Community Support is Critical

Filed under Warrior Games, WTC Commander by on May 9, 2010 at 11:00 am {no comments}

By BG Gary Cheek, WTC Commander

The Warrior Games are about to start and I can’t wait to see our athletes, especially our Army athletes, compete. While most of the attention will be focused on these athletes, and rightfully so, I don’t want to overlook a key component of the Warrior Games—community support.

I encourage everyone in the Colorado Springs area to come out, watch the Warrior Games, and get to know the athletes. Behind every athlete is an inspiring story and there will be lots of great competition to see. If you can’t be here, follow all the action on the U.S. Paralympics website.

We would not be able to have the Warrior Games without the outstanding support we’ve received from the Colorado Springs Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Colorado Springs community as a whole. Thank you to all who have helped and will help with the Warrior Games.

I would also invite you to learn more about how, through our Community Support Network, local communities like Colorado Springs can help support our wounded warriors all across the country. The AW2 Community Support Network exists to connect the Army’s most severely wounded, injured, and ill Soldiers, Veterans, and their Families with caring organizations that can help them transition to life post-injury. I encourage you to visit the website and discover all the ways you can help a wounded warrior.

AW2 Weekly Digest April 12-23

Filed under Soldier Story, Weekly News Digest by on April 26, 2010 at 8:45 pm {no comments}
  • AW2 Veterans Juan Arredondo, Bryan Hinojosa, Brian Neuman, and Michael Schlitz and AW2 Soldiers SGT Robert Brown and MAJ David Underwood, featured in Army News, encouraged paratroopers to help stop Soldier suicides.
  • AW2 Soldier SPC Charles Berninghausen was featured in a 9 NEWS article about the assistance he received from AW2 and Freedom Service Dogs.
  • AW2 Veterans Heath Calhoun and Melissa Stockwell, featured on DCmilitary.com, were special guests at a showing of ‘‘Warrior Champions, From Baghdad to Beijing,” at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
  • AW2 Veteran Heath Calhoun, featured on Whowon.com, unveiled the official race logo on the pace car, took some laps, and participated in media interviews for the The Heath Calhoun 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race.  He is also featured in a Defense News article Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates hosting the Paralympic Team at the Pentagon.
  • BG Gary Cheek, WTC Commander, was featured in Defense News discussing Warrior Games and in the Fort Hood Sentinel discussing Ride 2 Recovery.
  • AW2 Soldier SSG Leon Cooper, featured on DCmilitary.com, helped their fellow warriors and others evacuate the building and prevented anyone from being injured during a fire at Walter Reed.
  • AW2 Soldier MAJ Tammy Duckworth, featured in Lahontan Daily News, shared a powerful message about her personal quest for success as a Veterans advocate at the third annual Nevada Women Veterans Summit. She was also featured in DOD “Wounded Warrior Diaries.”
  • AW2 Soldier SGT Andrew Eads, featured on KMEGTV14, was offered an all-expenses-paid hunting trip from a group of Nebraskans.
  • AW2 Veteran Nicholas Ebbinghaus was featured in Building Strong ® in an article about AW2 Advocate Joyce Garrett providing career assistance and his new career opportunity.
  • AW2 Soldier SGT Derrick Ford and his Family, featured on DCmilitary.com, are learning to adjust to a ‘new normal’ off Walter Reed.
  • AW2 Veteran Steve Holloway was featured in WPTV for receiving a specially adapted home from Homes for Our Troops.
  • AW2 Veteran Nathan Hunt was featured on the Pentagon Channel on April 12 in a story about wounded warriors participating in a Ride 2 Recovery event. He is also slated to receive a specially adapted house according to PR Newswire.
  • AW2 Soldier SGT John Hyland, featured on Motorsport.com, been selected to sing the national anthem for Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on May 30.
  • AW2 Veteran Matthew Lammers was featured in an Action 3 News and KTRK article for receiving a specially adapted home from the HelpingaHero.org Home Program.
  • AW2 Soldier SGT Daniel Lopez, featured in Peninsula Warrior and WAVY-TV 10, will participate in the Warrior Games.
  • AW2 Soldier SPC Brendan Maracco featured in 1010 WINS, the Staten Island Advance, and the New York Daily News, will receive a specially adapted home from his community.
  • AW2 Veteran Ryan Newell, featured in Army Times, will receive a specially adapted house from Homes for Our Troops.
  • AW2 Soldier SFC Josh Olson, featured in the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, provided expert instruction to wounded warriors to help them prepare for the Warrior Games.
  • AW2 Soldier SPC Ryan Price and his spouse Terry, featured in San Diego News, received a wedding to remember from his community.
  • AW2 Veteran Edwin Salau, featured in the Jacksonville Daily News, participated in a weekend in New York City for intensive training and mentorship on making a fresh career start in the civilian world.
  • AW2 Veteran Craig C. Smith, featured in Defense News, is training for next month’s inaugural Warrior Games.
  • AW2 Soldier SPC Branden Stackenwalt, featured in the Rapid City Journal, will receive a specially adapted home as part of Operation Opening Doors.
  • AW2 Soldier SGT Matt Williams was featured in Medical Device Daily in an article about controversial treatment for TBI and PTSD.

The appearance of external hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by the United States Department of Defense of the linked web sites, or the information, products or services contained therein. For other than authorized activities such as military exchanges and Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) sites, the United States Department of Defense does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations.

Warriors in Athletic Competition

Filed under Adaptive Sports, Warrior Games, WTC Commander by on April 19, 2010 at 11:03 am {no comments}

By BG Gary Cheek, WTC Commander

I recently had a chance to sit down with The Pentagon Channel and talk about Warrior Games (click here to read the interview). Over the last few weeks I’ve been visiting our Warrior Games athletes around the country to get their feedback on the Warrior Games. The feedback from Army athletes has been very positive and I have come away with the knowledge that these men and women are both inspired by the upcoming competition and serve as inspiration to other Soldiers. The Warrior Games is a great and challenging athletic event. The Warrior Games is about your abilities, not your disabilities. May the best athletes win!

Let the Games Begin – Shooters Train for Warrior Games

Filed under Adaptive Sports, Warrior Games by on April 9, 2010 at 11:01 am {no comments}

By BG Gary Cheek, WTC Commander

With much planning for Warrior Games behind us, I’m excited to now see the event begin to come to life with athletes focusing on training for their event. The U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit at Ft. Benning hosted wounded Soldiers from around the Army. The three-day training event allowed Warrior Game participants to learn from the military’s best shooters.

Read more about the marksmanship training and the wounded athletes who participated in the event in the online article at http://www.ammoland.com/2010/04/05/wounded-warrior-shooters/.

Good luck in your continued preparation! See you at the Games in Colorado May 10-14.

Warrior Games Interview

Filed under Adaptive Sports, General, Warrior Games, WTC Commander by on March 23, 2010 at 9:54 am {no comments}

By BG Gary Cheek, WTC Commander

On Friday, I participated in a radio interview with As It Happens, on CBC Radio – Canada. We discussed the upcoming Warrior Games and the importance of being active for all wounded warriors.

In the interview, I stressed the incredible power of sports for recovering warriors and the personal rewards you get from doing something very difficult. So many WTs have told me that accomplishing something that seems impossible restores and amplifies their self-image and gives them the confidence to make things happen.

I see the Warrior Games as a way of challenging wounded warriors of all services to fulfill their abilities. The experience may be a little different than what they did before, but they can still enjoy the rigors and excitement of competition.

You can listen to the interview podcast here, and just scroll down to the March 19 podcast. Good luck to all wounded warriors training for the Warrior Games.

Working Together Makes a Difference

Filed under General, Resources, Warrior Transition Command, WTC Commander by on March 19, 2010 at 2:25 pm {one comment}

BG Gary Cheek, WTC Commander

I had an opportunity yesterday to present the Army’s warrior care story to a dozen Veteran service organizations (VSOs) such as the Paralyzed Veterans of America. I was the guest of Dr. Michael Kilpatrick of Force Health Protection. Although I covered the nuts and bolts of how the Warrior Transition Command and Army Wounded Warrior Program operate, it’s hard to truly summarize what we do and the impact we have on helping wounded, ill, and injured Soldiers move forward.

I think the key to what we have done is that we understand that every Soldier we work with is a unique individual with distinct challenges—and so we created a uniform system with flexibility. We exist to help Soldiers chart their own path forward to a rich future and provide assistance in their following of a Comprehensive Transition Plan based on their goals.

In my discussions with the VSOs, I emphasized that this is a team effort between the Soldier, WTC, MEDCOM, VA, VSOs, and other organizations such as the USOC Paralympics. I also demonstrated what our team effort can accomplish by sharing the inspiring stories of a few of our Soldiers who have continued to serve after injury, including CPT Scott Smiley, who is blind. Knowing we’ve made a difference validates everyone’s hard work and commitment.

BG Cheek Plays Hoops with Wounded Warriors

Filed under WTC Commander by on March 12, 2010 at 12:10 pm {no comments}

By BG Gary Cheek, WTC Commander

BG Gary Cheek (right) plays wheelchair basketball with Wounded Warriors at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

BG Gary Cheek (right) shoots hoops at Walter Reed Army Medical Center with a Wounded Warrior.

I recently had the honor of playing wheelchair basketball with the wounded warriors at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. I am encouraged to see these wounded warriors strive to test new limits and achieve new goals as they demonstrate the power of ability over disability—while recovering from serious injury. Looking at these pictures, some blurred due to the speed of the athletes, I am all the more convinced of the power of athletics to inspire recovery, capitalize on physical fitness, and promote opportunities.

As we get closer and closer to the Warrior Games, I am excited to see how the Army Paralympic athletes go head to head against the other services and who wins bragging rights. Hooah.

 

BG Cheek (right of center) plays wheelchair basketball with Wounded Warriors.

BG Cheek (right of center) plays wheelchair basketball with Wounded Warriors.

Wounded Warrior Urges WTU Leaders to Focus on Soldier’s Abilities

Filed under Warrior Transition Command, WTC Commander by on March 1, 2010 at 9:58 am {no comments}

BG Gary Cheek, WTC Commander

This week at the WTC Winter Conference we have been focused on Comprehensive Transition Plans (CTPs) and how they will help our Soldiers and their Families. Lonnie Moore, WTC Career and Employment Branch Program Analyst, brought home the importance of having a plan in his speech “Disability to Ability.” You see, Lonnie is a wounded warrior and he has firsthand knowledge and experience in why setting measurable, attainable, and time-driven goals is so important.

Lonnie told us how when he was wounded in 2004, he felt he had lost his identity as a Soldier and was so ashamed of his amputation that he did not want his young son to see him. In short he felt labeled, as if people would only see his disability and not his ability. Through the support of his Family, peer support from a Vietnam Veteran, and involvement in adaptive sports he began to make positive changes towards transition and reintegration into a new life.

It was not an overnight transition or all sunshine and roses. Eight months after being injured, and admittedly in a low period in his life, Lonnie was invited by a non-profit organization to an adaptive skiing event in Breckenridge, CO. As he told it, he skied down the mountain twice, falling several times, and thinking he just couldn’t do this. But each time, he went back to the top and started over again. On the third run down the mountain—he didn’t fall. For the first time since his injury he felt he could do anything he put his mind to.

Nine months post-injury, Lonnie had some hard decisions to make, and a trip to an adaptive sports clinic helped him realize it was time to start setting goals and moving forward. He was a third generation Army Soldier, who had planned on an Army career that would culminate in becoming a Battalion Commander, but he made the tough decision to transition to the civilian world. He sat down and created his own CTP, he set measurable and attainable goals, and put his transition on a timeline.

Lonnie believes that we can use the CTP to “train” Soldiers to prepare for transition, and so do I. He exhorted the attendees at this week’s conference to “look at abilities and not disabilities” to make this process work for all of our Soldiers, and I think that’s excellent advice.

WTC Staff and Cadre Wrap Up WTC Conference

Filed under Warrior Transition Command, WTC Commander by on February 26, 2010 at 5:07 pm {no comments}

By BG Gary Cheek, WTC Commander

BG Gary Cheek and COL Brian Lein, FORSCOM, discuss the importance of caring for Medically Not Ready Soldiers with WTC staff and cadre.

BG Gary Cheek and COL Brian Lein, FORSCOM, discuss the importance of caring for Medically Not Ready Soldiers with WTC staff and cadre.

We have had a productive week in Florida, and we’ve made great strides in preparing the Comprehensive Transition Plan (CTP) to launch at Warrior Transition Units (WTUs) across the country. We have gotten very productive feedback on ways to streamline and improve the CTP from Company Commanders, Squad Leaders, Nurse Case Managers, Primary Care Managers, Soldier and Family Assistance Center (SFAC) Directors, and other essential members of the WTC staff and cadre. Now, we will take those valuable suggestions back and improve the CTP for the benefit of all Warriors in Transition (WTs).

This morning, COL Brian Lein, Command Surgeon of Army Forces Command (FORSCOM), gave us all an important perspective as we move forward with the Warrior Care and Transition Program (WCTP). COL Lein previously spent two years as the Commander of the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, where he supervised the medical treatment of thousands of Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and Airman recently injured on the battlefield. Today, many of those Soldiers are recovering in WTUs.

“WCTP is a strategic imperative,” said COL Lein. “It is critical that we maintain this program to ensure the well-being of our Soldiers and Families in order to preserve an all-volunteer force. Senior FORSCOM Commanders have expressed nothing but gratitude for the way WTUs operate and for the collaboration between them and WTU Commanders.”

COL Lein encouraged all of us to continue to examine the best way to care for Medically Not Ready (MNR) Soldiers, and he particularly emphasized that the WTU Company Commanders should engage with Commanders throughout their installations to make them aware of the services available through WTUs and the more accessible WTU admission procedures. I couldn’t agree more—WTUs are here to help all WTs through their recovery and return to active duty or transition as proud, productive Veterans.

As we move forward, I will keep WTC staff and cadre informed of the improvements to the CTP and continue to emphasize that WTs and their Families need to actively embrace this valuable tool so they can set and achieve measurable goals and move forward with their lives.

LTG Ricky Lynch Emphasizes IMCOM’s Support for CTP

Filed under Warrior Transition Command, WTC Commander by on February 26, 2010 at 1:53 pm {one comment}

By BG Gary Cheek, WTC Commander

LTG Ricky Lynch, Commanding General of Army Installation Management Command, discusses the importance of CTP at WTC Winter Conference.

LTG Ricky Lynch, Commanding General of Army Installation Management Command, discusses the importance of CTP at WTC Winter Conference.

I appreciated LTG Ricky Lynch, Commanding General of Army Installation Management Command (IMCOM), joining the WTC Winter Conference to demonstrate IMCOM’s support for the CTP.

Warrior Transition Units (WTUs) exist at Medical Treatment Facilities (MTFs) on installations around the country, and WTUs require facilities, personnel, and resources support from installations to provide the best possible service to Warriors in Transition (WTs). This morning, LTG Lynch assured WTC staff and cadre that they will have the full support of installation Commanders in this important mission and encouraged them to collaborate closely with their installation Commanders.

“At IMCOM, we work hard on leadership development to ensure that Commanders understand the issues affecting WTs,” said LTG Lynch. “Senior installation Commanders should be engaged with warrior care so they can work with their leadership to ensure that we’re doing the right thing and that we’re doing things right. Our Soldiers and their Families deserve the very best.”

Effective warrior care requires coordination and commitment from everyone who interacts with the WT. The CTP, as an automated tool, will help consolidate coordination efforts and give cadre, company Commanders, and even installation Commanders visibility on both the overall trends and individual issues of warrior care at each installation. I am confident that this tool will help leaders across installations and throughout the Army work together to better serve each individual WT.

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