New Mexico native, Fort Bragg sergeant, serves as battle NCO for deployed Army air defense unit

Photo By Master Sgt. Jenifer Calhoun | U.S. Army Sgt. Marsha A. Millikin, battle non-commissioned officer for the 1st Battalion, 7th Air Defense Artillery, stands in a formation during her unit's NCO Induction Ceremony, March 29, at a non-disclosed base in Southwest Asia. Millikin is deployed from the 1-7 ADA at Fort Bragg, N.C., and her hometown is Bloomfield, N.M. The 1-7 ADA is part of the 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade and the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command. The battalion displays 35 battle streamers ranging from the North African desert and the plains of Europe during World War II, the frozen battlefields of Korea, the jungles and highlands of Vietnam, the deserts of Southwest Asia during Operation Desert Storm to more recently with support for operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom.  

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06.03.2010

Story by Senior Airman Jenifer Calhoun 

1st Battalion, 7th Air Defense Artillery

SOUTHWEST ASIA -- A four-year veteran of the U.S. Army, Sgt. Marsha Millikin said she knows that when she's deployed it's all about doing your best.

"Deploying is what the Army is made to do," said Millikin, who serves as a battle noncommissioned officer with the 1st Battalion, 7th Air Defense Artillery at a non-disclosed base in Southwest Asia. "We train to be ready to deploy and once we deploy, it's applying that training to the mission."

In doing her deployed job, Milliken supports the Patriot Missile System air defense capabilities for her deployed base that includes billions of dollars in deployed assets and more than 1,900 people. The NCO described her deployed duties.

"One aspect is I control all status reports that the Patriot missile battery personnel turn in and I condense them and forward to higher headquarters," Millikin said.

The deployed Soldier said she also knows the importance of her job to her unit and the overall mission.

"My career field has taught me the management of stress, the process in which reports are to be tracked in the Patriot system, and to track missiles effectively so we can see what type of missile it is and the speed and direction it is heading," she said. "In the tactical operations center, where I work, we do everything the same way but we send the reports to a higher branch."

In joining the Army and the military more than four years ago out of her hometown of Bloomfield, N.M., Millikin said it's been something that has only benefitted her greatly.

"It's a job like no other," she said. "I joined the military because I felt like after high school my physical appearance went down the drain, plus serving others is what I loved. I joined and lost 50 pounds. I love the Army."

As an additional duty, Millikin serves as a deployed unit public affairs representative for her fellow Soldiers. It's a job, she said, that pays big dividends in improving morale.

"I also handle [unit] public affairs requests to support things like promotions, awards and other ceremonies," Millikin said. "As an extra duty, I handle morale, welfare and recreation trips and activities for the entire battalion."

The 1-7 ADA is known as the "No Fear" battalion, according to its official history. The battalion is part of the 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade and the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command. The battalion displays 35 battle streamers ranging from the North African desert and the plains of Europe during World War II, the frozen battlefields of Korea, the jungles and highlands of Vietnam, the deserts of Southwest Asia during Operation Desert Storm to more recently with support for operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom.

• Date Taken: 06.03.2010
• Date Posted: 06.03.2010 05:37
• Story ID: 50763
• Location: (UNDISCLOSED LOCATION)