Meet Your Military
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PHOTO: Air Force Master Sgt. Donald Stichter prepares his feet prior to the start of the ING Luxembourg Night Marathon, May 31, 2014. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Rusty FrankSPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, Germany– Some people hope that when they compete in a marathon they can finish it in one piece. Stichter trained for more than five months to get ready for the race. "I would like to finish it, potentially without stopping," said Air Force Master Sgt. Donald Stichter, 52nd Equipment Maintenance Squadron noncommissioned officer in charge of munitions inspection. "Even if I stop, I will be happy just to finish it alive." Starting at sunset May 31, more than 9,000 people ran in the ING Luxembourg Night Marathon. Before that race, Stichter said, he never had a desire to run in a marathon. However, after his commander heard the Lakewood, Colorado, native had completed a Tough Mudder -- a 10-to-12-mile series of obstacle courses -- he asked Stichter why he’d never attempted a 26.2-mile marathon. Thinking that he was going to be smarter than his commander, Stichter said, he made him an offer: if he completed a full marathon, his commander would have to do a Tough Mudder.
Fully expecting his commander would decline, he added, he was surprised when his boss called his bluff. After the deal was sealed, the training commenced. Stichter relied on the four pillars of the Comprehensive Airman Fitness concept to help train for the marathon. For the social part, Stichter ventured outside family zones by going on group runs with people he wouldn't normally meet. "I think the social aspect of going out and running with guys and girls who are training with me for the marathon has been a lot of fun -- a little bit of bonding," he said. With the physical pillar, Stichter noticed he could work out longer with an even higher intensity. He also noticed that the mental and physical pillars tied together.
Read more: Meet Your Military: Airman Competes in First Marathon
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PHOTO: Marine Corps Cpl. Michael Kean, right, discusses the instructions for the day with a fellow Marine during a desert training exercise, June 16, 2014. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Adwin EstersMARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif. – From a very young age, Marine Corps Cpl. Michael Kean said, he knew he wanted to lead Marines, because the core values the Marines stand for -- honor, courage, and commitment -- were traits he wanted to emulate. “I’ve known I wanted to be a Marine since I was 6 years old,” the Crossville, Tennessee, native said. Kean said he never had a stable father figure while he was growing up, and that he realized that joining the Marines could enable him to be the role model he never had for junior Marines under his care. He enlisted at age 21 and served as a landing support specialist with Combat Logistics Regiment 45 out of Marietta, Georgia. Waiting a couple of years after high school, he said, gave him life experience that seemed to pay off in his leadership skills.
“He’s an outstanding Marine,” said Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Khoa Truong, a supply staff noncommissioned officer who has worked closely with Kean during Integrated Training Exercise 4-14, an annual desert training exercise. “He does nothing but drive above and beyond his required duty and has been filling the role of someone above his rank. He gives me 100 percent every day.” Truong said he noticed Kean’s ability to tackle problems better than most corporals in his situation. “I like it. I work better under stress,” Kean said. Kean is a busy man. He and his wife of two years have a 6-year-old son and an 8-month-old daughter.
Read more: Meet Your Military: Corporal Follows Dream of Leading Marines
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PHOTO: Air Force Senior Airman Kimberly Buzzell, left, and her father, Air Force Tech. Sgt. John Trujillo, pose for a photograph at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, July 1, 2014. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Evelyn ChavezBAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – The military becomes a tightly knit family for people who are away from home. Service members share many unique experiences, and when the time comes to deploy, they need “family” support that much more. Both are assigned to Task Force Signal and deployed from the Air National Guard’s 243rd Engineering Installation Squadron in South Portland, Maine. For Air Force Tech. Sgt. John Trujillo and Air Force Senior Airman Kimberly Buzzell, the support network is available not only from their unit, but also each other, as this father and daughter share their first deployment together here. Trujillo and Buzzell are both deployed from the Air National Guard’s 243rd Engineering Installation Squadron in South Portland, Maine, and are natives of Turner, Maine.
Trujillo, a cable antenna team chief, has served for 26 years. Buzzell has been in the Air Force for five years and is a radio frequency transmissions technician. Both are deployed with Task Force Signal. For them, the Air Force, deployments and moving always have been a normal way of life. “My wife retired from active duty about nine years ago,” Trujillo said. “We have traveled and lived everywhere, and now that my daughter is older, I think she appreciates the opportunities we had being a military family.” Five years ago while Trujillo was deployed to Afghanistan, Buzzell enlisted in the same unit as her father. Trujillo came home to the surprise that his daughter was in the Air Force and part of his unit. “My dad had mentioned the military, and I always wanted to join,” she said. “Other plans happened. I got married and had kids, so a few years later, I just decided to join.” Though he was surprised, Trujillo said, he was proud of his daughter. “I never pushed her to join. I would have supported her in any decision she made,” he added. “I always thought that the Air Force would be a good choice for her. I think the Air Force is very family oriented, and it helps give you an idea of what you want to do with your life.”
Read more: Meet Your Military: Father, Daughter Share Afghanistan Deployment
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PHOTO: Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Peter Bergum, coach of the Barcelona women’s soccer team at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, stands ready as his team gets ready for a June 27, 2014, game. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Kenneth TucceriGUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba – Several service members here have taken to the soccer field to boost their fitness and relieve stress. Their new coach, a fellow member of Joint Task Force Guantanamo, has the skills to help the local female soccer team, Barcelona, to the next level. Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Peter Bergum, with JTF Engineering, has coached his children’s soccer teams for many years back home. In fact, he has a U.S. soccer coaching certification, called an e-license, and coaches in Iowa. When word of his experience reached a Barcelona player, he was recruited to help bring them together and unite a team that includes both experienced and inexperienced players. “They’re great. They’re fun,” Bergum said. “It’s fun to practice and see an improvement in the couple of games we’ve had together.” Most recently, the team has been working on foot skills and run drills to improve passing, shooting and ball-handling. “We’re trying to get everybody a little bit better, because we have all different experience levels on the team -- those that have played for years
and years, and those that have never played before getting here,” Bergum said, “so that’s kind of a fun challenge.” Army Sgt. Rebecca Rickrode, a soldier with the 420th Military Police Company who plays forward for Barcelona, brings a lot of experience to the table. She said training with those who have never played before has been an interesting challenge, but she has seen a vast improvement in the team as a whole since Bergum has come on board as coach. “He is a very positive coach, and he’s very helpful,” she said. “He’s encouraging, but he also teaches us a lot of good techniques and helps out people who play at all different levels.” While the female soccer league ends next week, the women of team Barcelona will never forget the skills they learned and the feeling of camaraderie they felt during the season, and for a brief moment enjoyed a positive distraction from being away from their loved ones. “[Playing] just brings a little bit of home back to deployments,” Rickrode said. “You can do something that’s fun and not just do PT all the time.”
Read more: Meet Your Military: Sailor Steps Up as Volunteer Soccer Coach
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PHOTO: Army Sgt. Fabricio Granados jokes with fellow soldiers after fixing a generator on Forward Operating Base Sweeney, Afghanistan, June 19, 2014. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Whitney Houston Drenched in sweat, Army Sgt. Fabricio Granados, an Oakland, Calif., native, ignored the discomfort of the heat as he distributed water to the thirsty, putting self-interest aside to serve a higher cause.FORWARD OPERATING BASE SWEENEY, Afghanistan– The sun-baked gravel on the landing zone here appeared as lava stones in a sauna. The shaded Conex container gave a deceptive invitation of a more comfortable working climate, the invitation proved to be nothing but a mirage. Granados serves in power equipment and generator repair for Forward Support Company, 2nd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan. His altruistic character and life experience have molded him into a versatile noncommissioned officer, his first sergeant said. “He’s an awesome NCO, and he’s a quiet professional,” said Granado’s supervisor, 1st Sgt. Rebecca Schlegelmilch, a Munster, Indiana, native. “He has such a broad spectrum of knowledge because of his experience throughout life. He can do anything, and he does so much more than fix generators.” Aside from being a generator mechanic, Granados is the NCO in charge of nine soldiers who support their battalion with a variety of skill sets, all of which he is competent in: four who work on weapons, one who works on night vision goggles, another who works on radios, a welder, an air conditioning mechanic and a generator mechanic. Granados said he uses the skills he has accrued over the years to support a cause that is bigger than himself. “Whatever we’re called to do, it’s in support of that company or battalion we’re attached to,” he said. “I know a little about everything, and I feel that’s why they’re always calling us to go on missions.
They’re constantly drawing on our knowledge and expertise to complete the mission.” Another facet of Granados’ job is to assist CH-47 Chinook helicopter pilots attach and detach sling loads that carry essential supplies to service members in remote areas of southern Afghanistan. “It’s just another part of my job,” he said. “We get word from the support element back at base that food, water, fuel or whatever they need is coming, and then we make sure we’re ready to detach the load that they’re bringing or attach a load that they need to lift out.” Granados, currently on his second deployment, has refined his skills over the years doing his job in the Army.
Read more: Meet Your Military: Versatile Soldier Aids Mission Success