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| THE RED 7 | Friday, May 25, 2012

Year No. 2 edition No. 22

The Red 7 is published by the Northwest Florida Daily News, a pri-vate firm in no way connected with the 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) or the U.S. Army.

This publication’s content is not necessarily the official view of, or endorsed by, the U.S. govern-ment, the Department of Defense, the Depart-ment of the Army or 7th Special Forc-es Group (Airborne). The official news source for 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) is http://www.soc.mil/.

The appearance of advertising in this publication does not constitute endorsement by the U.S. govern-ment, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Army, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) or the Northwest Florida Daily News for products or services advertised. Ev-erything advertised in this publication shall be made available for purchase, use or patronage without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national ori-gin, age, marital status, physical handi-cap, political affiliation or any other nonmerit factor of the purchaser, user or patron. Editorial content is edited, prepared and provided by the North-west Florida Daily News.

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Coping with cancerBy aNGel McCuRDY

Florida Freedom Newspapers

FORT WalTON BeaCH — Just six months ago, Josh Santos was living his life with no regrets and no

thoughts on the future. Now, the 23-year-old cannot stop thinking about life’s what ifs.

The Air Force reservist was diagnosed with Stage 4 colon can-cer six months after he returned last August from a six-month deployment to Afghanistan. Now, he’s fighting for his life and the lives of other young people facing similar struggles.

“It changes your life,” Santos said. “There’s no way I’ll ever be the same. How do you go back when you’ve been through this fight? You don’t. You just find new purpose.”

The brown haired, brown-eyed man doesn’t look like he’s fight-ing for his life. He sat back in the Santa Rosa Mall food court one recent afternoon wearing a T-shirt and board shorts.

The only difference between Santos and the patrons walking past him is the thoughts in his head.

“This affects you more than you think,” he said. “Life’s so dif-ferent now. Now, I’m just trying to stay chipper and stay awesome for everyone around me.”

The diseaseThe Duke Field pilot began to

show symptoms of the cancer dur-ing his deployment. But because the signs were minimal, the thought of cancer never crossed his mind.

“He thought he was OK,” said Lisa Santos, Santos’ mother. “It happened again a few months after he came home from deployment, but it wasn’t severe until February, and that’s when we started bugging him to go to the doctor.”

With every doctor’s visit, Santos struggled to get anyone to look further into his cause. He was work-

ing out daily and said that aside from his symptoms he’d never felt healthier.

After each appointment he left with a new medicine to try and a new idea as to what was causing his pain and bleeding.

“That whole time I was still working, not thinking about cancer or life, but then in February the pain didn’t go away,” he said. “I had to beg for them to look more closely at me.”

The doctors again misdiagnosed Santos’ symptoms in February and sent him home. When the pain came again just two weeks later, the doctors decided to do more tests.

“I remember they sat me down and started out saying, ‘Well, we’ve

got some bad news’,” Santos said. “Finally, they came out and told me it was cancer.”

Santos was set up with an ap-pointment to remove the tumor that had developed in his colon, but on the day of his surgery another evaluation was done with more bad news: His cancer had spread.

“They told me I had two options. I could get the tumor cut out, but I would have to recover before I could start chemo, so that would be four to six weeks, which they said they weren’t sure I would live through, or I could start chemo and, hopefully, the tumor will shrink,” he said.

“I was in so much pain that I was ready for Option 1. You don’t feel

cancer, you feel the tumor. But the best option was the chemo, so that’s where I’m at.”

Santos completed his second dose of chemotherapy last week and is scheduled for six more treatments.

“I’ve done the research. I know what I’m dealing with and what’s going on in my body. I think anyone who’s going through this should do the same,” Santos said. “I want to fight. I’m 23. I have a lot of life left to live.”

The changesFor as long as he can remem-

ber, Santos has wanted to follow in his parents’ footsteps and serve his country. While other children dreamed of being teach-ers or doctors, Santos’ goal was to fly.

Santos was a member of a C-130 air crew in Afghanistan. But since his diagnosis, Santos fears his life in the Air Force will never be the

Josh Santos wants to share his story to help others recognize warning signs

Special to the Daily News

Josh Santos works out with gym rings recently. He says he is trying to keep a positive attitude as he fights his colon cancer.

See caNcer Page 4

DeVON RaViNe | Daily News

Air Force Reservist Josh Santos talks about his current chemo-therapy treatments. Santos, 23, was diagnosed with colon cancer earlier this year.

Friday, May 25, 2012 | THE RED 7 | Page 3

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By DaVe CHaCe

SWCS Public Affairs Office

FORT BRaGG, N.C. - The U.S. Army Special Forces regiment welcomed more than 120 men into its broth-erhood during a Special Forces Qualification Course graduation ceremony May 17 in Fayetteville, N.C.

The ceremony, where the newest Special Forces Soldiers wore their green berets and the Special Forces tab for the first time, marked the completion of at least one full year of spe-cialized, individual training at Fort Bragg, N.C. with the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School.

“The long, storied tradi-tion of the legendary green berets began with just a few individuals who sought to strive for a higher stan-dard of excellence in the profession of arms,” said Maj. Gen. Patrick M. Hig-gins, the ceremony’s guest speaker, to the graduates during the ceremony. “Now it’s your turn.”

Higgins is the director of the Joint Integrated Air and Missile Defense Organiza-tion, part of the joint staff in Washington, D.C. His first assignment as a Spe-cial Forces officer was as a detachment commander in 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) in 1986, when the group was assigned to Fort Bragg. Since that time, Higgins has gone on to command 2nd Battalion, 5th SFG(A) at Fort Campbell, Ky., the 3rd SFG(A) at Fort Bragg and the U.S. Special Op-erations Command-Africa, headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany.

“Only through carefully, arduously and ruthlessly building the strength of the individual Soldier will we preserve the strength of the regiment,” Higgins

said, acknowledging the graduates’ countless hours in training.

Only Soldiers who have successfully completed the three-week Special Forces Assessment and Selection program are qualified to begin the Special Forces Qualification Course. Once enrolled in the course, SFQC students must com-plete five phases: orienta-tion and history; language and culture; small-unit tac-tics; specialty training; and a final culmination exer-cise known as Robin Sage. Each student is assigned an occupational specialty within the Special Forces branch and attends specific training to become a Spe-cial Forces officer, weap-ons sergeant, engineer, medic or communications specialist.

“Your training has only just begun,” Higgins said to the graduates. “Your coun-try demands the most from you. The regiment expects that no matter the task, no matter the environment, no matter the difficulty, you will always accomplish the mission.”

During the ceremony, SWCS recognized a 2010 SFQC graduate for heroic actions taken while attend-ing the course.

Capt. Chad Lewis, now a detachment commander with the 5th SFG(A), was awarded the Soldier’s Med-al for providing emergency response support to a civil-ian plane crash.

On July 12, 2010, Lewis witnessed a single-engine aircraft’s catastrophic crash at Horace Williams Airport in Chapel Hill, N.C. After the plane came to a halt, Lewis scaled a perim-eter fence and ran more than 600 yards to the crash site to provide aid to the survivors. He found that the pilot was killed on im-pact but that the co-pilot was partially ejected from the wreckage and had suf-fered double below-the-knee amputations. Lewis saved the co-pilot’s life by applying improvised tour-niquets to his legs and re-maining with him while he was medically evacuated to a nearby hospital.

The Soldier’s Medal is awarded to any member of the United States armed forces or of a friendly for-eign nation who, while serving in any capacity with the U.S. Army at the time of the heroic act, distin-guished himself or herself by heroism not involving actual conflict with an en-emy. The same degree of heroism is required as that of the award of the Distin-guished Flying Cross, and performance must involve personal hazard or danger and the voluntary risk of life under conditions not involving conflict with an armed enemy.

Like Lewis and all SFQC graduates before them, the members of this graduat-

DaVe CHaCe | U.S. Army

Special Forces Qualification Course graduates wear their green berets for the first time in front of Family members, friends and Special Forces senior leaders during a gradua-tion ceremony May 17 in Fayetteville, N.C. The green beret is a symbol of excellence and mark of distinction for the Army’s Special Forces regiment..

Special Forces Soldiers graduate qualification trainingThe ceremony, where the newest Special Forces Soldiers wore their green berets and the Special

Forces tab for the first time, marked the completion of at least one full year of specialized,

individual training at Fort Bragg, n.C. with the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare

Center and School.

See graDuaTe Page 4


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ing class will soon report to their first operational Special Forces assignment with one of the Army’s five active-duty or two National Guard Special Forces groups. In these assignments, the will work with host nations, regional partners and indigenous populations to shape the foreign political and military environments in order to prevent war.

“We live in a time of great consequence and change,” Higgins said. “Committed around the globe, the military continues to fight while simultaneously disengaging and reducing force structure. There has never been more of a demand for Special Forces.”

“Whether it’s destroying terrorist networks, stabiliz-ing lawless regions or conducting humanitarian relief operations, rest assured you are trained and ready, and I have no doubt you will continue to bring honor and glory to our regiment,” he said to the graduates. “To navigate through the uncertain conflicts of tomorrow, we must be able to defer, deter and defeat aggression, not only by ourselves, but by, with and through our allies and partner nations.”

“America’s Army is the best-manned, best-trained, best-equipped, best-led and most decisive land force in the world,” Higgins said. “And the very best in the U.S. Army is its Special Forces.”

graDuaTe FroM Page 3same.

“I don’t think I’ll ever fly again,” Santos said. “This is who I wanted to be. It’s what I wanted to do, but I don’t know if it will happen.”

For now, he continues to live his life as best he can while undergoing chemo-therapy and dealing with the pain of his tumor. He said the hardest part is coping with his new reality.

“I’m reading a lot of books like Lance Arm-strong’s book that talks a lot about how he handled the emotional part of all of this, because that’s been tougher than the physical part,” he said.

Santos said he has start-ed going back to church and talking with spiritual lead-ers, but not about his cancer. He said he chooses to focus on his relationships and how he can be a support system for his friends and family.

“There are kids younger

than me dealing with it, so I know I can,” he said. “If you look at somebody in their 40s with cancer they’re fighting to live; the kids, they’re fighting to play the next day and have fun. That’s the way I want to look at it.”

The biggest change for Santos has been day-to-day activities. Rather than going to work at Duke Field or at Crossfit, where he was a fit-ness coach, he’s working on staying positive.

“You wake up different because it constantly fills your mind,” Santos said. “I didn’t think a thing about it before, but once it happens to you it’s a different story.

“Six months ago I was in-vincible and now I’m sitting in a room every two weeks

while poison is being pushed into my body.”

The new lifeNow, Santos said he has

decided to focus on some-thing other than his struggle with cancer. He said he wants to be an advocate for young people who may be ignoring the warning signs.

He wants everyone to understand it could happen to them.

“We had no family his-tory of this. Josh is in good shape, he’s active and strong,” his mother Lisa said. “You would never know he has cancer. But we know he’s not alone.”

Lisa will host a benefit for her son that also will serve as a way for Josh to share his story. The event will be

from 2 to 6 p.m. June 9 at the Rib Shack in Navarre.

“If this has taught us any-thing, it’s that young people need to be their own advo-cate,” she said. “These kids need to know what’s happen-ing in their own bodies. I’m just sick thinking about what Josh is going through.”

Santos said he wants to ensure that other young people push for tests and proper diagnosis.

“Maybe if I would have taken the early signs more seriously I wouldn’t be deal-ing with Stage 4 cancer,” he said. “I’m lucky because I’m young and I can fight this. But everyone needs to know that this can happen to them.”

Santos said he hopes to speak at the benefit on the reality of his cancer and the treatment he is going through.

“There’s no way for anyone to understand this unless they go through it, but I can try and make it as real as possible,” he said. “Life will never be the same when you’re faced with something you have no control over. It makes you think.”

caNcer FroM Page 2

WANT TO ATTEND?

Josh’s Journey against Colon Cancer will be from 2 to 6 p.m. June 9 at the Rib Shack, 2495 S. State Road 87 in Navarre.

For tickets, call 850-362-6262 or 850-362-6262. Tickets can be purchased at LuLu’s Uniforms in Santa Rosa Mall, the Rib Shack or Carolina Cigars in downtown Fort Walton Beach.


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FORT BRaGG, N.C. – The U.S. Army Special Opera-tions Command will honor 32 Special Operations Forc-es Soldiers killed while sup-porting combat operations during the past year in a ceremony, May 25, at 1 p.m. at the Fallen Special Opera-tions Soldiers Memorial Wall adjacent to the USASOC headquarters building.

USASOC command-ing general, Lt. Gen. John F. Mulholland will add the

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Army Special Operations Command to remember fallen Soldiers

By DaVe CHaCe

SWCS Public Affairs Office

FORT BRaGG, N.C. - The Special Forces Advanced Mountain Operations School, based out of Fort Carson, Colo., is filling its classes of the Special Forces Senior Mountaineering Course throughout the summer of 2012. The school trains spe-cial-operations personnel to survive in and move through mountainous terrain during military operations.

Part of the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, the SFAMOS is also known as A Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne).

The school will run three iterations of the Senior Mountaineering Course in 2012. The first, which is cur-rently in progress, is sched-uled to graduate June 8.

The course is scheduled to run two more times, from July 23 thru Aug. 30, and Sept. 10 thru Oct. 19. This course is open to all special-operations personnel with mountaineering require-

ments within the U.S. Spe-cial Operations Command. Additionally, personnel in ci-vilian government agencies with similar requirements may attend.

The six-week Special Forces Senior Mountaineer-ing Course includes tactical mountain operations, field-craft training, horsemanship, animal packing instructions, equipment maintenance, high-alpine medical con-siderations and medical emergencies, weather fore-casting, belaying techniques, casualty extraction, night-time mountain operations, equipment hauling and the construction of improvised climbing equipment.

Graduates will have the ability to serve as their unit’s subject-matter expert in tac-tical military operations in mountainous terrain, lead untrained and indigenous forces over mountainous terrain, conduct pack-ani-

mal operations and have the ability to certify basic moun-taineers for attendance to future iterations of the Se-nior course.

Additionally, Senior course graduates are quali-fied to attend the Special Forces Master Mountain-eering Course, a four-week course held once each year, which integrates tac-tical-mountain operations in a winter environment. The next Master course is scheduled to run in Febru-ary 2013.

Both courses are de-signed to host up to 22 students.

Special Forces units interested in sending per-sonnel to the course should contact the U.S. Army Spe-cial Forces Command (Air-borne) G-3 office. Other interested personnel, or for more information, may con-tact the SFAMOS directly at (719) 524-1654.

Special Forces Advanced Mountain Operations School course dates

The course is scheduled to run two more times, from July 23 thru Aug. 30,

and Sept. 10 thru Oct. 19.

By sTaFF sGT. MaTTHeW e. WiNsTeaD

U.S. Army Alaska Public Affairs

KaHilTNa GlaCieR Base CaMP, alaska — Crowning a vast glacier and surrounded by other peaks of impressive magni-tude rises Mount McKinley, also known as Denali (a Koyukon Athabaskan word meaning “The High One”).

It stands as the tallest peak in North America and third highest in the world.

The mountain has a his-tory of claiming the lives of unprepared climbers and

offers some of the most treacherous terrain and harshest climates on the planet.

It’s exactly the kind of challenge a team of U.S. Army Alaska mountaineer-ing experts is looking for.

Six members of the Army’s Northern Warfare Training Center cadre land-ed on the Kahiltna Glacier May 17 to begin a 14-to-20-day climb to the summit.

The NWTC trains Sol-diers to fight and win in a variety of unforgiving envi-ronments. Its Black Rapids Training Center near Delta Junction, Alaska, offers

courses in extreme cold weather operations and military mountaineering.

The NWTC team was shuttled in courtesy of two UH-60 Black Hawk helicop-ter crews from A Company, 1st Battalion, 52nd Aviation Brigade, 16th Combat Avia-tion Brigade.

Even though this is a mission the U.S. Army hasn’t attempted since be-fore the events of 9-11, the climbers are no strangers to mountaineering.

The NWTC instructors specialize in maneuvering on treacherous terrain in arctic conditions and say they’re ready for anything the mountain has to throw at them.

The team consists of five active-duty Soldiers and one Army civilian, each fully equipped with a tailored packing list of sustainment supplies and climbing gear.

“We’ve made sure to plan for everything from weather to altitude sick-ness,” said Maj. Gary Mc-Donald, commandant of the

NWTC, based at Black Rap-ids Training Area, Alaska. “We’ll be moving in rope teams to help mitigate the

danger from potentially fall-ing into hidden crevasses and adhering to strict rest/movement plan.”

People typically experi-ence altitude sickness at an

Page 6 | THE RED 7 | Friday, May 25, 2012

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Army team climbing Mount McKinley

sTaFF sGT. MaTTHeW e. WiNsTeaD | U.S. Army

Training Specialist Steven Decker and Instructor Staff Sgt. Brian Bailey, both assigned to the Army’s Northern Warfare Training Center, survey the route they will take to the sum-mit of Mount McKinley, Alaska. Grooming standards, such as shaving, are temporarily suspended as a clean shaven face is much more susceptible to damage from frostbite and other extreme conditions they will face on their expected 14-to-20-day climb.

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elevation around 17,000 feet above ground level. Bodily functions begin to operate abnormally due to several factors, chiefly the lessened air pressure and reduced concentration of oxygen at the higher elevations, Mc-Donald explained.

Some of the signs of al-titude sickness can include altered mental states, a reduced ability to absorb nutrients, vertigo and de-creased awareness along with a general feeling of be-ing unwell, McDonald said.

With so many risk fac-tors, this is no small mis-sion for the members of NWTC.

They have planned meticulously for months to make everything happen safely and for some mem-bers of the team it is the op-portunity of a life time.

“I’ve wanted to climb this thing for the last four years,” Sgt. Jacob Collins, an NWTC instructor said. “I attended the mountain-eering course back in 2007 as a (private first class) and I sorta fell in love with it. Ever since then, this moun-tain has been on my to-do list.”

In addition to meeting the personal goals of some of the team members, the climb is providing the con-summate professionals of NWTC the perfect opportu-

nity to hone their skills as they deal with conditions and travel methods most amateur climbers wouldn’t consider.

“Most of our early move-ments at the lower eleva-tions will be done at night,” Staff Sgt. Brian Bailey said. “Nighttime provides us more protection from the heat and solar radiation re-flected off the snow and ice and it also hardens the soft spots, allowing us to cross over them with less risk of falling through and into a crevasse. There’ll also be less traffic from other climbers to deal with, as the other climbers tend to travel during the day.”

Mount McKinley cur-rently has an estimated 200 additional climbers on it at various levels, according to Denali National Park Ser-vice officials.

Steven Decker, a train-ing specialist with NWTC and the team member with the longest tenure at the NWTC described the climb as a culminating training event using every tech-nique and method taught at the schoolhouse.

“This is a capstone training event, similar to a unit going down to [The Na-tional Training Center] or [Joint Readiness Training Center] in the lower 48.” Decker said. “A climb of

this magnitude refines criti-cal skills helps establish a greater confidence in the methods we teach.”

In addition to his current service as an Army civil-ian, Decker was previously assigned to NWTC as a Soldier.

McDonald said training in such extreme condi-tions makes Soldiers more adaptable to any terrain and conditions.

“What we do here makes us better as a fighting force,” he said. “Our Army might not always need to fight on terrain as harsh this, but having the ability and confident members who can make fighting on normal terrain that much easier.”

McDonald pointed out the vivid similarities be-tween areas of the Black Rapids Glacier, where NWTC is located, and the mountainous regions of northern Afghanistan.

“There are photos of the mountains of Afghanistan that are completely indis-tinguishable from the land-scape we have available here in Alaska,” he said.

“The terrain matches, the vegetation matches. The comparison is uncanny. The training benefits of such ar-eas are invaluable and need to be used more than they currently are.”

In addition to summit-ing McKinley, the team has offered to assist in rescue missions conducted by the Denali National Park Service in their immediate area during the climb.

“While making it to the summit is a goal, it’s not the only goal we have in climb-ing the mountain,” McDon-ald said. “The park service has agreed to contact us in the event they receive word of a needed rescue in our immediate area, if that hap-pens we’ll render any as-sistance that we can. While that may render our at-tempt to summit the moun-tain unsuccessful, we will do whatever we can to help out in those situations.”

The climbing team is currently making its way up Denali and rest at several camps along the way.

At the 17,000-ft. camp, the elevation is expected to begin affecting the

climbers. They are expecting the

last leg of the climb to be the most strenuous and will have to conserve their resources for the climb down, where most fatalities

traditionally occur. “Just because you make

it to the top doesn’t mean you’re done. You still gotta climb back down,” team member Sgt. Tony Mac-Dougall said.

clIMbINg FroM Page 6


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96th Security Forces Squadron commander

Memorial Day is a time to honor those who serve and remember those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. It has also be-come a key opportunity for scammers to target those who are serving or have served their nation, especially elderly veter-ans. The Better Business Bureau urges consum-ers and donors to be on the lookout for deals that seem too good to be true, and for disreputable charities.

Among the scams to watch out for: People posing as

Veterans Administra-tion representatives who contact veterans to say they need to update their credit card, bank or other financial records with the Veterans Administration; Businesses that

charge service members for services they could get for free or less expensive elsewhere, such as access to military records; Fraudulent invest-

ment schemes that con-vince veterans to transfer their assets into an irre-vocable trust; Businesses that offer

“instant approval” mili-tary loans, with language like “no credit check” and “all ranks approved,” that can have high interest rates and hidden fees; Businesses that

advertise housing online

with military discounts and incentives, and then bilk service personnel out of the security deposit; Businesses that try

to sell things like security systems to spouses of deployed military person-nel by saying the service member ordered it to pro-tect his or her family; People who sell

stolen vehicles at low prices by claiming to be soldiers who need to sell fast because they’ve been deployed; People who pose

as government contrac-tors recruiting veterans and ask for a copy of the job applicants passport (which contains a lot of personal information); People on online

dating services who portray themselves as lonely service members in a remote part of Iraq or Afghanistan, and then ask for money to be wired to a third party for some emergency.

The BBB advises ser-vice members, veterans and all consumers never to give personal identifi-cation information (Social Security, bank account, military identification or credit card numbers, etc.) to anyone who contacts you by phone or e-mail, and to be wary of any solicitations that involve purchasing something or transferring money. Consumers can check out businesses and charities for free at www.bbb.org.

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A disabled veteran has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to consider anew whether states violate fed-eral law when they allow divorce courts to count a veteran’s disability com-pensation in calculating spousal support.

The petition also in-vites the justices to con-sider an issue that states are more sharply divided over: whether federal law bars state courts from considering VA disabil-ity benefits communal property to be divided in divorce like other marital assets.

In dissolving the near 20-year marriage of Peter James Barclay, an Air Force veteran, and his wife Claudia Kay, an Ore-gon district court judge in 2010 considered the value

of Peter’s VA disability payments in awarding spousal pay of $1,000 a month. His only income is VA benefits and Social Security Disability Insur-ance, a tax-free total of just over $4,400 a month.

Barclay, 42, suffers from post-traumatic stress from his role as a Tinker Air Force Base first-responder to the 1995 bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City. Barclay cleared debris and helped in recovery the dead and wounded. In time, PTSD made him un-employable and eligible to draw VA compensation at the 100-percent disabled rate.

Barclay argued at trial that to include his dis-ability pay in calculating spousal support would

violate federal law. The court ignored that argu-ment and the Court of Ap-peals of Oregon affirmed its decision.

His Washington, D.C., attorney, Michael D.J. Eisenberg, petitioned the Supreme Court this month to consider whether Title 38 U.S. Code, Section 5301(a), which makes VA disability benefits immune “from taxation, claims of credi-tors, attachment, levy and seizure,” doesn’t also bar inclusion of disabil-ity pay, directly or indi-rectly, in spousal support calculations.

“We have two good rea-sons to be heard before the court,” Eisenberg said in an interview. “One is the fact that the states are ignoring federal law. And

two, states are split on how they are execut-ing federal law.”

The petition concedes that most states have adopted

the approach used in Ore-gon that disability pay can be used toward alimony. This is based on the Su-preme Court’s 1987 Rose decision, which said the legislative history of VA disability benefits shows that these payments are intended to compensate both the veteran “and his family.”

Eisenberg disagrees. Disability pay, he said, is to compensate the veter-

an for loss of income due to a service-connected medical condition. If the veteran has a spouse, VA compensation tables set payments higher. But that extra amount, in recogni-tion of the sacrifice the spouse makes in living with a disabled vet, stops if veteran gets divorced. That means the spouse has no direct claim on the compensation.

“It’s not like the veter-an’s disability caused the spouse a military-related disability,” Eisenberg said.

If a former spouse has no disability, she “has an advantage over the veter-an” that the Oregon court should have considered and not try, using VA com-pensation, to “even the playing field.” Doing that

gives the former spouse an advantage over the veteran, he said.

Barclay’s former spouse claims to have disabilities of her own. But Eisenberg said relief should come from a state or federal assistance pro-gram such as Social Secu-rity Disability Insurance, not the veteran’s benefits.

Eisenberg acknowl-edged that a Supreme Court ruling in favor of Barclay would not be a happy result for many for-mer spouses of veterans.

“But let us not forget these VA benefits are to make persons whole for loss of either physical or mental disability incurred while they are serving their country. The spouse

Will Supreme Court review how states treat vets’ disability pay?

Tom Philpott

See DISabIlITY Page 11

is deemed to have no disabilities, certainly no disabilities from military service … There’s noth-ing in the record to reflect she can’t go out and get a job.”

Barclay and his former spouse are in their early 40s. He is a veteran but not a military retiree. She worked at home through-out their marriage, rais-ing children who are now grown.

The 1982 Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act (USFSPA) allows courts to distrib-ute “disposable” military retired pay as marital property or as alimony or child support. But Barclay’s petition notes that the law also excludes disability compensation from the definition of “net disposable income” that can be divided under the USFSPA.

The petition also points to the Supreme Court’s 1989 Mansell decision in favor of a retiree who sought to reduce his spou-sal support when he won a disability award from

the VA. When the retiree began drawing VA bene-fits, it lowered his military retirement being shared with the ex-spouse.

Despite the harmful impact on former spous-es, the court said it had to follow the “plain and pre-cise meaning” of the USF-SPA. Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, now retired, dissented, writing that the majority was allowing VA disability compensation to warp the protections of the USFSPA.

Barclay’s petition cites O’Connor’s dissent to

point out that Congress hasn’t chosen to amend the USFSPA to address her concern. That means Congress still wants dis-ability benefits protected from spousal support cal-culations, at least for mili-tary retirees, Eisenberg argued.

Arizona recently passed a law shield-ing veterans’ disability benefits from alimony calculations. Barclay’s petition refers to two other states in which VA disability benefits paid in lieu of retirement (Texas)

are not subject to division as property or to alimony calculations (Vermont.)

Eisenberg agues it’s time the court addressed the states’ “various inter-pretations” and clarified the law in favor of his client and other disabled veterans. At least four jus-tices would have to agree a review is merited.

Tom Philpott is a syndicated columnist. You may write to him at Military update, P.O. Box 231111, Centreville, Va 20120-1111; or at [email protected].

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DISabIlITY FroM Page 10

From staff reports

Florida Trail group activities

The group has several activities planned for May and June.

May 26 – 27: 8 a.m. a one night woman’s backpacking trip. Details: 850-729-0344.

June 2: 9:30 a.m. celebrate Na-tional Trails Day with a short 1 mile hike around Anderson Pond

on Eglin reservation followed by lunch (burgers and hot dogs). Eglin recreation permit required. De-tails: 850-492-8258 or 850-803-9190 or 850-916-5756.

June 13: 9 a.m. bring your canoe or kayak for a paddle trip on Eco-fina Creek. Details: 334-858-6448 or 302-528-2824.

June 26: 6 p.m. the monthly meeting of the Florida Trail Asso-ciation at Ed’s Hometown Seafood & Steaks in Niceville. Visitors wel-come. Details: 850-654-1172.

June 30: 9 a.m. a short hike on Eglin near Crestview to view old Longleaf pines with catfaces. Lunch will follow. Eglin recreation permit required. Details: 850-492-8258. Visit online http://choctaw.florida-trail.org.

submit news items or story ideas to [email protected] or fax to 863-7834, attention eglin Dis-patch. Deadline for Friday’s edition is noon Monday.

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From staff reports

Settlement of estate

Anyone with debts owed to or by the estate of SSG An-drew Britton-Mihalo must contact CPT Gabrielle Calda-ra, the Summary Court Of-ficer for the Soldier. Call CPT Caldara at (850) 885-7250 or email [email protected].

Memorial Day ceremony

The Veteran’s Tribute Tower Committee will host the Annual Memorial Day Ceremony at Beal Memo-rial Cemetery on Monday, May 28, at 11 a.m. During the traditional reading of the names of fallen comrades from the past year, guests and organizations are invit-ed to place a fresh flower at

the base of the flagpole and render appropriate honors.

Guest speaker for this year’s event will be Major General Select Michael J. Kingsley, Vice Commander, Air Force Special Opera-tions Command, Hurlburt Field, with Army Chaplain Capt. Charles E. Shields, Ranger Camp and 7th Spe-cial Forces Group (Airborne) providing the invocation and benediction.

For more information, call Tom Rice at 302-0266.

Youth Fishing rodeo

Eglin Youth Fishing Ro-deo is May 26-27 at Ander-son Pond, 3 miles north of Niceville on East Side of U.S. Highway 85. The event is limited to children age 15 and under. Sign your chil-dren up for one of the May 26-27 time periods: 7-10 a.m.,

noon-3 p.m. and 4:30-7:30 p.m. (50 participants per pe-riod). Sign up with Jackson Guard through May 25 at 882-4165 or 882-4166.

ultimate Day campThe Eglin Chapel will

sponsor the Ultimate Day Camp, June 18-22 for chil-dren that have completed 1st - 6th grade. Cost is $70 for active-duty children and $90 for non-active duty children. To obtain a discount code, call the chapel at 882-2111.

orientation Flights with aero club

Enjoy a spectacular bird’s-eye view of the beau-tiful Emerald Coast with an Eglin Aero Club orientation flight! To celebrate Memo-rial Day, the Aero Club is offering specially priced flights on Monday, May 28

for only $20 per person. Flight times must be booked in advance by calling 850-882-5148. Bring along your family, your friends, and your PLAYpass card to save even more! Flights depart from the Eglin Aero Club (Bldg. 898 on the flightline) and last approximately 20 minutes. For information, contact the Eglin Aero Club at 850-882-5148.

‘Famtastic’ Holmes creek Paddle

Join Outdoor Recreation for a family friendly canoe and kayak paddle on beau-tiful Holmes Creek. Enjoy small springs and creeks as well as cypress, magnolia, and sweet gum trees along the way. Holmes Creek is a very easy paddle for an enjoyable day trip. Trip de-parts Post’l Point at 8 a.m. on Saturday, June 2. Cost is

$35 per person and includes transportation, canoe, and lunch. Sign up at Outdoor Rec or for information call 850-882-5058.

uSo Holds golf for Heroes event June 1

USO Northwest Florida Golf for Heroes will be held at AC Read Course. This fundraising event will help raise funds for USO North-west Florida. A four person team scramble the event will feature a putting contest, lunch and fun times golfing. Deadline for entering the tournament is May 25 at 5 p.m. for the June 1 event. This fun, first time tourna-ment on NAS AC Read Golf Course will be limited to the first 128 player (32 teams). Lunch will be provided. For-mat is a scramble and there will be a putting contest to enjoy as well as the normal

golf event. All proceeds will go to benefit USO Northwest Florida. Registration can be mailed to: PO Box 33135, Pensacola FL 32504.

For information, Faye White, USO Programs Manager Northwest Flor-ida at [email protected] or 850-485-6279.

‘Movies on the bay’ summer series

Outdoor Recreation will be hosting “Movies on the bay at Camp Robbins on the following dates: June 8, July 13, Aug. 10, Sep. 7 and Oct. 19. Movies will begin at sun-set. Bring lawn chairs, blan-kets, refreshments - all you need for your viewing com-fort. Event is free and mov-ies will be family friendly with a G or PG rating. Titles will be announced as show date approaches. For infor-mation, call 850-882-5058.

MiLiTARy BRiEfs

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