First Friday briefing [Sept. 1, 2000]

GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FIRST FRIDAY BRIEFING
September 1, 2000
Editors Note: Members of the Directorate of Communications and the 124th MPAD are currently at Fort Stewart covering annual training of the 48th Infantry Brigade. This issue of "First Friday Briefing" does not contain a Foto File feature. This feature will return in the October edition.
Rigdon Assumes Command of Bosnia-Bound 48th Brigade New Commander Promoted to General
Robley S. Rigdon of Snellville officially assumed command of the 48th Infantry Brigade on Saturday, June 12 at Change of Command ceremonies in Macon. He was also promoted to the rank of Brigadier General in the Georgia Army National Guard succeeding Brigadier General Robert C. Hughes as Commander of the 48th Infantry Brigade.
Rigdon takes command of the 4,000-member 48th Infantry Brigade of the Georgia Army National Guard on the eve of the unit's deployment to Bosnia with more than 1,200 Georgia Army National Guardsmen. The unit is schedule to deploy in March of 2001.
Rigdon is a 31-year veteran and most recently was Chief of Training Division for the Georgia Army National Guard.
In his civilian occupation Rigdon is Deputy Commissioner of Mortgage and Corporate Divisions, Department of Banking and Finance of the State of Georgia. He attended North Georgia College and later graduated from Georgia Southern College in 1968. He completed the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Wisconsin in 1983.
During his career General Rigdon has held numerous leadership positions in the Georgia Army National Guard, including Military Personnel Officer for Headquarters, State Area Command, Battalion Commander of 1st Battalion 230th Field Artillery, Operations and Intelligence Officer of the 118th Field Artillery Brigade, and Commander of Battery B of Second Battalion 214th Field Artillery.

Rigdon completed the Army War College, the US Army Aviation School, Air Assault Course and was an honor graduate of the USAF Air Ground Operations School. He also attended the Battle Staff Course and Joint Firepower Control Course. He completed Command and General Staff College and was a distinguished graduate of the State Officer Candidate School where he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in September 1971.
General Rigdon holds the Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, the Army Reserve Component Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Humanitarian Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon Armed Forces Reserve Medal, the Air Assault Badge and eight State of Georgia ribbons
While in Bosnia, Rigdon will serve as the Deputy Division Commander for the 24th Infantry Division.
Rigdon is married and has three children.
Georgia Guard members train for Bosnian mission
Editor's Note: This story was prepared by SSgt Elliott Minor, 124th PAD and was picked up by a number of Georgia dailies)
FORT STEWART, Ga. _ Twelve-hundred Georgia Army National Guard soldiers began 21 days of training Monday to help prepare them for a peacekeeping role in the NATO Stabilization force in Bosnia.
They are members of the 48th Infantry Brigade (Mech) in Macon. It will be the largest deployment of state troops since 1990, when 4,500 members of the brigade were called up for the Persian Gulf War.
Their training at Fort Stewart, near Savannah, includes probing for mines, reacting to artillery and sniper fire, police tactics and classes on Bosnian history and culture. Some also will learn urban warfare at a mock village.
"It's a change in the mindset for our soldiers," said Maj. Jeff Hobaugh, the brigade's operations officer. "In conventional war, you want to close with and destroy the enemy. In Bosnia, if you have to fire a weapon, you've failed. "
On the first day, some learned how to search cars for weapons and explosives, they quelled a riot staged by soldiers pretending to be Bosnians and they watched demonstration highlighting the explosive force of anti-personnel mines. The demonstrator shredded a combat boot with a small amount of explosives.
The United States has been sending peacekeepers to Balkans since the three-year Bosnian Civil war ended in 1995, with about 2 million Bosnians killed and millions more homeless. Ethnic tensions remain high in the war-torn country.

NATO peacekeepers enforce provisions of the Dayton Peace Accords, which divided the country into a Muslim-Croat Federation and a Serbian Republic.
Most of the guardsmen say they welcome the opportunity to serve in Bosnia. "I've been here training year after year and finally I'm going to do a real-world mission," said Sgt. Michael Ward, 25, a member of A. Company, 2nd Battalion, 121st Infantry in Valdosta.
Spc. Robert Taylor, 20, of Moultrie, said his mother is concerned about him being sent to what is still officially a war zone.
"She doesn't want me to go," he said. "I have mixed feelings. I don't want to leave my family and my girlfriend, but it has got to be done."
Spc. Robert Grundy, 28, a dry-wall contractor in Valdosta, said his brother will run the business while he's away for nine months.
"I want to go," he said. "This is that 'unexpected' you sign up for. It's part of your oath. I think the 48th deserves a chance to prove itself to the world."
Georgia Poised to Make Youth Challenge History . . . Again.
Georgia's Youth Challenge Academy is poised to make history again as the second campus for this National Guard sponsored youth program is scheduled to open at Fort Gordon near Augusta. With the opening of the second campus, Georgia becomes only the second state together with Mississippi to operate the highly successful youth program in two locations.
"Within a year, Georgia's Youth Challenge Academy will be graduating over a thousand students a year from our two campuses" said Major General David B. Poythress, Georgia's Adjutant General. In its first six years of operation, Georgia's Youth Challenge Academy has graduated more than 2,000 students.
The second campus will be ready for its first class of approximately 140 students on September 25. As with the original YCA campus at Fort Stewart, the Fort Gordon campus will operate two 22-week classes each year. For the planned two platoons which will open the new campus, more than 60 fulltime cadre members, administrators, counselors, medical and food service personnel will be hired. If a third platoon is added, this number could rise to over 75 fulltime employees.
"This expansion was made possible by a lot of hard work and cooperation by the state legislative delegation from Augusta as well as officials at Fort Gordon," said General Poythress. The cost of the expansion is $2.4 million, which will be funded by matching state and federal dollars. New students will move into Viet Nam era barracks that have been renovated to meet building standards and the needs of both male and female students. Renovation performed at the Gordon facilities has been provided by labor from the Georgia Department of Corrections.

The first class at the Fort Gordon location arrives on September 24 followed on the 25th by the official grand opening. For the first two weeks, new students will go through a rigorous indoctrination period that is the first hurdle in the 22-week Youth Challenge Program.
The Fort Stewart campus, which graduated it first class in 1994, is also undergoing significant expansion providing room for an additional 240 students. Class XV (Fifteen) began classes in July.
Venn Newest Georgia Guard Colonel
Lieutenant Colonel Donald W. Venn II was promoted to the rank of Colonel in the Georgia Army National Guard at official promotion ceremonies held on Thursday, August 31 at the Confederate Avenue location. Venn, a 23-year veteran of the Georgia Army National Guard is currently the Deputy Chief of Staff for the Georgia Army National Guard. At the ceremony, Venn was also awarded the Georgia Commendation Medal by Maj Gen David B. Poythress.
Venn graduated from Armstrong Atlantic State University in 1976 and later received his Masters in 1979. He was commissioned a Second Lieutenant through Officers Candidate School at Fort Knox, KY in January 1967.
He has attended the Armor Pre-Command Course in 1995, Command and General Staff Officer course in 1994, the Armor Officer Advance CAS3 in 1986. He has also completed Chemical, Biological and Radiological School and Civil Affairs Officer Career course.
Colonel Venn has held a series of leadership positions within the Georgia Army National Guard including Battalion Commander, 1/108th Armor: Counterdrug Commander, HQ, GaNG; Chief, Plans and Actions Branch, GA ARNG; AMEDD Recruiter; Education Services Officer, Chemical Officer for the 118th FA BDE and Battery Commander, HHB. 118th FA BDE.
The Michigan native holds numerous awards and decorations including the Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal, National Defense Ribbon, the Army Service Ribbon, Armed forces Reserve Meal and the Army Reserve Achievement Medal. He also has been awarded the Viet Nam National Defense Medal, Four Viet Nam Campaign Ribbons, the Georgia Active Duty Ribbon, Georgia Meritorious Service Ribbon, Georgia Commendations medal and Georgia Counterdrug Ribbon.
Colonel Venn is married with two children and resides in Kennesaw, Georgia.
Civic Leaders View Guard Training at Fort Stewart
More than sixty government, business and community leaders were treated to tours of annual training activities of the 48th Infantry recently at Fort Stewart. These key leaders from Atlanta, Macon, Albany and numerous smaller communities throughout the state were transported by Air Guard C-130s to the Combat Readiness Training Center in Savannah. The groups then boarded Chinnook helicopters for the 30-minute flight to Fort Stewart to witness the Brigade's training for Bosnia.

In commenting on the purpose of the civic leader tours, LTC Jim Driscoll, Director of Communications for the Georgia Department of Defense said, "We know that our troops and their families are soon to encounter personal hardships due to this deployment. We believe that if we acquaint local business and community leaders to mission of the 48th and inform them of the kinds of challenges that our troops and their families may face that they will be wonderful allies for us in their communities in the difficult days ahead."
The two groups visiting the Brigade were given complete briefings on the mission of the 48th while in Bosnia, the political situation in this war torn area of the world, and the readiness of the men and women of the Brigade for this mission. Helicopters flew guests to areas where troops were in active training for the mission. Once in place, guests received an overview of the training and were able to talk and enjoy a midday "MRE" with the troops.
According to one guest from Cordele, "I never knew that these were the things the Guard did while on annual training. I only thought it was active duty that prepared like this. I was very impressed by our troops, and while I know that it will be difficult to leave their families, from what I have seen today, they will perform well in Bosnia."
B-1 Officer Receives Distinguished Flying Cross
Major Thomas Bell, a B-1 Weapons Officer of the 116th Bomb Wing was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for personal heroism earned as a member of a B-1 bomber crew in the skies over Kosovo in 1999. The Distinguished Flying Cross is America's third highest award for valor.
Bell, who commands the 116th's Weapons and Tactics shop and is a Weapons Control Officer instructor in the 128th Bomb Squadron, was presented the distinctive award by Brig Gen William N. Searcy, Commander of the Georgia Air National Guard during ceremonies held in August at Robins AFB.
Bell earned the award while participating in a B-1 combat mission in support of Operation Allied Force over Kosovo. The mission Bell flew was the first B-1 mission flown during the conflict in Kosovo. On an April 1, 1999 mission, Bell experienced numerous in-flight challenges, beginning with a weapons release malfunction on his first bomb run. Correcting the malfunction, Bell completed a second run achieving multiple kills on tanks, armored personnel careers and forces in the field. As the weapons system officer, Bell defended the aircraft on two separate occasions against tactical surface-to-air missile launches and completed an unscheduled aerial refueling before returning the B-1 safely

to RAF Fairford in England.
Bell, who was assigned to the 77th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, 2nd Air Expeditionary Group, RAF Fairford ultimately flew fifteen combat sorties during the three months in theatre.
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