Convos with Heroes

Joe Wankelman joined the Army in 2000 at the age of 18 as a forward observer. He did his first tour to Iraq was 2004 as a forward observer.  In 2006 at the  rank of E-6 was selected for warrant officer program flight school. He did 2 tours in Iraq (2008-2009 & 2011) as AH-64D pilot/ pilot in command. Did one tour in Afghanistan 2014 as an AH-64E Pilot in command/ Air mission commander/ Maintenance Test pilot. He medically retired in 2017 due to kidney failure. He just finished getting his BA in Business with emphasis in marketing and entrepreneurship. He's currently working as the COO for BoneForg coffee.

As the Managing Director and Pastor for RLB Echad LLC, Jonathan guides an organization that (a) helps for-profit business leaders provide a way for employees to fully engage at work, by leveraging religious advisor services, (b) helps executive leaders balance their personal and professional lives and (c) helps non-profit leaders make sound business decisions. Jonathan received a bachelor’s degree in biology from Prairie View A&M University, after which he spent some time in the U.S. Navy. He worked at Frito Lay and then at Michelin before attending Washington State University College of Business where he studied in the Executive Master of Business Administration (MBA) program. Jonathan did his capstone (thesis) on what eventually became RLB Echad, a faith-based consulting organization. His extensive research included: leveraging pastoral models to improve employee engagement, pushing work-life balance to prevent burnout, and encouraging nonprofits to seek experts in business.

Outside of RLB Echad,  Jonathan Dade leads a congregation that: (a) serves Hebrew Christian, Torah Observant, Messianic Jewish, and Non-Religious Believers, (b) teaches principles on living a biblical lifestyle for spiritually-minded individuals, interfaith families, and non-religious couples, and (c) celebrates biblical feasts and holy days, keeps the seventh day Sabbath, and experiences the Holy Spirit. Theologically, Jonathan published The Church and The Community, pastored groups, researched the Scriptures, and received a Master’s of Theological Studies (MTS) from Colorado Christian University, with a passion (thesis) in Messianic Jewish apologetics, to a Christian audience.

Jonathan, Melinda, Karissa (born 2011), Tristen (born 2012), the Rhodesian Ridgeback (Chaya), and a flock of mostly Buff Orpington chickens live in Georgetown, a suburb of Austin, Texas. Outside of Jonathan’s unifying work with Messiah Echad and RLB Echad, he enjoys road cycling, target shooting, and visiting local wineries, usually— safely—in that order. His wife (Melinda) enjoys DoTerra Essential Oils, art, reading, and teaching younger women. And together, they enjoy camping, canoeing, cycling, foster-adopt discussions, and WineShop At Home Parties. Should you ever find yourself in Central TX, be sure to contact Jonathan and learn about RLB Echad.

Captain Joseph Polanin grew up in Carteret, New Jersey, was the valedictorian of Carteret High School’s class of 1986, the first student the school’s history appointed to the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, and was commissioned an Ensign in May 1990. He was the honor graduate of Basic Diving Officer class 94-30 at the Naval Diving and Salvage Training Center, Panama City Beach, FL and qualified as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Technician at Indian Head, MD in February 1996.  

Captain Polanin Commanded EOD Mobile Unit TWELVE, in Virginia Beach, VA; Task Group 56.1 in Manama, Bahrain; and Naval School Explosive Ordnance Disposal – over 3,400 students, instructors, and staff at Eglin Air Force Base, FL – the sole EOD individual high-risk training command within the Department of Defense. He was the Deputy Commander of Combined Joint Task Force PALADIN in Afghanistan, which integrated U.S., Afghan, and NATO forces from 46 countries to counter the threats posed by improvise explosive devices (IED) and terrorist networks. Captain Polanin Commanded Task Force 68 in Rota, Spain and led more than 2,600 Sailors and Marines in who enabled U.S. and NATO forces across 69 countries in Europe and Africa. He established Task Force SPARTA, which synchronized all U.S. and allied capabilities in Africa to counter IEDs and terrorism. He advised the President, Secretary of Defense, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on global operations and, while serving at the Pentagon was hand-picked to represent the military at the National Security Council. Captain Polanin’s final military assignment was Deputy Commander and Director of Operations for U.S. Special Operations Command Central; forward deployed primarily in Qatar until his retirement in 2020 after 30 years of active-duty service. Units and warriors under his command earned numerous commendations for valor and meritorious service in combat, counter insurgency, and other special operations with U.S. and multinational forces across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.  

Captain Polanin earned a Bachelor of Science degree in History with a Russian language minor from the Naval Academy; a Master of Business Administration with honors in 2007 from Grand Canyon University, Phoenix, AZ; and a Master of Arts in Strategic Security Studies as the Distinguished Graduate of the 2014 Combating Terrorism Fellowship at the College of International Security Affairs, National Defense University, Washington, DC. He wrote, “Defeating Violent Radical Islamism,” published in U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings, October 2016. He is a graduate of the Air Command and Staff College at Maxwell Air Force Base, AL and the Joint Forces Staff College in Norfolk, VA. Captain Polanin’s personal honors include the Defense Superior Service Medal (three awards), Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, various unit & campaign awards, the Delta Mu Delta Honor Society for business leaders, and a Department of State commendation for transformational diplomacy. He resides in Tampa, FL with his wife of 28 years, Deanne and their daughters Kiana and Sydney.  

https://thealakaigroup.com

Colonel (Retired) Jason Blevins is a proven, combat-tested leader who served for 25 years in the US Army as a Combined Arms Aviation Officer, leading Soldiers, complex military operations, and programmatic initiatives within the Army. Born in Wurzburg, Germany, Jason is the son of a Vietnam era Army officer and UH-1 pilot. He graduated from Victoria High School in Victoria, Texas in 1990, later graduating as a distinguished military graduate of Texas A&M University in 1994.

Jason’s extensive Army career spanned tactical and operational level positions and combat proven leadership from platoon leader to brigade task force commander in some of the Army’s most elite divisional units including the 82ndAirborne Division, the 2nd Infantry Division, the 101st Airborne Division, and the 1st Cavalry Division.

Jason’s professional military education includes distinguished graduate of both the Air Command and Staff College at Maxwell Air Force Base in 2008, and the US Army War College in 2016. Jason deployed to Iraq in 2003-2004, Afghanistan in 2006, 2009, 2013, and 2017, where he led an advise and assist task force in Jalalabad. Jason’s command experience includes Alpha Company, 9th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment; 2nd Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment; and Task Force Leopard Advise and Assist Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division. Jason served as the Director of the US Army Aviation Operational Test Directorate in his final Army assignment.

Upon his retirement from the U.S. Army in June 2019, Jason initially worked for Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, and currently DelMar Aerospace Corporation. Most recently, Jason opened an in-home senior care business, Seniors Helping Seniors of Northwest Houston.

Jason holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Texas A&M University, and master’s degrees in Military Operational Arts and Sciences, and Master of Strategic Studies. His military education includes the Aviation Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, the UH-60 Instructor Pilot Course, the Combined Arms Services Staff School, the U.S. Air Force Command and General Staff College, and the U.S. Army War College.

Jason is a Master rated Army Aviator with over 2,700 flight hours, including over 1,000 hours in combat. His awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal (3rd Oak Leaf Cluster), the Air Medal for Valor, the Air Medal (with numeral 7), the Meritorious Service Medal (6th Oak Leaf Cluster), the Army Commendation Medal (2nd Oak Leaf Cluster), and the Combat Action, Master Army Aviator, Senior Parachutist, and Air Assault badges.

Jason lives in Tomball, TX with his wife, Camille. They have four children: Madison (22), Jake (21), Luke (18), and Dani (9).

Mike Schindler is a US Navy veteran, an award-winning author, the national podcast host of The Military Wire, which features interviews with some of America’s most elite men and women who have served this country, and Executive Producer of IT’S VUCA: The Secret to Living in the 21st Century documentary that features 15 of our nation’s top experts on how to navigate chaotic times.

He has been featured in USA Today, CBS Radio, Entrepreneur Radio, the Lars Larson Show, the Boston Globe, Q13 FOX, Yahoo Finance, and others.

Mike is known throughout the US as a subject matter expert on leadership development, government relations, and veteran transition issues.

Mike is a guest writer for several national publications and the author of two books: “U.S. Veterans in the Workforce: Why the 7% are America’s Greatest Asset” and “Operation Military Family” - which is endorsed by retired General Tommy Franks and retired General Peter Chiarelli.

Dr. George Taylor arrived at Southwest Minnesota State University in August 2020.  He holds several degrees, including a Doctorate in Management (Organizational Leadership), a Master of Business Administration (Information Systems Technology Management), and is currently pursuing a PhD in Education Leadership. He is also certified as a Senior Professional Human Resources Professional (SPHR), Senior Certified Partner in Human Resources (SHRM-SCP) and is a lifetime Certified Professional Coach (CPC). Dr. Taylor's teaching interests include organizational development, leadership, and entrepreneurship.  He is an active researcher for the OK Center for Education Policy, a think-tank center that focuses on state and national education policies.   

Dr. Taylor is a published author and frequent speaker in research conferences and symposiums. He is the author of a popular book entitled Blessed Strategy. Prior to teaching, Dr. Taylor served a distinguished enlisted-to-officer career in the U.S. Navy. While serving in the Navy, he was assigned as a task force team leader and member for several high-level strategic initiatives to include Sea Warrior, a human capital initiative that transformed the Navy's HR processes. Dr. Taylor has a strong record of entrepreneurship and business coaching and was a Leadership Fellow for Memphis in 2004 (Leadership Academy Memphis) where he served on various citywide initiatives. Dr. Taylor is married with three adult children. He loves to travel, workout, and spend time with his wife.

Many members of John Morgan’s family have served in the armed forces, which was influenced by his grandfather’s actions during WWII. The idea of service to others resonated strongly with John and served for 13 years in the US Marines. Even though he is no longer wearing a uniform, he still has a mission to continue to serve the country and wants to honor the legacy his grandfather had begun.

During his 13 years in the Marine Corps and multiple trips to Afghanistan and Iraq, John invested well in the stock market. There were a few fundamentals that he stuck with and took a conservative approach to investing, which served him well. He didn’t come from money, but he was able to develop an investment portfolio nearing $600,000 by the time he exited the Marines. That portfolio was liquidated to create IzMaCo Investments.

During his time in the Marines, John constantly heard horror stories about off-base properties that were not well maintained. Landlords would take advantage of a situation and there seemed to be little recourse for a service member to take. The worst would be is when a spouse was deployed or on an extended military maneuver and their family would go without essential services. IzMaCo’s top priority of having well-maintained homes is so someone that is serving the country has their head in the game. No one will be able to concentrate on what’s in front of them if they are worried about their family dealing with a broken HVAC system in the middle of July

Real estate can be a lucrative investment, but we have the service member in mind. With a strong portfolio of 8 properties, valued at over one million dollars, IzMaCo will strive to teach service members how to invest while simultaneously providing them better quality rental properties.

IzMaCo can do this with the assistance of shareholders that will invest not only in this current project but to build a legacy that will continue to help others into the future. The focus is to provide an investment opportunity that is recognizable and provide the returns that investors should expect with a solid exit strategy for the shareholders.

IzMaCo wants to create the John “Red” Morgan Foundation, to honor John’s grandfather and Medal of Honor recipient John C. Morgan, a B-17 pilot during World War 2. The foundation will one-day support veteran startups to help fund the veteran entrepreneurial spirit. Through these investments, IzMaCo seeks to be the change it wanted to see in this world.

Proud 20 years veteran of the United States Navy, served as an Operations Specialist OS1(SW). Married to my Wife Macky for 22 years and grateful for all her support, and parents of 4 Blessed children (18,14,12 6). Live in Fredericksburg, VA.

Work as a Defense contractor with +17 years of BMD/IAMD experience, and +8 years in advanced Systems Engineer and Analyst, development, fielding, and integration, with an extensive track record of successful optimizing operational performance and capabilities for multiple combats systems in the United States Navy. Able to coordinate and conduct moderately complex system analyses through data acquisition and modeling, identify, coordinate, document, and implement business requirements by determining solutions that enhance business systems, as well as provides support to business operations and processes under general supervision. Skilled in delivering key analytical insights and collaborating with members across all organizational levels to drive unified approaches to achieve objectives. Excel at developing, supporting, and leading high-level training programs for both internal and external stakeholders to achieve operational excellence and increase personnel competency. Demonstrated skill leading, training, and optimizing the performance of cross-functional teams that exceed expectations. Multilingual: fluent in English & Spanish.

Been a professional photographer for 12 years and own, jointly with my wife, Jac&Mac Photography.

Recently started a new financial coaching company, www.myfianacialcompass.org helping transiting military and college graduating individuals, and getting married couples on how to better manage their financial future.

He is an intuitive leader, inspiring high productivity levels, guiding cross-functional teams, coaching, motivating with strong interpersonal communication skills and proactively conveying operational needs to executive-level management.

Proud 20 years veteran of the United States Navy, served as an Operations Specialist OS1(SW). Married to my Wife Macky for 22 years and grateful for all her support, and parents of 4 Blessed children (18,14,12 6). Live in Fredericksburg, VA.

Work as a Defense contractor with +17 years of BMD/IAMD experience, and +8 years in advanced Systems Engineer and Analyst, development, fielding, and integration, with an extensive track record of successful optimizing operational performance and capabilities for multiple combats systems in the United States Navy. Able to coordinate and conduct moderately complex system analyses through data acquisition and modeling, identify, coordinate, document, and implement business requirements by determining solutions that enhance business systems, as well as provides support to business operations and processes under general supervision. Skilled in delivering key analytical insights and collaborating with members across all organizational levels to drive unified approaches to achieve objectives. Excel at developing, supporting, and leading high-level training programs for both internal and external stakeholders to achieve operational excellence and increase personnel competency. Demonstrated skill leading, training, and optimizing the performance of cross-functional teams that exceed expectations. Multilingual: fluent in English & Spanish.

Been a professional photographer for 12 years and own, jointly with my wife, Jac&Mac Photography.

Recently started a new financial coaching company, www.myfianacialcompass.org helping transiting military and college graduating individuals, and getting married couples on how to better manage their financial future.

He is an intuitive leader, inspiring high productivity levels, guiding cross-functional teams, coaching, motivating with strong interpersonal communication skills and proactively conveying operational needs to executive-level management.

Clarice Mack was born/raised in Orlando, Florida where after graduating High School she joined the U.S. Air Force. This was the beginning of her career where she ultimately spent 16years serving within the Department of Defense working at the Pentagon within the Office of the Secretary of Defense, HQ Air Force and other Air Force organizations.  While she started off as an Airman, she served in various capacities to include Active Duty service, contractor and Federal civilian service. Clarice spent most of her career in roles supporting Information Technology, Security Management and Operations.

While on Active Duty, Clarice served in Balad, Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) during the first Iraqi elections. (2005)

Today she works in the Tech Industry and lives in Northern, Virginia with her husband and daughter. While Clarice no longer works for DoD she continues to selflessly serve by helping women and men transitioning from the service through coaching, resume assistance, and job search.