Loss and recovery are common themes for individuals with traumatic brain injury. In my interview with Army Sgt. Mike Ortiz, he revealed his loss and his hope. This is his story:

Like any institution, there are things we do well in the Air Force and there are others that, at times, leave something to be desired. Ask any of your peers about the formal feedback they’ve received throughout their careers and you’ll be sure to hear horror stories.

Give blood, play rugby.

Pat Solomon hugs as many returning service members as she can. At Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Airport, a gateway for many of our warriors headed to battle and back home, that’s a lot of hugs.

First lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, the vice president’s wife, marked the one-year anniversary of their Joining Forces campaign earlier this month with a renewed call to action and a message of gratitude to the nation.

First Lady Michelle Obama recently unveiled a new hiring effort that will deliver thousands of portable, flexible job opportunities to military spouses.

Have you ever noticed when you listen to a discussion on the news about a natural disaster, domestic security issue or a concern about our border security, the conversation ultimately ends with what can the military do?

On the first day of training, flyers are taught “no rings and things” and our talented maintainers are similarly indoctrinated with ensuring full accountability for every tool taken on and off the aircraft. There is another resource saving responsibility we must consider and apply in every organization and work area, on base or deployed. It’s called Fraud, Waste and Abuse prevention.

Parents and teachers have lectured on this for as long as I can remember: Be prepared. I learned this many years ago and it still rings true today.

As his time as 62nd Airlift Wing command chief comes to an end, Chief Master Sgt. Greg Warren reflects on the past few years of his Air Force career, the transition of a joint base and his plans for the future.

We’ve all heard or lived through a merger of one kind or another; consolidating like, same or similar capabilities to capitalize on economy of scale.

At the risk of self indulgence, we would be remiss not to mark the retirement of someone special and important to the Northwest Guardian for a long time. Jim Symmonds is retiring today after 42 years of federal service as a civil servant and Army Reserve officer.

An enduring problem in modern medicine is that many patients do not take their medications as directed by their doctor. This is known as poor “medication adherence.”

At the first of every year, Airmen stand in front of the mirror and make resolutions to have a better, more focused year.

Every day across our installations, members of Team IMCOM are working hard to provide world-class customer service and make it a great day to be a Soldier, Family member or Army Civilian.

Many articles have been written about resiliency and it has been the focus of our Wingman Days for quite some time now, yet the question still remains, how does one become resilient?

I dumped my Facebook account a few weeks ago.

I spend much of my off-duty time volunteering in a local organization that works with youths ages 11 to 17. They are generally well-behaved and smart. While each is different, there is one thing the majority of them have in common - Facebook drama.

Is it just me, or do those who complain loudest about rules and regulations often have the least leadership experience? I’m pretty sure Franz Kafka, the most famous author for stories about heartless, faceless bureaucracies, never commanded anything.

Do you have the bug? Do you have the itch? Not a rash or sickness, but do you have a passion for your job, where you serve and for those with whom you serve?

Life is like a ski slope.

I’ve got really three principal tasks that I’ve got to accomplish for the country — three different kinds of transition as we go through changes in strategy, changes in resourcing, changes in structure — missioning, re-missioning, expansion, contraction.

Last month’s winter storm highlighted two things that we can’t have enough of: patience and preparedness.

I heard it a lot during my career from wise senior NCOs and officers: “You are your own best personnel manager.” At times like these, with news breaking daily about proposed reductions in federal resources, it’s understandable to feel a little out of control. You’ve done everything you’ve been asked, deployed several times, and returned to hear rumors about getting caught in budget reductions and force downsizing.

Black History Month, has been a February tradition in the U.S. for eight decades. It is a time for Americans to reflect on the history and teachings of African Americans — a month when people can witness to the progress, richness and diversity of African American achievement.

Toxic leaders are detrimental to the morale, good order and discipline and over all mission success of a unit. The purpose of this paper is to generally define what is toxic leadership, how to identify these traits, and then how to combat them at the company level.

My guess is if you were to think about an accident, incident, mishap or misstep, the culprit would be accountability. Accountability lies at the heart of mission accomplishment and professionalism. It is about holding ourselves to the highest standards, not because of threat of discipline, but because we aspire to excellence.

WASHINGTON — Recent news items about the use of Army medical evacuation, or MEDEVAC, helicopters in Afghanistan contain troubling information.

Life as an Airman in service to our country is honorable and rewarding. There is no higher calling than to be a part of a group of Americans who pledged their lives in our country’s defense. This choice is definitely not for the faint of heart. It takes an exceptional person just to earn the title of Airman, officer or enlisted, and the demands continue to grow the longer we serve. If you are charged with leading other Airmen, whether as a first-line supervisor, NCOIC, flight chief, commander, etc., you have a solemn obligation to serve those you lead with high standards and expectations, true compassion, up-to-date guidance, genuine caring, and most important, by splendid example. Our opstempo remains high, with a number of Airmen continuing to deploy at greater than a 1:1 deploy/dwell ratio. If you are not currently deployed, you are carrying heavier buckets of water because many of your teammates are “downrange.” We have been executing missions in Afghanistan for over 10 years now and we just completed our mission in Iraq after nearly nine years. Many Airmen have deployed “outside the wire,” many in harm’s way. Sadly, a number of our Airmen have joined our Soldier, Sailor, and Marine brothers and sisters in the ranks of wounded warriors. And tragically, we have had brave Airmen give the last full measure of devotion to our country.