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Parents of fallen service members gather for retreat
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Briefs ...............5
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Silver Star shines 47 years later
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Year No. 6 edition No. 18
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/.
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By KELLY HUMPHREY
Northwest Florida Daily News
DESTIN — Equipped with a snorkel and a pair of flippers, Suzi Fernandez was on a quest to find a hermit crab while at the beach on last week.
The Pensacola resident was part of a scavenger hunt team, and nothing, not even an elusive crustacean, was going to stop her from helping her team to victory. After a few minutes of searching in the knee-deep gulf waters, she emerged victorious, shell and crab in hand.
“Got it!” she exclaimed to her partners waiting on shore, who greeted her with applause.
The good-naturedly competitive scavenger hunt was just one of several activities planned for this weekend’s Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) Retreat at the Emerald Grande. Thirty-three parents of fallen military members from across the country have gathered for the event.
For Feranandez, whose son, Air Force Staff Sgt. Forrest Sibley, was killed in Afghanistan in August, the grieving process is still new. For others, like Pat and Lurlene McGuire of Lillian, Alabama, the journey has been longer.
Pfc. Kelly Patrick McGuire died on February 9, 2009, from a sudden onset of meningitis while in training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. A member of the Army Corps of Engineers, his parents had been worried that he would soon be deployed to the warfront.
“He was our only child,” Pat McGuire said. “When something like this happens, it leaves you with an empty feeling. The best part of retreats like this is being around other people who can understand how you feel.”
Founded in 1994, TAPS provides a wide range of assistance to family members of fallen servicemen and women.
The organization is planning a similar retreat here for siblings of deceased military members next weekend.
Jamie Boris, TAPS retreats deputy manager, is herself a military widow. She said the Destin community has opened its heart to the organization and the folks on the retreat.
“I’m already hearing people say that they want to come back and visit here again sometime,” Boris said. “This community has really welcomed us with open arms.”
Remember, celebrate, share
More info
For more information about the Tragedy Assistance Program
for Survivors, go to www.taps.org or call TAPS
at 202-588-TAPS (8277).
Parents of fallen service members gather for retreat
DEVON RAVINE | Daily News
TAPS participants pose for a picture on the beach at Holiday Isle in Destin Friday. TAPS, an acronym for Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, helps family members of fallen service members cope with their losses.
Suzi Fernandez holds up a hermit crab for a photo as she and other par-ticipants in the TAPS program go on a scavenger hunt Friday morning on Holiday Isle in Destin. Fernandez’s son, Air Force Staff Sgt. Forrest Sibley, was killed in Afghanistan in 2015.
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Northwest Florida Daily News
The Silver Star is the third highest award for heroism that a member of the armed forces can receive. For airmen, only the Air Force Cross and the Medal of Honor are more prestigious.
Normally, someone who earns the Silver Star if lauded in a ceremony in front of his peers. The medal is usually pinned on the hero’s chest by a general officer with all the pomp and circumstance the military can muster.
That’s not what happened when Anthony J. McFarr earned his Silver Star.
In 1969, McFarr distinguished himself by gallantly performing his duties as a pararescueman in Southeast Asia. According to the citation accompanying his award, on Oct. 6, 1969, McFarr courageously participated in the successful extraction of five downed American air crewmembers and 46 local Army troops from an area under direct attack from hostile forces.
As a pararescueman, or “PJ” as the airmen are known, McFarr routinely took part in extremely dangerous missions. By the time the recommendation for his Silver Star made it up the chain of command,
he had already been assigned to another base, so the presentation ceremony he should have received never happened.
In fact, it wasn’t until years later that he discovered that he had actually been approved for the medal.
“We were during a routine review of my service record, and I saw it listed that I had been awarded a Silver Star,” said McFarr, who now lives in Merritt Island. “I never received an actual medal, so I just bought one at the clothing sales store.”
That indignity didn’t sit well with Fort Walton Beach resident Aaron Farrior, a member of the Jolly Green Association, which represents the storied group of helicopter rescue crewmembers who saved so many servicemen during the Vietnam War.
“It happened to a lot of us,” Farrior said. “You’d be nominated for a medal, then you’d leave the base and they’d end up sending it to you in the mail. But with the Silver Star, it’s not supposed to happen that way.”
As it happened, the Jolly Green Association
gathered for its 47th annual reunion on Okaloosa Island last weekend. The reunion seemed like the perfect opportunity to right a historic wrong.
With a ballroom full of people standing at attention, retired Brig. Gen. Dale Stovall, president of the Jolly Green Association, presented the Silver Star to McFarr on Saturday. A full colonel read the citation accompanying his award aloud.
McFarr stood proudly on the stage as the general pinned the medal on his chest. After 47 years, he was finally receiving the honor he had earned in the skies over Southeast Asia.
Big, burly men who had shared in McFarr’s dangerous duty could be seen wiping away tears.
“Oh my God, it was great,” said Farrior. “It was the way it should be.”
For McFarr, the evening marked one of the highpoints of his life.
“The biggest accomplishment of my life was the work we did rescuing people,” he said. “Being there at that ceremony worked out just perfect.”
Silver Star still shines 47 years later
KELLY HUMPHREY | Daily News
Retired Brig. Gen. Dale Stovall presents retired Senior Master Sgt. Anthony McFarr on April 30 with the Silver Star he earned during the Vietnam War in 1969.
From staff reports
emerald WarriorAir Force Special Opera-
tions Command is hosting the annual Emerald War-rior exercise May 2-13. This joint exercise provides pre-deployment readiness train-ing for special operations forces, conventional forces, interagency elements and partner nation forces in re-alistic combat scenarios.
Emerald Warrior is a Department of Defense ex-ercise that focuses on ir-regular warfare and hones special operations forces air and ground combat skills. This two-week exercise al-lows participants to execute advanced tactical scenari-os and to strengthen joint warfighting relationships for future deployments.
Residents may see an increase in military activity in their area to include a higher than usual number of military vehicles and air-craft noise during the night-time hours.
Residents may also hear simulated munitions fire. All training occurs at desig-nated sites with the permis-sion of property owners and local authorities.
Cultural analysis Course
There are a few seats re-maining in JSOU’s Cultural Analysis in Special Opera-tions class to be hosted at the USAF Special Op-erations School from May 8-17.
The course is taught at the undergraduate level and designed specifically for the special operations community, interagency, and international partners assigned to and/or in direct support of joint and coali-tion special operations. Lessons examine applica-tions of socio-cultural anal-ysis in the military, with
emphasis on some of the concepts and techniques that social scientists use to examine the culture and social systems, and the po-tential impact of culture in planning and military operations. Register at https://jsou.socom.mil/ or contact Dr. Sager directly at (813)-826-3337 or [email protected]
Boots to Business The Eglin Airman &
Family Readiness Center’s Transition Assistance Pro-gram (TAP) will offer a 2-day “Boots to Business” track on entrepreneurship at the Eg-lin Education Center (Bldg 251) for service members transitioning out of the mili-tary. Participants will learn the tools and knowledge needed to identify a business opportunity, draft a plan, and launch their enterprise.
The class is offered Tues-day-Wednesday, May 10-11 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Course instruction will be provided by an SBA Representa-tive/SBA Resource Partner. Please call to register at 850-882-9060
gate-to-gateA 4.4-mile run/walk, 10K
run, and kid’s fun run are all part of the 31st Gate-to-Gate Memorial event, set for Saturday, May 28 at 7 a.m. at Unity Park. Participants carry on the time-honored tradition of dropping a car-nation at Eglin’s All War Memorial.
Register now at www.runsignup.com. Registration closes May 16 for general public and May 20 for base ID cardholders.
In-person registra-tion and package pickup is scheduled for Saturday, May 7 and 14 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Air Force Arma-ment Museum. Registration is $25, cash only accepted.
May 9-20, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. race packages will be
available for pickup at the Eglin Fitness Center. A pho-to ID is required to pick up your race package.
Ranger Open HouseThe 2016 Ranger Open
House on May 7 will show-case the capabilities of the 6th Ranger Training Battal-ion and the Florida Ranger Camp. Festivities will kick off with a “Race the Ranger” 5K at 8 a.m.
Open House events will begin at 10 a.m. and consist of a static line and freefall parachute demonstration, Rangers in action demon-stration, hand to hand com-bat show, and a reptile show by the U.S. Army’s only rep-tile team. Many activities will be available throughout the Ranger Camp, such as a tomahawk throw, several U.S. weapons that guests can fire, static displays, a car show, food vendors, chil-dren’s activities and more.
Guests may register to participate in the 5K run or the car show by visiting www.eventbrite.com.
Tubing down Turkey Creek
Join Eglin Outdoor Rec-reation on Sunday, May 8 at 10 a.m. for a float down the cool, shallow, sand bot-tom waters of Turkey Creek. Price is only $10 per person, Outdoor Rec provides tube rental and transportation for all participants. Call 850-882-5058 to sign up.
Toddler TimeToddlers ages 0-4 are
invited to a special time of reading and fun activities, hosted by Eglin’s Integrated Learning Center (ILC). Tod-dler Time is held in the “Bub-ble Building” (Bldg. 2579 on Gafney Road) at 10 a.m. ev-ery first and third Tuesday of the month. Call 850-882-9308 for more information.
Skydiving tripsJoin Eglin Outdoor Rec-
reation on Sunday, July 24, or Sunday, Sep. 11 for a day trip to Altha, Florida (www.xtremeskydivers.com) to experience the ultimate thrill — Tandem Skydiv-ing! Jumps are from an ap-proximate height of 10,000 to 13,000 feet, falling about 1,000 feet every six seconds at 120 mph.
Cost is $25 per person and includes transporta-tion (if needed), equipment, and jump with a licensed tandem skydiver. Partici-pants must be 16 years of age or older, in good health and physical condition, and should not be on medication that may affect judgment or performance.
There is no height re-striction, but weight limit is 240 pounds. (A weigh-in is required on flight day, and
even one pound over the limit will prohibit participa-tion.) Participants must have current High Risk Activities form (AF Form 4391) filled out prior to signing up. Sign up at Eglin Outdoor Rec. Payment is due at signup.
Stand Up Paddleboard Clinic
An introduction to this popular watersport will be offered the first Saturday of each month through Septem-ber at Postl Point with the next class on May 7 from 9 to 11 a.m.
Classes are conducted by World Paddling Association instructors and include one hour of fun paddleboarding. Cost is $25 per person for one class session and includes board rental and instruction.
Class size is limited, con-tact Outdoor Rec at 850-882-5058 to sign up early.
Offshore Party Boat Fishing
Experience the thrill of offshore fishing in the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday, May 7 from 9 to 11 a.m. on the popular Sweet Jody charter fishing boat. Cost per per-son is $25 for an 8-hour ex-cursion open to 40 people.
Military members and family members ages 6 and above are welcome to sign up. All items will be provided, including but not limited to boat trip, tackle, bait, fishing poles, instruc-tions, bagging of fish to take home, plus other in-cidentals needed to make the trip an experience to remember.
Contact Eglin Outdoor Recreation at Post’l Point to make reservations. Pay-ment is due when signing up.
Page 4 | THE RED 7 | Friday, May 6, 2016 Friday, May 6, 2016 | THE RED 7 | Page 5
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Maj. David Patterson, the Group Support Battalion Operations Officer, presents a cer-tificate of appreciation to Sheriff Larry R. Ashley, the Okaloosa County Sheriff, for his participation in the unit’s Safety Stand Down day on Eglin Air Force Base April 29.
PHOTOS BY SgT. SARA WAKAI | U.S. Army
Okaloosa County Sheriff Larry R. Ashley addresses members of the Group Support Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) during the unit’s Safety Stand Down day on Eglin Air Force Base on April 29.
Ashley Bailey, a Crime Prevention Specialist with the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, briefs Soldiers on the hazards and consequences of driving under the influence during the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s visit.
Safety Stand Down day
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Page 6 | THE RED 7 | Friday, May 6, 2016 Friday, May 6, 2016 | THE RED 7 | Page 7
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With U.S. forces still at war and House members up for re-election in November, the House Armed Services Committee rejected almost every idea the Obama ad-ministration proposed in its 2017 budget request to dampen military compensa-tion and apply dollars saved to other defense priorities.
The committee not only refused to force working-age retirees and family mem-bers to pay higher fees and co-pays for health care in 2018, it took the unusual step of making its pared-down packet of higher out-of-pock-et costs apply primarily to future generations of service members.
As described here last week the committee al-ready was primed to reject a fourth consecutive military pay raise cap and the deeper force drawdown sought by the department. But here are highlights of what the full committee also sent to the House floor on a final 60-to-2 vote:
Health Care Reform —
The Defense Department had sought multi-year hikes in fees and co-pay-ments to drive more patients, particularly non-medical retirees and
their families, into managed care and military facilities.
The committee reject-ed most fee increases but agreed to streamline and narrow TRICARE options to a health maintenance or-ganization (HMO) and pre-ferred provider organization (PPO). The HMO would still be called TRICARE Prime. TRICARE Standard, the fee-for-service insurance option, would be renamed Preferred and its network of providers called a PPO.
For Prime users, enroll-ment fees won’t change ex-cept for annual increases to match the percentage rise of retiree cost-of-living ad-justments. For Preferred
(Standard) users, if the U.S. Comptroller General certi-fies in 2020 that ease of ac-cess and other quality gains have been reached, TRI-CARE could begin a $100 a year enrollment fee for sin-gles and $200 for families. Otherwise fees or co-pays for current beneficiaries would be unchanged, including for elderly using TRICARE for Life with Medicare.
Referred users would have to enroll annually in the PPO to help TRICARE better manage costs and resources. But only new en-trants to the military on or after Jan. 1, 2018, would be subjected to slightly higher Prime and Preferred enroll-ment fees. Preferred deduct-ibles and cost-shares would be higher still if beneficiaries decide to use non-network providers.
By Oct. 1, 2018, all military facilities and budgets would be managed by the Defense Health Agency rather than their services. And military treatment facilities would be required to provide urgent
care until 11 p.m.The Senate Armed Ser-
vices Committee could de-cide to adopt health reforms nearer to what the Depart-ment of Defense proposed. The House committee plan to spare current forces and retirees most higher fees had some senior Democrats questioning its affordability with the 2011 Budget Control Act still set to resume a hard squeeze on future defense budgets.
Rep. Adam Smith (Wash.), the committee’s ranking Democrat, grumbled that TRICARE soon could be saddled with the complex-ity of administering “two fee structures for the next fifty years” for retirees.
His worry made for one advocate for retirees guffaw, noting that Congress voted last year created a fourth military retirement system, this one for new entrants after 2017 and younger cur-rent members who might be enticed to opt in and save the government even more money. On that matter, Con-
gress didn’t wring its hands over new administrative burdens.
SSIA Extended — For 62,000 surviving spouses who have Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) payments re-duced dollar for dollar by Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) from the VA, the committee voted to extend for one year a Spe-cial Survivor Indemnity Al-lowance. SSIA is intended to ease the impact of the SBP-DIC offset. It is set to climb to $310 a month in October and then sunset a year lat-er. The committee voted to extend SSIA through fiscal 2018. The long-term goal is still to end the offset entirely, said Rep. Joe Heck (R-Nev.), who led markup of the bill’s personnel provisions.
Ex-Spouse Law Tweaked — The 1982 Uniformed Ser-vices Former Spouses Pro-tection Act allows divorce courts to divide military re-tired pay as property jointly earned in marriage. Con-gress hasn’t considered even modest changes to the USF-SPA for more than a decade. But on Wednesday freshman congressman Steve Russell (R-Okla.), a combat veteran and retired infantry officer, won bipartisan support for a USFSPA amendment to benefit members who di-vorce after the defense bill is enacted into law.
Russell took aim at a “windfall” feature of the USFSPA that retirees have criticized for decades. If a member is not retired when divorced, state courts often award the ex-spouse a per-centage of future retired pay. In effect, this allows the value of the “property” to rise based on promotions and longevity pay increases earned after the divorce. In 2001, the Armed Forces Tax Council said this was inconsistent with treatment of other martial assets by divorce courts. The amend-
ment would end the windfall in future divorce cases by directing that an ex-spouse’s share of retirement must be based on a member’s grade or rank at time of divorce.
Making such a change retroactive would force re-calculation of tens of thou-sand of divorce settlements, an unpopular idea with ex-spouses. So the change is prospective only. But both Republicans and Democrats praised the amendment as fair. It cleared committee on an uncontested voice vote.
Commissary Reforms — The committee rejected an amendment from Rep. Tim Walz (D-Minn.) that would have delayed commissary reforms, including adoption of variable pricing, private label brands or the conver-sion of commissaries to non-appropriated fund activities like base exchanges, for up to two years by mandating more reports and tougher oversight.
Heck and Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) argued that the reform package as written includes reasonable “notice and wait” safeguards at each phase of implementation, giving Congress 30 days to review and block any change if the shopping benefit ap-pears to be at risk.
Women Draft Registra-tion — With all combat jobs now open to women, the committee voted 32-30 for an amendment to require women to register with Se-lective Service System. Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), who opposes women serving in infantry or Special Forces, said he offered the amend-ment to spark a debate that the Congress, so far, has avoided.
Send comments to Military Up-date, P.O. Box 231111, Centrev-ille, VA, 201 20, email [email protected] or twitter: Tom Philpott @Military_Update
Panel votes to end pay-benefit slide, tweak ex-spouse law
Tom Philpott
WASHINgTON — To increase access to care, the Department of Defense is launching an Urgent Care Pilot Program for TRICARE Prime beneficiaries. This program allows Prime enrollees two visits to a network or TRICARE autho-rized provider without a referral or prior authorization.
The Urgent Care Pilot Pro-gram, scheduled to begin spring May 23, covers: Active Duty Family Members
enrolled in TRICARE Prime or TRICARE Prime Remote Retirees and their fam-
ily members who are enrolled in Prime within the 50 United States or the District of Columbia Active duty service members
enrolled in TRICARE Prime Re-mote or stationed overseas but traveling stateside
Active Duty Service Members enrolled in TRICARE Prime are not eligible for this program as
their care is managed by their Service. This pilot also excludes Uniformed Services Family Health Plan enrollees. TRICARE Overseas Program enrollees can receive an unlimited number of urgent care visits, but only when they are traveling stateside and seeking care.
There are no Point of Service deductibles or cost shares for these two urgent care visits, but network copayments still apply.
Following a visit to an urgent care facility, you must notify your PCM of that care within 24 hours or the first business day after the urgent care visit. Authorization re-quirements have not changed for follow up care, specialty care or inpatient care.
When you are not sure of the type of care you need, or you re-quire care outside of standard business hours, call the Nurse Advice Line. If the NAL recom-
mends an urgent care visit, and a referral is submitted, that visit will not count against the two visits al-lowed under the Urgent Care Pilot. However, if you call the NAL and get a referral to a military hospital or clinic and you go elsewhere for care, that visit will count against your two preauthorized visits.
If you need more information, please visit the Urgent Care Pilot Program web page on the TRI-CARE website.
TRICaRE Prime members get new urgent care program
Page 8 | THE RED 7 | Friday, May 6, 2016
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