LUCIUS D. CLAY KASERNE, WIESBADEN, Germany (Dec. 7, 2012) -- "I'll take 'Cold Roads' for 500" asked a U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden Soldier during the Jeopardy portion of 5th Signal Command's Winter Safety Showdown, Dec. 6.
More than 300 Soldiers and civilians from seven USAG Wiesbaden units participated in 5th Signal Command's Winter Safety Showdown at the Lucius D. Clay Kaserne Community Activity Center, Dec. 6. The highlight of the showdown was when four Soldiers from each of the seven units competed against one another during a Jeopardy-style competition, which uses safety titles and questions.
"By taking the safety and wellness promotion material that we traditionally present as a dry and sometimes boring classroom lecture, and packaging it in a 'Jeopardy-style' game show format, we make the whole process fun and entertaining," said Joseph G. Michalkiewicz, 5th Signal Command safety manager and event coordinator.
"Not only are the competing teams focused on getting the correct answers, the entire viewing audience is fully engaged," said Michalkiewicz, also known locally as Safety Joe. "That's the goal; we want to get the Army's Safety and Wellness promotion messages into everyone's head. We want to set the conditions for success by getting people to stop and think before they do something that could cause them or others harm."
"When learning is fun, people will want to learn, and the showdown is the best example I've seen of combining fun and learning," said 1st Sgt. Timothy B. Ellis, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 5th Signal Command.
The 102nd Signal Battalion had been the reigning champion of the Jeopardy-style safety showdown for a few years. However, 2nd Theater Strategic Signal Brigade stepped up to the plate and became the new showdown champion. Units studied numerous safety messages prior to competing with one another.
"My team prepared for the competition by studying some of the questions that were on the U.S. Army Europe safety website," said Sgt. Bryon K. Collins, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Theater Strategic Signal Brigade training room noncommissioned officer in charge, and 2nd TSSB showdown team captain.
Sgt. Kenneth Sharp, USAREUR mission support element noncommissioned officer in charge, said he enjoyed the competition aspect of the Safety Showdown.
"The competition helped raise the camaraderie amongst the unit, and it gave us the opportunity to show our stuff," said Sharp. "I can't wait until the next competition, especially since there will be more USAREUR personnel on Wiesbaden. We will win."
Brig. Gen. Bruce. T. Crawford, commander, 5th Signal Command, said to the audience, "What I ask you to do over the holidays is give some thought to a few things that are right. There's a lot of good that's going on here in Europe, and there are many great things going on here in Wiesbaden, like this showdown."
"Whether you are part of 66th Military Intelligence Brigade, V Corps, U.S. Army Europe, 5th Signal Command, 102nd Signal Battalion, 2nd TSSB, USAG Wiesbaden, our Air Force brothers and sisters, our joint partners - there are a lot of positive things going on here, so spend some time thinking about that and not just the one or two things that are bad," Crawford added.
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