60 Minutes report on Task Force Paladin

60 Minutes did a piece on Task Force Paladin - EOD Techs in Afghanistan. They focused on route clearance. Visit "The Deadliest Weapon" for a video of the broadcast piece plus extras such as "Bomb Squad Training" and "The Deadliest Job."

(Photo: Navy Lt. Jonathan Kehoe, commander, Plt. 602, 63rd Bn., EOD Mobilization Unit 6, attached to 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div., crosses the finish line in 10 minutes and 13 seconds for the Guinness World Record for the fastest mile in a bomb suit at Camp Echo Feb. 2. Photo credit Sgt. Rodney Foliente)

Another Wounded EOD Warrior Event - WEODWF- 2 Day Ride!

All Hands - Read this message from Ens. Matt Byington.

"Hooya, Rembrandt!"

Family and Friends-

As you know, I am currently studying Arabic in the capital city of Amman, Jordan as part of my initial training to become an Explosives Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Officer. This training has been tough, but it has brought me many great experiences and opportunities to grow, such as this month-long immersion. However, another tremendous opportunity has presented itself, one that I need your help to accomplish.

From 13-15 November, a dedicated group of athletes will participate in a fully supported 2-day bike ride from Naval Station Point Mugu south to Liberty Station in San Diego in order to raise money for the Wounded EOD Warrior Foundation. This event provides an opportunity to enjoy one of the most spectacular biking tracks in America, while supporting our Wounded EOD Warriors and their families. All proceeds will go to the WEODWF (www.woundedeodwarrior.org) which funds and supports military EOD families caring for their loved ones at military medical facilities across the country. The resources provided to the families are above and beyond the budgetary constraints of the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs. The resources of the WEODWF are entirely obtained through donations and fund-raising events.

My goal is to raise $750 for this organization. For my part, I will be donating $250 as a start towards this goal. If you would like to help me along in this journey, I (as long as the EOD warriors receiving aid from this fundraiser) would greatly appreciate it.

If you would like to give a monetary donation, be it $5 or $50 or any other amount you would like to donate, please make checks payable to:

WEODWF 2-Day Ride

Also, please send the checks to my address so I can submit them all together. My address is:

5 Sommerset Vale
Monterey, CA 93940

I will be returning to Monterey on 23Oct, and will be submitting donations and the entrance for on 30Oct. However, any donations received after that I will submit prior to the event.

If you have any questions or would like any more information, please do not hesitate to ask. Also, if you know of anyone else that may be interested in donating, please let me know so I can get in contact with them. I hope that life is giving you all the best, and thank you for your support.

Very Respectfully,

ENS Matthew Byington

[Image: Matt Byington running in the Avenue of the Giants Marathon.]

Wounded EOD Warrior Event

Please read all of the information below on an upcoming Wounded EOD Warrior Event. I'm donating a copy of Proximity to the silent auction.

A Brave Warrior, Our Hero: TSgt Michael Williams

On August 2, 2009, Mike Williams, his wife Kristi and son Zachary all discovered how a single step could change their lives. While serving in the United States Air Force in Afghanistan, on a mission to disarm a roadside Improvised Explosive Device (IED), Mike stepped on a landmine and lost his left leg. He is lucky to be alive. His teammates rushed to his aid, grabbing a discarded wheelbarrow to help transport him to a helicopter for evacuation. Even as he was being evacuated, under direct fire, Mike was clutching his weapon and directing his team.

Today, Mike and his family are living at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington D.C. He continues to improve at a fast pace and his spirits are high.

To honor Mike and others that have sacrificed so greatly for our freedom, we will be holding a Chili Dinner Fundraiser. All proceeds will be donated to the Wounded EOD Warrior Foundation. For more information on the foundation or to make an online donation, please visit http://woundedeodwarrior.org/.

WHERE: V.F.W.

10154 Bellwright Rd

Summerville, SC 29483

WHEN: Saturday, October 10, 2009

5 pm until?

WHAT: Food, Music and Fun.

There will also be a silent auction and raffle.

COST: Admission is $10/person and includes chili and the fixins’.

Make your donation and receive a wristband to wear in support of the foundation.

RSVP: Hannah Morris 843-276-5651 or Hannah.morris@threatgroup.com

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

We are currently looking for volunteers and items to be donated so that we may have a raffle to raise additional funds that evening. Do you have contact with a business or private individual that might be willing to donate something of value for our fundraiser? Or do you know someone who might be willing to make a monetary donation? Would you like to donate some of your time or services? If so, please contact:

Hannah Morris

106 S Knightsbridge Ct,

Goose Creek, SC 29445

(843) 276-5651

hannah.morris@threatgroup.com

Please make all checks payable to the WEODWF.

Donation Information:

Contact Name:

Company:

Address:

Email:

Phone:

I would like to sponsor a table at the event: $250. Includes 5 Tickets to chili dinner and recognition/advertising on one of the tables at the event.

I would like to donate an item(s) for the silent auction or raffle.

I would like to make a donation of

Businesses must provide logo to hannah.morris@threatgroup.com by October 5, 2009 to receive proper recognition on all advertising and signage.

All proceeds of the event will be donated to the Wounded EOD Warrior Foundation.

Please make checks payable to the WEODWF and send to:

Hannah Morris

106 S Knightsbridge Ct

Goose Creek, SC 29445

EOD Memorial Support through CFC - #10119

The EOD Memorial features prominently in Proximity. Here is one example from Chapter Twenty-Two:

TWENTY-TWO

Indian Head

The next day Jazz drove the rental car down Indian Head Highway to the main gate of Naval Surface Weapon Station Indian Head. As he passed through, a wave of old feelings returned. He wiped them, reminding himself that he was already a Tech.
He saw the base club, The Powder Keg, on the right hand side. Jazz turned into its lot and parked there.
The memorial was not far. Jazz always paused when he first saw the four obelisks of granite each with the seal of one of the four services on top. Under each seal were bronze plaques bearing the names of EOD Techs who died in the line of duty.
Jazz was first drawn to the list under the seal of the United States Navy. Its most recent addition was an instructor Jazz knew as a student.

GMC (EOD/PJ) Stephen J. Morris, USN

Morris died in a training accident the very day Jazz graduated. Jazz was on leave and did not hear the news until he reported in at Mobile Unit Six. As he looked at the name, Jazz recalled the cold November mornings less than two years before, his class standing in shorts on pool deck. He remembered Morris, warm in a sweatsuit with coffee in hand, the class taskmaster.
“Get in the water!”
“Hooya!” the students would yell as they plunged into the cold water. Morris would wait a moment until a quorum of his charges was shivering.
“Anyone wanna quit?”
There would not be an answer.
“Ten thousand yards, crawl. Go!”
Upon finishing the swim, the students were required to exit the pool and get into the ‘leaning rest,’ the pushup position until the last of their classmates finished the swim. Jazz recalled looking at Morris’ boots as he stood in front of him.
“Mister Jascinski, you had better square these people away. Two more failed room inspections yesterday. Come by after class today and we’ll discuss.”
“Aye, aye, Chief!”
Jazz looked to the Army column.

Timothy A. West, Sgt USA

Cameron P. Martin, Sgt USA

Jazz still struggled with his role in their deaths. He made the phone call that set their demise in motion.
There was a noise behind him. Jazz turned around to see a fossil of a man in a short-sleeved shirt with a bow tie. The man was stooped and wore thick glasses. He had long ago ceased combing the thin wiry hair on his head that matched the bush in his ears.
“Zero eight five eight,” he said.
“Excuse me?” replied Jazz.
“Zero eight five eight.”
“Uh, was that your class number, sir?”
“No. Ever heard of the Combined Federal Campaign?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Get a pen and write it down. Zero eight five eight,” the white Yoda growled as if Jazz was negligent to not have known and remembered this important number.
Jazz nervously pulled a pen from his shirt pocket. He then extracted an old receipt from his wallet.
“Zero eight five eight,” the man repeated.
Jazz mimicked as he wrote it down. “Zero eight five eight.”
“What is it?” he asked.
“The number for the EOD Memorial Scholarship Fund in the Combined Federal Campaign. I assume you are a student?”
“I graduated a few months ago. I’m Lieutenant James Jascinski,” he said extending his hand.
“Nice to meet you, sir. I’m Sergeant Horace Pickney, United States Army Retired. I’m one of the curators for the EOD Memorial and the scholarship fund. Army? Navy?”
“Navy.”
“Are you here for someone in particular? That chief who was an instructor I guess.”
Jazz studied the sergeant’s face. He noticed that his eyes were glossy and that his teeth were stained from cigarettes and coffee. When he raised his bushy eyebrows in anticipation, Jazz snapped back.
“Uh, yes. The chief, and the two most recent Army Techs from Texas.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. I didn’t know them directly, but we kinda worked together. How about you, do you know any of these men?”
The old man smiled at Jazz. “Well, Lieutenant, I’ve only met four of them, but I know all of ‘em.”


I wrote of the EOD Memorial and Foundation as a means to entertain, but also to educate my readers to this important effort. Now more than ever, we must help those who serve, especially the families of the fallen. This is best expressed in a letter sent by Jim O’Neil – Executive Director of the Foundation. Note that the Memorial’s CFC number is now 10119.




Date: September 8, 2009

To: The EOD Community & Friends

Subj: CFC Contributions

Greetings to all. This is the time of year when the CFC Campaign commences and we all will be asked to assist many worthwhile organizations and causes. I would however, ask each of you, and those to consider The EOD Memorial Foundation as your organization of choice.

In 2008, we lost six exceptional EOD Technicians who were placed upon the EOD Memorial. As of this date in 2009, we have lost nine gallant warriors. Hopefully, we will have no more. Please keep their families and fellow techs in your thoughts and prayers.

In 2009, the EOD Memorial Foundation: a) approved $100,000 in scholarships to the children and spouses of the EOD community; b) paid for the travel costs associated with the family members attendance at the EOD Memorial Service and Ball; c) Spent over $75,000 in the upgrade, maintenance, and expansion of the EOD Memorial.

We are exploring ways in which we can expand our services and support for the families of our fallen as well as the EOD community in general. Your ideas or suggestions are welcome. To be successful, we need your help. I am asking that you contribute as much as you comfortably can, but at least ten dollars ($10.00) per month. I am also asking that each of you make a personal effort to encourage your fellow EOD techs and work associates to do the same. Please send them to our website (www.eodmemorial.org).

Our CFC Identification Number is: 10119. Say it again: 10119.

Fellow EOD Warriors, we need your assistance. Please call if you need any additional information or if your workplace would host a presentation. We are ready to assist you to assist us in any way we can. Thank you!! We Remember.

V/R,

Jim O’Neil
Executive Director
Jim.oneil@eodmemorial.org
www.eodmemorial.org
813-389-0351

(Photo: The EOD Memorial as it appeared in Indian Head, MD.)

Author Stephen Phillips on facebook

For readers who are on facebook - I have established a facebook fan page. It can be found at: http://www.fbook.me/Author_Stephen_Phillips [U.S. Navy Photo of EOD crabs to be awarded at NAVSCOLEOD graduation ceremony]