by Karl Alvarez ‘84

On March 31st, I had the honor to represent ZoomU and Blue Alliance at the Inaugural KnightsOut Dinner at West Point. Conceived at our Blue Alliance Celebration in November 2011, the dinner was WoopU’s first opportunity to ‘come out’ on campus. The event hosted about 95 people with almost 35 cadets in attendance. Andrew Fitsimmons and Nate Gooden who attended our Blue Alliance Celebration were in attendance.

The dinner was like our first event: a very formal, military affair. 1LT Chris Antal, an Army Reserve chaplain, opened with a remarkable prayer that addressed every challenge to LGBT integration in the Army and at West Point. Lieutenant Antal’s parish, a Unitarian Universalist congregation close to the Academy, made a large contribution to KnightsOut and donated the evenings ‘take away’ in the form of a small book [looks a LOT like my ’84 Contrails] called “Bless All Who Serve.” Each copy of the book was personally dedicated to its recipient by Lt. Antal. Late in the evening, Chris mentioned that each cadet in attendance had taken a book and he wanted to send a copy to our cadets. I, therefore, traveled home with three copies for our graduating Firsties.

KnightsOut had four cadets and a cadet candidate speak about life at the Academy after repeal of DADT. There are significant regulatory obstacles to interactions between cadets and preppies at West Point. The Prep School recently moved onto the campus. The presentation of a cadet candidate marked a significant tide-change in the discussion of LGBQ members at the Military Academy.

I had the additional honor of being placed at the same table as Aubrey Sarvis, the outgoing Executive Director of Servicemembers’ Legal Defense Network (SLDN). Andrew Fitzsimmons was also at our table and provided a unique perspective on cadet life. The evening was built around the presentation of an important award to Jonathan Hopkins, USMA ’02, who was discharged under DADT but continued to assist DoD in implementation of repeal. John was highly decorated and has been one of the many faces of DADT in the media. A straight-ally, classmate of John’s detailed the character and leadership that John Hopkins brought to every unit in which he worked. The award itself was “a big cadet head” which was completely lost on this Zoomie so familiar with awards being in the shape of elegant birds.

Lessons I learned at WoopU: 1) We did a good thing in November with our dinner of historic significance, 2) Cadets have more interesting things to say than most of us, 3) We’d be well-served to attract national LGBT leaders to future dinners, 4) Blue is prettier than gray and less draining on my happy-meter, and 5) KnightsOut and Blue Alliance must work, in conjunction with USNA Out and groups from Coast Guard and Merchant Marine, to identify and celebrate our common values and missions. Our support of our cadets can only benefit from this cross-feed of goodwill and bonhomie

Col Gary Packard
USAFA Behavioral Sciences Department Head

Abstract: The 1950 guidebook for military officers titled “The Armed Forces
Officer” states “the nature of loyalty requires that (the commissioned
officer) will use his force toward the righting of those things which reason
convinces him are going wrong.” How does one “right the wrongs” without
compromising one’s Oath? Col. Gary Packard will share his personal
journey, experiences as a writer on the DoD study of the DADT repeal, to
include a summary of the process and major findings, and lessons he
learned along the way to walk the walk on difficult social issues with
integrity.
The views expressed above are those of the author and do not necessarily
represent the policy of the United States Air Force Academy or any other
government agency.
Featured presenter: Col. Gary Packard, Permanent Professor and Head of
the Department of Behavioral Sciences & Leadership at the USAFA. A
USAFA graduate, he has served our nation in the Air Force for close to 30
years, over ten years of that as an instructor at the Academy. Col Packard
will present on this topic for about 45 min, as he has done at various
campuses. There should be close to an hour for Q&A with the audience.
Sponsors: PFLAG Colorado Springs is the organizing sponsor. Other local
co-sponsors include the Colorado College Chaplains’ Office, The Pride
Center, The Diversity Forum, Citizens Project, and the Blue Alliance.
PFLAG point of contact: Bill Oliver, gnarlybill@hotmail.com

by Steven M. Samuels & Col. Gary A. Packard
AF Times, 6 Feb 2012, p. 24
Despite strong opposition that integration would harm military effectiveness, President Truman mandated the end of military segregation in 1948. When skeptical soldiers in Korea were forced to fight in integrated units, they discovered that with the bullets flying, what mattered was one’s ability to shoot straight; not one’s race.
“Don’t ask, don’t tell” was based on an argument similar to segregation: gay men and lesbians would reduce cohesion and effectiveness in military units. This decision was made primarily on personal convictions rather than evidence that showed actual negative impact. In 2010, the Defense Department rigorously studied the impact of repeal, concluding that, “the U.S. military can make this change, even in this time of war.”

Col Gary Packard
USAFA Behavioral Sciences Department Head

We all come into organizations with our own preconceptions born of our own provincialisms. Through interaction with diverse people, we break down our prejudices as we learn more about our teammates and become stronger as a unit. The data from the 2010 DoD study indicated that service members who believed there were no gay men or lesbians in their units were the most likely to view repeal negatively.
History and social science research inform us that as we get to know lesbian and gay service members, stereotypes will fade, even for those with honest personal disagreements about homosexuality. Thus, while the negative impact of DADT on gay men and lesbians was glaringly apparent, the impact on straight people was real but less obvious. For many straight people, the ability to truly get to know the gay men and lesbians in their units was stifled by the secrecy mandated by DADT.
Our Oath of Office demands that we support our nation’s laws; thus, under repeal, toleration is the minimum behavioral expectation of every service member.

Dr. Steve Samuels
USAFA Behavioral Sciences Faculty

However, military strength is not built on toleration. Strength requires acceptance and, ultimately, respect and inclusiveness for all who volunteer to serve. We must value our colleagues for who they are and not who we want them to be. In a healthy unit, a gay, agnostic man respects the dignity of the straight, evangelical woman, and she does the same. Through respect we discover, like soldiers in Korea, that with the bullets flying, what matters is training and ability, not the gender of one’s partner waiting at home.
Re-examining our relationships is difficult because we all fear that change will come at the cost of our own identity and personal beliefs. This fear is normal, and it occurred with both racial and gender integration. However, in both cases, we became stronger as a military despite early anxieties.
We believe repeal has challenged us to take a risk and honestly confront our fear of change.
Those who have genuinely entered this journey will walk toward a truer integrity and a more honest ability to value our peers and serve our nation. We are better servants to the nation as a result of our personal struggles with diversity, and we look forward to others joining us on the journey.
Steven M. Samuels, Ph.D. and Col. Gary A. Packard, Jr., Ph.D. are professors in the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Col. Packard is Permanent Professor and Head of the Department and served as a writer on the Department of Defense’s Report of the Issues Associated with a Repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Dr. Samuels has served on the Academy’s faculty since 1993 and is published in the areas of diversity and privilege. He served as an advisor and subject matter expert on the DoD study.
The views expressed above are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the policy of the United States Air Force Academy or any other government agency.

Tricia Heller '87

Blue Alliance is proud to welcome Tricia Heller as our new Executive Director. We are excited about the direction of Blue Alliance for the coming year, and thankful for Trish's leadership.

Service Before Self: These Lines Across My Face
"The Story" by Brandi Carlile starts,

"all of these lines across my face,
tell you the story of who I am,
so many stories of where I've been,
and how I got to where I am,
but these stories don't mean anything when you've got no one to tell them to . . ."

These lines resonate with me as I consider my story from the Academy and career in the Air Force. The lines in my face do show the pride, the joy, the fraternity and the sense of accomplishment in a mission complete. But the lines also show the hurt, the intense stress, the sadness and the sorrow. The dichotomy of being a good cadet, officer, pilot, leader and person was always in conflict with the policy that could never let me be COMPLETE in the Air Force.

I served my country for over 16 years trying to embody the core values of the Air Force every day - integrity, service before self and excellence in all that I did. It truly was service before self though, because in the end I saw that a policy ultimately comprimised the very essence of who I was. In the end I had to have integrity with myself every day, because I was truly proud of who I was and who I loved and all of what we represented and offered our community and country.

I'm truly grateful and proud of my Academy and Air Force roots - it made for the best lines across my face - as it gave me my professional foundation and more important my best friend and life-long partner Regina. And now the lines show the smile across my face as the circle and mission is complete because everyone can serve with integrity and excellence in all they do and all of who they are.

Tricia A. Heller | USAFA Class of 1987

Greg Mooneyham '87

When I graduated in 1987, I literally looked at USAFA in my rear view
mirror as I drove away and was relieved that I did not have to go back. I
had 60 days leave and the pressure would be off until UPT. Little did I
know that UPT and my career as a pilot would present even greater
challenges and pressures. USAFA prepared me well to meet those days
ahead. But there was always one thing that nothing could prepare me for
and one thing that was my burden to bear alone. I was a gay cadet, I was
a gay officer, and I was a gay Fighter Pilot. The enormous pressure to
conform, to hide my true self and to always be just a little separated from
my fellow cadets, officers, and fighter pilots was the greatest pressure of
all. It was the main factor in my decision to leave the service that I truly
loved.

Years after looking at USAFA in my rear view mirror, I returned. I have
now come back many times and I have the same experience each time. In
spite of the separation I felt from my fellow service members, I never felt
separated from this place. I feel a deep connection here that I find hard
to explain. The changes that this school made in me were profound. In
many ways I feel as if I was born here. No Air Force policy and no
amount of bigotry or hatred could change that. I belonged because I met
the same challenges as all others. When I returned for my 20 year
reunion, I was honest with my classmates for the first time about who I
really was and it was liberating.
So, only one thing for me was missing. Full acceptance for all LGBT
military personnel would finally allow all to serve with integrity and
excellence in all that they do. When that day finally came, things
changed. It may be too late for me to serve again but finally I no longer
feel that separation from my fellow cadets, officers, and fighter pilots. I
feel welcome here at Doolittle Hall. I walk the paths outside and weep
for those that have fallen. I paint my face blue and cheer for the Falcons.
These mountains, these buildings, these memorials, and these
monuments always welcomed me back. And now finally the Air Force
welcomes me back too.
Greg Mooneyham | USAFA Class of 1987

Blue Alliance,

Board Member Karl Alvarez, Dr Villa and Sue Fulton
with cadets and member of Blue Alliance

Our annual dinner and Board meeting was held in Colorado Springs over the November 4th weekend. The Board and I came away from this event more excited and energized than ever. I wanted to give you guys the highlights and let you know where we are headed for next year.

We held our Board meeting on Friday night at the Marriott. The entire Board was present along with other guests. The Executive VP of the AOG, Mr Gary Howe was there to talk with us about our newly minted affinity status and how the AOG could be supportive of our organization. One of our long term allies, Mr. Steve Samuels from the Behavioral Sciences Dept also came to talk with us about the upcoming NCLS (National Character and Leadership Symposium) conference in February. He has been working to get a LGBT panel added to the Symposium and asked if we could participate. More to follow as this great opportunity develops. Steve Hall, the executive director from USNA Out also attended and offered his experience to help us with our future direction. You can see his writeup about the weekend on the website. Finally, Kevin Highfield '87 came to be interviewed and was elected as our newest Board member!

Overall the Board meeting lasted an astonishing 5 and a half hours. But so much was accomplished as we look to the work to be done in the New Year. We are establishing several new committees to address a host of new issues. I will detail those at the end of this message. We are looking for members who are willing to help out with the new committees. This is important and exciting work and we are looking forward to our best year ever in 2012.

Blue Alliance's First Ever Offical Tailgate
Looking forward to more tailgates all next season!

The next morning we all met again at the first ever Blue Alliance Tail Gate for the Army Game! You can see some of the pictures on the website and the Facebook page. We had the rainbow flags flying and enough food and drink to make it a great time for all. This was the first time we had a real chance to interact with the newly emboldened LGBT cadets. We had cadets from both USAFA and USMA come to the tailgate. Off to the game where things started out a little rough but the Falcons pulled it together in the second half to bring home the Commander and Chief's Trophy for the second year in a row. That made dinner a little more festive!

Our second annual dinner was held immediately following the game in Doolittle Hall. We had about 63 guest for the reception and dinner. One of the first guest to arrive was the Dean of Faculty, Gen Dana Born. I think she gets preferred parking at the game so it was an easy out of the Stadium! Once again we had almost 30 cadets in attendance .... thanks to all of you who sponsored cadets to the dinner. We could not have done it without your help! The dinner was a "Celebration of Equality" that was meant to be fun and inspirational. I think we nailed it. As I was preparing to open the dinner... I had to take a step back from the podium ... I truly felt humbled... I was looking at something that I never thought I would see in my lifetime.... this dinner had cadets, alumni, USAFA Staff, AOG Staff, friends and family... and all were having a great time.

We asked Steve Hall from USNA Out and Sue Fulton from Knights Out to take a few minutes to fill us in on happenings at their schools. Dr Adis Maria Vila, the Academy Chief Diversity Officer was the keynote speaker. Her remarks made it clear that she is an ally and someone we can count on for support. She opened the floor for questions and was gracious in her responses.

We closed the dinner with my remarks on the future of Blue Alliance and where we are headed in 2012. We also opened the floor to questions.

My takeaway... we have a lot of work to do... including working with the cadets. These guys/girls are stepping out in a big way and are showing no fear in their organization efforts. More about that soon!!

So.... we have organized a few new committees and we are looking for help! Here they are:

1. Cadet Relations
2. Media Relations
3. Membership Growth and Involvement
4. Family Support
5. Outreach to Fellow Organizations (We are working on this title)
6. Executive Relations

Each of these committees has several sub categories that they will be working on. If you have interest in helping in these areas, please let us know.

Thank you all for a very successful 2011! Have a great Holiday Season and we look forward to working with so many of you in the New Year!

v/r
Greg Mooneyham '87
Executive Director

You can now order a variety of clothing and household articles with the Blue Alliance logo on it from Company Casuals Follow the link and select the articles, colors and sizes and watch as the website builds your custom article with the Blue Alliance logo on it.

http://www.companycasuals.com/blue-alliance/start.jsp

By DAN ELLIOTT
Associated Press

DENVER (AP) - Gay and lesbian Air Force Academy graduates plan to maintain a higher profile at events surrounding next month's home football game against Army now that "don't ask, don't tell" has been repealed.

A gay and lesbian alumni group called the Blue Alliance will display a rainbow flag and a Blue Alliance banner at its tailgate party before the Nov. 5 game on the academy campus north of Colorado Springs.

The Blue Alliance's annual dinner, which takes place on campus after the game, is drawing some high-ranking academy officials, including the dean of faculty, Gen. Dana Born, an academy spokesman confirmed Tuesday.

Also planning to attend is Adis Vila, the school's chief diversity officer.

"It's been very gratifying," said Greg Mooneyham, executive director of the Blue Alliance, describing the school's response since the repeal of the ban on gays and lesbian serving openly in the military. "We're very happy about it."

Mooneyham said he expects as many as 30 cadets to attend the dinner, as well as some West Point cadets who'll be on campus for the Army-Air Force game.

The Pentagon formally lifted the 18-year-old ban last month after taking the steps Congress required in a 2010 law to reverse the policy.

That allowed the Association of Graduates, the academy's alumni group with headquarters on campus, to make the Blue Alliance an "affinity group," a chapter based on a common interest rather than geographic location, said Gary Howe, the Association of Graduates executive vice president.

"We embrace any group of people who want to help the academy," Howe said Tuesday.

"What had prevented us from granting affinity group status to the Blue Alliance was simply that they were in opposition to Air Force policy, 'don't ask, don't tell.' Now that 'don't ask, don't tell' has been repealed, we welcome them," Howe said.

Howe plans to attend the Blue Alliance dinner, along with a meeting of the alliance's board of directors.

The alliance had a presence at the academy before the ban was repealed, renting meeting space from the Association of Graduates' on-campus office building and buying a "go Air Force"-type booster ad in the association's magazine, Howe said.

Their participation was legal because they were out of the service and not covered by the ban, he said.

The Blue Alliance planned to hold its 2010 annual dinner at the Association of Graduates office but it had to be moved off campus because academy commanders deemed it to be a political gathering, which is barred on military property, Howe said. Among other things, at least one congressman was expected to attend during an election year and while repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" was being debated in Congress, he said.

I've been working on an on going photo essay project for the LGBT community. I interview different members of the community about their life and then create two images. The first one represents how they felt growing up and the second represents how they feel now. Each set of images is accompanied by a deeply personal story written by the subject. There is also a place where users can submit their own stories so that others can read and be inspired by their words. The website is www.MyAcceptance.org I would appreciate any help you can in spreading the word about this project. Please send it to anyone that you think might be interested in this project!

Thank you
Parker Austin

As we approach Nov. 5th, a lot of positive events have taken place...We have had a great cadet response to the Blue Alliance Dinner, and as a result we still need members to "sponsor a cadet", so I would encourage everyone to help out if you can.

The Dinner should be interesting - several high ranking members of the Academy Staff will be in attendance. We will be hearing about how the implementation of DADT has been going so far, and will have an opportunity to forge a new relationship with the Academy leadership. It will also be a chance to meet new members, straight allies, and to talk about our beat down of Army. The dinner is after the game, and don't forget we will have a tailgate before hand. Stay tuned for details.

Blue Alliance recently received official "affinity" status from the AOG which basically means we have the same rights and privileges of any other alumni organized group. Good news - kudos to the AOG - they have worked with us very closely for over two years and you would likely be surprised at how supportive they have been to Blue Alliance.

I find it interesting to note the very strong reception and interest in Blue Alliance from the Cadet Wing. How times have changed.....The next few years will be a time of growth and development of our group, and an interesting time for USAFA in general, much as it was in 1976!

Fly safe,
JB USAFA '85
Blue Alliance Board

This is an exciting time for all of us as we enter the last phase of the repeal of DADT. Less than 60 days to go when so many of you can rest a little easier knowing your career is more secure. We know that much work remains to ensure that implementation goes well. There is also much work ahead to secure equal rights for our spouses and families. So we will celebrate this victory and continue with the work in front of us.

We will officially celebrate this victory at our annual dinner and Board Meeting on November 5th at the Air Force Academy. Please join us at Doolittle Hall on that evening for a fun.... yet a little less formal dinner celebration. Our theme this year is "A Celebration of Equality." We plan to tailgate at the Army Football game, cheer on the Falcons at the game, then head up the hill to Doolittle to celebrate the win over Army and celebrate the death of DADT.

So please save the date, plan to come to Colorado for the game and the dinner, and plan to have a great time with us there. We will be releasing more details in the next couple of weeks so check you email and keep an eye on the website.

Thanks for all your support!

Greg Mooneyham
Executive Director

To Our Membership:

As you all know this year marks the beginning of a new era for our LGBT military family. In just a few more weeks .... end of June maybe... DADT will draw its final desperate gasp and die. It will be a time long remembered and long overdue.

Blue Alliance has continued to work in our role as a support organization for LGBT graduates and cadets of USAFA. Recently we have done interviews with AP and NPR that have been widely disseminated. But more importantly we have been working with the office of Congressman Jared Polis to further our relationship with the Academy Administration. Congressman Polis is on the Board of Visitors and was the guest speaker at our dinner last year.

For this coming year we have set two new goals to go along with our day to day mission. First we intend to get Affinity Status with the AOG as quickly as we can. Our application will be presented at the next AOG Board meeting in May. To help us with this effort, we need to have 25 signatures from our membership on the application. If you would like to be a signatory please respond back to me here. Karl Alverez is currently working on the application and will contact you about the signature we need.
Second: We want to become a significant asset to the Administration and the Board of Visitors as they implement the repeal of DADT. This goal may be harder to achieve but we are already making headway.

In our continuing role as a social networking organization.... we have a big weekend planned at the Academy in November! Our annual dinner and Board Meeting will be held at USAFA on Army weekend. So save the dates... Nov 4th, 5th and 6th to come to Colorado Springs! We will be asking the AOG to allow the dinner at Doolittle this year and we expect to get it. We had a great dinner last year and plan to have this one be even bigger and better. Also, plan to attend the Army game on Saturday because we plan to invite Knights Out to tailgate with us for the event. There will be mandatory fun had by all!

As always we thank each of you for your support. In order for us to continue in our efforts we need a little help. We are asking for a voluntary suggested donation of $50 to Blue Alliance to keep us funded for another year. You can make a fully tax deductible donation at the website and it will be much appreciated. Your Board's work is totally voluntary and your entire donation will go to support our mission.

Again, thanks to all and if you would like to help with any future projects please let us know.

Greg Mooneyham
Executive Director

Right now, the top military brass, and the Obama administration are hammering out the details of repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell. That's the policy banning gays from serving openly. Leaders at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs say they’re preparing for a smooth transition once the change goes into effect. Captain Greg Mooneyham graduated from the Academy in 1987. He also expects a smooth transition. Mooneyham's affiliated with the group The Blue Alliance, which is a networking group for gays and lebsians who've attended the Academy. He talks with Ryan Warner.

Listen to the broadcast here on Colorado Public Radio

http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_17384033

By DAN ELLIOTT
Associated Press
DENVER (AP) — The Air Force Academy will make a smooth transition when the military ends its "don't ask, don't tell" rule this year despite a history of problems in the academy's treatment of women and religious minorities, according to gay and lesbian alumni.
"I don't think it's going to be a big issue, honestly," said Greg Mooneyham, a 1987 academy graduate and executive director of the Blue Alliance, an association of gay and lesbian alumni. "I think the (AFA) administration is going to do the right thing."
The Defense Department is moving to lift the ban on openly gay and lesbian service members by the end of the year at the direction of Congress and President Barack Obama, but timetables for training and implementation aren't final.
On Friday, the Pentagon distributed training guidelines to top officials of each service branch and ordered them to report on their progress every two weeks starting March 1.
Air Force Academy officials said last week they couldn't discuss their preparations because they were waiting for guidance from Air Force higher-ups. But the academy superintendent, Lt. Gen. Michael
Gould, told cadets, faculty and staff in late January that "we will get this right."
"We will follow the letter of the law, and we will follow the spirit of the law, and we will do it together," Gould said in remarks quoted on the academy's website.
Commanders at the school outside Colorado Springs have confronted other tolerance issues over the past decade. A 2003 scandal prompted the ouster of top academy leaders after female cadets said they were ignored or ostracized by commanders when they reported sexual assaults by other cadets.
Reports in 2004 and 2005 found chaplains and other officials had been proselytizing cadets in settings in which such actions were forbidden by school rules and that the academy failed to accommodate the religious needs of some cadets and staff.
Mooneyham, who went on to pilot A-10 Thunderbolt aircraft before leaving the Air Force as a captain in 1994, said history "sometimes makes you wonder" whether the school's tolerance issues have been settled. While gay and lesbian cadets should encounter few problems overall, Mooneyham predicted,
they may run into obstacles in individual areas such as athletics or appointments to leadership roles in the cadet wing, as the student body is called.
"Are you going to have some kid who doesn't know any better do something stupid? Yes," he said. "They're not going to have all 1.4 million (personnel in all the services) on board."
U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, an openly gay congressman and member of the academy's Board of Visitors, predicts gay and lesbian cadets will get a better welcome than did the first women admitted to the academy in 1976. Some women in the first co-ed class reported harassment and said male colleagues attributed their promotions to tokenism.
"There's a very high degree of professionalism in the Air Force Academy, as well as in the Air Force as a whole," said Polis, D-Colo.
The Board of Visitors reports to Congress and the Pentagon about academy matters.
Trish Heller, a 1987 graduate who is on the Blue Alliance board, said the academy and other service schools have invested time and thought to the transition.
"You're going to have your hiccups, just like anything. I don't expect it will be completely smooth sailing," said Heller, who left the Air Force about five years ago as a lieutenant colonel after piloting cargo planes and working on Capitol Hill as an adviser to a senator.
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Online:
http://www.usafa.af.mil
http://blue-alliance.org