Fort Belvoir has updated its gate access control policies, introducing new measures for deliveries, identification requirements, and visitor passes. These changes aim to enhance security and streamline entry procedures for various groups.

Have you been affected by the recent changes at Fort Belvoir? Share your experiences with us.

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• Deliveries entering the installation that currently have or are holding existing sponsorship privileges, will be searched and continue without delay. Deliveries such as, AAFES, Quest Fuel services, Pepsi, Coca Cola, UPS, FedEx, and DHL.

• All U.S. Military and DoD Civilian CAC holders that do not work or reside on the installation will NOT need a sponsor to escort them on the installation.

• Individuals with DoD IDs and CACs that have expired are still required to produce 2 forms of identification to get a pass and will be required to have a sponsor escort them on the installation.

• Parents who no longer possess a dependent ID card bringing a child on post who has a dependent ID for the purpose of medical or school services will need to get cleared for a 24 hour pass from the Visitor Control Center to proceed to the hospital for the medical appointment or school.

• All FCPS busses, substitutes, and employees will continue coordinate with the school liaison to attain their passes from the Visitor Control Center.

• All REX, Fairfax Connector and Metro Access buses will continue services on the installation with their current passes. Coordination will continue with the Visitor Control Center to obtain passes moving forward.

• Contractors cannot sponsor another individual on Fort Belvoir.

• Veterans Health Identification Card (VHIC) are still allowed on the installation. The VHIC will need to be registered at the Visitor Control Center and will be valid for access not to exceed 3 years.

Individuals without DoD IDs/CACs transporting the VHIC personnel to the Hospital will need to be cleared for a 24 hr. pass from the Visitor Control Center.

• All moving companies entering the installation providing services will need to have a sponsor once they have already been vetted through NCIC at Tulley search lanes.

• Families that receive in-house medical care from nurses, home health care aids, therapists, etc. are allowed access. The family will need to sponsor them for the duration of the treatment for up to one year. The sponsor is also responsible for collecting the ID upon termination of care.

• Residents and patrons hosting ceremonies/events on the installation will need to coordinate with the Visitor Control Center to submit their list of attendees to be pre-vetted NLT 14 days prior to the event or arrival on the installation. A sponsor will be required.

Insidenova.com: Fort Belvoir announced Friday it is limiting access to the Army base in Fairfax County to those with Department of Defense identification, their minor dependents and those with sponsored passes. Read More

“This state-of-the-art tactical vehicle is set to enhance infantry, reconnaissance, and logistics mobility and sustainability, providing the modern warfighter with an advanced, lightweight solution tailored for operations in an anti-access/area denial environment.”

“Fielding the ULTV serves as a signal that the Corps is keeping in stride with the ambitious roadmap laid out in Force Design 2030,” said Col. John Gutierrez, portfolio manager for Logistics Combat Element Systems. “This new capability will ultimately help forge a more agile and resilient Corps one which is empowered to overcome the evolving complexities of modern warfare.”

“The ULTV is being fielded at Camp Pendleton, California.”

Insidenova: “Actor and musician Gary Sinise and celebrity chef Robert Irvine teamed up to give thousands an unforgettable experience at Fort Belvoir for Memorial Day weekend.”

“Sinise and the Lt. Dan Band travel to military bases across the country to perform free of charge to service members, veterans and their families. And on May 25, they took stage in front of the garrison headquarters.”

It will be a noisy few weeks on and near Quantico Marine Corps Base.

Here’s a look at the latest training schedule for March 24 through April 7, 2023. Marines plan to fire missiles, rockets, mortars, and more.

From Quantico:

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Updated Feb. 15, 2024 -- For Town of Quantico residents, there's one way in and one way out.

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The Board of County Supervisors has proclaimed February 28 “Montford Point Marine Day.” In doing so, the community commemorates the first African American recruits in the Marine Corps trained at the Montford Point in North Carolina.

During the early 1940s, the United States was preparing to enter World War II and needed recruits. But President Franklin D. Roosevelt faced a problem; Hiring discrimination based on race was still the norm in the defense industry.

At the same time, Civil rights leaders were organizing for change. A. Philip Randolph, who had organized and led the first African American labor union, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, was planning a march on Washington D.C. to pressure President Roosevelt to open the defense industry to Black Americans. The president initially resisted this effort, but as the march grew closer and after much pressure from his wife Eleanor, Roosevelt conceded.

On June 25, 1941, the president signed Executive Order 8802, prohibiting racial discrimination in the defense industry or government. At last, all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces were open to African Americans. Between 1942 and 1949, approximately 20,000 African American men completed recruit training under harsh conditions on a still racially segregated base in North Carolina known as Montford Point.

Montford Point Is now part of Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, the main Marine Corps infantry base for the East Coast, and is called Camp Johnson after one of those first Black marines. The Montford Point Marines were determined to serve and fight for their country abroad as heroes, even though they faced segregation when they returned home.

On November 23, 2011, President Barack Obama signed into law the legislation awarding the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor bestowed by Congress, to the Montford Point Marines.

Prince William County is home to Quantico Marine Base in the Potomac District, and the county is home to many veterans and active service members who are the beneficiary of sacrifices made by the Montford Point Marines, which is why the County has set aside this day, February 28, 2023, to recognize and honor their legacy.

Master Gunnery Sgt. Carroll W. Braxton, 98, one of the Montford Point Marines, attended and spoke at the ceremony commemorating the trailblazing Marines.

“You couldn’t even realize what we had to go through to be a Marine,” Braxton said. “You know it’s kind of tough when you’re going to fight for your country, and you are told you are not wanted. You don’t belong here. We don’t need you here, and you will never be a Marine, but after 11 weeks of going through Hell, you see, I’m standing here.”

After boot camp, Braxton was one of a few Marines sent to the Pacific Theater.

“We went to the Pacific, and would you believe we weren’t segregated? We joined the white marines on those Islands. And you know, it was a strange thing, bullets don’t have black or white, and we found that out, and the white Marines found out that we could do what they could and maybe a little bit better because we wanted to. We wanted to prove that we could fight for our country and we were equal to anybody else that fought for their country. We had to fight for our country, and now we are still, I hate to say, still fighting a little bit. It’s better, but it could be a whole lot better.”

-Story by Prince William County Government

The Virginia Council on the Interstate Compact for Military Children awarded five Stafford County Public Schools with 2022 Purple Star Designation; Margaret Brent Elementary and North Stafford High School for the first time, Rockhill, Widewater, and Winding Creek elementary schools for the second time.

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