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Show HEADS UP Dcmbr 7, Friday, who, with the help of some of her friends from the 419th Civil Engineering Squadron, Hill AFB, took this year's Prime Base Engineering Emergency Force competition by storm at Dobbins AFB, Ga. Mobile Prime BEEF, units are responsible for providing engineering support' for combat forces. The competition tested the proficiency of the participating teams to perform required wartime tasks under realistic field conditions. . e When not working at her job as a cardio- By AlCTom McKinzie Dobbins AFB, Ga.. Public Affairs Office ' J? - full-tim- "ss.s.wssss,s, " , v . I t' JS K , 3a v" asfe I si She has blond hair and blue eyes and a smile that would melt your heart. She also has the skills that e could save your heart and life in her job. She can build a house, do the plumbing and the wiring or even repair a bombed-ou- rt runway in. her part-tim- e job. In either job, SrA. Kim Johnson is a e performer. She is a from Idaho Falls, Idaho, vascular technician at Parkview Hospital in Idaho Falls, she is involved in her part-tim- e job with the d 419th CES training to repair runtrailand construct facilities, operate tractor ways g er rigs and equipment, survey an area and defend herself with an M-1- 6 rifle. Her job at Parkview Hospital involves care for critical heart attack patients. If anyone in southeast Idaho ever has a heart attack, chances are they will Two contracts have been awarded for development of an advanced aircraft ejection seat for high probably go to Parkview and into the capable hands of Airman Johnson. performance fighters and bombers in the late 1990s. "The first four to eight hours are critical," said .The seat will be designed to provide aircrew protection during ejections below 500 feet and as high the airman. "Our job is to stabilize the patient, remove the blood clot or help it dissolve. Most heart as 70,000 feet. The seat is expected to restrain crew members attacks are a result of blood clots," she explained. To Airman Johnson took up her part-tim- e better, offer increased wind-blaprotection, permit careerrelax, with the Air Force Reserve as a civil engineervaried control of thrust after ejection, use digital electronics for seat stability and "steering," and ing specialist with the 419th CES. She enjoys her sense the aircraft's speed, altitude and attitude in- work and it serves a purpose. "I am on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week dependent from the aircraft's sensing system.- at the hospital," she began. "I use my job with the (AFNS) Reserve to help me relax from the stress. Added to F-4 this, I have always wanted to be a carpenter, but e basis. The change gives me an opAn Air Force reservist with the 924th Tactical not on a Fighter Group, Bergstrom AFB, Texas, has been portunity to do the carpentry." chosen as one of the National Aeronautics and Never a stranger to challenge or hard work, Airman Johnson was born in Idaho to military parents. Space Administration's newest astronauts. F-- 4 an and Charles Her father was in the Navy and the family traveled weapons Lacy Veach, Maj. as a lot in her early years. At age 12, Airman Johnson selected was with the 924th, tactics instructor and her mother moved back to Idaho Falls to live a mission specialist based on his civilian employment as a NASA pilot and his expertise in astrono- , with grandparents. Airman Johnson soon grew up my, extraterrestrial geology and orbital mechanics. raising pigs and cows and even exhibited some horses. He is one of 17 new astronauts. (AFRNS) full-tim- ss - 4 1984 - full-tim- 25-year-o- ld bomb-damage- earth-movin- Ejection seat developed st pilot new astronaut full-tim- Toy ma leer stuffs stockings TFW Public Affairs Office (USAFR) It looks like Santa will have a little extra help this year in the form of one SMSgt. Hyrum R. Bates, former air reserve technician medical administrative superintendent with the 419th Tactical Hospital, now retired as a civilian but still active as a reservist. Being naturally somewhat elfin in appearance, "Hy," as he is generally known throughout the unit, exhibits a certain telltale twinkle of the eye which suggests he is supplementing the Christmas toy supply through his hobby of woodworking. A continuous procession of trains, cars, trucks, road graders, airplanes, doll houses and doll furniture rolls off the production line in the little workshop behind his Kaysville home, where he lives with Faye, his wife of 32 years, and daughter Amy, and Amber, a chihuahua "who runs the house," according to Hy. They have two other daughters, Lorilyn and Denise. , him do his which the helps machinery Among work are a combination saw, planer and router, plus a band saw and a lathe. Why does he do it? To keep him busy in his retirement? For fun? For profit? "Probably," he says, Vail of the above," but he confesses by far the least of his motives is profit. "It's a tension releaser very relaxing," he explains. While he has taken a few special orders from close acquaintances and charged just enough to cover expenses, most of his creations have ended up as gifts for relatives and friends. His skills have evolved over the three years he's been working with wood. It took a lot of experimentation, trial and error to achieve the desired results in terms of quality and personal satisfaction. t - - r I s is : s; v is " 1 ,ss ; SS " s s vy sv' s" s .vtf , s s N v W s I v :::: CV; Vs t. s s - s - s " s " sv s. s v s , , J 1 s 4tess J,! 30-ye- fr v : - ;ivts sXM && , s'sS0 ar , s ; t s 1 -, S .5 s s " i - I Vss.sw' ' c ' v; i V ? -- i,Aa-s,- v IrW v s sS s s K s. ,s : ing so nice to people in his woodworking hobby is to attempt to dole out as much pleasure with his creative works of art as he gave in pain over the years with the needle. Hy just shrugs and smiles impishly. Born in Francis, Utah, in 1926, he graduated from Park City High School. From 1944 to 1947, he served on active duty in the Navy; then, after three years in civilian life, he returned to the Navy in 1950 for seven years. He remained in the inactive Navy Reserve until joining the Air Force Reserve at HUl in 1960 as an air reserve technician, serving 24 years of the wing's history at Hill AFB. Hy estimates conservatively that he gave a minimum of 100,000 shots during his varied career in the medical field in the Navy and Air Force. Jokingly, one confidant suggested the reason he's be- " 1 " J ' ; A DUBBED SANTA i knSVs 'xsss -' s ' " ' - sv- - s s A W Sf s .. sX sssW I ks ss s frnm Mnnorl th y w w w of hands SMSgt. Hy Bates, m , Sss s s, JJ r JO J s, s s j i JSUMWlt.-M!Ms- i i i i i i i ' m m m medical superintendent, creation each wooden . y s i ELF j nntiAnt i J mns on wiuo promises I Christmas morning. J S Some of the woods he purchased weren't as easy to work with as others. Sometimes dark sap stains or-chi- . Career highlights White pine the best wood appeared in places where they weren't wanted due to flaws in the wood. Experience has led him to prefer white pine. "It's easy to work, soft and. it as much' headvisesw v v doesn't split V-- But, all in all, he in effect "whistles while he works." He's happy doing what he's doing and the joy he gives to others is just a bonus. It's truly a labor of love, the work of a "wooden soldier" whose "duty" extends beyond the Christmas season and beyond the confines of his workshop to create special occasions for others throughout the year. By Maj. Len Barry 419th SrA. Kim Johnson 419th Civil Engineering Squadron After graduation in 1977, she went to Kinman University in Spokane, Wash., where she studied to be a medical assistant. .... Airman Johnson began working with respiratory care and with problem kids after graduation. "Mostly kids with drug problems and some runaways," she said. "I got interested in cardiac care because I love the action, and I don't mind the blood." Airman Johnson says she is uncertain about her plans for the immediate future, but says that she likes working in the unit. "I work with a great bunch of guys. They take the time to explain things to me and I enjoy the Reserve and what I do," she said. '.',',",'4'."'.(Pt)oto by Mat, ten Barry) ,....,...i,t. |