Leadership Message (March 2022)

Hello everyone. We hope 2022 has been as active and productive for you as it has for KRDA. It is so nice to be able to gather again in person. We hope it stays that way. As you can see from our newsletter, the KRDA team has been hard at work promoting Fort Knox and working with community partners to ensure we are as supportive as possible to the soldiers and their families assigned here. We are especially mindful of supporting the V Corps families while their loved ones are in Europe supporting our NATO allies. We are so proud to be home to the Corps Headquarters that is providing command and control of Army forces in Europe – such a critical Mission.

With people being the Army’s number one priority, Fort Knox remains at the center of human capital development and management, including the Army’s largest annual training exercise – Cadet Summer Training (CST). As Col. Barnett shared at our annual meeting, thousands of ROTC cadets and cadre will begin arriving in just a couple of months for CST. Barring any change in COVID conditions and protocols, their families will be allowed to come for graduation so expect that spike in hotel and restaurant traffic we have become accustomed to each summer.

We know you’ll welcome the families coming for CST and those moving to post this summer with the same unmatched kindness and support you always have shown. Time and again at the Association of Defense Communities National Summit, senior DOD officials emphasized the critical role that defense communities outside of the gate play. Our support to Fort Knox helps make it more competitive for new opportunities and helps keep the critical missions we already have here. With nearly $1 billion in annual payroll, that makes it not only the right thing to do, but the smart thing to do for our long-term economic prosperity.

Warm Regards,

Ray and Jim