The 62nd Airlift Wing hosted a ceremony March 23 to thank and honor Vietnam veterans and their family members living in the local area.

During the ceremony, 16 widows of Vietnam veterans were presented with a certificate of honor from the Department of Defense. The ceremony is part of the DOD's commemoration of the Vietnam War's 50th anniversary, which began May 28, 2012 and is a 13-year program dedicated to paying tribute to Vietnam veterans.

"A grateful nation thanks and honors you and your family for your service and sacrifice," said Col. Wyn Elder, 62nd AW commander and presiding officer for the ceremony. "Your husband answered our nation's call and proudly served in the footsteps of previous generations of American servicemen and women. It is a privilege to present you with this certificate of honor in recognition of the patriotism, service and sacrifice of your husband and family."

Elder emphasized the importance of the ceremony, which among other things, provides an opportunity for current servicemembers to remember and thank those who served before them.

"Your husbands served during a very difficult time and I wish I could thank them personally for their service," he said. "I can't do that, but I can extend my thanks through you and for everything you have done to serve your country."

Many expressed gratitude and some were even surprised when they first took a glance at the certificates.

"I wish my husband was here to see this," said Janis Elliott, one of the honorees. "The certificates looked very nice and the ceremony was great."

The 2008 National Defense Authorization Act authorized the Secretary of Defense to conduct a program to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War and "in conducting the commemorative program, the Secretary shall coordinate, support, and facilitate other programs and activities of the federal government, state and local governments, and other persons and organizations in commemoration of the Vietnam War."

Senior Airman Steven Soto is shy and quiet. But make no mistake - if something comes up, he'll probably be the first to volunteer.

That, one of his superiors said, is the attitude that recently earned him the honor of 2012 Military Firefighter of the Year for the Army's Installation Management Command.

"I can't think of a time he's not involved in something," said Senior Master Sgt. Christopher Maxwell, Joint Base Lewis-McChord military deputy fire chief, who oversees more than 30 Air Force firefighters and fire officers supporting JBLM's six fire stations. "If you need something done, he's the first one with his hand up. He's a go-to Airman."

The good news came via email March 1 directly from the IMCOM fire protection office. Soto didn't even know he'd been submitted.

Military Firefighter of the Year, one of several categories that make up the Department of Defense's Fire and Emergency Services Annual Awards program, recognizes the best of the field from each service and in the end, distinguishes one winner.

If fortune remains in Soto's favor through the next level of competition, he'll be the first member of the Air Force ever to earn the award at the Department of the Army level. DA results are scheduled to be released sometime next week.

In years past an Airman wouldn't be seen competing with Soldiers at DA. But joint base realignment, which has placed Soldiers and Airmen together in the same stations, has changed the game.

This year, award guidance for the program's individual categories states that "military firefighters at joint base assignments where their service is not the lead component shall compete in the lead component award process." Fire Chief Dean Dixon, the senior fire chief for JBLM's Fire and Emergency Services, said this is the first year joint installations have sent their top contributors for competition.

"It's a huge sense of pride," Maxwell said. "This department does great things on a daily basis."

IMCOM's four regions encompass the U.S., Europe and Korea. JBLM award submissions first competed against candidates from other stations within the Central Region - an area of responsibility that covers the majority of installations across the U.S.

JBLM's Fire and Emergency Services emerged as the region's Large Fire Department of the Year, and one of its fire officers, Tech. Sgt. Thomas Anderson, was named the region's Military Fire Officer of the Year.

Only Soto, however, was victorious at the command level.

"It's more of an honor than anything," said Soto, 25, who joined the Air Force in 2010 and was assigned to JBLM in February 2011. "I just go out there and do my job, and do it to the best of my ability."

Judges based their decisions on awards packets submitted by the nominees' supervisors that highlight accomplishments, job performance, tactical competency, leadership ability, initiative and resourcefulness. It details how he led fellow firefighters into a home quickly and without hesitation to extinguish a kitchen fire. He had control of the nozzle.

Winners are often difficult to choose, said Maxwell, who reviewed every JBLM packet. But when it came to Soto there was no question.

"Everybody in the department does outstanding work, but he just happens to be a little ahead of his peers," he said.

Among all firefighters Maxwell has worked with in his 23 years as an Air Force firefighter, Soto stands out. "I'd put him right at the top of the list."

Maxwell said Soto frequently trains other Airmen at his station on job-related tasks, while finding time to finish his associate degree through the Community College of the Air Force - an achievement most don't see until they are technical sergeants or higher.

"It took me 10 years," he said.

But Soto also works a second job. That's not in his packet.

The guidance for submitting nominees states that off-duty efforts not in support of a department don't count toward an award.

Firefighters at JBLM work 48 hours on and have the following 48 hours off. But unlike most who recharge at home, Soto heads to an auto parts store, where he stocks and delivers parts.

"I do what I do for my family," Soto, said. The father of two works eight hours a day at the store to help pay for his wife's college whenever he's not on shift at Station 105 on McChord Field. "They depend on me."

He credits his selflessness to his mother.

"My mom always did everything she could to make sure me and my sisters had everything we needed," he said, part of the reason he never stops moving.

"I'm a person who doesn't like to sit still," he said. "I plan to make the Air Force a career, and why am I going to just make my way by and hang behind the curtain instead of putting myself out front?"

But like most who are quiet and humble, Soto isn't letting any accomplishment - even Military Firefighter of the Year - go to his head.

"I'm not going to sit here and think about it," he said. "I'm just going to keep on moving with what I know I need to get done. It just makes me want to keep doing what I'm doing."

The Department of Defense is scheduled to announce winners for the awards program no later than March 31. When it does, said Dixon, who oversees the more than 160 firefighters operating on JBLM, he's not sure how the awards ceremony will play out if Soto wins at DA.

"Do the Air Force stand up, then the Army?" He said, chuckling. "I don't know."

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. - Air Mobility Command announced today that Rodeo 2013, which was to take place at McChord Field in the summer, is cancelled.

Rodeo, sponsored by AMC, is the Mobility Air Force's readiness competition. Rodeo competitions are held to train and improve the abilities of U.S. and international partners' air mobility operations skills while building international relationships.

Gen. Paul Selva, AMC commander, decided this week to cancel the competition because of budget shortfalls.

"Given the fiscal uncertainty and current budget cuts, this was the right thing to do," said Selva. "It is very unfortunate we have to cancel. This is an important and uniquely useful event for mobility air forces and our international partners. We'll get back to holding Rodeo as soon as we can."

The first airdrop competition for units of the active-duty force occurred in April 1962, when the Military Air Transport Service held a MATS-wide Rodeo at Scott Air Force Base, Ill. McChord Field has been the host for the past four Rodeo competitions.

"We recognize that this decision will impact many outstanding businesses and community leaders throughout the South Sound," said Col. Wyn Elder, 62nd Airlift Wing commander. "Their support for Rodeo and the competitors over the years has been outstanding. Our Airmen have benefited tremendously from the community support for decades and we sincerely hope to continue our partnerships with the community in whatever capacity possible. Simply put, we can't be successful without the support provided by our local community."

This is not the first time Rodeo has been cancelled. The two most recent examples are Rodeo 2003, which was called off because of worldwide commitments for the war on terrorism and humanitarian efforts. In 1988, it was canceled because of budget shortfalls.

Three air mobility symposia originally scheduled for the week before the competition are also canceled, officials said.

More than 20 U.S. teams and a dozen allied nations were looking to travel to Washington state in late July for Rodeo 2013 to participate in events that would challenge the capabilities of airlift and air-refueling aircrews, as well as maintenance, aerial port, and aeromedical evacuation. Those participants are being notified of the cancellation through appropriate channels, officials said.

FORT MEADE, Md. (AFNS) -- Young Janet Libby was definitely someone going places at Beavercreek High School near Dayton, Ohio. She was in the National Honor Society, on both the German and Ski clubs and a soccer athlete as well.

But even those friends and well-wishers who would have signed her senior yearbook with words like "you'll go far," and "you'll be a success in life," could never have imagined that the young daughter of an Air Force pilot would go on to become the first female in the Air Force to attain the rank of four-star general, and only the second in military history.

Today, Gen. Janet C. Wolfenbarger has come full circle from those Beavercreek roots as the commander of the Air Force Materiel Command, a major command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, just a few miles from where she graduated from high school. She is responsible for more than 80,000 Airmen and civilians worldwide, along with a $60 billion annual budget, leading an organization that supports the warfighting efforts through state-of-the-art technology, weapon systems management, systems development and evaluation and a global supply-chain management system.

It didn't take long following her graduation from high school for Wolfenbarger to make her mark. After a suggestion from her dad a year earlier, she applied and was accepted in 1976 into the first class at the Air Force Academy to accept women.

"The Air Force Academy was an opportunity for me to be stretched in so many ways: physically, mentally and emotionally," said Wolfenbarger at a women's conference in San Diego in 2011. "It was an opportunity to prove to myself that, in fact, I could withstand those kinds of experiences, and come out on the other end realizing that I was far more capable than I ever thought I would be. The experience gave me a belief in myself that I have relied upon ever since."

Commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1980, she has spent most of her career in the acquisition field, leaving her imprint on the purchase, testing and implementation of the F-22 Raptor, the B-2 Spirit and the C-17 Globemaster III programs. She went on to earn a master's degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in aeronautics and astronautics.

Although Wolfenbarger is proud of her accomplishments and the direction women are headed in the Air Force, she said that she never wanted to be recognized for simply being a woman. "I wanted to do well and be recognized because I worked hard," said Wolfenbarger. "I did the very best I could at every job I held."

During the early 1980s, when Wolfenbarger was in the early stages of her career, she told stories of women who could be discharged for getting pregnant or even adopting a child. There were also many more career fields closed to women at the time. She believes that over the past three decades, women have made tremendous strides.

"We now have, not only maternity leave, but also paternity leave for our service members," she said. "Also, when I joined, there were a host of career fields closed to women, but we can now, as a service, proudly say that we have 97 percent of our career fields open to women."

Even though Wolfenbarger believes many women entering the Air Force today may take for granted their equal status, she said there are still areas of progress yet to be overcome.

"I think one of our challenges when we serve our country is that there is such a drive to support our nation in whatever mission we are assigned. I think there has to be a constant reminder that we all have to search for that work and life balance because, in the end, it is our families, our friends and our health that we have to rely on when our careers are over."

If sequestration is triggered this week, unpaid furloughs for civilian Defense Department employees will start in late April, Pentagon officials said here today.
Those furloughs would include potentially 246 employees in the 446th Airlift Wing, most who are air reserve technicians.

Sequestration is a provision in budget law that will trigger major across-the-board spending cuts March 1 unless Congress agrees on an alternative.

DOD Comptroller Robert F. Hale told reporters at a Pentagon news conference that if sequestration happens, the department will cut virtually every program and investment, and that almost all civilian employees will feel the pain.

Jessica L. Wright, the acting undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, said that sequestration and the continuing resolution -- a temporary funding measure for the federal government that's set to expire March 27 -- also will have a devastating on military personnel.

"But on our civilians, it will be catastrophic," she added.

"If the full 22 day furlough is implemented," said Caron Hardy, 446th AW budget officer, "that would have a $32.4 thousand impact on our people per month."

The expected furlough would be four days a month (two days per pay period) starting in late April through at least the end of the fiscal year.

"Everything is going to be affected, should sequestration go in effect," Wright said. "That's a guarantee. I think that everybody will be impacted by this action. And I think its incumbent upon us to try to ease that where we can."

The department already has taken actions to alleviate some of the pressures. DOD has slowed spending, instituted a hiring freeze, ordered layoffs for temporary and term employees and cut back base operations and maintenance.

If sequestration hits, this pain will seem minor by comparison. Operations and maintenance funding is the only way to provide the $47 billion in required cuts for the remainder of the fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30.

Within a year, two-thirds of the Army combat brigade teams will be at unacceptable levels of readiness, Hale said. Most Air Force units not deployed will be at an unsatisfactory readiness level by the end of the year. Navy and Marine Corps readiness also suffer, Hale said.

The process of furloughing civilians began today, with Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta sending notification to Congress. "That starts a 45-day clock ticking, and until that clock has run out, we cannot proceed with furloughs," Hale explained.
If sequester happens, each employee will be notified. "That starts a 30-day clock -- waiting period -- before we can take any action," the comptroller said. "The bottom line is furloughs would not actually start for DOD employees until late April, and we certainly hope that ... in the interim, Congress will act to de-trigger sequestration."

The vast majority of DOD's almost 800,000 civilian employees will be furloughed, Wright said. DOD civilians in a war zone and political appointees who are confirmed by the Senate will not be furloughed. Nonappropriated fund employees and local national employees will not be affected.

Limited exceptions will be made for the purposes of safety of life and health, Wright said, such as firefighters and police. And if a military hospital has only one neonatal nurse, for example, that person could be exempted, she added.

While military personnel accounts are exempt from sequestration, there will be second- and third-order effects, Wright said. For example, hours at exchanges and commissaries could be affected, and family programs could be reduced or cut. It is unclear at this point how DOD Education Activity schools will be affected.

The spending cuts will affect military health care, as some 40 percent of the personnel working in the system are civilians. Elective surgeries could be delayed or eliminated, and costs cannot be shifted to the TRICARE military health plan, because that program also will be hit by cuts.

Affected employees would be furloughed for 22 discontinuous days -- 176 hours -- between implementation and the end of fiscal 2013, with no more than 16 furlough hours per pay period.

Fiscal 2013 is just the beginning of a decade of budgetary problems, Hale said.
"The Budget Control Act actually requires that the caps on discretionary funding beyond fiscal '13 be lowered for defense by $50 billion to $55 billion a year," he said. "If those come to pass, then we will have to look at a new defense strategy. That would be the first thing that we'd do."

The new strategy would accept more risk and also be based on having a smaller military.

For now, officials "devoutly would wish for some budget stability right now," Hale said. "And I think it would benefit the department and the nation."