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Show TgMES HILLTOP TIMES 3 AFMC Airman among service's 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year units, field operating agencies and Headquarters Air Force. The board selected 12 Airmen based on superior leadership, job performance and personal achievements. 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year (by command of assignment when selected): Senior Airman Casey L. Anderson, Air Education and Training Command Master Sgt. Andre S. Davis, Air National Guard Air Force Public Affairs W ASHINGTON — Air Force officials announced the service's top enlisted members, naming the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2013. An Air Force selection board at the Air Force Personnel Center considered 36 nominees who represented major commands; direct reporting Senior Airman Lauren A. Everett, U.S. Air Forces in Europe Master Sgt. Tessa M. Fontaine, Air Force Space Command Tech. Sgt. Adam L. Gomez, Air Force District of Washington Staff Sgt. Joshua L. Hanna, Pacific Air Forces Senior Airman Steven C. Hedgepeth, Air Force Materiel Command Master Sgt. Shawn J. Jones, Air Force Reserve Command Tech. Sgt. Celeste C. Okokon, Air Combat Command Tech. Sgt. Jason D. Payne, Air Force Special Operations Command Senior Master Sgt. Ernesto J. Rendon, Air Mobility Command Senior Airman Joseph C. Senteno, Air Force Global Strike Command The winners are authorized to wear the Outstanding Airman of the Year Ribbon with the bronze service star device on the ribbon. They are also authorized to wear the Outstanding Airman of the Year Badge for one year from the date of formal presentation. The Air Force Association will honor the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year in September during its Air and Space Conference and Technology Exposition in Washington, D.C. Deployed dental clinic keeps Airmen in the fight BY SENIOR AIRMAN BAHJA J. JONES 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs S OUTHWEST ASIA —Whether it's a toothache, cracked tooth or cavity, the 379th Expeditionary Medical Group Dental Clinic is here to get to the root of the problem and keep service members in the fight. "If you have tooth pain it distracts from the mission, and doing your job can become very difficult," said Capt. Jonathan Schubert, the 379th Expeditionary Medical Operations Squadron dental flight chief deployed from Hill Air Force Base. "I've actually had a root canal before and it was some of the worst pain I've ever experienced." Three strong, one general dentist and two dental technicians, the dental clinic serves the estimated 8,500 U.S. and coalition forces here and sees approximately 140 patients per month. The clinic has walk-in hours Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., and 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. and Saturday mornings from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., and typically set same day appointments to accommodate patients' dental needs. "Most Airmen who de- ploy are dental class one or two, which means we don't expect them to need routine dental for the duration of thier deployment," Schubert said. "We mostly end up seeing patients who might've fallen and broken their teeth or have an acute infection or things of that nature." They are able to perform root canals, extractions and fillings among other emergency dental services. They also provide dental cleaning for service members who are here for one year or more. "Nearly all of the capabilities we have at home we have here," said Tech. Sgt. Jennifer LaPlante, the 379th Expeditionary Medical Operations Squadron dental flight NCO in charge also deployed from Hill AFB. Several of the other bases throughout the U.S. Central Command's area of responsibility have a general dentist and are able to serve the deployed service members in their respective locations, but what makes this dental clinic unique is the relationship they have with a local dental clinic, Schubert explained. "We're able to refer some patients off base if there is a procedure FURLOUGHS From page 1 mandated by sequestration, while also doing everything possible to limit damage to military readiness and our workforce. We are joined in this regard by managers in nondefense agencies who are also working to accommodate sequestration cuts while minimizing mission damage. As part of that effort at the Department of Defense, I am announcing today that, thanks to the DoD's efforts to identify savings and help from Congress, we will reduce the total numbers of furlough days for DoD civilian employees from 11 to six. When sequestration took effect on March 1, DoD faced shortfalls of more than $30 billion in its budget for day-to-day operating costs because of sequestration and problems with wartime funding. At that point we faced the very real possibility of unpaid furloughs for civilian employees of up to 22 days. As early as January, DoD leaders began making painful and far reaching changes to close this shortfall: civilian hiring freezes, layoffs of temporary workers, significant cuts in facilities maintenance, and more. We also sharply cut training and maintenance. The Air Force stopped flying in many squadrons, the Navy kept ships in port, and the Army cancelled training events. These actions have seriously reduced military readiness. By early May, even after taking needing to be done that is too complicated for us to do here or if we don't have the equipment available to perform," he said. As the military continues to look for ways to cut spending, the dental clinic has been able to save money by limiting the number of service members who are sent off the installation for treatment. "Since our rotation, we've already cut that number from an average of about 13 a month to only one or two patients, saving the Air Force nearly $20,000," Schubert said. In addition to serving military members, they also treat the wing's military working dogs here. "Though we haven't had to treat any of the MWDs during this rotation, the dental clinic does have the capability to provide care for them as well," LaPlante said. "The vet here can typically handle cleaning, but we take care of root canals as needed. They have very long roots and have to use special tools unique to K-9 dentistry." The dental clinic allows deployed service members to be treated here without leaving the AOR so the mission can keep flowing. these steps, we still faced day-today budgetary shortfalls of $11 billion. At that point I decided that cutting any deeper into training and maintenance would jeopardize our core readiness mission and national security, which is why I announced furloughs of 11 days. Hoping to be able to reduce furloughs, we submitted a large reprogramming proposal to Congress in May, asking them to let us move funds from acquisition accounts into day-to-day operating accounts. Congress approved most of this request in late July, and we are working with them to meet remaining needs. We are also experiencing less than expected costs in some areas, such as transportation of equipment out of Afghanistan. Where necessary, we have taken aggressive action to transfer funds among services and agencies. And the furloughs have saved us money. As a result of these management initiatives, reduced costs, and reprogramming from Congress, we have determined that we can make some improvements in training and readiness and still meet the sequestration cuts. The Air Force has begun flying again in key squadrons, the Army has increased funding for organizational training at selected units, and the Navy has restarted some maintenance and ordered deployments that otherwise would not have happened. While we are still depending on furlough savings, we will be able to make up our budget- SENIOR AIRMAN BAHJA J. JONES/U.S. Air Force Capt. Jonathan Schubert examines Airman 1st Class Danielle Adams during a follow-up appointment at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 29. Schubert is the 379th Expeditionary Medical Operations Squadron dental services chief deployed from Hill Air Force Base, and Adams is a 557th Expeditionary RED HORSE Squadron vehicle maintainer deployed from Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. "Keeping service members out of pain so they can focus on their job is our mission," said Senior Airman Zachary Mason, a 379th EMDOS dental assistant deployed from the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo. "I can't imagine anything more fulfilling for a deployed dental technician." ary shortfall in this fiscal year with fewer furlough days than initially announced. This has been one of the most volatile and uncertain budget cycles the Department of Defense has ever experienced. Our fiscal planning has been conducted under a cloud of uncertainty with the imposition of sequestration and changing rules as Congress made adjustments to our spending authorities. As we look ahead to fiscal year 2014, less than two months away, the Department of Defense still faces major fiscal challenges. If Congress does not change the Budget Control Act, DoD will be forced to cut an additional $52 billion in FY 2014, starting on Oct. 1. This represents 40 percent more than this year's sequester-mandated cuts of $37 billion. Facing this uncertainty, I cannot be sure what will happen next year, but I want to assure our civilian employees that we will do everything possible to avoid more furloughs. I want to thank our civilian workers for their patience and dedication during these extraordinarily tough times, and for their continued service and devotion to our department and our country. I know how difficult this has been for all of you and your families. Your contribution to national security is invaluable, and I look forward to one day putting this difficult period behind us. Thank you and God bless you and your families. * SWAP MEET ALL YEAR ROUND * 5368 S. 1050 W. RIVERDALE MOTOR VU DRIVE-IN & SWAP MEET 394-1768 SATURDAY & SUNDAY 8 AM - 1 PM IY BUYERS FREE ON SAT.! Visit Our Indoor Shops! A Great Place for Those Hard to Find Bargains! 4 0 SELLERS VISIT US AT www.motorvu.com or call 394-1768 * SWAP SHOPS AVAILAEILE FOR RENT * ist Annual OGDENVALLEY ROOTS & BLUES FESTIVAL North Fork Park, Liberty, UT August 23 1d-f25'h * * * * * * * 0. 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