MOH ceremony for Army Staff Sgt. Travis Atkins

Trump presents Medal of Honor to family of Iraq war hero

By Associated Press
March 27, 2019

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump can recognize individuals for contributions to the arts and humanities, to science and technology and for other gifts to American society, but the Medal of Honor is one of the only awards he gives out regularly, recognizing military members living or dead for acts of bravery against an enemy.

President Donald Trump presents a posthumous Medal of Honor for U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Travis Atkins, to his surviving son Trevor Oliver, during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House on March 27, 2019. On June 1, 2007 while serving in Iraq, Atkins tackled a suicide bomber, shielding three of his fellow soldiers from the explosion, but resulting in his own death.Saul Loeb / AFP - Getty Images

Trump on Wednesday presented his eighth Medal of Honor, this time to the family of Army Staff Sgt. Travis Atkins, who gave his life in 2007 to save fellow soldiers from an Iraqi suicide bomber.

The president, who received a series of deferments to avoid military service during the Vietnam War, speaks highly of medal recipients. He recounts for White House guests the details of the heroic acts for which the recipients are being recognized and, at times speaks of them using language that suggests he could not have matched their bravery.

"America is the greatest force for peace, justice and freedom the world has ever known because of you and people like you," Trump said at the October ceremony for retired Marine Sgt. Maj. John Canley , the most recent medal recipient. "There are very few. There are very few. Brave people, but very, very few like you, John."

The 80-year-old Canley's heroism during the Vietnam War included twice scaling a hospital wall in view of the enemy to help extract wounded Marines.

At an earlier ceremony, Trump said Medal of Honor recipients are a godsend.

"Our nation is rich with blessings, but our greatest blessings of all are the patriots like John and all of you that just stood, and, frankly, many of the people in this room — I exclude myself, and a few of the politicians, who, like John, carry our freedom on their shoulders, march into the face of evil, and fight to their very last breath so that we can live in freedom, and safety, and peace," he said before presenting the medal to the widow of John A. Chapman. The Air Force sergeant was critically wounded and died in 2002 while trying to rescue a Navy SEAL in Afghanistan.

Trump asked past Medal of Honor recipients attending the August 2018 event to stand and be recognized.
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Suicides at Fort Wainwright cause investigation

Army launches Fort Wainwright suicide inquiry

Daily News Miner
By Sam Friedman
Mar 22, 2019

"If these deaths are officially ruled as suicides, Congressman Young hopes the U.S. Army can help identify a path forward to improve the mental health and overall well-being of active duty military at Fort Wainwright," Brown said.

FAIRBANKS—A team of medical experts will be sent to Fort Wainwright to study suicide in response to a perception that there has been a recent spike in suicides at the Army post.

Cars drive in and out of Fort Wainwright's main gate off of Airport Way on Thursday, January 15, 2015. Daily News-Miner photo

The team is coming at the request Rep. Don Young and U.S. Army Alaska commander Maj. Gen. Mark O'Neil. Young wrote a letter on the subject last week to U.S. Army Medical Command.

U.S. Army Alaska spokesman Lt. Col. Martyn Crighton said he believes this is the first time this type of investigation is being conducted in Alaska. He said the timing of the investigation has not yet been announced but that soldiers at Fort Wainwright have begun preparing for it.

The exact number of recent suicides at Fort Wainwright is fluid because several deaths remain under investigation.

Since May 2018 two deaths of Fort Wainwright soldiers have been determined to be suicides, Crighton said. There were four other deaths of Fort Wainwright soldiers in the same time period. The Army's Criminal Investigation Command is investigating those deaths.

Two confirmed suicides in this time period is not unusual among Alaskans and Army soldiers — both populations have high rates of suicide compared with national averages, Crighton said. Even this number of suicides is not acceptable, he said.
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Come out of the dark and fight to #TakeBackYourLife #BreakTheSilence and ask for help. If someone is a jerk about it, then call them out for being an idiot. If they do not know what PTSD is by now...they never will. 

We figured it out in the 70's when Vietnam veterans came home and fought for all the research other generations came home with.

PTSD on Trial: Third wife of Iraq veteran sought justice

Life was like a 'horror film': Wife's tale of abuse puts tormented war veteran behind bars

Buffalo News
By Thomas J. Prohaska
March 24, 2019

Defense attorney Randy S. Margulis said Cody Tomaselli, a Texas native, joined the Army a few months after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. He spent 3½ years in Iraq and Germany and received the Army's Expert Combat Infantryman Badge. Margulis said his client suffers from severe PTSD, apparently stemming from his Army service, including infantry combat in the Iraq War's vicious Battle of Fallujah in 2004.

Cody Tomaselli joined the Army at 17, spent nearly four years in Iraq and Germany and had “dozens of kills” that left him with severe post-traumatic stress disorder.

But his claims that PTSD led him to three days of violence and threats against his wife last year did little to sway a judge to lessen his punishment. Tomaselli, 33, was sentenced last week to seven years in state prison for attempted kidnapping during a three-day ordeal that ended in the parking lot of a Niagara Falls elementary school.

Tomaselli is "dangerous and unstable," his wife, Nichole, said last week in Niagara County Integrated Domestic Violence Court.

"I'm asking for justice not only for myself but for the other women he was in relationships with," Nichole Tomaselli told State Supreme Court Justice John F. O'Donnell.

She is the third woman whose marriage to Iraq War veteran Cody Tomaselli allegedly ended in violence, but she's the first to see him convicted.

"It's my opinion that everyone who goes to war comes back with some form of PTSD," O'Donnell said. But he added that "millions of veterans" don't commit the crimes that Tomaselli did.

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He is 100% disabled and was going to the VA. So how is it that he did not get enough help to keep three of his wives safe from his rage?

If you are not wondering how they go from putting their own lives on the line to save others...into abusing people they love, then you are missing the point. PTSD is on trial and so are we!

Fort Hood Soldiers Mentor at Good Grief Camp

Soldiers supporting child survivors

Fort Hood Sentinel
By Ariana-Jasmine Castrellon, Sentinel Staff
March 21, 2019

“I just found so much joy in being able to be present for somebody who’s grieving,” Wright said.

During the Good Grief Camp, March 15-17, 131 service members and veterans from around the Fort Hood area volunteered to mentor 123 child survivors at Duncan Elementary School. Each child was given his or her own mentor during the camp.

Training for volunteers was held on Friday, prior to the Good Grief Camp kick off Saturday morning, where child survivors were greeted by their mentors and broken up into seven different groups depending on their age.

The camp, hosted by Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors with support from the Fort Hood Survivor Outreach Services, offered classes and activities for adult and child survivors.

Sgt. Sarah Vanterpool, attached to Golf Forward Support Company, 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, shared that although she is married and does not have kids, she volunteered as a mentor as a way to give back to children in the community.

“At the end of the day, they just get to have their voices heard,” Vanterpool said.

Vanterpool said that although she was “voluntold” her first year to be a Good Grief Camp mentor, she came back for the second time this year on her own.

“It was the best experience ever,” Vanterpool said. “It makes me feel great – like amazing.”

TAPS has been a private non-profit organization since 1994. TAPS’ mission is to provide assistance, programs and resources to Family members, children, spouses, friends and fiancés after the loss of a loved one who died as a result of his, or her service. TAPS provides support 24/7.
For more information on visit TAPS
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Tender moment when blindfolded son hears Dad's voice

Soldier surprises son with tearful homecoming during Taekwondo practice

WTHR
March 19, 2019

LEBANON, Tenn. (WTHR) - A soldier posed as a sparring partner to surprise his young son in a tear-jerking homecoming surprise.

Nine-year-old Luca Cesternino had a blindfold on as he sparred during his Taekwondo class near Nashville Monday night. He had no idea his partner was his dad.

Once Tennessee Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Rob Cesternino called his son by his nickname, the boy stopped, asked "Daddy?" and ripped his blindfold off.

After seeing his father, Luca jumped into his arms for a tearful reunion.

SSG Cesternino was home after spending ten months serving in Jordan and southern Syria. He came home a few days earlier than Luca expected, setting the stage for the big surprise.

go here if video does not load because it is one that you'll be happy you watched.

Fort Jackson’s 51st Commanding General marks 100 years of family service

This general’s family: From segregation to command in 100 years

The Associated Press
By: Christina L. Myers
March 17, 2019

"That was one thing I did reflect on. Somebody at some point in time said your particular race can't do that," Beagle said. "At some point our ancestors fought so we could be in those front-line units and those combat units."

Brig. Gen. Milford H. Beagle Jr., commander of Fort Jackson, South Carolina, speaks to the president of the Sgt. Isaac Woodard Historical Marker Association following the dedication ceremony in Batesburg-Leesville, S.C., last month. The general is descended from a soldier who served at Camp Jackson in a segregated Army more than a century ago. (Christina Myers/AP)

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Pvt. Walter Beagles arrived at Camp Jackson, South Carolina, in 1918, an African American draftee in a segregated Army that relegated black soldiers to labor battalions out of a prejudiced notion that they couldn’t fight.

More than 100 years later, his great-grandson now serves as Fort Jackson’s 51st commanding general.

Brig. Gen. Milford Beagle Jr., a combat veteran who took command last June, admits that it gets to him, knowing he’s serving where his ancestor served but under vastly different circumstances.

"It does become pretty surreal to know that the gates my great-grandfather came through are the same gates I come through," Beagle said. "You always reflect back to you're standing on somebody's shoulders. Somebody put that stair in place so you can move one more rung up."

Beagle hails from the same town where his great-grandfather came from: Enoree, South Carolina. The family dropped the "s'' from the end of its name during his grandfather's lifetime.

He says he felt compelled to enter the infantry as a young man at least partly because African Americans once were largely shunted aside — considered inferior and unsuited to combat.
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Gary Sinise Foundation gave Veteran and family new place to be welcomed home

Wounded North Texas Army Veteran, Family Get Free Home: ‘I Can’t Say Enough How Great This Place Is’

CBS 11 News
By J.D. Miles
March 14, 2019

ARGYLE, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) – There were tears of gratitude in Argyle where a wounded veteran and his family moved into a new home.

It was donated by the Gary Sinise Foundation which creates more accessible homes for deserving veterans and first responders.

A parade of veterans led the escort to where Jake Murphy and his wife raised the American flag outside their new home.

“As years pass I’ll be able to live comfortably in a place that is customized to my specific needs,” said Ret. Army Captain Jake Murphy.

Murphy lost both of his legs in an explosion while serving in Afghanistan more than seven years ago.

His previous home was inaccessible for a wheelchair which he sometimes uses.

The new home has wider doorways, lower racks and faucets as well has tablet controlled lights and other home environment functions. “I can’t say enough how great this place is for me, Lisa and our children,” he said. The home is one of 71 gifted to wounded heroes across the country through the Gary Sinise Foundation. read more here

Veteran MP-Amputee...leans on three legged service dog...plus puppy

Double Amputee Veteran Training 3-Legged Puppy to Be Therapy Dog for Schoolchildren

PEOPLE
By KELLI BENDER
March 14, 2019

“Without her, I would have given up already. I got to places so low in my life that I didn’t want to go on but didn’t know what to do with her because she relies on me,” Gardner said. “I didn’t know how she’d handle it. Now, I’d never give up on her and I’m so afraid of the day I have to let her go. She’s given me my life back and a purpose helping others.”

Christy Gardner is paying it forward in the best way possible: with a puppy!

In 2006, Gardner, a U.S. Army Military Police Officer at the time, was injured during a peacekeeping mission. Due to complications from these injuries, Gardner had both of her legs amputated. This drastic change left Gardner in a low place, unable to live on her own and unsure on how to enjoy life.

Those feelings shifted when she met Moxie, a golden retriever service dog trained by Florida’s K9s for Warriors. Always an animal lover, Gardner was open to the idea of getting a service dog when her doctors suggested a canine companion.

She was place with Moxie in 2010. The effect the service dog had on her was immediate.

Now, both Gardner and Moxie have been working together to prepare Lucky for life as a three-legged therapy dog. Moxie has been doing her part to teach Lucky the essentials of good dog behavior.
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Sad Update:Veteran driven to VA by Jimmy Johns, gave up fight to heal

Jimmy Johns delivers disabled veteran to VA freaky Fast

You may remember that story and now, you'll sadly know the rest of it. Another "VA parking lot suicide." 

Sister of Columbus vet who died by suicide wants answers from Veterans Affairs

KETV ABC 7 News
Camila Orti
March 8, 2019

COLUMBUS, Neb.
Model cars, old photos and stacks of well-organized medical records.

That's what Lisa Nagengast was busy packing away in boxes Thursday at her brother's apartment in Columbus, Nebraska.

"I'm just trying to make sense of everything that has happened," Nagengast said.

She's cleaning out Greg Holeman's apartment, because he isn't coming home.

"I already know the statistic for how many veterans commit suicide, and now my brother is one of those," Nagengast said.

Holeman, an Army veteran who served as a mechanic, fatally shot himself inside his pickup truck on the night of February 25, a Platte County Sheriff's Office lieutenant told KETV NewsWatch 7. The 48-year-old was parked outside of the Columbus Community Hospital's emergency department.

Nagengast filed a missing person report with the Platte County Sheriff's Office after a physical therapist reached out to her to let her know Holeman had missed his Tuesday and Thursday appointments.

Investigators found Holeman in his pickup truck in the hospital parking lot on Thursday, February 28.

"It just takes your whole breath away and you can't even think or focus," Nagengast said.
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Samaritan’s Purse response in Alabama after tornado

Billy Graham’s Grandson Shares Greatest Need Facing Alabama Tornado

Faithwire
By Will Maule
March 5, 2019

Amid the utter havoc and devastation wreaked by this weekend’s massive tornados, devoted teams of volunteers have been pouring into Alabama, spending countless hours offering material relief and spiritual comfort to those in dire need. Samaritan’s Purse, an international humanitarian relief organization, is one of the groups that is on the frontline, responding to the destruction through prayer and action.

“Unfortunately, for several families, they have lost loved ones,” the former U.S. Army Major and grandson of the late Rev. Billy Graham told Faithwire in a phone interview. “It was a bad storm.”

Tragically, three children have been confirmed among the 23 who lost their lives, while countless others still remain unaccounted for. Edward Graham, Billy Graham’s grandson, is working on the ground in Lee County with Samaritan’s Purse, where the grief and heartache is palpable.

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19 year old soldier found dead in Italy

173rd Brigade soldier found dead in Vicenza barracks is identified

STARS AND STRIPES
By NANCY MONTGOMERY
Published: March 6, 2019

VICENZA, Italy — The 173rd Brigade paratrooper found dead in the barracks Sunday morning has been identified as Pvt. Peter Cimino.

The paratrooper found dead in the Vicenza, Italy, barracks Sunday morning has been identified as Pvt. Peter Cimino, 19. U.S. ARMY

Cimino, 19, was a mortarman assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment.

Cimino was from Danville, Ky. He arrived in Vicenza in August, four months after he enlisted in the Army, according to brigade officials, and was a recipient of the National Defense Service Ribbon and the Army Service Ribbon.

The cause of death is under investigation.
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Staff Sgt. Steven McQueen gets to keep helmet that save his life

Soldier Gets Back Battered Helmet That Saved His Life During Insider Attack

Military.com
By Matthew Cox
4 Mar 2019

"I was surprised that I was able to react [as] quickly as I did because I knew what had happened instantly; I knew I was shot," McQueen, 30, told reporters at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, on Monday.

Staff Sgt. Steven McQueen, and his wife Aaron, with a plaque featuring a portion of the Enhanced Combat Helmet that saved his life during an insider attack in Afghanistan last year. (Military.com/Matthew Cox)

Staff Sgt. Steven McQueen still can't believe how quickly he got to his feet after a bullet from an enemy rifle struck him in the back of his helmet during an insider attack in Afghanistan last year.

Two gunmen opened fire on McQueen and fellow soldiers from the 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade from a distance of 20 feet during the Sept. 3 shooting.

"I was surprised that I was able to react [as] quickly as I did because I knew what had happened instantly; I knew I was shot," McQueen, 30, told reporters at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, on Monday.

The bullet tore a large hole in the ballistic material, but the Enhanced Combat Helmet (ECH) stopped the round as it was designed to do.
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Fort Bragg Army Special Operations command soldier OK after standoff

Bragg Barricaded Soldier Surrenders After Evacuation

Fayetteville Observer 
By Rodger Mullen Staff writer 
Posted Mar 2, 2019

A soldier who barricaded himself inside a house Saturday night surrendered after several hours of negotiation, according to Tom McCollum, a public affairs officer for Fort Bragg.

"Everything ended peacefully," McCollum said.

The incident, which was reported after 5 p.m., ended by 11:20 p.m. Saturday, McCollum said.

The soldier's wife and children left the house when military police arrived after 5 p.m. on Charlotte Street, according to McCollum.

McCollum identified the soldier as a member of Army Special Operations command.
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Military leaders blame bad leadership?

Personnel chiefs blame unsafe base housing on leadership failures

Stars and Stripes
By TOM PHILPOTT Special to Stars and Stripes 
Published: February 28, 2019

Three-star personnel chiefs and senior non-commissioned officers of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps testified Wednesday that unsafe and sometimes scandalous conditions of base housing units, which has sparked waves of complaints from military families, can largely be blamed on leadership failures.

Urgent reforms are underway, they contend, after military leaders and private partnership contractors that operate on-base housing analyzed failings which harmed the health of, and lowered quality of life for, some military families.

Commands across the military had not been attentive enough to the performance of housing contractors who, under a 1997 Military Housing Privatization Initiative, became responsible for construction of new housing and refurbishing legacy units on base. Under long-term contracts, companies profit from maintaining, managing and renting to military tenants who in turn forfeit their monthly Basic Allowance for Housing and sometimes even pay a little more.

Increasingly dissatisfied military families say maintenance problems and health hazards from leaky roofs or pipes, dangerous mold, problem-plagued heating or air conditioning systems, high radon readings or infestations of bugs and rodents have gone unaddressed or resulted in only temporary fixes to await new renters.

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But...they want to take money from their budget to build a wall instead of FIX THE PLACES WHERE THEY MAKE TROOPS AND FAMILIES LIVE?

Army veteran committed suicide after "sextortion" scam by prison inmates

update

South Carolina Inmates Charged With Extorting Veteran Before He Took His Own Life "Using contraband cellphones, the inmates, John William Dobbins and Carl Richard Smith, allegedly posed as the parents of a fictional teenage girl they claimed had sent Army veteran Jared Johns explicit photos."

'Sextortion' by inmates targeted Greenville veteran just before his suicide, parents say

The Greenville News
Kirk Brown,
Feb. 25, 2019

The person identified as Harris responded that his wife "is going to the police and you are going to jail."

Within minutes of that exchange, according to Greenville County Senior Deputy Coroner Kent Dill, Johns died from a self-inflicted gunshot. Bowling said data from her son's Apple Watch shows that his heart stopped beating at 12:03 p.m.

Army veteran Jared Johns was the target of a "sextortion" scam by prison inmates in the hours before he killed himself in Greenville on Sept. 11, 2018, according to his parents. They shared records with The Greenville News that appear to corroborate extortion attempts through text messages.

Kathy Bowling and Kevin Johns believe that inmates at Lee Correctional Institution tried to bilk their son out of $1,189 while posing as the parents of a 17-year-old girl who purportedly sent him illicit photos.

Jared Johns, 24, suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after serving in Afghanistan, and the condition left him unable to cope with the threats that he received in the moments leading to his suicide, his parents said.

"I feel like they're the ones who shot him," Kevin Johns said.

"My son should still be alive," Bowling said.
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On leave for husband's funeral after suicide, soldier did the same

Following his husband’s suicide, a soldier took his own life while on leave for the funeral

Army Times
By: Meghann Myers
6 days ago

A 21-year-old soldier died Feb. 5 while stateside visiting home, according to a release from the Army. It was the day after a funeral for his husband, according to their obituaries.

Pvt. Aaron Mitchell was found dead in Valley, Nebraska, 12 days after his husband, 21-year-old Rich Rosa, died by suicide.

“We’re just grieving,” Rosa’s father, Richard Rosa, told Army Times in a Wednesday phone interview, acknowledging that the family believes the deaths were by suicide. “We are without words to express how much we’re grieving and how much grief we feel.”

Rich Rosa, a civilian, had been living in the couple’s native Nebraska while Mitchell was in South Korea on an unaccompanied assignment, in which family members do not move with the soldier.

Both families requested donations to a suicide prevention or veterans organization in obituaries posted by Roeder Mortuaries in Omaha.
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19 year old female soldier killed while deployed to border

Active Duty Soldier Killed By Suspected Drunk Driver

KURV 710 News Talk
By JSALINAS
February 17, 2019

A Valley man has been charged in the suspected drunk driving death of a U.S. Army soldier. 25-year-old Edward Leo Magallan was brought before a judge Saturday, charged with intoxication manslaughter, and ordered jailed on a $150,000 bond.

Magallan is accused of plowing into a Ford Mustang and running over 19-year-old Cassandra Julianne Perez. Perez was standing next to her car which had stalled on the southbound frontage road of I-69C at around 1 a.m. Friday. 

Perez was part of a squad of active duty soldiers assigned to the border.
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Four Chaplains Brotherhood Award for Gold Star Mom

Duty Calls: Minister earns Four Chaplains Brotherhood Award

Times Union
Terry Brown
February 17, 2019

She is also a Gold Star mother of Army Staff Sgt. Thomas Robbins, who died in action in Iraq on Feb. 9, 2004, attempting to save the lives of his soldiers during a mortar explosion while serving with Troop A, 1st Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment (Stryker) near Mosul, Iraq.

The Rev. Charlene Robbins of Delmar, a Gold Star mother active in veterans circles, has been selected to receive the 54th annual Four Chaplains Brotherhood Award from the Albany Post 105 of Jewish War Veterans.

Robbins will receive the award during a Four Chaplains Award and Remembrance ceremony at 2:30 p.m. Sunday at the First Reformed Church, 8 N. Church St., Schenectady.

The Rev. Charlene Robbins of Delmar, a Gold Star mother active in veterans circles, has been selected to receive the 54th annual Four Chaplains Brotherhood Award from the Albany Post 105 of Jewish War Veterans.

Robbins will receive the award during a Four Chaplains Award and Remembrance ceremony at 2:30 p.m. Sunday at the First Reformed Church, 8 N. Church St., Schenectady.

The honor commemorates the sacrifice four military chaplains made after a German submarine torpedoed the USS Dorchester, a troop ship, on Feb. 3, 1943, off the coast of Greenland.

One of the four was Army Chaplain 1st Lt. Clark Poling, who ministered at the First Reformed Church just before he enlisted.

The other chaplains were 1st Lt. Alexander Goode, a Jewish rabbi; 1st Lt. George Fox, a Methodist minister; and 1st Lt. John Washington, a Catholic priest.

"Charlene inspires us in her devotion to others, and in particular her focus on serving veteran organizations," said Fred Altman, Post 105 commander. "As a Gold Star mother, Charlene stands among our veterans as a cherished and honored family member. Her sympathy and enthusiasm to give back to the many veteran groups and causes is a shining example of the commitment to others that the Four Chaplains gave their lives for."
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Community comes together to help amputee move on to healing

Veterans community comes together to help double amputee move to Arkansas

AZ Central
Nathan J. Fish, Arizona Republic
Feb. 16, 2019

With a wide smile on his face, Matt Zajac, a double-amputee Army veteran, wheeled himself outside, stopping to light up a cigarette. Boxes lined his driveway.

"Keep the beer, throw out everything else," Zajac told one of a volunteers with a laugh.

Almost a dozen volunteers from multiple veterans organizations joined forces Saturday to help Zajac move out of his home in San Tan Valley.

Volunteers wearing black Changed By Nature Outdoors shirts bustled around, carrying boxes and furniture in and out of Zajac's home. The volunteers loaded up the moving truck parked in front of the home near Bella Vista Road and Hunt Highway.

Zajac is moving to participate in an Arkansas-based wounded-veteran program with We Are The 22, a nonprofit organization committed to preventing veteran suicide. The Purple Heart awardee said he reached out to the organization for help with his post-traumatic stress disorder.
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Two Golden Knights still in critical condition

Two Golden Knights still hospitalized after Army parachuting accident

Army Times
Meghann Myers
February 15, 2019

Two members of the U.S. Army Parachute Team remain in critical condition after a training accident early Tuesday morning that sent three to a Miami hospital.

A member of the Golden Knights lands during a demonstration jump at the African Aerospace and Defence Exposition at Waterkloof Air Force Base, Pretoria, South Africa on Sept. 18, 2014. (Staff Sgt. Patricia Austin/Army)

One of the three has since been released from Jackson Memorial hospital, Army Recruiting Command spokeswoman Kelli Bland told Army Times on Friday.

That soldier was upgraded to fair condition on Thursday before being released, she said.
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