Why We Serve: Marine Captain Talks About Corps Pride

By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service

March 14, 2008 - Marine Capt. John Sand knows what it takes to be a good college student: go to class, read the book, and take good notes. And, for him, first spend four years in the Marine Corps. This realization came after Sand spent a few years as a not-so-good college student after high school, he said.

"I had a 0.8 grade point average for the semester when I left school. That's very hard to do. I pretty much flunked everything and didn't really care much about school," Sand said.

Sand grew up in the small Illinois town of Ottawa. Both of his parents were career educators; his father was a counselor and his mother a grade-school teacher. After high school graduation in 1988, Sand accepted an Army ROTC scholarship to attend college. But after a few years, both Sand and his parents accepted that he needed to do something different.

"I flushed a scholarship away, basically. I wasn't paying for school. I was having a little too much fun. I needed to get some discipline and more control over where I wanted to go," Sand said.

His father, once in the Navy, suggested the Marines, and Sand agreed.

In 1991, Sand enlisted as a Morse code interceptor. He said he did, indeed, learn self-discipline, and that he enjoyed his tour, which took him twice to Somalia on deployments. But Sand had promised his parents that at the end of his enlistment he would return to college.

He made good on that promise and returned to study criminal justice.

"It was a complete 180 from my experience the first time at college. Four years in the Marine Corps made coming back to college kind of ... simple," Sand said.

The former dropout then made the dean's list and played tennis competitively. In the 60 credit hours he amassed to finish his degree, Sand received nearly perfect grades.

Still, he missed the Corps, Sand said. After graduation, he returned to the Marines as an officer.

"When I enlisted in 1991, did I think I'd be doing this in 2008? No, I didn't, but it led me down that road, and I really enjoy it," Sand said.

Now Sand, as part of the Defense Department's "Why We Serve" public-outreach program, is traveling the country, telling his story to community, business and veterans group audiences and at other gatherings. Fresh from a deployment to Iraq, Sand said he hopes to convey the efforts of servicemembers there.

"It's important what we're doing in the global war on terrorism. I think it's important that they hear it from the servicemember's perspective," Sand said. "In Iraq, there's a lot more to it than guns and tanks. There's a lot of humanitarian assistance. There's a lot of nation building. We definitely do a lot of work for the Iraqi people, alongside the Iraqi people, to better their lives."

Sand served as an artillery battery commander in Iraq, returning in October. His battery provided a regimental combat team with artillery fire in support of operations in and around Fallujah. They also performed nonstandard missions such as providing security for explosives technicians who cleared the roads of bombs. His battery went on more than 500 combat patrols.

"I like to talk about my Marines a lot. I'm very proud of what my Marines did in Iraq, and I think that there's a really good story there," Sand said. "It's hard work over there. A lot of times they are out for long patrols. They don't get a lot of sleep. They don't get a lot of time off. But they do their job, and they're proud of what they do."

During his tour, Sand said, he saw the tangible signs of progress.

"Things got better while we were there. When we initially showed up, we were shooting quite a bit. By the time we were leaving ... we might go a week or more without ever pulling the lanyard on a howitzer," Sand said. "If we're not shooting as much, to me that's a sign that things are better there."

As a father of three children, being around the Iraqi children sometimes made him homesick, but also served as reminder for why he was there, Sand said.

"Seeing the little kids playing soccer, it's like 'Wow, I miss spending the time with my kids,'" Sand said. "On the other hand, it makes you feel like we're doing something good over there. The smiles, the little conversations -- sometimes just with hand gestures -- or kicking a ball around, that makes you feel good that day."

Sand said he also hopes to convey that servicemembers are typical people, Sand said.

"Military people are your average Joes," he said. We do a lot of the same things. I'm a husband. I'm a father. I'm also a Marine."

In fact, his family is a big part of why he continues to serve in the Marine Corps, Sand said.

"That's very important to me. I want them to grow up in a country where they (continue to) have the freedoms that we enjoy," Sand said. "And so I'm willing to serve to ensure that they grow up in a place where they don't have to worry. I want to ensure that they have a good childhood experience and continue to reap the benefits of the country that we live in."

Sand continues his service also because of the sense of camaraderie he feels for his fellow servicemembers and the sacrifices of those who have fought before him.

"I think that's a big deal. You keep doing it because the guy next to you is counting on you," the captain said.

He is in awe for those who have given the ultimate sacrifice for their country, Sand said.

"It's just amazing to think that I'm part of that organization that would have somebody of that character. That makes you want to stay," he said.

"I serve because I'm proud to wear the uniform. I'm proud to be a Marine, and I want to get that message out there -- that it's a very honorable service and that we're proud to serve the American people," Sand said. "That's why I do what I do."

Face of Defense: Airman's Instincts Prevent Catastrophe

By Tech. Sgt. James Law, USAF
American Forces Press Service

March 14, 2008 - An airman's quick action following a Feb. 26 jet fuel starter explosion that sent shrapnel across the flightline here averted a possible explosion of an F-15E Strike Eagle, officials said. Air Force Staff Sgt. Jonathan Billie was working near a fellow airman preparing an F-15E for flight when the small motor that starts the fighter's engines blew up. The jet fuel starter imploded, and pieces of the machine flew across the flightline.

"I went out to help the crew chief on the jet clean up the area and find out how much damage had occurred," said Billie, an F-15E crew chief with the 335th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Unit here. "When I came upon the scene, I noticed there was a lot of shrapnel on the ground."

Instinctively, Billie looked up into the engine's exhaust to check the damage and noticed flames flickering in the engine compartment. In eight years as an F-15 crew chief, he said, he had never before personally witnessed flames in the engine.

"I had someone come over and verify, just to double check, because you don't want to jump to conclusions," Billie said.

With the flames confirmed, Billie immediately ran over and grabbed the hose off the halon fire extinguisher while simultaneously instructing another crew chief to charge the bottle. Charging the bottle is a process of removing a safety pin and pushing the charging handle forward to pressurize the hose.

Billie yelled out to the eight or so airmen nearby to clear the area. He ran back to the aircraft, pointed the hose into the exhaust and sprayed the bottle's contents onto the fire before it turned catastrophic.

"The first thing that crossed my mind was the live explosives," said Billie, who is deployed from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C. "My thoughts were, 'We need to put this fire out now.'"

Billie said F-15 crew chiefs are trained to deal with this situation, but because it is not a frequent occurrence, it is imperative to remember the training and react without hesitation.

"His actions were outstanding," said Senior Master Sgt. Donald Poormon, the maintenance unit's F-15E assistant superintendent. "He acted perfectly, and you couldn't ask for better."

Brig. Gen. James W. Hyatt, then the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing commander, recognized Billie with a commander's coin at a meeting with the wing's group commanders and chief master sergeants.

(Air Force Tech. Sgt. James Law serves with 455th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs.)

First Community Sites to Open for Reserve, Active-Duty Families

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

March 14, 2008 - A new "virtual installation" concept that helps families who live far from a military base get information and tap into services available for them during their loved ones' deployment is expected to begin rolling out next month. Plans are being laid to open several "brick and mortar" pilot sites by April 23, just in time for the Army Reserve's 100th anniversary celebration, Laura Stultz, wife of Army Reserve Chief Lt. Gen. Jack C. Stultz, told American Forces Press Service.

Focus groups are under way to identify where to put the first three to five sites, she said, likely in areas with big Army Reserve and National Guard populations and no Army post nearby.

General Stultz acknowledged that all spouses face hardships when their loved ones deploy – regardless of whether they're active-duty, National Guard or Reserve. But he said his wife reminded him that unlike active-duty families, who can turn to their local post for help if they need it, Army Reserve families often live far from an Army post and don't know how to tap into available services.

"She said, 'If I am living on an installation, I have Army Community Services, child and youth services, legal support, medical support, the Red Cross. I can go to Army Emergency Relief if I need to get help,'" the general said. He paused, then continued his wife's point: "But if I am in Pocatello, Idaho, who do I turn to?"

As Laura Stultz sees it, the gap is as much cultural as geographic. Active-duty families tend to live on or near a military post, know each other and know where to go for assistance, or at least who to ask how to get it, she said.

Reserve families often don't. A single Reserve unit can draw members from a 10-state area, and families may have had no past exposure to each other or to the Army system overall.

That quandary led her to come up with the virtual installation concept. As she envisions it, it not only will fill a gap for reserve-component families, but also will benefit the many active-duty families who leave their post for their hometowns during their loved one's deployment.

Each site to open next month under the pilot program will be slightly different; one may be a kiosk in a local shopping mall, another may be an office in an Army Reserve center or National Guard armory. "We'll try different approaches of going into the community and see what works best," Laura Stultz said.

Military family members will be able to walk into the sites to talk to someone about their questions or needs. A trained staffer – most likely a military or veteran volunteer – will know the answer or be able to pick up a phone or go online to get it.

The general's wife said she envisions people from the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and other veterans as well as community groups manning the sites. "They keep asking what they can do and saying that they want to help, so I am giving them a job to do," she said.

In addition to providing personal service to military families, the brick-and-mortar sites will serve as visible signs of a broader community outreach effort, Laura Stultz said. Volunteers who staff them will help make inroads into local businesses, churches and other groups to remind them that members of their community are deployed, and that they and their families need support, she added.

The sites will represent the first step in a two-pronged effort designed to reach out to Army Reserve and National Guard families who are nowhere near installations and the full range of support services they offer to active-duty families, she said.

In addition to physical sites, the new concept calls for a Web-based virtual installation that families can tap into from their computer for information and support. That site is expected to go live later this year.

Once it's operational, users will be able to navigate the streets of a simulated Army base with a click of their computer mouse, stopping wherever they wish, Laura Stultz explained. They'll be able to "stop" at the military identification card desk to find out how to replace a lost card, the Tricare office to check on their medical benefits or the family assistance center for other support. "You'll be able to navigate down the street just like in a video game and get the information you need," she said.

Families also will be able to enter their ZIP codes into the site to find the nearest place to get help or services or to contact the nearest family readiness group.

The Army Reserve chief's wife cited the "Fort Family" Web site launched by the Army Reserve's 108th Training Command as an example of the virtual installation's potential. That site links families with local military and civilian resources. It also offers a virtual volunteer program for people seeking ways to help local soldiers and families.

The Web initiative and other programs promoting family wellness and readiness earned the unit honors in the Defense Department's 2007 Reserve Family Readiness Award program.

Laura Stultz praised the 108th Training Command for taking the lead in helping make the virtual installation concept a reality. "It's a wonderful program," she said. "It's a smaller model of what we will take and then add to."

Among additional services she hopes to offer is a chat room for children of deployed troops.

While the general's wife never has served in the military herself, she said she's had lots of experience holding down the homefront far from the nearest military post when her soldier-husband deployed.

She recalled his deployments to the Persian Gulf and the Balkans in the 1990s, when she had four young children at home and couldn't make the two-hour drive to a family readiness group meeting for help and support. "So I know what it's like to be out there and not know where to turn," she said. "I understand."

Now that her husband is chief of the Army Reserve, Laura Stultz said she feels a personal responsibility to make things smoother for other Army Reserve spouses who keep the home fires burning during deployments.

"Their soldiers are putting their lives on the line just like everyone else, so they deserve and need the same help and resources available for active-component families," she said.

General Stultz called the virtual installation an important step toward taking better care of Army Reserve families. After all, he said, the Army Reserve recruits soldiers, but it retains families. "And we have to do a better job of reaching out to those families," he said.