Air Force Team Cares for Haiti Victims in Flight

By Derek Kaufman
Special to American Forces Press Service

Jan. 27, 2010 - A three-person medical team from the Wright-Patterson Medical Center here is providing aeromedical evacuation support for victims of the earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The critical care air transport, or CCAT, team is staging from MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., with the 45th Aeromedical Staging Squadron. From there, the team flies to Port-au-Prince, picks up critically injured patients and takes them to hospitals in southern Florida.

CCAT teams are highly specialized, rapidly deployable medical teams that set up and provide intensive-care-unit-level care for patients aboard transport aircraft in flight. Most often, they set up their equipment aboard Air Force C-130 Hercules or C-17 Globemaster III aircraft.

Air Force Maj. (Dr.) John Lynch, a physician with the 88th Medical Group here, leads the Wright-Patterson team. Air Force Capt. Jeffery Marsh, an intensive-care unit nurse, and Air Force Senior Airman Brooke Lohr, a cardiopulmonary technician, round out the team.

"Ours was the first CCAT to arrive on the ground in Haiti," Lynch said. The first CCAT mission supporting Operation Unified Response left Haiti for Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Jan. 20.

To date, the Wright-Patterson team has flown three missions, evacuating 10 critical-care patients. Two were flown to Fort Lauderdale and one to Miami. The team planned to leave late yesterday to fly to Port-au-Prince for its fourth medevac mission.

"We're transporting a lot of crush injuries, amputees, burns, and closed-head trauma," Lynch said. "About half of our critical patients to date have been pediatric patients with all of those types of injuries."

Lynch said his team calls ahead to emergency personnel in Miami-Dade and Broward counties while airborne to identify the mix of patients onboard so they are ready to receive and transport them to local medical centers.

"As soon as we open the back of the plane, they are there waiting to take the patients off," Lynch said.

Lynch said each CCAT team typically oversees care for three critical patients in flight, but has provided intensive care for up to four patients on missions flown from Haiti so far. Critical care patient capacity is maxed out on each aircraft, he said.

Two additional CCAT teams from Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., have joined the Wright-Patterson team to move patients. As of yesterday, Lynch said, the combined CCAT teams had moved 20 patients.

On the ground in Haiti, the air evacuations are directed by a combination of a medical air staging facility, which provides triage and stabilization, and an air evacuation liaison team, which arranges airlift with Air Mobility Command's Tanker-Airlift Control Center at Scott Air Force Base, Ill.

Air Force Capt. Jeffery Marsh -- a critical care nurse originally from Albuquerque, N.M., who now lives in Dayton, Ohio, -- said many of the patients the team has evacuated have been extremely ill, having had to endure burns and crushing injuries for seven days or more prior to transport.

"It's a different mission than we encounter in Afghanistan and Iraq," he said. "Nonetheless, it's very rewarding to be part of this humanitarian effort. ... It's really hectic, really stressful, because of the situation in country. You normally don't get this type of experience in a career, so I am very happy to be a part of it."

Marsh and Lynch said the real heroes in the Air Force's medical response have been a group of special operations airmen from Hurlburt Field, Fla., who were on the ground in Port-au-Prince early, helping to free those trapped in the rubble and providing quick surgical intervention. All of the critical patients moved by the Wright-Patterson team to date were identified by the special operations team.

Marsh called the special operations airmen "a mixed bag of pararescue jumpers, surgeons [and] nurses who ask for no thanks and somehow manage to keep a smile on, despite being dead tired."

Lohr, the CCAT team's only enlisted member, ensures patients have a good airway and are getting enough oxygen. The Columbia, S.C., native said she's "really learned a lot about teamwork."

"We each know a little bit about what the other does," she said, "but it really takes every person on the team to accomplish the mission and bring the patient safely back to wherever they are going."

One patient who stands out in her mind is a 9-month-old girl who was experiencing a perfect storm of respiratory distress from malaria, pneumonia and an apparent asthma attack.

"We were able to give two albuterol nebulizer treatments, and racemic epinephrine, which they didn't have available," Lohr said. "Had we not been there to give those medications, they probably would have had to intubate to save the baby, and they really don't have a lot of pediatric stuff right now."

The baby was stabilized and later was transported to the Navy hospital ship USNS Comfort.

Lynch, a Lexington, Ky. native, said all CCAT team members get two weeks of specialized training with the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine at Brooks City Base, Texas. His team also participated in a two-week trauma training course in partnership with University Hospital Cincinnati.

(Derek Kaufman works in the 88th Air Base Wing public affairs office.)

5,000-Bed Hospital to Increase Haitian Medical Capacity

By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service

Jan. 26, 2010 - U.S. and international relief workers in Haiti are developing a 5,000-bed hospital in the capital of Port-au-Prince to increase medical capacity as the country struggles to recover two weeks after a devastating earthquake struck. Among other facilities, the hospital will accept patients from the floating hospital ship USNS Comfort, where more than 100 surgeries have been performed since arriving at the Haitian coast last week.

Though still some weeks away from becoming fully operational, U.S. medical equipment that will outfit the additional hospital in northern Port-au-Prince has begun to arrive, Army Lt. Gen. P.K. Keen, the top U.S. commander in Haiti, told Pentagon reporters today.

"We are anticipating to at least get the seeds of that hospital up within the next week or so, but that we'll begin small and then grow from there," Keen said via teleconference from Haiti. "We are hoping to be able to at least start with a 250-man centerpiece."

Haitian authorities have said more than 150,000 bodies have been buried in Haiti since a magnitude 7 earthquake devastated the country Jan. 12. Original estimates by the Red Cross were that upwards of 3 million Haitians were affected.

International aid continues pouring into Haiti in the midst of what an official called one of the greatest humanitarian emergencies in the history of the Americas. Among those assets is the USNS Comfort, on which U.S. medical personnel has taken aboard nearly 400 patients, performed more than 100 surgeries and filled more than 11,800 prescriptions since its Jan. 20 arrival.

Keen said the Haitian government quickly granted a request for a large piece of land -- situated near the hospital ship and also accessible by road -- that could host the 5,000-bed hospital. A principal source of the incoming patients will come from the Comfort, he added.

"We want to continue to see a flow of patients that need that critical care that the Comfort offers, and then take patients off of her that do not need that any longer, in order to maximize the utility of the Comfort," Keen said.

The general said nongovernment organizations are determining who will man the hospital once it opens its doors to patients, with the United States playing the role of advisors and assistants in what Keen characterized as a "joint venture."

"[The organizations] are responding, in terms of being able to manage the hospital and in being able to staff the hospital," he said. "We are enabling that by working with the international community to procure tinnage and all the things that you can imagine you need in order to build a hospital of that magnitude."

DoD and Army Work to Provide Psychological Health Care When It’s Needed Most

By Sarah Heynen
DCoE

January 26, 2010 - The Army is ever increasing its efforts to treat and provide continuity of care for soldiers with psychological health issues, an Army psychological health expert said at the 2010 MHS Conference Jan. 25.

“We've got a tremendous sense of mission now,” said Col. Elspeth C. Ritchie, M.D., M.P.H., psychiatry advisor to the Army surgeon general. Ritchie said that the Army has increased behavioral health providers by 50 percent since 2007.

In addition to the increase in providers, Ritchie said that the Army has and will continue to install new programs that will reach the warriors who need help, increase effective treatments for those who have already sought help, and combat the rise in suicides. The programs include using telehealth services that can treat patients through the use of video teleconferencing and Webcams.

Ritchie said that after creating innovative programs to meet the needs service members there still remains the challenge to implement the programs in a way that is effective and useful. Among the barriers to care for service members is the stigma sometimes associated with seeking psychological health care. While efforts to eliminate stigma are increasing, it is still necessary to ensure that policies are also in place that protect those service members who seek help.

As the Army increases its efforts in this arena, the Department of Defense is doing the same, said Capt. Edward Simmer, senior executive director for psychological health at the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, and also a speaker at the conference.

“We must provide the best possible care in the worst possible place,” said Simmer, reminding that service members need to receive the highest quality care available in some of the most remote locations – from warriors in Iraq and Afghanistan to Reservists battling PTSD in Minnesota many miles away from a behavioral health provider. Simmer, too, suggested the use of telehealth in these circumstances.

Simmer highlighted a model for care based on “resilience, recovery and reintegration.” As service members go through the continuum of care this model provides a way to help prevent future issues, acknowledge and heal from any injury that may occur (physical or psychological), and reintegrate back into life whether from an injury or just returning from deployment.

Empowering line leaders, service members and families to take responsibility for service members' psychological health is another way to increase access to psychological health services, Simmer said. With protocols in place to enable line leaders to identify problems and make the initial intervention, warriors could get the needed help sooner. Simmer also stressed the importance of partnering with civilian health care providers to increase the number of behavioral health providers available. The DoD, along with the services, is actively working to provide warriors access to the best psychological health care available, when they need it most.

First Lady Announces Family Program Budget Boost

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

Jan. 26, 2010 - President Barack Obama's fiscal 2011 budget request calls for a record $8.8 billion for military family support programs, First Lady Michelle Obama told military spouses today at Bolling Air Force Base here. The request represents a 3 percent increase over current funding, she told attendees at the Joint Armed Forces Officers' Wives Club annual luncheon.

The budget request will include $1.3 billion to reduce shortages in military child care and ensure its quality remains high, and also increases funding for youth programs, she said.

Another provision will provide $439 million to build 10 new Department of Defense Education Activity Schools. This measure, directed by Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, is part of a major, five-year effort to renovate or replace 103 of the schools by 2015.

Obama emphasized the challenges military children face, and the need to ensure they're cared for.

"We cannot forget that military kids also serve in their own special way," she said. "They're just like any other child in this country – except their lives are turned upside-down every time their mom or dad is gone halfway around the world, risking their lives so that all our children can enjoy the freedoms of our democracy."

As a result, she said, military children often experience higher levels of anxiety and a higher risk of depression than their nonmilitary classmates, and a tougher time focusing at school.

"So, we can never forget just how much these wars affect our military kids, and we all have an obligation to ensure they have the support they need at home and at school," she said.

Based on input from military spouses, the fiscal 2011 budget request also will include $84 million for spousal career development, Obama said, including tuition assistance and a federal internship program.

Another provision will provide $14 million in new funding for Coast Guard housing.

"These are all major investments, and they are the result of military families speaking up and being heard," the first lady said. "They are part of a larger, ongoing commitment to care for our troops and their families after the fighting ends."

Obama said her many interactions with military families over the past year has deepened her respect and gratitude for them, and her recognition of "the spirit and strength and courage that our military families display every day."

"You put your own priorities aside. You take care of one another. You take care of this nation," she said. "So, as first lady, I can't thank you enough for that sacrifice, and I promise you that I will use every ounce of my energy to make sure that America always takes care of you."

Obama said she recognizes that providing this level of support network will require "active citizens," as well as the government, working hand in hand.

She said she will continue making it a priority to keep asking all Americans to join in supporting military families. She noted, for example, the "Mission Serve" network she and Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, helped to launch on Veterans Day to bring civilian and military services groups together to help in supporting military members and their families.

"We're asking Americans to engage and support military families any way they can," she said, through job opportunities, professional services, or even babysitting or providing a home-cooked meal. "Our men and women in uniform and their families sacrifice for every single one of us, and every single one of us can do something in return, even if it's as simple as saying, 'Thank you.'"

Attendees at today's luncheon said they welcomed the first lady's commitment to military families – one they noted that she has demonstrated continually since her husband entered the presidential race.

"The fact that she's shown such an interest means a lot," said Meredith Simpson, whose husband, Marine Corps Capt. Neal Simpson, is a student at the Expeditionary Warfare School at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va.

Simpson is no stranger to the challenges military families face. The couple's 3-year-old twins were born when their father was deployed to Iraq, and they were 3 months old before he met them.

Simpson said she's encouraged by Obama's emphasis on putting military families first – and by the example she credits the first lady with showing by putting her own family first. "That's very promising to me," she said.

Department of Military Affairs furlough day set for Friday, Jan. 29

January 26, 2010 - Wisconsin Department of Military Affairs (DMA) will operate on a limited basis Friday, Jan. 29, as state employees take one of 16 furlough days required for all state workers in the next two years. DMA will resume regular business hours Monday, Feb. 1.

The Department of Military Affairs includes Joint Force Headquarters-Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Army and Air National Guard, and the Wisconsin Division of Emergency Management. Wisconsin National Guard federal employees are not furloughed.

Brig. Gen. Don Dunbar, the adjutant general of Wisconsin, said the Wisconsin National Guard's Joint Operations Center (JOC) and the 24-Hour Emergency Management Duty Officer System will remain fully operational. Edward Wall, WEM Administrator, has ensured that if a disaster or emergency should occur on Jan. 29, there will be staff available to respond to the scene and to work in the state Emergency Operations Center.

Pay, Medical, Family Issues Highlight Budget Request

By Donna Miles

American Forces Press Service

Jan. 26, 2010 - Recognizing the nation's responsibility to support its men and women in uniform and their families, President Barack Obama will request increased funding for military pay, housing allowances, family support programs and care for wounded warriors, White House officials said today.

The budget request, expected to be released Feb. 1, will include a 1.4 percent basic pay raise officials say is designed to keep military pay increases in line with those in the private sector. The request also will include an average housing allowance increase of 4.2 percent, as well as a variety of enlistment and re-enlistment bonuses and monthly payments for specialty skills.

Family support programs will grow 3 percent if Congress approves the request – to $8.8 billion – to support the family members who officials credit with providing the strength and stability on which the uniformed force relies.

The request will include $1.3 billion to make affordable, high-quality child care services more available at 800 military child development centers stateside and overseas. This represents an $87 million increase over fiscal 2010 funding levels, officials noted.

Expanded counseling and assistance services to be funded in the new budget will help families meet the challenges of repeated deployments and family separations, officials noted. The president will request $1.9 billion for these services, which range from financial counseling to transition and relocation assistance, up $37 million from fiscal 2010 funding.

In addition, the request will include $84 million for enhanced career and educational opportunities for military spouses through tuition assistance and federal internship programs. This represents a $12 million increase over current funding.

Another provision in the request will provide $439 million to build 10 new Department of Defense Education Activity schools. This is the first step in a Defense Department plan to replace or renovate 103 of the schools by 2015, providing military children what officials called "the world-class education they deserve," offered in "world-class facilities."

Providing high-quality medical care for more than 9.5 million servicemembers and their families and military retirees -- but especially wounded, ill and injured troops -- remains a top administration priority, officials said. Toward that end, the fiscal 2011 budget request includes support for wounded warrior transition units and centers of excellence in vision, hearing, traumatic brain injury and other areas.

Specifically, it includes: $30.9 billion overall for medical care, up 5.8 percent from current levels; $669 million to provide TBI and psychological health care; and $250 million for continued mental-health and TVI research.

The budget request also will fund more employment and job training for military spouses and veterans, officials noted. It provides $262 million for the Labor Department's Veterans Employment and Training Service, up $6 million from fiscal 2010 levels. This includes $5 million for a new initiative to help homeless women veterans and homeless families.

Another effort, to provide more employment workshops for spouses of separating servicemembers, will receive $1 million in the president's budget request.

The budget request also seeks to expand veterans' access to medical care, officials noted. Obama will request $50.6 billion in advance appropriations for the VA medical care program to ensure veterans' care isn't interrupted due to budget delays. The goal, officials explained, is to ensure VA has timely, predictable funding from year to year, so veterans can rely on the quality and accessibility of the care they receive through VA.

For the first time, highly disabled veterans who are medically retired from the military will be eligible to receive both VA disability benefits and military retirement benefits. By 2015, all medically retired servicemembers will be eligible to receive concurrent benefits, officials said.

The fiscal 2011 budget request also provides funds to continue enrolling more than 500,000 veterans with moderate income into the VA health care system by 2011.

Another measure in the request funds technology to improve the timely, high-quality delivery of health care and benefits, officials said. The Defense Department and VA are implementing the Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record – essentially an electronic medical record that will follow a servicemember from initial enlistment through retirement or separation and transition to the VA system.

The request also includes more than $200 million in automated processing to directly improve both the accuracy and timeliness of the delivery of veterans benefits – particularly disability compensation and the new Post-9/11 GI Bill benefit, officials said.

Speaking to military spouses today at the Joint Armed Forces Officers' Wives Club at Bolling Air Force Base here, First Lady Michelle Obama said the budget request represents a shared interest among administration officials, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Joint Chiefs Chairman Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, and the entire military chain of command to take care of servicemembers and their families.

"The quality of the lives of our military and their families means a great deal, because in the history of our all-volunteer forces, we've never asked so much of so few," she said. "We've seen the huge burden of eight years of war on our troops – tour after tour, year after year, missing out on moments that every parent treasures: a baby's first steps, the first words, the day the training wheels come off the bike, birthdays, anniversaries."

Obama said she's been inspired by the spirit of the men and women in uniform and the families who stand with them as they serve the nation.

"All of you – our troops and families – you do your duty, and you do it without complaint," she said. "You give your all and ask very little in return -- only that we back you up so our troops can do their job.

"That's why my husband and his administration have worked to do right by our armed forces and their families," she said, "to be there for you like you have been there for us, to lighten your load as all of you have lightened ours."

MILITARY CONTRACTS January 26, 2010

ARMY

Oshkosh Corp., Oshkosh, Wisc., was awarded on Jan. 20, 2010 a $258,201,196 firm-fixed-price contract to exercise the option for 90 lots authorized stockage list kits, 90 lots of prescribed load list kits, 23 each deprocessing spare kits, and 132 lots battle damage repair kits for the mine resistant ambush protected all terrain vehicle. Work is to be performed in Oshkosh, Wisc., (50 percent) and McConnellsburg, Pa., with an estimated completion date of May 31, 2012. Five bids were solicited with five bids received. TACOM, CCTA-ADC-A, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (W56HZV-09-D-0111).

Oshkosh Corp., Oshkosh, Wisc., was awarded on Jan. 20, 2010 a $67,448,554 firm-fixed-price contract for the partial exercise the option for 2 lots authorized stockage list kits, 2 lots of prescribed load list kits, and 65 lots battle damage repair kits for the mine resistant ambush protected all terrain vehicle. Work is to be performed in Oshkosh, Wisc., (50 percent) and McConnellsburg, Pa., with an estimated completion date of May 31, 2012. Five bids were solicited with five bids received. TACOM, CCTA-ADC-A, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (W56HZV-09-D-0111).

BAE Systems Inc., Anniston, Ala., was awarded on Jan. 20, 2010 a $29,247,535 firm-fixed-price contract for the Centralized and National Level RESET of a total of 417 M113 Family of Vehicles. Work is to be performed in Anniston, Ala., with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2010. One bid was solicited with one bid received. TACOM, CCTA-AHLA, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (W56HZV-05-G-0005).

Lockheed Martin Corp, Missiles and fire control, grand prairie, Texas, was awarded on Jan. 22, 2010 a $44,875,596 firm-fixed-price and cost-plus-fixed-fee for PATRIOT advanced capability – 3 (PAC-3) United Arab Emirates requirement quantities are 16 launcher mod kits and 16 motor control units. Work is to be performed in Dallas, Texas, (82.8 percent), Camden, Ark., (0.2 percent), Lufkin, Texas, (10.9 percent), Ocala, Fla., (6.1 percent). One bid was solicited with one bid received. U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W31P4Q-09-C-0002).

Vetco Contracting Service, LLC., Watertown, N.Y., was awarded on Jan. 20, 2010 a $15,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract to design and construct a child development center. Work is to be performed at in Fort Belvoir, Va., with an estimated completion date of Aug. 30, 2011. Four bids were solicited with three bids received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineer District-Baltimore District, Baltimore, Md., is the contracting activity (W912DS-09-D-0007-DA01).

Watterson/Davis JV., Anchorage, Ark., was awarded on Jan. 22, 2010 a $11,231,012 firm-fixed-price contract for the construction of an F22A weapons loading crew training facility, Elmendorf AFB, Ark. Work is to be performed at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Ark., with an estimated completion date of Sept. 13, 2011. Seven bids were solicited with three bids received. U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, Alaska District, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Ark., is the contracting activity (W911KB-07-D-0013).

Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., Stratford, Conn., was awarded on Dec. 31, 2009 a $8,219,728 firm-fixed-price contract for the UH-60 (BLACKHAWK) for 22 each, transmission, mechanical, NSN: 1615-01-542-7514, part number: 70400-06641-201. Work is to be performed in Stratford, Conn., with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2011. One bid was solicited with one bid received. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aviation & Missile Command Contracting Center, CCAM-AL-A, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (N00383-06-G-006F)

Northstar Huffman JV, North Olmsted, Ohio, was awarded on Jan. 22, 2010 a $6,258,000 firm-fixed-price contract to remove 400,000 cubic yards of dredged material from consolidated disposal facility 10B. Work is to be performed in Cleveland, Ohio, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 14, 2010. Bids were solicited on the World Wide Web with 10 bids received. U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, Buffalo District, Buffalo, N.Y., is the contracting activity (W912P4-10-C-0001).

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co., LLC., Oak Brook, Ill., was awarded on Jan. 22, 2010 a $6,233,200 firm-fixed-price contract for Jacksonville Harbor maintenance dredging, 40-foot project, Bar Cut 3 through Bar Cut 45, Duval County, Fla. Work is to be performed in Duval County, Fla., with an estimated completion date of Sept. 1, 2010. Six bids were solicited with three bids received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville, Fla., is the contracting activity (W912EP-10-C-0016).

Raytheon Co., Marlborough, Mass., was awarded on Jan. 19, 2010 a $5,912,675 firm-fixed-price contract for air traffic navigation integration and coordination system hardware, sustainment support, II spares and engineering services. Work is to be performed in Marlborough, Mass., with an estimated completion date of Dec. 11, 2011. One bid was solicited with one bid received. U.S. Army Contracting Aviation and Missile Contracting Center, Huntsville, Ala., is the contracting activity (W31P4Q-06-C-0323).

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

Metals USA, (DBA) 1-Solutions Group, Fort Washington, Pa., is being awarded a maximum $124,500,000 fixed price with economic price adjustment, prime vendor contract for customer direct meals deliveries. Other locations of performance are throughout Pennsylvania. Using services are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and federal civilian agencies in the Western United States. There were originally five proposals solicited with two responses. This contract consists of a two year base with three one-year option periods. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is January 26, 2012. The contracting activity is the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPM8EG-09-D-0013)

United Technologies, East Hartford, Conn., is being awarded a maximum $110,138,427 firm fixed price, indefinite quantity, sole source, corporate contract for engine lines. There are no other locations of performance. Using services are Navy and Air Force. There was originally one proposal solicited with one response. This modified contract is exercising the seventh option period. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is Feb. 14, 2011. The contracting activity is the Defense Supply Center Richmond, Richmond, Va., (SPM400-01-D-9405).

Propper International Inc., Mayaguez, Puerto Rico is being awarded a maximum $19,461,168 firm fixed price contract for men's and women's airman battle uniform, coats and trousers. Other locations of performance are throughout Puerto Rico. Using service is Air Force. The original proposal was Web solicited with six responses. This contract includes a base and four one-year options and represents the third option year period. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is Jan. 31, 2011. The contracting activity is the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPM1C1-07-D-0008).

American Apparel, Inc., Selma, Ala., is being awarded a maximum $14,046,480 firm fixed price contract for men's and women's airman battle uniform, coats and trousers. Other locations of performance are in Texas and Mississippi. Using service is Air Force. The original proposal was Web solicited with six responses. This contract includes a base and four one-year options and represents the third option year period. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is Jan. 31, 2011. The contracting activity is the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPM1C1-07-D-0009).

AIR FORCE

CSC Applied Technologies LLC of Fort Worth, Texas was awarded a $29,513,871 contract which will provide for base operating support service at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. At this time, $25,427,428 has been obligated. 81 CONS, Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., is the contracting activity (FA3002-08-C-0001, A0024)

NAVY

Argon ST, Inc., Fairfax, Va., is being awarded a $23,838,548 firm-fixed-price contract for 28 Cerberus units and associated spares for deployment in support of operational forces abroad. Cerberus is a portable, self sustaining, integrated tower developed to provide persistent ground surveillance system for perimeter defense for the Forward Operating Bases. Work will be performed in Newington, Va., (90 percent) and Orlando, Fla., (10 percent) and is expected to be completed in December 2011. Contract funds in the amount of $20,371,498 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to FAR 6.3. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Lakehurst, N.J., is the contracting activity (N68335-10-C-0110).

Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Integrated Systems Sector, San Diego, Calif., is being awarded an $11,000,000 not-to-exceed modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee contract (N00019-07-C-0055) for autonomous aerial refueling technology maturation and demonstration activities in support of the Navy Unmanned Combat Air System Demonstration. Work will be performed in El Segundo, Calif., (60 percent) and Rancho Bernardo, Calif., (40 percent), and is expected to be completed in November 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

Lockheed Martin, MS2 Division, Syracuse, N.Y., is being awarded an $8,817,539 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-07-C-5201) to exercise Fiscal Year 2010 options for upgrade kits for the Navy's AN/SQQ-89A(V)15 Undersea Warfare System. The AN/SQQ-89A(V)15 is a surface ship combat system with the capabilities to search, detect, classify, localize and track undersea contacts; and to engage and evade submarines, mine-like small objects, and torpedo threats. Work will be performed in Lemont Furnace, Pa., (50 precent); Syracuse, N.Y., (25 percent); and Eagan, Minn., (25 percent) and is expected to be completed by September 2011. 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.

DEFENSE INFORMATION SYSTEMS AGENCY

Intelsat General Corp., 6550 Rock Spring Drive, Suite 450, Bethesda, MD 20817-1112, was awarded a contract for the guaranteed minimum of $10 million, firm-fixed-price, Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity contract for the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command's Commercial Broadband Satellite Program on Jan. 25, 2010. The contract, with a not-to-exceed ceiling of $542.7 million, provides worldwide commercial telecommunications services to include: C, Ku, and X-band satellite resources, land earth stations, terrestrial backhauls, and bandwidth management services. The period of performance is Jan. 26, 2010 through Jan. 25, 2015 (a one-year base with four one-year options). Performance will be at various locations around the world. The solicitation was issued as a full and open competitive action. Solicitation was posted to FEDBIZOPPS. Five offers were received. The Defense Information Technology Contracting Organization, Scott AFB Ill., is the contracting activity. Contracting point of contact is Karen E. Kincaid at 618-229-9451 (HC1013-10-D-2000).

U.S., U.K. Share History, Values in Afghanistan

By Linda D. Kozaryn
American Forces Press Service

Jan. 26, 2010 - "The United States has no closer ally than the United Kingdom," Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III said here yesterday. The two nations have a special relationship based on history, shared values and a shared future, he said during a speech before the House of Commons All-Party Parliamentary Group on Transatlantic and International Security.

"Nowhere is our special relationship more apparent than in Afghanistan," he pointed out. "No one country has stood closer with us on the front lines in our fight against violent extremism -- and no country has paid so high a price in this crucial mission."

As of November, 9,000 of the United Kingdom's 150,240 soldiers were participating in NATO operations in Afghanistan. According to BBC News, 251 British military personnel have been killed during operations there, including the latest, Lance Cpl. Daniel Cooper, who was killed Jan. 24 in an explosion south of Sangin district center in Helmand province. Of those killed, 31 have died from accidents, illness or non-combat injuries, or have yet to be assigned a cause of death.

Lynn expressed the American people's deep gratitude for their service and sacrifice. "We rely greatly on the expertise and resources that you bring to the fight," he told the members of the Parliamentary group.

The U.S. deputy defense secretary arrived here the night of Jan. 24, primed to address mutual security concerns and encourage defense cooperation during his public events and one-on-one meetings with government officials. Following a meeting at the U.S. Embassy with Ambassador Louis Susman, Lynn spoke during an off-the-record session at the European Security and Defense Conference.

About 250 European diplomats, military and government officials and think-tank researchers are attending the two-day conference at Chatham House, home of the Royal Institute of International Affairs.

Next on his docket was his visit to Parliament, where he was escorted on a brief tour of the historic building by Gisela Stuart, member of Parliament for Birmingham Edgbaston and chairwoman of the All Parliamentary Group. Following lunch in the House of Commons, Lynn addressed the need for defense cooperation to develop new capabilities to deal with unconventional threats. He also spoke of the continuing military partnership between the two nations.

"In Haiti, your military and rescue services are serving alongside ours to help make a desperate situation a little less desperate each day," he said. "Off the Horn of Africa, your Navy sails with ours to sweep the sea clear of pirates."

Turning to Afghanistan, Lynn said, British leadership has helped to solidify European resolve as the war there enters a pivotal phase.

"Your public, like ours, has grown weary of conflict," he said. "Your treasury, like ours, is under strain. And yet when President Obama asked for others to join in our renewed push for security, it was your country who first answered the call. In fact, you increased your troop presence even before the new strategy was announced."

Lynn noted that the London Conference on Afghanistan is also being held here this week, co-hosted by the British and Afghan governments. Nearly 70 delegations are attending to focus on the civilian side of the mission. Lynn said he hopes the conference will link international support with Afghan President Hamid Karzai's anti-corruption, governance and security initiatives.

The deputy defense secretary also highlighted the Afghan government's plan to announce a new program of reconciliation underwritten by the U.K.-Japan International Reintegration Fund. The program's goal is to provide "an assured and lasting means to demobilize Taliban fighters who are willing to switch sides," Lynn said.

"The London Conference is also an important opportunity for countries to fulfill their pledges of support, and for still more countries to step forward with pledges of troops," he added. A shortage of trainers to help ready Afghan security forces, he said, "is an area where we can and should do more."

Measurable progress should take place over the next 18 to 24 months, Lynn said, but he acknowledged that it's too early to judge whether momentum on the ground has shifted.

"But we are confident that the new strategy will help us reach our goal of beginning the transition to Afghan leadership and control next year," he said. "We are not in an easy fight. And 2011 is not the end. It will be the beginning of a transition to Afghan control. But a stable and secure Afghanistan, free from terrorist threat, is a goal worth fighting for -- for America, for Europe, for our partners and for Afghanistan."

Wisconsin Guard family readiness group leader to be First Lady's guest at State of Union

January 26, 2010 - Janell Kellett has found that moving forward and giving back can bring satisfaction and purpose - and a special invitation to the nation's capitol. Kellett learned last week that she had been selected to attend the State of the Union address Wednesday (Jan. 27) as the guest of First Lady Michelle Obama. Kellett will be among 23 guests, civilian and military, to sit with the First Lady as well as Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice- President Joe Biden.

"It's totally awesome," Kellett said. "If you would have told me four months ago, or even four weeks ago, that this was a possibility, I wouldn't have believed it."

Kellett's husband, Maj. Michael Hanson, recently returned from Iraq following a year-long deployment with the 32nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team. While that 3,200-Soldier unit was training, mobilizing and deploying, Kellett served as the lead volunteer for the brigade's Family Readiness Group, where she coordinated the efforts of approximately 27 subordinate-unit Family Readiness Group volunteers. They launched a community service campaign called "Moving Forward, Giving Back" to bring together families of Soldiers who have deployed in the past with families experiencing their first deployment, as well as to provide a focus outside of deployment concerns.

The Wisconsin National Guard learned late last year that the 32nd Brigade's Family Readiness Group was named the best in the Army National Guard for 2009, and will be one of seven reserve component family readiness groups to receive a Department of Defense award next month.

Kellett contends that her volunteer work, both with the Family Readiness Group as well as other organizations, likely played a major role in receiving the invitation. For example, a food drive the 32nd Brigade Family Readiness Group conducted at Volk Field as Red Arrow Soldiers were returning from Iraq netted more than 2,000 pounds of food for the Mauston Food Pantry.

"Our leadership here in Wisconsin, as well as our leadership in Washington, support volunteerism and clearly support these efforts," she said. "It's a lot of hard work, but a lot of rewarding work. I truly believe our volunteers are serving the National Guard, definitely making an important contribution."

Brig. Gen. Don Dunbar, adjutant general of Wisconsin, agreed.

"We are very proud of Janell and grateful for her tireless efforts on behalf of the 32nd IBCT," Dunbar said. "She has a heart of gold and is the perfect choice to represent Family Readiness Group volunteers across the military.

"I am also very appreciative of the honor that the First Lady is bestowing to Janell and all volunteers who support our military family," he continued. "Clearly, our First Lady understands the importance of family support to our nation's warriors."

Kellett was nominated by Col. Steven Bensend, commander of the 32nd Brigade, as well as by Jan Van Kirk, lead volunteer for the 157th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, and by Lt. Col. Tammy Gross, director of the Wisconsin National Guard's Service Member Support Division.

She said her husband, who will watch the speech from the theater room of the White House while she is at the Capitol Building, jokes that he is the "and guest" part of the invitation. She disagreed.

"If it wasn't for him, I never would have been asked," Kellett, the only National Guard spouse to be invited, said. She described the invitation as a great honor, and said she struggled to justify why she was selected over other deserving candidates.

"At first I was excited, and then I was panicked, and then I was wondering why someone else wasn't picked," she explained. "Then I accepted that I was picked, and then I was excited again."

TRICARE Increases Behavioral Health Care Options

By Gabrielle Kirk
Health.mil

January 26, 2010 - TRICARE has made Web-based behavioral health counseling available to service members, spouses and other beneficiaries who have a computer and a Webcam, a TRICARE representative said at the Jan. 25 at the 2010 Military Health System Conference. The counseling service is called the TRICARE Assistance Program, or TRIAP, and allows beneficiaries to speak privately with a licensed counselor over the Internet at any time.

“The use of TRIAP is unlimited so beneficiaries can access it as many times as they like to,” said Rear Adm. Elizabeth Niemyer, director of TRICARE Regional Office West. Niemyer spoke in a conference session to inform on TRICARE’s recently expanded behavioral health care services that further support service members and their families.

TRIAP is more like a civilian employee assistance program, Niemyer said. If TRIAP counseling suggests that more specialized care is required, the beneficiary will be referred to a behavioral health provider. Niemyer said that most users have sought counseling for relationship issues and stress.

Niemyer stressed the importance of reaching out to and increasing the number of mental health providers in the TRICARE network. More than three million troops have been deployed in the more than eight years the U.S. has been at war, and more than 800,000 service members having been deployed more than once. The constant stress on troops and families has made behavioral health care an issue of paramount concern to military health officials. Niemyer said Tri West has added 12,000 mental health providers since 2005.

To help meet the growing demand for behavioral health care, TRICARE launched its Telemental Health Program in August 2009 (at the same time as TRIAP). It provides behavioral health care, including psychotherapy and medication management, through medically supervised, secure video conferencing at TRICARE facilities with offsite TRICARE network behavioral health care providers.

Additional support has been provided to beneficiaries who are more isolated from the military community, including National Guard and Reserve troops. The Guard and Reserve portal was created to provide targeted information to those groups of service members.

Niemyer also discussed the impact of integrating and coordination behavioral health into primary care, wounded warrior care and individual units on eliminating the stigma of seeking behavioral health care. Describing a pilot project that embedded behavioral health providers in National Guard units in Montana, Minnesota, and California, Niemyer said, “One unit commander in California was quoted as saying ‘The embedded provider program has saved marriages and our soldiers’ mental health’.”

Next for TRICARE West Region, says Niemyer, is a behavioral health initiative to examine issues experienced by female active duty service members returning from deployment and wives of deployed service members, due to rising rates of depression, suicide, and divorce in that group.

National Guard Responds to Winter Storms

By Army Staff Sgt. Jim Greenhill
Special to American Forces Press Service

Jan. 26, 2010 - The National Guard responded to severe weather in the Dakotas and Arizona yesterday. In South Dakota – where National Guard officials said about 6,000 people were without power during strong winter storms with high wind, snow and freezing rain – Guard members set up generators at the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation, worked to reopen roads and prepared for search-and-rescue operations.

South Dakota's response included bulldozers and recovery vehicles staged in three cities, and personnel called up for snow removal and to tackle ice accumulations on roads and power lines.

In North Dakota, civilian media reported about 2,500 people without power. Travel was said to be virtually impossible in parts of the state, and the state's homeland security division issued a "no travel advisory."

The North Dakota National Guard assisted with aerial surveillance of power lines. Storms downed lines and poles, and the state remained under a blizzard warning. The Guard also prepared for search-and-rescue operations, snow removal, temporary shelter requirements and other missions such as providing high-wheel vehicles for transportation or helping to restore power, said Army Staff Sgt. Billie Jo Lorius, deputy public affairs officer.

The winter storm first hit the region Jan. 19.

In Arizona – with northern counties experiencing similar storms to the Dakotas and forecasters predicting more to come midweek – Guard members transported water and prepositioned trucks.

The Nevada National Guard sent CH-47 Chinook and UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters to assist flooded communities around Flagstaff and northern Arizona.

The Navajo Indian Reservation was one area where Arizona officials anticipated aerial operations. Civilian media were reporting that the Navajo Nation president asked for assistance after snow trapped reservation residents in their homes. The National Guard assisted with the delivery of medicine, food, fuel and hay to isolated Navajo and Hopi lands.

Arizona Guard leaders said the operation might continue for up to two weeks.

While Guard members respond to the president for national emergencies and overseas operations, state governors call their Guard members up as needed.

(Army Staff Sgt. Jim Greenhill serves at the National Guard Bureau. Army Sgt. Monette Wesolek of the Arizona National Guard and Army Maj. Brendan Murphy of the South Dakota National Guard contributed to this report.)

U.S., U.K. Face Common Security Issues

By Linda D. Kozaryn
American Forces Press Service

Jan. 25, 2010 - Three international issues that showcase common values held by the United States and the United Kingdom also highlight the benefits of a common approach to dealing with them, U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III told members of Parliament here today. In remarks before the House of Commons All-Party Parliamentary Group on Transatlantic and International Security, Lynn said both nations are addressing nuclear proliferation, the environment's effect on security and NATO reform.

Lynn recalled that President Barack Obama shared his vision of a world free from nuclear threat during a speech in Europe, and that he also gave a speech in Prague that motivated Defense Department officials to conduct a nuclear posture review.

Due to be released early next month along with the Quadrennial Defense Review, the nuclear posture review aims "to balance the president's call for eventual disarmament with his commitment to protect our country, and our allies, as long as a nuclear threat remains," Lynn said.

U.S. defense officials are in the final stages of concluding negotiations on a new strategic arms reduction treaty with Russia, Lynn said.

"We have reached the endgame, and anticipate a new START treaty that will reduce both our arsenals," he said. "We are also working to ratify and bring into force the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.

"We are taking unprecedented steps toward a world free from the nuclear threat, while at the same time, working with the United Kingdom and NATO to responsibly ensure our own security and that of our allies," he added.

The Defense Department also is focusing high-level attention on how natural resources contribute to conflict, Lynn said. This includes resource scarcity -- especially access to hydrocarbon fuels -- as well as population growth and climate change.

"We know that climate change will exacerbate food and water shortages, increase the spread of disease, and may contribute to migration both within and across borders," he noted. "Increased poverty, environmental degradation, even social unrest and the possible weakening of governments are potential consequences."

U.S. defense officials are making installations more energy-efficient, he said. Over the past three years, the department has tripled its investment in energy technology, yielding reduced energy consumption at fixed installations by 11 percent. Nearly 5 percent of the electricity used at bases now comes from renewable sources.

Lynn went on to say U.S. officials want NATO, the 28-member North Atlantic Treaty Organization, to continue developing new missions and capabilities. The alliance is in the process of drafting a new strategic concept this year.

U.S and British defense officials are "voicing support for an ambitious reform agenda," he said, that includes how to shape NATO's mission, capabilities and partnerships for the coming decade.

NATO's procedures and processes are outdated, Lynn said, and the alliance faces severe resource constraints. He called on heads of state slated to gather at the Lisbon summit in November to review NATO command structures, force structures and how the alliance reaches decisions and manages its budget.

"NATO also needs the ability to address nontraditional threats, both on its own and in cooperation with institutions like the European Union," he said. "Achieving public support for new missions will require describing how today's threats differ from those in the past, and how NATO should transform its methods of operating to meet them."

Mullen Urges Closer Ties With Central, South Asia

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

Jan. 25, 2010 - The U.S. commitment to Central and South Asia is long-term and enduring, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Navy Adm. Mike Mullen told chiefs of defense from the region today. Mullen underscored at the Central and South Asia Chiefs of Defense Conference the message that Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates delivered last week during his visit to India and Pakistan.

"We are in this for the long haul," the chairman said, emphasizing that the United States has "no designs on the region" or interest in occupying another country.

The chairman, like Gates, recognized terrorism as the common threat to the United States and the Central-South Asia region, and emphasized the importance of working together to confront it.

Terrorist groups have become much more collaborative in their operations, he said, recognizing what Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton increasingly refer to as a "terror syndicate" threatening the region.

"That requires us to be much more harmonious," Mullen told the defense ministers, acknowledging that the United States hasn't always focused on the region as much as it now recognizes it must.

He noted major strides in that direction since last year's conference, the second U.S. Central Command has sponsored in as many years. There's a renewed level of energy and commitment toward Afghanistan, Pakistan and the broader region by the United States, by NATO, by regional neighbors and within Afghanistan itself, he said.

Mullen expressed confidence in President Barack Obama's new U.S. strategy for Afghanistan, and in the leadership being demonstrated by Army Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the top commander on the ground, in carrying it out.

Particularly important to its success, Mullen said, is that it's "population-centric" and emphasizes preventing civilian casualties as well as showing respect for Afghans' property during military operations. "This is a hugely positive change, from my perspective," he said. "We believe the population is the center of gravity."

The new strategy also recognizes that long-term success in Afghanistan goes beyond security, to include development, economic opportunity and good governance. "We have all said this isn't just about the military," Mullen told the defense chiefs.

Additional U.S. forces are moving into Afghanistan to support the strategy, with the rest of the 30,000 troops to follow as quickly as possible, he said. They'll serve as security forces, but also as trainers needed to boost capability within Afghanistan's national security forces, he told the chiefs.

Mullen warned that violence is likely to increase before these forces, working alongside Afghan security forces, are able to help clear and hold ground now claimed by extremists. "We think this year is going to be a difficult year as we add these forces," he said.

Mullen welcomed the conference as an opportunity for regional countries' military members to build relationships, exchange views and foster regional-military-to-military cooperation so they can better face up to current and long-term challenges together. He expressed hope that these military-to-military relationships can expand throughout the ranks, particularly for tomorrow's military leaders at the mid-grade officer and noncommissioned officer levels.

"Having that foundation will be very powerful for the future," he said.

MILITARY CONTRACTS January 25, 2010

AIR FORCE

Aerospace Testing Alliance, Tullahoma, Tenn., was awarded an $86,697,018 contract which will provide for the operation, maintenance, information management and support of the Arnold Engineering Development Center for fiscal year 2010. At this time, no money has been obligated. AEDC/PK, Arnold Air Force Base, Tenn., is the contracting activity (F40600-03-C-0001,P00192).

NAVY

Patriot Contract Services, LLC, Walnut Creek, Calif., is being awarded a $13,665,935 firm-fixed-price contract for the operation and maintenance of four government-owned large, medium-speed roll-on/roll-off ships, also called LMSRs. Two of the ships are Gordon-class, $6,823,958 for one year, and two of the ships are Shughart-class, $6,841,977 for one year. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $111,130,732; $55,519,108 for the Gordon-class and $55,611,624 for the Shughart-class. The contract includes four one-year option periods and five six-month award term periods. Work will be performed at East Coast, Gulf Coast and West Coast ports where the ships will be primarily maintained in reduced operating status. The contract is expected to be completed in February 2011. If all option periods are exercised, the contract is expected to be completed by September 2017. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a small business set-aside, with more than 50 companies solicited and six offers received. The solicitation was posted to the Military Sealift Command, Navy Electronic Commerce Online and Federal Business Opportunities Web sites. The Military Sealift Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00033-10-C-5301).

Raytheon Co., Integrated Defense Systems, Tewksbury, Mass., is being awarded an $11,200,000 not-to-exceed modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-05-C-5346) for changes to software development efforts due to revised missile interface control documents and related power density implementation for the DDG 1000 Zumwalt-class destroyer program. The purpose of this modification is to incorporate the combat system and dual band radar related software changes associated with the MICDs Rev B+ and related power density implementation changes to the current requirements of total ship computing environment software development. Work will be performed in Tewksbury, Mass., and is expected to be completed by March 2012. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

Violence Against Police Officers

Editor's Note:  The information applicable to military police officers and the guest is a former US Army military police officer.


On February 19, 2010, Conversations with American Heroes at the Watering Hole will feature a conversation with Chief of Police Joel F. Shults on Violence Against Police Officers.

Program Date: February 19, 2010
Program Time: 2100 Hours Pacific
Topic: Violence Against Police Officers
Listen Live: www.americanheroesradio.com/violence_against_police_officers.html
About the V.A.L.O.R. Project
The Violence Against Law Officer Research (V.A.L.O.R.) Project hypothesizes that “Police officers who are victims of crime as defined by statute are routinely denied the rights afforded to other crime victims. As a result of this wholesale denial of their rights police officers suffer a handicap in being empathetic to civilian crime victims; have pathologies like other repeat crime victims; and are at risk of acting out in ways that constitute misconduct or in self destructive ways including substance abuse and suicide.”

About the Guest
Chief Joel F. Shults, Ph.D., currently serves as a college police administrator for the Adams State College Police Department (Colorado). Chief Joel Shults earned his doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Shults earned a Master's in Public Services Administration from the University of Central Missouri after completing an Associate and Bachelor's degrees in Criminal Justice Administration at UCM. Chief Joel F. Shults began his law enforcement as a US Army Military Police Officer. He served in the Missouri Army National Guard as a Military Police Investigator with MP and CID units.

Chief Joel Shults was sworn in to his first civilian police position with the Warrensburg Police Department. After a brief period of field training and his first six months as a patrol officer, Shuts attended the Basic Law Enforcement Academy at the Missouri State Highway Patrol Training Academy. While with WPD, Shults served as shift supervisor, investigator, community relations officer, field training officer, and coordinator of reserve officers and interns.

Chief Joel Shults ran for the elective office of sheriff and after a close race was appointed Chief of Police for the combined police services of two small Missouri towns. After serving there, Shults retired briefly from law enforcement to work in the insurance and real estate appraisal business for a short time before accepting a position in Kansas City as head of the Tarkio College law enforcement program where he served as supervisor of admissions, lead instructor, and supervisor over adjunct faculty. Chief Joel F. Shults’ most recent appointment was as Director of Public Safety at Adams State College.

About the Host
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster was a sworn member of the Los Angeles Police Department for 24 years. He retired in 2003 at the rank of Lieutenant. He holds a bachelor’s from the Union Institute and University in Criminal Justice Management and a Master’s Degree in Public Financial Management from California State University, Fullerton; and, has completed his doctoral course work. Raymond E. Foster has been a part-time lecturer at California State University, Fullerton and Fresno; and is currently a Criminal Justice Department chair, faculty advisor and lecturer with the Union Institute and University. He has experience teaching upper division courses in Law Enforcement, public policy, Public Safety Technology and leadership. Raymond is an experienced author who has published numerous articles in a wide range of venues including magazines such as Government Technology, Mobile Government, Airborne Law Enforcement Magazine, and Police One. He has appeared on the History Channel and radio programs in the United States and Europe as subject matter expert in technological applications in Law Enforcement.

Listen, call, join us at the Watering Hole:
www.americanheroesradio.com/violence_against_police_officers.html
Program Contact Information
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster, LAPD (ret.), MPA
editor@police-writers.com
909.599.7530

Chairman Cites Need for Rapid Health Care Solutions

By Elaine Wilson
American Forces Press Service

Jan. 25, 2010 - Defense Department officials must work quickly to surmount a stigma that's preventing servicemembers from seeking help for the signature wounds of today's wars, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today. "We are clearly just beginning to deal with the long-term effects of the signature injuries of these wars -- not just the visible, but the invisible," Navy Adm. Mike Mullen told an audience of more than 3,000 military and civilian medical professionals at the 2010 Military Health System Conference at the National Harbor here.

Mullen stressed the importance of finding rapid health care solutions for servicemembers and their families and of ensuring they understand that seeking help is a sign of strength. He acknowledged that many people continue to suffer in silence.

"We are held back by a stigma that we cannot climb over," he said. "Not just now, but five years from now, we still need to be working our way through the impact of these fights and what that means. We can't expect it to just move away from us."

Calling it an "exponential problem that takes exponential resources," Mullen stressed the importance of finding quick solutions for servicemembers. "We need to make sure they have great lives," he said.

Toward that end, he said, the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs are cooperating closely.

"It's incredibly important to look at how we're going to work with the VA, not just pass our patients over to the VA," he said. "That actually reaches from the military to the VA and through communities throughout the land. We cannot forget these individuals who sacrificed so much and their families.

"We owe them more than that," he continued. "We need to connect to them and make sure their care is representative of their sacrifice."

Part of that care, he said, is speeding up processes such as the physical evaluation board that determines a servicemember's fitness for continued military duty.

"We are huge, bureaucratic and slow," the admiral said. "The one thing [servicemembers] want back is their life; the one thing they want back is time. We've got to move them through quicker."

A pilot program aimed at resolving that problem has been under way for more than two years, he noted. "We need that fixed, and we need to get everyone in it and move them through that process," he said.

Mullen praised the military's cutting-edge treatment and support facilities – including the Intrepid centers in San Antonio and Washington, D.C., Fisher Houses, and Brooke Army Medical Center's burn center – that are offering servicemembers exceptional support. He also noted the importance of support from families.

"We need to be a military that is ready; a huge part of that ... is the health of our force and the health of our families," he said. "They are such an integral part of our readiness and our success, in ways I don't think we totally understand yet. It's because of their support, in so many ways, that we've been able to succeed."

Mullen said he often talks to military spouses, and while he begins by touching on broad topics, the discussion always returns to the same issue: health care.

"These are families that have been through an extraordinary amount," he said. "It is that much more important when they have been through so many deployments. It will continue to be that way."

The chairman said leaders need to look to the future to ensure health care remains a constant presence. "We need to think of the families as part of our readiness equation, and health care is a big part of that," he said.

Along with caring for servicemembers and their families, Mullen said, leaders also need to be mindful of caring for caregivers. He recalled events in 2004 when doctors and nurses were exhausted in the combat theater and "didn't know when to stop."

"People who have seen things they never thought they would see -- and certainly that has continued throughout these wars -- that needs to be something we keep in mind as well," he said.

That care remains vital, he noted, particularly in light of recent events in Haiti, which was struck recently by a devastating magnitude 7 earthquake.

In 2005, Mullen said, the hospital ship USNS Mercy provided support in the wake of a tsunami that caused extensive death, damage and suffering in Asia. That effort set health care officials up for success today, he said, citing the USNS Comfort's rapid response to the current crisis. The hospital ship set sail for Haiti with only a few days notice.

"To be able to ... get down to theater that rapidly, was truly exceptional," Mullen said.

Mullen said he is grateful for the hard-working medical professionals who care for servicemembers and their families.

"If you can go back six years, six-plus years now, and think about what's happened, it has truly been extraordinary," he said. "And you have led the way in that, and you've led it not just here in hospitals in America, but you've led it on the battlefield."

Military medicine has evolved rapidly, Mullen said, which underscores the importance of looking to the future to ensure the military as a whole is set on the right path. He said he's already looking ahead to determine what shape the military will take post-war.

"We're certainly looking to the increase of troops this year in Afghanistan, but Afghanistan will end," he said. "What happens when that adrenaline is back down -- and we need it to be? We need to get it to a rotation that gives us more time at home than we have right now. But what does it mean when we get there?"

Cost is a major factor in that future, the chairman said, noting that health care costs have risen "astronomically."

"Leaders have to make tough calls on what we're going to do and what we're not going to do," he acknowledged. Leaders must balance investing in people, operations and in systems needed for the future, Mullen said.

"Those are hard, hard decisions, and I understand that," he said. "But they must be made. They must be made sooner rather than later."

Official Notes Health System's 'Amazing' Impact

By Elaine Wilson
American Forces Press Service

Jan. 25, 2010 - The Defense Department's Military Health System has never played a clearer or more important role in the security of the nation, the assistant secretary of defense for health affairs said today. "I'm very, very proud of the great strides we all have made to date," Ellen P. Embrey told an audience of more than 3,000 military and civilian medical professionals at the 2010 Military Health System Conference at the National Harbor here.

Embrey cited the medical achievements that have resulted in the highest wartime survival rate in history. Wounded servicemembers receive state-of-the-art treatment and equipment within the first hour of injury, she told the group, with many transported back to the United States within 48 hours.

"That is what has made all the difference," she said, noting the importance of the physicians and other team members at their side.

Of the servicemembers wounded in action, 54 percent return to duty within 72 hours, which Embrey termed "pretty amazing." The military also is experiencing the lowest disease and nonbattle injury rates ever reported, she said, citing rates of 5 percent for Afghanistan and 4 percent for Iraq.

"And we have a battlefield survival rate that now stands at 97 percent, the highest of all wars in U.S. history," she said, "quite an accomplishment considering the lethality of our enemies."

Embrey noted a few of the medical advances that have made a difference both on the battlefield and off. Since 2001, she said, remarkable progress has been made in prosthetics, implants, hand and limb transplantation, skin therapies and other areas of regenerative medicine.

Further advancements have been made in bandages to stop bleeding, drugs to treat or prevent chronic pain, robotic support for telesurgeries, cranial reconstructions, and the detection and treatment of traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries, she added.

"In research and development, military medicine is yielding transformational advances that will not only improve the lives and health of our servicemembers, but ultimately, all Americans," she said.

This research includes many diseases unrelated to warfare, including lung, breast, prostate and ovarian cancers, and autism spectrum disorder.

Embrey credited medical professionals serving around the world for the groundbreaking achievements in military medicine and patient care.

"These are the kinds of results that you and your colleagues at home are delivering today and every day," she told the conference attendees. "Keeping our forces fit and ready for the fight, caring for them on the field and off, helping to develop health care capabilities for other nations and helping provide humanitarian disaster relief and stabilization operations across the globe, and of late, here in our part of the world, down in Haiti."

Army Guard Prepares for Role in Haiti

By Army Sgt. 1st Class Jon Soucy
Special to American Forces Press Service

Jan. 25, 2010 - As humanitarian relief operations continue in Haiti, the Army National Guard stands ready to provide personnel and equipment to support the mission, senior Army Guard officials said today. "We stand by ready, willing and able to assist as soon as they sort out what the requirements are and what they want the Army Guard to fill," said Army Col. David Aycock, deputy chief of staff of operations for the Army Guard.

Currently, a Puerto Rico Army National Guard unit is the only Army Guard unit participating in relief operations in Haiti.

"The Puerto Rico Army National Guard, with three UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters and 13 personnel, has been committed to the Haiti relief effort," Aycock said. But additional Army Guard assets may be sent to Haiti in the coming days, he added.

"We were asked yesterday to look at our ability to provide a command and communications company out of a general support aviation battalion," he said. "So within the next 24 hours or so, we may have a validated requirement for an aviation company to go down there."

Sending in the aviation company would provide additional Black Hawk helicopters as well as LUH-72A Lakota helicopters, Aycock said.

The Puerto Rico unit's missions in Haiti involve airlifting water and rescue equipment, movement of personnel and casualty evacuation.

The Haitian government announced over the weekend that the search-and-rescue phase of the operation had closed. Aycock said that the next few weeks may see a transition of the U.S. military effort there to reserve-component units.

"The Army has asked us to look at some alternative solutions to provide some options for either additional forces that may be required or to replace some of the forces that are already on the ground sometime in the near future," he said. "My personal perspective is this thing is going to transition more and more to the reserve component-side of the house in the weeks ahead."

However, he emphasized, specific units or types of units that would be activated have yet to be determined.

"We've been asked to staff some potential options," he said. "We don't have a hard requirement yet, but we're looking at some organizational constructs of what we think would be the right force structure to go down there within the parameters we've been given."

Those parameters may change based on the needs on the ground, he said, and any mission plan would have to be validated by U.S. Southern Command, which has the overall command responsibility for U.S. forces in Haiti.

"We still have to go through the process of getting a validation from both Forces Command and Southern Command that the force mix we're working meets the requirement on the ground," Aycock said. "And, we would need to put specific Army Guard solutions against that list, brief the leadership here and then engage with those states that own those units."

Several states have volunteered their National Guard forces for missions in Haiti.

"I think probably every state out there has come up on the net at some point and offered their assistance and engaged with us about their ability to provide forces and their willingness to provide forces should they get an opportunity to do that," Aycock said.

For now, Puerto Rico remains as the sole Army Guard asset in Haiti as well as being among the first U.S. military units to respond to the earthquake.

"Obviously, if it were up to us, we would put other units down there, but that's not the way the process works," said Aycock, who described the process as more of a "pulling" one than one that the Army Guard pushes units into.

"Although we do have to wait on a pull system, we have significant capability in the Army Guard to apply against this if asked to apply it," he said. "And you can bet your boots we'll provide it."

(Army Sgt. 1st Class Jon Soucy serves at the National Guard Bureau.)

VA to Begin Recovery of GI Bill Advance Payments

American Forces Press Service

Jan. 25, 2010 - The Veterans Affairs Department is beginning the process of recovering advance payments made available during the fall 2009 semester to veterans and servicemembers who applied for education benefits. "The advance payments were a huge success and helped thousands of student veterans during the first days of the historic Post-9/11 GI Bill focus on studies and not their finances," said Keith Wilson, VA's director of education

services. "Now, we can get to the business of closing the books on advance payments and focus on supporting veterans for the spring semester."

VA officials will begin sending out notification letters this week explaining the repayment process.

In October, VA instituted an advance-payment process for all eligible students who were enrolled in an institution of higher learning for the fall 2009 term to ensure that all veterans and eligible students were able to focus on their academic studies and not be burdened with financial concerns, officials said. As part of that process, a Web portal was established to allow electronic submission for advance payment, and advance payments also were made at VA offices around the country.

At that time, student veterans were told that advance payments would be deducted from future benefit payments.

In collaboration with the Defense Department, VA also will notify active-duty servicemembers who may have mistakenly applied for the advance payment of their options for returning uncashed checks or reimbursing deposited funds.

VA discontinued advance payments via the Web portal after the fall 2009 semester. Officials now are processing about 7,000 education benefits daily, up from an average of 2,000 at the beginning of the fall 2009 term, officials said.

As of Jan. 22, the department had processed more than 105,000 of the roughly 132,000 spring enrollments received. Since the inception of the new program last year, VA has paid out more than $1.3 billion in education benefits and opened the door to higher education to more than 183,000 veteran students.

(From a Department of Veterans Affairs news release.)

Navy Assists Ethiopian Airlines Search, Rescue Effort

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

Jan. 25, 2010 - The U.S. military has dispatched a guided missile destroyer and a patrol aircraft to assist the search-and-rescue effort after an Ethiopian Airlines plane crashed into the Mediterranean Sea earlier today. USS Ramage, a 505-foot-long Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, has been dispatched to the area, Marine Corps Col. David Lapan, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters.

Ramage and its crew of more than 200 sailors left Norfolk, Va., Jan. 5 for a regularly scheduled six-month deployment conducting maritime security operations in the Mediterranean. The ship made a port call last week in Naples, Italy, Navy Lt. Patrick Foughty of the U.S. 6th Fleet reported.

A P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft based in Italy also has joined the search-and-rescue effort, Foughty said. The aircraft is assigned to Task Force 67 in Sigonella, Sicily, and was conducting operations in the area when the crash occurred, he said.

Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET409 crashed shortly after takeoff from Beirut. The Boeing 737-800 was headed to Addis Ababa, and reportedly had 90 people aboard.

Lebanese officials reportedly are discounting terrorism as the cause, attributing the crash to a severe thunderstorm.

Deputy Secretary Visits U.K. to Promote Defense Cooperation

By Linda D. Kozaryn

American Forces Press Service

Jan. 24, 2010 - U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III is slated to address attendees at the European Security and Defense Conference and members of Great Britain's Parliament at the House of Commons here tomorrow. Lynn's two-day visit will serve as a "renewal of the special relationship we have with the British," he told American Forces Press Service during a Sunday morning flight to London .

"The goal is to bring attention to and reinforce the various aspects of defense cooperation between the U.S. (and) U.K," he said. "We want to continue to collaborate with the British on all aspects of military and defense industrial activity."

Defense officials traveling with Lynn said the deputy secretary will speak about the importance of strengthening defense cooperation and enhancing European defense institutions at the conference. About 250 European diplomats, military and government officials, and think-tank researchers will attend.

Lynn is then scheduled to address the United Kingdom's All-Party Parliamentary Group on Transatlantic and International Security. The group includes more than 70 members of Parliament, and invited guests from think tanks, the media and the academic community.

Defense officials said Lynn will cover a broad range of subjects, including threats from extremism, the need for new defense capabilities and a common approach on NATO reform, nuclear proliferation and energy.

The deputy secretary's visit comes on the eve of the London Conference aimed at improving coordination among some 68 partner nations involved in the civilian side of the Afghanistan mission. The international community is coming together here Jan. 28 to fully align military and civilian resources behind an Afghan-led political strategy.

Lynn said there are three key lines of defense cooperation U.S. and U.K. defense officials can reinforce. First is the Bilateral Defense Acquisition Committee. "It's a central forum where we elucidate the various cooperation issues we have," he said. "We ask the British to address issues such as the collaboration of the Joint Strike Fighter and other key acquisition programs."

Second, he said, is the U.S.-U.K. Defense Trade Cooperation Treaty that will permit the U.S. to trade most defense articles with Great Britain without an export license or other written authorization.

"We do indeed intend to press the Senate for ratification of the defense cooperation treaty," Lynn said. "We do that as basically a down payment on export control reform that the president and Secretary (Robert M.) Gates have been championing."

The third line of defense cooperation is cyber security. Speaking last week at the Fletcher Conference on National Security in Washington, D.C., Lynn said the threat of cyber warfare is a national security threat that has captured his attention.

"We're going to have some meetings with the British leaders of the British cyber security effort," Lynn said today. "We want to make sure that critical new threat area that we're building a foundation of cooperation with our oldest ally as we tackle the critical challenges that cyber security poses."

This is particularly important now, he noted, because the two nations are relatively early in the development of the tools and the structures they have to address the cyber security threat, he added.

Lynn is the 30th deputy secretary of defense. He has had extensive public service at various levels within the U.S. government including eight years service as the under secretary of defense (comptroller) and as the director of Program Analysis and Evaluation in the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

He also served eight years at the executive level in the private sector, including service as the vice president of Government Operations and Strategy at Raytheon Company. He spent six years on Capitol Hill as the late Sen. Ted Kennedy's liaison to the Armed Services Committee.

USS Carl Vinson Sailors Support Haiti Mission

By Christen N. McCluney
Special to American Forces Press Service

Jan. 24, 2010 - Sailors aboard the USS Carl Vinson are playing a pivotal role in providing medical services and humanitarian support during Operation Unified Response in Haiti, the ship's commander said yesterday. "The people that come on here have broken bones and wounds. You just can't imagine it unless you are here looking at it the number of people injured," U.S. Navy Capt. Bruce H. Lindsey, the ship's commanding officer, told bloggers during a "DoDLive" bloggers roundtable. "As long as there are injured people needing our care, we will stay here as long as it takes."

Before the USNS Comfort hospital ship arrived, the medical team of the USS Carl Vinson conducted initial triage of patients prior to providing life-saving medical and surgical services. USS Carl Vinson also serves an alternative landing site when the Comfort's landing spots are full. Patients with critical needs are brought to the Vinson to provide immediate assistance.

"We want to mitigate the suffering from the Haitian people from this earthquake, so we are spread out trying to help as many people as possible," Lindsey said.

The Carl Vinson also boasts a variety of helicopters that include 19 CH-53s and SH-60s, that can be used for a variety of purposes from transporting cargo and supplies to picking up patients in small remote areas.

Lindsey described how a group in Michigan emailed the Carl Vinson and said they had been contacted by personnel on an island outside of Port-au-Prince that needed help. The Carl Vinson sent an aircraft to the island and found an area for the SH-60 to land. The helicopter transported three casualties from the island because they had the capability to land in such a small area.

"We are probably doing 180 to 240 landings a day off of this ship," he said. "The sailors on the flight deck and in maintenance are doing the hard work, making sure they are getting into the country."

One of the main things the ship transports is medical supplies. Another is water -- the ship has transported more than 30,000 gallons of water. A group of sailors on his ship also created a water tree, where they took piping and created spigots, and use the supply of water from the ship to fill containers with water for those in need in Haiti.

Lindsey said sailors volunteered their time to do build the water tree and fill 5 gallon jugs with water by hand. Because of their volunteer efforts each helicopter that leaves the ship has 32 of these jugs on flight.

Lindsey credits the success of the ship to the crew, including Creole speakers who he says have been "enormously helpful" when airlifting patients.

"Having someone speaking their own language has been critical to our success and has comforted patients," he said.

"My sailors on board, every one of them wants to go ashore to help them. I have to tell them I would love for them to all go there, but I do need a few of them to stay back on the ship to continue the operations here," he said. "It's great to see such an outpouring of volunteerism from today's sailor. America should be very proud of the sailors that they have. They're great human beings."

(Christen N. McCluney works in the Defense Media Activity's emerging media directorate.)

Logistics Task Force Keeps Relief Flowing into Haiti

By Christen N. McCluney
Special to American Forces Press Service

Jan. 24, 2010 - A newly established joint logistics hub at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay in Cuba is helping save lives by making sure that food, water, supplies, equipment and personnel are delivered to bring relief to survivors of the disastrous Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti. "The Navy isn't doing anything it doesn't already know how to do," U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Patricia E. Wolfe, Supply Corps, commander, Task Force 48 told bloggers during a Jan. 23 "DoDLive" bloggers roundtable.

"We are working around the clock, using aircraft and seaborne assets from multiple services and many, many countries to get medical supplies, food, water, relief personnel and critical equipment to where it needs to be to save lives," Wolfe said. "It's a fantastic mission and a very, very critical mission."

The joint task force has over 100 members, consisting of servicemembers from the Navy and Army, providing support to any ships that come through the hub.

The hub also sees anywhere from 15 to 30 flights a day coming in from many different areas. They include commercial, military and foreign military aircraft.

Wolfe said they have a small airport, and are flying some small planes in on a regular basis, but they are using the pier facilities that are available and working cargo over the shoreline as much as possible.

Items that come in ship out right away. "Nothing stays here very long," she said.

One of the biggest challenges they face is the volume of food, water, tents and supplies that need to go support the people of Haiti.

"The sheer volume going through this hub is phenomenal."

They have delivered more than 32,000 gallons of bulk water and more than 440,000 bottles of water to 50 different places in Haiti.

The task force has a number of large and small ships surrounding Haiti that include cargo barges and high-speed ferries. They also use small amphibious ships to transport supplies like water, tents and cots.

"Our ships are really pulling their weight in this effort," Wolfe said.

"Task Force 48 and any of the joint log hubs that the Navy puts forward can support operations anywhere in the world," she said. "The Navy sea base is here to support military, joint and international operations of the future."

(Christen N. McCluney works in the Defense Media Activity's emerging media directorate.)

USS Normandy Serves Dual Role in Haiti Efforts

By Christen N. McCluney
Special to American Forces Press Service

Jan. 24, 2010 - The Norfolk-based guided-missile cruiser USS Normandy is supporting relief efforts in the air, at sea and ashore for victims of the devastating earthquake in Haiti. U.S. Navy Capt. Jeffrey T. Griffin, Normandy's commanding officer, and U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Michael Hansen, officer-in-charge of Helicopter Antisubmarine Squadron Light 46, Detachment 3, spoke to bloggers and blogger journalists during a Jan. 22 "DoDLive" bloggers roundtable.

Normandy arrived off the coast of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Jan. 17 to support Operation Unified Response, the operation to provide humanitarian assistance and disaster relief to the people of Haiti.

The ship received a call the night of the earthquake and was on their way to Mayport, Fla., to pick up the helicopter detachment within 15 hours of the initial call.

Immediately upon arrival to Haiti, the helicopter pilots began using the two embarked SH-60B helicopters for transport of water, food, and patients to medical facilities.

"The mission of the Normandy is twofold," Griffin said. "We are heavily using our embarked helicopters to move patients, transport food and water and to transport people." The ship, which is normally used for air defense, is acting as the only air surveillance radar at sea.

Griffin added that the Normandy is tracking and then reporting to the rest of the ships all of the aircraft operating in the area.

"They're doing what they're trained to do, and they're keeping a very good air picture of all of the aircraft to prevent any type of a midair collision, to sequence the aircraft properly into Port-au-Prince," Griffin said.

In addition to providing air surveillance, the Normandy serves as a refueling platform for any other helicopters operating in the area.

"If they needed to be refueled, if they needed any type of emergency landing pad, we provide that as well," Griffin said. "We're always here, standing by with our crew, with our ship's boats to be able to conduct a search and rescue at sea if called upon."

The SH-60's have flown more than 50 hours since arrival and have delivered more than 600 cases of water, 800 cases of food and have accomplished 17 medical evacuations.

"We have moved over 100 passengers," Hansen said, "those include security forces, military personnel, media and various relief agency workers."

Hansen said their goal is to get every person to the places their skills can be used. He noted that typically an antisubmarine helicopter detachment doesn't operate over land, so they are learning lessons as they go along that will help them in the future for other humanitarian efforts. These lessons include how to maximize the number of people they transport and using methods to ensure the safety of everyone on the helicopter.

There have also been moments that have helped the crew realize how important their mission is, Hansen said. The crew flew to a remote area to rescue an infant with pneumonia and was able to transport the infant and his mother to Port-au-Prince to get care.

"The littlest victims of this earthquake probably break your heart the most," Hansen said. "But it's nice that we were able to provide assistance."

Hansen added that the crew of the Normandy will be "here until the mission is done. And, we're happy to be able to contribute to helping the people of Haiti."

(Christen N. McCluney works in the Defense Media Activity's emerging media directorate.)

Social Media and Law Enforcement

Editor's Note:  While specifically geared toward law enforcement organizations, military organizations will find much of the information valuable and applicable.

On February 18, 2010, Conversations with American Heroes at the Watering Hole will feature a discussion with Lauri Stevens on Social Media and Law Enforcement.

Program Date: February 18, 2010
Program Time: 1700 hours, Pacific
Topic: Social Media and Law Enforcement
Listen Live: http://www.americanheroesradio.com/social_media_law_enforcement.html

About the Guest
Lauri Stevens “is an interactive media professional with over 25 years of media experience. She is the Department Chair of Web Design & Interactive Media at The New England Institute of Art (NEiA) in Boston, a position she's held for over ten years. During her tenure at NEiA she has written several bachelors’ programs, served on NEASC accreditation review committees and visiting teams, and chaired several groups to further the college's mission.

Lauri is passionate about the Internet, the web, social media and helping law enforcement leverage these tools to help them do their jobs, connect with their communities, and promote their departments. Having used the net since the mid-80s, before the web existed, makes her one of the first fraction of a 1% of people in the world on the net.

She holds an MBA in eBusiness from Bentley University, an MS in Mass Communication/Communication Technology from Boston University, and a BA in Political Science from Clemson University.”

About LAwS Communications
LAwS Communications has been providing web design and interactive media advice to law enforcement since 2005. They “offer media expertise at all levels, traditional and interactive. LAwS Communications specialize in offering consultative services in the world of web 2.0 (and beyond) to law enforcement agencies. Web 2.0 and Open Source communication technologies available today allow organizations to efficiently gather and distribute information like never before. Many law enforcement agencies are catching on to and using the new social media technologies. LAwS Communications can help make sense of the tools available, help your agency craft a plan and social media policy as well as provide the training needed to get your organization running. LAwS Communications can help law enforcement organizations not only understand why your organization should take advantage of Web 2.0 technologies, but also how to leverage these vast resources.

The agencies that are effectively using these tools are shrinking their communities, improving communication with citizens and enhancing their reputations through the transparency provided. Other agencies are developing sophisticated methods for investigation, crime solving and prevention. Police departments, in particular, have an opportunity to better educate their communities about who they are and what they do and to therefore increase and improve communication with the public they serve.”

About the Watering Hole
The Watering Hole is police slang for a location cops go off-duty to blow off steam and talk about work and life. Sometimes funny; sometimes serious; but, always interesting.

About the Host
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster was a sworn member of the Los Angeles Police Department for 24 years. He retired in 2003 at the rank of Lieutenant. He holds a bachelor’s from the Union Institute and University in Criminal Justice Management and a Master’s Degree in Public Financial Management from California State University, Fullerton; and, has completed his doctoral course work. Raymond E. Foster has been a part-time lecturer at California State University, Fullerton and Fresno; and is currently a Criminal Justice Department chair, faculty advisor and lecturer with the Union Institute and University. He has experience teaching upper division courses in Law Enforcement, public policy, Public Safety Technology and leadership. Raymond is an experienced author who has published numerous articles in a wide range of venues including magazines such as Government Technology, Mobile Government, Airborne Law Enforcement Magazine, and Police One. He has appeared on the History Channel and radio programs in the United States and Europe as subject matter expert in technological applications in Law Enforcement.

Listen, call, join us at the Watering Hole:
http://www.americanheroesradio.com/social_media_law_enforcement.html
Program Contact Information
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster, LAPD (ret.), MPA
editor@police-writers.com
909.599.7530