News Front
The U.S. House of Representatives unveiled a plan on Tuesday that would provide a monthly inflation bonus in 2023 to service members and Defense Department employees who earn under $45,000 per year. Representative Jared Golden, D-Maine, suggested that the 2.4 percent incentive be part of an amendment to the $802 billion
News Front
Exercise Courage Crossing at Joint Base Lewis-McChord highlighted the coordination between approximately 400 army active duty, reserve, and guard soldiers and Marines in order to cross a body of water. The 555th Engineer Brigade hosted the training June 12. "It's bridge building and boat piloting ‘on the move' when we conduct
Health
The mission of the US Family Health Plan (USFHP) is to not only provide quality health care for uniformed service family members, retirees and their families, but to also ensure that they are satisfied with the service they receive. For more than eight decades, USFHP has been proud to serve active-duty
News Front
Beginning in July service members will begin to receive more money reimbursed to meet the rising cost of gasoline during a permanent change of status (PCS) or a temporary duty station (TDY) move. The Coast Guard, the first to announce the new rates, noted the mileage rate for PCS travel will
News Front
On Aug. 16, 2021, thousands of Afghani citizens, desperate to depart the country as Taliban forces closed in on Kabul, surged out onto a runway as a Joint Base Lewis-McChord-based C-17 taxied in to deliver needed supplies. "Faced with a rapidly deteriorating security situation around the aircraft, the C-17 crew decided
News Front
The American Lake Veterans Golf Course is the nation's only course designed specifically for the rehabilitation of wounded and disabled veterans. On June 6, the course improved on its mission when it reopened its newly redesigned front nine holes. The volunteers who helped to make this happen had the privilege of
Military Life
America's Credit Union has been selected by The Penny Hoarder as one of the nation's top six credit unions for military members of 2022. With two-thirds of its military members living off-base, ACU offers them the best of both worlds; they can bank off base at ten local locations or on
News Front
For many military families, food insecurity is a daily issue. In a recently released report by the Military Family Advisory Network (MFAN), researchers found that one in five military families were experiencing food insecurity, a rise from one in eight just two years ago. "The Causal Factors of Military and Veteran
Health
In the South Puget Sound region, Pristine Mental Health is a leader in providing mental health services to individuals facing the challenges of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD. One of the individuals who stands ready and able to help those confronting PTSD is Tom Yarber, a triple board-certified Psychiatric and Mental
Focus
Corporal Arezu Taghvaei faces the challenges of life with perseverance. "There were no shortcuts or workarounds, and the only way forward was navigating through them," began the Joint Base Lewis-McChord based soldier assigned to the 2nd Brigade Support Battalion, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, as a highly-trained information
Family
The first baby shower Heidi Murkoff held was in Okinawa in 2013 for expectant military mothers and mothers who had just had a child. "The air conditioning was broken," she recalled, "but the best part was that nobody even noticed because the hugs were amazing and, honestly, I was hooked that
Health
For more than eight decades, the US Family Health Plan (USFHP) has been proud to serve active-duty family members, retirees and their dependents, and Reserve/Guard members on active-duty orders who are under the age of 65. PacMed, a multi-specialty physician group and a not-for-profit organization, has administered US Family Health Plan
Military Life
It has been one year since Bill Moore, director and CEO of the Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA), stated in Feb. 2022 DeCA press release that the agency's is to be, "The grocery provider of choice for our eligible patrons - delivering a vital benefit exclusively for our military community and
Focus
I Corps' Command Sgt. Maj. Shawn Carns leads by what a Sgt. Gonzales taught him long ago. "When I first came into the Army, I had a rough time; I was struggling to find my way; I wasn't sure what to do as a private," began the native of Indiana, PA.
News Front
The State of Washington knows the value of the lessons learned by members of the Washington National Guard (WNG) in protecting property and lives in preparation for this summer's wildfires. Last Sunday instructors with the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) instructed approximately 200 members of the Guard during a field exercise
News Front
After turning left off Eighth Ave. E and driving a few hundred yards, Ron Grantham made another left turn onto a dirt road leading into Training Area 15. After bouncing down the road for a few hundred yards, Grantham stopped the truck and got out to inspect a pile of garbage
News Front
Sarin gas was responsible for the sickening of approximately 250,000 American soldiers who served during the 1990-1991 Persian Gulf War according to a recently released study. Following the conflict, nearly one-third of all who deployed reported unexplained chronic symptoms. In the following years, veterans who sought medical help at the Department
Focus
Maj. Ryan Dykes approaches whatever he does in a non-stop manner. "It's hard for me to sit and not be doing something," the Washington Army National Guard operations officer and full-time administrative officer (AO) for the 420th Chemical Battalion at the Yakima Readiness Center began. "I think this is why I
News Front
PCSing can be a pain in the neck, change is coming. The regulations around military moves stem from two sources - Congress and the Pentagon. In charge of putting all of the rules in place and caring for the PSC system is the U.S. Transportation Command (TRANSCOM) at Scott Air Force
Health
A legion of lawsuits against earplug manufacturer 3M has become the largest multidistrict litigation in the nation's history. Between 2003 and 2015, thousands of military personnel who used the dual-ended Combat Arms Earplugs, Version 2 have either been diagnosed with or suffer from hearing loss or tinnitus. On May 6, District Judge
