Pentagram
Vol. 62, No. 30 July 30, 2015
www.army.mil/jbmhh
Published For Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall
New Headquarters Command
Battalion leadership team on the job
By Julia LeDoux Pentagram Staff Writer The United States Army He adqu a r ter s Com m a nd Battalion’s new leadership team of Commander Lt. Col. Johnathon Kupka and Command Sgt. Maj. Kenyatta Mack has been in place nearly six weeks and the pair has been busy getting to know the Soldiers under their command and Joint Base MyerHenderson Hall. Kupka and Mack assumed command of the Army’s largest battalion, which comprises 52 agencies and more than 6,000 Soldiers, from Lt. Col. Mark Biehl and Command Sgt. Maj. Alex Pratt June 19. “What Lt. Col. Biehl and Sgt. Maj. Pratt have done for the battalion and for Fort Myer, the joint base and the entire MDW (Military District of Washington) is amazing,” said Kupka. Kupka, a Bakersfield, Calif., native raised in Aberdeen, Wash., is an 18-year soldier who served in the infantry and as a Special Forces officer. “W hat a privilege to be assigned here, let alone command here,” he said. “You can’t find better Soldiers anywhere in
see HQCMDBN, page 4
PHOTOS
MPD to service members: Clearing joint base early saves time and effort By Damien Salas Pentagram Staff Writer Since March 1, the Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall Military Personnel Division has used outprocessing software to streamline the process of clearing post for transitioning service members. The system helps quickly find debts owed by service members to standard Army post agencies such as Army Community Service, housing, Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation, saving service members going on leave time and effort. “OutProc is a pre-clearing system that the Army has incorporated to assist with transitioning off post,” said JBM-HH Military Personnel Out-Process Lead Christine Aikens. “We get notifications from first sergeants that let us know a service member has received their permanent change of station, expiration
see MPD, page 4
PHOTO
BY
DAMIEN SALAS
Right, Maj. Bridget Dalziel receives assistance July 23 from JBM-HH Military Personnel Division Out Processing Lead Christine Aikens, with PCS orders to Fort Eustis in Newport News, Va. Dalziel is one of dozens of service members who MPD helps transfer out of the National Capital Region each summer.
Ten things to know around the DoD in August Compiled by Guv Callahan Pentagram Staff Writer 1. St a rbuck s to open Aug. 3. The Fort Myer Exchange recently announced the opening of its new Starbucks Coffee store, located in the exchange’s food court. The store’s first day of business is Aug. 3 at 6:30 a.m.; there will be a grand opening Aug. 14 with plenty of samples and a cake cutting. This addition will complete the main store
BY
DAMIEN SALAS
Headquarters Command Battalion Commander Lt. Col. Johnathon Kupka (left) and battalion Command Sgt. Maj. Kenyatta Mack (right) give remarks during the battalion’s change of command and responsibility ceremony June 19 in Conmy Hall at the Fort Myer portion of the joint base. Both assumed their roles as the battalion’s new command team during the ceremony. Six weeks later, both Soldiers say they are nothing short of impressed by what they have seen of the battalion’s staff. The battalion comprises of some 6,000 Soldiers across 52 agencies in the National Capital Region and abroad.
food court and bring several new food and drink options. Store hours are Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday – 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday – from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, call 703-527-0100. 2. Aug ust is Nat iona l Immunization and Influenza Awareness Month. August marks National Immunization and Influenza Awareness Month. According to U.S. Army Surgeon General Lt. Gen. Patricia
Horoho, getting vaccinated for influenza is the most important step community members can take in the next few months to ensure they are healthy this coming flu season. Vaccines are vital in improving the health of Soldiers, families and retirees. Soldiers should remind family and friends how important vaccinations are to their health in order to be resilient this coming flu season. For more information, visit www.healthfinder.gov/ NHO/Augusttoolkit.aspx. See
page 4 for more information on local immunization availability. 3. Military Health System Research Symposium. The Military Health System Research Symposium will take place from Aug. 17 to 20 in Fort Lauderdale, Fl. The event provides an opportunity for military medical care providers with deployment experience, military scientists, academics and industry professionals to collaborate and
see TEN THINGS, page 4
News Notes Summerall Field parking restricted July 30-31
In preparation for the retirement ceremony Friday, July 31, of Adm. James A. “Sandy” Winnefeld, Jr., the ninth vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Summerall Field parking lot on the Fort Myer portion of JBM-HH will be closed at 9 p.m., July 30. Except to ceremony attendees, the lot will be closed until 6 p.m., July 31. At 9 p.m., military police will secure the parking lot, and all vehicles remaining in the lot will be towed to an off post location at owner expense, in accordance with JBM-HH Militar y Police Uniform Traffic Policy 190-15. The large Tri-Services parking lot between McNair Road, Fort Myer, and the Arlington National Cemetery boundary wall, is always open for all to use. For more information, call 703-696-3290.
Grant Hall Public Open House
Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall announces its quarterly Public Open House of Grant Hall’s historic third-f loor courtroom, located on the Fort McNair portion of the joint base in southwest Washington, D.C., Aug. 1 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The courtroom is the site of the military tribunal, held from May through June 1865, of those thought responsible for the plot to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln. For more information visit www.army.mil/article/146900.
see NEWS NOTES, page 4
Index
This week in military history . . . . page Throwback Thursday. . . . . . . . . . page Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page News notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page In photos: Honor, precision. . . . . page SFL-TAP events . . . . . . . . . . . . . page JBM-HH job opportunities . . . . . . page AIE update. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page
Local forecast
2 2 3 4 5 6 8 8
THURS. 93 | 74
FRI.
87 | 74
SAT.
89 | 74
SUN.
89 | 74
For more weather forecasts and information, visit www.weather.gov.