Even the most casual news-watcher has probably heard about the recent issues of recruitment and retention across the United States military. Between generational shifts, lower rates of physical fitness in youth, perception problems, and a host of other factors, there just doesn’t seem to be as many men and women who seek a career in the military. The issue has created a large amount of discussion and media buzz over the last year as the Armed Services try everything from new ad campaigns and cash bonuses to attract more recruits, but, perhaps unsurprisingly, there’s one demographic across the country that consistently wants to join up and serve the country in uniform.
That demographic is, of course, military communities, which consistently are one of the largest sources of Armed Forces recruiting per capita. Surprised? If you think about it, you shouldn’t be. Sure, everyone with a friend or relative in the Armed Forces can talk about the less-appealing aspects of the job like field exercises and long hours and sometimes that takes over the narrative. But people who experience military life or are from military communities also see the impacts a military base can have on a local economy and the opportunities that the defense department can provide daily. Beaufort County sees those impacts in dozens of ways, whether that be from direct investments by the Department of Defense into local schools or from more indirect spending in the economy by visitors to Parris Island graduations and other military functions. Some of our readers may remember the 2022 Economic Impact of South Carolina’s Military Community report which calculated the military’s impact to the Beaufort Region at $2.5 billion per year and 21, 241 jobs supported. In these metrics, the symbiotic support system between military base and military community should be easy to see.
In even better news, the trend of mutual support should only improve with time. Part of the military’s strategy to boost flagging recruitment numbers is to double down into the communities’ surrounding installations and really showcase that the military can improve not only the Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors, Marines, and Guardians in the ranks, but also entire regions of the country. Education partnerships with local technical colleges and high schools are actively being expanded, as we’ve seen firsthand with some of the efforts made by the South Coast Cyber Center and the Technical College of the Lowlands. Other improvement programs such as the Defense Community Infrastructure Pilot program give money directly to community projects that take place off military installations for the purpose of meeting needs for both the installation and its surrounding neighborhoods. It is because of the dedication and hospitality of local communities to their military installations that symbiotic partnerships like these are possible. With this trend continuing, the Beaufort area should be proud to showcase its ties to the military and see plenty of benefit from its local installations for many more years to come.
Lance Cpl. Carlos Silva awarded Beaufort Rotary Military Person of the Year
