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Show niunii TIMES November 15,2007 Utah Wheelin' Jazz overwhelm Team SSMGING BY DARRELL RECTOR Hill Top Times correspondent L T he Jazz were there. The Team Hill Players were there. And the fans were there. At the new fitness center at Hill Air Force Base, it was time to renew the rivalry between the high rollers of base management and the Utah Wheelin' Jazz players, recently. It turned out to be one of the most highly regarded secrets on base: Management didn't have a chance against these athletes. They just play their game of basketball from the inconvenience of a chair. This game is about people, it is about athletics, and it is about emotion and hard work. With sweat, good and bad calls, and good old team play, management soon learned that even with a 35-point head start it didn't matter. They didn't have a chance. Joe Ruigomez from Sandy was among those on hand working as a coach and a volunteer. He is an advocate for Utah Independent Living and is part of the Utah Wheelin' Jazz team, which is part of a league made up of more than 160 teams nationwide. The national title games will be in April in Florida. The game at Hill was considered a tune up for the season and the fun had by players was evident. Ruigomez has been in a wheelchair since he was a teenager after making what he considers some "terrible mistakes." He said he "wants all to know to think two or three times about things that can change your life forever." Kevin Yosts, the coach, said he knows how it is to be angry at life because of events that can happen to totally change it. He said the individual must decide to make it work. Yosts works for a contractor on base and gets along with people who just see him as Kevin, and that's the way he wants it. David Perry, No. 21, is the speed demon of the group and will have opponents turned upside down before they realize he is even there. He is afflicted with spina bifida but to him, as a lifetime NBA fan, "this is just basketball on wheels." Then there is Team Hill. Made up of managers and a general from the base, they have not won a game in three years. That's how long they have been playing. This last game was no different. Nick Island, who oversees the engraving shop, played last year and said he has gained a whole new appreciation for these athletes. "This is great for me and for the base," he said. Ogden Air Logistics Center vice commander Ken Merchant said, "these guys are incredible. Their speed, the ability to over- . come adversity and the inspiration they give to us can't be measured." The Singing Sergeants and U.S. Air Force Concert Band, considered the premier band and choir in the Air Force, performed at the Weber State University Browning Center on Nov. 5. The group is stationed at Boiling AFB, and came to Ogden as a part of a six-state tour. Other Utah performances were in Logan, Salt Lake City, Richfield and Cedar City. Courtesy photos Hill commissary puts in new registers, adds self-checkout lines BY TOM BUSSELBERG H ELL AIR FORCE BASE — If it's hustle and bustle that you want, then the base commissary may be just the place. It may not be a glamorous spot, but hustle and bustle it has, with an average of 1,500 people shopping the aisles each day and spending an average of $33 million on groceries per year. For the last week or so, customers have been able to take advantage of a set of self-checkout lanes, along with standard clerk-supported lanes. Store director Karen M. Ochsner is heaving a sigh of relief, these days, not only removing the glue that contained because the new self-check lanes some asbestos materials. are open, but all of the registers Rod Sanders, who oversees have been replaced. base abatement — asbestos and It meant some close hazardous material removal — coordination and long hours, for and Environmental Abatement some, but worked out well, she Inc., handled that effort. The task said. had to be done when the store "The changing of the registers was closed, and as quickly as was one of the most seamless possible, Ochsner said. things I've ever seen. We're "Tuesday at 9 p.m. we had still working the bugs out, but to get things out, we turned it eveiyone pulled together," over to IBM, and had it on line, Ochsner said. Wednesday morning," Sanders All of the NCR registers were said. "On that first phase we torn out and replaced with IBMs. worked about 20 hours Friday But since the old units had been night and Saturday morning installed decades ago, that meant (before the store opened), went employees, from those in receiving to stackers and checkers to the office staff. "We really love what we do, taking care of our families, so the guys and gals can be over there, protecting us. It can be stressful (for employees), but it's so worth it." The commissary is one of 288 across the world, operated by the Defense Commissary Agency. It is nonprofit, with merchandise sold at cost to active duty and retired military. That means a savings on groceries averaging 32 percent. "The desire is to have all of the stores built the same," MATTHEW HATFIELD Ochsner said. "That's so people Standardcan always go someplace where Examiner staff they can feel like home. We want to be like a family away from percent of our employees who can operate each register. home." Normally, customers never have Because so many of its to wait more than 10 minutes." customers have served tours It's anticipated the selfoverseas, the commissary checkout stations, staffed by carries a variety of food items available cashiers, as well, should from around the world, she reduce lines and wait times. said. About 56 percent of its customers are military retirees, "Under the new system, we but there are ongoing efforts will no longer keep customers' to acquaint and educate new checks," Ochsner said. 'They arrivals to its services. are treated like a debit card, are scanned immediately, and A variety of related services then we give them back to the are offered by the commissary, customer." including a case lot desk to place The store is open 9 a.m. to 7 orders for cases of products, p.m., seven days a week. There monthly newsletters and notices are 62 full-time equivalent of special commissary events. Senior Airman Chris Tryling (left) and Airman First Class Andre Lloyd use the new self checkout at the base commissary at Hill Air Force Base on Nov. 8. The commissary has new cash registers and self-serve aisles. Standard-Examiner Davis Bureau tbusselberg@standard.net back Saturday night (Nov. 3) to do the next phase." The base's structure shop replaced floor tiles in what was a "pretty labor intensive project," he said. "It went well, they're back in business. That's the bottom line." In the meantime, trainers were on hand to assist and familiarize staff with the new registers, with that training wrapping up last Saturday. "We have probably at least 1,500 customers a day, and with that heavy traffic, we have only 15 full-time cashiers," Ochsner said. "Our goal is to have 90 |