History

#FlashbackFriday: The Exchange Responds After the 9/11 Attacks

By Robert Philpot / September 6, 2024 /

Wednesday will mark the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Exchange associates worldwide offered support in many ways after the attacks.

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#FlashbackFriday: The Exchange Officer Who Sang With the Metropolitan Opera

By Robert Philpot / August 30, 2024 /

Lt. Col Arthur Kent, an Exchange officer assigned to the Fort Douglas Exchange in Utah in 1956, was a reserve officer who for a time had a parallel career as an opera singer. 

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#FlashbackFriday: August 1898—Hawaii’s First Post Exchange Opens

By Robert Philpot / August 16, 2024 /

“The Post Exchange forms quite a feature in the life of the soldier,” said a report in a Hawaiian newspaper.

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A female Seaman looks at damage to Trader Andy's Hut after an 8.1-magnitude earthquake struck Guam in 1993.

#FlashbackFriday: 1993—Guam BX Boosts Morale After 8.1-Magnitude Quake

By Robert Philpot / August 9, 2024 /

It was the strongest quake to hit the island in 84 years, and the strongest to be recorded anywhere in the world in four years

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#FlashbackFriday: 52 Years Ago, a ‘Gunfighter BX’ Fell—and Rose Again—in Vietnam

By Robert Philpot / August 2, 2024 /

Fifty-two years ago this weekend, on Aug. 3, 1974, an enemy rocket attack destroyed an Exchange at Danang Air Base in Vietnam. Nicknamed the “Gunfighter BX,” it didn’t stay down for long.

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Illustration featuring four 1984 Olympics military gold medal winners.

#FlashbackFriday: Going for the Gold With Olympics Connections in Exchange History

By Robert Philpot / July 26, 2024 /

From the Exchange Post archives, a look at Exchange family connections to the Olympics as well as ways the Exchange has supported the Games.

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#FlashbackFriday: Blasting Off Through the Exchange’s Connections to the Space Program

By Robert Philpot / July 19, 2024 /

From a 1950s commander whose son was a pioneering astronaut to modern-day clothing with the U.S. Space Force photo, the Exchange has several links to the space program in its history.

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#FlashbackFriday: We Go Where You Go—The Exchange in Thailand

By Robert Philpot / July 12, 2024 /

The Exchange operated in Thailand during the Vietnam War. Elephants, Santa and an astronaut visited.

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#FlashbackFriday: Remembering Maj. Gen. Albin G. Wheeler, 1991-’93 Exchange Commander

By Robert Philpot / June 28, 2024 /

Wheeler, who was also AAFES-Europe commander from 1983 to 1983, passed away June 10.

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#FlashbackFriday: 1994—The First Exchange-Operated Dental Office Opens

By Robert Philpot / June 21, 2024 /

Fairbanks Dental Clinic, which opened at what was then Fort Hood, increased convenience for military families who previously had to go off-post for routine care.

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