May 31, 2009

May 31, 2009

Soldiers promoted at historic World War II site.

May 30, 2009

SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, Hawaii - The words were sometimes difficult to find for retired Sgt. 1st Class Don Cook during his visit to the post cemetery on Memorial Day. "... I have feelings when I come here ... I lost good friends." As a member of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, Cook came to remember friends lost in combat, and his perspective offered special poignancy for the more than 80 in attendance at the remembrance ceremony, May 25.

May 30, 2009

Standing in knee-deep waters among thousands at Ala Moana Beach Park, Amy Urbina's thoughts were as distant as the cruiseliners and boats dotting the horizon, during the evening of May 25.

May 30, 2009

WAHIAWA, Hawaii - Each year before Memorial Day, dozens of senior citizens gather, here, like worker bees to flowers, to participate in an annual patriotic service project - making lei for the gravesites of those interred at Schofield Barracks Post Cemetery.

May 30, 2009

SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, Hawaii - The Schofield Barracks Main Post Chapel (MPC) and the Aliamanu Military Reservation (AMR) Chapel are accepting applications for Vacation Bible School (VBS).

May 30, 2009

May 30, 2009

May 30, 2009

May 30, 2009

TAJI, Iraq - Soldiers from the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team conducted a large-scale joint operation, May 24 with members of the Iraqi Army to clear a factory of possible enemy insurgent activity.

May 30, 2009

BAGHDAD - Soldiers with the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, took time to honor their fallen at a Memorial Day service, May 25, on Camp Taji, Iraq.

May 30, 2009

Deputy Army Materiel Command Commander Lt. Gen. Jim Pillsbury declared the Aberdeen Proving Ground Base Realignment and Closure Rehearsal of Concept Drill a success Friday, saying: "We tackled several heavy issues today. Personnel, the hiring process, being one, IT (information technology) infrastructure being another, and the Garrison staff that has to now take over a 90-percent civilian population versus a 67-percent civilian population. These issues would not have been raised had we not had this ROC Drill, so it is an understatement to say it's been a success."

May 30, 2009

CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq - For Army Soldiers, the month of May is Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month.

May 30, 2009

BAGHDAD- Soldiers from 1st 'Dragon' Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, conducted joint driver and mechanic training at Combat Outpost Cashe South as part of an ongoing effort to strengthen Iraq's security capabilities.

May 30, 2009

MOSUL, Iraq - Nestled just off a main truck route between the Turkish border and Erbil, the vice mayor's office in Ainsifini became a conference hall for Shekhan district's local government leaders, key business and agricultural leaders and economic project advisors from the Ninewa and Coalition Forces provincial reconstruction teams on May 20.

May 30, 2009

BAGHDAD - Sgt. Richard Dusenberry, a 26 year old native of Orion, Ill., with the 46th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy), 225th Engineer Brigade, leads a mobile electrical task force of nine electricians and carpenters. Their efforts bring power to Joint Security Stations and ensure that pre-existing electrical hazards are identified and corrected.

May 30, 2009

May 30, 2009

May 30, 2009

The 4th IA MiTT works alongside the 4th IA Div. at Forward Operating Base Dagger, just outside of Tikrit, in an advisory role. Their primary function being to assist their IA partners in improving their operations and supporting the Iraqi people within their area of operations.

May 30, 2009

SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, Hawaii -- Scouts from the local community and post, here -- Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts -- place American flags and lei at the foot of grave sites at the Post Cemetery, here, hours prior to U.S. Army Garrison-Hawaii's Installation Memorial Day Remembrance Ceremony, May 25.

May 30, 2009

Midway through GI Jane Day, May 23, Josie Dyon and Angie Kennedy were asked what they would tell their husbands at the conclusion of a physically and mentally demanding day of activities.

May 30, 2009

SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, Hawaii - Residents who did not attend the Oahu North Town Hall meeting, Tuesday evening, missed out on getting a great amount of information specifically compiled for their benefit.

May 29, 2009

Staff Sgt. Janet Hardin Spc. Elis McBride May 20 presented a skit in conjunction with National Mental Health Awareness Month at Fort Hood, Texas. Both Soldiers are assigned to the Department of Behavioral Health at Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center.

May 29, 2009

BLACK BUTTE LAKE, Calif. (May 28, 2009) - Repopulation by ospreys is the goal of work by park staff at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Black Butte Lake in California. (Hover mouse over photos for more information)

May 29, 2009

Ultra-marathon runner John Teeples completed a 270-mile four-day run from Columbus to Tybee Island, Ga., Memorial Day weekend to raise funds and awareness for House of Heroes. His goal was to raise $20,000. "We've never had anybody do anything like this for House of Heroes," said Susan Gerkin, House of Heroes executive director.

May 29, 2009

If a drive to Arizona to see the Grand Canyon is too far or out of your budget, try a detour 35 miles south to Providence Canyon State Park, also known as Georgia's "Little Grand Canyon." Though the western canyon is far deeper - 5,000 feet compared with 150 - there's nothing "little" about the Georgia version, at least not when you're standing on the canyon rim looking into a massive chasm below.

May 29, 2009

Families of deployed Illinois Army National Guard Soldiers had a unique opportunity to get some questions answered about their loved ones serving in Afghanistan.

May 29, 2009

Thanks to a new teaching tool, Fort Benning community members can learn about fire and tornado safety by experiencing their effects firsthand.

May 29, 2009

Some stood at Sicily Drop Zone with apprehension on their faces. Others couldn't contain their excitement, while most were just wishing the plane would get to the landing zone so they could load up and jump.

May 29, 2009

R. Lee Ermey, best known for his role as the drill instructor Gunnery Sgt. Hartman in "Full Metal Jacket" and as the host of "Mail Call," came to Fort Campbell, Ky., Wednesday to film segments for his new show "Lock and Load."

May 29, 2009

The Army's Criminal Investigation Command and Multi-National Force - Iraq are investigating allegations of serious misconduct involving members of the 266th Military Police Company, Virginia Army National Guard, which allegedly took place during the unit's pre-deployment mobilization training at Fort Dix, N.J., in fall 2008.

May 29, 2009

"The Soldier, above all other men, is required to perform the highest act of religious teaching - sacrifice," said Douglas MacArthur in a 1935 address to his fellow World War I veterans of the Rainbow Division.

May 29, 2009

Aboard the USS Midway the U.S. Postal Service released the .44 cent Bob Hope commemorative stamp on what would have been the world renowned entertainer and philanthropist's 106th birthday.

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

Deputy Commander Brig. Gen. Stephen Townsend made a personal appeal on the pressing issue of suicide to nearly the entire division Wednesday. "No matter how bad problems seem, trust me, it is not the end of the world," Townsend told the massive array of troops. "It will be better tomorrow. Don't take away your tomorrow."

May 29, 2009

Fort Sill holds an annual Memorial Day ceremony.

May 29, 2009

A picture can say a thousand words, or bring back a thousand memories if you are Jake "McNasty" McNiece, Jack "Hawkeye" Womer, Jack Agnew or Robert "Ragsman" Cone.

May 29, 2009

After 50 years of serving Fort Benning, the post's Emergency Medical Services has been recognized at the regional level for the first time.

May 29, 2009

Fort Sill Casualty Assistance aids survivors as well.

May 29, 2009

The Tennessee Army National Guard out of Russellville and Jefferson City, Tenn., swung through Camp Shelby, Miss., this week to pick up 48 tons of cargo to help Fort Campbell cross the water. Soldiers with the 190th Engineer Company, 230th Engineer Battalion, 194th Engineer Brigade, arrived May 20 ready to lay 18 tons of steel across a creek at the Killebrew detour off Angels Road Friday.

May 29, 2009

"It flies and it lands on two feet and it has something to do with your head," said Mike Criscillis, National Infantry Museum curator when speaking about an exhibit that will be on display for the first time when the new museum opens June 19.

May 29, 2009

The Fort Benning All Stars defeated the Too Easy Group,78-72, in the Old School Basketball League Tuesday at A.J. McClung YMCA in Columbus.

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

The Army G-8 is the Army's lead for matching available resources to the defense strategy and the Army plan. We accomplish this through participation in OSD-led defense reviews and assessments, the programming of resources, materiel integration, analytical and modeling capabilities, and the management of the Department of the Army studies and analyses. The G-8 team is made up of one field operating agency-the Center for Army Analysis (CAA), three directorates-the Army Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) Office, Program Analysis & Evaluation (PAED), and Force Development (FD),-and the Army Study Program Management Office (ASPMO). The G-8 team works to plan, develop, and resource programs supporting Soldiers by balancing Current Force needs with Future Force capabilities.

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

CAMP TAJI, Iraq - Soldiers from a 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team unit took time, May 24, to recognize peers who have reenlisted while mobilized. The unit also welcomed newly-promoted sergeants into the noncommissioned officer ranks.

May 29, 2009

BAGHDAD - Weeks after arriving in country, Soldiers of the 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team sought to strengthen their relationship with Iraqi National Police in the Dora neighborhood by supplying wood to improve construction of NP security checkpoints here, May 23.

May 29, 2009

The host of late-night show Aca,!A"Last Call,Aca,!A? visited Fort Irwin to film an episode dedicated to the Soldiers at the National Training Center here, May 27.

May 29, 2009

CAMP TAJI, Iraq - A great amount of knowledge of the surrounding area and operational success is gained by a unit when it is deployed to Iraq for a year.

May 29, 2009

CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq - A Pennsylvania Army National Guard Soldier who began his basic training the day the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team mobilized has caught up to his unit in Iraq, after a busy year of military instruction.

May 29, 2009

The Army could benefit from a permanent rotational schedule, similar to the Navy and Marine Corps, with four force groups of the Army in varying stages of operational readiness, the chief of staff of the Army said Thursday.

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

Fort Benning celebrated the culture of nearly 60 countries, from Sri Lanka and Bahrain to Singapore and the Philippines, during the annual Asian Pacific American Heritage Month luncheon May 21. The observance helps improve cultural awareness in the community, said CPT Batina Church, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 192nd Infantry Brigade.

May 29, 2009

"The American military is like no other military in the world, because the American military reflects a nation like no other nation in the world," declared Gen. Charles C. Campbell, commander of U.S. Army Forces Command, in his keynote address as part of Governor Sonny Perdue's Memorial Day proclamation-signing ceremony at the state capitol May 21

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

The new Army G-8 Website will be Coming Soon!. Check back June 8, 2009 to view a new look and fresh content focusing on the Army G-8 organization.

May 29, 2009

Pop-up targets weren't the only enemy facing Soldiers in C Company, 2nd Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, when they took part in convoy live fire training at Engineer Trail May 15 - they also battled the Georgia heat. With humidity hovering around 100 percent and temperatures nearing 90, Soldiers spent the day mounting and dismounting vehicles, engaging targets while moving, and conducting enemy prisoner of war searches and assessing and treating casualties.

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

Teaching the Army values of Duty, Honor, Integrity, Selfless Service and more, five First Army NCOs and more than 60 fifth-graders from W. A. Fountain Elementary School, First Army's partner in education school, enjoyed a morning discussing what traits make good leaders and good citizens May 20.

May 29, 2009

BAGHDAD - The oppressive desert heat bore down on Soldiers hitting nails into smoldering plywood, persistent flies swarmed around their heads; cold water was in the far off distance, so they drank the hot water nearby.

May 29, 2009

Pvt. Justin P. Hartford, 21, of Elmira, N.Y., died of non-combat related injuries.

May 29, 2009

A U.S. Army TRADOC Soldier places flags in front of headstones at the Hampton National Cemetery in recognition of the Memorial Day observance

May 29, 2009

BAGHDAD - Leaders of the 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team and the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, attended a ceremony, May 21, held by the Ready Made Clothing Factory to celebrate the opening of a vocational technical school for women here.

May 29, 2009

BAGHDAD - Pfc. Robert Kubas, a gunner for the personal security detail for the battalion commander of the 230th Brigade Support Battalion, 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, Multi-National Division-Baghdad, is trained and ready for the fight.

May 29, 2009

Despite only spending six months of her life in Cambodia and Thailand combined, time spent as a newborn, Staff Sgt. Chendi Goodman speaks both countries' languages, Khmer and Thai, fluently and is well versed in the culture. For Goodman's family, preserving their Asian Pacific heritage is a vital link to their past - to the country they did not want to leave, but had to for their own safety.

May 29, 2009

A 233rd Military Police Detachment rifle detail from Fort Monroe, Va., participates in a Memorial Day event at Hampton National Cemetery

May 29, 2009

An Army major from Fort Monroe, Va., turns in medal-winning performances during a national swim meet in Fresno, Calif.

May 29, 2009

An Army Family member at Fort Monroe, Va., was among the 10 finalists of the peninsula area's "Heroes at Home" competition

May 29, 2009

Montage of photos from SAMS 25th Anniversary activities including the Commandant's Reception and graduation, May 20-21. Guest speaker at the reception was LTG David Huntoon, DAS, and guest speaker for the graduation was LTG (R) James Dubik.

May 29, 2009

Soldiers from the 1st Space Brigade bid farewell to one senior enlisted and welcomed another during a Change of Responsibility Ceremony in Building 1's small auditorium on base during the afternoon of May 26.

May 29, 2009

Two retired general officers trace the beginnings of the School of Advanced Military Studies to a boat trip on the Yangtze River in China. It was in 1981, and then-Lt. Gen. William R. Richardson and then-Col. Huba Wass de Czege discussed plans for an advanced education program to an elite group of Command and General Staff College students.

May 29, 2009

"If I know I have a mission to do, I'm going to give it my all." While it's a can-do philosophy is a good fit for his military career, this mindset is also helping Staff Sgt. Javis Pittman, plans NCO for G5 Plans at U.S. Army Central, pursue a secondary passion: music.

May 29, 2009

In honor of Memorial Day, the Atlanta Braves recognized current military members and veterans in a ceremony prior to their game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Turner Field in Atlanta, May 23.

May 29, 2009

In 1974, Sunny Park came to America from South Korea with no money, but with a goal to be successful. As a millionaire whose accolades include founding the General Building Maintenance Company, the One Georgia Bank and a mentorship program for high school dropouts called "If Sunny Can, I Can," most would agree his goal has been accomplished. Learning of Park's accomplishments simply highlighted what Asian-Pacific Heritage Month was designed to celebrate: that the culture has done much in service to America and continues to contribute today.

May 29, 2009

The sound of patriotic music flowed softly from Squires Parking lot as the afternoon sun went down on Hunter Army Airfield, May 15. Members of the Coastal Empire Boy Scout Council, Troop 691, were preparing for the Armed Forces flag retirement ceremony that would follow.

May 29, 2009

Ben McLaughlin is a carpenter from Salem, Ore., but this year he will be operating a .50 caliber machine gun from the turret seat. Private First Class McLaughlin is with Company G, 141st Brigade Support Battalion, 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team from the Oregon National Guard.

May 29, 2009

A mission's design is dictated by the unique environment of every combat situation. Soldiers, as a result, must be prepared for circumstances on any and all battlefields. The 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade, in order to prepare for future combat operations, began Falcon Focus in May at Camp McGregor on Fort Bliss, Texas.

May 29, 2009

Rain didn't stop the 492nd Bombardment Group from taking their scheduled visit to Hunter Army Airfield, May 21. More than 20 members of the bomb group and their Families were in Savannah Memorial Day weekend for the annual convention of the 492nd Bombardment Group.

May 29, 2009

The School of Advanced Military Studies celebrated 25 years of creating Army leaders and planners with a graduation ceremony May 21 at the Command and General Staff College.

May 29, 2009

BAGHDAD - Cheers, music and fun filled the famed Shaab stadium during a two-day soccer tournament held May 22 and 23 in eastern Baghdad's Rusafa district.

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

BAGHDAD - In an effort to prepare Iraqi Army engineers for timelines established in the Security Agreement, U.S. Army heavy equipment operators of Company A , 46th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy), 225th Engineer Brigade have spent hours training Iraqi engineers across Baghdad since April 5.

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

As 7th graders from Blackmon Middle School filed off their school buses and made their way down to Essebagger Field, Staff Sgt. Terry Jones, a platoon sergeant in Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, stood perfectly still. The red guidon in his right hand was held firmly, and he stared stoically forward as the children in his platoon flowed around him. Many made jokes and giggled at his military bearing, not knowing what to think.

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

May 25 was Memorial Day, and while many of us were having a cookout or going to a lake, Families and friends of the 10th Transportation Company, 260th Quartermaster Battalion, 3rd Sustainment Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, were welcoming home America's newest war veterans.

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

Appreciation toward Soldiers of today's Army is illustrated on a daily basis. Whether rendering a handshake at the airport or just saying 'thank you' to troops at the post office, respect and support for Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom veterans is ever present. Unfortunately, Vietnam-era and other past-war veterans can contest the nation's support has not always been so eminent.

May 29, 2009

Marine Mud challenge at Fort Gordon draws hundreds.

May 29, 2009

Soldiers from 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, and local police officers came together to honor all who have fallen in the line of duty during a veterans Memorial Day ceremony held at Richmond Hill's J. F. Gregory Park, May 20.

May 29, 2009

Military Intelligence Soldiers take the annual Warrior competition challenge at Fort Gordon.

May 29, 2009

TRADOC commanding general makes his first ever visit to Fort Gordon.

May 29, 2009

PISA, Italy - Ernesto Mussi, an Italian painter, sculptor and professor of English literature, along with his good friend, retired Italian army Brig. Gen. Simone Baschiera, visited Camp Darby May 27 to teach the children of U.S. servicemembers and employees about sculpturing with clay.

May 29, 2009

The XVIII Airborne Corps began a new chapter in religious services as Chaplain (Col.) Pat Hash relinquished his responsibilities as the corp's chaplain to Chaplain (Col.) Chet Egert during a passing of the stole ceremony at the Main Post Chapel May 19. The stole is a symbol of the

May 29, 2009

May 29, 2009

In 1988, The Army Theme Plan tasked the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command to create a recognition program to distinguish the outstanding accomplishments of its instructors. From its humble beginnings in 1989, to this month in 2009, the program has grown, evolved and adapted to changing theoretical constructs and teaching approaches, in an effort to applaud and celebrate the accomplishments of the "Best and Brightest" instructors that TRADOC has to offer.

May 29, 2009