The Seattle Times has a great story about "Hire America's Heroes," a 3-year-old nonprofit group that hosted a symposium Thursday at JBLM-McChord Field as part of an effort to help veterans find jobs. 

Read more about the symposium here.

Quarterly award winners for the 446th Airlift Wing, first quarter are:

Officers of the Quarter
Field Grade Officer - Maj. Jere High, 446th Civil Engineer Squadron
Company Grade Officer - Capt. Vanessa Balint, 446th Mission Support Squadron

Airmen of the Quarter
The 446th AW Airmen of the Quarter, 1st Quarter are:
Senior NCO - Master Sgt. Scott Terra, 728th Airlift Squadron
NCO - Tech. Sgt. Glen Tuttle, 446th CES
Airman - Senior Airman Mitchell Williams, 97th AS    

MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan-U.S. and German aeromedical evacuation units met to gain insight, share ideas and coordinate joint evacuation efforts at International Security Assistance Force Regional Command North's Camp Marmal, Afghanistan, April 24-26.

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Michael Gainer, 455th Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Flight commander, and other U.S. aeromedical experts used the three-day visit with their German counterparts to exchange ideas on ways to improve the evacuation process in a coalition environment. 

"We are trying to establish a smoother flow of communication between all of the (aeromedical evacuation) agencies and interoperability with our equipment and airframes," said Colonel Gainer, deployed from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash. "We want to identify what equipment does not work well together and try to develop an understanding of how we can work together to improve the process."

According to German Col. Thomas Stahl, German Medical Task Force, Afghanistan, commander, and medical adviser to the RC-North commander, although the medical evacuation systems of the coalition countries are not very different, there are different medical policies and philosophies between forces and a common ground must be reached to ensure the best most timely medical care is given to patients. 

"We are potentially going from a few hundred to a few thousand U.S. forces in the RC-North region in the next few months," added Colonel Gainer. "With this growth, the potential for medical and casualty evacuation could rise and we want to ensure the system is in place and ready to go if needed."

Gainer explained that although the German aeromedical evacuation is outstanding, their German C-160 aeromedical evacuation aircraft has a smaller capacity for transporting patients than that of the U.S. aircraft, which means in the event of a mass transport situation, the system could become overwhelmed with patients. 

"A lot of our people are not able to speak English; a lot of other nations in the theater are not able to speak English and that can cause a problem," explained German Chief Master Sgt. Klaus Zuaihasch, a medical crew chief on the German C-160 medical evacuation aircraft. 

The type of power used to operate equipment, different medications and dosage are all issues Stahl sees as a challenge to the combined medical evacuation effort. He added that even the way patients are transported from the medical facility to the aircraft can present a challenge.

Zuaihasch said equipment standardization is a key component to creating a fluid patient transfer process where patients can go from aircraft to aircraft and hospital to hospital without compromising the level of care. "We are not able to give our litters to the Americans because they have (different) litters than the Germans, so when we hand over intensive care patients, there is added stress on the patients."

He added meetings between coalition medical teams are great because they give each country a chance to see and learn about equipment the other uses and gives both sides a chance to gain a better understanding of the other processes its patients. 

Gainer agreed, adding sometimes the process has to be coordinated through a number of channels before the mission actually leaves the ground. He explained all U.S. fixed-wing aeromedical evacuation orders come from the Combined Air and Space Operations Center, Southwest Asia. Rotary wing casualty evacuation is controlled through each regional command's patient evacuation center in which the German aeromedical evacuation teams are located along with the RC-North PEC. Sometimes communication between all agencies involved in the patient transfer process can be a challenge. 

"They work on a different telephone system than we do," said Gainer. "We are working to get some of our systems to their areas to help with information flow but it is going to take some time and the access will be limited. Until these systems are in place it is going to take a greater effort to ensure everyone knows the plan for patient movement so everyone is ready and there are no delays." 

He lauded the care at the German medical facility as, "Top notch western medicine at its finest." Gainer thinks one of the greatest parts of a deployment is getting to work with other NATO countries to share ideas and information to improve the way everyone does business. 

"I expected a great visit, but it was clear to me that we were both interested in providing the best care for patients, whether they are coalition or U.S.," said Gainer. "We are very excited about the opportunity to work together and I think both countries will benefit from the strong relationship we are developing."    

The Tacoma Rainiers baseball team hosts a Salute to Armed Forces theme at its game May 8 at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma, against the Las Vegas 51s at 7 p.m. Discount tickets are available for all military ID card holders and their families. Advance purchase tickets, which include a ballpark meal, are $5 and game day tickets are $5 (subject to availability).

Those in the military will be recognized throughout the game. For more information, visit www.tacomarainiers.com.

Marvel Comics superhero Spiderman will visit the McChord BX and Fort Lewis PX Saturday.

He will be at the McChord BX from 10 to 11:30 a.m. and the Fort Lewis PX from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Organizers are asking people to show up early because there are large crowds expected. 

Doing the right thing seems automatic for some people.

Staff Sgt. Nigel Norcisa, a C-17 loadmaster at McChord Field, is one of those people.

Norcisa grew up in an Air Force family in Dover, Del. His father's guiding philosophy influences his life to this day.

"Nigel, never look down on a man unless you are extending your hand to help him up," his father used to say.

Norcisa put his father's advice to work on the streets of Tacoma recently.

While driving to a dinner date, the 32-year-old Airman spotted a car driving erratically.

"It veered to the left, barely missing an oncoming car and then piled into a telephone pole," Norcisa said.

Immediately, he pulled over to help the driver.

"It was an automatic reaction. I thought about it later. Had that been my mother, sister, father or someone I knew in that car, I would hope that others would help. It's just the right thing to do," Norcisa said.

Trained in first aid, Norcisa jumped into action.

He found the driver slumped over and in a state of confusion.

"He was an older gentleman, and the airbags had deployed and hit him squarely in the face. I pulled him out and seated him on the curb. The engine was still running and smoking, so I shut it off. I looked in the front seat and found his glasses," Norcisa said.

The rapid inflation of air bags striking the driver full in the face had created some bloody bruising around his eyes. Neither car had a first-aid kit, so Norcisa improvised with some paper towels. After following up with a few short questions concerning the driver's welfare, Norcisa called 911. Norcisa stayed with the driver until emergency medical help arrived. He gave them contact information and later spoke with an investigating police officer.

Colonel Glenn G. Rousseau, 8th Airlift Squadron Operations Group commander, recognized Norcisa's actions by presenting him with a commander's coin.

Captain Adam Schubert has known Norcisa for about four years. He said assisting an injured motorist is characteristic of Norcisa's personality.

"He's a great Airman," Schubert said.

"Staff Sergeant Norcisa is a natural-born leader. He could have just continued to drive by, but that option didn't even enter his mind. It doesn't surprise me that he rendered immediate assistance to the driver in Tacoma," Schubert said.

Norcisa will soon take an assignment at Altus Air Force Base, Okla., as a C-17A Globemaster III instructor loadmaster, with the 58th Airlift Squadron.

Approximately 13 medals will be awarded to Airmen of the 22nd Special Tactics Squadron, McChord Field, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, during a ceremony here at 9 a.m. April 29. The medals are being awarded for combat actions during the deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan.

During the ceremony, Staff Sgt. Sean Harvell will be the first Air Force combat controller to receive two Silver Star medals in a single ceremony. The Silver Star is the nation's third highest decoration for valor.

Staff Sgt. Evan Jones, also a combat controller, will also receive a Silver Star. Both Airmen are being recognized for their actions during firefights against enemy forces in Afghanistan.

Additionally, eight Bronze Stars and two Purple Hearts will be presented to the special tactics Airmen during the ceremony presided over by Gen. Norton Schwartz, Air Force Chief of Staff, and Lt. Gen. Donald Wurster, Air Force Special Operations Command commander.

AFSOC's combat controllers are battlefield airmen assigned to Air Force special tactics squadrons. They are trained special operations forces and certified FAA air traffic controllers. The mission of a combat controller is to deploy, undetected, into combat and hostile environments to establish assault zones or airfields, then provide conducting air traffic control and fire support. Special tactics operators' unique capabilities place them in high demand for missions involving command and control, direct action, counter-terrorism, foreign internal defense, humanitarian assistance and special reconnaissance.

Their motto, "First There," reaffirms the combat controller's commitment to undertaking the most dangerous missions behind enemy lines by leading the way for other forces to follow.  Since the beginning of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, between 270 and 290 combat controller Airmen have answered their nation's call to duty.  These warrior Airmen have received two Air Force Crosses (one posthumously), nine Silver Stars, and more than 200 Bronze Star Medals with and without the Valor device.

According to a story on the Air Force's Web site, Air Force officials released Friday the candidate basing locations and the criteria they used to determine the candidate basing locations for additional C-17 Globemaster III aircraft.

The list of candidate bases was approved by the secretary and chief of staff of the Air Force: Eastern West Virginia Regional Airport in Martinsburg, W.V.; Memphis International Airport, Tenn.; and Stewart International Airport, N.Y.

The basing criteria were approved by the secretary and chief of staff of the Air Force and considered factors such as mission requirements, airspace, facilities and infrastructure, support capacity, environmental impacts and cost. 

Site surveys will be conducted and the formal environmental impact analysis process will begin, allowing communities around each candidate base to participate and provide input. Based on the results of these efforts, officials expect to announce the preferred locations in November 2010. 

Once the environmental impact analysis processes are complete, Air Force officials will announce the final basing decisions. The announcement is anticipated in June 2011.    

SOUTHWEST ASIA -- At a moment's notice things can change. A country can rise up and overthrow its government. A volcano can erupt polluting the skies with ash and grounding more than 100,000 flights. A small air base in Southwest Asia can suddenly find itself bedding down hundreds of transient troops because of circumstances out of its control.

For the lodging staff here at Commando Village, the transient housing area, the recent political upheaval in Kyrgyzstan and the natural disaster in Iceland has been an eye-opener as the Airmen work around the clock ensuring the hundreds of Airmen and Soldiers temporarily displaced due to these situations have a roof over their heads and beds to rest on.

"The lodging staff here is by far the greatest group of men and women I have ever worked with," said Senior Master Sgt. David Walker, 386th Expeditionary Force Support Squadron lodging superintendent, deployed from McChord Field. "They work hard to get the job done and have a great attitude doing it. They care about the mission and it shows."

The six-person staff, which has recently recruited a few volunteers due to the influx of transient military members, is responsible for ensuring all guests have safe and clean housing, bedding and working amenities. 

"There's always something to do here, especially with the recent influx of people," said Airman 1st Class Dustin Kimbrough, 386th EFSS services journeyman, deployed from Fairchild AFB, Wash. "It seems like it's always something different too. We can do grunt work such as clearing a storage tent one minute and computer data the next. The best part about working here is it keeps us on our toes."

Tech. Sgt. Willie Andino, 386th FSS Commando Village lodging assistant manager, deployed from Barksdale AFB, La., said communication and organization are key to making the lodging operation a success.

"There are a lot of moving parts out here which really make good communication critical," said the Grand Rapids, Mich. native. "Assigning a non-flyer to a flyer tent or male to a female tent are examples [of what could go wrong with poor communication]. Most of our customers are tired from traveling and just want to go to sleep when they get here as they pass the time until their next flight. With hundreds of people to keep track of, organization is also critical in ensuring everything runs smooth."

The NCO, now on his eighth deployment, added that with customer service at the forefront of their job, from in-processing and out-processing transient members to assisting guests throughout their stay, the Commando Village staff does its best to make guests as comfortable as possible in the deployed environment. 

"I really enjoy the customer service aspect of our job and trying to help people," he said. "We do our best to ensure our customers are happy during the short time they're here."

Andino and his coworkers said that one of the biggest challenges they face downrange is the diversity of their career field.

"Services troops can be tasked to work at lodging, the fitness center, dining facility or recreation center regardless of their present job at home station," he said. 

At his home station, Andino works at the fitness center, while Airman Kimbrough, an Albuquerque, N.M., native, works at the dining facility.

"I've actually never worked in lodging before, so this experience has been a welcome challenge for me," said Kimbrough, who is on his first deployment. "There isn't really time to learn in this environment, you just have to know what you're doing, which I seem to have picked up along the way. You have to adapt and overcome."

Walker, who has been in the services career field for just over 25 years, said he is proud of the work his staff has put forth over the past few months contributing to such an important mission.

"Rest is absolutely critical to the mission and our staff here is making sure our transient folks get just that - a clean, comfortable place to rest before moving on to the next location," said the Spokane, Wash., native. "Ultimately, they are keeping morale high and high morale is a force multiplier."