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‘Bright’ idea helps local guard unit |
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Wednesday, 21 November 2007 |
By ANNIE ZELM
Staff Writer
When the mother of an officer in U.S. Navy read an article publicizing the need for light bars and sirens on military convoys, she decided to approach local law enforcement agencies for assistance.
The officials were eager to oblige, she says.
Auglaize County Sheriff Al Solomon and Wapakoneta Police Chief Dave Webb Friday presented members of the Alpha Company Special Troops Battalion 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team with 12 light bars and sirens for their humvees.
Officials from the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office also contributed equipment.
Twilia Elsass, 64, of Anna, said she approached the sheriff for help after reading a January 2006 article in the Navy Times, a weekly publication she has received since her son, Doug Elsass, was deployed in 1999.
Elsass said she enjoys reading the Navy Times because it gives her a common ground for conversation with her son, a 28-year-old Navy construction worker and petty officer first class stationed at Port Hueneme, Calif.
He is scheduled to be deployed for a six-month term in Japan next month.
In the Navy Times story, U.S. Army Reserve Capt. Jim Nelson approached local law enforcement agencies in Orlando, Fla. and obtained signaling equipment for 50 convoys.
“I saw it and just thought maybe we could get more sent over from here,” Elsass told the Wapakoneta Daily News. “So I asked the sheriff about it, and he was interested right away.
“I didn’t realize there was so much work involved, but he was in touch with me through all of it,” Elsass said of Solomon. “He’s really a super guy.”
The equipment is to be fitted and placed on humvees that will accompany the group to Kuwait. It is to be used as a non-lethal alternative to warn those who are approaching the vehicles, 1st Lt. Matthew Molinksi told the Wapakoneta Daily News in a telephone interview.
“We have a process called escalation of force ... and what we try to do in the military is keep it at the non-lethal force level,” Molinski said. “Any kind of signaling device helps us do a little warning.”
In Iraq and other areas of the Middle East, reliable light bars and sirens are not readily available, he said.
The lights and sirens used by law enforcement officials are high-quality pieces of equipment which are upgraded regularly, so the departments often have a few extras on hand, Solomon said.
To avoid difficulties with shipment to the cause — Solomon said he opted to donate the equipment to the National Guard unit team in St. Marys.
Elsass, who retired in 2002 after 18 years of service as a custodian for Botkins Local Schools, said she is considering the possibility of contacting other area agencies for donations.
“It took some time,” Elsass said, “but once things started progressing it was a good feeling.” |
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Last Updated ( Friday, 23 November 2007 )
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