Latest / Real State / Alabama’s Strategic Approach to Military & Veterans, with Casey Rogers of the Alabama State Military Department

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Alabama’s Strategic Approach to Military & Veterans, with Casey Rogers of the Alabama State Military Department · Real State

• 0:00
  A lot of people can get caught in the general stance of, you know, we appreciate our military
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  and we appreciate our veterans and what they've done for us. But, you know, there's,
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  there's a, in my opinion, a defining difference between utmost respect and then, you know,
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  implementing that and driving that towards action.
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  This is Real State, a podcast from CSG South. Join us as we talk with policymakers and public
• 0:29
  leaders shaping state-level decisions across the South and explore how ideas move from policy
• 0:36
  to real impact.
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  Hello and welcome to Real State. I'm your host, Lindsey Gray. Across the South,
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  support for military members and veterans is a defining priority. The region is home to a
• 0:54
  significant share of the nation's nearly 19 million veterans and states like Alabama play a
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  critical role in national defense through their national guard with more than 12,000 soldiers and
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  airmen serving statewide. As a result, states are taking a closer look at how to better support those
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  who serve both veterans and active duty military members and how state policy, leadership,
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  and strategic investment can strengthen those efforts. In Alabama, that work has gained real momentum
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  under Governor Kay Ivey's leadership with a growing emphasis on both veterans, services, and
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  military readiness. Today's guest, Casey Rogers, has been at the center of that work,
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  first as external affairs director for Governor Ivey, and now as deputy director of external affairs
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  and strategic communications for the Alabama State military department. Casey, thank you for being
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  here. Absolutely. Thanks, Lindsey. Happy to be here. I'm glad we're getting to connect again.
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  You've had a unique vantage point, working at the highest levels of state government and now
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  directly in the military structure. So what prompted your transition from the governor's office to
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  the Alabama State military department and how did your experience and external affairs prepare you
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  for this role? So great question, Lindsey. It was one that I don't think we could have predicted,
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  but when you look back at all of these stars aligning and when they did, I think you hit the
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  head of the nail with momentum. When you're working in a governor's office, particularly one like
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  Governor Ivey, she is all about implementing things that provide real results. And so when you're
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  looking at towards the end of a term and you're looking at where the momentum is going and what
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  you're trying to accomplish given I look at the runway of it all and then from this you look at,
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  okay, well, if this is an opportunity that fits, then it's something that I want to be a part of.
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  And for me, it really started, you know, 10 to 11, 12 years in the making. I was able to work for a
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  a congresswoman who really championed veterans in our military as well. And so coming from a military
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  background family as well, that's always been something that's been super important to me,
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  but the congressman really championed that in action and that in policy and what could be driven
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  by that. And so there were things that started 10 to 12 years ago that as luck would have it and
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  being on the blessing side of that for Governor I.V., you know, we got to see the F-35s bed down at
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  R-1-87 that Dannelly talked about a really, really cool moment where, you know, we had done all the research
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  and the, you know, the intern level type work on two for ish in and then seeing them actually
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  bed down, it really painted a picture that sometimes great things just take time. And so having somebody
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  in the methodically champions that over the course of a period of 10 to 12 years, you can really have
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  some, some big wins. Wonderful. So this is the long-term plan, long-term goal, whether you know it
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  during that, you know, those years or not, it's certainly become part of your story, a huge part
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  of your story. And I guess it started as a kid. So you've been part of Governor Kay Ivey's push to
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  elevate veterans and military priorities. What has driven that momentum in Alabama and what makes
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  this moment just different than some of the years passed? A lot of people can get caught in the
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  general stance of, you know, we appreciate our military and we appreciate our veterans and what
• 4:41
  they've done for us. But, you know, there's, there's a, in my opinion, a defining difference between
• 4:46
  utmost respect and then, you know, implementing that and driving that towards action. And so I think
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  in, in a world where there are million policy priorities, you really have to put a lot of emphasis
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  on the ones that you, that you want to see action. I feel like it's been kind of a, a slow evolving
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  thing where you see implementation of a new mission at our 187. Do you see a heightened sense of
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  recruitment and readiness moving forward? When I was in the governor's office, I prayed constantly
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  that we would have folks that understood what the needs were of our military and that they would be able
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  to communicate those because it's a lot different from a civilian to a non-savillion, you know,
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  carrying the policy or carrying the water, so to speak. And so having somebody who cares about it is
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  one thing, but then having somebody who can get in the weeds about it and say, no, what, what is it
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  that you actually need and what are our long-term trajectory items and I think the governor has
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  championed those really well and looked at it as what's our target, you know, what is our 2040 target,
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  what does our military look like then and how does education and technology and just in general,
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  what does the war game look like then? And so it would be one thing to prepare for a military of
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  today, but I think she really has valued the fact that, you know, we want our, our today military
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  to be taken care of, but we also have to prepare for the future because it is a quickly evolving landscape.
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  Yes. And your current role is both strategic and deeply operational as you were just saying,
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  so you've been described as a super civilian, advocating as at the state, federal and even international
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  levels, so what does that look like day to day to be a super civilian?
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  Well, it doesn't, it doesn't fall short on comedy, I will tell you that. And so we, we have a good time
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  with it. I am often on military basis, I'm in suits and in the statehouse, a good bit as well, but then
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  I've always been a proponent of if you're going to really figure out what's needed from a policy
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  standpoint, you've really got to meet where that unfolds, whether that's Nivian, Fort McLellan
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  for a little while and seeing their barracks or they took me out and let me shoot at a thousand yards,
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  that was cool, but really getting to be part of what they do on a daily basis. You learn through
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  that, like what their needs are, what their struggles are, what, you know, long term trajectory,
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  what we would like for this to see, and if it's having capacity and trying more people more efficiently
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  and for, from a livability standpoint while they're there. And so being their super civilian is one
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  of my greatest honors, but it also comes with a lot of, a lot of jokes, a lot of comedy, I just got back
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  from a DC trip and they said, "Oh, we're glad you came back. We've been missing you, we were hoping that
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  that you didn't decide that you were going to stay in DC because we need you boots on the ground here."
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  They suited me up with a military backpack, like the first week and I think I thought it was cool.
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  They see it and they're like, "Oh my gosh, she probably think she's cute." I think a lot of people
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  probably didn't expect quite the change of worlds for me. Being able to serve at Joint Force headquarters
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  is a lot different than going into an office in the Capitol. And so both are wonderful
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  opportunities and have been great parts of my life, but in terms of it just being very, very different
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  than your day in, day out, business office, it is a lot different. And it's a unique role that you
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  get to fill. So I will put your cape in the mail as soon as our podcast is done and make sure that
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  you have your super civilian cape as well. You would have had some extraordinary experiences
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  from the F-35 program to disaster response flights and seeing really the immediacy of what has
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  you transpired after a disaster. So what have those moments taught you about the realities
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  facing service members? I think, you know, in this does go back heavily to my time during the
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  governor's office. I was, I'm really, really thankful that I got to see it kind of through that
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  lens as well. Because one thing that a lot of people don't necessarily think of about our military,
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  they may think that, you know, our national guard is they're kind of our week, once a month,
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  weekend warriors. I've heard that in social settings a lot, but what I really found out is that
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  there's so much more than that. And so training is a big component of that. And yes, they have,
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  you know, they have their day job, so to speak, but they can be called up at a moment's notice to do
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  anything in our state in terms of natural disaster, but then it's a joint mission. And so they answered
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  both the governor and the answer to the president. And so at any given time, they may be called up
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  federally as well. And we may have simultaneous missions. One of the experiences we had around
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  of tornadoes a couple years ago in the state. And being able to see just how the national guard,
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  when they are called on by the governor, how quickly and effectively they're able to come in and
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  help and be there at the local level. And so I've often joked that, you know, I really feel like
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  the biggest wins are at the local level when you can help people with some of your less glitz and
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  glamour type opportunities. But, you know, to those people at the local level, their biggest issue
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  may not be having putable water for a moment, or, you know, they may have downed power lines for weeks
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  on end, or it may be as simple as bringing in, you know, washing machines on the bed of a truck and
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  giving them what they need in that moment. But all of that is boots on the ground and
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  implemented by our national guard at times like that. Given the moment with when the tornado
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  set a couple years ago, you had a congresswoman who I've always really enjoyed working with and we
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  had a mayor that at the time really, really wanted to see aerial footage of their community. And,
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  and so I was working with the governor's office and they asked me if we could implement that and
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  get them in the air to be able to see that so that, you know, for documentation purposes for federal
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  funding down the road, but also just so they could really get the way of the land and just the severity
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  of the issue. I was not expecting to see a congresswoman who had grown up there and that was her
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  old stomping grounds. That was people that she cared about, her community to a tee and getting to
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  see that through her eyes in that moment. And I'll never forget that because I think that that's
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  why we do what we do and being able to figure out the rebuild on that. But, you know, it's easy to
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  get swept up in. Oh my goodness, I'm getting to find a black cop today or, you know, getting to meet
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  with such and such. And those are all very cool moments. But I think at the end of the day when you
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  really think about the heartbeat of Alabama and you think about the folks that on our worst day
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  are the most challenging day. The people who do come in and try to alleviate that pressure for our
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  citizens in our state. I naturally think of our National Guard and so I'm really proud to be able
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  to advocate for them. Amazing. The Alabama National Guard plays a unique, complex role and you
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  mentioned this earlier. They report to the governor but also to the president. So for those less
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  familiar, can you explain the dual state and federal mission of the National Guard and how that
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  balance plays out in practice? Roughly right now, kind of paying a little bit of a landscape of where we are.
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  We have just over 13,000 and I would say just under 800 of those men and women, soldiers and airmen
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  are deployed overseas. And so some are running missions here domestically. Southern border,
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  for instance, would be one of those. But then we have missions abroad as well. And so a lot of people
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  when they think about it, they think that it is just the natural disasters and it is just when
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  the governor calls upon them. And that is certainly a very important part of their mission. But if the
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  federal government needs folks to go into a scenario, we obviously have evolving and changing
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  landscapes right now. And so I came on about a year ago and we have had continued ask at the federal
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  level and it starts. We get what they call an "opward" and it basically is a statement of need
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  and kind of what is coming down the pipeline. And we match the need with our talent or readiness
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  and scope. And so we have a lot of diversity in our military assets here in the state. And
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  that has been an interesting and a very cool thing to see because they may specifically at the
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  federal level need a military police and MP. And so we look at our roster and see how we can,
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  for a personnel standpoint, fulfill that request. And so it is neat to see how it happens in-house
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  at Joint Force headquarters because it is the perfect balance between looking at what our capabilities
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  are and then looking at our roster and then also keeping in mind that if we send folks to fulfill
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  a federal mission, we also have to retain enough here that we are prepared for any instance where
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  the governor might call as well. That is why when we talk about readiness being one of our biggest
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  components and keeping our recruitment numbers the way they are, but we're only as good as maintaining
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  those because the missions don't stop. So Alabama operates as a fully joint force army in air.
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  How does that strengthen your ability to respond both at home and abroad? And is that a little bit
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  of a unique structure for a state? Yes, very good question, Lindsay. It's unique and it's something that,
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  in moving towards a fully integrated joint force, has been an interesting thing to see in our state.
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  Our leadership component has both represented. And so at any given level of decision-making here,
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  you know, we look at how this is going to impact the whole. When we are also doing missions abroad,
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  there may be a component to that that is army in air. It's neat because we have all of that
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  in-house here. And it's just really cool because our army numbers heavily outweigh our air numbers.
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  And so we have army structures really all over the state. And then we have two wings. As they
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  call them, we have a fighter wing at the 187 Danley. And then we have the 117th refueling wing in Birmingham,
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  at Sumter Smith. All throughout the state, we have Fort McLellan, which is a training center for all of
• 16:32
  our army. Just on down throughout the state, their assets. But within that, there's also a lot of
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  diversity, whether you look at, I know I mentioned it before, but our military police, or you look at
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  our 20 Special Forces Group. I was looking a couple weeks ago just being their super civilian and
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  thinking that things were interesting. But when you look at the geographic footprint of that 20
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  Special Forces Group, they pull folks from truly all over the country. And so, and that's not just
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  unique to our 20 Special Forces, but we really do have a unique makeup. And whether it be
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  comms or logistics or you name it, there's normally a niche that you can serve and be in Alabama.
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  And it fit pretty well to your needs.
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  Nice. The 117th did are presented the colors and retard the colors at SLC this past summer in
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  in Birmingham. So it was very special. So, you'll have recently unveiled a long-term strategic plan.
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  So the department's new plan focuses on people readiness, transformation, and partnership.
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  What do each of those pillars mean in practice?
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  Thank you for acknowledging our strategic plan. We've put a lot of time and energy into it.
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  And this really goes back to us focusing on taking care of our current folks well.
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  And then also preparing for the future. And I'm laying the groundwork for our force essentially
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  to be successful for many years to come. One of the things that I love about it, and this was well
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  ahead of me joining them at the State Military Department, but really at the base of everything
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  was our people. And that was something that resonated with me when I was with Governor Ivy
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  Staff. I think people were the basis of every decision that she made. For us,
• 18:28
  trying to make sure that our soldiers and airmen have what they need, but also taking very good
• 18:35
  care of their families. There's been a lot of emphasis on that here recently. Whether it's
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  true military or true veteran, we have about 300 and 1000 veterans in the state. And then we have
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  just over just over 13,000 that we are responsible for personally within the Alabama National Guard.
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  And so that's that's a lot of people and they cover a huge geographic footprint. And so trying to
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  listen to them in terms of what their needs are and that show up down the road in terms of policy
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  decisions, but then also the leadership decisions internally. People are our base for everything else.
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  And then closely following that would be readiness. And that is a component that we champion in
• 19:24
  our recruitment and retention, yes, but in terms of the folks being ready to serve when they are
• 19:30
  called up and have the resources they need to be ready to serve in a moment's notice is extremely
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  important. And so you start looking at things like healthcare. And most people don't know that
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  unless folks are serving in an active status, they don't necessarily get those traditional benefits
• 19:54
  that people think they do. But then yet if they get called in a moment's notice, they have to be
• 19:59
  up to date with all their healthcare up to date with all their dental. And so that's something that
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  a few of our surrounding states have looked at and that I think we'll probably be looking at in
• 20:10
  the near future. But then that also goes towards educational readiness. A huge emphasis here recently
• 20:16
  in thank goodness. There's been an uptick in momentum here, but it would be mental health readiness as well.
• 20:24
  We want a holistic soldier or airmen to be taken care of and to be ready with the things that
• 20:32
  can be seen, but then also be there best self and be able to get called up in a moment's notice. And
• 20:39
  for them to be ready, mentally, spiritually, physically, all of those things. Transformation is our
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  third and I've hit on this a little bit, but just the state of global affairs right now and what we're
• 20:53
  seeing it's not the war that we fought 20 or 40 years ago. It's very different. And of course we see
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  that in the news a lot and I would say that trying to make sure that we are cognizant of the transformation,
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  but also if we were to prepare for the right now, it is evolving so quickly that we can't just focus
• 21:21
  on the right now, right now, we're going to be behind in two weeks time. And so it is interesting
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  from a technology standpoint and just what are individual folks are doing, what are our infrastructure
• 21:37
  around the state is doing. I like to brag on our intel squadron in Birmingham. They are on the
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  cutting edge of technology and monitoring what is going on in the world. And they're the most
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  unassuming, you know, folks have no idea what what goes on and what their capabilities are. I like to
• 22:00
  joke. I think that I get to advocate for one of the most humble audiences in the country, being our
• 22:06
  military and that's great, but if we don't start advocating and telling their story for them,
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  then they're going to be needs down the road and they're going to be discrepancies in
• 22:17
  what we deliver in their needs. And so transformation is always something that from a war gaming scenario,
• 22:24
  they're looking at the next greatest and greatest and how we can accommodate and be at the top of
• 22:33
  our game because we serve in an industry where you can't chance that. And so in last, but certainly not
• 22:41
  least on the mentioned partnership. And I think that it goes back to I feel like everyone is generally
• 22:49
  a fan of the military normally and they are normally met with open arms, but I think when we look
• 22:56
  at our partnerships strategically, we can better serve our people, have them ready and come back
• 23:04
  the transformation process as well because we've seen a huge emphasis on private public partnership
• 23:10
  and what that can do, but from a workforce component because obviously our men and women are dual
• 23:17
  habit. Most do have civilian jobs. And so they're an important part of our civilian workforce, but they
• 23:25
  certainly bring talent and energy and expertise to what we're doing as well. And so those partnerships
• 23:32
  from a workforce component really are important, but then also some that are off the beaten path
• 23:38
  when we go into the state house or into the halls and DC and there are things that we have found
• 23:44
  that we need or are people need. They're not all that different than than what some of our other
• 23:50
  folks and our other agencies and partners are fighting for. They just may not be aware of it.
• 23:58
  And so trying to have more of a symbiotic relationship with our partners and letting our partners
• 24:04
  also know, hey, these are things that we're trying to advocate on for our men and women.
• 24:10
  There's a lot of unity there and there's a lot of things that they're willing to help us with.
• 24:16
  And so they've got to know. And so that is something that we're really trying to heighten our
• 24:22
  sense of partnership across the state and federally speaking. Well, you've got your plate full.
• 24:28
  So what are the biggest challenges and opportunities you're planning for as you look towards 2050 and
• 24:34
  y'all unfold this plan? You know, having a force that's 13,000 plus, one of the things is just
• 24:43
  trying to make sure everybody is on board and understands exactly where our priorities line,
• 24:48
  what that actually means in practice. And so we've already kind of started introducing that
• 24:55
  internally. We've introduced it externally a little bit to our partners in regard to legislative
• 25:02
  approaches. We've really taken what Owick DeKar, legislative envelope and looked at, okay,
• 25:08
  we're kind of in a really cool jumping off spot for next year because there were some things that
• 25:13
  we needed a tweak to be more effective on programs that we currently had. One, for instance,
• 25:19
  is our ANGAP program. It's our educational assistance program. And so there were just some more
• 25:27
  clerical, more time frame, small tweaks that would help our students be able to implement that
• 25:34
  program and have a little bit more flexibility with how they could spend it. And so we went to the
• 25:39
  drawing board with that the session. And thankfully it passed on the last day of session in the last
• 25:48
  chamber that was open and it was the last, well, we thought it would be the last time session would be
• 25:54
  going on in that particular state house because we're about to move into a new state house next session.
• 26:00
  But here we are. We're in a special session now. So I guess we can't say that anymore, but looking
• 26:06
  at that and looking at our programs and how they match what our folks needs are, you know, take 10
• 26:15
  years ago. Some of these programs were implemented 10 to 12, 15 years ago. And they're still great
• 26:21
  programs, but without tweaking them to a modern day force, they're lacking. And so kind of evaluating
• 26:28
  what we have right now and then getting this strategic plan and then now we're really
• 26:34
  postured in a sense of, okay, now we can go after our next greatest need and it may be something
• 26:41
  that really is from the ground up. We get to put pin to paper. And so I think I've mentioned
• 26:48
  this a little bit in the past, but I think having that healthcare component for all will be something
• 26:53
  we look at. It's something they're looking at at the federal level as well, but it's certainly a
• 26:59
  need. And as our men and women continuously get asked to do more with less, I think that is
• 27:07
  something that single-handedly would would help our force and prepare them and also just from an
• 27:13
  implementation standpoint us having more of a roster that is ready to go. I think we will have
• 27:20
  really be looking at that, but stay tuned. Okay. Well, there's a lot of layers. This package
• 27:27
  included measures focused on military, family support, occupational licensure,
• 27:31
  affordability, broader benefit enhancements. So from your perspective, which of these will have
• 27:37
  the greatest impact on Alabama's ability to recruit and retain service members in an increasingly
• 27:44
  competitive environment? Well, I would say, you know, you hit that on the know with people
• 27:51
  and their families. And so there are certainly benefits to the individual soldiers in airman that
• 27:57
  we need to focus on, but we can't neglect the fact that they come along with families whether they
• 28:04
  move here, whether they reside here permanently. And it may be as simple as a licensure
• 28:11
  esurprosity scenario where we make that move a little bit easier for that family or for that student.
• 28:19
  And, you know, I look at it and they talk a lot about the resilience of the military family.
• 28:27
  And that is not to be taken lightly in any regard. There's a lot of moving parts. There's a lot of
• 28:34
  just movement in general. And so trying to stabilize that as much as possible for a family
• 28:40
  that is giving of their parent or their spouse to military service, I think is certainly important.
• 28:47
  But I also think that giving the individual member, whether it be soldier or airman,
• 28:53
  what they need to alleviate any pressures, whether that be health insurance for all or, you know,
• 28:59
  dental for all, so that it's one less thing that they're having to take out of their pocketbook to
• 29:05
  be ready to serve our country. You know, I can get off an honest soap box tangent on that pretty
• 29:10
  easily, but I just think that from an awareness standpoint, I think some folks are not as aware of
• 29:18
  the day-and-day-out ask that we're asking our soldiers and airmen to make. Even growing up in a military
• 29:25
  family, my dad, he was an Army National Guard and ended up retiring about two years after I was born.
• 29:34
  I was raised in a military hand with a deep appreciation for everything that he had done in his
• 29:40
  service to our country, but the interesting thing about it, he was already retired. And so I didn't
• 29:45
  get to see the day-and-day out. You know, I was not alive when he was deployed. My mother was actually
• 29:51
  pregnant with me, and so she did nine months on her own, and you know, that was those real moments of
• 30:01
  signing over debt to it from a young family, and you sign over debt, and your spouse is deployed,
• 30:07
  and now you're looking at, you're raising your children, and that's certainly a scary component for
• 30:13
  us, spouse. I just look at it and it's like, does your a lot more real scenarios in our world day-and-day-out?
• 30:20
  And sometimes our communities or our civilian population may not see that as, as up close and
• 30:29
  personal as they may or may not need to be able to truly champion some of these things for them.
• 30:34
  And when you just shared a personal scenario or experience for you about your father,
• 30:42
  so you've worked closely on both veterans initiatives and active military support. So how did those two
• 30:48
  areas intersect? And where do you see the greatest opportunity to better align support systems across
• 30:54
  a service member's full career? As you mentioned, you didn't get to see the day-and-day out of
• 31:00
  your father's military career, but you did see the veteran side of it. And so now that you're on this
• 31:07
  side working with the military and obviously your background in government, what, where do those
• 31:13
  two intersect and what's that greatest opportunity for the full service members career?
• 31:18
  Yeah, well, we've seen, and by way, I mean, just the IV administration as a whole have seen,
• 31:26
  in my opinion, a lot of a lot of momentum in this area and a lot of victories in this area.
• 31:32
  And so we now have two cabinet-level agencies that are in veterans affairs and in our military
• 31:39
  department. And so we've seen a lot of lock step action on this. And what we have found is,
• 31:49
  obviously, we are interested to provide for these folks while they are in the military and while
• 31:54
  they are in that moment serving our country. But then certainly when they graduate to being
• 32:02
  at SAID, just a veteran, and that's, it's anything but just a veteran, but you look at it and the
• 32:09
  challenges are a bit more complex sometimes in the individual buckets, but they really are kind of
• 32:15
  more so all a holistically. Let's take care of this person from a mental, physical, spiritual
• 32:22
  component and kind of the holistic help of that person or individual and their families.
• 32:28
  And so we look at it, we've had a lot of public-private partnership. We've seen a veterans resource center
• 32:36
  that was a thought a few short months ago and in less than a year they've been able to have a
• 32:45
  facility downtown, I spoke to the executive director last week and they've already had folks come in
• 32:53
  and going and they've been able to connect them to benefits that they rightfully have been able to
• 33:02
  get during their military career, but a lot of folks on the veteran side and my dad was actually one of these,
• 33:08
  but they don't necessarily need the assistance right after they leave their service. But then in years
• 33:16
  to follow is they age and it's an aging population, they may need more from a healthcare component or
• 33:23
  a general services component, but then just the paperwork and the bureaucracy that goes along with
• 33:31
  that is a lot to sift through. It's a lot for my mom and I do a lot for my dad with that, but
• 33:39
  for folks that may or may not have family members that are helping them and committed to that process,
• 33:45
  you know, or just when general issues arise, we need those veteran service officers that have access
• 33:53
  to what these individuals can can garner at the federal level and then what they can garner at
• 33:59
  the state level. And so we've really created the space for everybody to come to the table and have
• 34:06
  a one-stop shop. And so that momentum has been a really cool thing to see. And so it's neat that,
• 34:14
  you know, from a public-private partnership, Alabama Power was immensely involved in the process
• 34:21
  of a Veterans Resource Center, but to have a company and a partnership in our state champion,
• 34:27
  veterans in our military the way that they did. And kind of creating, I think, a blueprint of what
• 34:34
  that might look like, because I think a lot of our partners, they're willing and probably able
• 34:41
  and probably apt to wanting to do something like that, but then actually having a blueprint of this
• 34:48
  is what we've been able to do. I think it's really cool. And so, you know, calling all partners if
• 34:56
  if there's anybody out there that wants to jump in, we can certainly help you figure out where
• 35:02
  to get plugged in, but the momentum side of it is something that I really hope that we keep in the
• 35:07
  next administration. And I think it's important because it's great that we've been able to do big
• 35:14
  things, but I think as the governor always says our greatest days are ahead of us. And I think
• 35:20
  there's a lot of neat that still have to be addressed. Yeah. And I remember when that resource
• 35:26
  center was just being talked about and then watching it unfold and that's been really rewarding to watch.
• 35:34
  I can't only imagine being on the side of implementing side and how rewarding that was. What does
• 35:39
  Alabama do particularly well that other states might learn from? Besides the resource center,
• 35:45
  I think that's a shining star that could be pointed to. Well, I would say, you know, and I'm sure
• 35:54
  other states are have this in theirs as well, but I really think that we have a unique opportunity
• 36:01
  and we're uniquely blessed with our congressional delegation all being extremely tight knit.
• 36:07
  And so, you know, though they may be on different sides of the aisle with certain issues,
• 36:12
  but really working in lockstep in Washington, but then in our state house, I look at our committees
• 36:20
  in both the Senate and the House and those men and women on our committees, we try to communicate
• 36:27
  with them regularly throughout the year so they know kind of what's going on at joint force headquarters,
• 36:32
  what's going on across the state. And so they know what our needs are and we're not just going to
• 36:39
  them one time a year and asking. And so I kind of really feel like our committee members do life with us,
• 36:45
  so to speak. And we're really, really thankful for that. And whether it may be, you know, touring
• 36:52
  Fort McLellan and seeing what we've got going on there or meeting folks here and just generally
• 36:57
  going over where in the world all of our force is and what they're doing. You know, they're
• 37:05
  interested, but they also, they also, any up, I mean, they take a great interest in us, but that also
• 37:13
  saw it time and time again in the state house, this session where they did, you know, champion our
• 37:19
  legislation. And I was really appreciative of that because, you know, anything can happen in a
• 37:25
  state house. And so you really need people that are champion the calls that's important. And
• 37:31
  they did that. And so I would say that our people are machineeek asset and we've got,
• 37:37
  we've got a great team in DC and we've got a great team in our state house.
• 37:41
  Wonderful. Well, before we close out, I always have a signature question to ask at the very end.
• 37:48
  What is the best piece of professional advice you have ever received? And how does it shape the way
• 37:54
  you approach your work today? That's a great question, Lindsay. I would say don't get in a hurry
• 38:03
  when I was an intern in Washington over a decade ago now, gosh, ever 15 years ago now.
• 38:09
  Somebody told me they said, Casey, you have the ability to be great in what you do. You just
• 38:15
  don't need to get in the hurry because you're going to miss part of the blessing along the way.
• 38:18
  And I didn't understand it then at all. And I was in DC this past week. And for whatever reason,
• 38:27
  that came to mind. And I was thinking when I signed on for the governor, she and the current
• 38:34
  chief of staff was Bill Moore. They basically told me, you know, it's a chance to, it's a unique
• 38:40
  chance to live history. And they were immensely right in that. And, you know, there are a lot of
• 38:47
  hard days in there over the course of a five to six year window, but you look at it and you can really see
• 38:55
  positive change for the state of Alabama. You can see some of those things that in the day and day
• 39:01
  out, methodical approaches and something that was always talked about growing up in my household
• 39:08
  was discipline. And so, you know, you have to have that discipline to implement and to kind of stay
• 39:15
  stay in the vein of seeing change through. But I think if we get in a hurry, we just miss
• 39:22
  miss a lot of the blessing along the way. Because when I look back on it, it's not normally
• 39:27
  the huge moments or the, you know, the the glamorous type stuff, it's normal. You know, I can remember
• 39:35
  leaving the Capitol at sunset after one of our longest days a couple years ago and thinking,
• 39:42
  you know, we really did work that mattered. And so, I just think, you know, don't get in a hurry.
• 39:48
  That's, that's, you know, I'm sure I should have something way more philosophical or wordy than that,
• 39:55
  but just don't get in a hurry. I love it. I love that I get to ask this question every two weeks.
• 40:00
  And it seems to be like the exact thing I need to hear personally. So every two weeks, I get like a
• 40:06
  little burst of good advice from state leaders and staff and other, other folks. And it's just,
• 40:13
  it's wonderful. So I know it's a great message for everybody listening. So I met Casey several years
• 40:20
  ago now during CISG South's professional development program for government staff called Sage.
• 40:26
  Look into it. If you have it, if you haven't heard of it, but I appreciated getting to know you,
• 40:31
  Casey then and feel privileged that our work still intersects. But more importantly, you've become a
• 40:36
  friend and I really appreciate just having two gals from Alabama talking today. So Kate,
• 40:43
  I'm here for joining us. Yeah. So thanks for joining us. Thank you for sharing your perspective on
• 40:48
  the important work happening in Alabama and keep supporting those who serve our country. We need
• 40:53
  more people like you. So we just appreciate the work that you're doing and for carving out the time
• 40:58
  to be with us today. Absolutely. Thanks, Lindsay. And I look back over it and that's one of those things
• 41:04
  also. Don't get it hurry because you just never know who you're going to meet along the way.
• 41:08
  And so certainly you guys have been a tremendous asset. And I look at it and we could not do the
• 41:16
  policy work that we do without having the assets and the research and the expertise at times that we
• 41:23
  call and you guys for. So we just appreciate that. And you know, furthermore, your day and day out support.
• 41:30
  And love getting to hear from you on a random text or call or you know, it's night knowing that folks
• 41:38
  at y'all's level and doing what you do really do pour into the states. And so that doesn't go
• 41:43
  in notice. So thank you. Thank you so much. Well, as we wrap up to our listeners, thank you for tuning
• 41:51
  into Real State for more conversations like these visit csgsouth.org and look into that
• 41:57
  professional development program sage that was just mentioned ago. I'm Lindsey Gray. Let's keep it
• 42:02
  real. Thank you for joining us today on real states where we keep it real about what really matters.
• 42:11
  [Music]