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Thursday, May 8th, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 02:12:47 pm
The 864th Engineer Battalion is due home to Fort Lewis on Sunday evening after a 15-month tour in Afghanistan. Welcome home ceremony is tentatively scheduled for Sunday evening. The sappers are coming back from their second stint. They were in Afghanistan for 12 months in 2005-06 -- that's 27 of the last 38 months deployed. As they did last time, the battalion headed up Task Force Pacemaker and spent this deployment constructing roads and buildings to benefit Afghan and coalition military and civilians. The battalion lost three soldiers on this tour. Sgt. 1st Class Rocky Herrera, Sgt. Cory Clark and Sgt. Bryce Howard were killed Aug. 28 by an improvised bomb strike on their vehicle in Jaji. Wednesday, May 7th, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 03:40:51 pm
Evidently there are many rumors flying about just what happened in that incident that led the MPs and security officers to close the Liberty Gate for more than two hours Friday. One variant had it that a pair of suicide bombers were captured before they could get onto the post. I put a number of followup questions to the post's Public Affairs Office, and this is what I got back:
Why did the personnel at the visitor center believe they had reason to be suspicious? And did that belief turn out to be unfounded? Was there a case of mistaken identity?
As you might note, a Fort Lewis spokesman in the story that we ran Saturday said the driver apparently was found to be on a National Crime Information Center "watch list." The NCIC is a well-known FBI-administered database that the police routinely check when they're trying to find out if a detained person is wanted elsewhere. It does not seem unreasonable to think that when you present yourself seeking a visitor pass at a major military installation like Fort Lewis, the security people might run you through NCIC. But I-5 traffic past Fort Lewis slammed for more than two hours on a Friday afternoon. A motorist detained for more than two hours. Bomb sniffing dogs. It seems that Fort Lewis could make a more forthcoming explanation of the incident – did they screw up? – without doing any real harm to its security operations.
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 02:09:46 pm
Soldiers from A Company, 5th Battalion of the 159th Aviation Regiment held a memorial ceremony today for Spc. Joseph M. Cerfus, who was killed Monday in a training accident. The unit is participating in a joint exercise with Canadian troops at the Canadian Forces Base Wainwright in Alberta. Cerfus, 25, of Marysville, also worked as a corrections officer with Snohomish County. The company is based at Gray Army Airfield at Fort Lewis. The Herald of Everett has more about the soldier, who was a Navy veteran who served two tours in Iraq. Reported the Herald:
Categories: Military, National Guard/Reserve
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 10:13:57 am
U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Auburn) is hosting another one of his "veterans resource fairs" from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at Kennydale Elementary School, 1700 N.E. 28th St. in Renton. Reichert's office says a slate of veterans' and service organizations will be on hand at "an interactive fair for veterans and their families to discover and discuss benefits available to them from numerous participating organizations, ranging from health care services to financial assistance." Reichert is apparently also looking for candidates to participate in the U.S. House of Representatives' Wounded Warrior Program, which places wounded service members in congressional fellowships. Tuesday, May 6th, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 04:58:00 pm
Coast Guard Port Security Unit 313 out of Tacoma is pulling security at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and have been down there since last December, according to a Coast Guard press release we got today. We must've been asleep at the switch when they announced that earlier. Either that or I need better sources in the Coast Guard. There's a Joint Task Force Guantanamo public affairs piece here. GSU 313 previously was deployed to the Persian Gulf to protect off-shore oil platforms early in the Iraq war.
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 10:05:29 am
RecruitMilitary will host a career fair 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 15 at the Greater Tacoma Convention and Trade Center. See the press release here for more information. They say they've got more than 30 employers lined up to conduct one-on-one interviews with veterans who are looking for work. Monday, May 5th, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 04:26:53 pm
Bremerton hosts its 60th annual Armed Forces Day parade on Saturday, May 17, beginning at 10 a.m. The parade route runs through downtown. The Navy's big boss, Chief of Naval Operations Gary Roughead, is the grand marshal. Other entries highlighted by the Bremerton Chamber of Commerce: • A Washington National Guard M1A1 Abrams tank. • A military aircraft flyover. • Bremerton's own Navy City Roller Girls roller derby team.
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 12:00:01 am
Notes and announcements about South Puget Sound residents serving in the U.S. military. Send your news to me at mike.gilbert@thenewstribune.com
Staff Sgt. Todd A. Hotis, a U.S. Army Reservist from Lakewood, returned home in late April after a 12-month tour as a driver, gunner and team leader in Baghdad with the Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq. He also spent three months before deployment in training at Fort Riley, Kan. Hotis is assigned to the Reserve's 104th Training Division out of Vancouver. (May 6, 2008) Senior Chief Petty Officer David Jonason of Tacoma took command March 21 of the U.S. Coast Guard Station Chatham near Boston. Jonason, 39, has been a Coast Guardsman 21 years and was last assigned as an instructor at the service's National Motor Lifeboat School in Ilwaco. (March 28, 2008) Pvt. 1st Class Arley Lange of Lacey graduated from the Army Military Police transisiton course at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., on March 21. She will be assigned to the 16th Military Police Brigade (Airborne) at Fort Bragg, N.C. (March 24, 2008)
Pfc. Jeffrey Arnold of Tacoma – that's him on the left, the Army public affairs people assure us – is serving in the Taji area of Iraq with the 2nd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division. That's the Hawaii-based Stryker brigade that's been in Iraq a couple months now. Staff Sgt. Ben Santiago of the Washington Air National Guard will be awarded the Bronze Star medal for meritorious service in Afghanistan. There's a ceremony at 1 p.m. Saturday, March 1, at Camp Murray. Santiago, with the 116th Air Support Operations Squadron, worked as a Special Operations tactical air control party – TACP – last March to September, according to a Guard press release. (Feb. 28, 2008) Lance Cpl. Kristopher G. Murray, a 2007 graduate of Emerald Ridge High School, recently completed the Basic Food Service Course at Fort Lee, Va., according to a Navy press release. He also earned meritorious promotion to his rank. He joined the Marines in July 2007. (Feb. 13, 2008)
Capt. Matt Upperman of Puyallup is deployed to Iraq as part of a Military Transition Team training an Iraqi infantry battalion. "He performs admirably as our intelligence officer, as a senior mentor-trainer for our Iraqi counterparts, and as a diplomat for the United States as our military continues to make steady gains toward stabilizing a country that has seen years of turmoil," his commander, Maj. Steve Carpenter writes to say. (Jan. 11, 2008) Jeffrey J. Carbullido, son of Karen Ruiz and Jeffrey J. Carbullido of
Jason Crabtree of Kingston, first captain of the corps of cadets at the United States Military Academy, has been named a Rhodes Scholar to study next year at Oxford in England. As first captain, the future infantry officer is following the likes of Lee, Pershing and MacArthur, according to West Point alum and historian Tom Morgan of Steilacoom. There have been fewer than 100 Rhodes Scholars in the history of West Point, former Army Chief of Staff Gen. Bernard Rogers and Supreme Allied Commander Europe Gen. Wesley Clark among them. Bios of all the winners are here. "Needless to say all of us in the West Point Society of Washington and Puget Sound are enormously proud of him," Morgan said. "His achievements at West Point are the stuff that legends are made of. His accomplishments are enormous!" (Nov. 20, 2007)
Marine Corps Reserve Lance Cpl. Andrew T. Hickman, son of Cynthia and William Hickman of Eatonville, recently Navy Seaman Kelly E. Barnes, daughter of Marty and Keith Barnes of Tacoma, is serving aboard the hospital ship USNS Comfort on a four-month humanitarian mission in the Caribbean and Latin America. According to a Navy press release, they've cared for 25,000 patients in Belize and Guatemala, and will also visit Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guyana, Haiti, Nicaraqua, Peru, Suriname and Trinidad & Tobago. (You can follow the Comfort's mission via the captain's log here and a route map here. Commanders also briefed the Pentagon press corps on the mission Tuesday; transcript here.) Barnes is a 2004 graduate of School Of The Arts High School and joined the Navy in December 2005.
Spc. Aimee Colver, a 23-year-old from Puyallup, is working as an Army medic with the 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division. She is assigned to the brigade command group's personal security detachment, regularly traveling on missions around northeastern Iraq. She was featured in a recent Army public affairs story and said she loves her job but it's not what she expected when she enlisted. "I’d been working in a nursing home after high school,” she said. “When I walked into the recruiter’s office I knew that I wanted a medical job. ... The health care specialist job was available, and I was told that I would be working in a hospital setting. Of course, I don’t work in a hospital and nothing out here in Iraq is anything like what I thought.”(Aug. 1, 2007) Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Adam L. Boster, son of Cheryl L. Boster of Eatonville, recently graduated from the 25-week Aviation Logistics Tactical Information Systems Course with Marine Detachment, Athens, Ga. Boster is a 2005 graduate of Eatonville High School and joined the Marine Corps in May 2006. (July 23, 2007) Wednesday, April 30th, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 10:07:05 am
DoD public affairs types put up a story yesterday about the I Corps leadership's mid-April trip to check out the lay of the land in Iraq. From the release:
Tuesday, April 29th, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 08:53:23 am
The South Jersey Courier-Post, via Strykernews.com has a nice feature today on Lt. Col. Kenneth Evans, commander of 4th Brigade's 202nd Brigade Support Battalion. Monday, April 28th, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 04:38:07 pm
Via the Fort Riley public affairs office, the family of Cpl. Durrell Bennett passes along its gratitude to all who supported them following the Spanaway soldier's death March 29 in Baghdad. More here. Bennett, a Bethel High School graduate, was killed in an ambush while serving with the 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment from Fort Riley. In a statement, the family said it wanted "to extend special thanks to everyone for touching our hearts during the grieving process. ... Your thoughtfulness meant so much during our time of grief. We want you to know your kindness means a lot." In particular, the family thanked By His Word Christian Center, Allen A.M.E. Methodist Church, the Department of Social and Health Services in Puyallup, the Department of Corrections in Gig Harbor, the Bethel School District, the American Red Cross, the American Legion, and other local, state and federal government agencies that helped them. Friday, April 25th, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 08:58:10 am
Secretary of the Army Pete Geren and a host of other high mucky-mucks will be in Lakewood Friday (that's May 2) to sign the "Army Community Covenant." A City of Lakewood press release says the local signing will be "just the second community covenant event in the nation." Looks to us like they've done one in Columbus, Ga., home of Fort Benning, and New York state lawmakers in Albany did one for West Point. But we quibble; second or third or umpteenth, it's a gesture of the civilian community's connection to the military community at Fort Lewis. The press release says:
Thursday, April 24th, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 01:38:03 pm
Heads up if you were planning to sleep in over there in DuPont on Friday morning. The 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division Strykers will be having a brigade run – builds fitness, esprit de corps, etc., etc., etc. Beginning at about 6:50 a.m., a salute battery of 75mm pack howitzers will fire a round as each of the brigade's battalions jogs past the I Corps headquarters building. They'll fire eight times – once for each of the seven battalions, and once for the brigade colors. Per a Fort Lewis press release:
That said, a post spokesman says the 75mm guns don't make that much noise. "They fire it once every morning for reveille" – that's 0630 – "and nobody ever complains," he said.
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 10:50:49 am
Dana Millbank of the Washington Post on the Arlington National Cemetery funeral of Marine Corps Lt. Col. William Hall of Seattle. If the family gave its permission to allow reporters and photographers to cover their farewell to their loved one, why interfere? It is a story that needs to be told.
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 10:41:20 am
Brig. Gen. John D. Johnson has been assigned to become the deputy commanding general at I Corps and Fort Lewis, according to a General Officer Management Office list released earlier this week. The assignment hasn't yet been made public by the Department of Defense, so we're waiting on that. Johnson is currently assigned as deputy commanding general at the Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command in Alexandria, Va. He commanded a brigade in the 1st Armor Division in Iraq and was assistant division commander for maneuver in the 2nd Infantry Division in Korea until last summer. More TK.
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 09:51:55 am
The post office in Cleveland, Ga., will be named after Army Sgt. Jason Harkins, who was killed in Iraq last March, the Gainesville (Ga.) Times reports. The paper said the Senate passed a name-change bill Wednesday and now it's on its way to President Bush for his signature. Harkins, 25, was one of six soldiers killed May 6 in Baqoubah when a deep-buried bomb exploded beneath their Stryker. They were with the 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment from Fort Lewis' 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division. I would imagine by now there are probably several other examples of streets, buildings and other places that have been named after Fort Lewis soldiers to be killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. It would be good to compile a list; your help is welcome here. UPDATE: Gale Poindexter of Tulsa, Okla., reports her son Joel Lewis's hometown of Barrie, Ontario, has named a one-kilometer stretch of the Trans Canada Trail in his memory. Lewis, 28, died May 6, 2007, in Baqouba. Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 11:01:03 am
They're having a tournament and resource fair May 9 at the American Lake Veterans Golf Course for Fort Lewis' Warrior Transition Battalion. The course on the grounds of the American Lake Veterans Hospital has been redone to accommodate people with disabilities. It's a volunteer operation and a labor of love for some great people in the local veterans and golf communities. The resource fair will feature information about employment opportunities and other services for returning veterans and their families. The events run 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 12:54:39 pm
We've told you before about Brian Turner and his collection of poems, "Here, Bullet," which describe his experiences in Iraq with the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division in 2003-04. He answered Washington Post readers' questions in an online forum today on the paper's web site. Monday, April 21st, 2008
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 10:18:08 pm
Army Capt. Joe Kobes of Sumner came up short of the $1 million prize on NBC's "Deal or No Deal" tonight. With a good spin of the "deal wheel" he tripled the $26,000 he won in the regular game to walk out with $78,000. Not too far off a year's pay, including housing allowance, and nothing to sneeze at. But clearly Kobes used up a lot of his really, really good luck where maybe he needed it more – making it through three trips to Iraq.
Categories: Military
Posted by Mike Gilbert @ 05:22:43 pm
None, maybe, to a letter carrier. From Wikipedia:
And then:
Either way, it's the 21st of flippin' April, and I'm sick of this $*^#!
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I've been writing about the military for The News Tribune since early 2001. Send your suggestions, story tips and especially your leaks to me at mike.gilbert@thenewstribune.com Or, if you prefer, you can send mail to The News Tribune, PO Box 11000, Tacoma 98411. Category
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Items of interest and the odd comment or two about military and veterans issues in the South Puget Sound.
