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In addition to the honor of
serving your country once again in uniform, members of the American
Volunteer Reserve receive important training, as well as opportunities
for advancement in AVR military rank, awards and decorations and
assignments in leadership positions.
Our Organization
The American Volunteer
Reserve (AVR), with national headquarters in Southern California, is a
military and veterans service and support organization. Our members are
retired and former officers and NCOs of all branches of the armed
forces, as well as non-prior-service patriotic citizens - men and women
- possessing special skills that contribute to mission fulfillment.
We operate along a
traditional military cadre structure. At present, AVR is comprised of
more that 4,150 volunteers. We have some 550 trained and uniformed
regularly-drilling volunteer reservists who make up our Headquarters
elements, Honors Detachments, Communications Detachments, Medical
Companies and General Support Battalions. We have an additional 3,600
members who serve in our "Regiment of Patriots" and support military
funeral honors on an "as needed" basis. AVR troops are regularly
detailed for local, regional and national military and veterans
commemorations, parades and color guard duties.
Established AVR units
operate in twenty-eight states, as well as the Commonwealth of Puerto
Rico. Task forces or individual members in the process of developing
units represent us in all fifty states. In terms of the history of our
volunteer military support to local communities, one of our units has
been doing such duty for more than a decade.
Our organization has two
general officers, both of whom hold one-star rank and have had long and
distinguished military careers. Governors have officially and formally
commissioned them in their roles as commanders-in-chief of their
respective military departments and/or state defense forces.
AVR volunteer soldiers wear
uniforms that are modified much as the various state defense forces, the
Civil Air Patrol and the Coast Guard Auxiliary. We have distinctive
shoulder sleeve insignia, cap devices, buttons, lapel brass, headgear,
nametags and BDU organizational nametapes. This allows for immediate
recognition of the fact that we are not federal military personnel.
Officers and NCOs of the AVR
train in a variety of skill areas to support the communities in which
they reside. AVR members serve without pay. They also purchase their
uniforms and necessary equipment. As noted earlier, our members possess
multiple critical skills that can serve our communities, our states and
our nation in time of both natural and man-made disasters.
The AVR is a not-for-profit
public benefit corporation and has been granted 501(c)(3) status by the
Internal Revenue Service.
Visit our Member-Interactive
Website.
Nearly 1900 U.S. veterans
pass away each day. Due to increasing military call-ups for the war on
terrorism and other major-focus duties, active duty and reserve
component troops are unable to fulfill all the requests for military
burial. This is when members of the American Volunteer Reserve step in
to help fulfill this important duty.
Our military funeral honors
are conducted in strict accordance with current military protocol, and
provide the honors that our veterans have earned and have the right to
expect.
For more information please
contact:
Major
Steve Starnes
7th Texas Honors & Homeland Security Detachment
P.O. Box 195
Lindsay, TX 76250
(940) 665-4714
steve@kiowaonline.net
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