By: Hermann Welm
President “Can Do Sandhu” opened the meeting by reminding us that the R.I. President is Ian H.S. Riseley, of Victoria, Australia, and his theme for the year is “Rotary, Making a Difference.” The meeting was once again held in the South Building of the San Ramon Regional Medical Center, and lunch was “catered” by the excellent staff of their Dietary Department. Thank you, Gary Sloan for making this happen again as part of our Veteran’s Day Program.
Our Greeter, PP Gary Sloan, led us in the Salute to the Flag and gave us his Thoughts for the Day, by Simran Khurana:
It takes courage for a soldier to risk life and limb for his country. The least we civilians can do is to honor these heroes. That is the basis of the Veterans Day celebration — to venerate these great men and women with words of appreciation. The edifice of our society stands on the martyrdom of these selfless souls.
Mike Thelen then led the group in the singing of the Patriotic Song; he chose “My Country tis of Thee.”
Gary then had an opportunity to speak a bit about what is going on in his life, including his planned retirement in 2018. He has been the Chief Executive of the hospital since 2003 and will leave this position with mixed emotions.
Visiting Rotarians: None.
Other Visitors: Jalal Afifi, formerly with Chevron for 25 years; now with Morgan Stanley. Mary Greco, wife of PP Guy Greco. Military veterans from the San Ramon Regional Medical Center, Lauren Beck, Jay Valdez, Julie Panis and Dennis Mills. Karen Born, representing Bay Area Navy Nurses. Other veterans, including several members of the American Legion, Post 246, Eric Ardell, Jerry Kidd, Bud Eckert, Richard Lambert, Dick Seavey and Jay Clapper.
Announcements:
Lucky Sandhu noted that on this Veteran’s Day he wanted to recognize his uncle who was a 4-Star General in the Indian Army and was inducted into the U.S. Army War College (Carlisle, Pennsylvania) International Fellows Hall of Fame, two years ago.
He then asked each of the veterans present to identify themselves and state when and how they served. In addition to those noted above, our Club’s veteran roster includes the following: Guy Greco (Army Reserve, 1963 to 1969), “Pat” Paterson (Air Force, 1957 to 1971), Hermann Welm (Navy, 1963 to 1969), Glen Weber (Air Force, 1969 to 1971), Fred Nevarez (Coast Guard, 4 years), Geoff Johnson (Army, 1958 to 1962), Horace Crawford (Army, 1959 to 1962), Jay Tontz (Air Force, 1966 to 1969), Jerry Marrs (Air Force, 1989 to 1993), Marvin Remmich (Army), Jeff Disch (Air National Guard, 1967 to 1975) and Edgardo Carrillo (Marine Corps, 1968 to 1978).
Chris Gayler announced that sign-ups for shifts at the Christmas Tree Lot will be emailed shortly. Everyone is expected to work at least two shifts; three is preferred. Start by signing up for the shifts in late November and then early December.
In regard to this year’s Christmas tree sales, PP John Tatum noted that there is a shortage of trees this season but that we will be getting our full order since we’ve been with this supplier for such a long time. Because of this shortage, prices will be up a little, but we can still expect brisk sales because we have the best quality trees in town and others will likely be running out of desirable trees.
Horace Crawford announced that the Trinity Center for the Homeless, in Walnut Creek, will once again be needing cooked turkeys for their Thanksgiving feast. The turkeys need to be cooked the day before and either delivered to the Trinity Center or arrangements can be made for them to be picked up. More on this “Turkey Call” will follow by email.
Brent Tucker announced that he and Terri will once again be hosting the annual Holiday Party at their home, on December 2nd. Look for sign-up information in your email.
Lucky next noted, for the benefit of visitors, that in addition to the above activities, Rotarians from our club, and internationally, are also involved in many other activities. He singled out Paula Gross for her leadership in the Miss Contra Costa County Scholarship Organization, part of the Miss America program.
Internationally, Lucky showed a short video about Rotary’s Polio Eradication Program. Globally, the incidence of polio has been reduced from about 1,000 per day, prior to the 1980’s, to 7 or 8 for the entire past year!
Good News/Fine Free: None
Recognitions: None
Program:
PP Bill Harlan spoke about his son’s 20-year career in the U.S. Army and the time leading up to his decision to enlist. Will had a “stormy” relationship with High School, so he quit before graduating but ultimately got his GED at Diablo Valley College. He went on to Chico State, but that didn’t work out so well either, possibly “because he didn’t do anything!”
So, in debt and adrift, Will stumbled upon an Army Recruiting Office, where they told him about a signing bonus that would almost pay off his debts! AND, if he jumped out of an airplane twice -- only twice -- the bonus would be higher; high enough to settle all his debts! So, in 1990, he joined the U.S. Army, went to Basic Training and on to Jump School at Fort Benning, was assigned to the famous 82nd Airborne Division and ended up in Saudi Arabia as part of Operation Desert Shield. Living in a hangar, subject to Saudi authority, and lacking in basic supplies because of the speed at which the U.S. sent the Army to the Gulf after Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait, was no great fun!
To keep Will and his unit supplied with “stuff,” he was “adopted” not just by this Rotary club but also by a Second Grade in Benicia and a Lutheran Church in Walnut Creek.
Then, in January, 1991, came Desert Storm, and the word that the 82nd Airborne would parachute into Kuwait City and retake it from the Iraqis! Dr. Bill and his wife were on pins and needles for several days worrying about Will, only to find out that it was a ruse to confuse the Iraqis; there was never an intention to parachute into Kuwait City! Will’s unit was on the road to Baghdad!
With Iraq’s surrender, Will returned to the U.S. for a “Welcome Home” which included a Brass Band and a talk at Walnut Creek’s Civic Park.
Then came deployments to Korea and Afghanistan. Prior to his second deployment to Iraq, Will transferred to a Stryker Brigade out of Alaska. The Stryker is a highly deployable, wheeled, armored vehicle that combines firepower, battlefield mobility, survivability and versatility, with reduced logistics requirements. They ended up in Mosul, Iraq.
Our club continued to send Will’s unit CARE packages, including toys for the children encountered on their patrols. This was not just a humanitarian undertaking since the presence of kids approaching their patrol also indicated that there wasn’t an ambush working in that village!
On March11, 2006, Sergeant Will Harlan’s luck ran out. His Stryker had an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) blow up right under his position in the vehicle’s turret. It blew him out of the turret with heavily injured legs and he landed feet first on those legs, further damaging them. He was evacuated via Kuwait, Landstuhl, Walter Reed Hospital and Travis AFB to Madigan Hospital at Fort Lewis, Washington.
Will received outstanding care at the Army’s Madigan Hospital and at the VA Hospital in Seattle. It took a total of 22 surgeries to get him “back on his feet” (pardon the pun). But in the end he persuaded the Army to not give him a medical discharge but to allow him to serve out his 20 years until retirement. He first was given a “Wounded Warrior” assignment at Fort Lewis, where he and other wounded active-duty soldiers worked in the “Tragedy Assistance Program” to assist the families of both fallen and severely wounded comrades.
During this time, Will earned his college degree, was promoted to First Sergeant -- a big deal for enlisted personnel -- and was named “Army Soldier of the Year” for 2008 -- a Bigger Deal, as one can easily imagine!
First Sergeant Harlan served one more tour of duty in Iraq in spite of his injuries and his “not being able to run!” The Colonel told him that he had plenty of other soldiers who could do the running!
Prior to his retirement in 2013 from the Joint Forces Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana, Will was once again promoted, to Command Sergeant Major! He now works for the State of Alaska as a manager in their Mechanical Inspection Division. Pity the poor slob who doesn’t maintain his elevator or has a malfunctioning Merry-Go-Round!
Raffle: None
Next Week’s Program: Tony Schoemehl will be speaking about the USS Hornet.