By Army Staff Sgt. Michel Sauret
Special to American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - A tour of duty in Iraq isn't stopping a noncommissioned officer here from continuing to pursue his passion. Army Sgt. Scott Sperling has been fighting in Brazilian jujitsu since 2005, and now he trains with fellow servicemembers in the basement of the Multinational Division Center headquarters.
Sperling, a "lightweight" from Rochester, N.Y., said he keeps training for a simple reason.
"I like competition. It's kind of a release as well when you've been in the office all day, and then you get to go work out," Sperling said. "When I'm rolling full speed, I try not to think of anything. I just let it happen."
In the past three years, Sperling -- an intelligence analyst -- has competed in various Army fighting tournaments and in-house gym tournaments, was a top-10 finalist in his weight class at the Pan American Championships, earned a bronze medal at the American National Championships and a silver medal at the Jujitsu U.S. Open, and finished in third place at the North Eastern Grappling Championship No-Gi Tournament.
Sperling first got into jujitsu while stationed in Yongsan, South Korea. He advanced his training from 2006 to 2007 while studying Arabic at the Defense Language Institute, in Monterey, Calif.
Sperling earned his blue belt in December, shortly before moving to Fort Drum, N.Y., and subsequently deploying to Iraq. Sperling fills in as the instructor when his group trains, though he always welcomes everyone to bring new techniques to the mat -- whether practicing wrestling, grappling or submissions.
Training in jujitsu can be an intensive and rigorous commitment, especially if training for a tournament, he said. To prepare for a tournament, he trains five to seven times a week, lifting weights in the morning and practicing Jujitsu in the evening. Running to maintain cardiovascular fitness also is important for stamina.
"In jujitsu, there are a lot of different aspects to the game as far as strength and speed [are concerned]," he said.
Jujitsu was developed by Samurai as early as the 14th century. The word literally means the "art of softness." This fighting style consists of grappling and striking techniques that use an attacker's energy against him, rather than directly opposing it. Today, jujitsu is practiced both in its original form and in a modified form for sport practice.
Brazilian jujitsu combines elements of Kodokan judo in its fighting style. The moves can be complex, often requiring several steps just to assume control over the opponent. The Army uses Brazilian jujitsu as a standard for teaching soldiers combative training.
"It's definitely more technical [than other fighting styles]. ... You have to train the movements over and over and over," Sperling said. "Everyone can throw a punch, but not everyone knows how to wrap someone up and put him in an arm bar. ... In jujitsu, you also have to think at the same time. It's almost like a chess match."
For Sperling, one of the biggest challenges was overcoming his nervousness during big fights. One must be mentally sound to out-think an opponent, he said. The sport is less about explosiveness and more about versatility.
A clear mind also allows him to hear his coaches during competitions. Good training partners who can coach and shout out moves from outside the ring during a fight are very important too, he said.
"You have to be able to listen to their voices when they're coaching you," Sperling said. "A lot of times you get tunnel vision during the fight. So you have to practice [listening to them] in the gym before you go out there."
Sperling said some of his greatest memories in fighting range from body-slamming his opponent to standing inside a ring surrounded by the sheer energy of a crowd.
"You would not believe the intensity. You would not believe," he said. "I've had some friends go to tournaments who never went before – couldn't take their eyes off the mat. Screaming. They left there with no voice."
One factor Sperling said he found intimidating was seeing championship-fighting celebrities such as Ronaldo de Souza, Mike Fowler or Marcello Garcia watching him from the crowd.
"I learned from them, trying to take things from their instructional [videos] and put it in my game, and then I'll see them in the stands watching me," he added. "You know, it's crazy."
Sperling said he hopes to one day earn his black belt. For now, though, he continues to train while deployed to Iraq and takes the opportunity to teach others what he knows.
"It's my life now," he said. "I've been doing it for three years, and I want to continue to progress."
(Army Staff Sgt. Michel Sauret serves in Multinational Division Center.)
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Army Wrestler Earns Greco-Roman Berth in Beijing Olympics
By Tim Hipps
Special to American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - Army Staff Sgt. Dremiel Byers secured an Olympic berth by defeating U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program teammate Spc. Timothy Taylor in the Greco-Roman heavyweight finals of the U.S. Olympic team trials for wrestling June 15.
Three other soldiers reached the finals of their respective weight classes but fell short of earning spots on the U.S. Olympic Team during the three-day tournament at the University of Nevada Las Vegas' Thomas and Mack Center.
Byers, the 2002 Greco-Roman heavyweight world champion, defeated Taylor in their first match, 1-1, 4-0, but lost the second bout of their best-of-three series, 2-5, 2-1, 1-1.
"Taylor is pretty good at being a wall when he wants to," said Byers, 33, a native of Kings Mountain, N.C., who is stationed at Fort Carson, Colo., where he trains daily with Taylor. "I really don't have any tricks for him. He knows what I'm going to do every time.
"He's a fast learner, a quick study, and his body's coming together," Byers said of Taylor, a 2007 armed forces champion who finished second in the U.S. nationals and third in the U.S. World Team trials last year. "That first match, I saw it. And in that second match, I really saw it – this guy is coming, and he's defending hard. I knew it was time to take it up a notch and do what I'm supposed to do."
In the decisive third match, Byers dominated the first period, 4-0. In the second period, he scored five points with a high-amplitude throw of Taylor that ended the match and tournament in dramatic fashion.
"I just felt that if I worked my under hooks it would pay off, and right there in a clutch moment, it paid off – just like I had hoped," said Byers, who was interviewed by his former training partner and archrival, MSNBC wrestling analyst Rulon Gardner, who struck Olympic gold at the 2000 Sydney Games and bronze in the 2004 Athens Games.
"It's been a long road. It's been a real long road," said Byers, who thanked a long list of supporters -- including All-Army coach Staff Sgt. Shon Lewis -- who helped him along the way. "Some of it was luck, and a lot of it was hard work. I'm very fortunate to be here right now. I think life starts now."
Byers said he plans to fulfill the promise of winning an Olympic medal for his late grandfather, Theodore, in Beijing in August.
"He probably would have asked me why I lost that one match," said Byers, who won his spot on the Olympic team on Father's Day. "Coming out that tunnel, and every time I looked up, I said, 'I know you're watching. I know you're watching.' I wish he could be here."
Taylor made sure soldiers would be represented on the U.S. Olympic Team by reaching the 264.5-pound finals against Byers with a 3-0, 0-3, 1-1 victory over Russ Davie of New York Athletic Club.
"I knew whoever won the first period was winning the match, regardless of what happened," said Taylor, 25. "I had to get the first period -- got the first period. Tried to stand up in the second period and he kept me down, so I just stopped moving. Third period, same situation: if I don't get turned, I win.
"Coach has been always saying that you have to have heart with 30 seconds left to win the match," said Taylor, a proud, new father of 3-month-old Makyla Aleece Taylor. "Being Father's Day, I was thinking about her. Reached down, thought about her, stood up -- and once I stood up, there was no way he was getting a point."
Several other soldiers competed gamely in the Olympic Trials.
The World Class Athlete Program's Spc. Aaron Sieracki wrestled through longtime nemesis Jacob Clark, a former Marine, and WCAP teammate Sgt. Brad Ahearn, who grappled with a broken hand, before losing 6-0, 3-0 in the 84-kilogram Greco-Roman finals to New York Athletic Club's Brad Vering, a two-time Olympian and four-time World Team member.
"I wrestled well, overall -- just wish I had stepped it up a little more for the finals," Sieracki said. "I just made a couple of mistakes, and if you make a mistake here, it's going to cost you."
Nothing stung Sieracki, however, quite like seeing his older brother, Keith, leave his boots on the mat, signaling the end of a brilliant Army wrestling career.
"Wow, that's tough to talk about," said Aaron, who buried his head in his sweatshirt to absorb the tears of disbelief. "He's the one who drove me. He's why I'm where I'm at. I can't believe he's retiring. It just won't be the same without him."
Staff Sgt. Keith Sieracki, an Olympic Trials winner in 2000 and 2004, lost to New York Athletic Club's Cheney Haight in the 74-kilogram Greco finale of the challenge tournament. Walking off the mat for the final time gave Sieracki a bittersweet sense of relief.
"I was hoping to do it at the Olympics, but I knew this was my last go-around," Keith said. "If you don't have the fire, mentally, it's hard -- you're on auto-pilot. I gave it everything I had. I just didn't have anything left. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to make the Olympic team, but when it's all said and done, I've been in the top two [in the United States] for the last 13 years.
"The Army has given me the opportunity to wrestle this long. I can't say enough good things about the Army. I never in my life thought I would get such a privilege. I get to be a soldier and I get to wrestle for the Army and honor these guys. It's amazing."
Sieracki lost his 2000 Olympic spot in a legal battle with Matt Lindland, whom Keith defeated on the mat in the U.S. Olympic Trials at Reunion Arena in Dallas. He also made the 2004 team that failed to qualify the weight class for the Athens Games.
"Yep, I'm [the answer to] a trivia question," said Sieracki, 36, an 18-year Army veteran who will be remembered as a two-time U.S. Olympic Team member who never graced a mat in the Games. "But now the pressure is gone. I'm so tired of carrying that weight on my shoulders, of hearing, 'This is your year.'"
World Class Athlete Staff Sgt. Glenn Garrison made it to the 60-kilogram Greco-Roman finals, but lost back-to-back matches to New York Athletic Club's Joe Betterman.
"I feel like I wrestled good in my last match -- thought I took it to him," said Garrison, 34, a five-time armed forces champion from Portland, Ore. "In my first match, I made a couple of mistakes that really cost me. I just didn't come out hard enough."
WCAP's Pfc. Jeremiah Davis finished third in the same weight class with a 6-4, 6-0 consolation victory over C.C. Fisher.
WCAP's Spc. Faruk Sahin, 32, a two-time Turkish national champion, lost 2-3, 7-5, 3-0 to Minnesota Storm's Jake Deitchler in the 66-kilogram Greco finals. Sahin was leading 5-0 in the second period before the bottom fell out.
"I guess I wasn't pumped up enough to win, but that was a great match," Sahin said. "He just goes, goes, goes, goes -- that's his advantage -- but I did my best. I'm happy with my performance. Now, I'll get ready for the CISM World Championships." The International Military Sports Council is known by its French acronym, CISM.
En route to his Olympic Trials finale, Sahin eliminated 2004 Olympian and All-Army teammate Sgt. Oscar Wood from the challenge tournament semifinals.
"He is the epitome of a warrior," Lewis said of Wood, who defeated Deitchler, 8-0, 8-0, earlier this year at the Sunkist Invitational. "He just leaves it all on the mat. We have a little saying that some people wrestle to the death and some people are scared to death. He's definitely a wrestle-to-the-death kind of guy. Every single time, he brings it, and I don't know what it is about the Olympic Trials, but he wrestled his butt off. I was getting excited for him to be a back-to-back finalist in the Olympic Trials."
WCAP's Staff Sgt. Marcel Cooper, 37, also left his boots on the mat after losing to Gator Wrestling Club's Harry Lester in a Greco-Roman 66-kilo consolation bout. This was Cooper's second retirement from the sport.
"I left my shoes out there four years ago at this same tournament," said Cooper, who then was wrestling for the Marines. "I just have too many injuries. My body can't hold up any more. I've been doing this for a long time. Guys are just younger and stronger. I just can't compete at that level no more. That's not the way I wanted to go out, but I have no excuses. I had a good career.
"It's time to let it go," added Cooper, who began wrestling at age 5. "I have a bunch of surgeries I've got to get. My body was really telling me four years ago to let it go. But I have no complaints. I'd do it all over again. I gave it my best, but I want to be able to walk after all this is over."
Lewis, a 13-time armed forces champion on the mat, paid Cooper an ultimate compliment.
"We went at it several times, and I always had utmost respect for him because he was one of the only guys I knew in the United States who could stop my gut wrench," Lewis said.
Three soldiers competed in the women's freestyle tournament.
Sunkist Kids' 17-year-old Tatiana Padilla pinned WCAP's 1st Lt. Leigh Jaynes with 14 seconds remaining in a 55-kilogram freestyle semifinal.
"I just made a technical error," Jaynes said. "You need to be on your game at all times, and she stuck me in the last 20 seconds. It's heartbreaking, but she's a fighter, and I knew better to tie up with somebody who didn't have anything to lose at that point."
In the same weight class, 2nd Lt. Tina George, a two-time world silver medalist and seven-time U.S. World Team member, lost to Gator Wrestling Club's Sally Roberts in the semifinals before wrestling back to take third place with a consolation victory over GWC's Sharon Jacobson.
WCAP's Sgt. Iris Smith, a 2005 world champion and four-time U.S. Nationals champ, lost 1-0, 0-2, 3-0 in the women's 72-kilo challenge tournament semis to NYAC's Kristie Marano, a two-time world champ and nine-time world medalist, the most among U.S. women. Marano prevailed with a takedown in the final 20 seconds of the match.
"Iris definitely had the momentum going, and Kristie was tired," Lewis said. "That takedown really was a tough one for me. I expect my world champions to get it done, but when you lose, you can't say anything but we've got to get better."
Lewis said he realizes the end is near for a few more All-Army wrestlers.
"The gladiators are going to get moved out by the younger gladiators one day, and that's really what's happening," he said. "Over my 20-plus-year career in wrestling, I have never seen so many people retire at the same tournament. It's a changing of the guard, and that's the way it's supposed to be."
(Tim Hipps works in the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command Public Affairs Office.)
Special to American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - Army Staff Sgt. Dremiel Byers secured an Olympic berth by defeating U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program teammate Spc. Timothy Taylor in the Greco-Roman heavyweight finals of the U.S. Olympic team trials for wrestling June 15.
Three other soldiers reached the finals of their respective weight classes but fell short of earning spots on the U.S. Olympic Team during the three-day tournament at the University of Nevada Las Vegas' Thomas and Mack Center.
Byers, the 2002 Greco-Roman heavyweight world champion, defeated Taylor in their first match, 1-1, 4-0, but lost the second bout of their best-of-three series, 2-5, 2-1, 1-1.
"Taylor is pretty good at being a wall when he wants to," said Byers, 33, a native of Kings Mountain, N.C., who is stationed at Fort Carson, Colo., where he trains daily with Taylor. "I really don't have any tricks for him. He knows what I'm going to do every time.
"He's a fast learner, a quick study, and his body's coming together," Byers said of Taylor, a 2007 armed forces champion who finished second in the U.S. nationals and third in the U.S. World Team trials last year. "That first match, I saw it. And in that second match, I really saw it – this guy is coming, and he's defending hard. I knew it was time to take it up a notch and do what I'm supposed to do."
In the decisive third match, Byers dominated the first period, 4-0. In the second period, he scored five points with a high-amplitude throw of Taylor that ended the match and tournament in dramatic fashion.
"I just felt that if I worked my under hooks it would pay off, and right there in a clutch moment, it paid off – just like I had hoped," said Byers, who was interviewed by his former training partner and archrival, MSNBC wrestling analyst Rulon Gardner, who struck Olympic gold at the 2000 Sydney Games and bronze in the 2004 Athens Games.
"It's been a long road. It's been a real long road," said Byers, who thanked a long list of supporters -- including All-Army coach Staff Sgt. Shon Lewis -- who helped him along the way. "Some of it was luck, and a lot of it was hard work. I'm very fortunate to be here right now. I think life starts now."
Byers said he plans to fulfill the promise of winning an Olympic medal for his late grandfather, Theodore, in Beijing in August.
"He probably would have asked me why I lost that one match," said Byers, who won his spot on the Olympic team on Father's Day. "Coming out that tunnel, and every time I looked up, I said, 'I know you're watching. I know you're watching.' I wish he could be here."
Taylor made sure soldiers would be represented on the U.S. Olympic Team by reaching the 264.5-pound finals against Byers with a 3-0, 0-3, 1-1 victory over Russ Davie of New York Athletic Club.
"I knew whoever won the first period was winning the match, regardless of what happened," said Taylor, 25. "I had to get the first period -- got the first period. Tried to stand up in the second period and he kept me down, so I just stopped moving. Third period, same situation: if I don't get turned, I win.
"Coach has been always saying that you have to have heart with 30 seconds left to win the match," said Taylor, a proud, new father of 3-month-old Makyla Aleece Taylor. "Being Father's Day, I was thinking about her. Reached down, thought about her, stood up -- and once I stood up, there was no way he was getting a point."
Several other soldiers competed gamely in the Olympic Trials.
The World Class Athlete Program's Spc. Aaron Sieracki wrestled through longtime nemesis Jacob Clark, a former Marine, and WCAP teammate Sgt. Brad Ahearn, who grappled with a broken hand, before losing 6-0, 3-0 in the 84-kilogram Greco-Roman finals to New York Athletic Club's Brad Vering, a two-time Olympian and four-time World Team member.
"I wrestled well, overall -- just wish I had stepped it up a little more for the finals," Sieracki said. "I just made a couple of mistakes, and if you make a mistake here, it's going to cost you."
Nothing stung Sieracki, however, quite like seeing his older brother, Keith, leave his boots on the mat, signaling the end of a brilliant Army wrestling career.
"Wow, that's tough to talk about," said Aaron, who buried his head in his sweatshirt to absorb the tears of disbelief. "He's the one who drove me. He's why I'm where I'm at. I can't believe he's retiring. It just won't be the same without him."
Staff Sgt. Keith Sieracki, an Olympic Trials winner in 2000 and 2004, lost to New York Athletic Club's Cheney Haight in the 74-kilogram Greco finale of the challenge tournament. Walking off the mat for the final time gave Sieracki a bittersweet sense of relief.
"I was hoping to do it at the Olympics, but I knew this was my last go-around," Keith said. "If you don't have the fire, mentally, it's hard -- you're on auto-pilot. I gave it everything I had. I just didn't have anything left. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to make the Olympic team, but when it's all said and done, I've been in the top two [in the United States] for the last 13 years.
"The Army has given me the opportunity to wrestle this long. I can't say enough good things about the Army. I never in my life thought I would get such a privilege. I get to be a soldier and I get to wrestle for the Army and honor these guys. It's amazing."
Sieracki lost his 2000 Olympic spot in a legal battle with Matt Lindland, whom Keith defeated on the mat in the U.S. Olympic Trials at Reunion Arena in Dallas. He also made the 2004 team that failed to qualify the weight class for the Athens Games.
"Yep, I'm [the answer to] a trivia question," said Sieracki, 36, an 18-year Army veteran who will be remembered as a two-time U.S. Olympic Team member who never graced a mat in the Games. "But now the pressure is gone. I'm so tired of carrying that weight on my shoulders, of hearing, 'This is your year.'"
World Class Athlete Staff Sgt. Glenn Garrison made it to the 60-kilogram Greco-Roman finals, but lost back-to-back matches to New York Athletic Club's Joe Betterman.
"I feel like I wrestled good in my last match -- thought I took it to him," said Garrison, 34, a five-time armed forces champion from Portland, Ore. "In my first match, I made a couple of mistakes that really cost me. I just didn't come out hard enough."
WCAP's Pfc. Jeremiah Davis finished third in the same weight class with a 6-4, 6-0 consolation victory over C.C. Fisher.
WCAP's Spc. Faruk Sahin, 32, a two-time Turkish national champion, lost 2-3, 7-5, 3-0 to Minnesota Storm's Jake Deitchler in the 66-kilogram Greco finals. Sahin was leading 5-0 in the second period before the bottom fell out.
"I guess I wasn't pumped up enough to win, but that was a great match," Sahin said. "He just goes, goes, goes, goes -- that's his advantage -- but I did my best. I'm happy with my performance. Now, I'll get ready for the CISM World Championships." The International Military Sports Council is known by its French acronym, CISM.
En route to his Olympic Trials finale, Sahin eliminated 2004 Olympian and All-Army teammate Sgt. Oscar Wood from the challenge tournament semifinals.
"He is the epitome of a warrior," Lewis said of Wood, who defeated Deitchler, 8-0, 8-0, earlier this year at the Sunkist Invitational. "He just leaves it all on the mat. We have a little saying that some people wrestle to the death and some people are scared to death. He's definitely a wrestle-to-the-death kind of guy. Every single time, he brings it, and I don't know what it is about the Olympic Trials, but he wrestled his butt off. I was getting excited for him to be a back-to-back finalist in the Olympic Trials."
WCAP's Staff Sgt. Marcel Cooper, 37, also left his boots on the mat after losing to Gator Wrestling Club's Harry Lester in a Greco-Roman 66-kilo consolation bout. This was Cooper's second retirement from the sport.
"I left my shoes out there four years ago at this same tournament," said Cooper, who then was wrestling for the Marines. "I just have too many injuries. My body can't hold up any more. I've been doing this for a long time. Guys are just younger and stronger. I just can't compete at that level no more. That's not the way I wanted to go out, but I have no excuses. I had a good career.
"It's time to let it go," added Cooper, who began wrestling at age 5. "I have a bunch of surgeries I've got to get. My body was really telling me four years ago to let it go. But I have no complaints. I'd do it all over again. I gave it my best, but I want to be able to walk after all this is over."
Lewis, a 13-time armed forces champion on the mat, paid Cooper an ultimate compliment.
"We went at it several times, and I always had utmost respect for him because he was one of the only guys I knew in the United States who could stop my gut wrench," Lewis said.
Three soldiers competed in the women's freestyle tournament.
Sunkist Kids' 17-year-old Tatiana Padilla pinned WCAP's 1st Lt. Leigh Jaynes with 14 seconds remaining in a 55-kilogram freestyle semifinal.
"I just made a technical error," Jaynes said. "You need to be on your game at all times, and she stuck me in the last 20 seconds. It's heartbreaking, but she's a fighter, and I knew better to tie up with somebody who didn't have anything to lose at that point."
In the same weight class, 2nd Lt. Tina George, a two-time world silver medalist and seven-time U.S. World Team member, lost to Gator Wrestling Club's Sally Roberts in the semifinals before wrestling back to take third place with a consolation victory over GWC's Sharon Jacobson.
WCAP's Sgt. Iris Smith, a 2005 world champion and four-time U.S. Nationals champ, lost 1-0, 0-2, 3-0 in the women's 72-kilo challenge tournament semis to NYAC's Kristie Marano, a two-time world champ and nine-time world medalist, the most among U.S. women. Marano prevailed with a takedown in the final 20 seconds of the match.
"Iris definitely had the momentum going, and Kristie was tired," Lewis said. "That takedown really was a tough one for me. I expect my world champions to get it done, but when you lose, you can't say anything but we've got to get better."
Lewis said he realizes the end is near for a few more All-Army wrestlers.
"The gladiators are going to get moved out by the younger gladiators one day, and that's really what's happening," he said. "Over my 20-plus-year career in wrestling, I have never seen so many people retire at the same tournament. It's a changing of the guard, and that's the way it's supposed to be."
(Tim Hipps works in the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command Public Affairs Office.)
America Supports You: Group Helps Wounded Vets Secure Adaptive Housing
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - Wounded veterans have a new source to turn to when looking for housing to meet their individual challenges after the expansion of a successful pilot program in Texas. "Helping a Hero" has been working for the past year to provide adaptive homes to wounded veterans of the war on terrorism, said Meredith Iler, chairman of the organization's Wounded Hero Home Program.
"Our principal activity is to provide specially adapted homes for qualifying servicemembers as well as engaging the community to provide services and resources for our wounded heroes and their families," she said. "We have awarded 13 homes and have plans to award another 100 homes in the next 12 months."
All the houses the group provides are part of planned communities, she said. The developers donate a lot, and one of the builders in the community matches the amount of the donated land in construction costs.
The homes range from $200,000 to $300,000 in value, with an average of $250,000. Recipients of the homes are required to sign a contract prohibiting them from borrowing against the equity in the house for 10 years, however. That policy is non-negotiable; even if the loan were for a worthy cause like starting a business, it's too risky, Iler explained. If the business were to fail, the veteran and his or her family could lose the home.
"We're trying to establish stability in their lives," Iler said.
To that end, Helping a Hero doesn't just get veterans into homes and wish them well. The group also offers ongoing workshops to help them reintegrate into the community and works to connect them with community service organizations such as the Rotary Club.
These connections not only provide support and a sense of community, but also could lead to employment, Iler said.
Helping a Hero is a new supporter of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad. The group's hope is that this affiliation will help spread the word to qualified veterans, Iler said.
"Our goal is to provide a home to every single severely wounded Hero in the next 10 years," she added.
Full details on how to apply for an adaptive home through Helping a Hero are available on the organization's Web site.
American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - Wounded veterans have a new source to turn to when looking for housing to meet their individual challenges after the expansion of a successful pilot program in Texas. "Helping a Hero" has been working for the past year to provide adaptive homes to wounded veterans of the war on terrorism, said Meredith Iler, chairman of the organization's Wounded Hero Home Program.
"Our principal activity is to provide specially adapted homes for qualifying servicemembers as well as engaging the community to provide services and resources for our wounded heroes and their families," she said. "We have awarded 13 homes and have plans to award another 100 homes in the next 12 months."
All the houses the group provides are part of planned communities, she said. The developers donate a lot, and one of the builders in the community matches the amount of the donated land in construction costs.
The homes range from $200,000 to $300,000 in value, with an average of $250,000. Recipients of the homes are required to sign a contract prohibiting them from borrowing against the equity in the house for 10 years, however. That policy is non-negotiable; even if the loan were for a worthy cause like starting a business, it's too risky, Iler explained. If the business were to fail, the veteran and his or her family could lose the home.
"We're trying to establish stability in their lives," Iler said.
To that end, Helping a Hero doesn't just get veterans into homes and wish them well. The group also offers ongoing workshops to help them reintegrate into the community and works to connect them with community service organizations such as the Rotary Club.
These connections not only provide support and a sense of community, but also could lead to employment, Iler said.
Helping a Hero is a new supporter of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad. The group's hope is that this affiliation will help spread the word to qualified veterans, Iler said.
"Our goal is to provide a home to every single severely wounded Hero in the next 10 years," she added.
Full details on how to apply for an adaptive home through Helping a Hero are available on the organization's Web site.
Soldiers With Enlistment Waivers Find Success
By Army Sgt. Susan Wilt
Special to American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - When Army Staff Sgt. Clarence Masiwemai greets someone, it's with a large grin and firm handshake. Beneath his smile, his chest and arm are covered in badges and awards that showcase his Army accomplishments, including the Combat Infantryman Badge, Parachutist Badge and the esteemed Ranger tab. At 23, Masiwemai is a decorated combat veteran who's led paratroopers in Iraq. In many ways, he seems like the prototype of a paratrooper on an Army recruiting poster.
But Masiwemai wasn't always so picture-perfect. Before he joined the Army, he had an anger problem; if someone looked at him funny, he was ready to fight. In fact, he had so many brushes with the law because of his brawling that he needed a waiver to be allowed to join.
"If [someone] tried to make a joke and it was in reference to our friends, family or where we came from, we'd respond back with fists," said Masiwemai, the land and ammunition noncommissioned officer for Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, in reference to how he and his friends were. "Now I'm the one making the jokes."
According to Army Recruiting Command statistics, the past three years have seen a 65 percent increase in the number of recruits who needed conduct waivers to join the Army. Today, about one in eight new armed services recruits are let in on these waivers. Media outlets have reported on this with a tone of concern for the quality of today's soldiers.
But Bill Carr, deputy undersecretary of defense for military personnel policy, stresses that waivers don't mean the military relaxes its standards, and that each waiver decision is based on "solid judgment calls."
"Last year's [waivered enlistees] proved to perform; they retained as well as the non-waivered counterparts, and they wouldn't be retaining if they weren't performing," he told online journalists and bloggers in an April 25 conference call. "They are doing as well as the non-waiver crowd. Therefore, we are making correct bets on the risks that we take for someone that has done something that was that much of an aberration against what we expect of our teenagers."
In fact, a study by the Army's Human Resource Center showed that soldiers who enter the Army on a conduct waiver are more likely to re-enlist, are promoted quicker than their peers, and even win more awards and badges.
Like Masiwemai, Sgt. John Adkerson, a squad leader from the 82nd Airborne Division's Company A, 2nd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, was allowed to join the Army on a conduct waiver.
"Really, I joined because I wanted to -- I needed to -- keep myself out of trouble," said Adkerson, an Alpharetta, Ga., native.
Adkerson has done more than that. He's in charge of seven soldiers, has led paratroopers in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, and received a Purple Heart after being wounded by shrapnel from a mortar.
"He leads from the front," Army 1st Lt. Travis Pride, Adkerson's former platoon leader, said. "He's a good role model."
Adkerson will give advice to his soldiers even if they don't know they need it, Pride explained.
When he was a private first class, Adkerson passed Ranger School, an intense combat leadership course, paving the way for a speedy promotion to sergeant in a little over two years. The average soldier takes 4.2 years. Masiwemai -- "Masi" for short -- also took two years to be promoted to sergeant; it took him five and a half to make staff sergeant.
Masiwemai, an Island of Yap, Micronesia, native, said that as soon as he finished basic training, he started to notice a change in himself as well as a few of his comrades who also came in on conduct waivers.
"Right when they finished basic training was when they realized, 'Hey, this is helping me out. I'm changing. I'm becoming a better person than I once was,'" Masiwemai explained. He said he believes soldiers who required a waiver to enlist end up doing well because they strive to improve themselves.
"They try harder to stay in the military by having an outstanding performance, by learning their job and knowing that the military is a great place to change yourself," he explained.
Adkerson said he believes that granting waivers to Army hopefuls with a questionable past helps get them off the streets and out of trouble.
"Waivers are the right thing to do," Adkerson said. "Instead of keeping people out of the Army, it's going to help the kids and make them a better person to society. ... People say you join a gang to get a family. The Army's a tighter family than you'd ever have."
(Army Sgt. Susan Wilt serves in the 82nd Airborne Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs Office.)
Special to American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - When Army Staff Sgt. Clarence Masiwemai greets someone, it's with a large grin and firm handshake. Beneath his smile, his chest and arm are covered in badges and awards that showcase his Army accomplishments, including the Combat Infantryman Badge, Parachutist Badge and the esteemed Ranger tab. At 23, Masiwemai is a decorated combat veteran who's led paratroopers in Iraq. In many ways, he seems like the prototype of a paratrooper on an Army recruiting poster.
But Masiwemai wasn't always so picture-perfect. Before he joined the Army, he had an anger problem; if someone looked at him funny, he was ready to fight. In fact, he had so many brushes with the law because of his brawling that he needed a waiver to be allowed to join.
"If [someone] tried to make a joke and it was in reference to our friends, family or where we came from, we'd respond back with fists," said Masiwemai, the land and ammunition noncommissioned officer for Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, in reference to how he and his friends were. "Now I'm the one making the jokes."
According to Army Recruiting Command statistics, the past three years have seen a 65 percent increase in the number of recruits who needed conduct waivers to join the Army. Today, about one in eight new armed services recruits are let in on these waivers. Media outlets have reported on this with a tone of concern for the quality of today's soldiers.
But Bill Carr, deputy undersecretary of defense for military personnel policy, stresses that waivers don't mean the military relaxes its standards, and that each waiver decision is based on "solid judgment calls."
"Last year's [waivered enlistees] proved to perform; they retained as well as the non-waivered counterparts, and they wouldn't be retaining if they weren't performing," he told online journalists and bloggers in an April 25 conference call. "They are doing as well as the non-waiver crowd. Therefore, we are making correct bets on the risks that we take for someone that has done something that was that much of an aberration against what we expect of our teenagers."
In fact, a study by the Army's Human Resource Center showed that soldiers who enter the Army on a conduct waiver are more likely to re-enlist, are promoted quicker than their peers, and even win more awards and badges.
Like Masiwemai, Sgt. John Adkerson, a squad leader from the 82nd Airborne Division's Company A, 2nd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, was allowed to join the Army on a conduct waiver.
"Really, I joined because I wanted to -- I needed to -- keep myself out of trouble," said Adkerson, an Alpharetta, Ga., native.
Adkerson has done more than that. He's in charge of seven soldiers, has led paratroopers in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, and received a Purple Heart after being wounded by shrapnel from a mortar.
"He leads from the front," Army 1st Lt. Travis Pride, Adkerson's former platoon leader, said. "He's a good role model."
Adkerson will give advice to his soldiers even if they don't know they need it, Pride explained.
When he was a private first class, Adkerson passed Ranger School, an intense combat leadership course, paving the way for a speedy promotion to sergeant in a little over two years. The average soldier takes 4.2 years. Masiwemai -- "Masi" for short -- also took two years to be promoted to sergeant; it took him five and a half to make staff sergeant.
Masiwemai, an Island of Yap, Micronesia, native, said that as soon as he finished basic training, he started to notice a change in himself as well as a few of his comrades who also came in on conduct waivers.
"Right when they finished basic training was when they realized, 'Hey, this is helping me out. I'm changing. I'm becoming a better person than I once was,'" Masiwemai explained. He said he believes soldiers who required a waiver to enlist end up doing well because they strive to improve themselves.
"They try harder to stay in the military by having an outstanding performance, by learning their job and knowing that the military is a great place to change yourself," he explained.
Adkerson said he believes that granting waivers to Army hopefuls with a questionable past helps get them off the streets and out of trouble.
"Waivers are the right thing to do," Adkerson said. "Instead of keeping people out of the Army, it's going to help the kids and make them a better person to society. ... People say you join a gang to get a family. The Army's a tighter family than you'd ever have."
(Army Sgt. Susan Wilt serves in the 82nd Airborne Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs Office.)
Military Tracks Hurricane Dolly, Readies Relief Support
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - "Hurricane Hunters" from the Air Force Reserve's 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron flew through Hurricane Dolly last night and this morning as it headed toward the Texas coast, relaying critical data to National Weather Service forecasters in Miami. Six-person crews from the squadron have been tracking the storm since July 16, when it was a tropical disturbance over St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, reported Air Force 1st Lt. Douglas Gautrau, a squadron aerial reconnaissance weather officer aboard last night's mission.
Since then, the squadron has been flying its C-130J aircraft 24/7 out of its base at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., delivering near-real-time data to the National Weather Service.
Gautrau and his fellow crewmembers took off from Keesler at about 7 last night for a 10-hour mission, crisscrossing Dolly in what Gautrau described as an "alpha pattern." They used sophisticated onboard instruments and small "dropsonde" canisters dropped by parachute to collect the most accurate measurements of the hurricane's location and intensity. The canisters relay details about barometric pressure, wind speed and direction and other measurements to the aircraft during their descent until they hit the water, Gautrau explained.
After a quick quality-control check on the data collected, the crew forwarded it every 10 minutes to the National Hurricane Center.
The aircrews, which consist of an aircraft commander and copilot, flight engineer, navigator, weather officer and dropsonde operator, fly through rough turbulence and heavy rains during the missions. The heaviest turbulence occurs in the "eye wall," the circular area directly around the hurricane's eye.
Gautrau described last night's turbulence as "moderate," but "nothing too bad" as the aircraft encountered 75-knot wind speeds. "It can get pretty bumpy," he said.
Toward the end of the mission, Hurricane Dolly had strengthened, and its leading edge was approaching the Gulf Coast near the Texas-Mexico border. Heavy rain and sustained 95 mph winds pounded the coast as Dolly's eye headed toward Brownsville, Texas.
For Gautrau, last night's flight through Hurricane Dolly was a rite of passage: his first hurricane mission without the benefit of an instructor watching over his shoulder.
"At some points, I'd think, 'Holy cow. I'm in a hurricane,'" he said. "Other times, I'd think, 'Holy cow. I still have to do my job.'"
But with that mission now complete, Gautrau said, he's thrilled to have "the best weather job out there." A native of New Orleans, he said he understands the impact of severe weather and knows he and his fellow crewmembers are giving the National Weather Service the best data possible so it can make accurate forecasts.
"I get a lot of joy out of this job, and I feel that what we are doing is a great benefit to the public," he said.
As the Hurricane Hunters continued their missions, some 600 Texas National Guard members were on the ground, preparing to offer assistance after Hurricane Dolly makes landfall, reported Air Force Tech. Sgt. Gregory Ripps, a Texas Guard spokesman.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry authorized the call for up to 1,200 Texas Guardsmen, to assist civilian emergency responders preparing for the first storm to threaten the United States this hurricane season.
Troops were fanning out across the region, poised to provide search-and-rescue support and emergency relief as required, Ripps said. Shelter management teams were standing by in Brownsville and McAllen, and the Guardsmen set up distribution points in the towns of Alice and Weslaco.
Meanwhile, the Texas Guard's Joint Operations Center is maintaining contact with the State Operations Center, as both monitor the hurricane.
Officials predict rain accumulations of four to eight inches, with isolated deluges of 15 inches, over much of southern Texas during the next few days. Coastal flooding of four to six feet above normal tide levels, with dangerous battering waves, was predicted north of the storm's landfall.
American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - "Hurricane Hunters" from the Air Force Reserve's 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron flew through Hurricane Dolly last night and this morning as it headed toward the Texas coast, relaying critical data to National Weather Service forecasters in Miami. Six-person crews from the squadron have been tracking the storm since July 16, when it was a tropical disturbance over St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, reported Air Force 1st Lt. Douglas Gautrau, a squadron aerial reconnaissance weather officer aboard last night's mission.
Since then, the squadron has been flying its C-130J aircraft 24/7 out of its base at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., delivering near-real-time data to the National Weather Service.
Gautrau and his fellow crewmembers took off from Keesler at about 7 last night for a 10-hour mission, crisscrossing Dolly in what Gautrau described as an "alpha pattern." They used sophisticated onboard instruments and small "dropsonde" canisters dropped by parachute to collect the most accurate measurements of the hurricane's location and intensity. The canisters relay details about barometric pressure, wind speed and direction and other measurements to the aircraft during their descent until they hit the water, Gautrau explained.
After a quick quality-control check on the data collected, the crew forwarded it every 10 minutes to the National Hurricane Center.
The aircrews, which consist of an aircraft commander and copilot, flight engineer, navigator, weather officer and dropsonde operator, fly through rough turbulence and heavy rains during the missions. The heaviest turbulence occurs in the "eye wall," the circular area directly around the hurricane's eye.
Gautrau described last night's turbulence as "moderate," but "nothing too bad" as the aircraft encountered 75-knot wind speeds. "It can get pretty bumpy," he said.
Toward the end of the mission, Hurricane Dolly had strengthened, and its leading edge was approaching the Gulf Coast near the Texas-Mexico border. Heavy rain and sustained 95 mph winds pounded the coast as Dolly's eye headed toward Brownsville, Texas.
For Gautrau, last night's flight through Hurricane Dolly was a rite of passage: his first hurricane mission without the benefit of an instructor watching over his shoulder.
"At some points, I'd think, 'Holy cow. I'm in a hurricane,'" he said. "Other times, I'd think, 'Holy cow. I still have to do my job.'"
But with that mission now complete, Gautrau said, he's thrilled to have "the best weather job out there." A native of New Orleans, he said he understands the impact of severe weather and knows he and his fellow crewmembers are giving the National Weather Service the best data possible so it can make accurate forecasts.
"I get a lot of joy out of this job, and I feel that what we are doing is a great benefit to the public," he said.
As the Hurricane Hunters continued their missions, some 600 Texas National Guard members were on the ground, preparing to offer assistance after Hurricane Dolly makes landfall, reported Air Force Tech. Sgt. Gregory Ripps, a Texas Guard spokesman.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry authorized the call for up to 1,200 Texas Guardsmen, to assist civilian emergency responders preparing for the first storm to threaten the United States this hurricane season.
Troops were fanning out across the region, poised to provide search-and-rescue support and emergency relief as required, Ripps said. Shelter management teams were standing by in Brownsville and McAllen, and the Guardsmen set up distribution points in the towns of Alice and Weslaco.
Meanwhile, the Texas Guard's Joint Operations Center is maintaining contact with the State Operations Center, as both monitor the hurricane.
Officials predict rain accumulations of four to eight inches, with isolated deluges of 15 inches, over much of southern Texas during the next few days. Coastal flooding of four to six feet above normal tide levels, with dangerous battering waves, was predicted north of the storm's landfall.
MILITARY CONTRACTS July 23, 2008
Navy
Dimensions Construction, Inc.,* San Diego, Calif.; Allen Engineering Contractor, Inc.*, San Bernardino, Calif.; RMA Land Construction, Inc.*, Brea, Calif.; Candalaria JV LLC.*, Glendale, Ariz.; Marcon Engineering, Inc.*, Escondido, Calif.; RQ-Brady JV 01 * San Diego, Cailf.; I.E.-Pacific, Inc.*, San Diego, Calif.; Patricia I. Romero Inc., dba Pacific West Builders*, San Diego, Calif., and Hal Hay Construction, Inc.* Riverside, Calif., are each being awarded a not to exceed $100,000,000 8(a) set-aside firm-fixed-price multiple award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple award construction contract for new construction and renovation of general building construction at various locations within the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Southwest area of responsibility including but not limited to Southern California, Arizona, and New Mexico. The $100,000,000 (with guaranteed minimum of $5,000) is for all contracts combined - base period and four option years. The work is for the design, construction, supervision, equipment, materials, labor, and all means necessary to provide complete and usable facilities at various locations. Work will be performed at various Navy and Marine Corps installations within the NAVFAC Southwest Area of Responsibility including, but not limited to Calif., (82 percent), Ariz., (16 percent), and N.M., (two percent). The terms of the contracts are not to exceed 60 months, with an expected completion date of Jul. 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured as a set-aside for eight (a) Small Businesses via the NAVFAC e-solicitation website, with 77 proposals solicited, and 28 offers received. These nine contractors listed may compete for task orders under the terms and conditions of the awarded contract. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southwest, San Diego, Calif., is the contracting activity (contract numbers N63473-08-D-8650, N63473-08-D-8642, N62473-08-D-8643, N62473-08-D-8644, N62473-08-R-8645, N62473-08-R-8646, N62473-08-R-8647, N62473-08-R-8648, and N63473-08-D-8649 respectively).
Western Branch Diesel, Inc., Portsmouth, Va., is being awarded a $10,158,500 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity requirements contract for the procurement of maintenance services (engine overhaul) and repair of the MK V Special Operations Craft MTU 12V396TE94 diesel engines. Work will be performed in Portsmouth, Va., (80 percent) and Norfolk, Va., (20 percent), and is expected to be completed by Mar. 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via Navy Electronic Commerce Online and Federal Business Opportunities websites, with three offers received. The Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division, Panama City, Fla., is the contracting activity (N61331-08-D-0018).
Army
Archer Western Contractors, Atlanta, Ga., was awarded on Jul. 21, 2008, a $45,079,000 firm-fixed price contract for the design and construction of unaccompanied personnel housing. Work will be performed at Fort Bragg, N.C., and is expected to be completed by Nov. 21, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Four bids were solicited on Mar. 27, 2008, and three bids were received. U.S. Army Engineer District, Savannah, Ga., is the contracting activity (W912HN-07-D-0051).
Park Construction Co., Hampton, Minn., was awarded on Jul. 22, 2008, a $12,939,650 firm-fixed price contract for a flood protection project. Work will be performed in Lincoln, Ne., and is expected to be completed by Jan. 31, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Apr.15, 2008, and four bids were received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha, Ne., is the contracting activity (W9128F-08-C-0014).
Alliant Lake City Small Caliber Ammunition Co., LLC, Independence, Mo., was awarded on Jul. 22, 2008, a $10,635,417 contract for small caliber ammunition. Work will be performed in Independence, Mo., and is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Jan. 2, 2008. U.S. Army Sustainment Command, Rock Island, Ill., is the contracting activity (DAA09-99-D-0016).
Barr Incorporated, Putnam, Conn., was awarded on Jul. 18, 2008, a $6,128,000 firm-fixed price contract for the construction of an addition to a fire crash rescue station. Work will be performed at Barnes Air National Guard Base, Westfield, Mass., and is expected to be completed by Aug. 15, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Apr. 14, 2008, and ten bids were received. National Guard Bureau, Milford, Mass., is the contracting activity (W912SV-08-C-0008).
Chugach Government Services, Inc., Anchorage, Ala., was awarded on Jul. 22, 2008, a $6,494,099 firm-fixed price contract for the construction of a substation and natural gas generators. Work will be performed in Redstone Arsenal, Ala., and is expected to be completed by Jul. 24, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on May 2, 2008. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Ala., is the contracting activity (W91278-08-C-0044).
Air Force
Associates for International Research Inc., Engineering Services LLC, of Annapolis, Md.; Boeing Support Systems of Fort Walton Beach, Fla.; DRS Technical Services of Herndon, Va. and Calverton, Md.; L-3 Communications TCS (3 Com) of Warner Robins, Ga.; Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems of Warner Robins, Ga.; MacAulay-Brown, Inc., of Dayton, Ohio; MTC Technologies (now BAE Systems Science and Technology, Inc.) of Dayton, Ohio; Northrop Grumman Technical Services Inc., of Herndon, Va.; Raytheon Technical Service Co., Customized Engineering Depot Support, of Indianapolis, Ind.; Science Applications International Corp., of San Diego, Calif.; Scientific Research Corporation of Atlanta, Ga.; Support Systems Associates, Inc., of Melbourne, Fla., are being awarded an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract for a maximum of $6.9 billion. This action will provide for potential requirements to include modifications, development, repairs, and limited, critical or contingency spares for all Air Force managed weapons systems. At this time a minimum of $5,000 for each contractor has been obligated. WR-ALC/PKE, Robins AFB, Ga., is the contracting activity (ARINC – FA8530-08-D-0001; Astronautics –FA8530-08-D-0002; BAE IESI – FA8530-08-D-0003; Boeing – FA8530-08-D-0004; DRS – FA8530-08-D-0005; General Dynamics – FA8530-08-D-0006; L-3 Comm – FA8530-08-D-0007; LMIS – FA8530-08-D-0008; MacB – FA8530-08-D-0009; MTC – FA8530-08-D-0010; Northrop Grumman – FA8530-08-D-0011; Raytheon – FA8530-08-D-0012; SAIC – FA8530-08-D-0013; SRC – FA8530-08-D-0014; SSAI – FA8530-08-D-0015).
E.J. Mlynarczyk and Co., Inc., DBA: EJM Aerospace Services of Crestview, Fla., is being awarded a firm fixed price contract for $14,553,548.57. This requirement is for the additional production kits and storage containers for the Improved Ballistic Armor Suppression Sub-System in support of the HH-60G helicopter. At this time all funds have been obligated. Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, WR-ALC/580th ACSG, GFKAB, Special Operations Forces Contracting Division, Robins AFB, Ga., is the contracting activity (FA8509-05-D-0004-0020).
Dimensions Construction, Inc.,* San Diego, Calif.; Allen Engineering Contractor, Inc.*, San Bernardino, Calif.; RMA Land Construction, Inc.*, Brea, Calif.; Candalaria JV LLC.*, Glendale, Ariz.; Marcon Engineering, Inc.*, Escondido, Calif.; RQ-Brady JV 01 * San Diego, Cailf.; I.E.-Pacific, Inc.*, San Diego, Calif.; Patricia I. Romero Inc., dba Pacific West Builders*, San Diego, Calif., and Hal Hay Construction, Inc.* Riverside, Calif., are each being awarded a not to exceed $100,000,000 8(a) set-aside firm-fixed-price multiple award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple award construction contract for new construction and renovation of general building construction at various locations within the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Southwest area of responsibility including but not limited to Southern California, Arizona, and New Mexico. The $100,000,000 (with guaranteed minimum of $5,000) is for all contracts combined - base period and four option years. The work is for the design, construction, supervision, equipment, materials, labor, and all means necessary to provide complete and usable facilities at various locations. Work will be performed at various Navy and Marine Corps installations within the NAVFAC Southwest Area of Responsibility including, but not limited to Calif., (82 percent), Ariz., (16 percent), and N.M., (two percent). The terms of the contracts are not to exceed 60 months, with an expected completion date of Jul. 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured as a set-aside for eight (a) Small Businesses via the NAVFAC e-solicitation website, with 77 proposals solicited, and 28 offers received. These nine contractors listed may compete for task orders under the terms and conditions of the awarded contract. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southwest, San Diego, Calif., is the contracting activity (contract numbers N63473-08-D-8650, N63473-08-D-8642, N62473-08-D-8643, N62473-08-D-8644, N62473-08-R-8645, N62473-08-R-8646, N62473-08-R-8647, N62473-08-R-8648, and N63473-08-D-8649 respectively).
Western Branch Diesel, Inc., Portsmouth, Va., is being awarded a $10,158,500 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity requirements contract for the procurement of maintenance services (engine overhaul) and repair of the MK V Special Operations Craft MTU 12V396TE94 diesel engines. Work will be performed in Portsmouth, Va., (80 percent) and Norfolk, Va., (20 percent), and is expected to be completed by Mar. 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via Navy Electronic Commerce Online and Federal Business Opportunities websites, with three offers received. The Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division, Panama City, Fla., is the contracting activity (N61331-08-D-0018).
Army
Archer Western Contractors, Atlanta, Ga., was awarded on Jul. 21, 2008, a $45,079,000 firm-fixed price contract for the design and construction of unaccompanied personnel housing. Work will be performed at Fort Bragg, N.C., and is expected to be completed by Nov. 21, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Four bids were solicited on Mar. 27, 2008, and three bids were received. U.S. Army Engineer District, Savannah, Ga., is the contracting activity (W912HN-07-D-0051).
Park Construction Co., Hampton, Minn., was awarded on Jul. 22, 2008, a $12,939,650 firm-fixed price contract for a flood protection project. Work will be performed in Lincoln, Ne., and is expected to be completed by Jan. 31, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Apr.15, 2008, and four bids were received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha, Ne., is the contracting activity (W9128F-08-C-0014).
Alliant Lake City Small Caliber Ammunition Co., LLC, Independence, Mo., was awarded on Jul. 22, 2008, a $10,635,417 contract for small caliber ammunition. Work will be performed in Independence, Mo., and is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Jan. 2, 2008. U.S. Army Sustainment Command, Rock Island, Ill., is the contracting activity (DAA09-99-D-0016).
Barr Incorporated, Putnam, Conn., was awarded on Jul. 18, 2008, a $6,128,000 firm-fixed price contract for the construction of an addition to a fire crash rescue station. Work will be performed at Barnes Air National Guard Base, Westfield, Mass., and is expected to be completed by Aug. 15, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Apr. 14, 2008, and ten bids were received. National Guard Bureau, Milford, Mass., is the contracting activity (W912SV-08-C-0008).
Chugach Government Services, Inc., Anchorage, Ala., was awarded on Jul. 22, 2008, a $6,494,099 firm-fixed price contract for the construction of a substation and natural gas generators. Work will be performed in Redstone Arsenal, Ala., and is expected to be completed by Jul. 24, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on May 2, 2008. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Ala., is the contracting activity (W91278-08-C-0044).
Air Force
Associates for International Research Inc., Engineering Services LLC, of Annapolis, Md.; Boeing Support Systems of Fort Walton Beach, Fla.; DRS Technical Services of Herndon, Va. and Calverton, Md.; L-3 Communications TCS (3 Com) of Warner Robins, Ga.; Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems of Warner Robins, Ga.; MacAulay-Brown, Inc., of Dayton, Ohio; MTC Technologies (now BAE Systems Science and Technology, Inc.) of Dayton, Ohio; Northrop Grumman Technical Services Inc., of Herndon, Va.; Raytheon Technical Service Co., Customized Engineering Depot Support, of Indianapolis, Ind.; Science Applications International Corp., of San Diego, Calif.; Scientific Research Corporation of Atlanta, Ga.; Support Systems Associates, Inc., of Melbourne, Fla., are being awarded an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract for a maximum of $6.9 billion. This action will provide for potential requirements to include modifications, development, repairs, and limited, critical or contingency spares for all Air Force managed weapons systems. At this time a minimum of $5,000 for each contractor has been obligated. WR-ALC/PKE, Robins AFB, Ga., is the contracting activity (ARINC – FA8530-08-D-0001; Astronautics –FA8530-08-D-0002; BAE IESI – FA8530-08-D-0003; Boeing – FA8530-08-D-0004; DRS – FA8530-08-D-0005; General Dynamics – FA8530-08-D-0006; L-3 Comm – FA8530-08-D-0007; LMIS – FA8530-08-D-0008; MacB – FA8530-08-D-0009; MTC – FA8530-08-D-0010; Northrop Grumman – FA8530-08-D-0011; Raytheon – FA8530-08-D-0012; SAIC – FA8530-08-D-0013; SRC – FA8530-08-D-0014; SSAI – FA8530-08-D-0015).
E.J. Mlynarczyk and Co., Inc., DBA: EJM Aerospace Services of Crestview, Fla., is being awarded a firm fixed price contract for $14,553,548.57. This requirement is for the additional production kits and storage containers for the Improved Ballistic Armor Suppression Sub-System in support of the HH-60G helicopter. At this time all funds have been obligated. Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, WR-ALC/580th ACSG, GFKAB, Special Operations Forces Contracting Division, Robins AFB, Ga., is the contracting activity (FA8509-05-D-0004-0020).
Truman's Military Desegregation Order Reflects American Values, Gates Says
By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - President Harry S. Truman's 1948 executive order that desegregated the U.S. military was a definitive statement of equality that declared all servicemembers must be judged by individual merit instead of their racial background, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today. "No aspect of black Americans' quest for justice and equality under the law has been nobler than what has been called, "the fight for the right to fight," Gates said at the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the integration of the armed forces held in the Capitol Rotunda.
"Our commemoration today of the racial integration of the armed forces makes us reflect on how far we have come toward living up to our founding ideals and yet how much remains to be done," Gates said.
The Defense Department began breaking down the barriers of race at the conclusion of World War Two in 1945, Gates said. As in past wars, African-American troops had served in World War Two with honor and distinction, he noted. However, African-American troops had to fight and live separately from all-white units.
America's sons and daughters fought in World War Two to preserve freedom and human dignity for the world's people, Gates said. Yet, African-Americans who'd served with distinction in that war, he noted, "returned to face segregation and harassment at home," as so-called Jim Crow segregation laws in place across the South relegated African-Americans to second-class-citizen status.
Truman's Executive Order 9981, signed July 26, 1948, was an important statement and an important step, Gates said. However, he said, Truman's directive "had to overcome stiff institutional resistance, as deeply entrenched attitudes were hard to change."
For example, "segregated units remained the norm and integrated units the exception," Gates noted, for several years after the integration order was issued.
The start of the Korean War in June 1950 prompted the need to put hundreds of thousands of Americans into uniform after the U.S. military had demobilized following the end of World War Two.
"With the sudden outbreak of war in Korea, the urgent demands of the battlefield trumped the old habit of Jim Crow," Gates said.
Before the start of the Korean War, he said, 50 percent of African-Americans in the Marine Corps -- about 750 men -- served as stewards. At the end of the Korean War in 1953, Gates said, there were 17,000 African-American Marines, and only 3 percent served as stewards.
"By 1954, the Korean War was over, the last of the segregated units were dissolved, and the momentum for equality and civil rights was carrying over into American society as a whole," Gates said.
In the ensuing decades after Truman's directive took effect, "black and white Americans trained, served, and fought together with honor and distinction," Gates said.
Today's integrated U.S. military continues to "put merit and integrity above all," Gates said, noting there's still more to achieve.
"My hope and expectation is that, in the years ahead, more African-Americans will staff the armed forces at the highest levels," Gates said. "We must make sure the American military continues to be a great engine of progress and equality -- all the better to defend our people and our values against adversaries around the globe."
American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - President Harry S. Truman's 1948 executive order that desegregated the U.S. military was a definitive statement of equality that declared all servicemembers must be judged by individual merit instead of their racial background, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today. "No aspect of black Americans' quest for justice and equality under the law has been nobler than what has been called, "the fight for the right to fight," Gates said at the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the integration of the armed forces held in the Capitol Rotunda.
"Our commemoration today of the racial integration of the armed forces makes us reflect on how far we have come toward living up to our founding ideals and yet how much remains to be done," Gates said.
The Defense Department began breaking down the barriers of race at the conclusion of World War Two in 1945, Gates said. As in past wars, African-American troops had served in World War Two with honor and distinction, he noted. However, African-American troops had to fight and live separately from all-white units.
America's sons and daughters fought in World War Two to preserve freedom and human dignity for the world's people, Gates said. Yet, African-Americans who'd served with distinction in that war, he noted, "returned to face segregation and harassment at home," as so-called Jim Crow segregation laws in place across the South relegated African-Americans to second-class-citizen status.
Truman's Executive Order 9981, signed July 26, 1948, was an important statement and an important step, Gates said. However, he said, Truman's directive "had to overcome stiff institutional resistance, as deeply entrenched attitudes were hard to change."
For example, "segregated units remained the norm and integrated units the exception," Gates noted, for several years after the integration order was issued.
The start of the Korean War in June 1950 prompted the need to put hundreds of thousands of Americans into uniform after the U.S. military had demobilized following the end of World War Two.
"With the sudden outbreak of war in Korea, the urgent demands of the battlefield trumped the old habit of Jim Crow," Gates said.
Before the start of the Korean War, he said, 50 percent of African-Americans in the Marine Corps -- about 750 men -- served as stewards. At the end of the Korean War in 1953, Gates said, there were 17,000 African-American Marines, and only 3 percent served as stewards.
"By 1954, the Korean War was over, the last of the segregated units were dissolved, and the momentum for equality and civil rights was carrying over into American society as a whole," Gates said.
In the ensuing decades after Truman's directive took effect, "black and white Americans trained, served, and fought together with honor and distinction," Gates said.
Today's integrated U.S. military continues to "put merit and integrity above all," Gates said, noting there's still more to achieve.
"My hope and expectation is that, in the years ahead, more African-Americans will staff the armed forces at the highest levels," Gates said. "We must make sure the American military continues to be a great engine of progress and equality -- all the better to defend our people and our values against adversaries around the globe."
Defense Leaders Promise Improved Contracting Oversight
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - The U.S. military depends heavily on the support contractors provide in Iraq and Afghanistan and is stepping up efforts to ensure dollars dedicated to their activities are spent appropriately, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England told Congress today.
England joined Army Gen. Benjamin S. Griffin, commander of U.S. Army Materiel Command; acting Defense Department Inspector General Gordon S. Heddell; and Shay Assad, DoD's director for defense procurement and acquisition policy, during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on contractor accountability.
The Defense Department takes its contract accountability and oversight responsibilities "very seriously," England told the lawmakers. He noted that multiple department agencies have conducted "literally thousands of aggressive reviews, audits and oversight."
In doing so, "they have indeed uncovered incidences of fraud and abuse," he said.
The Defense Department takes meaningful corrective actions and makes structural organizational changes where appropriate, England said. Meanwhile, it holds people accountable for their actions.
Heddell, who became acting DoD inspector general last week, noted that the department is completing or conducting audit oversight efforts that cover about $158.9 billion related to Defense Department efforts in Iraq alone.
As of June 30, the Defense criminal Investigative Service had 124 ongoing investigations related to Southwest Asia that involve 286 subjects, he told the committee. Thirty-two of these investigations have been adjudicated, resulting in 22 federal criminal indictments and 32 felony convictions, he reported. It also resulted in 32 federal "criminal informations" -- essentially, cases where defendants agreed that evidence against them was so strong that they agreed to forego trial proceedings and accept sentencing, Heddell said.
The adjudications have resulted in 54 years of confinement, 44 years of probation, debarment of 10 people and four companies, and suspension of 28 people, Heddell said.
In addition, the U.S. government accepted three settlement agreements, received $13.5 million in restitution, levied more than $374,000 in fines and penalties, received $1.76 million in forfeitures and seized another $2.65 million in assets, he reported.
With $71 billion obligated to 98,000 contracting activities since January 2003, the department has struggled to provide full oversight for this huge volume of contracts, England conceded. Complicating the process, he said, is the fact that 98,000 expeditionary contract actions have occurred since 2003, with much of the work performed in a dangerous and difficult environment.
The department "will continue to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our contracting across the entire enterprise," but recognizes that it will take time, England said. He noted that the defense contracting force was cut dramatically during the 1990s, and that bringing replacements up to speed won't happen overnight. "It will likely take a few more years before all of these critical skills are fully replenished," he said.
Meanwhile, England pointed to yesterday's swearing-in of retired Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Arnie Fields as special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction as a positive step forward.
"I'm confident Arnie Fields will help to do in Afghanistan for the departments of Defense and State what [special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction] Stu Bowen has been able to accomplish over the past several years in Iraq as part of his special investigative status," England said.
Griffin told the senators the military knows it has improvements to make in its contracting systems and oversight.
"I will state up front that we are not where we want to be today in terms of contracting," he said. "But we have made significant progress. We are committed to improve our ability and capability, to provide not only first-class expeditionary contracting, but also to implement improvements across the entire contracting system."
While vowing to improve oversight of contractor activities, England told the lawmakers the military depends on contractors who work as partners with servicemembers in harm's way. "I ... want to thank the people who deployed and who are deployed today who do this contracting work for America," he said.
American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - The U.S. military depends heavily on the support contractors provide in Iraq and Afghanistan and is stepping up efforts to ensure dollars dedicated to their activities are spent appropriately, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England told Congress today.
England joined Army Gen. Benjamin S. Griffin, commander of U.S. Army Materiel Command; acting Defense Department Inspector General Gordon S. Heddell; and Shay Assad, DoD's director for defense procurement and acquisition policy, during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on contractor accountability.
The Defense Department takes its contract accountability and oversight responsibilities "very seriously," England told the lawmakers. He noted that multiple department agencies have conducted "literally thousands of aggressive reviews, audits and oversight."
In doing so, "they have indeed uncovered incidences of fraud and abuse," he said.
The Defense Department takes meaningful corrective actions and makes structural organizational changes where appropriate, England said. Meanwhile, it holds people accountable for their actions.
Heddell, who became acting DoD inspector general last week, noted that the department is completing or conducting audit oversight efforts that cover about $158.9 billion related to Defense Department efforts in Iraq alone.
As of June 30, the Defense criminal Investigative Service had 124 ongoing investigations related to Southwest Asia that involve 286 subjects, he told the committee. Thirty-two of these investigations have been adjudicated, resulting in 22 federal criminal indictments and 32 felony convictions, he reported. It also resulted in 32 federal "criminal informations" -- essentially, cases where defendants agreed that evidence against them was so strong that they agreed to forego trial proceedings and accept sentencing, Heddell said.
The adjudications have resulted in 54 years of confinement, 44 years of probation, debarment of 10 people and four companies, and suspension of 28 people, Heddell said.
In addition, the U.S. government accepted three settlement agreements, received $13.5 million in restitution, levied more than $374,000 in fines and penalties, received $1.76 million in forfeitures and seized another $2.65 million in assets, he reported.
With $71 billion obligated to 98,000 contracting activities since January 2003, the department has struggled to provide full oversight for this huge volume of contracts, England conceded. Complicating the process, he said, is the fact that 98,000 expeditionary contract actions have occurred since 2003, with much of the work performed in a dangerous and difficult environment.
The department "will continue to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our contracting across the entire enterprise," but recognizes that it will take time, England said. He noted that the defense contracting force was cut dramatically during the 1990s, and that bringing replacements up to speed won't happen overnight. "It will likely take a few more years before all of these critical skills are fully replenished," he said.
Meanwhile, England pointed to yesterday's swearing-in of retired Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Arnie Fields as special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction as a positive step forward.
"I'm confident Arnie Fields will help to do in Afghanistan for the departments of Defense and State what [special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction] Stu Bowen has been able to accomplish over the past several years in Iraq as part of his special investigative status," England said.
Griffin told the senators the military knows it has improvements to make in its contracting systems and oversight.
"I will state up front that we are not where we want to be today in terms of contracting," he said. "But we have made significant progress. We are committed to improve our ability and capability, to provide not only first-class expeditionary contracting, but also to implement improvements across the entire contracting system."
While vowing to improve oversight of contractor activities, England told the lawmakers the military depends on contractors who work as partners with servicemembers in harm's way. "I ... want to thank the people who deployed and who are deployed today who do this contracting work for America," he said.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
America Supports You: Military Couples to Wed with Hollywood's Help
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - After matching servicemembers re-entering the civilian work force with military friendly employers, "Hire a Hero" is stepping outside its box and trying some matchmaking of a different kind. The troop-support organization has teamed with Dreamworks Television and Mark Burnett Productions to help two deserving military couples have their dream weddings. The gesture is a thank you for their service and commitment to the country, according to the Hire a Hero Web site.
"Providing something like this is just great," said Rob Barr, a Hire a Hero representative. "It's showing support for the troops, and it's kind of giving them hope that there are really people out there that care."
The next step to helping two couples live happily ever after begins at the Hire a Hero Web site. military couples who plan on marrying later this year can fill out the entry and share the challenges they've faced while trying to plan a wedding with at least one spouse serving their country.
Just the distance during a deployment, for example, can make things nearly impossible, Barr said. Then the occasional tour extension crops up and completely undoes what the couple may have managed to get done.
"Little things like that," he said. "But they're also looking for military spouses that just said, 'OK. You know what? We're going to go to the courthouse, get married and have a wedding later.'"
Once the midnight July 28 entry deadline passes, it's all up to the Hollywood folks to choose the two lucky couples for the big "Wedding Day" program that will air on a major TV network this fall, Barr said, adding that he has no idea what's in store for the couples chosen.
"They're kind of keeping that top secret information," he said. "All I was told was that they're going to get ... to have their dream wedding."
Barr said he thinks Hire a Hero was approached to help find couples because of the group's involvement with helping former "Apprentice" winner Kelly Perdew find applicants to be his assistant.
"To my knowledge, I think they got our information from someone ... who said, 'Hey, use "Hire a Hero" to look for this kind of person,'" he said.
Hire a Hero is a supporter of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.
American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - After matching servicemembers re-entering the civilian work force with military friendly employers, "Hire a Hero" is stepping outside its box and trying some matchmaking of a different kind. The troop-support organization has teamed with Dreamworks Television and Mark Burnett Productions to help two deserving military couples have their dream weddings. The gesture is a thank you for their service and commitment to the country, according to the Hire a Hero Web site.
"Providing something like this is just great," said Rob Barr, a Hire a Hero representative. "It's showing support for the troops, and it's kind of giving them hope that there are really people out there that care."
The next step to helping two couples live happily ever after begins at the Hire a Hero Web site. military couples who plan on marrying later this year can fill out the entry and share the challenges they've faced while trying to plan a wedding with at least one spouse serving their country.
Just the distance during a deployment, for example, can make things nearly impossible, Barr said. Then the occasional tour extension crops up and completely undoes what the couple may have managed to get done.
"Little things like that," he said. "But they're also looking for military spouses that just said, 'OK. You know what? We're going to go to the courthouse, get married and have a wedding later.'"
Once the midnight July 28 entry deadline passes, it's all up to the Hollywood folks to choose the two lucky couples for the big "Wedding Day" program that will air on a major TV network this fall, Barr said, adding that he has no idea what's in store for the couples chosen.
"They're kind of keeping that top secret information," he said. "All I was told was that they're going to get ... to have their dream wedding."
Barr said he thinks Hire a Hero was approached to help find couples because of the group's involvement with helping former "Apprentice" winner Kelly Perdew find applicants to be his assistant.
"To my knowledge, I think they got our information from someone ... who said, 'Hey, use "Hire a Hero" to look for this kind of person,'" he said.
Hire a Hero is a supporter of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.
Integration Brought Strength, Credibility to Military, Official Says
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - Today's military is stronger and has more credibility among the American people in large part due to a presidential decision 60 years ago to integrate the force, the defense undersecretary for personnel and readiness said. David S.C. Chu credits President Harry S. Truman's 1948 executive order that integrated the military with laying crucial groundwork for success of the all-volunteer force.
Black soldiers had fought in every U.S. war, including the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War and World Wars I and II, Chu noted during an interview with American Forces Press Service and the Pentagon Channel. But in most cases, he noted, they served in all-black units with white commanders.
Truman's Executive Order 9981 changed that officially, but, Chu conceded, it didn't take root overnight. Segregated units had to be reconfigured. Tensions had to be overcome.
"It took the better part of a generation and a half to ... really take it from an order from the president to a reality that meant that your race didn't matter," Chu said. But ultimately, Truman's executive order "provided the foundation for the U.S. military to become one of the United States' most racially integrated institutions," he added.
"What Truman really did was use the armed forces to change American society," Chu said. "The armed forces pride themselves in being leaders in this."
As the military became a national model in integration, its members put the concept to its first combat test during the Korean War, then in every subsequent conflict leading up to today's war on terror.
The integrated force provides equal opportunity, but also brings strengths that are particularly important in an all-volunteer force, Chu said.
"You've got a broader selection of talent if you recruit everybody or potentially have everyone wanting to join ... your organization," he said. "You have more talent than you would otherwise have."
Today, black servicemembers make up 17 percent of the active-duty force, 9 percent of active-duty officers and just under 6 percent of general and flag officers, officials reported. In addition, black troops make up more than one-quarter of the top three enlisted ranks.
In addition to providing a broad talent base, diversity ensures that the military looks like the American population it defends, Chu said. That, in turn, helps build public confidence and trust in the institution.
"If the whole society is not part of [the military], then you don't have the backing of that whole society," Chu said. "You have a backing of a fraction of that society."
The flip side, he said, is that the public recognizes its diverse military has a difficult job and unifies behind it. "That moral authority is crucially important to the military's ability to operate," he said.
Chu pointed to broad American support for its highly diverse military, as demonstrated in polls in which the public repeatedly ranks the military as its most trusted institution.
As the military looks to the future, it needs to remember the lessons learned as it integrated the force and continue to embrace diversity, Chu said.
"I think it is important to remember this history to be ready to deal with the new elements of diversity coming forward," he said.
American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - Today's military is stronger and has more credibility among the American people in large part due to a presidential decision 60 years ago to integrate the force, the defense undersecretary for personnel and readiness said. David S.C. Chu credits President Harry S. Truman's 1948 executive order that integrated the military with laying crucial groundwork for success of the all-volunteer force.
Black soldiers had fought in every U.S. war, including the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War and World Wars I and II, Chu noted during an interview with American Forces Press Service and the Pentagon Channel. But in most cases, he noted, they served in all-black units with white commanders.
Truman's Executive Order 9981 changed that officially, but, Chu conceded, it didn't take root overnight. Segregated units had to be reconfigured. Tensions had to be overcome.
"It took the better part of a generation and a half to ... really take it from an order from the president to a reality that meant that your race didn't matter," Chu said. But ultimately, Truman's executive order "provided the foundation for the U.S. military to become one of the United States' most racially integrated institutions," he added.
"What Truman really did was use the armed forces to change American society," Chu said. "The armed forces pride themselves in being leaders in this."
As the military became a national model in integration, its members put the concept to its first combat test during the Korean War, then in every subsequent conflict leading up to today's war on terror.
The integrated force provides equal opportunity, but also brings strengths that are particularly important in an all-volunteer force, Chu said.
"You've got a broader selection of talent if you recruit everybody or potentially have everyone wanting to join ... your organization," he said. "You have more talent than you would otherwise have."
Today, black servicemembers make up 17 percent of the active-duty force, 9 percent of active-duty officers and just under 6 percent of general and flag officers, officials reported. In addition, black troops make up more than one-quarter of the top three enlisted ranks.
In addition to providing a broad talent base, diversity ensures that the military looks like the American population it defends, Chu said. That, in turn, helps build public confidence and trust in the institution.
"If the whole society is not part of [the military], then you don't have the backing of that whole society," Chu said. "You have a backing of a fraction of that society."
The flip side, he said, is that the public recognizes its diverse military has a difficult job and unifies behind it. "That moral authority is crucially important to the military's ability to operate," he said.
Chu pointed to broad American support for its highly diverse military, as demonstrated in polls in which the public repeatedly ranks the military as its most trusted institution.
As the military looks to the future, it needs to remember the lessons learned as it integrated the force and continue to embrace diversity, Chu said.
"I think it is important to remember this history to be ready to deal with the new elements of diversity coming forward," he said.
Texas Guard Gears Up as Storm Approaches
By Air Force Master Sgt. Mike R. Smith
Special to American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - As Tropical Storm Dolly beat a northwestward path over the Gulf of Mexico toward southern Texas and Mexico, at least 600 Texas National Guard members prepared for storm duty today after being called yesterday by Gov. Rick Perry. Meteorologists expect the storm to reach hurricane strength -- with damaging winds, heavy rains and coastal flooding -- by tomorrow.
Officials said Perry authorized the call for up to 1,200 Texas military personnel, including the Army and Air National Guard and State Guard, to assist civilian emergency responders preparing for the first storm to threaten the United States this hurricane season. A contingent of State Guard volunteers based out of Weslaco in the Rio Grande Valley was available for duty.
Guard members are preparing equipment as the storm approaches. Units are staging equipment in Austin, Houston and San Antonio, with orders to be fully mission-capable by noon tomorrow, Army Col. Bill Meehan, Texas National Guard spokesman, said.
The National Weather Service reported that Dolly was expected to become a hurricane, with sustained winds of at lease 74 mph, before making landfall tomorrow afternoon. Storm watches were in effect this morning from Brownsville in southern Texas up the Gulf Coast to Port O'Conner. As of 11 a.m., tropical force winds of more than 65 mph extended out to 160 miles from the storm's center.
Officials also predict rain accumulations of four to eight inches, with isolated deluges of 15 inches, over much of southern Texas during the next few days. Coastal flooding of four to six feet above normal tide levels, with dangerous battering waves, was predicted north of the storm's landfall.
The Texas National Guard's Joint Operations Center is maintaining contact with the State Operations Center as both monitor the storm.
Texas Guard officials said they are deploying their state's soldiers and airmen from outside the predicted impact zone to allow affected Guard members to prepare and protect their own families and businesses.
The Guard is preparing to conduct search and rescue operations, provide transportation, and deploy medical teams to support the state's first responders, Meehan said. Guard members also will provide communications, engineering and security support if needed, he added.
Meehan said the state also is deploying more than 3,000 soldiers from the 56th Infantry Brigade Combat Team this weekend for Operation Iraqi Freedom. And Guard members are still planning to conduct Operation Lone Star, a medical and humanitarian support operation along the Mexican border. They expect to treat nearly 15,000 Mexican residents.
The National Guard continually trains, coordinates and exercises with local and state emergency responders nationwide. More than 400,000 Guard soldiers and airmen are available nationwide, because of Emergency Management Assistance Compacts, should any governor ask for their support.
In September, 250 Texas Guard members mobilized for Hurricane Humberto. It made landfall just east of the Louisiana border as a tropical storm, killing one and causing an estimated $50 million in damage.
Texas Guard members also were mobilized last summer for Tropical Storm Erin, which was downgraded to a tropical depression, and nearly 4,700 Guard members mobilized in August for Hurricane Dean, a deadly Category 5 hurricane, which missed the United States and blew into Mexico.
(Air Force Master Sgt. Mike R. Smith serves at the National Guard Bureau.)
Special to American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - As Tropical Storm Dolly beat a northwestward path over the Gulf of Mexico toward southern Texas and Mexico, at least 600 Texas National Guard members prepared for storm duty today after being called yesterday by Gov. Rick Perry. Meteorologists expect the storm to reach hurricane strength -- with damaging winds, heavy rains and coastal flooding -- by tomorrow.
Officials said Perry authorized the call for up to 1,200 Texas military personnel, including the Army and Air National Guard and State Guard, to assist civilian emergency responders preparing for the first storm to threaten the United States this hurricane season. A contingent of State Guard volunteers based out of Weslaco in the Rio Grande Valley was available for duty.
Guard members are preparing equipment as the storm approaches. Units are staging equipment in Austin, Houston and San Antonio, with orders to be fully mission-capable by noon tomorrow, Army Col. Bill Meehan, Texas National Guard spokesman, said.
The National Weather Service reported that Dolly was expected to become a hurricane, with sustained winds of at lease 74 mph, before making landfall tomorrow afternoon. Storm watches were in effect this morning from Brownsville in southern Texas up the Gulf Coast to Port O'Conner. As of 11 a.m., tropical force winds of more than 65 mph extended out to 160 miles from the storm's center.
Officials also predict rain accumulations of four to eight inches, with isolated deluges of 15 inches, over much of southern Texas during the next few days. Coastal flooding of four to six feet above normal tide levels, with dangerous battering waves, was predicted north of the storm's landfall.
The Texas National Guard's Joint Operations Center is maintaining contact with the State Operations Center as both monitor the storm.
Texas Guard officials said they are deploying their state's soldiers and airmen from outside the predicted impact zone to allow affected Guard members to prepare and protect their own families and businesses.
The Guard is preparing to conduct search and rescue operations, provide transportation, and deploy medical teams to support the state's first responders, Meehan said. Guard members also will provide communications, engineering and security support if needed, he added.
Meehan said the state also is deploying more than 3,000 soldiers from the 56th Infantry Brigade Combat Team this weekend for Operation Iraqi Freedom. And Guard members are still planning to conduct Operation Lone Star, a medical and humanitarian support operation along the Mexican border. They expect to treat nearly 15,000 Mexican residents.
The National Guard continually trains, coordinates and exercises with local and state emergency responders nationwide. More than 400,000 Guard soldiers and airmen are available nationwide, because of Emergency Management Assistance Compacts, should any governor ask for their support.
In September, 250 Texas Guard members mobilized for Hurricane Humberto. It made landfall just east of the Louisiana border as a tropical storm, killing one and causing an estimated $50 million in damage.
Texas Guard members also were mobilized last summer for Tropical Storm Erin, which was downgraded to a tropical depression, and nearly 4,700 Guard members mobilized in August for Hurricane Dean, a deadly Category 5 hurricane, which missed the United States and blew into Mexico.
(Air Force Master Sgt. Mike R. Smith serves at the National Guard Bureau.)
Northern Command Sends Coordinating Cell to Texas for Storm Response
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - U.S. Northern Command has deployed a defense coordination unit to the Joint Operations Center in Austin, Texas, in anticipation of the landfall of Tropical Storm Dolly in southern Texas. As of 3 p.m. EDT today, the storm packed sustained winds of 70 mph, and meteorologists expect it to attain hurricane status before it makes landfall tomorrow.
The 12-man NorthCom cell deployed yesterday from Denton, Texas, and is coordinating with federal, state and local officials. The cell is collocated with the Federal Emergency Management Agency's regional office.
Civilian agencies are the lead elements. If the civilian agencies need help from the military, the NorthCom cell is on scene to speed that assistance. "We only work in support of civilian agencies," said Army Col. Laverm "Bullett" Young, commander of the cell and the defense coordinating officer.
The cell also has been working with the U.S. defense attaché in Mexico to cooperate with the Mexican armed services. Dolly is forecast to hit north of Brownsville, Texas, but northeastern Mexico also will experience hurricane or tropical storm winds. "There will be a lot of aircraft flying down there doing search and rescue, if the need arises, and we've been talking in advance of that," Young said.
Forecasters expect between 10 and 20 inches of rain from the storm. "We anticipate flooding will be the biggest problem, but we're preparing for any contingency," Young said.
Fort Sam Houston, Texas, has been designated as a staging area for supplies for the area if needed. Texas has not asked for any aid from the military yet. About 1,200 members of the Texas National Guard have been called to state active duty, and state officials are keeping in close touch with affected communities and with federal and nongovernmental agencies.
The defense coordinating cell normally reports to the U.S. Army North. When called up like this, the cell reports directly to the commander of U.S. Northern Command in Colorado Springs, Colo.
This is not the first time the team has deployed. They worked on coordinating efforts for Hurricane Dean last year and for the series of tornadoes that decimated the community of Eagle Pass, Texas, in April 2007. In addition to Texas, the unit provides support to Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, New Mexico and Arizona.
American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - U.S. Northern Command has deployed a defense coordination unit to the Joint Operations Center in Austin, Texas, in anticipation of the landfall of Tropical Storm Dolly in southern Texas. As of 3 p.m. EDT today, the storm packed sustained winds of 70 mph, and meteorologists expect it to attain hurricane status before it makes landfall tomorrow.
The 12-man NorthCom cell deployed yesterday from Denton, Texas, and is coordinating with federal, state and local officials. The cell is collocated with the Federal Emergency Management Agency's regional office.
Civilian agencies are the lead elements. If the civilian agencies need help from the military, the NorthCom cell is on scene to speed that assistance. "We only work in support of civilian agencies," said Army Col. Laverm "Bullett" Young, commander of the cell and the defense coordinating officer.
The cell also has been working with the U.S. defense attaché in Mexico to cooperate with the Mexican armed services. Dolly is forecast to hit north of Brownsville, Texas, but northeastern Mexico also will experience hurricane or tropical storm winds. "There will be a lot of aircraft flying down there doing search and rescue, if the need arises, and we've been talking in advance of that," Young said.
Forecasters expect between 10 and 20 inches of rain from the storm. "We anticipate flooding will be the biggest problem, but we're preparing for any contingency," Young said.
Fort Sam Houston, Texas, has been designated as a staging area for supplies for the area if needed. Texas has not asked for any aid from the military yet. About 1,200 members of the Texas National Guard have been called to state active duty, and state officials are keeping in close touch with affected communities and with federal and nongovernmental agencies.
The defense coordinating cell normally reports to the U.S. Army North. When called up like this, the cell reports directly to the commander of U.S. Northern Command in Colorado Springs, Colo.
This is not the first time the team has deployed. They worked on coordinating efforts for Hurricane Dean last year and for the series of tornadoes that decimated the community of Eagle Pass, Texas, in April 2007. In addition to Texas, the unit provides support to Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, New Mexico and Arizona.
MILITARY CONTRACTS July 22, 2008
Army
Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, Stratford, Conn., was awarded on Jul. 21, 2008, a $22,042,092 firm-fixed price contract for two MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopters. Work will be performed in Stratford, Conn., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2012. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Oct. 20, 2005. U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-08-C-0003).
B.L. Harbert International, LLC, Birmingham, Ala., was awarded on Jul. 18, 2008, a $20,000,000 firm-fixed price contract for the design and construction of an Army Materiel Command headquarters facility and a United States Army Security Assistance Command facility. Work will be performed at Redstone Arsenal, Ala., and is expected to be completed by Sept. 10, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Oct. 5, 2007, and nine bids were received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Ala., is the contracting activity (W91278-08-C-0045).
Navy
General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, Inc. Fairfax, Va., is being awarded a $9,733,571 cost-plus-fixed-fee research and development delivery order #0004 under a previously awarded indefinite-quantity/indefinite-delivery contract (N00014-05-D-0508) for the development of a Digital Array Radar. Work will be performed in contractor facilities at General Dynamics, Fairfax, Va., (79 percent); REMEC Defense and Space, San Diego, Calif., (18 percent); and Shenandoah Solutions, Red Lodge, Mont., (3 percent), and work is expected to be completed Jan. 2014. Contract funds will not expire at end of current fiscal year. The Office of Naval Research, Arlington, Va., is the contacting activity.
Lockheed Martin Corp., Eagan, Minn., is being awarded $7,807,353 for firm fixed price delivery order #1408 under a previously awarded contract (N00024-98-D-5202) for logistics support for the AN/UYQ-70 advance display system. Work will be performed in Egan, Minn., and work is to be completed by May 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This offer was not awarded competitively. The Naval Inventory Control Point is the contracting activity.
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Campbellsville Apparel Co., LLC, Campbellsville, Ky.*, is being awarded a maximum $11,866,573.00 firm fixed price, total set aside contract for men's apparel. There are no other locations of performance. Using services are Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. This proposal was originally Web solicited with four responses. This contract is exercising option year two. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance is Sept. 17, 2010. The contracting activity is Defense Supply Center Philadelphia (DSCP), Philadelphia, Pa., (SP0100-06-D-0378).
Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, Stratford, Conn., was awarded on Jul. 21, 2008, a $22,042,092 firm-fixed price contract for two MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopters. Work will be performed in Stratford, Conn., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2012. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Oct. 20, 2005. U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-08-C-0003).
B.L. Harbert International, LLC, Birmingham, Ala., was awarded on Jul. 18, 2008, a $20,000,000 firm-fixed price contract for the design and construction of an Army Materiel Command headquarters facility and a United States Army Security Assistance Command facility. Work will be performed at Redstone Arsenal, Ala., and is expected to be completed by Sept. 10, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Oct. 5, 2007, and nine bids were received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Ala., is the contracting activity (W91278-08-C-0045).
Navy
General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, Inc. Fairfax, Va., is being awarded a $9,733,571 cost-plus-fixed-fee research and development delivery order #0004 under a previously awarded indefinite-quantity/indefinite-delivery contract (N00014-05-D-0508) for the development of a Digital Array Radar. Work will be performed in contractor facilities at General Dynamics, Fairfax, Va., (79 percent); REMEC Defense and Space, San Diego, Calif., (18 percent); and Shenandoah Solutions, Red Lodge, Mont., (3 percent), and work is expected to be completed Jan. 2014. Contract funds will not expire at end of current fiscal year. The Office of Naval Research, Arlington, Va., is the contacting activity.
Lockheed Martin Corp., Eagan, Minn., is being awarded $7,807,353 for firm fixed price delivery order #1408 under a previously awarded contract (N00024-98-D-5202) for logistics support for the AN/UYQ-70 advance display system. Work will be performed in Egan, Minn., and work is to be completed by May 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This offer was not awarded competitively. The Naval Inventory Control Point is the contracting activity.
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Campbellsville Apparel Co., LLC, Campbellsville, Ky.*, is being awarded a maximum $11,866,573.00 firm fixed price, total set aside contract for men's apparel. There are no other locations of performance. Using services are Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. This proposal was originally Web solicited with four responses. This contract is exercising option year two. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance is Sept. 17, 2010. The contracting activity is Defense Supply Center Philadelphia (DSCP), Philadelphia, Pa., (SP0100-06-D-0378).
Pentagon Official Calls Integrated Military 'Model of Diversity'
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - The U.S. armed forces have exemplified racial diversity since integrating 60 years ago, but further efforts are necessary to diversify military leadership, a Pentagon official said today. On July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed an executive order that led to racial equality among servicemembers. Six decades later, the Defense Department now boasts a diverse work force of roughly 3 million employees.
"The military has been a model for the nation," Clarence Johnson, DoD's principal director and director of civilian equal employment opportunity, said in an interview. "Other institutions look at us and see what programs that we're putting in place."
Johnson, a former Air Force colonel, said diversity of the services creates a wider talent pool to recruit from, and allows for a more productive and prepared force.
"We find that readiness does not owe any special allegiance to color, to sex to race," he said. "From the wide populace that we serve, we go out and get the best we can."
In today's military, minorities make up more than one-third of active duty forces, with blacks comprising more than 17 percent. Black representation in the enlisted forces -- about 13 percent -- is parallel to the amount of blacks represented in the recruiting-age civilian population overall, according to Defense Department statistics.
Meanwhile, Hispanic representation in the military has grown over the past decade, from about 2 percent to 5 percent among officers overall, and in the enlisted ranks to around 11 percent, Johnson said.
Though the armed forces have made great strides since early integration efforts, a department-sponsored report released this month suggests that major institutional changes may be required to improve diversity among the military's senior leadership.
The study, published by the nonprofit policy think tank Rand, melds input from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, the unified combatant commands, the Navy and Marine Corps and other defense agencies.
One policy recommendation highlighted in the report, titled "Planning for Diversity," is to include senior levels of the Defense Department in the push for diversity.
"The highest level of DoD leadership, not just from the personnel community, but also from other functional communities, needs to be involved in this effort," states a report summary available online.
Echoing the Rand findings, Johnson cited the need for greater representation of minorities and women at senior ranks and grades as a challenge facing the Defense Department.
African-Americans now represent 6 percent of all general and flag officers, and 9 percent of officers overall, levels which have increased steadily over the last decade, according to Defense Department statistics.
Johnson suggested the makeup of the military's senior levels could achieve greater balance if more minorities entered service academies, Johnson said. He added that blacks are less represented than other races in officer occupations -- career tracks with the best prospect to rise to senior ranks -- with only 20 percent of blacks in tactical operations, while 38 percent of all other races occupy the same fields.
Though not at desired levels, racial diversity among current military leadership is a factor that improves combat readiness, Johnson said.
"The fact that we have a wide variety of race, a wide variety of skill of other diverse characteristics, [means] we then have different types of people making decisions that can impact the mission, and the mission is going to be better for it," he said.
Johnson said the strength of the Defense Department is its ability to assess itself, and to respond to whatever shortcomings exist.
"I think that the military is going to be strong, because it will continue to be diverse," he said.
American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - The U.S. armed forces have exemplified racial diversity since integrating 60 years ago, but further efforts are necessary to diversify military leadership, a Pentagon official said today. On July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed an executive order that led to racial equality among servicemembers. Six decades later, the Defense Department now boasts a diverse work force of roughly 3 million employees.
"The military has been a model for the nation," Clarence Johnson, DoD's principal director and director of civilian equal employment opportunity, said in an interview. "Other institutions look at us and see what programs that we're putting in place."
Johnson, a former Air Force colonel, said diversity of the services creates a wider talent pool to recruit from, and allows for a more productive and prepared force.
"We find that readiness does not owe any special allegiance to color, to sex to race," he said. "From the wide populace that we serve, we go out and get the best we can."
In today's military, minorities make up more than one-third of active duty forces, with blacks comprising more than 17 percent. Black representation in the enlisted forces -- about 13 percent -- is parallel to the amount of blacks represented in the recruiting-age civilian population overall, according to Defense Department statistics.
Meanwhile, Hispanic representation in the military has grown over the past decade, from about 2 percent to 5 percent among officers overall, and in the enlisted ranks to around 11 percent, Johnson said.
Though the armed forces have made great strides since early integration efforts, a department-sponsored report released this month suggests that major institutional changes may be required to improve diversity among the military's senior leadership.
The study, published by the nonprofit policy think tank Rand, melds input from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, the unified combatant commands, the Navy and Marine Corps and other defense agencies.
One policy recommendation highlighted in the report, titled "Planning for Diversity," is to include senior levels of the Defense Department in the push for diversity.
"The highest level of DoD leadership, not just from the personnel community, but also from other functional communities, needs to be involved in this effort," states a report summary available online.
Echoing the Rand findings, Johnson cited the need for greater representation of minorities and women at senior ranks and grades as a challenge facing the Defense Department.
African-Americans now represent 6 percent of all general and flag officers, and 9 percent of officers overall, levels which have increased steadily over the last decade, according to Defense Department statistics.
Johnson suggested the makeup of the military's senior levels could achieve greater balance if more minorities entered service academies, Johnson said. He added that blacks are less represented than other races in officer occupations -- career tracks with the best prospect to rise to senior ranks -- with only 20 percent of blacks in tactical operations, while 38 percent of all other races occupy the same fields.
Though not at desired levels, racial diversity among current military leadership is a factor that improves combat readiness, Johnson said.
"The fact that we have a wide variety of race, a wide variety of skill of other diverse characteristics, [means] we then have different types of people making decisions that can impact the mission, and the mission is going to be better for it," he said.
Johnson said the strength of the Defense Department is its ability to assess itself, and to respond to whatever shortcomings exist.
"I think that the military is going to be strong, because it will continue to be diverse," he said.
Captain Leads Military Athletes at Olympic Track and Field Trials
By Tim Hipps
Special to American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - U.S. Air Force World Class Athlete Program Capt. Kevin Eastler led Military athletes competing in the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team track and field trials by earning his second Olympic berth in the 20-kilometer race walk. U.S. Army WCAP Sgt. John Nunn, who competed in the same event with Eastler at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, finished fourth at the trials on July 5, ending his bid to make Team USA and compete in Beijing.
On an emotional Fourth of July at Hayward Field, Army WCAP Capt. Michael Mai, a two-time Olympic Trials competitor, finished fifth in the hammer throw with a hurl of 71.75 meters. His first warm-up throw may have been good enough to make Team USA, but the throws that counted were not long enough.
"I tossed out a 75-meter throw that probably would have gotten me second place tonight," said Mai, 30, of Le Mars, Iowa. "I just couldn't quite get it as far out there as I wanted to when it counted.
"I still got fifth place and represented the U.S. Army to the best of my ability, which is why I'm here," added Mai, who is stationed at Moffett Field, Calif. "It was the best year I've had in all my years of throwing for the Army, and we'll see what the future brings."
Retired Air Force Capt. James Parker, a 2004 Olympian, placed seventh in the hammer with a throw of 69.97 meters.
Earlier in the eight-day meet, Army WCAP Spc. Nathaniel Garcia finished seventh in the first heat of the 400-meter hurdles semifinals. His time of 49.52 seconds was not fast enough to advance to the finals.
Air Force 2nd Lt. Dana Pounds finished second in the women's javelin throw with a mark of 57.83 meters but failed to earn an Olympic berth because she did not meet the qualifying standard.
Air Force 1st Lt. Paul Gensic, the only U.S. track and field competitor to medal at the 2007 Military World Games, placed sixth in the pole vault with a height of 5.5 meters -- 18 feet, ½ inch.
Former Army WCAP distance runner Dan Browne, 33, a 1997 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, doubled in the 10,000 meters and marathon at the 2004 Olympics. He finished 14th in the 10,000 meters at Eugene with a time of 28:42.78.
Eastler, 30, of Buckley Air Force Base, Colo., will be Team USA's only competitor in the men's 20K race walk in Beijing. He was the lone U.S. competitor to meet the Olympic qualifying standard before toeing the start line in Eugene, where a relatively slow pace prevented others from making the team.
Eastler won the early-morning race in 1 hour, 27 minutes, 8 seconds.
Nunn, who finished in 1:30:35, knew he needed to both win the race and meet the qualifying standard of 1:24:30 to secure a berth in the Beijing Games. He took an early lead and separated from the pack during the first two of 20 laps around a 1-kilometer loop outside Autzen Stadium. Eastler and second-place finisher Matthew Boyles of Miami Valley Track Club, however, quickly reeled in Nunn and passed him on the fourth lap.
"I knew he was going to do that," said Eastler, who won by more than a minute. "He needed to get a standard today, so it was expected that he was going to go out on pace. I wasn't in shape to do that today, so I just kind of let him go to see what happened. It's just a lot of pressure on an athlete to try to do both – win and get the standard – so he had a lot of pressure. I just wanted to stay strong and see what happened."
Having already met the qualifying standard, Eastler merely needed to finish the race to earn a trip to China – unless three other walkers beat him and met the standard, which nobody did.
"My only plan was to go out on a solid pace of between 4:20 and 4:25 per kilometer," said Eastler, a 1999 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy. "That's about what I ended up and it worked out."
Nunn said he felt ready for the challenge, but his legs did not cooperate.
"No one went with me [early], which is what I expected, because most of them were just racing for place," Nunn said. "So I figured I would walk it alone, but I've walked the time alone before by myself. I got into the race and things just weren't holding; it wasn't sticking. The first couple kilometers were OK, and then things slowed and I just couldn't get my turnover going. Quite honestly, I don't really have an answer for why. Some days it's on and some days it's not.
"When they passed me," he continued, "I hung with them for just a little bit and I guess I just couldn't get my legs to move. By around six kilometers, I realized it was going to take a lot to try to fight back and get the time that I had already lost. At that point, I figured let's just try to get among the top three. ... It was a shock for me – not quite at all what I fully expected. I've had good speed workouts and good distance sessions. It's hard, because 2012 is a long ways away."
Nunn's coach, Enrique Pena, a seven-time Olympic race walk competitor/coach, seconded that sentiment.
"He was ready to walk under 1:24, for sure," Pena said. "But I don't know what happened with John. It's disappointing for him and for me. He can do it, but sometimes things just don't work out."
Nunn thought of the future while choking back the tears of four tough years of training since he finished 26th at the Olympic Games in Athens.
"I'd really like to at least be a two-time Olympian and take the next four years and train to be in contention in the world," said Nunn, 30, of Evansville, Ind. "This is horribly disappointing, but the sun comes up tomorrow. We'll go on – go home and hug my daughter and keep living and enjoy life and realize there's a next time. It's four years away and that's a long time, but it gives me four more years to focus on my daughter (Ella, age 4) and my training – two things I love.
"It's been an incredible honor and a very humbling experience to be given the chance to train for the Olympics full-time with Military support and to wear the Army's singlet," he said. "It's always nice to hear 'Go Army.'"
Likewise, Eastler said he could not compete on the international level without Military support.
"I couldn't do this without the Air Force, that's for sure," he said. "To compete at this level, you need to train full-time and be dedicated to it. I don't think I could do it any other way."
Now he must compete against the rest of the world's best walkers.
"I had so much focus on today that I'm going to have to sit back and talk with my coach and come up with a game plan," Eastler said. "We'll just have to see how the body holds up."
After competing in the 2007 World Track and Field Championships, Eastler was slowed by persistent pain in his abdomen and underwent sports hernia surgery in December.
"I found a good therapist, trained through some pain, and finally got back," he explained. "I was a little tight today, but I mostly got rid of it."
He also is nagged by knee tendinitis.
"My body's kind of telling me this is the final season, so, yeah, this is it for me after this year," said Eastler, who hopes to improve upon his 21st-place finish in Athens at Beijing. "It's going to be tough for me to do that on my own again – to recreate such a good result. I'm sure going to try, but it's going to be an uphill battle given the injuries I've had."
(Tim Hipps works in the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command Public Affairs Office.)
Special to American Forces Press Service
July 22, 2008 - U.S. Air Force World Class Athlete Program Capt. Kevin Eastler led Military athletes competing in the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team track and field trials by earning his second Olympic berth in the 20-kilometer race walk. U.S. Army WCAP Sgt. John Nunn, who competed in the same event with Eastler at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, finished fourth at the trials on July 5, ending his bid to make Team USA and compete in Beijing.
On an emotional Fourth of July at Hayward Field, Army WCAP Capt. Michael Mai, a two-time Olympic Trials competitor, finished fifth in the hammer throw with a hurl of 71.75 meters. His first warm-up throw may have been good enough to make Team USA, but the throws that counted were not long enough.
"I tossed out a 75-meter throw that probably would have gotten me second place tonight," said Mai, 30, of Le Mars, Iowa. "I just couldn't quite get it as far out there as I wanted to when it counted.
"I still got fifth place and represented the U.S. Army to the best of my ability, which is why I'm here," added Mai, who is stationed at Moffett Field, Calif. "It was the best year I've had in all my years of throwing for the Army, and we'll see what the future brings."
Retired Air Force Capt. James Parker, a 2004 Olympian, placed seventh in the hammer with a throw of 69.97 meters.
Earlier in the eight-day meet, Army WCAP Spc. Nathaniel Garcia finished seventh in the first heat of the 400-meter hurdles semifinals. His time of 49.52 seconds was not fast enough to advance to the finals.
Air Force 2nd Lt. Dana Pounds finished second in the women's javelin throw with a mark of 57.83 meters but failed to earn an Olympic berth because she did not meet the qualifying standard.
Air Force 1st Lt. Paul Gensic, the only U.S. track and field competitor to medal at the 2007 Military World Games, placed sixth in the pole vault with a height of 5.5 meters -- 18 feet, ½ inch.
Former Army WCAP distance runner Dan Browne, 33, a 1997 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, doubled in the 10,000 meters and marathon at the 2004 Olympics. He finished 14th in the 10,000 meters at Eugene with a time of 28:42.78.
Eastler, 30, of Buckley Air Force Base, Colo., will be Team USA's only competitor in the men's 20K race walk in Beijing. He was the lone U.S. competitor to meet the Olympic qualifying standard before toeing the start line in Eugene, where a relatively slow pace prevented others from making the team.
Eastler won the early-morning race in 1 hour, 27 minutes, 8 seconds.
Nunn, who finished in 1:30:35, knew he needed to both win the race and meet the qualifying standard of 1:24:30 to secure a berth in the Beijing Games. He took an early lead and separated from the pack during the first two of 20 laps around a 1-kilometer loop outside Autzen Stadium. Eastler and second-place finisher Matthew Boyles of Miami Valley Track Club, however, quickly reeled in Nunn and passed him on the fourth lap.
"I knew he was going to do that," said Eastler, who won by more than a minute. "He needed to get a standard today, so it was expected that he was going to go out on pace. I wasn't in shape to do that today, so I just kind of let him go to see what happened. It's just a lot of pressure on an athlete to try to do both – win and get the standard – so he had a lot of pressure. I just wanted to stay strong and see what happened."
Having already met the qualifying standard, Eastler merely needed to finish the race to earn a trip to China – unless three other walkers beat him and met the standard, which nobody did.
"My only plan was to go out on a solid pace of between 4:20 and 4:25 per kilometer," said Eastler, a 1999 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy. "That's about what I ended up and it worked out."
Nunn said he felt ready for the challenge, but his legs did not cooperate.
"No one went with me [early], which is what I expected, because most of them were just racing for place," Nunn said. "So I figured I would walk it alone, but I've walked the time alone before by myself. I got into the race and things just weren't holding; it wasn't sticking. The first couple kilometers were OK, and then things slowed and I just couldn't get my turnover going. Quite honestly, I don't really have an answer for why. Some days it's on and some days it's not.
"When they passed me," he continued, "I hung with them for just a little bit and I guess I just couldn't get my legs to move. By around six kilometers, I realized it was going to take a lot to try to fight back and get the time that I had already lost. At that point, I figured let's just try to get among the top three. ... It was a shock for me – not quite at all what I fully expected. I've had good speed workouts and good distance sessions. It's hard, because 2012 is a long ways away."
Nunn's coach, Enrique Pena, a seven-time Olympic race walk competitor/coach, seconded that sentiment.
"He was ready to walk under 1:24, for sure," Pena said. "But I don't know what happened with John. It's disappointing for him and for me. He can do it, but sometimes things just don't work out."
Nunn thought of the future while choking back the tears of four tough years of training since he finished 26th at the Olympic Games in Athens.
"I'd really like to at least be a two-time Olympian and take the next four years and train to be in contention in the world," said Nunn, 30, of Evansville, Ind. "This is horribly disappointing, but the sun comes up tomorrow. We'll go on – go home and hug my daughter and keep living and enjoy life and realize there's a next time. It's four years away and that's a long time, but it gives me four more years to focus on my daughter (Ella, age 4) and my training – two things I love.
"It's been an incredible honor and a very humbling experience to be given the chance to train for the Olympics full-time with Military support and to wear the Army's singlet," he said. "It's always nice to hear 'Go Army.'"
Likewise, Eastler said he could not compete on the international level without Military support.
"I couldn't do this without the Air Force, that's for sure," he said. "To compete at this level, you need to train full-time and be dedicated to it. I don't think I could do it any other way."
Now he must compete against the rest of the world's best walkers.
"I had so much focus on today that I'm going to have to sit back and talk with my coach and come up with a game plan," Eastler said. "We'll just have to see how the body holds up."
After competing in the 2007 World Track and Field Championships, Eastler was slowed by persistent pain in his abdomen and underwent sports hernia surgery in December.
"I found a good therapist, trained through some pain, and finally got back," he explained. "I was a little tight today, but I mostly got rid of it."
He also is nagged by knee tendinitis.
"My body's kind of telling me this is the final season, so, yeah, this is it for me after this year," said Eastler, who hopes to improve upon his 21st-place finish in Athens at Beijing. "It's going to be tough for me to do that on my own again – to recreate such a good result. I'm sure going to try, but it's going to be an uphill battle given the injuries I've had."
(Tim Hipps works in the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command Public Affairs Office.)
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