Unofficial 1st Infantry Division Magazine of Soldiers and Families January 2009

www.1id.army.mil
Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil

The Big Red One

Creed

TEAMWORK is the foundation of the Big Red One. I shall

never fail my team, for I maintain the standard. My conduct and 

self-discipline set the example for others to follow.

HONOR is what I stand for-an American Soldier on duty

for my country. My loyality is intense. I display care for

my fellow Soldiers and my chain-of-command through courage,

respect, integrity and compassion.

I have learned to ENDURE, to thrive in adversity.

The harsh reality of combat gives me the enthusiam for

realistic training. I am physically and mentally strong to

meet the demanding situations my unit encounters.

We are one in the Big Red One. Our BROTHERHOOD

gives us strength to fight on to any objective and accomplish the

mission as our veterans have done before us. I live the legacy of

my division.

READINESS is my priority. To be ready for any mission,

anytime, anywhere. My business is first-class training and living

high standards of care and equipment, weaponry and tactical

and technical competence.

My ORGANIZATION is my strength. The BRO is bigger 

than any one individual. It gives me purpose, self-confidence, 

competitive spirit, intestinal fortitude and the desire to fight

with all my heart.

1

contents No Mission too Difficult. No Sacrifice too Great.

January 2009 www.1id.army.mil

Duty First!

The Duty First is an unofficial 

publication produced under 

the provisions of AR 360-1, 

published by Soldiers of the 

1st Infantry Division. Editorial 

views and opinions expressed 

are not necessarily those of the 

Department of Defense, the Army 

or the 1st Infantry Division. All 

photos are Army photos unless 

otherwise noted. Circulation is 

6,000 per issue, printed monthly. 

Story and photos submissions are 

welcome and should be sent to: 

1st Infantry Division

Public Affairs Office 

ATTN: Editor 

Bldg. 580

RM 317

Fort Riley, Kan. 66442. 

Telephone number

COM 239-8857 

 DSN 856-2257 

or visit Duty First online at 

www.1id.army.mil.

Cover Photo: Historical Photo 

provided by the 1ID Library

1st Infantry Division 

Commander

Brig. Gen. Perry Wiggins

1st Infantry Division CSM

Command Sgt. Maj. Jim 

Champagne

1st Infantry Division PAO 

Lt. Col. Matt Hackathorn

 Editor

Gary Skidmore

Illustrator / Assistant Editor

Tammy Dinger

Staff Writers

Ty Abney

Anna Staatz

Duty First!

Features

 BRO History ... 13

BRO Volleyball.... 17

1st Vocalist.... 18

 Soldier Gets A Helping Hand........19

Machine Gun University ... 22

 Alcohol Abuse......23 

 Sexual Assault......25

Brigades

 1st BDE....5

 1st SB.....7

 2nd HBCT.....8

3rd IBCT...... 9

4th IBCT.....11

75th Fires.... 15

 1ID at War.....21

Command

 Danger 6 ..... 3 

Danger 7...... 4

2

An Infantryman, clad in 

protective snow suit, advances 

toward enemy positions as the 

16th Infantry drives forward 

in the Butgenbach Sector of 

Belgium. 
Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil

Commanding General Danger 6

 New Year...

Brig. Gen. Perry Wiggins

3

Happy New Year! I hope you all enjoyed the holiday break 

and spent much-needed time with family and loved ones. As we 

celebrate the passing of 2008 and ring in 2009, I’d like to reflect 

for a bit on some of the many changes and accomplishments of the 

Big Red One in the past year, and look ahead to some of the new 

challenges that the 1st Infantry Division will face this year.

It would be an understatement to say that the last 12 months have 

been a whirlwind for this division. We’ve deployed and redeployed 

thousands of Soldiers, completed or started over $1 billion in 

construction projects, seen leadership 

changes from the company level all the 

way up to the division command, and all 

the while we’ve been working to improve 

the quality of life for our Soldiers and 

Families.

We’ve really focused efforts on working 

with our surrounding communities to 

help us make life better for the Soldiers 

and Families of Fort Riley. In February, 

we held the first monthly Community 

Partnership Conference with leaders from 

throughout the Central Flint Hills Region. 

The conferences have opened up a critical 

two-way dialogue between Army leaders 

and our counterparts in the communities. 

In August, we solidified our community 

partnerships even more with the signing 

of the Army Community Covenant 

(ACC). By signing this covenant, our 

communities recognize the sacrifices made 

by our Soldiers and Families and commit 

themselves to helping us take care of them. This covenant is an 

opportunity for us to celebrate and recognize communities that are 

proactively working on quality of life issues for our Soldiers. 

A program highlighted at our ACC signing and now implemented 

nationwide thanks to the efforts of our local and state leaders was 

the Interstate Compact on Education Opportunity for Military 

Children. The compact was first signed by Kansas Governor 

Kathleen Sebelius and helps ease the stress on our military children 

who face frequent moves and multiple deployments.

One key quality of life issue that has affected us Army-wide is 

that of dealing with our wounded Soldiers. In an era of persistent 

conflict, casualties are a given. The Army has recognized that and 

revamped efforts to help our wounded warriors heal. In February, 

we unfurled the colors of the Warrior Transition Battalion. 

We also launched the Warrior Internship Network – the first 

of its kind in the Army and yet another example of how our 

communities work to help us care for Soldiers. The WIN program 

allows our Soldiers to get real-world work experience and is meant 

to reduce the stress and uncertainty associated with exiting the 

military. While we’ve placed a heavy emphasis on 

caring for Soldiers and Families and partnering with our 

communities, this division also has another critical task – 

training and deploying brigades to combat. We built up and 

sent our 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team to Afghanistan 

and the 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team to Iraq. We also 

welcomed home three brigades from Iraq – the 4th IBCT, 

1st Combat Aviation Brigade and 1st Sustainment Brigade. 

The CAB and 1st SB just returned home last month and will 

begin their reset cycle later this month. 

The 4th IBCT “Dragons” are currently 

training and have received deployment 

orders for late this summer or early fall. 

And our 1st Brigade trained, deployed 

and redeployed thousands of transition 

team members to train security forces 

in Iraq and Afghanistan. Later this year, 

that training mission will transfer to Fort 

Polk, La., and 1st Bde. will build to a 

heavy brigade combat team.

The building, deployment and 

subsequent redeployment of these 

brigades has caused an influx of 

thousands of Soldiers and Family 

members. To accommodate that growth, 

we’ve undertaken a massive construction 

effort at Fort Riley – to the tune of about 

$1.7 billion. Our CAB Soldiers returned 

to a noticeably different – and more 

crowded – Marshall Army Airfield. We 

built an aircraft crash and rescue station; 

an airfield base operations building; brigade, battalion and 

company administration facilities; aircraft maintenance 

facilities; a dining facility; and an unmanned aerial system. 

The CAB Soldiers are also housed in brand new barracks 

at Camp Whitside. We’ve also constructed new barracks 

on Custer Hill and are working on a Battle Command 

Training Center that will house all of our simulators and 

serve as a model for other Army installations.

For our Families, we’ve nearly completed construction 

on two new child development centers, a new, much bigger 

Post Exchange, opened a new marina at Milford Lake, and 

we’ve seen hundreds of new homes go up in the Forsyth 

area.

As I said before, to say 2008 was a whirlwind is an 

understatement. But we’re not slowing down. We’re going 

to keep working at improving facilities and the quality of 

life for our Soldiers and Families. I’m looking forward to 

what the Big Red One will accomplish in 2009, and want to 

wish you and your Families a Happy New Year! 

Command Sergeant Major Danger 7

Division Command Sgt. Maj. James Champagne

Educational Opportunities...

4

Noncommissioned officers are the backbone of the Army 

and the reason the 1st Infantry Division is one of the best 

trained, most professional and most respected divisions in the 

world. First line supervisors execute day-to-day operations 

with precision whenever and wherever duty 

calls. NCOs provide the leadership required 

to fulfill our non-negotiable contract with 

the American people – to fight and win our 

nation’s wars decisively.

Don’t stop with the NCO Education 

System or the great college education 

system offered to every Soldier in the 

Army, no matter where you’re stationed or 

deployed. Continue your education by going 

to Airborne School, Air Assault School, the 

Pathfinder School, Ranger and Warrant 

Officer School. Any or all of these will 

make you a better Soldier and leader.

Here are several courses to choose from:

Ranger School is an intense, 

nine-week-long, combat leadership course 

oriented to small-unit tactics, and conducted 

in three separate three-week long phases - 

at Fort Benning, Ga., at Camp Rogers and 

Camp Darby, Ga., the mountain phase at Camp Merrill, Ga., 

and the Florida phase at Camp Rudder, Eglin Air Force Base, 

Fla.

Airborne School is taught at Fort Benning, Ga., 

and is a course comprised of three weeks of training. You’ll 

be introduced to your best friend - your parachute. You’ll get 

to know everything about it. How to wear it, adjust it, use 

it, the works. You’ll also learn all the techniques needed to 

accomplish your mission with absolute confidence.

Air Assault School is a 10-day school. It teaches 

Soldiers about preparing combat loads for transportation by air 

as well as insertion techniques like fast-rope rappelling from 

helicopters. 

Pathfinder School is a threeweek course in which students navigate 

dismounted, establish and operate a day/

night helicopter landing zone, conduct sling 

load operations, provide air traffic control 

and navigational assistance to rotary and 

fixed wing operations. Students participate 

in a three-day field training exercise as a 

member of a Pathfinder team. 

Warrant Officers are highly 

specialized experts and trainers in their 

career fields. By gaining progressive levels 

of expertise and leadership, these leaders 

provide valuable guidance to commanders 

and organizations in their specialty. 

Warrant officers remain single-specialty 

officers whose career track is oriented 

toward progressing within their career field 

rather than focusing on increased levels of 

command and staff duty positions, like their 

commissioned-officer counterparts.

There was a sign on a high school bulletin board in Dallas 

a few years back. It said “Free every Monday through Friday 

– Knowledge. Bring your own containers.” That’s a pretty 

good way to put it. Use your heads, stay in school. If you’re not 

signed up yet, see your schools NCO. Good leaders are ordinary 

Soldiers with extraordinary determination. Go to school. If 

you are in school, stay there, learn as much as possible. Be 

the best you possibly can in all aspects of your life and career. 

The United States Army depends on you, and the 1st Infantry 

Division depends on you.

Now ... Get after it!
5 Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil

BDE ST

By Anna Staatz

Duty First! Magazine

Soldiers in 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry 

Division will spend most of 2009 meeting 

two demanding missions. The brigade 

has spent the past two years shouldering 

the mission of training transition teams 

for deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. 

Now, the brigade will hand that mission 

off and begin the process of building into 

a modular brigade.

Transition Team 

Mission

Transition teams first began forming 

at Fort Riley in early 2006. The teams 

at that time were comprised of 11 to 16 Soldiers, Sailors or 

Airmen. They came to Fort Riley for 60 days of training prior 

to deploying to either Iraq or Afghanistan. Once deployed, the 

teams mentored National Security Forces in those countries, 

helping them build bigger, stronger militaries. As the mission 

grew, so did the teams and their detail. Some teams were 

completely focused on particular areas, such as medical, 

finance and administrative needs, and sometimes were larger 

than 16 service members.

This fall, the task of training transition teams will move 

from 1st Bde., 1st Inf. Div., to Fort Polk, 

La. About 150 Soldiers currently a part 

of the “Devil” Brigade will make the 

move to Fort Polk, allowing for some 

continuity as teams are trained.

“That way, they have a cadre who 

understands the mission and has tried and 

true methods of executing it,” said Maj. 

David Snodderly, 1st Bde. plans officer.

Transition team training at 

Fort Riley will continue through September 2009. 

The final two classes to pass through the post will 

be training at the same time the first two classes of teams begin 

at Fort Polk. 

 While 1st Bde. completes its mission 

of training transition teams, it is already 

beginning to take on the additional task 

of setting the groundwork for building a 

new, modular heavy brigade combat team. 

New Soldiers have been arriving at the brigade, 

which will swell from its current size of about 

1,000 Soldiers to more than 3,500 when at full 

strength. Snodderly said so far, about 80 Soldiers 

have been arriving monthly for the past few 

months. Those numbers will increase through the 

spring and summer months.

As the brigade builds, it will go through 

four phases, Snodderly said. The first phase is 

integration – new Soldiers in-processing to the 

brigade and participating in necessary Army 

and brigade-level classes. The second phase will be individual 

through company-level training. During the second phase, 

Snodderly said the brigade should begin receiving most of 

its equipment. The third phase is collective training, during 

which Soldiers will participate in larger-scale battalion through 

brigade-level exercises. The final phase is the pre-deployment 

phase – a brigade-level exercise at one of the Army’s combat 

training centers. After that, the brigade will drop into the 

Army’s pool of units ready for deployment.

Making It Happen

Right now, the efforts to hand off the transition team 

mission and begin building a brigade are mapped out in charts 

along Snodderly’s wall. Members of the Fort Riley team have 

also met with a team from Fort Polk to prepare for the shift.

“Logistically, for everyone involved, it will be very busy,” 

Snodderly said.

About 11,000 service members have trained and deployed 

from Fort Riley as part of a transition team since the post was 

given the training mission. 1st Bde. is tentatively scheduled for 

an official activation as a modular brigade in late 2009, prior to 

beginning the buildup and training process.

6

BDE ST

Local Group Learns 

About TT Mission

By Anna Staatz

Duty First! Magazine

Members of the Flint Hills Leadership Project walked the 

walk of a military transition team Soldier recently.

About 20 guests from the Flint Hills group visited Fort Riley 

in November. Guests listened in on a briefing by Lt. Col. Keith 

Casey, deputy commander, 1st Bde., before being divided into 

groups and sent to one of four stations. The stations included 

a medical scenario at the combat lifesaver course; a combat 

scenario at the Engagement Skills Trainer; a stop at a language 

and cultural lab where visitors were taught a few Arabic 

greetings; and a mounted combat patrol station, where guests 

learned about various improvised explosive devices and then 

suited up for a short patrol. 

The visit was designed to help local community members 

learn a little more about the lives of Soldiers. Lauren Palmer, 

assistant city manager for the city of Manhattan, said she hadn’t 

been able to spend much time on post since moving to the area 

a few months ago, so the experience was something she looked 

forward to. “I have such an appreciation for the intensity of 

the training they go through,” Palmer said. She added that she 

found the language lab the most interesting station she visited.

“It was really interesting to learn about another language 

and another culture,” Palmer said.

Hank Nelson, from the Riley County Police Department, said 

he came expecting to learn more about what the Soldiers were 

doing in the Global War on Terrorism. The most interesting 

part of the visit was the IED station, he said.

“Actually seeing these types of devices, and watching the 

video of how they’re used really brings home the challenges 

our Soldiers face on a day to day basis,” Nelson said.

Military transition teams, trained by 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry 

Division, are sent to Fort Riley for 60 days of training before 

being sent to either Iraq or Afghanistan to mentor and advise 

those countries’ security forces. 

Lauren Palmer, Manhattan assistant city manager, puts on protective gear before participating in 

a mock convoy exercise at Camp Funston.

Duty First!/Staatz
7 Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil

SB ST

Happy Return Home 

For The Durables

By Anna Staatz

Duty First! Magazine

The moment was everything Linda Spain could have hoped 

for. Her daughter, Sgt. Summer Spain returned to Fort Riley Dec. 

8 after a 15-month deployment to Iraq with members of the 1st 

Sustainment Brigade.

Summer didn’t know her mom would be at the return ceremony, 

expecting only her sister, Sunshine Pille. As Soldiers filed into 

formation at the start of the ceremony, Pille excitedly pointed to 

her sister. Summer found Sunshine’s face in the crowd quickly, her 

eyes widening in surprise, and then filling with tears as she spotted 

her mother.

“I love you,” 

Summer mouthed to 

her Family.

Twenty-f iveyear-old Summer 

joined the Army, not 

wanting to follow 

her sister into the Air 

Force.

“She knew the 

military was a good 

route to go, though,” 

said Pille.

Summer was 

last together with 

her Family about 18 

months ago, after 

her niece was born. 

Linda traveled to Fort 

Riley from Hansville, 

Wash., to be present 

for the redeployment.

“It’s been driving 

me crazy, because 

she’s been sending 

texts and messages, 

and I can’t answer,” 

Linda said before the 

ceremony. “I 

don’t want her to know I’m here yet.”

The “Durable” Brigade deployed from Fort Riley 

in September 2007 for a 15-month deployment. The 

headquarters detachment took command of more than 

seven battalions and about 4,000 Soldiers when it arrived 

in Iraq. During its deployment, Soldiers conducted support 

operations, providing food, water, fuel, ammunition, 

barriers and medical supplies to Soldiers and units in 

the Multi-National Division – Baghdad area. The unit 

also conducted maintenance, finance management, 

human resources, force protection and convoy security 

operations.

Along the way, Soldiers in 1st Sustainment Brigade 

racked up some impressive numbers. The brigade issued 

more than 200 million gallons of bulk fuel; 6.6 million 

rounds of ammunition; 170,000 meal cases and produced 

more than 12 million cases of bottled water.

Spc. Ryan Foltin joined the Army at the age of 30, 

something he’d always wanted to do. His wife and three 

children waited patiently for him at the return ceremony.

“We haven’t really lived together for the three years 

he’s been in the Army,” explained Linda Foltin, noting 

that she had stayed in Pennsylvania to finish her master’s 

degree before moving to Fort Riley. “This will be the first 

Christmas we just get to hang out and be together and not 

have to go anywhere.”

About 370 Soldiers returned to Fort Riley with 1st 

Sustainment Brigade.

Staff Sgt. Christopher Johnson 

talks with his daughter, Madison, 

following a redeployment ceremony 

Dec. 8 at Fort Riley for Soldiers 

in the 1st Sustainment Brigade.

Duty First!/Staatz

Sgt. Summer Spain embraces her mother, Linda 

Spain, after returning from Iraq.

Duty First!/Staatz

8

NDHBCT

Leaders Attend

Bridge Opening

By Sgt. Brian Tierce

2nd HBCT PAO

BAGHDAD – Soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry 

Regiment, 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry 

Division, attended a bridge reopening ceremony recently in 

the Kadhamiyah district of northwest Baghdad.

The Al Aima Bridge has been closed since 2005 when a 

stampede caused the deaths of nearly 1,000 Shiite pilgrims. 

The reopening was more than just a ribbon-cutting event, 

said Lt. Col. John Vermeesch, commander, 1st Bn., 18th Inf. 

Regt., who oversaw the ceremony. 

“The opening of this bridge is symbolic of the unity in 

Baghdad,” Vermeesch said. “Opening this bridge also indicates 

sectarian relations and security have improved due to the hard 

work of local leaders and coalition forces.” 

The ceremony marking the reopening of the bridge was a 

festive event and included an Iraqi Army band. The mayor of 

Baghdad, along with the major Iraqi Army and Iraqi Police 

commanders of the Karkh District, was in attendance for the 

ceremony. Before the ceremony, policemen from the 2nd 

National Police Division and Iraqi Army Soldiers from the 3rd, 

Battalion, 22nd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, cleared and 

secured the bridge.

“Iraqi security forces have played an instrumental role in 

not only making an event like this possible but also in helping 

the bridge reconstruction project run smoothly,” said Maj. 

Koné Faulkner, spokesman, 2nd HBCT. 

The event went off without incident and traffic began 

flowing across the bridge.

“The people were in a celebratory mood, waving Iraqi flags 

as they drove across the bridge,” Vermeesch said. “This event, 

along with others scheduled for the future in the Kadhamiyah 

district of Northwest Baghdad, will continue to promote 

security and good sectarian relations in the area.”

The Al Aima Bridge in Baghdad, which has been 

closed since a deadly stampede in 2005, reopened 

Nov. 11 as a result of the combined efforts of local 

leaders and Iraqi Security and Coalition Forces. The 

bridge will allow for a free flow of traffic between the 

Kadhamiyah and Adhamiyah districts of Baghdad. 

Local leaders, along with Iraqi Army and Iraqi Police 

commanders, look on during a ribbon-cutting 

ceremony Nov.11 that served to officially open 

the Al Aima Bridge in the Kadhamiyah district of 

northwest Baghdad .

Baghdad Public Affairs./MND

Baghdad Public Affairs./MND
9 Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil

IBCT RD

By Sgt. Casey Ware

3rd IBCT PAO

JALALABAD AIR FIELD, Afghanistan – Saving life and 

limb is all in a day’s work for the 772nd Forward Surgical 

Team at Forward Operating Base Fenty, and they do it seven 

days a week.

A cramped plywood hut is known as the operating room and 

medical clinic to the medical team. It is where surgeons and 

their staff perform operations from life-saving amputations and 

bone grafts on Afghan civilians to life-sustaining treatment on 

injured coalition forces Soldiers, sometimes all in less than a 

24-hour period.

Due to the poor economic state of the country, many Afghan 

civilians can’t afford needed medical care.

Four days a week the FST staff runs a clinic and treats 

local Afghans referred to them by the Jalalabad Public Health 

Hospital. In this program, U.S. Forces and International 

Security Assistance Forces teamed up with the Nangahar 

Province Minister of Health to provide aid to those otherwise 

suffering due to economic circumstances.

“The care we give the local nationals is very important. 

The people can’t afford it,” Staff Sgt. Justin Steffans, Ward 

Master over Advanced Trauma Life Support and Intensive Care 

Recovery Clinic said. “Although at times it’s very minimal, it’s 

more than they could afford elsewhere.”

Enaytullah is an Afghan national who has been receiving 

treatment for a bone infection.

Twice a month, Enaytullah journeys from his small 

village in Nuristan. He walks the hour and a half it takes over 

mountainous terrain on crutches and a metal brace screwed 

into his shin bone. He’s received a bone graft and needs to have 

it checked.

“By providing help, it shows that we’re not here to ruin their 

way of life,” Steffans said.

“Our sole mission here is trauma support to the war, so when 

U.S. and Coalition Forces Soldiers, local nationals or detainees 

are injured, they come first and the program clinic stops. We’ll 

see them again, but not today,” Steffans said.

After six hours of surgery on clinic patients and an hour of 

stabilizing an ISAF Soldier injured by an improvised explosive 

device, the surgical crew can relax again. 

Maj. Dirk Slade, a general surgeon with the 

772nd Forward Support Team, prepares a 

local nationals’ leg for bone graft surgery at 

Forward Operating Base Fenty, Afghanistan.

3 IBCT PAO/Brice

10

3 IBCT Public Affairs

JALALABAD – A group of celebrities visited Soldiers of 

the 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division at 

Jalalabad Airfield in northeastern Afghanistan recently during 

a United Service Organizations - sponsored tour called Around 

the World in Eight Days.

The celebrities, consisting of the Ying Yang Twins and singer 

and model Mayra Veronica were hosted by Marine Gen. James 

Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“I think it was a great thing for the celebrities to show their 

support for the Soldiers. It was a surprise for us that they spent 

a little while longer with us in spite of their time constraints,” 

Spc. Francisco Rivera, supply specialist for 3rd IBCT said.

According to the USO, their entertainers are essential to 

fulfilling the USO’s mission. The USO’s long-standing tradition 

of sending entertainers overseas will carry on as long as service 

members are stationed far from home.

The Ying Yang Twins and singer Mayra Veronica posed 

for photos with Soldiers of 3rd Brigade, 1st Infantry 

Division during a USO Tour in northeastern Afghanistan. 

USO visits 

troops in 

northeastern 

Afghanistan

Capt. James Kesler and Spc. Peter Maze of the 772nd 

Forward Surgical team, prepare a local national for bone 

graft surgery at Forward Operating Base Fenty, Afghanistan.

3IBCT PAO/Brice

3 IBCT PAO/Brice

IBCT

By Sgt. Casey Ware
11 Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil

THIBCT

By Anna Staatz

Duty First! Magazine

There’s only so much that can be learned at school or in 

small-group training. Eventually, Soldiers have to hone 

their skills out in the field – the closest they’ll get to combat 

scenarios for a while.

Battalions in the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st 

Infantry Division, have spent the past several months working 

on the basics of field training with squad evaluations. Those 

basics begin a training process that will escalate in the next 

several months, ahead of an anticipated deployment in late 

summer.

2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry 

Regiment

The “Ranger” Battalion’s Company A sent Soldiers through 

several training lanes in late November, all designed to 

improve on key skills and build teamwork within platoons.

“The key is versatility,” said 1st Sgt. Phillip Mays. “We 

don’t know for sure where we’re going when we deploy. We 

think Iraq, but we don’t know for sure. So we have to train on 

things we will need for either Iraq or Afghanistan.”

The company’s platoons rotated through several 

training scenarios, including battle drills in making 

and breaking contact, forming and reacting to 

an ambush; mounted convoy training; and 

battle drill six training – squad evaluations 

on door to door neighborhood patrols, 

gathering intelligence and information and 

performing a “raid” on an insurgent house.

 Mounted convoy training covered the skills 

needed to react to finding an improvised 

explosive device, recovering and extracting 

down vehicles and what to do if a gunner or 

driver is wounded. Gunners also worked on acquiring 

targets from the hatch of their Humvee.

Battle drill six training was a little more complicated, 

involving skills from land navigation and reconnaissance, to 

tactical questing and searching detainees.

The company’s 1st Platoon left the unit’s tactical operations Sgt. Ryan Nhyus provides cover for other Soldiers in 2nd 

Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, during squad battle drills.

Duty First!/Staatz

Home On 

12

way through three rooms. Every detail of clearing a room, from 

the flow into it to quickly attaining points of domination has to 

be right.

“This is the most important training infantrymen can do,” 

said Spc. Irvin Myers. “It is the bread and butter of how we 

operate in combat.”

Myers said the training helped Soldiers learn how to 

capitalize on the element of surprise while clearing areas as 

well as become more efficient at dominating the battle space.

“You need to know your team,” Myers said. “You need to 

know their jobs as well as yours because this will be much 

more intense over there.”

Black Lion Soldiers also went to the field in October to work 

through urban clusters – a simulated Iraqi town – and other 

range certifications.

1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment

Soldiers in the 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, headed 

to Kirwin, Kan., in early October to earn their spurs, a tradition 

dating back to the days of knights, when being awarded spurs 

meant entry into the ranks of mounted warriors. Soldiers who 

participated in the spur run survived five rigorous checkpoints 

to test their physical and mental strength and went more than 

two days without sleep.

“We used physical stress and ambiguity to induce 

psychological stress,” said Lt. Col. John Nelson, squadron 

commander. “This allows me to build the team. It allows every 

squadron leader to know each other. It allows me and the 

command sergeant major to assess their ability to lead under 

stress and deal with physical hardships. So far it’s delivered the 

effect I want on my leaders.”

Soldiers in the 1st Sdn., 4th Cav. Regt. also spent field time 

working on close-quarters marksmanship training and spotting 

mortars at a training site.

Fourth IBCT returned from a 15-month deployment to 

Baghdad in April. The brigade received orders from the 

Department of Defense in September to deploy again in late 

summer 2009. The brigade’s Soldiers will build on basic 

field scenarios in the coming months, culminating with an 

anticipated month-long exercise at the National Training 

Center, Fort Irwin, ahead of deploying in support of the Global 

War on Terrorism.

center and worked their way toward a wooded ravine that ran 

along the edge of the mock village they were entering. Once 

the Soldiers began navigating the ravine, they were invisible.

“They’re doing a good job, because I can’t see where they 

put their guns,” Mays said as he scanned the terrain, looking 

for signs of movement. “This is awesome training for these 

guys,” he said. “It’s all skills that are important for them to 

learn and be good at.”

Finally, the Soldiers broke over the ridge and made their way 

to the village, where they found a weapons cache, controlled 

several detainees and used their tactical questioning skills to 

question an informant.

1st Battalion, 28th Infantry 

Regiment

Soldiers in 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment, spent 

time in October working through scenarios at a “shoothouse.” 

The shoothouse allows Soldiers plenty of rooms and setups 

to simulate close-combat scenarios they will encounter in 

combat. It also allows upper noncommissioned officers and 

those grading the teams running scenarios to stand on a 

catwalk overhead for an eagle eye view of their troops.

Sgt. 1st Class Lucas Sagarin repeated the words “do it 

again,” over and over as he watched four-man stacks work their

Soldiers from 1st Plt., Co. A, 2nd Bn., 16th Inf. Regt., 

break over a ridge and head toward a mock village 

during Battle Drill and training.

Duty First!/Staatz

The Range
13 Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil 14

.

The road to glory in a patriot 

army and a free country is thus 

open to all. This order is also to 

have retrospect to the earliest stages 

of the war, and to be considered as 

a permanent one.”

Only three soldiers are known 

to have received the original honor 

badge: Sgt. Daniel Bissell of the 

2nd Connecticut Regiment of the 

Continental Line; Sgt. William Brown 

of the 5th Connecticut Regiment of 

the Continental Line, and Sgt. Elijah 

Churchill of the 2nd Continental 

Dragoons, also a Connecticut 

regiment.

For unknown reasons, the medal apparently 

was not awarded again. In fact, it was not 

until October 1927, after Word War 

I, that General Charles Summerall 

proposed that a bill be submitted 

to Congress to revive the “Badge 

of Military Merit.” In January, 

1928, the Army’s Office of The 

Adjutant General was instructed 

to file the materials concerning 

the proposed medal. Among 

those materials was a rough 

drawing of a circular medal 

disc with a concave center 

on which a raised heart was 

visible. Engraved on the back 

of the medal was “For Military 

Merit.”

In January 1931, Gen.

Douglas MacArthur, Summerall’s 

successor as Army Chief of 

Staff, resurrected the idea for the 

medal. Miss Elizabeth Will, an Army 

heraldic specialist in the Office of the 

Quartermaster General, was assigned the 

task of designing the medal according to some 

general guidelines provided to her. The Commission 

It is one of the most recognized and 

respected medals awarded to 

members of the U.S. Armed Forces. 

Introduced as the “Badge of Military 

Merit” by General George Washington 

in 1782, the Purple Heart is also the 

nation’s oldest military award. In 

military terms, the award had “broken 

service,” as it was ignored for nearly 

150 years until it was re-introduced on 

Feb. 22, 1932, on the 200th anniversary of 

George Washington’s birth. The medal’s 

plain inscription “For Military Merit” 

barely expresses its significance.

On Aug. 7, 1782, from his headquarters 

in Newburgh, NY, Gen. George Washington 

wrote: “The General ever desirous to cherish 

virtuous ambition in his soldiers, as well as to foster 

and encourage every species of Military merit, 

directs that whenever any singularly meritorious 

action is performed, the author of it shall be 

permitted to wear on his facings over the 

left breast, the figure of a heart in purple 

cloth, or silk, edged with narrow lace or 

binding. Not only instances of unusual 

gallantry, but also of extraordinary 

fidelity and essential service in any way 

shall meet with a due reward. Before 

this favor can be conferred on any man, 

the particular fact, or facts, on which it 

is to be grounded must be set forth to 

the commander in chief accompanied 

with certificates from the commanding 

officers of the regiment and brigade to 

which the candidate for reward belonged, 

or other incontestable proofs, and upon 

granting it, the name and regiment of the 

person with the action so certified are to be 

enrolled in the book of merit which will be 

kept at the orderly office. Men who have merited 

this last distinction to be suffered to pass all guards 

and sentinels which officers are permitted to do.

open to all. This order is also to 

have retrospect to the earliest stages 

of the war, and to be considered as 

a permanent one.”

to have received the original honor 

badge: Sgt. Daniel Bissell of the 

2nd Connecticut Regiment of the 

Continental Line; Sgt. William Brown 

of the 5th Connecticut Regiment of 

the Continental Line, and Sgt. Elijah 

Churchill of the 2nd Continental 

Dragoons, also a Connecticut 

regiment.

For unknown reasons, the medal apparently 

was not awarded again. In fact, it was not 

until October 1927, after Word War 

I, that General Charles Summerall 

proposed that a bill be submitted 

to Congress to revive the “Badge 

of Military Merit.” In January, 

Douglas MacArthur, Summerall’s 

successor as Army Chief of 

Staff, resurrected the idea for the 

medal. Miss Elizabeth Will, an Army 

heraldic specialist in the Office of the 

Quartermaster General, was assigned the 

in 1782, the Purple Heart is also the 

nation’s oldest military award. In 

military terms, the award had “broken 

service,” as it was ignored for nearly 

150 years until it was re-introduced on 

Feb. 22, 1932, on the 200th anniversary of 

George Washington’s birth. The medal’s 

plain inscription “For Military Merit” 

On Aug. 7, 1782, from his headquarters 

in Newburgh, NY, Gen. George Washington 

wrote: “The General ever desirous to cherish 

virtuous ambition in his soldiers, as well as to foster 

and encourage every species of Military merit, 

directs that whenever any singularly meritorious 

action is performed, the author of it shall be 

permitted to wear on his facings over the 

left breast, the figure of a heart in purple 

cloth, or silk, edged with narrow lace or 

binding. Not only instances of unusual 

gallantry, but also of extraordinary 

fidelity and essential service in any way 

shall meet with a due reward. Before 

this favor can be conferred on any man, 

the particular fact, or facts, on which it 

is to be grounded must be set forth to 

the commander in chief accompanied 

with certificates from the commanding 

officers of the regiment and brigade to 

which the candidate for reward belonged, 

or other incontestable proofs, and upon 

granting it, the name and regiment of the 

person with the action so certified are to be 

enrolled in the book of merit which will be 

kept at the orderly office. Men who have merited 

this last distinction to be suffered to pass all guards 

of Fine Arts obtained plaster models from three sculptors and, 

in May 1931, selected the model produced by John Sinnock of 

the Philadelphia Mint.

On Feb. 22, 1932-the 200th anniversary of George 

Washington’s birth-the War Department (predecessor to the 

Department of Defense) announced the establishment of the 

Purple Heart award in General Order No. 3:

Until Executive Order 9277 by President Franklin D. 

Roosevelt in December 1942 authorized award of the Purple 

Heart to personnel from all of the military services (retroactive 

to Dec. 7, 1941), the medal was exclusively an Army award. 

The Executive Order also stated that the Purple Heart was to 

be awarded to persons who “are wounded in action against 

an enemy of the United States, or as a result of an act of such 

enemy, provided such would necessitate treatment by a medical 

officer.”

In November 1952, President 

Harry S. Truman issued an 

Executive Order extending 

eligibility for the award to April 5, 

1917, to coincide with the eligibility 

dates for Army personnel.

President John F. Kennedy 

issued Executive Order 11016 in 

April 1962 that further extended 

eligibility to “any civilian national 

of the United States, who while 

serving under competent authority 

in any capacity with an armed 

force..., has been, or may hereafter 

be, wounded” and authorized 

posthumous award of the medal.

Executive Order 12464 signed 

by President Ronald Reagan in 

February 1984, authorized award 

of the Purple Heart as a result of 

terrorist attacks or while serving 

as part of a peacekeeping force 

subsequent to March 28, 1973. 

The 1998 National Defense 

Authorization Act removed 

civilians from the list of personnel 

eligible for the medal.

The Purple Heart is ranked immediately behind the bronze 

star and ahead of the Defense Meritorious Service Medal in 

order of precedence.

Possession of the Purple Heart medal does not by itself 

qualify veterans for Department of Veterans Affairs disability 

compensation. However, since November 1999, Purple Heart 

recipients have been placed in VA’s enrollment priority group 

3, unless eligible for the higher priority groups (1 or 2) based 

on service-connected disabilities. Recipients are also exempt 

from co-payments for VA hospital care and medical outpatient 

care, but not from pharmacy co-payments for medications 

prescribed for non-service connected conditions. 

Sources: The U.S. National Archives and Records 

Administration; U.S. Army Center of Military History
15 Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil

THFIRES

By 1st Lt. Udall Brigham

3rd Bn., 13th Field Artillery Bde.

CAMP BUCCA, Iraq - More than 150 Iraqi national 

teachers, clerics and social workers gathered together at Camp 

Bucca’s Iraqi Correctional Officer dining facility Oct. 5, to 

celebrate Eid ul-Fitr, the three-day celebration that marks the 

end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting.

They were joined by Soldiers who support them in their 

efforts to teach and help thousands of the detainees at Camp 

Bucca reintegrate into Iraqi society. 

“This is my third opportunity to serve in Iraq, and this 

Ramadan - unlike the previous two when I was here - has 

been much different. Iraq is a much safer place; growing and 

rebuilding itself because of the hard work of Iraqis like you 

and those who you are teaching every day,” Lt. Col. Andrew 

Weatherstone, commander of the 3rd Battalion, 13th Field 

Artillery Regiment said.

He praised Camp Bucca’s Theater Internment Facility 

Reconciliation Center workers and reminded them of the hope 

they bring to Iraq. 

“As the teachers and clerics who interact daily with the Iraqi 

population, you are the citizens of Iraq who are sowing the first 

seeds; those seeds that will become the roots of change for this 

great country,” said Weatherstone.

Weatherstone oversees TIFRC services at Camp Bucca. His 

battalion manages various programs contributing to detainees’ 

reconciliation with Iraqi society. The programs and services 

are wide-ranging. 

The crown jewel is the Bucca Enrichment School, an 

education complex complete with a school, carpentry and 

agriculture vocational-technical programs, and a recreation 

center. 

Other TIFRC programs include the Islamic Discussion 

Program, civics classes, and arts and crafts programs - all 

located in various parts of the Bucca Theater Internment 

Facility. There are also intra-compound schools, where 

detainees are taught basic studies at the compounds where 

they live.

Another highlight is a new $3.5 million brick factory set to 

open for operations in the near future. There the detainees will 

gain additional work experience.

“All the TIFRC programs are geared toward giving the 

detainees education and real-world skills that will help them 

find jobs to support their families and contribute positively to 

the rebuilding of a new Iraq” said Capt. Cameron Trudell, 

3-13th FAR’s operations officer who directly oversees the 

management of the TIFRC programs. 

Patience is certainly a trait many of the Iraqi nationals 

working at Camp Bucca have developed. One of them is Max, 

a local resident of nearby Umm Qasr. He is the principal of the 

“Freedom School” located in the Vigilance TIF.

Max has been working at Camp Bucca for more than three 

years and has seen the results of the slow, but ultimately positive 

changes that have taken place in the program.

“In 2005, when I first worked here, there were only 45 total 

graduates from all the TIFRC programs. Now, in 2008, there 

are over 2,000,” he said. 

Max attributes the positive changes to greater support from 

the military leadership over the past few years. More service 

members were allocated to the programs, both the schedule 

and curriculum were revamped and the quantity and quality of 

classes have increased. The result - more detainees are able to 

and actually want to participate. 

“The detainees in my carpentry classes tell me they want 

to stay there all day,” said Pvt. Robert Sublett, of the 66th 

Forward Support Company, who runs one of the Enrichment 

School’s wood shops. 

“They are really excited about it and enjoy learning skills 

while they are here,” he added.

Even more exciting for Sublett and the detainees is the 

expansion of the carpentry program, which increases the 

number of detainees who can attend.

Plans are in the works to improve and increase other TIFRC 

programs available to the detainees. 

Max has a dream that one day all the different schools and 

auxiliary programs will be located in one central location - or 

as he calls it, an “education town.”

“We are working for our country and risking our lives,” said 

Delon, an intra-compound school teacher. “Things are still 

difficult, but they are improving, and we are happy to help.” 

As an intra-compound school instructor, he supervises basic 

English, Arabic and mathematics instruction to detainees at 

their respective compounds.

According to Delon, the intra-compound school concept 

is one of the innovations that allow more detainees to receive 

education during their detention. Not all detainees can attend 

the Enrichment School or Freedom School. Still, the detainees’ 

responses to education opportunities are mixed. 

16

“Some appreciate it and others refuse because they don’t 

want to participate in what they believe to be American 

programs,” said Delon.

The results of sacrifice by Iraqis who work at TIFRC are 

seen by the Soldiers who support them. 

“We provide security and safety to over 150 local national 

teachers, clerics, and social workers,” said Spc. Charles Putzer, 

66th Forward Support Company, a member of the security 

force tasked with escorting various TIFRC workers around the 

base. 

A mechanic for a Multiple Launch Rocket System battalion, 

Putzer never expected to support programs that help rehabilitate 

detainees. 

He really enjoys his job because he gets to interact with 

Iraqi nationals, learn about their culture and see the good 

things about Iraq instead of just watching detainees in the 

compounds from a distance.

“I can’t see the other side when the detainees leave Camp 

Bucca, but the Iraqi nationals working with us believe it makes 

a difference, so it must,” Putzer added.

 For all the successes the TIFRC program has seen in the last 

few years, there are still goals to be met in making Camp Bucca 

a place of reconciliation rather than only a place of internment 

for its thousands of detainees.

This is the reason Weatherstone and his unit are working 

hard to improve and expand the programs. 

Looking back on the last month of Ramadan, some TIFRC 

employees might reflect on the lessons learned from their fast.

Looking forward, they can use those lessons of patience, 

sacrifice, and humility as they press forward in the continued 

effort to rebuild Iraq. 

Perhaps, the most important lesson to remember is the one 

conveyed by Weatherstone that night during Eid ul-Fitr, that 

hope is the key to their success. 

“Although you cannot often see the end or final outcome 

of your hard and diligent work, you must understand you are 

making an incredible difference in the lives of the detainees 

here at Bucca,” Weatherstone told the TIFRC workers. “You 

should be proud of your part in the rebuilding and rebirth of 

your country.” 

A young boy enjoys the safety of the streets in Iraq.

13th FA BDE PAO/Brigham

Iraqi Educators key To 

Reconciliation At Camp Bucca
17 Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil

By Ty Abney

Duty First! Magazine

Over the years, Fort Riley and Kansas State University have 

enjoyed a partnership in which both 

parties come together to benefit one 

another. The case was no different 

Nov. 1, as K-State celebrated the 

first Big Red One Family Day at 

Ahearn Field House during the 

K-State women’s volleyball match 

against the University of Kansas. 

Every fall, K-State honors 

Soldiers by hosting Fort Riley Day 

at the Bill Snyder Family Stadium. 

Joni Smoller, assistant director 

of marketing and promotions for 

K-State Athletics said they want 

the sporting event to be a fun 

outing for families. 

In the past, as the case during 

football games, K-State required 

Soldiers be in uniform and tasked 

the fort to have a specific number 

of Soldiers attend the event.

“We don’t want to make anyone 

be here who would rather be at 

home with their family or wherever 

they want to be on a weekend, said 

Smoller. “This is more free tickets 

for the people who want them,” she 

said.

The local chapter of the 

Association of the United States 

Army and the K-State athletic 

department donated the tickets and 

more than 100 Soldiers or Family 

members attended the match.

“Our partnership with Fort Riley 

has really expanded in the past two 

years,” Smoller said. “We’ve given 

free tickets to Fort Riley for other 

events like baseball and women’s 

basketball, but this year were doing 

a bigger marketing effort to make sure those tickets get to people 

who want to come. 

BRO Family Day

At K-State

During the match, service members were asked to stand and 

be recognized and were involved with promotional events, such 

as a trivia contest. 

Maj. Pat Proctor, Headquarters, 1st Infantry Division brought 

his family to the match and was asked 

to participate in the trivia question 

– which he answered correctly with 

some help from the K-State student 

section.

“We’re just here to enjoy the 

volleyball,” Proctor said. “My 

daughter plays volleyball in high 

school so we thought we’d take in a 

game. We’ve only been here since 

July so this is our first KSU event and 

we’re pretty excited.” 

Maj. Michael Cobb, also from 

Headquarters, 1st Inf. Div., brought 

his family to the match and shared the 

same enthusiasm as Proctor.

“I think it’s a great thing they are 

giving the Soldiers something to do,” 

Cobb said. 

Cobb also said this was his family’s 

first experience at a K-State sporting 

event. 

At the end of the night, both the 

Wildcats and Fort Riley Soldiers and 

Families came out on top.

“One of the really great things 

about being at Fort Riley is the 

university is right here so I can go 

to school and my family can go to 

school,” Proctor said. “This is a great 

part of being at Fort Riley and being 

in Manhattan.”

“The overall goal is to make sure 

the Soldiers feel connected to the 

community and can become K-State 

fans,” Smoller said. “We realize they 

come from all over the nation, so 

they’re UCLA fans or Georgia fans, 

but while they’re here at Fort Riley we 

want them to bleed purple and cheer 

for the Cats and welcome them to athletic events like this so 

they can have some entertainment on their off-days.”

Maj. Pat Proctor, Headquarters, 1st Inf. Div., 

holds up the correct answer to a trivia question 

Nov. 1, at the K-State volleyball victory over KU. 

Proctor watched the game with his Family as 

part of Big Red One Family Day at Ahearn Field 

House on the K-State campus in Manhattan.

Duty First! Magazine/Abney

18

1st Vocalist By Military 

Occupational Specialty

By Sgt. Nathaniel Smith

1st Inf. Div. Public Affairs

The 1st Infantry 

Division is a division 

of firsts: it fired the first 

American artillery shell of 

World War I, was the first 

infantry division to enter 

Vietnam, and the first to 

breach Iraqi defenses in 

Desert Storm.

Now, the Big Red 

One has one more first to 

claim as Staff Sgt. Renatta 

Draper, formerly of the 1st 

Inf. Div. Band, is set to 

become the first vocalist 

in the U.S. Army.

Draper, who joined 

the Army 15 years ago 

as a fueler, will be the 

first vocalist by military 

occupational specialty.

The Bemidji, Minn., 

native described receiving 

the MOS not only as an 

honor but as a relief as 

well.

“It’s awesome because 

I’ve been with five different 

bands for the last 12 years, 

and I pretty much thought 

I was running out of time,” 

Draper said. “I was going 

to have to go back to my 

old MOS which would 

have been quite scary 

after 12 years.”

First Sgt. David Fallin, the senior enlisted member of the 1st 

Inf. Div. Band, said Draper being the first to officially receive 

the title was fitting.

 

 “She did this herself. It’s one of those things she’s worked hard 

for, and this is something she’s wanted to achieve,” Fallin said. 

“She’s been very persistent at 

this, and I’m glad it happened 

here at the 1st Inf. Div., but she 

did this on her own.”

Draper, who has been 

an unofficial vocalist since 

returning from deployment 

to Bosnia with the 181st 

Transportation Battalion, has 

served in that capacity with 

five bands at U.S. Army Europe 

in Heidelberg, Germany; the 

1st Cavalry Division in Fort 

Hood, Texas; the 8th Army in 

Seoul, Korea, and with Forces 

Command in Fort McPherson, 

Ga. She served at Fort Riley 

for almost two years.

Over the course of nearly 

12 years singing for the Army, 

Draper has performed at a 

variety of events, ranging from 

sporting venues to change 

of command ceremonies to 

high schools for recruiting 

purposes.

Now Draper has returned 

to Fort Hood, where she will 

serve in the same capacity for 

the 1st Cavalry Division Band.

Draper was excited to return 

to the post.

As for the 1st Inf. Div. Band, 

Fallin said his Soldiers are ready 

to fill in until a replacement is 

found.

“Right now, we do have a flute player that sings, and the 

division plans on having auditions for a 1ID chorus,” Fallin 

said. “The plan is for us to have four or five folks in that chorus 

to begin with. We will utilize them in the same way we utilized 

Staff Sgt. Draper.”

1st Vocalist By Military 

Staff Sgt. Renatta Draper, former 1st Inf. Div. Band vocalist, 

sings at the 2007 Sundown Salute in Junction City. Draper 

is scheduled to become the first Soldier to receive the 

military occupational specialty of vocalist.

U.S. Army photo
19 Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil

By Dena O’Dell

The Fort Riley Post

“Good morning Tutwiler Family!” 

Those words along with cheers echoed throughout the 

Burnside Heights neighborhood Nov. 11 on Fort Riley. But the 

announcement wasn’t just a wake up call for Patrick Tutwiler, 

a Warrior Transition Battalion 

Soldier, his wife, Crystal, their four 

children and nephew. The voice 

was that of Ty Pennington, the host 

and team leader from the ABC 

reality television series, “Extreme 

Makeover: Home Edition.” To say 

that the voice, as well as a staff and 

crew of 70 people rolling up in the 

neighborhood got attention was an 

understatement. 

As the cast and crew began filming, neighbors peeked their 

heads out of doors with cameras in tow, trying to get a glimpse 

and a photograph of the show’s famous designers. 

The Family’s plight began several years ago, when Crystal 

was diagnosed, first with cervical cancer and then with 

choriocarcinoma. She was told at that time she would never be 

able to have children again. Then, in June 2007 while serving 

in Iraq, Patrick was injured when he was shot in the neck by a 

sniper. But the Family’s troubles did not end there.

 Just one short year after Patrick’s return from Iraq, the 

Family narrowly escaped injury when their home, as well 

as the rest of the town of Chapman, Kan., took a direct hit 

from an EF-3 tornado in June 2008.

The Family was selected after the show’s producers 

heard about the Family’s plight. 

“This Family has been through a lot,” said Diane 

Korman, the show’s senior 

producer of marketing and public 

relations. “First, dad getting shot 

(in Iraq) and getting the Purple 

Heart, and they didn’t think he was 

going to make it. Then him coming 

home and their house gets hit by 

a tornado. He saved his Family 

covering them up with his own 

body. He was getting ready to get 

discharged from the Army, and he didn’t know where he 

would go. They are heroes in every sense of the word.” 

“I never really expected anything out of it. I enlisted in 

the Army, I knew the risk. She had cancer. We just thought 

we had bad luck. We never expected anything out of this,” 

Patrick said. 

The Tutwilers were temporarily living in post housing 

with their four children, Jacob, 9, Hailey, 6, Alyssa, 1, and 

Gabriel, 5 months, and nephew, Jesus, 15, until Patrick’s 

discharge.

Extreme MAKEOVER

Home Edition

 Just one short year after Patrick’s return from Iraq, the 

Family narrowly escaped injury when their home, as well 

as the rest of the town of Chapman, Kan., took a direct hit 

from an EF-3 tornado in June 2008.

The Family was selected after the show’s producers 

heard about the Family’s plight. 

“This Family has been through a lot,” said Diane 

Korman, the show’s senior 

Extreme

Soldier Gets A 

Helping Hand

20

The Family’s concern grew upon the realization that 

Patrick’s medical discharge would come soon, and they would 

have nowhere to go.

“It has been hard,” Crystal said. 

“It has been the uncertainty of not 

knowing what’s coming up, if he 

was getting medically discharged. 

There has been lots of anxiety and 

uncertainty of not knowing where 

we’re going to go, what we’re 

going to do and how we are going 

to survive after he gets out. Then 

they came and now everything’s all 

better.” 

When asked what the reaction 

of the Family was when they got 

the knock on the door, designer Ed 

Sanders described the scene as one of 

relief for the Family. 

“Nine times out of 10, they come 

out screaming and waving, so excited. 

With this Family, they were excited, 

but it was more like someone had 

released a pressure valve. It was like, 

‘Thank God you guys are here.’ A 

parent’s job is to tell your kids that 

everything is going to be alright. What do you tell your kids 

when you don’t know the answer?”

That relief in knowing everything is going to be okay still 

seemed like a fairytale for Crystal. 

“It doesn’t feel real at all. It hasn’t 

sunk in with any of us. It doesn’t 

even feel like we are going to go 

on vacation, let alone coming home 

to a real house,” she said. “It feels 

so good just to see the community 

come together for us. It means a lot 

to us.” 

During the seven days it took 

for volunteers and the Extreme 

Makeover crew to complete the 

house, the Tutwilers enjoyed a 

Disney Cruise to the Bahamas, 

courtesy of the show. Once they 

arrived back home they were 

given a tour of their new home.

When asked what he wanted 

in his new room, the Tutwiler’s 

9-year-old son Jacob was 

overcome with emotion.

“I don’t care as long as I have 

a home,” he said. 

Extreme MAKEOVER

Home Edition

All photos by The Daily Union/Cruz
Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil 22

Machine Gun 

University

By Spc. Shantelle J. Campbell

4th IBCT PAO

At the bottom of Range 18’s three-story command tower, 

one machine-gun team patiently waits for their chance to 

execute what they have learned. Their gear is almost perfectly 

aligned and their helmets are lying contently on top of their 

flack vests. 

Green and black cotton hats, brown neck gaiters, black 

ninja suits and gloves help the Soldiers combat the cold that 

slices through the air. Cold that feels like ice water has found 

its way into the fingertips and is working its way throughout 

the vulnerable extensions of the body.

The Soldiers of the machine gun team begin to stir. Some 

begin to load ammo while others grab their gear. Once 

everyone is ready, the team walks casually to their positions. 

The calmness in their strides exudes confidence, and their 

relaxed demeanor whispers comfort. They’re ready.

Welcome to Machine Gun University. Unlike regular 

universities where a student’s supplies consist of pencils, 

notebooks and textbooks, at MGU the students are Soldiers. 

They depend on each other, their training and their weapons to 

achieve the grades needed to move on to the next level.

“Machine Gun University’s purpose is to train the whole 

battalion to the same standard, so Soldiers are proficient in the 

tactical and technical use of the weapons as well as the different 

positions,” said Staff Sgt. John V. Swicegood, a weapons squad 

leader with Company A, 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment. 

“It was a project that was started at battalion level with company 

level input that has brought our standards up.”

The team travels to the firing line in a wedge formation. 

About 200 meters later, the team’s movements become 

measured and cautious. The squad leader raises his hand to 

indicate their understanding of his signal, the team becomes 

stagnate. Their bodies and weapons gradually lower to meet 

the grassy platform beneath them. The only thing to do now is 

wait intently for further instructions. 

According to Swicegood, a Soldier who graduates from 

Machine Gun University leaves with the knowledge of 

understanding of how to fire his weapon, whether it is an 

M-240B machine gun or an M-4 carbine. They’ll also be 

proficient in handling ammo, counting rounds, being able to 

keep the gunner on target as well as knowing how to properly 

carry, replace and disassemble the weapon along with other 

skills about tactical positions and weapon’s theory.

A machine gun team prepares to leave the firing line after completing a training exercise Nov. 20. 4th IBCT/ Campbell

21
Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil

 Abuse

24

Fort Riley offers several programs dedicated to helping 

Soldiers. 

One such program every Soldier on the installation 

participates in was developed by Freeman in the 1990s while 

working in Korea. Freeman came up with the SABER 

(Sober Armies Bravely Expedite Readiness) 

Awards Program, which is incentive-based, to 

assist in the reduction of alcohol and drug 

related incidents.

Freeman said in compliance with 

Army regulations, every Soldier 

in the United States Army must 

receive four hours of substance 

abuse training annually. SABER’s 

purpose is to reward commands 

which follow the Army Substance 

Abuse Program regulation. 

“If they [units] go a quarter 

and meet all the requirements, 

they get a red streamer to put on 

their guidon,” Freeman said. “If 

the units maintain the standard 

for another quarter, they receive a 

gold streamer. The gold units are 

then eligible to compete for a saber 

itself.” 

For a unit to compete for the 

saber, it must not only complete the 

annual training, but also an array of 

other requirements. Some of which 

include: passing the commanding 

general’s random urinalysis test of 50 

percent or higher per quarter, providing 

documentation stating Soldiers have 

completed the four hours of training and have no 

alcohol or drug related events on the MP blotter.

There are other programs on post for Soldiers 

to seek help. Aside from graphic Power Point lectures 

which show Soldiers the effects of alcohol abuse, Freeman 

said Alcoholics Anonymous is available on post. ASAP also 

provides DUI education classes along with other events such 

as the Save a Life Tour, which gives Soldiers an idea of what 

it would be like to drive impaired. Along with prevention 

programs run by ASAP, Freeman said the senior leadership 

plays a large role in the prevention of substance abuse.

“Every one of the commands is supportive, and a lot of them 

are giving out their telephone numbers to call if Soldiers need a 

ride or assistance,” Freeman said. “There’s a perception among

the Soldiers that the commands would be the last ones to get 

a hold of, but the commander and the first sergeant are a real 

good support mechanism, if they are utilized.”

Freeman said kicking alcohol abuse starts with early 

identification and can prevent problems down the 

road. “The sooner you can identify a Soldier 

who has inappropriate behaviors or 

drinking styles and get them education 

and help is much better than waiting 

until they’re older and the problem 

becomes serious,” Freeman said. 

“It doesn’t make any difference 

how old you are, what ethnic 

group you’re from or what 

rank you have.” 

Freeman also said 

encouragements from 

peers and a willingness 

to attend the treatment 

program together can 

also help a Soldier get on 

the right track.

“If they know there 

are people in their unit 

who are using and could 

have a problem, now is the 

time to get them help. We 

tell them, the life you might 

save could be your own. If 

you have a kid drinking 

too much in garrison, when 

he gets ready to roll out for 

combat, he’s not going to leave 

his problem in garrison; he’s going 

to take it with him. And if he can’t 

take care of business here, how is he 

going to take care of business when the 

lead’s flying around?” 

 *Additional facts found at 

http://www.gdcada.org/statistics/

alcohol.htm and 

http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/

23

By Ty Abney

Duty First! Magazine

Each year, hundreds of thousands of people die because of 

it. Parents lose their children, children lose parents, families 

are broken and torn apart because of it and yet, the problem 

remains. 

“It is the nation’s number one health hazard – kills more 

people than most wars and harms not only the user but everyone 

around them physically and emotionally,” said Ted Freeman, 

Director of Army Substance Abuse Program on Fort Riley. 

The hazard Freeman refers to is alcohol abuse, and it’s 

everywhere, including the U.S. Army and Fort Riley. It 

doesn’t see color, race, gender or nationality. It sees only the 

opportunity for bad decisions and for people to get hurt.

“Alcoholism and drug addiction are the most brutal and 

deadly enemies our Soldiers will ever face,” Freeman said. 

“This enemy will cause more casualties than all the wars we 

have fought. It is an enemy that is so cunning and powerful 

with a camouflage that makes it almost stealth. It has the 

ability to turn a Soldier against himself and to deteriorate a 

unit from the inside out. It’s an enemy that allows Soldiers to 

become their own worst enemies, killing themselves so slowly 

they never see it coming.”

Alcohol abuse can have an effect on everything a person 

does and anyone they know. Freeman said an alcoholic may 

feel as if the problem 

is only affecting 

him or her, but in all 

actuality, it affects on 

average, 57 others.

Although some 

individuals may not 

seem like they have 

a problem, there are 

signs which may 

indicate a person is 

using alcohol at an 

excessive level. 

Changes in 

behavior and 

attitudes are things 

Freeman said could 

indicate someone has 

a drinking problem. 

He also said ignoring 

basic hygiene and 

finding themselves 

in financial 

trouble may be the result of alcohol abuse.

Drinking does have a direct influence on decision-making. 

If it didn’t, people wouldn’t get behind the wheel and drive. 

In 2007, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 

reported approximately 41,000 people were killed in trafficrelated accidents. Of those, approximately 13,000 were alcohol 

related.

The alcohol problem affects everyone. In the 2008 fiscal 

year, 278 Fort Riley Soldiers and employees were charged for 

driving under the influence. 

“One of the things we’re trying to sell is, ‘don’t drink 

period,” Freeman said. “Even if you drink a swallow, don’t get 

behind the wheel. Not if you’ve had two or three in an hour, if 

you drink anything, do not get behind the wheel.”

In terms of numbers, Freeman said Fort Riley has totaled 

about the same number of DUIs as in 2007, but has seen 

numbers steadily increase in the past seven years – a trend he 

says is Army wide. 

Another decision-making factor is that alcoholism rears its 

head in domestic violence cases.

Family Advocacy Program Manager Joe Kulbiski said 

while alcohol abuse can play a role in domestic violence, it is 

not always the deciding factor.

“It contributes to domestic violence in the sense that alcohol 

is a depressant,” Kulbiski said. “It acts on the brain and initially 

acts on the frontal lobes of the brain, which is where the 

impulse control 

mechanisms are 

located. So if 

you’re drinking 

alcohol and 

you’re involved 

in an argument, 

you’re much 

more likely to 

react emotionally 

or physically.” 

Kulbiski also 

said a number of 

military police 

reports on post 

involve one or 

both parties 

and alcohol. For 

the Soldiers on 

Fort Riley who 

drink alcohol in 

excess, there is a 

means to an end. 

Courtesy photo

Alcohol 
Duty First www.1id.army.mil Duty First www.1id.army.mil 26

As Old Man Winter begins to bear down on Fort Riley 

and the 1st Infantry Division, Soldiers should fight the frigid 

conditions by following basic winter health and safety tips. 

Exposure to cold can cause injury or serious illnesses such 

as frostbite or hypothermia. The likelihood of injury or illness 

depends on factors such as physical activity, clothing, wind, 

humidity, working and living conditions and a person’s age and 

state of health. Follow these tips to stay safe in cold weather: 

Dress in layers so you can adjust to changing conditions. 

Avoid overdressing or overexertion that can lead to heat illness. 

Most of your body heat is lost through your head so wear a 

hat, preferably one that covers your ears. 

Wear waterproof, insulated boots to help avoid hypothermia 

or frostbite by keeping your feet warm and dry and to maintain 

your footing in ice and snow. 

Get out of wet clothes immediately and warm the core body 

temperature with a blanket or warm fluids like hot cider or soup. 

Types of cold casualties and injuries.

 Chilblains are localized skin changes such as redness, 

swelling, and itching. The skin may feel tender and burning. 

The most common areas to be affected are the backs of 

hands, toes and feet, the nose, and ears. This occurs in cold 

temperatures from 20 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit where there is 

very high humidity. 

Treatment involves warming the affected areas with warm 

air. Keep exposed areas, such as hands and feet, covered and 

dry, to prevent chilblains. The face, especially around the 

mouth and nose, which has a tendency to become wet, should 

be kept as dry as possible, and covered. 

Trench/immersion foot. Immersion foot or trench foot 

is an injury that results from fairly long exposure of the feet to 

wet conditions at temperatures from approximately 32 degrees 

to 50 degrees . Inactive feet in wet socks and boots, or tightly 

laced boots, impair circulation and are even more susceptible 

to injury. Prolonged exposure can cause the feet to swell. Signs 

of trench foot can include not only reddish colored feet, but can 

also be pale, blue or black (depending on degree of injury). 

Individuals with immersion injury should elevate and warm 

their feet gradually by exposing them to warm air. Trench foot 

treatment can also include direct body-to-body contact. If 

trench foot is diagnosed early, maintaining warm, dry feet is 

an effective treatment. Do not moisten, massage, or apply heat 

or ice to feet with immersion injuries. Covering the patient 

with several layers of warm coverings is preferable to using 

extreme heat.

Frostbite. Frostbite is injury to tissue caused from 

exposure to below freezing temperatures. Severe frostbite 

can result in loss of affected body parts such as fingers, toes, 

hands or feet. Frostbite starts with a discoloration of the skin 

of the nose, ears, cheeks, fingers, or toes. This is followed by 

a tingling sensation for a short time and then numbness. The 

skin may briefly appear red for light skinned individuals, or 

grayish for dark skinned individuals, and then become pale or

waxy white. Upon thawing, the signs vary with the degree 

of injury. Mild to moderate frostbite injury appear red and 

swollen, with blisters, and is painful. Severe frostbite injuries 

have blue-black discoloration, blood-filled blisters, and an 

absence of pain. 

Remove tight clothing or boots from the injured area. Warm 

the frozen body part by placing it next to the skin of another 

person. Keep the victim warm and covered to prevent further 

injury. Do not massage, expose to open fire, rub with snow, 

or soak injuries in cold water. Frozen tissue should only be 

thawed if there is no chance that it will refreeze. Thaw and 

freeze cycles cause significantly greater damage. Evacuate the 

victim to a medical treatment facility ASAP.

Hypothermia. Hypothermia is a state in which the 

core temperature is below normal because an individual is 

losing heat faster than they can produce it. The body cools to 

a temperature below 95 degrees during continued exposure 

to low or rapidly dropping temperatures, rain, snow, or ice. 

Hypothermia can also occur in seemingly mild conditions 

(e.g., 60°F air with heavily falling rain, as the rain degrades the 

clothing insulation and increases cooling). As the body cools, 

the following progressive stages of discomfort and impairment 

occur: shivering; faint pulse; mental confusion; slurred 

speech; glossy eyes; slow, shallow breathing; uncoordinated 

movements; unconsciousness; and irregular heart beat. 

Hypothermia is a medical emergency and prompt medical 

treatment is necessary. Shivering is an effective means of 

raising body temperature. Heating just the skin with an external 

heat device can blunt both shivering and warming, so heating 

should be applied to armpits and groin. Immediate treatment 

for all casualties must include calling for MEDEVAC or 

ambulance, rapidly removing wet garments, applying blankets 

and available insulating equipment, maintaining the horizontal 

position, and avoiding rough movement and excess activity. 

Responsiveness, breathing, and pulse must be assessed. Pulse 

and breathing can be difficult to detect. However, if casualty 

is not breathing, rescue breathing must be started immediately 

without hesitation. 

To keep warm, remember the word 

C-O-L-D

C-Cleanliness and Care - Socks and clothing work more 

effectively when clean. Socks should be changed two to three 

times daily.

O-Overheating - Wearing too much clothing can cause 

overheating and excessive sweating, which makes clothes wet, 

and decreases insulation.

L-Layers and Looseness - Loose layers of clothing assure 

air spaces to prevent heat loss. Adjust the number of layers 

to both the environment and activity. Loose-fitting clothing 

insures circulation and insulation.

D-Dry - A wet garment is a cold garment. Wear the a jacket 

as a windbreaker and to repel water. 

Information provided by 1st 

Inf. Div. Safety Office.

25

By Dena O’Dell

The Fort Riley Post

Since 2005, the number of reported sexual assault cases 

has more than tripled on Fort Riley. Sexual assault prevention 

and response coordinators believe this increase has to do with 

more victims reporting sexual assaults because they have 

more options, understand help is available and they are 

not alone.

The Army’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response 

Program - Army Regulation 600-20, Chapter 8 - was 

established in 2005 to provide response to and prevention 

of sexual assault,” said Melody McDowall, sexual 

assault prevention and response coordinator. 

“Victims were coming forward saying 

the Army didn’t help them or their 

services didn’t help them. So 

there was a task force created 

by Secretary of Defense (Donald) 

Rumsfeld in 2004 to take a look at how 

the services were handling sexual assault, 

and they created this program,” she explained. 

Prior to the policy’s implementation, McDowall 

said, sexual assault cases in the Army were handled in 

a variety of ways. The command would either try to fix 

it and work with the victim without any notification, 

or they would automatically make the victim, if he 

was a Soldier, cooperate and have evidence collected 

from their body.

“The victim had no control over their information 

or how they wanted to decide what would happen 

with the case,” McDowall said. “So this gives 

victims a choice and it gives them power back.” 

Now victims of sexual assault can either report 

the assault as a “restricted” or “un-restricted” 

report. A restricted report means they can tell 

a sexual assault response coordinator, a civilian 

or unit victim advocate, health care provider or 

a chaplain that they’ve been a victim 

of sexual assault. They can 

get counseling, advocacy, spiritual services and 

medical care without their chain of command or 

law enforcement being notified, McDowall said. 

In addition to the sexual assault program already 

in place, the Army took it one step further this past 

September by launching the “I A.M. Strong,” campaign. 

The campaign is aimed at putting an end to sexual assault 

Army-wide within the next five years and making the 

Army’s sexual assault prevention program a model for the 

rest of the nation.

The acronym I A.M. stands for intervene, act and 

motivate, said Lt. Col. Maria Bentinck, sexual assault 

program manager.

“The Army had more sexual assault cases than any of 

the other services combined per capita. We are a band of 

brothers and sisters. We should not have this repugnant 

crime in our Army,” Bentinck said. “Before, the focus 

was more on response and support activities, and now our 

focus is on prevention.”

Starting in January, Fort Riley will begin hosting 

national subject matter experts to provide sexual assault 

awareness and prevention training to Soldiers.

 “Part of the prevention piece we have been doing 

for awhile, but this is really going to be focusing in 

on bystander intervention so that other people will 

intervene to stop and get involved at the beginning of 

a potential sexual assault,” McDowall said. “It’s 

about having battle buddies, co-workers, brothers

For more information on the 

I A.M. Strong campaign, visit 

www.preventsexualassault.army.mil.

Se ual Assault

and sisters standing up and saying, ‘It’s 

not okay to be feeding a girl drinks. 

What are your intentions?’”

In addition to coordinating the new 

campaign, McDowall serves as 

an advocate for sexual assault 

victims; Dana Van Ness, 

Fort Riley sexual 

assault trainer, provides 

unit, pre-deployment, 

post-deployment, in-processing, biannual, annual, emergency response 

and community sexual assault training. 

Each battalion has a minimum of two 

Soldiers appointed on orders by the chain 

of command to be trained as unit victim 

advocates, as well as one deployable 

sexual assault response coordinator per 

brigade.
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