Married Couple Pins Each Other as Chief Petty Officers

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class (SW) Austin Rooney, USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) Public Affairs

NORFOLK (NNS) -- Chief Operations Specialist (SW/AW) Priscilla Jones and Chief Master-at-Arms (SW) Mark Jones, who have been married for eight years, pinned anchors on each other during two separate chief pinning ceremonies at the Waterside Marriott Hotel in Norfolk and Naval Station Norfolk, Sept. 14.

Priscilla, stationed aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), and Mark, stationed at Naval Station Norfolk Security, said they both shared the goal of being promoted to chief petty officer for years, but seeing both of their names on the list of selectees at the same time shocked them.

"I really didn't expect I'd make chief this time up," said Priscilla. "I thought my husband would make it, but not both of us."

Mark disagreed, saying he always thought his wife would get the promotion before he did. Upon realizing that they both made it together, he said he felt blessed.

"I'm so glad she was able to pin me, and I was able to do the same for her," said Mark. "She's been with me through most of my career, and we've made a lot of sacrifices to be together. So, this is like a reward for both of us."

Ever since the two met aboard USS Tortuga (LSD 26) in 1999, they knew that they would have to make sacrifices beyond what a normal couple would make as a result of being dual-military. For much of their relationship, Mark would be at sea and Priscilla at shore, and vice versa. Still, the two were able to maintain their commitment to the Navy and each other successfully.

"It's really important to leave work at work," said Priscilla. "Spending time at home should be relaxing. If you can keep those two separate, then it makes the relationship a lot easier."

When they found out that they had been selected, both Priscilla and Mark knew they would be spending the next few weeks apart, since they would be attending different induction activities in different places. After five weeks of waking up at three in the morning and coming home at nine in the evening, the couple said being able to attend each other's pinning ceremonies made the entire process worth it.

"I think we were really lucky, and we both deserved it," said Priscilla. "Words can't even describe how good it felt. It was the best experience in the world."

Now that the couple are both chiefs, they have new goals lined up for their future careers in the Navy. Mark said he plans on transitioning to the wardroom next, while Priscilla said she has her eyes set on making senior chief.

Since Priscilla's ceremony at the Waterside Marriott in Norfolk happened two hours earlier than her husband's in building C-9 on Naval Station Norfolk, she jokingly insists that she made chief before he did.

"I already made chief before Mark did," said Priscilla, laughing. "I think I'll get my senior chief star before he does too."

Several options available for combating suicide in the ranks

Wisconsin National Guard Public Affairs Office

Suicide by service members is a limited but difficult threat to engage and defeat - but not impossible.

"I really believe, if there is a glimmer of hope, that someone considering suicide can be saved," said Staff Sgt. Dana Cowell, the Wisconsin National Guard's Suicide Prevention Program manager.

Part of keeping that hope alive is to kindle the understanding that the person contemplating suicide is not alone. The Department of Defense theme for this year's Suicide Prevention Awareness Month is "Stand By Them" - a prompt to get involved when a friend or loved one seems distressed.

Jacqueline Garrick, acting director of the Defense Suicide Prevention Office, said she encourages military family members concerned about a loved one's state of mind to contact commands, chaplains' offices, community services, or any other means of help they can reach.

"One of the key features that we're working on right now is with the Department of Veterans Affairs," she said. "For several years, they have been working on the Veteran's Crisis Line, and we have been working with them to rebrand [it] as the Military Crisis Line so that our men and women in uniform know that the Military Crisis Line - the '1-800-273-TALK(8255) number, press 1 if you're military' - is for them as well."

Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Bryan B. Battaglia - senior enlisted advisor to Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff - said service members, family members and veterans in need of assistance, either for themselves or for a loved one, can call the number day or night to speak to someone.

"That someone, who will answer will be a medical health official ... with the background and expertise to make some immediate assessments," he said. "That phone call has complete confidentiality."

Cowell said one of the first courses of action the Wisconsin National Guard follows is to determine the service member's veteran status. Those who have deployed overseas are connected with resources such as the Vet Centers or VA hospitals.

"First, we call ahead to the VA to let them know that a service member is coming in, so they can be there to greet them," she said. "We usually provide an escort - we want a warm handoff so they know they're never alone."

Cowell acknowledged that there are fewer services for non-veteran service members.

"We really rely on local law enforcement, local hospitals and emergency rooms," she said. Other available resources include Bob Evans, the Wisconsin National Guard's resident director of psychological health, and Military Family Life Consultants such as Nan Gardner and Ruth Price.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno characterized suicide among service members as one aspect of a range of health-of-the-force issues, during a Sept. 10 address at the 134th National Guard Association of the United States General Conference in Reno, Nev.

"The most important thing is about creating an environment, a culture, where people feel comfortable, [and] can come forward and get the help that they need," Odierno said. He also cited screening people before, during and after deployments as one of a plethora of programs aimed at helping service members.

"These problems are not self-correcting," said Gen. Frank Grass, chief of the National Guard Bureau, on Sept. 11. "They will not just go away. They require the collective action of leaders across the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs and the private sector."

Garrick acknowledged there is a common belief among military members that seeking help for mental health issues can damage their careers.

"Not seeking help is going to harm your career even more," she said. "So even if you have to take a medication, or you can't deploy, or you have to go for further testing, ... there are benefits to treatment. Treatment works."

Mental health support "that we know works" is available across the services through military treatment facilities, community mental health services and chaplains' offices, Garrick said.

"That will benefit your career in the long run," she added. "And it will benefit your life in the long run, because this isn't just about your military career - it's about your family well-being, it's about your safety, and it's about what your long-term plan is for your future."

Cowell said that relationship issues, legal or financial problems remain among the most significant stressors that can lead to thoughts of suicide. Evans explained that, in his experience, suicides generally result from two main factors - hopelessness and personal humiliation.

"Usually if a person is discovered with suicidal ideation, they have not yet reached a decision to kill themselves and are at some level accessible to intervention," Evans said. He develops an intervention strategy related to the issues behind the suicidal thoughts. For example, if the issue is a failed relationship he determines how to help the individual understand the reasons behind the breakup and how to more objectively evaluate why it happened.

"Engaging service members about dealing with suicidal ideation really results in having a basic understanding to what is driving this ideation, and displaying alternatives that the service member will view as viable," Evans said.

"I think the first key factor is to understand the signs and symptoms of suicide, and not to be afraid to ask the question," Garrick said. "It's a myth that if you ask somebody, 'Are you feeling suicidal?' that you'll put a thought in their head. And that's just not going to happen. If somebody's really in distress, … the first thing we want people to know to do is ask the questions, 'Do you feel like you could hurt yourself,' 'Do you have a plan?,' and 'How can I help [you through this crisis]?'"

Cowell said Wisconsin National Guard members can access a Risk Reduction and Resilience Library on the Wisconsin National Guard portal (internal network) for additional resources on identification and intervention.

Sgt. 1st Class Jim Greenhill of the National Guard Bureau, and Karen Parrish and Claudette Roulo of American Forces Press Service contributed to this report.

Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group, 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit Depart for Deployment

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Dominique Pineiro, Navy Public Affairs Support Element West

SAN DIEGO (NNS) -- More than 4,000 Sailors and Marines assigned to the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) and the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit departed San Diego for deployment Monday, Sept. 17.

The Peleliu ARG, composed of Peleliu, amphibious transport dock ship USS Green Bay (LPD 20) and amphibious dock landing ship USS Rushmore (LSD 47), is commanded by Capt. Mark T. Sakaguchi, commander, Amphibious Squadron 3.

Prior to deploying, the ARG completed a myriad of workup exercises, amphibious squadron/Marine expeditionary unit integration, a composite training unit exercise and a certification exercise to prepare for deployment.

During deployment, the Peleliu ARG will be expected to accomplish a variety of missions supporting the Navy's maritime strategy including combat missions, humanitarian assistance, counter-piracy and promoting peace and stability in the regions it enters.

"We're prepared for everything, from humanitarian relief, disaster relief, maritime support operations up to full scale combat," said Sakaguchi. "Whatever the situation is our leaders give us the tasking, we'll respond."

The ships in the ARG hosted a large number of family and friends on board prior to their departure.

"This is my first deployment, and I never thought it would be so hard to leave my wife behind for so long," said Aviation Ordnanceman Airman Joshua Quinones, assigned to Peleliu. "I'm sad, but this is what I signed up for."

U.S., China Team Up for Counterpiracy Exercise

From a USS Winston S. Churchill News Release

GULF OF ADEN, Sept. 18, 2012 – Guided-missile destroyer USS Winston S. Churchill and other U.S. Navy assets participated in a counterpiracy exercise with Chinese naval elements near the Horn of Africa yesterday.

The exercise, the first bilateral counterpiracy exercise ever conducted between the United States and China, paired Winston S. Churchill with the Chinese frigate Yi Yang to conduct a combined visit, board, search and seizure boarding.

The focus, officials said, was on bilateral interoperability in detecting, boarding and searching suspected vessels as well as the ability of both Chinese and American naval assets to respond to pirated vessels.

"Piracy is a threat to the freedom of the seas, economic security, and the safety of mariners from all nations,” said Navy Cmdr. Chris D. Stone, Winston S. Churchill's commanding officer. “Bilateral exercises such as this demonstrate the cooperative will of the international community and increase proficiency of multinational forces in confronting the threat.

"We have common regional and global security challenges,” he continued, “and we are able to jointly address those by training together."

Teams from both ships performed the boarding on Winston S. Churchill, which was simulating a pirated vessel. Executing the boarding side by side as a combined U.S.-Chinese team, the team successfully searched the vessel and assisted role-playing mariners.

Participants felt that the training was meaningful, providing a unique opportunity to operate with alongside one another.

"It was exciting to interact with the Chinese sailors and cooperate in a critical environment," said Navy Lt. j.g. Edward R. Kellum, boarding officer for Winston S. Churchill's team. "Any time we work with a foreign military, it adds a different perspective to how we operate. However, to collaborate with the Chinese in an antipiracy framework is a rare opportunity and a real achievement for maritime security."

Following the exercise, leaders from both navies discussed the elements of the boarding to learn how to better operate together in the future.

U.S and Chinese leaders expressed how important and beneficial the training was, both in terms of building cooperative ties and development of techniques to counter piracy.

"We're appreciative of the opportunity to train with other nations to establish ties that will allow us to work together to face the piracy threat," Stone said. "As fellow mariners, we have great admiration for our Chinese counterparts, who are sailing alongside us and other coalition partners to keep the sea lanes safe."

Winston S. Churchill is deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility, conducting maritime security operations, theater security cooperation efforts and support missions for Operation Enduring Freedom.

DCoE Director Shares Air Force Birthday Message

By Navy CAPT Paul S. Hammer, DCoE director

Most of us are able to easily answer the question, “Where are you from?” However, for some it can be a bit more difficult. Many of us who have trouble answering the question have developed a default reply over the years.

When I’m asked, “Where are you from,” I am proud to say that I was an Air Force brat and grew up all over (yes, this is my default reply). Growing up, I wasn’t fully aware of what my dad did or why. My dad was a fighter pilot and, like many other military kids, I attended multiple schools and identified more with my family than with the locale.

In 1966 my dad went to Vietnam. Although he was a fighter pilot by training, he was assigned to a forward air control (FAC) squadron. As part of a FAC in Vietnam, he flew around in this dinky little Piper Cub-like airplane, dropped smoke and directed airstrikes in support of Army ground troops.

One of my dad’s proudest moments was about this time of year almost 50 years ago. He was engaged with the infantry battalion he supported in a large firefight on the ground. He was getting low on fuel, running out of daylight and yet the fight was still intense and a much smaller Army battalion was at risk of getting overrun. So, he directed two fighter airstrikes in hope of helping the smaller Army battalion. Sometime later, my dad ran into the former Army battalion commander from that day in Vietnam who told him how they were able to wipe out an entire enemy regiment.

I was 9 years old when my dad went to Vietnam. It wasn’t until many years later when I was on active duty myself that we were able to have conversations about his military experiences.

We often take our capability for air supremacy for granted but it’s because of the hard work, dedication to duty, and professionalism of the U.S. Air Force that we have dominance in air, space and cyberspace. Today, no one thinks about going to war without air power.

On behalf of all of us at the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, I wish the United States Air Force a Happy 65th Birthday.

Aim High … Fly, Fight, Win!