Outpost Outspoken

Host Mark Schauer talks with Combat Automotive test officer Jade Janis about the importance of testing military vehicles in a natural environment. Plus, Schauer chats with program analyst Minda Federmeyer about serving as a suicide prevention specialist as a collateral duty.

Host Mark Schauer chats with YPG welder Andy Pinkerton about supporting the post's developmental test mission for two decades. Plus, Host Ana Henderson talks with YPG firefighter/paramedic Barry Wise about his advocacy on behalf of mental health.

Host Mark Schauer talks with YPG Data Processing Branch Chief Ashley Thompson about using technology for efficiency gains in delivering test data to the Army. Also, Schauer discusses the post's experience with money-saving Intergovernmental Support Agreements with Plans, Analysis & Integration Office Chief Ben Rix.

Host Mark Schauer interviews Range Planning Branch Chief Tim Szymanski about planning the safe operation of numerous inherently dangerous developmental test activities. Also, Host Ana Henderson talks with Family Advocacy Program Manager Mariah Boykin on Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Range Planning Branch Chief Tim Szymanski about coordinating the safe operations of numerous inherently dangerous developmental test activities. Also, Host Ana Henderson discusses Domestic Violence Awareness Month with Family Advocacy Program Manager Mariah Boykin.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Senior Artillery Test Leader Ernest Ballard about his more than three decades of experience in developmental testing. Schauer also chats with Combat and Automotive Systems Test Officer Jose Jaramillo about testing tanks for warfighters.

Host Ana Henderson talks with Joel Ramirez, executive assistant to Yuma Proving Ground’s Command Group, about what led him to YPG and his extensive charitable work. Also, Henderson interviews YPG Police Officer Austin Howard about serving the community he grew up in and why community outreach is important to the YPG Police.

Host Ana Henderson talks with Gilbert Moreno, Senior Test Engineer at U.S. Army Tropic Regions Test Center, about testing equipment in extreme tropical environments. Plus, Henderson chats with Sgt. Bryant Hernandez of the YPG Health Clinic about the scores of volunteer hours he has devoted to supporting the post chapel and the Army Substance Abuse Program.

On the season six premiere of Outpost Outspoken, host Mark Schauer talks with Rick Ramirez, a team lead in YPG’s Maintenance Test Branch who was recently recognized by the Yuma Police Department for helping a police officer being assaulted by a suspect. Plus, Schauer chats with YPG Firefighter Raul Carlos about his extensive community involvement.

On the season five finale of Outpost Outspoken, host Mark Schauer talks with James Branch, former commander of the Military Freefall School at YPG who is now the Senior Army Instructor for Yuma County’s first Army Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps program. Plus, Schauer talks with Sgt. Jason Yang and Pfc. Hardi Patel of the YPG Health Clinic, who as a collateral duty serve as the president and vice president of YPG’s Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers program.

Season six of Outpost Outspoken begins August 12, 2024.

Host Ana Henderson talks with Yuma Test Center Commander Lt. Col. Shane Dering about his Army career and two years in command.

Host Ana Henderson talks with Aviation Test Officer Gene Walters about his nearly 40 years of service at the proving ground on behalf of the warfighter. Plus, Host Mark Schauer chats with Executive Service Officer Jim Stickney about his collateral duty coordinating the post's participation in the annual Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Tyler Beach of YPG's Threat Systems Target Branch about working on the largest single repository of foreign threat systems in the continental United States. Also, Schauer interviews YPG Plans Division Chief Stefanie Jacobs about deploying to Afghanistan for nine months as a Department of the Army civilian in 2012.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Chief Data Officer Richard Hernandez about utilizing technology to make YPG's chief product even more efficient. Also, Host Ana Henderson interviews Firefighter Heather Banda about her community involvement on and off duty.

Host James Gilbert interviews Department of Public Works Director Luke Bailey about the complexity of YPG's facilities and infrastructure. Also, Host Ana Henderson talks with Army Substance Abuse Program Manager Scott Zaehler about the Army's Employee Assistance Program.

Host James Gilbert talks with Fleet Manager Adam Wood about telematics that are revolutionizing the management of the post’s large support vehicle fleet. Plus, Host Ana Henderson chats with Child and Youth Service Coordinator Sommer Cloinger about Month of the Military Child and the post's youth services.

Host Mark Schauer interviews Occupational Health and Safety Specialist Scott Fenstermacher about Yuma Proving Ground's 'Zero Mils to Safety' initiative. Plus, Host Ana Henderson talks with Army Community Services Director Clarissa Benavides about National Child Abuse Prevention Month.

From the frozen ranges of Cold Regions Test Center (CRTC), Host Mark Schauer talks with Kevin Cummings, a forestry major from Massachusetts whose career at CRTC began by happenstance. Plus, Schauer chats with Hannah Henry, a Delta Junction, Alaska native who didn't know of CRTC's existence prior to working there. Also, Schauer talks with assistant test officer Danielle Schmidt, a Wisconsin native who learned of CRTC from her roommate.

From the frozen ranges of Cold Regions Test Center (CRTC), Host Mark Schauer talks with Steven Prewitt, a Marine Corps veteran and current National Guard NCO working as a test officer at CRTC after years of testing experience in the Marine Corps. Plus, Schauer chats with Expeditor Gene Eggleston, a Vietnam veteran and career Alaska Department of Transportation foreman about his active retirement years supporting CRTC's test mission.

On this volunteer episode, Host Mark Schauer talks with YPG Plans and Operations Director Jeff Tatar, who has devoted countless volunteer hours in the Yuma community over the past three decades. Plus, Host Ana Henderson chats with Adam Ghannoum, a general engineer with YPG's Public Works Directorate who volunteers with the Yuma County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue Unit.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Electronic Warfare Team Lead Yogendra Shrestha about the branch’s extraordinarily specialized test mission. Plus, Host Ana Henderson discusses Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month with Army Community Services Director Clarissa Benavides.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Robert Valencia, a heavy equipment mechanic and crane operator who supports the test mission in remote locations across Yuma Proving Ground's vast ranges. Plus, Host Ana Henderson chats with Tammy Ramos of YPG's Education Center about the services the center provides soldiers.

On the season five debut of Outpost Outspoken, host Mark Schauer talks with YPG Chief of Staff Minerva Peters about the Employee Modernization Effort for Relevant Growth and Enrichment (EMERGE) program preparing the workforce for the future test mission. Plus, host Ana Henderson talks with YPG STEM Outreach Manager Janett Rios about the Gains in the Education of Mathematics and Science (GEMS) summer program for sixth through eighth grade students.

On the season four finale of Outpost Outspoken, host James Gilbert talks with Randy Ehrlich, supervisor of YPG’s Threat Systems Target Simulations Shop, about the important role targets play testing munitions, artillery, and aircraft. Plus, host Ana Henderson talks with Reba Maxwell, manager of YPG's post commissary, on the store earning the title of second-best small commissary with the Defense Commissary Agency’s Richard M. Paget award.

Season five of Outpost Outspoken will begin on January 8, 2024.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Metrology and Simulation Division Chief Brad Cox about his journey from the Marine Corps to Yuma Proving Ground. Plus, Schauer talks with Test Support Branch Chief Nickolas McColl about his service to the community beyond thousands of specialized weather forecasts.

Host Ana Henderson talks with Munitions and Weapons test engineer Mariela Cockburn Ojeda about her road to a rewarding career supporting warfighters. Plus, host James Gilbert chats with Sgt. Dennis Suggs, Religious Affairs Non-Comissioned Officer at the YPG Chapel, about his 14-year semi-professional football career.

Host James Gilbert talks with YPG Fire Department Chief Gerald Ball and Deputy Chief Matthew Kelly about the recently-inked mutual aid agreement with the Martinez Lake Fire District . Plus, Gilbert chats with YPG Chaplain Capt. Ryan Pearse about the recent renovations at the YPG Chapel.

Host James Gilbert talks with geodetic technician Darin Meeks about the importance of accurate geodetic measurement in accomplishing the proving ground's test mission. Also, host Ana Henderson talks with Military Freefall School Sgt. Maj. Matthew Krueger about the school's use of YPG’s vast ranges to train thousands of the military’s most elite paratroopers.

Host Ana Henderson talks with Program Analyst and Engineering Support Branch Team Lead Jose Rodriguez about YPG's summer intern program. Plus, host James hilbert chats with Kylie Kime, a participant in the Army Fellows Program at YPG.

On this special edition of Outpost Outspoken, host Mark Schauer reports from YPG's sister installation Dugway Proving Ground (DPG) as NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft returns soil samples from the asteroid Bennu after a seven-year journey. Hear DPG commander Col. James Harwell, OSIRIS-REx mission leader Dr. Dante Lauretta, and DPG program manager Damon Nicholson on the role the Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC) played in this historic space mission.

Not every child who plays with Legos and building sets becomes an engineer, but that was the case for Quentin Sorenson: Host Ana Henderson talks with the YPG Munitions and Weapons test officer who turned his hobby into a career. Plus, Host Mark Schauer talks with YPG pilot Scott Myers, who in his spare times volunteers extensively in the Yuma squadron of the Civil Air Patrol and teaches science classes at a community college.

Host Ana Henderson speaks with Army Reserve Officer Training Corps cadets Maddy Hippensteal and Lauren Hernandez about how their three weeks at U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground gave them great confidence in the equipment the Army provides. Plus, Host Mark Schauer chats with Deric Millis, a second generation YPG employee whose hobby is teaching sales techniques.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Steve Taylor of YPG’s Engineering Support Branch about the Electro-Optical Lab’s maintenance, repair, and design of a variety of test support equipment. Plus, host James Gilbert chats with mission Antiterrorism Officer Robert Barocio about Army Antiterrorism Month.

On the season four debut of Outpost Outspoken, host Mark Schauer talks with Command Sgt. Maj. Bryan Otero of the Army Test and Evaluation Command about the command’s efforts on behalf of Army transformation to face the future threat. Plus, host Ana Henderson chats with engineer Maria Hernandez and project manager Janett Rios about YPG’s support of the Army’s eCYBERMISSION STEM competition for middle school students.

On the season three finale of "Outpost Outspoken," host Mark Schauer talks with Cold Regions Test Center Commander Lt. Col. Jonathan Brown about his post's vital importance to Army transformation efforts. Also, Schauer talks with YPG Protocol Officer Jim Stickney about the unprecedented visibility the proving ground has had from high-level visitors in the past five years.

Season four of "Outpost Outspoken" will begin on August 7, 2023.

Host Ana Henderson talks about U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground's expertise in non-destructive testing with Radiographer Lindsey Carter. Also, Henderson speaks with YPG Archaeologist Jane Poss about the post's stewardship of ancient sites of great cultural significance.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Artillery Tester Lead Thomas Brown about the complexity of being a weapons operator at Yuma Proving Ground. Also, Schauer chats with Fire Inspector Bradford Henderson about his full recovery from a harrowing illness thanks to a little help from his fellow firefighters.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Logistics Manager Jonna Pittman about the support that keeps YPG’s test mission moving. Plus, Host Ana Henderson chats with Munitions and Weapons Test Officer Erik Alcala, whose hobby of making stop-motion movies with his young son led him to create his own YouTube channel.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Lead Engineering Technician Hector Vergara about the YPG Systems Test Branch’s reasonability for the firing, maintenance, and repair of everything from 9mm small arms to 120 mm cannons. Plus, Host Ana Henderson interviews new YPG Deputy Garrison Manager Dan Carter, who brings nearly two decades of experience to the position.

Outpost Outspoken Special: Host Ana Henderson talks in-depth with Ben Wallace, YPG Ammunition Recovery Section supervisor, about his section’s critical role in the safe testing of munitions.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Munitions and Weapons Division Test Officer Jonny Clark about his road from agricultural engineering student to two decades of testing complex radar systems and munitions for the Army. Plus, Schauer talks with Equipment Specialist Eddie Pierson, who spent more than a decade supervising the post's motor pool while coaching his daughter's fastpitch softball teams in his spare time.

Host Ana Henderson interviews Combined Maintenance Branch Chief Jaysen Lockett about his more than 30 years of service in various roles at the proving ground. Plus, Host Mark Schauer chats with Optics Group Manager Chris Eliasen about his longstanding hobby serving as a stock car racing pit crew member.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Combat Systems Branch Chief Marco Nixen about the importance of testing military vehicles in a natural environment. Plus, Host Ana Henderson chats with Durred Francher, YPG Explosive Safety Manager, about how his hobby of sewing opened up a world of opportunities.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Combat Automotive Systems Division Team Lead Erick Hurtado about his decade of testing the Army’s most cutting-edge vehicles, and how his example inspired others in his family to also serve the Warfighter. Plus, Schauer chats with Munitions and Weapons Division Test Officer Kevin Irr about his service as president of the Yuma Community Theater’s Board of Directors in his spare time.

Host Ana Henderson talks with engineers Daniela and Maria Villegas, sisters who grew up in Yuma County, Arizona and obtained the entirety of their engineering educations locally prior to working in YPG’s Instrumentation Division. Plus, Host Mark Schauer chats with YPG Airfield Operations Manager Jim Walk about the cross-country bicycle trip he made in his youth.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Jason Swain, Chief of YPG’s Instrumentation Division, about the staggering array of high tech equipment used to record, quantify, and verify performance of the Army’s most cutting edge weapons systems. Plus, Schauer chats with YPG Police Chief Donnie Lucas about the importance of community policing and his time working a security detail for Generals Colin Powell and Norman Schwarzkopf in the early 1990s.

Host Ana Henderson chats with Jonathan Olbert, who served in the U.S. Army, then pulled double duty as an Army reservist while working at YPG. Hear about his time in the Army rebuilding warzones and how it ties into what he does now for YPG's Technology and Investments Directorate. Plus, Henderson talks with Chaplain (Capt.) Ryan Pearse on what YPG's chapel offers for the community-- and how you can get involved.

On the first episode of season three, Host Ana Henderson talks with aviation test officer Charlie Saltz about how her experience as a Navy veteran influences her work on behalf of the warfighter. Plus, Host Mark Schauer visits with Jose Dorame, an award-winning artist who teaches art at YPG's Price Elementary School.

On the season two finale of Outpost Outspoken, host Mark Schauer talks with David Bates, Cross Functional Team Integrator, about YPG’s position at the forefront of Army transformation efforts. Plus, host Ana Henderson chats with IT Specialist Richard Gillmor about his recently-published first novel. Season three of Outpost Outspoken will debut on January 9, 2023.

From the rugged ranges of U.S. Army Cold Regions Test Center, host Mark Schauer talks with Allied Trades Lead Sam Porter about the shop’s vital role in keeping the cold weather test mission running and his longtime personal association with local motorsports. Plus, Schauer visits with Vehicle Maintenance Shop Lead David Sutherland, a third-generation Alaskan and farrier renowned for his expertise in big-game hunting. Also, Schauer talks with Meteorologist Dan Wozniczka about the importance of specialized weather data when conducting developmental testing of military equipment.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Sean Franklin of YPG’s Technology and Investments Directorate, who was recently named one of Yuma County, Arizona’s ’20 under 40’ young professionals. Plus, Schauer chats with physical scientist Larry Nelson, a national championship-winning competition shooter and pilot who built his own airplane.

From the punishing jungle of U.S. Army Tropic Regions Test Center (TRTC), host Mark Schauer talks with electronics engineer Julio Villegas about the complexities of information technology during testing in a rugged tropical environment. Plus, Schauer chats with Robert Dunn, one of the test center's newest employees, with a keen appreciation of the facility's lengthy history.

From the rugged ranges of U.S. Army Cold Regions Test Center, host Mark Schauer talks with senior test officer Isaac Howell about how his prior service as an active duty infantry officer informs his evaluations of equipment soldiers use. Plus, Schauer chats with range photographer Sebastian Saarloos, whose photos have earned international exposure.

Host Ana Henderson talks with Airborne Test Force Chief Warrant Officer 3 David Minnis about his elite team’s developmental test mission. Plus, Henderson chats with Yuma Test Center Mission Employee of the Third Quarter Marcus Giddings about the testing that earned him that honor.

From the punishing jungle of U.S. Army Tropic Regions Test Center (TRTC), host Mark Schauer talks with Senior Test Officer Rolando Ayala about more than 30 years of tropical testing on behalf of the United States military and private industry. Plus, Schauer chats with Property Administrator Ivett Gutierrez about her unique career path to TRTC and passion for yoga.

From the rugged ranges of U.S. Army Cold Regions Test Center, Host Mark Schauer interviews Mobility Test Complex Manager Russell Hollembaek about the facility's military and private industry test capabilities. Also, Schauer talks with Security Manager Richard Reiser about the second career that brought him to all three of Yuma Proving Ground's natural environment test centers.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Todd Hudson, Director of Yuma Proving Ground's Technology and Investments Directorate, about YPG's efforts to posture for future testing. Plus, Host Ana Henderson chats with Equipment Specialist Karen Mort about being recognized as Yuma Test Center's Employee of the Quarter.

The season two debut of Outpost Outspoken comes from U.S. Army Tropic Regions Test Center in the heart of the Central American jungle. Hear computer science engineer Luisa Wong on her quarter century specializing in exposure testing of military equipment in extreme tropical environments. Also, civil engineer Carlos Mora on his passion for photography at work and in his personal life.

On the season finale of Outpost Outspoken, host Mark Schauer talks with Isaac Rodriguez, Acting Chief of the Range Operations and Training Division, about his lengthy experience conducting developmental testing on ground combat vehicles. Plus, host Brandon Mejia interviews test engineer Riley Sinek about cutting edge counter-unmanned aircraft technology.

Season two of Outpost Outspoken will begin on August 8, 2022.

Host Mark Schauer visits with John Bacon, weapons maintenance test team lead, about the team’s mission and his service as former commander of Yuma’s Naval Sea Cadet squadron. Plus, host Ana Henderson talks with program analyst Michele Dominguez, who heads YPG’s groundbreaking employee wellness program as a collateral duty.

Host Mark Schauer visits with John Bacon, weapons maintenance test team lead, about the team’s mission and his service as former commander of Yuma’s Naval Sea Cadet squadron. Plus, host Ana Henderson talks with program analyst Michele Dominguez, who heads YPG’s groundbreaking employee wellness program as a collateral duty.

Host Ana Henderson talks with Yuma Test Center Employee of the Year Ashley Lochetto about YPG's artillery testing mission. Plus, Host Brandon Mejia visits with longtime YPG employee Bobbye Williamson, whose father was one of the first eight soldiers trained in military free fall at YPG in 1958.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Hi-Sing Silen of YPG's Air Combat Directorate about starting his testing career in the jungles of Tropic Regions Test Center before relocating to Yuma. Plus, Host Ana Henderson chats with Maiko Black, YPG Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Marketing Director, about the high quality of life enjoyed by post residents.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Luis Arroyo, chief of the Training and Exercise Management Office, about how supporting military training activities enhances YPG's testing capabilities. Plus, host Ana Henderson chats with Garrison Safety Director Ron Van Why about his passion for restoring and showing antique vehicles.

Host Mark Schauer visits with Armaments Branch Chief Wayne Schilders about the complexity of being a weapons operator at Yuma Proving Ground. Also, Schauer talks with Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Business Manager Mindy Cordova, who has trained hundreds of local and regional lifeguards in her spare time.

Host Ana Henderson chats with Combat Automotive Team Lead Rob Fillinger about his journey from Motown to Y-Town during the Great Recession of 2008. Plus, host Mark Schauer visits with Ryan Ingham, electronic technician for YPG's meteorology team, about his intense passion for endurance running.

Host Ana Henderson visits with Workforce Development and STEM Outreach Manager Paula Rickleff about her experience as Yuma County's first female West Point appointee and her Army career. Plus, Henderson chats with YPG Firefighter William Session on his extensive charity work. Also, Host Mark Schauer talks with Chaplain (Maj.) Jeffrey Crispin on hearing two callings and the YPG Chapel's importance to community life.

Host Mark Schauer talks with U.S. Army Tropic Regions Test Center Director Ernie Hugh about the importance of testing military equipment in rugged jungle environments. Schauer also visits with James Schremp of YPG's aircraft armament section about his passion for teaching the art of blacksmithing.

Host Ana Henderson talks with YPG Munitions and Weapons Branch Chief Kermit Okamura on how his branch's daily operations supports soldiers. Plus, host Mark Schauer visits with Contract Specialist Erik Reta about his lifelong pursuit of artistic excellence.

Host Mark Schauer talks about the science of geodesy with Ruben Hernandez of YPG's Engineering Support Branch. Schauer also visits with YPG Heritage Center Curator Bill Heidner about the post museum's future.

Host Mark Schauer talks with Yuma Proving Ground Metrology Branch Chief Savanna Silva about the importance of accurate measurement to the post's test mission and her devotion to inspiring the next generation of engineers. Schauer also visits with wildlife biologist Daniel Steward about Yuma Proving Ground's rich ecological diversity.

In this episode, host Mark Schauer talks with Jacob Obradovich, Next Generation Combat Vehicle Cross Functional Team Integrator, about vehicle testing at U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground; and Ron Rodriguez, Chief of the Directorate of Operations, about his long-time enthusiasm for kendo, a martial art known as the "way of the sword."

Host Mark Schauer talks with the YPG Range Operations and Training Division Chief Omar Silva about how merging the range planning, range control and the Test and Exercise Management Office helped make support of Project Convergence (PC) more efficient. Silva also shares what kept him in the Yuma community.

Plus, host Ana Henderson talks with YPG Lead Meteorologist Mark Hendrickson about the role YPG’s Meteorology Team serves during Yuma’s annual Colorado River Crossing Balloon Festival. Hendrickson also talks about why meteorology information is vital for testing accuracy.

Outpost Outspoken is the official podcast of U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground, which conducts natural environment testing of military equipment in Arizona, Alaska, and the tropics.

In this episode:

* U.S. Army Cold Regions Test Center Technical Director Jeff Lipscomb discusses cold weather evaluations of the equipment troops rely on.

* Antiterrorism Officer Alfonzo Brown talks about the importance of vigilance in preventing terrorist attacks.

* Contracting Officer Representative Keith Ware on serving on his appointment to a local school board and his family's legacy of service.