America's Army continues to answer the Nation's call, as it has since it was established nearly 235 years ago. Today our Army is fighting two wars, assisting other nations as they build their own security capacity, supporting civil authorities at home, helping the people of Haiti rebuild after a devastating earthquake, and preparing to deter and defeat new threats. The Army's Soldiers, Civilians, and Families faithfully shoulder the load that our Nation asks of them. With the support of the Congress, we are on track with our four-year plan to put the Army back in balance. Though their sacrifices can never be fully repaid, the Nation continues to recognize and honor our Soldiers and their Families by supporting them before, during, and following deployments. Our Soldiers rely upon the best training and equipment that our Nation can provide to accomplish their mission. Yet even with this continued support, the demands of eight years of war weigh heavily on our Army. The strain of multiple deployments is evident on Soldiers and their Families. Equipment is used at a pace that seriously challenges our maintenance and replacement capabilities and resources. The stress is present in our institutions as we change 20th-century systems and processes to meet the demands of the 21st Century. Our Nation faces the difficult challenge of balancing when, where, and how to engage in a dynamic and uncertain world while meeting important priorities at home. However, when the security of our citizens or allies is threatened, the Nation can depend on America's Army - the Strength of the Nation. Our Army continues to lead America in the global struggle against violent extremism. Since the attacks of September 11th, 2001, America's Army has engaged in sustained combat against determined enemies, provided lifesaving humanitarian assistance to those affected by natural disaster, and supported homeland defense and civil authorities in responding to domestic emergencies. In more than eight years of war, the Soldiers, Civilians, and Families of our Army have paid a heavy price - more than one million have deployed to combat, over 3,900 Soldiers have sacrificed their lives and over 25,000 have been wounded. Yet our Army remains the "Strength of the Nation" because of the courage, commitment and resilience of our people. Each day, 1.1 million Soldiers, 279,500 Civilians, and their Families proudly serve in nearly 80 countries around the world, and in the past year, more than 279,000 men and women chose to enlist or reenlist in the United States Army. Three years ago, we put the Army on a path to restore balance - a point where we could meet the demands on our force at a tempo that was sustainable for this all-volunteer Army. In 2009, we continued to make progress toward this goal. The support the Army received over the past year enabled us to sustain our Soldiers and Families, continue to prepare our Soldiers for success in the current conflict, reset them effectively when they returned, and continue to transform for an uncertain future. We also continue to improve how we acquire equipment, modernize our force, and conduct the business of the Army, so that we remain good stewards of our Nation's resources. We are not out of the woods yet. We face challenges as we shift our weight from Iraq to Afghanistan, continue to refine the Army of the 21st century, execute BRAC-directed moves, continue to modularize and reposition units to meet diverse threats, and transform our business practices.