Kaiserslautern American - May 29, 2020

Page 1

NEWS

DOD officials unveil COVID-related personnel, move guidance, Page 2

NEWS

FEATURE

Strengthening force protection, Page 5

American children remembered in annual memorial service, Page 13

May 29, 2020 | Volume 44, Number 21

FEATURE

Putting people first, Pages 14-15

LIFESTYLE

Summer with dogs, Page 22

Read the KA online at KaiserslauternAmerican.com

Forward together: Green, blue teamwork keeps massive community safe by Jason Tudor U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz Coldwater, Michigan, and New Castle, Pennsylvania, are separated by 285 miles of Interstate, a westto-east drive that passes The Glass Capital of the World, Cedar Point Amusement Park, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Today, separated by less than five miles are two of those towns’ proudest sons. They are senior military officers in the Army and Air Force in key leadership roles at a pair of overseas military installations near Kaiserslautern. Since mid-February, Army Col. Jason T. Edwards and Air Force Col. Robert S. Thompson have been paired up to do everything possible to abate a pandemic in the largest American community outside of the United States. As the pandemic spread, they both understood what their leadership meant. “Lives were on the line, and we needed to get it done,” Edwards said. “It’s just an extraordinary effort to make sure that we’re

all aligned considering the different policies coming down from higher headquarters.” Edwards, the Michigander, is the commander of U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz. His responsibility covers 29 sites in Germany, including several in the Kaiserslautern area. His counterpart Thompson, the Pennsylvanian, is the 86th Mission Support Group Commander, part of the 86th Airlift Wing at Ramstein Air Base. He has a similar role as the “town mayor” for several Air Force sites in Europe and at Ramstein overseeing functions like infrastructure, human resources and force protection. Snow, high winds and other weather events usually precipitate Oh Dark Thirty phone calls between the two to decide what services and facilities should be closed. When the coronavirus crisis exploded, the two leaders had already started the process of aligning efforts. See FORWARD TOGETHER, Page 6

Graphic by Staff Sgt. Kirsten Brandes

Vehicle experts weigh in

With the goal of protecting the largest community of Americans outside the United States, Air Force Col. Robert S. Thompson (upper left) and Army Col. Jason T. Edwards (upper right) have been working closely to ensure the life, health and safety of the Air Force and Army communities totaling more than 50,000 people. Photos by Senior Airman Elizabeth R. Baker, Keith Pannell, Erinn Burgess and Jason Tudor

by Airman 1st Class Jennifer Gonzales 86th Airlift Wing Public Affairs With COVID-19 restrictions relaxing and base customer service areas able to accommodate more personnel, many community members voiced questions regarding vehicle shipping, registrations, inspections and sales. Chief Master Sgt. Ernesto J. Rendon, Jr., 86th Airlift Wing Command chief, Master Sgt. Travis Ferguson, 569th Vehicle Registration non-commissioned officer in charge, Tech. Sgt. Octavio Ortega, 86th Vehicle Readiness Squadron mechanic and Ms. Natasha Lasky, vehicle shipping customer service rep-

resentative, hosted a virtual town hall May 20 to address issues related to personal vehicles in the Kaiserslautern Military Community. During opening remarks, Rendon recognized the demand to understand the current processes and limitations for vehicle registration and shipment. Below are summarized answers to several questions fielded during the town hall. Is there a way to streamline or open up more appointments with vehicle registration? What about the possibility of scanning and emailing required documents, then coming in to

sign for temporary plates? Use of Appointments Plus has allowed us to see approximately 75% more customers since Health Protection Condition Charlie was implemented. As more facilities open in the garrison, customers will see a decrease in volume to individual locations and more access to take care of vehicle registrations and renewals. Due to the legal documents needed for the process, in-person appointments are necessary. Scanned or emailed documents are not an option for this process. See TOWN HALL, Page 3


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