Fort Riley receives new Red Cross station manager
By Katherine Rosario
1st Inf. Div. Post
Fort Riley’s new Red Cross station manager, Susan Westbrook, said she hopes to open up more community-based activities like volunteering and training to Soldiers and Families on post.
Westbrook, who is originally from Nebraska, transferred from the Red Cross station at Camp Red Cloud, Korea, to Fort Riley after the previous station manger retired.
The Red Cross is located in Grimes Hall, Building 510, on the second floor.
Westbrook is in charge of all Red Cross activities on Fort Riley and oversees the emergency messaging between deployed Soldiers and their Families.
“The main reason the Red Cross is on post is because of the emergency communications,” she said.
Before deployment, Soldiers are briefed on how to start an emergency message should something happen while they are gone.
If the Soldier suspects they need to take emergency leave during deployment, Westbrook suggested starting an emergency message before deployment.
“Starting the message involves a Soldier calling me to put basic information into our computer system so we are ready to go if something should happen,” she said.
A Soldier or a Family member can start the message with the Red Cross.
If a Family member calls, they must know the Soldier’s name, rank, branch of service, social security number, date of birth and unit, she said.
The summer youth program will begin when school ends for the year and will help students gain their volunteer hours needed to graduate, she said.
“We really need volunteers for the hospital, (veterinary) clinic and dental clinic,” she said. “Teens and adults can volunteer at these locations and it’s a great way for teens to spend the summer.”
Teens need to fill out an application and will be placed in an office based on their interests.
“I am hoping to be able to partner with the Red Cross chapters in the local community to host more health and safety classes on post,” she said.
The Red Cross on post does not offer those classes regularly because it functions strictly an emergency communications station.
The chapters located in Manhattan, Junction City and Topeka provides community health and safety courses such as lifeguard training, CPR classes and babysitting classes.
“If there’s a need for something on post that people don’t see I encourage them to contact me and we will make it happen,” she said.
Soldiers and Family members will soon be able to follow the Fort Riley Red Cross on Facebook to receive important messages and health and safety training updates.
For more information call, 785-239-1887.
Survivor recalls horrors of Holocaust
Louis Frydman, left, receives a plaque for sharing his story of survival during the Holocaust from Brig. Gen. Randal Dragon, 1st Inf. Div. deputy commanding general, right, during the Days of Remembrance observance May 3 at Riley’s Conference Center.
1st Inf. Div. Post
When 15-year-old Louis Frydman opened his eyes, he saw a man in a military uniform and a woman in a white dress, and when they smiled at him, he knew he was safe.
They returned him back to his bed to rest, and the only reminder of the past two years was the clothes he still wore – the clothes given to him at the beginning of his journey through nine concentration camps.
“I have no memory of the liberation or how I ended up in the hospital, but they literally brought me back to life, and I am forever grateful to the U.S. Army,” he told an audience during the Days of Remembrance observance May 3 at Riley’s Conference Center.
During the Holocaust, Frydman endured three ghettos, nine concentration camps and three death marches before he was liberated in 1945.
Upon his liberation, he spent nine months in a children’s center operated by the U.N. Refuge and Rehabilitation Agency.
His first mission, though, was finding his brother who was separated from him during a death march.
Without any money or papers, he set off to find him after hearing about a survivor living close by with his last name.
“I looked high and low because I figured that if anybody survived it would be my brother,” Frydman said. “He never looked for me because he left me at a death march, and he was convinced I was dead.”
Frydman, now in his 80s, first spoke about his experiences in the Holocaust 26 years after the liberation.
He was 12 years old in 1943 when his Family was rounded up by the Nazis in Poland and put into the Warsaw Ghetto, he said.
“After taking everything from us including wedding rings, they put it all on a big heap and they put us against a wall and got an order to take us to the gas chambers but the train went to Majdanek instead,” he said.
There his mother made her two sons raise their hands to volunteer to travel to another camp where the Germans needed 800 expert metal workers.
“Even though we were 12-years-old, they took us and killed all the rest of them,” he said.
They traveled to Budzyn labor camp in Poland, a camp not far from where they had left their mother.
“It was the worst imaginable camp because we were dead ducks, we weren’t supposed to live,” he said. “The commander screamed at us for daring to oppose the German Army. We were little kids.”
He and his brother stayed there 13 months until they closed the camp due to the advancement of the Russian army.
From there they transferred to Radom where they did hard slave labor working with metals.
“It was a terrible camp, but compared to Budzyn, it was a resort,” he said.
His first death march came July 26, 1944, when the workers were ordered to march to Tomaszow. They arrived three days later and stayed a week but both he and his brother can only remember one day.
“There was no food, no open windows, no sanitary conditions,” Frydman said.
They arrived in Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland Aug. 3, 1944, and Frydman described it as the most horrible day of his life.
There were three lines: one for men who could work, one for women who could work and the third was for everyone else – children, older people and hurt or sick people.
Doctors examined each person to determine their level of fitness and then sent them to a line.
“My doctor was Dr. (Josef) Mengele; he was the worst of the worst,” he said. “If you didn’t pass the selection you were sent to the third line.”
Mengele, also known as the Angel of Death, was most infamously known for his human experiments on camp inmates, especially children.
“The air was angry with burning flesh and smoke was bellowing from the chimneys. Everyone knew exactly what was happening,” Frydman said.
When a Soldier inquired about his fitness, he said he was a good, hard worker and he was sent to the side to be transferred to another camp.
“I said to myself that no matter what I would not go to that line and wait a couple of hours to be killed.”
Out of the 1,500 people inspected that day, 1,000 people were killed.
As he held out his arm, he told the audience, “I don’t have my left arm inked with concentration numbers because I was in Auschwitz only one day, and they don’t give numbers to visitors.”
From Auschwitz, he traveled to three more concentration camps before his second death march.
He was too weak to continue marching and told his brother to go on without him, he said.
While the Soldiers were preparing to kill those who could no longer walk, they were ordered to move the inmates out of the area because an officer from the German infantry, who were setting up nearby, did not want his Soldiers witnessing a mass shooting.
He endured his final march before boarding a truck headed to Dachau concentration camp in Germany.
“I was ordered to stay at Dachau and clean the barracks so when the U.S. Army came they would be impressed with the camp,” he said. “It was totally twisted.”
After his rehabilitation and reunion with his brother, he moved to New York where he received his bachelor’s degree in sociology in 1954 from City College. In 1956, he received his master’s degree from Columbia University, and a doctoral degree in psychology in 1968 from Yeshiva University.
He was appointed as associate professor in 1969 at the University of Kansas School of Social Welfare. He retired from the university in 2002.
Soldiers, Family members awarded degrees at postwide graduation
Master Sgt. Monique King, Garrison Command Operations NCOIC, left, shakes hands with Maj. Gen. Vincent Brooks, 1st Inf. Div. and Fort Riley commanding general, right, after receiving her master’s degree in human resources administration from Central Michigan University during the semi-annual postwide graduation ceremony May 6 at King Field House.
1st Inf. Div. Post
Soldiers, Family members and Department of the Army civilians cheered and clapped as their loved ones and colleagues walked down the aisle to receive their college diploma during the semi-annual postwide graduation ceremony May 6 at King Field House.
About 140 people earned diplomas ranging from associate degrees to master’s degrees from more than 10 colleges and universities.
One hundred and two students earned associate degrees, 28 earned bachelor’s degrees and 10 students earned master’s degrees.
Thirty-three active duty Soldiers received degrees along with 24 veterans or retirees, 66 Family members, 2 National Guard and Army Reserve members and 15 DA civilians.
Maj. Gen. Vincent Brooks, 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley commanding general, said he was impressed by the number of people who graduated and their examples of commitment.
Next in importance to freedom and justice is education, Brooks said, and without them neither freedom nor justice can be permanently maintained.
“As members of the Army community, you know all too well the importance of freedom and justice and also the cost of permanently maintaining them, and it is evident by your success that you also know of the importance of education.”
Adult education is probably the most challenging task, he said, because it requires balance of an already busy work and home life.
“Many of you came home from a long day’s work, burned the midnight oil, studying for your exams and doing your homework,” Brooks said. “Some of you even completed courses while serving in theater.”
The work of an adult college student should not be underestimated, he said, because of the time and effort needed to complete coursework.
“You didn’t let the challenges of being a Soldier, Army civilian or Family member deter you from achieving your objective,” he said, adding the degree earned demonstrates they are ready to accomplish other goals in their lives and careers.
“Each one you is an inspiration, a role model and a leader,” Brooks said. “Teach others what you learned about yourself, the value of discipline, the traits that you have demonstrated that have helped you succeed here.”
He encouraged the graduates to take their knowledge, experience and determination back into their units and Families to help others improve their lives.
Master Sgt. Monique King, Garrison Command Operations Noncommissioned Officer in Charge, graduated with her master’s degree in human resources administration from Central Michigan University after deciding she wanted to be in a field that was more people oriented.
“This field’s primary focus is on human and organizational relationships,” she said. “It strengthens your oral and written communication skills and gives you the opportunity to see the big picture as it relates to an organization and its environment.”
King started taking classes about 10 years ago and obtained her associate degree in 2001 and her bachelor’s degree in 2006, but she said she wanted to continue her education.
King said she wanted to shower her daughter, Shameika, who is graduating from Manhattan High School later this month and will attend Kansas State University, that higher education is important in today’s society.
“Your quality of life will and can be much more rewarding, and its one of the best feelings in the world, knowing that you have challenged yourself beyond what you initially thought you could handle,” she said.
Among the 140 students who graduated on Friday, King said she was impressed by the number who received diplomas.
“This ceremony showcased a variety of people from all walks of life and for some, to include myself, happened to be the first in their Family to achieve this level of success,” she said.
King said she constantly encourages Family, friends and co-workers to continue their education and knows people who have achieved a degree while deployed.
“As a Soldier serving in the Army, there is no reason why he or she can or should (end term of service) or retire without a degree,” she said. “If you serve your country and graduate from an accredited institution you are considered a double threat and very marketable in the civilian sector.”
Parents learn techniques to change children’s behavior through classes
By Katherine Rosario
1st Inf. Div. Post
As part of Child Abuse Prevention Month, the Family Advocacy Program taught a three-week class on parenting to help couples and single parents learn how to set their children up for success April 21 at Army Community Service.
The class, “Becoming a Love and Logic Parent,” aims to give parents tools to help their children be better prepared for life by using worksheets and videos.
“Children don’t make enough mistakes, and each mistake is an opportunity to teach,” said Earl Robinson, FAP specialist and clinical social worker who helped teach the class.
Parents often fail to hold their children responsible for mistakes and yell at their children, thus accepting responsibility for their mistake, he said.
The class teaches parents to give children two positive choices for any situation and not to lecture them.
“Children’s attention spans are about 30 to 40 seconds, and after that, they zone out,” he said.
The most challenging part of the program, he said, is teaching parents that it is OK to hold their child responsible for the mistakes they make and remaining calm through the process.
“The idea is to minimize the arguing and not let them see you as the bad guy,” he said, adding that sometimes playing dumb will force the child to put the blame on them and seek ways to fix the problem.
Playing the empathic parent will force a child to look upon him or herself as the cause of the problem, he said, causing them to see their parents as good and them as bad.
Staff Sgt. Patrick Franzen, 601st Aviation Support Battalion, Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, said he attended the course because he recently became a single parent.
“I am exploring different ways of parenting and raising my children in a healthy and safe environment,” he said.
Through the course, he has learned how to give his children two positive choices and how to communicate with his ex-wife.
“The lessons taught here have helped me in real-life situations,” he said.
For more information, call 785-239-9435.
Brooks says goodbye, reflects on partnership during Junction City MAC breakfast
By Katherine Rosario
1st Inf. Div. Post
The best memory Maj. Gen. Vincent Brooks, 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley commanding general, takes with him from his Junction City-Geary County experience is the partnership they formed with the installation, he said during an April 28 Junction City-Geary County Military Affairs Council breakfast.
“You saw us as valuable partners,” he said. “That trust and partnership is what I am most proud of.”
Brooks gave a recap of what the brigades at Fort Riley are currently working on and what the region has to look forward to in the future.
Division Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 1st Inf. Div., recently returned from a one-year deployment to Southern Iraq and saw progress made in the country from its previous deployment, he said.
“For us to come back to Iraq after our prior deployments and see the progress that had been made and then continue to push it forward, in a place by its own choices can move backward, but by our own efforts will not, to see that progress was really something to behold,” he said.
The 1st Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 1st Inf. Div., was a unit training Military Transition Teams to assist internal security forces in Afghanistan and Iraq three years ago before they became a heavy brigade combat team in 2009.
The brigade deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan in 2010 because of the draw down of strength in Iraq and the drawing up of strength in Afghanistan.
Three battalions are in Iraq and three battalions are helping NATO efforts in Afghanistan.
“When the problems are really hard, American units get put in and all our allies know that,” he said.
The 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 1st Inf. Div., is currently the only brigade in Baghdad helping to advance the Iraqi the units and is scheduled to return home in the fall this year.
The 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Inf. Div., a satellite unit out of Fort Knox, Ky., is conducting operations as one of the primary brigades out of Southeastern Afghanistan.
“They are doing some heavy fighting right now and have had some combat losses,” Brooks said. “But they will make a difference, and they will be successful.”
The 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Inf. Div., came home through last summer and was the leading edge in reducing the strength in Iraq, he said.
“They are training for their next deployment, probably to Afghanistan, later in the year,” he said.
The Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Inf. Div., recently returned from Iraq in March and is currently on leave. The unit deployed to Iraq in March 2010.
“For more than half of their time there, they were the only aviation brigade operating the entire country of Iraq. There has never been an Army aviation unit created that way, to have a mission that size and to accomplish it to such a high standard,” Brooks said.
The first aircraft are returning to Fort Riley and modernization efforts will take place during the winter to make the brigade the “most modern aviation brigade in the Army,” he said.
The 1st Sustainment Brigade, 1st Inf. Div., recently returned from Kuwait, Iraq, Oman and Afghanistan, where they were responsible for the logistics of moving supplies.
“You want to know who it is that has done this logistical miracle of drawing equipment out of Iraq, recycling some of it to be sent forward onto Afghanistan, bringing some of it back into inventory in the U.S., that brigade did,” he said.
Fort Riley is fortunate to be well supported by the council, and it is important to Fort Riley because it is an important part of how the installation interfaces with both the city and the county, Brooks said.
Brooks will move to Fort McPherson, Ga., as the commanding general for the 3rd U.S. Army, and then move the colors of the headquarters to Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina.
“The future is very bright, and the momentum is clearly in place here in the Flint Hills, and we’re eager to be part of that,” he said.
The next meeting is May 26 at the Junction City Marriott.
Students, spouses recognized for excellence
Maj. Gen. Vincent Brooks, 1st Inf. Div. and Fort Riley commanding general, far left, poses for a picture with Fort Riley Combined Scholarship award winners during an award ceremony for students and spouses April 26 at the 1st Inf. Div. headquarters. Awardees from left to right, are Jennifer Cuington, Amanda Lax, Kylie Martin, Kiara Ocasio, Makenna Kelly, Joshua Cox and Elizabeth Petite. Dr. Briana Nelson-Goff, director of the K-State Institute for Health and Security of Military Families, far right, also awarded scholarships to high school students attending K-State University next year.
1st Inf. Div. Post
More than $30,000 in scholarships were awarded to high school and college students as well as spouses during the Fort Riley Combined Scholarship Board award ceremony April 26 at the 1st Infantry Division Headquarters.
About 40 people applied for the scholarships that were awarded based on a 3.7 or higher grade point average and volunteer activities. Each person also had to turn in a 500-word essay on the responsibilities of an educated person.
The money is collected throughout the year from organizations on post like the thrift shop, Officers’ and Civilians’ Spouses’ Club, the Historical and Archaeological Society and the Enlisted Spouses’ Club, along with private donors, said Sarah Leonard, chairperson for the scholarship board.
“It’s always a great privilege to be able to congratulate people who have achieved academic excellence, but have done even more,” said Maj. Gen. Vincent Brooks, 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley commanding general.
Striving for higher education and volunteering in the community is a commitment to a lifetime of learning, Brooks said.
“Everything in life is expensive, and the cost of education continues to be something that challenges a number of our fellow citizens, but with scholarships that can certainly help,” he said. “It goes a long way to lessening to burden that one would have to carry and eliminates some of the challenges to be able to continue education.”
To achieve academic excellence, especially in the military where students often move to new schools and have to start over, is an achievement in itself, Brooks said.
“To be able to achieve this in the type of environment and the sorts of challenges that we have in our military lifestyle, it takes the team, it takes the Family unit to help you achieve what you have accomplished,” he told the students.
Elizabeth Petite, a senior at Junction City High School, received a scholarship for excellence in high school, as well as a scholarship from Kansas State University for her freshman year.
“I’ve been working hard and have done more than 160 hours of community service through the hospital and dance team at school,” she said.
Her $3,000 will go straight toward her college fund, she said.
“It’s a big deal to be attending college, and it’s great that people recognize the students that go above and beyond for their community,” Petite said.
Petite said she plans to study public relations and mass communication.
Jennifer Cuington, spouse of Lawrence Cuington, 1st Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 1st Inf. Div., received a scholarship for her volunteer work with her husband’s Family readiness group and hours spent volunteering at a hospital in Topeka.
Her scholarship will go directly to her nursing school, she said.
“When people are recognized for the work they do, it keeps them motivated,” she said, adding she was amazed at all the high school students who received awards.
Joshua Cox, a senior at Wakefield High School, said he is using his award money for college housing at K-State.
“I plan to join ROTC and study history,” he said, adding his ultimate goal is to become an Airborne Ranger.
Cox attended a leadership seminar last summer and is the vice president of his student body and captain of the football team.
The K-State scholarships were awarded through the K-State Institute for Health and Security of Military Families.
Two years ago, K-State started the partnership to supplement the Fort Riley scholarship program to support students who would be attending K-State, said Dr. Briana Nelson-Goff, director of the institute.
“Anything that we can do to start that K-State and Fort Riley partnership and continue it I am all for,” she said.
Paraplegic warns Soldiers of reckless behavior during safety briefing
By Katherine Rosario
1st Inf. Div. Post
More than 1,000 Soldiers who recently returned home from deployment learned that small choices could have huge consequences as part of the Garrison Safety Office’s summer safety briefing April 26 at Barlow Theater.
Kelly Narowski, a paraplegic, spoke to Soldiers about how split second decisions could affect their lives forever.
Narowski was paralyzed after overcompensating a turn on a curvy mountain road in California and crashing her friend’s car into a guardrail.
Her friend, who had between six and eight martinis before jumping into the driver’s seat, asked Narowski to switch places because she was too drunk to drive. Narowski had had two drinks.
“I remember getting out of the car, and I remember what I was wearing and how the mountains and the sky looked,” she said. “It was the last time I ever walked.”
Her friend, Heather, was wearing her seatbelt and walked away without a scratch. Narowski was not wearing a seatbelt.
“My body was pushed very, very hard into the steering wheel, and I broke my ribs, collarbone, my lungs were collapsed and full of blood,” she said.
The Jeep collided with the guardrail a second time, sending her flying around the car until she ended up in the backseat.
“My body flew around the Jeep like a ragdoll, and it ended up in the backseat, and my body was going 70 miles an hour,” she said.
She shattered her T6 vertebrae.
“It exploded like a grenade. My spinal cord was stretched like a piece of taffy, and I was paralyzed from the chest down forever from that moment in time on,” she said.
The next thing she remembered, she said, was the paramedics telling her not to move and then lying on a hard wooden table in the hospital.
She stayed in the Intensive Care Unit for a month and underwent eight surgeries before learning how to live life as a wheelchair user.
“Heather walked away without a scratch and that’s the difference between a seatbelt and no seatbelt,” she said.
Personal safety is a plan for a healthy, happy life, she said.
“It’s not hard to get into these good habits, such as limiting time on the cell phone while driving or pulling over to take a call,” Narowski said.
The safety office asked Narowski to speak as their kickoff event to 111 days of summer safety, said Dawn Douglas, Garrison Safety Office safety and occupational health specialist.
The age group of Soldiers returning from deployment is between 18 and 26, and that age group is most likely to be killed in a vehicle crash, she said.
“These young Soldiers are more likely to drive fatigued, and coming back from a deployment, they have a high-octane tempo,” Douglas said. “We know people can identify with a person better than a movie or a PowerPoint slide, and Mrs. Narwoski, I think, will really resonate with them.”
Pfc. Sandra Colocho, 601st Aviation Support Battalion, Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, said she was moved by Narowski’s story and realized she needed to change her driving habits.
“I took a lot of what she said to heart because I have two children, and I do talk on the phone in my car, and now I realize that I’m setting an example for my kids that it’s OK to do that when they start driving,” she said. “I wouldn’t want my kids hurt.”
Bosses recognize administrative professionals during lunch
By Katherine Rosario
1st Inf. Div. Post
Bosses treated their administrators to lunch during administrative professional’s day April 27 at Riley’s Conference Center.
Nita Miller, chief of staff, Directorate of Logistics, said her job is challenging, but she enjoys it because every day is different.
“It is nice that they recognize us and realize that we do other things aside from answering phones and receiving people,” she said.
Miller has worked for DOL for nine years and has worked at Fort Riley in other capacities for 32 years.
“This is the best job in my whole career, and I feel comfortable and appreciated here,” she said. “They give me a task and don’t have to worry about it because they know I will take care of it and get the job done.”
Miller handles ordering supplies for the office, taking notes at meetings, dispersing important information to the staff and manages calendars and appointments.
“I also volunteer to help with the organizational days and annual holiday party,” she said.
Currently, Miller is working toward completing an updated DOL handbook for new employees.
“I’m also the photographer for DOL and take pictures of all the staff to put up in the bulletin board, and (I) created a history book of all our activities and awards,” she said.
Miller also contributes to Fort Riley’s mission by processing temporary duty packets for military units overseas and following them through from receiving the requests to helping people fill out vouchers.
Tasha Jones, administrative assistant to the Garrison Safety Office, helps manage the office environment, making sure the staff and the boss work cohesively.
“I have to know a little about what everyone is doing in case I need to fill in as help,” she said. “This job requires you to manage a lot of little moving parts.”
Jones started working at the safety office in 2002 and came from outside the system where administrative work was different, she said.
“Here we deal with civilians and Soldiers, but being an Army brat, I was used to it,” she said. “You are never off duty in this type of environment because of the nature of our work.”
The most challenging part of her job, she said, is remembering to keep her stress level and the stress level of the office down during hectic days.
“Even though we’re in a business atmosphere, it helps to relax for a few minutes,” she said. “I have a really good boss, and he is very supportive.”
Her job contributes to the readiness of the directorate because she helps them gather information and distribute it out to the installation, she said.
“My work is very rewarding, and I love the people I work with,” Jones said. “We know how to have fun and get the job done.”
Rick Hearron, Garrison Safety Office installation safety manager, said his office would not run as efficiently if it weren’t for Jones.
“She is my right arm,” he said. “She is professional and efficient.”
He does not approve paperwork, he said, unless Jones looks over it first.
“I trust her opinions and corrections,” he said. “I appreciate everything she does for me and Fort Riley and the Army.”
Antiterrorism Office sites key behaviors, activities to spot threats
By Katherine Rosario
1st Inf. Div. Post
Fort Riley’s Antiterrorism Office will educate Soldiers, Family members and government workers about terrorist threats and Army procedures during its third quarter campaign, “Understand the Threat.”
The campaign will focus on heightened awareness to understand the terrorist threat, tactics, techniques and procedures, as well as Army resources and processes to enhance threat knowledge and information sharing, said Chris Hallenbeck, installation antiterrorism specialist, Directorate of Plans, Training, Mobilization and Security.
Antiterrorism is one of the four elements of combating terrorism and involves risk management, planning, training, education and awareness. The other three elements are counterterrorism, intelligence support and consequence management.
“Since 2009, the increase of U.S. and naturalized U.S. citizens, especially young people, are turning to or venturing back to extremist beliefs,” Hallenbeck said, adding in 2010 more than 60 terrorist cases involved U.S. and U.S. naturalized citizens.
The reason for younger recruitment, he said, is partially because of the increased use of social media by terrorist groups.
“The Internet has made it possible for terrorist groups to put their message out to anyone who wants to read it, and they can download their magazines because they are open source,” he said, adding terrorist groups also use methods like online videos, blogs and social media sites to reach out to potential recruits.
These newer, younger, extremists are harder to track because they do not link themselves to a specific organization. When they do, the terrorist groups often deny it, but are happy their name was marketed, Hallenbeck said.
The mission of the Antiterrorism Office is to provide analysis, risk management and defensive measures to the installation. They also provide Antiterrorism Awareness education to Soldiers, Families and workers.
“We also conduct several types of emergency response exercises installation-wide to ensure all our directorates know what to do in the event of an attack,” he said. “We look at all the ‘what ifs’ and try to anticipate any threats.”
Some indicators of the radicalization process, which describes the stages a person goes through toward a terrorist action, include advocating violence and support for international terrorist organizations, providing financial support to a terrorist organization, connections with a known terrorist organization and expressed hatred and intolerance of American society, culture, government or principles of the U.S. Constitution.
The four phases of radicalization are pre-radicalization, identification, indoctrination and action.
During the pre-radicalization stage, one of four indicators can help identify a person as a possible threat.
The first is a jilter believer or someone who is frustrated with the current religious faith they lead and seeks an alternative faith.
The second is a protest converter or a person who changes their faith and views based on economic, ethnic, racial, legal, political, religious or social deprivation that may have negatively affected them.
The third indicator is the acceptance seeker who has a fundamental human motivation and has a pervasive drive to form and maintain at least a minimum quantity of lasting and significant interpersonal relationships. They usually have weak social ties and are constantly looking for acceptance from individuals and groups. These people may be more likely to join a terrorist organization for a sense of belonging.
The final indicator is faith reinterpretations. This is when people alter their religious tradition through introspection and evaluation. These people may interpret their religious traditions differently and choose to follow an extreme version of their faith.
During the second stage of radicalization, the identification stage, a person accepts the cause and ideology of the extremist views and is alienated from his or her former life to bond with like-minded people, which in turn, strengthens their dedication to the group.
These people may conduct surveillance activities, attend an extremist camp for training or isolate themselves from Family and friends.
The third stage, indoctrination, indicates immersion into a group. Here the person becomes convinced action is required to support the cause, which can lead to the final phase, action, where a person regularly engages in extremist terrorist activity.
These people normally attempt to lose their American identity and stop all “normal” activities as part of their daily routine.
If someone sees another person acting suspicious or sees a suspicious package or vehicle, it is highly recommended he or she reports the activity immediately, Hallenbeck said.
“We want people to think outside the box of what suspicious is,” he said. “If something to them is weird, give us a call. These terrorists are thinking outside the box of what normally would be considered suspicious.”
The iWATCH program allows anyone to report suspicious activities or behaviors via phone, e-mail or in person.
To report a suspicious behavior or activity:
Call the Fort Riley Police at 785-239-6767 (MPMP)
1-800-CALL-SPY
Antiterrorism Office 785-239-6303/6044
902nd MI Detachment 785-239-2268
Or send e-mails to rile-iwatch@conus.army.mil
To report in person, go to the Fort Riley Police Station, Building 221 on Main Post, or talk to a supervisor.
Students learn fundamentals of leadership from community mentors
Kaitlin Wichman, left, displays her half of a horse while Rebekah Roberts, right, holds up her portion of the drawing during a communication exercise as part of the Flint Hills Regional Leadership Program April 20 at K-State. Twenty students from throughout the Central Flint Hills Region participated in the leadership course that concluded with a tree planting at their schools.
1st Inf. Div. Post
Members of the Flint Hills Regional Leadership Program met with more than 20 students to teach them qualities for becoming a good leader April 20 at Kansas State University.
Four sophomores were chosen from each high school in Riley, Rock Creek, Wamego, Junction City and Manhattan based on their leadership potential, said Alan Hynek, a FHRLP member.
Members of the program took students through a shortened version of what they experienced throughout the past year in their leadership classes.
Ben Moore, a FHRLP member, helped students find their working style through a worksheet that assessed five characteristics of a good leader.
“We did the activity to help them see how they work as an individual and how others work around them,” he said, adding when he filled out the sheet he was able to better understand his own working environment at his personal business.
Students then worked in groups of two to determine their communication style by drawing a picture of a portion of a horse while sitting back to back.
The exercise showed students how assumptions could misshape the final product and clear communication is key, said Mike Keating, a FHRLP member.
“This exercise should show you that the elements of verbal and non-visual communication are important but can often be misconstrued,” said Heather Peterson, a FHRLP member.
Bevin Landrun, a FHRLP member, asked the students to think of how communication skills could be applied to their school and community to ensure the correct message is being received.
“I am impressed at how well they handle skills and leadership opportunities,” she said.
The students’ final exercise of the day consisted of a history lesson from Greg Wells, administrative specialist with the division of biology at KState.
Wells brought in a cross section of a Sequoia Redwood, the tallest and largest trees in the world, that can live to be more than 2,000 years old.
“Kids, how do you want this area to look in 5, 10, 20 or 1,000 years,” he asked the students. “You have the chance to affect the community right now.”
The tree, which has pinpoints to show important times in history, has rings dating back to Columbus discovering America and the founding of KState.
“Each year the tree makes a ring and it’s a big ring if it was a good, healthy year and thing ring if the tree didn’t get enough water or nutrients that year,” he said. “Everything you do, every choice you make has a consequence and you can think of those as your personal growth rings.”
The students reflected on how their community might look in the years to come and what a tree might see their community become.
“When I was mowing one day I saw a sapling tree and I didn’t run it over and I let it grow and it’s cool to see it and it’s seen a lot happen outside my home and community since I was a kid,” said Brett Riffel, a FHRLP member. “
Their parting gift from the program members was a sapling tree they could take home to plant. The members are also making a trip out to their schools May 27 to plant a tree for their community.
Ashley Kaye, a student from Wamego High School, said she learned that leaders can be followers and followers can be leaders.
Trey Basa, from Rock Creek High School, said he learned more in one day than he expected.
“After today I have a better understanding of the leadership role I can take in my community,” he said.
The FHRLP was created in 1992 and has graduated more than 360 regional leaders. The goal of the program is to bring leaders throughout the communities together to help them develop regional strengths, plans for economic development and networking possibilities.
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