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November 5th, 2009 was the day that changed my life for good. The day started off at the hotel at MEPS. Get up early, get dressed, eat breakfast, and get on the bus for the short ride over to the MEPS station. I had already been to MEPS before, so this trip wasn't the first, but this was the most significant so far...enlistment day. As alot of you know MEPS is alot of waiting around. This is what I did most of the morning. I just waited for the liasion office to call me in to sign my...read more
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No more is this phrase more true than when you are performing a night stand off jump (High Altitude High Opening) or HAHO. This is a highly technical insertion technique performed by highly trained and skilled Special Operations Soldiers allowing them to fly to an intended target. Before you make a HAHO jump you must first clear the airspace up to the altitude in which you are going to make your jump. The last thing you need as a non powered wing pilot is a commuter airplane flying through...read more
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As a young boy I was always fascinated with planes and birds. Imagine being able to fly like a bird, or a plane. I spent a lot of time climbing trees and swinging from old ropes tied from the large oak limbs in the woods just behind our house. On occasion I would lose my grip on the rope and send myself ripping through the saplings and underbrush coming to a halt soundly on the ground. Well being the curious kid I was my friends and I decided to try out some theories on sustained flight from...read more
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It is said that our lives are shaped by significant emotional events that challenge the very spirit within each of us. How we deal with these events build character, confidence, and personal courage. The courage to push through things that you may not have thought possible, either physically or mentally. This story is of an event that tested my limits... I was sitting in a room full of fellow Soldiers getting a briefing from our training NCO, when he stated to the group that we had a slot...read more
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21 May 2010, United States Army Parachute Team Headquarters 1000 hours... As the skies above Fort Bragg were filled with red smoke trailing from the Soldiers jumping the distinctive Army colors of Black and Gold opening a Special Ceremony off Butner Road at the Headquarters of the United States Army Parachute Team, the winds of change were upon us. Why all the fan fare, people gathering around the Headquarters, Flags lining the Sidewalks, chairs neatly placed in...read more
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As a young man growing up in Daytona Beach, Florida I stood at a cross road in my life deciding what I was going to do with my life. Like most people my age I made no preparations for life after High School. I took the ASVAB test just to get out of my English class for a few hours. I guess I did well as I recieved several post cards from the Marine Corps and the Army. They were prompty cast away as junk mail, surely I was going to go on to bigger and better things in life,...read more
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This week, my battle buddy(DS Oskouei) and myself will be in Madison, Wisconsin and the surrounding areas talking and motivating high school students by way of PT and telling them how the Army values are our foundation to leadership as well as success in life. We will also be doing a future soldier event in Middleton, WI and the Warrior Drill Challenge Competition in Milwakee, WI. The participants will be recognized at the Milwakee Bucks basketball game and also a luncheon that will...read more
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It wasn't only until about a year ago when I became introduced to the large black and gold leadership patch that many ROTC cadets proudly bear on their left shoulder. With seven years prior enlisted service, as a long-time national guard soldier, I can't say that my progression through college (in pursuit of my nursing degree) was actually the 'norm'. In fact, with a deployment to Afghanistan under my belt, as well as numerous state and federal activations (Hurricane Katrina Relief, etc...),...read more
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