AUSA’s Army Matters Podcast

How hard is it to turn a hobby into a successful business? Former Army Captain Kevin Ryan decided that rather than look for a new job he’d create one – and realized he wanted to turn his home brewing hobby into a real-life business. Host Sergeant Major of the Army (retired) Dan Dailey sits down for a drink (or two) with Kevin at Service Brewing in Savannah, GA to discuss Kevin’s Army career, the ins-and-outs of the brewery business, and most importantly… what his top beer is.  
Guest: Kevin Ryan, former U.S. Army Captain and CEO & Co-Founder, Service Brewing, Co. 
Host: SMA (Ret) Daniel Dailey, AUSA’s Vice President for NCO and Soldier Programs 
 
Resources: 
AUSA’s NCO & Soldier Programs Web: https://www.ausa.org/programs/nco-and-soldiers Twitter (Dailey): @15thSMA  
Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org. 

Of the countless heroes from World War II, four men in particular inspired acclaimed author Alex Kershaw (The Liberator) to devote years researching their lives and tales of survival. Host Joe Craig talks to Alex about his book Against All Odds: A True Story of Ultimate Courage and Survival in World War II, the men he chose to profile, the overwhelming obstacles they had to overcome, and how one fights Nazis from a burning tank destroyer. Check out the resource section below for more book details.
 
Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org. 
 
Guest: Alex Kershaw, author of Against All Odds: A True Story of Ultimate Courage and Survival in World War II
 
Host: Joe Craig, AUSA’s Book Program Director
 
Resources: 
 
Penguin Random House: 
Against All Odds: A True Story of Ultimate Courage and Survival in World War II
 
 
Podcast Credits
 
Narrator: CSM (Ret.) Troy Welch, AUSA’s Director, NCO & Soldier Programs
 
Kershaw, Alex. “Chapter 1.” Essay. In Against All Odds: A True Story of Ultimate Courage and Survival in World War II. New York: Random House Large Print, 2022.
 

Did you know that Elmo’s parents are in the National Guard? For the last fifteen years Sesame Street have been running a program for Military Families giving over 750,000 military children videos and resources they can use to understand their world. Sabrina Huda of Sesame Workshop chats with Family Voices host, Thea Green, to discuss her own unconventional journey to Sesame Street, what resources Sesame Street for Military Families (SS4MF) provides, and what Elmo, Rosita, and Big Bird are like in real life. To learn more please check out their website linked in the resource section below. 
 
 Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.
 
Guest: Sabrina Huda, Project Director, Sesame Workshop
 
Host: Thea Green, AUSA’s Deputy Director for Family Readiness
 
Resources: 
Sesame Street for Military Families (SS4MF) 
Website: https://sesamestreetformilitaryfamilies.org/
Sesame Street in Communities
Website: https://sesamestreetincommunities.org/
 
Social Media Handles:
Sesame Street for Military Families
Facebook: @SesameStreetForMilitaryFamilies
Sesame Street in Communities
Facebook: @SesameStreetInCommunities
Twitter: @SesameCommunity
Music Credits:
Sesame Street for Military Families, “Coming Back| Temporary Duty,”22 September 2021, video, 3:10, https://youtu.be/9MQTswkpaPg.  

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is the envy of governments and militaries around the world, a group in which officers and civilian engineers work hand-in-hand. Major General Diana Holland, the Commanding General of the Corps’ Mississippi Valley Division, shares with host Colonel Scott Halstead leadership skills learned from her time with the Corps, insights she received from students at West Point and lessons from a legendary college basketball coach.
Guest: MG Diana M. Holland, Commanding General, Mississippi Valley Division, United States Army Corps of Engineers (bio)
Host: COL (Ret) Scott Halstead, Director of AUSA’s Center for Leadership
 
Resources:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Mississippi Valley DivisionWeb: https://www.mvd.usace.army.mil/
 
Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

Have you heard about the new Enterprise Exceptional Family Member Program System? LTG Evans joins us to share the program details and Army's Quality of Life initiatives updates. Learn about Morale, Welfare and Recreation programs; Child, Youth and School Services; and the new Enterprise Exceptional Family Member Program (E-EFMP) system, which automates enrollment in the program and allows Soldiers and Families to track enrollment their entire career. For more information, check out the resource section below.
 
Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org. 
 
Guest: LTG Jason Evans, Deputy Chief of Staff, G-9 Installations
 
Hosts: 
Holly Dailey, AUSA’s Director for Family Readiness
SMA (Ret) Daniel Dailey, AUSA’s Vice President for NCO and Soldier Programs 
  
Resources: 
 
G-9 Installations
Web: https://dcsg9.army.mil
 
 
Social Media Handles:
Twitter: @dcs_g9
Twitter: @USArmyHousingFacebook: @USArmyHousing
Facebook: @soldierandfamilyreadiness 
  

How difficult is it to transition from the Army to entrepreneurship? Former Army Command Sergeants Major Marissa and Thomas Capel found an opportunity in baked goods and have subsequently seen their prospects rise. They share their story, insights into the pros-and-cons of owning a franchise, and lessons they learned from their years of service. This is the first of a Soldier Today summer series on veteran entrepreneurs led by Sergeant Major of the Army (retired) Dan Dailey.
Guests:
CSM (Ret) Marissa Capel, Franchise Co-Owner, Nothing Bundt Cakes
CSM (Ret) Thomas Capel, Franchise Co-Owner, Nothing Bundt Cakes
Hosts:
SMA (Ret) Daniel Dailey, AUSA’s Vice President for NCO and Soldier Programs
CSM (Ret) Troy Welch, AUSA’s Director for NCO and Soldier Programs
Resources:
AUSA’s NCO & Soldier ProgramsWeb: https://www.ausa.org/programs/nco-and-soldiersTwitter (Dailey): @15thSMA
Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

Are codes the key to victory on the battlefield? In the build-up to World War I Colonel Parker Hitt recognized the Army’s non-existent cryptology methods could lead to countless deaths and created an entirely new system, laying a foundation that exists to this day. Host Joe Craig chats with Betsy Rohaly Smoot, the author of the new biography Parker Hitt: The Father of American Cryptology, to unlock the secrets of the man and his methods.
Guest: Betsy Rohaly Smoot, Author, Parker Hitt: The Father of American Military Cryptology
Host: Joe Craig, AUSA’s Book Program Director
Resources:
University Press of Kentucky:Parker Hitt: The Father of American Military Cryptology
 
Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

"...If you live without passion, you can go through life without leaving any footprints." - Betty White. Hear how 3 Army spouses are leaving their footprints through their passion for music. Heidi Ackerman and Deidra Lee Stubbs, members of the American Military Spouses Choir share how music has connected military families and brought healing and happiness through their choral performances. Victoria McAdoo wraps up the episode sharing her experience writing Lima Oscar Victor Echo with Operation Song and her inspiration behind the song. To learn more please check out their websites linked in the resource section below. 
 
Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org. 
 
Host: Holly Dailey, AUSA’s Director of Family Readiness
 
Guests: 
Maria McConville, Spouse of the Chief of Staff of the Army
Alexandra Grinston, Spouse of the Sergeant Major of the Army
Heidi Ackerman, American Military Spouses Choir Director
Deidra Lee Stubbs, American Military Spouses Choir Member
Victoria McAdoo, Lima Oscar Victor Echo Songwriter 
 
Resources: 
 
Center for American Military Music and Opportunities (CAMMO)
Website: https://www.cammomusic.org/
 
Operation Song
Website: https://www.operationsong.org/
 
 
Social Media Platforms:
 
Center for American Military Music and Opportunities (CAMMO)
Twitter: @cammo_music 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cammomusic/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cammomusic
 
American Military Spouse Choir (AMSC)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/americanmilitaryspouseschoir/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmericanMilitarySpousesChoir
 
Operation Song
Twitter: @operationsong
Instagram: @operationsong
Facebook: @OperationSong
 
 
Music Credits:
 
American Military Spouses Choir, “Fleet Week Follies: Digital Edition,” Bitta Mostofi, Anna Chlumsky, Waterwell Productions, Inc., 23 May 2020, New York City, video, 7:29, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkCGUKx0N8s.
 
Dell Ramsdell, vocalist, Victoria Vanderberg and Cindy Morgan, writers, “Lima Oscar Victor Echo (LOVE),” Operation Song, 2020, music video, 3:08, https://subsplash.com/operationsong/media/mi/+ssrhdz4.

“I landed and just heard my leg go pop.” – 1LT Maggie Gleason describing her painful landing after jumping from an airplane during Army Ranger training. She joins AUSA’s Scott Halstead to talk about her leadership journey, including her story of perseverance in earning her Ranger tab despite being injured.
Guest: 1LT Maggie Gleason, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, United States Army
Host: COL (Ret) Scott Halstead, Director of AUSA’s Center for Leadership
Resources:
2nd Cavalry Regiment, United States ArmyWeb: https://www.2cr.army.mil/
Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

What’s new with the SMA? Today, SMA(R) Dailey interviews SMA Grinston about the things he is doing to implement our Army senior leaders’ vision, shape the culture of the Army and give us an overall update on how our Army is doing.
Guest: SMA Michael Grinston, 16th SMA
Host: SMA (Ret) Daniel Dailey, AUSA’s Vice President for NCO and Soldier Programs
 
Resources:
Pentagon, HQDATwitter (Grinston): @16thSMASuicide Prevention Lifeline: https://t.co/limoaNq8HT
AUSA’s NCO & Soldier ProgramsWeb: https://www.ausa.org/programs/nco-and-soldiersTwitter (Dailey): @15thSMA
Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.