Journal 19 July

Vol. 24 No. 29 www.bethesda.med.navy.mil July 19, 2012

By Helen HocknellNSAB Public Affairs

staff writer

Struggling to stay awake in the sad-dle, sometimes Aviation MachinistMate3rdClassChrisSuterwouldstaredown at the dark pavement, watchingthe white line as it wove back and forthlike a snake beneath his wheels.

“I didn’t realize my feet were stillspinning,” said Suter, who works inthe Staff Judge Advocate Office atWalter Reed National Military Med-ical Center (WRNMMC).

Suter recently completed a non-

stop, cross-country bicycle race knownas the Race Across America (RAAM).Unlike the Tour de France, in whichriders have 22 days to cycle 2,000miles with breaks for sleep and mas-sages, with RAAM, the clock doesn’tstop from start to finish.

This year’s route totaled approxi-mately 3,000 miles with 170,000 feet ofclimbing, taking the riders throughscorching desert heat and windymountain passes. It took Suter’s four-rider team 8.5 days to ride from SanDiego to Annapolis, Md.

Team Red White and Blue (RWB),a nonprofit organization that provides

support for wounded veteransthrough athletic events, sponsored theteam, which included two woundedwarrior riders.

Suter said he lost 16 pounds duringRAAM,but that’s nothing compared tothe 28-year-old’s transformation overthe past two years.

Despite working out constantly, byOctober of 2010, 6-foot-1-inch Suterhad ballooned up to more than 240pounds. Doctors at WRNMMC diag-nosed him with Cushing’s Disease, arare tumor on the pituitary gland thatcauses the body to produce excess cor-tisol, a stress hormone that causes

weight gain, insomnia and a host ofother unpleasant symptoms.

Suter underwent brain surgery atthe National Institutes of Health to re-move the tumor in February 2011.Doctors kept him hospitalized forweeks while his body adjusted to thesudden decrease in cortisol, but Suterquickly discovered exercise was thekey to recovery.

He joined the base cycling groupand participated in charity rides. Sixweeks after surgery, Suter completeda triathlon. By spring of 2012, he’d

Cycling challenge pushes Sailor to the limit

Courtesy photo

Suter takes a break from riding to chat with his teammates, whilecrew members refuel the support vehicles.

Courtesy photo

Suter rides across the Arizona desert during the Race AcrossAmerica.

Courtesy photo

Aviation Machinist Mate 3rd Class Chris Suter, second from theright,participates in a Ride 2 RecoveryVeterans Day ride in LasVe-gas last November.

See CYCLING page 6

2 Thursday, July 19, 2012 The Journal

Published by offset every Thurs-day by Comprint Military Publica-tions, 9030 Comprint Court,Gaithersburg, Md. 20877, a pri-vate firm in no way connectedwith the U.S. Navy, under exclu-sive written contract with theWalter Reed National MilitaryMedical Center, Bethesda, Md. Thiscommercial enterprise newspaper is anauthorized publication for members of the mil-itary services. Contents of The Journal are notnecessarily the official views of, nor endorsedby, the U.S. Government, the Department ofDefense, or the Department of Navy. The ap-pearance of advertising in this publication, in-cluding inserts or supplements, does not con-stitute endorsement by the Department of De-fense or Comprint, Inc., of the products orservices advertised. Everything advertised inthis publication shall be made available forpurchase, use or patronage without regard to

race, color, religion, sex, nationalorigin, age, marital status, phys-ical handicap, political affiliation,or any other non-merit factor ofthe purchaser, user, or patron.Editorial content is edited, pre-pared and provided by the

Public Affairs Office, WalterReed National Military Medical

Center, Bethesda, Md. News copyshould be submitted to the Public Affairs Of-fice, Bldg. 1, 11th Floor, by noon one weekpreceding the desired publication date.News items are welcomed from all WRN-MMC complex sources. Inquiries aboutnews copy will be answered by calling (301)295-1803. Commercial advertising shouldbe placed with the publisher by telephoning(301) 921-2800. Publisher’s advertising of-fices are located at 9030 Comprint Court,Gaithersburg, Md. 20877. Classified adscan be placed by calling (301) 670-1700.

Naval Support Activity (NSA) Bethesda

Commanding Officer: Capt. Frederick (Fritz) Kass

Public Affairs Officer NSAB: Joseph MacriPublic Affairs Office NSAB: (301) 295-1803

Journal StaffStaff Writers MC2 John Hamilton

MC3 Nathan PardeSarah MarshallSharon Renee TaylorCat DeBinderKatie BradleyHelen Hocknell

Managing Editor MC1 Ardelle Purcell

NSAB Editor MC3 Dion DawsonWRNMMC Editor Bernard Little

Walter Reed National Military Medical CenterOffice of Media Relations (301) 295-5727

Fleet And Family Support Center (301) 319-4087

WRNMMC OmbudsmanJulie Bondar (443) 854-5167

NSAB OmbudsmanJojo Lim Hector (703) 901-6730

Visit us on Facebook:Naval Support Activity Bethesda page:https://www.facebook.com/NSABethesda

Walter Reed National Medical Center page:http://www.facebook.com/pages/Walter-Reed-National-Military-Medical-Center/295857217111107

Yellow Fever PresentationNavy Capt. Stanton E. Cope, director of the Armed

Forces Pest Management Board, will discuss yellowfever and its impact on the U.S. and abroad during apresentation on Tuesday from 6 to 7 p.m. at theSilver Spring Civic Building, Ellsworth Room, 1Veterans Place in Silver Spring, Md. Cope's presen-tation will cover the experiments conducted in Cubaby the Walter Reed Commission, which includedMaj. Walter Reed, namesake for Walter ReedNational Military Medical Center. The NationalMuseum of Health and Medicine is hosting the freeevent open to the public. For more information, call(301) 319-3303 or e-mail [email protected].

Financial CounselingFree financial coaching for all service members,

federal employees, contractors, and family memberis available at the Fleet and Family Support Center(FFSC) in Building 11. Help is available to analyzeyour credit report or credit scores; discuss retire-ment (Thrift Savings Plan) options; create a budget,and more.Also, FFSC will host the presentation, "DoYou Want to be a Millionaire?" on Tuesday andWednesday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Building 11,classroom 159. For more information or to registerfor any of the workshops, call (301) 319-4087, or e-mail [email protected].

"The Anatomy of Sports"Specialists and athletes will discuss tips and

techniques to improve performance while prevent-ing injuries during a presentation on Aug. 11 from10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the National Museum ofHealth and Medicine on Linden Lane at the FortDetrick Forest Glen Annex in Silver Spring, Md.Attendees will also be able to watch medical illus-trators paint on athletes' bodies to reveal key mus-cles and bones structures. Featured will be ananatomical art demonstration that will illustratehow a horse and rider's bodies must work in tan-dem to achieve maximum performance. The eventis free and open to the public. For more informa-tion, call (301) 319-3303 or e-mail [email protected].

Bethesda NotebookBethesda NotebookCustomer Service Corner

“The customeris always right.”It’s a phraseheard often, butwe don’t alwaysthink applies in amilitary environ-ment. Yet, Iwould be willingto bet most of usare in a job thatrequires deliver-ing something (aproduct or serv-ice) to someone.That someone is your cus-tomer. You might not think ofthem that way since they maynot be paying for the productor service. Make no mistakethough — in customer service,The Golden Rule still applies:treat others as you’d like to betreated.

I’ve worked in the hospitali-ty industry for many years andas wounded warrior liaison, myjob is to advocate on behalf ofNaval Support Activity Bethes-da’s (NSAB) most important“customers” when they arehaving a problem and can’tseem to get a resolution. Oftentimes, it’s not the problem itselfthat leads to my involvement,but a customer’s feeling thattheir voice is not being heard.Most customers fully under-stand the answer cannot al-ways be “yes,” but it shouldnever be a simple “no.”

Every time you interact withsomeone, ask yourself, “howcan I make this interaction bet-ter?” Are they in the wrong of-fice? Can you point them to theright one? Is something bro-ken? Can you explain the stepsbeing taken to fix it and offer

up possible al-ternatives? Didthey dial yournumber by mis-take? Can youtake the time tolook up theright number?You can be per-fectly polite andprofessionalwithout askingany of thesequestions, but ifyou were the

customer, wouldn’t you wantthem to ask?

Now you might think I de-cided to write this because ofa negative incident I wit-nessed, but I can honestly sayat NSAB, I see people everyday providing outstandingcustomer service. Customercare has always been a pas-sion of mine and because ofwhom we serve and where weare, we need to ensure wehave done the absolute bestwe can to provide outstandingsupport in every single situa-tion we encounter. Individual-ly, everyone wants to providegood customer service. And wecan. But while doing our jobindividually, it’s sometimeseasy to lose sight of the factthat collectively we are a cus-tomer service organization.One way to provide outstand-ing customer service is not toask “have I done MY job forthis person,” but rather, “haveI gone above and beyond to as-sist them?”

Caroline van SantenNSAB WoundedWarrior Liaison

The Journal Thursday, July 19, 2012 3Thursday, July 19, 2012 3

By Mass CommunicationSpecialist 3rd Class

Dion DawsonNSAB Public Affairs

staff writer

Six months after its inauguralcommand climate assessment, NavalSupport Activity Bethesda (NSAB)recently conducted focus groups toprovide the command with feedbackon its continuous efforts to present aworkplace where everyone's personaland professional needs are met.

"Instead of doing a survey, we[held] focus groups to talk directlywith everyone to ensure we've takenthe steps in the right direction," saidCulinary Specialist 1st Class JoshuaRosario, NSAB command managedequal opportunity (CMEO) programmanager. "We want to show everyonetheir voice can be heard. Everyone'swork environment should offer every-thing needed to get the job done."

The objective of the CMEO pro-gram is to promote positive commandmorale and quality of life by providingan environment in which personnelcan perform to their maximum abili-ty, unimpeded by institutional or in-dividual biases based on race, color,ethnicity, national origin, gender orreligious stereotypes.

"[The focus groups] have been ex-cellent," said Janelle Massiatte, assis-tant to the CMEO program managerand lead coordinator of the groups."We were able to stand up two itera-tions for every paygrade and grouphere at the command includingMorale, Welfare and Recreation em-ployees, child development center em-ployees and shift workers. We've got-ten great results and are looking for-ward to pursuing our findings."

Rosario said the focus groups givehis team a chance to evaluate progressbefore the next official survey.

"The command assessment survey

is a tool commanding officers use toassess the climate of their respectivecommands, but that's annually," hesaid. "We want to know what's goingon. These groups allow us to ask thenecessary questions for leadership toensure all work spaces have positiveenvironments and we don't have towait until next year to do it."

In a recent congressional testimo-ny before the House Armed ServicesCommittee, Master Chief Petty Offi-cer of the Navy Rick West said, "It isthe responsibility of every Sailor, andleadership in particular, to ensurethat we are creating a climate of in-clusion, where every member of theteam believes his or her views, skillsand dedication are valued."

According to Rosario, the confi-dence and enthusiasm of a person orgroup at a particular time could bethe difference between a productiveand non-productive unit.

"Morale plays a huge factor in

everything we do. It can make orbreak your command. If morale is low,the level of productivity will not bewhere you want it to be and the cohe-sion needed in every unit will be ab-sent. Command climate is very seri-ous and we can't stress that enough,"said Rosario.

NSAB Commanding Officer Capt.Frederick Kass believes commandparticipation is critical in ensuringeveryone is engaged in the mission.

"It has been six months since thesurvey and I have been working withour team to share my vision of mak-ing NSAB a great place to work andsome things have clearly improved,"he said. "All command leaders, atevery level, must create, shape andmaintain a positive equal opportunityenvironment. We have the authorityand responsibility to ensure the Navycore values are integrated into ourdaily business."

Focus Groups Aim to Foster Improvement

By Bernard S. LittleWRNMMC Journal staff writer

To draw attention to the dangers ofthe sun's UV rays and to provide tipsfor skin and eye protection against sundamage, July has been designated asUltraviolet (UV) Safety Month.

"UV radiation from the sun is a car-cinogen that has been proven to in-crease the risk of skin cancer, which isthe most common form of cancer in theUnited States," said Cmdr.ChristopherDolan, service chief for the Division ofDermatology at Walter Reed NationalMilitary Medical Center (WRNMMC).

"Damage from the sun can occur injust 15 minutes,so protection is impor-tant for all people," added Army Maj.Lisa M. Lute, chief of Public HealthNursing/Clinical Preventive Medicineat WRNMMC.

"UV rays are the invisible rays thatare part of the energy that comes fromthe sun, and can burn the eyes, hairand skin if these parts of the body arenot properly protected or if they under-go too much exposure to the sun," Luteexplained. "Studies have shown thatjust a few severe sunburns duringchildhood and/or adolescent years canincrease the risk of a person developingskin cancer later in life," she added.

In addition to high levels of exposureto UV light and sun exposure duringchildhood, Lute said other factors thatcan increase the risk of developing sundamage and skin cancer include:use oftanning beds; gender (men are twotimes as likely as women to have basalcell cancers, and about three times aslikely to have squamous cell cancers ofthe skin); age (the risk goes up as oneages because of more time in the sun);

smoking; exposure to large amounts ofchemicals or other radiation sources(other than the sun); skin problems;and genetics.

Skin cancers are one result of toomuch sun, but there are other effectsas well, Lute continued.

"The short-term results of unpro-tected exposure to UV rays are sun-burn and tanning, which are signs ofskin damage," the major said. "Long-term exposure can cause prematurely-aged skin,wrinkles, loss of skin elastic-ity, dark patches or lentigos, which aresometimes referred to as age or liverspots,and pre-cancerous skin changes,such as dry, scaly, rough patches calledactinic kerasotes."

"Glaucoma and growths on the eyecan also occur from too much UV expo-sure," Dolan added.

"Over time, the sun's rays can seri-ously damage the eyes and surround-ing skin, leading to vision loss and con-ditions from cataracts and macular de-generation to eye and eyelid cancers,"Lute explained.

Dolan and Lute agreed that varioushealth providers and organizations dif-fer in opinion in regards to the amountof sun exposure that's consideredhealthy for people.

"According to the World Health Or-ganization, the sun's rays providewarmth and light that can possibly en-hance one's general feeling of well-be-ing and stimulate blood circulation,"Lute explained. "Some UV radiation isessential to the body as it stimulatesthe production of vitamin D,importantin increasing calcium and phosphorusabsorption from food to help skeletaldevelopment, immune function andblood cell formation."

But Dolan added that healthy expo-

sure to the sun is a "controversial topicthese days in regards to vitamin D lev-els. I think the jury is still out, but ifone is to subscribe to the theory that alittle bit of sun is good for the bodythen limit it to no more than 10 min-utes a day and avoid the hours of 10a.m. to 4 p.m."

Lute said the Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention (CDC) officialsrecommend people protect themselvesfrom UV rays year-round and not justduring the summer. To protect fromUV radiation, the CDC suggests indi-viduals: seek shade, especially duringthe midday hours; wear clothing thatprotect the skin from UV rays, and forexposed skin apply sunscreen; wear ahat with a wide brim to shade the face,head, ears and neck; wear sunglasses,preferably those that wrap around theeyes and block as close to 100 percentof both UVA and UVB rays as possible;and avoid indoor tanning.

"Sunscreen can help prevent sundamage [and] should be applied 30minutes before going outside becauseit takes that long for it to absorb intoyour skin and give you the proper pro-tection," Lute continued.

The "SPF" level of a sunscreenstands for its sun protective factor,Dolan added."This number is based onthe relative amount of protection anaverage user will receive from UVB ra-diation if the sunscreen product is usedproperly. With proper usage, a sun-screen product with an SPF of 30 isusually adequate for most skin types,as it will block 97 percent of UVB rays.The key is to use a broad spectrumsunscreen that blocks both UVB andUVA. Most of these products will statethat on the label.

Sunscreen should be applied every

two hours or after excessive sweatingor swimming, according to Lute andDolan. "Keep in mind,sunscreen is notmeant to allow kids to spend more timein the sun than they would otherwise,"the CDC says.

The lips can also be damaged by UVrays, Dolan added. "A lip balm withSPF is essential. Skin cancer on thelips may be more aggressive than otherlocations on the body."

People should check their skin forsun damage monthly, Lute and Dolancontinued.

"Our skin is one of the few organs wecan easily examine every day," Lutesaid. "Patients and their significantothers will often be the first to noticethat something on the skin haschanged. Thorough monthly skin self-examination and an annual visit toyour dermatologist can be vital."

"For the general public, the ABCDEguidelines are the best thing to followin checking the skin," Dolan said. A isfor asymmetry of a mole (one half of themole does not match the other half). Bstands for border of the mole, whichshould be examined for irregularitiessuch as ragged, cloud-shaped or scal-loped. C is for the color of the mole andchecking to see if there are inconsisten-cies (melanomas may have multiplecolors such as light and dark brown,pink, red, gray, white or even blue). Dstands for diameter, and noting if themole becomes larger than a pencileraser or 6 millimeters. E is evolution,meaning noting if a mole grows orchanges in shape and color.

For more information, call the Pre-ventive Medicine clinic at (301) 319-8733 or Dermatology Clinic at (301)295-4552.

Protect Yourself Against Sun's Harmful Rays



Nathan PardeNSAB Public Affairs

staff writer

The military's housing programsare designed to ensure that servicemembers receive suitable, afford-able and safe housing whereverthey may be stationed around theworld.

Housing service centers are locat-ed at most military installations, in-cluding one established at NavalSupport Activity Bethesda (NSAB)in August 2011.

"The Housing Welcome Centerhere supports all branches of theservice, as well as civilian cus-tomers," said Terrance VanHook,Housing Manager at NSAB. "Wedeal with 23 different managementcompanies with more than 100,000apartments between D.C., Mary-land and Virginia."

With such a wide selection ofhousing available to service mem-bers in the area, the Housing Wel-come Center aims to find the bestmatch for their customer.

"We go out and inspect every

property on the housing referral listonce a year to make sure they areup to standards," said VanHook."We manage on base and off basehousing, the barracks and theWounded Warrior building and theRental Partnership Program."

The Rental Partnership Programis designed to aid a service memberin finding suitable housing by waiv-ing the application fee, security de-posit, income requirements, andcredit check fees that are customarywhen signing a lease for an apart-ment. It also offers a five to 10 per-cent discount on monthly rent rateswhen military members apply tohave their rent paid through an au-tomatic deduction.

"Service members can save$1,000 or more up front by using theRental Partnership Program with-out worrying about qualifying forthe lease," said Sharon Reynolds,housing management specialist atNSAB. "It makes it much easier toget into an apartment and establisha rental credit history."

After a new transfer arrives, theHousing Welcome Center takessteps to assist them in settling intothe area.

"Every Monday, Tuesday andThursday, we do a 'welcomeaboard' [indoctrination] briefingfor the Soldiers, and we are look-ing to expand that for the Navysoon," said VanHook. "We alsosend out welcome aboard packagesby e-mail."

The welcome aboard package hasspecific information on local housingoptions, including the name, loca-tion, telephone number, rental costs,utility information and amenities ofavailable apartments.

"The welcome aboard packagecontains a list of privatized and mil-itary housing, a zip code map forMontgomery County, a list of theRental Partnership Program prop-erties, schools in the Washingtonmetropolitan area, short-term ho-tels, applicable information onhousehold goods and the BAH [Ba-sic Housing Allowance] rate for thisarea," said Reynolds.

Another tool that can make theprocess of finding an apartment eas-ier for transferring military is theNavy's Housing Early ApplicationTool (HEAT). It allows service mem-bers and their families to start thehousing application process for one ormore Navy installations online, be-fore or after they receive their Perma-nent Change of Station (PCS) orders.

To help meet the higher cost ofliving in the D.C. metropolitan area,the Housing Welcome Center offersresources that can assist servicemembers, veterans and their fami-lies, said Reynolds.

"People are often shocked to findhow much information we haveavailable and how it can help themand save them a lot of hassle. Ourrecommended properties are en-sured to be safe and a good benefitto the service member, and most ofour properties come with a 30-daysatisfaction guarantee."

Vanhook said the Housing Wel-come Center is always available tohelp their customers find a placethey can call home.

"Anybody who comes to NSABethesda and needs any informa-tion in reference to housing, we willtake care of them, including servicemembers, civilians, USU [Uni-formed Services University] stu-dents - anyone who could use thehelp," he said.

The Housing Welcome Center islocated in Building 17, Room 3256,and open from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.Inquires can also be made by phoneat (301) 295-6564 or by e-mail [email protected].

4 Thursday, July 19, 2012

For Military Members and their Families, Home is Where the Heart Is

10358871032237

The Journal Thursday, July 19, 2012 5

By Mass Communication Specialist 2ndClass John K. Hamilton

NSAB Public Affairs staff writer

With summer in full swing, many motorcyclistsare taking advantage of the warm weather by tak-ing their motorcycles for a spin.

Alexanderia Artis, work center supervisor atthe Armed Services Blood Bank Center said herfavorite part of commuting by motorcycle is ridingin the HOV (high occupancy vehicle) lane. "I havebeen riding for two years and it's easier to getaround. It's not hard to find a parking on base andit's cheaper on gas," said Artis.

Although there are a lot of benefits to riding amotorcycle over driving a car to work, there is alsoan added risk.There are motorcycle safety policiesat Naval Support Activity Bethesda (NSAB) inplace to reduce the number of motorcycle incidentsand fatalities.

The military requires all service members totake motorcycle riding courses whether they usetheir motorcycles on base or not. In order to regis-ter your bike on base you must have already com-pleted the basic rider course. The military offersbasic and experienced rider courses as well as amilitary sport bike rider course.

"All riders must first take the basic ridercourse, which is level one training," said JamesGanz, NSAB safety manager. "After 60 days, theywill take either the experienced rider course, orif they have the type of bike that qualifies, themilitary sport bike riders course, which is leveltwo training.

"There are also level three training classesthat are intended to improve the riders' skillsand knowledge through a curriculum that in-cludes practice maneuvers conducted at streetor highways speeds, challenging cornering tech-niques and other realistic scenarios conductedin a controlled environment. These courses areall approved by the Motorcycle Safety Founda-tion (MSF) and are available at no cost to themember, nor will leave be charged," he added.

"The Navy has an effective program that teach-es the basics and then progresses for the advancedriders," said Artis. "The course is also designedwith the difference of training needed for sportbike and cruiser riders taken into consideration.It emphasizes the need to continually brush up onskills and re-certify every three years.These skillswill save your life."

According to the Governors Highway SafetyAdministration, there were more than 4,300 mo-torcyclist fatalities in 2010, but some people be-lieve it isn't entirely the motorcyclists' fault.

"Extra care must be taken. Most motorcycle

accidents are not the fault of the cyclists, but mo-torists. We all need to pay attention to our sur-roundings to help prevent accidents. With theproper training and equipment, motorcycling isfun and safe,” said Artis.

According to OPNAVINST 5100.12J, theTraffic Safety Instruction, when riding a mo-torcycle it is mandatory to wear the correct per-sonal protective equipment (PPE). Choosingnot to do so could result in punishment underthe Uniformed Code of Military Justice or for-feiture of medical benefits if you are involvedin an accident.

"PPE is a major component of safe riding. Ahelmet, visor, long pants and long-sleeve shirtsor a leather riding jacket, good shoes that cover

the ankle, foot and toes and a reflective vest areall standard Navy required PPE for motorcycleriders," said Ganz. "Some other safety precau-tions revolve around the fact that, on a motorcy-cle, the rider has virtually zero crash protection.As such, a situational awareness of the surround-ings, road conditions, traffic and weather is para-mount. This is vitally important whether travel-ling on the beltway during rush hour, or at nighton empty back roads."

Riders or prospective riders can register for mo-torcycle riding classes online at www.navymotor-cyclerider.com, which also has a list of participat-ing installations to choose from.A list of approvedlevel three classes is available on the Naval SafetyCenter's web site at www.safetycenter.navy.mil.

Base Offers Access to Motorcycle Training CoursesThursday, July 19, 2012 5

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6 Thursday, July 19, 2012 The Journal6 Thursday, July 19, 2012

By Bernard S. LittleWRNMMC Journal

staff writer

Two teams from WalterReed National Military Med-ical Center (WRNMMC) re-cently repeated as championand runners-up in the FortDetrick Champions' Invita-tional Tournament for co-edvolleyball.

The Walter Reed Attackdefeated Walter ReedBethesda, two games to nonein the finals to win their sec-ond consecutive Fort DetrickChampions' InvitationalTournament title at Fort De-trick, Md., recently.

In addition to the twoteams from WRNMMC, otherteams that competed in thetournament included FortDetrick's intramural champi-ons U.S. Army Medical Re-search Institute of InfectiousDiseases (USAMRIID) andrunners-up Defense LogisticsSupport Center (DLSC), andthe Joint Base Andrews, Md.,intramural champion volley-ball team. Some players fromWalter Reed Bethesda, in-cluding James Ling, 2nd Lt.Courtney Edwards, HospitalCorpsman Third Class Moni-ca Montes and Sgt. PamelaStarkie, also competed on theUSAMRIID team during theFort Detrick intramural sea-son and tournament.

Ling organized the basevolleyball program at the for-mer Walter Reed Army Med-ical Center (WRAMC), andcontinued it at WRNMMCwhen WRAMC integratedwith the former NationalNaval Medical Center in Au-gust to form Walter ReedBethesda. He explained thatfor the recent Fort Detricktournament, the WRNMMCteam "was [again] split upinto two fairly equal teams,allowing for a high level ofcompetitiveness and maxi-mum participation for play-

ers. For the second consecu-tive, we brought home bothtrophies."

Coming a day after the re-gion was hit by the powerfulstorm known as a derecho,which caused vast power out-ages and knocked downmany trees and branches af-fecting travel, tournamentplay for Walter Reed Bethes-da got off to a slow start.When players showed up lateit caused the team to forfeitits first match to Andrews,who went on to win a matchagainst USAMRIID, twogames to one. The secondmatch of the day saw theWalter Reed Attack, led byteam captain Kelli Blaize-Wise, defeat DSLC twogames to none.

The USAMRIID team thendefeated DSLC, also twogames to none, behind by thepowerful hitting of Gil Ramosand the solid floor play ofWal-ter Reed staffers Edwards,Montes and Starkie.With twodefeats, the loss eliminatedDSLC from the tournament.

In the winner's bracket,Walter Reed Attack blew outAndrews in their first game ofthe match, survived a scarefrom the joint base team afterdropping the match's secondgame, and defeated them inthe tie-breaking third gamefor the match win.

"With timely hitting fromNavy Lts. Dan Hammer andJustin Orr, Walter Reed At-tack was able to survive thisvery hard-fought match withthe animatedAndrews team,"Ling said.

The loss bumped Andrewsto the loser's bracket with twowins and one defeat.

With all of their players fi-nally onboard, Walter ReedBethesda had to work theirway out of the loser's bracketbecause of the early forfeit,and win two matches to ad-vance to the finals. Led by 1stLt. Marko Benito and team

captain Grace Wong, WalterReed Bethesda won their firstmatch against USAMRIID,two games to none, eliminat-ing the Fort Detrick's teamfrom the tournament.

Walter Reed Bethesda thenfaced Andrews to see whowould play Walter Reed At-tack for the championship.Walter Reed Bethesda pre-vailed, two games to none,eliminating Andrews fromplay and setting up the allWalter Reed final.

Ling said the Walter ReedAttack was the fresher teamgoing into the final match,having to wait nearly threehours for their opponent tobe determined, as WalterReed Bethesda bumped offUSAMRIID and Andrews toearn the honor.

"The power hitting andfront line net play of WalterReed Attack's Dan Hammerand Justin Orr would provethe biggest factor of all, asWalter Reed Bethesda ran

out of answers, and gas,"Ling said. He added PhilHuynh, Benito and Wongdid their best to keep WalterReed Bethesda in the matchby digging up as many hitsas they could from the tallerWalter Reed Attack team,but in the end, Attack had"too much fire power toovercome."

The Attack won the matchtwo games to none, as bothteams came away from thetourney with trophies - theAttack, the championshipprize, and Walter ReedBethesda, the runner-uphardware.

"Key for us winning wasconsistency," Blaize-Wisesaid. She also attributed thevictory to their "Wall of De-fense" which consisted of theco- MVPs 6'5" Orr and 6'6"Hammer, as well as 6'4" DougSievers. "It makes the teamsplaying us change the waythey hit because they can't hitthrough [them]. Most teams

we played their adjustmentsfell short, and on top of ourblocking,our offense was pret-ty successful in putting theball away on the first attack.We really communicated welland made adjustments quick-ly. Everybody worked well to-gether."

Huynh agreed the At-tack's size was a factor intheir win. "We played ourhearts out to reach the finalto lose to a better team," saidthe Army specialist.

Wong agreed, "You musttake up the challenge in orderto grow and improve yourskills," said the Walter ReedBethesda team captain. "Youlearn how to play as a teamby utilizing each member'sstrength, but you must alsocompensate for each other'sweaknesses. Playing in atournament or a league al-ways psyches me up and is agreat mind and body stimula-tion."

Montes added, "What I en-joy most about playing is thecamaraderie; we are all fromdifferent branches of the mil-itary yet we come together tohave a good time."

Ling explained the WalterReed co-ed volley ball teamcompetes in local area tourna-ments such as in the Mid-At-lantic Volleyball Association,military tournaments,match-es against local colleges andmilitary installations, as wellas play in local leagues.

The team practices mostSaturdays from 10 a.m. tonoon in the fitness center inBuilding 17 at Naval Sup-port Activity Bethesda.Those interested in partici-pating in the base varsityvolleyball program can at-tend a practice, or contact 1stLt. Marko Benito at [email protected], Mas-ter Sgt. Rodolfo Santos [email protected], or Grace Wong at [email protected].

Volleyball Teams Earn Tourney's Championship, Runner-up Trophies

photo by Bernard S. Little

Navy Lt. Justin Orr prepares to spike the ball duringa practice with the Walter Reed Bethesda co-ed vol-leyball team. The 6'5" Orr, a middle blocker, wasnamed co-MVP on the Walter Reed Attack teamwhich won the Fort Detrick Champions' InvitationalTournament recently at Fort Detrick, Md.

lost more than 60 pounds.Suter said riding with

wounded warriors adds a dif-ferent kind of perspective tothe challenge. “You think toyourself: ‘I might be sore andhurting, but that guy’s doingit with only one leg,’” he ex-plained.

About a month after hissurgery, Suter participated

in a bike race in Texas withRide 2 Recovery. He strug-gled to keep up and was onthe verge of quitting when hefelt a hand on his back, giv-ing him a push. Not one toeasily accept help, he turnedaround to yell at his helper,who turned out to be a Viet-nam veteran with a pros-thetic leg.

“That was the last time Iever let self pity almost getthe best of me,” said Suter. “Ifa man like that can carry notonly his weight, but the

weight of those around him,then I can push on. Whenriding with wounded war-riors, you are faced with achoice: Be defeated by the lit-tle voice that wants you toquit, or silence it with yourdetermination and actions.”

Now fully recovered, Suteris back to focusing on the goalthat has become an obsessionover the past few years: to be-come a Navy SEAL.

Army Cpl. Omar Duran, awounded warrior at WRN-MMC and cycling buddy of

Suter’s said Suter just mighthave what it takes to make itin the special operationsforces.

“When it comes to thatkind of training, you have tolet your mind go blank andallow your body to take overwhen you don’t think youhave anything left,” said Du-ran. “Chris has found thatmental switch that allowshim to stop thinking andstart moving. That’s what’sgoing to get him through.”

Suter shrugged off the ad-

miration, but his mothersaid she couldn’t be moreproud of her son’s accom-plishments. She said shedoes worry about him get-ting hurt in combat, butknows there’s no stoppinghim once he puts his mind tosomething.

“We raised him to be driv-en and to be part of some-thing bigger,” said DonnaSuter. “When Chris says hewants to do something, well,you’d just better stay out ofhis way.”

CYCLINGCYCLINGContinued from 1


By Sarah MarshallJournal staff writer

The U.S. Olympic DiveTeam took a break from train-ing to visit patients and staffat the Walter Reed NationalMilitary Medical Center(WRNMMC) on Friday.

On behalf of theWRNMMCCommander Rear Adm. AltonL. Stocks, the team and itstraining staff were welcomedby Deputy Commander forClinical Support Col. JohnSpain.Thanking them for pay-ing tribute to the woundedwarriors, Spain explained tothe divers that they would notonly make an impression onthe patients,but, "You're goingto be equally if not more in-spired [by them]."

Spain told the team theywould have an opportunity tocatch a glimpse of the manyservices and quality of careprovided by the medical cen-ter and its staff. "We're veryproud of what we do," hesaid, adding, that while[you're] in London, "Just soyou know, we're going to berooting for you."

Upon their arrival,10 of theU.S. Olympic Dive Team's 11members signed autographsfor patients and staff in theWarrior Cafe, visited inpa-tients on the surgical ward aswell as patients in the Mili-tary Advanced Training Cen-ter (MATC).

Marine Sgt. Zachary Stin-son, who lost both his legswhile in combat in November2010, was among the patientswho had a chance to meet andtalk with the team. He ex-plained he could relate to theirdedication and drive.

"They're kind of doing thesame thing the military does.They're representing the U.S.It's inspiring," Stinson said.

Accompanying the OlympicDive Team, famed OlympianGreg Louganis ,who competedsince age 9, and won his firstOlympic diving medal at age16 in the 1976 games, was onhand to serve as a mentor tothe team. In 1988, Louganisbecame the first man in 56years to win two gold medalsin diving. He went on to win

five World Championshipsand 47 National Champi-onship titles.

Louganis said he was grate-ful for the opportunity to visitthe wounded warriors,who hebelieves share a similar com-petitive spirit as the dive team.

"It's great we're able to dothis. It's really important,"Louganis said.

It allows the young divers toappreciate what they have, headded, noting they may alsorelate to one another, with"that passion and heart."

Synchronized diver and 3-meter springboard diver TroyDumais agreed stating, "It'sthe 'never-give-up,' will to liveon and will to work for whatyou want," Dumais said.

The seven-time World

Championships member, whocompeted in the 2000, 2004,and 2008 Olympic Games,wasalso inspired by the woundedwarriors.

"We train every day,and wework hard for what we love, forour goals, and they're heretraining and [going after]what they want," Dumaissaid. "It's an amazing arena.It's an amazing environmentto be a part of."

The visit also had a signifi-cant impact on synchronized3-meter Springboard diverKristian Ipsen.

"It does really put things inperspective," Ipsen said."Without these [troops] doingwhat they have done, wewouldn't have the opportunityto do what we're doing."

David Boudia, a 10-meterindividual diver and 10-metersynchronized diver, agreed.

"This really puts in perspec-tive why we get to do what wedo. These [service members]fight for our country, give usthe freedom we have," said the15-time National Champion,who also competed in the 2008Olympic games. "It's becauseof them we're even able to con-sider or be a part of theOlympic games. It's extremelyencouraging to come here."

After training at a localaquatic club in North Bethes-da last week, the U.S.OlympicDive Team departed Sundayfor the London games, takingplace July 27 throughAug.12.For more information, visitwww.london2012.com.

U.S. Olympic Dive Team Visits Patients, Staff

Members of the 2012 U.S. Olympic DiveTeam posesfor photos during their visit in the Warrior Cafe be-fore meeting with inpatients atWalter Reed and thethe National Intrepid Center for Excellence Friday.

Photos by David A. Dickinson

Marine Lance Cpl. Kyle Carpenter, an outpatient atWalter Reed Bethesda, talks with members of the2012 U.S. Olympic DiveTeam in the Warrior Cafe.

By David A. DickinsonWRNMMC Journal

staff writer

Listening to the award-winning piano playing ofMartin Spitznagel in theWalter Reed Bethesda'sAmerica Building atrium onJuly 11 during the noonhour, one could have easilyimagined they were in a1920s music hall.

Spitznagel, the 2011"World Champion of Old-Time Piano Playing," playedragtime music and explainedsome of its history, and hislove of playing it, to the Wal-ter Reed Bethesda communi-ty. His performance was themost recent offering by themedical center's Stages ofHealing series Summer ofHealing, which brings artistsof various genres to Walter

Reed Bethesda as respite forpatients, families, visitorsand staff, according to MicahSickel, a series organizer andchild psychiatrist at WalterReed National Military Med-ical Center (WRNMMC).

A resident of northern Vir-ginia, Spitznagel won the ti-tle of World Champion ofOld-Time Piano Playing atthe 2011 World Champi-onship Old-Time Piano Play-ing Contest in Peoria, Ill. Henot only seeks to dazzle andentertain with his pianoskills, but also to educateand rejuvenate, especiallywhen it comes to ragtime. Hesaid although many peoplemay think ragtime is an "old,dead and gone music," al-most anything can be playedin ragtime, which he de-scribes as a lively, syncopat-ed style of playing.

"Although known as aclassical pianist, GeorgeGershwin played ragtime,"Spitznagel said to the WalterReed Bethesda audience. He

demonstrated how one of theGershwin's classics, "Some-one to Watch Over Me," wasoriginally written as an up-tempo ragtime song instead

of the popular, slow, love bal-lad many have become famil-iar with over the years.

As artist-in-residencewith the Scott Joplin Foun-dation in Missouri, Spitz-nagel's mission is to contem-porize ragtime, "combiningold good stuff with new fire."

The next event in theStages of Healing's Summerof Healing series is sched-uled for Wednesday, July 25,from noon to 1:30 p.m. inBuilding 7's Memorial Audi-torium, third floor. ClaireCarroll will perform her onewoman show, "Beef En-counter," described as "funnyand poignant" on theDCMetroTheatreArts.comwebsite.

For more informationabout the Summer of Heal-ing, call Micah Sickel at(301) 295-2492.

Ragtime Comes To Walter Reed Bethesda

photo by David A. Dickinson

Martin Spitznagel performs in Walter Reed Bethes-da'sAmerica Building atrium recently as part ofWal-ter Reed National Military Medical Center's Stagesof Healing series Summer of Healing.

8 Thursday, July 19, 2012 The Journal8 Thursday, July 19, 2012


Dion DawsonNSAB Public Affairs

staff writer

The Women, Infants and Children(WIC) program is available at NavalSupport Activity Bethesda's (NSAB)Fleet and Family Support Center(FFSC) for interested parents.

"This is great news," said Hospi-talman Zevan Lejeune, a techni-cian with the Walter Reed NationalMilitary Medical Center's emer-gency room. "My wife and I are ex-pecting our first child, so it feelsbetter knowing the option is there.I have met a lot of people who'veutilized the WIC program and Ihave heard nothing but goodthings. The support that is given isamazing and they continuallyteach you about ways to have ahealthier child."

The WIC program is a federalgrant program that was designedto foster positive nutrition for preg-nant, postpartum and breast-feed-ing women, and infants and chil-dren up to age five. The program iscommitted to improving the health

of eligible participants by providingnutrition education, breast-feedingsupport, healthy foods, and refer-rals to health and social programsduring the critical stages of growthand development.

Ursula Rocha, a registered nursein the parent support program withFFSC, said the program is open toindividuals who live in Mont-gomery County and PrinceGeorge's County.

"The determining factor will betheir financial situation. We en-courage everyone to come see therepresentative because there aresome things they can deduct for anmilitary income," she said.

The partnership between Mont-gomery County, Prince George’sCounty and the WIC program is inthe beginning stages, so the objec-tive right now is to get the word outto everyone on the installation,Rocha said.

"Right now, they are coming hereto get prequalified and get set upfor their first appointment at a clin-ic close to them," she said. "Wewant to build up awareness andparticipation on base to the pointwhere we can be a one-stop for

every step of the WIC process. Butthis is a great start," she said.

Rocha went on to explain whathappens after registration.

"[After signing up] for the WICprogram, participants will meetwith a WIC representative," saidRocha. "The representative will bein Building 11 the first Thursday ofeach month from 9 a.m. to noon toanswer questions, look over infor-mation and determine if a person iseligible."

After qualifying, the representa-tive will set up appointments for theparent and child. The child will begiven an evaluation and afterwards,the parent will receive their WICvoucher. “The parents, for now, go toa local office close to their home. Forexample, if you live in Gaithersburgor Silver Spring, you will go to an of-fice in that area," she said.

A lot of times, when a personthinks they won't qualify they don'tcome in at all, said Rocha.

"I have heard stories from peoplethinking they don't qualify becausethey have a foster child or evenfood stamps. Everyone's situationis unique. Fathers can even applyfor their children. Since we are the

Women, Infants and Children pro-gram, fathers cannot receive bene-fits for themselves, but that doesn'tstop them from applying for theirchildren," Rocha added.

To make an appointment or formore information, contact Rocha at(301) 319-4087 or by e-mail [email protected] (subject lineWIC).

Bringing WIC Closer to Service Members

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The Journal12 Thursday, July 19, 2012

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