Sled Driver Brian Shul should not be alive, much less belong to the elite cadre of pilots who have flown the world’s fastest airplane. The SR-71 can flight at altitudes exceeding 85,000 feet and speeds beyond Mach 3 (2,223 miles per hour). The aircraft is truly faster than a speeding bullet. He flew 212 covert close air support missions in Laos and Cambodia before being shot down. Unable to eject, he expected to die in the fiery crash but survived. [...]
One might say that military service is in Col. Joseph Turnham’s DNA. His family traces their military service back to his sixth great grandfather who fought at Valley Forge and was present at Yorktown for the surrender of Cornwallis. Turnham HAD planned to become a doctor until he took some flying lessons. He now has over 3,600 hours in the cockpit – 1,149 of those in combat. Prior to assuming command of Davis-Monthan Air Force Base (one of the largest [...]
Merica Bourbon Founder Derek Sisson warns aspiring entrepreneurs “When you decide to make that leap into starting your own business, brace for impact.” Nonetheless he has great advice to share in our latest Veteran Entrepreneur segment. Derek served five years as a Force Recon Marine and compares the Special Forces to the “entrepreneurs” of the military world. After leaving the Corps he was forced into entrepreneurship because he needed to make a living but “..there weren’t a lot of companies [...]
Green Beret Foundation Executive Director Brent Cooper might have been a little late in starting his military career, but serving our nation was always something he wanted to do. While the average age of an enlisted Green Beret is 29 years old, Cooper didn’t join until the “ripe old age” of 30 after securing an age waiver. Cooper served as a Communication Sergeant with the 5th Special Forces Group. He deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, earning [...]
The Medal of Honor was presented to Staff Sergeant David Bellavia for his actions November 10, 2004 during the second battle of Fallujah. He would become the first living Iraq War Veteran to earn our nation’s highest military decoration. He also sits on the board of the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation. While clearing a block of houses in Fallujah, David and his soldiers walked into a fortified ambush. He describes it as a “house ready to blow up”. [...]
Havok Journal Managing Editor Scott Faith joins us for his regular update on issues in the Veteran community and a variety of other topics. The mission of the Havok Journal is to serve as the voice of the Veteran community through a focus on current affairs and articles of interest to the public in general. We start with Scott’s perspective on celebrities involved in supporting Veteran & Military family causes. Scott specifically mentions the initiatives being led by Jon Stewart [...]
Bo Derek wasn’t on our list of celebrities to interview regarding their support of Veterans. As it turns out, I didn’t know Bo. Many of her family members served in the military; her father was a radio operator on a B-29 during the Korean War. Her stepfather served as a Green Beret in Vietnam and her ex-husband was also a Veteran. However, it was a chance encounter with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony Principi that really got Bo engaged. [...]
On The Blue Line founder and host Wayne Mulder never thought he would become a cop but he has now worn the badge for nine years. On the Blue Line is one of the podcasts hosted by Heroes Media Group. Wayne created the On the Blue Line podcast in March of 2019. The program is “Geared to help cops find success in what REALLY matters, your life outside the badge.” He motivation is to help other law enforcement professionals find [...]
Marion “Tony” Marshall had a penchant for pushing boundaries. This led to some rather intriguing experiences during his time as a POW in Vietnam. Tony always wanted to be a pilot. Despite “skating” in high school he secured an interview for a military academy appointment and was one of only 6 black cadets in his Air Force Academy class of 1,000 persons. His eyesight prevented him from entering pilot training so he chose to become a navigator just to get [...]
Operation Desert Storm would be Jeff “Tico” Tice’s first opportunity to fly combat missions. Things didn’t turn out as well as planned. On his second combat mission of the conflict, a last minute mechanical issue forced Jeff to switch aircraft and didn’t allow time for his good luck tradition of spitting into the plane’s exhaust. On the second day of the Desert Storm "Shock & Awe" campaign Jeff’s F-16 was hit by an Iraqi surface to air missile. He would [...]