erald Union H Back to school Students return after summer break Wiesbaden: Our home in Germany
Vol. XXII, No. 24
Sept. 10, 2015
‘Women at War’ USAREUR deputy surgeon general speaks at clinic By Shayna Brouker
U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden Public Affairs Office
How do you go to the bathroom when you’re on a 20-hour mission outside the wire and pulling over means exposing your whole team to enemy fire? How do you get treatment for a urinary tract infection when the clinician comes to your forward operating base only twice a week? How do you ensure you’re on the right type of birth control for the austere environment you are heading toward, or is it possible to not have a period at all while you’re deployed? These are the questions Col. Anne Naclerio, U.S. Army Europe deputy surgeon general, set out to answer when she lent her expertise on a book titled “Women at War.” She wrote the chapter on the issues above and helped edit the collection of chapters with Elspeth Cameron Ritchie, and visited the Wiesbaden Army Health Clinic Aug. 27, a day after Women’s Equality Day and less than a week after the first two women made history by earning their Ranger tabs. Naclerio served on a women’s health See ‘War’ on page 12
Photo by Shayna Brouker
Wiesbaden Middle School students amble into the school building on their first day back to school Aug. 31. For more photos of the first day of school see page 16.
Suicide Awareness Day: ‘Don’t let your story be over’ By Shayna Brouker
U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden Public Affairs Office
This year, it dawned on Mary Cheney that she is a lot like her mom. She’s 43 — the same age as her mother when she died — and she has a 15-year-old daughter. She too is living in Germany with her husband, a Soldier, just like her mom was. She too works to help Army Families. But that’s where most of the similarities end. Unlike her
Inside Wild for Scotland
Part two in a threepart travel story. See page 9.
mother, Cheney is “making the choice to continue her path.” “Her story wasn’t over,” said Cheney of her mother, who committed suicide after struggling with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder for years when Cheney was 15. “She had feelings of failure, but she was a success. She was an incredible person who had a tragic end.” Cheney chose to share her story publicly for the first time in her life at the garrison Suicide Awareness Day Sept. 3
at the Tony Bass Fitness Center. 5th Signal Command Lt. Col. (Chaplain) Douglas Prentice and Dr. Robert Rucinski from the Behavioral Health Center also spoke, giving tips about what warning signs to look for and the “Ask, Care, Escort” procedure to help someone who might hurt his or herself. Prentice beseeched the audience to look beyond the potential damage to one’s reputation or relationship with the person in question and to “err on the side of life.” He
Concert on the Lawn Final concert entertains crowds. See page 8.
recounted several occasions during which he intervened. “When you ask, care and escort, you are saving lives,” he said. “When you do, you will look at yourself in the mirror with pride instead of shame that you knew someone’s secret and now they’re dead.” Rucinski made it a point to ask everyone in the room who knew someone who either had taken their own life or tried to to stand up. Nearly everyone in the gym of approximately 100 people stood.
PT with the family
Family members PT with 1-214th. See page 6.
He reminded the audience that the signs can be subtle: idle banter about death and suicide might not just be idle banter. A loss of interest in favorite activities, a sudden change of emotions, even from depressed to happy — because the person has made peace with his or her decision to end their life — or having a close friend or family members who committed suicide can all be indicators to look out for. See ‘Awareness’ on page 4