‘Real Warrior’ Finds Path to Physical, Emotional Healing

By Elaine Sanchez

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 4, 2011 – Black-and-white photos of Vietnam-era veterans line the wall at a Veterans Affairs center. Some are smiling and others are gazing at a distant point, but in all, an unseen light catches the emotion in their eyes.

The photographer, Stacy Pearsall, a veteran of the more recent wars, strove to capture the character and the experience etched in their faces while listening to their recollections of war.

“Their stories are amazing,” she said.

This line of photos on a wall in a VA center in Charleston, S.C., serves not only as Pearsall’s veteran tribute, but also a milestone in her recovery from physical and emotional wounds of war.

Just a few months earlier, Pearsall had nearly given up hope of working as a photographer again or of taking photos that didn’t serve as a haunting reminder of a painful past.

Pearsall’s photography career took off while she was in the Air Force. As a combat photographer, she took thousands of pictures over the course of her Air Force career, earning her accolades and awards from leaders at all levels of her chain of command.

She traveled extensively for her job, so she felt prepared when she was tasked to deploy to Baghdad in September 2003.

As part of her duties, Pearsall documented a school rebuilding process, and when the school marked its opening with a ceremony in February 2004, she attended. After the ceremony, as the unit prepared to head out, the Humvee she was riding in was making a tight turn on a dead-end street when a roadside bomb detonated.

Pearsall was sitting behind the driver’s seat. The impact threw her forward, and her head hit the back of the seat. But more concerned about her ears, which were bleeding from the concussive sound, she didn’t feel the neck pain until hours later. She was seen by a doctor who chalked it up to whiplash, and she was back out on a mission the next day.

Months later, the headaches and vertigo lingered, as did the severe neck pain. But concerned about her Air Force career, Pearsall didn’t seek treatment. Her deployment ended in March, and she became a student at Syracuse University for a year to hone her photography skills.

She had become accustomed to hiding her pain and the emotional after-effects of combat from others, but was unable to keep them from a friend -- a fellow photographer and Vietnam veteran -- who recognized the signs of post-traumatic stress. He connected her with a Vet Center, where she began counseling.

“It definitely helped me work through a lot of emotions and stress,” she said. “I knew whatever I said to [my therapist] wouldn’t go back to my active-duty command. There was no threat of losing my career.”

After school, Pearsall went on back-to-back deployments, first to Africa, then to Lebanon and finally, back to Iraq. The difference between her first and second Iraq deployments was like night and day, she said. In 2003, she never fired her weapon, but in 2007, she fired it constantly.

Her unit experienced heavy casualties in Diyala province. Pearsall saw bodies of Iraqis who had been executed and mutilated, and comrades shot just a few feet away, which she later had to photograph. People getting wounded or killed was a daily occurrence, she said.

A series of back-to-back events took their toll. Pearsall lost three teammates, and a day later, her video partner was wounded and evacuated. Another friend had been shot in the head right in front of her. “Nothing prepares you for the death of your friends,” she said.

Her photos from that time are haunting.

In one photo, three soldiers are gathered in a dimly lit room, faces downward as if in reflection, a single light shining through a window. Two days before, their teammate had been shot in the head just 10 feet away from where they were standing. In another photo, two soldiers are comforting each other, one close to tears, after the loss of a friend the day before.

“I’m eternally tied to the photographs that I made and those soldiers who were in those photographs,” she said.

The photographer said she had to keep her emotions in check, for her teammates and for the troops who served under her. “I think I handled things pretty well by just not addressing the emotions at the time,” she said.

Pearsall was injured again -- further damaging her neck -- when a roadside bomb detonated during a mission. A few months later, her unit was ambushed. She was running out to help a wounded soldier in the street when a cord attached to her helmet snapped her back. Her head slammed on a Stryker vehicle, again injuring her neck.

The next morning, she felt neck pain unlike anything she had felt before, and she knew it was time to get help. The doctors did an X-ray and she was on a helicopter that day. Her neck injury had grown so severe, the doctors told her, that if she had jolted her head one more time, it would have severed her spinal cord.

Pearsall’s greatest fear -- losing her career -- was now at hand, she said. And her husband, a strong source of support, was deployed at the time. “It was a really ugly time in my life,” she said.

The years of wearing 85 pounds of gear had wreaked havoc on her neck. The doctors told her she wouldn’t be able to work as a photographer or pursue another passion, riding horses, again.

But Dr. Patrick Lovegrove, an Air Force flight surgeon at the time, offered her hope through prolotherapy treatment -- which involves insertion of a 4-inch needle down to the bone -- that lasted for more than two years. Pearsall was able to get off of the pain killers and finally on the road to physical recovery.

Invested in her recovery, her doctor separated from the Air Force, but continued to donate his services to her until the therapy ended in 2009 and she switched over to the VA system.

“I’ll always owe him a debt of gratitude,” she said. The therapy enabled her to ride horses and take photos again, but she knew she’d always have some degree of pain from her degenerative condition.

“It was either adapt to life or shrivel up and die,” she said. Pearsall chose to adapt.

But the loss of her Air Force career affected her, as did the emotional wounds of war that she had pushed aside to focus on her physical recovery. She started seeing a mental health therapist about a year after her deployment.

“The military told me I couldn’t be a photographer for them anymore,” she said. “Mentally, that put me on a roller coaster. What am I good for?”

Pearsall found an answer at the VA medical center in Charleston. While she sat for hours in waiting rooms, she began to notice the men and women around her. Most of the veterans there were from the Vietnam era, and she reached out to hear their stories. She felt inspired to bring her camera and take their portraits, leading to the project that now fills a wall there.

“Just because I was disabled, didn’t make me unable,” she said. “Once I wrapped my own mind around that, I could do more.”

Pearsall plans to keep up her veteran portrait work at VA hospitals in Georgia and North Carolina, then here, and to Maryland and Virginia as well. In another effort aimed at helping veterans, Pearsall provides horse therapy to veterans through a nonprofit group.

Most recently, Pearsall offered to have her story documented for the Defense Department’s “Real Warriors” campaign in hopes of encouraging other veterans and servicemembers to seek help. The campaign in sponsored by the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, and it features stories of service members who sought psychological treatment and continued successful military or civilian careers. Her profile is now posted on the Real Warriors website, http://realwarriors.net/.

“My hope is that if they watch my story, they’ll find a way to offload their burden,” she said. “Everyone wears a different amount, but it’s not necessary to carry it around with you all the time.”

Pearsall said the stigma that kept her from getting help has been greatly reduced through projects such as the Real Warrior campaign and through efforts by the Defense and Veterans Affairs departments.

For servicemembers still leery about getting care, Pearsall recommended online support networks, blogs and forums where people can go and shed their burdens. “You’ll see you’re not alone,” she said. “The loss of sleep, nightmares, anxiety, road rage -- they’re products of war.”

Pearsall also hopes leaders will gain a greater understanding of mental health issues and, above all, avoid judgment.

“Be positive and supportive,” she said. “You’re the first in line for that service member.”

While it’s been difficult to discuss, Pearsall said, she believes it’s important to share her story.

“If I get one person to get help if they’re having issues, then I feel like I’ve been successful,” she said.

Navy Conducts Maintenance and Modernization Performance Review

From Navy Regional Maintenance Command (NRMC) Public Affairs

NORFOLK (NNS) -- Commander, Navy Regional Maintenance Center (CNRMC) and the Executive Director of Surface Warfare for Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA-SEA 21B) participated in the Navy's inaugural maintenance and modernization performance review (MMPR) in San Diego, April 26-27.

Capt. David Gale, commander, Navy Regional Maintenance Center; and Bilyana Anderson, executive director, NAVSEA-SEA 21B; spoke to more than one hundred military, civilian and contract personnel who are involved in all facets of surface ship maintenance and modernization.

"The failure point for us is anyone here today who doesn't see they are a part of this important effort," said Gale. "Whether you are a member of ship's force, a commanding officer of a ship or regional maintenance center (RMC), a type commander representative, contractor, or port engineer; we all play a critical role in getting maintenance right."

Gale and Anderson encouraged all MMPR participants to engage in frank and open discussions during the event in an effort to better identify performance gaps that were discernible during maintenance availabilities and to, in turn, provide solutions for RMCs' and ships' respective challenges.

"As the end-to-end process that is surface ship maintenance and modernization continues to evolve, we need to standardize and align our practices," said Gale. "From the way we train our workforce to the way we identify maintenance work, we need to work together to support ships and sustain their service lives."

Program managers and port engineers from each of the RMCs were among those who briefed detailed data on their recent maintenance availabilities.

Among the multitude of topics discussed during the course of the MMPR were the successes and challenges of various ships' maintenance availabilities, the surface ship maintenance initiative, total ship readiness assessments, multi-ship/multi-option contracts, and NRMC's development of a standardized workforce development program.

Between briefs, Anderson spoke to the MMPR attendees about program changes within Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), and the ways those changes would impact funding for future surface ship maintenance work.

Anderson also encouraged the use of valid and reliable metrics, along with well-defined and standardized practices to improve the likelihood of proper funding and contract coverage for maintenance availabilities.

"We are completely aligned; we have resources available to support your efforts," said Anderson. "I'd like to ask for each of you to share in our sense of passion and urgency, and acknowledge there should be an agreement among us about the best ways we can support each other in sustaining our surface fleet and commit ourselves to moving forward."

Gale concluded the conference by reinforcing his message encouraging quality through partnership, alignment and quantifiable performance.

"We want to work together in a standardized, repeatable way to ensure our engineering and work certification processes are uniform," said Gale. "We want to ensure our ships are ready to go to sea on time, with the right degree of quality at the right cost.

"Our work here at the MMPR is about laying bear to our individual and collective maintenance issues, and identifying ways to mitigate and resolve them in the most expedient and efficient manner possible," said Gale.

The next MMPR event will be held in Newport News, Va., in November 2011.

Soldier Missing in Action from WWII Identified

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a serviceman, missing in action from World War II, have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial with full military honors.

Pfc. Robert B. Bayne, of Dundalk, Md., will be buried on May 7 in his hometown.  On March 28, 1945, while patrolling the Rhine River in an inflatable raft, Bayne, a lieutenant and two other enlisted men were attacked near Schwegenheim, Germany.  Bayne and the officer were wounded, forcing all four men into the swift waters of the river.  The lieutenant was rescued but the enlisted men were not found.

Between 1945 and 1946, Army Graves Registration personnel exhumed remains of three men from two different locations when German citizens reported the graves contained remains of American soldiers recovered from the river in March 1945.  Among items found with the remains were military identification tags.  Two of the men were identified as enlisted men from the raft -- Pvt. Edward Kulback and Pfc. William Gaffney -- but due to limited forensic science of the time, the remains of the other individual could not be identified and were interred at the U.S. Military Cemetery in St. Avold, France as “unknown.”

In 1948, the remains of the unknown soldier were exhumed to compare them to available records for Bayne.  After several years of analysis the remains could not be identified and were reinterred as unknown at the Rhone American Cemetery and Memorial in Draguignan, France, in 1951.

More than 60 years later, analysts from DPMO and the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) developed case leads, evaluated records and determined that modern forensic technology could offer methods to identify the remains.  In 2010, the remains were exhumed once again for analysis.

Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC used dental comparisons and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory used mitochondrial DNA -- which matched that of Bayne’s brothers -- in the identification of his remains.

At the end of the war, the U.S. government was unable to recover and identify approximately 79,000 Americans.  Today, more than 74,000 are unaccounted-for from the conflict.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO website at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call 703-699-1169.

Korean War Soldiers Receive ‘Hall of Heroes’ Induction

By Terri Moon Cronk

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2011 – The nation’s two most recent Medal of Honor recipients were added to the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes roster today in what Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III said is a tribute to their enduring valor.

The Hall of Heroes induction followed yesterday’s White House ceremony in which President Barack Obama presented the nation’s highest military honor posthumously to Anthony T. Kaho’ohanohano and Henry Svehla, both Army privates 1st class when they were killed in action in the Korean War.

Kaho’ohanohano was honored for his actions of Sept. 1, 1951 when he led a machine-gun squadron with the 7th Infantry Division’s 17th Infantry Regiment, Company H.

“Kaho’ohanohano will always be remembered for the lone assault that saved his comrades, and then inspired their counter attack,” Lynn told the gathering of families, friends and dignitaries. “His last words -- reportedly, ‘I’ve got your back,’ -- are a creed our soldiers carry with them today whenever they go in harm’s way.”

Svehla’s medal was for his actions of June 12, 1952 when he served in Korea as a rifleman with the 7th Infantry Division’s 32d Infantry Regiment, Company F.

“Svehla, similarly, put the security of his fellow troops above his own life,” Lynn said. “His courageous counter attack after being fired upon during a reconnaissance mission saved his unit from defeat. And throwing himself on a grenade, he gave the last full measure of his devotion to his men, and to the country he swore to defend.”

With their names now inscribed on a wall, the legacies of Kaho’ohanohano and Svehla are enshrined in the Hall of Heroes, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey said.

“The courage, resilience and tenacity of Anthony and Henry and those they fought alongside and protected every day in one of our more difficult wars, contributed immeasurably to our unmatched legacy as an army, as a force that stands against tyranny, protects the weak, and champions freedom,” Dempsey said.

Army Undersecretary Joseph Westphal said the soldiers’ actions continue to make contributions today.

“The actions of Kaho’ohanohano and Svehla,” he said, “are a timeless inspiration for soldiers who are, once again, fighting America’s enemies in faraway places, and under very challenging conditions.”

Dempsey presented Hall of Heroes induction plaques to family members Eugene

Kaho'ohanohano and Sylvia Svehla at the end of the induction ceremony.

This Day in Naval History - May 04

By the Navy News Service

1917 - First Navy ships, Destroyer Division 8, arrive at Queenstown, Ireland, to provide convoy escorts against German U-boats.

1942 - Battle of Coral Sea, first carrier vs. carrier battle, begins.

1945 - Japanese attempt to land on Okinawa repulsed; kamikaze attacks damage 6 U.S. Navy ships.

1961 - Cdmr. Malcolm D. Ross, USNR, and medical observer Lt Cmdr. Victor A. Prather Jr., ascended in two hours to over 11,000 feet in Strato-Lab 5, a 411-foot hydrogen filled balloon launched from the deck of USS Antietam. This was the highest altitude attained by man in an open gondola. Tragically, Prather drowned during the recovery.

1994 - Operation Restore Hope begins in Somalia.

SECNAV, VCNO Address Senior Leaders, SARCs at Summit

By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Christine Hannon, Navy Public Affairs Southeast – East

ORLANDO, Fla. (NNS) -- The secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) and vice chief of naval operations (VCNO) addressed Navy and Marine Corps leaders and sexual assault response coordinators (SARCs) at the second annual Department of the Navy (DoN) Sexual Assault Prevention Summit in Orlando May 3.

Secretary Ray Mabus identified three areas of improvement that senior leadership throughout the service needed to address in order to break the back of sexual assault.

"Prevention, intervention and 'help seeking' behavior; those are the three things we have to stress," Mabus said. "We've got to improve our prevention. We've got to make sure people know they should, and need to, intervene. And we've got to strongly support our survivors and strengthen post-assault investigations."

Mabus went on to discuss the role and responsibility of leadership in the efforts of combating sexual assault. He stated that he would hold commanding officers accountable for their command's sexual assault prevention programs and demanded that they properly train their personnel.

The SECNAV concluded by stressing the necessity of ridding sexual assault from the Navy and Marine Corps.

"If we are to remain the greatest expeditionary fighting force the world has ever known, we cannot allow this to continue," Mabus said. "If we are going to protect our shipmates, we cannot allow this to continue. If we are going to remain the Navy and Marine Corps people look up to, and should look up to, this cannot continue."

Sexual assault is a criminal offense, incompatible with DoN's core values, Navy ethos and high standards of professionalism and personal discipline.

"Sexual assault is a crime, not just an unfortunate incident," said Adm. Jonathan W. Greenert. "It hurts a Shipmate and affects the readiness of the entire unit. Ultimately, our challenge to eliminate sexual assaults will be resolved by leadership - at the unit level."

Greenert encouraged Navy senior leaders set goals for preventing sexual assault.

"We've made progress in the care and treatment of sexual assault victims," Greenert said. "Our focus should shift to prevention. Commands need to set measurable goals, track progress locally and treat sexual assault as an untoward incident at the unit level."

Many commanding officers in attendance will take what they have learned at the summit back to their respective commands to apply new leadership strategies.

"The biggest take-a-way for me, from this summit, is the power of bystander intervention," said Capt. Lou Cariello, commanding officer, Naval Construction Battalion Center (NCBC)/commander, 20th Seabee Readiness Group.

"We're going to talk a lot more about the importance of figuring out how you go about having the courage to stand up and do what's right to prevent something bad from happening in the future," Cariello said. "And to applaud people for doing things that are smart and courageous."

This year's summit focuses on sexual assault prevention and the impact of alcohol on sexual assaults.

The DoN Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO) is responsible for oversight of the DoN's sexual assault policy. SAPRO works hand-in-hand with the services and the civilian community to develop and implement innovative prevention and response programs.

Bataan Sailors, Marines Stay Connected with United Through Reading

By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Elijah G. Leinaar, USS Bataan Public Affairs

USS BATAAN, At Sea (NNS) -- Multipurpose amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5) officially kicked of the ship's United Through Reading (UTR) program with Bataan's executive officer recording a reading session for his daughter, May 3.

Capt. Erik Ross, along with other Sailors and Marines aboard Bataan, have been signing up and filling each available recording session to help them stay connected with their loved ones back home throughout the ship's current deployment to the Mediterranean Sea.

"UTR is a very successful program that has an established track record of being very meaningful to service members over the years," said Cmdr. Steven Souders, USS Bataan command chaplain. "One of the fundamental joys of parenting is being able to read a book with your children. When we are separated for deployment that joy doesn't have to end."

UTR was founded by the Family Literacy Foundation and has enabled thousands of deployed service members to read and record stories to their friends and family members, regardless of location. The reading is recorded directly to DVD and sent home to offer the recipient a few moments with their deployed love one.

"It's important for the crew to have the opportunity to stay connected with their families back home during deployments; UTR certainly helps with that," said Ross. "I enjoy being able to take some time and read to my kids as if I were home, and I know they enjoy being able pop in the DVD and spend time with dad—even if it's just a few minutes."

The program was designed to boost family morale and to help children and parents better cope with deployments.

"Staying in touch is so important, and this program does that," said Ship's Serviceman 1st Class (SW) Jose Gotay, a UTR participant. "I think my son will go up to our TV and hug it, and my daughter will pat my head on the TV and tell me it's alright."

Work rarely stops while underway, so having a chance to get away from the day-to-day requirements and spend some time dedicated to family can be a stress reliever.

"My children have the knowledge that even though I am far away from home, they're always in my thoughts, and they are always worth spending time with," said Religious Program Specialist 1st Class(SW) Lunar Odhiambo, USS Bataan UTR program coordinator. "UTR provides a meaningful opportunity for a powerful emotional connection that helps relieve the stress of separation by having a deployed parent."

There is no limit on how many times service members can participate during a deployment.

"I actually started recording myself reading before we got underway, so my kids will know … even though I may be anywhere in the world, that daddy still loves them," said Gotay.

Bataan's program has flourished during the last several deployments and is expected to continue to be a popular resource for Sailors, Marines and their families. UTR will continue for as long as the ship is deployed.

To find out more about United Through Reading, visit www.unitedthroughreading.org.

Navy Supports Earth Week on Guam

By Anna-Victoria Crisostomo, U.S. Naval Forces, Marianas Public Affairs

GUAM (NNS) -- Volunteers from Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Marianas and Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit (EODMU) 5 participated in a day-long cleanup effort to support events in recognition of Earth Week on Guam April 30.

The volunteers kicked off the day by cleaning up Tanguisson Beach and Park in Dededo. They collected 60 bags of trash that had once scattered the shoreline and Tanguisson park facility, and were able to separate bags of glass and plastic for recycling.

According to Paul Wenninger, NAVFAC Marianas natural resources specialist and coordinator of the event, volunteers removed more than 400 bags of trash from the Tanguisson area in the past three years.

"The Navy's very involved with helping the public and doing volunteer work, and this is an opportunity for us to clean a beach that has public access," Wenninger said. "We like to come out and go to a public beach and do a cleanup that can benefit the whole island."

Gunner's Mate 1st Class (EXW) Ronald Sherman, EODMU 5, said everyone should have a hand in preserving Guam's natural treasures.

"It's very important that we're out here at the beaches or where people hang out," Sherman said. "If you don't take care of the beaches then it's going to be overran by trash."

Wenninger agreed wholeheartedly with Sherman.

"We should take pride in our island," Wenninger said. "This is the Navy's way of giving back to the community."

Military representatives also participated in the Guahan (GWAH-hawn), or Guam, Earth Festival at the Governor Joseph Flores Beach Park in Tumon on the same day. Alongside government of Guam entities including the Guam Energy Office and Guam Environmental Protection Agency, Joint Region Marianas (JRM), NBG, and Andersen Air Force Base (AFB) energy managers promoted conservation, energy efficiency, and wildlife preservation and protection. They also passed out environmental-friendly, reusable shoulder bags, pens, pencils, and other items with conservation messages.

"Joint Region Marianas wants to support our sister villages and Guam in showing our support for an island sustainability concept – a 'one Guam concept' – and saving energy," said Kevin Evans, JRM energy manager. "We're all one community here. So, pardon the cliche, no one's an island. We have to work together, and we're all in this together."

Personnel from the Andersen AFB environmental team promoted the base's recycling program and Natural Resources Conservation Office. Barbara Torres, Andersen Environmental Team Pollution Prevention Program environmental protection specialist, said her team was there to give Guam residents a look at environmental measures being taken aboard Andersen AFB.

"For the recycling side, we just wanted to share with people what we do at Andersen; how we recycle in the offices and at the homes, and how from that recycling, how it goes to the facility and it gets recycled either on island or off island," she said.

To learn more about conservation measures, contact your installation energy manager.

Air Guard Assists Critical-care Evacuations

By Donna Miles

American Forces Press Service

RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany, May 3, 2011 – Minutes after takeoff here, Air Force Col. (Dr.) Charles Chappuis jumped to his feet aboard a C-17 Globemaster III aircraft to check on Army Spc. Adam Castagna, one of three critical patients under his care being transported to the United States for advanced medical care.

Chappuis is the surgeon for a three-person Air National Guard air transport team deployed to Ramstein to treat critically wounded and ill patients flown from the combat theater.

Castagna was among 24 patients aboard the April 29 aeromedical evacuation flight to Joint Base Andrews, Md. Seven patients were in critical condition, requiring two critical-care teams –- in this case, an Air National Guard team and an active duty team –- to monitor them continually during the eight-hour flight.

Eleven days earlier, 14 days shy of his 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment’s redeployment to Vilseck, Germany, Castagna had been on a patrol in the Panjwai district of Afghanistan’s Kandahar province. An enemy attack on his platoon, and the explosion that ensued resulted in the wounding of his right eye and liver which ultimately cost 37-year-old Castagna his spleen, his younger brother, Mike, explained.

In past conflicts, patients with wounds as severe as Castagna’s never could have been transported so early in their recovery. But the critical care air transport teams have changed all that, said Air Force Lt. Col. (Dr.) Raymond Fang, trauma director at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.

The teams not only speed up the process of moving patients to increasingly more advanced care closer to their loved ones, but also free up hospital space needed for newer battlefield casualties.

“We can’t hold everybody at Bagram [Airfield in Afghanistan], and we can’t hold everybody until they are well at Landstuhl,” Chappuis said. “We have to keep them moving, because there are more coming. And if we don’t move them, then we reach our chokepoint. So our goal is to progressively move them until they are back in the United States.”

With every patient move, he said, the goal is to provide “not only first-class care, but a step up in the advancement of care.”

The critical-care teams work closely with primary-care and trauma teams to ensure patients’ movement through that continuum of care is as safe and smooth as possible. “We get them to as good as we can get them before they get on the aircraft” to minimize, and ideally, eliminate complications, Chappuis said.

With about 750 pounds of high-tech medical equipment that essentially turns an aircraft into an airborne intensive-care unit, the teams ensure there’s no lapse in patient care during transport.

“Our environment has been described as a flying ICU, and I think we provide the equivalent high-tech medicine that you would get if you were in an ICU in Washington, D.C.,” Chappuis said. “We have all the drugs and all the equipment to monitor the patients. And I think the proof of that is our success rates are so good.”

In January, the Air Guard readopted the critical-care transport team mission, which it had phased out about six years ago, bringing welcomed support to active-duty and Air Force Reserve teams that had been conducting the mission, along with a wealth of civilian trauma-care experience.

Chappuis, for example, has 30 years of surgical experience under his belt. When not in uniform with the Louisiana Air National Guard, he works as a professor of clinical surgery at Louisiana State University School of Medicine and as chief of surgery at the University Medical Center in Lafayette, La.

In addition to being a Kentucky Air Guardsman, Air Force Lt. David Worley, the team’s critical care nurse, works in his civilian capacity as a cardiac catheterization lab nurse at a hospital in Louisville, Ky. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Chris Howard, from the North Carolina Air National Guard, works as a respiratory therapist for the team, and also as a civilian at Carolinas Medical Center Pineville near Charlotte, N.C.

“From a Guard standpoint, we bring a tremendous amount of experience from the civilian world,” Chappuis said. “We do this almost every day at home, and it brings a tremendous amount of medical experience to the fight.”

Air Force Lt. Col. Kathleen Flarity, commander of aeromedical evacuation at Bagram, called incorporating the Air Guard into critical care teams “a great idea.” The biggest plus, she said, is the wealth of clinical experience the Guardsmen bring to the mission.

“They are phenomenal –- really smart, talented people,” she said.

Air Force Staff Sgt. Napolean Gifford, an active-duty respiratory therapist with the 10th Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Flight, said he’s happy to work side by side with experienced Guard critical-care teams.

“It really helps, because they bring a lot of trauma experience from working at large trauma centers,” said Gifford, a Douglas, Ga., native.

With a steady load of patients being transported from the combat theater to Landstuhl and on to Andrews, Fang welcomed the expanded the pool of military professionals qualified to conduct critical-care air transport missions, noting that the number of people with their experience is limited, and the training experience in the Guard broadens the pool of people qualified to serve on the teams.

Developing the clinic skills and abilities for critical-care transport teams takes years, Chappuis explained. Beyond the traditional critical-care skill sets, it requires about five weeks of highly specialized training.

The training culminates with a demanding two-week Center for Sustainment of Trauma and Readiness Skills, or C-STARS, training at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio, where simulation that replicates realistic scenarios subjects trainees to the most extreme rigors they’ll face in critical-care transport.

“It is kind of like the ‘Wizard of Oz,’” Chappuis said. “There is somebody in the back room controlling the computer and videotaping everything, and then there is another person in the room actually watching you. And you are graded every time you go through the simulation.”

Successful completion of C-STARS is required before deploying for CCAT duty. “By the time you complete the course, you have demonstrated if you can cut it or not,” Chappuis said. “If you don’t make the cut at C-STARS, then you don’t deploy.”

While the teams are trained and equipped to treat the most severe medical complications in the most challenging in-flight situations, Fang said, the goal is to ensure a calm, controlled airborne experience.

“They are almost like the firemen,” he said of the critical-care teams. “You want them on the plane if the patient has problems, but ideally, it is a standard ICU shift. And in most ICU shifts, you don’t see people running around like crazy. You have it calm, and there is a plan, and you take care of the patient.”

Mike Castagna praised the care the transport team and every other military medical professional has provided since his brother was wounded. “The care he has gotten every step of the way has been exceptional,” he said. “It has far exceeded anything I have ever seen in a civilian hospital.”

Castagna’s movement through his continuum of care hasn’t been without its roller-coaster moments. He received initial care at the Kandahar Airfield Hospital, then the Staff Sgt. Heathe N. Craig Joint Theater Hospital at Bagram before making the seven-hour aeromedical evacuation flight her to get treatment at Landstuhl. During that flight, one of Castagna’s arteries burst, and a critical-care transport team immediately put him on life support, his brother said.

Castagna’s entire family and his fiancée flew to Germany to be with him, fearing the worst. But accompanying his brother during the flight to Andrews, Castagna marveled at his progress since the live-saving intervention.

“Literally, in a day and a half, he went from being on life support to talking with us,” he said.

Guardsmen say the chance to make a difference for wounded warriors like Castagna makes then want to be part of the all-volunteer mission. “Nobody called us up and said, ‘Hey, it is your turn,’” Chappuis said.

Howard, at Ramstein for a six-month deployment, said he jumped at the critical-care air transport opportunity as soon as the Air Guard adopted the mission. “It’s satisfying,” he said. “For me, it was a way to give back.”

“The opportunity to come here and help kids get home is a great opportunity for me, and that is why I chose to do it,” agreed Worley. “It’s a very good mission. It’s what we would want for our own families.”

That’s exactly what Chappuis said he tells his wife when he explains why he volunteered.

“I have grown children. If it was one of my children, I would want the absolute best care for them to make these multiple flights from Afghanistan or Iraq back to the United States,” he said. “And if that is my desire for my children, I should be ready to pony up and do it myself.”

Mrs. Mullen Spotlights Family Issues in New Blog

By Elaine Sanchez

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2011 – Building resilience and providing long-term support are keys to strengthening military families and better equipping them to weather the frequent, multiple deployments so prevalent in this decade of war, the wife of the nation’s top military officer said.

“We’ve never asked a generation of families to do what this one has done,” Deborah Mullen, wife of Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said. “We need to make sure they know we care about them, we care about their service, and we will be with them for the long haul.”

This message of assistance and support is one Mullen is working to pass on to as many service members, veterans and their families she can reach -– whether it’s on a trip across the nation with her husband, a tweet sent out on Twitter or, in her most recent social media venture, a blog.

Through her new “Family Forum” blog, Mullen plans to write on a wide range of family-related topics, including resilience, veteran and spouse employment and education, and psychological health and well-being. She also will pass on the latest information regarding support programs and resources.

“I have a number of ideas I think will span a lot of issues,” she said.

Her first post, “Family Forum: Supporting Military Families Year Round,” will be featured today on American Forces Press Service’s Family Matters Blog.

Along the way, Mullen hopes to elicit comments from family members to gain an even greater insight into the challenges they face, building on knowledge she acquired first-hand as a Navy wife and from speaking with military families around the world.

Mullen was a young Navy spouse when she first decided to advocate on families’ behalf. Thirty years ago, she recalled, her husband was assigned to serve as the executive officer of a ship. The families of the ship’s sailors were dealing with a significant number of challenges and she decided to step in to help.

“I realized at that moment that there are challenges and difficulties that I may not realize, that I may not be experiencing, but someone else is,” Mullen said. That experience set her on a family-support journey that continues today.

This past decade of war in particular, with its frequent and lengthy deployments, has presented challenges that will resonate for years to come, she said.

Dwell time, which is the time at home between deployments, is still a “very significant problem,” Mullen noted.

“I know services are working hard to increase the dwell time, but it’s still not where it needs to be,” she said. “Service members, particularly in a unit with multiple deployments, have been gone for a significant amount of the last 10 years. Families need to have a true reintegration of the family unit.”

Military spouses also need access to stigma-free psychological health care, Mullen said. “The symptoms they’re experiencing, it’s affecting them and affecting their children, and they need to get help,” she said. “We don’t know what the cumulative effects of these deployments will be on these families.

“We’ve been at war for 10 years and we have a generation of children who have known only war, only worry and fear,” she added.

Mullen also touched on spouse employment. Spouses often have trouble transferring licenses and certifications between states. States need to work together to decrease the barriers they face, she said.

Mullen praised recent efforts to assist with these and other challenges, citing the White House’s new “Joining Forces” military family-support campaign. This national initiative aims to raise awareness of military families and then call on Americans to step up and support them.

She also highlighted her husband’s “Conversation with the Country,” an initiative to raise awareness in American communities about the value of veterans and their families.

Mullen said she hopes these efforts will continue to grow over time, and that communities will reach out to military families -– whether active duty, Guard, Reserve or veteran -– in their neighborhoods, schools and jobs to ensure they receive the support they need and deserve.

“Military families are in communities across the nation,” she said. “We just need to try and find out who they are, thank them for their service and then find out what we can do as a community to support them.”

Survivors Call bin Laden’s Death ‘Bittersweet’

By Elaine Sanchez

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2011 – When Wendy Duffman first heard that Osama bin Laden, al-Qaida’s leader and the mastermind behind 9/11, was dead, she felt a sense of elation, then relief.

Her brother, Air Force Tech. Sgt. Scott Eric Duffman, died four years ago in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan -- a war launched in the wake of the deadly terrorist attacks. And as an American Airlines flight attendant in 2001, she lost friends and colleagues on the planes that crashed into the Pentagon and Twin Towers, and onto a field in Pennsylvania.

“I woke up for the first time in four years feeling like my brother didn’t die in vain,” Duffman said.

The news of bin Laden’s death May 1 set off an emotional chain reaction across the nation. As the president prepared to brief the nation, hundreds of people gathered in front of the White House to celebrate the news and display their patriotism, waving American flags and singing the national anthem. Since then, social media networks have lit up with celebratory comments.

The reaction has been somewhat more subdued among surviving family members who lost a loved one on 9/11 or in the subsequent and related wars.

While elated at bin Laden’s death, Duffman said, she feels it’s a “small victory.”

“I don’t want people to forget there are others like bin Laden,” she said. “The war isn’t over. We still have troops in harm’s way.”

Many survivors have mixed emotions about the news, said Ami Neiberger-Miller, spokeswoman for the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, a support group for survivors of fallen military loved ones.

Neiberger-Miller noted that some people have talked of a sense of closure because of bin Laden's demise. Yet, “there’s not a sense of real closure; you can’t have closure from something like this,” she said.

Lisa Dolan understands that firsthand. Her husband, Navy Capt. Bob Dolan, was killed in the Pentagon on 9/11 when Flight 77 struck the building.

The news of bin Laden’s death seemed surreal at first, Dolan said, then bittersweet.

“Nothing will bring back my husband and the almost 3,000 men, women and children that were killed on Sept. 11, 2011,” she said. “Is there some vindication in the death of bin Laden? Maybe. However, I do feel incredibly proud of our military. They have sacrificed so much for our freedoms.”

Dolan’s son, Beau, was at college -– he’s a freshman at Notre Dame -- when he heard the news. At first he felt “dumbstruck,” he said. Then, “I started to realize how great it was, [and] the feeling of being dumbstruck transformed into sheer excitement.

“I couldn’t believe that it was finally over,” he said. “There seemed to be a chapter that had been finally finished in my life.”

In a display of unity, scores of students ran up and down the campus “quad” chanting “USA” and singing patriotic songs, he recalled.

“It really was an awesome experience and display of love for the country,” he said.

Dolan’s daughter, Rebecca, is coupling her excitement with caution.

“I’ve always had it in my mind that Osama bin Laden … might always be there looming,” she said. “I’m excited to think that there is one fewer terrorist out there. I also feel that there is still work to be done -- that bin Laden’s death does not signal the end of terrorism as we know it.”

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Trish Lawton also is concerned about the repercussions of bin Laden’s death. “It’s a little scary,” she said. “How many groups are going to want to avenge his death? How is that going to affect our normal day-to-day life? It brings me to wonder what lies ahead.”

Lawton learned of bin Laden’s death yesterday morning, while getting her two sons ready for school. Her husband, Marine Capt. Garret Lawton, was killed in 2008 by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan. The boys were ages 4 and 6 at the time of their father’s death, she said.

“I know that my late husband would have been elated that our servicemembers had a successful mission,” she said.

As for her sons, “Maybe they will feel some sort of peace that their dad played a part in eventually making today possible,” she said, close to tears.

While emotions seem to be running the gamut from elation to caution, Miller has traced a common thread of patriotism among survivors. Many people within the survivor community have changed their social networking profile picture to a patriotic symbol or to a picture of their lost loved one, she said.

Miller changed her Facebook profile picture to a picture of her brother’s tombstone. Army Spc. Christopher Neiberger was killed Aug. 6, 2007, in Baghdad.

“I would hope I would never celebrate the death of another human being, but I do feel that justice was served,” she said of bin Laden’s death. “I’m very proud of my brother and the military and all of those people who have given so much.

“It’s a momentous day for a lot of people,” she said.

Continuing Promise 2011 Arrives in Peru

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eric Tretter, Continuing Promise 2011 Public Affairs

PAITA, Peru (NNS) -- Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) arrived in Paita, Peru, for her second stop of Continuing Promise 2011 (CP11) April 30.

Following Comfort's initial humanitarian assistance visit in Kingston, Jamaica, the ship's crew of military and non-governmental organization doctors and nurses now face more diverse conditions and a language barrier in a different country, continent and hemisphere.

"One of the things we need to be aware of is every country we go to, you want to look at life from the perspective of patients that we're seeing," said Capt. William Todd, director for surgical services. "We need to take the time out from the job that we're doing here to try and enjoy their life from their perspective; and it only takes a couple of minutes per patient to do that."

Comfort's deployment to the region exemplifies the U.S. commitment to cooperative partnerships in the Caribbean, Central and South America.

Comfort's hospital, the Medical Treatment Facility (MTF), is configured with specialized medical teams of military and civilian health care providers. These caregivers provide a range of services ashore, as well as on board the ship for approximately 250 patients.

Combined with the overall medical screenings comes regional and area-specific ailments that team Comfort can expect to encounter while in Peru.

"It's really the diseases of poverty that we see here; like everywhere else," said Capt. Gregory Martin, who spent three years stationed at a Navy lab in Lima, Peru. "There's a lot of chronic skin disease, mild malnutrition, infection diseases, respiratory ailments … it's also so hot and sunny here that a lot of people develop pterygium, an eye condition common among peoples living near the equator."

Helping to bridge the language barrier between CP11 staff and patients is a team of 12 U.S. Air Force and Navy linguists, who are serving as interpreters for the final eight countries of the mission.

Along with providing translators for the variety of medical and civil service teams, the linguists have translated medical documents and command information packets, and have welcomed Peruvian dignitaries, doctors and media.

"Translating a document takes time, it's not just five or ten minutes, it takes hours," said Information Systems Technician 2nd Class Manuel Guzman.

Aside from medical capabilities, U.S. Navy Seabees and Marines from Navy Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 26 will continue CP11's work during civic engineering projects where they will revamp and repair schools throughout the community.

COMUSNAVSO/C4F supports U.S. Southern Command joint and combined full-spectrum military operations by providing principally sea-based, forward presence to ensure freedom of maneuver in the maritime domain, to foster and sustain cooperative relationships with international partners and to fully exploit the sea as maneuver space in order to enhance regional security and promote peace, stability, and prosperity in the Caribbean, Central and South American regions.

Navy to Christen Guided Missile Destroyer Michael Murphy

The Navy will christen the newest guided-missile destroyer, Michael Murphy, Saturday, May 7, 2011, during a 10 a.m. EDT ceremony at General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine.   The new destroyer honors Navy SEAL (Sea, Air, Land) Lt. Michael P. Murphy who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions during Operation Red Wings in Afghanistan June 28, 2005.

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead will deliver the ceremony's principal address.  Maureen Murphy will serve as sponsor of the ship named for her late son.  In accordance with Navy tradition, she will break a bottle of champagne across the ship’s bow to formally christen the ship.

Murphy led a four-man team tasked with finding a key Taliban leader in the mountainous terrain near Asadabad, Afghanistan, when they came under fire from a much larger enemy force with superior tactical position.  Mortally wounded while exposing himself to enemy fire, Murphy knowingly left his position of cover to get a clear signal in order to communicate with his headquarters. While being shot at repeatedly, Murphy calmly provided his unit’s location and requested immediate support for his element.  He returned to his cover position to continue the fight until finally succumbing to his wounds.

Designated DDG 112, Michael Murphy, the 62nd Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, will be able to conduct a variety of operations, from peacetime presence and crisis management to sea control and power projection.  Michael Murphy will be capable of fighting air, surface and subsurface battles simultaneously and will contain a myriad of offensive and defensive weapons designed to support maritime warfare in keeping with “A Cooperative Strategy for 21st Century Seapower.”

Cmdr. Thomas E. Shultz, a native of El Cajon, Calif., is the prospective commanding officer of the ship and will lead the crew of 279 officers and enlisted personnel.  The 9,200-ton Michael Murphy is being built by General Dynamics Bath Iron Works.  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.  Additional information on Arleigh Burke class destroyers is available online at http://www.navy.mil/navydata/fact_display.asp?cid=4200&tid=900&ct=4.

May - A Month of Appreciation and Remembrance

By Navy Adm. Mike Mullen

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

 America's support means so much to our military. In fact, as I travel the world to visit our men and women in uniform, what they want to know most is, "Are the American people still with us?"

I tell them that you are.

May is set aside as Military Appreciation Month to offer each of us the opportunity to recognize, honor, and show support for all who wear and have worn the uniform, along with the incredible families who serve alongside them.

Throughout the month, communities across the country will host events and activities at baseball games, auto races, concerts, parades and more to celebrate our troops and their families.

We will specifically recognize the extraordinary contributions and dedication of military wives and husbands on Military Spouse Appreciation Day on May 6, followed by Armed Forces Day on the 21st and culminating with Memorial Day weekend at the end of the month and the National Moment of Remembrance at 3 p.m. on the 30th.

Each of these days has a distinct and well-deserved focus. But they all share in common real human stories of sacrifice and service. Through these personal stories, we can hear the testimonies of those -- present and past -- who have given so much of themselves, including those who have given all.

We must never forget these men and women nor their families -- particularly our wounded warriors and the families of the fallen, whose lives and dreams have been forever changed by the sacrifice of their loved one.

As we enjoy everything that May has to offer and march towards the joys of summer, we can each reach out to show support in various ways, to listen to their special stories and to offer a simple "thanks for your service."

The Joint Chiefs of Staff and I salute our military and their families this month and every month, and just as importantly, we thank each of you for taking the time to show your support and care for those who do so much to take care of us.