At Your Service
For and about Hawaii's military

By Gregg K. Kakesako

Sunday, June 24, 2001

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[IN THE MILITARY]

>>FOR YOUR BENEFIT
>>MILITARY CALENDAR

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St. Louis grad
nominated for
2nd star

Army Brig. Gen. Joseph F. Peterson, a 1968 St. Louis High School graduate, has been nominated for his second star as a major general.

Peterson is serving as the assistant division commander (maneuver), 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, Ga.

Assigned to the 3rd Infantry Division since July 1999, Peterson has been in his current position since June 2000. Since September 2000, Peterson also has served as the commanding general of Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield.

He has a master's degree in business administration from Chaminade University.

Also on the promotion list for two star generals is Brig. Gen. Karl W. Eikenberry, former 25th Infantry Division assistant commander, and Maj. Gen. Edward Correa, who was appointed as the state's adjutant general two years ago.

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Hawaii Army National Guard Spec. Jonathan Knox demonstrated why he is one of the Army National Guard's Outstanding Soldiers of the Year.

On June 13 Knox, a personnel clerk with the 1st Battalion, 487th Field Artillery's Service Battery in Wahiawa, gave emergency medical assistance to a 52-year-old man who had collapsed and struck his head on the floor in the same Arlington, Va., hotel where Knox and five other Army Guard soldiers were staying. Knox, 31, treated the man for heat stroke and a slight concussion.

Knox served two years in the active Army as a flight operations controller. He became a combat medic after joining the Guard last year, and is a certified emergency medical technician. He is studying to become a registered nurse in a University of Phoenix program in Hawaii.

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Sixteen family members of Medal of Honor recipient Army Sgt. Leroy Mendonca last week proudly boarded the Military Sea Lift Command's newest cargo vessel, remembering the former McKinley High School student who wished for world peace.

USNS Mendonca arrived at Ford Island in Pearl Harbor June 15 during its maiden voyage from Louisiana. The 1,000-foot-long ship is named for Mendonca, who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for helping his platoon capture a strategic hill near Chichon, Korea on July 4, 1951.

"I feel very proud and I also feel very glad that the nation honored the memory of my uncle," said Leroy's nephew Thomas Mendonca. "I also feel a little sad because whenever they do something like this it brings back memories of his sacrifice and the impact that it had on his family."

Sgt. Mendonca voluntarily remained to cover his platoon's withdrawal. When his ammunition ran out, he used his rifle as a club and his bayonet until he was killed.

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[FOR YOUR BENEFIT]

Disabled veterans
can get help

Question: What services are available for disabled veterans?

Answer: To receive vocational rehabilitation and employment benefits, a veteran must have a combined Veterans Affairs compensable disability rating of at least 10 percent and have been honorably discharged. A service member awaiting medical separation from active duty with a rating of at least 20 percent may also be eligible. The law allows for a maximum of 48 months of services.

Vocational services include evaluation, vocational counseling and planning, assistance in finding and keeping a suitable job, training such as on-the-job and nonpaid work experiences, college programs, and supportive rehabilitation services and additional counseling. The VA may pay for tuition, books, equipment, tools, or other supplies. A subsistence allowance is available to pay living expenses. This is in addition to any VA compensation or military retired pay. Also, the VA will provide the medical and dental care and treatment and employment assistance to get and keep a job.

Question: My husband recently passed away and had his ashes scattered. Does the VA provide a marker?

Answer: The VA provides a memorial headstone or marker the same as that used to identify a grave except that the phrase "In Memory of" precedes the inscription. The headstone or marker is available for veterans or deceased service members whose remains were not recovered or identified, buried at sea, donated to science, or cremated and scattered. The VA will supply the marker and pay the cost of shipping, but does not pay for the plot or the placement of the headstone or marker. For further information, contact the VA at 433-1000.

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[CALENDAR]

Monday-Thursday

Pacific Air Forces' Korean War Air Power Symposium. Hilton Hawaiian Village. For more information, call 449-3936.

Monday

51st anniversary of the Korean War. Wreath-laying ceremony. National Cemetery of the Pacific. 10 a.m. Adm. Dennis Blair, Pacific Forces commander, guest speaker.

[DEPLOYMENTS]

U.S. Navy (Pacific Fleet)

Indian Ocean/Persian Gulf
USS Chosin (CG 65)
Western Pacific
USS Columbia (SSN 771)
USS Chicago (SSN 721)
USS Santa Fe (SSN 763)
USS Los Angeles (SSN 688)
USS Frederick (LST 1184)
Hawaiian area
USS Greeneville (SSN 772)
USS Asheville (SSN 758)
USS Buffalo (SSN 715)
USS Honolulu (SSN 718)
USS Tucson (SSN 770)
Eastern Pacific / West Coast U.S.
USS O'Kane (DDG 77)

U.S. Army

Arizona: 25th Division, US Army Pacific
Thailand: Tripler Army Medical Center
Sinai: 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment
Micronesia: 84th Engineers
East Timor: 25th Division, 9th Regional Support Command (U.S. Army Reserve)
Bosnia, Kosovo, Germany, Albania: 5th Division, 9th Regional Support Command
Malaysia: US Army Pacific, 9th RSC
Japan: 500th Military Intelligence
Vietnam: Tripler
Kosrae, E. Micronesia: 84th Engineers, Tripler

Hawaii National Guard

Washington: 487th Artillery Battalion, Hawaii Army National Guard, Ft. Lewis
Italy: Company B, 29th Support Battalion, Hawaii Army National Guard
Germany: HHC, 29th Separate Infantry Brigade, Military Police Platoon, Hawaii Army National Guard

Marine Corps

Okinawa: 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment; C Battery, 1st Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment
Thailand: Combat Service Support Detachment 79