MJ Hegar served in the Air Force for 12 years, first as an aircraft maintenance mechanic and later as a pilot. She deployed three times to Afghanistan, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross on her final tour. Courtesy MJ Hegar’s campaign
Ms. Provost, who was appointed acting chief of the Border Patrol last year, will become the first woman to lead the Border Patrol in its 94-year history.
Carla Provost, who has been serving as acting chief of the Border Patrol, is being promoted to lead the agency. Credit:Lexey Swall for The New York Times
This all-female flight crew just made history
"While we are very proud to have made history yesterday by being the first all-female flight crew, we are more proud of the mission we are doing and the safety we are providing for people," said Waddington, who has been a pilot with the NOAA Corps for eight years.
Pilots Rebecca Waddington and Kristie Twining made history on their flight to Hurricane Hector. Add those women to these!
The Shadow Rulers of the VA ProPublica By Isaac Arnsdorf 8 Aug 2018
At times, Perlmutter, Moskowitz and Sherman have created headaches for VA officials because of their failure to follow government rules and processes. In other cases, they used their influence in ways that could benefit their private interests.
A June 21, 2013 file photo of the Veterans Affairs Department in Washington. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)
Last February, shortly after Peter O’Rourke became chief of staff for the Department of Veterans Affairs, he received an email from Bruce Moskowitz with his input on a new mental health initiative for the VA. “Received,” O’Rourke replied. “I will begin a project plan and develop a timeline for action.”
O’Rourke treated the email as an order, but Moskowitz is not his boss. In fact, he is not even a government official. Moskowitz is a Palm Beach doctor who helps wealthy people obtain high-service “concierge” medical care.
More to the point, he is one-third of an informal council that is exerting sweeping influence on the VA from Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump’s private club in Palm Beach, Florida. The troika is led by Ike Perlmutter, the reclusive chairman of Marvel Entertainment, who is a longtime acquaintance of President Trump’s. The third member is a lawyer named Marc Sherman. None of them has ever served in the U.S. military or government.
Yet from a thousand miles away, they have leaned on VA officials and steered policies affecting millions of Americans. They have remained hidden except to a few VA insiders, who have come to call them “the Mar-a-Lago Crowd.”
“On any veterans issue, the first person the president calls is Ike,” another former official said. Former administration officials say that VA leaders who were at odds with the Mar-A-Lago Crowd were pushed out or passed over. Included, those officials say, were the secretary (whose ethical lapses also played a role), deputy secretary, chief of staff, acting under secretary for health, deputy under secretary for health, chief information officer, and the director of electronic health records modernization.
Moskowitz and Sherman helped Perlmutter convene a council of health care executives on the day of the Trump-Perlmutter photograph, Dec. 28, 2016. Offering more private healthcare to vets was a signature promise of Trump’s campaign, but at that point he hadn’t decided who should lead an effort that would reverse the VA’s longstanding practices. read more here
Missing Baytown officer found dead Tuesday morning KHOU Author: David Gonzalez, Jamie Galvan August 7, 2018
Sheriff Hawthorne said everyone is trying to understand how a local hero who seemed to have everything going for him would make the tragic decision to end his life.
Officer Stewart Beasley, a 23-year veteran, was last seen at his Chambers County home around 3:30 p.m. Thursday. His wife reported him missing that night.
CHAMBERS COUNTY, Texas — The search for a missing Baytown Police officer is over.
Chambers County Sheriff’s Office deputies, along with Texas Search and Rescue, discovered the body of Officer Stewart Beasley around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Beasley’s body was found in a field less than a mile from his home.
Chambers County Sheriff Brian Hawthorne said Beasley died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
“We’re cops. We’re supposed to stand in the face of evil, and so sometimes it’s hard for us to admit that we have a problem. It’s hard for us to admit we’re dealing with issues that we can’t cope with, because we’re supposed to be able to cope with anything.” Lt. Dorris read more here
Coming Home: Families adjust to Marines returning from war CBS News August 6, 2018
When the Riveras are separated, with Paul serving in dangerous combat zones, they rely on their faith. "I'd wake up and just go in my closet and pray for 15 minutes, and that was one thing I did every day," Lily said. "I just felt like I needed that pick up."
"CBS This Morning" continues to follow the lives of our nation's bravest as they return from war. We were there earlier this year when a group of Marines came home to North Carolina from Afghanistan's Helmand Province.
It's been six months since that emotional reunion. Now as part of our series, "Coming Home," we focus on the families of two Marines, Major Ethan Krumnow and Major Paul Rivera.
Major Ethan Krumnow's family must now adjust to his return following a lengthy deployment to Afghanistan. CBS NEWS
You hear this phrase all the time when we're honoring our nation's heroes: "Families serve, too."
But what does that really mean for a family to serve? How do they cope when this huge hole opens up in their home, and then when their loved one comes home and so much has changed – especially for those with young children?
When Majors Krumnow and Rivera first saw their families, you could feel the relief.
But after nine long months in Afghanistan, Krumnow and his wife, Christina, faced some surprises.
read more here
350 Oklahoma Airmen return home after deployment to Afghanistan FOX 25 News Jessica Remer August 6, 2018
TULSA, Okla. (KTUL) -- Family and friends lined up Monday to welcome home 350 Airmen assigned to the 138th Fighter Wing of the Oklahoma Air National Guard.
A sweet homecoming for hundreds of men and women serving our country.
Beneath the stars and stripes a crowd of anxious faces.
All waiting or their loved ones’ return.
Today more than 350 airmen and airwomen coming home from deployment to Afghanistan. read more here
