military

Flag of military uniforms on display at San Antonio Int’l Airport

Art, ,

As we head into July 4, San Antonio International Airport (SAT) is unveiling a 25-foot by 12-foot American flag woven out of 100 military uniforms.

The uniforms were worn in conflicts dating back to World War I. Most uniforms are donated by employees of USAA, an insurance and banking organization serving military families headquartered in San Antonio. The company is celebrating its 100-year anniversary this month.

The artwork is made by Minnesota Veteran and artist Jeffrey Stenbom. He spent more than 1,000 hours weaving together uniforms from all five branches of service for this latest, and largest, piece in his “Freedom’s Threads” series.

“Those pieces of fabric are interlinked, just like those service members are interlinked to protecting our freedoms and keeping the freedoms that we have,” Stenbom said. “Those uniforms that they wore, they bled in, that they sweated in, they cried in, it’s hard, it’s real hard.”

The flag made of military uniforms will be on display at San Antonio International Airport for around 6 months, through January 2023, and then transferred to USAA headquarters for permanent display.

During its time at the airport, the flag “has the potential to be viewed by millions,” said Stenbom. “It feels only fitting that it be displayed at the airport of Military City USA. My hope is that many travelers are able to view it. Especially active duty military members, veterans, and their families.”

The video in this tweet shows Stenbom working on the piece.

https://twitter.com/johnheid68/status/1542885224517976064?s=20&t=DL6Kb100J-YOOnUOJboy8A

Factoids about the new Freedom’s Thread Art Piece at SAT

  • The finished piece weighs nearly 100 pounds.
  • Pieces of more than 140 different uniforms were woven into this flag.
  • In addition to uniforms donated by USAA employees, Stembon used uniform pieces from his grandfathers and from one of his own uniforms. He bought some uniforms online to help represent a few missing time periods.
  • More than 65,000 feet (over one mile) of parachute cord was used to create the loom he worked on to weave the uniforms together.

“The uniform items veterans own often end up in a box or deep in our closets and are rarely seen,” said Taylor Clark, Assistant Vice President and Executive Sponsor USAA’s 100th Anniversary. “To know that we can contribute to something so meaningful…makes it really special.”

Look for this flag at San Antonio International Airport (SAT) presecurity in the Terminal B Lobby.

Free meals for military at airports over Thanksgiving week

Food, Free Stuff,

THANKSGIVING postcard

In what has become a holiday tradition, Paradies Lagardère, which operates many retail and restaurant outlets in North American airports, will be offering active or retired military a free meal during the week of Thanksgiving ( Sunday, November 20, through Sunday, November 27 ) in almost 50 airport restaurants listed below as part of the Treat our Troops program.

A “meal” includes one menu item, which can be an appetizer, salad, sandwich or entrée and a non alcoholic beverage.

In “coffee” or “grab & go” locations, the meal can be one prepared grab & go item, such as a pastry and a prepared coffee or bottled/fountain beverage. (Bagged candies, chips, granola bars, etc., aren’t included.)

Active and retired military service men and women just need to show their military identification when ordering or checking out to take advantage of this promotion, which is limited to one meal per customer per day.

Asheville Regional: Blue Ridge Tavern Long Beach: Long Beach Burger Bar
Asheville Regional: Blue Ridge News Long Beach: Taco Beach Grill
Aspen–Pitkin County: Aspen Bar & Grille Long Beach: Taco Beach Cantina
Aspen–Pitkin County: Aspen Kiosk Long Beach: Long Beach Marche
Austin–Bergstrom: Ruta Maya Coffee Long Beach: 4th Street Vine
Austin–Bergstrom: ThunderCloud Subs Long Beach: The Boathouse
Dallas/Fort Worth: Whitetail Bistro Northwest Arkansas: Smokewood American Grill
Denver: Say Si Bon! TravelMart Northwest Arkansas: Say Si Bon! Gourmet Market
Denver: Auntie Anne’s Pretzels Northwest Arkansas: Mountain Bird Coffee/CNBC
Denver: Big Bowl Northwest Arkansas: Jammin’ Java
Denver: The Magic Pan Crepe Stand Northwest Arkansas: Auntie Anne’s
Denver: The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf Northwest Arkansas: Core Brewing Co.
Denver: Steve’s Snappin’ Dogs Pittsburgh: Bar Symon
Eagle County: Mountain Java Pittsburgh: Bottega dei Sapori
Eagle County: Alpenglo Express Reagan National: Say Si Bon! Gourmet Market – Center Pier
Eagle County: Townie Tavern Reagan National: Say Si Bon! Gourmet Market – North Pier
Eagle County: Alpenglo Grille Reagan National: The Magic Pan Crepe Stand
Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta: Sweet Auburn Market Reagan National: Wow Bao
Long Beach: Polly’s Gourmet Coffee N. Terminal Reagan National: Washington Pour Bar
Long Beach: Polly’s Gourmet Coffee S. Terminal Reagan National: U Street Pub
Long Beach: George’s Greek Café

 

 

 

Free meals for military at airports

Airports, Food, Free Stuff, Military,

Armed Forces

Between Memorial Day and Independence Day 2016, active and retired military personnel traveling through many of the nation’s airports may show a military ID when or ordering or at check-out and receive a free meal (an entree, salad, or appetizer and a non-alcoholic beverage), courtesy of the Treat of Troops program of airport retail and restaurant operator Paradies Lagardère.

Here’s the list of airport restaurants participating in this program:

Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport – Sweet Auburn Market

Asheville Regional Airport – Blue Ridge Tavern

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport – Say Si Bon!, Washington Pour Bar, U Street Pub, Wow Bao and Magic Pan

Denver International Airport – Say Si Bon!, Magic Pan, Big Bowl and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

Long Beach Airport – Long Beach Marché, The Boathouse and 4th Street Vine

Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport – Jammin’ Java, Coastal Roast, Say Si Bon!, Smokewood American Grill and Core Brewing Co.

Airports where military eat free this Thanksgiving

Airports, Food, free Wi-Fi, Holidays, , ,

paradies

Here’s a nice gesture being extended to military personnel traveling this Thanksgiving:

Paradies, a company that operates many airport concessions, is inviting active or retired military to dine for free in any of its airport restaurants from November 24 to 27.

The offer is courtesy of the company’s Treat Our Troops program and will cover one menu item such as an entrée, sandwich or salad, and a non-alcoholic beverage.

To take advantage of the promotion, active and retired military service men and women can simply show their military identification when ordering or checking out.

Funds for the promotion come not just from Paradies, but from other travelers: throughout the year, Paradies restaurant customers can buy a $5 voucher that is then applied to the dining check of an active or retired military service member.

Here’s a list of some of the participating airport restaurants:

· Sweet Auburn Market – Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (Atlanta, GA)

· Blue Ridge Tavern – Asheville Regional Airport (Asheville, NC)

· McKenna’s on the Fly, 4th Street Vine Wine and Beer Bar, and the Long Beach Marche – Long Beach Airport (Long Beach, CA)

· Bar Symon – Pittsburgh International Airport (Pittsburgh, PA)

· Say Si Bon Gourmet Market – Denver International Airport (Denver, CO)

· Smokewood American Grill and Say Si Bon Gourmet Market – Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (Bentonville, AR)

bturkey

Free coffee at airports for service men & women

Airports, free Wi-Fi, , , ,

On Saturday, May 17 – Armed Forces Day – the Hudson Group kicked off a six week program to honor US and Canadian service men and women by offering them a free cup of coffee in 52 company-run food & beverage locations in North American airports and transit terminals, including Euro Cafe, Dunkin’ Donuts, Alki Bakery and others.

coffee

 

The promotion will include the Memorial Day weekend, Victoria Day and Canada Day and end at midnight on Independence Day, July 4.

Those not traveling in uniform just need to show an ID.

The offer is in addition to the regular 20 percent discount that the Hudson Groups offers to all active North American service men and women.

Look for signs and banners – like the one below – at participating cafes in airports and transit terminals.

Nice!

 

Hudson Counter Card

Travel Tidbits from IAD, ORD and Midway Airports

Airports, Events, Music, , , , ,

ARPAN

Indian Classical and Bollywood dance performances from the ARPAN Dance Academy at Dulles Int’l Airport on May 17

Dulles International Airport is marking Asian-Pacific Heritage Month with a series of musical performances and educational events, including girl groups from South Korea, traditional Japanese Taiko drums; Gangnam Style dancing and other traditional Filipino, Afghan and Indian performances.

The full schedule is listed here.

May is also Military Appreciation Month at Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway Airports.

The airports, the United Service Organization (USO) and airport concessionaires are sponsoring events and programs for passengers and special discounts for military personnel and their families.

On Tuesdays donation bins will be set up at USO centers at both airports to accept food items, phone calling cards, video games and personal care items for use by military personnel and their families traveling through Chicago’s airports. There will also be information tables set up where passengers can fill out “Thank A Hero” note cards for those serving in the military. And there will be live entertainment provided by high school drill teams, blues and jazz bands and samba dancers at both airports on Fridays, May 3, 10, 17, 24 and 31 from 2 to 5 p.m.

TSA eases rules for wounded warriors at airport checkpoints

Security, , ,

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has expanded the services it offers to wounded military service members at airport security checkpoints nationwide.

Starting Wednesday, March 27, 2013 injured troops and veterans will no longer be required to remove their shoes, jackets or hats at airport security checkpoints as long as they call ahead to arrange for the expedited service.

“We’ve had a wounded warrior program in place for some time to assist injured members of the military through the checkpoint process,” said TSA spokesperson Nico Melendez.

“Starting now, in airports with or without TSA PreCheck lanes, these heroes will be escorted to and through the checkpoints and will not have to remove hats, caps, light jackets or shoes.”

The expedited checkpoint rules for wounded warriors are now much the same as those the TSA offers for travelers over 75 and under 12 years of age, but in order to receive this new service, a wounded warrior or a travel companion must contact the Military Severely Injured Joint Services Operations Center via email or by phone (888.262.2396) at least 24 hours ahead of travel to be assured of the special service.

“Anything that can be done to make is easier for wounded warriors to go through airport checkpoints is a good thing,” said Garry Augustine, national service director for the non-profit Disabled American Veterans.

He said amputees wearing prosthetic legs have reported difficult and uncomfortable experiences at airport checkpoints when asked to remove their shoes, so being able to leave shoes on “is definitely going to be an advantage.”

The new expedited program for wounded warriors is being added to the existing program that offers expedited screening to U.S. service personnel in uniform who, with proper identification, and whether traveling on official orders or not, are currently not required to remove their shoes or boots unless their footwear sets off alarms in the checkpoint security equipment.

In addition to the new expedited procedures for wounded warriors, the TSA recently announced that, beginning April 25, small knives and a variety of previously prohibited items — such as ski poles, pool cues and golf clubs (two per passenger) — will be allowed as carry-on items.

(My story TSA extends expedited security to wounded warriors first appeared on NBCNews.com Travel)

TSA eases airport security routine for wounded warriors

Security, ,

Staff Sgt. Guillermo Tejada lost both legs to an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan in 2010. Now rehabilitating in San Diego, Tejada travels regularly to compete in hand-cycling races and marathons.

When flying out of San Diego International Airport, Tejada receives the royal treatment. “They’re waiting for us at the curb and take us through the whole process of checking in and going through security,” he said.

Getting through airport security can be stressful on anyone. For wounded military service members, it can be a nightmare.

The Transportation Security Administration recently expanded a program to make the checkpoint experience for wounded warriors as simple as possible.

“Depending on the airport, the assistance provided can be meeting the passenger curbside when they get to the airport, assisting with checking of bags, getting boarding passes, and assisting through screening,” said TSA spokesperson Nico Melendez.

TSA’s Wounded Warrior Accommodations program is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. While TSA doesn’t directly provide all the services Melendez listed, it will — if alerted — coordinate a wounded warrior’s airport experience with airport staff, USO volunteers and airlines.

Many of the severely injured service members are traveling to or from hospitals and military bases, but many are going home, to a new duty station or on vacation.

The program has been active at a few airports for several years, serving more than 5,000 wounded military personnel traveling through Washington’s Reagan National Airport since 2010, Melendez said. In the past year, 1,500 people have been assisted at San Diego International Airport, according to Cheryl Paine, the TSA official who coordinates the program there.

Pre-check and other expedited, risk-based screening programs for people 75 and older and for those age 12 and under are now in place at most airports, so Melendez said it’s  possible to offer the wounded warrior program nationwide. “If we know who they are and know they are coming through, we can expand the pre-check program and tailor it to their limitations and needs,” he said.

“After a decade of war we have more and more wounded warriors going through airports,” he said. “If they don’t know these tools are available it won’t do them any good.”

(My story – TSA eases airport security routine for wounded warriors – first appeared on msnbc.com’s Overhead Bin.)

At JFK airport, some workers getting trained to be N.I.C.E.

Airports, Etiquette, ,

Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone who worked at the airport was nice?

At John F. Kennedy International Airport, they’re working on it.

On May 22, 30 veterans who work at the airport for several airlines, government agencies and private security and service companies will get N.I.C.E (Neutralize Irritations Customers Experience) program training to teach them how to use skills learned in the military to help frustrated passengers at the airport.

Many other airport employees at JFK have already gone through N.I.C.E training offered by the Human Resiliency Institute based at New York’s Fordham University, which also has a special program for veterans. Now the program is tapping vets already working at the airport to use their leadership skills to help enhance customer service.

“Through our Edge4Vets program, we at Fordham have first-hand knowledge of the strong leadership strengths vets possess,” said institute director Tom Murphy. “Now we’re tapping resources offered by vets working at the airport and training them to apply their inherent leadership strengths and their ‘N.I.C.E.’ tools to help their airport enhance service.”

Murphy said the special N.I.C.E. Corps training for veterans at the kick-off event in JFK Terminal 4 Tuesday will include will include role–playing exercises in which the veterans will use the keen observation skills they’ve learned in the military to spot and come to the aid of passengers in need of assistance. Members of the N.I.C.E. Corps will also be trained to note when other airport employees go out of their way to help frustrated passengers and to document those success stories on the ‘N.I.C.E’ website.

Employees caught using N.I.C.E. skills become eligible to win a variety of incentive awards, including gift checks, meals, and hotel stays. Two veterans participating in the JFK N.I.C.E. Corps will win a fishing trip to Alaska so they can catch salmon for a salmon-bake for the whole team.

The chance of winning that fishing trip isn’t what convinced veteran Egbert Haynes, a TSA supervisor at JFK, to volunteer to be captain of the JFK N.I.C.E. Corps. “I’m from New York; when I need fish I go to the fish market,” said Haynes. “But when I heard of the program and saw the potential to recognize the good things done daily by airport employees outside of their job description, it all made sense.”

In addition to JFK, employees at Los Angeles International Airport, Pittsburgh International Airport and Manchester-Boston Regional Airport have been trained in the N.I.C.E. program.

*My story, JFK trains its workers to be N.I.C.E., first appeared on msnbc.com.

Welcome Home a Hero program ending at DFW

USO, , ,

 

Those American flags and welcome signs won’t be needed at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport anymore.

Every day, for the past eight years, at least one chartered plane carrying U.S. soldiers heading home for two weeks of rest and recuperation from active duty in Iraq and Afghanistan has touched down at both Dallas/Fort Worth and Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airports.

And for every flight at DFW, volunteers in the “Welcome Home a Hero” program have gathered to enthusiastically greet the returning soldiers.

“The welcome is a festive event with recorded patriotic music and anywhere from 30 to 300 cheering people holding flags and homemade signs and banners,” said Donna Cranston, coordinator of the Dallas/Fort Worth program. The greeting has become so well-known that some soldiers request to arrive in the U.S. via Dallas instead of Atlanta, Cranston said, even though that means they may have to wait longer for a connecting flight home.

But the drawdown of troops in Iraq and the shift to shorter deployments means there are no longer two full planes of R&R-bound soldiers returning home each day. So the U.S. army has decided to consolidate the flights into Atlanta.

March 14 will be the final Dallas arrival.

The conclusion of the flight is bittersweet news for some troops and for many volunteers who have welcomed home more than 460,000 inbound soldiers who have touched down in Dallas since 2004.

“The soldiers get a hero’s welcome when they come through Dallas, and it’s an uplifting and emotional experience,” said Army Lt. Col. Trisha McAfee, commander of the army’s Personnel Assistance Point at the Dallas airport. “They didn’t get that in other wars. But the consolidation is a good thing because it means many soldiers are spending less time in the war zone and getting home sooner.”

In Dallas/Fort Worth, many volunteers who welcome home troops at the airport also joined the USO so that they could be part of the send-off activities for active-duty military as well. “One volunteer has made more than 45,000 neck pillows to give to soldiers on their way back,” said McAfee.

“It’s always a happier occasion when they come in,” said Linda Tinnerman, 71, who with 78-year-old Constance Carman became known as one of the “Huggin’ and Kissin’ Grandmas” — dispensing free hugs to every returning soldier. “We are also there just to talk and visit with the soldiers.”

While the final R&R flight will arrive at Dallas/Fort Worth on March 14, the last departing flight is scheduled for March 30. After that, the U.S. Army’s daily chartered R&R flights will arrive and depart solely from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, where there’s a much smaller “Welcome Home a Hero” and send-off program.

“It’s a matter of logistics,” said Mark Brown, Personnel Assistance Point commander at the Atlanta airport. “At DFW, the soldiers come out into the non-secure side. In Atlanta, they stay on the secure side to connect to their flight. So we have airport employees come out to help with the welcome.”

(A slightly different version of my story appeared on msnbc.com Travel)