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Show Tilltop HILLTOP TIMES 1 wn TIME S may 1, 2014 B-17 From 7 hopes the signatures on the wing panel will help keep the memories of those who served in the 384th alive. Terry Kendrick, the daughter of Olen Grant, attended the signing and spoke briefly to a small gathering of friends and family afterwards. Kendrick shared details from a poem and transcript written by her father, which highlighted the time he served with the 384th Bomber Group; most notably, on September 6, 1943, when the B-17 that Grant was assigned to was shot down during a mission over Germany. Unable to egress from the B-17, he went down with the plane and survived. Following the crash, he underwent several surgeries and eventually was taken prisoner by German forces where he remained a prisoner of "(Olen Grant) is an example to all of us. He is my hero." — war for more than a year. Grant, originally from Hot Springs, Ark., turned 21 years old at the time. Kendrick concluded that throughout her father's experiences and his life he's never complained and has never been bitter towards his enemies. She said she's grateful for all of the sacrifices he and others who have served with the 384th have made for our nation. Grant, who is now battling cancer, "... is an example to all of us," Kendrick said of her father. "He is my hero." To date, about 90 signatures have been gathered on the wing panel, which has been traveling around the country for a couple of years now. TERRY KENDRICK Grant's daughter Meighan said it is slated to go to Idaho and Arizona next. The 384th Bomb Group, Inc., is looking for all 384th Bomb Group veterans or their family members who think their living veteran might be interested in signing the wing panel in Utah or other states. It's still undecided where the wing will eventually end up. The ultimate destination for the wing is still being worked out, Meighan said, but will eventually be displayed only after all possible signatures have been acquired. For more information, call Meighan at 360-2808049 or Christopher Wilkerson, coordinator of the project, at 310-866-8457. -^ • ALEX LLOYD/U.S. Air Force Olen Grant, 91, runs his finger over his signature on the wing panel of an old B-17 bomber. The panel is being shipped around the country to collect signatures of surviving members of the 384th Bomber Group from World War II. Movie tide to let them go. It's a decision they soon regret, as within a very short time, they are ambushed by Shah's men on three sides, carrying PK machine guns, AK475, RPG-7s and 82mm mortars. And so the firefight be- gins and trust me, the action is very intense. I even caught myself ducking in my own seat as bullets were flying everywhere, soldiers tumbling down mountainsides with violent results and extensive injuries. It's almost too much to take in. Yet there is one more element to this story that takes it to another level, as we realize there are Afghanis who are also fighting against the Taliban and due to their religious and tribal traditions will protect a stranger in distress. It's unbelievable. I think Mark Wahlberg said it best in a recent interview, "I hate war, but I love soldiers." Well, due to the extraordinary efforts of director Peter Berg to get this film right in every detail, we, too, are given the opportunity to love and appreciate our dedicated men and women in uniform all the more. This is nothing close to an easy watch, but seeing it will remind us of the sacrifices being made on our behalf, half a world away. system to fight cancer cells and inhibit their growth. His (Don's) cancer counts dropped again, and by November of last year he was in Billings receiving stem-cell transplants from his own cells. That drove his cancer counts to almost undetectable levels." Don says through the support of his faith, family, friends and doctors, he made it through this difficult battle. The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) also "deserves major credit for its work to develop the drug that saved his life. Much of the funding going to research for multiple myeloma comes from the foundation." Joel formerly ran track and cross country in Helena, Montana at Helena High. He heard about the Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon while on "a trip with his dad to San Francisco ... for an Oakland Raiders game ..." He is thankful that as he has been preparing, he reached his fundraising goal with the Multiple Myeloma Research foundation of $1,500. Joel says training "has been going well." He works out "six times a week with two in the days for each event triathlon ... Each different workout session I bike 2030 miles, run 5-10 miles, or swim 1-2 miles ... I have gotten to know the base perimeter very well." On Apri112, Bischoff completed his first Olympic distance triathlon (1 mile swim, 25 mile bike, and 6 mile run) at ake Mead, Nevada. He took eighth out of 188 male athletes and placed first in his age category (25-29 years). There are roughly five weeks left of training before the event and Joel is "attempting to make the most of each day." In a statement made to the Helena Independent Record, Joel noted: "It means a huge amount to me to be able to do this event to support a foundation that did research to develop new drugs to give my dad a second chance in his life... It's going to be an emotional trip down there." From 9 Corpsman First Class Marcus Luttrell (Mark Wahlberg) position themselves a safe distance away, high above the village, awaiting the cover of darkness. However, some local goat herders happen upon them by accident and the soldiers have a tough decision to make. They try to radio for orders, but the mountainous terrain makes that impossible. Do they dare kill them? One is a young boy, another a teenager and the third an old man. Fearing a media backlash and based on their limited rules of engagement, the Seal Team members de- Recovery From 9 globulin) into the bones and blood. The excessive protein accumulates throughout the body, causing organ damage." Upon diagnosis, Don began taking a recently developed trial drug called Pomalyst. According to a Helena newspaper interview with the Bischoff's, "the drug works by altering the body's immune Pin From 7 awards monitor, Howard Slocumb. "Every year, I put out a call to solicit designs for the spirit award pin and give the contestants about two months to complete their design and turn it in." Slocumb said after the designs are sent in, a team of judges make sure there are no copyright infringements and then vote on their favorite. "The majority vote wins," Slocumb said. "After the winner is chosen Universal Pictures LEFT TO RIGHT: Michael Murphy (TAYLOR KITSCH), Marcus Luttrell (MARK WAHLBERG), Matt 'Axe" Axelson (BEN FOSTER) and Danny Dietz (EMILE HIRSCH) in "Lone Survivor", the incredible story of four Navy SEALs on a covert mission to neutralize a highlevel Taliban operative who are ambushed by enemy forces in the mountains of Afghanistan. The film is based on The New York Times bestselling tale of heroism, courage and survival. Denied VA Compensation or Social Security Disability? =30 Ban we send the design to a shop and they produce the pins. Each pin is about an inch to an inch and a-half." The winning designer gets a pin along with spirit award winners chosen throughout the year. "The spirit award is given to people who perform their duties above and beyond what's expected," Slocumb said. "That person can be military, a contractor or a federal civilian. Each winner gets one of the pins, but we also sell the pins in our store." Perry said he was honored to be chosen as the winner. "It was fun to design • Hill AFB Job Openings Site Internal civilian announcements are posted on the USAJOBS web site. Announcements for bargaining unit positions are posted any week day. The website is www.usaiobsgov. On the home page type "HILL" in the box titled "What". In the box titled "Where" type "UT" and hit the Search Jobs button. To view all vacancies that are currently open, under "Refine Your Results", top left hand section, select the "Jobs for Federal Employees" bubble. the pin," he said. "I've tried to design a couple of pins before, and this time it went through as the winner." 170 S. 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