Bio: Foster, Gary H. Named as Oklahoma Guard Chair (Jul 2014)

Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org 

Surnames: Foster, Zschernitz

----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 7/09/2014

Neillsville Native Named as Oklahoma Guard Chair (ESGR Chair – 2014)

Former Neillsville resident Gary H. Foster, son of Dr. John and Delores Foster and a 1976 graduate of Neillsville High School, has been named the new Oklahoma Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) chair.

The Department of Defense (DoD) announced the selection through its Oklahoma ESGR office.

The chair is an official DoD volunteer position. Foster will take an oath of office and will be sworn in during a formal ceremony at the Mark Center, Alexandria, VA, Aug. 22, 2014.

He will serve under the assistant secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs. This position carries a three-year term and is the equivalent to a military two-star flag office under DoD protocol.

Foster will provide leadership and vision for a team of more than 60 dedicated volunteers who are spread all across Oklahoma.

Foster’s education consists of Joint Professional Military Education Phase I and Phase II, an MVA from Cardinal Stritch University, Milwaukee, an MA in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College, Newport, RI, and a BS in zoology, with a chemistry minor, from the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire.

He has a long and distinguished record and retired from the United States Navy in 2010 at the rank of captain. With almost half of the nation’s military force serving in the Guard or Reserve, Foster will have a direct impact on these men and women and their civilian employers.

“The patriotic support of America’s employers and the employees they share with the nation ensures the viability and success of the all-volunteer force and is a force multiplier to enhance our national security,” said Foster. “ESGR applauds employers who practice personnel policies that support employee participation in the Guard and Reserve.”

Foster joins 53 other chairs who oversee the ESGR mission in the 50 states and four territories that make up this great nation. ESGR seeks to promote a culture in which all employers support and value the employment and military service of members of the National Guard and Reserve in the United States.

ESGR facilitates and promotes a cooperative culture of employer support for National Guard and Reserve service by developing and advocating mutually beneficial initiatives, recognizing outstanding employer support, increasing awareness of applicable laws and policies, resolving potential conflicts between employers and their service members and acting as the employers’ principal advocate with DoD.

Paramount to ESGR’s mission is encouraging employment of Guardsmen and Reservists who bring integrity, global perspective and proven leadership to the civilian workforce.

Foster and his wife, Melodie (Louis and Gen Zschernitz have four children, Brady and Caleb, who live in Oklahoma City, and Adam and Torrie, who reside in Dallas, TX.