Photo By Thomas Cieslak | Maj. Jeffrey Searl, left, the executive officer of the 503rd Military Police Battalion...... read more read more
FORT BRAGG, N.C. - The dream of a young man came true one sunny afternoon thanks to the Military Police of Fort Bragg, N.C.
Paratroopers of the 503rd Military Police Battalion (Airborne), 16th Military Police Brigade partnered with the Make a Wish Foundation to give Ryan Beaulieu a taste of Military Police life.
The Military Policemen, inspired by his courage and his eagerness to learn, were eager to meet a boy like Beaulieu.
“Anytime you get to make a less fortunate child’s dream come true, I’m very honored,” said Staff Sergeant Franklin Moore, a native of Mayodan, North Carolina. Moore is the 503rd Military Police Brigade (Airborne)’s Noncommissioned Officer of the Year for 2009 and was Beaulieu and his Family’s escort while they were visiting the brigade.
Soon after arriving, Beaulieu found himself in the driver’s seat of a Garrison Patrol Vehicle, operating the vehicle’s sirens, lights and loudspeaker. Moore, a Military Police Investigator, helped Beaulieu work the features on the vehicle while explaining how he and other Soldiers keep Families on Fort Bragg safe.
A four legged member of the brigade was next to meet Beaulieu.
A Military Working Dog and his handler demonstrated how, as a team, they find narcotics and apprehend suspects. Sfc. James Bockelmann, the Noncommissioned Officer in Charge of Military Working Dogs at Fort Bragg, helped Beaulieu understand how a Military Working Dog and a handler work together and make use of each other’s special skills. He presented Beaulieu with a set of trading cards featuring Military Working Dogs and Military Police equipment.
“It feels good to do it,” said Sgt. Kevin Miller, a squad leader with the 65th Military Police Company and a native of Kalispell, Montana. Miller and a team of Military Policemen gave Beaulieu and his mother a ride in an Armored Security Vehicle after briefing them on the vehicle’s capabilities.
Moore then escorted Beaulieu to the 16th Military Police Brigade memorial, located outside the brigade’s headquarters building. Moore described to him the bravery and valor many of the fallen Service members whose names are engraved on the memorial.
In a ceremony conducted in the 503rd Military Police Battalion (Airborne)’s “Hall of Heroes,” Beaulieu was made an honorary member of the battalion by Maj. Jeffrey Searl, the unit’s executive officer. Searl, a native of a native of Mukwonago, Wisconsin, then presented Beaulieu with a battalion shirt and other items to help him display pride in the Military Police.
Prior to his experience with the Military Police, Beaulieu was treated to a day on Fort Bragg by the XVIII Airborne Corps. He had the opportunity to see helicopters up close and even met the XVIII Airborne Corps Commander, Lt. Gen. Frank Helmick.
A young man with the Make A Wish Foundation left the 503rd Military Police Battalion (Airborne) an honorary member of the nation’s only airborne Military Police battalion. That sunny Thursday afternoon, a young man’s wish to see Soldiers and military equipment and the dream of Military Policemen to be heroes both came true.
| Date Taken: | 09.17.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 09.27.2010 05:44 |
| Story ID: | 57044 |
| Location: | FORT BRAGG, NC, US |
| Web Views: | 349 |
| Downloads: | 3 |
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