News Articles
With demand for Special Forces Soldiers at an all-time high, Joint Base Lewis-McChord's 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) officially welcomed a fourth battalion during a ceremony Aug. 26 at the unit's headquarters building. The additional battalion and its 400 to 500 troops come as part of a 2006 plan set in
Military Life
Despite being stationed at McChord Field for less than a year at the time, Katie Minter wanted her husband, a maintainer in the 62nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, to purchase a pair of tickets to attend the base's Air Force Ball. Adam, an airman first class at the time, forgot. But a timely
News Articles
Working as a gate guard at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, there were days when Chris Davis would stare at the combatives training building and think about the possibility of him one day joining the team. As technical sergeant in the Washington Air National Guard's 215th Engineering Installation Squadron, Davis was eligible to
Hip-Toss
While it's certainly not California or Hawaii, believe it or not Washington does have some prime spots for surfing enthusiasts. The city of Westport, on the south end of Grays Harbor and about 90 miles from JTacoma, might be the state's best-kept coastal secret. While Westport is perhaps known more for
Veterans
Even though it had been nearly 66 years since World War II veteran Bob Comstock had sat in the gun turret seat on the B-29 Superfortress, as soon as he settled in, it all came rushing back to him. The 89-year-old veteran from Mill Creek visited the Museum of Flight a
Focus
The Military Family Day event in Lacey started small in 2003. It began as a march attended by about 500 people. The celebration now boasts more than 3,000. And nobody is happier about the growth than event director Andrew Oczkewicz, who has experienced it from the very beginning. Oczkewicz calls the success of
Focus
The Museum of Flight will host a talk by Fallen Heroes Project founder Michael Reagan at 2 p.m. on Aug. 20. The Edmonds-based artist has created more 2,200 custom, hand-drawn portraits of service men and women killed in Iraq or Afghanistan. Each drawing was done free of charge for the family
Focus
Working at the Washington Army National Guard's armory in downtown Tacoma, Maj. Brian Nelson never has to go far to enjoy one of his favorite spots to go for a run. Stadium High School's iconic Stadium Bowl is right down the street. "I've been running the stairs there for the last couple
Focus
Maj. Gen. Timothy Lowenberg, the Adjutant General and commander of the Washington National Guard, gave the Airmen of the 116th Air Support Operations Squadron some encouraging words before about 21 of them left on a four-month deployment to Afghanistan in March. "The mission this task force is about to undertake is
Focus
With her husband Cameron at the flight controls, co-pilot Kim Miller got on the headset to identify their Pilatus PC-12 to air traffic controllers as the aircraft prepared to land at its destination. Using the prefix "hero flight" to identify themselves, Miller was immediately asked what the call sign meant by
Focus
Senior military leaders, medical school deans from across the country and other private health care sector experts gathered in Tacoma Monday and Tuesday to discuss finding more efficient and effective ways to care for wounded Servicemembers and their families. The two-day meeting at Hotel Murano was hosted by the Defense Health
Focus
Starting next week, about 150 Civil Air Patrol cadets from all over the state and Northwest region will gather at Camp Murray for the organization's annual summer encampment. The encampment will include tours of various facilities on McChord Field and Camp Murray, more than 40 hours of classroom instruction on Air
Focus
After spending some time furthering her education and working behind the scenes at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., Col. Valerie Hasberry is anxious to get back to the front lines of the Air Force's mission. She will get that opportunity as the new commander of the 627th Air Base Group with
News Articles
Seven Airmen from McChord Field were awarded the Air Medal during a ceremony at the base July 29 for their role in evacuating an ailing government contractor from McMurdo Station, Antarctica, in June. In front of Rodeo competitors from military bases all across the world, Gen. Ray Johns, Air Mobility Command
Education
According to a Department of Defense report released in May, the DoD had more contractor personnel in Afghanistan and Iraq (155,000) than uniformed personnel (145,000). Contractors also made up 52 percent of the DOD's workforce in Afghanistan and Iraq. The numbers show the jobs and demand for quality workers is there, and
News Articles
After much buildup over the last year, the 16th Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB) formally signified its arrival to Joint Base Lewis-McChord from Alaska during a ceremony Monday at Gray Army Airfield. During the hour-long ceremony in front of about 500 Soldiers and invited community members, the brigade uncased its unit colors,
Focus
When readying the cargo bay of an aircraft to transport patients, Lt. Col. Sharon Carlson, a flight nurse with the 446th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron at McChord Field, is constantly in motion, checking to make sure everything is where it needs to be and properly hooked up. "You're so absorbed in what
Focus
Lt. Col. Ernst "Dutch" Coumou knows his Dutch is by no means perfect. The language has progressed over the years and Coumou - who was born in the Netherlands but has lived in the U.S. for more than 30 years - admits he's a little behind the times. "My Dutch is stuck
Veterans
It was a win-win situation for all those involved. Rebuilding Together South Sound teamed up with VetsMeetVets and homebuilders from the Master Builders Association July 23 to build ramps at the homes of three Pierce County homeowners. Veterans from several different groups and backgrounds came together to pitch in and help. Operation New
Veterans
As soon as World War II veteran Jack Marsh set foot in the barracks on Joint Base Lewis-McChord, a familiar feeling came over him. Nearly 70 years earlier, Marsh was a young Soldier in the beginning stages of his military career and newly stationed at then Fort Lewis. "I went in one
