July Marks 40th Anniversary of All-volunteer Army

July Marks 40th Anniversary of All-volunteer Army
Army News Service
By Alex Dixon

WASHINGTON, July 3, 2013 – When newly elected President Richard M. Nixon directed the Department of Defense to create an all-volunteer force, Army leaders knew there would be some hurdles.

Instead of drafting young men to fill the ranks, the Army and the other armed services would need to spend money to ramp up recruiting efforts and portray military service as an attractive career choice.

By July 1, 1973 -- now 40 years ago -- the draft had been eliminated. But the Army started working on developing the all-volunteer force well before that.

In April 1971, Project VOLAR, for "volunteer Army," was implemented at select Army posts across the country. The project was an experiment designed to increase retention rates and morale among soldiers and attract those who would want to serve.

Army Sgt. Maj. Ray Moran, now retired, was assigned to the 1st Recruiting Brigade under VOLAR in 1971, at Fort Meade, Md., and said VOLAR brought about changes to life at the post.

Comfortable furniture soon filled the open-bay barracks, which were divided into sleeping rooms. Beer, once prohibited, became a popular beverage. And grooming standards relaxed. But Army leaders soon realized some changes caused more problems than they solved, and new initiatives began that focused on instilling professionalism and building pride for the Army.

Moran said he thinks the all-volunteer force initiative has proven a success -- and he was proud to have been part of it.

"We built a volunteer Army that really proved itself in Desert Storm," Moran said in a 2011 interview. "They were just a marvelous bunch of soldiers, and they have done it right through to Iraq and Afghanistan today. We are very proud of the all-volunteer Army."
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