Archive of: In Service

	Title	Issue
	Russia trip reinforces Alaska ties I got to spend the last week in St. Petersburg, Russia. A group of six from my church went to help facilitate an English camp and experience as much Russian culture as we could in one week. I felt for foreign travelers to the United States who struggle with language barriers. So many Americans have the attitude “You’re in America, speak American,” yet I was in Russia unable to speak Russian. My language skills were limited to yes, no, and my name is — “da,” “neyt,” and “menya zavut.” LORI SPEARS	May Issue 2 2013
	World War II heroics not forgotten After nearly seven decades, George Miller finally received the Distinguished Flying Cross he earned while serving in World War II. The wait was well worth it for the 87-year-old Peters Creek man. MIKE NESPER	May Issue 2 2013
	ERHS grad assigned to USS Anchorage On Saturday, May 4, Seaman Cruz Boseman stood on the deck of the USS Anchorage during a commissioning ceremony for the Navy’s newest warship at the Port of Anchorage. MIKE NESPER	May Issue 2 2013
	Army gives Park Service a lift When your new office is located in one of the world’s most extreme natural environments, it’s nice to have a little help moving in. The National Park Service recently enlisted the help of the U.S. Army to shuttle supplies to Park Service base camps located far up 20,328-foot Mt. McKinley. MATT TUNSETH	May Issue 1 2013
	Car shopping not easy Alaska doesn’t seem to like the vehicles we brought into the state. After less than a year of living here, our van was totaled after two rear-end collisions. At the same time our car decided to begin falling apart. We’ve been nursing her along for the past year and a half. When the transmission went out, the car had gone from spare vehicle to my main transportation. So, we replaced the transmission. Since then we keep fixing things knowing the transmission is still good. But when the brakes went out again on Monday, we decided it was time for that car to be put out to pasture. We just have to find a replacement. LORI SPEARS	April Issue 4 2013
	JBER MP gets 16 years in spy case An Alaska-based military policeman will serve 16 years in prison and will be dishonorably discharged for selling secrets to an FBI undercover agent who he believed was a Russian spy, a panel of eight military members has decided. MARK THIESSEN	April Issue 3 2013
	Polar Force 13-3 wraps up The continuous 24-hour operational readiness exercise, Polar Force 13-3, came to a close Monday after a week of evaluating Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson’s Air Forces deployment capabilities, despite weather complications. AIR FORCE STAFF SGTS. WILLIAM BARTON AND NANCY GOLDBERGER	April Issue 3 2013
	First visitors of the season Next week is a big week in our house. Our first out-of-town guests of the year will arrive. The timing works out so that we will have multiple visitors at once. My in-laws will be flying in from Tennessee. They are coming to watch my kids while I take a trip to St. Petersburg, Russia. They will arrive about a week before I leave so that I can spend some time with them, too. Plus a college friend who is currently stationed at Ft. Wainwright will be driving down for his extended weekend. LORI SPEARS	April Issue 2 2013
	Overcoming obstacles After getting shot in Afghanistan, the combat engineer spent six months at a military hospital in Germany, where he underwent the transformation from a “10-foot tall and bulletproof” paratrooper into someone with a new appreciation for the daily battles fought far from the front lines of war. MATT TUNSETH	April Issue 1 2013
	Here comes the sun! The first day of spring conjures up specific thoughts for me. Crocus and tulip blossoms. Rain, lots and lots of rain. Everything being green and damp. A farewell to temperatures below freezing. Time for planting and playing in the garden. Alaska very much challenges that definition of spring. Snow covers my yard, keeping spring flowers in hibernation and keeping me from my garden. The world seems white and blue with the snow abounding and crisp, clear, blue skies overhead. And the temperature is still falling below freezing daily. However, the calendar says that today is a spring day. So what does spring in Alaska mean? LORI SPEARS	March Issue 4 2013