• Public Health Service lieutenant wins Buckner triathlon

    Michael Bakker cuts through the water as if it were his natural habitat. His white swimmer's cap rhythmically breaks the surface as he sucks in precious oxygen for the next lap.Bakker, a Public Health Service lieutenant assigned to the Indian Health Service, completed 9.62 miles at the Indoor Sprint

  • Former Marine sensei imparts wisdom and respect through martial arts

    "I will work hard to build true confidence through knowledge of mind, honesty of heart and strength in the body," begins the student creed of Sensei Ken Riley's Ketsugen Karate class at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson's Arctic Oasis community center."To keep friendship with one another and to build

  • Flying JBER

    Light breezes flow, as the sounds of a motor makes for mechanical music in the air. A Hobbico NexSTAR remote-controlled airplane flies past its controller -- a rookie learning how to fly for the first time.Though the hobbyist in question may be new to the RC world, members of the Alaska Radio

  • Blood and ink: JBER pararescueman finds solace from PTSD

    (This is the second part of a two-part series about Air Force Master Sgt. Roger Sparks, a pararescueman with the 212th Rescue Squadron.)The aftermath of war is ugly. Buildings are ravaged, fields are razed, and people die. Structures are rebuilt and fields and forests are restored, but the survivors

  • Royal Canadian, U.S. air forces create integrated top cover

    During the Cold War, the Soviet threat lay not far to the west of Alaska. The state's nearest neighbor shared more than 1,500 miles of border and the mission to protect North America.They still do.Several members of the Royal Canadian Air Force are assigned to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson's 962nd

  • Engineers among last units to leave Afghanistan

    December 1950. The Korean War. Following the breakout of the Chosin Reservoir, Marines and Soldiers of the X Corps had avoided destruction by Chinese Communist forces and maneuvered south to the port of Hungnam. If they couldn't evacuate to United Nations lines, the battered unit would risk being

  • Cleaning hazardous waste under Arctic conditions

    Hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst, members of the 611th Civil Engineer Squadron, along with five other state and federal agencies, practiced techniques to deal with an oil or hazardous waste spill under cold weather conditions during an exercise here Feb. 3 through 5.As the lone CES

  • Guardian Angel recounts battle which earned him Silver Star

    (This is the first part of a two-part series about Air Force Master Sgt. Roger Sparks, a pararescueman with the 212th Rescue Squadron.)The air erupted with the percussive sound of machine-gun fire. Master Sgt. Roger Sparks jumped out of an HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter and began the 40-foot hoist down