The June 2016 issue of the Office of Veterans Services newsletter is just out. This issue’s articles include:
OVS has Limited our Face to Face In-Office-Services
Director’s Message
Information from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
Lanai Cemetery Open House
From the Air Force Magazine website
The Defense Department is rolling out fifth-generation wireless technology for experimentation and testing at seven more military bases, including the Air Force’s main training base.
The second tranche of bases includes Naval Base Norfolk, Va.; Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii; Joint Base San Antonio, Texas; the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif.; Fort Hood, Texas; Camp Pendleton, Calif.; and Tinker Air Force Base, Okla.
Hawaii Air National Guard retiree Douglas Awana and his wife, Diane are on a 2-3 year RV road trip of the lower 48 states. One of the goals of their once-in-a-lifetime trip is to visit as many HIANG retirees as possible. Retiree News will post photographs to these reunions as the Awanas make their way across America.
Additional photographs will post on Doug’s Facebook page. Send him a friend request to access his page. If you want to contact him to arrange a reunion, message him through Facebook.
His first reunion was with John “JC” Chun and his wife, Lorriane, in Salem, Oregon. Great to see old friends.
Off the Hawaii Air National Guard Facebook page
There’s no doubt that Drill Weekend looks a little bit different than before, however, we are simply inspired to see how some things will always remain the same in the HIANG, such as our Airmen’s ability to adapt, take care of one another and have a great time while accomplishing high-quality training for their unique and diverse mission-sets.
It’s wonderful to have the wingmen of our ‘ohana united once again, and the success of this past weekend is making us looking forward to some of our ‘Super-Drills’ to come later this year!
The crew of the Memphis Belle after their 25th mission: (left to right) Technical Sergeant Harold Loch, Top Turret Gunner/Engineer; Staff Sergeant Cecil Scott, Ball Turret Gunner; Technical Sergeant Robert Hanson, Radio Operator; Captain James Verinis, Co-pilot; Captain Robert Morgan, Aircraft Commander/Pilot; Captain Charles Leighton, Navigator; Staff Sergeant John Quinlan, Tail Gunner; Staff Sergeant Casimer Nastal, Waist Gunner; Captain Vincent Evans, Bombardier; Staff Sergeant Clarence Winchell Waist Gunner.
9 June 1943: After completing 25 combat missions over Western Europe from its base at Air Force Station 121 (RAF Bassingbourne, Cambridgeshire, England), Memphis Belle, a U.S. Army Air Forces Boeing B-17F-10-BO Flying Fortress, serial number 41-24485, assigned to the 91st Bombardment Group (Heavy), 324th Bomb Squadron (Heavy), was flown home by Captain Robert K. Morgan and Captain James A. Verinis.
Memphis Belle ® is a Registered Trademark of the United States Air Force.
The Memphis Belle story inspired the making of two motion pictures: a 1944 documentary film, Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress, and a 1990 Hollywood feature film, Memphis Belle. (Wikipedia)
The old Moanalua Shopping Center opened on August 19, 1954. It was conveniently located outside Hickam AFB and the Pearl Harbor base. Prominent Hawai’i architect, Alfred Preis, designed the center. It was the largest center of the era until Ala Moana opened in 1960. Preis is best known for his design of the USS Arizona Memorial.
Over the years, there were 35-40 tenants including Jesse’s Bakery & Restaurant, Caddie Shop Hawaii golf shop, and Mike’s Engraving & Trophies. Wayne Soma, a Hawaii Air National Guard technician and his wife Birgit, ran a small sport equipment store for many years until he passed. They gave Guardmembers great discounts.
After fifty years, the center closed at the end of June 2005. Demolition of the old buildings was completed in July and construction of the new center began. The new facilities open in mid-2007, and is now the home to over 25 business, mostly eateries.
You may have money waiting if a loved one named you on a life insurance policy and then neglected to tell you about it. Unclaimed life insurance policies aren’t as unusual as you would think either.
According to a study by Consumer Reports, 1 out of every 600 people is the beneficiary of an unclaimed life insurance policy with an average benefit of $2,000. It could be like finding out you have a secret savings account.
This post updates previous Retiree News posts on this subject. We posted this as “Unclaimed Life Insurance Policies” under the dropdown menu “Bereavement” on the maroon bar below the header photograph.
Whether you had to cancel a vacation due to the coronavirus pandemic or are itching to plan one, you’re probably buzzing with travel questions. So, Next Avenue spoke to a few experts for their best advice.
After months of quarantine living, some people lately have begun leaving home and taking trips; more are expected to do so this summer and fall.
Answers to common questions about vacations and the pandemic:
Off the Hawaii Air National Guard Recruiting & Retention Facebook page
If you are interested in applying for this year’s Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) Board, the 154th Wing, Hawaii Air National Guard, is now accepting applications. Packages are due no later than July 17, 2020.
For more details, feel free to reach out to a recruiting representative directly, or email the recruiting team at: HQHIANG.HQHIANGA1R.Recruitingelement@us.af.mil
TSgt Warren Reyes: 808-388-4835
TSgt Sharon Pasion: 808-216-3322
MSgt Marigold Manalo: 808-387-7185
MSgt Leslee Siongco: 808-234-4547
MSgt Todd Shak: 808-216-2020
From the Eater Las Vegas website
Las Vegas hosts some of the best places to eat a steak, and not every single one of those establishments is located on Las Vegas Boulevard, though most of them are.
Find real Kobe beef at SW Steakhouse at Wynn Las Vegas and Bazaar Meat by José Andrés at SLS or beef Wellington at Gordon Ramsay Steak at Paris Las Vegas, just to name a few. Elsewhere, there’s Hank’s, located in Green Valley Ranch in Henderson, or one of the oldest restaurants in Las Vegas, Golden Steer, with its Rat Pack-era vibe. High-end Kobe beef, prime rib sliced directly at the table, dry-aged filet mignon, or a classic wood grilled New York strip steak all find a home in Las Vegas.
Here, a look at 30 of the best places to eat a steak in Las Vegas, along with what to order at each.
Today in 1990: On its final flight, our Lockheed #SR71 Blackbird set a new speed record flying from Los Angeles, CA to Washington, DC in 1 hr, 4 min, 20 sec, averaging 3,418 kph (2,124 mph). pic.twitter.com/zMcSav6Anq
— SmithsonianAirSpace (@airandspace) March 6, 2018
An economic depression is an occurrence wherein an economy is in a state of financial turmoil, often the result of a period of negative activity based on the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rate. It is a lot worse than a recession, with GDP falling significantly, and usually lasts for many years. In the US, the Great Depression lasted for a decade, with the unemployment rate reaching 25% and wages falling by 42%.
From the Financial Times website
The COVID-19 lockdowns have led to the largest rises in unemployment since the 1930s. The Financial Times asked leading economists and market analysts what to expect and what might be done to avert turmoil
This undated photograph shows the serving line in the then-154th Composite Group chow hall. The timeline was probably in the late 1070s.
The facility was on the ocean side of the hanger on the second floor – where the operations center is currently located. The seating area was limited and many took their lunches back to their shop areas to eat.
From the Military Times website
Veterans Affairs officials announced they will resume in-person compensation and pension exams at 20 department medical centers in coming weeks in an effort to bring down a backlog of benefits cases which has grown substantially since November due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Veterans Affairs officials announced they will resume in-person compensation and pension exams at 20 department medical centers in coming weeks in an effort to bring down a backlog of benefits cases which has grown substantially since November due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The exams backlog currently sits at 114,000 cases, up from 65,000 in November 2019.
The news came just a day after lawmakers and veterans advocates expressed concern that department leadership hasn’t done enough to inform veterans about their plans to handle benefits cases stalled in recent months, as in-person exams were banned in almost all cases.
Retiree News 