Medic returns from tour with Army in Afghanistan Published Nov. 5, 2008 By Steve Pivnick 81st Medical Group Public Affairs KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, MISS. -- Master Sgt. Helen Vander Grinten, 81st Medical Group, recently returned from a four-month tour with the Army in Afghanistan. Deployed from early May to mid-September, Sergeant Vander Grinten served with a U.S. Army Reserve military police unit from Florida working in detainee operations at Bagram Air Base. The education and training flight chief explained, "I was part of a team (of seven to eight members) that went on several missions to Army field operating bases throughout Afghanistan. I was one of two Air Force master sergeants. The team consisted of medical, legal and military police personnel. Our mission was to train the FOB personnel about conducting correct detainee operations." Although she participated in only three missions, they lasted up to a week each and were to various areas in Afghanistan including Kandahar in the south and a field operating base near the Pakistan border. Sergeant Vander Grinten also participated in volunteer service with the Egyptian clinic at Bagram. "We would give immunizations to Afghan women and children who would come on base," she said. She also assisted a few time at the Bagram hospital's intensive care unit.. This was her second deployment; she was in Saudi Arabia in 1998. The Army recognized Sergeant Vander Grinten for her service with the Army Achievement Medal. She was also submitted for the Army Meritorious Service Medal, one of three members of her team to be nominated. Sergeant Vander Grinten has been assigned to Keesler since 2002, coming here from Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. Sergeant Vander Grinten and husband Tom reside in Thrower Park with daughters Megan, 15, and Savannah, 12. The family moved into the newly-constructed house only a month before she deployed.