Wisconsin National Guard unit to deploy to Kuwait

Wisconsin National Guard Public Affairs Office

While the Wisconsin Army National Guard just welcomed home its last unit to serve in the Iraq War, approximately 130 Soldiers with the Oshkosh-based 1157th Transportation Company are expected to report for active duty in early 2012 for a deployment to Kuwait.

Capt. Christian Menden of Green Bay, commander of the 1157th, said that the unit trained up on common Soldier tasks, individual and crew-served weapons, and rollover training for Humvees and Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles, Nov. 1-18 at Fort McCoy.

"It was a blast," Menden said.

"The weather was excellent, and we even got a bonus one day when it snowed," said 1st Lt. Nate Wilhelms, an 1157th platoon leader. "We fired our pistols that day, so we got that training experience."

Menden said that unit morale was very high.

Members of the 1157th Transportation Company train at the M2 .50-caliber range during recent training at Fort McCoy, Wis. Photo by Rob Schuette

"We have so many young Soldiers who have not deployed," he explained. "The younger Soldiers have embraced this training to prepare themselves, and they're taking advice from the older Soldiers. Everyone is willing to do their time."

Menden said that approximately 30 percent of his Soldiers - mostly in leadership positions - have prior deployment experience.

"That's great for us," he said.

The unit is scheduled to conduct several weeks of mobilization training at Camp Shelby, Miss., before deploying to Kuwait for approximately nine months. The company is expected to serve in a force protection role, which may involve base security or convoy security operations.

The 1157th has been called to active duty on four previous occasions. In 1990 the unit mobilized and served overseas for about five months in support of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. In 2002 the company provided transportation support to Army Special Operations Support Command and other units stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C., for approximately 11 months. In September 2005 the unit was among a dozen Wisconsin National Guard units ordered to active duty to support Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in Louisiana. Its last deployment was to Iraq in 2006, where it logged more than 300,000 miles hauling fuel and other cargo.

Rob Schuette, Fort McCoy public affairs, contributed to this report.

Face of Defense: Father, Son Reunite in Iraq

By Army Spc. Kandi Huggins

U.S. Division North

VICTORY BASE COMPLEX, Iraq, July 19, 2011 – Despite the strains military life can cause for families, being soldiers has proven to be a common denominator that has improved the relationship of a father and son serving in Iraq.

“We had the typical father-and-son relationship,” said Army 1st Sgt. Patrick Thomas. “But in advanced individual training, he started questioning if he could do this, and I would talk to him and work with him, and from that we started getting closer and closer.”

“It was different growing up,” said Army Pfc. Tyler Thomas. “We didn’t have much of a family life, because he was probably deployed every year and a half. Looking back, it seems like he was gone more than he was home, on either a deployment or just being at work before I woke up.”

Now, Patrick, senior noncommissioned officer in charge of the 1st Infantry Division’s Company A, 1st Special Troops Battalion, 1st Advise and Assist Task Force, and Tyler, a multi-channel transmissions systems operator with 50th Expeditionary Signal Battalion, 35th Signal Brigade, have reunited and become closer as NCO and soldier, and as father and son, while they serve in support of Operation New Dawn.

The son of a retired command sergeant major, Patrick enlisted as an infantryman, and, after completing basic and advanced individual training, attended airborne school. His first assignment was at Fort Bragg, N.C., with the 82nd Airborne Division’s 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, and he deployed in support of Operation Desert Shield.

The Mobile, Ala., native said he credits his father for being the soldier he has become and hopes to influence Tyler in the same way.

“When I was younger, if I was doing something wrong or messed up, as my dad, he would talk to me. If it came to me getting hemmed up and my sergeant major called him, my dad would say he didn’t care, because the standards are the standards,” Patrick said. “And I treat Tyler the same way. You have to teach him to be a soldier, and that’s something my dad did for me growing up in the army.”

Tyler agreed. “There’s a level of professionalism we keep,” he said. “Just like any other NCO, he’s not my dad when I’m wearing my rank and he’s wearing his.”

That is how Tyler learns, his father said, and that is how he will build himself to be a better leader.

“[Being a soldier] has definitely helped my relationship with my dad,” Tyler said. “I wasn’t making the best decisions, and I probably didn’t live up to his expectations, but I can say after I graduated basic training, it’s continued getting better.”

Tyler also began his service at Fort Bragg and deployed to Iraq within six months, following the same path his father set out on 20 years earlier. Patrick said he shares a series of interesting and unique experiences with Tyler.

“In October 1990, I deployed for the first time in support of Desert Shield/Desert Storm,” he said. “I remember that Christmas Eve, I came off guard duty and the phones were open to call home. So I called my wife, and her dad said she was in the hospital having my son.

“I told Tyler on his 20th birthday last December, that it’s crazy because he will turn 21 here,” he continued. “I was here all those years ago when he was born. Now he’s here, helping to close out what I started.”

Although Patrick makes it clear to Tyler that he is bound to fulfill his duties as a soldier, he said he has not taken for granted the moments the two have shared so far.

“I went to his basic training graduation from Fort Gordon [in Georgia],” he said. “It brought a tear to my eye, especially seeing him as a father. You think, ‘Is he going to do good? Did we do everything we could as parents?’”

Patrick added that seeing Tyler on the parade field in his uniform and beret during graduation made him proud as a father.

“I can’t measure how proud I am of Tyler,” he said. “I’m ecstatic he’s done something with himself. Will he ever know how proud I am? Oh yeah, he gets tired of me telling him.”

And Tyler continues to try to earn and reciprocate his father’s pride.

“If there’s one thing I’ve learned from my dad, it’s that it takes years to build a reputation and a day to mess it up,” he said. “There’s a continuous proud moment of knowing how much he has accomplished, how hard he’s worked, and how many crazy things he’s done that no one but his little group will ever know about.”

West Virginia Guard member looks back at Desert Storm

By Army Sgt. Debra Richardson

201st Field Artillery

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait (4/6/11) - Army Sgt. 1st Class John Oliverio is one of 20 soldiers currently deployed with West Virginia Army National Guard’s 201st Field Artillery, who served with the same unit during Operation Desert Shield and Storm about 20 years ago.

The 201st was one of only five National Guard units that deployed in support of Operation Desert Shield.

“We received our activation notice Dec. 4, 1990 and by Dec. 9, we were completely packed and enroute to Fort Campbell, Ky.,” said Oliverio, who was a supply sergeant at the time.

“We traded in our old Vietnam-era jeeps for new Humvees. We loaded up our assigned M109 howitzers on ships to send overseas.”

Following the new assignment, the unit’s green camouflage equipment had to be painted, desert tan.

“Because we were National Guard, we weren’t issued desert uniforms,” Oliverio said. “We wore our green BDUs up until we were preparing to return home.”

“This was a true integration of National Guard, Reserve and active Army,” he said. “This experience really portrayed the citizen-soldier as truly competent and capable soldiers.”

A 15-hour flight through Europe brought the 201st to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia on Feb. 2. After a few weeks, the battalion traveled 510 miles north to Rafha, Saudi Arabia to stage as part of the ground force.

“We were part of General Schwarzkopf’s famous ‘student body left’ or ‘Hail Mary’ move,” Oliverio said. “We were the western most located U.S. unit in Rafha. There were only two other units to our left: the French 6th Light Division and French Foreign Legion. To our right was the 82nd Airborne Division.”

The 201st was attached to the 18th Airborne Corps out of North Carolina.

“On Feb. 17, which was the 256th birthday of the 201st, we fired a few hundred rounds of preparatory fire into Iraq,” he said.

“A full week before the ground war began, we were targeting an escarpment, or cliff, where Iraqis were located,” Oliverio said. “We had to secure that route for the French and ourselves for future movement.”

A week later, the 201st was moving north with the French Legion in leap-frog fashion to reach As Salman, Iraq. It took two days.

Oliverio rode in a 2.5 ton truck, known as a deuce and a half, behind the howitzers as the 201st unit pressed north. There was little time for sleep, showers, or hot meals.

“I discovered you could only be so dirty until you started making everything else around you dirty,” he said. “We used baby wipes to maintain hygiene and we conserved as much water as possible.”

While traveling, the unit stopped at various supply points set up along the route. The points provided fuel, water, and food rations.

After obtaining its objective in Iraq, the 201st turned east toward Kuwait.

“Upon arriving in Kuwait, the cease-fire was announced,” Oliverio said. “We were all hopeful that the cease-fire meant we were going home.”

As active duty Army units began flying home, the 201st was instructed to return to Iraq to diffuse riots in Basrah.

“Throughout the campaign, we were told not to take prisoners,” Oliverio said.

“We were instructed to give them [Iraqi soldiers] water and an MRE, and instruct them to sling their rifles over their shoulders with the barrel pointing down,” he said.  “We confiscated their ammo and pointed them south, toward Saudi Arabia.”

After things calmed down, the 201st moved back into Saudi Arabia to the King Khalid Military City or KKMC.

“At KKMC, we finally received hot meals, showers and toilets,” Oliverio said. “I moved from primitive living to modern wooden latrines and showers. We had to burn the waste but it was still a step up and much appreciated.”

After many delays, the 201st arrived back at W.Va. mid May, 1991. The state heroes received individual welcome home receptions at all the local airports followed by a huge parade a few months later. The soldiers marched from east to west Fairmont as thousands of people cheered along the parade route.

“The parade was the highlight of coming home,” he said.

“The streets were filled with people and when we turned into the stadium, I was overwhelmed by sheer number of people filling the stands.” Oliverio said. “I was helping the first sergeant call cadence but the crowd was so deafening, the soldier beside me couldn’t even hear me. It’s a memory that will last a lifetime.”

“The cheers from the crowd were more deafening than the cannon fire during the campaign,” he said.

During the campaign, the 201st fired a total of 447 high explosive rounds. The unit traveled 1,850 miles, from start to finish and  is recorded as having traveled farther than any other unit during the ground war, for a total of 362 miles.

“While I am very proud of all our accomplishments in what became Desert Storm, I am most proud that throughout numerous enemy engagements, we didn’t suffer a single casualty,” Oliverio said. “All my West Virginia boys came back home, and in the end, that’s what really mattered.”

Oliverio, a human resource specialist is currently deployed in support of Operation New Dawn. This marks his third deployment, having also served in 2004-05 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Once again overseas, Guardmember a veteran of three campaigns

By Army Sgt. Debra Richardson

201st Field Artillery

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait – From afar, Army Staff Sgt. Timothy Liptrap blends into the Army scene; his small stature and respectful stance denoting nothing out of the ordinary. But unlike many Soldiers currently deployed, Liptrap is a veteran of three campaigns and currently serves in the country he helped to liberate 20 years ago.

Two decades ago, he was on his way to the Saudi Arabia as a cannon crewmember with A Battery, 4th Battalion, 41st Field Artillery of the 197th Infantry Brigade. His unit was en route after only a few weeks notification and training.

“We spent the first couple of weeks in tent city,” said Liptrap, then 18. “Most of us were feeling anxiety and excitement about the challenges ahead. Not to mention dysentery.”

For months, then Army Spc. Liptrap and members of his brigade spent countless hours creating and maintaining their base perimeter and training.

“We trained on field artillery tasks daily to maintain proficiency on the M109 self propelled Howitzer,” Liptrap said.

The Soldiers had to rough it by today’s standards. They didn’t have access to a Post Exchange or local market to buy essential cleaning items such as shampoo and soap. There was also a shortage of tobacco products.

“After about the first month, a mobile PX came by once a week with various goods,” recalled Liptrap. “Some goods were much needed hygiene supplies – the stuff deployed Soldiers today receive in care packages that aren’t easily accessible in the Middle East.”

The showers weren’t hot or plentiful, but two or three times a week was better than nothing, he said.

“We had to discard our own waste as well, by mixing it with diesel fuel and burning it,” said Liptrap. “The burn pits produced a nasty stench and you had to make sure you were upwind when stirring to keep from inhaling the fumes.”

When the air war started on Jan. 17, Liptrap began sleeping under ground in dug out sleeping areas. U.S. planes attacked Iraqi forces in Kuwait and Baghdad, and by Jan. 30, U.S. forces in the Gulf exceeded 500,000 troops.

“Once the ground war began, we rolled for days, trying to reach our objectives to fire at our assigned targets,” said Liptrap. “We had to be available and ready to lay down suppressive fire when called upon as well.”

Once leaving Saudi Arabia and moving into the northern part of Iraq, the big struggle was obtaining fuel, Liptrap said. Fuel points were scarce along their route, and the lines were long.

“I recall one unit making it to their destination with only one of six guns to lay suppressive fire because they didn’t stop for fuel,” said Liptrap.

After nearly a year overseas and two campaign names later, Liptrap and his fellow comrades returned to U.S. soil March 29, 1991.

“I remember it well,” Liptrap said. “There were severe thunder storms as we approached Fort Benning and we had to circle the airfield for 30 minutes before landing. The air crew kept playing music by Motley Crue, ‘Home Sweet Home.’”

They stepped off the plane to a hero’s welcome, with music, photographers, handshakes, and hugs.

Liptrap has returned to the now liberated country of Kuwait as a staff sergeant assigned to 1/201st Field Artillery, West Virginia Army Guard. Although the 201st is supporting a non-artillery mission, Liptrap has served as an artilleryman for 23 years.

Liptrap also served in Iraqi Freedom and now Operation New Dawn.

Mullen Launches Middle East Trip in Saudi Arabia

By Donna Miles

American Forces Press Service

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 20, 2011 – Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, arrived here today for the first leg of a sweep through the Middle East to reassure friends of the U.S. commitment to regional stability, acknowledging he’s been “stunned” by the pace of the upheaval here.

“The speed with which this has happened has really taken me aback,” Mullen said of unrest that has moved through the region, domino-like, in recent weeks. “And I think this speed is going to continue.”

Mullen left Washington yesterday to confer with international and U.S. officials during stops in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Djibouti and Kuwait. Although the trip has been in the planning stages for some time, he said, its nature has changed dramatically based on the current tumult.

Talks are expected to address uprisings that have toppled the presidents of both Tunisia and Egypt and continue to ripple through the region. As during his trip last week to Israel and Jordan, Mullen said, he plans to “reassure our friends and just listen to what’s on their minds” about the situation and to get their views firsthand, particularly concerning Egypt.

Mullen said he comes to the region bringing no message to any particular group, but rather to reiterate the U.S. interest in seeing differences resolved peacefully. “We would certainly like to see what happens happen in a nonviolent way,” he told reporters traveling with him.

Emphasizing the importance of the Gulf region, the chairman said its stability is in everyone’s best interest.

Mullen has office calls scheduled here with Prince Mohammed bin Niyif, Saudi Arabia’s assistant interior minister for security affairs; Prince Miteb bin Abdullah, commander of the Saudi Arabian national guard; Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud, assistant defense and aviation minister for military affairs; and Lt. Gen. Qubail, deputy chief of the general staff.

He also will meet with U.S. Ambassador James Smith.

The United States and Saudi Arabia have had strong military-to-military relations since World War II. U.S. advisors continue to help in training the Saudi military and national guard. The U.S. military training mission to Saudi Arabia and a U.S. program managers’ office for the Saudi Arabian national guard work to help in increasing Saudi military capabilities.

Saudi Arabia is one of the largest customers for U.S. defense goods.

The trip is expected to wrap up next weekend in Kuwait City, where a month-long commemoration is observing the 50th anniversary of Kuwait’s liberation and the 20th anniversary of Operation Desert Storm. Coalition forces liberated Kuwait from Iraqi occupation forces on Feb. 26, 1991, at the end of Operation Desert Storm. Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait Aug. 2, 1990.

The chairman’s last extended visit to the region was in February 2010, when he made stops in Egypt, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.

Face of Defense: Father, Son Serve Together

By Army 1st Lt. Nicholas Rasmussen

Task Force Lethal

PAKTIA PROVINCE, Afghanistan, Jan. 20, 2011 – Most soldiers who are deployed miss their homes. But for Army Spc. Steven Starkey and Army Pfc. Andrew Starkey, a large part of what the word “home” represents is just a five-minute walk up the hill.

Steven, a 40-year-old mechanic by trade in Council Bluffs, Iowa, works as a wheeled-vehicle mechanic attached to Company A, 1st Battalion, 168th Infantry Regiment, which currently falls under the 101st Airborne Division’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team. Andrew, his son, works in Company A’s kitchen preparing breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week.

Both Starkeys are assigned to the Iowa Army National Guard’s Company F, 334th Support Battalion, out of Red Oak, Iowa.

Both soldiers said they joined the Guard to serve their country and fulfill some personal goals.

Steven enlisted in the active-duty Army in 1989 as a heavy equipment mobile tactical truck wheel mechanic. He was slated to serve during Operation Desert Storm when personal issues at home prevented his involvement. He was young and dealing with a troubled marriage when his chain of command made the determination to let him remain in the rear as his unit prepared to support Desert Storm, he said.

“Looking back, I don’t feel I was mature enough to handle the task at hand,” he acknowledged, adding that his brief service helped him to mature and gave him cause to consider future opportunities for service.

The events of 9/11 reignited that simmering ambition.

“I felt like I had left something on the table, an obligation I had left incomplete” he said.

So almost 15 years after his initial service, he began the process to rejoin the Army, eventually serving with the Iowa National Guard. The process wasn’t easy.

Steven had remarried and had three additional children -- daughters Ashley and Rachel and stepson Jon -- when he decided to re-enlist for active duty. Despite trying three times, the active Army would not accept his application because he had more than two dependents.

Steven gave up trying for active duty after the third attempt. Then, in the spring of 2007, he met his daughter’s soccer coach, a staff sergeant in the Iowa National Guard. The soccer coach informed Steven that the Iowa National Guard had waivers and programs to allow people in situations like his to join. A month after speaking with the soccer coach, he was at the military entrance processing station swearing in for service.

A year later, Andrew raised his right hand and made the oath to serve his country, but he had a different reason: his daughter, Kyra.

Being in the Iowa Army National Guard has given Andrew a means to provide health care and child support for Kyra, he said.

“I plan to start a savings account with the money I’m making [on deployment] to help pay for her college,” he said.

But joining the Guard came with some additional, unanticipated benefits for Andrew.

“I see myself grow every day,” he said, “whether or not I enjoy it all the time.”

Before making his commitment to serve in the Iowa Guard, Andrew had a “loose-cannon mentality,” as his father put it. He was an unruly youth who often did not think before he acted. That was nine months ago. Now, six months into deployment, Andrew is a much different person.

“He’s level-headed and can take criticism constructively like an adult,” said Steven, who added witnessing this change has been one of the most rewarding benefits to come out of being on this deployment together.

Steven said sometimes a father has to be a father, regardless of rank, and stick up for his son.

“It’s hard to keep the fatherly instinct at bay when I see my son getting in trouble by his boss,” Steven said. “I often have to swallow my pride and know my place.”

The Starkeys act more like brothers or best friends when they’re together here, calling each other by their last name and making fun of just about anything the other says. Though they work at the same company, the Starkeys still feel as though they could spend more time together.

As trying as some days may get, they said, they usually find some time throughout the week to hang out and unwind together, giving them a chance to solidify, in a unique way, a bond that can only be made between a father and son deployed together.

“The one thing that everyone else wants, we have: a family member on deployment,” Andrew said.

Iraq: An RPG to the Head and a Silver Star – the Gunny Speaks

On December 12, 2008, Conversations with Heroes at the Watering Hole will feature Gunnery Sergeant Nicholas A. Popaditch, USMC (ret.). On April 7, 2004, during the First Battle of Fallujah, Gunnery Sergeant Popaditch “was wounded in action. During a firefight with enemy insurgents, he was struck in the head by an enemy Rocket Propelled Grenade, fired from a rooftop into the commander’s hatch of his tank. He received numerous shrapnel wounds.” His injuries necessitated the removal of his right eye; and, “his remaining eye was legally blind. His right ear and nose sustained significant damage and an implant was placed in his skull.”

In his book, Once a Marine: An Iraq War Tank Commander’s Inspirational Memoir of Combat, Courage, and Recovery, Popaditch describes how at first he “fights to get back to where he was in Iraq - in the cupola of an M1A1 main battle tank, leading Marines in combat at the point of the spear. As the seriousness and permanence of his disabilities become more evident, Nick fights to remain in the Corps in any capacity, to help the brothers in arms he so aches to rejoin. Facing the inevitable following a medical retirement, he battles for rightful recognition and compensation for his permanent disabilities. Throughout his harrowing ordeal, Nick fights to maintain his honor and loyalty, waging all these battles the same way - the Marine way.”

Program Date: December 12, 2008
Program Time: 2100 hours, Pacific
Topic: Iraq: An RPG to the Head and a Silver Star – the Gunny Speaks
Listen Live:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/LawEnforcement/2008/12/13/Iraq-An-RPG-to-the-Head-and-a-Silver-Star-the-Gunny-Speaks

About the Guest
Gunnery Sergeant Nicholas A. Popaditch enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in January 1986. After recruit training, “PFC Popaditch was assigned the job of tank crewman and given orders to report to the Basic Crewman’s Course.” During the First Gulf War, “he was assigned as Tank Commander of Bravo 2-2 (an M60A1 main battle tank) and promoted to the rank of Sergeant. During Operation Desert Storm, Sgt Popaditch commanded his tank through breaching operations of two minefields and numerous offensive operations against Iraqi forces as part of Task Force Papa Bear.”

Between the wars, Popaditch was an instructor at Tank Commander’s School and honorably discharged in May 1992. He returned to Indiana where he worked as a construction worker and a correctional officer. Ultimately, he re-enlisted in the Marine Corps and in December 1998, became a drill instructor.

During the Second Gulf War, he “commanded his tank through numerous offensive operations against Iraqi forces. Following the fall of Saddam’s Regime in Iraq, he participated in security and stabilization operations on the streets of Baghdad. In July 2003, he returned stateside.” In the Fall of 2003, now Staff Sergeant Popaditch “volunteered to return to Iraq.” In February 2004, he was “promoted to Gunnery Sergeant. And, in April 2004 his platoon was assigned to combat duty in the city Fallujah.”

About the Watering Hole
The Watering Hole is police slang for a location cops go off-duty to blow off steam and talk about work and life. Sometimes funny; sometimes serious; but, always interesting.

About the Host
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster was a sworn member of the Los Angeles Police Department for 24 years. He retired in 2003 at the rank of Lieutenant. He holds a bachelor’s from the Union Institute and University in Criminal Justice Management and a Master’s Degree in Public Financial Management from California State University, Fullerton; and, has completed his doctoral course work. Raymond E. Foster has been a part-time lecturer at California State University, Fullerton and Fresno; and is currently a Criminal Justice Department chair, faculty advisor and lecturer with the Union Institute and University. He has experience teaching upper division courses in law enforcement, public policy, Criminal Justice technology and leadership. Raymond is an experienced author who has published numerous articles in a wide range of venues including magazines such as Government Technology, Mobile Government, Airborne Law Enforcement Magazine, and Police One. He has appeared on the History Channel and radio programs in the United States and Europe as subject matter expert in technological applications in law enforcement.

Listen, call, join us at the Watering Hole.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/LawEnforcement/2008/12/13/Iraq-An-RPG-to-the-Head-and-a-Silver-Star-the-Gunny-Speaks

Program Contact Information
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster, LAPD (ret.), MPA
editor@police-writers.com
909.599.7530