NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE AGENCIES FOR SURPLUS PROPERTY (NASASP,Inc.)

11/09/2023

As we continue to honor the brave men and women who have served our country, today's feature focuses on veterans from the Texas SASP.

Veterans have had an immeasurable impact on the American people, protecting our freedoms and ensuring our way of life. As President John F. Kennedy once said, "As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." Let us strive to live by the values of courage, sacrifice, and service that our veterans embody.

Meet Dennis Hegarty and Estanislao Rodriguez.

Dennis served in Ramadi, Iraq in 2003. He retired from the United States Army after 22 years of service. He has been part of the Texas Federal Surplus Property Program team as a Property Screener for the last five years.

Estanislao served in the United States Marine Corps from 2000 to 2004. In 2003, he was deployed to Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom. He has been a public servant for the State of Texas as a Compliance Specialist for the last seven months.

Thank you, Dennis, and Estanislao for your service and dedication to our country.

11/06/2023

NASASP would like to take another moment to honor all the brave men and women who have served our country, but especially the female veterans who have faced unique challenges and barriers in their service.

Today, we want to share the words of President Abraham Lincoln, who once said, "Honor to the soldier and sailor everywhere, who bravely bears his country's cause. Honor, also, to the citizen who cares for his brother in the field and serves, as he best can, the same cause." These words ring true for our female veterans who have put their lives on the line to protect our freedom.

Meet Marie Leedom, a Business Manager for the Nebraska SASP. After completing Officer Candidate School, Marie served as an Officer in the United State Navy for 7 years. Her duty stations included: Naval Air Station, Bermuda, Naval Criminal Intelligence Service and finally at Naval Nuclear Reactors Command, both these final commands in Washington DC. After resigning her commission to be a stay-at-home mom to her three sons, she eventually continued her service to the public by first serving on the board of the Village of Ceresco and eventually working for the Department of Corrections for the State of Nebraska. She has been in her current position as Business Manager of Federal Surplus Property for over 6 years. She was most recently appointed as the newest Commander of the Ceresco American Legion, Post 244 as the first female Commander. Congratulations, Marie!

Thank you to all the veterans out there for your service and sacrifice. You are true heroes.

11/02/2023

"Freedom is never free." - Unknown

The contributions of veterans to the United States and the world cannot be overstated. Every day, these brave men and women risked their lives to protect our freedom and safeguard our way of life. This November, NASASP would like to highlight the stories of NASASP members who served our country and in turn, made a significant positive impact on America.

Meet Dean McQuay and Keith Cundy, employees of the South Dakota SASP.

Dean served in the South Dakota National Guard for 20 years. During his service, Dean was deployed to Vietnam from 1969 to 1970, which is where his photograph was taken. After retiring from the military, Dean did not rest on his laurels. Instead, he devoted his time and resources to public service. He has been with the South Dakota Federal Surplus program for 18 years and with State of South Dakota government for 55 years.

Keith served 10 years of active duty with the United States Airforce from 1987 to 1997. Like Dean, following his time in the Airforce, Keith also decided to utilize his unique skillset and become a civil servant for the State of South Dakota. He has been with the Federal Surplus program for 25 years.

As we honor the sacrifices of veterans-on-Veterans Day and beyond, let us remember the stories of individuals like Dean and Keith, who have made a difference for all American citizens. Their service and sacrifice should never be forgotten.

10/23/2023

MISASP ❤️’s marketing!

The Michigan Federal Surplus Program is excited to announce our participation in the 2023 Michigan Sheriffs’ Association Professional Development Conference! If you’re local, visit us at booth #59 to learn about the benefits of our program and grab an application. See you there!

09/12/2023

The Wisconsin SASP has a donee they'd like to shed the "Spotlight" on this month! The VR Huey Mission Simulator

A retired Vietnam-era UH-1H “Huey” helicopter is being given new life as a virtual reality flight simulator by a Wisconsin nonprofit. Its purpose: to give Wisconsin and Minnesota residents a chance to learn about the challenging and hazardous work performed routinely by military and civilian helicopter crews.

The Helicopter Conservancy, Ltd., a Wisconsin SASP donee located in the town of New Richmond, received this helicopter in 2018 through the GSA Federal Surplus Personal Property Donation Program. The airframe was donated by the US Department of State, which had used it as a source of parts to keep its active fleet of modernized Huey's flying.

But the helicopter was located near Orlando, Florida, a long way from Wisconsin. “We were fortunate to have the help of three retired pilots living in the Orlando area. They were intimately familiar with Huey's, having flown them during the Vietnam War, and were willing to inspect and supervise the loading of the airframe for transport. It would be hard to imagine this donation happening without their help,” according to Helicopter Conservancy President Kenneth Eward.

The Huey came with no logbook or other clues to its history, but through a Freedom of Information Act request, the Helicopter Conservancy learned that it had served with the army’s 101st Airborne Division. It once carried the division’s Pathfinder parachutists, elite soldiers tasked with securing landing zones in advance of main troop landings. “When it arrived in New Richmond, the helicopter still had the cable used decades ago by army paratroopers to attach the static lines of their parachutes,” says Eward.

The Helicopter Conservancy designed the simulator conversion to take advantage of relatively inexpensive off-the-shelf consumer computer and electronics equipment, including virtual reality (VR) goggles, that dramatically heighten the perception of realism. Although they did not at first realize it, their approach was like the US Air Force, which uses similar equipment to train cadets in its revolutionary new Pilot Training Next program.

The Helicopter Conservancy decided not to limit the simulator to one or two pilot seats, but to include the cabin seating area as well, greatly expanding the number of visitors participating in the same flight. The use of VR goggles would heighten the immersive feel of the shared experience, in which visitors can participate directly, by spotting objectives or flight hazards, lowering a rescue hoist, and even assisting the pilot in flying the helicopter.

The Helicopter Conservancy also kept the helicopter intact: “Most flight simulators only represent the cockpit, which is OK, because they’re intended for flight instruction, and you don’t need the entire aircraft for that. But we decided to install the simulator in a complete Huey so that visitors have a better sense of the real aircraft and the feeling that in stepping aboard, they’re embarking on a unique experience,” according to Eward. “Participants will be able to fly in several mission scenarios, in any part of the world, even scenarios designed to reenact events of the past. One example we’re considering is a troop landing during the Vietnam War. Our focus is on educating the public about the world of helicopter crews, which is why we’re not calling this a flight simulator, but a mission simulator.”

When visitors arrive at the simulator, they will be briefed on their mission and assigned tasks as a crewmember, or simply opt to come along for the ride. A veteran pilot will lead the flight, and the VR headsets allow voice communication between pilot and participants.

The Helicopter Conservancy has partnered with Laminar Research, developers of the widely acclaimed X-Plane flight simulation software, and Nimbus Simulation Studios, to run the simulator.

The first milestone was achieved in September 2021 when the primary flight controls were completed and evaluated. Retired Huey pilot Mitch Madison took the simulator for its initial test flight. The following day, the simulator was demonstrated to a gathering of the Upper Midwest Chapter of the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association at our workshop. Several of the retired pilots took a turn at the controls, pronouncing it very realistic and “a whole lot of fun.”

The VR Huey Mission Simulator is still very much a work in progress, but already has two functional VR pilot stations that visitors were able to try out at a recent demo in July 2022.

When completed in 2024, the simulator will be equipped with a trailer to bring it to area schools, retirement homes and to special events. Admission to the public will be free.

Included is a link to short demo video of the Mission Simulator created by the Helicopter Conservancy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RM0gmcSSz7Q

08/01/2023

Boise, what a great time Idaho was! Shoutout to everyone who made the 2023 NASASP Conference a success!

06/13/2023

Interested in some NASASP swag? Check out the item storefront. Special thanks to Joshua Foster with ILSASP for making this possible!

Online ordering for NASASP Company Swag 2023 ends on Sun, Jun 25, 2023 (11:59 PM CDT)

05/11/2023

The Illinois State Agency for Surplus Property (ILSASP) would like to recognize a Federal Surplus customer who regularly utilizes the program and has made the most of the excess government resources available.

Clean Up – Give Back has been a State of Illinois donee since 2020. This donee works out of Des Plaines, IL and labors tirelessly to clean up their community and the surrounding areas. Last November ILSASP allocated them green trash and recycling cans and they were a real “game changer” for the entity. The cans make Clean Up's large jobs so much easier, as they can roll their equipment all around and no longer have to carry it in boxes. They also use the cans outside of their building for collecting bags and other need items that are donated to them by their community.

Clean Up – Give Back, thank you for what you do for your community and to help improve our world. NASASP appreciates you!

For more information on how to assist Clean Up – Give Back in their efforts, visit www.cleanupgiveback.org.

04/10/2023

Spring has sprung and the sun is shining along with the Donee Spotlight on MISASP's recognized donee, Karl Dornburg of Pearl Beach Construction Company.

Pearl Beach Construction provides a variety of services, including, but not limited to, marine construction and dredging, roofing and demolition, and historic building restoration. Mr. Dornburg's business is registered as a Veteran Owned Small Business and Mr. Dornburg himself, yields many years of experience in his trade. He has completed a variety of projects for the National Parks Service, Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.

One testimonial from a happy Pearl Beach customer read, "The high quality of the finished project is a direct reflection on the integrity of the company. The attention to detail is next to none."

Since his application's approval in October of 2022, Mr. Dornburg has acquired boats, boat cradles, trailers and a barge. We greatly thank Mr. Dornburg not only for his service to this country, but for reutilizing government property and keeping the Federal Surplus program afloat *no pun intended*.

03/17/2023

As NASASP continues the celebration of National Women's History Month, the Illinois SASP wanted to recognize one of their employees for her wonderful strengths!

Rewa Boldrey is the heart of ILSASP’s operations. She quickly moved up from a support role in our federal programs to being the Program Manager for all Federal Programs last year.

This promotion was well warranted as she has been driving both of our Federal programs (GSA Fed Surplus / LESO) for the last four years. Rewa has initiated and managed the rollout of numerous technological platforms to enable ILSASP to move from a paper-based program to a fully electronic system.

In addition, she has utilized these new platforms to help ILSASP comply with federal and internal audit findings/suggestions to make our program more efficient, competent, and compliant will all governing rules/regulations. Beyond the technological advances that she has made, Rewa also digs in deep to help manage, execute, and correct any issues with our programs, projects, and initiatives.

Her personal pride in our programs, work ethic to get things done, and exemplary service to our agency and the State of Illinois makes her a mission critical asset that is easily displayed by the ongoing success of ILSASP and any other program/project that she is involved with.

Congratulations, Rewa! Thank you for all you do!

03/08/2023

International Women's Day!
Did you know that 23 of the 56 SASPs Directors are Women? These are some of the most talented and dedicated women in government service today. They over see logistics, warehousing, computer systems, personnel and so much more! A special shout out to Marilyn Trachsel! Marilyn retired as the MO SASP Director and has since spent her time since supporting and promoting NASASP as the Fund Administrator. The title belies her importance to NASASP. Her experience and knowledge of not just NASASP, but the Federal Surplus Property Program is simply irreplaceable. Thank you, ladies, and especially Marilyn for all you do!