Paralympian Soldier Pioneers Prosthesis, Hopes to Inspire Others

By Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.

American Forces Press Service

LONDON – A sharpshooting Army sergeant who helped to usher in an innovative prosthesis that has helped countless wounded warriors has brought his sharp eye to compete in the 2012 Paralympic Games here.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Olson, a member of the 2012 Paralympic shooting team and of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit helped to develop an advanced prosthesis for wounded service members.

“[In] October 2003, I was wounded in Iraq by a rocket-propelled grenade during an ambush,” Olson said. “From there, I was medevaced to Landstuhl [Regional Medical Center in Germany], and I was there for about eight days.” After that, he said, he woke up at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., where he spent about 18 months.

“In my stay at Walter Reed, there was an outdoor event every day in occupational therapy – shotgun shooting,” he said. “I went out and shot sporting clay one day. I hit my first 49 out of 50.”

Olson said his shooting acuity caught the attention of the program director at Walter Reed, who put in a call to the Army Marksmanship Unit at Fort Benning, Ga., to see if a position was available for a competitive shooter or marksmanship instructor.

“I went down to Fort Benning from Walter Reed, had a tryout and was very successful,” Olson said. “[I] got along great with the coaches and the other shooters on the team.”

The Army sergeant said he was assigned to the marksmanship unit in June 2005 and “slowly, but surely, started shooting.”

“And I'm here today,” he added.

Olson noted that been many troops in his position have wished to stay in the military despite their injuries, but were unable to.

“There's a lot of guys that have been wounded that want to continue to serve,” he said. “I'm very blessed and very fortunate to be able to do that.

I hope I inspire, not even [just] wounded soldiers, but other soldiers,” he continued, “just to [let them know], 'Hey, you might be going through something tough, such as [post-traumatic stress], but if you work hard and give yourself goals to work on, it helps you get out of bed every day [and] helps you work hard and overcome things in your life.”

In discussing the origin of the “Olson Socket,” the Army sergeant is quick to note he didn't invent the prosthesis himself.

“I was just the first guy to wear it and help make it work,” Olson explained. “In late 2004, I went down to Orlando, Fla., where Prosthetics and Associates is, and [met] a gentleman by the name of Dennis Clark.”

“Those guys got together [with] myself and the actual designers, and originally drew it up on a bar napkin,” he revealed. “And we tried it out, and we put it together and made it work.”

Olson said as soon as he got back to Walter Reed with the prosthesis, officials there immediately began sending service members down to Florida to be fitted for the same prosthesis and socket system.

“I was very fortunate and very blessed they named it after me, but I just happened to be the first guy to ever have one,” he said.

Olson credited his military service for the discipline that got him here to compete in the Paralympic Games.

“Military service has prepared me for the Paralympics by teaching me determination, patience and just overall hard work,” he said. “My goal for the Paralympics is to be able to perform my best – to perform at the level I know I can. If I do that, I should be on the medal stand.”

The key to his success, Olson said, is practicing, staying focused and concentrating on the fundamentals of his sport.

“For me, my biggest challenge is the ability to stay focused during the entire match,” he said. “So I do some mental exercises, a lot of imagery and some visualization exercises. This sport is 95 percent mental and 5 percent physical.

“I've been training a long time for this,” he added. “There's really no shooting drill, no mental exercise or anything you can really do to prepare for actually sitting there.”

Olson’s next Paralympic Games shooting event is scheduled for Sept. 4 at the Royal Artillery Barracks.

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Canada: Pennsylvania Army Guard transportation unit on the road as part of training exercise Steadfast Warrior

By Army Sgt. Matthew Keeler

109th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

CANADIAN FORCES BASE PETAWAWA, Ontario - Soldiers from the Pennsylvania Army National Guard’s 131st Transportation Company, transported Canadian Army vehicles from Petawawa, Ont., to Toronto as part of Steadfast Warrior, a training exercise between the Pennsylvania Guard and the Canadian Army’s 32nd Canadian Brigade Group.

“I know in theatre we do a lot of blended operations,” said Canadian Army Capt. Jacquie Field, a logistics officer with the 32nd CBG, and a Sudbury, Ontario native. “For the central region, or where we are from, I don’t know that we have ever had Americans lift-stuff for us before. So, to me that was an inaugural kind of thing.”

But for many of the Soldiers of the 131st Trans. Co., transporting the trucks was business as usual, said Army Sgt. Jorge Aviles, a team leader with the unit.

“The 131st is often tasked to transport large equipment like Humvees and Bradleys across Pennsylvania that made this mission very similar,” he said.

On arrival to Petawawa the 131st Trans. Co. trucks carried equipment for the Pennsylvania Army Guard Soldiers training with Canadians.

The preparation not only for the movement to Canada, but to get clearance for the trucks to move to Toronto needed approval not only through the American side, but the Canadian side too, said Field.

 Field said she worked through her higher headquarters and alerted all the individuals needed to help support the movement.

“Then it was dealing with people repairing our vehicles to make sure that they were ready to lift,” she said. “And, then when that kind of stuff was taken care of, [the Pennsylvania Army Guard] did their business and we stayed out of the way.”

Securing the Canadian Army’s Light Support Vehicle Wheeled to the trailers they would be transported on gave newer members of the unit a chance to gain experience with different vehicles, said Aviles.

“There are a few different ways to chain equipment down to a trailer,” he said.

But,  no matter the vehicle being chained down, there are common techniques that Aviles stressed to his Soldiers.

“I prefer to harness the vehicle by its axle to eliminate the chance that the vehicle will bounce or move and loosen the chain,” he said, explaining one of those techniques.

 For Staff Sgt. Kelly Eitreim, acting convoy commander for the Toronto mission and a squad leader with the 131st Trans. Co., the mission’s success was based on the time element too. Arriving in Toronto on Sunday evening and leaving before rush hour prevented the trucks from getting bogged down in traffic.

The Soldiers arrived back at Petawawa from Toronto in under six-hours, and received high praise from their Canadian counterparts.

“They are consummate professionals, very positive and energetic,’” said Field. “You can tell that they are specialists in their field. I believe 28 minutes is what…it took to unload their trucks.”

With their trucks unloaded and more work to be done back in the States, the Soldiers from the 131st Trans. Co. boarded their trucks and made the journey back to the United States set to return to collect the equipment upon completion of the exercise.

Mississippi National Guard distributes food, assists with high-water rescues in Isaac’s aftermath

By Army Sgt. Scott Tynes

102nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

GULFPORT, Miss. - The storm surge and rising flood waters of a lingering Hurricane Isaac have had a telling effect on those along the Mississippi Gulf Coast and more than 1500 Mississippi National Guard members have assisting local and state agencies presence patrols, search, food and water distribution and search and rescue operations.

That includes rescuing residents from high water and flooded areas.

“Our search and rescue teams have been extremely effective,” said Army Brig. Gen. Robert Thomas, commander of Joint Task Force Magnolia. “Our force has rescued approximately 50 individuals in Hancock County and numerous pets that were stranded in flooded areas. Mississippi National Guard search and rescue efforts have also expanded into Jackson County. The need to help residents there is present as well.”

On Wednesday, members of the Mississippi Guard assisted the American Red Cross with distributing food, water and other items in areas affected by the storm. 

“Many of the shelters began running out of food early this morning,” said Tech. Sgt. Domingo Rodriguez of the 47th Civil Support Team. “The American Red Cross called the National Guard for help in transporting food from storage areas out to where they needed most in the shelters.”

Mississippi Guard elements positioned along the coast sent convoys through the swirling winds and deluge of rain to Red Cross distribution centers to pick up food for delivery to shelters in their area of operation.

“We have more than 2,000 residents in our shelters now and more than 36,000 meals on hand,” said Jay Huffstatler, chapter executive for the South Mississippi Chapter of the Red Cross. “The Guard is helping us to get those out to the three coastal counties.”

Mississippi Guard members used high-clearance trucks to navigated flooded roadways and other areas to get to areas to distribute the food items to the shelters in need.

“Right now, people need food and that is what we are doing,” Army 1st Lt. Jessica Lee, of Company E, 106th Brigade Support Battalion.

 Many of the relief efforts would not be possible without the assistance of the Mississippi Guard, said Windy Swetman, Harrison County District 1 supervisor, adding that he appreciated the efforts of the Soldiers and Airmen.

“We know you have families and we appreciate the sacrifices being made,” he said.

 The Mississippi Guard will continue to provide additional support to local agencies through presence patrols and with search and rescue and other operations as needed.

VR-57 Conquistadors Provide Support for Hurricane Isaac Relief Efforts

By Lt. j. g. Wesley Holzapfel, Commander Fleet Logistics Support Wing Public Affairs

NAVAL AIR STATION OCEANA, Va. (NNS) -- Fleet Logistics Support Squadron (VR) 57 at Naval Air Station Oceana provided support for Hurricane Isaac relief efforts, Aug. 29.

A crew of the VR-57 'Conquistadors,' with their C-40A Clipper, quickly, and in the middle of their own mission, jumped into the support for Hurricane Isaac relief efforts by transporting a group of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 9 aircrew and maintenance personnel from Norfolk to Dothan Regional Airport, in Alabama. This last-minute transport gave HSC-9 some much-needed manpower to begin preparations for the NORTHCOM-tasked Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Relief missions along the Gulf Coast.

The Conquistador crew was preparing to return to its home base at Naval Air Station North Island, in San Diego, when the Navy Air Logistics Office (NALO) scheduled the support.

"NALO and the VR-57 crew easily coordinated the no-notice mission which allowed for same-day execution and completion," said Cmdr. Tim Rascoll, transport aircraft requirements officer for the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations.

VR-57 is one of 15 squadrons within Fleet Logistics Support Wing (FLSW) headquartered at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base, Fort Worth, Texas. FLSW, the largest functioning air wing in the Navy, was established to operate Navy-unique essential airlift aircraft on a worldwide basis. Its mission is to provide responsive, flexible, and rapid deployable air logistics support.