By Sharon Foster
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 14, 2008 - Two troop-support groups hosted a "Military Showers of Appreciation" for 15 expectant military mothers July 27 at Camp Pendleton, Calif. Many of the expectant mothers helped by the two groups -- North Star Group and Operation Showers of Appreciation -- have spouses who are deployed and will not be home for the birth of their new babies.
"Military Showers of Appreciation assists active-duty Military families from all branches that are expecting new babies with various items they will need to care for their new baby," said Mandy Sims, vice president of the North Star Group. "Because many of these pregnant mothers have babies alone with new fathers deployed, we pay special attention to pampering these spouses and supporting them positively during this time."
The North Star Group -- a home-front supporter of the Defense Department's America Supports You program -- has been hosting "Military Showers of Appreciation" since 2006. The group decided to make this event one of their various military programs after a North Star Group volunteer and military veteran had her baby alone during her husband's deployment.
"This shower shed a little sunlight on a difficult time that many Military spouses experience during constant deployments," Sims said. "Many people do not realize the sacrifices the entire military family makes during a deployment. It is important to the North Star Group that military families know they are appreciated and that they are not alone."
The baby showers are held quarterly, and applications are accepted on a first-come, most-needed basis. Twenty to 25 spouses are honored per shower each quarter.
At the most recent baby shower, held in July, the North Star Group and Operation Showers of Appreciation honored the 100th family assisted. Families at the special shower received lunch, gifts, massages, mini-makeovers and professional family portraits.
"I received a lot of baby necessities," said Ashley Ruiz, who attended the July 27 shower. "Everything from baby bottles to a bassinet, the gifts helped us out a lot. The entire event was just a very supportive, caring atmosphere. I really enjoyed it. The baby shower also provided me an opportunity to meet and make new friends with other pregnant Military moms."
North Star Group plans to work with Operation Showers of Appreciation again in planning the next "Military Showers of Appreciation" event, scheduled Dec. 6 for 20 expectant mothers at Camp Pendleton. Military families are informed about these baby showers through information and application flyers and news releases distributed on bases and posted online at the North Star Group and Operation Showers of Appreciation Web sites.
"We will make every attempt to do something special for expecting families even if they miss the shower cut-off dates," Sims said. "These quarterly showers are currently held at Camp Pendleton and Twentynine Palms, California, base locations, with plans of expanding to bases in other states in the future. All military servicemembers in California willing to travel to the shower from any Military bases in the area are welcome to apply."
To be considered, applicants must provide a valid active-duty military ID, current leave and earnings statement, proof of pregnancy and a completed application.
The North Star Group, which also offers information referral services to these mothers, is a supporter of the Defense Department's America Supports You program, which connects citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
America Supports You: Soldiers in Iraq Unite With Families Through Reading
By Army Capt. Kathryn Rains
Special to American Forces Press Service
Aug. 14, 2008 - As deployments have remained consistent for soldiers and family members of the 4th Infantry Division, separation has been commonplace. To aid in strengthening the separated families' relationships, the nonprofit United through Reading program promotes the "read aloud" experience for separated families.
The program fosters communication between deployed soldiers and their children, siblings, nieces, nephews or those to whom they are a mentor.
"If we make a difference in one soldier's life and possibly that of his or her children, we have been successful, but to impact so many soldiers and families is simply overwhelming and fills the heart with pride," said Army Lt. Col. Steven Palmer, who hails from Las Vegas and serves in Multinational Division Baghdad as commander of the 4th Infantry Division's 3rd Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment, Combat Aviation Brigade.
"This program has grown so large for us that nearly everyone feels the positive influence of this family interaction," he said. "I cannot be more proud of our ministry team and the positive impact they have had on our daily mission."
The support for this program throughout the battalion has been in keeping with the 4th Infantry Division's motto, "Steadfast and Loyal." A video of the deployed soldier reading a book, and the book, are mailed to the child. The child's reaction is mailed in return to the soldier.
"It's a wonderful blessing to be able read to my daughter on video, receive a video in return, and be able to watch her sit and follow along with the book," said Army Staff Sgt. James Stanley, who hails from Troufdale, Ore., and serves as a personnel noncommissioned officer with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment. "It helps with the separation, and I get to help teach her to read at the same time."
United through Reading's nationally acclaimed programs provide opportunities for powerful emotional bonding to deployed servicemembers and their families. The program attempts to relieve the stress of separation by coordinating a book reading session between adult and child.
Chaplain (Capt.) Mark Olson, from Dayton, Tenn., who has six children of his own, offers soldiers this opportunity to communicate with their children not only by providing a reading room for soldiers to record in, but also by taking the program to the soldiers working on the flight line.
"Many soldiers do not have the time to come to our reading room, so we take our video camera and books to them," Olson said. "The main idea for this program is simply to keep soldiers in touch with their families. The greatest reward, however, is the knowledge that someone back home will cry, smile, or laugh as they see their loved one in living color, live before them on TV."
(Army Capt. Kathryn Rains serves in Multinational Division Baghdad with the 4th Infantry Division's 3rd Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment, Combat Aviation Brigade.)
(Editor's Note: More information on groups and individuals supporting the troops can be found at www.AmericaSupportsYou.mil, the Web site of the Defense Department's America Supports You program, which connects citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.)
Special to American Forces Press Service
Aug. 14, 2008 - As deployments have remained consistent for soldiers and family members of the 4th Infantry Division, separation has been commonplace. To aid in strengthening the separated families' relationships, the nonprofit United through Reading program promotes the "read aloud" experience for separated families.
The program fosters communication between deployed soldiers and their children, siblings, nieces, nephews or those to whom they are a mentor.
"If we make a difference in one soldier's life and possibly that of his or her children, we have been successful, but to impact so many soldiers and families is simply overwhelming and fills the heart with pride," said Army Lt. Col. Steven Palmer, who hails from Las Vegas and serves in Multinational Division Baghdad as commander of the 4th Infantry Division's 3rd Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment, Combat Aviation Brigade.
"This program has grown so large for us that nearly everyone feels the positive influence of this family interaction," he said. "I cannot be more proud of our ministry team and the positive impact they have had on our daily mission."
The support for this program throughout the battalion has been in keeping with the 4th Infantry Division's motto, "Steadfast and Loyal." A video of the deployed soldier reading a book, and the book, are mailed to the child. The child's reaction is mailed in return to the soldier.
"It's a wonderful blessing to be able read to my daughter on video, receive a video in return, and be able to watch her sit and follow along with the book," said Army Staff Sgt. James Stanley, who hails from Troufdale, Ore., and serves as a personnel noncommissioned officer with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment. "It helps with the separation, and I get to help teach her to read at the same time."
United through Reading's nationally acclaimed programs provide opportunities for powerful emotional bonding to deployed servicemembers and their families. The program attempts to relieve the stress of separation by coordinating a book reading session between adult and child.
Chaplain (Capt.) Mark Olson, from Dayton, Tenn., who has six children of his own, offers soldiers this opportunity to communicate with their children not only by providing a reading room for soldiers to record in, but also by taking the program to the soldiers working on the flight line.
"Many soldiers do not have the time to come to our reading room, so we take our video camera and books to them," Olson said. "The main idea for this program is simply to keep soldiers in touch with their families. The greatest reward, however, is the knowledge that someone back home will cry, smile, or laugh as they see their loved one in living color, live before them on TV."
(Army Capt. Kathryn Rains serves in Multinational Division Baghdad with the 4th Infantry Division's 3rd Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment, Combat Aviation Brigade.)
(Editor's Note: More information on groups and individuals supporting the troops can be found at www.AmericaSupportsYou.mil, the Web site of the Defense Department's America Supports You program, which connects citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.)
MILITARY CONTRACTS August 13, 2008
Navy
The University of New Orleans, New Orleans, La. is being awarded a $49,283,693 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity with provisions for issuance of fixed-price task ordercontract for analytical and technical support services from undergraduate and graduate students and faculty at a geographically local educational institution in support of advanced research and development projects on behalf of multiple customers in the South Eastern La., and South Miss., region to include, but not limited to, the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center, New Orleans; Manpower, Personnel, Training and Education Command; Naval Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration; Department of Navy Chief Information Office; National Aeronautics and Space Administration; the National Finance Center; and other federal government research and development activities. Work will be performed in New Orleans, La., and is expected to be completed by 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract wascompetitively procured with oneproposal received. The Space and Navy Warfare Systems Center New Orleans, La., is the contracting activity (N69250-08-D-0302).
Alion Science and Technology Corp., Chicago, Ill., is being awarded a $37,930,000 ceiling-priced indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the procurement of integrated anti-submarine training systems, which will provide single platform and integrated computer based training. In addition, the trainers will support an anti-submarine warfare synthetic training environment and provide a continuous training capability that is interoperable, distributed, mobile, and deployable. Work will be performed in Naval Air Warfare Center, Training Systems Command, Orlando, Fla., and is expected to be completed in Aug. 2013. Contract funds in the amount of $50,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured through an electronic request for proposals and one offer was received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division, Orlando, Fla. is the contracting activity (N61339-08-D-0009).
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Bethpage, N.Y., is being awarded a $16,124,867 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-06-C-6311) to provide integration services for mission packages that will deploy from and integrate with the Littoral Combat Ship. The Navy's plan is to use spiral development to improve mission capability in identified mission areas. The LCS mission packages are developed and acquired separately from the LCS sea frame. Work will be performed in Bethpage, N.Y., (32 percent); Washington, D.C., (26 percent); Panama City, Fla., (15 percent); Hollywood, Md., (15 percent); San Diego, Calif., (5 percent); Dahlgren, Va., (5 percent); and Newport, R.I., (2 percent), and is expected to be completed by Sept. 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity.
Rockwell Collins Aerospace and Electronics, Inc., Portland, Ore., is being awarded a $7,200,000 (in total ceiling amount) firm-fixed-price, Basic Order Agreement (BOA) for spares, repairs, and engineering services and support of HGS-3000 heads-up display system for the C-130J aircraft sustainment program. The HGS-3000 heads-up display system is an electronic system that displays information on a screen so the flight crew does not have to "look down" to read the aircraft instrumentation equipment. Work will be performed 100% in Portland, Ore and is anticipated to be complete at the conclusion of the BOA in Aug. 2013. Funds will be obligated as each job order against this BOA is identified. This contract was competitively procured via Federal Business Opportunities, Navy Electronic Commerce Online, and the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane website with one offer received. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division, Crane, Ind., is the contracting activity (N00164-08-G-WT00).
Army
Watterson Construction Co., Anchorage, Ala., was awarded on Aug. 11, 2008, a $33,850,000 firm-fixed price construction contract for the construction of a barracks facility. Work will be performed at Fort Richardson, Ala., and is expected ot be completed by Sept. 10, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Dec. 20, 2007, and one bid was received. U.S. Army Engineer District, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Ala., is the contracting activity (W911KB-08-C-0023).
Evergreen Helicopters, Inc., McMinnville, Ore., was awarded on Aug. 11, 2008, a $9,507,456 firm-fixed price contract for MEDEVAC services. Work will be performed at Fort Wainwright, Ala., and is expected to be completed by Aug. 31, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Four bids were solicited on Jun. 13, 2008, and two bids were received. Army Contracting Agency, Fort Richardson, Ala., is the contracting activity (W912CZ-08-D-0006).
Raytheon Missile Systems Co., Tucson, Ariz., was awarded on Aug. 12 2008, a $6,057,283 firm-fixed price with cost-plus fixed fee line items contract for GRIFFIN munitions and engineering services. Work will be performed in Tucson, Ariz., and is expected to be completed by Aug. 31, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Feb. 5, 2008. U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W31P4Q-08-C-0252).
Valley Machine Co., Alexandria, Ala., was awarded on Aug. 12, 2008, a $6,000,000 firm-fixed price contract for the finish, repair and paint of various combat vehicle parts. Work will be performed in Alexandria, Ala., and is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Aug. 2, 2006, and two bids were received. Anniston Army Depot, Anniston, Ala., is the contracting activity (W911KF-06-D-0009).
Air Force
Micro-Sat Systems, Inc, of Littleton, Colo., is being awarded an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract for a maximum of $14,999,579. This contract provides for research and development in the area of space plug-n play electronics. MSI, with its subcontractor Advanced Solutions Inc., will develop modular flight software and continue in the development of a robust software architecture that takes advantage of various software modules to address the wide range of mission needs, evaluate wireless data and power transfer technologies for PnP application, develop thin film deployable solar arrays to provide additional power to the location of performance is Micro-Sat System, Colorado Springs, Colo. At this time $200,000 has been obligated. Kirtland AFB, N.M. is the contracting activity (FA9453-08-C-0249).
The University of New Orleans, New Orleans, La. is being awarded a $49,283,693 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity with provisions for issuance of fixed-price task ordercontract for analytical and technical support services from undergraduate and graduate students and faculty at a geographically local educational institution in support of advanced research and development projects on behalf of multiple customers in the South Eastern La., and South Miss., region to include, but not limited to, the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center, New Orleans; Manpower, Personnel, Training and Education Command; Naval Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration; Department of Navy Chief Information Office; National Aeronautics and Space Administration; the National Finance Center; and other federal government research and development activities. Work will be performed in New Orleans, La., and is expected to be completed by 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract wascompetitively procured with oneproposal received. The Space and Navy Warfare Systems Center New Orleans, La., is the contracting activity (N69250-08-D-0302).
Alion Science and Technology Corp., Chicago, Ill., is being awarded a $37,930,000 ceiling-priced indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the procurement of integrated anti-submarine training systems, which will provide single platform and integrated computer based training. In addition, the trainers will support an anti-submarine warfare synthetic training environment and provide a continuous training capability that is interoperable, distributed, mobile, and deployable. Work will be performed in Naval Air Warfare Center, Training Systems Command, Orlando, Fla., and is expected to be completed in Aug. 2013. Contract funds in the amount of $50,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured through an electronic request for proposals and one offer was received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division, Orlando, Fla. is the contracting activity (N61339-08-D-0009).
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Bethpage, N.Y., is being awarded a $16,124,867 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-06-C-6311) to provide integration services for mission packages that will deploy from and integrate with the Littoral Combat Ship. The Navy's plan is to use spiral development to improve mission capability in identified mission areas. The LCS mission packages are developed and acquired separately from the LCS sea frame. Work will be performed in Bethpage, N.Y., (32 percent); Washington, D.C., (26 percent); Panama City, Fla., (15 percent); Hollywood, Md., (15 percent); San Diego, Calif., (5 percent); Dahlgren, Va., (5 percent); and Newport, R.I., (2 percent), and is expected to be completed by Sept. 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity.
Rockwell Collins Aerospace and Electronics, Inc., Portland, Ore., is being awarded a $7,200,000 (in total ceiling amount) firm-fixed-price, Basic Order Agreement (BOA) for spares, repairs, and engineering services and support of HGS-3000 heads-up display system for the C-130J aircraft sustainment program. The HGS-3000 heads-up display system is an electronic system that displays information on a screen so the flight crew does not have to "look down" to read the aircraft instrumentation equipment. Work will be performed 100% in Portland, Ore and is anticipated to be complete at the conclusion of the BOA in Aug. 2013. Funds will be obligated as each job order against this BOA is identified. This contract was competitively procured via Federal Business Opportunities, Navy Electronic Commerce Online, and the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane website with one offer received. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division, Crane, Ind., is the contracting activity (N00164-08-G-WT00).
Army
Watterson Construction Co., Anchorage, Ala., was awarded on Aug. 11, 2008, a $33,850,000 firm-fixed price construction contract for the construction of a barracks facility. Work will be performed at Fort Richardson, Ala., and is expected ot be completed by Sept. 10, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Dec. 20, 2007, and one bid was received. U.S. Army Engineer District, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Ala., is the contracting activity (W911KB-08-C-0023).
Evergreen Helicopters, Inc., McMinnville, Ore., was awarded on Aug. 11, 2008, a $9,507,456 firm-fixed price contract for MEDEVAC services. Work will be performed at Fort Wainwright, Ala., and is expected to be completed by Aug. 31, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Four bids were solicited on Jun. 13, 2008, and two bids were received. Army Contracting Agency, Fort Richardson, Ala., is the contracting activity (W912CZ-08-D-0006).
Raytheon Missile Systems Co., Tucson, Ariz., was awarded on Aug. 12 2008, a $6,057,283 firm-fixed price with cost-plus fixed fee line items contract for GRIFFIN munitions and engineering services. Work will be performed in Tucson, Ariz., and is expected to be completed by Aug. 31, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Feb. 5, 2008. U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W31P4Q-08-C-0252).
Valley Machine Co., Alexandria, Ala., was awarded on Aug. 12, 2008, a $6,000,000 firm-fixed price contract for the finish, repair and paint of various combat vehicle parts. Work will be performed in Alexandria, Ala., and is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Aug. 2, 2006, and two bids were received. Anniston Army Depot, Anniston, Ala., is the contracting activity (W911KF-06-D-0009).
Air Force
Micro-Sat Systems, Inc, of Littleton, Colo., is being awarded an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract for a maximum of $14,999,579. This contract provides for research and development in the area of space plug-n play electronics. MSI, with its subcontractor Advanced Solutions Inc., will develop modular flight software and continue in the development of a robust software architecture that takes advantage of various software modules to address the wide range of mission needs, evaluate wireless data and power transfer technologies for PnP application, develop thin film deployable solar arrays to provide additional power to the location of performance is Micro-Sat System, Colorado Springs, Colo. At this time $200,000 has been obligated. Kirtland AFB, N.M. is the contracting activity (FA9453-08-C-0249).
Soldier Sets Two Olympic Records En Route to Double Trap Gold
By Tim Hipps
Special to American Forces Press Service
Aug. 13, 2008 - Spc. Walton Glenn Eller III, of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, set two Olympic records en route to winning a gold medal in double trap at the Beijing Shooting Range here yesterday. Marksmanship unit teammate Spc. Jeffrey Holguin finished fourth in the event.
Eller's score of 145 in the qualification rounds eclipsed the previous Olympic record of 144 set in the 2004 Athens Games by United Arab Emirates shooter Ahmed Almaktoum, who finished seventh in Beijing.
In double trap, competitors fire their 12-gauge shotguns from five adjacent shooting stations. At each station, two targets are thrown simultaneously from an underground bunker at speeds up to 50 mph at set angles and height. The targets are thrown with a variable delay of up to one second, and competitors get one shot per target.
"I realized with my last pair to go, 'Oh, the Olympic record is only 144. If I hit my last pair, I'm going to get the Olympic record.'"
When Eller did that, he said, he sensed he was on his way to a spectacular day. He missed his first two targets in the final, but settled down and missed only three shots the rest of the way.
"If you shoot the Olympic record [in qualification rounds] and you've got a little bit of a lead, you expect to come out with gold," Eller said. "But after I went out there [in the final] and missed that first pair, it was a little dicey there for a second, but I brought it all back together."
Eller's final score of 190 topped Almaktoum's world record of 189, also set in Athens. Italy's Francesco D'Aniello won the silver medal in Beijing with a score of 187, and China's Binyuan Hu took the bronze with a 184 total.
"It's incredible," said Eller, 26, a native of Katy, Texas, who is stationed at Fort Benning, Ga. "I finally made a final in the Olympics. I came in like 12th [in Sydney] and 17th [in Athens], and finally came out and put a good day together. This was the only thing I was worried about for the last two years."
Explaining his key to success, Eller reached into his vest and revealed a handful of trading cards.
"Hard work," the three-time Olympian said as he shuffled cards featuring soldiers of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit. "That, and I had my teammates with me. The military has been great to me. They've helped me fulfill a dream that, without them, I don't think would've ever happened. I owe everything to them.
"Joining the Army was an incredible gain for me," he continued. "It gave me a lot of discipline. I was fortunate enough to go into the Army Marksmanship Unit. It's great having those guys to train with every day. They really pushed me along. Just working with them all day, every day, it keeps you in it.
Being a soldier means he's expected to do what's asked of him, Eller noted. "For right now, they asked me to come to the Olympics and win a gold medal for the United States," he said. "I don't know how to better represent them than with a gold medal in my hand."
Eller said he couldn't wait to give his parents a big bear hug.
"I'm going to go find my parents and celebrate," he said. "They've been here all week, and to the last two Olympics, watching me. To have them here and to finally win a gold medal for them is incredible. The crowd was amazing. The facilities were incredible."
Holguin, 29, of Yorba Linda, Calif., finished fourth with a 182 total.
"I shot really well today, until the final," Holguin said. "This game is all about putting four good rounds together, and honestly, I could only manage two. I had a mediocre round and a bad round. So when you've got two good rounds, they don't offset the mediocre and bad rounds.
"Finishing fourth," he added, "that's where you finish when you shoot like I did in the final."
On this day, Holguin tipped his cap to Eller.
"It's all about him now," Holguin said. "Glenn Eller and I started shooting against each other a long, long time ago, and we actually enlisted in the Army together in the fall of 2006. This was half of our goal. We wanted gold and silver at the Olympics. We came really close, but I'm happy for him."
But during the competition, Holguin said, he did not pull any punches.
"When we're out on the shooting line, we take the gloves off and go at it as hard as anybody else," Holguin said. "I don't feel bad when he misses a target. If he would have lost the gold medal, yeah, I would have felt badly for him, but not if I was in the silver medal position. I'd be chasing him the whole way."
Holguin agreed with Eller that joining USAMU was their best move.
"Joining the Army was probably the best thing I could've done for my shooting career, just because of the discipline and structure that comes along with the Army," Holguin said. "The Army Marksmanship Unit at Fort Benning has world-class shooting facilities. We shoot with and against some of the best in the world," he said. "I've been training with the 2008 Olympic gold medalist for the last two years straight since I joined the Army, so the Army has definitely taken my shooting to the next level.
"My heartfelt thanks go out to everybody who has been behind me this whole time, but it's Glenn's day," Holguin said. "He earned it. He deserves it."
(Tim Hipps works in the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command Public Affairs Office.)
Special to American Forces Press Service
Aug. 13, 2008 - Spc. Walton Glenn Eller III, of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, set two Olympic records en route to winning a gold medal in double trap at the Beijing Shooting Range here yesterday. Marksmanship unit teammate Spc. Jeffrey Holguin finished fourth in the event.
Eller's score of 145 in the qualification rounds eclipsed the previous Olympic record of 144 set in the 2004 Athens Games by United Arab Emirates shooter Ahmed Almaktoum, who finished seventh in Beijing.
In double trap, competitors fire their 12-gauge shotguns from five adjacent shooting stations. At each station, two targets are thrown simultaneously from an underground bunker at speeds up to 50 mph at set angles and height. The targets are thrown with a variable delay of up to one second, and competitors get one shot per target.
"I realized with my last pair to go, 'Oh, the Olympic record is only 144. If I hit my last pair, I'm going to get the Olympic record.'"
When Eller did that, he said, he sensed he was on his way to a spectacular day. He missed his first two targets in the final, but settled down and missed only three shots the rest of the way.
"If you shoot the Olympic record [in qualification rounds] and you've got a little bit of a lead, you expect to come out with gold," Eller said. "But after I went out there [in the final] and missed that first pair, it was a little dicey there for a second, but I brought it all back together."
Eller's final score of 190 topped Almaktoum's world record of 189, also set in Athens. Italy's Francesco D'Aniello won the silver medal in Beijing with a score of 187, and China's Binyuan Hu took the bronze with a 184 total.
"It's incredible," said Eller, 26, a native of Katy, Texas, who is stationed at Fort Benning, Ga. "I finally made a final in the Olympics. I came in like 12th [in Sydney] and 17th [in Athens], and finally came out and put a good day together. This was the only thing I was worried about for the last two years."
Explaining his key to success, Eller reached into his vest and revealed a handful of trading cards.
"Hard work," the three-time Olympian said as he shuffled cards featuring soldiers of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit. "That, and I had my teammates with me. The military has been great to me. They've helped me fulfill a dream that, without them, I don't think would've ever happened. I owe everything to them.
"Joining the Army was an incredible gain for me," he continued. "It gave me a lot of discipline. I was fortunate enough to go into the Army Marksmanship Unit. It's great having those guys to train with every day. They really pushed me along. Just working with them all day, every day, it keeps you in it.
Being a soldier means he's expected to do what's asked of him, Eller noted. "For right now, they asked me to come to the Olympics and win a gold medal for the United States," he said. "I don't know how to better represent them than with a gold medal in my hand."
Eller said he couldn't wait to give his parents a big bear hug.
"I'm going to go find my parents and celebrate," he said. "They've been here all week, and to the last two Olympics, watching me. To have them here and to finally win a gold medal for them is incredible. The crowd was amazing. The facilities were incredible."
Holguin, 29, of Yorba Linda, Calif., finished fourth with a 182 total.
"I shot really well today, until the final," Holguin said. "This game is all about putting four good rounds together, and honestly, I could only manage two. I had a mediocre round and a bad round. So when you've got two good rounds, they don't offset the mediocre and bad rounds.
"Finishing fourth," he added, "that's where you finish when you shoot like I did in the final."
On this day, Holguin tipped his cap to Eller.
"It's all about him now," Holguin said. "Glenn Eller and I started shooting against each other a long, long time ago, and we actually enlisted in the Army together in the fall of 2006. This was half of our goal. We wanted gold and silver at the Olympics. We came really close, but I'm happy for him."
But during the competition, Holguin said, he did not pull any punches.
"When we're out on the shooting line, we take the gloves off and go at it as hard as anybody else," Holguin said. "I don't feel bad when he misses a target. If he would have lost the gold medal, yeah, I would have felt badly for him, but not if I was in the silver medal position. I'd be chasing him the whole way."
Holguin agreed with Eller that joining USAMU was their best move.
"Joining the Army was probably the best thing I could've done for my shooting career, just because of the discipline and structure that comes along with the Army," Holguin said. "The Army Marksmanship Unit at Fort Benning has world-class shooting facilities. We shoot with and against some of the best in the world," he said. "I've been training with the 2008 Olympic gold medalist for the last two years straight since I joined the Army, so the Army has definitely taken my shooting to the next level.
"My heartfelt thanks go out to everybody who has been behind me this whole time, but it's Glenn's day," Holguin said. "He earned it. He deserves it."
(Tim Hipps works in the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command Public Affairs Office.)
Soldier Becomes Oldest U.S. Woman Competitor in Olympic History
By Tim Hipps
Special to American Forces Press Service
Aug. 13, 2008 - At age 56, Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Elizabeth "Libby" Callahan became the oldest U.S. woman competitor in Olympic history with a 25th-place finish in the women's 25-meter pistol shooting event today at the Beijing Shooting Range Hall. "I've been told oldest-ever female Olympian of any nation, of all time," Callahan said. "But I don't know if that's right."
USA Shooting officials could not confirm that claim. At any rate, Callahan certainly has withstood the test of time on the competitive pistol-shooting line.
"Well, it shows my longevity, I guess," Callahan said with a laugh and a smile that rivaled the seemingly never-ending smiles of the Chinese hosts of the Beijing Games. "I'm just still kicking, and I'm not putting any restrictions on myself. It doesn't say I have to stop at a certain age.
"In fact, the oldest Olympic medalist was in shooting," she noted, "and he was 73, back in the early 1900s."
Therefore, Callahan, a four-time Olympian, already is considering taking a shot at the 2012 London Games.
"I'm not ruling it out," she said. "I'm not ruling anything out. I still feel good, and I still have that competitive fire in me."
Callahan's passion for pistol packing already has earned Summer Olympic trips to Barcelona, Atlanta and Athens, Greece, along with journeys to Hyderabad, India, for the Conseil Internationale du Sport Militaire's 2007 Military World Games, and to Salinas, Puerto Rico, for the 2005 Championships of the Americas. She's also competed in five world championships and as many Pan American Games.
After retiring in 2003 from a 28-year career with the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department, Callahan moved from Upper Marlboro, Md., to Pawleys Island, S.C., to be closer to her seven older brothers and sisters. She now has an unprecedented amount of free time to sharpen her shooting skills and compete internationally.
"What I've probably done in a lot of areas is that I've tried too hard," Callahan said. "I shoot great technique. I've been told this not just by U.S. coaches, but other international coaches. It's just something's happening just a few times in a match that throws me out of some competitions. That's a mental thing. And you know, the brain, the mind, is a terrible thing."
Callahan can easily laugh with herself -- seemingly oblivious to the fact that Father Time could be ticking on her athletic career. Her approach to the sport, however, remains unchanged as she approaches her 57th birthday.
"You still have to have the same mental approach, have to have the same techniques to execute the shot," she said. "There may be a different perspective in maybe somebody who is younger or hasn't been here before, but that's just all part of experience -- just having general experience in life.
"Throughout shooting, you will find that some things work at a certain period of time, and then after a while it doesn't work any more," she continued, "so you maybe try something different. Maybe it's your stance, maybe it's your grip, maybe it's your gun. There are always things that if something's not working and you've worked at it for a while, OK, let's try something different. How you execute, and how you execute under certain conditions, is always the important thing.
"I'm way [more] advanced than I was when I first started shooting," she said, "but it's some mental things that really grab me at certain times, and it hurts me in the match."
Callahan did not advance to the final here, where gold medalist Gundegmaa Otryad of Mongolia equaled the Olympic record with a 590 total. Germany's Munkhbayar Dorjsuren won the silver medal with a score of 587. China's Chen Ying took the bronze with a 585 total.
Callahan's career-best Olympic finish was 19th in the 2004 sport pistol event in Athens, where she also placed 30th in the air pistol competition.
"Some days you're really good. Some days you're really bad. And some days you're mediocre," she said. "That's what makes shooting interesting and, I guess, challenging. You can shoot a perfect score, and the next day go out and you aren't diddly squat."
Either way, Callahan always finds the resolve to shoot another day.
(Tim Hipps works in the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command Public Affairs Office.)
Special to American Forces Press Service
Aug. 13, 2008 - At age 56, Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Elizabeth "Libby" Callahan became the oldest U.S. woman competitor in Olympic history with a 25th-place finish in the women's 25-meter pistol shooting event today at the Beijing Shooting Range Hall. "I've been told oldest-ever female Olympian of any nation, of all time," Callahan said. "But I don't know if that's right."
USA Shooting officials could not confirm that claim. At any rate, Callahan certainly has withstood the test of time on the competitive pistol-shooting line.
"Well, it shows my longevity, I guess," Callahan said with a laugh and a smile that rivaled the seemingly never-ending smiles of the Chinese hosts of the Beijing Games. "I'm just still kicking, and I'm not putting any restrictions on myself. It doesn't say I have to stop at a certain age.
"In fact, the oldest Olympic medalist was in shooting," she noted, "and he was 73, back in the early 1900s."
Therefore, Callahan, a four-time Olympian, already is considering taking a shot at the 2012 London Games.
"I'm not ruling it out," she said. "I'm not ruling anything out. I still feel good, and I still have that competitive fire in me."
Callahan's passion for pistol packing already has earned Summer Olympic trips to Barcelona, Atlanta and Athens, Greece, along with journeys to Hyderabad, India, for the Conseil Internationale du Sport Militaire's 2007 Military World Games, and to Salinas, Puerto Rico, for the 2005 Championships of the Americas. She's also competed in five world championships and as many Pan American Games.
After retiring in 2003 from a 28-year career with the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department, Callahan moved from Upper Marlboro, Md., to Pawleys Island, S.C., to be closer to her seven older brothers and sisters. She now has an unprecedented amount of free time to sharpen her shooting skills and compete internationally.
"What I've probably done in a lot of areas is that I've tried too hard," Callahan said. "I shoot great technique. I've been told this not just by U.S. coaches, but other international coaches. It's just something's happening just a few times in a match that throws me out of some competitions. That's a mental thing. And you know, the brain, the mind, is a terrible thing."
Callahan can easily laugh with herself -- seemingly oblivious to the fact that Father Time could be ticking on her athletic career. Her approach to the sport, however, remains unchanged as she approaches her 57th birthday.
"You still have to have the same mental approach, have to have the same techniques to execute the shot," she said. "There may be a different perspective in maybe somebody who is younger or hasn't been here before, but that's just all part of experience -- just having general experience in life.
"Throughout shooting, you will find that some things work at a certain period of time, and then after a while it doesn't work any more," she continued, "so you maybe try something different. Maybe it's your stance, maybe it's your grip, maybe it's your gun. There are always things that if something's not working and you've worked at it for a while, OK, let's try something different. How you execute, and how you execute under certain conditions, is always the important thing.
"I'm way [more] advanced than I was when I first started shooting," she said, "but it's some mental things that really grab me at certain times, and it hurts me in the match."
Callahan did not advance to the final here, where gold medalist Gundegmaa Otryad of Mongolia equaled the Olympic record with a 590 total. Germany's Munkhbayar Dorjsuren won the silver medal with a score of 587. China's Chen Ying took the bronze with a 585 total.
Callahan's career-best Olympic finish was 19th in the 2004 sport pistol event in Athens, where she also placed 30th in the air pistol competition.
"Some days you're really good. Some days you're really bad. And some days you're mediocre," she said. "That's what makes shooting interesting and, I guess, challenging. You can shoot a perfect score, and the next day go out and you aren't diddly squat."
Either way, Callahan always finds the resolve to shoot another day.
(Tim Hipps works in the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command Public Affairs Office.)
America Supports You: 'D-Lister' Shows Audience Laughter is Best Medicine
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 13, 2008 - As summer ends, so goes the summer TV season, which means many favorite shows will go into hibernation for the winter. Comedian Kathy Griffin, Bravo network's somewhat saucier answer to Lucille Ball, has ensured the fourth season finale of "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D List," affects its audience when it airs tomorrow night.
Don't expect the funny lady to reel it in just because she's visiting with servicemembers recuperating at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here.
"I know our show isn't exactly 'Frontline,' but we definitely tried to weed as much comedy into the situation as possible, because these men and women let me know very quickly that when you're dealing with these kinds of injuries, you just gotta laugh," Griffin said. "What I'm proud of with [this] show is that it shows how people use humor to cope with a traumatic situation."
Griffin found laughs razzing a corporal about his questionable tattoo while touring the Fisher House Foundation's two housing facilities where outpatients and their families stay while receiving treatment at Walter Reed. She found laughs while talking with troops during a visit to the hospital. Even George the therapy dog provided amusement when Griffin stopped by the hospital's physical therapy room.
In fact, Griffin and Walter Reed's residents and employees didn't stop laughing from the moment she arrived until she walked off the stage after performing a stand-up routine in the evening.
The "little show," as she described it, was well attended until Griffin started her more-than-PG routine and some members of the audience opted to call it a night.
"To me, that's the sign of a good show," Griffin said. "You always need a couple of [ticked-off] chaplains combined with some laughing soldiers and a couple ER nurses."
Supporting servicemembers has long been a cause near and dear to Griffin, whose father, a World War II soldier, died last year. It wasn't that military legacy, however, that led her to first performance for deployed troops.
"What really got me involved was when a friend of mine, Kerri Turner from the television series "JAG," talked me into my first [United Service Organizations] trip to Afghanistan in 2002," Griffin said. "She told me that the trip would change my life, and she was right. It did."
Last year's season of "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List" included her visit to Iraq to entertain troops. Her positive experience and the overwhelmingly positive response from the audience was a catalyst to feature the military again this season, she said.
"My goal this year with the Walter Reed episode is to have these men and women seen for the heroes they are and their families for the human beings they are," Griffin said. "This experience shows us what happens to these brave men and women when they come home and deal with the injuries they have sustained while at war. I saw the bravery from the moment I walked into Fisher House to the rehab facility to the little show I put on that night."
Griffin said she's open to featuring the military in another episode, but isn't sure that will happen.
"At this point, I have basically put the Army through hell. I believe they call my crew 'the insurgency,' but I won't stop," she said. "I visit with returning soldiers before each show I do on the road. I am so happy to be involved with performing for the armed forces [and] meeting them; whatever I can do."
The season finale of "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List," which was filmed at Walter Reed in April, will premiere tomorrow on the Bravo network. Check local listings for times.
The Fisher House Foundation and USO are supporters of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 13, 2008 - As summer ends, so goes the summer TV season, which means many favorite shows will go into hibernation for the winter. Comedian Kathy Griffin, Bravo network's somewhat saucier answer to Lucille Ball, has ensured the fourth season finale of "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D List," affects its audience when it airs tomorrow night.
Don't expect the funny lady to reel it in just because she's visiting with servicemembers recuperating at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here.
"I know our show isn't exactly 'Frontline,' but we definitely tried to weed as much comedy into the situation as possible, because these men and women let me know very quickly that when you're dealing with these kinds of injuries, you just gotta laugh," Griffin said. "What I'm proud of with [this] show is that it shows how people use humor to cope with a traumatic situation."
Griffin found laughs razzing a corporal about his questionable tattoo while touring the Fisher House Foundation's two housing facilities where outpatients and their families stay while receiving treatment at Walter Reed. She found laughs while talking with troops during a visit to the hospital. Even George the therapy dog provided amusement when Griffin stopped by the hospital's physical therapy room.
In fact, Griffin and Walter Reed's residents and employees didn't stop laughing from the moment she arrived until she walked off the stage after performing a stand-up routine in the evening.
The "little show," as she described it, was well attended until Griffin started her more-than-PG routine and some members of the audience opted to call it a night.
"To me, that's the sign of a good show," Griffin said. "You always need a couple of [ticked-off] chaplains combined with some laughing soldiers and a couple ER nurses."
Supporting servicemembers has long been a cause near and dear to Griffin, whose father, a World War II soldier, died last year. It wasn't that military legacy, however, that led her to first performance for deployed troops.
"What really got me involved was when a friend of mine, Kerri Turner from the television series "JAG," talked me into my first [United Service Organizations] trip to Afghanistan in 2002," Griffin said. "She told me that the trip would change my life, and she was right. It did."
Last year's season of "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List" included her visit to Iraq to entertain troops. Her positive experience and the overwhelmingly positive response from the audience was a catalyst to feature the military again this season, she said.
"My goal this year with the Walter Reed episode is to have these men and women seen for the heroes they are and their families for the human beings they are," Griffin said. "This experience shows us what happens to these brave men and women when they come home and deal with the injuries they have sustained while at war. I saw the bravery from the moment I walked into Fisher House to the rehab facility to the little show I put on that night."
Griffin said she's open to featuring the military in another episode, but isn't sure that will happen.
"At this point, I have basically put the Army through hell. I believe they call my crew 'the insurgency,' but I won't stop," she said. "I visit with returning soldiers before each show I do on the road. I am so happy to be involved with performing for the armed forces [and] meeting them; whatever I can do."
The season finale of "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List," which was filmed at Walter Reed in April, will premiere tomorrow on the Bravo network. Check local listings for times.
The Fisher House Foundation and USO are supporters of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.
Face of Defense: Airman Helps Injured Warriors 'Face' World
By Air Force Staff Sgt. Erin M. Peterson
Special to American Forces Press Service
Texas, Aug. 13, 2008 - The characteristics of a person's face are unmistakable. They are the uniqueness that makes people recognize family members, friends, co-workers. Now imagine suddenly being stripped of those defining characteristics. Facial injuries are becoming more prevalent among wounded warriors. The features that protrude the most on a person's face are at a high risk for injury.
Air Force Senior Airman Justin Jones, a maxillofacial prosthetic technician with 59th Dental Squadron here, works to help servicemembers who have suffered disfiguring facial injuries.
After he enlisted in the Air Force in December 2002, Jones was a dental lab technician for three and a half years before switching to his current specialty through on-the-job training. His position was previously occupied by a civilian contractor, now retired.
Jones' qualifications come from studying art in high school and college, where he gained an understanding of color and light. He has experience with oil painting, watercolor and clay sculpting. He is now the only full-time maxillofacial prosthetic technician in the Air Force.
According to the Baylor College of Dentistry, maxillofacial prosthodontics is a subspecialty of dentistry that deals with the rehabilitation of patients with acquired and congenital defects of the head and neck region. Facial prosthetic devices are an essential part of restoring the physical and psychological well-being of patients with missing or disfigured facial structures.
Jones is brought in when a patient could benefit from a facial prosthetic. He often uses a pre-injury photo of the patient as a guide in restoring a patient's facial features. On one occasion, a patient's father was even brought in to shape an ear and match the pigment exactly.
His goal is to improve patients' quality of life, Jones said, allowing them to live without drawing attention to a specific aspect of their physical appearance. He works directly with the patients, perfecting the prosthetic until it suits each person precisely.
"I get to know my patients, and they let me know exactly what they want. I love the work that I do," Jones said.
Maxillofacial prosthetics staff members work mainly with patients from Brooke Army Medical Center and burn units in San Antonio. Air Force Col. (Dr.) Jose Villalobos, program director of maxillofacial prosthetics, praised Jones' work.
"With all the war casualties coming in right now, it is important that we use our capabilities to help those wounded warriors," he said. "Senior Airman Jones has an artistic background, and he uses his knowledge of sculpting, color and contours to restore missing or altered facial features. He has a passion for his craft, and he is filling big shoes right now."
(Air Force Staff Sgt. Erin M. Peterson serves in the 59th Medical Wing Public Affairs Office.)
Special to American Forces Press Service
Texas, Aug. 13, 2008 - The characteristics of a person's face are unmistakable. They are the uniqueness that makes people recognize family members, friends, co-workers. Now imagine suddenly being stripped of those defining characteristics. Facial injuries are becoming more prevalent among wounded warriors. The features that protrude the most on a person's face are at a high risk for injury.
Air Force Senior Airman Justin Jones, a maxillofacial prosthetic technician with 59th Dental Squadron here, works to help servicemembers who have suffered disfiguring facial injuries.
After he enlisted in the Air Force in December 2002, Jones was a dental lab technician for three and a half years before switching to his current specialty through on-the-job training. His position was previously occupied by a civilian contractor, now retired.
Jones' qualifications come from studying art in high school and college, where he gained an understanding of color and light. He has experience with oil painting, watercolor and clay sculpting. He is now the only full-time maxillofacial prosthetic technician in the Air Force.
According to the Baylor College of Dentistry, maxillofacial prosthodontics is a subspecialty of dentistry that deals with the rehabilitation of patients with acquired and congenital defects of the head and neck region. Facial prosthetic devices are an essential part of restoring the physical and psychological well-being of patients with missing or disfigured facial structures.
Jones is brought in when a patient could benefit from a facial prosthetic. He often uses a pre-injury photo of the patient as a guide in restoring a patient's facial features. On one occasion, a patient's father was even brought in to shape an ear and match the pigment exactly.
His goal is to improve patients' quality of life, Jones said, allowing them to live without drawing attention to a specific aspect of their physical appearance. He works directly with the patients, perfecting the prosthetic until it suits each person precisely.
"I get to know my patients, and they let me know exactly what they want. I love the work that I do," Jones said.
Maxillofacial prosthetics staff members work mainly with patients from Brooke Army Medical Center and burn units in San Antonio. Air Force Col. (Dr.) Jose Villalobos, program director of maxillofacial prosthetics, praised Jones' work.
"With all the war casualties coming in right now, it is important that we use our capabilities to help those wounded warriors," he said. "Senior Airman Jones has an artistic background, and he uses his knowledge of sculpting, color and contours to restore missing or altered facial features. He has a passion for his craft, and he is filling big shoes right now."
(Air Force Staff Sgt. Erin M. Peterson serves in the 59th Medical Wing Public Affairs Office.)
Rice Calls Military Relief Mission in Georgia 'Continuous, Robust'
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 13, 2008 - The U.S. military-led mission to provide humanitarian aid in Georgia will be "continuous and robust," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said today, calling on Russia to commit to keeping open the lines of communication and transportation during relief efforts. "We expect that Russia will respect the humanitarian nature of that mission, and that ports, sea lanes, air routes will all be open for humanitarian purposes, another pledge that Russia has undertaken to the French," Rice told reporters in a news conference this afternoon.
Rice's remarks came hours after President Bush announced a first U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft was delivering humanitarian aid and medical supplies to the Georgian capital of Tbilisi.
An additional delivery slated for tomorrow will mark the second shipment in a relief effort that could comprise many planeloads of humanitarian relief, Defense Department officials said.
"There are plans for another flight tomorrow as we continue to assess the wide range of humanitarian assistance options that we might be able to provide both in the immediate and long-term humanitarian capabilities," Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said today.
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates will oversee the military's humanitarian mission. Rice, who is scheduled to depart this evening to France en route to Georgia, is delivering the U.S. diplomatic response.
"I am going ... first to meet with the French president and other members of the French government in France," she said, "and then I will fly on to Tbilisi to underscore the strong support of the United States for the Georgian people and for their democratically elected government."
Fighting that began in the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia is now in its sixth day, and has broadened to include Russian attacks on Abkhazia, another heavily separatist region, and other parts of the country, where Russia's forces reportedly are still engaged despite Moscow's cease-fire pledge yesterday.
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 13, 2008 - The U.S. military-led mission to provide humanitarian aid in Georgia will be "continuous and robust," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said today, calling on Russia to commit to keeping open the lines of communication and transportation during relief efforts. "We expect that Russia will respect the humanitarian nature of that mission, and that ports, sea lanes, air routes will all be open for humanitarian purposes, another pledge that Russia has undertaken to the French," Rice told reporters in a news conference this afternoon.
Rice's remarks came hours after President Bush announced a first U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft was delivering humanitarian aid and medical supplies to the Georgian capital of Tbilisi.
An additional delivery slated for tomorrow will mark the second shipment in a relief effort that could comprise many planeloads of humanitarian relief, Defense Department officials said.
"There are plans for another flight tomorrow as we continue to assess the wide range of humanitarian assistance options that we might be able to provide both in the immediate and long-term humanitarian capabilities," Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said today.
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates will oversee the military's humanitarian mission. Rice, who is scheduled to depart this evening to France en route to Georgia, is delivering the U.S. diplomatic response.
"I am going ... first to meet with the French president and other members of the French government in France," she said, "and then I will fly on to Tbilisi to underscore the strong support of the United States for the Georgian people and for their democratically elected government."
Fighting that began in the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia is now in its sixth day, and has broadened to include Russian attacks on Abkhazia, another heavily separatist region, and other parts of the country, where Russia's forces reportedly are still engaged despite Moscow's cease-fire pledge yesterday.
Company Focuses on Families to Support Military Employees
By Sara Moore
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 13, 2008 - Kim Robinson knows that when military members deploy, they face a lot of stress overseas on top of worrying about their families at home. To help alleviate that stress, Robinson has committed to do what he can to ease the burden on the families of his employees who serve in the National Guard and Reserve. Robinson's company, Robinson Transport, of Salina, Utah, provides $1,000 a month to the families of employees who are deployed with the National Guard or Reserve. This money is meant to supplement the family's income, and the company still pays all company bonuses, as well as full life, health and dental insurance for the deployed employee.
For its efforts to support employees who serve in the reserve forces, Robinson Transport is receiving the 2008 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. The award is the highest honor a company can receive for its support of military employees.
Robinson Transport has seven employees in the National Guard or Reserve, all of whom have been deployed within the last five years, Robinson said, adding that he's happy to do what he can to support his employees while they're serving the country.
"They're over there fighting for my freedoms, which I enjoy very much, and they're leaving their families and their wives, and most of them have smaller children," he said. "They're over there worrying about their life for one thing, but on the other hand, they're worrying about what their children and their wives are going through. If I can help them that way, then that's a little less worry that they have."
Robinson Transport, which has about 130 employees, also supports its deployed employees by keeping in close contact with them via e-mail, and the company has contributed $5,000 to provide faster Internet service to deployed personnel.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Roger Orton, who has served for 33 years in the Utah National Guard, nominated Robinson Transport for the Freedom Award because he saw their dedication to military personnel firsthand. Orton has been a truck driver with Robinson for 26 years, and in 2006 he was deployed to Afghanistan. While he was gone, someone from the company called his wife at least twice a week to check on her. They also paid her the $1,000 a month, even though Orton told his boss that he actually made more money while deployed than he'd been earning at Robinson Transport.
"I asked them why they thought they needed to do that, and they said it was to ease the pain of us being gone and that it was a small price to pay for what we were doing," Orton said. "It's too bad all employers aren't this good to work for, and it's easy to see how easy it is to work for them for 26 years."
Orton said that several other members of his unit also work for Robinson, and the company always has accommodated them when it came to taking time off for drill weekends and summer training. He said when he came back from Afghanistan, he talked to the Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve representative from Utah, who told him that he had received many letters telling him how supportive Robinson Transport is of its military employees.
Orton said he enjoys working for Robinson because the management is caring and supportive. "You go to work every morning knowing that you work for good people," he said. "There's no other employer that tops them. They deserve the red carpet treatment from the Army for what they do."
Having employees who also serve in the military, like Orton, is helpful to the company, Robinson said. "They're all pretty humble people anyway, but when they come back they're so appreciative," he said of the National Guard and Reserve employees. "With the other people listening to them out there on a daily basis, I think it makes the other people better Americans and makes them appreciate what they really have here."
Robinson said he's always thought of himself as patriotic, but was completely surprised to hear his company was receiving the Freedom Award.
"It's a great honor for me to be selected as one of the recipients," he said. "For my employees to nominate me for that, that was an awesome thing. I'm just proud to be a part of it."
Robinson Transport will receive the Freedom Award, along with 14 other companies, in a ceremony Sept. 18 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center here. The Freedom Award was instituted in 1996 under the auspices of the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve to recognize exceptional support from the employer community.
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 13, 2008 - Kim Robinson knows that when military members deploy, they face a lot of stress overseas on top of worrying about their families at home. To help alleviate that stress, Robinson has committed to do what he can to ease the burden on the families of his employees who serve in the National Guard and Reserve. Robinson's company, Robinson Transport, of Salina, Utah, provides $1,000 a month to the families of employees who are deployed with the National Guard or Reserve. This money is meant to supplement the family's income, and the company still pays all company bonuses, as well as full life, health and dental insurance for the deployed employee.
For its efforts to support employees who serve in the reserve forces, Robinson Transport is receiving the 2008 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. The award is the highest honor a company can receive for its support of military employees.
Robinson Transport has seven employees in the National Guard or Reserve, all of whom have been deployed within the last five years, Robinson said, adding that he's happy to do what he can to support his employees while they're serving the country.
"They're over there fighting for my freedoms, which I enjoy very much, and they're leaving their families and their wives, and most of them have smaller children," he said. "They're over there worrying about their life for one thing, but on the other hand, they're worrying about what their children and their wives are going through. If I can help them that way, then that's a little less worry that they have."
Robinson Transport, which has about 130 employees, also supports its deployed employees by keeping in close contact with them via e-mail, and the company has contributed $5,000 to provide faster Internet service to deployed personnel.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Roger Orton, who has served for 33 years in the Utah National Guard, nominated Robinson Transport for the Freedom Award because he saw their dedication to military personnel firsthand. Orton has been a truck driver with Robinson for 26 years, and in 2006 he was deployed to Afghanistan. While he was gone, someone from the company called his wife at least twice a week to check on her. They also paid her the $1,000 a month, even though Orton told his boss that he actually made more money while deployed than he'd been earning at Robinson Transport.
"I asked them why they thought they needed to do that, and they said it was to ease the pain of us being gone and that it was a small price to pay for what we were doing," Orton said. "It's too bad all employers aren't this good to work for, and it's easy to see how easy it is to work for them for 26 years."
Orton said that several other members of his unit also work for Robinson, and the company always has accommodated them when it came to taking time off for drill weekends and summer training. He said when he came back from Afghanistan, he talked to the Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve representative from Utah, who told him that he had received many letters telling him how supportive Robinson Transport is of its military employees.
Orton said he enjoys working for Robinson because the management is caring and supportive. "You go to work every morning knowing that you work for good people," he said. "There's no other employer that tops them. They deserve the red carpet treatment from the Army for what they do."
Having employees who also serve in the military, like Orton, is helpful to the company, Robinson said. "They're all pretty humble people anyway, but when they come back they're so appreciative," he said of the National Guard and Reserve employees. "With the other people listening to them out there on a daily basis, I think it makes the other people better Americans and makes them appreciate what they really have here."
Robinson said he's always thought of himself as patriotic, but was completely surprised to hear his company was receiving the Freedom Award.
"It's a great honor for me to be selected as one of the recipients," he said. "For my employees to nominate me for that, that was an awesome thing. I'm just proud to be a part of it."
Robinson Transport will receive the Freedom Award, along with 14 other companies, in a ceremony Sept. 18 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center here. The Freedom Award was instituted in 1996 under the auspices of the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve to recognize exceptional support from the employer community.
Missing WWII Pilot Is Identified
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing from World War Two, have been identified and will be returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is 2nd Lt. Howard C. Enoch Jr., U.S. Army Air Forces, of Marion, Ky. He will be buried on Sep. 22 in Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.
Representatives from the Army met with Enoch's next-of-kin to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.
On March 19, 1945, Enoch was the pilot of a P-51D Mustang that crashed while engaging enemy aircraft about 20 miles east of Leipzig, near the village of Doberschütz, Germany. His remains were not recovered at the time, and Soviet occupation of eastern Germany precluded his recovery immediately after the war.
In 2004, a team from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) surveyed a possible P-51 crash site near Doberschütz. The team found aircraft wreckage. In 2006, another JPAC team excavated the site and recovered human remains and aircraft wreckage.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA in the identification of Enoch's remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department's mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO Web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1420.
He is 2nd Lt. Howard C. Enoch Jr., U.S. Army Air Forces, of Marion, Ky. He will be buried on Sep. 22 in Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.
Representatives from the Army met with Enoch's next-of-kin to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.
On March 19, 1945, Enoch was the pilot of a P-51D Mustang that crashed while engaging enemy aircraft about 20 miles east of Leipzig, near the village of Doberschütz, Germany. His remains were not recovered at the time, and Soviet occupation of eastern Germany precluded his recovery immediately after the war.
In 2004, a team from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) surveyed a possible P-51 crash site near Doberschütz. The team found aircraft wreckage. In 2006, another JPAC team excavated the site and recovered human remains and aircraft wreckage.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA in the identification of Enoch's remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department's mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO Web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1420.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Bush Denounces Russia's 'Brutal Escalation' in Georgia
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 11, 2008 - President Bush today expressed deep concern over reports that Russia has escalated a conflict with Georgia, calling the ramped-up moves by Moscow "unacceptable in the 21st century," and urging the country to accept a peace agreement. Fighting that began last week in the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia has today broadened "beyond the zone of conflict," to include a Russian attack on the Georgian town of Gori, and threats to the capital city of Tbilisi, the president said.
"If these reports are accurate, these Russian actions would represent a dramatic and brutal escalation of the conflict in Georgia," Bush said during a news conference today at the White House.
He added that such actions would be inconsistent with assurances by Russia to restore forces in South Ossetia to pre-fighting levels, one element of a peace agreement that Georgia, a former Soviet republic, also endorsed.
Other pieces of the treaty, which diplomatic officials are pursuing in Moscow, include an immediate cease-fire, the withdrawal of forces from the conflict zone and a commitment to refrain from using force.
"The Georgian government has accepted the elements of a peace agreement that the Russian government previously said it would be willing to accept," Bush said.
But hopes for an agreement appear to be fading as the situation unfolds in Georgia, where the U.S. State Department today helped to evacuate at least 170 American citizens from Georgia as well as dependents of embassy staff in Tbilisi, according to reports.
Georgia declared its independence from the then-Soviet Union in 1991. However, many South Ossetia residents continue to profess Russian allegiance.
The situation was already tense when Russian tanks and troops on Aug. 8 crossed the border into South Ossetia, where they were aided by regional separatists. Clashes escalated a day later in and around Tskhinvali, South Ossetia's capital, as Russian aircraft were reported to have bombed that city, as well as Abkhazia, another breakaway region in Georgia.
President Bush, who had just met with his national security team before today's news conference, said evidence reveals Russian forces may soon begin bombing the civilian airport in Tblisi. He added that Moscow may be attempting to depose the democratic government in Georgia.
"Russia has invaded a sovereign neighboring state and threatens a democratic government elected by its people," Bush said. "Such an action is unacceptable in the 21st century."
Bush said Russia's actions have "substantially damaged" the country's standing in the world, jeopardize Moscow's relations with the U.S. and Europe, and raise serious questions about its intentions in Georgia and the region.
He urged Russia to reserve its course and accept the peace agreement as a first step toward resolving the conflict.
"It is time for Russia to be true to its word and to act to end this crisis," Bush said.
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 11, 2008 - President Bush today expressed deep concern over reports that Russia has escalated a conflict with Georgia, calling the ramped-up moves by Moscow "unacceptable in the 21st century," and urging the country to accept a peace agreement. Fighting that began last week in the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia has today broadened "beyond the zone of conflict," to include a Russian attack on the Georgian town of Gori, and threats to the capital city of Tbilisi, the president said.
"If these reports are accurate, these Russian actions would represent a dramatic and brutal escalation of the conflict in Georgia," Bush said during a news conference today at the White House.
He added that such actions would be inconsistent with assurances by Russia to restore forces in South Ossetia to pre-fighting levels, one element of a peace agreement that Georgia, a former Soviet republic, also endorsed.
Other pieces of the treaty, which diplomatic officials are pursuing in Moscow, include an immediate cease-fire, the withdrawal of forces from the conflict zone and a commitment to refrain from using force.
"The Georgian government has accepted the elements of a peace agreement that the Russian government previously said it would be willing to accept," Bush said.
But hopes for an agreement appear to be fading as the situation unfolds in Georgia, where the U.S. State Department today helped to evacuate at least 170 American citizens from Georgia as well as dependents of embassy staff in Tbilisi, according to reports.
Georgia declared its independence from the then-Soviet Union in 1991. However, many South Ossetia residents continue to profess Russian allegiance.
The situation was already tense when Russian tanks and troops on Aug. 8 crossed the border into South Ossetia, where they were aided by regional separatists. Clashes escalated a day later in and around Tskhinvali, South Ossetia's capital, as Russian aircraft were reported to have bombed that city, as well as Abkhazia, another breakaway region in Georgia.
President Bush, who had just met with his national security team before today's news conference, said evidence reveals Russian forces may soon begin bombing the civilian airport in Tblisi. He added that Moscow may be attempting to depose the democratic government in Georgia.
"Russia has invaded a sovereign neighboring state and threatens a democratic government elected by its people," Bush said. "Such an action is unacceptable in the 21st century."
Bush said Russia's actions have "substantially damaged" the country's standing in the world, jeopardize Moscow's relations with the U.S. and Europe, and raise serious questions about its intentions in Georgia and the region.
He urged Russia to reserve its course and accept the peace agreement as a first step toward resolving the conflict.
"It is time for Russia to be true to its word and to act to end this crisis," Bush said.
New Air Force Leaders Pledge to 'Reinvigorate' Service
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Newly sworn-in Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton A. Schwartz today pledged to "reinvigorate" his service's acquisition woes and mishandling of nuclear weapons. Schwartz, who was sworn in as chief of staff earlier today, told reporters at a Pentagon news conference that the service is fundamentally sound. "It doesn't mean we're perfect," he said. "And we certainly have work to do, things to fix, fences to mend."
But the Air Force being able to ship 2,000 Georgian soldiers from Baghdad home to Tbilisi this past weekend demonstrated that "we know how to operate, and we continue to support the joint team in Iraq and Afghanistan."
Precision and reliability are the Air Force standard regardless of job or specialty, Schwartz said. "We will return the vigor and the rigor to all the processes and missions ... for which we have been entrusted," he added.
The general said the service will "work with a vengeance" to fix areas that are substandard. "And the United States Air Force will remain the finest Air Force on the planet," he said.
Schwartz shared the dais with Acting Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley. The secretary, who is in his second stint as acting secretary, said he and the general have several issues to address including the nuclear enterprise; care for wounded warriors; the service's intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance posture; the acquisition process; and modernization and recapitalization. Still, the Air Force's main priority, is "our continued support for the global war on terror," he said.
Air Force leaders are undertaking efforts this month to look at all those issues, Donley said, "and expect to address several of them, both in the immediate term and the longer term, within the next month or two."
Donley and Schwartz replace Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne and Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley when Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates asked for their resignations following an investigation that revealed a decline in the Air Force's nuclear program focus, performance and effective leadership.
Donley said he and Schwartz will examine all reports of internal Air Force investigations into incidents at Minot Air Force Base, N.D., in which nuclear weapons were unknowingly flown to Louisiana, and with Taiwan, in which parts of a Minuteman missile were shipped to Taiwan mislabeled as helicopter batteries. They are waiting for input from a panel led by former Defense Secretary James R. Schlesinger.
"So we'll be able to take input from the Schlesinger panel, then take about another 30 days to work out our roadmap," Donley said. "I wouldn't want to speculate on the organizational structure that comes out of this. What I can promise you is that we're taking a comprehensive look at this issue. So this is not onesies and twosies and a handful of fixes. This is across the board."
Schwartz agreed, saying changes in the nuclear program will be "end to end." He said that when dealing with nuclear weapons, perfection is the standard.
Schwartz and Donley said servicemembers they have talked to are more than willing to put in the hours and effort necessary reinvigorate the service. "My pledge to all today is that the Air Force will keep the promise to our teammates and to our families and to all our partners who rely on us every day," Schwartz said. "That trust is critical, is born from expertise, respect for our joint partners, and rigorous accountability. We will work together to reinvigorate the Air Force's institutions and show ourselves completely worthy of America's trust."
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Newly sworn-in Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton A. Schwartz today pledged to "reinvigorate" his service's acquisition woes and mishandling of nuclear weapons. Schwartz, who was sworn in as chief of staff earlier today, told reporters at a Pentagon news conference that the service is fundamentally sound. "It doesn't mean we're perfect," he said. "And we certainly have work to do, things to fix, fences to mend."
But the Air Force being able to ship 2,000 Georgian soldiers from Baghdad home to Tbilisi this past weekend demonstrated that "we know how to operate, and we continue to support the joint team in Iraq and Afghanistan."
Precision and reliability are the Air Force standard regardless of job or specialty, Schwartz said. "We will return the vigor and the rigor to all the processes and missions ... for which we have been entrusted," he added.
The general said the service will "work with a vengeance" to fix areas that are substandard. "And the United States Air Force will remain the finest Air Force on the planet," he said.
Schwartz shared the dais with Acting Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley. The secretary, who is in his second stint as acting secretary, said he and the general have several issues to address including the nuclear enterprise; care for wounded warriors; the service's intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance posture; the acquisition process; and modernization and recapitalization. Still, the Air Force's main priority, is "our continued support for the global war on terror," he said.
Air Force leaders are undertaking efforts this month to look at all those issues, Donley said, "and expect to address several of them, both in the immediate term and the longer term, within the next month or two."
Donley and Schwartz replace Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne and Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley when Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates asked for their resignations following an investigation that revealed a decline in the Air Force's nuclear program focus, performance and effective leadership.
Donley said he and Schwartz will examine all reports of internal Air Force investigations into incidents at Minot Air Force Base, N.D., in which nuclear weapons were unknowingly flown to Louisiana, and with Taiwan, in which parts of a Minuteman missile were shipped to Taiwan mislabeled as helicopter batteries. They are waiting for input from a panel led by former Defense Secretary James R. Schlesinger.
"So we'll be able to take input from the Schlesinger panel, then take about another 30 days to work out our roadmap," Donley said. "I wouldn't want to speculate on the organizational structure that comes out of this. What I can promise you is that we're taking a comprehensive look at this issue. So this is not onesies and twosies and a handful of fixes. This is across the board."
Schwartz agreed, saying changes in the nuclear program will be "end to end." He said that when dealing with nuclear weapons, perfection is the standard.
Schwartz and Donley said servicemembers they have talked to are more than willing to put in the hours and effort necessary reinvigorate the service. "My pledge to all today is that the Air Force will keep the promise to our teammates and to our families and to all our partners who rely on us every day," Schwartz said. "That trust is critical, is born from expertise, respect for our joint partners, and rigorous accountability. We will work together to reinvigorate the Air Force's institutions and show ourselves completely worthy of America's trust."
MILITARY CONTRACTS August 11, 2008
Army
AM General, LLC, South Bend, Ind., was awarded on Aug. 8, 2008, a $247,546,000 firm-fixed price contract for high-mobility multi-purpose wheeled vehicles. Work will be performed in Mishawaka, Ind., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Mar. 17, 2006. TACOM, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (DAAE07-01-C-S001).
BAE Systems, Ground Systems Division, York, Pa., was awarded on Aug. 8, 2008, a $76,185,539 firm-fixed price contract for the procurement of Operation Desert Storm situational awareness kits in support of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. Work will be performed in York, Pa., and is expected to be completed by Mar. 30, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Jun. 3, 2008. U.S. Army TACOM, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (W56HZV-05-G-0005).
Sodexho Management Inc., Gaithersburg, Md., was awarded on Aug. 11, 2008, a $8,475,017 firm-fixed price contract for nutrition care services at military treatment facilities. Work will be performed at military installations across the United States and is expected to be completed by Oct. 17, 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Jun. 28, 2007, and five bids were received. U.S. Army Medical Command, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, is the contracting activity (W81K04-08-C-0003).
Mantech Telecommunications and Info System, Chantilly, Va., was awarded on Aug. 8, 2008, a $8,053,055 time and materials contract for logistics and information technology services in support of program manager intelligence and effects. Work will be performed in West Fort Hood, Texas and Iraq, Afghanistan, Korea and Germany, and is expected to be completed by Aug. 7, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Apr. 28, 2008. LCMC Acquisition Center, Alexandria, Va., is the contracting activity (W909MY-08-C-0045).
Air Force
Syracuse Research Corp., North Syracuse, N.Y., is being awarded an indefinite delivery requirements contract for $95,000,000. The purpose of this contract is to obtain the expertise to support the 453rd Electronic Warfare Squadron in developing and maintaining the Sensor Beam program. At this time, no dollar amount has been obligated. Air Force Intelligences Surveillance and reconnaissance Agency at Lackland AFB is the contracting activity (FA7037-08-D-0002).
DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY
Siemens Corp., Research Inc., Princeton, N.J., is being awarded a $500,338 increment of a $11,256,966 technology investment agreement for the development of deep bleeder acoustic coagulation technology and prototype devices. Work will be performed in Princeton, N.J., (31 percent), Issaquah, Wash., (26 percent), Seattle, Wash., (15 percent) and College Station, Texas, (3 percent) and is expected to be completed in Feb. 2010. A portion of the funds ($500,338) will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. DARPA issued a solicitation in Federal Business Opportunities on Feb. 29, 2008, and over 10 proposals were received. The contracting activity is the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Va., (HR0011-08-3-0004).
U.S. SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND
Raytheon Co., from McKinney, Texas, was awarded a $15,280,290 firm fixed-price requirements contract for continued life cycle contractor support to sustain Forward Looking Infrared Radar systems and subsystems for the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps for a period of performance of 18 months after contract award. Variations of the FLIR systems are used on the MH-60, MH-47, MH-6, and CV-22 aircraft. This requirement is a follow-on contract to the existing contract, USZA95-03-C-0004. This contract was awarded in accordance with sole source procedures. The contract number for this effort is H92241-08-D-0007.
AM General, LLC, South Bend, Ind., was awarded on Aug. 8, 2008, a $247,546,000 firm-fixed price contract for high-mobility multi-purpose wheeled vehicles. Work will be performed in Mishawaka, Ind., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Mar. 17, 2006. TACOM, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (DAAE07-01-C-S001).
BAE Systems, Ground Systems Division, York, Pa., was awarded on Aug. 8, 2008, a $76,185,539 firm-fixed price contract for the procurement of Operation Desert Storm situational awareness kits in support of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. Work will be performed in York, Pa., and is expected to be completed by Mar. 30, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Jun. 3, 2008. U.S. Army TACOM, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (W56HZV-05-G-0005).
Sodexho Management Inc., Gaithersburg, Md., was awarded on Aug. 11, 2008, a $8,475,017 firm-fixed price contract for nutrition care services at military treatment facilities. Work will be performed at military installations across the United States and is expected to be completed by Oct. 17, 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Jun. 28, 2007, and five bids were received. U.S. Army Medical Command, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, is the contracting activity (W81K04-08-C-0003).
Mantech Telecommunications and Info System, Chantilly, Va., was awarded on Aug. 8, 2008, a $8,053,055 time and materials contract for logistics and information technology services in support of program manager intelligence and effects. Work will be performed in West Fort Hood, Texas and Iraq, Afghanistan, Korea and Germany, and is expected to be completed by Aug. 7, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Apr. 28, 2008. LCMC Acquisition Center, Alexandria, Va., is the contracting activity (W909MY-08-C-0045).
Air Force
Syracuse Research Corp., North Syracuse, N.Y., is being awarded an indefinite delivery requirements contract for $95,000,000. The purpose of this contract is to obtain the expertise to support the 453rd Electronic Warfare Squadron in developing and maintaining the Sensor Beam program. At this time, no dollar amount has been obligated. Air Force Intelligences Surveillance and reconnaissance Agency at Lackland AFB is the contracting activity (FA7037-08-D-0002).
DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY
Siemens Corp., Research Inc., Princeton, N.J., is being awarded a $500,338 increment of a $11,256,966 technology investment agreement for the development of deep bleeder acoustic coagulation technology and prototype devices. Work will be performed in Princeton, N.J., (31 percent), Issaquah, Wash., (26 percent), Seattle, Wash., (15 percent) and College Station, Texas, (3 percent) and is expected to be completed in Feb. 2010. A portion of the funds ($500,338) will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. DARPA issued a solicitation in Federal Business Opportunities on Feb. 29, 2008, and over 10 proposals were received. The contracting activity is the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Va., (HR0011-08-3-0004).
U.S. SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND
Raytheon Co., from McKinney, Texas, was awarded a $15,280,290 firm fixed-price requirements contract for continued life cycle contractor support to sustain Forward Looking Infrared Radar systems and subsystems for the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps for a period of performance of 18 months after contract award. Variations of the FLIR systems are used on the MH-60, MH-47, MH-6, and CV-22 aircraft. This requirement is a follow-on contract to the existing contract, USZA95-03-C-0004. This contract was awarded in accordance with sole source procedures. The contract number for this effort is H92241-08-D-0007.
Official Travelers Can Claim Reimbursement for Excess Baggage Fees
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Servicemembers traveling for official business, including deployments, will continue to receive full reimbursement for reasonable, authorized excess baggage fees, defense officials said. A recently updated fact sheet from the Department of Defense Per Diem, Travel and Transportation Committee explains department policy regarding excess baggage in light of new charges many airlines have imposed for checked baggage.
As airlines struggle to offset increased fuel and operating costs, many have started charging additional fees for services such as baggage shipment, the fact sheet explains. Commercial airline practices vary widely regarding fees for shipped baggage. Some charge for each bag, others for a second or third bag, and others for any bag over a specified weight limit.
Many airlines waive some or all excessive baggage fees for military members traveling on official orders, said Dave Castelveter, vice president of communications for the Air Transport Association.
But for those who don't, the fees are reimbursable if authorized on the travel order, according to the DoD fact sheet.
Servicemembers' commands will reimburse any fees charged for the first checked bag. However, the command may opt to limit how much it will pay for additional luggage in light of the length of the travel and mission requirements, the fact sheet explains.
To claim reimbursement, the traveler must submit the receipt and claim the charge on a travel voucher.
The excess baggage fee issue gained widespread attention after news reports that a commercial airline had charged a soldier deploying to Iraq $100 to cover the cost of a third piece of luggage. The incident prompted Veterans of Foreign Wars National Commander George J. Lisicki to fire off a letter to the Air Transport Association asking for a break. Lisicki asked the ATA to negotiate an agreement with its member airlines to exempt servicemembers traveling on official orders from paying fees on a third piece of luggage.
"I completely understand the financial constraints the airline industry is in, but I also know the military traveler is an extremely small fraction of the total passengers carried," he wrote. "Those who wear the uniform today are a special class of citizen who enables everyone else to enjoy every liberty our great country holds dear. They deserve special treatment because they have earned it."
Lisicki emphasized that he wasn't asking the airlines to give military travelers first-class lounge privileges or other executive perks. "What I am requesting is for your member airlines to begin allowing all military personnel traveling on orders to check a third bag without being charged," he said. "This should not be a difficult decision to reach, but it is one that needs to be made."
James C. May, Air Transport Association president and chief executive officer, explained in his response to Lisicki that military members on official duty travel at rates negotiated between General Services Administration and individual airlines. May said he expects those contractual arrangements -- reached before spiraling fuel prices forced the airlines to begin charging fees for excess baggage and other services -- to be renegotiated in the future.
Until then, many individual airlines have established policies creating special exceptions from certain baggage limitations for Defense Department travelers on official orders, he told Lisicki.
May said he would forward Lisicki's letter to ATA's member airlines, which by law must make all fare-setting and service-policy determinations independently. These policies include excess-baggage fees. Meanwhile, May emphasized the commercial airline industry's "long and proud history of supporting our nation's military men and women."
"They routinely offer special fares for military personnel and families, attempt when possible to accommodate unplanned schedule changes and generally seek to do what they can to show their appreciation," he wrote.
May said the airlines also support the Fisher House Foundation and various other programs that support the military.
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Servicemembers traveling for official business, including deployments, will continue to receive full reimbursement for reasonable, authorized excess baggage fees, defense officials said. A recently updated fact sheet from the Department of Defense Per Diem, Travel and Transportation Committee explains department policy regarding excess baggage in light of new charges many airlines have imposed for checked baggage.
As airlines struggle to offset increased fuel and operating costs, many have started charging additional fees for services such as baggage shipment, the fact sheet explains. Commercial airline practices vary widely regarding fees for shipped baggage. Some charge for each bag, others for a second or third bag, and others for any bag over a specified weight limit.
Many airlines waive some or all excessive baggage fees for military members traveling on official orders, said Dave Castelveter, vice president of communications for the Air Transport Association.
But for those who don't, the fees are reimbursable if authorized on the travel order, according to the DoD fact sheet.
Servicemembers' commands will reimburse any fees charged for the first checked bag. However, the command may opt to limit how much it will pay for additional luggage in light of the length of the travel and mission requirements, the fact sheet explains.
To claim reimbursement, the traveler must submit the receipt and claim the charge on a travel voucher.
The excess baggage fee issue gained widespread attention after news reports that a commercial airline had charged a soldier deploying to Iraq $100 to cover the cost of a third piece of luggage. The incident prompted Veterans of Foreign Wars National Commander George J. Lisicki to fire off a letter to the Air Transport Association asking for a break. Lisicki asked the ATA to negotiate an agreement with its member airlines to exempt servicemembers traveling on official orders from paying fees on a third piece of luggage.
"I completely understand the financial constraints the airline industry is in, but I also know the military traveler is an extremely small fraction of the total passengers carried," he wrote. "Those who wear the uniform today are a special class of citizen who enables everyone else to enjoy every liberty our great country holds dear. They deserve special treatment because they have earned it."
Lisicki emphasized that he wasn't asking the airlines to give military travelers first-class lounge privileges or other executive perks. "What I am requesting is for your member airlines to begin allowing all military personnel traveling on orders to check a third bag without being charged," he said. "This should not be a difficult decision to reach, but it is one that needs to be made."
James C. May, Air Transport Association president and chief executive officer, explained in his response to Lisicki that military members on official duty travel at rates negotiated between General Services Administration and individual airlines. May said he expects those contractual arrangements -- reached before spiraling fuel prices forced the airlines to begin charging fees for excess baggage and other services -- to be renegotiated in the future.
Until then, many individual airlines have established policies creating special exceptions from certain baggage limitations for Defense Department travelers on official orders, he told Lisicki.
May said he would forward Lisicki's letter to ATA's member airlines, which by law must make all fare-setting and service-policy determinations independently. These policies include excess-baggage fees. Meanwhile, May emphasized the commercial airline industry's "long and proud history of supporting our nation's military men and women."
"They routinely offer special fares for military personnel and families, attempt when possible to accommodate unplanned schedule changes and generally seek to do what they can to show their appreciation," he wrote.
May said the airlines also support the Fisher House Foundation and various other programs that support the military.
Rice Urges Ceasefire, Diplomatic Solution in Georgia
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today urged Russia to deliver on its pledge to cease fire in Georgia, as the United States draws up humanitarian aid plans in the wake of recent fighting in the former Soviet republic. Rice spoke to reporters at the White House after briefing President Bush on diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis in Georgia, where clashes with Russia broke out last week in the breakaway region of South Ossetia and escalated over ensuing days.
"The Russians need to stop their military operations, as they have apparently said that they will, but those military operations really do now need to stop because calm needs to be restored," said Rice, emphasizing the need for a cease-fire by both sides.
"There then will be international efforts to facilitate the withdrawal of forces from the zone of conflict," she said. Rice added
Following troop withdrawal, the focus can then center on resolving what Rice described as "the long-standing frozen conflicts" of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, two pro-Russian enclaves inside Georgia that bore much of the recent violence.
Rice said the United States will continue to work diplomatically with all involved parties and welcomed efforts by the European Union and France to negotiate a peaceful settlement.
"But the most important thing right now is that these military operations need to stop," she said.
Meanwhile, the secretary reiterated U.S. support of Georgian territorial integrity, sovereignty and its democratically elected government.
"We are reviewing our options for humanitarian and reconstruction assistance to Georgia," she said.
Aug. 12, 2008 - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today urged Russia to deliver on its pledge to cease fire in Georgia, as the United States draws up humanitarian aid plans in the wake of recent fighting in the former Soviet republic. Rice spoke to reporters at the White House after briefing President Bush on diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis in Georgia, where clashes with Russia broke out last week in the breakaway region of South Ossetia and escalated over ensuing days.
"The Russians need to stop their military operations, as they have apparently said that they will, but those military operations really do now need to stop because calm needs to be restored," said Rice, emphasizing the need for a cease-fire by both sides.
"There then will be international efforts to facilitate the withdrawal of forces from the zone of conflict," she said. Rice added
Following troop withdrawal, the focus can then center on resolving what Rice described as "the long-standing frozen conflicts" of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, two pro-Russian enclaves inside Georgia that bore much of the recent violence.
Rice said the United States will continue to work diplomatically with all involved parties and welcomed efforts by the European Union and France to negotiate a peaceful settlement.
"But the most important thing right now is that these military operations need to stop," she said.
Meanwhile, the secretary reiterated U.S. support of Georgian territorial integrity, sovereignty and its democratically elected government.
"We are reviewing our options for humanitarian and reconstruction assistance to Georgia," she said.
Soldier Wins Gold Medal, Sets Olympic Record
By Mary Beth Vorwerk and Tim Hipps
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Army Spc. Glenn Eller won the gold medal in double trap shooting at the Summer Olympics here today, setting an Olympic record with a total score of 190. Eller's teammate, Army Spc. Jeff Holguin, finished fourth. Both soldiers are members of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, based at Fort Benning, Ga.
Eller went into the final round leading by four shots and hit 45 out of 50 targets to win the first shooting gold for Team USA in Beijing.
Eller is a three-time Olympian. He finished 15th in 2000 and 17th in the last summer Olympic Games. He claimed the gold medal at the 2007 Korea World Cup as well as the 2007 World Cup Final. He also took the Silver Medal at the 2008 "Good Luck Beijing" International Shooting Sport Federation World Cup. Holguin claimed the silver medal in men's double trap at the 2007 Pan-American Games and won the bronze medal at the World Cup USA in May.
In the men's 10-meter air rifle event over the weekend, two-time Olympian and U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit member Sgt. 1st Class Jason Parker placed 23rd with a total score of 591, while 19-year old U.S. Military Academy Cadet Stephen Scherer took the 27th spot with 590.
Parker will compete Aug. 17, the final day of the shooting competition, in the men's 50-meter three-position rifle, his second event of the 2008 Olympic Games.
Along with double trap, shooters are competing today in the men's 50-meter free pistol event at the Beijing Shooting Range Hall.
Sgt. 1st Class Daryl Szarenski, a three-time Olympian, will compete for the United States in men's free pistol. Szarenski claimed the bronze medal at the "Good Luck Beijing" 2008 International Shooting Sport Federation World Cup in April, the first World Cup medal won by a U.S. shooter in men's free pistol since 2000.
World Class Athlete Program shooter Staff Sgt. Keith Sanderson, 33, of San Antonio, is scheduled to compete Aug. 16 in the 25-meter rapid-fire pistol event.
Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Elizabeth "Libby" Callahan, 56, of Columbia, S.C., will make her fourth Olympic appearance in the women's sport pistol event tomorrow.
Army Marksmanship Unit shotgun shooter Pfc. Vincent Hancock, 19, of Eatonton, Ga., set a world record in every skeet-shooting event at age 18. He will toe the line Aug. 16 in Beijing.
U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program Greco-Roman heavyweight wrestler Staff Sgt. Dremiel Byers will compete in the 264.5-pound weight class Aug. 14.
Byers, a world champion in 2002, is accompanied in China by World Class Athlete Program teammate and training partner Spc. Timothy Taylor, whom Byers defeated in the Olympic team trials.
"I was at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, and Glenn Eller was in Houston shooting by himself," said Holguin, who joined the marksmanship unit in the spring of 2007. "All of us are now shooting together in the marksmanship unit with great competition day in and out among us, and it's just improved all of our games.
"The hardest part of this Olympic experience is waiting for the day to get here," he continued. "I wanted to compete at the highest level of clay target shooting. To do that, I had to commit myself to the sport. The U.S. Army and the USAMU have given me the necessary resources to compete and win at the level required to win an Olympic medal."
As Holguin makes his Olympic debut, Eller, who joined the Army in 2006, is competing in this third Olympics. He placed 17th in 2004 and 12th in 2000.
"Growing up, I always wanted to be an Olympian," Eller said. "The Olympics were greater in every aspect than I had anticipated, both in highs and lows. The emotions involved are so great because of the years of training that go into that one day of competition."
World Class Athlete Program boxing coach retired Staff Sgt. Basheer Abdullah, the U.S. head coach in the Athens games, will serve as a technical advisor for Team USA.
WCAP boxer Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Downs won Team USA's light-heavyweight spot at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Houston but did not get the weight class qualified to compete in Beijing. He made the trip to China to serve as a training partner. WCAP fencer Spc. Cody Nagengast also is serving as a training partner for Team USA's squad.
(Mary Beth Vorwerk works with Shooting USA. Tim Hipps works for the U.S. Army Family, Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command.)
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Army Spc. Glenn Eller won the gold medal in double trap shooting at the Summer Olympics here today, setting an Olympic record with a total score of 190. Eller's teammate, Army Spc. Jeff Holguin, finished fourth. Both soldiers are members of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, based at Fort Benning, Ga.
Eller went into the final round leading by four shots and hit 45 out of 50 targets to win the first shooting gold for Team USA in Beijing.
Eller is a three-time Olympian. He finished 15th in 2000 and 17th in the last summer Olympic Games. He claimed the gold medal at the 2007 Korea World Cup as well as the 2007 World Cup Final. He also took the Silver Medal at the 2008 "Good Luck Beijing" International Shooting Sport Federation World Cup. Holguin claimed the silver medal in men's double trap at the 2007 Pan-American Games and won the bronze medal at the World Cup USA in May.
In the men's 10-meter air rifle event over the weekend, two-time Olympian and U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit member Sgt. 1st Class Jason Parker placed 23rd with a total score of 591, while 19-year old U.S. Military Academy Cadet Stephen Scherer took the 27th spot with 590.
Parker will compete Aug. 17, the final day of the shooting competition, in the men's 50-meter three-position rifle, his second event of the 2008 Olympic Games.
Along with double trap, shooters are competing today in the men's 50-meter free pistol event at the Beijing Shooting Range Hall.
Sgt. 1st Class Daryl Szarenski, a three-time Olympian, will compete for the United States in men's free pistol. Szarenski claimed the bronze medal at the "Good Luck Beijing" 2008 International Shooting Sport Federation World Cup in April, the first World Cup medal won by a U.S. shooter in men's free pistol since 2000.
World Class Athlete Program shooter Staff Sgt. Keith Sanderson, 33, of San Antonio, is scheduled to compete Aug. 16 in the 25-meter rapid-fire pistol event.
Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Elizabeth "Libby" Callahan, 56, of Columbia, S.C., will make her fourth Olympic appearance in the women's sport pistol event tomorrow.
Army Marksmanship Unit shotgun shooter Pfc. Vincent Hancock, 19, of Eatonton, Ga., set a world record in every skeet-shooting event at age 18. He will toe the line Aug. 16 in Beijing.
U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program Greco-Roman heavyweight wrestler Staff Sgt. Dremiel Byers will compete in the 264.5-pound weight class Aug. 14.
Byers, a world champion in 2002, is accompanied in China by World Class Athlete Program teammate and training partner Spc. Timothy Taylor, whom Byers defeated in the Olympic team trials.
"I was at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, and Glenn Eller was in Houston shooting by himself," said Holguin, who joined the marksmanship unit in the spring of 2007. "All of us are now shooting together in the marksmanship unit with great competition day in and out among us, and it's just improved all of our games.
"The hardest part of this Olympic experience is waiting for the day to get here," he continued. "I wanted to compete at the highest level of clay target shooting. To do that, I had to commit myself to the sport. The U.S. Army and the USAMU have given me the necessary resources to compete and win at the level required to win an Olympic medal."
As Holguin makes his Olympic debut, Eller, who joined the Army in 2006, is competing in this third Olympics. He placed 17th in 2004 and 12th in 2000.
"Growing up, I always wanted to be an Olympian," Eller said. "The Olympics were greater in every aspect than I had anticipated, both in highs and lows. The emotions involved are so great because of the years of training that go into that one day of competition."
World Class Athlete Program boxing coach retired Staff Sgt. Basheer Abdullah, the U.S. head coach in the Athens games, will serve as a technical advisor for Team USA.
WCAP boxer Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Downs won Team USA's light-heavyweight spot at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Houston but did not get the weight class qualified to compete in Beijing. He made the trip to China to serve as a training partner. WCAP fencer Spc. Cody Nagengast also is serving as a training partner for Team USA's squad.
(Mary Beth Vorwerk works with Shooting USA. Tim Hipps works for the U.S. Army Family, Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command.)
Behavioral Health Conference Looks for Best Ways to Help Veterans
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Behavioral health issues affecting veterans returning from deployment took center stage yesterday during the first day of a three-day conference in Bethesda, Md. In collaboration with the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration is hosting "Paving the Road Home: The National Behavioral Health Conference and Policy Academy on Returning Veterans and Their Families."
"This ... conference and policy academy is really designed, overall, to help states and territories and the District of Columbia think about new approaches, particularly approaches that blend expertise and resources from multiple contributors," said Kathryn Power, director of SAMHSA's Center for Mental Health Services. "It's going to provide framework to consider different approaches, dialogue with colleagues, and work toward a unified plan that they can take to their states to ensure that veterans have the [mental health] services they need and want."
SAMHSA's deputy administrator challenged conference attendees to work together beyond the conference to make that happen.
"Whether we're from the federal government, whether from state [or] local government, the research community or wherever you come from today ... look for ways that we can address the needs that those men and women return with," said Navy Rear Adm. Eric Broderick. "Whether we're from SAMHSA, or the VA, or DoD, we each have a role to play in addressing those needs."
For the director of the Defense Center of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, the effort to tap any and all best practices for treating veterans returning with behavioral issues officially began in June.
That's when ground was broken for the new National Intrepid Center of Excellence on the grounds of the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, said Army Brig. Gen. (Dr.) Loree Sutton. The Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund will design and build the facility dedicated to research, diagnosis and treatment of military personnel and veterans suffering from traumatic brain injury and psychological health issues, according to the center's Web site. The fund, a nonprofit organization supporting the nation's troops and their families, is scheduled to complete construction in late 2009 and will transfer the center to the Defense Department then.
"We've come up with a 'center of centers' concept because we've realized that none of us have all of the answers," Sutton said. "We brought in four existing centers that have been doing great work for a long time."
The centers Sutton cited as part of National Intrepid Center of Excellence are the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, the Center for Deployment Psychology, the Deployment Health Clinical Center and the Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress.
Providing the resources is not enough, however, said Ellen Embry, deputy assistant secretary of defense for force health protection and readiness. Servicemembers often are hesitant to seek help for behavioral or mental health issues, she said.
The stigma associated with seeking or receiving mental health care is nearly impossible to quantify, Embry noted. "That's why I personally appreciate the expertise and counsel as you formulate better mental care policies, particularly to reduce stigma," she said.
That is the key to encouraging returning veterans to seek the help they may need, former Marine Sgt. Dan Taslitz said. The stigma of seeking help for a mental health issue stems from the thought that those types of problems indicate a lack of strength, something with which servicemembers very strongly identify, he explained.
"Stigma is a huge component in the inability for servicemembers to effectively seek support and care," Taslitz said. "It doesn't matter how good your opportunities are, how effective your integration of community and military and Veterans Affairs programs are if you don't ... [open] the door for participation in a way that men and women will walk through, it's not going to work."
Taslitz is currently with ONE Freedom, a nonprofit organization providing information to combat veterans and their families.
Yesterday's conference included seven concurrent breakout sessions dealing with everything from suicide prevention and meeting the needs of military families and children to addressing mental health and substance abuse in returning veterans and their families.
The policy academy portion of the conference, which began today, will continue tomorrow with financing and benefit structures, setting priorities and integrating best practices among the topics to be covered. Strategies for handling mental health issues among veterans and their families will be developed, and participating state entities will exchange information and ideas they've put into practice.
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Behavioral health issues affecting veterans returning from deployment took center stage yesterday during the first day of a three-day conference in Bethesda, Md. In collaboration with the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration is hosting "Paving the Road Home: The National Behavioral Health Conference and Policy Academy on Returning Veterans and Their Families."
"This ... conference and policy academy is really designed, overall, to help states and territories and the District of Columbia think about new approaches, particularly approaches that blend expertise and resources from multiple contributors," said Kathryn Power, director of SAMHSA's Center for Mental Health Services. "It's going to provide framework to consider different approaches, dialogue with colleagues, and work toward a unified plan that they can take to their states to ensure that veterans have the [mental health] services they need and want."
SAMHSA's deputy administrator challenged conference attendees to work together beyond the conference to make that happen.
"Whether we're from the federal government, whether from state [or] local government, the research community or wherever you come from today ... look for ways that we can address the needs that those men and women return with," said Navy Rear Adm. Eric Broderick. "Whether we're from SAMHSA, or the VA, or DoD, we each have a role to play in addressing those needs."
For the director of the Defense Center of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, the effort to tap any and all best practices for treating veterans returning with behavioral issues officially began in June.
That's when ground was broken for the new National Intrepid Center of Excellence on the grounds of the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, said Army Brig. Gen. (Dr.) Loree Sutton. The Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund will design and build the facility dedicated to research, diagnosis and treatment of military personnel and veterans suffering from traumatic brain injury and psychological health issues, according to the center's Web site. The fund, a nonprofit organization supporting the nation's troops and their families, is scheduled to complete construction in late 2009 and will transfer the center to the Defense Department then.
"We've come up with a 'center of centers' concept because we've realized that none of us have all of the answers," Sutton said. "We brought in four existing centers that have been doing great work for a long time."
The centers Sutton cited as part of National Intrepid Center of Excellence are the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, the Center for Deployment Psychology, the Deployment Health Clinical Center and the Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress.
Providing the resources is not enough, however, said Ellen Embry, deputy assistant secretary of defense for force health protection and readiness. Servicemembers often are hesitant to seek help for behavioral or mental health issues, she said.
The stigma associated with seeking or receiving mental health care is nearly impossible to quantify, Embry noted. "That's why I personally appreciate the expertise and counsel as you formulate better mental care policies, particularly to reduce stigma," she said.
That is the key to encouraging returning veterans to seek the help they may need, former Marine Sgt. Dan Taslitz said. The stigma of seeking help for a mental health issue stems from the thought that those types of problems indicate a lack of strength, something with which servicemembers very strongly identify, he explained.
"Stigma is a huge component in the inability for servicemembers to effectively seek support and care," Taslitz said. "It doesn't matter how good your opportunities are, how effective your integration of community and military and Veterans Affairs programs are if you don't ... [open] the door for participation in a way that men and women will walk through, it's not going to work."
Taslitz is currently with ONE Freedom, a nonprofit organization providing information to combat veterans and their families.
Yesterday's conference included seven concurrent breakout sessions dealing with everything from suicide prevention and meeting the needs of military families and children to addressing mental health and substance abuse in returning veterans and their families.
The policy academy portion of the conference, which began today, will continue tomorrow with financing and benefit structures, setting priorities and integrating best practices among the topics to be covered. Strategies for handling mental health issues among veterans and their families will be developed, and participating state entities will exchange information and ideas they've put into practice.
“Worth Fighting For: Inspiration From Home”
WAYNE, N.J. – “Thank you.” It’s a small phrase that can make all the difference in the world for U.S. military men and women around the globe, but so often it goes unused, forgotten in the chaos and egotism of everyday life. Author Ashley Ann Serafin, however, is shouting “Thank you!” from the rooftops with her new book, Worth Fighting For: Inspiration From Home (published by AuthorHouse), a tribute to those who serve each day so that “we are able to rest peacefully each night and live the American Dream.”
In each of its 52 chapters – one for each week of the year – Worth Fighting For reminds the men and women of the U.S. military serving both domestically and overseas that they are loved, respected and prayed for.
“Worth Fighting For was written to serve as a reminder that no matter where our military is at the moment, they are forever in our hearts and we will forever be grateful for the sacrifices they make daily,” says Serafin. “Our liberty is of high value and we are so thankful for the dedicated soldiers who have served us in the past and the soldiers that are presently serving our beautiful country.”
It is Serafin’s hope that her book will inspire those in service to continue building their faith in God and remain strong in their convictions.
“When our military prepares to leave the United States, they are given the tools to be stronger, but it is equally important to remain healthy in the mind as it is in body,” says Serafin. “This book is to be a reminder to keep fighting for what we all believe in and to never take their eye off the end result. I hope this book supports all of their hopes and dreams and brings them home safely to their beloved friends and family.”
A graduate of Wayne Valley High School, Ashley Ann Serafin has studied acting with the N.J. School of Dramatic Arts and the Unstoppable Business School in New York City. Worth Fighting For: Inspiration From Home is Serafin’s first published book, although she has also contributed to the book Guerrilla Networking by Jay Conrad Levinson and Monroe Mann. For more information, visit www.50399.authorworld.com.
AuthorHouse is the premier publishing house for emerging authors and new voices in literature. For a complimentary copy of this book for review, members of the media can contact the AuthorHouse Promotional Services Department by calling 888-728-8467 or emailing pressreleases@authorhouse.com. (When requesting a review copy, please provide a street address.)
In each of its 52 chapters – one for each week of the year – Worth Fighting For reminds the men and women of the U.S. military serving both domestically and overseas that they are loved, respected and prayed for.
“Worth Fighting For was written to serve as a reminder that no matter where our military is at the moment, they are forever in our hearts and we will forever be grateful for the sacrifices they make daily,” says Serafin. “Our liberty is of high value and we are so thankful for the dedicated soldiers who have served us in the past and the soldiers that are presently serving our beautiful country.”
It is Serafin’s hope that her book will inspire those in service to continue building their faith in God and remain strong in their convictions.
“When our military prepares to leave the United States, they are given the tools to be stronger, but it is equally important to remain healthy in the mind as it is in body,” says Serafin. “This book is to be a reminder to keep fighting for what we all believe in and to never take their eye off the end result. I hope this book supports all of their hopes and dreams and brings them home safely to their beloved friends and family.”
A graduate of Wayne Valley High School, Ashley Ann Serafin has studied acting with the N.J. School of Dramatic Arts and the Unstoppable Business School in New York City. Worth Fighting For: Inspiration From Home is Serafin’s first published book, although she has also contributed to the book Guerrilla Networking by Jay Conrad Levinson and Monroe Mann. For more information, visit www.50399.authorworld.com.
AuthorHouse is the premier publishing house for emerging authors and new voices in literature. For a complimentary copy of this book for review, members of the media can contact the AuthorHouse Promotional Services Department by calling 888-728-8467 or emailing pressreleases@authorhouse.com. (When requesting a review copy, please provide a street address.)
Retired Army Marksman Finishes 21st in Olympic Trap Shooting
By Tim Hipps
Special to American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - It rained on what might have been four-time Olympian Bret Erickson's final appearance on the world's grandest shotgun shooting stage, literally and figuratively. The retired Army sergeant first class, a former member of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, competed in the Barcelona, Atlanta and Athens Olympic Games, but finished in a four-way tie for 21st place in the trap event here Aug. 10.
"This year, truthfully, I absolutely 100 percent believed was my year," said Erickson, 47, a native of Bennington, Neb., who lives in Muenster, Texas. "I was ahead of schedule all year long. I was going into World Cup events with the goal of just making the finals, and not only made the finals, but won a [World Cup] bronze here in April and a silver in Germany last month.
"I was really on top of my game -- haven't felt this good in 10 or 15 years," he said.
Erickson, however, performed poorly on the Beijing shooting range on Aug. 9 and stood 33rd among 35 competitors entering the next day's second qualification round. The constant rain, therefore, only dampened his spirits.
"It's very disappointing, because I'm shooting as good as I've ever shot," he said. "I'm ranked third in the world, and I was a serious medal contender. To go out there and just lose it in one day, that's the Olympics. You wait four years and hope it's your day. Unfortunately, it wasn't. I ran into some problems with my game and just didn't have time to fix them."
Czech Republic's David Kostelecky won the gold medal by posting an Olympic final record with 25 perfect shots and a total score of 146. Italy's Giovanni Pellielo, who missed two shots in the final, won his second consecutive Olympic silver medal with a 143 total. Russia's Alexey Alipov claimed the bronze medal by prevailing in a shoot-off against two-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Diamond of Australia.
U.S. Air Force Reserve Lt. Col. Dominic Grazioli, of Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio, was Team USA's other competitor in the event. He finished tied with Erickson with a five-round score of 113, eight points behind the leading finalists.
Erickson temporarily retired from competitive shooting in 1999, but after taking two years off, he "started this whole crazy thing again," he said. Bothered most of the year by shoulder soreness, Erickson said he soon will undergo surgery, take some time off to recover, then decide if he wants to make a run at the 2012 Olympics in London. He runs the Willawalla Creek Shooting Center, where he coaches young shotgun shooters.
"In conjunction with USA Shooting, I'm trying to develop some more junior camps," said Erickson, who retired from the Army in 2005. "We've got to fill the gap. We've got to bring somebody up to replace us old guys."
Erickson suffered a heart attack during a 2-mile run at Fort Benning, Ga., just four weeks before the 2004 Olympics in Athens, where he bounced back to finish 13th in both trap and double trap, his finest Olympic performance.
Then Army Marksmanship Unit teammates Staff Sgt. Mark Weeks, a certified emergency medical technician, and Staff Sgt. William Keever, an Olympic skeet shooter in 2000, saved Erickson's life when he collapsed that day in Georgia.
Weeks will take Team USA's reins from retired Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Lloyd Woodhouse, four-time U.S. Olympic shotgun coach, on Sept. 1. He said he may not let Erickson ride off into the Texas sunset just yet.
"I seriously made up my mind that this was it," Erickson said. "But the new coach, ... you could see inside that he was OK with me shooting badly here. So I asked him what he was so happy about, and he said, 'You can't quit like this. You're going to be back.' And I said, 'No, I'm not.' And he said, 'Oh, yeah, you are.'
"He's the same guy who CPRed me and brought me back to life," Erickson said, "so it's kind of handy to have him around." Likewise, Erickson has been a handy shotgun shooter to have around.
"I've been to China four times, but only twice to this range," said Erickson, a six-time U.S. national champion. "Yesterday is getting foggy, let alone 10 or 15 years ago. I've been doing this so long they all run together after awhile, but this place is beautiful. This is a state-of-the art range and the [Olympic athletes'] village is fantastic. I would put the village probably second to Barcelona, and that's only because in Barcelona you're right on the Mediterranean.
"Here in Beijing," he continued, "the service, the smiles, and the friendly people have been just unbelievable. It's been a great experience. I wish I could go home with a medal, but as I said three times prior, maybe next time."
Somewhat like New York Jets quarterback Brett Favre, Erickson refuses to fully commit to retirement.
"We'll have to talk with him," he said while gesturing toward Weeks. "He's trying to keep me around. He's saying, 'I'm going to take over the coaching job and lose all my veterans. Come on, guys, give me a break. Throw me a bone.'
"So I don't know. I'll be off next year, for sure. I've got to get my shoulder done. I've got to go under the knife. Then in a couple years, we'll see."
(Tim Hipps works in the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command Public Affairs Office.)
Special to American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - It rained on what might have been four-time Olympian Bret Erickson's final appearance on the world's grandest shotgun shooting stage, literally and figuratively. The retired Army sergeant first class, a former member of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, competed in the Barcelona, Atlanta and Athens Olympic Games, but finished in a four-way tie for 21st place in the trap event here Aug. 10.
"This year, truthfully, I absolutely 100 percent believed was my year," said Erickson, 47, a native of Bennington, Neb., who lives in Muenster, Texas. "I was ahead of schedule all year long. I was going into World Cup events with the goal of just making the finals, and not only made the finals, but won a [World Cup] bronze here in April and a silver in Germany last month.
"I was really on top of my game -- haven't felt this good in 10 or 15 years," he said.
Erickson, however, performed poorly on the Beijing shooting range on Aug. 9 and stood 33rd among 35 competitors entering the next day's second qualification round. The constant rain, therefore, only dampened his spirits.
"It's very disappointing, because I'm shooting as good as I've ever shot," he said. "I'm ranked third in the world, and I was a serious medal contender. To go out there and just lose it in one day, that's the Olympics. You wait four years and hope it's your day. Unfortunately, it wasn't. I ran into some problems with my game and just didn't have time to fix them."
Czech Republic's David Kostelecky won the gold medal by posting an Olympic final record with 25 perfect shots and a total score of 146. Italy's Giovanni Pellielo, who missed two shots in the final, won his second consecutive Olympic silver medal with a 143 total. Russia's Alexey Alipov claimed the bronze medal by prevailing in a shoot-off against two-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Diamond of Australia.
U.S. Air Force Reserve Lt. Col. Dominic Grazioli, of Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio, was Team USA's other competitor in the event. He finished tied with Erickson with a five-round score of 113, eight points behind the leading finalists.
Erickson temporarily retired from competitive shooting in 1999, but after taking two years off, he "started this whole crazy thing again," he said. Bothered most of the year by shoulder soreness, Erickson said he soon will undergo surgery, take some time off to recover, then decide if he wants to make a run at the 2012 Olympics in London. He runs the Willawalla Creek Shooting Center, where he coaches young shotgun shooters.
"In conjunction with USA Shooting, I'm trying to develop some more junior camps," said Erickson, who retired from the Army in 2005. "We've got to fill the gap. We've got to bring somebody up to replace us old guys."
Erickson suffered a heart attack during a 2-mile run at Fort Benning, Ga., just four weeks before the 2004 Olympics in Athens, where he bounced back to finish 13th in both trap and double trap, his finest Olympic performance.
Then Army Marksmanship Unit teammates Staff Sgt. Mark Weeks, a certified emergency medical technician, and Staff Sgt. William Keever, an Olympic skeet shooter in 2000, saved Erickson's life when he collapsed that day in Georgia.
Weeks will take Team USA's reins from retired Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Lloyd Woodhouse, four-time U.S. Olympic shotgun coach, on Sept. 1. He said he may not let Erickson ride off into the Texas sunset just yet.
"I seriously made up my mind that this was it," Erickson said. "But the new coach, ... you could see inside that he was OK with me shooting badly here. So I asked him what he was so happy about, and he said, 'You can't quit like this. You're going to be back.' And I said, 'No, I'm not.' And he said, 'Oh, yeah, you are.'
"He's the same guy who CPRed me and brought me back to life," Erickson said, "so it's kind of handy to have him around." Likewise, Erickson has been a handy shotgun shooter to have around.
"I've been to China four times, but only twice to this range," said Erickson, a six-time U.S. national champion. "Yesterday is getting foggy, let alone 10 or 15 years ago. I've been doing this so long they all run together after awhile, but this place is beautiful. This is a state-of-the art range and the [Olympic athletes'] village is fantastic. I would put the village probably second to Barcelona, and that's only because in Barcelona you're right on the Mediterranean.
"Here in Beijing," he continued, "the service, the smiles, and the friendly people have been just unbelievable. It's been a great experience. I wish I could go home with a medal, but as I said three times prior, maybe next time."
Somewhat like New York Jets quarterback Brett Favre, Erickson refuses to fully commit to retirement.
"We'll have to talk with him," he said while gesturing toward Weeks. "He's trying to keep me around. He's saying, 'I'm going to take over the coaching job and lose all my veterans. Come on, guys, give me a break. Throw me a bone.'
"So I don't know. I'll be off next year, for sure. I've got to get my shoulder done. I've got to go under the knife. Then in a couple years, we'll see."
(Tim Hipps works in the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command Public Affairs Office.)
Civil Affairs Sailors Work to Improve Humanitarian Effort Outcomes
By Kristen Noel
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - The Navy's budding Civil affairs force will help sustain U.S. military humanitarian efforts in developing countries, the force's commander told online journalists and bloggers in an Aug. 8 teleconference. Many past humanitarian missions were completed with little thought to how the country would maintain the project, Navy Capt. Robert S. McKenna, commander of the Maritime Civil Affairs Group, explained. For example, he said, a school would be built without attention to who would attend the school, who would teach, or where the budget for maintenance and teaching materials would come from.
"So now," McKenna said, "instead of doing this in an ad hoc nature, we're building a force that understands Civil affairs and understands effects-based operations."
McKenna explained that the Maritime Civil Affairs Group, which was established in July 2006, spent the past two years creating a training program to develop Civil affairs teams. Since the Navy never had a civil affairs force, he said, officials solicited the assistance of the Army to craft the six-month course.
The training, McKenna said, familiarizes sailors with the 16 functional areas that form the basis of Civil affairs work. Sailors also receive training in foreign languages and port assessment, and they complete a month-long expeditionary combat skills course, he said.
"We can't make experts, obviously, in 16 different areas," he said. "So, they know enough about those areas to be able to go out and do a good assessment." Sailors are considered civil affairs generalists when they complete the training, McKenna explained.
The Maritime Civil Affairs Group already has deployed teams to Africa, Iraq, Southeast Asia, Central America, and the Caribbean to assist with ongoing civil affairs and humanitarian missions.
"We have another team that just departed to go to the Combined Joint Task Force Horn of Africa," he said. "They're going over there to do a 45-day pre-deployment site survey in preparation for a commitment, where we'll send two teams in December for a six-month deployment."
The Civil affairs forces' role, McKenna said, is to provide strategy and planning for humanitarian projects and to advise combatant commanders and Navy component commanders. He added that civil affairs teams should be on the ground long before a ship arrives, assessing the area's needs.
"We need to be out way ahead of the ship so we can establish those relationships that we need, and we can liaison with civil authorities there," he said. "And we can find out where they need help and where we can give help."
Despite involvement in a few current missions, McKenna said, it's going to take time for the Navy to build a professional Civil affairs force.
"I think over the next five to 10 years you're going to see this force grow and become more widely known and more widely used," he said. "And it's going to become a strong force for our national defense."
(Kristen Noel works for the New Media branch of the Defense Media Activity.)
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - The Navy's budding Civil affairs force will help sustain U.S. military humanitarian efforts in developing countries, the force's commander told online journalists and bloggers in an Aug. 8 teleconference. Many past humanitarian missions were completed with little thought to how the country would maintain the project, Navy Capt. Robert S. McKenna, commander of the Maritime Civil Affairs Group, explained. For example, he said, a school would be built without attention to who would attend the school, who would teach, or where the budget for maintenance and teaching materials would come from.
"So now," McKenna said, "instead of doing this in an ad hoc nature, we're building a force that understands Civil affairs and understands effects-based operations."
McKenna explained that the Maritime Civil Affairs Group, which was established in July 2006, spent the past two years creating a training program to develop Civil affairs teams. Since the Navy never had a civil affairs force, he said, officials solicited the assistance of the Army to craft the six-month course.
The training, McKenna said, familiarizes sailors with the 16 functional areas that form the basis of Civil affairs work. Sailors also receive training in foreign languages and port assessment, and they complete a month-long expeditionary combat skills course, he said.
"We can't make experts, obviously, in 16 different areas," he said. "So, they know enough about those areas to be able to go out and do a good assessment." Sailors are considered civil affairs generalists when they complete the training, McKenna explained.
The Maritime Civil Affairs Group already has deployed teams to Africa, Iraq, Southeast Asia, Central America, and the Caribbean to assist with ongoing civil affairs and humanitarian missions.
"We have another team that just departed to go to the Combined Joint Task Force Horn of Africa," he said. "They're going over there to do a 45-day pre-deployment site survey in preparation for a commitment, where we'll send two teams in December for a six-month deployment."
The Civil affairs forces' role, McKenna said, is to provide strategy and planning for humanitarian projects and to advise combatant commanders and Navy component commanders. He added that civil affairs teams should be on the ground long before a ship arrives, assessing the area's needs.
"We need to be out way ahead of the ship so we can establish those relationships that we need, and we can liaison with civil authorities there," he said. "And we can find out where they need help and where we can give help."
Despite involvement in a few current missions, McKenna said, it's going to take time for the Navy to build a professional Civil affairs force.
"I think over the next five to 10 years you're going to see this force grow and become more widely known and more widely used," he said. "And it's going to become a strong force for our national defense."
(Kristen Noel works for the New Media branch of the Defense Media Activity.)
Air Force Welcomes New Chief of Staff
By Army Staff Sgt. Michael J. Carden
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today that he has no doubt the new Air Force chief of staff will "give his all" to the job. Air Force Gen. Norton A. Schwartz became the Air Force's 19th chief of staff during a ceremony today at Bolling Air Force Base here.
"[Schwartz's] goal is to recommit the Air Force to the high standards of excellence that have always been its hallmark," Gates said. "He is one who has lived the core values of airmen and women: integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do."
Gates said Schwartz "is the right man at the right time for this demanding job" because of his experience and expertise to further prepare the Air Force for "challenges on and beyond the horizon."
Some of these challenges include modernizing the Air Force's aging fighter and tanker fleets, restoring trust in the Air Force's stewardship of nuclear weapons and related materiel, protecting space and cyberspace and making the most effective use of air power in counterinsurgency operations while maintaining strategic deterrence and technological superiority, Gates said.
"Airmen and women led by General Schwartz are going after these tasks with zeal and, in so doing, will write new chapters of greatness for the Air Force," he said.
Schwartz said he is "humbled and honored" to serve as Air Force chief of staff. He reflected on the "incredible journey" he and his wife, Suzie, have had in the Air Force and the journey today's airmen have embarked on amid the global war on terror.
"We stand on a foundation built through blood and sweat of those who have gone before us," he said. "Through sacrifice and devotion alongside our joint and coalition partners, we continue to serve together in the defense of liberty."
He also noted the challenges recently faced by the Air Force regarding scrutiny over the service's handling of its nuclear weapons program. This eventually led to the resignation of Schwartz's predecessor, retired Air Force Gen. T. Michael Moseley, and former Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne.
"Knowing our nation expects our very, very best, we certainly have some things to fix, some fences to mend and some challenges to overcome," the general said. "We will show ourselves worthy of the sacred trust our leaders, our joint brethren and the American people place in us, because this business is all about trust."
Prior to becoming chief of staff, Schwartz spent nearly three years as commander of U.S. Transportation Command, at Scott Air Force Base, Ill., where he was the single manager for global air, land and sea transportation for the Defense Department.
Schwartz began his Air Force career in 1973 after graduating from the U.S. Air Force Academy with a bachelor's degree in political science and international affairs. During his 35-year career, he has logged more than 4,200 flying hours in a variety of aircraft and participated in war and peacetime operations in Vietnam, Iraq and Cambodia.
Schwartz served in several other command assignments, including Special Operations Command Pacific, Alaskan Command, Alaskan North American Aerospace Defense Command Region, and 11th Air Force. He also served as director of the Joint Staff at the Pentagon.
American Forces Press Service
Aug. 12, 2008 - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today that he has no doubt the new Air Force chief of staff will "give his all" to the job. Air Force Gen. Norton A. Schwartz became the Air Force's 19th chief of staff during a ceremony today at Bolling Air Force Base here.
"[Schwartz's] goal is to recommit the Air Force to the high standards of excellence that have always been its hallmark," Gates said. "He is one who has lived the core values of airmen and women: integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do."
Gates said Schwartz "is the right man at the right time for this demanding job" because of his experience and expertise to further prepare the Air Force for "challenges on and beyond the horizon."
Some of these challenges include modernizing the Air Force's aging fighter and tanker fleets, restoring trust in the Air Force's stewardship of nuclear weapons and related materiel, protecting space and cyberspace and making the most effective use of air power in counterinsurgency operations while maintaining strategic deterrence and technological superiority, Gates said.
"Airmen and women led by General Schwartz are going after these tasks with zeal and, in so doing, will write new chapters of greatness for the Air Force," he said.
Schwartz said he is "humbled and honored" to serve as Air Force chief of staff. He reflected on the "incredible journey" he and his wife, Suzie, have had in the Air Force and the journey today's airmen have embarked on amid the global war on terror.
"We stand on a foundation built through blood and sweat of those who have gone before us," he said. "Through sacrifice and devotion alongside our joint and coalition partners, we continue to serve together in the defense of liberty."
He also noted the challenges recently faced by the Air Force regarding scrutiny over the service's handling of its nuclear weapons program. This eventually led to the resignation of Schwartz's predecessor, retired Air Force Gen. T. Michael Moseley, and former Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne.
"Knowing our nation expects our very, very best, we certainly have some things to fix, some fences to mend and some challenges to overcome," the general said. "We will show ourselves worthy of the sacred trust our leaders, our joint brethren and the American people place in us, because this business is all about trust."
Prior to becoming chief of staff, Schwartz spent nearly three years as commander of U.S. Transportation Command, at Scott Air Force Base, Ill., where he was the single manager for global air, land and sea transportation for the Defense Department.
Schwartz began his Air Force career in 1973 after graduating from the U.S. Air Force Academy with a bachelor's degree in political science and international affairs. During his 35-year career, he has logged more than 4,200 flying hours in a variety of aircraft and participated in war and peacetime operations in Vietnam, Iraq and Cambodia.
Schwartz served in several other command assignments, including Special Operations Command Pacific, Alaskan Command, Alaskan North American Aerospace Defense Command Region, and 11th Air Force. He also served as director of the Joint Staff at the Pentagon.
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