Alive Day - series of features

By Ann Peru Knabe
17the Officer / March-april 2014

Extraordinary Courage
SGT David Hutchinson, USAR
Several years passed before Sergeant David Hutchinson
was really ready to deal with his Alive Day. Today he says he
appreciates the richness of life and family much more than he
did in 2008, when he came under attack while serving on his
frst mission in Afghanistan as a young private frst class.
“We had been in country just four days,” recalled the
Individual Ready Reservist, who at the time belonged to the
420th Engineer Brigade Personal Security Detail (PSD). “I
hadn’t even had time to unpack my bedroom, and we were out
doing missions.”
Te PSD was prepared for action. Te Soldiers had spent
three months training before their boots hit the ground.
“I remember feeling the hair stand up on my neck as we
moved out into the mountain foothills,” said the Reservist.
“We were tingling with adrenaline, in total refex mode, and
then we were hit. But we had rehearsed scenarios like this 30
or 40 times back in the U.S., so we knew what to do.”
PFC Hutchinson served as an MK19 gunner in the third
gun truck when close to 20 anti-Afghan forces ambushed the
convoy with rocket-propelled grenades and machine gun and
sniper fre. Te enemy was shooting from fortifed fghting
positions, 50 to 70 meters (160 to 230 feet) away in the moun-
tains surrounding the roadway. As the enemy attempted to
destroy the convoy by disabling the lead and trail gun trucks,
three of the four gun trucks immediately returned suppressive
fre. Ten the anti-Afghan forces boldly moved out from cover
into the open, still achieving fre superiority.
It was PFC Hutchinson—the new kid—who fgured out
a PKM machine gun nest on the hilltop was posing the most
The Sun team on early morning operation with the Brigade Reconnaissance Force (BRF), Light Dragoons, in the infamous Argandhab region, Afghanistan, on patrol
to fnd improvised explosive devices or weapons. (Photo by Dan Charity)
Specialist David Hutchinson receives the Silver Star Medal from Colonel James
Doty on June 6, 2009. SPC Hutchinson, who now is a sergeant, earned the
award for valor during and following an ambush in Afghanistan on May 21, 2008.
(Photo courtesy of U.S. Army)
A
few dates generally mark the timeline in a person’s life—birthdays, weddings,
graduations. For members of the military who narrowly escaped death in battle, another
date marks the calendar. It’s called Alive Day; the day they didn’t die. Ann Peru Knabe,
a regular contributor to The Officer, shares the stories of three Reserve members.
18 the Officer / March-april 2014

lethal threat. He quickly engaged the enemy’s nest with dev-
astating fre power, destroying it completely. Te enemy forces
refocused their assault on the young Reservist and his MK19.
Hutchinson stayed in place while under intense enemy
fre, retaliating with accurate, efective fre back at the
enemy. PSD members would later count more than 100 bul-
let strikes on Hutchinson’s turret. As the frefght continued,
the Soldier expended an entire ammunition can, destroy-
ing a fxed machine gun position and killing fve insurgents,
before he was seriously wounded by an RPG. Afer shrapnel
hit him, he collapsed from the gunner position into the crew
compartment.
“When the dust settled, I realized I couldn’t move my legs,”
he said. “I was hit pretty bad. But then I looked up and saw
my frst sergeant covered in blood, with gaping wounds on his
head and face. And once again, adrenaline kicked in.”
Despite his own injuries, PFC Hutchinson calmly admin-
istered frst aid and controlled the sergeant’s bleeding. When
the medevac arrived, the Reservist refused to be carried on
a litter so others could use it to carry the frst sergeant, thus
freeing other Soldiers to provide security to reduce the time
the helicopter was on the ground.
“When the helicopter was taking of, that’s when it really
hit me … everything we had gone through,” he said. His total
time in the country was seven days. Yet, more than two years
would pass before PFC Hutchinson would really process what
had occurred.
Back in the U.S., PFC Hutchinson didn’t want to think
about what had happened.
“I pushed my emotions down, lived day to day, and
just didn’t want to deal with what I had been through,” he
explained. “I closed down emotionally, but eventually it
caught up to me. I started to ask the questions: Why did we
survive? Why me?”
He came to the conclusion the only answer was a combi-
nation of superior training before deployment and luck, and
he decided it was time to renew connections with friends and
family. His Alive Day had changed him.
“Before the event happened, I was very outspoken and
always trying to debate everyone. I was very materialistic,
always wanting the best gadget or gun or whatever,” he said.
“But I’ve really changed since then. I don’t have that need to
argue with everyone, and I’ve realized my belongings don’t
make me who I am. What really matters most now is spending
time with my family.”
SGT Hutchinson was awarded a Silver Star Medal for his
actions on May 21, 2008. He was cited for extraordinary cour-
age, loyalty, and selfess service under fre beyond expectation,
and for helping protect the lives of 17 other Soldiers.
Strangely Calm
TSgt Jarrod “Jay” Mills, USAFR
Technical Sergeant Jarrod “Jay” Mills was on the tail end
of his third deployment when he experienced his closest brush
with death. Te Air Force Reservist, who served as an explo-
sive ordnance disposal (EOD) team lead in Afghanistan, was
training his replacement on the Paladin counterinsurgency
task force. As part of the fy-away team, TSgt Mills and his
replacement supported the United Kingdom’s 12th Battalion
Reconnaissance Force. It was the new guy’s frst time outside
the wire as he shadowed TSgt Mills.
“Our mission was pretty simple on paper,” TSgt Mills
explained. “We supported the Brits, and were responsible
for trying to get weapons and arms away from insurgents.
Everything we worked on was actionable intelligence. Tat’s
when it’s important to keep a level head.”
A couple hours afer midnight, on Sept. 21, 2012, TSgt
Mills and his EOD team deployed into an insurgent strong-
hold in the Upper Gereshk Valley to clear a homemade explo-
sive production site. Te site was located on an island in the
middle of the Helmand River. Te team destroyed 50 kilo-
grams of explosives and captured one insurgent before head-
ing back to camp.
“It had been a long day, and we were maneuvering back
to a secure area to take a break, and that’s when we were
ambushed,” he said. “Insurgents were fring machine guns
TSgt Jarrod “Jay” Mills of the 315th Airlift Wing’s Civil Engineering Flight
was awarded the Air Force Combat Action Medal and Bronze Star for his
extraordinary bravery and initiative when he helped evacuate two wounded
British soldiers under gunfre in Afghanistan. The Air Force Reservist is grateful
to be alive, and he is eager to deploy again as an explosive ordnance disposal
team leader. (Photo courtesy of TSgt Jarrod Mills)

from two positions on the lef bank. So, the British recon team
dashed across the river to one of the insurgent fring points,
and then two of them were injured by a grenade.”
TSgt Mills said fve of the 12 friendly forces were lef
on his side of the river, including his team and the British
platoon commander.
“On our side of the river we were securing the area and
trying to prevent the enemy from attacking the injured
guys,” he said. “We kept moving around and got as close as
25 meters [82 feet]. We had no choice but to keep pounding
back with frepower.”
Under direct enemy fre, TSgt Mills led his team across the
open riverbed, as they continued to supply frepower against the
insurgents. Once on the other side, they continued to provide
rear cover fre for the evacuation, as the wounded were being
treated and moved on stretchers to a helicopter landing site.
“Strangely enough, I remained calm the entire time, even
with my adrenaline pumping,” he said. “We had so much train-
ing before deployment, so it was almost as if we knew what to
expect. And I had already been in other frefghts, so it was easy
to methodically respond afer hundreds of hours of training.”
TSgt Mills said the battle lasted longer than an hour.
“We would shoot for a little bit, then reposition, then fre
back,” he explained. “All we were trying to do was protect the
guys so they could get medevac’d out.”
Despite exposure to incoming fre, the EOD team remained
in position and suppressed fring points over a 400-meter
(1,300-foot) stretch of open space inundated with insurgent
small arms fre. In the end, they killed four insurgents and
critically wounded seven others, while two wounded British
soldiers were evacuated.
It wasn’t until later, when TSgt Mills’ and his replacement
had time to catch their breath, that the new guy remarked on
the Reservist’s sense of calm while under fre. And that’s when
they found the 7.62 round in TSgt Mills’ body armor plate.
Remarkably, he had been hit and didn’t notice. Yet, the
ceramic plates had protected the Reservist from the round.
Today TSgt Mills recalls the splitting headache he had when
they arrived safely at the temporary checkpoint. He said he was
too exhausted to really experience any overwhelming feelings.
“We kind of joked around and told ourselves that someday
we’ll share this story with our grandkids,” said TSgt Mills.
Te Reservist would complete one more mission in
Helmand Province before returning to the U.S. By the end of
his tour, he had spent more than 1,650 hours outside the wire
in the execution of counter-IED missions for the U.S. Marine
Corps and another 700 hours in insurgent territory support-
ing the U.K.’s Special Operations Forces.
More than a year has passed since the Helmand frefght,
and he said he is “defnitely lucky” to be alive. But TSgt Mills
doesn’t dwell on his brush with death.
“It’s interesting to put things in perspective,” he explained.
“Sometimes I’ll have a stressful day at my civilian job, and then
I realize the stress I went through under fre in Afghanistan,
and things always seem more manageable.”
A former crew chief with more than 10 years in the Air
Force Reserve, TSgt Mills cross-trained to the EOD feld in
2007. He said he fnds his deployments strengthening and
thinks every mission provides an opportunity to learn and
improve. “Te September frefght is another tool in my tool
bag,” he said. “It adds another layer of experience and skill.”
Today he incorporates his close call into training for others
at his home unit, the 315th Civil Engineer Flight at Joint Base
Charleston, S.C., where he serves as the NCOIC of Intelligence
and EOD Training.
“It’s impossible to accurately simulate situations like that
day,” he said. “But I can share my experiences with other
Reservists on UTA weekends, and hopefully help save other
lives.” In his Reserve role, TSgt Mills is developing an aggres-
sive and evolving curriculum for his unit with an overview
of proper post-blast analysis, forensic evidence recognition,
recovery, and processing.
“While I enjoy training others, I love being an operator,” he
said, referring to his work in Afghanistan. “It’s fulflling and
great to use what you train for. But it’s the training that we did
before deploying that kept my team and me alive. Training is
crucial—leadership and faith in leadership.”
Ironically, TSgt Mills wasn’t on the books to deploy a third
time. He described himself as a “reclama fller” for the Delta
fy-away fight, a Reservist who flled in when an active duty
Airman had to cancel at the last minute. TSgt Mills has volun-
teered for another tour overseas but said the slots were “thin
for Reservists in the AOR” with recent cutbacks and the retro-
grade process in Afghanistan.
I remember feeling the hair
stand up on my neck as we
moved out into the mountain
foothills. We were tingling with
adrenaline, in total refex mode,
and then we were hit.
— SGT David Hutchinson, USAR
20 the Officer / March-april 2014

A Reason for Everything
SPC Olivia Samples, USAR
From the time she was a young child, Specialist Olivia
Samples remembers her grandmother saying, “No matter what
happens in your life, it happens for a reason. No matter if it’s good
or bad, it prepares you for the next obstacle life faces you with.”
Te Army Reservist never really knew what her grand-
mother meant until she faced her Alive Day in Taji, Iraq, on
May 4, 2011. As an automated logistical supply specialist, she
worked night shif near the fight line, moving aircraf parts
and supplies with a team of Soldiers. Te darkness was a wel-
come relief from the intense desert heat—until the mortars
started hitting at 3 a.m.
“It wasn’t unusual to hear mortars at Taji,” said SPC
Samples, recalling the attack. “But this time it was diferent.
Afer the frst boom, we heard another, and then another, and
then another. And then the alarms went of.”
SPC Samples and her fellow Soldiers ran to a clamshell and
took cover on the ground. Te last thing she remembers is her
friend yelling for maintenance workers to get of the aircraf
and take cover as a huge cloud of dust started to settle. Ten
she blacked out.
“Te next thing I remember is standing over my friend,
SPC Seekman,” recalled SPC Samples, referring to a fellow
Reservist. “He was bleeding, and I was trying to cut my shirt
and use it as gauze. My ears were ringing and heart was rac-
ing as all this was happening. Seekman had a bunch of shrap-
nel in his forearm and chest, and some had gone all the way
through his shoulder, and his head was bleeding. But adrena-
line kicked in, and I kept administering frst aid.”
A short time later, another Soldier arrived with a frst aid
kit, and eventually SPC Seekman was medevac’d to Germany.
SPC Samples didn’t realize she was injured until she went to
the troop medical center and was given a change of clothes.
She found two chunks of shrapnel sticking out of her skin, one
in the lower right leg and one in her lef thigh.
“I guess in situations like this, your adrenaline is rushing
so much, and you just don’t feel anything except the need to
help your fellow Soldiers,” she said. “I had no clue I was hurt.”
Prior to the May 4 attack, SPC Samples had kept a jour-
nal. She said writing was a way for her to process her thoughts,
vent her emotions, and move on. She would write, process, and
delete. Afer the attack, she was required to write several sworn
statements containing every detail of the incident. As she wrote,
she relived the attack over and over again. She also began expe-
riencing vertigo, a dizziness that lef her unsteady on her feet.
Six months later, she fnished her tour and returned to the U.S.
It was then that she realized the prophetic meaning behind
her grandmother’s words. She recalled taking nursing classes
several years prior, even though she didn’t enjoy nursing and
had no interest in the medical feld.
“Clearly, there was a reason I was enduring these classes,”
she said. “I just didn’t see it at the time.”
A day doesn’t go by that SPC Samples doesn’t think of the
attack and her brush with death. Her body has also taken a
toll, with a painful diagnosis of multiple sclerosis.
“Tey think my MS was triggered by the trauma I endured
during the attack,” said the 23-year-old. “I had my frst symp-
toms six days afer we were hit.”
Today, multiple MRIs show lesions in her brain and spine,
and SPC Samples battles chronic pain from her head down
to her lower spine. She also still fghts vertigo and remains
unbalanced, describing herself as “not very coordinated.”
She can’t work a regular job because of the medical
appointments and chronic pain, but she has cared for three
foster children since coming back from her deployment. SPC
Samples and her husband hope to adopt a young child in the
future or foster more children.
Tere are days when she endures excruciating pain and
wants to blame the Army, but more ofen than not, SPC
Samples fnds comfort in her grandma’s wisdom.
“I’m grateful to be alive, but I really wanted to be a lifer [in
the Army],” she said. “I joined when I was only 17, and now I’m
limited in my own life. But then I remember, maybe this is the
path God led me down—to instinctually help. Tere’s a reason I
took those nursing classes, and there’s a reason I am here today.
… I know there’s a calling for me. It’s all part of the journey.”
Ann Peru Knabe is a communications professor, freelance jour-
nalist, and public relations consultant with more than 27 years
of service in the Air Force Reserve. She is based in Wisconsin.
SPC Olivia Samples, an Army Reservist, survived an attack on May 4, 2011,
while serving in Taji, Iraq. (Photo courtesy of SPC Olivia Samples)

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