The Charles County Military Alliance Council (MAC) plays an important role in supporting both the Naval Support Facility (NSF) Indian Head and the Town of Indian Head itself. The alliance is an advocacy organization funded partially by the Maryland Department of Commerce, Office of Military & Federal Affairs. The MAC is a connecting thread that supports both.
Pam Frank, the Charles County MAC’s Executive Director, explains, “We have seven major installations in the State of Maryland—Aberdeen Proving Ground, Fort Detrick, Fort Meade, Joint Base Andrews, Patuxent River, Indian Head, and Carderock. (There are others, but these are the main ones.) Each one has an alliance whose job it is to advocate for the installation and the community in which it is based. They go hand in hand; they’re intertwined.”
Frank was born and raised in Indian Head. Her grandfather was a country doctor, and his garage was the home of today’s Indian Head Center for the Arts and the Black Box Theatre. The Center is a family labor of love—her mother, Evie Hungerford, was very involved with the Center for Arts for years. Frank has been the Center’s administrator since 2012, and she also manages the Charles County MAC from there. They plan to move soon to a new space in the Maryland Technology Center.
The MAC was founded in 2015 with the goal of creating connections between the Town of Indian Head, the greater Southern Maryland community, and the military community at NSF Indian Head. They work together with leaders from local government and business communities, as well as base leadership, to forge a strong and mutually beneficial relationship.
The MAC has secured grants of $3 million for more recent projects such as the CSM Velocity Center, the US Bomb Technician Association, and the Oasis Fresh Foods Market. Frank serves on the advisory council for Oasis, and says the community is very invested. “Good things are happening in Indian Head,” she says, “but it’s been a lot of hard work.”
How the Tech Corridor Got Started
Neighboring St. Mary’s County has the Patuxent River Corridor, and Frank liked the idea of having a similar corridor in Charles County. She says, “I went to George Clark (with the Tri-County Council for Southern Maryland ) at a Christmas Chamber event 1 ½ years ago and told him, ‘after the holidays, we need some help. Here’s what we want to do…’” Clark got things started with state highway officials, and then the Charles County Economic Development Department took the concept of a Western Charles Tech Corridor to the Board of Commissioners. It was approved in six months--only a short time. Frank says, “With the influx of jobs and new businesses coming to the area, from Indian Head up to Bryans Road and the airport, we’re going to need a hub like this.”
2024 MAC Priorities
The MAC’s top priorities for 2024 are education and growing their membership. The MAC, along with partners like the Charles County Economic Development Department, Charles County Public Schools, and the Patuxent Partnership’s Workforce 2030 initiative, will focus on educating the community. “It used to be that everybody on base lived in secrecy,” says Frank. “Now we need to tell the story. Workforce is everybody’s Achilles heel. We don’t have enough people in the pipeline. Right now, the base says we’re good with scientists; we need people in the trades.”
An education campaign is in the works. They also want to build their membership and are collaborating with partner organizations in the county. They host an annual State of the Station, which is a briefing with news and updates from state and local leaders, as well as base leadership, all focused on how we can make each other stronger. Last year’s first State of the Station had 60 attendees, and this year’s January event had 80. Watch that video recording here.
To learn more about how the MAC supports our base and community visit their website. They also have a link there to join.
