pg. 5pg. 5

Vol. 2, Issue 42 October 23, 2005

Skunk Werks createscustom armor for vehicles

on the roads of Iraq

The 46th CSG packs up andit’s out with the old, in with

the new

pg. 9

pg. 11

Soldiers keep blades turningThe 54th Medical Company’s maintenance platoon wins awards for helicopter upkeep

Photo by Staff Sgt. Engels Tejeda

Photo by Sgt. Ty StaffordPhoto by Staff Sgt. Monika Comeaux

Sgt. Charles Romans, an aircraft mechanic from the maintenance platoon of the 54th Medical Company (Air Ambulance) of Fort Lewis, Wash. prepares a helicopter for flight.

pg. 5pg. 5pg. 5pg. 5pg. 5pg. 5pg. 5pg. 5pg. 5pg. 5

PAGE 2 OCTOBER 23, 2005ANACONDA TIMES

Anaconda Times is authorized for publication by the1st COSCOM for the LSA Anaconda community. Thecontents of the Anaconda Times are unofficial and arenot to be considered the official views of, or endorsedby, the U.S. Government, including the Department ofDefense or Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Anaconda Times is a command information newspa-per in accordance with Army Regulation 360-1.

Anaconda Times is published weekly by the Stars

and Stripes central office, with a circulation of 5,000papers.

The Public Affairs Office is on New Jersey Ave. inbuilding 4136, DSN 318-829-1234. Anaconda Times,HHC 1st COSCOM, APO AE 09391. Web site atwww.mnf-iraq.com/publications_theater.htm

Contact Sgt. Marshall Thompson via e-mail [email protected] or Sgt. 1st ClassJeffrey S. Mullett at [email protected]

1st COSCOM Commanding GeneralBrig. Gen. Yves J. Fontaine

Chief of the Anaconda Consolidated Press CenterMaj. Curtis Carney

Deputy Public Affairs Officer207th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment CommanderMaj. Curtis Carney

207th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment NCOICSgt. 1st Class Jeffrey S. Mullett

EditorSgt. Marshall Thompson

Staff WritersStaff Sgt. Engels TejedaStaff Sgt. Monika ComeauxSgt. Mitch ArmbrusterSgt. Jason MikeworthSgt. Ty D. StaffordSpc. Spencer Case

By Staff Sgt. Engels TejedaStaff Writer

The Iraqi army’s compound at Al Kisik,Iraq, is an unlikely host for a clinic staffedby American Navy medics.

The nearest navigable bodies of water,the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea,are located 350 and 375 miles away,respectively.

Though no ships are anchored nearby,the camp is home to three sailors and anAir Force officer who work with Iraqimedics to provide medical support forlocal Iraqis, Iraqi servicemembers andAmerican Soldiers stationed there.

“We don’t turn people away here,”said Chief Petty Officer Renato Feliciano,the senior medical representative and ahospital corpsman at the clinic. “If theyneed some help, and we can give themhelp, we do it.”

The corpsmen run a standard sick calloperation every day, during whichapproximately 500 U.S. Soldiers and over2,500 members of the new Iraqi army,who live on the base, may visit the clinicfor medical care for illnesses that rangefrom headaches and heartburn to brokenlimbs.

The corpsmen also help local residentsfrom the villages surrounding the campso long as the patients have militarysponsors and the clinic has the suppliesnecessary to help them.

They also provide emergency medicalcare to patients suffering trauma or“medical condi-tions that arebeyond ourcapabilities,”Feliciano said.

“We stabilizethe patient if it’strauma, and whenthe patient isready for travel,we get them on a[medical evacua-tion helicopter].The MEDEVACsget here withinnine minutes fromwhen we call,”Feliciano ex-plained.

Moreover, the servicemembers play avital and unique role in helping train andmentor members of the new Iraqi army.They teach a combat life saver course thatprepares Iraqi enlisted soldiers, known asjundis, to act as the first line of aid in thebattlefield.

“I’m enjoying what I’m doing,” saidPetty Officer 3rd ClassLarry W. Barnes Jr., acorpsman from theNaval Health ClinicAnnapolis. “I’mhelping people,training them so theycan go out and helptheir own people.”

Though reward-ing, the job has itsdrawbacks. Al Kisikis entirely run byIraqis, a plus for theoverall mission inIraq because itdemonstrates thatthe Iraqis arebecoming more

independent, but a challenge to the fewAmericans serving there because they areisolated from other Americans.

The remote location and the impor-tance of the mission add up to a uniqueexperience for the sailors.

“I like being in the heat. I don’t like tosit around,” said Petty Officer 3rd ClassLuke K. Damoah, a hospital corpsmanwho during his four and a half years inthe Navy has never spent a tour on aship. “All we need out here is a PX andI’m good,” he said, noting that themission at Al Kisik often takes him onpatrols with Iraqi and U.S. forces battlinginsurgents in north-western Iraq.

“I never thought I would be doing thisin the middle of Iraq,” Barnes said. “ButI’m enjoying it here, you get to see whatthe news doesn’t show back home. Justthe looks on the kids’ faces and theirparents when we help them – you knowyou are appreciated when you see stufflike that. You know that what you aredoing is worth while.”

So the sailors sail on at Al Kisik, evenwithout much water around.

NaNaNaNaNavy trvy trvy trvy trvy trains Irains Irains Irains Irains Iraqi medicsaqi medicsaqi medicsaqi medicsaqi medics

Navy Corpsman 3rd Class Luke K. Damoah (right), the leading petty officer at the Al Kisikclinic, trains a class of three Iraqis on combat life saving techniques.


I’m enjoying what

I’m doing. I’m help-

ing people, training

them so they can go

out and help their

own people.

Petty Officer 3rd Class Larry W. Barnes Jr.

Bush applaudsIraqis on theirrecent electionArmed Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 17, 2005 –President Bush congratulated the Iraqipeople Oct. 16 for the success of theirconstitutional referendum Oct. 15.

“On behalf of the American people,I’d like to congratulate the people ofIraq for the successful completion of avote on their draft constitution,” Bushsaid.

“By all indications, the turnout wasgreater than the turnout from the last-January election, which is good news.By all indications, the Sunnis partici-pated in greater numbers in thiselection than last time. And that’s goodnews,” he said.

The president said he was pleasedthat the level of violence in this electionwas considerably less than that duringthe last election.

“That’s a tribute to the Iraqis —forces who we’ve trained — as well ascoalition forces that worked hard tomake sure that democracy could moveforward in Iraq,” he said.

Bush compared the progress ofdemocracy in Iraq to the outlook ofthose who have sought to derail theprocess, saying the successful vote“stands in stark contrast to the atti-tudes and philosophy and strategy ofal Qaeda and its terrorist friends andkillers.”

“We believe, and the Iraqis believe,the best way forward is through thedemocratic process,” the presidentsaid. “Al Qaeda wants to use theirviolent ways to stop the march ofdemocracy because democracy is theexact opposite of what they believe isright.”

Citing the progress they have madeand his hope for the country’s futureas an ally in the war on terror, Bushthanked the Iraqi people for participat-ing in the democratic process. “I thankyou for meeting this milestone,” hesaid. “Thank you for doing what isright, to set the foundations for peacefor future generations to come.”

Last week the Iraqipeople voted on theirconstitution and voterturnout across allprovinces greatlyexceeded expectations.Whether the constitu-tion is approved or not,the significance is thefact that a vote tookplace and democracy ison the move in Iraq.

The Constitution isthe basic principlesand laws of a nationthat determine thepowers and duties ofthe government and guarantee certainrights to the people. Our country wentthrough a similar process to develop itsown Constitution 230 years ago. Overtime that process has guaranteed justiceand liberty to all Americans. Over timethe same will occur for all Iraqis.

The success of the election is dueforemost to the patriotism and courage ofthe Iraqi people and the Iraqi SecurityForces who are stepping forward to thefront line against the terrorists whothreaten their freedom.

The Iraqi government and SecurityForces are more capable than ever ofproviding the necessary security for theirfellow citizens to make their voices heard.Insurgent activity during the vote wasalmost nonexistent and the people of thiscountry are embracing their new freedom.

This will once again be evidenced inDecember when another election isscheduled to elect a constitutional govern-ment. It is hard to say whether the lack ofinsurgent activity during the election

indicates that theinsurgency is dying,but, as democracy takesroot, its death is immi-nent. It will be Iraqiswho ultimately kill it.

Through multipledifficult deploymentsby U.S. and CoalitionSoldiers and civilians,Iraq has witnessed twosuccessful elections thisyear and is well on itsway to becoming ademocracy. You havebeen and continue to be

a key enabler for Iraq’s tremen-dous progress since the fall of theHussein regime.

As a direct result of your year of hardwork, and dedication, Iraq now has theability to provide essential securitywithout an American face on it. It isimperative that we continue to supportthem and that you continue to performmagnificently.

You have participated in an incredibleevent that has positively influenced theIraqi people, the Middle East region, andthe world. Your place in history isprominent.

Be proud to tell your children, friends,and family that you were part of thistremendous accomplishment. As my timein this deployment comes to a close, I amextremely proud to have served America’scause here in Iraq, but I am most proud tohave served you, and served with you: theU.S. Warriors. God bless the UnitedStates of America.

AIRBORNE!

CG’s commentary:Be proud of the tremendousaccomplishment of elections

PAGE 3OCTOBER 23, 2005 ANACONDA TIMES

Question of the Week

What do you think the result of the referendum will be?

Spc. Brandy Ruel1436th EN

“People are saying it went reallysmoothly, I think it will pass.”

Sgt. 1st Class Rogelio Gonzalez3rd COSCOM

“I don’t know what its going tobe, but I hope it’s great.”

Spc. Angelita Alonzo1436th EN

“I think it will be a positive thing,it needs to pass.”

Master Sgt. McDonald Jacob3rd COSCOM

“Whatever the results, I hopeit’s what the Iraqis want.”

Pfc. Lawrence Klenk3rd COSCOM

“No matter what it is, it will bepositive, whether it goes throughor not.”

By Sgt. Mitch ArmbrusterStaff Writer

Potholes and washed away pavementare common on the roads of northern Iraq.Trash lined medians and blind spots on theroadsides have made the main supplyroutes of Iraq a dangerous place to maneu-ver.

The 360th Transportation Company,from Forward Oper-ating Base (FOB) En-durance, deals withthe road conditions,moving supplies,fuel and other essen-tial items to sur-rounding FOBs.

The companyhas logged over 1.25million miles on theroads. This is thesecond rotation forhalf of the Soldierswith the 360th; theywere in Iraq duringOperation IraqiFreedom I.

Twenty-five vol-unteers from FortCarson, Colo., the home station of the 360th,volunteered to deploy with the unit to pro-vide security on the missions. These Sol-diers help to man the company’s own guntrucks.

“This is a unique situation,” said Capt.Troy Kirby, the company commander for the360th. “We are doing the support for ourown guys [ and] most of these [volunteers]are combat arms.”

Even with all of the support that the Sol-diers of the company give, Kirby explainedthat the trucks are still big targets.

“The Level 2 armor works,” said Kirby.“It has saved 10 Soldiers lives.”

As a unit, the Soldiers have run into al-

most 40 incidents involving improvisedexplosive devices and small arms fire onthe road. 122 Soldiers were recom-mended for Combat Action Badges.

“You’ve got to be flexible when youwake up in the morning,” said Sgt. ClintVoss, a Las Vegas, Nev. native with the360th. “Things are always changing.”

Soldiers with the 360th have been readyfor anything, a sentiment noted by thecompany commander and first sergeant.

Unit members careabout doing the jobright, knowing theirfellow Soldiers arethere for one an-other. Volunteersfrom various mili-tary occupation spe-cialties fill the com-pany.

The mission,equipment and fel-low servicemembersare equally impor-tant to the membersof the combat logis-tics patrols andthose working be-hind the scenes cov-ering the mission

preparation.“I have to trust that they are going to

have everything ready before they go outbecause there is such a small window oftime,” 1st Lt. Paul Medley said.

Missions may only last a couple ofhours yet the work that goes into gettingthe trucks and troops ready is constant.

“They keep taking the challenges, stepup and accomplish them,” Kirby said.

The Soldiers of the 360th deal withmany of the uncertainties that exist onthe main supply routes in Iraq, but theyhave found that certainty comes from rou-tine maintenance and a willingness tohelp their fellow Soldiers do the job.

360th delivers in Iraq

I have to trust that

they are going to have

everything ready before

they go... - 1st Lt. Paul Medley


Freedom Radio FrequenciesFreedom Radio FrequenciesFreedom Radio FrequenciesFreedom Radio FrequenciesFreedom Radio Frequencies107.7 Baghdad107.9 Sinjar105.1 Mosul, Fallujah107.3 Balad, Kirkurk, Tallil, Ar Ramadi93.3 Q-West, Tikrit, Al Asad107.1 Ridgeway102.5 Camp Taji

“Always There, on the Air!”“Always There, on the Air!”“Always There, on the Air!”“Always There, on the Air!”“Always There, on the Air!”

By Spc. Spencer CaseStaff Writer

When an instructor pilot stepped out of his aircraftand embraced his mother on the airfield, it may havelooked like a scene from an airport in the U.S. at the endof a long deployment. This pilot, however, is hugging hismother in Al Asad, Iraq.

When Chief Warrant Officer 3 Shawn Norton, a CH-47D Chinook Helicopter co-pilot and instructor of B Co.,4th Battalion of the 123rd Aviation Regiment, arrived inIraq in January, he discovered his mother was at Al AsadAirfeild.

His mother, Carolyn Rucker, an employee of Kellogg,Brown and Root (KBR) has been in Iraq as a civilian,managing payroll since November.

“She’s a little more battle hardened then I am,”Norton joked.

Norton realized it would be possible to see his mothersince his Chinook often made stops at Al Asad. He soongot in touch with his mother through phone and e-mailand told her when his unit was stopping by using aseries of codes to prevent operational security violations.

He has since seen her four times, he said. During hislongest and most recent visit, Ruckers met Norton on theairfield at Al Asad, brought snacks for Norton and therest of the crew, and told them how Norton was such agood child.

“You know how moms are,” Norton said, laughing.He added he thinks everyone wishes their mother couldbe with them on deployment at one point or another.

Norton spent two hours with Ruckers Sept. 10 as therest of his helicopter team flew to Combat OutpostRawah and picked him up on the way back to LogisticalSupport Area Anaconda. In the mean time, Norton hadthe opportunity to meet some of her friends and see herliving conditions.

So far, none of Norton’s coworkers have called him a

mamma’s boy. At least not to his face, Norton said.That’s not to say he didn’t get looks of surprise whenhe told the members of his crew that he was visitinghis mother.

“We were like, ‘hey, your mom’s here? Get out oftown,’” said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Wayne Martain,one of Norton’s co-workers. “It was pretty cool.”

In the U.S., Norton lives in Alaska and Ruckerslives in Texas, so they are used to being away. Ironi-cally, Norton has actually seen his mother more ondeployment than at home.

“I’ve seen more of her here in the last ten monthsthan the last ten years in the States,” Norton said.

Son sees mom more in Iraq

Carolyn Ruckers, a KBR employee, shares treats withher son, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Shawn Norton and hisfriends at Al Asad Airfeild in September.


“She’s a little morebattle hardened then Iam.” - Chief Warrant Officer Shawn Norton

Brothers servetogether in IraqBy Cpl. Evan M. Eagan2nd Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward)

After serving nearly 13 years in the Marine Corpsrespectively, two brothers with the 8th CommunicationBattalion, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, Headquar-ters Group, 2nd MEF (Forward), have found themselvesside-by-side in the same unit serving in support of Op-eration Iraqi Freedom here.

Gunnery Sgt. Frank Ashworth and Staff Sgt. NickAshworth are brothers separated in age by 14 months,but seem more like best friends catching up on old times.

Raised in Grants Pass, Ore., the brothers were raisedby their mother.

Their father, a Marine veteran who served three toursof duty in Vietnam, passed away when they were young.

According to Nick, joining the Marine Corps wassomething he wanted to do since he could talk.

“I decided I was going to join when I was 4 yearsold,” said Nick, 31, maintenance chief, Engineer Pla-toon, Charlie Company. “Basically when I could say it.Then it took me about three months to convince mybrother to join.”

Frank was attending community college and work-ing when his brother entered the delayed entry program.Soon after, Frank and Nick were in the buddy programand getting ready to ship to Marine Corps Recruit De-pot, San Diego .

“We were supposed to go in on the buddy program,but the recruiter needed someone to fill a spot early,”said Frank, 32, first sergeant for Charlie Company. “Eventhough I enlisted first, he got to ship first,” added Nick.

Growing up in a small town that was big on sports,the brothers were constantly in competition with eachother. “We were very competitive growing up,” saidNick, while laughing. “Whether it was girls, wrestling,football, track, cross country, anything competitive wehad to do it.”

As the Charlie Company first sergeant, Frank is incharge of more than 250 Marines. He makes sure theyare taken care of, staying out of trouble and dealing withthem when they stray.

Now, one of those Marines under his watch is hisyounger brother, who also doubles as his roommate.


By Spc. Spencer CaseStaff Writer

Flight medics often say hearing “thankyou” from a patient is one of the mostrewarding parts of the job. However,medics would be unable to perform theirduties without others who rarely have theopportunity to meet the people whoselives they save or get recognition for whatthey do.

Soldiers in the maintenance platoon ofthe 54th Medical Company (Air Ambu-lance) of Fort Lewis, Wash. are finallygetting that recognition. They wererecently honored for their outstandingbehind-the-scenes work with two awardsfrom Sirkorsky Aircraft, the manufacturerof the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter.

The Sikorsky Superior MaintenanceAward recognizes these Soldiers, crewchiefs and contractors specializing inmaintenance, for outstanding perfor-mance while maintaining the aircraft.

The Sikorsky Milestone Award recog-nizes the entire company for having over6,000 flight hours, and over 3,000 medicalevacuation missions, this calendar year,in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom,said Jesse Summers, the field servicerepresentative for the Sikorsky AircraftCorporation.

Capt. Michael Myers, the maintenanceplatoon officer for the 54th, added eachmaintenance Soldier, crew chief andcivilian contractor specializing in heli-

copter maintenance will be presentedwith a plaque later this month. He andother leaders say the award was welldeserved.

“I would trust no one else with myaircraft,” Myers said.

“They have excelled over anything I’veasked them to do,” added Sgt. 1st ClassLarry Depriest, the maintenance platoonsergeant. “It’s a thankless job.”

The platoon’s responsibilities includeperforming corrosion control inspectionfor each of their 18 helicopters every 100hours of flight time.

During these inspections, they take thepanels off the aircraft from nose to tail,tediously looking for signs of corrosion,then wash it thoroughly. They also domore complicated maintenance andoccasionally send out a Down AircraftRecovery Team (DART) when an aircraftcannot safely be flown to LSA Anacondafor repairs.

Failure to do any one of these tasks canmean loss of life, Myers said.

Adding even more pressure, theplatoon is only manned to take care of 12helicopters, but they must maintain 18.For these Soldiers, this has meant long

days, with days off few and far between.They’ve totaled about 4,500 work hourssince they arrived in December, Depriestsaid.

“There is no set ‘go home’ time for usany day,” Depriest said, adding that theplatoon has stayed at work for as long as16 hours to complete a mission.

Despite the challenges, maintenanceSoldiers still managed to exceed Armystandards. The Department of the Armyonly requires an operational readinessrate of 75 percent, meaning each aircraftis mission ready 75 percent of the time.Since their deployment in December, theunit has maintained an operationalreadiness rate of 80 percent.

Earlier in the year, another Sikorskyaward was given to Sgt. RachelUnderwood of the 54th for recognizing apotentially life-threatening problembefore it became too late. While at For-ward Operating Base Caldwell,Underwood realized that the tail rudderplates were too loose. A DART team wascalled to fix the problem. It was laterdiscovered that the problem would haveled to a potentially catastrophic crashhad it not been fixed.

While others take to the skies onmedical evacuation missions, mainte-nance Soldiers usually remain in an airhanger to keep the Black Hawk helicop-ters flying safely.

“It’s not about the glory,” said Spc.Charles Kirchmeyer, a mechanic of the54th. “It’s about saving people’s lives.”

Sgt. Charles Romans, an aircraft mechanic, prepares one of the helicopters at the 54th Medical Company’s maintenance bay.

Helo crHelo crHelo crHelo crHelo creeeeew wins aw wins aw wins aw wins aw wins awwwwwararararardsdsdsdsdsMaintenance platoon recognized for keeping flight medics in the air

“It’s not about the glory.It’s about saving people’slives.” - Spc. Charles Kirchmeyer

American Forces Press Service

MANAMA, Bahrain – The USS PearlHarbor made a brief port stop here to-day, where sailors loaded 13 pieces ofheavy equipment bound for Pakistan.

The machinery will be used to assistthe victims of the worst earthquake inthat country’s history.

Pearl Harbor, a Navy dock landingship, usually transports Marines andtheir combat equipment to areas world-wide.

The crew of about 425 is on a regu-larly scheduled deployment to the NorthArabian Gulf as part of maritime secu-rity operations, and it received orders tochange course to load dump trucks,front-end loaders, backhoes, cargotrucks, a road grader, a forklift and a gen-erator.

“It was overnight,” said Cmdr.Jonathan Harnden, the ship’s command-ing officer. “They made the decision thatthey wanted to send this equipment lateyesterday afternoon, and we were herefirst thing this morning.”

A member of Expeditionary StrikeGroup 1, Pearl Harbor’s posture in theregion allowed the ship to respond soquickly, Harnden says.

Pakistan was the epicenter of a dev-astating 7.6 magnitude earthquake Oct.8 that left thousands dead and more than1 million people homeless. For many resi-dents of remote or mountainous regionsin that country, food and medical atten-tion has been limited or nonexistent, andentire villages are in ruins.

The United States will support Paki-stani relief efforts with specific capabili-ties. U.S. forces, like Pearl Harbor, andother members of ESG 1 will act in a sup-porting role for this effort.

Specifically, Rear Adm. Michael A.LeFever, commander of ESG 1, leads theDisaster Assistance Center inIslamabad, where U.S. military relief ef-forts are coordinated.

“I think it’s important to help thepeople of Pakistan who we have a long,historic relationship with — one that’sdrawn even closer with the war on ter-rorism,” said Harnden, originally fromVirginia Beach, Va. “We all witnessedthe tragedy. We can see what’s happen-ing on the news. Our hearts go out to thepeople who were affected by this.” Sail-ors aboard Pearl Harbor said they felthonored to join the relief effort.

“I feel like we’re doing our part, help-ing them out,” said Petty Officer 2ndClass Edward Rodriguez, a damagecontrolman from Whittier, Calif. Anotherdamage controlman, Petty Officer 2ndClass Matthew Sanchez from Fresno,Calif., said he would like to do more thanjust drop off the equipment.

“I feel great (about the delivery), but Iwould go to help out,” he said.

USS Pearl Harborpicks up suppliesbound for Pakistan



LSA LSA LSA LSA LSA ANANANANANAAAAACONDCONDCONDCONDCONDAAAAADining FDining FDining FDining FDining Facilityacilityacilityacilityacility

Hours of OperationHours of OperationHours of OperationHours of OperationHours of Operation

DFAC 1Breakfast 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.Lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.Dinner 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.Late Night 2 a.m. to 5 a.m.

DFACs 2 & 3Breakfast 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.Lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.Dinner 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.Late Night 11:30 p.m. to 1 a.m.

DFAC 4Breakfast 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.Lunch 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.Dinner 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.Late Night 11:30 p.m. to 1 a.m.

The DFAC hours for all locationsare seven days a week. All patronsmust be in the proper uniform and beable to present appropriate identifica-tion.

By Staff Sgt. Monika ComeauxStaff Writer

The term ‘equal opportunity’ refers to many things inthe U.S. Army, and members of the 1st Corps SupportCommand EO team run classes to train equal opportu-nity representatives on all the different facets.

“I think that equal opportunity is important, becausewe are a diverse force. You want to make sure that allSoldiers have the opportunity to obtain rank, attend

Public speaking is not as easy as it may seem. Stu-dents spend some time giving impromptu speeches totheir classmates. Each student has a topic. They haveonly 30 seconds to think about what to share with theclass in a three to five minute speech. Some of the topicsinclude women in the military, my state, black people,white people and even the confederate flag.

This is designed to prepare them to talk to theircommander, summarizing the ‘meat and potatoes’ ofwhat they need to say in a few minutes effectively, Sgt. 1st

Class Richard L. Weldon, the equal opportunity advisorof 1st COSCOM, explained.

“I think that the support from the commanders hasbeen incredible. Not only dealing with the representa-tives and by sending the Soldiers to the course, but alsosupporting us on the ethnic observances,” Romeu said.

To show support for the program, Command Sgt. Maj.Joseph R. Allen, 1st COSCOM command sergeant majorshowed up during the September class.

“He is a regular visitor,” Weldon said.Keeping with class standards, Allen gave his own

three to five minute speech outlining what he and thecommanding general of the 1st COSCOM expect from allequal opportunity representatives.

“We don’t expect you to be experts on anything. Wedon’t expect you to fix any of that stuff. We expect you tolisten to what Soldiers and leaders have to say, and getthose Soldiers to the agents that can fix their problems,”Allen said. “When you travel and you are out theretalking to the Soldiers, you need to put your personalbiases aside…use your God-given common sense.”

Students even had the opportunity to analyze whattheir command sergeant major did well in his speech,and what he needed to improve on.

The instructors hope that at the end of the coursestudents will have a much better understanding aboutwhat is meant by equal opportunity in the U.S. Army.

“Equal opportunity is about leadership. There is a bigmyth that we are all about sensitivity. We are leaders,and we are here to help Soldiers and help the commandto enforce an equal opportunity policy,” Romeu said.

schools, and be able to hold any kind of position thatthey qualify for,” said Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Romeu, theequal opportunity advisor of the 507th Corps SupportGroup from Fort Bragg, N.C.

1st COSCOM ran at least one class a month duringtheir deployment to Iraq, training over 200 Soldiers onhow to effectively advise and aid fellow Soldiers onequal opportunity matters.

The Equal Opportunity Representative Course is atwo-week long course condensed to a one-week coursedue to mission requirements.

The class teaches participants what the equal oppor-tunity program is, and promotes respect for each other’sculture, background and ethnicity. Students receive acertificate signed by Brig. Gen. Yves Fontaine, 1st

COSCOM commander, upon successful completion ofthe course. This gives them promotion points, Romeusaid.

“The class is very detailed,” said Sgt. Jonathan A.Burell, a participant in the September class from A Co.,50th Signal Battalion. Students receive handouts and acopy of Army Regulation 600-20, regarding equalopportunity. They are assigned homework, and have topass a closed-book test on the last day. “If I knew theywere going to give us homework, I wouldn’t have come,”joked Burell. His commander ‘nominated’ him for thecourse.

Students in the class seem to enjoy interacting witheach other and discussing the different issues theinstructors present to them.

“This class shows you, that even though you don’tthink you have prejudices, everybody does, in some way,shape or form,” Burell said. “I enjoyed it, I learned a lotof different things.”

Students learn about perception, stereotyping, racism,sexism and conflict management, among many othertopics.

Students are not always comfortable with every topicthey have to talk about in the class. At times it is hard forSoldiers to open up and talk about these things, Romeusaid.

Equal opportunity classes encourage communication

Command Sgt. Maj. Joseph R. Allen addresses the 1stCOSCOM Equal Opportunity Representative Class partici-pants during a short speech on Sept. 28.

Photo by Staff Sgt. Monika Comeaux

59th Quartermaster runs ‘fuel farm’By Sgt. Mitch ArmbrusterStaff Writer

Vehicles lined up while their driverswaited to fill their tanks. Fuel service is alarge operation on the forward operatingbases (FOBs) in Iraq.

The 59th Quartermaster Company runsthe fuel point on FOB Endurance to keepall military, civilian contractors, and thirdcountry national vehicles filled with fuel.

“We provide fuel to northern Iraq,”said Sgt. Rudy Madrid, a shift leader forthe unit.

The fuel system, affectionately knownas the “fuel farm,” holds 3.1 milliongallons of fuel from Turkey. According toMadrid, this is the largest Army run fuelpoint in theater.

“Without fuel the Army doesn’t move,”said Spc. David Robledo, a petroleumsupply specialist with the 59th.

Third country nationals bring the fuelto the FOB, which is then downloaded tofuel bags. FOB Endurance has over 60bags holding 50,000 gallons per bag.

From the bags, the company can issuebulk fuel to the units going on combatlogistics patrols as well as sustain theFOB’s fuel needs.

“Nothing moves without the fuel.Aircraft and ground vehicles will notmove without the fuel,” said Pfc. JohnPyles, a petroleum supply specialist withthe 59th. “I would consider our job veryimportant.”

The 59th has 24 Soldiers and fills anaverage of 75 vehicles a day but the trafficcan be unpredictable. The Soldiers havedealt with as many as 160 vehicles in a12-hour shift.

“It makes me feel good to be here andknow that we are going to help the Iraqipeople in the long run,” said Pyles.“They are in a time of need right now andwe are helping them establish theirgovernment.”

Fuel drives the machines that allowCoalition Forces and civilian contractorsto give back to the Iraqi people. Fuelsupports military operations that willgive the Iraqi citizens a starting point tomake their country better.

Spc. David Robledo, a petroleum supply spe-cialist with the 59th Quartermaster Com-pany, calls up the next truck for fueling atFOB Endurance.

Photo by Sgt. Mitch Armbruster



For many soldiers with the new Iraqiarmy, military service comes with a lot ofemotional baggage. The jundis, as lowerenlisted are known, give personal reasonsfor joining the army that vary from fleeingmilitary oppression under SaddamHussein’s regime to avenging the murderof family members by foreign insurgents.

Abbas Mahadi, a security sergeantwith the 2nd Motorized TransportationRegiment, is an example. The 24-year-oldresident of Basra joined the new Iraqiarmy after Saddam murdered his uncleand banned his family from militaryservice. Abbas’ uncle taught history andquestioned in his classes whetherSaddam had abandoned the true teach-ings of Islam.

“All he wanted to do was teach thetruth of Islam,” Abbas said with the aideof an interpreter. “Saddam had him killedfor it.”

Not only was Abbas’ uncle murdered,but his family was banned from anymeaningful public office, including anytype of military service.

Since Saddam’s fall, Abbas family hasreturned to the military with a vengeance.His brother is an infantry soldier serving

in Baghdad and several members of hisextended family serve in the militarypolice or the army.

“We want to help our country. Wewant to help the Iraqi people,” Abbassaid. “The money is not important to me,what’s important is [to] protect myfamily.”

Unlike Abbas, Ali Jabbar was able to,and did, serve in the military underSaddam’s regime. He too has a personalreason to return to the service.

“Insurgents killed my brother a yearand a half ago,” said Jabbar, a 25-year-oldfrom Nasareah and who is now a truckdriver with the 2nd MTR. “It makes sensefor me to join because I want to fight theinsurgents. They killed my brother andmany other people,” he said with the helpof an interpreter.

Ali served for three years in the mili-tary police with the old army. AfterSaddam’s fall, he and three of his brothersdecided to serve. His brothers joined thepolice force working in Nasareah, andone of them was killed by an improvisedexplosive devise while on patrol shortlythereafter.

“They don’t care who they kill,” Alisaid in reference to the insurgents. “Theyjust want [to] make noise and [disrup-tion].”

Abbas and Ali are part of a four-man-

crew that runs one of the 2nd MTR’strucks. During the past few months, thejundis have been hauling suppliesthroughout Iraq, mainly while supportingcoalition forces in the south. The othertwo crew members, Zaman Sabitt Uhidand Ali Hassan have similar stories.

Zaman, a 29-year-old resident of Basra,said he too had served in the old army.

“In the old army you could not speakwith freedom,” Zaman said with the helpof an interpreter. He was an infantrysoldier for over three years. “We werescared of them,” he said of Saddam’shandpicked military leadership. “If yousaid something wrong, you went to jail.Now it’s different.”

Though excited to be part of a newarmy, the jundis are not blind to the taskat hand. They know that the work aheadis difficult and threatening to them andtheir families. In August, while on acombat logistics patrol through AbuGraib, the jundis came under small armsfire from insurgents. Before that incident,they lost a fellow soldier when an IEDdetonated and disabled a vehicle.

Moreover, they said that there is stillmuch to be resolved internally. Onewarned that there may still be “some left-over corruption” from the old army. Yetthey all agreed that progress was alreadyevident. They have never dropped a

mission, supporting both coalition andIraqi military operations throughout Iraq.

“They are doing great,” said Sgt. 1st

Class David Worth, a U.S. trainer for the2nd MTR, noting that the jundis haveexceeded the trainers’ expectations atboth the job specific and the tactical level.“They keep moving [when under contact]and anything that is coming their way isgoing to get shot at.”

Worth said he knows that the jundisstill need to improve. He said that likeany other military, the new Iraqi armyrequires continuous training. He alsonoted that one of their strengths is howemotional they are about their job.

“They are very emotional. Some ofthem are the most emotional people I’veever met in my life,” Worth said.

Given their history, one has to wonderwhether the dramas that have led jundislike Abbas and Ali to serve could interferewith their work down the road. Forexample, how would the jundis reactshould they capture an insurgent alive?

“I have a higher ranking [person] thanme so I have to follow their order,” Alireplied, saying he would not let hispersonal feelings toward the insurgentsinterfere with his mission. “But yes, itwould be hard.”

In conclusion, the jundis have beendoing a great job and will succeed.

From Left: Ali Jabbar (25), Abbas Mahadi (24), Ali Hassan (30), and Zaman Sabitt Uhid (29), all members of the 2nd Motorized Transportation Regiment, pose for a photo during a missionto Basra in support of British forces there. Though the four jundis are from southern Iraq, their background and reasons for joining are as diverse as Iraq itself.

Jundis talk about reasons for joiningPhoto by Staff Sgt. Engels Tejeda

OCTOBER 23, 2005 PAGE 9PAGE 8 OCTOBER 23, 2005 ANACONDA TIMES

By Sgt. Ty StaffordStaff Writer

New technology has helped to improvethe armoring of humvees in Iraq. How-ever, some units have taken it a stepfurther by enhancing the armor withoperational experience of what they needin the field.

One group in particular, the “SkunkWerks” shop maintained by the 457th

Transportation Battalion, from FortSnelling, Minn., has used the experiencegained driving 5 million miles on theroads of Iraq to create useful. The five-man shop, along with Iraqi workers,produces equipment designed and vettedby the Soldiers of the battalion.

The Skunk Werks shop dates back toOperation Iraqi Freedom I with the 181st

Transportation Battalion from Germany,who will return this month to take overthe operation.

The operations of Skunk Werks is tobuild protection systems, mainly gunnerysystems, shielding and under armorplating systems that the humvees do nothave.

Other products made by Skunk Werksinclude bumpers for humvees, secondarybumpers for 5-tons trucks, ammunitioncan holders, fuel can holders and sparetire racks.

“It’s now not necessary to add up-armor because of the add-on armor nowsupplied by the Army. But when westarted out it was just Level 3, up-armorwe had to add on ourselves,” said Sgt. 1st

Class Randall Pollard.Pollard added that when the full-

armor kits became available their focusbecame the gunnery systems because thevehicles, primarily 5-tons, came withturrets but no armor shield plates.

Pollard and his team use their collec-tive civilian knowledge to help design thearmor add-on systems they use in theater.

“All the guys that work in here hadto prove they can do the job. Eachone was given test plates toweld and had to showsome type of certifica-

tion before they could start,” Pollard said.The Skunk Werks team has completed

1,180 work orders in their battalion andcountless orders from outside units.

“A lot of the jobs now are coming fromthe different FOBs [forward operatingbase],” said Staff Sgt. Keith Baylor aSkunk Werks shop technician.

There are currently about 500 workorders on hand and more than 1,500pieces of equipmentneeded to completethe jobs. Most ofthe equipmentis drawnthrough theS-4 supplychain, butsomeequipmentis providedby localnationals.Pollardadded that awork order can beanywhere from onepiece to several piecesdepending on the job. Manyproducts are prefabricated to help cutdown production.

“When units come from other locationsfor a mission here, and they have thetime, they stop by and see what we cando for them and put in a work order sothey can hit the road with a little extraprotection,” Pollard said.

The team averages 6 to 8 hours perjob and 12 to 16 hours a day ofwork in the shop. The great-est achievement of theSkunk Werks shophowever is notthe numberof jobsthey

Pho

to b

y S

gt. T

y S

taffo

rd

have done, but the outstanding achieve-ment rate of their products.

“I enjoy what I’m doing and I think weare making a difference,” Baylor said.

“We have seen the benefit of what wedo. None of our protective systems wecreated have been penetrated and to datewe have not had any injuries in thebattalion. We try to think of every safetymeasure possible. Everything we build is

for the Soldier’s safety,” Pollardconcluded.

skunk werksBy Staff Sgt. Engels TejedaStaff Writer

Though it started from scratch, the art club at Logisti-cal Support Area Anaconda has produced some fine artthat is attracting attention at American museums.

After nearly eight months of continuous weeklymeetings, the organization is looking for a new leaderand an increase in membership.

Last February Leslie Ritchie arrived at LSA Anacondato work as a Morale Welfare and Recreation technicianat the East Recreation Center. One of the first things shenoticed was that the walls were bare and that everythingwas plain.

“The place was dull,” Ritchie said while at the center.“So I had an art contest and I was actually surprised tosee the turn out.”

Eight Soldiers and civilians entered art pieces forRitchie’s contest and she put the top three pieces ondisplay. That’s when an employee of the Department ofDefense noticed a piece by Spc. Jesse Link, a signalsupport systems specialist with the 463rd EngineerBattalion.

“Joel Dusek (the contractor) saw the painting andtook a picture and sent it to his mom back in the states.She works for a museum,” Ritchie explained.

A few days later, Ritchie got an e-mail from PamelaDusek, the arts program supervisor at the Yuma ArtsCenter Museum, in Yuma, Ariz.

“She wanted to know if I could send her a couple ofthe paintings for a display,” Ritchie said.

Ritchie sent some of the art club’s work, and themuseum ran an exhibit featuring among other art, Link’suntitled piece.

The museum’s interest in the Soldiers’ artwork is insync with a wave of attention that military art hasrecently received. Last spring, national news magazinespublished cover articles on the impact that the war hashad on artists serving in the military.

Some of the articles suggested that the current war onterror has inspired servicemembers to write and produceart ranging from “Soldiers’ Rap” to country songs aboutIraq.

While readers may have been surprised to find thepopularity of art among Soldiers, Al Haener, a civiliancontractor working at Anaconda who has been leadingthe LSA’s art club, said the current military art wave issimply history repeating itself.

“Art in the military is big,” Haener said. He served asan artillery officer for 16 years before becoming a DODcontractor. “Here you do a lot of artwork. Those T-barriers don’t do themselves, you know,” he said,referring to hundreds of complex paintings found onconcrete walls throughout military camps in Iraq.

Haener is leaving Iraq by the end of November, and isseeking someone to replace him as leader of the art club,a job that he says doesn’t take much.

“They know what they want,” Haener said referringto the Soldiers who periodically attend Anaconda’s artclub. “You just get out supplies and let the kids getcreative. Now, I call them kids, but they are Soldiers,” hejoked.

Joking aside, he is on point. Soldiers throughout Iraqhave been building clubs from scratch in order toexpress themselves through art.

At the Q-West Base Complex in northern Iraq, forexample, a drama club recently attracted record-breakingcrowds to an onstage performance of “Operation

This untitled art piece by Spc. Jesse Link, a signal supportsystems specialist with the 463rd Engineering Battalion, isdisplayed with camo netting at LSA Anaconda.

courtesy photo

Sgt. Mathew Campbell, an operations NCO with the Headquarters and Headquarters Company of the 1st Battalion, 504thParachute Infantry Regiment, puts the finishing touches on his art piece. LSA Anaconda’s art club meets every Sunday atthe East Recreation Complex at 1900. Soldiers are welcome to bring their own supplies or to use the supplies the club hasfree of charge.


The Art of WarThe Art of WarThe Art of WarThe Art of WarThe Art of WarAn art club at LSA Anaconda gets together once a week to express

themselves visually, and people in the States are noticing.

Redneck.” The cast consisted of Soldiers who had tograpple with scarce supplies and lack of preparationtime.

Further south in Camp Al Taqqadum, Soldiersindependently run the Black Sheep Coffee House, apopular venue for “local talents” to express themselvesthrough poetry or music. The Soldiers built the wholevenue independent of any military funding.

Similarly, Anaconda’s art club was started withoutany official funding. The Soldiers and civilians whoattend the club started with their own supplies. As newsof their work spread, they started getting art materialfrom well wishers at home, including Dusek.

Today, the club has a stockpile of material that rangesfrom water colors and paint brushes to bead stringingkits, and since there are no limitations from benefactors,those who attend the club can use the materials forwhatever they please.

“I like to come here to do something that’s normaloutside the military,” said Sgt. Lauran Robinson, apublic affairs NCO with the 29th Brigade Combat Team.“You know, it’s fun. You don’t have to be Da Vinci orMichael Angelo to be in here.”

Anaconda’s art club meets every Sunday at 7 p.m. atthe East Side MWR.

The longstretch:The 457th playsan important roleBy Sgt. Ty StaffordStaff Writer

The long stretches of road, theheat of the engine, the cumbersometactical gear and, most importantly,the dangers of war take their toll onall weary travelers on the roads ofIraq.

For the 457th TransportationBattalion, from Fort Snelling, Minn.,this is the day-to-day routine whichthey have done since their arrival inIraq late last year.

The battalion, composed of amulti-component force of activeduty, Reserve, National Guard andAir Force personnel, has loggedmore than 5 million miles on themain supply routes of Iraq andKuwait during more than 1,700combat logistics patrols.

The more than 1,500 personnelstrong battalion, who supports the18th Airborne Corps and 1st CorpsSupport Command at LogisticalSupport Area Anaconda, hastraveled from as far south as theKuwaiti border to the northernTurkish border transporting food,ammunition and nearly 9 milliongallons of fuel to help support theOperation Iraqi Freedom troops.

“We support the corps. Wheneversomeone needs something moved,we get it done. We’re like the 9-1-1for the corps,” said Maj. JamesFlanders, the support operationsofficer for the 457th.

The battalion consists of 11 linecompanies and has anywherebetween nine to 12 convoys with180 to 240 trucks on the road everyday. Four of those line companiesare gun truck support companieswhich provide the security to alloutgoing CLPs from the battalion.

The lift assist capabilities includethe Palletized Load System and theM915 5-ton truck with M872 40-foottrailers. The PLS truck and trailerform a self-contained system thatloads and unloads a wide range ofcargo without the need for forkliftsor other material handling equip-ment.

The majority of the PLS liftshowever, are from Kellogg, Brownand Root.

To help bridge the gap betweencivilian counterparts, the battalionhas integrated the KBR staff.

See 457th on pg. 15


Going onEmergency

Leave?

Don’t forget,

you MUSThave civilianclothes tobe able to

fly out!

Also make sure you

have a copy of your

orders on you at all

times, even when

you are at home!

Please be sensitive to those whoobserve this religious holiday.

This year, Muslimscelebrate Ramadan

Oct. 4 to Nov. 2

By Sgt. Rachel Brune101st Sustainment BDE

LSA DIAMONDBACK, Iraq – Alanguage barrier is not something Armymedics may see regularly in their militarycareers.

For the medics of Bravo Company, 101st

Brigade Troops Battalion, the barrier issomething to deal with on a daily basis atthe Mosul Detention Facility here.

The 16-Soldier detachment takes turnsrotating through duty at the facility, aswell as running sick call at the 228th

Combat Support Hospital, said Sgt. JefferyImel, detachment noncommissionedofficer in charge.

The mission at MDF is health mainte-nance, making sure the detainees stayhealthy and keeping track of thoseneeding medications to manage variousmedical conditions, said Sgt. ChristopherWilliamson, the detention facility medicalcare NCOIC.

With the help of a translator, themedics perform initial medical screeningsof all new detainees. The Soldiers make amedical folder for each detainee, record-ing vital signs and other pertinentinformation.

The physicians in the detachmentperform a physical on each detaineewithin 24 hours of intake, Williamsonsaid.

After drawing blood, taking bloodpressure and administering intravenousfluids if needed, the physician makes ajudgment of any further care based on theinitial assessment.

The MDF medics conduct a daily sickcall, visiting each cell to offer medicalcare, whether the detainees request it ornot, Williamson said. At this time, themedics hand out needed medications tothose detainees requiring them.

With the beginning of Ramadan, the

medics adjusted their schedule to meetthe needs of detainees whose religiousfasting requirements prohibit them fromtaking medication or having blood drawnduring daylight hours, Williamson said.

The 194th Military Police Company,from Fort Campbell, Ky., provided themedics with the list of those detaineesobserving Ramadan. The company iswinding up a one-year deployment takingcare of the detention facility.

B Co. medics staff the detention facility24 hours a day. In an emergency, theSoldiers can always reach one of thedetachment’s physicians on the radio.

The facility can hold about 350 detain-ees, according to Williamson. It currentlyholds about 150.

As an added precaution for the detain-ees’ protection, the medics screen theircharges before and after military intelli-gence screenings. They check for bruises,scrapes or other indications of abuse tomake sure the detainees are treatedproperly.

“The medics who rotate through hereare doing a pretty good job,” Williamson

said. Although his Soldiers rotate be-tween the facility and sick call at 228th

CSH, he works solely at the facility.“The interpreters have been doing this

job for the past three years,” Williamsonsaid, when asked about the languagebarrier. He added, “I’m going to try tolearn some Arabic while I’m here.”

Elsewhere on Diamondback, detach-ment Soldiers run sick call at the hospitalunder the watchful eye of Spc. Jason Hale,sick call noncommissioned officer incharge.

“We are medics. We do see a lot oftrauma,” Imel said. “It’s teaching theSoldiers quite a bit up there.”

As detachment NCOIC, Imel coordi-nates support for Soldiers at outlyingcamps and makes sure the paperworkgets routed where it needs to go.

“I think the Soldiers are doing anexcellent job out here,” Imel said. Evenwith long weeks of 12-hour days, theBravo Co. medics are keeping their moraleup.

“Everyone’s been working togetherand working pretty hard,” Imel said.

Medics look after Soldiers and detainees

Pfc. Nan Shih, B Co., 2-5 Field Artillery medic, assists Pvt. Jose Vargas, B Co., 101st BrigadeTroops Battalion medic, as he gives an IV during their sick call shift on Oct. 7.

Photo by Sgt. Rachel Brune


By Staff Sgt. Monika ComeauxStaff Writer

A sea of duffle bags lay in an orderlyfashion on the well-lit basketball courtacross the street from the 46th CorpsSupport Group headquarters in Taji, Iraqon Oct. 7. A few Soldiers wearing desertcombat uniforms guarded them.

Trucks and buses pulled up, and thebasketball court came to life. Soldierswearing the new army combat uniformsgot off the vehicles and started download-ing and regrouping more bags. The eyesof the Soldiers wearing the DCUs lit up.Their replacement, the 4th SustainmentBrigade had arrived.

The 46th CSG has spent almost a yearin theater, arriving in Iraq in December oflast year.

“We hit the ground running,” saidCol. Kenneth M. McMillin, the com-mander of the 46th CSG.

At first, the unit supported the 1st

Cavalry Division, later, the 3rd InfantryDivision. The CSG also provided supportfor the elections in Iraq, mostly by pre-staging supplies at forward operatingbases, so when the roads were closeddown, nobody had a shortage of any-thing, said Maj. Christopher K. Lanfried,operations officer of the 46th CSG.

A corps support group generallyprovides combat service support bydelivering water, food, fuel, and assistingunits on the battlefield with transporta-tion and maintenance, explained Lt. Col.Thurington W. Harvell, the officer incharge of support operations in the CSG.

The 46th CSG successfully supportedfive brigade-size elements in an area of7,200 square miles.

Among many other supporting activi-ties, they averaged 200 combat logisticspatrols a month.

As the three leaders reflect back on theyear the unit spent in Iraq, the same tasksand events come to mind for all of them.

The most challenging task theythought was the setup and training of the1st Motorized Transportation Regiment ofthe Iraqi army. This was not a mission acorps support group generally has to dealwith.

“When we received the mission, it [the1st MTR] was just a name. It didn’t haveany personnel or vehicles,” Harvell said.

“There was no MTOE [modified tableof organization], or training plan,”Lanfried said.

The designated personnel of the 46th

CSG developed a training plan, andsuccessfully trained, equipped andoutfitted the 1st MTR, to include armoringtheir vehicles. The training plan was laterused to set up the 2nd and 3rd MTR,McMillin said proudly.

The unit also impacted the lives oflocal Iraqis by employing approximately150 local national workers and anadditional 30 local national translators,Lanfried said.

Another achievement the groupcommander is proud of, is how fast andeffectively they armored their vehicles.The majority of the work was done inKuwait between January and May of thisyear. By now, 90 percent of their vehicleshave at least level two armor, allowingpersonnel to run missions off post.

Even though the CSG does supportmissions at Fort Bragg, those missionsdon’t always compare to what they hadto accomplish in theater.

“Here we are actually doing what wewere trained to do, which you don’talways get to do in garrison,” Harvellsaid. He referred to handling water andfood supplies or bulk fuel on a daily basisand running 24-hour operations in acombat environment.

After almost a year, Soldiers will gohome with a sense of accomplishment,and knowing that they were part of an

important process.“I think everyone has enjoyed the time

they had over here. A lot of my guyslearned stuff they normally wouldn’t. Ithas been very educational for them. Ithink we will always remember comingover here and bringing democracy toIraq,” Lanfried said.

Harvell will most remember people heworked and lived with.

“We kind of brought the airbornementality to support, that a lot of the unitshave not seen before,” McMillin said.“Anybody that has been in an airborneunit understands the whole ‘can do’attitude. The bottom line is, we don’t say‘we can’t do it,’ we just say, ‘hey we maynot be able to do it like you want, but wewill get it done.’ That kind of filtereddown to our battalions. There just hasn’tbeen a mission that we weren’t able to dothis year.”

By Sgt. 1st Class GuadalupeStratmanSustainment Brigade PAO

The 4th Infantry Division made itsreturn to Iraq as Soldiers of thedivision’s Sustainment Brigade arrivedat Camp Taji, Iraq, on Oct. 7.

Nearly 350 Soldiers left their homestation of Fort Hood, Texas, starting onSept. 18.

Soldiers trained for two weeks atCamp Beuhring, Kuwait. The trainingwent from basic firing skills to closequarter marksmanship course andreacting to a suspicious vehicle at anentry control point.

The Soldiers’ training reached itspeak with live-fire convoys whereSoldiers moved vehicles into defensiveand offensive positions, moved dis-abled vehicles and requested medicalevacuations for injured personnel.

Some Soldiers also experiencedforeign weapons training.

Soldiers then flew to LogisticalSupport Area Anaconda, Iraq for abrief stay while the unit’s primary staffwent forward to Camp Taji to coordi-nate for a seamless move. After settlinginto their quarters, Soldiers begantraining with their counterpart of the46th Corps Support Group, the unitthey are replacing.

Col. Gustave Perna, the commanderof Sustainment Brigade, set his priori-ties for the brigade transition.

“We are here at a momentous time,”Perna said. “As the Iraqi governmentprepares for the referendum on theconstitution, we pick up the mission ofthe 46th.”

Perna warned that putting in a 12 to16-hour day may be the norm, butencouraged Soldiers to continue theirphysical and spiritual fitness duringthe year deployment.

“I’m looking forward to gettingbusy,” said Staff Sgt. Sandy Gribble,movement coordinator for the brigade.“Being busy makes the time go byfaster. The transition is getting used tochange. Once we are established thingswill run smoothly.”

Sustainment Brigade will not onlytake on the 46th CSG’s mission but willalso take on the mission of anotherbrigade.Perna said, “We are going todouble the mission of the current unit.”

Sustainment Brigade will be the oneof the first units to live the Armytransformation by taking on themission of the 46th CSG and themission of the 3rd Infantry Division’sSustainment Brigade.

“We are excited to take over bothmissions because we are trained andready to do so,” said Maj. SethSerwood, Sustainment Brigade S-3.

4th ID arrivesafter trainingin Kuwait

‘Super‘Super‘Super‘Super‘Supergrgrgrgrgroup’ packs bags foup’ packs bags foup’ packs bags foup’ packs bags foup’ packs bags for trip homeor trip homeor trip homeor trip homeor trip home

Capt. Daniel A. Holland from the 4th Support Brigade struggles with his dufflebag on Oct. 7.Photo by Staff Sgt. Monika Comeaux


East MWREast MWREast MWREast MWREast MWRScheduleScheduleScheduleScheduleSchedule

WWWWWesesesesest MWRt MWRt MWRt MWRt MWRScheduleScheduleScheduleScheduleSchedule

PilatesPilatesPilatesPilatesPilatesThe LSA Anaconda Fitness Center

offers Pilates classes at 5:45 a.m. Mon-day, Wednesday and Friday.

AerobicsAerobicsAerobicsAerobicsAerobicsThere will be an aerobics class Mon-

day, Wednesday and Friday at 6 p.m.Freestyle aerobics is Saturday at 9a.m., and today at 1 p.m.

KKKKKarararararaaaaateteteteteKarate classes will be Sunday,

Monday, Wednesday and Friday at7:15 p.m.

TTTTTae Boae Boae Boae Boae BoThe LSA Anaconda Fitness Center

offers Tae Bo classes Tuesday, Thurs-day and Saturday at 5:30 a.m.

KKKKKobobobobobushi Sessen Jushi Sessen Jushi Sessen Jushi Sessen Jushi Sessen JutsuutsuutsuutsuutsuThe LSA Anaconda Fitness Center

offers classes in the feudal warriorcombat art Tuesday, Thursday andSaturday at 8:30 p.m.

CaCaCaCaCapoeirpoeirpoeirpoeirpoeiraaaaaThe LSA Anaconda Fitness Center

offers capoeira classes Sunday at 6p.m and Monday, Wednesday andFriday at 8:30 p.m.

Nihon Goshen AikidoNihon Goshen AikidoNihon Goshen AikidoNihon Goshen AikidoNihon Goshen AikidoThe LSA Anaconda Fitness Center

offers Nihon Goshen Aikido classes at5:30 p.m. every Tuesday, Thursdayand Saturday in the Sprung Gym.

Brazilian Jiu-JitsuBrazilian Jiu-JitsuBrazilian Jiu-JitsuBrazilian Jiu-JitsuBrazilian Jiu-JitsuCombaCombaCombaCombaCombatititititivvvvveseseseses Classes will beSundays at 8:30 p.m. and Wednes-days and Fridays at 8:30 p.m.

LSLSLSLSLSA AnacondaA AnacondaA AnacondaA AnacondaA AnacondaFitness CenterFitness CenterFitness CenterFitness CenterFitness Center

KKKKKarararararaokaokaokaokaoke Nighte Nighte Nighte Nighte Night

Open-mike nights willbe every Saturday at 8 p.m.

TTTTTaaaaabbbbble-Tle-Tle-Tle-Tle-TennisennisennisennisennisTTTTTourourourourournamentnamentnamentnamentnament

A Table-tennis tourna-ment will be every Sundayat 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

DarDarDarDarDartststststsTTTTTourourourourournamentnamentnamentnamentnament

A darts tournamentwill be held Sundaysat 8 p.m.

8-Ball8-Ball8-Ball8-Ball8-BallTTTTTourourourourournamentnamentnamentnamentnamentAn 8-ball tourna-

ment will be heldevery Monday at 3and 8 p.m.

Game NightGame NightGame NightGame NightGame NightGame night

will be everyFriday at 8 p.m.

Games featuredwill include Risk,

Battleship andDominoes.

Dedicated to providing a variety ofservices including:

Powers of Attorney and NotariesCitizenship Application Preparation and Immigra-

tion IssuesDivorce and Family Law Issues

GuardianshipsTax Services

Servicemember’s Civil Relief Act IssuesFLIPL and Reprimand Rebuttals

Personnel Claims and Wills

LSA Anaconda Soldier’sLegal Center

DSN 829-1533/1538

The firstSanctioned

PowerliftingCompetition

on Oct. 30

Bingo nights at the

PANTHER PAVILIONSATURDAYS AT 8 p.m.

TEXAS HOLD’EMat the

Panther PavilionMondays at

2 p.m. and 8 p.m.

8-Ball8-Ball8-Ball8-Ball8-BallTTTTTourourourourournamentnamentnamentnamentnamentTTTTTuesdauesdauesdauesdauesdays ays ays ays ays attttt

1 p.m. and 8 p.m. 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. 1 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Going Home?A Naval Customs will be holdingbreifings for returning units. The

Breifings will cover MILVANinspection and restricted items.

The brief will cover container andMILVAN inspections, prohibited items,and tips on how to make the process gowell. Customs inspectors will be there to

answer questions

For questions and reservations callMT1 McCreary:

829-1824

OCTOBER 23, 2005 PAGE 13ANACONDA TIMES

RRRRReligious Sceligious Sceligious Sceligious Sceligious ScheduleheduleheduleheduleheduleMovie Schedule

SustainerSustainerSustainerSustainerSustainerRRRRReel Timeeel Timeeel Timeeel Timeeel Time

TheaterTheaterTheaterTheaterTheater(schedule is subject to change)

October 233 p.m. Deuce Bigalow: European6 p.m. Into the Blue9 p.m. The Great Raid

October 243 p.m. Into the Blue6 p.m. Deuce Bigalow: European9 p.m. Dukes of Hazard

October 253 p.m. The Great Raid6 p.m. Must Love Dogs9 p.m. Into the Blue

October 263 p.m. Dukes of Hazard6 p.m. Into the Blue9 p.m. Deuce Bigalow: European

October 273 p.m. The Great Raid6 p.m. Supercross9 p.m. Into the Blue

October 283 p.m. Valiant6 p.m. Two for the Money9 p.m. Two for the Money

October 293 p.m. Supercross6 p.m. Four Brothers9 p.m. Two for the Money

Roman Catholic MassWednesday 11 a.m. Air Force HospitalSaturday 5 p.m. Tuskegee ChapelSunday 8:30 a.m. Freedom ChapelSunday 9 a.m. Tuskegee ChapelSunday 11 a.m. Provider ChapelSunday 8 p.m. Provider Capel AnnexMon.-Fri. 7 p.m. Tuskegee Chapel

Sacrament of Reconciliation(30 minutes prior to each mass)

Church of ChristSunday 11 a.m. Aviation Village 1/245th ATSConference Room

Samoan Congregational ServiceSunday 4 p.m. Provider Chapel

Latter Day SaintsSunday 1 p.m. Provider ChapelSunday 3 p.m. Freedom ChapelSunday 7 p.m. Tuskegee ChapelFHE 8 p.m. Provdier Chapel Annex

Islamic PrayerFriday 12:30 p.m. Provider Chapel

Jewish PrayerFriday 6:30 p.m. Provider Chapel Annex

Protestant-GospelSunday 11 a.m. Sustainer Indoor TheaterSunday 11:30 a.m. Freedom ChapelSunday 7 p.m. Provider Chapel

Protestant Praise and WorshipSunday 9:30 a.m. Sustainer Indoor TheaterSunday 5:30 p.m. Tuskegee ChapelSunday 6:30 p.m. MWR Tent 29th Spt. Bn.Sunday 7 p.m. Freedom ChapelWednesday 7:00 p.m. Freedom Chapel

Protestant-ContemporarySunday 11 a.m. Town Hall

Protestant-TraditionalSunday 7:30 a.m. Air Force Hospital ChapelSunday 9:30 a.m. Provider ChapelSunday 10 a.m. Freedom Chapel

Movie Synopsis for Oct. 23- Oct. 29SupercrossPG-13, action, 92 minSteve Howley, Mike Vogle

Two brothers overcome emotional and physicalobstacles to achieve success in the competitive worldof Supercross racing. The brothers’ conflicts aremagnified by their different life choices and theirdecision to become competitors and rivals. KC is amore cautious rider than his younger brother Trip,who has more natural talent but takes too many risks.When KC gets an all-expenses paid “factory” —corporate sponsored — ride, a rift forms between thetwo brothers. Trip is forced to go at it alone, becominga “privateer”—a rider without a sponsor. But when acareer threatening crash ends Trip’s Supercrosscareer, he and KC realize that they must put asidetheir conflicts, and work together to helpKC defeat the world’s greatest Supercross champions.

The Great RaidR, drama, 132 minBenjamin Bratt, James Franco

Set in the Philippines in 1945, “The Great Raid” tellsthe true story of the 6th Ranger Battalion, under thecommand of Lieutenant Colonel Henry Mucci whoundertake a daring rescue mission against all odds.Traveling 30 miles behind enemy lines, the 6th RangerBattalion aims to liberate over 500 Americanprisoners-of-war from the notorious CabanatuanJapanese POW camp in the most audacious rescueever.

Four BrothersR, drama, 109 minMark Wahlberg, Andre Benjamin

After their adoptive mother is murdered during agrocery store hold-up, the Mercer brothers—hotheaded Bobby, hard-edged Angel, family man andbusinessman Jeremiah, and hard rocking Jack—reunite to take the matter of her death into their ownhands. As they track down the killer, they quicklyrealize that their old ways of doing business havenew consequences.

Into the BluePG-13, action, 110 minPaul Walker, Jessica Alba

When four young divers discover a legendaryshipwreck rumored to contain millions in gold at thebottom of the sea, they believe their dream of buriedtreasure has come true. But nearby on the ocean floor,a sunken plane full of illegal cargo threatens theirfind. The friends make a pact to keep quiet about bothdiscoveries so they can excavate the shipwreck beforea rival treasure hunter uncovers their secret and beatsthem to the gold. But their plan goes awry when theyrealize dangerous smugglers are already closing in onthe missing plane, and one of the friends makes afatal decision that quickly turns the treasure huntersinto the hunted.

Religious schedule subject to change


By Sgt. Jason MikeworthStaff Writer

Citizens across Iraq turned out amid heavy security tovote on a constitutional referendum to decide if the draftproposal should be approved.

Iraqi police and Iraqi army personnel took a morevisible security role than during the January elections,with U.S. troops providing quick reaction force (QRF)teams and presence patrols. At the Zuhari polling site,U.S. forces stood at the ready nearby but out of sight.

“We’re here in support of the referendum process. Themain goal is to offer our services to the Iraqi police andarmy, however, we’re staying away from the pollingsites,” said Spc. Bryon Hart, a light machine gun opera-tor with K Troop, 1st Battalion, 128th Infantry Regiment.

Taha Kadum, an Iraqi citizen working as a linguistwith the U.S. Army, was proud to have been able to voteon the constitution.

“I think this is the first day of a good future. I hopethey will say yeah for the constitution,” Kadum said. “Iwant to see my country grow. I want to see my countrymore safe, more secure.”

Kadum said it was a good feeling to see the Iraqipolice and Iraqi army taking a more active role in provid-ing security for the polling sites.

“I hope everybody [votes] today. I want to take more[steps] forward, not back,” he added.

K Troop Soldiers conducted security patrols throughseveral villages and along many rural routes to disruptany attempts by anti-Iraqi forces to interfere with thevoting process.

Although the day of the vote passed peacefully for KTroop, attacks in the time leading up to the vote claimedthe life of Spc. Robert Tucker.

Tucker was killed when an improvised explosivedevice detonated near the vehicle he was riding in aftercompleting a mission to install concrete barriers at apolling site. Four other Soldiers were wounded in theattack.

Capt. Paul Shannon, commander of K Troop, said he

felt the Iraqi people have taken a huge step forward bycoming out to vote.

He also felt that the Iraqi police and Iraqi army takingpoint on providing polling site security helps to showthe progress that has been made in Iraq since the Januaryelections.

“A lot of them have stepped up to the plate, takingthis head on, and they’ve done a great job with it,”Shannon said. “It takes many building blocks to build acountry, and the constitution is one of the first blocksthey need to build this country.”

Some Soldiers hoped the referendum would bringIraqis closer as a nation, helping to stabilize Iraq andallowing the U.S. to start drawing down the number oftroops deployed here.

“If we can help this country become as great of acountry as the United States, and help unite the people ofIraq, I think we will have accomplished what we’retrying to do here,” said Sgt. Ryan Ledbetter, a driver withK Troop. “Overall, I think the ones who vote are the oneswho will be proud of themselves and are the ones tryingto make a better life for them and their children.”

K Troop Light Machine Gun Operator Sgt. EricDodson said, “I think it’s a good thing because it showsthat they’re closer to taking over their own country andwe can get U.S. forces back home a lot quicker. They’vecome a long way from Jan. 30 to Oct. 15.”

Soldiers also said the voting process in Iraq hadhelped bring into perspective the election process backhome.

“We have technology and computers [for voting]. Herethey’ve got to protect the ballots with their lives,”Dodson said. “We take for granted how easily we havethat right back home, and these people are just nowgetting it and have to work so hard just to keep it.”

Hart echoed Dodson’s sentiments.“We should look at this process and realize the

freedom we have to vote. Reaching out to anothercountry and teaching them the importance of votingshould wake Americans up to see it’s our freedom to doso.”

Iraqis turn out to vote at a polling site in Zuhari, Iraq as an Iraqi army soldier provides security.

U.S. Soldiers watch froma distance as Iraqis vote

Photo by Sgt. Jason Mikeworth


On the eve of a general referendum on the new Iraqiconstitution, The Anaconda Time’s Staff Sgt. Engels Tejeda andCapt. Christian Jenni sat with Iraqi soldiers of the 2nd Motor-ized Transportation Regiment, a logistics unit within the newIraqi army. With the help of an interpreter, they recorded thesoldiers’ feelings about the referendum:

Col. “Jay R.,” (49) a senior officer with the 2nd

MTR who could not use his real name becausedisclosure would endanger his family:

Q: Are you looking forward to the referendum?A: Oh yes, of course. This constitution will be the

base for a new Iraq.Q: Some people say that this is a Kurdish and Shiite

constitution, not a constitution for the whole Iraq. Isthat accurate?

A: That is not correct. Two days ago even one of thebiggest Sunni organizations agreed to vote. A lot ofSunnis are in the government, one of them is theMinister of Defense. He’s Sunni.

Q: Do you have Sunnis in your regiment?A: We don’t like to look at Sunni and Shiite in Iraq.

We are all the same here. But yes, I have Sunnis. Onetime they asked me for two officers to go train outsidethe country and I sent a Sunni and a Shiite becausethey were my two best soldiers. If the best two wereSunnis, I would have sent them. We just need the best.

Q: How important is the constitution for themilitary?

A: Very important. I read the new constitution tomy soldiers and I explained [to] them why it isimportant.

Q: But if it is so important, why have there been somany last minute changes and so many problemsbefore going to the polls?

A: It’s a new experience for Iraq, first of all. Andthere are some people who don’t even want us to vote.These people, they are not Iraqis. Even yesterday theycaught some people with [improvised explosivedevises]. They were not Iraqis.

Capt. Mohammad Esare (32), an intelligenceofficer whose real name could not be disclosedbecause of the sensitivity of his job. He is a SunniMuslim of Kurdish ancestry:

Q: Why are you voting?A: For a new country, a new government, a new life.

We need a different life in Iraq. Before, we had onepresident and we couldn’t change him. Now that’sdifferent.

Q: Saddam Hussein held elections. Did you votethen?

A: [Laughs] Yes, I voted. I was in the army and I hadto vote. There was only one [candidate] and we allhad to vote – we all had to vote “yes” or we weredead.

Q: Why do you think some people are opposed tothe constitution?

A: There are three types of people who don’t wantthis constitution to pass or can’t help pass it. Onegroup doesn’t trust the leaders, the political leaders,because it’s hard to trust anyone after Saddam. It’shard to believe again. Another group is the peoplewho were in power when Saddam was in power.They are scared that they won’t have any more power.Then there [are] people who are scared because theterrorists said they would attack. They are afraid to goto the voting site, especially in the west of Iraq.

Q and A with Iraqisoldiers on the eveof the referendum


Sgt. Jason MikeworthStaff Writer

Helping secure Iraq is no easy task, but the Soldiers ofTask Force 1/128th, are proving they are up to thechallenge.

Based out of Forward Operating Base O’Ryan, theTask Force comprised of K Troop, 3rd Squadron, 278th

Armored Calvary Regiment and 1st Battalion, 128th

Infantry Regiment has completed over 1,700 missions,including over 150 raids on suspected insurgent hide-outs, identification of close to 3,500 improvised explosivedevices and unexploded ordnance and countlesshumanitarian missions to improve roads, assist in waterpurification projects and repair schools.

“We’ve probably handed out thousands of soccerballs,” said Cpt. Paul Shannon, the commander of KTroop. “The guys really like that. That gives them anopportunity to see the little ones in a different light thansome of the other individuals we have to deal with on adaily basis here.”

The unit has overcome adversity and tragedy toaccomplish their mission. The unit is comprised ofSoldiers from both the Wisconsin National Guard andthe Tennessee National Guard. Originally an armoredcavalry unit, they traded in their tanks for M2 Bradleysand a dismounted lifestyle. They trained in their newroles for six months at Camp Shelby, Miss., beforedeploying to Iraq in December of 2004.

The terrain of Iraq also dictated additional changes tothe way the unit conducts their missions. Their assignedarea of operations contains a patchwork of dirt roads,rural towns and canals that don’t always match thecapabilities of the Bradleys. Shannon said the unit againhad to adapt, this time from a mechanized style of unit toa hybrid of mechanized and motorized, mixing in morehumvees, which were better suited to some of the land-scape the unit had to cover.

“The guys handled all of the changes thrown at themextremely well,” Shannon said. “I couldn’t ask foranything better.”

Staff Sgt. William Looper, a section sergeant andpatrol leader with the 1/128th, said his primary missionis usually to clear routes of IEDs and disrupt Anti IraqiForces (AIF) activity. He said he feels the unit’s missionis a very important part of achieving the Army’s goals inIraq.

“We have convoys traveling up and down throughhere. I truly feel that if I didn’t go up and down through

continued from pg. 9

A KBR representative is permanently assigned tothe battalion and confers with the operations sectiondaily.

“We are one of the first to have KBR, operationsstaff and the convoy commanders working directlytogether in the same office,” said Lt. Col. DavidGaffney, battalion commander for the 457th.

As the transition from OIF II units to OIF III unitstook place, experiences and knowledge were passeddown to create many new initiatives.

One initiative to help enhance their missioncapabilities was setting up a validation process tocertify their convoy commanders and assistantconvoy commanders, said Command Sgt. Maj. MarkWhade, battalion command sergeant major for the457th.

The validation process includes mission time priorto request, meeting training requirements and gettingsignatures from their platoon sergeant and companycommander before getting final approval.

The battalion also created a validation process forsafety officers and loadmasters.

Each CLP has a safety officer and loadmasterassigned who have standardized checklists to ensureall procedures are followed to better ensure missioncompletion.

“The loadmaster has the primary responsibility toensure that all the loads on the various trucks whereproperly located on the trailer and properly securedbecause once you are outside the wire a load shiftwould cause you to stop and puts the CLP in dan-ger,” Whade added.

In addition to the validation process, the battalionhosts a drivers and gunners conference every fewweeks to keep each party informed of new tactics,techniques and procedures.

“We move, we shoot and we communicate. Butmost important is to survive,” Gaffney said, “and thisis done by focusing on training and proper executionof missions.”

The validation process along with the CRAM(Commanders Risk Assessment Meeting), nightlycommanders briefings, the 457th interactive CD-ROM,rehearsals and company-level leadership are all keysto our success, Gaffney said.

The Interactive CD-ROM with updated trainingmaterials was a year-long process.

“It is a resource for company commanders to use asa training tool to keep the Soldiers informed of newand updated training materials and is used as aguideline for future operations,” Gaffney said.

The stringent training and safety program has ledthe battalion to the lowest accident rate for transpor-tation battalions in the theater of operations, Gaffneyadded.

“Overall, I think the battalion is maintaining themomentum of the corps,” Gaffney said. “Everyoneunderstands it’s about the CLPs. It’s about movingsupplies. Our mission is life or death.”

By the end of this deployment the Soldiers of hisbattalion will have logged nearly 10 million miles onthe road.

Besides the CLPs, the battalion had force protectionresponsibilities on Anaconda which took more than80 Soldiers a day to support, Whade added.

It seems however, that the miles and operationaltempo hasn’t affected the battalion’s morale. Thebattalion during this rotation has had 70 reenlist-ments compared to last rotation which only had 35,Whade said.

“The legacy they will leave behind is not the milesdriven, but the way they conducted the missionswhile they where here,” Gaffney said.

there and somebody died, I’d feel bad about it knowing Iwent out on a mission and I didn’t spot something. Thatkeeps me going,” Looper said.

Staff Sgt. Robert Tiedje, a squad leader with K Troop,said his squad usually operates as the lead vehicle forcombat patrols, a job he described as being the eyes of thepatrol.

“Our responsibilities include choosing what routeswe’re going to take, we have to be aware of ambushesand scan for IEDs,” Tiedje said.

Tiedje said that searching for IEDs is a little morenerve racking than taking a hit from one.

“When you’re looking for them it’s unknown,” Tiedjesaid, “but once it goes off then you know exactly whatsituation you’re in, and if you’re still there to fight after itwent off you know you’re probably OK.”

Tragedy struck the 1/128th in August when an IEDdetonated under the lead vehicle of a patrol that wasreturning from a successful mission. Made from twoanti-tank mines, the IED killed Staff Sgt. Victoir ‘Vic’Lieurance and Sgt. Joey Hunt. The loss of two friendsaffected the unit deeply.

“It hurts losing somebody,” Looper said, “but justknowing that we’ve got people out there that are willingto sacrifice that for what they believe helps us all keepgoing.”

Soldiers helped each other deal with the grief bytalking to each other.

“We did a lot of talking, a lot of soul searching,”Shannon said. “They held together well and got back inthe saddle.”

The Soldiers of K Troop try to keep the mood aroundthe unit light-hearted by joking, but never forget theseriousness of their mission. Maintenance is no jokingmatter and is one of the keys to their success, Shannonsaid.

“I have an excellent maintenance team here. Our OR[Operational Readiness] rate has consistently been 92percent, and for the majority of the time it has been 100percent for combat vehicles,” Shannon said. “Sgt. 1st

Class Billy Collins has been instrumental, along with hissmall group of guys, in keeping these tracks and thesewheels turning. Without him, these [missions] would nothave been possible.”

With K Troop now preparing to redeploy to the U.S.,some Soldiers have had a chance to reflect on the unit’saccomplishments and the price they have paid for them.

“I hope it’s all worth it,” Tiedje said. “A lot of peopleare coming over here making a lot of sacrifices. I thinktime will tell.”

457th Transportation Bn. Special Special Special Special Special TTTTTask Fask Fask Fask Fask Forororororce wce wce wce wce worororororkskskskskstototototogggggether to securether to securether to securether to securether to secure Ire Ire Ire Ire Iraqaqaqaqaq

Soldiers from K Troop, 1st Battalion, 128th Infantry Regiment, provide overwatch security during the constitutional referen-dum in Iraq. Iraqi police and Iraqi army personnel provided the main security at polling sites across Iraq.



AROUND 1st COSCOM

Are there slurpees?This shop, named after 7-Eleven, in Mosul at Logistical Support Area Diamondback. Thereare no slurpees or coffee, but plenty of watches, blankets, transformers and movies.

Photo by Staff Sgt. Monika Comeaux

And that’s why democracy is good.Staff Sgt. Josh Adams demonstrates blowing bubbles to children in Albu Assad.

AAA in IraqMembers of 3rd Platoon, Troop F of the 82nd Cavalry pull a humvee out of a mud puddle during a combat recon area patroloutside Logistical Support Area Anaconda.

Take it off any sweet jumps?Soldiers from the 146th Transportation Company conducttheir own version of driver training at Camp Al Taqqadum. Itis unknown whether the Army will adopt the new technique.


1st Lt. Mike Smith

1st Lt. Mike Smith

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