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Douglas native serves as a member of US Navy’s submarine force | Free Share

jayfer2 free_share, news 0 Comments February 22, 2022

NORFOLK, Va. – A Douglas native is serving aboard USS Helena, one of the world’s most advanced nuclear-powered submarines.

Petty Officer 3rd Class Cory Brackett joined the Navy three years ago. Today, Brackett serves as an electrician’s mate (nuclear).

“I wanted to do something bigger than myself, be a part of something I could be proud of and also provide for my family,” said Brackett. “That’s why I joined the Navy.”

Growing up in Douglas, Brackett attended Douglas High School and graduated in 2016. Today, Brackett relies upon skills and values similar to those found in Douglas to succeed in the military.

“I grew up learning hard work and perseverance,” said Brackett. “Those are big things that can help you in the Navy.”

These lessons have helped Brackett while serving aboard USS Helena.

Known as America’s “Apex Predators!,” the Navy’s submarine force operates a large fleet of technically-advanced vessels. These submarines are capable of conducting rapid defensive and offensive operations around the world, in furtherance of U.S. national security.

There are three basic types of submarines: fast-attack submarines (SSN), ballistic-missile submarines (SSBN) and guided-missile submarines (SSGN).

Fast-attack submarines are designed to hunt down and destroy enemy submarines and surface ships; strike targets ashore with cruise missiles; carry and deliver Navy SEALs; conduct intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions; and engage in mine warfare. The Virginia-class SSN is the most advanced submarine in the world today. It combines stealth and payload capability to meet Combatant Commanders’ demands in this era of strategic competition.

The Navy’s ballistic-missile submarines, often referred to as “boomers,” serve as a strategic deterrent by providing an undetectable platform for submarine-launched ballistic missiles. SSBNs are designed specifically for stealth, extended patrols and the precise delivery of missiles. The Columbia-class SSBN will be the largest, most capable and most advanced submarine produced by the U.S. – replacing the current Ohio-class ballistic-missile submarines to ensure continuous sea-based strategic deterrence into the 2080s.

Guided-missile submarines provide the Navy with unprecedented strike and special operation mission capabilities from a stealthy, clandestine platform. Each SSGN is capable of carrying 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles, plus a complement of heavyweight torpedoes to be fired through four torpedo tubes.

Strategic deterrence is the Nation’s ultimate insurance program, according to Navy officials. As a member of the submarine force, Brackett is part of a rich 122-year history of the U.S. Navy’s most versatile weapons platform, capable of taking the fight to the enemy in the defense of America and its allies.

Serving in the Navy means Brackett is part of a world that is taking on new importance in America’s focus on rebuilding military readiness, strengthening alliances and reforming business practices in support of the National Defense Strategy.

“The Navy controls the seas and also deters other countries from any kind of attacks,” said Brackett. “If they can’t get close they can’t do anything. Without the Navy, we wouldn’t have as much of a buffer to protect the U.S.”

With more than 90 percent of all trade traveling by sea, and 95 percent of the world’s international phone and internet traffic carried through underwater fiber optic, Navy officials continue to emphasize that the prosperity and security of the United States is directly linked to a strong and ready Navy.

Brackett and the sailors they serve with have many opportunities to achieve accomplishments during their military service.

“I am very proud of finishing and qualifying the nuke pipeline,” said Brackett. “It takes about two years of school. I learned the electrical and the nuclear part. There’s a lot of heat transfer and nuclear physics and then I learned to operate the nuclear reactor on an actual submarine.”

As Brackett and other sailors continue to train and perform missions, they take pride in serving their country in the United States Navy.”

“Serving in the Navy means protecting my family and our home country,” added Brackett.

Breaking News

How tragedy led to Des Plaines veteran’s mission of suicide prevention

jayfer2 Des Plaines, Des Plaines Newsletter, Mental Health, news, Veterans Helping Veterans 0 Comments February 20, 2022

Vietnam-era Air Force veteran Tom Strossner of Des Plaines had been steadily increasing his post-retirement service to fellow veterans last fall when tragedy struck the American Legion post where he was serving as commander.

A younger member of the post who was in crisis took his own life in November.

Ever since, Strossner has made it his mission to make himself and others as well-prepared as possible to help those in such pain.

“I’ll be honest with you, I never, never thought I would face a suicide in my lifetime,” Strossner said. “Now I’m all on board with making people aware.”

Only weeks after suffering that loss, Strossner saw a presentation in River Grove on veteran suicide prevention training.

This month, he brought the same program to American Legion Post 36 in Des Plaines.

The program highlights the complexity of suicide and the factors that play a role in whether a person in distress will attempt it. It’s delivered by Kristy Bassett, community engagement and partnership coordinator at Edward Hines Jr. Veterans Affairs Hospital, and Carmona Caravelli, the hospital’s lead suicide prevention coordinator.

Several factors make veterans a distinct population, they said, including their likelihood of owning and being trained in the use of firearms.

While stressing that neither they nor the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs are anti-gun, they said firearms more commonly are used by veterans than the general population in suicide attempts and can narrow the time frame a person in distress has to reevaluate his or her decision.

Persuading at-risk veterans to voluntarily separate themselves from their firearms is just one targeted prevention measure, they said.

Members of Des Plaines American Legion Post 36 and others attend a recent remote presentation on veterans suicide prevention training featuring Kristy Bassett, community engagement and partnership coordinator at Edward Hines Jr. Veterans Affairs Hospital.
– Eric Peterson | Staff Photographer

Staying calm, avoiding mirroring the at-risk person’s mental distress and not shying away from the direct question, “Are you thinking about killing yourself?” are other important strategies for others to know and exercise.

“You don’t need an advanced degree to be able to help someone,” Bassett said.

Strossner likens the training to CPR instruction — something most people might hope to never need but would find invaluable in the unexpected moment they do.

This month’s one-night training event is not the end of the prevention measures the post intends to take, he said.

In some ways, Strossner considers himself an unlikely person to be leading the post through such a challenging time — or at all.

“I lived in this town 30-some years and didn’t even know this post was here,” he said. “I joined this post six years ago. I made the mistake of telling them I wanted to get involved.

“I don’t know how I could get more involved than I am now,” he said with a smile.

After retiring, Strossner believed it would be good to enjoy the camaraderie of fellow veterans again, something he didn’t have much time to think about while working. Now, part of what he sees as his role as post commander is to persuade others in the community to not wait as long as he did to join.

Strossner graduated from Lake View High School in Chicago in 1966 and immediately went to work for the construction firm that would build the house in Hoffman Estates his family would move into.

“Then I decided I was going to join the Air Force because I really wanted to work on airplanes,” he said.

He became a crew chief on an airplane at 19. That’s where he learned many of the organizational skills that would quickly prove valuable to his American Legion Post.

Though Strossner spent the majority of his service in the U.S., he was in Iceland for some months at two different times and at an Air Force base in Vietnam from June of 1968 to June of 1969, shortly after the Tet Offensive.

The fact that he got out of the Air Force in 1971 made a big difference to the rest of his life. Airlines were laying off workers rather than hiring, and he ended up supporting his young family with a truck driving job that became a career.

But his main focus now is helping fellow veterans and making sure American Legion Post 36 is accessible to them.

“We have all served,” he said of the bond he feels with other members. “It’s the same military, just a different era. You are a family, no matter what era you served in. It’s a great post. I felt that after I joined here.”

Navy

B-A native exemplifies ‘Freedom at Work’ aboard U.S. Navy aircraft carrier | News

jayfer2 news 0 Comments February 19, 2022

NORFOLK, Va. – Petty Officer 2nd Class Ryan Kerns, a native of Bellwood-Antis, serves the U.S. Navy aboard one of the world’s largest warships, the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77).

Bush was commissioned in 2009 and is completing a pre-deployment work up cycle.

“Our Sailors’ hard work to return George Herbert Walker Bush to the operational fleet in 2021 was exemplary,” said Capt. Robert Aguilar, GHWB commanding officer. “They represent the best principles of service to the mission and the nation that our namesake, President George H.W. Bush, embodied.”

Kerns joined the Navy four years ago. Today, Kerns serves as a machinist’s mate (nuclear).

“Both my parents were in the military,” said Kerns. “A lot of my family was in the military. They inspired me to join. I was also interested in earning money for college.”

Growing up in Bellwood-Antis, Kerns attended Bellwood-Antis High School and graduated in 2017. Today, Kerns relies upon skills and values similar to those found in Bellwood-Antis to succeed in the military.

“I come from a small town with a great sense of community,” said Kerns. “Everyone knows how to work together like a small family. It’s similar aboard this ship. We work together, eat together and when we’re not working, we hang out together.”

These lessons have helped Kerns while serving in the Navy.

Kerns’s service aboard Bush follows the example of the ship’s namesake, the nation’s 41st President, George H.W. Bush. Bush is the only U.S. president to serve as a U.S. Navy aviator. During World War II he flew the TBF Avenger in Torpedo Squadron (VT) 51 and was stationed aboard USS San Jacinto (CVL 30). He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for a daring bombing run over the island of Chichi Jima.

The ship bearing Bush’s name is preparing for deployment amid ongoing strategic competition between the U.S. and its adversaries. In doing so, the ship and its Sailors continue the legacy of service to the nation that U.S. Navy aircraft carriers have provided for 100 years.

Since USS Langley’s (CV 1) commissioning 100 years ago this March 20, aircraft carriers and their ability to project American power around the globe have been a consistent tool in maintaining and improving U.S. national security interest and the prosperity of the American people.

Sailors aboard USS George H.W. Bush, like Kerns, continue to burnish the legacy of the aircraft carrier fleet and naval aviation by providing the national command authority a flexible, tailorable warfighting capability as the flagship of a carrier strike group that maintains maritime stability and security in order to ensure access, deter aggression and defend U.S., allied, and partner interests.

Serving in the Navy means Kerns is part of a team that is taking on new importance in America’s focus on rebuilding military readiness, strengthening alliances and reforming business practices in support of the National Defense Strategy.

“The Navy can be anywhere we want,” said Kerns. “Having this presence around the world with the capabilities we have serves as a strong deterrence.”

With more than 90 percent of all trade traveling by sea, and 95 percent of the world’s international phone and internet traffic carried through fiber optic cables lying on the ocean floor, Navy officials continue to emphasize that the prosperity and security of the United States is directly linked to a strong and ready Navy.

Kerns and the sailors they serve with have many opportunities to achieve accomplishments during their military service.

“I’m proud of the supervisor qualifications I earned a few months ago,” said Kerns. “I coordinate orders between the watch officer and the watch standers. This covers two of the four propulsion units aboard the ship in addition to other parts in the reactor spaces.”

As Kerns and other sailors continue to train and perform missions, they take pride in serving their country in the United States Navy.

“Being able to serve our country helps ensure that we don’t lose what we have,” added Kerns. “If something were to happen, the Navy is the first service to respond because we’re already deployed around the world.”

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