Michele Willard | Army War College Foundation, INC. - Part 40

Army War College Foundation, INC.

Enriching, Enhancing & Encouraging

Michele Willard

Michelle Rose, DDE ‘14

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BG Michelle Rose, DDE ’14

I’m working as the Director of Logistics and Engineering at U.S. NORTHCOM and we are most definitely in the fight! Yes, it’s been a crash course in medical logistics planning to ensure the fielded force has what is needed for this response. Class VIII (medical) is not normally in the logistics and supply lane as medical supply is managed by the medical community. However, we at NORTHCOM, as well as the Joint Staff J4 and Surgeon General, have collaborated and coordinated with many agencies across the Joint Logistics Enterprise (JLENT) to ensure we get PPE (personal protective equipment) and medical supplies to where they need it the most…field hospitals, nursing homes, and the hospital ships, all where we have DoD medical personnel and units actively engaged in support of the interagency. The agencies include DHA (Defense Health Agency), DLA (Defense Logistics Agency), HHS (Health and Human Services), and FEMA, a truly whole-of-government effort. As of April 14th, we have Air Force and Army field hospitals, Navy Expeditionary Medical Facilities, and Urban Army Medical Task Forces, all with DoD medical specialties spread across 9 major metropolitan areas in support of HHS. We are ready to support where the nation needs us, across the 50 states and territories, by providing support directly to hospitals or at ACF (alternate care facilities) provided by FEMA and/or local/state agencies. By the way, we have been at this response for COVID-19 since late January, when DoD in support of HHS, responded to requests to provide quarantine locations at DoD facilities first for American citizens from China, those that came off of several cruise ships, and citizens who came back through commercial airports.

BG Michelle M. Rose
Distance Class of 2014
Director of Logistics and Engineering
NORAD and USNORTHCOM/J4

Chuck Brady, RES ‘18

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As the Coordination and Contingency Branch Chief for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), government civilian Chuck Brady is overseeing emergency management and continuity of operations for DTRA and its worldwide presence. He and his team are working with all the combatant commands and warfighting units that DTRA supports globally to mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 virus, maintain mission essential functions, and assure critical tasks are performed. DTRA is a 24/7, worldwide, critical enabler to the Department of Defense, the interagency, and allies and partners in their mission to detect, deter, and defeat weapons of mass destruction, improvised threats, and the threat networks that employ them.

Mr. Charles P. ‘Chuck’ Brady
Resident Class of 2018

Kevin McMahan, USAWCF ’13

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Kevin is the Title 32 Deputy Commander for all National Guard forces mobilized under the Dual Status Commander (Joint Task Force Steelhead). This nests well with his current assignment as the 96th Troop Command Commander and Homeland Response Commander for FEMA Region X. As of April 10, 2020, 374 Title 32 (National Guard) Airmen and Soldiers are supporting three COVID-19 test sites where they are physically running the site, along with 34 food banks that are distributing food to hundreds of thousands of individuals throughout Washington State.

COL Kevin D. McMahan
Army War College Fellow 2013

Mark Ritchie, NSS ‘12

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Last year in January, I was appointed Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army (CASA) for Minnesota. While we do not have an active duty base, we have a large National Guard, super successful recruiters, and ROTC in high schools and on a number of university and college campuses statewide. Nearly every day during this COVID-19 crisis, there are calls and emails with a wide range of questions and the national team in the CASA offices in the Pentagon have been incredibly efficient in keeping us ahead of the curve with multiple information feeds each day, downhill phone meetings with the Secretary and other staff, and a weekly newsletter with great ideas from CASAs all over the country.

Mr. Donald Mark Ritchie
National Security Seminar (NSS) ‘12

Chris Muller, RES ’16

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I am supporting COVID-19 in two ways, having retired from the Army last October. First, I am helping lead my company’s effort (MasTec, N.A.) to partner with contractors working on the hotel/dorm-to-hospital conversions. Secondly, as a volunteer firefighter in the City of Plantation, Florida, I am continuing to respond to 911 emergencies in my free time, but obviously with a heightened sense of awareness and PPE (personal protective equipment).

COL (Ret) Christopher W. Muller
Resident Class of 2016

Tom Bundt, RES ‘09

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Tom Bundt, RES’ 09

Medical is truly the front line here.  I currently command Madigan Army Medical Center and as the first U.S. State to come up on the net with COVID-19 and mitigation, it’s been quite a journey.   “Team Madigan” in close coordination with I Corps, our Regional HQs, and other tenant units, have all been addressing the COVID-19 pandemic on the front lines to the operations cells since the beginning as the first site for the outbreak to truly manifest itself.  What is really new in this regard is the main effort role of military medicine in this context.  I cannot recall a time in history where the nation felt engaged in a war where the medical component was the lead effort other than the Spanish Flu of 1918.  These are truly unprecedented times and should go a long way in highlighting the amazing capacity and capability of the DoD Military Health System and all the elements that make it an indispensable component of our go to war kit bag, no matter the adversary.  You cannot obviously see this enemy, but it is invisible as well in its infectious form where is can be present in those asymptomatic to the illness.  These characteristics and many others have defined this as a truly novel disease and hence the name. The other piece that should not be lost on this is the necessity for all the elements available in the military medical system inventory to work in concert with a common goal.  No matter the final structure, there truly needs to be an appreciation for the gravity of something like this and its lack of concern for Service, system, component or command lines of authority or accounting.  In this respect, specifically, there has truly been some silver lining.  The work to prepare for the transition to Full Operational Control (FOC) by the Defense Health Agency (DHA) and the standing up of the formal markets under the new construct has helped to form bonds and relationships that in truth, were previously either rare or nonexistent altogether.  Our Navy colleagues for example, although operating on another installation, have worked closely with us throughout this time — whether it be sharing resources, staff or materiel — the relationships built through the market development meetings and communities of practice engagement have born some significant unforeseen fruit.  The feeling that we are truly one in this regard has definitely made a very challenging and occasionally tragic situation, bearable as well as winnable.  The challenge of COVID-19 is still very much with us as we have several in our facility and have staff losses in our out sick lists as a result; however the system remains incredibly resilient. The courage and bravery of our staffs to constantly reenter the fray, support one another, whether this is in the ICU, the Medical Surgical wards, or in the logistics warehouse as they struggle to manage the demand on PPE and other items, is ever present and something a few of us are privileged to witness up close and personal.  I thank you for allowing the opportunity to put a plug in for our incredible military medical system and the true character of those in the front line fight against a determined enemy that can only be defeated as a team and corporation united in one common cause.

COL Thomas S. ‘Tom’ Bundt
Resident Class of 2009, Seminar 11
Commander, Madigan Army Medical Center
Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington