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Show Hilltop Hill AFB, Utah 84056-5824 M S Weekly Since 1948 1 M111111n11 www.hilltoptimes.com hilltoptimes@standard.net Vol. 72 No. 2, Jan. 12, 2012 National tradition continues with Feb. 2 prayer breakfast 75th Medical Group to close on Jan. 16 BY MARY Lou GORNY The 75th Medical Group Clinic will be closed on Jan. 16 for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. n keeping with the time-honored tradition of the National Prayer Breakfast, the Hill Air Force Base Chapel will be holding its event at The Landing (formerly known as Club Hill), Thursday, Feb 2, at 7:30 a.m. Gen. (Ret.) Robert C. Oaks, former commander of the U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Training Command, has been invited to address those present. President Harry Truman Roy Gate to resume normal traffic flow In an effort to reduce congestion caused by merging traffic, Hill Air Force Base will change the Roy Gate morning traffic pattern for a 30-day trial period. Beginning on Jan. 27 there will be two lanes of traffic in each direction at all times. While this effort is to ultimately improve traffic flow, please allow additional travel time as drivers adjust to the new pattern and it is determined if the new pattern is helpful. Inbound traffic will now be restricted to the inbound lanes only. The use of the outbound lane for inbound use will no longer be available. Security forces will now have four patrolmen checking inbound Ds during morning rush hours to facilitate installation access. Motorists will be able to exit the base through the Roy Gate at all times. The Roy Gate operating hours will remain as 24 hours per day 7 days per week. Please be courteous to all drivers as traffic patterns adjust. If you have any comments or questions, please submit an email to RoyGate.Traffic@hill. af.mil , also listed in the GAL as "Hill CE Roy Gate Traffic." Hilltop Times editor I signed a declaration for the National Day of Prayer in 1952, and the observance has continued, which calls Gen. Oaks for presidents to declare a day of prayer in behalf of the nation and its leadership. "Prayer is a historic, significant part of our nation's history starting with the Continental Congress all the way through today," said Chaplain Mark Nevius. The theme for this year's event is "Faith, freedom and prayer," said the chaplain, with an emphasis on prayer. "We want to maintain the health of our fighting force and the spiritual well-being of our families." Chaplain Assistant Staff Sgt. Anthony Gray added, "Spiritual health and well-being is just as important as physical wellness." Oaks recently addressed the REMEMBERING UPCOMING AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY MONTH EVENTS Warrior Call to take place January 27 The next Warrior Call will be held at The Landing (formerly known as Club Hill) on Jan. 27. Senior Master Sgt. (Ret) Shawn Whitten will be talking about an Airman's experience at Abu Ghraib. Hill AFB Ski Meet at Snowbasin March 13-16 marks the return of Hill's Ski Meet after a 14 year absence. The fee is $425 for three days of racing and all-area lift tickets to Snowbasin. For those interested, or to register, contact Outdoor Recreation at 801-777-2225 or 801-7779666. Registration ends Monday, Jan. 16 with a $100 nonrefundable deposit. Full payment due by Feb. 15. A penny a pin special on bowling Come in Tuesday, Jan. 17, from 6 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. for Penny-A-Pin. What is PennyA-Pin? You guessed it — pay only a penny for each pin knocked down in your game. For example; a game with a score of 139 will cost only $1.39. For the skilled bowler, all games over 200 are free. Tony Horton, of P9OX fame, to visit Hill P90X creator Tony Horton will visit Hill on Feb. 2. Horton, the master behind the best selling fitness program P9OX, will visit Hill and work out with active military, visit with Airmen at a "lunch and learn" series, train the fitness trainers, and at 3 p.m. will work out in the Warrior Fitness Center with anyone who wants to attend. fr IFKETIO Base Theater Free Movies Saturday, noon — "Puss in Boots" (PG-13) Saturday, 3 p.m. — "The Thing" (R) Saturday, 6 p.m. — "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (R) For review see page 7 TODD CROMAR/U.S. Air Force Carolyn Smith, Ogden Air Logistics Center Scientist and Engineer Workforce Development Branch chief, addresses those assembled at the Martin Luther King Jr. event held at The Landing on June 11. Music, presentations and remarks celebrated and honored King's contributions and those of others in the advancement of civil rights. For more on the event see next week's Hilltop Times edition. • Tuskegee Airman Commemoration Speech, Feb. 2, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Hill Aerospace Museum. • Poets and artist exhibit at the Base Exchange and the Gerrity Base Library, Feb. 9, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. • Health Screening Seminar, Feb. 13, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Warrior Fitness Center • African American History Cultural Trivia Game, Feb. 17, 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., Hill Field Elementary School. • Gospel Extravaganza choir concert, Feb. 24, 7 p.m. at the 2nd Baptist Church in Ogden, sponsored by the AAHM committee. • Book readings every Tuesday at the Child Development Center on base, 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., throughout the month of February. VERA/VSIP applications accepted until Jan. 24 VERANSIP Program Management Team A s you may know, a VERA/ VSIP program is now under way. Applications to participate will only be accepted until Jan. 24 through the VERA/VSIP Interactive Program web site at https:// wbhill03.hill.afmc.ds.af.mil/ vera vsip/. VERA/VSIP stands for Voluntary Early Retirement Authority/Voluntary Separation Incentive Pay. VERA temporarily lowers the age and service requirements to allow approved employees to retire early. VSIP allows selected employees to receive an incentive payment of up to $25,000, before taxes, for voluntarily separating. Each authorized VERA/VSIP will ultimately prevent an individual from being involuntarily separated. This VERA/VSIP program is in response to Air Force wide budgetary constraints and work force shaping measures. Our past few VERA/VSIPs have mainly targeted the O&M workforce and were somewhat narrow. This VERA/VSIP carries a much wider range of job series and grades, and it will include many federal wage positions. The list of targeted job series will be posted on the VERA/ VSIP web site listed above, as soon as the information becomes available. VERA/VSIP offers may begin to be sent as early as Jan. 31. Once an offer is made, the employee has three days to accept or decline. For this effort, there is a very limited time frame in which offers can be made. If there are multiple declinations, there may not be enough time to make followon offers which could have prevented employees from losing their jobs involuntarily. If you apply and later realize that you will not be able to accept a See VERANSIP I page 6 Civil Air Patrol during the 70th anniversary of its founding at the Mazer Historic Chapel in December. His first assignment as a pilot of F-100 Super Sabres was with the 524th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Cannon Air Force Base, N.M. He flew 188 combat missions in F-100s in Southeast Asia, serving at Tan Son Nhut Air Base, South Vietnam in November 1965. The general is a command See BREAKFAST I page 6 Civilian forecast storm to help avoid additional Hill damages This is part 1 of a four-part series involving the four members of the Team Hill community who won the Ogden ALC 2012 AFA Outstanding Air Force Civilian Employees of the Year award. BY ANNE MORRISON Hilltop Times staff T he windstorm on Dec. 1 reaped $500,000 in dam- age. But the damage could have been worse if Chris Shipman didn't see it coming. Shipman, a meteorological technician in the 75th Operational Support Squadron, saw the storm four days out Shipman and recognized its powerful features. The next day, he issued a weather advisory. The day of the storm, the flight schedule was canceled because of the forecast for the soon-to-be destructive winds. A fighter jet's crosswind capacity tops out at 25 knots, Shipman said, and the crosswinds for the day reached more than double that capacity. Without Shipman's conservative forecast of 50 knots, flights would have proceeded and would have caused more trouble than good for Hill's pilots. For his efforts, Shipman was nominated by his supervisor, Capt. William Danyluk, See AWARD I page 4 Look inside this week's Hilltop Times for • • • Keeping connected Check out how the USO is helping deployed families See page 9 Prefer indie films? Check out the Ogden Sundance Alm schedule and Team Hill discount See page 7 |