wolverzine news letter september
DESCRIPTION
TRANSCRIPT
As you read this, the Outlaws
should be more than half way
done with their con-
struction missions at Ft.
Riley. The local leader-
ship is already more than
pleased with the quality
construction we are
providing. We are mak-
ing Ft. Riley a better
place to train and work.
My hat’s off to the Out-
laws.
Currently we are preparing for
our field training exercise at Ft.
Riley. This FTX, sandwiched
between Columbus weekend and
Halloween, will ensure we main-
tain our war fighting skills. I
know we are good at construc-
tion; it’s operating in a hostile
environment that we must con-
Wolverines,
We are now officially busy!
Thanks to the planning efforts of
the battalion staff, and the prepa-
ration efforts of the companies,
we are executing multiple pro-
jects at Ft. Leonard Wood, Ft.
Riley, and in Columbus, NM. We
have accumulated enough con-
struction requests to keep us
busy through next fall. This is
good news; the Soldiers I talk to
are excited to be doing their
jobs. By holiday time, we will be
ready to take a little break and
spend some quality family time.
Congratulations to the Warriors
of the 232nd Engineer Company
for a first class performance at
Camp Atterbury in August. I
think the Army’s leaders of do-
mestic response missions now
have a better understanding of
the awesome capability of a hori-
zontal Engineer company. Addi-
tionally, the 232nd
has a better feel
for the mission
they may get called
to do in the next
year. While the
Warriors trained
on cleaning up
after a disaster, the
Vipers almost got
to do exactly that.
US Forces Command alerted
units all across America to come
to the aid of those in need on
the East Coast in the wake of
Hurricane Irene. The 103rd
jumped through hoops to be
ready to drive to the East Coast,
but alas the damage was not as
bad as expected. A disciplined
response; my appreciation for
being ready in such short notice.
This month, as the Nation re-
members such a huge and tragic
loss of lives during the 9-11 at-
tacks, as well as the too-
numerous-to-count deployments
that have followed, I am starkly
reminded of how blessed and
lucky I am to have my own Fam-
ily back together AND to join an
amazing group of Families, Sol-
diers and friends here with the
Wolverines. I cannot properly
put in words my THANKS to the
many people (CSM Keel &
Sheree, Stephanie Leary, Corlee
Winkler, Jenny Petty, the FRG
leaders, and many, many more)
who have opened their hearts of
friendship to the girls and me as
we settle in to Fort Leonard
Wood after our move from Vir-
ginia. Since this Army thing is a
whole Family affair, I must also
thank my Mom for once again
stepping in to help us while we
got our dual military assignments
From the Command
Spouse Greetings
The Wolverzine S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 9 4 T H E N G I N E E R B A T T A L I O N
F R G
M E E T I N G S :
HHC FRG - 5:30,
2nd Tues, Piney
Hills Comm. Cen-
ter
FSC FRG - 5:30, 1st
Tues, Stonegate
Comm. Center
77th FRG - 5:30, 1st
Tues, Specker
Chapel
103rd FRG - 5:30,
1st Thurs, USO
232nd FRG - 5:30,
2nd Tues, Company
I N S I D E
T H I S I S S U E :
HHC 3
FSC 4
77th 5
103rd 6
232nd 7
AFTB 8
Milestones 9
Continued on page 2
Continued on page 2
P A G E 2
Greetings cont’d
Command cont’d tinue to train on. These are
the Soldier skills that will en-
sure we all come home from
whenever we get “the call”.
Predictability in our schedule is
one of my focus areas. We
have a very good idea where
everyone will be from now
until Christmas. If you don’t
know what’s going on in your
team; ask your chain of com-
mand. They know. Speaking
of Christmas, we are already
deep into planning for the
Wolverine Ball on the 2nd of
December (thanks to MAJ
Petty). This is going to be a
first class event. I will tell you
now it will not be mandatory.
Having said that; we are mak-
ing it a special time that most
of us will “want” to go to.
More details will be available in
the coming weeks.
All of the company changes of
command are complete for
this Summer, so our teams
should be stable from now
until then. The next big
changes will be the loss of MAJ
(P) Winkler to Brigade staff
this Winter, and the change
out of Command Sergeant
Major Keel with CSM J. John-
son sometime this Spring. As
always, a “shout out” to
Stephanie Leary who does so
much for our families, but
refuses to take credit for any-
thing.
We’ve got about a month and
a half of sprinting left to do,
then we can settle down into a
garrison routine, and the holi-
day season. Please stay safe.
Wolverine 6
LTC Gary Calese
aligned. In my few weeks of
being here, I am over-
whelmed by the great team
spirit you all have. I am also
awestruck by how many
opportunities there are to be
involved in the community
and just have fun together. I
look forward to helping the
Families in any way that I can.
T H E W O L V E R Z I N E
FRG Leader Contact Info
HHC
Shelly Hughes
FSC
Melissa Simulcik
Robin Edwards
77th
Angie Bryant
103rd
Amanda Almeida
Oyu McGlothlin
232nd
Mara Tate
Through the month of Octo-
ber especially, I am hoping we
can get our Families together
while the Battalion is away for
training. The Family Readiness
Groups and our Battalion
FRSA are working on some
great ideas that involve the
whole range of Wolverine
Family age groups and inter-
ests. I look forward to seeing
you at these events and
around the community.
Laura Calese
Battalion Senior Advisor
See pages 8
and 10 for
more info on
the AFTB
program.
To the Soldiers, Families, and
Friends of the HHC Head Hunters:
Summer is drawing to a close, and
we are enjoying the cooler weather
over the last few weeks.
We have stayed busy this summer
with a Range density at FT Chaffee,
AR. This was my first training ex-
ercise as the new HHC com-
mander, and it was a great experi-
HHC Headhunter Headlines
P A G E 3 9 4 T H E N G I N E E R B A T T A L I O N
ence for me to get to know the
Soldiers.
On 30 June, we welcomed back
SGT Fleming and the six other
Soldiers of the 562nd Fire Fighter
detachment returned from a year
long deployment to FOB Wolver-
ine, Afghanistan.
This month the 83rd Concrete De-
tachment is transferring to the
103rd EN Co, where they will have
more opportunity to assist in con-
struction projects and make con-
crete.
The next big event for the Battalion
is our FTX from 12 -29 October at
FT Riley, KS. HHC will be playing a
critical role in supporting the train-
ing of the other companies while
we also conduct individual training,
a range density where we will fire
all of our weapons system, a con-
voy live fire exercise. We antici-
pate this being a very rewarding
and productive time.
You can keep in touch and stay
informed by checking out our Face-
book page: http://
www.facebook.com/pages/94th-
Engineer-HHC-
FRG/178770138816962
Lindsay and I look forward to get-
ting to know all of you more during
our time together.
CPT Aaron Ferguson
Hello, my name is Rachelle Hughes,
and I am the new FRG leader for
HHC. I am married to PFC Hughes.
We have been married for 8 years.
We have six children; Anthony, 20,
Samantha, 19, Endya, 16, Chantelle,
12, Ean, 10, and Xavye, 4. I was
born and raised in Saint Louis. We
have been here at Fort Leonard
Wood for 4 years now.
I am happy that the 94th has em-
braced me to be the FRG Leader. I
have a lot of exciting ideas for ac-
tivities that we can do as a group. I
am looking forward to having a
Spouse’s Ice Cream Social, where
all the wives can get together and
meet. We are going to have the 1st
Annual Madden 2012 Tournament
Fundraiser, October 1st at the Piney
Hills Center. I am going to find out
how many would like to have a 94th
HHC Family Game Night once a
month or every other month.
Anyone with any ideas of activities
they would like to have are wel-
come to call me or email me their
ideas. I am hoping that I am able to
add a little spice to our Company.
Here is my contact information;
email – [email protected]
or phone – (573) 452-2196.
FRG Leader Nook
Wolverine Olympics Day 9/1/11
FRG volunteers Dominicha Anderson, Shelly
Hughes & Tina Balvanz working a fundraiser
P A G E 4
FRG Leader Nook
FSC Spartan Word Hello Wolverine, and espe-
cially Spartan, families! As the
new FSC Commander, this is
my first Wolverzine. Some of
you have already had a chance
to meet me and my wife,
Melissa; I look forward to
meeting the rest of you as time
goes on.
We will be having monthly
FRG meetings on the first
Tuesday of every month unless
holidays or other events inter-
fere. In this, I have taken MG
Quantock’s advice to heart; if
the Commander doesn’t want
to be at the meeting, families
won’t want to be at the meet-
ing. I will try to hold meetings
in conjunction with fun things,
such as mini-golf, go-carts, or
whatever else the families want
to do.
The primary purpose is to link
the families together and with
the chain of command, so that
we know each other and can
help each other. We will have
guest speakers about programs
you request information on,
and we will discuss the com-
pany’s upcoming battle rhythm
so that you can plan family
time around those times when
the Army needs your Soldier
to be away.
CPT Joshua Simulcik
season approaches, remember
that we are all “family” and
here to help each other. Please
feel free to contact me if there
is anything I can do to help you
or your family.
Melissa Simulcik
(410)790-8115
Robin Edwards
(870)688-3833
T H E W O L V E R Z I N E
Summer was a busy time with
lots of change for the FSC! I
have enjoyed getting to meet
many of the FSC families and
look forward to spending time
with you in the coming
months.
The FSC Organizational Day
was fun for everyone, and our
FRG meetings are shaping up
to be enjoyable as well. It was
great to have so many families
come out for mini-golf at our
September meeting. We hope
to keep combining “sharing
information” with “family fun”
at future meetings. I hope you
will feel free to share your
suggestions for FRG activities
and meeting programs.
The coming months will be
busy and exciting for Soldiers
and Family members. As the
sometimes-stressful holiday
77th Rock Steady Report
P A G E 5 9 4 T H E N G I N E E R B A T T A L I O N
OUTLAW FAMILIES
The last 30 days have been quite
busy for the Outlaws. It started
with conducting a detailed inven-
tory of ALL the Company’s equip-
ment and tools. The Soldiers were
motivated and cheerful during this
long, hot, monotonous time. Thank
You!
Thanks to all Outlaws especially
CPT Brent Hamilton and 1SG
Barkefelt for the coordination of an
OUTSTANDING Change of Com-
mand. There were many compli-
ments and praise for the Soldiers of
the 77th. Great Job Outlaws!!
As you know, the majority of the
Company (1st and 3rd PLTs with
HQ) has been up at Ft Riley, KS
constructing various projects for
most of September. 1st Platoon has
the job of building 3 wood buildings
and a guard tower. 3rd Platoon’s
projects at Ft Riley consist of con-
structing sidewalks and a concrete
staircase. Both Platoons have done
a great job and are ahead of sched-
ule.
2nd Platoon is finishing up their pro-
ject at Thayer Elementary School,
which is looking good and has been
a great opportunity to get back into
construction mode.
I’d, also, like to take the time to
introduce myself, CPT Ben Ashton,
my wife Emily and 3 kids Kate (4),
Anna (2), and James (5 months).
We are happy to be here and look
forward to meeting all of you.
Those of you we have met have
done a tremendous job of welcom-
ing us and we thank you for your
efforts, they are greatly appreci-
ated.
CPT Ben Ashton
Gilmore, Sgt. Linden and SSG
Bannister.
Gifts we provided by FRG Mem-
bers and we had a lot of fun with
the Baby Shower Games.
At BN Sports Day the FRG pro-
vided Soldiers and Families with
hamburgers and hotdogs and a BIG
thank you to 1SG Barkafelt for
providing Chips and Drinks!
Our Soldiers are currently partici-
pating in a Construction Project at
Ft. Riley and the BN FTX will fol-
low. We will hold our normal
meetings to keep everyone upto
date, and to begin planning fundrais-
ers and specifics concerning our
Holiday Get Together. Volunteer
positions are available, we are in
need of fresh new faces and ideas!!
Angie Bryant
(573)647-6268
77th FRG Hosted a Pool Party for
the Company. We had a great turn
out and it was nice to see everyone
and bring the summer to an end!
The 77th said farewell to Cpt.
Brent Hamilton and his wife Dani at
the Change of Command Cere-
mony and welcomed Cpt. Ashton
and his wife Emily.
We hosted Our first FRG Baby
Shower for four of our expecting
Spouses / Soldiers; Sgt. Collins, Spc.
FRG Leader Nook
Angie setting up food for
the FRG Family Day
Change of Command
P A G E 6
FRG Leader Nook
103rd Viper Bytes Hello Vipers and families, the
last few months have been
very busy for the 103rd. We
had to say a very sad goodbye
to CPT Todd and Nyree Brad-
ford. We want to thank them
for all of their hard work over
the last year and wish them
the best in their upcoming
assignment with the 509th. As
we begin to close out the end
of this fiscal year we have been
very busy. 1st Platoon has
been working diligently out at
Range 18 emplacing two berms
that will assist with future
training. 2nd Platoon sent a
large number of Soldiers up to
Fort Riley to build a parking lot
out at the MPRC. They are
working in conjunction with
the 77th EN CO and they have
done an outstanding job. 3rd
Platoon just kicked off a road
improvement mission out at
Range 21/22 and they will be
working on that through the
winter months, which will
challenge them as they battle
the winter weather. With all
of this going on we realize that
it is easy to forget some of the
events going on around post
or within the company. To
help with this we have created
a Facebook page for our com-
pany, which you can find it
from the 94th EN BN page.
Please take a look when you
have a chance.
CPT Dennis Hines
sold hotdogs, hamburgers,
pasta salad and beans. We
have another fundraiser com-
ing up on the 14th of October
at Bldg 470. It will be a Bake
Sale and your assistance and/or
goodies will be needed.
I would like to thank all of our
volunteers for their help. We
couldn’t do it without you.
Please don’t hesitate to stop
by our new Facebook page for
information.
Amanda Almeida
(239)826-4419
Oyu McGlothlin
(312)719-0743
Hello Families! This month has
been a pretty exciting month.
We held a Self Care Class at
our last FRG meeting. Atten-
dees can now receive free
over the counter medications
at the Pharmacy. Don’t forget
to pick up your cards at the
Health Promotion office at the
new clinic. We had a wonder-
ful time on the 19th at the
BBQ in the motor pool. We
T H E W O L V E R Z I N E
http://www.facebook.com/pages/103rd-Engineer-Company-FRG/166344670115487
P A G E 7 9 4 T H E N G I N E E R B A T T A L I O N
To the Soldiers, Families, and
Friends of the 232nd Warriors:
My, how the time flies when we are
having fun! First, I want to thank
the families, friends, and Soldiers of
the 232nd Warriors for their contin-
ued support over the last quarter.
We have been exceptionally busy
but everyone remained safe and has
become stronger and smarter
through our experiences...without
forgetting to have a little fun. The
Warriors and their families success-
fully completed two training de-
ployments: movement to and from
Fort Chaffee, AR to qualify on
weapon systems and movement to
and from Camp Atterbury, IN for
an FTX to prepare us for our
CBRN mission starting in October.
We ensured that we took time to
thank our families and Soldiers and
had some fun at the Company Or-
ganizational Day held at LORA.
The event was great as we enjoyed
in the sun with great food, water
sports, and a lot of volleyball! We
also did a great job balancing our
construction projects on Fort Leo-
nard Wood by completing Range
11 and TA 244 construction pro-
jects, and starting the TA 74A con-
struction project for the NCO
Academy. The Warriors continue
to provide high quality products
that the company and battalion are
consistently known for. Thank you
all for your continued support and I
invite everyone to attend our FRG
meetings every 2nd Tuesday of the
month and our Spouse’s Night Out
once a quarter.
CPT David McKelvin
Hello Friends and Family of 232nd,
What a great summer we have had!
It was a little hot, but I'm glad to
see fall around the corner!
Over the summer we had several
fundraising events. We had a Pie in
the face, BBQ at the motor-pool,
Dunk tank, and snow cones at the
Battalion Olympics Day. We are
looking forward to our upcoming
bake sale and car wash in Septem-
ber. We are currently fundraising
for our holiday Party in December.
I would like to say a Big THANK
YOU and Welcome to our newest
FRG members: Mrs. Renee Moorid-
ian our new 232nd Treasurer and
Mrs. Kristin Camacho our 232nd
Secretary. These Ladies are amazing
and we are so lucky to have them
as part of our FRG.
If you are interested in becoming a
volunteer within our FRG please do
not hesitate to contact me, anyone
and everyone is welcome! Our
FRG meetings are held the 2nd
Tuesday of every month, please
come check it out – we are looking
forward to seeing all our 232nd
friends and family!
Mara Tate
(314)496-7719
FRG Leader Nook
1SG Lopez in the Dunk Tank
232nd Warrior Review
P A G E 8
Chaplain’s Blessings
Chaplain Chad Davis
(573)433-1672
4th MEB Bible Study
Wednesdays 1130-1230
Specker Chapel
Lunch provided
responsibility for yourself and
your Family. The training is
available to Soldiers, Family
members of all Soldiers, De-
partment of Defense civilians
and volunteers.
AFTB Level I Modules train
basic information about the
Army. Learn about the Army
life and how to maneuver
through daily challenges by
discovering how to decipher
Army acronyms, utilize Com-
munity Resources, attain bet-
ter financial readiness and
understand the goal and impact
of the Army mission on daily
life.
AFTB Level II Modules train
personal growth skills. Grow
personally through self-
development modules. Learn
how to improve your commu-
Army Family Team Building is a
series of training modules
taught through the Army
Community Service office that
cover topics such as basic
information about the Army,
personal growth skills and
leadership skills. AFTB im-
proves personal and Family
preparedness which enhances
overall Army readiness and
helps America’s Army adapt to
a changing world.
AFTB helps you to not just
cope with, but enjoy the mili-
tary lifestyle. Many of the
courses can be applied toward
resume’ and career building,
self-development and leader-
ship skills. Active duty Soldiers
can earn promotion points for
participating in the training.
AFTB provides the knowledge
and self-confidence to take
nication skills, personal rela-
tionships, and stress manage-
ment skills. Discover how
teams form and grow, how to
solve problems and how to
resolve personal conflict. Ac-
quire knowledge on Army
traditions, customs, courtesies
and protocol.
AFTB Level III Modules train
leadership skills. Thrive in the
Army and civilian life by ex-
panding leadership skills, effec-
tive communication techniques
and learning to mentor others
into leadership positions.
Learn about the different lead-
ership styles, how to run an
effective meeting, how to man-
age group conflict and how to
coach and mentor others.
Contact ACS at 596-0212 for
more info on classes available
here at Ft. Leonard Wood.
T H E W O L V E R Z I N E
Army Family Team Building
Farewell My Friend
P A G E 9 9 4 T H E N G I N E E R B A T T A L I O N
So Long, Farewell, auf Wiedersehen,
Good-bye. To all of you who are leav-
ing to move on to bigger and better
things we wish you good luck in your
life and career.
HHC - SGT McLemore, SPC
Wynn, PFC Leonard, SPC McKin-
ney, PFC Haynes
FSC - 1LT Brown
77th - none
103rd - SGT Rodgers, SGT
Haynes, SPC Reed
232nd - none
77th
SFC Franklin, PVT MacDonald, SPC
McLaughlin
103rd
PFC Carlson, PFC Crabtree, SGT
Drake, PFC Dunn, PV2 Glass, SGT
Grrenidge, SGT Hatfield, PFC Her-
nandez-Garcia, CPT Hines, PFC
Lorenz, PFC Moskvicheva, SFC
Peters, PV2 Ricks, SSG Robinson,
2LT Surprenant, PFC Taylor.
We welcome into the ranks of the
Wolverines the following Soldiers and
Families:
HHC
SGT Campbell, PVT Holman, SSG
McIntosh, MSG Pacheco, PVT Gar-
cia.
FSC
WO Choate, 2LT Mathews, SGT
Swegger, SSG Ruegger
Special Deliveries
Welcome Wolverines!
HHC - SPC Hessler & Mrs. LaRiviere, baby boy, Jace Edward Hessler on 27
August.
FSC - SPC & Mrs. Harkness, baby boy Jared Zachary on 6 August; SPC & Mrs.
Underwood, baby girl Liliane Amelia on 11 August.
77th - SPC & Mrs. Linden, baby girl Cheyenne Faith on 14 August; SSG & Mrs. Bannister, baby
girl on 2 July; SSG & Mrs. Collins, baby boy on 26 August; Mr & Mrs. Williams on 11 August; Mr.
& Mrs. Bannister, baby boy Dayvid.
103rd - SGT & Mrs. Eskridge, baby boy Kollin Jace on 6 June; Mr. & Mrs. Green, baby Girl Ha-
ley on 25 June; Mr. & Mrs. Gray, baby boy Gene on 29 June; PFC & Mrs. Evans, baby boy Joseph
James on 3 August; SPC & Mrs. Whitaker, baby boy Colton on 3 August; SPC & Mrs. Cruze,
baby Boy Charles David III on 6 August; PV2 Mouhamed & Mrs. Fall, baby Diery Fall on 28 Au-
gust.
232nd - PFC & Mrs. Ou, baby girl Cassidy on 23 July; 1LT & Mrs. Tollison, baby girl Danielle
Marie on 24 August; SGT & Mrs. Rice, baby boy Brian Allen born 16 September.
232nd
SPC Singer, SGT
Harky, SFC Matte-
son and family, SPC
Cobb, SPC Hearn
will help you with any of the above
goals. Ask your Soldier to attend
with you too, they can earn promo-
tion points and may be eligible for a
4th MEB one day pass for attending
AFTB Level I.
Stephanie D. Leary
Family Readiness Support Assistant
Bldg 1022 East 20th Street
Fort Leonard Wood, MO 65473
Phone: (573)596-0131 ext 6-3968
Cell: (573)837-8086
E-mail: [email protected]
94th Engineer FRG Steering Committee
Mission Statement:
We will listen to and handle Family member concerns and
issues with respect, understanding, and kindness.
We will provide the necessary, appropriate communications
and resources to help Family members stay informed, knowl-
edgeable, and educated.
We will reach out personally to all Family members with
genuine concern and appreciations in order to sustain, sup-
port and motivate them throughout their Wolverine tours.
We will act responsibly with the financial assets and re-
sources of the 94th Engineer Battalion and promise to use
these monies to benefit the Wolverine Family members as a
whole.
94th Engineer Battalion
FRSA Note
Join us on Facebook!
www.facebook.com/94thEngineer Battalion
“Building Firm Foundations”
The inclusion of some unofficial information in this FRG Newsletter has not increased the costs to the Government, in
accordance with DoD 4525.8-M, Official Mail Management Manual.
Do you ever feel like your Soldier is
speaking a foreign language to you?
Do you want to become a more em-
powered military spouse? Want to
help other military spouses? Then get
involved in Army Family Team Build-
ing! AFTB offers many classes that