number-two legislative objective is adequate resources for recruiting and retention requirements.

In addition, like the stock market, ROA is in the European market through the Interallied Confederation of Reserve Officers (CIOR) and the Interallied Confederation of Medical Reserve Officers (CIOMR). Similarly, through the Union Pan Americana de Oficiales de Reserva de las Fuerzas Armadas (UPORFA), ROA is a participant in South America.

ROA--through its elected leaders, departments, chapters, and national staff--uses its human capital and financial resources in a proactive investment strategy to succeed versus depending on fate.

As with the stock market, an investment strategy of market timing does not produce the results that a long-term strategy does. Thus, members with a long-term relationship in ROA have built a portfolio whose return on investment (ROI) cannot be matched. In your ROA portfolio, there are continuous contributions to national security; a viable Reserve force structure; ROA's political capital supported by its strength in numbers and professionalism of its membership base; ROA's Defense Education Forum; scholarships for this nation's future leaders; and ROA member services and products.

ROA's market advisors include all commissioned officers from the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard, Public Health Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, as well as their spouses, supported by the Reserve Officers Association League (ROAL). These advisors have the width and breadth of knowledge, experience and savvy to continuously increase the net value of ROA's portfolio.

The bottom line is that ROA has stayed true to its charter to support a military policy that provides for an adequate national security. This has meant that ROA's investment strategy has produced unparalleled ROI results. Joining ROA and staying for the long term is one of the best decisions you can make after taking your oath as an officer to support and defend this great country, the United States of America.

MG Robert W. Smith III, USAR (Ret.) ROA National President 2005-2006

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