PROMOTIONS

PROMOTIONS
Petty Officer 3rd class
Navy Petty Officer 3rd class Erik B. Adams, son of Kim A. Buckley and Jeff H. Adams of Greenville, Pa., was promoted to his current rank while serving with Mobile Mine Assembly Group Unit 15, Naval Air Station, Kingsville, Texas. Adams is a 2001 graduate of Greenville, Pa., High School.
First lieutenant
Air Force 1st Lt. Aaron S. Hager was promoted to his present rank, and decorated with the Air Force Commendation Medal while serving as a fabrication flight commander with the 22nd Maintenance Squadron, McConnell Air Force Base, Kan.
Hager, the son of Marilyn L. Hager of Sharon, Pa., is a 1993 graduate of Sharon High School and a 2001 graduate of Emery-Riddle University through the military extension program in Anchorage, Alaska. His wife, Stephanie, is the daughter of Ton and Bobbie Cannon of Cabot, Ark.
Lieutenant colonel
Air Force Lt. Col. Walt Ruman, son of Walt and Sophie Ruman of Niles, was promoted to his present rank while serving as deputy director reserve advisor to the Personnel Center at Randolph Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas. Ruman is a 1975 graduate of John F. Kennedy High School in Warren. He and his wife, the former Deborah O'Brien of Warren, have two daughters and live in San Antonio.
Senior Master Sergeant
Air Force Reserve Senior Master Sgt. Gary S. Yonchak was promoted to his current rank while serving as Chief of Personnel Readiness for the 910th Airlift Wing at Youngstown Air Reserve Base, Vienna. Yonchak is one of 39 personnel readiness technicians at the 910th, whose duties are the management of all deployed 910th personnel. He has been affiliated with the 910th since 1977, having served overseas and in the United States.
Yonchak is the son of Toni Yonchak of Louisville, Ga., and the late Stephen Yonchak. He and his wife, Katherine, live in Masury, and have a son, Michael, of Lisbon.
HONORS
Top Field Grade Officer
Air Force Lt. Col. Carl E. Workman Jr. was named Field Grade Officer of the Year for the 68th Electronic Warfare Squadron at Eglin Air Force Base, Valparaiso, Fla. Workman, an assistant director of operations, is the son of Carl and Marian Workman of Lowellville. He received a bachelor's degree in 1978 from the Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo.
DEPLOYED
Sent to Kyrgyzstan
Air Force Staff Sgt. Jason O. Plumb has been assigned to a base in Kyrgyzstan in central Asia to support Operation Enduring Freedom. Plumb, a fuels craftsman, is the son of Kenneth O. and stepson of Peggy Plumb of Akron. His mother and stepfather, Loretta and Tom Fultz, live in Youngstown. He is a 1999 graduate of Akron Manchester High School.
Working in Iraq
Army National Guard Sgt. Adele M. (DiVencenzo) Garcia, a 1999 graduate of Cardinal Mooney High School, Youngstown, has been deployed to Iraq. She is a motor transport operator in the 1462nd Transportation Company out of Howell, Mich. She is the daughter of Nick and Carolyn DiVencenzo of Youngstown. Her husband, Milo Garcia, and their three-year-old daughter, Alesandra, live in Michigan.
USS George Washington
Navy Seaman Allicia A. Price, daughter of Julia L. Price of New Castle, Pa., was recently deployed aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington as part of the U.S. War on Terrorism.
ADVANCED TRAINING
Hospital Corps School
Navy Hospitalman Angela M. LaPresta, granddaughter of Melba C. Ohl of Mineral Ridge, graduated from the 14-week Basic Hospital Corps School at Naval Hospital Corps School, Great Lakes, Ill. LaPresta is a 2003 graduate of Mineral Ridge High School.
BASIC GRADS
Air Force: Airman 1st Class Michael J. Dunn II (McKinley High School, Niles, '03), son of Mike and Monica Dunn of Niles; Reserve Airman 1st Class Ryan W. Simones (Warren Christian High School, '02), son of Gary Simones of Lordstown.
Navy: Seaman Recruit Christopher B. Barron (Reynoldsburg, Ohio, High School, '02), son of Valire Fleetion of Reynoldsburg, and Bertie B. Barron of Youngstown; Seaman Recruit Jacob L. Less, son of Susan J. and Gerald A. Less of Leetonia; Airman Apprentice Ryan P. Mitchell (Lakeside High School, Ashtabula, '03), son of Judy A. Ecklund of Ashtabula, and Kevin Mitchell of Andover.
Marine Corps: Pvt. Lee C. Shane, of Vero Beach, Fla., formerly of Boardman, son of Denise Peloza of Vero Beach, and grandson of Dickson and Ellen Peloza of Enon Valley, Pa. He is undergoing advanced infantry training at Camp Geiger, N.C.
AIR FORCE ACADEMY
Cadet exchange program
Air Force Academy Cadet Craig H. Neuman II participated in the cadet exchange program by serving the fall semester at the Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. The Military Academy accepts nine Air Force junior class cadets for the program each year. While at West Point, Neuman was a member of AFA's Sandhurst Ranger Challenge Team and the Military Academy's Cadet Mountaineering Team. Neuman, back at the AFA majoring in aeronautical engineering, has earned the Superintendents Honor Pin for excellence in academics, military science and fitness each semester since he has been at the academy.
Neuman was the 2001 Liberty High School valedictorian and is the son of Sheryl and Craig Neuman of Liberty.
XItems of note for the Military Roundup can be sent to The Vindicator, Regional Desk, P.O. Box 780, Youngstown 44501-0780, or e-mailed to alcorn@vindy.com.