“Unfortunately, I kept silent. I didn’t talk about it, but I was only hurting myself internally.”

A Second Chance at Life: Local veteran tells her story of life after surviving suicide attempt

Military Matters
Author: Bary Roy
September 9, 2019

ROUND ROCK, Texas — Editor's note: This article contains depictions of sexual assault and suicide. Reader discretion is advised.

Vivianne Pearson is a United States Army veteran who proudly followed in the footsteps of her family at Fort Jackson in South Carolina.

It was while she was stationed in Fort Jackson that she says she went to get a drink with her sergeant, someone she barely knew, when he forced himself on to her.

Almost 11 years after a cry from her daughter interrupted her suicide attempt, a local vet is moving forward in life as a successful business owner in Round Rock.

"I was cornered," she said. "I was just fighting this particular sergeant off of me. It was the most scariest, intimidating, anxious experience that I've ever had to experience because I'm thinking to myself, 'Your wife is even here.'"

Pearson said that assault in 2006 shaped her military experience. She said the sergeant who assaulted her made it a point to make her life unbearable after a report was filed.

“There was a report made about the party. He thought I reported him,” she said. “But in all honesty, I didn’t. Not at all. My life was a living hell from day one after that.”

In retrospect, Pearson said she knows keeping her silence was a mistake. She believes that men and women who in those situations need to speak up and know there’s no shame in doing so.

“Unfortunately, I kept silent,” she said. “I didn’t talk about it, but I was only hurting myself internally.”
read it here

Fort Jackson’s 51st Commanding General marks 100 years of family service

This general’s family: From segregation to command in 100 years

The Associated Press
By: Christina L. Myers
March 17, 2019

"That was one thing I did reflect on. Somebody at some point in time said your particular race can't do that," Beagle said. "At some point our ancestors fought so we could be in those front-line units and those combat units."

Brig. Gen. Milford H. Beagle Jr., commander of Fort Jackson, South Carolina, speaks to the president of the Sgt. Isaac Woodard Historical Marker Association following the dedication ceremony in Batesburg-Leesville, S.C., last month. The general is descended from a soldier who served at Camp Jackson in a segregated Army more than a century ago. (Christina Myers/AP)

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Pvt. Walter Beagles arrived at Camp Jackson, South Carolina, in 1918, an African American draftee in a segregated Army that relegated black soldiers to labor battalions out of a prejudiced notion that they couldn’t fight.

More than 100 years later, his great-grandson now serves as Fort Jackson’s 51st commanding general.

Brig. Gen. Milford Beagle Jr., a combat veteran who took command last June, admits that it gets to him, knowing he’s serving where his ancestor served but under vastly different circumstances.

"It does become pretty surreal to know that the gates my great-grandfather came through are the same gates I come through," Beagle said. "You always reflect back to you're standing on somebody's shoulders. Somebody put that stair in place so you can move one more rung up."

Beagle hails from the same town where his great-grandfather came from: Enoree, South Carolina. The family dropped the "s'' from the end of its name during his grandfather's lifetime.

He says he felt compelled to enter the infantry as a young man at least partly because African Americans once were largely shunted aside — considered inferior and unsuited to combat.
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Fort Jackson Drill Sergeant Took Responsibility for Fatal Crash

Drill sergeant pleads guilty in Fort Jackson crash that killed 2, injured 6

The State
By Teddy Kulmala
FEBRUARY 11, 2019

When Staff Sgt. Andrew Marrow fell asleep at the wheel of the military truck he was driving on Fort Jackson on Oct. 6, 2017, he was awoken not by the truck plowing into a group of recruits, but by the screams that followed.

Army Privates Ethan Shrader and Timmothy Ashcraft died in an accident on Ft. Jackson during basic training. By Tracy Glantz

At times choking back tears, Marrow testified in military court on Monday about the events leading up to the deadly crash and the grisly scene he saw when he exited the truck. The drill sergeant pleaded guilty to two counts of negligent homicide and one count of dereliction of duty in the deadly crash that killed two young soldiers and injured six others.

“I was tired from being in the sun all day and having four hours of sleep,” he said Monday.

He faces up to 7.5 years in prison and dishonorable discharge. A judge is hearing from witnesses before imposing a sentence.
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Two Fort Jackson Soldiers Killed, Several Injured

2 soldiers killed, Alabama soldier injured at South Carolina's Fort Jackson
AL.com
By Leada Gore
October 7, 2017

An Alabama soldier was injured and two others killed in a deadly accident Friday at Fort Jackson, South Carolina.

Pvt. Emmett Foreman of Daleville was injured in what officials are describing as a "tragic accident involving a military vehicle and a troop formation." Two Army personnel, later identified as Pvt. Ethan Shrader of Prospect, Tennessee, and Pvt. Timothy Ashcraft of Cincinnati, Ohio, were killed.

Foreman, Pvt. Hannah New of Cartersville, Georgia; Pvt. Benjamin Key of Livingston, Tennessee; Pvt. Alan Kryszak of Clarksville, Tennessee; Pvt. Cardre Jackson Jr. of Laurel, Maryland; and Pvt. James Foster of Macon, Georgia were injured.

Two of the service members are in critical condition but Fort Jackson public affairs did not identify the conditions of individual service members. The type of vehicle or the exact nature of the accident has not been released.
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Two Soldiers Shot To Death Trying To Help Stranger

Two South Carolina Soldiers Killed Defending Woman at Bar, Suspect Charged 
NBC News 
by CORKY SIEMASZKO 
JUL 26 2016 

The military was mourning two soldiers Tuesday who were fatally shot while trying to protect a woman from a gun-toting man in a South Carolina bar. 

Staff Sgt. Charles Allen Judge Jr., 40, and Sgt. First Class Jonathan Michael Prins, 29, "were acting as good Samaritans when they were shot," said Capt. Adam Myrick of the Lexington County Sheriff's Department. 
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Vietnam Moving Memorial Tribute At Fort Jackson

Moving tribute to Vietnam veterans at Fort Jackson 
Live 5 News WCSC
By Carolyn Callahan
Updated: May 14, 2015

FORT JACKSON, SC (WIS) -

"It's an honor for us to finally welcome home our Vietnam veterans that served our nation and didn't get the welcome home they deserve," Col. Mark Shade, deputy commander at Fort Jackson, said.

Most people take the time to thank veterans for their service, but sometimes, you can't give that gratitude until long after sacrifices have been made. At Fort Jackson, there's a moving way to honor Vietnam veterans.

"Every Vietnam veteran is just as proud as they can be that we're doing this to recognize the Vietnam veterans," Maj. Gen. Retired Steve Siegfried said.

More than 58,000 names are engraved on 'The Moving Wall', a replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

"It's a tribute to those battle buddies that we had," Siegfried said.

Siegfried served in Vietnam. He remembers the faces that go with some of the names on 'The Moving Wall.'

"I'll come back at a time when there's not as many people here and visit with them," Siegfried said.

'The Moving Wall' was created in 1984 and makes stops throughout the country. Fort Jackson is its most recent visit. read more here

Fort Bragg Staff Sgt.'s death under investigation

Fort Bragg soldier found unresponsive in Hope Mills home, later dies
Fay Observer
January 31, 2014

A soldier with the 82nd Airborne Division was found unresponsive at his Hope Mills home early Tuesday and was later pronounced dead.

The cause of death is under investigation, Fort Bragg officials said Thursday in a news release.

Staff Sgt. Alton Jefferson II, 36, of Lancaster, Calif., was a military intelligence systems maintainer/integrator with Delta Company, 127th Brigade Engineer Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team.

Jefferson joined the Army in October 2000, attended basic combat training at Fort Jackson, S.C., and advanced individual training at Fort Huachuca, Ariz. He joined the 82nd Airborne Division in February 2012, the release said.
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Fort Jackson General relieved of duty for "misconduct"

Army Relieves Fort Jackson CO
Associated Press
by Susanne M. Schafer
Jul 12, 2013

COLUMBIA, S.C. -- The Army has removed from the command of its largest training post the one-star general suspended in May over charges of adultery and involvement in a physical altercation.

Brig. Gen. Bryan Roberts was relieved of his command at Fort Jackson, S.C., on Thursday afternoon due to misconduct, said Army spokesman Harvey Perritt.

The decision was made by Gen. Robert W. Cone, Commander of the Army Training and Doctrine Command in Fort Eustis, Va., Perritt said.

"This misconduct included adultery and a physical altercation," he said. "This misconduct was not sexual assault or harassment; it was a breach of order and discipline that violated standards of the Army profession."
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Fort Jackson 1-star suspended amid misconduct allegations

Fort Jackson 1-star suspended amid misconduct allegations
Army Times
By Joe Gould
Staff Writer
May. 21, 2013

The Army announced it has suspended the commander of Fort Jackson, S.C., amid misconduct allegations that include adultery and a physical altercation, according to a spokesman for Training and Doctrine Command.

Brig. Gen. Bryan T. Roberts was suspended today as commander of the Army Training Center and Fort Jackson by TRADOC commander Gen. Robert W. Cone, based on a preliminary investigation by Army Criminal Investigation Command. The investigation pointed to a breach of good order and discipline, “which was contrary to Army values and could not be condoned,” said spokesman Harvey Perritt.

Perritt said he could not provide details of the investigation in order to protect the privacy of those involved and the investigation itself, which is expected to span several weeks to several months.

“Regardless of rank or position, soldiers will be held accountable for their actions,” Perritt told Army Times. “We have to assume Brig. Gen. Roberts is innocent until proven otherwise.”
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Fort Jackson Wife Nominated Spouse of the Year

I received an email from Pamela Larson about this nomination. She is a soldier's wife but she was a soldier as well. She was wounded in Iraq. Pamela is Mom, but has also taken on another labor of love, helping soldiers and spouses with PTSD.

Read Pam's story and if you learn nothing about what is asked of military families, then you've already been paying attention. The trouble is too many have no clue.

If her name sounds familiar to you it is because Pamela and her husband were also the subjects of many posts here. Her husband, Sgt. Robert Larson was having a hard time with PTSD and for a while was missing. This was followed up by Fort Jackson, Missing Soldier Suffers from PTSD, Long Untreated TBI Pamela was frantic but when the Military search for Sgt. Rob Larson ended this Wife turned to Facebook to find missing husband. On October 22, the news came out that Sgt. Larson returned home.

On February 21st, 2013 Pamela Larson was named a finalist for Military Spouse of the Year. Pamela Larson is Fort Jackson’s Spouse of the Year and is one of three Army spouses who are eligible for this impressive honor. For Pam, this campaign is not about gaining a title, it is about saving her husband's life and healing her family from the wounds of war. Her fight is not for her soldier, but more so for the man underneath the uniform.

In the painful journey of PTSD and TBI which their lives have become, Pam now recognizes that she is not alone in this fight. She strives to be a resource and lifeline to other soldiers, veterans, and their loved ones to help them cope and treat these silent war-inflicted wounds.

Pamela Larson is more than just a Military Spouse, she is a purple heart veteran, a mother of two, a college student, a small business owner, and an activist for soldiers battling Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injuries. But first and foremost, she is a military spouse and mom.

Pam’s heroic story did not start that October day in 2006 when she was shot on her last 36 hours of duty in Iraq; this story began the day that her wounded husband went missing from their South Carolina home after a PCS move to Fort Jackson. Against all odds, Pamela used social media to gain resources to lead a nationwide search. Without the active help of military resources, she and the connections she sought out, tracked her soldier to a remote camp in Minnesota after an 8-day search, where he was found in a delusional state.

Since her husband’s return, Pamela is now utilizing her resources to find the help her husband needs and to assist all active military members, their spouses, and the veterans who struggle daily fighting this silent epidemic of PTSD and TBI. Through her PTSD support pages, Pam is also working daily to help spouses and loved ones get the help they need to assist in their soldier’s recovery.

Along with being an activist, Pamela has been a strong support to Military families through the creation of her in-home business, Teddys from the Troops. Teddys from the Troops was started as a way to help Military families to cope when a loved one is deployed. The bears are made out of used ACUs to provide a level of comfort while the soldier is away. Pamela also donates one bear a month to a family member of a wounded warrior.

Voting for Military Spouse of the Year will take place on March 5th and absolutely anyone can vote. This voting will determine both Military-wide Spouse of the Year as well as Branch-wide Spouse of the Year. Military Spouse of the Year will be announced on May 9th at a luncheon in Washington DC.

Chaplain casualty-care video game draws fire

Oh my God how much more are they going to keep getting wrong? They are right here in Orlando on top of everything else!

Chaplain casualty-care video game draws fire
By Michael Peck
Posted : Wednesday Feb 13, 2013

An Army computer game to train military chaplains may bring judicial rather than divine intervention. The Military Religious Freedom Foundation is vowing to stop the project, and possibly file a lawsuit in federal court.

The simulation, tentatively named Spiritual Triage, is being created for the Army’s Chaplain Center and School at Fort Jackson, S.C., but the school doesn’t want it.

“The school still hasn’t made any requests for the simulation, nor does it intend to at this point,” said spokeswoman Julia Simpkins.

Spiritual Triage is beginning development at the Army’s Simulation and Training Technology Center, which awarded the contract to Orlando, Fla.-based Engineering and Computer Simulations. Scheduled to be completed by September, Spiritual Triage is intended to expose chaplains and chaplain assistants to stressful situations such as ministering to dying soldiers.

“Non-player characters are used to elicit feelings and conditions that one may encounter, such as fear of death and dying, faith, guilt, separation, despair, grief, as well as physical trauma such as pain, burns, amputations, and disfigurement, to name only a few,” according to the ECS website.
read more here

Fort Jackson soldiers get old fashion dinner for Christmas

Soldier: "We Didn't Expect Much, Not Like This"
WLTX News
Dec 27, 2012
Written by
Steven Dial

Columbia, SC (WLTX) - The Christmas holiday is a time that many people spend with family. However, getting home to see family can be hard for some of the soldiers stationed at Ft. Jackson.

With that in mind, a local organization donated their time and made a home made old fashioned spaghetti dinner.

"It's just to thank them," said Mike Mancari with the Mother Teresa Knights of Columbus Assemblies.

For the men and women who protect our country, there's no such thing as a Christmas break.

"We didn't expect much, not like this," said Sergio Mendez.

About 200 Soldiers at Ft. Jackson didn't get to go home for Christmas, so volunteers with the Mother Theresa Knights of Columbus brought home to them.
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Fort Jackson Staff Sgt. Convicted on Sex Charges

Jackson drill sgt. convicted of sex charges
The Associated Press
Posted : Saturday Nov 17, 2012

FORT JACKSON, S.C. — A South Carolina drill sergeant faces five years in prison and a bad conduct discharge after being convicted of sexual assault charges at the Army's largest training center.

Fort Jackson spokesman Pat Jones said Saturday that Staff Sgt. Louis Corral was convicted of forcible sodomy, cruelty and maltreatment of subordinates, and other charges.
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Sergeant Robert Larson back home and safe

Missing soldier returns home safely
by Shyann Malone
Posted: 10.22.2012

St. Matthews, S.C.(WACH)--A missing Ft. Jackson soldier returns home safely after vanishing from his home more than a week ago.
Sergeant Robert Larson went missing from his home in St. Matthews Saturday October 20th.
His wife Pamela said that he was working on his Jeep and when she went to check on him he wasn't there.
After a week long search that extended into the Midwest Region Larson was found in the woods near his hometown in Minnesota.
The Larson family is glad to have Robert back but things are far from being back to normal.
read more here

Wife turns to Facebook to find missing soldier-husband

Social media help wife find missing soldier
Army Times
By Meghann Myers
Staff writer
Posted : Monday Oct 22, 2012

During the eight days after her husband went missing Oct. 6 from their home near Fort Jackson, S.C., Pamela Larson updated her “Help Find Sgt. Robert Larson” Facebook page daily.

She chronicled every meeting with law enforcement and her husband’s chain of command, while thousands of followers sent in tips and expressed their support for her husband, who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. Pamela knew something of what he was going through because she, too, was a wounded warrior.

“I can’t tell you what all the prayers mean to me and the boys,” she wrote Oct. 8. “The police have been updating us regularly. Unfortunately, they are updating us that they have made no progress.”

On Oct. 15, the 26-year-old soldier with Training and Doctrine Command’s Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 165th Infantry Brigade, returned home. His cousin had found him camping out in a forest near his Minnesota hometown, about 1,200 miles and a 22-hour drive from the last place his wife had seen him.

The “Help Find Sgt. Robert Larson” Facebook page had collected 11,831 “likes” as of press time, with some posts garnering more than 5,000 “likes” and upward of 800 comments. Though the tips sent in didn’t pan out, Pamela said she took comfort in knowing how many people are on her side, and she’ll keep the page going to encourage her husband through his recovery.
read more here

Search for missing soldier with TBI continues

Fort Jackson missing soldier suffers from TBI and PTSD

Military search for Sgt. Rob Larson ends

Military search for Sgt. Rob Larson ends

Military Search For Fort Jackson Soldier Halted
Sgt. Rob Larson, a Purple Heart recipient, served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. He has since gone missing from his stationed Fort Jackson, S.C., base.

A Fort Jackson soldier missing for more than a week sufffered from a traumatic brain injury sustained in Iraq in 2005 and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, according to a release from the team of family and friends searching for him.

He may not have his medicine for his brain injury and could be disoriented, the release stated.

Sgt. Rob Larson lives Calhoun County but was stationed in Fort Jackson. On Oct. 7, he was spotted in Gary, IN. After being spotted in another jurisdiction, the Calhoun County officials halted the search, though they are still collecting tips and remain the primary point of contact for all information coming in on the search.

Also, military officials told Pamela Larson, Rob Larson's wife, that they would not search for soldiers who are absent without leave (AWOL.), the release stated.
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Fort Jackson, Missing Soldier Suffers from PTSD, Long Untreated TBI

Fort Jackson, Missing Soldier Suffers from PTSD, Long Untreated TBI

Wife: Missing Soldier Suffers from PTSD, Long Untreated Brain Injury
Sgt. Rob Larson was seen on a surveillance tape buying gas in Gary, IN.
By Jessie Gable

A Fort Jackson soldier who has been missing since Saturday may be headed to his parents' home in Minnesota, The State reports.

Sgt. Rob Larson, 26, served two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. He had a traumatic brain injury in 2006 and has been undergoing treatments since 2009, The State reports.

Larson was last seen in Columbia at the Forest Acres Walmart buying camping equipment.

A Facebook page operated by Larson's wife Pamela stated that Larson is probably not wearing military issued clothing. If he does not return in 30 days, Larson could be declared AWOL.
read more here

Search for missing soldier with TBi continues

Search for missing soldier with TBI continues

UPDATE Sgt. Larson back home safe

Search continues for soldier nearly killed in Iraq now missing from home
Posted: Oct 09, 2012
By Jason Old
By Susan-Elizabeth Littlefield
CALHOUN COUNTY, SC (WIS)

A South Carolina soldier who suffered a traumatic brain injury when the vehicle he was riding in hit an IED in Iraq during a deployment eight years ago has gone missing from his Midlands home.

Sgt. Robert Larson, 26, hasn't been seen since approximately 7 p.m. on Saturday. Pamela Larson says her husband left their Sandy Run home in his Jeep after working all day on the brakes.

She believes he may have left to blow off some steam after she was "nagging" him to help carry some boxes into the house.

He hasn't answered his phone or sent Pamela any text messages since he left. She says this long period of being out of contact is abnormal for her husband.

Larson was driving a Black 2009 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited with Smittybilt XRC front and rear fenders, and Smittybilt stickers on windshield and rear windows. It has South Carolina Purple Heart license plates. The tag number is PH5752.

Pamela is worried her husband may have gone off-road driving after dark on Saturday. "He thinks because he has a 4-wheel drive vehicle that he knows how to drive it in the woods," said Larson.

Wednesday the Calhoun County Sheriff's Department continued to search the dense woods around the home.
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Military Dog Up for Hero Award

Military Dog Up for Hero Award
Jul 28, 2012
Knight Ridder

On Oct. 6, Gabe, a weapons sniffing dog at Fort Jackson who conducted 210 combat missions in Iraq -- and has more than 20,000 Facebook friends -- will be cooling his paws at the Beverly Hills Hilton with the likes of Betty White and Whoopi Goldberg.

The 10-year-old lab mix -- who was rescued as a puppy from a Houston shelter just one day before he was to be euthanized -- is the 2012 American Humane Association Hero Dog in the military category. Now he and his handler, Sgt. 1st Class Charles "Chuck" Shuck, will face off against other service dogs, from guide dogs to search and rescue dogs, for the title of American Humane Association Hero Dog of the Year before the panel of celebrity judges.
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74 female drill sergeants at Fort Jackson, some are single parents

Single mom drill sergeants juggle family, work
By Suzanne M. Schafer - The Associated Press
Posted : Sunday Aug 14, 2011 13:38:36 EDT
FORT JACKSON, S.C. — Few women make it into the ranks of the Army’s top drill sergeants, even fewer when they face the challenge of being a single parent. But there they are, running fresh recruits through the grueling boot camp that welcomes every new soldier.

To juggle childrearing with a job that features 18-hour days and six-day weeks, the women take different paths: One sent her two daughters to live with relatives in Tennessee, one drops her son and daughter at an Army-run day care center at 4:30 a.m., while a third woman’s own mother moved from Texas to care for her 7-year-old granddaughter.

“You just have to build a big extended family,” said Staff Sgt. Esasha LeBlanc, a 10-year-Army veteran with a 10-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter. “It’s like being sent to war.”

The 30-year-old LeBlanc is one of 74 female drill sergeants at Fort Jackson who are single parents, out of the 207 women holding the job at the training post this summer. By contrast, 39 of 523 male drill sergeants are single parents, Army officials said.
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