Thanks to you: 43,849 helmet
upgrades sent - Helping Prevent Traumatic Brain Injuries
...and the requests keep coming in! Let's keep the upgrades flowing!
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Backlog:
Make a Donation
civilian info.
about operation helmet
-other
links For the unvarnished info, see Doc Bob's BLOG
Couple of good songs thanking our vets;
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Our Warriors Ask For Your Help, especially those in Afghanistan Please remember and honor them this 4th of July See the emails below for our warriors heartfelt requests for our help, more important than ever with the 'surge' now taking place in AfghanistanTroops: If you've asked for a helmet pad upgrade in the past and were told 'sorry, we're broke', please contact us again...we'll do what we can, thanks to our generous donors. Request your kit here Nevermind: survey timed out on 20 May. Wonder how many Marines outside the wire and in Combat Outposts came up with the time to take the long survey versus communicating with families back home? Attention Marines: there's a confidential on-line survey at Marine Helmet Pad Survey for you to voice your opinion of the GI pads. All Marines who've received the helmet pads we've sent, now or in the past, are urgently requested to go to that website and fill out the survey. Without your help, no changes in procurement of more wearable and less distracting helmet pads will be made by MCSC. Help us send helmet pad upgrades to our warriors by clicking on this link: Make a Donation See our Donors page for major donations by more Americans supporting our troops. We do not release donor's names without their permission. Davis Spade donated enough to outfit 3,000 troops: We've sent 2,460 of those out to date. And requests are starting to pour in as our troops 'pour in' to Afghanistan. <== Click on a link to the left to proceed to the various pages. Here's an approximate translation of web pages in Espanol
Do you make a difference with your donation? "Just received the pads about two days ago. Have them in my ACH now and took them out on about an eleven hour patrol yesterday. I can quite possibly say that it was one of the best patrols I've had out here due to the pads. I usually take a Tylenol about halfway through our missions due to the headache I would get from the standard issue pads, not anymore though. These pads are hands down the best quality and most comfortable I have ever worn. I wouldn't even begin to compare these to the standard issue pads we get. Hands down the Oregon Aero surpass GI pads in comfort, sweat absorption, and heat ventilation. They not only felt more comfortable on my head, but noticeably cooler. Everyone here is very grateful to have generous civilians like yourself get them out to us. Thank you again" Uncomfortable helmets simply aren't worn as much or strapped down as required as those you can 'forget about'. Hard to concentrate on a dangerous job when you are distracted by pain. And IED's, RPG's and ambushes pop up anytime, anywhere. Removing or loosening helmets to deal with severe distracting headache = needless injury or death. Believe it: The life you save may save another! 26 Feb 09 NOTICE: Click on this story. Torso injuries fall, brain traumas rise at Walter Reed With the upcoming addition of thousands of combat troops in Afghanistan, we're going to be flooded with requests and rightfully so. Together we can keep sending the very best blast/impact protecting helmet pads to our warriors while we work like crazy to convince the Military to do what's right!
Important new data: Lawrence Livermore National Lab has
recently reported that computer-based studies show the supposedly rigid skull
actually 'flexes' when it is struck by the invisible, supersonic blast wave, resulting in brain injury similar to that of a direct impact. The Kevlar helmets now in use also flex. When the helmet is 'fastened' to the head
by firm pad as are now used in military helmets, the helmet flexion is
transmitted to and added to the skull flexion underneath the helmet with
resulting increase in brain injury. See the full report and judge
for yourself: this is something that should elicit immediate action.
This should prompt the military to look at protection from more than just the
standpoint of impacts; protect from blast wave injury as well.
Click on this link to see the full report:
Skull Flexure
from Blast Waves- A New Mechanism for Brain Injury with Implications for
Helmet Design . There's another story on
this issue recently released in SEE DOC BOB'S BLOG FOR IMPORTANT NEW INFORMATION ON HELMET PAD PROBLEMS, including a recent meeting in with the Marines in Quantico and one in Washington, DC with the Army's PEO Soldier and House Armed Services Committee staff. If and when the Army releases the information, three independent civilian labs have re-done the flawed tests done earlier and we'll report the actual results...not some pre-digested blather. Note: the summary of our meeting with PEO Soldier and House Armed Services Committee Staff is on the Army page, Click Here Please remember our troops EVERY DAY Join with your fellow Americans and Make a Donation AND NOW FOR THE EMAILS FROM THE FRONT LINES (Not from 'desk warriors' in their air-conditioned foxholes !) 7/2/09 Bob,Received the Oregon Aero kits today and they are a big hit. Some of the guys did not think there was solution to their helmet pain. I am going to pass your info on to a couple of our associated Transition Teams.Thanks for your support, Dale (Major, USArmy) 7/2/09; Hey Doc, Just a quick update, the original pads you sent me are still going strong. As of yet, they haven't become matted down, they maintain their shape and still feel new. I wear my ACH approximately 4-8 hours per day in 100 degree plus temps. They don't even trap any sweat or odor like the issued pads did. You really don't know how much we have appreciated your support with these pads. Looks like we have about 2 months left, then homeward bound we'll be, god willing! Thanks again Doc, if there is anything I can do to help you with feedback, etc please don't hesitate to ask.Your Friend,SSG Jim XXXX 6/26/09: Using issued MSA pads and currently getting tension headaches 45min-1hr after wearing helmet. The corners of the "Pad Rect" (rectangular pads on temples) focus pressure on one location and do not form to the head. The only relief is finishing the mission and taking the helmet off. 6/1/09: Hey Bob, its LCPL xxxxl Sorry its been awhile, but we have been busy. We are getting out of here (Afghanistan) in a few days and I am real excited to say it. Let me just say that the pads you sent were a godsend. Everyone in the platoon loved them and not only do they feel better, but they don't leave a bald spot on your head like the old ones. Quite frankly many of my platoon members who didn't have them ended up with no kidding balding areas on the top of their heads... I think organizations like this are the unsung heroes for our American forces and the one's people do not know about... We all thank you for everything you have done and I'll send you a few pictures of my platoon and I when I get a chance. Thanks again 5/24/09:
I still have the pads that I was issued back in November, 2002 when the helmet
was referred to as the MICH. I have washed (cleaned) the pads 5/13/09: In reply to your previous email about our current pads, the back just says "Unit Pad (oblong, crown, etc...)" and an NSN#. The things are like rocks shrink-wrapped in Velcro. Incredibly uncomfortable and in no way do they shape or form to the head. SGT, USMC. 5/11/09 My platoon runs resupply missions to 4 different JSS in support of our line companies. We are on the road a minimum of four hours at a time and that's our short mission. I am in the front gun truck and the issued pads give me a tension headache from hell. They are extremely stiff and have no give. About an hour and a half in or so I start getting a tension headache from hell. We also run our missions at night so we have NODs mounted and that doesn't help. I feel like my head is surrounded by bricks. 5/8/09: I am the Command Sergeant Major of Task Force XXXX which is currently conducting Route Clearance missions in Afghanistan looking for IED's. We find a good number of them. Well we find them all, but some are because they blow up on us. I have a good number of Soldier's that end up with concussions so anything that helps absorb that impact and blast wave is a good thing for my Warriors. I received your website from one of my Company Commanders. I have forwarded the site to my 1SG's and Det Sgt's as my task Force is spread all over. ... I have a set from my civilian Police helmet that I brought with me and they make all the difference in the world on long missions. My head never hurts even after spending more than 24 hours straight in the helmet. 4/30/09: I just receive a brand-new USMC-LW helmet (still in plastic bag when I got it) in early March and wore it steady for a two week training exercise in Mississippi; consequently, the center pad is already flaking up. Also, for those two weeks I had to keep removing my helmet to relieve the tension headache that it was causing me! My HM's and I are going OCONUS in the mid fall of 2009 and I would like to have all my gear ready prior to avoid any delays at the last minute. Many thanks to you folks, and GOD BLESS YOU. LCDR, USN, Medical Corps 4/28/09: We were issued the Wendy pads which cause considerable pain, headaches and discomfort after wearing them. I'm interested in emailing PEO Soldier with my teams comments so they hear our feedback and make some changes to get us the best gear possible that is both functional and comfortable. I think these pads will reduce the number of complaints I receive from team members who have difficulty with their helmet pads. Appreciate everyone who is supporting this program! Capt, USArmy In the meantime: PEO Soldier tells us they have not had a single complaint about the helmet/pad 'system' either from Soldiers in the field or during post-deployment debriefing. Therefore, they will continue to field the 'bricks' you are asking us to upgrade with the top-of-the-line pads we provide, courtesy of the American public. Our feeling is that either someone is not passing the Word or else we had a front-loader of BS heaped on us at the meeting. Will SOMEONE have the guts to go up the chain of command or directly to PEO Soldier and tell them what's really happening inside their brain bucket? You can email PEO Soldier's Project Manager for Soldier Equipment at john.mcguiness@us.army.mil Unless PEO Soldier hears from the individual trooper or unit in combat, nothing will change and troops will keep taking their helmet off to relieve the headache caused by too-firm pads. That's unacceptable! We want ALL our troops protected to the best of America's ability to provide head/brain protection that's wearable. See Doc Bob's Blog for more information and reports on how we're trying to get the military to 'do the right thing' and provide the best, not the cheapest helmet pads to our troops in harm's way. Hard to do your dangerous job when distracted by a blinding headache. We met with the Marines at Marine Corps Systems Command and with PEO Soldier at the House Armed Services Committee's Hearing Room in Washington, DC. I'll put info on Doc Bob's BLOG after each meeting. Article on the New Marine Helmet of the Future and interview with Gen Conway. Jan 28, 2008. Operation Helmet's version three survey results,
We hear that DOD (And some vendors) is (are) convinced we're some sort of agent for Oregon Aero because we don't point out that their pads are more expensive than the competition. I have NO idea what OA charges the military nor do I care. That's not my business. All we want is for our troops to have the best, not the cheapest, equipment that makes their jobs safer and more effectively performed. If an item costs, for example, 3/4 as much as another but lasts only 1/2 as long, where is the savings? I also don't know how much a UAV costs, or even the M4 carbine. Attention DOD: Don't shoot the messenger, fix the problem!
Operation Helmet, Inc. is a 501-c-3 charity; our EIN is 20-1756585. Donations are tax-deductible. Your cancelled check is sufficient unless you gave $250 or more, then we send a letter/email for proof of donation. Once all troops are provided appropriate blast/impact protecting helmet upgrades, we will utilize residual funds to help other charities providing for rehabilitation and support of our wounded troops and their families. We are researching several charities and will support those we find to be well managed, little or AT LEAST MINIMAL administrative fees and have a proven track record of helping our wounded warriors cope with their injuries and return to either civilian or military life.
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Send mail to
ophelm@operation-helmet.org with
questions or comments about Operation Helmet.
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Send mail to
ophelm@operation-helmet.org with
questions or comments about Operation Helmet.
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