Motorcycle Safety Promoted by Reagan Riders

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class (SCW) Jeffrey R. Militzer, USS Ronald Reagan Public Affairs

SAN DIEGO (NNS) -- USS Ronald Reagan's (CVN 76) Reagan Riders Association took to the streets and highways of San Diego County to participate in a winter safety ride just days after returning from a month-long underway period.

The Reagan Riders is a motorcyclist club sponsored by the ship, whose purpose is to train riders of all skill levels to be safer on the road.

The group meets twice monthly to review motorcycle safety issues, such as weather advisories and bike recalls that could affect their shipmates. At least once a month, the Riders go on a group outing.

The Reagan Riders began their trip early in the morning after training on safety topics such as drinking and riding, fatigue and inclement weather. After training, the 12 riders cruised a variety of roads to put their training into practice.

"The Navy has deemed that we are losing too many Sailors to inexperience," said Aircrew Survival Equipmentman 1st Class (AW/SW) Joseph Erskine, president of the Reagan Riders. "We take our Sailors out (on rides) and give them first-hand experience from guys who know the area well."

The Riders' ethos is simple: more training equals more Sailors arriving home safely.

"We are here to train Sailors and make them smarter motorcyclists," said Erskine. "There's no better way to do this than hitting the road together."

The Reagan Riders felt a group ride would improve riders' knowledge of safety throughout the upcoming holiday season.

"It typically doesn't rain much in Southern California, but that's not always the case. So we took a day to go over safe winter-riding habits," said Erskine, a rider with more than 20 years of riding experience.

The Reagan Riders have full command support for their training sessions for good reason. According to the Naval Safety Center, the Navy experienced 14 deaths in fiscal year 2009 from motorcycle-related accidents and the U.S. Marine Corps experienced 22.

"The Navy realizes how serious this issue is and is fully committed to reducing the number of Sailor motorcycle fatalities," said Operations Specialist 1st Class Abraham Nantin, the Reagan Riders' vice president. "Our club can go a long way to that end."

The roads and highways of Southern California can be particularly intimidating for riders of all experience levels.

"It's our goal to get our fellow Sailors accustomed to riding safely in Southern California," said Nantin. "If making it a friendly, group environment will improve their awareness, then that's what we'll do."

While safety is the chief concern for the Riders, having an enjoyable time is also high on the list.

"We of course are out here preaching safety, but we definitely make it fun," said Nantin. "The fact is we all share this passion, so why not enjoy it together? People learn better when they're having a good time and we're going to make the most of it."

Coast Guard chefs compete for Culinary World Cup

Written by: LT Connie Braesch

Coast Guard chefs are steaming up the culinary world stage, winning awards and kneeding out the competition.

Two of our top-notch Food Service Specialists earned a position on the prestigious U.S. Army Culinary Arts Team (USACAT) and are mixing it up as they compete in the Culinary World Cup in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. Held every four years, the Culinary World Cup pitts the skills of nine other military teams from across the globe against each other.

“You’re competing on the world stage. You’re up against the best of the best in the culinary world,” said FS1 Ed Fuchs, an apprentice on USACAT and a previous Compass Guardian of the Week. “It’s a great chance to go up against people who are on the same level as you in a battle royal for world champion.”

Echoing his enthusiasm for being a part of this joint service team, FSCS Justin Reed, a primary member of the USACAT, appreciates the joint training and professional development he and the other team members will get during their time in Luxembourg.

“Being on USACAT is a great privilege, so is getting the opportunity to participate in the largest, most prestigious culinary competition in the world when it comes to military chefs,” said Reed. “It’s like the World Cup of Soccer but for chefs.”

Reed and Fuchs are two key non-Army chefs on the 18 member USACAT. The team is comprised of an Army team manager, six primary members, and 11 others as apprentices. This is not the first time Reed has been a part of this joint service team. In 2008, he was the captain when the team competed in the Culinary Olympics.

Over the course of the competition, the team will prepare a challenging cold food presentation and cook a three-course meal for 100 people using a military field kitchen – not an easy task.

“I know how the field kitchens work and I knew I could bring the experience and leadership I learned from competing in the Culinary Olympics,” said Reed.

The team is geared up for the competition after spending 12 hours a day for 33 straight days preparing and practicing their menu. The kitchens heat up today and the pressure cooker intensifies until the winners are announced Thursday.

According to Reed, Sweden, which edged the U.S. by seven tenths of a point to take the gold during the 2008 Culinary Olympics, is their biggest competition. USACAT is planning to give them a run for their money in the race for the Cup.

You can follow the team on their Facebook page or follow MSG Camacho, team captain, and SSG Parker, a Reservist, on their blogs.

Good luck USACAT! Bring home the Gooooooooooooooold!

Vershbow: Resetting Russian Relationship is Top Priority

By Cheryl Pellerin

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Nov. 17, 2010 – Continuing the job of resetting the relationship with Russia is among the United States’ highest priorities and one of its biggest challenges, a senior defense policy official said today.

Alexander Vershbow, assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, spoke at the Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Service here. He has served as a U.S. ambassador to NATO, the Russian Federation and South Korea.

The Obama administration’s objective “has been to establish a more coherent Russia policy that acknowledges that Russia is still important as a partner on the front lines of many of the key security challenges,” Vershbow said.

Russia, he added, is “a partner that we have to handle with care if we’re going to achieve our common objectives.”

Since Vice President Joe Biden introduced the “reset” concept at Munich two years ago, Vershbow said, this opportunity for improving a “formerly toxic atmosphere” in the relationship between the United States and Russia has created important successes involving Afghanistan, strategic arms control, Iran and its nuclear challenge, and the bilateral defense relationship.

“One of the key outcomes of the reset was progress on our common objective of negotiating a new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty,” Vershbow said, “and we’re very pleased with the results of these negotiations.”

Vershbow said the new treaty includes significant reductions in nuclear weapons, cuts delivery vehicles roughly in half, includes a comprehensive verification regime and gives both countries the flexibility to protect their security.

The new treaty, he added, also allows the United States to carry out its security commitments to its European allies.

“During his meeting with [Russian] President [Dmitry] Medvedev in Japan last weekend, President Obama reiterated his commitment to get the START treaty passed by the Senate during the lame duck session,” Vershbow said. “He’s made clear that this is a top priority and he reaffirmed that again just yesterday.”

As soon as the new START treaty is ratified, Vershbow added, follow-on talks will begin addressing non-strategic and non-deployed nuclear weapons, in addition to further reductions in the strategic force.

Vershbow also noted increased cooperation with Russia in Afghanistan, including facilitating the transportation of material to U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

“The Afghan Air Transit Agreement, which was one of the main deliverables from the 2009 Moscow Summit, allows us to fly over Russia with military equipment and provides redundant transit routes as we have been building up our troop levels in Afghanistan,” he said.

“To date, approximately 90,000 of our troops have flown through Russian airspace to and from Afghanistan,” Vershbow added.

Since rail transit for non-military supplies to the forces in Afghanistan was offered by former Russian President Vladimir Putin, he said, tens of thousands of containers have transited Russia, easing the strain on other U.S. supply routes.

Russia also has cooperated with the United States in countering Iranian efforts to develop a nuclear weapons capability, Vershbow said.

This effort, he said, included joining with China and the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Board of Governors in 2009 to demand that Iran immediately freeze operations at the previously covert Iranian nuclear facility at Qom. Russia also worked constructively with the United States in the U.N. Security Council on resolution 1929, which imposed stricter sanctions on Iran.

One of the most dramatic moments based on the Russians’ interpretation of their obligations under U.N. resolution 1929, Vershbow said, came when Russia cancelled a significant contract to provide S-300 air defense missiles to Iran.

“Having Russia working hand-in-glove with us on Iran gives us a better chance of finding a diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear issue, which remains our goal,” he said.

In September, Vershbow said, Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov visited U.S. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates for five hours of meetings and a renewal of dialogue between the two nations. The leaders signed a memo outlining the U.S.-Russia military relationship that makes defense cooperation a cornerstone of broader relations, and noted shared threats and similar challenges. They also signed an agreement creating a defense relations working group to resolve issues in armed forces reform and transformation, defense policy priorities and national security, transparency and confidence-building, and regional and global security.

Issues with Russia that have traditionally been more challenging include Russia’s relationship with NATO, missile defense cooperation, conventional arms control and regional security issues, Vershbow said.

“While we do not see these issues in zero-sum terms,” he said, “we have also been clear that our efforts at cooperation cannot involve jeopardizing core U.S. principles or interests.”

Ahead of the NATO Summit in Lisbon, Portugal, this week, Vershbow said promising areas for greater NATO-Russia cooperation include terrorism, piracy, countering weapons of mass destruction, disaster response and expanded cooperation regarding Afghanistan.

“Even efforts at cooperation that don’t always bear as much fruit as we might hope can help in reducing some of the uncertainty about Russian interests and intentions and by reducing their uncertainty about ours,” Vershbow said.

Riverine Squadron 1 Returns Home

From Navy Expeditionary Combat Command Public Affairs

NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- Riverine Squadron (RIVRON) 1 returned to Naval Station Norfolk, Va., Nov. 13, following a deployment to Iraq.

During RIVRON 1's nearly seven-month deployment, its mission was to train Iraqis to provide their own maritime patrol element and to prevent smugglers and violent extremist networks from moving dangerous materials throughout the country's waterways.

"I'm excited for what the Riverines have accomplished and what we've done for the Iraqis, which is giving them the tools to do this job and carry on," said Cmdr. Craig Hill, RIVRON 1 commanding officer.

Hill pointed out the vitality of the waterways in Basrah, emphasizing the geographical advantage Iraqi security forces have in conducting maritime security missions.

"The rivers can be used for transporting legitimate products and communication, or they can offer a means of moving accelerants of violence," Hill said. "What [RIVRON 1] has done is provide the Iraqi security forces the training to ensure the waterways are used for the right reasons."

During the deployment, the squadron completed more than 150 missions, more than 145 convoys, more than 110 shoreline sweeps in support of coalition and Iraqi security forces, conducted 170 days of training for local forces and more than 90 hours of airtime from unmanned aerial vehicles.

Assigned to Riverine Group 1, under the command of Navy Expeditionary Combat Command, RIVRON 1 serves as a direct action unit, designated to serve as a maneuver element to conduct combat operations and augment land forces.

This deployment marked the third for RIVRON 1 since the command's establishment in May 2006. Each of the three Riverine Squadrons has served multiple deployments in Iraq, maintaining a continual presence in the region.

General Officer Announcements

Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates announced today that the President has made the following nominations:

Army Brig. Gen. Robert B. Abrams has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Abrams is currently serving as commanding general, National Training Center and Fort Irwin, Fort Irwin, Calif.

Army Brig. Gen. Al T.  Aycock has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Aycock is currently serving as deputy commanding general/chief of staff, Installation Management Command, San Antonio, Texas.

Army Brig. Gen. Peter C. Bayer Jr., has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Bayer is currently serving as director of strategy, plans and policy, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3/5/7, U.S. Army, Washington, D.C.

Army Brig. Gen. James C. Boozer Sr., has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Boozer is currently serving as director of operations, Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff, Installation Management, U.S. Army, Washington, D.C.

Army Brig. Gen. Jeffrey S. Buchanan has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Buchanan is currently serving as director, J-9, U.S. Forces-Iraq, Operation New Dawn, Iraq.

Army Brig. Gen. Gary H. Cheek has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.   Cheek is currently serving as director, Military Personnel Management, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-1, U.S. Army, Washington, D.C.

Army Brig. Gen. Kendall P. Cox has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Cox is currently serving as director, J-7, U.S. Forces-Iraq, Operation New Dawn, Iraq.      

Army Brig. Gen. William T. Crosby has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Crosby is currently serving as program executive officer, aviation, Redstone Arsenal, Ala.

Army Brig. Gen. Anthony G. Crutchfield has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Crutchfield is currently serving as commanding general, Aviation Center of Excellence and Fort Rucker, Fort Rucker, Ala.

Army Brig. Gen. Peter N. Fuller has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Fuller is currently serving as program executive officer, Fort Belvoir, Va.

Army Brig. Gen. William K. Fuller has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Fuller is currently serving as deputy commanding general, U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, N.C.

Army Brig. Gen. Walter M. Golden Jr., has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Golden is currently serving as director, J-1, the Joint Staff, Washington, D.C.

Army Brig. Gen. Patrick M. Higgins has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Higgins is currently serving as deputy director, requirements, J-8, the Joint Staff, Washington, D.C.

Army Brig. Gen. Frederick B. Hodges has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Hodges is currently en route to director, Pakistan/Afghanistan Coordination Cell, the Joint Staff, Washington, D.C.

Army Brig. Gen. Anthony R. Ierardi has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Ierardi is currently serving as director of force management, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3/5/7, U.S. Army, Washington, D.C.

Army Brig. Gen. Richard C. Longo has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Longo is currently serving as deputy chief of staff, operations and training, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, Fort Monroe, Va.

Army Brig. Gen. Alan R. Lynn has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Lynn is currently serving as commanding general, Signal Center of Excellence and Fort Gordon, Fort Gordon, Ga.

Army Brig. Gen. David L. Mann has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Mann is currently serving as commanding general, 32d Army Air Missile Defense Command, Fort Bliss, Texas.

Army Brig. Gen. Bradley W. May has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  May is currently serving as director, Iraq Training and Advisory Team, U.S. Forces-Iraq, Operation New Dawn, Iraq.

Army Brig. Gen. Lloyd Miles has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Miles is currently serving as deputy commanding general, I Corps and Joint Base Lewis McChord, Joint Base Lewis McChord, Wash.

Army Brig. Gen. Mark A.Milley has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Milley is currently serving as deputy director, regional operations, J-3, the Joint Staff, Washington, D.C.

Army Brig. Gen. Jennifer L. Napper has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.   Napper is currently serving as commanding general, U.S. Army Network Enterprise Technology Command, Fort Huachuca, Ariz. 

Army Brig. Gen. John W. Nicholson, Jr. has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Nicholson is currently serving as director, Pakistan/Afghanistan Coordination Cell, the Joint Staff, Washington, D.C.

Army Brig. Gen. Raymond P. Palumbo has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Palumbo is currently serving as commanding general, U.S. Army Alaska/Deputy Commander, U.S. Alaskan Command, Fort Richardson, Alaska.

Army Brig. Gen. Gary S. Patton has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Patton is currently serving as deputy commander for programs, Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan, Operation Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan.

Army Brig. Gen. Mark W. Perrin has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Perrin is currently serving as director, J-2, U.S. Forces-Iraq, Operation New Dawn, Iraq.

Army Brig. Gen.William E. Rapp has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Rapp is currently serving as commandant of cadets, U.S. Army Military Academy, West Point, N.Y.

Army Brig. Gen. Thomas J. Richardson has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Richardson is currently serving as director, J-4, U.S. Forces-Iraq, Operation New Dawn, Iraq.

Army Brig. Gen. Frederick S. Rudesheim has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Rudesheim is currently serving as director, requirements and integration, J-8, U.S. Joint Forces Command, Norfolk, Va.

Army Brig. Gen. Bennet S. Sacolick has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Sacolick is currently serving as commanding general, U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center, Fort Bragg, N.C.

Army Brig. Gen. Frank D. Turner III has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Turner is currently serving as program manager, Saudi Arabian National Guard Modernization Program, Saudi Arabia.

Army Brig. Gen. Kevin R. Wendel has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Wendel is currently serving as deputy director, operations, U.S. Africa Command, Stuttgart, Germany.

Army Brig. Gen. Larry D. Wyche has been nominated for appointment to the rank of major general.  Wyche is currently serving as deputy chief of staff for logistics and operations, U.S. Army Materiel Command, Fort Belvoir, Va.

Navy to Commission Guided Missile Destroyer Gravely

The Navy will commission its newest Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, Gravely, during an 11 a.m. EST ceremony Saturday, Nov. 20, 2010, in Wilmington, N.C.

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead will deliver the ceremony’s principal address.  Alma Gravely will serve as sponsor of the ship named for her late husband.  The ceremony will be highlighted by a time-honored Navy tradition when she gives the first order to “man our ship and bring her to life!”

Designated DDG 107, the new destroyer honors the late Vice Adm. Samuel L. Gravely Jr.  Gravely was born in Richmond, Va., June 4, 1922.  After attending Virginia Union University, he enlisted in the Naval Reserve in September 1942.  In 1943 he participated in a Navy program (V-12) designed to select and train highly qualified men for commissioning as officers.  On Dec. 14, 1944, Gravely successfully completed midshipman training, becoming the first African American commissioned as an officer from the Navy Reserve Officer Training Corps.  He was released from active duty in April 1946, but remained in the Naval Reserve.

Gravely was recalled to active duty in 1949.  As part of the Navy’s response to President Truman’s executive order to desegregate the armed services, his initial assignment was as a Navy recruiter, recruiting African Americans in the Washington, D.C. area.  Gravely went on to a Navy career that lasted 38 years and included many distinguished accomplishments.

Gravely’s performance and leadership as an African American Naval officer demonstrated to America the value and strength of diversity.  Gravely’s accomplishments served as watershed events for today’s Navy.  He was the first African American to command a warship (USS Theodore E. Chandler); to command a major warship (USS Jouett); to achieve flag rank and eventually vice admiral; and to command a numbered fleet (Third).

Gravely is the 57th Arleigh Burke-class destroyer.  The ship will be able to conduct a variety of operations, from peacetime presence and crisis management, to sea control and power projection.  Gravely will be capable of fighting air, surface and subsurface battles simultaneously and contains a myriad of offensive and defensive weapons designed to support maritime warfare in keeping with “A Cooperative Strategy for 21st Century Seapower,” which postures the sea services to apply maritime power to protect U.S. vital interests.

Cmdr. Douglas Kunzman will become the first commanding officer of the ship and lead the crew of 276 officers and enlisted personnel.  The 9,200-ton Gravely was built at Northrop Grumman Corp.’s Ingalls Shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss.  The ship is 509 feet in length, has a waterline beam of 59 feet, and a navigational draft of 31 feet.  Four gas turbine engines will power the ship to speeds in excess of 30 knots.

Media may direct queries to the Navy Office of Information at 703-697-5342.  More information on Arleigh Burke-class destroyers can be found at http://www.navy.mil/navydata/fact_display.asp?cid=4200&tid=900&ct=4.

SEALs Honored During Veterans Ceremony at Norfolk State University

From Naval Special Warfare Group TWO Public Affairs

NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- Norfolk State University hosted a Navy SEAL and wounded warrior, along with a contingent of SEALs from Naval Special Warfare Group TWO, during a Veterans Day observance ceremony at the university student center, Nov. 11.

The ceremony was held in conjunction with the local Hampton Roads Reserve Officers Training Corps unit and other local veterans groups.

Ceremony guest speaker Lt. Jason Redman spoke about the meaning of Veterans Day and the sacrifices of service, sharing his experiences serving as a SEAL on the front lines and about the near-death experience that left him seriously injured.

Redman was injured in combat, along with two of his teammates in Iraq, when his squad came under heavy machine-gun and small-arms fire. Despite being hit numerous times, Redman and his team won the fight and brought all of his teammates home alive.

While he was recovering at Bethesda Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., Redman posted an inspirational sign outside his hospital room that discouraged visitors from pity and urged fellow wounded warriors to be proud of their service. The sign, gaining the attention of Secretary of Defense Robert S. Gates, became a statement for wounded warriors everywhere, and continues to hang in the wounded ward at the medical center.

"The truth is," said Redman, "I am thankful for these scars because I know they mean that my family, my friends and all of you, hopefully will never have to wear them. I proudly wear them for you."

The torch of American Freedom has burned for 234 years, he said.

"Three years ago, against all odds, I brought my torch of freedom back from Iraq. I pass it on to all of you here today," said Redman. "What will you do with yours?"

Redman reminded the audience that military service requires an incredible amount of dedication and self sacrifice.

"Thousands have willingly sacrificed their own flames of freedom to ensure the flames of all Americans' would never be extinguished by the winds of terrorism," said Redman.

He concluded by thanking all veterans and inviting the members of the audience to meet visiting Navy SEALs and other veterans in attendance.

"Thankfully, there are those of us who wear the uniform; who are entrusted with an oath and presented at the start of our military careers with a part of the flame to keep the torch of American freedom always burning," said Redman.

Public Health Center Promotes 2010 Great American Smokeout

By Hugh Cox, Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center Portsmouth Public Affairs

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (NNS) -- The Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center (NMCPHC) in Portsmouth, Va., is partnering with Navy Liberty Centers and the Marine Corps Semper Fit Program as part of Navy-wide efforts to promote the Great American Smokeout (GASO) Nov. 18.

The GASO is an American Cancer Society initiative held across the United States to encourage smokers to quite smoking.

Nearly 31 percent of Sailors and 37 percent of Marines smoke cigarettes, according to a 2008 Department of Defense survey of health related behaviors.

"There are lots of reasons for Sailors and Marines to quit smoking and using tobacco," said Dr. Mark Long, NMCPHC public health educator. "In addition to the myriad of reasons that numerous anti-smoking organizations have been touting for years, smoking can also adversely impact operational and individual readiness."

According to Long, more individuals quit smoking Nov. 18, the GASO, than any other day of the year.

Navy Medicine has long-recognized that tobacco harms the health and well-being of Sailors, Marines and their families.

"More importantly, tobacco use is being acknowledged by Navy and Marine Corps leadership as a readiness issue with our deployed forces," said Capt. Larry Williams, NMCPHC health promotion and analysis head.

Williams is the chair of the Tobacco Cessation Action Team (TCAT), a Navy Medicine group that reviews, develops and provides resources, guidance and policies aimed to help decrease tobacco use in the Navy and Marine Corps.

Long, also a member of TCAT, has been the driving force behind the Navy GASO initiatives for many years.

"It is also important for the non-tobacco users to support their friends and loved ones who decide to quit on the 18th," said Williams. "Quitting is easier with friends to support you."

"More and more Navy and Marine Corps commands are actively promoting and participating in the GASO and encouraging their Sailors and Marines to stop," said Long. "It is a great opportunity to quit using tobacco."

Numerous resources are available to tobacco users interested in quitting tobacco, including military treatment facilities and clinics that offer tobacco cessation programs and support groups. Additionally, the NMCPHC website has a wide variety of tools, tips and resources for tobacco users, as well as program managers.

For more information on the GASO and other Navy public health programs, visit the NMCPHC's website at http://www.nmcphc.med.navy.mil/Healthy_Living/.

For additional information, also visit the Department of Defense's "Quit Tobacco, Make Me Proud" Web-based program at www.ucanquit2.org.

Tricare also offers a free helpline to assist with cessation. Call the following numbers for information:

North Region: (866) 459-8766

South Region: (877) 414-9949

East Region: (866) 244-6870

Veterans’ Reflections: 'Learn Everything You Can'

By Ian Graham

Emerging Media, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Nov. 16, 2010 – When Frank “Irish” Healey was in Vietnam, he was a walking dead man. At least that’s what infamous Radio Hanoi broadcaster “Hanoi Hannah” said of Healey and his fellow Marines in the 1st Battalion, 9th Marines.

The unit became known as the “Walking Dead” because it took heavy casualties in a particularly hot combat zone near the demilitarized zone, where the North Vietnamese army was coming across the border into South Vietnam.

“She said we’re ‘already walking dead men and they don’t know it,’ so that’s where the name came from,” Healey said.

The Barnegat, N.J., native said he hadn’t expected that Marines would face such heavy combat in Vietnam. In 1964, when he followed two friends to enlist in the Corps, Vietnam was an advisory mission. They knew things were going on there, he said, but it wasn’t a full-blown war.

Healey followed a long family tradition of service in enlisting: his father and all of his uncles were veterans of World War II or Korea.

“To be a Marine was to join the best,” he said. “I was brought up learning about their valor in World War II and Korea, and that was where I was going to go. If I was going to go, I was going to go with the best.”

He spent two years in Europe aboard the USS Springfield, touring the Mediterranean, before he volunteered to go to Vietnam with the 1-9th Marines in February 1967. They were looking for troops to send to the combat zone, and Healey said he knew it was his obligation to go.

The Marines he met there would end up being an integral part of Healey’s life, even after combat. He still regularly attends 1-9th reunions and is close with many of the Marines with whom he served in Delta Company.

“They’re like brothers to me –- they’re family,” Healey said. “We lived together, we fought together, we bled together, and unfortunately, some of them died with us.”

During one particularly vicious battle near An Hoa, Delta Company took serious fire. A helicopter came, against orders, to pick up some wounded Marines, though it ended up getting shot down a short distance away.

A UPI photographer, Frank Johnston, happened to be on the chopper, and stayed with Healey and the other Marines as they rallied around the fallen aircraft, eventually taking refuge in an abandoned church. Johnson’s photographs of the scene found their way to the pages of Life magazine and numerous newspapers, magazines and books about the war in Vietnam.

The pictures, depicting exhausted, injured Marines fresh off the battlefield, defined an era for the Corps. While Healey said he appreciates that he’s a part of that history, he added that it doesn’t matter that it’s him and his company on the film.

“It’s great –- but the point isn’t who’s in the picture,” he said. “Every one of us was in that picture. We were tight, we were close, and we shared everything we had. Every Marine and corpsman was in that photograph.”

Healey left active duty in 1968 and served two more years as a reservist. In 1970, he accepted a discharge as sergeant, but his story with the Marine Corps doesn’t end there. His son enlisted in the Corps, and he went to Camp Lejeune, N.C., prior to deploying to Saudi Arabia with the 2nd Marine Division. Then-Maj. Gen. William Keys was the commander of that division -– some years prior, he had been a company commander with the 1-9th in Vietnam.

Healey said he made a phone call, unbeknownst to his son. At first reluctant -- and impeded by his noncommissioned officers, who assumed he was being insolent -- the junior Healey eventually made contact with Keys.

“A two-star general went out and found a private first class and had him over for dinner about a dozen times before the Gulf War started,” Healey said. “My son came home and said, ‘Dad, I walked in with PFC chevrons on and dirty utilities, with colonels sitting around. A general walked in, took one look at me and said, ‘You’re a Healey, I know it.’ He took me into his office, gave me a cold bottle of water, sat down, and talked to me like a father for an hour and a half.’”

“That’s a veteran,” he added. “We’re a family.”

Healey said his best advice to servicemembers now is the same he shared with his son upon enlisting: “Learn everything you can.”

“Whatever you train in, train hard, and train well. Know your job, and know two to three jobs above you,” Healey said. “Because if you’re in combat, and you’ll have to take over when people get killed or get wounded, you’re going to have to know that job and know it well to survive and make sure your friends survive.”

(“Veterans’ Reflections” is a collection of stories of men and women who served their country in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, and the present-day conflicts. They will be posted throughout November in honor of Veterans Day.)

Marine Corps Seeks Correct 21st Century Balance

By Jim Garamone

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Nov. 16, 2010 – The Marine Corps needs to be like a middleweight boxer –- agile, quick and deadly, the commander of Marine Corps Combat Development Command said here today.

Speaking to the Defense Writers’ Group, Lt. Gen. George J. Flynn noted that the Marine Corps has the mission to be America’s expeditionary force in readiness.

“A middleweight fighter has to have a knockout punch,” the general said. “But I also don’t think a middleweight should go 15 rounds with a heavyweight.”

Finding the right balance to define what the Corps should look like and what capabilities it should contain is Flynn’s mission. “It means that we are going to be truly expeditionary -- that we can go wherever we need to go today, not tomorrow, and that we put a premium on readiness,” he said.

“A crisis response force does all the things you see the Marine Corps do right now,” he told the group, from fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan to providing aid to Pakistan, to helping countries in Africa, South America and Asia. The Marine Corps is taking the lessons of 10 years of war to heart, he added.

“One of the top lessons is that we’re doing things at a much lower level than we ever did in the past,” Flynn said.

Marine Corps companies are doing what battalions did in the past, he explained. The strategy calls for pushing intelligence and operations planning to company level.

“We’re asking a lot of the young leaders to do this,” he said. “Tactical actions have strategic implications, and that really is a key factor in pushing those things down there and asking them to coordinate these in a very complex battle space.”

Strategists talk about a three-block war, and the Marines have embraced that notion, Flynn said. “It is not uncommon to have a unit doing pretty heavy combat, at the same time they train their replacements -– be it police or army support -– and the other part is enabling governance to take place,” Flynn said.

Another lesson is integrating new technology into battle plans and integrating lessons on the fly. Pre-deployment training is an area of concentration for Marines, Flynn said. The training, he said, enables Marines at all levels to understand the mission ahead.

“We use the pre-deployment training to integrate the new things that are on the battlefield – not just equipment, but the tactics, techniques and procedures as well,” Flynn said.

For example, he said, the Marine Corps just opened the expanded immersive infantry trainer at Camp Pendleton, Calif., and is building similar facilities at Camp Lejeune, N.C., and in Hawaii. The trainer gives ground Marines the same leg up that pilots receive, Flynn said.

“For those who fly airplanes, you would never think of giving a pilot the keys to a commercial airliner or a fighter aircraft without some simulator time,” he said. “Why would we give a young squad leader the keys to a rifle squad without going through a simulator? The simulator gives you the pre-combat check ride to make sure you can deal with what you’re going to have to deal with.”

The Marines have been criticized as functioning simply as a second land army, but Flynn said he doesn’t agree.

“I would argue that since 9/11, we’ve been at sea quite a bit as well,” he said. A Marine expeditionary unit based on ships responded to the earthquake in Haiti in January, he noted. Another responded from the sea to the flooding in Pakistan. Still another responded to Haiti as a hurricane struck the island nation earlier this month, Flynn said.

Integrating new equipment into the Corps also is part of Flynn’s mission, and he is looking at new ground combat vehicles, the F-35 joint strike fighter and many other pieces of equipment, he said. He acknowledged, however, that such programs can present fiscal pitfalls. “How do programs get in trouble? We over-reach on technology, and as a result we underestimate the cost and we underestimate the time to be able to do it,” he said.

To remedy that, the general said, the military needs a better dialogue with industry from the beginning of the process.

“We need to be more informed of what we’re asking and to be able to really know the cost of what we’re asking them to do,” he said.

Wisconsin Army National Guard names new chief of staff

Wisconsin National Guard Public Affairs Office

Col. Kenneth Koon of Waunakee, a 28-year veteran of the Wisconsin Army National Guard, was named chief of staff for that organization on Monday (Nov. 15).

In his new duty, Koon will serve as the chief advisor and principal assistant to the Assistant Adjutant General - Army, also the commander of the Wisconsin Army National Guard. He will be responsible for directing, supervising, training and coordinating the staff, as well as assisting the assistant adjutant general - Army in deploying and coordinating programs, policies and plans affecting the more than 8,000 members of the Wisconsin Army National Guard.

"Col. Koon, along with all the officers who interviewed for this critical assignment, presented the selection board with a difficult task as each officer brings a wealth of knowledge and skills to the organization," said Brig. Gen. Mark Anderson, commander of the Wisconsin Army National Guard. "We are very lucky to have such a deep bench of absolutely quality officers committed to excellence and Soldier well-being."

Koon replaces Col. Kevin Greenwood, who is retiring as chief of staff following 28 years in the military.

Koon recently completed a term as commander of the 426th Regional Training Institute at the Wisconsin National Guard's Military Academy at Fort McCoy, overseeing a dramatic expansion of field artillery and other military courses. He also recently served as director of manpower and personnel for the Wisconsin National Guard's joint staff.

Koon enlisted in the Army in 1977, and served as a military policeman at Fort Sill, Okla., and in Germany. After leaving the active duty, he joined the 84th Division of the Army Reserve and was commissioned as a second lieutenant through the Reserve Officer Training Corps in 1982. He began his career in the Wisconsin Army National Guard in May 1982 as a support platoon leader in the headquarters company of the 2nd Battalion, 127th Infantry Regiment. He continued to serve in command and staff assignments of increasing scope and responsibility with the 32nd Infantry Brigade, State Area Command and Joint Force Headquarters.

Koon deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2007-08 as commander of Forward Operating Base Grizzly and Camp Ashraf, Iraq.

He is a life member of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 8483, a member of American Legion Post 812, and a member of the 2-127th Infantry Association. He also holds life memberships in the National Guard Association of the United States, the Wisconsin National Guard Association and the 32nd Division Association.

Koon lives in Waunakee with his wife, Lt. Col. (retired) Luanne J. Sleger Koon, and twin sons Jacob and Jonah.

Navy Commemorates 50th Anniversary Of First SSBN Deterrent Patrol

By Lt. Ed Early, Commander, Submarine Group 9 Public Affairs

BANGOR, Wash. (NNS) -- When the ballistic missile submarine USS George Washington (SSBN 598) departed Charleston, S.C., 50 years ago, it marked the beginning of a new era in strategic deterrence.

On Nov. 15, 1960, the "Georgefish" – a converted attack submarine – began the U.S. Navy's first SSBN deterrent patrol. With her stealth capability and the 16 Polaris missiles she carried, the George Washington provided the United States with a forward presence unprecedented in naval history.

As the Navy celebrates the golden anniversary of the George Washington's historic deployment, the ballistic missile submarine remains a key component of our nation's strategic deterrent. Today, the Navy employs 14 Ohio-class Trident SSBNs in its deterrent force – eight at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, Wash., and six at Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Ga.

"USS George Washington revolutionized the way we conduct both submarine warfare and strategic deterrence," said Rear Adm. Bob Hennegan, Commander, Submarine Group 9. "The legacy of that first patrol is the strong, capable deterrent force you see in today's Navy."

Commissioned on Dec. 30, 1959, the George Washington was originally laid down in 1957 as the Skipjack-class attack submarine Scorpion (SSN 589). However, the decision was made to add a 130-foot section behind the sail that would carry 16 Polaris A1 missiles, resulting in the world's first ballistic missile submarine.

Following her commissioning, George Washington would successfully carry out the first submerged Polaris launch on July 20, 1960 at the Atlantic Missile Test Range, launching two missiles. Later that year, she left her homeport of Groton, Conn., for Charleston to load her full complement of Polaris missiles.

Cmdr. James Osborn Jr. and his Blue Crew took George Washington out of Charleston on Nov. 15 to begin her historic first patrol, which concluded Jan. 21, 1961 at New London, Conn., after 66 days submerged. George Washington's Gold Crew followed with its first patrol from February-April 1961.

George Washington was the first of the "41 For Freedom" – the Navy's first 41 ballistic missile submarines. Together, they paved the way for future Polaris, Poseidon and Trident submarines that continue to maintain the nation's strategic deterrent today.

Cambodian-American Navy Officer to Return to Birth Country after 37 Years

By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Brock A. Taylor, Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet Public Affairs

PACIFIC OCEAN (NNS) -- He has visited dozens of ports over the course of his Navy career, but none has ever evoked the emotions that will come when his ship USS Mustin (DDG 89), visits Cambodia in December.

The port visit will mark the first time in 37 years that Cmdr. Michael Vannak Khem Misihas returned to the land of his birth.

As a young Cambodian boy born and living in the rice fields outside of the capital Phnom Penh in the late 1960's/early 1970's, Misiewicz – whose birth name was Vannak Khem -- was not aware of the political tension building up around him. When his country plunged into turmoil, his family reluctantly gave him up for adoption to a young American woman who worked at the U.S. Embassy, allowing him to escape before the Khmer Rouge regime took over the country, eventually causing millions of deaths in what is known as the "Killing Fields."

"I know it's going to be very emotional," said Misiewicz. "I was the lucky one in the family."

Raised by his adoptive mother, Misiewicz enlisted in the Navy after graduating from high school in Lanark, Ill. He was selected for the Navy's Broadened Opportunity for Officer Selection and Training (BOOST) program, and attended the U.S. Naval Academy, where he received his commission in 1992.

His service as a Navy surface warfare officer ultimately brought him to command the guided missile destroyer USS Mustin, forward deployed to Yokosuka, Japan.

As commanding officer of the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, Misiewicz and the more than 300 Sailors under his charge will conduct community service projects and interact with the Cambodian Navy.

USS Mustin's port call comes on the heels of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's visit earlier this month, and the first-ever Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) exercise with Cambodia.

"It brings a lot of happiness to see my country – the United States – establishing a positive relationship with the country of my heritage," Misiewicz said. "America is truly the land of opportunity. It's the one country on earth where you start from the rice fields of a war-torn country and rise to command a U.S. Navy destroyer. It doesn't get any better."

For more than 16 years, after moving to the U.S. in 1973, Misiewicz did not know what happened to his family in Cambodia.

"As a child I would cry almost every night, thinking about my family and what had happened to them," Misiewicz said. "I had no idea at that point in my life whether they had survived the Killing Fields or not. Quite honestly, it was less painful as I got older to not think about it."

While Misiewicz was pursuing his naval career, he did not know that his surviving Cambodian family had immigrated to the U.S. and was looking for him.

Sponsored by an American family and church, his surviving siblings and birth mother moved to Austin, Texas, in 1984. With the help of a college student, they started researching Misiewicz's footsteps, and in 1989 they were reunited. But he also learned the devastating news that his father had been executed by the Khmer Rouge in 1977.

Misiewicz says the most emotional part of returning to Cambodia will be reuniting with his living blood relatives, especially an aunt who played a large part in his adoption, and an uncle who hoped for a better life for Misiewicz.

As a child, Misiewicz was very close to his aunt and often accompanied her at work as a maid for the American woman who later became his adoptive mother.

"My aunt got sick, so some arrangements were made between my adopted mom, my dad and my aunt to find a better life for one of us children, and my adopted mom found a liking toward me," Misiewicz said.

While his aunt carried out her cleaning duties, Misiewicz's future mother would let him watch movies and play games at her home. So in 1973, when she was scheduled to leave Phnom Penh, the only way she could bring the little boy she had grown fond of was to adopt him.

"I went [to the U.S] and I think the initial thought was for me to get a better education, live a better life and eventually return to Cambodia," Misiewicz said.

Misiewicz was very young when he immigrated to the U.S. After arriving in Alexandria, Va., in April 1973, his adoptive mother, Maryna Lee Misiewicz, who raised him as a single parent, enrolled him into the 1st grade the following fall. Misiewicz received extra English tutoring for the next three years and eventually continued his education in Lanark, Ill., which was his mother's hometown.

"Lanark was and still is a population of 1,500, and I think I was the only non-caucasian at my school," Misiewicz said.

Nearly four decades later, Misiewicz believes the Navy has given him an incredible amount of opportunities that he would have never experienced had he remained in Cambodia. Although his ship's upcoming visit has tremendous emotions attached for Misiewicz, he is also focused on his mission as Mustin's commanding officer and hopes his background will help accomplish it successfully.

"I really feel privileged and blessed to be able to return with this crew to where I was born and to do so with the ability to promote American goodwill and share with Cambodians the success stories, not only mine, but a lot of success stories within our crew," he said.

Misiewicz is not the only commanding officer of a forward deployed ship to visit his birth country in a U.S. Seventh Fleet ship.

Korean-American Cmdr. Jeffrey Kim, USS John S. McCain (DDG 56) commanding officer, took command of his ship in a ceremony held at Busan, Republic of Korea, in May 2009.

In November 2009, Vietnamese-American Cmdr. H.B. Le, USS Lassen (DDG 82) commanding officer, made a port call to Da Nang, Vietnam, as the first Vietnamese-born American citizen to command a U.S. warship and visit the country. He escaped with his family from Vietnam near the end of the war in 1975.

Misiewicz says he is proud of his background and even more proud that the growth of diversity in the Navy has given him and others a chance to excel in life.

"When you think about all the things that could've gone wrong, I think I'm truly blessed to have so many opportunities and certainly the different miracles that have occurred just for me to reunite with my family."

Guardian of the Week – Ed Kruska

Written by: LTJG Stephanie Young

With a career that spanned two decades of telling the Coast Guard’s story Chief Warrant Officer Ed Kruska shared his passion of the Coast Guard mission and its people with the nation. His commitment to the service goes beyond the call of duty as he inspires generations of service members and their families to honor their profession and their heritage.

Kruska served as editor of Coast Guard Reservist magazine and published 163 issues and nearly 5,000 pages through his tenure. In 1996 Kruska published a story about Coast Guard monuments across the United States urging Coast Guardsmen nationwide to pay their dues to those who served before them. Wanting to do more, and turning the magazine’s words into actions, he gathered with a group of friends at Arlington National Cemetery to honor veterans who were buried there.

The following year, Kruska joined with Master Chief Mark Allen, the current Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Reserve Forces, and their families as they met at Coast Guard Hill on Memorial Day. Together, as they stood in admiration of the service and sacrifice others had made, Kruska thought — why not place Coast Guard flags on the graves of fallen Coast Guardsmen at Arlington each Veterans Day?

Kruska worked with the Washington, D.C. Chapter of the Chief Petty Officers Association and after a year of planning Flags Across America came to life on the Saturday before Veterans Day 1999. This time, the group was much larger than the original eight, and the Chiefs and their families placed 75 Coast Guard flags on the graves of Coast Guardsmen buried at Arlington. The families also visited the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall where flags were placed besides each panel where the names of seven Coast Guardsmen who fought in Vietnam were etched into the wall.

The tribute to Coast Guard veterans grew, and today the event continues to build with Kruska as chairperson. The day now includes a rally outside the cemetery prior to posting the Coast Guard flags as well as a flag ceremony and Coast Guard history tour. With more people, the Flags Across America group is also able to find more graves of fallen service members from the Coast Guard and its predecessor services, including the U.S. Life-Saving Service and Revenue Cutter Service.

From its humble beginnings of eight people, the annual event now includes crowds of Coast Guardsmen and their families. This year the Flags Across America group was able to post 600 Coast Guard standards. Amongst the attendees this year was Admiral Bob Papp, Commandant of the United States Coast Guard.

 “It is an honor and privilege to commemorate the service of Coast Guard veterans that guarded our coasts in peace and defended our Nation in war,” said Papp, adding, “With Flags Across America, Ed Kruska has established in our service a powerful way for us to observe these manners of our profession with dignity and admiration.”

Kruska’s fervor for honoring those who went before him has been contagious. Since January 2001, more than 86 Flags Across America chapters have blossomed at Coast Guard units in a total of 36 states.

Recently retired, Kruska will continue his efforts in paying tribute to Coast Guardsmen and veterans of our country. Veterans like Kruska are a reminder to us all that when thinking about the brave men and women who have served, it is not enough to utter words of praise, but to live by those words.

Today in the Department of Defense, Monday, November 15, 2010

Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates and Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn have no public or media events on their schedules.

Statement by Press Secretary Geoff Morrell on CRWG Report Leaks

“Secretary Gates is very concerned and extremely disappointed that unnamed sources within the Department of Defense have selectively revealed aspects of the draft findings of the Comprehensive Review Working Group, presumably to shape perceptions of the report prior to its release.

“The Secretary launched this review in March to objectively ascertain the impact of potential repeal of the ‘Don't Ask, Don't Tell’ law on military readiness, effectiveness, recruiting, retention, unit cohesion and families. He made it clear then and throughout this process that it was ‘critical that this effort be carried out in a professional, thorough and dispassionate manner.’ He has also stated clearly that ‘given the political dimension of this issue, it is equally critical that...every effort be made to shield our men and women in uniform and their families from those aspects of this debate.’

 “For nearly nine months the Working Group has operated in strict accordance to that mandate.  Anonymous sources now risk undermining the integrity of this process.  

 “The Secretary strongly condemns the unauthorized release of information related to this report and has directed an investigation to establish who communicated with the Washington Post or any other news organization without authorization and in violation of Department policy and his specific instruction.

 “The full report will be made public for all to review early next month. Until then, no one at the Pentagon will comment on its contents.”