Mountain Ranger Battalion Mountain Ranger Battalion

Mountain Ranger BattalionNEWSLETTERSpring Semester – Issue #2 April 07, 2008AInside• Farewell MRB• Why are you Here• Alumni Tales• The Bronze Star Medal• From First Sergeant toLieutenant• Air Assault at Fort Campbell• Cadets of the MonthCadre’sCornerFarewell MRBBy MSG George VegaMountain Ranger Battalion(MRB) it has been an honorto meet, instruct, and workwith all the great professionalofficers, noncommissionedofficers, COMTek, NSPS,and Cadets. Words couldnever express the thanks and appreciation to allyou Cadets who have raised your hand toanswer the call to our nation. I feel confidentthat the ROTC program will provide the Cadetsthe confidence, knowledge, discipline andcharacter to become outstanding officers. Itwill provide skills needed to motivate and leadthe nation’s sons and daughters in service or incombat.As I finish my third year as your SeniorMilitary Instructor, let me ensure you, that allof you are in great hands. This team isdedicated and committed to training, coaching,and mentoring each and every Cadet. Theprogram provides you with the necessary toolsneeded to attend and graduate Warrior Forge,BOLC I, II, and III.As you continue though your studiesyou must give 110% in everything you do fromclass, PT, and the MRB FTX. The experiencesand lessons learned from these training eventsare the backbone of the learning process; do notmiss out. Continue to focus on your GPA, andtake advantage of the MRB Academic BattleBuddy program; the key is early notification tostart the tutoring. My experience with theArmy is that the Army is an open book test andso is ROTC. Use all resources available: Cadre,Cadets, Internet, and the MRB ABB.Before you know it, you will becommissioned and on your way to BOLC.Take your tool box with you, use all the toolsyou have learned, and don’t be afraid of anytask to which you are assigned. Remember theArmy is an open book test, someone has done itbefore you, open the book and look for theMRB NEWSLETTER1

answer. As you assume command of your firstPlatoon, my recommendation to you is to findthe balance in the Army’s fast training tempo.“Balancing”: balancing is the key, balance yourPlatoons training, family, and friends. Rewardand punish accordingly; it’s about taking careof Soldiers. This will build a strong bondwithin your platoon. I want you to know it hasbeen my honor to have crossed paths with oneof the very best ROTC programs in WesternerRegion.Sergeant.What a defining moment it was for mein my military career and lucky for me it wason my first day. During Drill Sergeant Clara’srelentless shark attack, she brought up a greatpoint—why was I in the army? The questionwas not that easy to answer—at least not inbasic training.Why are youHere?By Cadet CSM Derek TorresI remember, not too longago, Day 1 of Basic Training ina place called Fort LeonardWood. I was “resting” in thefront lean and rest position,while thinking to myself “whatthe hell did I get myself into?”Drill Sergeant Clara was walking around,yelling at us for what seemed to be for noapparent reason, when suddenly she stoppedand squatted down right in front of me, then ina raspy voice asked “Why the hell are youhere Private Torrez?” At the time, I wasnot thinking straight and I replied “toblow s#!t up?” What a dumbanswer, especially for a private whowas reporting to medic training rightafter Basic. Before I realized what adumb answer it was, the whole platoonwas doing push-ups all because of me. Was itbecause of my response? No. In my mumbledresponse of wanting to become MedicalExplosives Expert (which to my knowledgedoesn’t exist) I forgot to end myremark with the two importantwords that made all thedifference in the world at FortLost in the Woods—DrillAfter graduation from Basic and AIT, Iwas deployed to Germany where I found theanswer to Drill Sergeant Clara’s burningquestion. I worked in the Deployed WarriorMedical Management Center in Landstuhl. Ona daily basis we were receiving and treatinganywhere from 90 to 250 soldiers injured inIraq and Afghanistan. Quickly it becameapparent to me. This was why I joined. Notfor money or school. Not for an enlistmentbonus. Not for the women my recruiterpromised (although the job has its perks). No!I joined to serve a cause that was greater thanmyself. Words like patriotism, duty, honor andcamaraderie took on a deeper meaning for meas they replaced my response of “to blow s#!tup?” It was my time overseas that helped mefind my purpose in the military—oddly enough,two years later I would be commissioned a 2 ndLieutenant in the Armor branch so that Icould—that’s right—blow sh!t up.Anyway, the point of this article is getcadets to ask themselves the same importantMRB NEWSLETTER2

question that Drill Sergeant Clara asked me—why are you here? What do you want to do inthis army? This is a question to answer foryourself. In a day where it is highly likely thatthose who serve will be deployed to a warzone,will you be the one complaining “I didn’t signup for this.” Or, will you be the dutiful leaderthat others look to and remember in a positivelight years later? I leave this for you to answer.Finally, before I go, I would like wishour soon to be Lieutenants the best of luck.Remember, this is just the beginning. Continueto be the best leaders you can. To the rest ofthe MRB, this program is YOURS and dependsheavily upon you. Help it grow so that theMRB can continue to produce the bestLieutenants possible.Farewell MRB. CDT/CSM Torrez—over and out (that’s an LDAC joke).Alumni TalesMRB FOR LIFE!!!By CPT Wayne R. KeelerWell the Spring Break isover, school is back in sessionand I am certain that the MRBis back training hard. In caseyou are interested, I am CPTWayne R. Keeler, MRB/UCCSClass of '00. I was anadvanced program Cadet recruited from 1-68AR, 3BCT, 4ID, FT Carson through "Greento Gold" in late 1998. I was on the RangerChallenge Team and MSG Celestino was noless tough on us then than I am sure he still is.I used to grunt over having very short legs andhaving to work so hard to keep up on the ruckmarches (I was also 32 at the time), butMSG Celestino would stand next to meand say, "yep, mine are shorter...nowmove out." As an Armor guy, theinfantry-centric training seemedirrelevant to me in many ways. Little did Iknow how wrong I was.After commissioning immediate activeduty in May '00, I went to Armor Officer Basicat FT Knox, and then to 1-13AR, 3BCT, 1AD,FT Riley, KS, where I was a Tank PlatoonLeader, B CO Executive Officer, and BNSupport Platoon Leader. While B CO XO, wedeployed to OIF I in March 2003. I wasMEDEVACed in January 2004, went to theArmor Captain's Career Course at Knox, andthen reported to Grafenwoehr, Germany, towork for MG Mark Hertling on the staff of theDirectorate of Training. I volunteered inDecember 2005 to go back to Iraq as an IraqiNational Police Transition Team DeputyChief. After a year of long days on patrol, onthe live fire range training, and in the shoothouse our Iraqi Cops were reliable, which wasa huge improvement from a year ago. Bothdeployments to Iraq proved to me that even as aTanker, I was as likely to pound pavement as Iwas to crank throttles. I grew to appreciate theexposure to the intensified infantry training wereceived through Ranger Challenge.After returning from Iraq, I took commandof Delta Company, 1-4IN at Hohenfels,Germany. We are the only Tank Company inEurope task organized permanently to aninfantry battalion and the largest TankCompany in the U.S. Army. Wereplicate ARMORED OPFORformations for units who come toHohenfels for pre-deployment rotationsMRB NEWSLETTER3

and mission rehearsal exercises. Additionally,we regularly replicate insurgent cells in adismounted mode or civilians on the battlefield(COBs). I had been the Commander no morethan a few months however, when the BCinformed me that we were going to deploy inthe "new year" in support of the InternationalSecurity Assistance Force (ISAF) in RC-South,Afghanistan. Beginning in August 2007, "TMDRAGON" began training as MotorizedInfantry and building our team. Trainingeverything from Advanced RifleMarksmanship, to Combatives, to CombatLifesaving, to Warrior tasks and drills, weeventually completed Squad Live Fire andSquad Certification. Our men did great, andwhen we did our own pre-deployment MissionRehearsal Exercise in the German Alps inDecember, the Dragons exceeded myexpectations. We will be deployed toAfghanistan by next month. Though we are aTank Company, we will have no M1A1s (M1Abrams Tanks) and one of my Platoons willoperate exclusively dismounted.Two of my Tank Platoon leaders are actuallyRanger School graduates 11As who havetrained their Tank Armor Crewmen to beinfantrymen. It is an awesome partnership andquite common in the modern combat armsarena. I additionally have al type of supportSoldiers who contribute greatly to the team. Asa Comat Arms Officer, I never thought I'd bepresented the opportunity to work with femaleSoldiers in my formation but I also have afemale E-7 as my Logistics NCOIC. She is aninvaluable member of the team.So what am I trying to convey with all of this,you ask? The bottom line is this: In May 2000when LTC(R) Ralf Zimmerman pinned 2LTbars on my greens, I thought I'd spend the bulkof my officership doing Tank Gunnery andNTC Rotations aboard an M1A1 Tank. As itis, nothing could be further from the truth. Ihave spent the greater part of my officer careermanaging persons of mixed MOS, gender, andnationality. Individually, I have spent moretime staring through a rifle’s sight than a TankCommanders Sight Extension and I have wornout more boots than track pads. To make a longstory short, be flexible. We live in a world thatis ever changing and the military arena yougrow up in will not be the environment youretire from. Embrace the training opportunitiesthat are presented to you because you maynever get another before having to execute inreal life. Rehearse, rehearse, and rehearse!Last, but not least, remember that you area warrior and part of a continuum that has beenever-present in the fighting peoples of theworld. Weather you invoke the spirit ofCharles Martell or Bodacia, Sitting Bull, LTJohn Rouse Merriot Chard, SGT Alvin York,SSG Lafayette Poole or SP5 Dwight Johnson orany of the other uncommon warriors that camebefore you, their spirit is in you.The Warriors of 1-4 Infantry is the currenthome of two former MountainRangers: 2LT JJ Tomberlin and I are here.2LT Tomberlin has an infantry platoon in BCO.Respectfully,Wayne R. KeelerCPT, ARCommanderD Company, 1st BN, 4th IN REG, OPFORMRB NEWSLETTER4

The Bronze StarMedalBy Cadet WilliamsThe Bronze Star Medal(BSM) is a United States ArmedForces individual militarydecoration, which is awarded forbravery, acts of merit, ormeritorious service. Whenawarded for bravery, it is the fourth-highestcombat award of the U.S.The medal may be awarded for Valor,which in this case is accompanied with anattached V device or it may be awarded forMeritorious Achievement, where the medaldoes not have a valor component and does nothave an attached V device denoting Valor.Most of the bronze stars awarded aremeritorious and do not have the V device.The V device is not to be confused withbronze service stars, which are worn oncampaign medals and service awards. TheBronze Star Medal is typically referred byits full name (including the word “Medal”).The BSM is awarded to a member ofthe military who, while serving in or with themilitary of the United States after 6 December1941, distinguished him or herself throughheroic or meritorious achievement of service(this does not involve participation in aerialflight during an engagement with an enemy ofthe United States). The BSM is awarded tothose engaged in military operations involvingconflict with an opposing foreign force or whileserving with friendly foreign forces engaged inan armed conflict against an opposing armedforce.To be eligible for the BSM, a militarymember must be receiving hostilefire/imminent danger pay during the event forwhich the medal is to be awarded. As of 30October 2000, the BSM is no longer awarded toDepartment of Defense (DOD) civilians.The Bronze Star Medal was conceived byColonel Russell P. “Red” Reeder in 1943,who believed it would aid morale if therewas a medal which could be awarded bycaptains of companies or batteries todeserving people serving under them.Reeder felt the medal should be a groundequivalent of the Air Medal and proposed thatthe new award be called the “Ground Medal.”The idea eventually rose through the ranks andgained support. It was General George C.Marshall, who wrote a memorandum toPresident Franklin D. Roosevelt dated 3February 1944. President Roosevelt approvedthe award in less than 24 hours, authorizing theBronze Star Medal by Executive Order 9419,dated 4 February 1944, retroactive to 7December 1941. The first recipient of the BSMis unknown.The biggest achievement of my militarycareer was receiving the BSM for meritoriousservice as a Scout Platoon Sergeant during mylast deployment to Northern Iraq.MRB NEWSLETTER5

From FirstSergeant toLieutenantBy Cadet Lauro PerezMany Soldiers ask me “Why1SG, why the change now”,and the first thing that I thinkabout is my family. I trulyenjoyed being the 1SG of acompany and being in chargeof a few hundred Soldiers, butas life and age crept upon meand as I realize that my little girl is 7 going on21, I wanted to be able to retire from thiswonderful life by serving my country andproviding for my family many years after myretirement.So while at home recovering fromsurgery from an injury sustained in Iraq, mywife said, “honey why don’t you finish yourAssociates Degree from home so you’re notso bored” and I replied, “good idea honey.” Afew term papers and final exams later, I finallyfinished what I started when I was just a privateand graduated with an Associate’s Degree fromCentral Texas College. The moment I receivedmy diploma, my wife asked me if I couldbecome an officer now. Itold her no, because Ihad to have a BachelorsDegree. She immediatelyreplied, “well, what youwaiting for FirstSergeant, get busy.” Istarted to laugh and sheimmediately replied,“that wasn’t a joke.”So this is where myjourney began; the very next day (Tuesdaymorning) while driving to work, I noticedthe Green to Gold sign on the side of the roadon Fort Carson. I gave myself a little giggle andthen remembered the words my wife uttered,“I’m not joking.” That same morning I dialedthe number that was on the sign and spoke withCPT Hageman and told her who I was and thatI was interested in the Green to Gold Program,She told me she was giving a briefing that sameday at 1200hrs at the education center. As I satin my office contemplating whether to go tothis briefing, my commander walked into myoffice and said how happy he was to just havefinished his Masters Degree and showed me hisdiploma that he had just received in the mail.I once again started to laugh and he askedme what I was laughing about, so I told himabout the conversation I had with my wifeand all the “signs” that I was receiving. BeforeI could continue, my commander immediatelysaid, “First Sergeant, do it. I will gladly write arecommendation for you; this Army needsgood officers and great leaders like yourself.”Needless to say, I went to that briefing and mygoal of becoming Sergeant Major of the Armyquickly changed.To continue answering the question“why”, why drop my position as a 1SG to aLieutenant, I would like to think the only thingI am changing is receiving an education and adegree. I am still going to be the leadereveryone knows me to be. I might have been anex-drill sergeant and an ex-First Sergeant, but Iwill never be an ex-leader. I will always leadfrom the front and share my knowledge andexperiences. I have always told my Soldiersit does not matter what rank you are, you donot have to wait for the rank to become aleader.MRB NEWSLETTER6

Air Assault atFort CampbellBy Cadet Nathan ShillAir Assault is aschool that challengesyou both physically andmentally. The first day,“Zero Day,” starts witha smoke session, adetailed inspection, follow by the obstaclecourse, and ends with a two mile run. Failure tocomplete the events resulted in an immediatefailure of the school. You are also issued an airassault manual (which you will startmemorizing), plus a packing list. The studentlearns to say “Air Assault” every time his rightfoot strikes the ground. The followingcouple of weeks consisted of tough PT,extended classroom instruction, hands ontraining in the humid Kentucky heat, andlong evenings of studying the manual.PT consisted of many long runs and logPT. Falling out of a run was an automaticfailure. The classroom instruction was long anddetailed, causing many students to fall asleepand be suspended. The classes were on combatassault, sling-load operations, and rappelling.After formal instruction, we would beevaluated with hands on training. Here wewould rappel off the tower with and withoutgear, fast-rope, sling load aircraft, and identifydeficiencies in sling loads. The heat made itthat much moredifficult to stayfocused and on yourtoes as youprogressed throughthe school. At the endof a long day you justwanted to sleep, butinstead you had tostudy the manual andtriple check yourpacking list for thenext day of training. All the while, attention todetail is paramount. You must always be in thecorrect uniform and have all the neededequipment. The littlest thing, like a missingearplug or a piece of paper falling out of youpocket while rappelling, could be enough to getthe student out of the school. A new studentmust pass numerous written tests, spotdeficiencies in sling loads, and be tested onseveral different rappelling techniquesincluding one from a Blackhawk. The lastday is graduation. Before you can receiveyour wings however, you get up at about0200 and complete a 12 mile ruck immediatelyfollowed by an inspection. If you are a secondlate on the ruck, or are missing a single itemfrom the packing list, you go home withoutyour wings and without graduating.For me the school was a greatexperience that has helped influence mydecision on what branch I would like to go. Tocadets heading to Air Assault, I wouldrecommend preparing for the school studyingthe manual and understanding everything thatis expected of you. I would encourage cadets toattend Air Assault for its training and the senseof pride you get after completing the school.MRB NEWSLETTER7

Cadets of theMonthI am Cadet Matthew Manka.Currently I am a MS I majoringin Electrical Engineering.What does it mean to be Cadetof the Month? I don't havemuch to say. I guess it is nice tobe appreciated and noticed fordoing something even if it was what was justexpected of me as a cadet.I am Cadet AndrewWooldridge. Currently I am aMS II and I am majoring inOrganizational Communication.What does being cadet of themonth mean to me? To me,being cadet of the month meansthat I am doing well and it’s encouraging to berecognized for it. It also meant that I could buythree more months of Xbox Live. ThanksMRB, HOOAH! I can be a nerd for 3 moremonths.As for words of encouragement, for those thatparticipated in the Death March, I salute you!Hello fellow MRB cadets!For those of you who don’tknow me I’m Cadet MariaOrozco. I’m getting mybachelors degree in ProjectManagement. I was awardedcadet of the month during myMS III class and I want tothank everyone who voted.I know most of us put our best efforts ineverything we do. Being cadet of the monthjust means that someone is watching and ourhard work does not go unnoticed. I encourageeveryone to be the best in STX lanes, landnavigation, PT, and to continue to participate inthe extra curricular activities of the program.ScholarshipsTel. (719) 262-3475MRB NEWSLETTER8