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Air
Force Women
Officers Associated |
Web Site: www.afwoa.org MAY 2007
President:
Pat Murphy,
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Pat’s Pen We’re still trying to figure out the best
approach for our
Pat
From our March Board of Directors Meeting
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News from our Members
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Lindsey
Bullard just got the call that she made Major. Also, last month, she was named Junior
Officer of the Year for the 445th Airlift Wing. From Lindsey: “Let
me catch you up…I got off Active Duty in San Antonio (lovely city... like it
as much as Boston). I stayed there, working |
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Here's a current tidbit about me, retired Col. Katie Cutler. When the tee boxes in Napa became too frozen to get a tee into
the ground in January, I decided to take advantage of my Space A travel
benefit for the first time. My golf clubs and I hopped on a C-17 from
Travis AFB to Hickham AFB, Hawaii. I was lucky enough to get into a
beachfront cottage at the Marine Corps Base at Kaneohe Bay for a week.
I golfed at three different military courses, but it was at the Kaneohe
Klipper that I shot a 118-yard hole-in-one on the eleventh hole. The
round-trip was completed via C-130. I met great people along the way,
some of whom have been traveling the world courtesy of MAC and AMC since the
'70s. I'll be packing my bags again soon! Katie Cutler,
Colonel, USAFR, retired Napa, California |
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as an EMT-Basic for American Medical Response
until June 1 '04. At
that point I moved back to Ohio and applied to Vet School. During the
application process I |
Lindsey at her brother's wedding
last Labor Day weekend. The guy I am with was my brother's college
roommate at Tufts. |
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worked at Starbucks and as a Safety and
Security Officer at a retirement community. During all this, I was
missing the military horribly. Well, at around the 8 month mark of
being officially Separated, I couldn't take it any more and started my search
for a way back in. I talked to the Active AF and Army, the Reserves for
Army and AF, and both the National Guard and Air National Guard. CONTINUED NEXT PAGE |
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Lindsey
Bullard Continued
Around the middle/end of October of '04 the recruiter from WPAFB
contacted me and said, since my TS clearance was still good, he had two
openings for me to look at. I chose to join the Reserve unit, vs.
become an IMA at NASIC. So, I became the third officer in the 445th
Airlift Wing's Intel Section. During my time there, so far, I have deployed
to Al Udeid, Qatar, flown on one of our Aeromedical Evacuation missions to
Balad, Iraq (on the C-141), retired the C-141, and now we are almost done
with our conversion to C-5s. The heavy world is definitely different
from the fighter world I was in at Spangdahlem (while on active duty) and I
am still learning... which is Great!! It keeps it fun and fresh. To make it even more fun, I am currently
competing for the Air Reserve Technician position that just opened up with my
LtCol's retirement. If I get it, I can move to Dayton and have a job
that allows me growth room to LtCol :-) :-) As it is right now, I am
living up NE of Cleveland, near my parents. I make a lot trips to the
base for Man-days and such, averaging about 2 weeks a month, so I am happy as
can be to be back in uniform |
From Captain Patti Jo DeMotts I am a relatively
new member and thought I would tell everyone a little about myself. Currently
I am the Pediatric Clinic Nurse Manager at Aviano Air Base, Italy. I have
been in the military for 8 years and have enjoyed every bit of it so far. I
met my husband while we were stationed at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska. He is
currently the EOD Flight Commander here (Explosive Ordinance Disposal). He is
deploying for his second time while being stationed here this summer. I,
however, am headed back to the US. I was selected as one of two nurses to
attend a civilian institute to purse my masters as a Pediatric Nurse
Practitioner. My husband, Josh was selected to join Air Staff at the Pentagon
when he returns from Iraq in January so I am looking at schools in the area.
I have already been accepted to UVA-Charlottesville and am waiting for a few
more responses before making my decision. Most of all, I am
looking forward to coming back to the USA! Italy has been wonderful as well
as touring the rest of Europe on weekends but there are many things from home
that we miss! If anyone is in the DC area, feel free to look me up, my e-mail
will be pjkohler5@yahoo.com. Ciao! From Kay Spannuth, who is
the new Commander of 333rd Training Squadron at Keesler AFB in
Mississippi. Kay says there is a lot
of construction going on at Keesler and it is an exciting place to be as they
rebuild from Katrina. From Linda Bryant My husband and I have taken up cruising; we cruised the past 2
Christmas's and will be cruising the inside passage of Alaska in July. |
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On
the personal side, the drawback of my frequent trips is that I have to leave
my "Boyz" with my parents while I am away. The Boyz are two
French Bulldogs, Genghis and Kublai,
who followed me home from Germany. I got them from an SF member when
they were 1 1/2yrs old. |
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From Susan Galante I have
so many wonderful memories of life in the USAF, it's hard to name my
favorite, but I'll give you some that are in the top 10 for sure. In
1983 I was stationed at Kunsan AB Korea and had a ride in an F-16
-- totally awesome! Took me hours to come down from that high...
Being a Sq CC and a Gp CC were two other great highlights -- Sq CC at Altus
OK (GREAT local support) and Gp CC at Misawa AB Japan -- an
absolutely amazing assignment. My husband and I still talk about it,
between the people we met and the experiences we had, it was a fantastic two
years.
And then there was SHAPE, Belgium (more correctly, NAEWFC) where we met
Col Patsy Hughes (USAF ret). That
was definitely one of THE highlights of my military career. We were one
of 16 different European nations in the building, and the culture/work ethic
differences were enlightening. I'm so thankful to have had the
opportunity and my husband and I will never forget it.
I'm currently employed as a govt civilian working for DLA (Defense Logistics
Agency) at Fort Belvoir VA. Newsletter Editor’s Note: Please note that Susan is a Colonel, USAF
Retired. Forgive me the misprint in
last month’s issue under New Members. |
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Nichole Campbell-King writes: After
12 years, I'm separating from the Air Force under the VSP. I plan to
join the reserves and finish out the rest of my years I need 8 years before I
can be eligible for retirement. As for destinations--The Islands would be
very nice. I'm trying to
recruit a couple of new members for you. |
From Wanda Wood A story for you: As a young Captain in 1971, I was stationed
at Udorn RTAFB, Thailand, I was sent
to Vien Tiene, Laos, tdy to WAPS test
some AF enlisted guys who "weren't there." I went up in civilian clothes and got
dropped off by helicopter. The folks
there wanted me to leave my ID card at Udorn, but I refused as I had a Secret
test in my briefcase full of tests to take for the guys there. As soon as I arrived there we went to the
Embassy and they gave me an Embassy ID card and put mine in the safe as well
as the tests. Anyway we went out to
dinner that night (a group of us "non-military' folks) and as soon as we
entered this one bar/ restaurant where we were going to eat the management
greeted us all by name including me.
It was spooky. During that
visit too, we were followed from one store to another the next day. I was really glad to get back to Udorn
after that. |
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From Gloria Makowski A good
time was had by all at the MiIitary Officers Association of America Cape
Canaveral chapter's Installation dinner-dance on 13 January 2007.
We were honored to have Brig.
Gen. Susan Helms, Commander of the 45th Space Wing at Patrick AFB,
FL, presiding. I was one of the new officers elected to the Board
and pleased to have the opportunity to be sworn in by Brig. Gen. Helms (whom
I regard as Wonder Woman). In the photo, I am chatting with Brig. Gen
Helms about her time as an astronaut aboard the space station. She
spent 211 days in space which included a spacewalk of 8 hours, 56 minutes --
a world record. For someone with such lofty experiences, I found
her to be gracious, friendly and -- down to earth. |
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From Merline
Lovelace Al and I have become cruise junkies. Here's a shot from
our Nov/Dec '06 cruise -- we were sampling the local vino in Gibraltar before
heading for Casablanca, Portugal and across the Atlantic. |
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Hi, I am Patsy
Hughes, the Treasurer for AFWOA.
I also donate my time and money to other Veterans organizations. However, my passion in life since I retired
is genealogy. Do you have a ton of
time on your hands and don’t know what to do with it? Well, genealogy is fun and you get to learn
a lot about your ancestors. Ancestry,
Inc says that most genealogy research starts when a person retires. Why?
It takes a lot of time if you want to get serious about researching
your ancestors. I did some when I was
still on active duty but I hit many a “brick wall” and never had the time to
get past them. Here is what I have
discovered since I retired. My father’s family came to Texas in 1835
and my great great grandfather (gggrandfather) fought in the Texas
Revolution. That fact alone allows me
to become a member of the Daughters of The Republic of Texas. I have
attended family reunions and met hundreds of cousins of my Hughes family that
I never knew I had. A 5th
cousin 4 times removed still confuses me so I just consider them all
cousins. I have learned a lot about CONTINUED NEXT PAGE |
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Patsy Hughes Continued what Texas was like back in the 1800’s and if we ever figure out who my gggrandfather’s grandfather was we will have a connection all the way back to the Revolutionary War. Now that is exciting! Over the Internet you find many other people researching the same family lines. I have a cousin who is an Anesthesiologist, one who is a Professor at Virginia Tech, Aquilla Ballard Hughes was a famous flier in WW II, and my ggggrandmother came to Texas alone with her 7 children. Can you imagine what that was like? My Mom’s family came to Texas in 1850 from Georgia. With the help of several now good Internet friends and family we have discovered that my gggggrandfather fought in the Revolutionary War and was a member of the Jamestown Colony that survived. His name was Nathan Barnett and there was also a Nathaniel Barnett whose life strictly paralleled my line. It has been great fun and very frustrating trying the keep these families separate. I even found out that Lyndon Baines Johnson was my Mother’s third cousin. I already knew that the country singer, Jim Reeves, was my mother’s first cousin because I remember him from my childhood. I also now know that Tex Ritter was the son of my great grandmother’s sister. My “brick wall” right now is my Mother’s father’s McDaniel line. They heavily intermarried with both the Choctaw and Cherokee and that poses huge problems. As many of you know, it wasn’t a popular fact back in the earlier years to have a Native American wife or husband. That fact was hidden and family stories concocted to explain where these family members originated. Family stories about 90 percent of the time are either total or partial falsehoods. Yet, it is still fun hearing those stories. |
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Are you interested in genealogy research? If so, let me know and I can give you tips on where to go on the Internet and in libraries to find your families. The main warning I have is to NEVER believe what you find on the internet unless it has written proof attached. Internet information can lead you on hundreds of goose chases, can be time wasting and very frustrating. Genealogy research is fun and provides you links to an era we all wish we knew more about. Heck, you might even be royalty!!!!! Editor’s Postscript: On May
11-12, Patsy culminated her efforts as a
team member in the Helotes Texas Relay For Life, an
overnight event that celebrates and commemorates those affected by the
ongoing fight against cancer. https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=191320&lis=1&kntae191320=A75295B7226D4F5B965EEEE6D8AA7228&supId=80215121 From Gina McGuiness (photo at right) In
January, Juanita Cox and I
and two friends cruised for 16-days on the Golden Princess from New
Orleans to Rio de Janeiro. The ports-of-call included: Grand Cayman,
Aruba, Isle Margarita, Venezuela; Port-f Spain, Trinidad-Tabago; Devil's
Island, French Guiana and Fortaleza, Salavador and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. |
With the
Golden Princess in the background, Juanita Cox and Gina McGuiness rest for a
moment on the dock at Devil's Island, French Guiana. |
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AFWOA Board President: Patricia Murphy
Executive Vice
President: Carol Habgood Vice President,
Recruiting: Karen Rankin Treasurer: Patsy Hughes Executive Secretary: Wanda Seals Newsletter Editor: Ellen Staley Webmaster: Linda
Allen Director: Vacant Director: Gina M. McGuiness Director: Marianne Rogers Director: Clara "Chris" Johnson Air Force Academy Liaison: Bonnie O'Leary The Military
Coalition Representatives: Elizabeth
Bustamante Rosalyn Knapp Anne Farrer |
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Link sent in by Mary Daley http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/07/AR2007050701603.html?hpid=sec-nation Female Would-Be Mercury
Astronauts to Be Honored By Todd Richmond OSHKOSH, Wis. -- Thirteen
American female pilots, who trained in the early 1960s to become astronauts
only to have NASA
pull the plug on them at the eleventh hour, will receive honorary doctorates
Saturday from the University of
Wisconsin at Oshkosh.
The pilots were part of the United States'
initial effort to catch up to the Soviet space program after Yuri Gagarin became
the first human sent into space in April 1961.
The women endured, and passed, the same tests as the better-known
"Mercury 7" male astronauts: suffering through sensory deprivation
and tests gauging how long they could keep body parts submerged in
near-freezing water.
Days before the group was to leave for spaceflight simulation tests in
Pensacola,
Fla.,
the women were told that NASA was not interested in their training.
"I think we all wanted to punch somebody," said Beatrice
"B" Steadman, 80, one of the 13.
In 1963, Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman
in space. Not until 20 years later did Sally Ride become the first American
woman in space.
George Low, director of space missions in the 1960s, explained at the
time that the women lacked military test pilot experience (they could not be
test pilots back then); that letting them use the training equipment would
cut down on the men's time; and that enough men were waiting for astronaut
slots.
More than 40 years later, in the fall of 2005, Jane Wypiszynski, a
communications instructor at UW-Oshkosh, assigned Martha Ackmann's 2003 book
"The Mercury 13: The Untold Story of Thirteen Women and the Dream of
Space Flight" to her freshman students. It went over like a fireball.
"Those women were severely wronged," said freshman Matt
Miles, 19, who read the book.
Inspired by the women's story and her students' reaction, Wypiszynski
went to Chancellor Richard H. Wells and suggested that UW-Oshkosh award all
13 with honorary doctorates.
Rhea Woltman, another member of the 13, said: "I'd rather be
flying the spaceship, but that didn't happen. This is next best. I'll take
it." AND… MAKING
TODAY’S NEWS – FUTURE AIR FORCE OFFICERS 2007 MAJ
GEN JEANNE M HOLM LEADERSHIP EXCELLENCE AWARD RECIPIENTS
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Feedback
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From Bev LaFond Vivienne Sinclair's
article was especially fascinating because we were suite-mates at Hahn AB
Germany in 1961-62. She was so kind to move out and let my mother stay with
me the night before the big wedding to Roger. Thanks from Bev |
From Therese
Strohmer
Thank you so very much for including my project in your article for
AFWOA (See Feb 07 Issue). I am excited to hear from everyone. I really
enjoyed reading about Vivienne
Sinclair's experiences. Her story captures the essence
of some of the difficulties that I am interesting in learning more
about...especially the wonderful little details like her description of how
she came to join the Foreign Language Department...wonderful! I will always feel
indebted to the women who served before me...I know they paved the way for my
wonderful experience. Reading this newsletter again gave me a feeling of
immense gratitude.
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From Marty
Stanton Really enjoyed the
career review by Vivienne Sinclair – I just missed meeting her in Vietnam. (Marty wrote to us on
letterhead from the Grand Hotel in Hong Kong, and remarked, “No, I’m not in
Hong Kong – was during Vietnam tour in 1969”.) |
From Terri
Slone-Baker Enjoyed Vivienne
Sinclair's AF experiences! Brought back many memories. |
Yours truly, the Newsletter Editor, Ellen Staley, thanks you for all
of your compliments on our bimonthly newsletter. The compliments go back-atcha, as I so
appreciate your contributions of stories, photos, and general tidbits about
your life today. Please keep up the
good work! |
OPPORTUNITIES TO SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCES…
Dear Air Force Women Officers Associated:
Next year, Kore Press (www.korepress.org) plans to publish a book-length anthology of writing by women who have served in the military.
We are in the process of gathering essays, fiction and poetry by female U.S. and non-U.S. service members. It is my hope that you'll help us spread the word about this opportunity by forwarding the announcement below to your membership.
Thanks very much for your help.
Regina Fitzsimmons
* * *SPECIAL CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Writing by Military Women
Postmark Deadline: June 29th, 2007
Kore Press (www.korepress.org) is seeking submissions for an anthology to be published in early 2008 that includes poetry, literary fiction, creative non-fiction or memoir written in English by women veterans and active-duty U.S. and non-U.S. service members, especially but not exclusively those who served in the
U.S.-led wars in Iraq or Afghanistan and those who enlisted or continued to serve after September 11, 2001. Please include the following with your submission: your name, phone number, address, email and years and branch of service.
There is no submission fee. Send manuscript to:
Kore Press
Women in Military Anthology
PO Box 3044
Tucson, AZ 85702
From Linda Bryant
This is
a forwarded a statement concerning a bill our Congressman just introduced,
HR 988. We had three children, our oldest is a Marine Lt. Col. our daughter
graduated from West Point Class of 2000, a Captain. Our youngest son Todd,
graduated from West Point Class of 2002, and was KIA in Oct. 2003. The Congressman
has put in a bill to name our local post office for Todd. I hope the bill
passes, it is a great honor. Todd is buried at Arlington.
Congressman Ken Calvert
PRESS
RELEASE
44th Congressional
District of California
Contact: Rebecca Rudman
202-225-1986
REP. CALVERT INTRODUCES BILL
TO NAME RUBIDOUX POST OFFICE AFTER LOCAL FALLEN HERO
Bill Would Name Post Office
after Lt. Todd Bryant, KIA
Washington, DC. February 14, 2007-
Yesterday Congressman Ken Calvert (R-Corona) introduced H.R. 988, a bill that
would name the post office located at 5757 Tilton Avenue in Riverside,
California the "Lieutenant Todd Jason Bryant Post Office."
"It is an honor to introduce this bill in
memory of Lieutenant Todd Bryant," stated Rep. Calvert. "Todd
was one of those rare individuals who distinguished himself at every stage of
life. I was proud to nominate Todd to West Point and later to have him on
my staff as an intern."
Todd was born on January 14, 1980, in Long
Beach, California. Todd came from a military family and his desire and
determination to join the military was resolute. He enlisted in the Army
Reserve and completed Basic Training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma before his senior
year of high school. Rep. Calvert appointed Todd to the U.S. Military
Academy at West Point where he graduated from in June 2002.
After graduation, Todd attended the Armor
Officer's Basic Course at Fort Knox, Kentucky, graduating in December
2002. He reported to Fort Riley, Kansas in January 2003, and was
initially assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st,
Battalion 34th Armor Regiment where he served as an Assistant
Operations Officer. In April of 2003, Todd was reassigned to C Company,
1-34 AR where he assumed duties as Platoon Leader, 3rd
Platoon. On August 30, 2003, Todd and Jennifer Reardon were married in
Pennsylvania, nine days before shipping out with his unit in support of
Operation Iraqi Freedom. On Friday, October 31, 2003, Todd was killed by
an explosive device as his Humvee traveled on a road between Fallujah and
Baghdad. He was 23 years old.
"I've often thought about Todd. I
consider it a great honor to have known him and to have watched him accomplish
so much in his short but vibrant life," stated Rep. Calvert.
"This Post Office is one way to remember Todd and to honor his family who
gave the greatest of sacrifices for our country."
You can find current addresses and phone numbers in our Website Directory:
The
AFWOA Member Directory is on-line in a password-protected "Members Only" area.
Contact
the Webmaster (webmaster@afwoa.org)
to receive the User ID and Password.
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Address Corrections |
New Members |
Lost in the Mail |
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Dion, Lucille 6251 Old Dominion Dr. #309 McLean VA 22101-4807 (703) 536-6281 Olson,
Kim new email address: kimolson@charter.net 817 597-0582 Killeen, Karin 31 Valleyfield St. Lexington, MA 02421 Nichole Campbell-King new email address: Murry, Sharon M. 9264 S.E. 72nd Ave Ocala, FL 34472-3469 Spannuth, Kay L. 239 Harmon Circle Biloxi,
MS 39531 |
Kaczor, Nancy 5394 W. Preserve CT Franklin, WI 53132-7103 Colonel (Retired) 2 July 1980 - 31 Dec 2006 (414) 704-2049 HARPOK@WI.RR.COM Wiggins, Janine Active Duty, Major Senior Foreign Nuclear Weapons Analyst Air Force Intelligence Agency 5113 Leesburg Pike, Ste 600 Falls Church, VA 22401 |