Hometown Military News for June 5, 2015:
Illinois National Guard Public Affairs Unit Deploys to Cuba
SPRINGFIELD – A deployment ceremony is scheduled for approximately 20 Illinois Army National Guard soldiers who will deploy to Cuba later this month. The ceremony for the 139th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment (MPAD) in Springfield, Illinois, will be June 7 at 11 a.m. at Camp Lincoln, 1301 N. MacArthur Blvd. in Springfield.
The soldiers will train for a brief time at Fort Hood, Texas before deploying to the Guantanamo Bay Naval Station for approximately nine months. The Soldiers are part of a team of military journalists who will inform the public about military events, training, accomplishments and issues, support media engagements and facilitate community outreach. The unit expects to be home by Spring 2016.
“This deployment is a unique one – there will be a lot of eyes on Guantanamo Bay this coming year,” said Capt. Dustin W. Cammack of Chicago, detachment commander. “With the high-visibility military commissions, and now the easing of relations with Cuba – we will be right in the middle of it all. It’s an exciting opportunity for my Soldiers and one in which I know they will excel.”
The 139th will support media organizations reporting on operations at Task Force Guantanamo. Additionally, the unit will enhance internal communications by publishing a weekly magazine and contributing video and radio products to the Armed Forces Network for the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines assigned to the joint task force. The unit last deployed from 2009-2010 to Balad, Iraq.
U.S. Navy Veteran reports for duty as first Executive Director of Illinois Joining Forces
SPRINGFIELD – Following an extensive selection process the Illinois Joining Forces (IJF) Board of Directors has announced the selection of U.S. Navy veteran Kenneth S. Barber as the first Executive Director.
Barber will report for duty today and assumes day-to-day operational leadership of the IJF, which is a statewide, public-private network of military and veteran serving organizations that collaborate in person and online to help service members, veterans, and their families navigate the “sea of goodwill.”
“We are delighted to have Ken Barber stepping up to the IJF Executive Director position,” said Tom Miller Chair, IJF Board of Directors. “While we had an impressive field of candidates to choose from, Ken is an excellent selection. As a combat veteran with experience in corporate, non-profit, entrepreneurial, civic, and academic settings, his wide range of experience, plus proven leadership make him a great choice. We are looking forward to him helping to make IJF even better through engaging and supporting even more of Illinois military personnel, veterans, and their families.”
Prior to joining IJF, Barber has over 15 years’ experience as an accomplished business owner, entrepreneur, and executive manager. He has been the founder or partner in several successful small businesses ventures in manufacturing, retail food and restaurant, real estate development, and wellness and health care. Most recently, he was the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Oxyall Inc., a Chicago-based start-up manufacturer and distributor of products in the Health and Wellness industry.
Before embarking on his entrepreneurial ventures, Ken was a manager in the private sector in banking and finance. He held executive management positions in Information Security, Consumer Lending, Community Affairs, and eCommerce for HSBC N.A. Similarly, he held management positions in Capital planning, Operating Budgets and Forecasting, and Airport Operations for United Airlines.
Barber currently serves as Treasurer for the Board of Trustees of Roycemore School, Evanston, and is the past Treasurer of the Highland Park Housing Commission. In the non-profit sector, he was director of Reach for Tomorrow, Inc., an organization whose goal was to promote disenfranchised youth interest and participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) programs to through annual trips to the Army, Navy, and Air Force service academies.
A Chicago native, Ken holds a Bachelor of Science in political science from the U.S. Naval Academy and a Master in Business Administration from DePaul University. He is also a decorated Gulf War (Desert Shield / Desert Storm) veteran, with more than eight years of service as a naval officer. While in the Navy he served on the two warships, the USS Fox (CG-33) and USS Boxer (LHD-4), and managed communications technicians and weapons specialists as a division chief. He also served for three years as the Regional Director – Midwest Office of Admissions, U.S. Naval Academy, where he conducted outreach to high schools, alumni, and groups to increase enrollment at the service academy. He left active duty in September, 1999 as a Lieutenant Commander. His interests include triathlons, basketball, and cooking. He is a member of the National Association of Service Disabled Veteran Owned Business, Inc.
Air Force Airman Jacob Brashear
Air Force Airman Jacob E. Brashear graduated from basic military training at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, San Antonio, Texas.
The airman completed an intensive, eight-week program that included training in military discipline and studies, Air Force core values, physical fitness, and basic warfare principles and skills.
Airmen who complete basic training earn four credits toward an associate in applied science degree through the Community College of the Air Force.
Brashear is the son of Kara Brashear of Bloomington and grandson of Gary and Kathleen Brashear of Dunlap. He graduated in 2014 from Bloomington High School, Bloomington.
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