Air Force Staff Sgt. Charles Newberry, a personnel specialist assigned to the 311th Air Base Group's military personnel flight here, volunteered in 2007 to register as a bone marrow donor. His decision recently saved the life of a servicemember's 2-year-old child."While I don't know his name, as soon as I heard who it was, and that he has a rare condition called aplastic anemia, I thought, 'Yeah, I'll gladly do what I can to help out the little guy,'" Newberry said. Aplastic anemia causes bone marrow to produce an insufficient amount of red and white blood cells or blood platelets. A bone marrow transplant can be the only effective treatment in severe cases. When he became aware of what his donation could mean, Newberry said, he was eager to volunteer. "I was surprised when I found out I was a match, but helping someone else's child was clearly something I wanted to do," he said. "My wife and mom were a little skeptical about the operation, but I think my enthusiasm won them over, and they were both supportive of me being a donor." Newberry's organization and supervisor also were behind his decision. "I thought his volunteering was very admirable, and a great thing to be willing to do," said Air Force Capt. Troy Lane, commander of the personnel flight. "I was impressed with his excitement to do it." Newberry said the procedure wasn't very painful or lengthy. "The surgeons removed the marrow from my lower back after the first day of tests and screening at the hospital," he said. "I was up and walking around the next day and only had to wear some small bandages for about a week." In addition to his family, Newberry said, the military community also was supportive. "In addition to being given time off from my duty location, [Defense Department officials] sponsored my flight and expenses," he said. "I went through a process of questions and phone interviews before leaving for the trip, but once everything was approved there was no cost involved for me or my family." Newberry is one of about 500 servicemembers who are matched to a patient and donate bone marrow each year. About 600,000 servicemembers have registered as marrow donors as part of the C.W. Bill Young Department of Defense Marrow Donor Program. Volunteers like Newberry are critical for many patients awaiting a match. According to the National Marrow Donor Program, about 70 percent of those needing a transplant do not have a matching donor in their family. Usually used to fight leukemia and lymphoma, a bone marrow donation often is a victim's last chance at beating a potentially fatal disease. More than 10,000 patients each year are diagnosed with these life-threatening diseases. A patient's doctor can contact the program's database of 8 million potential donors in the United States and another 5 million potential donors in international registries. The C.W. Bill Young Department of Defense Marrow Donor Center is located in Rockville, Md., and is charged with supporting Defense Department bone marrow volunteers. It is one of 79 donor centers that work with the National Marrow Donor Program. Established by Congress in 1990, the Defense Department program is open to any military member or civilian and their family members, including Coast Guard and reserve-component members, in good health between the ages of 18 and 60. Aug. 20, 2010: By Joe N. Wiggins- American Forces Press Service

“They work well together,â€Â said Army Staff Sgt. Michael Tindal, a brigade emergency care noncommissioned officer and Manning, S.C., native. “You can see their teamwork during the class. They take things from their relationship at home and bring them to work.â€ÂJoshua, the brigade’s primary combat lifesaver instructor and a Fairmont, Minn., native, met Andrea, an aid station specialist and Austin, Texas, native, while attending advanced individual training in 2007. “In AIT, we didn’t really hang out a lot,â€Â Andrea said. “He flirted with me and asked me out, but I told him no. But once we went home to our reserve units, I found out that I actually missed him.â€Â Joshua said he and Andrea started dating over the phone. “She decided to visit for four days and never left,â€Â Joshua said. “We were married a couple months after that.â€Â A few months after their marriage, they both went into active duty. They said being married has helped them both at home and on the job. “I know what he’s best at, and he knows what I am best at,â€Â Andrea said. “A lot of the time, we don’t even have to discuss it, because we already know who’s going to do what. We work together a lot, so we know each other better. It makes things easier for us.â€Â Their NCOs think the situation is beneficial to the brigade by having them work together on such an important aspect of training. “Since before I ever arrived at the unit, they have worked together on CLS and other projects, and it has just worked for the unit,â€Â said Army Staff Sgt. Tricia Watkins, a medical platoon sergeant and Sacramento, Calif., native. “They work well together. They know the material. They work different facets of the class and balance each other out.â€Â This is the couple’s first deployment. They said they wouldn’t have wanted to deploy without each other. “It makes [deployment] easier,â€Â Andrea said. “You have someone to lean on and help you cope with everything you face.â€Â Around 90 percent of combat deaths occur on the battlefield before casualties reach a medical treatment facility, according to the Army combat lifesavers course manual. This is why the Army requires every soldier heading into a combat zone to receive CLS training. Operation Iraqi Freedom will transition into Operation New Dawn on Sept. 1, and the number of troops in Iraq will be about 50,000 by then. This means the 3rd Sustainment Brigade will provide the primary CLS instructors for northern and central Iraq, Tindal said. This will put the Fillinganes in charge of training nearly 20 percent of U.S. forces in Iraq. “It makes me feel good that my NCOs trust us to do what we need to do to get the job done,â€Â Joshua said. “It’s a big responsibility.â€Â Both specialists said part of the reason they love their job is because they are together. “I love working with her,â€Â Joshua said. “It makes the job a lot easier, having someone there. When things go bad, I know I have someone there that I can rely on heavily to make things go right.â€Â Aug. 19, 2010: By Army Spc. Gaelen Lowers- 3rd Sustainment Brigade

 

Air Force Senior Airman Mario Webb, a ground radio maintainer from the 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, donated part of his liver in April so his son, Genghis, could receive a life-saving transplant.Webb and Genghis are scheduled to go home early this month after more than three months of recuperating from their surgeries in the Ronald McDonald House here. In April, Genghis was diagnosed with tyrosinemia, a genetic, metabolic disorder that affects the liver and prevents the body from properly breaking down proteins. If left untreated, it can lead to developmental delays, cancer or death. He was also diagnosed with cirrhosis, and cancerous cells were found in his liver. During his 18-month check up, Genghis' doctor decided to send the Webbs to a civilian gastrointestinal specialist in Pensacola, Fla., who identified the problem in Genghis' liver. "At first, [the specialist in Pensacola] thought it was rickets," said Julie Webb, Genghis' mother. "I was really worried." From there, he was referred to Yale-New Haven Medical Center. After several tests, doctors confirmed Genghis needed a liver transplant right away. Air Force and Tricare officials ensured the Webb family, including Julie Webb and Genghis’ baby sister, Zyla, had transportation to Connecticut and lodging accommodations once they arrived for the boy’s appointment. "Each of the three regional contractors maintains a network of civilian health care providers," said Austin Camacho, chief of public affairs for the Tricare Management Activity. "If the needed care is not available in [the] area, the doctor may refer the beneficiary to an appropriate provider outside the area. If an appropriate provider can't be found within the network, the regional contractor will refer the beneficiary to another Tricare authorized provider. "When a family member is referred for medically necessary, nonemergent specialty care at a location more than 100 miles from the primary care manager, they may be eligible to have reasonable travel expenses reimbursed by Tricare," he continued. "Reasonable travel expenses are the actual costs incurred while traveling, including meals, gas, tolls, parking and tickets for public transportation." After doctors determined that Genghis needed a transplant, he was added immediately to the waiting list. Officials of The Living Bank, a nonprofit organization that promotes organ and tissue donations, said the waiting time increases every year due to a continuous shortage of donor livers and the high incidence of liver disease. Hundreds of people die each year while waiting for a liver from a cadaver to be offered, according to the organization’s website. The site notes that 5,670 liver transplants were performed in 2003, but 1,705 people died that same year while waiting for a transplant. With odds like that, the Webbs decided to go with the alternative: a living donor. Dr. Sukru Emre, chief of transplantation and immunology for the Yale University School of Medicine’s surgery department, suggested the Webbs look into the living donor process. He later performed the surgery. A few days after screenings and tests were completed, Webb was notified he was a match for Genghis, and his son would be able to receive his transplant. "It was probably about two weeks between the time they said he needed an organ transplant to the time we had it done," Webb said. "It was a real quick turnaround." Since the operation, father and son have recuperated well and are looking forward to going back to their home in Florida. Doctors expect Genghis to make a full recovery and live a normal, healthy life, Webb said. Aug. 2, 2010: By Air Force Staff Sgt. Mareshah Haynes- Defense Media Activity-San Antonio

Grossman, who hails from Lexington, Mo., and fought under her maiden name, Hannah Doak, is assigned to Company A, 369th Adjutant Battalion."Cage fighting is not about beating people up," she said. "It is a mentally and physically challenging sport that is the longest three minutes of your life."Cage fighting, also referred to as mixed martial arts, is a combination of several fighting disciplines that involves several striking and grappling techniques. Opponents compete in a caged ring for three three-minute rounds. "There are a lot of parallels between MMA and the Army," Grossman said. "You have to stay focused. If you don't put 100 percent into it, someone is going to get hurt -- just like if you don't focus 100 percent during training, when you get downrange, someone is going to get hurt or worse." Grossman, who has won three of her five professional matches, said she began the sport as a way to channel her anger that stemmed from a bout with skin cancer. "I was angry at the world, and wanted to channel it somewhere positive," she said. "I started professional arm wrestling, but broke my arm. Three months after that, I began training for cage fighting." Army Capt. Miguel Santana, her company commander, said he was impressed with Grossman's skills after viewing a video clip on the Internet. "Eighteen seconds into the fight, she got her opponent into a rear-naked choke hold and won," Santana said. "You could tell how focused she was going into the cage. It is definitely an honor to have her in my company, because she embodies the Warrior Ethos and what a soldier is." In addition to maintaining a strict diet, Grossman said, she spent three hours in the gym five days a week training to become a professional mixed martial artist. "More people get hurt training than fighting, because you do so much," she said. "You develop a family-like relationship with the people you train with. You need that support, because it is very intimidating going into a cage with someone that knows how to fight." Grossman joined the Army five years ago, but had to leave training when she discovered doctors failed to determine she was pregnant. Now that she’s back in uniform, she hopes for an opportunity to put her skills to work in hand-to-hand combat, a skill known as “combativesâ€Â in the Army. "I always wanted to come back," she said. "I initially wanted to become a soldier because my grandfather was a World War II vet. I want to serve my country. I also want to do combatives for the Army. That is my goal." July 30, 2010: By Chris Rasmussen- Fort Jackson Leader