Recognizing our troops

First of all, the UNMC public affairs department would like to wish everyone a happy and safe Independence Day one day in advance.

For many on campus, this holiday causes thoughts to turn those who serve in the U.S. Armed Forces. In the following article, we recognize service men and women who hold special places in the hearts and minds of members of the UNMC community.

Josh Schwarz, a Marine service at Camp LeJune, N.C., is the son of Dana Schwarz of the UNMC orthopaedics department.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Steve Laire, shown here serving in Iraq, is the son of Rita Laire of the department of internal medicine.

Master Sgt. Paul Prewitt, husband of minimally invasive surgery program administrator Rhonda Prewitt, services in the Iowa Air National Guard and recently assisted with flood relief efforts in eastern Iowa.

U.S. Army Cpt. Patrick Williams, son of the McGoogan Library’s Sheryl Williams, currently teaches combat medics at the Ft. Sam Houston Medical Center in San Antonio.

Pfc. D. Bradley Kee is the son of Pamela Pavlov, a reimbursement specialist with UNMC Physicians.

Pfc. D. Bradley Kee, who currently is stationed at the Army AMMO Base in Meisau, Germany, is the son of Pamela Pavlov, a reimbursement specialist with UNMC Physicians. Kee will head to Iraq in December.

James Johnston, son of the pharmacy practice department’s Linda Schirmbeck, currently serves on the U.S.S. Philadelphia submarine, which deploys out of Groton, Conn. Johnston has been in the Navy since 1996 and previously served on the U.S.S. Alaska, which was stationed in Bremerton, Wash.

Susan Nelson, an office assistant for Michele Aizenberg, M.D., would like to recognize her sister-in-law, Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Carolina Hubbartt-Cerna, who is stationed in Georgia, and her niece, Air Force 1st. Lt. Nancy Hubbartt-Cerna, who is stationed ion Texas.

Cpl. Christopher Schott is the newphew of Pat Schott of the geriatrics and gerontology section.

Cpl. Christopher Schott of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit at Camp Pendleton in San Diego, is the nephew of Pat Schott of the section of geriatrics and gerontology. Cpl. Schott will deploy this month for his second tour of the Middle East.

Army Lt. Col. Jesse Edwards Jr., who commands a unit in Afghanistan and trains members of the Afghanistan army, and Maj. Joyce Edwards-Beaty of the Air Force Medical Service, are the children of Jesse Edwards of the School of Allied Health Professions. Maj. Edwards-Beaty is enrolled in a training program Leigh Hospital in Allentown, Pa. Her husband is a non-commissioned officer who is serving a tour in Turkey. Jesse Edwards, who retired from the Air Force in 1967, also has another son-in-law who is a Marine lawyer who will serve a tour in Iraq this fall.

Army Spc. Charles Doyle, who is serving in Iraq, is the nephew of Robin Taylor, project coordinator in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience.

Army Sgt. Lindy John is the daughter of the College of Dentistry’s Janet John.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Steve Laire also is currently serving in Iraq and is the son of Rita Laire, administrative assistant to internal medicine chairman Lynell Klassen, M.D.

Sgt. Lindy John is a U.S. Army Reserve Recruiter in Memphis, Tenn., and the daughter of Janet John, office associate I in the College of Dentistry in Lincoln.

Air Force Capt. Ryan Nelson, the husband of the pharmacy practice department’s Sarah Nelson, is stationed at Offutt Air Force Base.

The folks over in sponsored programs administration would like recognize one of their own, Robert Hansen, an enlisted soldier in the Army National Guard who recently returned from a tour in Iraq.

Capt. Jason Hamman, right, the son of the College of Medicine’s Bev Hamman, receives an honor for his actions during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Capt. Jason Hamman is the Anti-terrorism/Force Protection Officer for the state of Wyoming/Wyoming Army National Guard Joint Forces Headquarters and the son of Bev Hamman of the College of Medicine Dean’s Business Office. For his actions while serving as the Joint Defense Operations Center battle captain in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in Iraq, Capt. Hamman received the Bronze Star.