Vol. 4 No. 21 November 21, 2007

Tips for Sailors to increase advancement

kkekk lU.S. Navy photo by AW2 Matthew Nikkel

EN1 Brian Riley was one of six PMRF Sailors promoted in the most recent enlisted advancement cycle.Enlisted promotions from E4 - E6 are determined by a combination of factors including the Sailor’s individualperformance evaluations, their scores on job-specifi c exams and their awards. The ratio between the factors’ importance for promotion recently changed to give more value to performance on the job.From Navy PersonnelCommand Public Affairs

With advancement results re-leased Nov. 16, many Sailors arecelebrating, while others look forsteps to increase their opportuni-ties during the next advancementcycle.

“Superior performance is still the most important factor in get-ting advanced,” according to Vice Adm. J.C. Harvey, Chief ofNaval Personnel (CNP). “The weight of the performance markaverage from a Sailor’s evalua-tion promotion recommendation

has increased by seven percent. The weight of service-in-pay gradeand pass-not-advanced points hasdecreased by approximately one-half,” Harvey said.

“It is extremely important for commanding offi cers, executive of-fi cers, and command master chiefsto communicate with those who didnot get advanced this cycle,” Harveyadded.

According to CNP, one thing thechain of command can do to assistSailors not selected for advance-ment is schedule a career develop-ment board (CDB). A CDB providespersonnel the opportunity to discuss

their career progression, the health of their rating, and their short and long-term goals for thefuture.

It allows a Sailor and his or herchain of command to review theSailor’s record and identify waysto improve competitiveness in future advancement cycles.

According to the Navy’s Center for Career Development (CCD),located at Navy Personnel Com-mand, some questions a Sailor should ask during the board in-clude:

- What can I do to gain morePROMOTE, Contd. on Page 3

Page 2 Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Commanding Offi cer’s Hot Line: Ext. 4435You can call the Captain with your question/concern too. Dial Ext 4435 any time, seven days a week! The pur-

pose of the hotline (record-a-phone) is to provide all PMRF military members, families, civil service and contractoremployees the opportunity to communicate directly with the CO. Some suggestions are:

· Safety suggestions/violations/unsafe practices, ideas to improve safety and promote safety awareness.· Ways to improve morale, working or living conditions.· Suggestions on how to save taypayer dollars, cut costs, save energy, reduce labor manhours, etc.· Security violations and/or recommendations for strengthening physical security and safeguarding classifi ed

information.· Any positive things (events, programs, policies, benefi ts, etc.) that you feel are particularly good.· Any negative things you feel should have the CO’s attention.· Suggestions for improving disaster preparedness (tsunamis, hurricanes, fi res, etc.)You need not identify yourself to leave a message, but if you would like a staffed response, please do so. If

reporting a problem, please try to recommend a workable solution. Some of the questions or problems reportedwill be answered in the Within Range.

A good point of contact for issues involving Navy families is the PMRF Ombudsman, Becca Denos,who can be reached at pmrfombudsman@yahoo.com.

PMRFSnapshot

“What do you mean no one brought any coffee?” - Kauai’s westside Boy Scout Troop 203 spent a weekend at Anini beach with other Kauai troops and participated in a Camporee event featuring a variety of team-oriented games. Several PMRF fathers attended including Scoutmaster MA2 John Denos and assistants Capt. Aaron Cudnohufsky, Ens. Nathan Deunk, Charlie Fox and MC1 Johnny Michael.

Within Range is published bi-weekly by the Pacifi c Missile Range Facility Public Affairs Offi ce. Questions, concernsand comments can be directed to the Editor at tom.clements@navy.mil. All photos by MC1 Johnny Michael unlessnoted otherwise.Executive Offi cer: Cmdr. Bruce PeckEditor: Tom Clements

Commanding Offi cer: Capt. Aaron CudnohufskyCommand Master Chief: STSCM (SS) Ronnie Spake

Staff: MC1 (SW/AW) Johnny Michael

Wednesday, November 21, 2007 Page 3

PMRF participates in Veteran’s Day events

PMRF Sailors participated in two Veteran’s Day events this year, including a parade held in Kapaa and a memorial held at the Kauai Veteran’s cemetary in Hanapepe. (Above left) Spectators lined the streets of downtown Kapaa to witness the parade. (Above right) PMRF Commanding Offi cer, Capt. Aaron Cudnohufsky, Executive Offi cer, Cmdr. Bruce Peck and Command Master Chief STSCM (SS) Ronnie Spake rode a SEPTAR boat during the parade. (Below right) Spake and his wife Vanessa delivered a speech the following day at the memorial held in Hanapepe. (Below right) Flags were placed on each of the graves for the memorial.

PROMOTE, Contd. frm Page 11authority and responsibility in mycurrent position to make me morecompetitive for the next higher pay grade?

- I passed but didn’t advancethe last advancement exam, whatchanges can I make to improvemy chances next time?

- In order to make me more competitive for advancement andto round out my rating expertise,what should my next assignmentor duty station be?

- What can members of this board do to assist me both profes-sionally and personally in order tohelp me achieve success?

- What is the status of my rating?Advancement is extremely limited inovermanned rates and Sailors maywant to consider a rating conversionto increase advancement opportuni-ties.

Every Sailor should have a men-tor and should also look for oppor-tunities to mentor other Sailors whocan benefi t from their diverse ex-periences, according to Chief NavyCounselor (AW) Kelly L. Strickland,a career counselor at CCD. A mentor is a trusted counselor or guide whois looking out for the best interestsof his or her Sailor. This includes advancement opportunities, but also includes helping the Sailor reach

lother personal and professionalgoals.

“It is extremely important to have a mentor,” added Strickland. “It’s great to have that person inyour career to receive information and points of view from.”

It’s never too early to start planning for the next advance-ment cycle.

“I suggest that Sailors who did not advance this cycle startstudying again,” said Strickland.“You should also realize perfor-mance carries the most weight in advancement. Look at your last evaluation and improve in the areas you scored less in.”

Page 4 Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Bravo Zulu! Excellence abounds at PMRF

(From left) PMRF Commanding Offi cer, Capt. Aaron Cudnohufsky, receives an award on behalf of PMRF for mission success during the recent Japanese Self Defense Force operation; Lt. Robert Gilbert receivedthe Air Medal; Esther Estes received an on-the-spot cash award.

MA1 Patrick Walsh (Above left), MC1 Johnny Michael (Above right), MA2 Eric Munoz (Below left) and MA2 Jessica Boeckman (Below left) were frocked to the next highest pay grade during a recent award ceremony.AM3 Chris Bostwick (Not pictured) will be frocked following completion of the Petty Offi cer Indoctrinationcourse. (Photos by AW2 Matt Nikkel)

Wednesday, November 21, 2007 Page 5

Page 6

Announcements

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Domestic Har- in this area today’. We from the PMRF Public Af- across the street on

mony Erupting want to encourage peo-ple to know that harmony

across Hawai’i can erupt too and they Island and Neigh- can reach out one to an-

fairs Offi ce. Look for moreDomestic Harmony infor-mation in the near future.

the beach. Admission is free.

Also, there is still room for more craft

bor Islands “ P l a n e t P u n a , ” i s

pleased to announce for the first time in the eight year history of the Domestic Harmony Awareness Initiative, proclamations have been secured from the mayors of Hawai’I, Maui, Kauai and O’ahu. They can be seen on www.planetpuna.com.

O r g a n i z e r S t a r Newland says, ‘We are developing an out-reach program around the theme of ‘domestic harmony erupting.’ We speak of eruptions of violence or war as in ‘more violence erupted

other to create more. Officials from PMRF

met Star Newland during EIS proceedings, and a partnership for Domestic Harmony was formed. ”When the United States Navy gets behind Domes-tic Harmony you know we are on to something” Newland said. “Our de-sire is to see programs made available across the Navy and other types of armed services to help those who serve our country.”

Neon green ribbons, representing ‘new life and new beginnings’ and as a symbol for domestic harmony, are available

Kekaha Town Cel-ebration

A two-day event aimed at bringing the Kekaha community together with music, food, crafts, sand sculpture exhibit, and star-gazing lecture from the Polynesian Voyag-ing Society. Through the Mayor’s Ka Leo meet-ings, PMRF is included as the “Mana” portion of the Kekaha community, so organizers are hope-ful that we will join in with great numbers. Hours are 5-10 p.m. Nov. 30, and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Dec. 1, at the Kekaha Community Center and

booths and one food booth. Any organi-zation interested in hosting a booth can call Lyndon Yamane at 337-9286, or 635-5892.

PMRF Christmas Party

The annual Christ-mas party for active duty Navy and their d e p e n d e n t s w i l b e held at Shenanigans on December 21. The party will feature din-ner and door prizes. Look for details as the event draws closer!

Ombudsman’s CornerThank you to everyone who attended our Active Duty Military Roundtable last night. We got to meet

our new MWR Director Craig Ulrich and hear about some great improvements that are in the works forthe programs here. Patti Huber, the NEX Manager, was able to answer questions about the NEX andalso enlighten us on current and upcoming events.

Since December is very busy, our next Roundtable will be postponed until January. Please mark yourcalendar for the 3rd Monday of each month for this gathering.

Upcoming events: Thanksgiving potluck on the berm for any of our active duty families or singlesailors who don’t have plans already. Please RSVP with number attending and what you are bringing toTerisa Peck at btzdhpeck@yahoo.com. Thanksgiving meal item donations for the KauaiBattered Women’s Shelter need to be delivered to the NEX gas station at 8:00 on Thursday morning.If you have questions feel free to call me. The Annual Military Christmas party will be held at Shenani-gan’s on Friday, Dec. 21.

Have a great Holiday weekend!

Becca Denos PMRF Ombudsman

pmrfombudsman@yahoo.com

Wednesday, November 21, 2007 Page 7

Safety CornerThe Friday Funnies(a.k.a.) Summary ofMishapsWarning Sign of a Bad

c o m i n g . I d o u b t t h e length of the flag pole is based on the size of the local dunes or

hills. If anyone knows better, let us know.

Our AM3 can provide a tes-

technique is much more ef-fective when you don’t start hopping up and down and yelling, “Ouch!” afterward.

He was treated by the ship’s corpsman, and then, when the ship pulled into

M e e t i n g : S o m e b o d y timonial for the buggy’s safety port the following day, he Passes Out

1. Welcome to the latest edition of the Friday Fun-nies. This week we exam-ine the design parameters of dune-buggy flag poles, dangerous meetings, anger- management techniques, and whether it is possible to hold onto a wall.

A. Have you ever seen dune buggies racing around and wondered what those little flags on the top of those

harness, by the way. Without it, her week of LIMPDU might have been a month.

B. A GS-11 office worker in California went to a meeting one morning. When it was over, the report says, he got up to leave and “lost his balance.” he banged his head on the deck and scraped his knee on the floor. The report doesn’t say what the precise physiologic cause was, but I can sympathize. I’ve been to some meetings where I felt

got to visit the local hospital instead of going on liberty. Three weeks of light duty and some anger-manage-ment classes ensued. Ev-eryone is always in a great mood when they show up for those.

D . S o m e w h e r e i n t h e bowels of a Supply Center in the Pacific, a GS-7 sup-ply clerk makes her way up a stairwell. She carries some classified paperwork

f l e x i b l e p o l e s w e r e f o r ? like banging my head on the and a record book in her There’s an AM3 in California who can explain. She was roaring around somewhere in California. Topping a hill, she saw another dune buggy heading straight for her. In the best tradition of “After you, Alphonse,” she turned left and the other guy turned right. One head-on collision later, she found herself briefly airborne, rolling over twice, and then spinning around on all four wheels. During this spectacular display, she had broken her foot on the other buggy’s roll bar.

Here’s where we get to those flag poles, because, according to the report, she “claims the flag poles should have been taller.” not that she shouldn’t have been rac-ing blindly up a hill. Rather, if there is a 20-foot hill, the other dune buggies ought to have 30-foot flag poles on them, so you can see them

deck during them. The meetings usually took too long, and I felt myself getting woozy toward the end, too.

C. On a ship en route to a port of call, an E-7 was standing engineering-officer-of-the-watch during some drills. Things were not going well, for some unspeci-fied reason. Personally, I can’t think of anything that might go wrong during underway drills on a ship, but something was a m i s s . F r u s t r a t e d , o u r c h i e f

progressed from concerned to peeved to annoyed and beyond. Wisps of steam were just begin-ning to seep from his ears when he slammed his hand down on the table in the central control station.

This got everyone’s attention, which might have been his goal, but he found himself unable to capitalize on this dramatic mo-ment, due to the fact that he had broken his hand.

Note to hand-slammers: This

left hand. According to the report, she is “holding on to the right side wall” with her right hand.

Not sure if you’ve ever tried holding onto a wall. Unless your nickname is “Spidey,” it is easier said than done. Her nickname wasn’t. Directly, she was sprawling on the deck, scat-tering documents and bruis-i n g h e r k n e e s . S h e h a d “tripped over the safety slat at the top step,” she says.

If a so-called “safety slat” is installed so that someone can trip over it, isn’t the word “safety” a misnomer? I n q u i r i n g m i n d s w a n t t o know.

2. That’s all for now, ami-gos. Until we meet again, take care, take five minutes to read the instructions, and take a deep breath if you start feeling frustrated. See you next time.

Page 8 Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Wish you were here - Photos from the Fleet

U.S. Navy Photo by MC2 2 Drae Parker

(Above) ABF2 Marwin D. Aquino supervises fueling stations ensuring aircraft are fueled aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2). Essex is the lead ship of the only permanently forward-deployed U.S. Expeditionary Strike Group and serves as the fl agship for Commander, Task Force 76. (Below left) HM1 Sean Ehrsam, a medical laboratory technician aboard the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75), reads the Disney/Pixar book “Monsters, Inc.” to his 3-year old son George and 4-week old daughter Sasha. (Below right) Construction Mechanic 1st Class Jerry Jump, an individual augmentee Sailor attached to Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) Khost, secures the perimeter during a groundbreaking for one of more than 50 schools funded by PRT Khost this year.

U.S. Navy photo by MC3 3 Patrick Grieco U.S. Navy photo by MC1 1 William Hamb