Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced today the next Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier will be named the USS John F. Kennedy.
The selection John F. Kennedy, designated CVN 79, honors the 35th President of the United States and pays tribute to his service in the Navy, in the government, and to the nation.
“President John F. Kennedy exemplified the meaning of service, not just to country, but service to all humanity,” said Mabus. “I am honored to have the opportunity to name the next aircraft carrier after this great sailor and inspirational leader, and to keep the rich tradition and history of USS John F. Kennedy sailing in the U.S. Fleet.”
Born in Brookline, Mass., May 29, 1917, Kennedy graduated from Harvard in 1940 and entered the Navy in October 1941.
During World War II, Kennedy took command of PT 109 at Tulagi Island in the Solomons with a mission to intercept Japanese ships attempting to resupply their barges in New Georgia. In the early morning hours of Aug. 2, 1943, Kennedy’s ship was inadvertently struck by an enemy ship and split in half. Over the course of the next six days, Kennedy led his crew members to safety and an eventual rescue. Kennedy received the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for the rescue of his crew and a Purple Heart for injuries he sustained when his ship was struck.
After his military service, Kennedy became a congressman representing the Boston area, he was elected to the Senate in 1953, and in 1961 became the youngest person to be elected president.
One previous ship, the USS John F. Kennedy, CV 67, was named in his honor and was decommissioned in 2007 after nearly 40 years of distinguished service, including Operation Desert Storm.
The USS John F. Kennedy and other Ford-class carriers will be the premier forward asset for crisis response and humanitarian relief and early decisive striking power in a major combat operation. The aircraft carrier and the carrier strike group will provide forward presence, rapid response, endurance on station, and multi-mission capability throughout its 50-year service life.
The USS John F. Kennedy will provide improved warfighting capability, quality of life improvements for sailors and reduced acquisition and life cycle costs. The ship will be constructed at Newport News Shipbuilding, Va., a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries.
NEATLY DRESSED, and with pep in his step, Fred Johnson walked the streets of his hometown, acting as if he were strolling along the finest boulevards, not passing boarded-up buildings and trashy lots in east Chester.
He struck up conversations with almost everyone he saw, smiling even when people turned away. He was looking for veterans, homeless ones, drug-addicted ones, unemployed ones, lost ones. Any former military man or woman who could be helped by the 4-year-old nonprofit organization that he leads: Heroes Today.
And he found them, waiting in front of the bus station, crossing the streets, lounging against city buildings. Johnson, an Army veteran himself, calls this "guerrilla marketing," going out and connecting one-on-one with people who need help.
"Thank you," one man, a Vietnam veteran, whispered to Johnson after the two made plans to speak by phone later that day about the man's troubles.
At one point, he gestured toward a grassy park where a woman and child played.
"I slept here a couple of times," he said. "A lot of the guys I run into, I got high with when I was homeless."
That's because Johnson, 41, wasn't always the one doing the helping. Last time he was here, he was one of the lost.
Wrecked after a stint in Iraq, he spent a best-forgotten year addicted to crack and sleeping on the same streets he walks today.
Now he's back, determined that no other veteran will suffer as he did.
"We want vets to know there's support here," Johnson said. "We're not going anywhere. We're engraved in stone now."
'The lowest low'
Johnson, 41, was born and raised in Chester. He joined the Army at 19. His was a fulfilling, but uneventful, stint until he was deployed to Iraq in 2004. He was based outside Baghdad in a camp nicknamed "Mortaritaville" because of the daily bombings it received. He was also part of a medical team that handled triage.
That's pretty much all Johnson will say about his time overseas. Ask questions and he'll just shake his head and look away. He won't go into many details about what he did or what he saw.
"I don't like to go there," he said.
He returned home to Chester in November 2005. By his own account, he spent much of 2006 drunk or high. Crack was his drug of choice.
His mother threw him out of their house. He doesn't blame her for that.
"No one wants to deal with you when you're smoking crack," he said. "My mom was scared of me. She changed the locks."
His mother, Betty Johnson, said that she did change her locks every two months, though it hurt her to see her only child this way.
"As a mother, your heart is out there when he's out there," she said. "You don't know where he is or what he's doing.
"God took him to the lowest low."
To support his habit, Johnson ran errands for his drug dealer. He was picked up by police for loitering. He slept in empty buildings or the woods or open parks, or spent all night walking through the city. He attempted suicide by overdose.
"I don't remember much of 2006," Johnson said.
One day, he just had enough. He went back to his mother's home. He asked her to take him to the Department of Veterans Affairs Hospital near Baltimore.
"He just came to me and said, 'I'm tired,' " his mother said. "He brought himself in and did what he had to do to get clean and sober."
Johnson spent a year in the VA hospital system, battling his addictions. There, he was also diagnosed with chronic post-traumatic stress disorder.
While he was struggling in the hospital, he had an idea for an organization that would help veterans like himself.
"I probably would have gotten off the street sooner if there was a veterans' organization in the city," he said.
'A great motivator'
In the VA hospital outside Baltimore, Johnson remembers watching fellow patients line up for the daily drug dispensings and feeling their stress choking him.
Wali Mutazammil, Johnson's roommate in Baltimore and a Heroes Today board member, discussed the concept of the nonprofit with Johnson.
"It's very personal," said Mutazammil, a Vietnam veteran. "We're here to embrace you and be with you for as long as it takes, even the rest of your life."
After a year in the VA system, including a transfer to the Pittsburgh VA, Johnson was released in 2007. He started to make his concept a reality in that city.
Although the focus was homeless veterans, he wanted to offer aid to any veteran. He organized regular dinners sponsored by area restaurants, connected with legal-aid associations and joined forces with other veterans-assistance organizations.
Johnson's gift is his ability to network, and he managed to get so far with money provided by only himself and his board members.
"He helped a lot of guys get their things straight and in order," said Scott Havelka, secretary of the Pittsburgh chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, a veterans-assistance association. "He's a great motivator."
Mutazammil easily listed a few of Heroes Today's Pittsburgh accomplishments, including finding homes for the homeless and securing cheap cars for those who needed them.
"We know that we're making a difference," he said. "We're still pretty much doing this out of our own hip pocket, but we don't even think about that. We just do it."
With the Pittsburgh organization established, Johnson brought Heroes Today to Chester.
'A giving heart'
Johnson is one of Chester's biggest supporters, calling it patriotic to the core. Johnson estimates that about 3,000 veterans call the city home.
But it needs more veteran-support services, he said.
"Vets, once they identify someone else is a vet, they have something to talk about," Johnson said.
"Veterans serving veterans' organizations are the most effective. A lot of veterans are so proud, they won't reach out to strangers for help. Some here have been jerked around so much, they're just tired of it."
So, Johnson does his guerrilla marketing, walking the streets, sticking fliers everywhere he can. He's starting a peer-to-peer support group. He'd like to find a permanent office space.
Earlier this month, Johnson organized his first major event: A job and health fair held at Chester's City Hall. More than 100 veterans - and some nonveterans - visited the fair, which included 15 potential employers, five colleges and representatives from different VA departments.
Betty Johnson said she was leery when she heard that her son would be moving home. But then she saw the transformation he had undergone.
"Once I saw he was so determined, I knew it was going to happen," she said. "He has a giving heart. He's always had a giving heart."
And he's committed to his cause.
"He lives, eats, breathes, sleeps Heroes Today," said Kim Jennings, a Chester resident who has joined Heroes Today's Veterans Outreach Committee. "That's all he talks about. It's not an organization that hears your problems and says, 'OK, we'll see what we can do' and leave it at that. It's made up of a bunch of people who are really go-getters."
For his part, Johnson is certain that he's finally on the right path.
"I would never have imagined myself giving so much of myself without getting anything in return every single day," he said. "It's the motivation to help others that keeps me going."
For more information on Heroes Today, go to http://heroestoday.org or call 888-386-9445.
And he found them, waiting in front of the bus station, crossing the streets, lounging against city buildings. Johnson, an Army veteran himself, calls this "guerrilla marketing," going out and connecting one-on-one with people who need help.
"Thank you," one man, a Vietnam veteran, whispered to Johnson after the two made plans to speak by phone later that day about the man's troubles.
At one point, he gestured toward a grassy park where a woman and child played.
"I slept here a couple of times," he said. "A lot of the guys I run into, I got high with when I was homeless."
That's because Johnson, 41, wasn't always the one doing the helping. Last time he was here, he was one of the lost.
Wrecked after a stint in Iraq, he spent a best-forgotten year addicted to crack and sleeping on the same streets he walks today.
Now he's back, determined that no other veteran will suffer as he did.
"We want vets to know there's support here," Johnson said. "We're not going anywhere. We're engraved in stone now."
'The lowest low'
Johnson, 41, was born and raised in Chester. He joined the Army at 19. His was a fulfilling, but uneventful, stint until he was deployed to Iraq in 2004. He was based outside Baghdad in a camp nicknamed "Mortaritaville" because of the daily bombings it received. He was also part of a medical team that handled triage.
That's pretty much all Johnson will say about his time overseas. Ask questions and he'll just shake his head and look away. He won't go into many details about what he did or what he saw.
"I don't like to go there," he said.
He returned home to Chester in November 2005. By his own account, he spent much of 2006 drunk or high. Crack was his drug of choice.
His mother threw him out of their house. He doesn't blame her for that.
"No one wants to deal with you when you're smoking crack," he said. "My mom was scared of me. She changed the locks."
His mother, Betty Johnson, said that she did change her locks every two months, though it hurt her to see her only child this way.
"As a mother, your heart is out there when he's out there," she said. "You don't know where he is or what he's doing.
"God took him to the lowest low."
To support his habit, Johnson ran errands for his drug dealer. He was picked up by police for loitering. He slept in empty buildings or the woods or open parks, or spent all night walking through the city. He attempted suicide by overdose.
"I don't remember much of 2006," Johnson said.
One day, he just had enough. He went back to his mother's home. He asked her to take him to the Department of Veterans Affairs Hospital near Baltimore.
"He just came to me and said, 'I'm tired,' " his mother said. "He brought himself in and did what he had to do to get clean and sober."
Johnson spent a year in the VA hospital system, battling his addictions. There, he was also diagnosed with chronic post-traumatic stress disorder.
While he was struggling in the hospital, he had an idea for an organization that would help veterans like himself.
"I probably would have gotten off the street sooner if there was a veterans' organization in the city," he said.
'A great motivator'
In the VA hospital outside Baltimore, Johnson remembers watching fellow patients line up for the daily drug dispensings and feeling their stress choking him.
Wali Mutazammil, Johnson's roommate in Baltimore and a Heroes Today board member, discussed the concept of the nonprofit with Johnson.
"It's very personal," said Mutazammil, a Vietnam veteran. "We're here to embrace you and be with you for as long as it takes, even the rest of your life."
After a year in the VA system, including a transfer to the Pittsburgh VA, Johnson was released in 2007. He started to make his concept a reality in that city.
Although the focus was homeless veterans, he wanted to offer aid to any veteran. He organized regular dinners sponsored by area restaurants, connected with legal-aid associations and joined forces with other veterans-assistance organizations.
Johnson's gift is his ability to network, and he managed to get so far with money provided by only himself and his board members.
"He helped a lot of guys get their things straight and in order," said Scott Havelka, secretary of the Pittsburgh chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, a veterans-assistance association. "He's a great motivator."
Mutazammil easily listed a few of Heroes Today's Pittsburgh accomplishments, including finding homes for the homeless and securing cheap cars for those who needed them.
"We know that we're making a difference," he said. "We're still pretty much doing this out of our own hip pocket, but we don't even think about that. We just do it."
With the Pittsburgh organization established, Johnson brought Heroes Today to Chester.
'A giving heart'
Johnson is one of Chester's biggest supporters, calling it patriotic to the core. Johnson estimates that about 3,000 veterans call the city home.
But it needs more veteran-support services, he said.
"Vets, once they identify someone else is a vet, they have something to talk about," Johnson said.
"Veterans serving veterans' organizations are the most effective. A lot of veterans are so proud, they won't reach out to strangers for help. Some here have been jerked around so much, they're just tired of it."
So, Johnson does his guerrilla marketing, walking the streets, sticking fliers everywhere he can. He's starting a peer-to-peer support group. He'd like to find a permanent office space.
Earlier this month, Johnson organized his first major event: A job and health fair held at Chester's City Hall. More than 100 veterans - and some nonveterans - visited the fair, which included 15 potential employers, five colleges and representatives from different VA departments.
Betty Johnson said she was leery when she heard that her son would be moving home. But then she saw the transformation he had undergone.
"Once I saw he was so determined, I knew it was going to happen," she said. "He has a giving heart. He's always had a giving heart."
And he's committed to his cause.
"He lives, eats, breathes, sleeps Heroes Today," said Kim Jennings, a Chester resident who has joined Heroes Today's Veterans Outreach Committee. "That's all he talks about. It's not an organization that hears your problems and says, 'OK, we'll see what we can do' and leave it at that. It's made up of a bunch of people who are really go-getters."
For his part, Johnson is certain that he's finally on the right path.
"I would never have imagined myself giving so much of myself without getting anything in return every single day," he said. "It's the motivation to help others that keeps me going."
For more information on Heroes Today, go to http://heroestoday.org or call 888-386-9445.
More than 2000 Citizen Soldiers and Airmen are now on duty supporting flood and tornado relief efforts in twelve states.
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An Afghan and coalition force killed Qari Musa, a senior Taliban leader, during a precision airstrike in the Talah wa Barfak district of Afghanistan's Baghlan province, military officials reported today.
Musa was the senior Taliban leader in the district, officials said, and routinely targeted Afghan government officials and Afghan National Police in the district. At the time of his death, he was gathering groups of fighters, including suicide bombers, to conduct attacks against Afghan security forces.
Musa also purchased weapons from arms facilitators to conduct ambushes, officials added.
The coalition force conducted the May 23 strike after receiving reports that identified Musa and several insurgents operating at a compound in the district. Besides Musa, two of his bodyguards and several other insurgent fighters were killed during the air strike.
No civilians were harmed as a result of the air strike, officials said.
In other operations:
-- Ziahuddin, the Taliban-appointed senior governing official for Bamyan district, and Shayk Dayan, the newly Taliban-appointed senior governing official for Doshi district, were killed during a security operation in Baghlan province's Doshi district May 22, International Security Assistance Force officials confirmed today.
-- Also today, ISAF officials confirmed the capture of a Taliban facilitator during a security operation May 23 in Logar province's Baraki Barak district. The facilitator assisted the insurgent network with improvised explosive devices and weapons for attacks against Afghan security forces.
-- Officials confirmed today the capture of a Taliban leader during a security operation May 21 in Helmand province's Nad' Ali district. The leader was engaged in planning ambushes and other attacks on Afghan forces.
-- A coalition force patrol found and destroyed several weapons caches today in Kandahar province's Arghandab district. The cache included an RPK machine gun, three 120 mm rounds, nine mortar rounds, 12 rocket-propelled grenades, an anti-personnel mine, three grenades, 800 7.62 mm rounds, seven booster rounds and four blasting caps.
In operations yesterday:
-- Afghan and coalition forces air assaulted into Nuristan province's Do-ab district to assess insurgent activity, officials said, following claims that the district was overrun by insurgents. The combined force came under small-arms fire upon landing from an unknown number of insurgents. The force returned fire and called for close-air support, suppressing the enemy fire and killing more than 10 insurgents.
"We have seen the insurgent claims in the media, Col. Hans Bush, ISAF Joint Command spokesman, said. "Our Afghan and coalition forces are on the ground. There is some fighting; however, no indication at this time the district was ever overrun. The ground force commander continues to develop the situation on the ground."
-- In Balkh province's Chimtal district, a combined Afghan and coalition security force detained two suspected insurgents while searching for a senior Taliban leader. The leader is the Taliban-appointed senior governing official for the province. He is the focal point for all operational direction and is involved in all stages of western Balkh operations.
-- In Helmand province's Nahr-e Saraj district, a combined Afghan and coalition security force detained several suspected insurgents during a security operation targeting a Taliban leader. The Taliban leader coordinated attacks against security forces and provides other insurgents in his area with munitions.
-- In Khost province's Musa Khel district, a combined Afghan and coalition security force detained two insurgents during a security operation targeting a Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin leader. The leader directs insurgents in Qalandar and Musa Khel districts.
-- In Ghazni province, coalition force patrols discovered two weapons caches. In Qarah Bagh district, a patrol found eight rocket-propelled grenades, while a separate patrol in Deh Yak district discovered 10 120 mm rounds, one 105 mm rounds and a fuse. Security forces will destroy all weapons and ammunition.
Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases
Musa was the senior Taliban leader in the district, officials said, and routinely targeted Afghan government officials and Afghan National Police in the district. At the time of his death, he was gathering groups of fighters, including suicide bombers, to conduct attacks against Afghan security forces.
Musa also purchased weapons from arms facilitators to conduct ambushes, officials added.
The coalition force conducted the May 23 strike after receiving reports that identified Musa and several insurgents operating at a compound in the district. Besides Musa, two of his bodyguards and several other insurgent fighters were killed during the air strike.
No civilians were harmed as a result of the air strike, officials said.
In other operations:
-- Ziahuddin, the Taliban-appointed senior governing official for Bamyan district, and Shayk Dayan, the newly Taliban-appointed senior governing official for Doshi district, were killed during a security operation in Baghlan province's Doshi district May 22, International Security Assistance Force officials confirmed today.
-- Also today, ISAF officials confirmed the capture of a Taliban facilitator during a security operation May 23 in Logar province's Baraki Barak district. The facilitator assisted the insurgent network with improvised explosive devices and weapons for attacks against Afghan security forces.
-- Officials confirmed today the capture of a Taliban leader during a security operation May 21 in Helmand province's Nad' Ali district. The leader was engaged in planning ambushes and other attacks on Afghan forces.
-- A coalition force patrol found and destroyed several weapons caches today in Kandahar province's Arghandab district. The cache included an RPK machine gun, three 120 mm rounds, nine mortar rounds, 12 rocket-propelled grenades, an anti-personnel mine, three grenades, 800 7.62 mm rounds, seven booster rounds and four blasting caps.
In operations yesterday:
-- Afghan and coalition forces air assaulted into Nuristan province's Do-ab district to assess insurgent activity, officials said, following claims that the district was overrun by insurgents. The combined force came under small-arms fire upon landing from an unknown number of insurgents. The force returned fire and called for close-air support, suppressing the enemy fire and killing more than 10 insurgents.
"We have seen the insurgent claims in the media, Col. Hans Bush, ISAF Joint Command spokesman, said. "Our Afghan and coalition forces are on the ground. There is some fighting; however, no indication at this time the district was ever overrun. The ground force commander continues to develop the situation on the ground."
-- In Balkh province's Chimtal district, a combined Afghan and coalition security force detained two suspected insurgents while searching for a senior Taliban leader. The leader is the Taliban-appointed senior governing official for the province. He is the focal point for all operational direction and is involved in all stages of western Balkh operations.
-- In Helmand province's Nahr-e Saraj district, a combined Afghan and coalition security force detained several suspected insurgents during a security operation targeting a Taliban leader. The Taliban leader coordinated attacks against security forces and provides other insurgents in his area with munitions.
-- In Khost province's Musa Khel district, a combined Afghan and coalition security force detained two insurgents during a security operation targeting a Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin leader. The leader directs insurgents in Qalandar and Musa Khel districts.
-- In Ghazni province, coalition force patrols discovered two weapons caches. In Qarah Bagh district, a patrol found eight rocket-propelled grenades, while a separate patrol in Deh Yak district discovered 10 120 mm rounds, one 105 mm rounds and a fuse. Security forces will destroy all weapons and ammunition.
Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases
The 1st Armored Division, the final American division to leave Germany, uncased its colors this week at Ft. Bliss, Texas.
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As part of an ongoing effort to better serve the military community, the American Red Cross will move to a single telephone number for its emergency communication services next month. Beginning June 13 at 8 a.m. EDT, service members and their families can use one toll-free number -- 877-272-7337 -- to send an urgent message to a service member. "The Red Cross has always been there for us," Robert L. Gordon III, deputy assistant secretary of defense for military community and family policy, said. "It's critically important to our men and women serving away from home that their families know whom to call in the event of an emergency. The Red Cross is now making it even easier to make that call." In the past, military families living outside an installation needed to remember the phone number for their local Red Cross chapters for emergency communications, while those living on a military installation used the 877-272-7337 number. Now, military members and their families can use this single number to initiate an emergency communication, regardless of where they live. For those stationed overseas, the three options for calling will remain the same: calling 877-272-7337 direct, accessing the number through a military operator or calling their local Red Cross station. "An emergency situation can be a very stressful time for a military family, and having just one common telephone number to remember can make a difficult situation a little easier," said Sherri Brown, senior vice president for service to the Armed Forces. "U.S. military personnel and their families can remain confident that the Red Cross will be there to keep them connected when there is a crisis at home." Through this number, Red Cross emergency communications services can put military personnel in touch with their families following the death or serious illness of an immediate family member, the birth of a service member's child or grandchild or when a family faces other emergencies. Additional Red Cross services such as case management and emergency financial assistance also are available. From an American Red Cross News Release |
| Related Sites: American Red Cross |
In May beneficiaries start spending more time outdoors, but it’s important to protect exposed skin from the sun. May is Skin Cancer and Prevention month and TRICARE reminds all beneficiaries to take precautions when outside enjoying the sunshine.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. There are three main types: melanoma, squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma.
Squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma are often found in older people with body parts exposed to the sun or weakened immune systems. These types of cancer are highly treatable, with more than 1 million cases of these two cancers diagnosed each year and fewer than 1,000 deaths.
Melanoma is the third most common skin cancer and the most dangerous. Melanomas arise from skin cells that make pigment-coloring. They can also begin in a mole, eye or intestines, and other types of tissue that have pigment.
Frequently the first sign of melanoma is a change to the shape, color, size or feel of an existing mole. Basal and squamous cancers are usually identified by a change on the skin, such as a growing bump having a rough, scaly surface and flat reddish patches. Skin cancer is typically not painful. Not all of these signs are present in every case of skin cancer. It’s important a mole or lesion be evaluated by a primary care provider.
TRICARE beneficiaries can use the National Institutes of Health “ABCDE” skin guide, which helps look for irregular changes in skin and existing moles:
• Asymmetry-the shape of one half the mole doesn’t match the other half
• Border-outline that is irregular; ragged, notched or blurred
• Color-shades of black, brown and tan and other areas white, gray, pink or blue
• Diameter-change in size (usually larger)
• Evolving-skin changes over weeks or months
Beneficiaries who are concerned about their skin can get screenings with TRICARE Prime, Standard and Extra. TRICARE covers skin cancer screenings for individuals with family or personal history of skin cancer, increased occupational or recreational exposure to sunlight, and clinical evidence of lesions. Beneficiaries should speak with their primary care manager or health care provider for more information on getting skin cancer screenings.
TRICARE encourages beneficiaries to protect and screen skin to avoid potential problems from the sun. For more information on skin cancer screenings, visit www.tricare.mil/mybenefit or skin cancer information at www.cdc.gov/cancer/skin.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. There are three main types: melanoma, squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma.
Squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma are often found in older people with body parts exposed to the sun or weakened immune systems. These types of cancer are highly treatable, with more than 1 million cases of these two cancers diagnosed each year and fewer than 1,000 deaths.
Melanoma is the third most common skin cancer and the most dangerous. Melanomas arise from skin cells that make pigment-coloring. They can also begin in a mole, eye or intestines, and other types of tissue that have pigment.
Frequently the first sign of melanoma is a change to the shape, color, size or feel of an existing mole. Basal and squamous cancers are usually identified by a change on the skin, such as a growing bump having a rough, scaly surface and flat reddish patches. Skin cancer is typically not painful. Not all of these signs are present in every case of skin cancer. It’s important a mole or lesion be evaluated by a primary care provider.
TRICARE beneficiaries can use the National Institutes of Health “ABCDE” skin guide, which helps look for irregular changes in skin and existing moles:
• Asymmetry-the shape of one half the mole doesn’t match the other half
• Border-outline that is irregular; ragged, notched or blurred
• Color-shades of black, brown and tan and other areas white, gray, pink or blue
• Diameter-change in size (usually larger)
• Evolving-skin changes over weeks or months
Beneficiaries who are concerned about their skin can get screenings with TRICARE Prime, Standard and Extra. TRICARE covers skin cancer screenings for individuals with family or personal history of skin cancer, increased occupational or recreational exposure to sunlight, and clinical evidence of lesions. Beneficiaries should speak with their primary care manager or health care provider for more information on getting skin cancer screenings.
TRICARE encourages beneficiaries to protect and screen skin to avoid potential problems from the sun. For more information on skin cancer screenings, visit www.tricare.mil/mybenefit or skin cancer information at www.cdc.gov/cancer/skin.
In his final Memorial Day message as his June 30 retirement nears, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates called on service members to reflect on their comrades who have died in service to the nation. Here is the text of the secretary's video message: For many Americans, Memorial Day is a respite from work. But it should be foremost an occasion to reflect, to remember and to honor all those who have fought and died in defense of our nation. It is also a day to remember family members, who in recent years have borne the brunt of repeated deployments. Memorial Day must not be the only day in which we keep our troops -- men and women like you -- in our thoughts. We must always recognize that that this generation, like so many before, is keeping watch and serving in faraway lands. It has been my greatest honor to serve and to lead you as secretary of defense. Virtually every day since taking this post, I have written condolence letters to the families of the fallen. I will always keep all of you in my heart and in my prayers as long as I live -- as should all Americans. Thanks for listening. American Forces Press Service |
| Biographies: Robert M. Gates Related Sites: Video Memorial Day Message |
Veterans with VA-guaranteed home loans, who've been affected by recent tornadoes, may get some help from new VA initiatives.
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The Red Cross will begin using a universal telephone number for its military emergency communication services.
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Afghan and coalition forces today confirmed the capture of the suspected senior Taliban leader for Afghanistan's Helmand province and his predecessor during a May 14 operation in the province's Babaji district.
One of the men is accused of being the head of Helmand's Taliban provincial commission until the second man recently returned from Pakistan and assumed the role, officials said. Both are suspected members of the Quetta Shura.
Both men reportedly ordered the intimidation of the local population and were in charge of the insurgent justice system in that area, military officials said. The senior leader also managed military appointments and the supply of weapons and ammunition to conduct attacks against Afghan and coalition forces.
Both men surrendered and were detained along with several other suspected insurgents with ties to insurgent activities, officials added.
In operations around Afghanistan yesterday:
-- A combined Afghan and coalition force conducted an operation resulting in the detention of two suspected insurgents and the death of an Afghan civilian in Helmand province's Musa Qalah district. The security force was searching for a Taliban facilitator and noticed a man fleeing the area. They pursued him to a nearby wood line, and an Afghan member of the force called for him to come out. He began to move directly toward the security force with an object in his hand despite instructions and warnings relayed in multiple ethnic languages, and he raised the object. Perceiving a threat the security force killed him. It was later discovered the object in the man's hand was a flashlight.
-- In Sar-e-Pul province's Sayad district, a combined Afghan force detained several suspected insurgents while searching for the acting Taliban governing official of Jowzjan province.
-- A combined force in Helmand's Kajaki district killed two insurgents who tried to engage them. The combined force found and destroyed 353 pounds of opium and 132 pounds of other narcotics.
-- In Zabul province's Qalat district, a combined force detained several suspected insurgents during an operation targeting key leaders of a Taliban roadside-bomb cell.
-- Also in Helmand province, separate combined patrols found weapons caches in the Marja and Sangin districts. The weapons included an 82 mm mortar round, 21 recoilless rifle rounds, six anti-personnel mines, two 105 mm smoke shells, a 107 mm warhead, a 130 mm high-explosive artillery shell, three communication radios and four full assault-rifle magazines.
-- A combined force captured a Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin terrorist network facilitator in Khost province's Sabari district.
-- In an intelligence-driven operation in Logar province's Baraki Barak district, a combined force detained a suspected insurgent while searching for a Taliban.
-- A combined force in Nangarhar province's Khugyani district detained a suspected insurgent while searching for a Taliban leader.
-- Afghan civilians in Bamyan province's Kahmard district led Afghan and coalition forces to a weapons cache consisting of 12.7 mm anti-aircraft machine-gun ammunition, 23 hand-grenades and 21 rocket-propelled grenades. The security force destroyed the weapons and ammunition.
Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases
One of the men is accused of being the head of Helmand's Taliban provincial commission until the second man recently returned from Pakistan and assumed the role, officials said. Both are suspected members of the Quetta Shura.
Both men reportedly ordered the intimidation of the local population and were in charge of the insurgent justice system in that area, military officials said. The senior leader also managed military appointments and the supply of weapons and ammunition to conduct attacks against Afghan and coalition forces.
Both men surrendered and were detained along with several other suspected insurgents with ties to insurgent activities, officials added.
In operations around Afghanistan yesterday:
-- A combined Afghan and coalition force conducted an operation resulting in the detention of two suspected insurgents and the death of an Afghan civilian in Helmand province's Musa Qalah district. The security force was searching for a Taliban facilitator and noticed a man fleeing the area. They pursued him to a nearby wood line, and an Afghan member of the force called for him to come out. He began to move directly toward the security force with an object in his hand despite instructions and warnings relayed in multiple ethnic languages, and he raised the object. Perceiving a threat the security force killed him. It was later discovered the object in the man's hand was a flashlight.
-- In Sar-e-Pul province's Sayad district, a combined Afghan force detained several suspected insurgents while searching for the acting Taliban governing official of Jowzjan province.
-- A combined force in Helmand's Kajaki district killed two insurgents who tried to engage them. The combined force found and destroyed 353 pounds of opium and 132 pounds of other narcotics.
-- In Zabul province's Qalat district, a combined force detained several suspected insurgents during an operation targeting key leaders of a Taliban roadside-bomb cell.
-- Also in Helmand province, separate combined patrols found weapons caches in the Marja and Sangin districts. The weapons included an 82 mm mortar round, 21 recoilless rifle rounds, six anti-personnel mines, two 105 mm smoke shells, a 107 mm warhead, a 130 mm high-explosive artillery shell, three communication radios and four full assault-rifle magazines.
-- A combined force captured a Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin terrorist network facilitator in Khost province's Sabari district.
-- In an intelligence-driven operation in Logar province's Baraki Barak district, a combined force detained a suspected insurgent while searching for a Taliban.
-- A combined force in Nangarhar province's Khugyani district detained a suspected insurgent while searching for a Taliban leader.
-- Afghan civilians in Bamyan province's Kahmard district led Afghan and coalition forces to a weapons cache consisting of 12.7 mm anti-aircraft machine-gun ammunition, 23 hand-grenades and 21 rocket-propelled grenades. The security force destroyed the weapons and ammunition.
Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases
A new children’s resource is available for parents, other family members and health care providers. Developed by DCoE, the “Children of Military Service Members Resource Guide” is a quick-reference tool that addresses the mental and emotional well-being of military children. Whether concerns are associated with deployment, rehabilitation or reintegration – aspects that are common with military service – they can be challenging for the entire family unit, especially children.
The resource guide is one way to help recognize and respond to the psychological and emotional health needs of children of military families.
Age-appropriate resources listed in the guide include books, films, websites and social media support groups on topics such as:
- Deployment
- Homecoming
- Grief
- Mental and emotional health
- Moving
One of the resources listed under mental/emotional health featured in the children’s guide is the Sesame Workshop’s Talk, Listen, Connect initiative, intended for preschool-age children. This multiphase, bilingual, multimedia initiative guides families through multiple challenges, such as deployments, homecomings and changes that occur when a parent comes home. Click on the links below to learn more about each one:
- Talk, Listen, Connect: Deployments
- Talk, Listen, Connect: Homecomings
- Talk, Listen, Connect: Changes
- Talk, Listen, Connect: Grief
And these are just a few of the many resources identified in the guide, so please download a copy today. If you can’t find what you need or are looking for other types or resources related to psychological health or traumatic brain injury, contact the DCoE Outreach Center and speak with a trained, professional health resource consultant. Call 866-966-1020, email resources@dcoeoutreach.org or live chat through the DCoE website.
Rocks crunch under the boots of a Marine walking a seemingly endless patrol route. He scans 360 degrees for suspicious activity as the sun slides beneath the horizon. It's getting late; if he wasn't on patrol, it would be dinner time.
He hums the chorus of a song, which bounces off the walls of an empty house he passes. His fire team hums along, but no one smiles or laughs. Their eyes scour the terrain, and their ears are tuned for trouble.
Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Shawn Cole stops mid-hum. His fire team halts, and the chorus comes to an abrupt rest. Instead of thinking about how long they've been walking, they hone in on something. Despite the improvements in the Garmsir district here, even a farmer digging in his field could signal danger ahead – maybe an improvised explosive device.
After a tense moment, the muffled crunch of boot upon stone resumes. Trouble never materializes, and the patrol moves on.
"After about four or five hours of just walking, it's hard to stay concentrated," Cole said. "So, I try to keep my Marines attentive and fresh. We pore over the ground, walls and trees, looking for IEDs and anything suspicious. Singing is a way I try to keep things fresh [and] make sure my Marines aren't being sucked into the monotony of patrol"
The blond, blue-eyed 21-year-old said he joined the Corps because he had always been interested in the military and he wanted to be a part of something bigger than himself. His second tour in Afghanistan gives him that satisfaction.
Cole is a fire team leader with the Guard Force Platoon, 1/3, which provides security throughout the district. He is responsible for himself and three other Marines. If they do something wrong, he has done something wrong, he said. Conversely, their successes are his.
Although Cole and his fire team are all the same rank, Cole has the most time in grade, so he leads his fellow Marines in combat and in their daily lives. They go to him with any problem, ranging from illness to coping with separation from loved ones. He knows if they are married, have a girlfriend or are engaged, and he knows their life goals.
"As a leader, I have to be concerned for my Marines," Cole said. "Not just how they perform their job, but I have to immerse myself in their life to see what's bothering them, how life is back home, how I can help them, and what I can do to boost their morale. [I have to] let them know that there is a Marine here who cares about them."
The Cresskill, N.J., native graduated from Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C., in 2008, and deployed to Afghanistan in 2009. He has been in the Corps for only three years, yet he leads Marines in combat.
As a lance corporal, or "lance," Cole holds a dynamic rank. He bears a significant level of responsibility as a fire team leader, but he's still only two ranks up from the bottom. Lance corporal is the most common rank in the Marine Corps, and for the infantryman, being a lance represents a baseline of experience. It means you know what you're doing.
"[It's] is really about going through shared hardships -- being able to say, 'We've experienced this,' because with experience comes respect in the infantry," he explained.
Superiors' constant supervision breaks down his weaknesses, he noted, building him into a better Marine each day. "Yes, insert-rank-here" always follows a direct order from a higher-ranking Marine.
Cole still fills sandbags like a private first class, but as a lance, he is beginning to see and become part of the bigger picture. As his superiors scrutinize him, he said, he studies them and forms his own opinions of how to lead effectively. Gradually, he added, he's becoming his future self.
"I'm definitely seeing what it's like to be in that higher rank, and what it's like to have Marines under you," Cole said.
However, he added, he can't lord over his Marines. Because he is equal to them in rank, he has to work especially hard to justify his elevated position, yet he must have the confidence to dictate when necessary.
"The fact that I hold a billet doesn't mean that I'm going to take myself out of the mix of things and just tell them to do things," Cole said. "I don't set myself [above them], but I still have the responsibility to make sure my Marines get the job done quickly, efficiently and properly."
Cole and his fellow lance corporals are the workhorses of the battalion. They stand post in the middle of the night, patrol, and participate in impromptu working parties during their free time.
"The vast numbers of lance corporals make up the [majority of the] Marine Corps' workforce. ... As a lance, it's about being mentally tough, because there are a lot of things that get thrown your way," he said. "But you've just got to keep your head up and keep pushing."
Hardship and adversity are the mortar of the lance corporal network: crushing on the one hand, yet binding on the other. And though Cole is a fire time leader, he isn't impervious to the stress. He still calls home any chance he gets. Many a night, he said, he lies motionless in his bed, waiting to fall asleep and thinking of his girlfriend.
When his spirits are low, Cole said, he leans on his fire team for support, noting that they know each other in a way only a Marine fire team can. They live in an atmosphere where sensitive subjects become talking points for discussions, and everything somehow ends in a zany joke to relieve the stress. It's not about suffering through seven months of separation, he said, but enjoying time with fellow Marines — his brothers.
"At the end of the day, when everything is said and done, we let each other know we're here for one another," Cole said. "You definitely see the brotherhood in the room, even if it's just goofing around to blow off steam. They know when I get extra stressed, I think about all the places I'd rather be, with my girlfriend and with my family. They know seeing my girlfriend's face on Skype and talking to my family on the phone keeps me going."
Mentally, Cole drifts between the present and future. He plans to marry his girlfriend, which he brings up every day with an ivory-white, full-toothed grin. He doesn't plan on staying in the Marine Corps, but that doesn't stop him from being proud to claim the title. He plans to get his associate's degree before leaving the Corps, and when he does get out, he said, he plans on going into law enforcement.
For now, he's a young and tough - a lance corporal laboring alongside his brothers in 1/3.
"I'm never going to regret my decision to join the Marines," Cole said. "I've made friends, and I'm going to take away a unique appreciation for the securities and luxuries I have as an American.
"Sometimes it's rough, and you kind of just want to make it go away," he added. "But at the end of the day, you're always proud to be a Marine, because you're going through things the average American can't even fathom."
By Marine Corps Cpl. Colby W. Brown
Regimental Combat Team 1
He hums the chorus of a song, which bounces off the walls of an empty house he passes. His fire team hums along, but no one smiles or laughs. Their eyes scour the terrain, and their ears are tuned for trouble.
Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Shawn Cole stops mid-hum. His fire team halts, and the chorus comes to an abrupt rest. Instead of thinking about how long they've been walking, they hone in on something. Despite the improvements in the Garmsir district here, even a farmer digging in his field could signal danger ahead – maybe an improvised explosive device.
After a tense moment, the muffled crunch of boot upon stone resumes. Trouble never materializes, and the patrol moves on.
"After about four or five hours of just walking, it's hard to stay concentrated," Cole said. "So, I try to keep my Marines attentive and fresh. We pore over the ground, walls and trees, looking for IEDs and anything suspicious. Singing is a way I try to keep things fresh [and] make sure my Marines aren't being sucked into the monotony of patrol"
The blond, blue-eyed 21-year-old said he joined the Corps because he had always been interested in the military and he wanted to be a part of something bigger than himself. His second tour in Afghanistan gives him that satisfaction.
Cole is a fire team leader with the Guard Force Platoon, 1/3, which provides security throughout the district. He is responsible for himself and three other Marines. If they do something wrong, he has done something wrong, he said. Conversely, their successes are his.
Although Cole and his fire team are all the same rank, Cole has the most time in grade, so he leads his fellow Marines in combat and in their daily lives. They go to him with any problem, ranging from illness to coping with separation from loved ones. He knows if they are married, have a girlfriend or are engaged, and he knows their life goals.
"As a leader, I have to be concerned for my Marines," Cole said. "Not just how they perform their job, but I have to immerse myself in their life to see what's bothering them, how life is back home, how I can help them, and what I can do to boost their morale. [I have to] let them know that there is a Marine here who cares about them."
The Cresskill, N.J., native graduated from Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C., in 2008, and deployed to Afghanistan in 2009. He has been in the Corps for only three years, yet he leads Marines in combat.
As a lance corporal, or "lance," Cole holds a dynamic rank. He bears a significant level of responsibility as a fire team leader, but he's still only two ranks up from the bottom. Lance corporal is the most common rank in the Marine Corps, and for the infantryman, being a lance represents a baseline of experience. It means you know what you're doing.
"[It's] is really about going through shared hardships -- being able to say, 'We've experienced this,' because with experience comes respect in the infantry," he explained.
Superiors' constant supervision breaks down his weaknesses, he noted, building him into a better Marine each day. "Yes, insert-rank-here" always follows a direct order from a higher-ranking Marine.
Cole still fills sandbags like a private first class, but as a lance, he is beginning to see and become part of the bigger picture. As his superiors scrutinize him, he said, he studies them and forms his own opinions of how to lead effectively. Gradually, he added, he's becoming his future self.
"I'm definitely seeing what it's like to be in that higher rank, and what it's like to have Marines under you," Cole said.
However, he added, he can't lord over his Marines. Because he is equal to them in rank, he has to work especially hard to justify his elevated position, yet he must have the confidence to dictate when necessary.
"The fact that I hold a billet doesn't mean that I'm going to take myself out of the mix of things and just tell them to do things," Cole said. "I don't set myself [above them], but I still have the responsibility to make sure my Marines get the job done quickly, efficiently and properly."
Cole and his fellow lance corporals are the workhorses of the battalion. They stand post in the middle of the night, patrol, and participate in impromptu working parties during their free time.
"The vast numbers of lance corporals make up the [majority of the] Marine Corps' workforce. ... As a lance, it's about being mentally tough, because there are a lot of things that get thrown your way," he said. "But you've just got to keep your head up and keep pushing."
Hardship and adversity are the mortar of the lance corporal network: crushing on the one hand, yet binding on the other. And though Cole is a fire time leader, he isn't impervious to the stress. He still calls home any chance he gets. Many a night, he said, he lies motionless in his bed, waiting to fall asleep and thinking of his girlfriend.
When his spirits are low, Cole said, he leans on his fire team for support, noting that they know each other in a way only a Marine fire team can. They live in an atmosphere where sensitive subjects become talking points for discussions, and everything somehow ends in a zany joke to relieve the stress. It's not about suffering through seven months of separation, he said, but enjoying time with fellow Marines — his brothers.
"At the end of the day, when everything is said and done, we let each other know we're here for one another," Cole said. "You definitely see the brotherhood in the room, even if it's just goofing around to blow off steam. They know when I get extra stressed, I think about all the places I'd rather be, with my girlfriend and with my family. They know seeing my girlfriend's face on Skype and talking to my family on the phone keeps me going."
Mentally, Cole drifts between the present and future. He plans to marry his girlfriend, which he brings up every day with an ivory-white, full-toothed grin. He doesn't plan on staying in the Marine Corps, but that doesn't stop him from being proud to claim the title. He plans to get his associate's degree before leaving the Corps, and when he does get out, he said, he plans on going into law enforcement.
For now, he's a young and tough - a lance corporal laboring alongside his brothers in 1/3.
"I'm never going to regret my decision to join the Marines," Cole said. "I've made friends, and I'm going to take away a unique appreciation for the securities and luxuries I have as an American.
"Sometimes it's rough, and you kind of just want to make it go away," he added. "But at the end of the day, you're always proud to be a Marine, because you're going through things the average American can't even fathom."
By Marine Corps Cpl. Colby W. Brown
Regimental Combat Team 1
Join us on June 10, 2011 @ 10am as we conduct a Town Hall style meeting with the veterans from the southern Delaware County area.
This meeting is to identify the specific needs of the veteran community and will allow veterans and the community at large the opportunity to inform the organization about areas that need attention and families that are in distress.
The panel for the meeting will consist of the Heroes Today Veteran Outreach Committee, Thaddeus Kirkland, Mayor Wendel Butler and Chester City Council members.
Date: June 10, 2011
Time: 10am
Place: 1010 Sunset Street
Trainer, PA 19061
For more information please contact Heroes Today at:
events@heroestoday.org
or
1.888.386.9445
Veteran Warriors. Warriors for Life. “The return to civilian life” is a lecture series, sponsored by Heroes Today, VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, and Integrated Resource Solutions Consulting.
Participants will be introduced to the following key concepts:
- Recognize that the experience in a war zone changes a Veteran forever
- Realize these experiences create a change in the warrior that sets the warrior on a different psychological and cultural path
- Identify with the ‘Veteran's return home’ as the beginning of a new psychological and spiritual journey--one which has been understood and addressed in all warrior cultures
- Be aware that post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has apsychological and cultural meaning
- Understand the essential role the community has in facilitating the psychological and spiritual life of the Veteran warrior
VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System will provide the following:
- Explain their role in providing services and treatment to returning Veterans
- Highlight treatment options for Veterans who have been diagnosed with PTSD
- Discuss services and programs that are available to eligible, homeless Veterans
This conference is free to attend for all and has been approved by ASWB to provide 3 Continuing Education Credits for Social Workers at a cost of $10 to be paid in full the day of the conference by cash only.
All attendees must RSVP to Barbara Morris at 412.954.5468 or barbara.morris2@va.gov. If you choose to RSVP by e-mail or phone please include full name, employer, contact number, email and if you plan to apply for the social work CEUs.
This week, members of 'Dog' Company maintained their hold on a key hilltop located just meters from the Afghanistan-Pakistan border by winning a 14-hour firefight with insurgents.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Adam Petrone, filling in for a platoon leader on mid-tour leave, was the senior soldier on the ground with the 4th Brigade, 101st Airborne Division's Third Platoon, Dog Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment. The platoon was conducting a five-day operation, which included setting up a blocking position about three kilometers from the rest of the company's positions. "Our task was to destroy the enemy in the engagement area," Petrone said. The hilltop which the third platoon occupied is a now-disused observation point, so some sandbag-reinforced dug-in fighting positions already were in place. The soldiers added more sandbags when they reached position May 14, 2011 – a Saturday. About 1 p.m. Monday, Petrone said insurgents attacked the platoon from 300 meters to the east, along the Pakistan border. The enemy used rocket-propelled grenades, multiple machine guns and small-arms fire. "They were set up in three different spots; I'd say there were about 15 to 20 of them," he said. The attack started with machine-gun fire followed by around 10 RPGs, Petrone said. Six of the grenades hit the hilltop, while the rest went over. "I know I felt one hit about 10 feet from my position," he said. "They were pretty effective with machine-gun fire; they had us pretty contained in our foxholes." The platoon fired back with machine guns, squad automatic weapons, 90mm recoilless, hand-held 60mm mortars and other weapons, Petrone said. "We just engaged them until they stopped shooting," he said. "Total suppression was probably 10 minutes to push them back. They went back over the side of the ridge – we obviously didn't push them too far back, since they stayed around the entire night." Petrone said he called for a medical evacuation after his medic was bitten twice by a snake before the fight started. "So the whole night we were there without a medic ... [but] we had no injuries," he said. Intelligence reports through the night indicated the enemy kept advancing toward the platoon's position. Those reports were important; the men on the hill couldn't see more than about 40 meters because trees and a steep drop blocked their view, Petrone said. Four air-weapons teams, two Apache helicopters at a time, and close-air support F-15s and F-16s stayed on-station throughout much of the night, he said, reporting enemy movements and firing at exposed insurgents. Petrone theorized the insurgents thought they could take advantage of the platoon's location away from the company's other elements to overrun their position. Air support kept pushing the enemy back, but fighters continued advancing through the night, Petrone said. "We could hear them, but we couldn't see them," he said. "We knew they were there, but we couldn't find them." Around 3 a.m. Tuesday the platoon stopped hearing the enemy, Petrone said. By that time other Dog Company elements were moving to reinforce the third platoon's position. "I think [the enemy] probably saw them coming and retreated," Petrone said. "Plus by that time the [Apaches] had shot a lot of rounds." By 10 a.m. Tuesday relief was in place, Petrone said, and the platoon was down to a third of its ammunition. Petrone, who twice served in Iraq and is now on his third deployment, said the third platoon's performance was "outstanding." "I think everything we did was exactly what we should have done," he said. "We had good sectors of fire, good position, we didn't take any injuries." The platoon's previous fights have usually run 30 minutes or so, Petrone said, with one sustained five- to six-hour contact under movement. "This fight was the worst one I think my boys have seen," he said. "Not the contact; they've been in worse contact. But this by far was the most nerve-wracking, because there's nothing you can do but scan your sectors and hope you see them before they're within 35 meters." Dog Company commander Capt. Edwin Churchill monitored the fight from his hilltop position with first platoon 1,400 meters southwest of the third platoon's location. The air support was helpful, he said, but couldn't effectively penetrate the dense trees protecting the enemy. Around midnight, Churchill called for two 500-pound bombs on the insurgent position. "We only ended up engaging two more [enemy fighters] after that, for the rest of the night," he said. "The bombs cleared a bunch of the tree cover and ... had a tremendous psychological effect." Spc. Alan Vogel, a fire team leader with the third platoon, said the ammunition supply was one of his main concerns during the night-long fight. Vogel's team, firing weapons including a 90mm recoilless rifle and two light antitank weapons, fought from a dug-in position they called the "thunder dome." "I had to make sure the guys weren't firing when we weren't getting shot at, to conserve rounds," he said. "We were on a mountain top, and what we had was what we had." "I'm a trigger-puller too," Vogel said. "Team leader, you're down there making sure that your guys are shooting, you're returning fire, controlling rates of fire." Pfc. Steven Boertmann, a 19-year-old third platoon machine gunner, carried nearly his body weight in gear up the mountain where the fight happened. "All together, about 120 pounds," he said, noting he weighs 150. Boertmann estimates he's been in about 20 firefights during the deployment, but this week's engagement was a little different. "Being so close to the Pakistan border ... this time we weren't really ambushed, we were set into a position," he said. Other than that, "It was what you expect in a firefight – to get shot at." The platoon was divided among seven fighting positions, he said, and shouted enemy positions and round counts back and forth to each other. "There's a lot of trust ... you're basically putting your lives in everyone's hands," he said. "Out here, no matter what you look like, age, your personality ... everyone watches over each other. It's like one big family." Boertmann likes his job, he said, because he can make a difference in a fight's outcome. "This is a career choice for me," he said. By Karen Parrish American Forces Press Service | ||
| Related Sites: NATO International Security Assistance Force 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division Related Articles: 'Dog' Company Takes Fight to the High Ground 101st Troopers Help Safeguard Paktika Province | ||
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Military doctors said the findings were no surprise, given the dramatic increase in fighting, which was at its most intense level during the survey period since officials began battlefield mental health analyses in 2003. The grim statistics illustrated the psychological cost of a campaign that US officials say has reversed the momentum of the insurgency in the war-ravaged country.
“There are few stresses on the human psyche as extreme as the exposure to combat,’’ Lieutenant General Eric B. Schoomaker, the Army surgeon general, said at a news conference.
Some 70 percent to 80 percent of troops surveyed said they had seen a buddy killed; roughly half of soldiers and 56 percent of Marines said they had killed an enemy fighter, and about two thirds of troops said that a roadside bomb — the number one weapon of insurgents — had gone off within 55 yards of them.
Those incidents were higher than what troops experienced in the previous year in Afghanistan as well as during the 2007 surge of extra troops into Iraq, the report said. But the rate of psychological problems may actually be small, considering the high level of combat that troops are seeing, said Colonel Paul Bliese, who led the last three survey teams to the battlefield, in 2007, 2009, and 2010.
“We would have expected to see a much larger increase in the mental health symptoms and a much larger decrease in morale . . . based on these incredibly high rates of exposure’’ to traumatic combat events, he said. Meanwhile, the military said that it has doubled the mental health staff in the country to help troops cope.
The new data come from a poll of more than 900 soldiers, 335 Marines, and 85 mental health workers on the Afghan battlefield last summer.
Story from Boston Globe www.boston.com
Story from Boston Globe www.boston.com
With all but its most senior soldiers having known no Army except the one that has deployed relentlessly for a decade, the service faces numerous challenges in the years to come, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today. In a question-and-answer session with students during a visit to the U.S. Army Engineer School, Gates said Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, Army chief of staff, has ambitious plans to help the Army adapt to a new reality. "I think the next step for the Army is resetting after Afghanistan and a resumption of full-spectrum training," the secretary said. With so little time at their home stations between deployments over the last 10 years, he explained, the only unit training soldiers have been receiving has been for their next deployment. By fall or early winter, he added, all Army units should be on a cycle of two years at their home stations between one-year deployments, allowing full-spectrum training to resume. Two other aspects of the high deployment tempo will pose a challenge for the Army going forward, Gates said. "The first is that because of the pace of deployments over the last 10 years, we have a lot of brigade and division commanders who don't have much experience as garrison commanders," he said. "They've been so busy deploying and preparing to deploy that dealing with an Army that is on post with their families for two years is something that not very many of them have much experience with." The second, he said, stems from the high degree of independence the Army's noncommissioned officers and company-grade officers have enjoyed and the varied nature of their work during their combat deployments that often required them to innovate. "It's been called 'a captain's war,' because it's basically a small-unit conflict," the secretary said. "They've had the opportunity to do a variety of things, from fighting the enemy to building roads to meeting with village shuras and mediating disputes. ... So they've been given a lot of responsibility and a lot of independence, and they're accustomed to taking responsibility." The challenge this poses as the deployment cycle winds down and soldiers come back to the United States, Gates said, is that after their experience in the combat theater, they may not be satisfied in a Pentagon cubicle making slides for briefings. "I think one of the challenges for the Army that's different from anything it's done in a long time, if ever," he said, "is how do you change the bureaucracy and the culture in the Army to keep people who have this kind of experience and this kind of independence and this kind of opportunity to innovate? How do you keep them challenged and interested so that they want to stay in the Army?" Opportunities for advanced training, graduate school and professional military education opportunities could be part of the solution, Gates said. "But I think that's going to be a real challenge for the Army leadership," he added. "It's got a different kind of NCO and company-level officer than in the past, and that's a good thing. The question is whether they can continue to be challenged." By John D. Banusiewicz American Forces Press Service |
| Biographies: Robert M. Gates Related Articles: Gates Urges Careful Thought in Defense Spending Reductions Gates Shares Views on Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan |
Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced today the selection of the USNS Cesar Chavez as the 14th Lewis and Clark class of dry cargo/ammunition ships.
Continuing the Lewis and Clark-class tradition of honoring legendary pioneers and explorers, the Navy's newest underway replenishment ship honors the memory of Mexican-American civil rights activist Cesar Chavez. Chavez served in the Navy from 1944-1946 after which he became a leader in the American Labor Movement and a civil rights activist who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, which later became the United Farm Workers.
"Cesar Chavez inspired young Americans to do what is right and what is necessary to protect our freedoms and our country," said Mabus. "The Cesar Chavez will sail hundreds of thousands of miles and will bring support and assistance to thousands upon thousands of people. His example will live on in this great ship."
Designated T-AKE 14, Cesar Chavez is being built by General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard in San Diego. Eleven of the T-AKEs are slated to serve as combat logistics force (CLF) ships, and three are slated to be part of the maritime prepositioning force (MPF). Cesar Chavez will serve the CLF missions, helping the Navy maintain a worldwide forward presence by delivering ammunition, food, fuel and other dry cargo to U.S. and allied ships at sea.
Cesar Chavez will be designated as a United States Naval Ship (USNS), and operated by the Navy’s Military Sealift Command with a crew of civil service mariners (129 in CLF mode, 75 in MPF mode). For CLF missions, the T-AKEs’ crews include a small detachment of sailors. Like her sister dry cargo/ammunition ships, T-AKE 14 is designed to operate independently for extended periods at sea and can carry two helicopters and their crews. The ship is 689 feet in length, has a waterline beam of 105 feet, displaces approximately 41,000 tons, and is capable of reaching a speed of 20 knots.
Continuing the Lewis and Clark-class tradition of honoring legendary pioneers and explorers, the Navy's newest underway replenishment ship honors the memory of Mexican-American civil rights activist Cesar Chavez. Chavez served in the Navy from 1944-1946 after which he became a leader in the American Labor Movement and a civil rights activist who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, which later became the United Farm Workers.
"Cesar Chavez inspired young Americans to do what is right and what is necessary to protect our freedoms and our country," said Mabus. "The Cesar Chavez will sail hundreds of thousands of miles and will bring support and assistance to thousands upon thousands of people. His example will live on in this great ship."
Designated T-AKE 14, Cesar Chavez is being built by General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard in San Diego. Eleven of the T-AKEs are slated to serve as combat logistics force (CLF) ships, and three are slated to be part of the maritime prepositioning force (MPF). Cesar Chavez will serve the CLF missions, helping the Navy maintain a worldwide forward presence by delivering ammunition, food, fuel and other dry cargo to U.S. and allied ships at sea.
Cesar Chavez will be designated as a United States Naval Ship (USNS), and operated by the Navy’s Military Sealift Command with a crew of civil service mariners (129 in CLF mode, 75 in MPF mode). For CLF missions, the T-AKEs’ crews include a small detachment of sailors. Like her sister dry cargo/ammunition ships, T-AKE 14 is designed to operate independently for extended periods at sea and can carry two helicopters and their crews. The ship is 689 feet in length, has a waterline beam of 105 feet, displaces approximately 41,000 tons, and is capable of reaching a speed of 20 knots.
| The partnership to ensure seamless transitions for wounded warriors from military to Veterans Affairs medical care has made significant progress, but work remains to be done, Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III said here today. In testimony before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, Lynn and Deputy Veterans Affairs Secretary W. Scott Gould laid out their goals and achievements to show the progress of the partnership, established four years ago. “The professionalism and commitment of the staff in both departments is helping make [seamless transition] a reality,” Lynn told the committee. “We’ve reached a historic level of cooperation between the departments.” A modernized disability evaluation system is one of the vital tools to create seamless transitions, Lynn said, noting that the former system remained relatively unchanged for decades. The new Integrated Disability Evaluation System, which DOD and VA developed, serves more service members, Lynn said, and full adoption of the new system, expected to be in place by year’s end, is the partnership’s top priority. In the new system, service members will get a single set of physical disability exams based on VA medical protocol, and processing will be done simultaneously by DOD and VA. “This will create more consistent evaluations and a more orderly experience for service members and their families,” Lynn told the committee. Also, he said, service members will continue to receive their full pay, allowances, compensation, medical base support care and benefits under the new system, which “largely eliminates the benefits gap” under the former system. The new evaluation system is faster and more fair, and it’s expected to cut processing time substantially, he added. Processing time now is down to 400 days, compared to 540 days under the former system, he said. “It has not reached [our] goal of processing in less than 300 days,” he acknowledged. “We have further to go, but we don’t plan to stop there.” Lynn noted that as DOD and VA work together toward a common electronic health records system, they’re collaborating on a number of other fronts. “Among the many current systems that exchange data to varying degrees, DOD and VA have created a service called the “Blue Button” that will allow beneficiaries to safely and securely access personal health data at TRICARE Online,” he said. To support the most severely wounded and injured, he added, the large military medical centers provide scanned records and radiology images for patients transferring from to VA polytrauma rehabilitation centers. “But to create a truly integrated electronic health record,” Lynn said, “DOD and VA have agreed to implement a joint common platform that has compatible data and services, joint data centers, common interface standards and a common presentation format.” It’s is an ambitious program, but one with great potential benefits, Lynn said. Noting the effort required in developing any large-scale information technology system, especially an interoperable system across two major federal departments, he said DOD and VA officials are observing lessons from other successful large joint IT systems. “We plan to use those lessons to lead us to the best possible outcome,” he said. The achievements of the DOD-VA partnership so far cannot be overstated, Lynn said, and the work that remains cannot be underestimated. “Taking care of our wounded, ill and injured service members is one of the highest priorities for the department, the service secretaries, and the service chiefs,” Lynn told the committee, noting that Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has made it clear that “other than the wars themselves, we have no higher priority.” By Terri Moon Cronk American Forces Press Service |
| Biographies: William J. Lynn III Related Sites: Department of Veterans Affairs |
Army Staff Sgt. James Hunter is remembered for lots of things. His fellow soldiers will tell you he was a hard worker, selfless and dedicated to his soldiers and their mission. His family will tell you that he loved Kentucky basketball and, above all else, he loved his country.
Today, Hunter was honored for his work as a journalist. He was an Army public affairs noncommissioned officer who was killed by a roadside bomb in June during a foot patrol in Afghanistan. His rifle was slung across his chest, but clutched in his right hand was his camera. "He was an outstanding NCO and leader," Army Lt. Col. Larry Porter, public affairs officer for the 101st Airborne Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team, said. Porter was Hunter's boss at the time of his death. "He was very dedicated to telling the soldiers' story." He and 76 other fallen journalists were memorialized at the Newseum here today in the 2011 rededication ceremony of the Journalist's Memorial. The memorial honors 2,084 reporters, photographers, editors and broadcasters who died covering the news between 1837 and 2010. Their names are inscribed on the glass panels of the memorial, adjacent to a wall filled with photographs of their faces, some with a short biography. Of those reporters honored today, 59 died in 2010. Krishna Bharat, founder of Google News, delivered the ceremony's keynote address, praising the character and drive of journalists for the risks they take to inform the otherwise uninformed public. "In most cases, [journalists] made the conscious choice ... to walk a path that was not paved with gold, but danger, to serve a higher human cost," Bharat said. "As we look back on the lives lost in the service of journalism, it's worth remembering that while we cannot predict how and when we die, we can certainly choose how we live. "The journalists we remember and honor today chose lives full of meaning and purpose," he added. "They chose to bring news that mattered to people who care to make the world a better place." The fact that Hunter was part of the ceremony is a humbling honor, said Army Lt. Col. J. Frank Garcia, an Army public affairs officer who worked closely with Hunter at Fort Campbell, Ky. "It really is great to see the Newseum honor a soldier journalist," Garcia said. "[Hunter] was someone who volunteered not only to be a soldier, but to put himself in danger repeatedly just to tell the soldiers' story [and] to ensure the story of what [soldiers] do all over the world is being told." Hunter grew up in South Amherst, Ohio, and enlisted in the Army in September 2003. He served in the 82nd Airborne Division's 49th Public Affairs Detachment on Fort Bragg, N.C., and deployed with the unit to Iraq in 2006. Following his tour at Fort Bragg, Hunter reported to the 10st Airborne Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team on Fort Campbell, Ky. He deployed to Iraq a second time in 2008. He was only two months into his Afghanistan deployment when he was killed. He was 25. "I'll always remember [Hunter] as the guy who always volunteered for the tough assignments," Garcia said. "He was the kind of guy who wanted to be up front with the troops, living with them and experiencing their experiences and making sure the world knew their stories." By Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden American Forces Press Service | ||||
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More than 200 wounded servicemembers are in their final moments of training for this year's Warrior Games.
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While acknowledging concerns about intelligence leading up to the May 1 raid that killed 9/11-attack mastermind and al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates called President Barack Obama's decision to move forward "gutsy." "I was very concerned," Gates said in an interview that aired tonight on the CBS program "60 Minutes." "Frankly, I had real reservations about the intelligence." Gates told CBS correspondent Katie Couric he worried that bin Laden was not even in the compound and that American lives were at risk, noting the intelligence was circumstantial. Still, the secretary said, it likely was the best lead the Defense Department and White House had on bin Laden's whereabouts in a decade. "I think everybody agreed that we needed to act, and act promptly," he said of Obama's national security team. Gates praised Obama's decision to move forward with the operation despite the lack of certainty in the intelligence, calling the results a game-changer in the war in Afghanistan. "This is one of the most outrageous calls, decisions, that I think I've ever seen a president make," said Gates, who has served eight presidents in his public life. "For all of the concerns I just talked about -- the uncertainty, the intelligence, the consequences of it going bad, the risk, the lives of Americans involved -- it was a very gutsy call." Although it's still too early to tell whether bin Laden's death will affect troop withdrawal in Afghanistan, Gates said, "I think we could be in a position by the end of this year where we have turned the corner in Afghanistan and more troops could come home." Gates explained that the militant Taliban could reconcile with the Afghan government by year's end, and the past 18 months of progress could ensure that neither the Taliban nor al-Qaida re-emerges as a threat in Afghanistan. The war in Afghanistan is only part of Gates' historical tenure as defense secretary. When he retires later this summer, he noted, will have overseen wars in Iraq and Afghanistan at some of the most promising and doubtful periods of each war. And through it all, he said, his highest priority was to ensure the safety of troops by making sure they had what they needed to accomplish their mission. "If you're in a war, and kids' lives are at stake, you do whatever is necessary to protect them and help them accomplish their mission," Gates said, explaining his decision to spend more than $40 billion on the mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicle designed specifically to protect occupants from roadside bombs. The MRAP, he noted, has saved thousands of lives. "I think of [troops] as my own sons and daughters," he said. "I'm the guy that signs the piece of paper that sends them. I'm the guy that signs the condolence letters. I'm the guy that visits them in the hospital. "It's very emotional for me," he continued. "They are the best. I want the parents, the wives, the spouses to know that I care about every single one of them." By Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden American Forces Press Service |
| Biographies: Robert M. Gates Related Sites: Special Report: The Demise of Osama bin Laden |
Uniformed services dependents under 26, unmarried, and not eligible for their own employer-sponsored health care coverage may qualify to purchase TRICARE Young Adult (TYA), which offers TRICARE Standard coverage for monthly premiums of $186.
Complete information and application forms are available at www.tricare.mil/tya. Beneficiaries should explore all of their health care options and costs when choosing a plan to best meets their needs.
TYA has been "fast-tracked" so enrollment could start as soon as systems changes, forms, premiums and other rules governing the program were approved and in place. TRICARE Management Activity will allow eligible applicants to be covered for the full month of May as long as enrollment forms and payment are received (not postmarked) by the regional contractor before May 31, 2011.
Participants in next week's Warrior Games competition are gearing up with five days of training this week in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
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Navy Adm. Mike Mullen spoke about service member and veteran issues to a crowd primed for a Lady Gaga show here last night. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff found a nontraditional audience for his message about the military as part of a fundraiser for the Robin Hood Foundation at the Javits Center. The group raised $132 million last year for charities all over the city, and this year announced a special fund to help veterans in Metro New York. Mullen followed Tony Bennett -- who at 84 can still bring it -- and Seth Meyers of "Saturday Night Live." The 4,000-member audience listened respectfully to the chairman, who was interviewed on stage by veteran journalist Tom Brokaw. Kid Rock and Lady Gaga followed. Brokaw told the audience that as they were enjoying the $3,000-a-plate dinner, young Americans in Afghanistan and Iraq were putting on Kevlar and getting ready for another day of war. "They represent less than 1 percent of the American population," Brokaw said. "The rest of us -- 99 percent -- nothing is asked of us." Brokaw noted that New York has a growing problem with veteran homelessness and asked the chairman what the Defense Department is doing about it. As a Vietnam veteran, Mullen said, he is particularly concerned about the issue because veterans of that war were experiencing the same thing when the current wars started. "My peers were still sleeping on the street in Washington and cities throughout the country, and I swore I would do whatever I could to address the homelessness challenge," Mullen told Brokaw. "As we've engaged in this, I find we've generated homeless veterans at a higher rate than we did in Vietnam." The Defense and Veterans Affairs departments are working together on the issue, the chairman said, but it will require the commitment of people in local communities to solve. "I find local leaders want to structure something to take care of our veterans," Mullen said. "The focus is on education, employment and health, and the private side has to help." Communities will lose a lot if they do not help the veterans of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the chairman told Brokaw and the audience. "More than 2 million have served in the wars, and they are a generation that is wired to serve," he said. "They are going to make a difference in the future. What they need is a bridge, and communities like New York need to provide that." Post-traumatic stress is another issue that Americans need to know about, Mullen said, because of reluctance in the military culture to seek help means that more than the reported 18 percent of today's combat veterans are affected. "We are fighting a stigma of asking for help, which is not strange for our country, and certainly not for the military," the chairman said, noting that post-traumatic stress penetrates right to the heart of military families. "It is the most significant invisible wound of these wars," he said. The chairman urged the crowd to reach out to the families of those who have lost someone in the wars. Many family members who have lost loved ones tell him their greatest fear is the country will forget the sacrifices service members have made, he said. "These are extraordinary young men and women who go out every day, and in too many cases, give their lives for this country so we can be the country we are," he added. Mullen urged the crowd to connect with these families. "They are very proud," he said. "I promise you, they won't ask for help, so figuring out how to connect with them to support them is really important." |
| Biographies: Navy Adm. Mike Mullen Related Articles: Mullen Says SEAL Team Represents All of Military |
Being named the best Soldier in the Army. That's the goal of Army Reservist Staff Sergeant Conrad Nazar.
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The nation's two most recent Medal of Honor recipients were added to the Pentagon's Hall of Heroes roster today in what Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III said is a tribute to their enduring valor.
The Hall of Heroes induction followed yesterday's White House ceremony in which President Barack Obama presented the nation's highest military honor posthumously to Anthony T. Kaho'ohanohano and Henry Svehla, both Army privates 1st class when they were killed in action in the Korean War.
Kaho'ohanohano was honored for his actions of Sept. 1, 1951 when he led a machine-gun squadron with the 7th Infantry Division's 17th Infantry Regiment, Company H.
"Kaho'ohanohano will always be remembered for the lone assault that saved his comrades, and then inspired their counter attack," Lynn told the gathering of families, friends and dignitaries. "His last words -- reportedly, 'I've got your back,' -- are a creed our soldiers carry with them today whenever they go in harm's way."
Svehla's medal was for his actions of June 12, 1952 when he served in Korea as a rifleman with the 7th Infantry Division's 32d Infantry Regiment, Company F.
"Svehla, similarly, put the security of his fellow troops above his own life," Lynn said. "His courageous counter attack after being fired upon during a reconnaissance mission saved his unit from defeat. And throwing himself on a grenade, he gave the last full measure of his devotion to his men, and to the country he swore to defend."
With their names now inscribed on a wall, the legacies of Kaho'ohanohano and Svehla are enshrined in the Hall of Heroes, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey said.
"The courage, resilience and tenacity of Anthony and Henry and those they fought alongside and protected every day in one of our more difficult wars, contributed immeasurably to our unmatched legacy as an army, as a force that stands against tyranny, protects the weak, and champions freedom," Dempsey said.
Army Undersecretary Joseph Westphal said the soldiers' actions continue to make contributions today.
"The actions of Kaho'ohanohano and Svehla," he said, "are a timeless inspiration for soldiers who are, once again, fighting America's enemies in faraway places, and under very challenging conditions."
Dempsey presented Hall of Heroes induction plaques to family members Eugene
Kaho'ohanohano and Sylvia Svehla at the end of the induction ceremony.
By Terri Moon Cronk
American Forces Press Service
Biographies:William J. Lynn III
Gen. Martin E. Dempsey
Joseph Westphal
The Hall of Heroes induction followed yesterday's White House ceremony in which President Barack Obama presented the nation's highest military honor posthumously to Anthony T. Kaho'ohanohano and Henry Svehla, both Army privates 1st class when they were killed in action in the Korean War.
Kaho'ohanohano was honored for his actions of Sept. 1, 1951 when he led a machine-gun squadron with the 7th Infantry Division's 17th Infantry Regiment, Company H.
"Kaho'ohanohano will always be remembered for the lone assault that saved his comrades, and then inspired their counter attack," Lynn told the gathering of families, friends and dignitaries. "His last words -- reportedly, 'I've got your back,' -- are a creed our soldiers carry with them today whenever they go in harm's way."
Svehla's medal was for his actions of June 12, 1952 when he served in Korea as a rifleman with the 7th Infantry Division's 32d Infantry Regiment, Company F.
"Svehla, similarly, put the security of his fellow troops above his own life," Lynn said. "His courageous counter attack after being fired upon during a reconnaissance mission saved his unit from defeat. And throwing himself on a grenade, he gave the last full measure of his devotion to his men, and to the country he swore to defend."
With their names now inscribed on a wall, the legacies of Kaho'ohanohano and Svehla are enshrined in the Hall of Heroes, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey said.
"The courage, resilience and tenacity of Anthony and Henry and those they fought alongside and protected every day in one of our more difficult wars, contributed immeasurably to our unmatched legacy as an army, as a force that stands against tyranny, protects the weak, and champions freedom," Dempsey said.
Army Undersecretary Joseph Westphal said the soldiers' actions continue to make contributions today.
"The actions of Kaho'ohanohano and Svehla," he said, "are a timeless inspiration for soldiers who are, once again, fighting America's enemies in faraway places, and under very challenging conditions."
Dempsey presented Hall of Heroes induction plaques to family members Eugene
Kaho'ohanohano and Sylvia Svehla at the end of the induction ceremony.
By Terri Moon Cronk
American Forces Press Service
Biographies:William J. Lynn III
Gen. Martin E. Dempsey
Joseph Westphal
The Navy will christen the newest guided-missile destroyer, Michael Murphy, Saturday, May 7, 2011, during a 10 a.m. EDT ceremony at General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine. The new destroyer honors Navy SEAL (Sea, Air, Land) Lt. Michael P. Murphy who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions during Operation Red Wings in Afghanistan June 28, 2005.
Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead will deliver the ceremony's principal address. Maureen Murphy will serve as sponsor of the ship named for her late son. In accordance with Navy tradition, she will break a bottle of champagne across the ship's bow to formally christen the ship.
Murphy led a four-man team tasked with finding a key Taliban leader in the mountainous terrain near Asadabad, Afghanistan, when they came under fire from a much larger enemy force with superior tactical position. Mortally wounded while exposing himself to enemy fire, Murphy knowingly left his position of cover to get a clear signal in order to communicate with his headquarters. While being shot at repeatedly, Murphy calmly provided his unit's location and requested immediate support for his element. He returned to his cover position to continue the fight until finally succumbing to his wounds.
Designated DDG 112, Michael Murphy, the 62nd Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, will be able to conduct a variety of operations, from peacetime presence and crisis management to sea control and power projection. Michael Murphy will be capable of fighting air, surface and subsurface battles simultaneously and will contain a myriad of offensive and defensive weapons designed to support maritime warfare in keeping with "A Cooperative Strategy for 21st Century Seapower."
Cmdr. Thomas E. Shultz, a native of El Cajon, Calif., is the prospective commanding officer of the ship and will lead the crew of 279 officers and enlisted personnel. The 9,200-ton Michael Murphy is being built by General Dynamics Bath Iron Works. The ship is 509 feet in length, has a waterline beam of 59 feet, and a navigational draft of 31 feet. Four gas turbine engines will power the ship to speeds in excess of 30 knots.
Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead will deliver the ceremony's principal address. Maureen Murphy will serve as sponsor of the ship named for her late son. In accordance with Navy tradition, she will break a bottle of champagne across the ship's bow to formally christen the ship.
Murphy led a four-man team tasked with finding a key Taliban leader in the mountainous terrain near Asadabad, Afghanistan, when they came under fire from a much larger enemy force with superior tactical position. Mortally wounded while exposing himself to enemy fire, Murphy knowingly left his position of cover to get a clear signal in order to communicate with his headquarters. While being shot at repeatedly, Murphy calmly provided his unit's location and requested immediate support for his element. He returned to his cover position to continue the fight until finally succumbing to his wounds.
Designated DDG 112, Michael Murphy, the 62nd Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, will be able to conduct a variety of operations, from peacetime presence and crisis management to sea control and power projection. Michael Murphy will be capable of fighting air, surface and subsurface battles simultaneously and will contain a myriad of offensive and defensive weapons designed to support maritime warfare in keeping with "A Cooperative Strategy for 21st Century Seapower."
Cmdr. Thomas E. Shultz, a native of El Cajon, Calif., is the prospective commanding officer of the ship and will lead the crew of 279 officers and enlisted personnel. The 9,200-ton Michael Murphy is being built by General Dynamics Bath Iron Works. The ship is 509 feet in length, has a waterline beam of 59 feet, and a navigational draft of 31 feet. Four gas turbine engines will power the ship to speeds in excess of 30 knots.
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