In the Military
For and about Hawaii's servicemen and womenBy Gregg K. Kakesako
See also: For Your Benefit
25th Infantry commander
to lead joint experimentationMaj. Gen. James Dubik, commanding general of 25th Infantry Division, will become the director for joint experimentation at the U.S. Joint Forces Command in Norfolk, Va., later this year. He will be replaced by Brig. Gen. Eric Olson. Also still pending is the elevation of Maj. Gen. James Campbell, who has been at Fort Shafter since December waiting to replace Lt. Gen. E.P. Smith as commanding general of U.S. Army forces in the Pacific.
Navy Rear Adm. Robert Willard has been nominated for his third star as vice admiral and will be assigned as commander of the Seventh Fleet in Yokosuka, Japan. Willard is currently serving as deputy and chief of staff of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.
Brig. Gen. Joseph Webb Jr. will replace Maj. Gen. Nancy Adams as commanding general of Tripler Army Medical Center and commander of the Pacific Regional Medical Command tomorrow. The new assignment means that Webb has been nominated for his second star. Webb comes to Hawaii after serving as the assistant surgeon general for force development and sustainment at the U.S. Army Medical Command at Fort Sam in Texas.
He has been chief of oral medicine at Fort Meade, Md.; staff pathologist at the U.S. Army Institute of Dental Research in Washington, D.C.; special assistant and assistant division commander for 8th Infantry Division in Baumholder, Germany; commander of the 766th Medical Detachment in Baumholder; commander of the U.S. Army Dental Activity in Alaska; and commander, U.S. Army Dental Command, Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Adams has been Tripler's commanding general since March 1998 and will retire after 34 years of distinguished service in the Army.
The United States will team up with seven nations from June 25 to July 21 in waters off Hawaii for Rim of the Pacific 2002, a biennial joint naval exercise.
The 25-day drill is designed to respond to contingencies in the Pacific Ocean by the eight countries. Other participants are Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, Chile, Peru and Britain.
Air Force Brig. Gen Loyd Utterback will replace Brig. Gen Raymond Johns as deputy director in the strategic planning and policy department of the U.S. Pacific Command at Camp Smith. Utterback is currently commander of the 35th Fighter Wing of Pacific Air Forces in Misawa Air Base, Japan. Johns will become deputy director of programs and deputy chief of staff of the Air Force in the Pentagon.
Nearly 800 World War II veterans of the 100th Infantry Battalion, the first Army unit made up of Japanese Americans, and their families will meet for its 60th reunion June 27-30.
The reunion will include a memorial service, a special tour of Pearl Harbor, a golf tournament and a cocktail party.
A memorial service will be held at 9 a.m. on June 29 at Fort DeRussy's Brothers in Valor monument.
The guest speaker will be Lt. Gen. E.P. Smith, who commands the U.S. Army Pacific.
The reunion will end with a luncheon banquet on June 30 at 10:15 a.m. at the Hawaiian Village Coral Ballroom.
A processional honoring all of the veterans, each of whom will be accompanied by a child or grandchild, will be held. The guest speaker will be Denby Fawcett, a KITV news reporter.
During the reunion, which is being organized by the Sons and Daughters of the 100th Infantry Battalion, a new book, "Sparky: A Portrait of Senator Spark M. Matsunaga," will be sold.
Matsunaga served in the 100th Infantry Battalion. The author of the biography is Richard Halloran, former Star-Bulletin editorial page editor. Part of the proceeds will fund scholarships sponsored by the veterans association.
Moving Up
Pearl Harbor>> Cmdr. Donald Fritts assumed command of the nuclear attack submarine USS Pasadena, relieving Cmdr. Mark Ginda.
Gregg K. Kakesako can be reached by phone at 294-4075
or by e-mail at gkakesako@starbulletin.com.
