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TalkingWithHeroes.Com Talk Show Program
Special LIVE Program with AmericanSupportsYou.Mil
About the 2008 Freedom Walk Events Across America
Go To The End of this Page for Details!
August 17, 2008
On StardustRadio.Com
CLICK HERE To Listen to this program 24/7
Thank you to Patti Bader and www.soldiersangels.org
for making this program possible
HOST: Bob Calvert
GUESTS:
Roxie T. Merritt
Director, New Media and Community Relations Directorates
Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs
Roxie Merritt serves as the director of the New Media Division in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs. In this role, she is responsible for Department of Defense (DoD) new media technology advancement, Web operations, and integrated strategic communications plans. She also serves as the Community Relations Division director and special assistant to the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, Ms. Allison Barber.
Directing the new media initiative, Roxie’s team of professional communicators is focused on using new technologies to ensure the effective dissemination of DoD information to the public and internal audiences via the Internet. This includes the use of podcasts, mobile messaging, blogger engagement and other “new media” platforms.
Recent new meinitiatives include two-way engagement through conference calls between stateside bloggers and U.S. military leaders in Iraq, DoDvClips featuring current DoD videos, and the development of customized mobile Web access specifically designed for mobile hand-held devices.
Heading the Web operations team, Roxie oversees the official Department of Defense Web site, www.defenselink.mil, providing in-depth coverage of the global war on terror; and www.americasupportsyou.mil, which links the general public homefront organizations directly with military personnel around the globe. These sites have become well-known as timely, accurate resources for DoD leadership, the media and the general public.
An additional element of Roxie’s current responsibilities is to lead the team that develops integrated internal communications plans, providing long-term, proactive and robust communications support to address specific DoD departmental issues. This strategic planning is coordinated across a variety of DoD offices, customized as needed for each issue.
Strategic plans have included the “Check It” campaign for internal controls, and most recently, a plan to address DoD communication issues in the event of pandemic flu.
As Special Assistant to the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Roxie also serves as the Community Relations director and lead spokesperson for the America Supports You program. In this capacity, Roxie communicates the importance of letting America’s military men and women know they are not being forgotten at home.
America Supports You is a nationwide program that connects the support of the American people directly to military members and their families.
Roxie comes to her current position after a 24-year military career in the U.S. Navy. Retiring at the rank of Navy captain in 2006, her most recent military position was director of press operations for the Department of Defense, where she developed and implemented integrated, complex media policies and procedures for the Department, coordinating directly with the White House, State Department and other government agencies.
In prior military assignments, Roxie managed the highly successful media embed program during Operation Iraqi Freedom, noted as the largest embed in naval history. Here she directly coordinated the embedding of more than 1,000 media teams from multiple countries, integrating with both U.S. and coalition forces
throughout the initial phases of the Iraq War in 2003.
Additionally, Roxie was responsible for sending the first live news crews into Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom in 2002.
Roxie’s military honors include the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal (four awards), the Joint Service Commendation Medal (two awards), the Navy Commendation Medal (two awards), and the Navy & Marine Corps Achievement Medal (three awards). Additionally, Roxie has been recognized with a Department of Defense certificate of honor recognizing her efforts in tsunami relief efforts during Operation Unified Assistance, three Admiral Thompson awards for public affairs excellence, two Thomas Jefferson Department of Defense awards, three Awards of Merit from the Navy Office of the Chief of Information, and a certificate of merit advertising award for recruiting programs at the U.S. Naval
Academy.
In addition to the completion of numerous professional development programs, Roxie holds a bachelor of science degree in biology and has completed graduate work in economics at Washington State University.
Roxie Merritt
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Joey Rizzolo, 13
Organizing Paramus, N.J.’s second
America Supports You Freedom Walk.
Joey wrote the book "20 Steps to a Freedom Walk" so kids all over could read it and start a Freedom Walk in their town. He is also in the process of getting a bill passed in the state of NJ that would declare the Sunday before Sept. 11th every year as Freedom Walk Day in the state of NJ.
Joey received a Medal from the Secretary of Defense for Exceptional
Service.
Paramus Freedom Walk September 2007
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Olga Vaca Durr
Parent & Community Involvement
Killeen Independent School District
254.501.1687
Killeen ISD & Fort Hood Texas
The Killeen Independent School District is located next to the largest military base in the world, with our very own Soldiers being the hero’s who captured America’s most wanted, Saddam Hussein. Therefore, we are honored to celebrate all that our Soldiers do every day to keep us safe.
Our yearly Freedom Walk Celebrations on September 11th are just one more way of saying thank you to our Soldiers who are our heroes. During a speech by President George W. Bush on March 6, 2007 he said, "… nothing we say here -- no speech, or vote, or resolution in the United States Congress -- means more to the future of our country than the men and women who wake up every morning and put on the uniform of our country and defend the United States of America."
Over 52,000 of these men and women who wake up every morning and put their uniform on to defend our great nation are stationed right here at Fort Hood, Texas. Their mission is to “when directed, deploy to theater of operations, conduct military operations and redeploy.” They “train, mobilize, deploy and sustain ready forces.”
The Killeen Independent School District has over 39,000 students and roughly 50% are military dependents, with even more being children of retired military or military contractors. For the 3rd year in a row the district will participate in a district-wide Freedom Walk, along with each school in the district also conducting their own Freedom Walks. We got involved because we feel honoring our hero’s is extremely important and we have a lot of hero’s in our town!
Olga works with various committees throughout the district and community. Additionally she works closely with the military base Killeen I.S.D. serves, which is the largest military base in the world. Olga received a Bachelor of Art degree in Elementary Education, with a minor in Early Childhood from the University of
Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton Texas. She received two Master of Education degrees from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville Texas, one in Special Education, with a minor in Bilingual Education; the other in Educational Administration.
Currently she is working on her Doctorate at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor.
In her thirteen year career in education she has served as an elementary and secondary teacher in both Special Education and Bilingual Education; a district-wide Bilingual Diagnostician; an Assistant Principal at a Middle School and a District Administrator.
My experience with 9/11:
On Sept 11, 2001 my husband was both a US Army reservist and an airline pilot. We were planning on getting married in November of that year and were in the middle of planning our military/post wedding. On the morning of 9/11 I did
not know my soon to be husband’s schedule and was awakened by my Daddy who told me I needed to come see something on the television.
I tried to contact my soon to be husband who after numerous phone calls finally answered the phone. He was in the cockpit, on the runway waiting to take off at Dulles in Washington D.C. heading to New York and had been sitting for over an hour. Dulles was the airport one of the terrorist left from. He could not believe when I told him an airplane had crashed into the Twin Towers and then was told by the tower at Dulles to take the aircraft back to the gate. He called and told me all the planes were not only going back to their gates, but deplaning.
The abbreviated version of this story is every wedding plan we had made to that point, including the location of the wedding, the location of the rehearsal dinner, the invitations, the hotel arrangements and the chaplain had to be changed. He was deployed before our first wedding anniversary and it took hours to find every pilot in his reserve unit that also worked as US Army reservists. It was an extremely long and stressful week that week, as well as the months to come, and today he is once again deployed.
Olga Vaca Durr
Freedom Walk in Killeen 2006
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Shelle Michaels
Soldiers' Angels Communication Officer
www.soldiersangels.org
Military Outreach Director for Spirit of America
www.spiritofamerica.net
America Supports You Freedom Walk Organizer
www.americasupportsyou.mil
Shelle Michaels is a social networking guru with years of experience as Soldiers' Angels Communication Officer. Being a volunteer for Soldiers' Angels (www.soldiersangels.org) has not only been the right thing for her to do in support of the deployed service members; it has become her passion. Through the countless hours she puts into 'her soldiers' at the local and national level, her efforts have not gone unnoticed by the North Dakota National Guard or Soldiers' Angels.
In 2007 she received the Distinguished Center of Influence for her support of the NDARNG 188th ADA JLENS soldiers and the Outstanding Center of Influence for the support given the NDARNG 188th ADA SECFOR soldiers that were deployed to Afghanistan. These awards are the top levels of recognition to be given to individuals in support based roles.
Recently, Michaels volunteerism opened up the doors for a new career as the Military Outreach Director for Spirit of America (www.spiritofamerica.net).
In this capacity, she will continue her volunteer efforts with the deployed service members while enhancing their experience in country with the humanitarian outreach to the Iraqi, Afghani and African natives.
She lives by the motto of Winston Churchill, 'We make a living by what we do, but we make a life by what we give.
2008 is the third year that Michaels has been involved with the America Supports You Freedom Walk. This year's walk, will take place at the International Peace Garden (www.peacegarden.org) along the Candian/American border in North Dakota. The 9-11 ceremony at the Peace Garden is an event that thousands of people attend, thus the walk will be a highly active addition to the ceremony. Key note speaker will be Dr. Earl Beal, Deployment Expert from the University of North Dakota with a special selection 'Thank You' presented by Miss Emily Custer. (www.emilycuster.com).
Testimony from a Mom who lost their son on 9/11
DATE: Mon, 18 Aug 2008 06:00:08 -0700 (PDT)
SUBJECT: Re:My Interview with America Supports you tonight on www.stardustradio.
DEAR SHELLE
YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH IT MEANT TO ME THAT YOU MENTIONED MY SON ON YOUR RADIO INTERVIEW. THANK YOU FOR HELPING TO KEEP HIS MEMORY, AND ALL THE HEROES OF THAT DAY ALIVE ACROSS THE COUNTRY. ANGEL HUGS, DIANE
Friends are angels who help us fly when our wings won't
work. Proud Mom of Keith, NYPH #8001, 9/ 11/ 01
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Dani Lamana
Hosting a Freedom Walk in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Dani lost her brother in the Pentagon on 9/11
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Nancy Magoon and their principal, Mr. Henson
South Korea
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Lana Barshinger and Debra Weeks
Lana is a Family Readiness Support Assistant
They are Walk coordinators in Heidelberg, Germany
Freedom Walk Plans Shaping Up Worldwide
By Samantha L. Quigley/American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, July 28, 2008 - Individuals and organizations around the globe are planning special commemorations to mark the quickly approaching seventh anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
So far, nearly 185 America Supports You Freedom Walks are scheduled to take place on and around Sept. 11. Of those walks, eight are scheduled overseas, in Heidelberg, Germany; Santa Rita, Guam; Baghdad; Vicenza, Italy; Iwakuni, Japan; Moron, Spain; and Seoul and Daegu, South Korea.
America Supports You is a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.
“The America Supports You Freedom Walk continues this year as a national tradition to commemorate the lives lost on 9/11 and honor our veterans past and present,” said Allison Barber, deputy assistant secretary of defense for internal communications and public liaison. “This will be a special year for Department of Defense employees, as the National America Supports You Freedom Walk begins a week of commemorations culminating in the opening of the Pentagon Memorial on 9/11.”
Colton Lockner, 11, who organized his first America Supports You Freedom Walk two years ago, is organizing two this year. One will be held in Sebring, Ohio, and the other in Lake Milton, Ohio.
Joey Rizzolo, 13, is organizing Paramus, N.J.’s second America Supports You Freedom Walk. This walk comes on the heels of Rizzolo’s recently published guide to organizing a Freedom Walk, “20 Steps to a Freedom Walk.”
The national America Supports You Freedom Walk will be held on Sept. 7. The walk, which has become a national tradition, calls on people to reflect on the lives lost on Sept. 11, remember those who responded, honor veterans past and present, and renew commitment to freedom and the values of the United States.
The fourth annual national walk will begin at the Women’s Memorial in Arlington National Cemetery at 9a.m. About one mile later, the walk will conclude in the Pentagon’s south parking lot, adjacent to the site where American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the building. A musical tribute is being planned immediately after the walk.
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