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Northern Connection magazine is proud to salute the men and women from the North Hills area who are serving in the military.

October 2007: The Pennsylvania  Air National Guard “Flight of Freedom” Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Wounded Warrior Project — A Soldier's Story from Wounded Warrior Project

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By Paula Green

The 19th Annual Flight of Freedom Honors Ceremony was held Sunday, Sept. 9, at the 171st Air Refueling Wing in Findlay Twp.  The event honored members of the Pennsylvania Air National Guard for their contributions to our nation’s defense and also remembered fallen comrades.

Allegheny County chief executive, Dan Onorato, was the honorary speaker as he congratulated Hall of Fame inductees, Outstanding Airmen of the Year and scholarship winners.

Two servicemen were inducted into the Pennsylvania Air National Guard Hall of Fame.  Chief Master Sergeant William A. Schempp was recognized for his four decades of service.  Chief Schempp began his military career in July of 1948, when he entered into the United States Marine Corps.

After four successful years with the Corps, he enlisted as an air technician at the Greater Pittsburgh International Airports Maintenance Squadron’s Hydraulics Shop.  This led to assignments as a flight line mechanic, then Flight Engineer Section Chief and Maintenance Quality Assurance Superintendent.

The most noteworthy accomplishment was his achievement of 10,000 accident-free flying hours.  Chief Schempp was the first member of the 171st Air Refueling Wing to accomplish such a feat.  The chief retired as a technician in January 1988 and then militarily in Oct. 1989, concluding 40 years of service to this nation and our commonwealth.

Colonel James M. Herron was also inducted into the Pennsylvania Air National Guard Hall of Fame.  Col. Herron began his career with the PA National Guard in 1966, where he served for three decades.

He was commissioned as a distinguished graduate of USAF Officer Training school in 1967 where he was assigned to the 112th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron.

Under Col. Herron’s leadership, the 112th achieved several “firsts” in support of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.  He played a crucial role in the construction of an $11 million Air National Guard station at State College.  He was also instrumental in the formation of the 114th Air Traffic Control Flight, now the 258th Air Traffic Control Squadron in Johnstown, Pa.

Since his retirement from the Air Guard in 1998, Col. Herron has been an independent consultant specializing in command and control issues.

The 171st Air Refueling Wing is one of three major flying units that make up the Pennsylvania Air National Guard.  The 171st delivers worldwide aerial refueling capability to U.S. and Allied forces.  The other two units are the 111th Fighter Winger in Philadelphia and the 193rd Special Operations Wing in Middleton.  Each year the Hall of Fame ceremony is held at one of these three facilities.  The location rotates annually.

Northern Connection salutes Chief Master Sergeant William A. Schempp and Colonel James M. Herron and all 4,000 members of the Pennsylvania Air National Guard for their dedication and commitment to the United States’ military.

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A Soldier’s Story from Wounded Warrior Project

By Jen Boyce

I didn’t ask Rob Laurent if he could leap tall buildings with a single bound, but later I wondered if maybe I should have. Even if I had, I suspect I would have gotten nothing more than a perplexed silence. To Rob, it’s perfectly obvious that you’d hit the ground running after losing an eye and part of a hand.  You’d naturally come up with a million new things to take on—re-enroll in school and never slow down for a second. It wasn’t until later that I started thinking about how difficult it must be to adjust to life after a serious injury. Talking to Rob, you can easily believe that you don’t have to be Superman to do anything you set your mind to.

Rob joined the Army shortly after high school, enlisting as a tank armor crewman, even before September 11 mobilized so many. During his service, Rob spent time at Fort Hood and in Germany before his unit was transferred to Iraq. On Christmas Eve of 2004, an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) ended Rob’s time in Iraq. The blast left Rob without his right eye, part of his left hand and with many shrapnel wounds on his legs. Rob was first transferred to Landstuhl, Germany, for three weeks. Once he could be transferred back to the States, he spent a month at Walter Reed Hospital, and then five additional months at Brook Army Medical Center.

These days, Rob’s a busy man. The 25-year-old juggles family, school and a multitude of other activities. Rob’s currently a senior at Texas State University, majoring in criminal justice. After finishing his bachelor’s degree, he’s planning to continue on to graduate school, ultimately hoping to work for a federal agency. He also recently received a scholarship from Able Flight to learn to fly a plane and earn his sport pilot license. Rob is working on ground school and will take flight training this summer. Somehow Rob still finds time to get involved with dirt-bike motorcycles and spend time with his wife and two young sons.

When asked his secret to transitioning so gracefully to life after injury, Rob seems surprised by the question. “It doesn’t seem too tough. You get used to your disabilities. I don’t find myself feeling like it’s too terribly tough doing what I’m doing. It just doesn’t seem that bad. You get used to it— your body adapts,” he said.

Rob admits that he wasn’t always so upbeat. “When I was in the hospital, I remember that there was a guy from Wounded Warrior Project who came up to me and told me about some of the things we could do once we got out. I was just kind of angry and ticked off. I didn’t want to hear it. But once I got out of the hospital and started getting involved in some of these projects, it got much better.”

“There are lots of opportunities out there for disabled veterans. When I was first injured, I had to go out and do a lot of research of my own to figure out what I was eligible for.  There’s a lot more now. There are trips to go biking or even skiing. When you do stuff like that, it’s well worth the effort to find a program. As you stay busy, it’s never too hard,” Rob said.

For more information on Wounded Warrior Project and other injured veterans stories, please visit www.woundedwarriorproject.org.

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