Howdy y’all and buckle up for this week’s News 6 update!

Army Corps of Engineers is Feeling Feline in 2023

The Army Corps of Engineers located in Portland Oregon are getting hairy with their 2023 calendar!

Each month’s shows a Godzilla size cat hanging out on pieces of the Corps infrastructure projects. Funny and catchy captions also adorn the dam’s bridges and buildings under the siege of these King Kong hairballs. 

Public Affairs specialist has said that this’ pet project’ of his had been a dream for three years and has finally come to life in a big way.

“Engineering is not that exciting,” Gaylord said. “I hope people realize … wrapped up in the loving embrace of this calendar is the reminder that we don’t take people’s attention for granted. We have things to say and messages to communicate, but we’re always going to strive to do that in a way that feels enjoyable and not bland and boring.”

What’s next for the engineers? We might be seeing canines added to the mix in next year’s calendar. That could be a real….catastrophe. 

Way to appeal to the masses, engineers! Who doesn’t like infrastructure and oversized cats?

You can find and nab your own calendar at USACE.com and can learn more at militarytimes.com

JROTC Cadet Honored for Heroism 

A JROTC cadet from the Military Academy of Philadelphia was honored for heroic actions during a shooting in August.

Cadet 2nd Lt. Kaheem Bailey-Taylor was leaving his cousins birthday party in Philadelphia when he heard shots ring out. Instead of running away from danger he turned back. He ran back into the house and found four people shot, three were relatives and another was a fellow cadet and classmate.

Bailey- Taylor told army.com “Everybody calls me crazy for going back, but I don’t know what it was. Something in me told me that I had to go and get them,

“I ran in there, started assessing, started doing triaging, and I felt as though one of the people that I saved had the most injuries that could be fatal,”

He focused on his classmate who had life threatening injuries and compressed the wound with his hoodie.

His quick actions saved his classmate’s life. He is back in school and on track to graduate this spring.

Bailey-Taylor was awarded the medal of heroism, which is the highest honor a cadet can receive.

“It’s the highest award given in JROTC,” said Commandant LTC Russell Gallagher, the Philadelphia Military Academy instructor who nominated Bailey-Taylor for the honor, according to 6abc Action News. 

“Even if he had not earned this medal,” Gallagher said of the teen, “he would still be a rare student.” 

You have the making of a great leader and an asset to the U.S army, cadet! We can’t wait to see where the future takes you. Now on to graduation!

Learn more at army.mil

 New Air Force Helicopter Makes its Debut with a Save

The brand new HH-60W Jolly Green II saved two foreign soldiers off the Horn of Africa in December. 

The helicopter, which had only been deemed combat ready for two months, safely removed the two injured soldiers from harm’s way without incident and with great precision. 

“Pararescuemen performed their own stabilizing emergency medical care in the aircraft’s cabin,” the Air Force said:

“While personnel may be behind enemy lines, or far from needed support, this team is equipped to travel great distances and fight their way in and out if necessary to make the mission happen,” Personnel Recovery Task Force commander Lt. Col. Thaddeus Ronnau said in the release.

“Even in the vast expanses of Africa, this combined team was able to pull a critical patient from the battlefield with the Air Force’s newest rescue vehicle and place them in the hands of skilled trauma surgeons, ultimately saving two lives,” 

The crew is deployed to Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, Africa out of Moody, AFB in Georgia, USA.

The Jolly Green II is named after a combat helicopter used in Vietnam. We know its predecessor would be proud!

Find out more at militarytimes.com 

Today in History:

The first bridge to tower over the Mississippi River opened on January 23 in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1855. 

Called the Father Louis Hennepin Bridge in honor of a 17th century explorer who discovered the area, it was originally a toll bridge. Nowadays travelers can drive over hassle free with no cash to give or riddles to answer.

To be honest I found no answers to my question of what kind of tolls men were  running this bridge but I’m gonna go with trolls. Happy birthday to the Hennepin Bridge! You not only stand as a way to get from one side to another but as a beacon for American ingenuity and progress.

Watch out for the Corps of Engineers, though. They might give you a giant feline to start back up the toll business.

Find out more at history.com

*That’s it for me! I’m Emma Tighe with News 6, where information empowers.