20100520 Inside SWCS (draft 2)static.dvidshub.net/media/pubs/pdf_8320.pdf · 2011-03-30 ·...
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May 21, 2010 Issue 14, Volume 1 SWCS Inside Why were you in this formation? O n June 27, billionaire H. Ross Perot will sit down to watch a video from the U.S. Army Special Operations Command, wishing him a happy 80th birthday. As the students and staff at the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Spe- cial Warfare Center & School already know, part of that video will include a message from about 1,500 Soldiers and civilians from SWCS as they surround the Col. Arthur “Bull” Simons statue on the John F. Kennedy Plaza at Fort Bragg. Simons, who served in the Army and Special Forces community for 30 years, is best known for leading the 1970 Son Tay raid, an attempted rescue of American pris- oners of war in North Vietnam. While Simons was orchestrating the Son Tay raid, Perot was tirelessly working with the government to help resolve the harsh treatment and secure the release of POWs in Southeast Asia. is was Perot’s first experience working with Special Forces, according to Roxanne Merritt, JFK Special Warfare Musuem Cu- rator. Perot was very impressed, and has kept close ties with the community ever since. “He’s become a fixture in the commu- nity,” Merritt said. “He’s done a lot for Viet- nam veterans and former POWs. It’s not stuff that makes headlines, but it brings them together and is very special to them.” In 1979, Perot, founder of Electronic Data Sys- tems, commissioned then-retired Simons to lead an operation to free two of his em- ployees who were imprisoned by the Iranian government. Simons successfully organized a rescue team and freed the prisoners, re- turning them to the United States. Years later, Perot would honor Simons by donating the statue on JFK Plaza in his honor. Perot is a former Navy officer who graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1953. After serving four years in the Navy, Perot became a top salesman for I.B.M. before branching off on his own to start a new company in 1962. Perot credits this company’s success to the contributions made by the Vietnam War veterans he hired. He has said they brought intelligence, ingenuity and leadership to his company. In turn, Perot seeks to use that success to give back to military members and their families. In addition to donating the “Bull” Simons statue to SWCS and Maj. Richard “Dick” Meadows statue to USASOC, he has contributed generously to scholarships for military members, their Families and the Family members of our fallen warriors. “His support goes beyond the things you can see, like the statues,” said Merritt. “It’s the way he supports us like a quiet profes- sional. He helps Special Operations Sol- diers and their families when they need it.” SWCS Soldiers and civilians stand in formation around the Col. Arthur “Bull” Simons statue May 14 on JFK Plaza. The formation was videotaped as part of USASOC’s video wishing H. Ross Perot a happy 80th birthday. Perot is a well-known advocate for the military, particularly Special Forces Soldiers, and donated the statue of Simons to SWCS as well as the statue of Richard “Dick” Meadows outside USASOC. By Staff Sgt. Marshall Pesta USAJFKSWCS Public Affairs Office “e sacrifices [Soldiers] make are incredible, and they don’t even blink. I wish every American was made of that same strength.” H. Ross Perot The official newsletter of the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center & School Perot
Transcript of 20100520 Inside SWCS (draft 2)static.dvidshub.net/media/pubs/pdf_8320.pdf · 2011-03-30 ·...
May 21, 2010
Issue 14, Volume 1SWCSInside
Why were you in this formation?
On June 27, billionaire H. Ross Perot will sit down to watch a video from the U.S. Army Special Operations Command,
wishing him a happy 80th birthday. As the students and staff at the U.S. Army John
F. Kennedy Spe-cial Warfare Center & School already know, part of that video will include a message from about 1,500 Soldiers and
civilians from SWCS as they surround the Col. Arthur “Bull” Simons statue on the John F. Kennedy Plaza at Fort Bragg.
Simons, who served in the Army and Special Forces community for 30 years, is best known for leading the 1970 Son Tay raid, an attempted rescue of American pris-oners of war in North Vietnam.
While Simons was orchestrating the Son Tay raid, Perot was tirelessly working with the government to help resolve the harsh
treatment and secure the release of POWs in Southeast Asia.
This was Perot’s first experience working with Special Forces, according to Roxanne Merritt, JFK Special Warfare Musuem Cu-rator. Perot was very impressed, and has kept close ties with the community ever since.
“He’s become a fixture in the commu-nity,” Merritt said. “He’s done a lot for Viet-nam veterans and former POWs. It’s not stuff that makes headlines, but it brings them together and is very special to them.”
In 1979, Perot, founder of Electronic Data Sys-tems, commissioned then-retired Simons to lead an operation to free two of his em-ployees who were imprisoned by the Iranian government. Simons successfully organized a rescue team and freed the prisoners, re-turning them to the United States.
Years later, Perot would honor Simons by donating the statue on JFK Plaza in his honor.
Perot is a former Navy officer who
graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1953. After serving four years in the Navy, Perot became a top salesman for I.B.M. before branching off on his own to start a new company in 1962.
Perot credits this company’s success to the contributions made by the Vietnam War veterans he hired. He has said they brought intelligence, ingenuity and leadership to his
company. In turn, Perot seeks
to use that success to give back to military members and their families. In addition to donating the “Bull”
Simons statue to SWCS and Maj. Richard “Dick” Meadows statue to USASOC, he has contributed generously to scholarships for military members, their Families and the Family members of our fallen warriors.
“His support goes beyond the things you can see, like the statues,” said Merritt. “It’s the way he supports us like a quiet profes-sional. He helps Special Operations Sol-diers and their families when they need it.”
SWCS Soldiers and civilians stand in formation around the Col. Arthur “Bull” Simons statue May 14 on JFK Plaza. The formation was videotaped as part of USASOC’s video wishing H. Ross Perot a happy 80th birthday. Perot is a well-known advocate for the military, particularly Special Forces Soldiers, and donated the statue of Simons to SWCS as well as the statue of Richard “Dick” Meadows outside USASOC.
By Staff Sgt. Marshall PestaUSAJFKSWCS Public Affairs Office
“The sacrifices [Soldiers] make are incredible, and they don’t even blink. I wish every American was
made of that same strength.”H. Ross Perot
The official newsletter of the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy
Special Warfare Center & School
Perot
The following column is an excerpt from Brig. Gen. Sacolick’s next blog post, to be located on the SWCS Portal at https://arsocportal.soc.mil/swcs/cmdgrp/dcg/blog/default.aspx. Please go online to read the entire post, along with the complete education brief, and provide feedback.
The three pillars of leader develop-ment are training, education and ex-perience. I believe we have an expertly
trained, combat hardened force but are lacking in education.
As a result of this perceived shor tcoming,
the Directorate of Regional Studies and Education has developed a comprehen-sive education proposal to be presented to the USASOC Commander.
SOF has the finest tactical leaders on the battlefield but have failed to produce Strategic Leaders (or leaders who consistently think strategically), which I believe in our profession is critical at every rank.
The single quality I associate most with strategic leadership is adaptability.
Humans are more important than hardware actually means that Soldiers, not things, are decisive. Resilient, su-perbly trained Soldiers organized into cohesive teams led by learned adaptive leaders who understand complexity.
SWCS must produce adaptive SOF leaders, a quality based upon humility, critical thinking, breadth of knowledge, comfort with ambiguity, acceptance of prudent but calculated risk and the ability to make rapid adjustments based upon a continuous assessment of the situation.
Tactical and operational acumen are remarkably important to SOF leader-ship, but intellectual prowess speaks volumes when routinely engaging our interagency partners, country teams and foreign dignitaries.
In essence, advanced education not only places our SOF Warriors on solid intellectual footing, but in many cases becomes our “street cred” or “bonafides” as we engage globally.
SOF education should produce strategic leadersBy Brig. Gen. Bennet S. SacolickUSAJFKSWCS Deputy Commanding General
Safety Day events have something for everyoneThe Safety Day events are designed to
provide our community, both on the mili-tary installation and in the local area, with
an opportunity to showcase their commitment to the Safety and Health of our most valuable resource: our SWCS Soldiers, Civilians, Families and Con-
tractors. These Safety Day events will take place
Monday and Tuesday, May 24-25 in the JFK Plaza parking lots. Each day kicks off at 9:30 a.m. with a safety briefing in the au-ditorium; outdoor events will open immedi-ately afterward. The safety briefing is open to all that are 16 or older (some graphic photos may be presented that are not rec-ommended for younger audiences).
Local law enforcement agencies will showcase numerous capabilities. Learn about Fayetteville’s Special Response Team Vehicle, the Bear Cat, and step into the North Carolina BAT-mobile. The Breath
Alcohol Testing (BAT) Mobile Unit is a re-mote processing station and mobile court-room for immediate forensic on-site tests and judicial appearances.
Take a look at Hope Mills’ and Cum-berland County’s Mobile Command capa-bilities, and visit with Fort Bragg and Hope Mills Firemen. Stop, drop and roll through the Fort Bragg Fire Safety House. K-9s abound; to help you learn about dog safety, we are pleased to host three K-9 units, and a therapy dog!
The wild mouse ride has nothing on the Seat Belt Convincer! Experience a crash and a seatbelt’s protection with this ride hosted by the Fort Bragg MPs.
Concerned about your health? Want to improve your nutrition? Check your blood pressure and cholesterol? Smoking cessa-tion? We have something for all of these. Stop by and visit with preventive medicine and speak to a nutritionist. Smoking Ces-sations classes are available both days at 11 a.m. in the JFK Auditorium.
Come to the events and make a commit-ment to yourself and the mission. Make a commitment to safety.
By Cathy ShankUSAJFKSWCS Safety Manager
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
16 17 18 19 20 21 2223 24 25 26 27 28 2930 31 1 2 3 4 5Memorial
Day
Training Holiday
HHC, SWCS Change of Command
1:30 p.m. Kennedy Hall
RegimentalFirst Formation
2 p.m. Kennedy Hall
SF Qualification Course Graduation
9 a.m. Crown Coliseum
Upcoming EventsSWCSInside
Inside SWCS is brought to you by the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center & School Public Affairs Office. Please send all comments and
contributions to [email protected]
Photo of the Week
Sgt. 1st Class Eric Strand, A Company, Special Warfare Medical Group (Airborne), takes aim during the marksmanship testing during the SWCS Soldier and Noncommissioned Officer of the Year competition May 19 at Fort Bragg, N.C.
Shank
Sacolick
