Sword & Pen

Officer, The, May 2007 by Williams, George F, Perrino, Dennis

Annual awards honor department and chapter newsletters.

There is no better reference to important events and local news than your department or chapter newsletters. These locally prepared newsletters are the primary means of getting the word out and staying connected with local ROA members. Newsletters convey important information to ROA members on a local level, including issues affecting nearby military bases, statewide Reserve concerns, and news of the ROA department and its chapters.

The mission of the ROA Publications Committee is to ensure that the publications of this association at the national, department, or chapter level provide members with accurate, timely, cogent, and interesting information oriented to implementing our associations objectives as mandated by ROAs Congressional Charter.

The ROA Sword & Pen is the primary award monitored by the Publications Committee. It is given annually to the editors of the department and chapter newsletters that convey the purpose of ROA and fulfill the need for information of value. Sword & Pen Awards are usually presented at the department spring conventions.

From among Sword & Pen winners, the Publications Committee recommends up to three department and three chapter publications to receive the prestigious ROA Benjamin Franklin Outstanding Journalism Award. Note that editors wanting to be considered for the Ben Franklin Award must submit a total of three issues, one more than the Sword and Screen criteria.

Recognition of many editors with ROAs Sword and Pen Award is denied annually to many publications and their editors due to the omission of two critical factors: mention of ROAs mandate as quoted from our Congressional Charter and a "disclaimer" statement (see story on this page).

Sword & Pen Award Criteria

To be considered for Sword & Pen recognition, publications must be submitted by Dec. 31 of each year. Complete criteria for the award are available on the ROA website. Go to www.roa.org. From the left panel on the ROA home page, select "publications," and under the heading "department and chapter publications," choose "download Publications Guidelines."

Key criteria for both department and chapter publications include:

* A title;

* Clearly identified editor;

* A disclaimer statement;

* Published a minimum of twice per calendar year.

In December, editors must send newsletters for judging in one of two ways. Initial submissions can be sent in hard copy to LTC (Ret.) Leslie C. Hobbs, P. O. Box 8544, Independence MO 64054-0544. The preferred method for initial submission (and mandatory to be considered for the Ben Franklin award) is to e-mail the newsletter as a PDF to kmatthews@roa.org and copy leshobbs@swbell.net. The subject line should read, for example, "Sword & Pen Submission for Dept CA," or "Sword & Pen Submission for TX/CH004." Consistent subject lines facilitate accounting for all entries.

Many departments and some chapters make their publications available on-line as either e-mail attachments or downloadable files from the department web site. The Publications Committee encourages this trend. Our junior officers demand electronic communication. Let's not ignore their wishes.

A list of Sword & Screen winners and submission criteria will appear in the June issue of THE OFFICER.

By CAPT George F. Williams, USNR (Ret.)

CAPT Williams is chairman of the ROA Publications Committee.