Army Morale, Welfare, & Recreation

The Army Morale, Welfare and Recreation is a private, non-profit organization that defines itself to serve for the benefit of the well being of those men and women who serve the country as defenders of the nation. Also known as MWR in short, it is an organization that functions on a large network that moves as one to support and give leisure and comfort that would help give better lives to soldiers, military retirees, civilian employees and their families.The concept of MWR started way back before the institution’s inception right in the battlefields of World War I, where sisters of the Salvation Army and volunteers for Red Cross tended to the needs of soldiers, serving as their primary source of morale, welfare and recreation. Everything virtually went to a halt, however, when the war ceased and the programs shelved until 1940, when the Adjutant General’s Office established the Morale Division, now known as Special Services.From there, active duty military and civilians composed the core recreation programs that were established in between 1946 and 1955. Active duty enlisted soldiers and officers were assigned at various levels of command within the Special Service’s military occupational specialties, which went on until the mid 1980s. While certain occupational specialties could no longer go on, civilians continued what has now become an operational MWR program. And after a series of reorganizations and renaming of the program, it finally ended up being called as the morale, welfare and recreation program.Today, MWR continues to offer services that help reduce stress as well as improve skills and foster self-confidence within one’s self and camaraderie among fellow soldiers, and thus catering to their morale, welfare and recreation which in turn contributes to the much needed retention of valuable and talented people in the Army by reminding them that there are people who care are willing to support them all throughout their service in defending the country.With the mission of serving the needs interests and responsibilities of every member of the Army community no matter where they are, so long as they continue to serve the Army, MWR upholds its ideology that the same, if not a better, quality of life should be awarded to soldiers who promised to defend their country.After all, it takes more than stringent training and dedication in order to produce an army that is ready and able. Soldiers need to play to balance out their work too, you know.

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