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  • Patchwork of passions: Band seamstress can do it all

    Her Grammy nominated voice has impressed audiences around the world, including the former President Bill Clinton and thousands of servicemembers. She’s performed with Bob Hope and Wayne Newton, but finds joy working with convicted criminals. As a kind and gifted woman, she is considered a “sacred

  • Airman running against the odds

    In Dec. 9, 1999, doctors diagnosed Maj. Michael Moyles with oligoastrocytoma, a type brain cancer, and gave him six years to live. Today, the major, a commercial satellite communications operational manager at U.S. Strategic Command here, is alive -- and beating cancer one step at a time. “You never

  • Woman veteran recalls World War II duty

    The popular images of World War II show American men fighting the Axis powers. What are often missing are images of the women pioneers of the nurse corps who patched up the Soldiers so they could face and defeat the enemy. Ann Walker was among those pioneering veterans. Mrs. Walker is from Grand

  • ‘Dirty Boyz’ sweep away foreign object damage hazards

    The mural painted on a concrete barrier inside the building where the “Dirt Boyz” work reads: “Once a dirt boy, always a dirt boy.” The dusty Airmen are members of the 379th Expeditionary Civil Engineering Squadron. Among the many projects they do and services they provide, there is one in

  • Mother, daughter reunite at Andrews

    A mother and her daughter have the Air Force to thank for being able to serve together. Col. LeEllen Coacher, 89th Airlift Wing staff judge advocate, supervises six attorneys, eight paralegals and four Department of Defense civilians. Her daughter, Capt. Kacey Grannis, is a 1st Helicopter Squadron

  • Professional groups, services keep deployed Airmen busy

    Three professional organizations are doing their part to boost morale and keep Airmen involved for the duration of their deployment here The Airmen Committed to Excellence, Middle Tier Association and Top 3 Organization are helping augment some of the 455th Expeditionary Services Squadron’s

  • 'Fixers' keep 'big, ugly, fat fellas' flying

    What makes a plane fly? Engines and wings first come to mind.But the answer is much simpler than that -- people. Maintainers to be exact.There are about 120 crew chiefs at the 5th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron here. They are the lead maintainers who work on Minot’s fleet of B-52Hs Stratofortresses,

  • Wellness center helps one man get fit after 50

    After Jim Staffan passed the half-century mark, he decided his once-lean physique was in need of help. He was 51, a smoker, overweight, with a 41-inch waist, 25 percent body fat and elevated cholesterol. The member of Air Force Materiel Command's Inspector General Office said he knew he needed to

  • HC-130 team trains to save lives during Africa mission

    With ears pricked, they listen for the slightest sign of an alert. This Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa team knows it gets the call, it is a life-or-death situation. Approximately 65 aircrew and maintainers from the New York Air National Guard’s 102nd Rescue Squadron are deployed here with

  • Bagram survival equipment duo keeps A-10 pilots safe

    From an initial review to final inspection, a survival equipment duo here is helping keep A-10 Thunderbolt II pilots safe and secure as they fly close-air support missions as part of the global war on terrorism. Whether assembling an antiG-suit, parachute or survival vest, Staff Sgt. Andrew Topor

  • Band of brothers: Tyndall musicians bring 'brass' to base ceremonies

    Confucius once said, “Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.” The 325th Air Control Squadron realized this also applies to squadron ceremonies, and thus the ACS Brass Band was formed. The band, which began in 2003 with four trombonists, now also includes two

  • Colonel takes fitness to the extreme

    Run a marathon? No problem. Swim around Manhattan Island? Been there, done that. Run a 135-mile race from Death Valley to Mount Whitney -- on lava-hot roads -- without stopping to eat a proper meal or get a decent night’s sleep? Now that’s a challenge. Or at least that’s what Col. Norman Albert

  • Cyclists helping themselves -- and others

    Gloria Padilla joined because she had breast cancer surgery. As a survivor, she wants to help others afflicted with the deadly disease. Master Sgt. B.L. Lawrence joined because he had trouble passing the Air Force’s bike test. Both joined the Blue Suite Pacers bicycle riding team. They joined for

  • Iceman hoopster to tour with pros

    A vehicle operator here never thought she’d be touring with professional basketball players -- especially after choosing the Air Force over a pro career in 2003. However, that will be the case in two weeks when Airman 1st Class Naomi Mobley, from the 354th Logistics Readiness Squadron, will be will

  • Female officers train Iraqi soldiers

    In a culture where women traditionally stay home and men take care of business, two female officers from here found that some customs are changing. The two women, from Robins’ 78th Security Forces Squadron, are part of an Air Force military training team helping train Iraqi noncommissioned officers.

  • Airman perfects bird calling skills in competitions

    Every hunter knows the importance of having good equipment -- a trusted rifle, the right piece of accessory equipment and that perfect ammunition load. But the key is being able to lure your prey to the perfect spot. To one Airman here, it is not enough to lure his prey, but to be the best at it.

  • Command during a Category 4 hurricane

    Command. There is no better job in the world. After seven years in jobs with “command authority” -- and two squadron commands -- I figured I had a good idea what command was all about. I was wrong. What changed my mind? Four words: “shelter commander” and ‘Hurricane Katrina.” From Aug. 28 to Sept.

  • Iraqi Air Force 101: First they must read English

    Nothing would seem out of place if the room were inside an American schoolhouse. The classroom has posters with picture clues describing nouns. The tables have books, pens, paper and lesson books on them, and students take notes while talking amongst themselves and laughing occasionally. There is

  • Mental health counseling not career ending

    Retired Senior Master Sgt. Patrick McCathern was literally seconds away from death. He hung by a noose tied to his bathroom door, ready to die.As he felt his last few gasping breaths fill his lungs, he noticed the wagging tail and puppy-dog eyes of his pet, Dunkin, looking up at him. That was enough

  • Rose Hill Cookie Lady sends more than 30,000 cookies overseas

    Three Airmen received some “sweet” support from the “Rose Hill Cookie Lady” while they were deployed.Since Feb. 5, Merry Debbrecht, nicknamed the Rose Hill Cookie Lady, has baked more than 30,000 cookies for deployed troops all over the world.Mrs. Debbrecht’s baking project began after her grandson,

  • A PJ’s night in New Orleans

    At the heart of the helicopter rescue portion of the Air Force Reserve Command’s contribution to the Hurricane Katrina relief effort are the crews flying 10 to 12 hour missions picking up as many as 184 survivors on a single mission.At the very center of that heart pararescuemen can be found who

  • Air traffic controllers perform dual mission, put fighters on target

    Air traffic controllers here are breaking new ground –- or space, as one might say in the air traffic control world.Not only do controllers balance their normal workload of ensuring the safety of civilian airplane traffic in the area, but they also direct fighter aircraft to engage the enemy in the

  • Lakenheath Airman weathers Hurricane Katrina

    The world watched helplessly as Hurricane Katrina decimated the Gulf Coast and left many people homeless or dead. Many people have watched the television news and seen video footage and photographs of the damage to Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., but one Airman here knows what it actually felt like

  • Saving lives, losing lives through eyes of medics

    The faces of Air Force medics serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom are often the first, and sometimes the last, seen by those who are left hurt and bleeding by an enemy fighting against peace and freedom. It is these same medics who see the pain and suffering of the injured, and the skill, dedication

  • Air refueling missions essential to ground troops

    Airman 1st Class Philip Inmon scoots forward and quickly turns his head back and forth. He is on his stomach, straining to scan left and right at 28,000 feet, looking for the incoming fighter. “I don’t see him,” he said into the headset to the pilot. Through the two panes of glass at the rear of

  • Hurricane aftermath extends to Germany

    Nineteen years of growing up around the capricious hurricanes of Pascagoula, Miss., kept a staff sergeant here relatively calm upon hearing the news that a surge in the Gulf of Mexico was on the way. But the reality of Hurricane Katrina’s wrath soon set in. Following the devastation and

  • Fresh eyes focused on deployment

    It has been said by old hats in the Air Force that the service is getting younger by the day. While this may not actually be the case, there is a group of Airmen who are new to both the Air Force and deployments. But they are ready to gain experience in their career fields and in the mission abroad

  • Living legends celebrate Air Force heritage

    Wearing an Air Force uniform from the 1960s is a completely different experience from seeing a black and white picture of one in a text book.Living Legends will soon offer Airmen here the opportunity to experience what it was like to wear heavy cotton khaki uniforms instead of a camouflage battle

  • Airmen use emergency vehicles for rescue ops

    With 35-inch tires and an 8.5-inch rock crawling lift kit, he could easily run over a Honda Civic.But Staff Sgt. Jonathan Gengnagel’s vehicle is a means to save and protect, not destroy.Although Hurricane Katrina has incited many people to volunteer and donate their time to help those suffering in

  • Airman gets ‘fit to fight’ in Southwest Asia

    “If you’re fat, get leaner; if you’re slow, get faster; if you’re weak, get stronger,” is a powerful statement senior leaders belts out every time new Airmen set foot on this forward-deployed location.After hearing that resonant quote, Staff Sgt. Dan Foster became a walking, talking example of it.

  • Landstuhl symbol of hope to wounded troops

    This huge hospital and its joint medical team have become strong symbols of hope to U.S. troops wounded or hurt in Afghanistan and Iraq.Col. (Dr.) Dean Bricker, 435th Medical Squadron commander, said he has heard that troops “downrange” are saying “if they can make it to Landstuhl, they know they

  • Deployed Airman, professional boxer traveled hard road

    Senior Airman Elisha Olivas was born a fighter, but she did not enter in the ring until she was 18. Overcoming a childhood where the goals were to stay off the streets and out of jail, she not only beat the odds, but pulled on the boxing gloves and came out on top.The reservist deployed from

  • Chaplain leaves behind horrors of Vietnam, alcohol abuse to find faith

    When a rocket struck Charles Perry’s barracks one sunny day at Phan Rang Air Base, Vietnam, it had a profound impact on his life, but it did not cause him to rediscover his faith.Instead, it opened up more questions. “I used to ask God about all the painful things in my life, especially, ‘Why

  • Like father, like son

    When Master Sgt. Jeffrey Porter left the 321st Special Tactics Squadron at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England, he did not realize he would be stationed with his son. Now, as a radio maintainer with the 720th Operations Support Squadron here, he could not be happier. “It’s like a dream come true,”

  • Maxwell teen graduates college, sisters following in footsteps

    U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice earned her bachelor's degree from the University of Denver at the age of 19. Hannah Harding, daughter of Officer Training School instructor Capt. Kitchener Harding, may be wondering what took her so long.The 17-year-old officially received her Bachelor of

  • Airman takes journey to live ‘American dream’

    An Airman here will never forget what it meant to leave a country plagued with poverty and disease to live the “American dream.”From the verge of death and hopelessness, she journeyed to where “dreams and hopes come true” in America. And, through her quest, Airman Kelemwork Tarriku-Shotts, a 47th

  • Airman loses stripes, gains bars in drug conviction

    People who raise their right hand in allegiance to the military know this promise inherently calls for resolute fearlessness. Last summer, however, one Airman’s involvement with narcotics made him realize there is a fine line between courage and audacity.“I just honestly thought I could never get

  • Jazz night in Baghdad bebops with Airmen’s notes

    If you close your eyes, lick the sand off your teeth and listen, you would swear you had been dropped into some Soho nightclub.Ragamuffin musicians clad in hip suits shuffle in after a meal uptown. Instruments clatter from their cases and get propped on stands. After some quick glad-handing of

  • Airman receives visit from contractor mom in Iraq

    Airman 1st Class Catherine Dilena did not know what to think when her first sergeant dropped by her office and told her to stand by to meet with him in a few minutes.Nervously, the 407th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron client support administrator here waited for him to return, mentally

  • Airmen support counterdrug mission in Manta

    America has 1.4 billion reasons to have a base in this Andean country.That is the amount of drugs -- in dollars -- that did not find their way onto American streets, in part because of counterdrug operations from here.“The war against drugs is important for everyone, not just the United States of