The Phoenix Team
He was born in a small town in Massachusetts. Raised by a Marine father and a Portuguese immigrant mother. Taught valuable life disciplines and early age. Among those were respect, honor, and courage.
His father trained him to fight like a Marine. Training him to know all the disciplines and strategies needed to survive in this world. His mother taught him how to be a gentleman, to stand tall and to live a life worth writing about.
Of all the things his parents taught him in life, the greatest was learning how to love like Christ. To show compassion. To Sacrifice it all for the sake of another.
He now leads a mission of hope. Reaching into the lives of the men and women who have been willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. As president and founder of Mission Phoenix he is leading the course of action in the endeavor to reverse the number of lives lost due to complications of veteran PTSD.
“Greater Love has no man than this, that he would give up his life for his friend.” For those who have been willing to give so much, we should be willing to give more.
Semper Orentiem – Always Rising.
Josh Gagnier |
President
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Rob Rathbun |
Vice Chair
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Raymond R. Rathbun (Rob)
Much of who I am finds its roots in my upbringing. I was raised in a Christian home in a small agricultural community in upstate NY. The core values that were instilled in me are a love of God, Family, and Country. These values are the moral compass that guide me to this day.
Community service was always a big part of my family life. I served as a volunteer Fire Fighter, EMT, and Red Cross Instructor, and I was also very active in my church, working with the youth.
I was 27, married, and had my first of six children when I joined the Army Reserve. Having a child caused me to consider God’s goodness in allowing me to live in a free country and the sacrifice of men and women that fought for my freedom. How could I ask others to do something I was unwilling to do myself? I didn’t want to be a career Soldier but wanted to be willing to fight if needed, and the Army Reserve was the perfect answer to my moral dilemma.
I joined the Army in 2000 and did my Basic Combat Training at FT Knox, KY, and Advanced Individual Training at FT Lenordwood, MO. My duty assignments included the C-368th Engineer Company, 844th Engineer Battalion, 316th Mobile Augmentation Company, and the 1-100th Engineer Instructors Battalion. I did missions in South Korea, Romania, and Guatemala, along with stateside community projects.
I also served two Combat tours with a combined total of two and a half years in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom.
As I worked my way through the ranks, I served as Team Leader, Squad Leader, Counter Mobility Platoon Sargent, Taskforce Battle Staff, and 12-B (Combat Engineer) Instructor.
I retired in 2021 as an E-7 (Sargeant First Class) with 21 years of military service.
I considered it an honor when asked to be a part of Mission Phoenix.
In the last few years, I have lost four Battle Buddies to the silent killer known as PTSD. I was forced to ask myself what the difference between them and me was.
I had hard times in my service; probably the hardest was coming home from combat. The Army has structure and order; Soldiers do what they are supposed to do when they are supposed to do it. You have gone from an environment where people are actively trying to kill you to an environment where people get upset over cold coffee. Every piece of trash on the side of the road causes your heart rate to climb, and every firework or backfiring car causes you to jump. You may appear calm and cool on the outside, but you are raging on the inside, and you often snap at the people that love you the most as a form of venting.
I am so blessed to have a loving, godly wife and church family. Neither of us walked through the adjustment perfectly, but by God’s grace, we walked through it. She, too, had to work through a lot. I was not the only one wrestling, and I was not the only one making a sacrifice. She filled both roles in our home and raising our children alone, watching the news about the war, not hearing from me for months, hoping for the best but preparing for the worst. This trial before us could either tear us apart or draw us closer, but the days of suppressing emotion and feelings needed to be gone. There is a time for every Soldier to get over the “suck it up and drive on” mentality and say, I need help.
That is why I am a part of Mission Phoenix. I don’t have all the answers, but I am willing to walk through this valley with anyone willing to accept help. PTSD is my new battlefield; if you let me, I’ve got your six.
COLONEL RICHARD W. FOGG
Col. Richard W. Fogg is the Director, CJ8, Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan, Headquarters, Resolute Support, Kabul, Afghanistan. He leads a team of 48 joint and coalition military professionals who provide fiscal oversight of the Afghan National Defense Security Forces $15 billion budget over three financial fiscal years as well as the NATO and UN Trust Funds of $2B per year. Commanding oversight of financial services to the Afghan National Police force of 157,000 and the Afghan National Army comprised of 195,000 personnel.
Colonel Fogg enlisted in the Air Force in 1982 and served in the Accounting and Finance career field. He commissioned through the Air Force Officer Training School in 1990, and has served in comptroller positions at all management levels—wing, major command and Air Force headquarters and has commanded at the squadron, group and wing levels and has served as the Military Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, Financial Management.
Colonel Fogg has experience in combat and counterinsurgency operations, including deployments to: Incirlick AB, Turkey and Zakho, Iraq as Paying Agent for the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force; King Faisal AB Jordan as the CJ8 for the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force as well as CJ8 for the Combined Joint Task Force – West in Amman which included forward deployment to Iraq; Camp As Sayliyah, Qatar as the CJ8 for the Combined Forces Special Operations Component Command which included forward deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan and Djibouti; and Kabul, Afghanistan, as the CJ8, NATO Training Mission/Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan.
EDUCATION
1989 Bachelor of Science degree in operations management, Florida State University, Tallahassee
1993 Financial Management Staff Officer Course, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas
1996 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
1999 Professional Military Comptroller School, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2000 Master of Business Administration, Webster University
2004 Master of Military Art and Science, Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kan.
2009 Master of Science in National Security Strategy, National War College, Fort McNair, Washington, D.C.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. March 1983 – September 1990, Accounting and Finance Technician, 325th Combat Support Group, Tyndall AFB, Fla.
2. December 1990 – December 1992, Chief, Computer Based Training, 1550th Combat Crew Training Wing, Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M.
3. January 1993 – December 1994, Chief, Financial Services Flight, Regional Accounting and Finance Office, Incirlik Air Base, Turkey
4. December 1994 – May 1997, Comptroller, 10th Air Base Wing and Budget Director, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo.
5. June 1997 – June 2000, Chief, Command Accounting Policy and Executive Officer to the Comptroller, Headquarters U.S. Air Forces in Europe, Ramstein AB, Germany
6. June 2000 – June 2003, Action Officer and Budget Analyst for Operations and Maintenance Appropriation; and Military Assistant to the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force Financial Management, Office of the Comptroller, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
7. June 2003 – June 2004, Student, Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth Kan.
8. July 2004 – June 2006, Commander, 81st Comptroller Squadron, Keesler AFB, Miss.
9. July 2006 – July 2008, Commander, 3rd Comptroller Squadron, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska
10. July 2008 – June 2009, Student, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington D.C.
11. June 2009 – May 2012, Chief, Budget Division, Headquarters Air Mobility Command, Scott AFB, Ill.
12. June 2012 – July 2014, Vice Commander, 10th Air Base Wing, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo.
13. July 2014 – October 2014, Deputy Comptroller, Headquarters Air Education and Training Command, Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas
14. October 2014 – May 2016, Director, Financial Management and Comptroller, Headquarters Air Education and Training Command, Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas
15. May 2016 – May 2017, Director, Programs and Comptroller, CJ8, NATO Training Mission and Combined Security Transition Command, Kabul, Afghanistan
16. June 2017 – Dec 2017, Special Assistant to the Vice Commander, Headquarters Air Education and Training Command
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. Dec 2002 – June 2003, CJ8 Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force, Combined Forces Special Operations Component Command as a Major
2. April 2007 – September 2007, CJ8 Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force, Combined Forces Special Operations Component Command as a Lieutenant Colonel
3. May 2016 – May 2017, Director Programs and Comptroller, CJ8, NATO Training Mission/Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan as a Colonel
Richard Fogg |
Board Member
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Legion of Merit with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters
Meritorious Service Medal with 6 Oak Leaf Clusters
Joint Service Commendation Medal
Air Force Commendation Medal with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster
Air Force Achievement Medal
Air Force Recognition Ribbon
National Defense Service Medal with bronze service star
Southwest Asia Service Medal with bronze service star
Afghanistan Campaign Medal with bronze service star
Iraq Campaign Medal with bronze service star
Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal with bronze service star
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Humanitarian Service Medal
Nuclear Deterrence Operations Service Medal
NATO Medal – Afghanistan
German Armed Forces Badge for Military Proficiency in Gold
OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS
1993 Distinguished Graduate, Financial Management Officer Course
1994 Finance Officer of the Year, U.S. Air Forces in Europe
1996 Company Grade Officer of the Year, 10th Air Base Wing
1998 Distinguished Graduate and Chief of Staff Flight, Squadron Officer School
1998 Finance Officer of the Year, U.S. Air Forces in Europe
2001 Outstanding Contribution to Financial Management and Comptroller, Runner-Up: Air Force
2004 Air Force Special Acts & Services Award for Financial Management and Comptroller
2005 Air Force Special Acts & Services Award for Financial Management and Comptroller
2005 AETC Comptroller Organization of the Year
2005 AETC Comptroller of the Year
2005 United States Air Force Comptroller of the Year
2005 Distinguished Comptroller of the Year, American Society of Military Comptrollers
2008 PACAF Comptroller Organization of the Year
2008 PACAF Comptroller of the Year
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant Nov. 21, 1990
First Lieutenant Nov. 21, 1992
Captain Nov. 21, 1994
Major Jan. 1, 2002
Lieutenant Colonel Nov. 1, 2006
Colonel April 1, 2012
Colonel (Ret) Jan 1, 2018
(Current as of January 2018)
Zebulon Golder |
Board Memeber
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Growing up in South Dakota farm country to Christian parents was a blessing from God. We were the Cornbelt Conference and hot rod dreamers until the realization of adulthood struck like a tornado on the great plains. I grew up with a wild streak, one that seemed to keep me just on the edge however the Spirit seemed to always pull me back to centerline. What opportunities awaited me in farm country USA without an impressive GPA and no family farmland to work? The military son! So, with my bag packed with work ethic instilled by my parents I took my first real significant trip out of my home state and moved in with the USAF in San Antonio Texas at Lackland Air Force Base.
Amber has been with Mission Phoenix since the beginning. She has taken up the passion of her husband Josh, in the fight to help Veterans and their Families battle PTS.
Amber has a degree in Law Enforcement. She moved with her family to Tennessee in the year 2000. Her husband is Josh Gagnier president of Mission Phoenix. She home schooled their only daughter, and organized a home school co-op that she administered for 5 years, helping to develop lesson plans and programs to teach innovative learning. Her desire was always to teach students to love learning. She spends her time volunteering in her local church, and is currently working on finishing her NANC certification for counseling. She is the head of Events and is working on programs as coach to Veteran spouses.
