Vol. 3, No. 10 Baghdad, Iraq March 11, 2005 Iraqis...

Baghdad, Iraq March 11, 2005Vol. 3, No. 10

Service members, families giveshoes to Iraqi children Page 9

MNC-I plans to evaluate, improvevehicle safety record Page 4

AF general commends Airmenat Wingmen Gathering 5

Inside

Training for disasters, Page 10

Hang on ... Cpl. Aaron M. Whyde, VMGR-252 electrician (right,) and Cpl. Adam L. Brunner, VMGR-252ordnance troubleshoot the lighting on the wing of one of the squadron’s KC-130Js. Thisdeployment marks the first time the “J” has operated in a combat zone. See Page 8.

Photo by: Cpl. Rocco DeFilippis

Iraqis beginrebuildinghealthcareINTERNATIONAL ZONE, BAGHDAD, Iraq — On a dusty plot of landbeside a bombed-out building here, Iraqi and U.S. officials gathered for a“brick-laying” ceremony March 3, formally beginning construction for whatis expected to become Iraq’s premiere healthcare training facility.

The facility, called the Iraqi Academy of Health Sciences, is expected totrain personnel to staff approximately 150 healthcare centers being estab-lished throughout the country.

Comparable to a traditional ground-breaking ceremony familiar to mostAmericans, but instead of scooping up a shovel full of dirt and tossing it, inthis ceremony Iraq’s Acting Minister of Health and Minister ofCommunication Mohammod Ali Alhakim and the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq,John D. Negroponte, cemented together a couple of bricks with freshlymixed mortar following short speeches by both.

By Staff Sgt. Brett B. McMillanScimitar Editor

WASHINGTON — Terrorist attacks have hampered the reconstructionprocess in Iraq, but officials there said March 4 that work to rebuild the coun-try continues.

“My sense is right now we are able to construct and work in many areas ofthe country,” said Charles Hess, director of the Iraq Project and ContractingOffice, during a videoconference from Baghdad with the Pentagon presscorps.

“I won’t say everything is improving, but clearly it seems like we have, infact, the ability to do a lot of work in multiple areas that we didn’t necessar-ily have that opportunity before,” Hess said. “Not to say that the insurgencyis gone, but clearly, by the fact that we have many projects in many areas,we’ve just been able to continue on,” he said.

In their first briefing on reconstruction since January, officials in Baghdadreported that about 2,000 construction projects have been started in Iraq, andthat 582 have been finished thus far, including a new health academy thatopened March 3 and a new electrical plant.

See HEALTHCARE, Page 5

Officials give updateon rebuilding IraqBy Sgt. 1st Class Doug SampleAmerican Forces Press Service

See RECONSTRUCTION, Page 5

Soul TrainIraqi schoolgirls patiently wait in line for shoes on Feb. 18 Airmen from332 ESFS distributed 1,100 pairs of children and adult shoes to three vil-lages near Balad AB, Iraq, during Operation Sole Train.

Photo by 1st Lt. Ron Alombro.

WASHINGTON — The results of America’sdedication can be seen in Iraq andAfghanistan, Deputy Defense Secretary PaulWolfowitz told the Senate Budget CommitteeMarch 1.

Those who doubted that Muslim countriescould embrace democracy have been provenwrong in those countries. Wolfowitz, MarineGen. Peter Pace, the vice chairman of theJoint Chiefs of Staff, and Tina Jonas, thedefense comptroller, testified before thepanel.

“In the terror war which [Osama] bin Ladenassociate Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is wagingagainst democracy in Iraq, al Qaeda is losingbadly,” Wolfowitz said. “In just the last threeyears, in regions some people previouslyjudged immune to the democratic spirit,there’s been an extraordinary movement

toward representative government, whatPresident Bush has rightly called the ultimateweapon against the terrorists’ bleak vision ofdeath and despair.”

American service members have helpedmore than 50 million people realize theirdreams of democracy, and that example isbeing felt around the world, Wolfowitz noted.Elections in Palestine, a revolt against riggedelections in Ukraine and the Lebanese peoplestanding up to Syria are just the latest exam-ples of the spread of freedom and democracy,he said.

Fighting this war, though, is expensive. Andthe U.S. military role in the battle “is unques-tionably the most expensive. It’s expensive interms of the resources that it demands of theAmerican taxpayer, and it’s expensive partic-ularly in terms of the sacrifices that itdemands of our men and women in uniform,including those who have made the ultimatesacrifice for our freedom and security,”Wolfowitz said. “This defense budget is first

and foremost about them, about their future,and about ours as Americans.”

Wolfowitz said the senators must look at thefiscal 2006 defense budget request in contextwith what is going on around the world andhow far the war on terror has progressed.“Combined with the supplemental [fundingrequest], this request provides sufficient fund-ing to sustain the president’s pledges to defeatglobal terrorism, to restructure America’sarmed forces and global defense posture, todevelop and field advanced warfighting capa-bilities and most of all to provide for the per-sonnel needs of our forces,” he said.

The Bush administration’s fiscal 2006request is pegged at $419 billion, and it walksa fine line between fighting the war on terrorand allowing the U.S. military to continue totransform and face the threats of the future,Wolfowitz told the Senate panel. “It providesfor our most valuable asset, our people, bymaintaining the president’s commitment totake care of our military men and women and

their families,” the deputy secretary said. “Itincludes a 3.1 percent increase in militarybase pay, it includes an increase in funding toensure continuing good health care, and it willfund by fiscal 2009 the elimination of all inad-equate housing units worldwide.”

The deputy said the American “invest-ments” to fight the global war on terror arealready beginning to pay off. But that earlyreturn should not make Americans compla-cent, he said, as the war will last many years.“This problem of terrorism grew up over aperiod of 20 or 30 years, if not longer,” hesaid. “It’s not going to go away in two or three[years].”

The United States fought the Cold War for40 years. “We may recall how long we wagedthe Cold War and how long it took to rebuildWestern Europe, but in both cases we knowhow the story ended,” he said. “We know thatseemingly impossible challenges can beachieved when the American people and theirallies are resolved to stand firm for freedom.”

Editor...................................Staff Sgt. Brett B. McMillan

Assistant Editor....................................Sgt. Misha King

Staff............................................Pfc. Ferdinand Thomas

Graphic Artist/Cartoonist....Staff Sgt. Timothy B. Lawn

MNF-I Commanding GeneralGen. George Casey

MNF-I PAOCol. Robert A. Potter

Command Information ChiefMaj. Patricia C. Anderson

The Scimitar is an authorized publication for members of the Department of Defense. Contents of this paper are not necessarily the offi-cial views of or endorsed by the U.S. Government or Department of Defense. The editorial content of this publication is the responsibili-ty of the Public Affairs Office of the Multi-National Force - Iraq. Stars and Stripes newspaper is not affiliated with MNF-I and acts onlyas a distributing source for the Scimitar. Questions and comments should be directed to the editor at [email protected].

Scimitar welcomes columns, commen-taries, articles and letters from readers.

Send submissions to [email protected].

We reserve the right to editfor propriety, clarity and space.

The Scimitar can also be viewed on theWeb at http://www.mnf-iraq.com/coalition-news/publications.htm

Scimitar March 11, 2005

Wolfowitz: Iraq, Afghanistan show U.S. determinationBy Jim GaramoneAmerican Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON — This year will likely be amomentous one for U.S. and coalition effortsin confronting extremism in the Middle Eastregion, a senior U.S. officer told the HouseArmed Services Committee March 2.

American forces deployed in Afghanistanand Iraq the past few years “have not onlybeen protecting the United States from attack,”Army Gen. John P. Abizaid said to committeemembers, but “has also done much to help the[Middle East] region move forward in thedirection of moderation.”

Abizaid said he was “optimistic” about thesituation across the Middle East, includingfuture developments in Afghanistan and Iraq.As head of U.S. Central Command, he over-sees U.S. troop operations in Afghanistan andIraq.

“I think 2005 can be a decisive year,”Abizaid said, in the fight against extremism inthe Middle East. He pointed to recent events inLebanon, where its citizens have called for theouster of Syrian troops and intelligence agentsfrom the country.

There’s also renewed momentum in efforts

to make peace between Palestinians andIsraelis, Abizaid noted, as well as an opportu-nity “to establish greater stability inAfghanistan and Iraq.”

This year should also provide Iraqi andAfghan forces an opportunity “to take moreand more of the responsibility of fighting theinsurgencies” within their countries, he said.

And the Pakistani and Saudi governments,Abizaid observed, can benefit from more U.S.and coalition assistance to help them confrontextremists operating inside their borders.

However, the general cautioned committeemembers that extremist elements operating outof Iran and Syria could foment “more vio-lence” across the Middle East.

“The extremist enemy that we face through-out the region will not surrender,” Abizaidsaid, noting the extremists “won’t move away,they’ll continue their attacks.”

By voting in nationwide elections held intheir countries, the Afghan and Iraqi peoplehave chosen to reject extremism and partici-pate in a democratic process, Abizaidobserved.

“This battle between moderation andextremism in the region is one that the peopleof the region have chosen to fight, and theycan’t win it without our help,” he concluded.

Gen Abizaid: 2005 ‘can be adecisive year’ against extremismBy Gerry J. GilmoreAmerican Forces Press Service

Military life inspires comic strips

ScimitarMarch 11, 2005

ScimitScimitar Pulsear Pulse

“I guess Johnny Quest because I’malways looking for something to do,and I am always on the borderline ofgetting into trouble.”

Army Capt. Stewart OrrJoint Psychological OperationsTask Force

“Jessica Rabbit because I’m sexyand sophisticated.”

Army 1st Lt. Zoraida WheelockJoint Area Support Group –Central

“The project manager in theScimitar newspaper (a Maj. JamesCrabtree cartoon character), becauseI am just like him.”

British Army Maj. Colin CodeMulti-National Forces – Iraq

“Wonder Woman because I canmake it through any situation.”

Airman 1st Class Kayla SimonMulti-National Forces – Iraq

“The Brown Hornet. He was big,bad and he took care of his people.”

Tony GlassAmerican Science and Engineers

“The coyote because I always have aplan. My plan might not alwayswork, but I always have one.”

Kerry BellBlackwater

“Mickey Mouse because he repre-sents good.”

Air Force Maj. Dona SpaccarotellaMulti-National Forces – Iraq

Which cartoon character are youmost like? Why?

PERSPECTIVES

I’ve never been a huge cartoon, funny papers or comicbook fan, but a humorous comic strip I can relate toalways makes me smile, and sometimes even chuckle.

Comic books’ first steps were taken in the beginning ofthe 20th century “in search of new ways of graphic and visu-al communication and expression,” according to “SomeHistory (so far…),” a geocities.com Web site.

Often, comic books or comic strip’s origin is associatedwith Egyptian hieroglyphics and prehistoric drawings oncave walls. They were visual narratives of juxtaposedimages. Words were not required, but with the adoption ofsymbols, then letters, they were soon included, providingmore information and improving the narrative flow.

The site credits Richard Fenton (R.F.) Outcault with thefirst comic book, with his creation of “The Yellow Kid” in1896. He took what had been made before him and intro-duced the “balloon,” a space where he wrote what the char-acters said.

According to Richard D. Olson, Ph.D., the Yellow Kid“was the first successful comic strip character to achieve apopularity so great that he not only increased the sales ofnewspapers carrying him, but he was also the first to demon-strate that a comic strip character could be merchandisedprofitably. In fact, for these two reasons, the Yellow Kid andhis creator, R.F. Outcault, are generally credited with perma-nently establishing the comic strip and making it a part ofAmerican society.”

In their early years, comic strips were essentially comical,which explains the name they carry in the English language.But comics evolved to feature action heroes, some based onartists’ life experiences and others purely from imagination.From 1940 to 1945, some 400 super heroes were created,mostly based on “Superman,” but only a few survived,among them Batman and Captain Marvel.

World War II inspired a lot of comic characters; many ofthem joined the battle and became ideological weapons toincrease morale among service members. Captain Americaeven battled Adolf Hitler himself.

Beetle Bailey debuted as a college cutup in 1950 in a mere50 newspapers. With America’s entry into the Korean con-flict, cartoonist Mort Walker’s star character accidentallyenlisted in the Army, and the rest is comic-strip history.“Beetle Bailey” went on to become the third most widelydistributed comic strip of all time, running in more than

1,800 newspapers around the world today.For the past 10 years, “Pvt. Murphy” has been in the ranks

of military cartoons familiar to many service members. It’screator, Mark Baker, is a full-time Soldier. “Pvt. Murphy”appears weekly in the Army Times and Sierra Vista Heraldnewspapers. Baker also supplies the Army Public AffairsOffice with cartoons that are distributed to Army publica-tions around the world.

Operation Iraq Freedom has also inspired comic strips cre-ated by service members in this theater. Above and beyondthat, “Doonesbury” creator Gary (G.B.) Trudeau has used hisstrip showing deployed service members talking about thewar to make his thought-provoking comments on the war.

Last year his longtime character BD, a college footballcoach, became a wounded Reserve Soldier in Iraq. The stripdepicted BD getting wounded, being medevaced to a mili-tary hospital and then on to Walter Reed Army MedicalCenter, in Washington.

Trudeau spent days at Walter Reed getting to knowamputees and their trials and how they dealt with them. Hegenerously permitted the hospital’s weekly Stripe newspaperto publish the comic strip and for the most part, the recuper-ating troops said the strip mirrored their experience.

Indeed comic strips are a way of visually and graphicallycommunicating ideas and expressing opinions, from hardcold news to humorous events. They are so much a part ofour culture today most people probably have a few favorites,and it’s even common for a person to feel connected to aparticular character.

In frustration or adoration many of us may have beencalled a particular character, or we’ve called someone else acharacter. Drill sergeants used cartoon characters at times topoke at recruits in basic training and when I arrived at myfirst duty station, Fort Bragg, N.C., I fondly recall my room-mate and I being called Beavis and Butthead. This was all ingood humor, and I’m sure it was because we were such greatnew Soldiers in the unit. Fortunately the names didn’t stickwith us for too long.

In Iraq the comic strips we have been printing in theScimitar are usually based on situations service membersdeployed here may experience, from the fright of a rocketattack, to the shock and embarrassment of an M-16 negligentdischarge in a clearing barrel, the mundane meals served inthe dining facility or downright annoying circumstances ofmud clinging mercilessly to our boots. They put a humorousspin on these situations and make us laugh about them —and maybe learn from some of them.

By Staff Sgt. Brett B. McMillanScimitar Editor

‘Devil Dog’and his dog A U.S. Marine rewardshis explosive-sniffingdog, assigned to 1stMarine Division, 2ndBattalion, 5th Marines,for a good job search-ing vehicles and theiroccupants at a Ramadicheckpoint. Marines,often referred to asDevil Dogs, and Sailorsconducted OperationRiver Blitz Feb. 20 toMarch 5 to limit themovement of insur-gents by use of check-points in vital entrypoints to the city.

Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Shane T. McCoy

CAMP VICTORY, BAGHDAD, Iraq — Units falling underMulti-National Corps - Iraq has been directed to conduct a safe-ty stand-down within 30 days of their transfer of authority.

This will enable units to evaluate their tactics, techniquesand procedures so they can become safer on the roads and beable to reduce or prevent accidents, according to the Multi-National Forces - Iraq safety policy.

The safety policy also states the stand-down campaign willensure every Soldier assigned or attached to a unit will betrained on how to react during vehicle rollovers and convoyoperations. The training will emphasize the need to wear seatbelts, pre-mission planning, vehicle readiness, vehicle speedand communication within the vehicle.

In fiscal year 2004, Coalition forces lost 107 troops to mili-tary-vehicle related accidents in Iraq. Since the start of the2005 fiscal year in October 2004, the Coalition has lost 48troops to vehicle accidents, according to MNC-I safety reports.

The increase in accidents is attributed to the sheer number ofSoldiers in the country and increased traffic they create,according to David R. Martin, MNC-I safety manager.

With each rotation coming into the country, there have beenincreases in vehicle accidents. “With [the current rotation],there is an even greater increase,” Martin said. That has con-tributed to having a greater number of troops and accidents intheater than before.

“The main cause of our accidents is speed and driving toofast for the road conditions. The leading factor in fatalities is

people not using seat belts,” Martin said. The Multi-National Force - Iraq safety policy requires every

occupant in a vehicle sitting in a seat to be wearing a seat belt.“We found that they are not wearing them,” Martin said.

“I think that when new Soldiers come in and we do the left-seat and right-seat transition, sometimes they may not be asfamiliar with the terrain,” Martin said.

There is anxiety that goes along with being in a combatenvironment and try-ing to expect the unex-pected, he said. “Thetendency is that theydrive a little faster. Idon’t know why we’rehaving so much trou-ble with the seat belts.”

Martin referred to arecent incident when aSoldier was the onlyone in a vehicle and itcollided with anothermilitary vehicle. Hewas ejected from the vehicle because he wasn’t wearing hisseat belt. He died of neck and head injuries.

“If a Soldier is wearing a seat belt, he is much more like-ly to stay conscious and be able to get himself out of thevehicle, versus flying around in a vehicle and having thechance of being knocked unconscious,” Martin said.

He also stated that many accidents have been attributed toup-armored vehicles.

“Back home, we’re not accustomed to driving a vehicle that

weighs so much. The increased weight of the up-armored vehi-cle makes it handle differently,” Martin said.

“The roads are not designed for the size of our vehicles.While driving down these little narrow canal roads, driverspull over to the edge to let other vehicles get by. When theypull over, the road breaks away, and the vehicle rolls down intothe canal.”

“We need the up-armored Humvee. Having the up-armor onthe vehicle saves lives;there is no questionabout that,” Martinadded.

There is a period oftime when Soldiersbecome more comfort-able with the vehicle,Martin said. There is aperiod of “about 90-120 days” where situa-tional awareness needsto be high at all times.“The risk factor goes

up during this period.” Command Sgt. Maj. Dennis E. Carey, MNC-I sergeant

major, said, “Safety and risk assessment are every Soldier’sbusiness. We have lost too many Soldiers to preventable acci-dents. This must cease.”

“We’re asking units to look at the speed their vehicles aretraveling, encourage their Soldiers to slow down and drivebased on the road conditions in a combat situation,” Martinsaid.


“The main cause of our accidentsis speed and driving too fast forthe road conditions. The leadingfactor in fatalities is people not

using seat belts.”David R. Martin, MNC-I safety manager

LOGISTICS SUPPORT AREA ANACON-DA, BALAD, Iraq — Over the past month,the military police here have responded to 54larcenies, including burglaries, theft of gov-ernment and private property, postal theft andshoplifting.

“Larceny is probably the majority of ourcases,” said Spc. Daniel Krupka, 939thMilitary Police Detachment (Law andOrder).

Two of the most recent incidents involvedthird country nationals who were caughtwith unauthorized items from alcohol todigital cameras to military-issued equip-ment.

“We got a tip that the [Army and AirForce Exchange Service] employees hadalcohol in their possession, so we wentover there and found all kinds of stuff,”said Investigator Shane Stephens, 939thMP Det.

The suspects were adamant that Soldiersgave them the items, but much of it had clear-ly been stolen, Stephens said.

One suspect was in possession of 11brand new military issue knives worth $144each. Others had expensive digital cameras,SAPI plates, rucksacks, load bearing equip-ment, desert camouflage uniforms andmore.

If Soldiers had given the items to the sus-pects, then troops need to be mindful thatthere are certain items that TCNs are notauthorized to possess.

Furthermore, service members should

never dispose of any uniform articles bythrowing them away; they should always beburned for disposal. It’s only too easy forthese items to fall into the wrong hands andbe used against Coalition Forces.

In the second incident, two men werecaught by AAFES loss prevention attempt-ing to steal two packages of underwear.When they were questioned, loss preven-tion personnel found an additional fourpackages, said Capt. Gary Blagburn, 939thMP Det. operations officer.

“We take an aggressive approach to stop-ping shoplifting by using in-store exchangedetective teams, electronic surveillance sys-tems, electronic article surveillance and othermethods. It is a misdemeanor or felony,depending on the value of the stolen merchan-dise,” said Amanda R. Bittle, AAFES arealoss prevention manager.

“It involves more than just the physicalact of concealing or taking possession ofgoods or merchandise, altering a price tag orother price marking, or transferring thegoods from one container to another. It alsoinvolves the intent to convert the goods ormerchandise to the shoplifter’s own oranother’s use without paying the full pur-chase price.”

In both cases, the individuals were firedby their companies and flown out of the-ater.

“Usually, when they’re caught, they’reback home in one to two days,” Blagburnsaid.

Other incidents include a unit that hadsome government property stolen. Theyposted signs that they needed the itemsreturned and provided an amnesty box. The

items were recovered.Much of the theft of personal and gov-

ernment property is caused by simpleSoldier negligence, such as troops failingto secure their belongings. To date, the MPshave recovered items such as M-16s, AT4s,M-9s, grenades and vehicles.

Service members go to public areas likethe fitness center, leave their bags unat-tended and return to find them missing. Orthey leave their trailer to go to the latrine,leaving their door unlocked and come backto find their television missing.

“Just keep your stuff secured. Know yourroommate, and know who’s been in yourroom,” Blagburn said.

While the TCNs are liable to lose theirlivelihood as a result of a larceny charge,service members have much more at stake.

Several articles of the Uniform Code ofMilitary Justice could be violated includ-ing:

• Article 108, sale, loss, damagedestruction or wrongful disposition ofmilitary property

• Article 121, larceny and wrongfulappropriation

• Article 122, robbery• Article 129, burglary• Article 134, knowingly receiving,

buying or concealing stolen property,with the maximum punishments of dis-honorable discharge, forfeiture of all payand allowances and confinement for any-where from two to 15 years.

Blagburn said individuals are encouragedto think about the consequences before set-ting their sights on someone else’s proper-ty.

MPs catch AAFES thieves red-handedBy Spc. Leah R. Burton28th Public Affairs Detachment

By Spc. Mary RoseMNC-I Public Affairs Office

Coalition gears up to reinforce safety

CAMP BLUE DIAMOND, Iraq —Enhanced security measures will continue inAl Anbar province to maintain the level ofsecurity reached during Operation RiverBlitz.

“We want to maintain the momentum,and build on the success of Operation RiverBlitz,” said Maj. Gen. Richard F. Natonski,Commanding General of the 1st MarineDivision of the I Marine ExpeditionaryForce. “Our forces, in conjunction with IraqiSecurity Forces, will maintain enhancedoperations to continue to keep the pressureturned-up on the insurgency.”

During the operation, Iraqi Security andCoalition Forces detained more than 400suspected terrorists and seized numerousweapons caches throughout Al AnbarProvince. The number of terrorist attacksdropped significantly during the operation.

Operation River Blitz began Feb. 20 at therequest of the Iraqi government to ensure apeaceful transition of power between theinterim Iraqi government and the Iraqi tran-sitional government. The combined opera-tion was designed to enhance security in theprovince by increasing the Iraq Security andCoalition Force presence in the populationcenters along the Euphrates River. The oper-ation concluded March 5.

A curfew was set, and access controlpoints on routes leading into the provincialcapital of Ar Ramadi were established dur-ing the operation, which proved to be veryeffective in preventing weapons and terror-ists from entering the city.

Operation River Blitzsecurity measures continue in Al Anbar

Addressing officials and guests at the ceremony, includingIraqi and U.S. military and civilian leaders, and reporters fromaround the world, Negroponte congratulated Iraqi officials“for their inspired leadership” and commended them on theirdetermination to establish the academy, “an institution thatwill quickly become a reflection of Iraq’s commitment to abrighter future.”

“Today we witness another sign of the dawning of a demo-cratic Iraq, a country where people are once again free to pur-sue their interests to speak their minds and claim their place inthe community of civilized nations,” he said. “The UnitedStates is proud to help as you, Iraqis, dedicate yourselves toreviving your academic institutions.

“The Iraqi doctors, nurses and administrators who will teachhere and the students who will learn here will make the provi-sion of health care in Iraq more efficient and more responsiveand these actions, Iraqis helping Iraqis, Iraqis building the newIraq, will define success in this country. The construction of

this building the establishment ofthis academy is further evidencethat you are doing precisely that.I wish you and the academyevery success,” Negroponte con-cluded.

The need for this academy wasapparent to Iraqi officials lastAugust after they assessed thecountry’s healthcare system saidAlhakim.

He said training and capacity-building for medical doctors andemployees is a priority. “The fourareas of training that require spe-cial emphasis are management, public health, political skillsand continuing education. The first task which will be imple-mented in the next few months by the academy will be to traina staff of 150 of the new healthcare centers which are alsobeing built as part of the health projects funded by the U.S.subcommittee.”

The brick-laying ceremony initiates the start of what willbecome the future school of public health,” Alhakim said.“The Academy of health sciences will be the first step in theprocess that will lead us back to golden days as a nation witha world-class healthcare system. The academy will be the lightHouse that will lead us to the safe harbor. The harbor I speakof is one that we once knew, was filled with highly skilled andmotivated health care teams. They orchestrated great care for

the population.”Project manager for construc-

tion of the academy MichaelZumstein, from the U.S. ArmyCorps of Engineers, said thebuilding consists of a singlelevel, fully functional and self-supporting design of approxi-mately 41,000 square feet. Thestructure is designed to allow forthree additional levels to be builtlater on. This will allow for train-ing during expansion and con-

struction periods.“The idea is to get this facility up and running as quickly as

possible,” Zumstein said, noting that the building should beready for use in October. However, the academy will standwhere a building bombed nearly two years ago in OperationIraqi Freedom is now being demolished and removed.

He said the contractor is local and all work is to be done byIraqi workers, about 200 will be employed during construc-tion. Basic amenities of the facility includes six classrooms for15-20 students, four larger classrooms for 30 students, twoconference rooms, an IM area, a library to accommodate 25people, a cafeteria with seating for 75-100 people.

According to officials the basic makeup of the student bodyis expected to be a 50-50 mixture of male and females. Theyexpect it will take five to 10 years to build up a reputable“Academy of Health Sciences.”

Healthcarefrom Page 1


Officials also reported that construction isunderway for military bases for the new Iraqiarmy and Iraqi National Guard.

“They are essentially the type of facilitiesthat would consist of barracks, dining facili-ties, training compounds, vehicle maintenanceareas and things of that nature that you wouldfind on any kind of typical military canton-ment associated with infantry-type activities,”Hess said.

Renovations to terminal complexes as wellas landing and runway lighting systems for thecountry’s three major airports were also men-tioned. And work is also being done at smallerairports in Irbil and Sulimaniyah.

All of this construction has meant a signifi-cant increase in dispersing the $18.4 billionCongress allocated for reconstruction projects,Hess noted. About $5.8 billion has been paidout to date, he said, at a rate of $80 million to$100 million per week.

However, with terrorist attacks on Iraqiworkers still a problem, Ambassador BillTaylor, director of the Iraq ReconstructionManagement Office, noted that a substantialpart of the money spent has had to go towardsecurity for construction projects. He said thesome money was used to pay for personalsecurity details for contractors and supervi-

sors, and for such items asarmored cars and concerti-na wire around bases.

“All of that is includedin that cost of doing busi-ness,” Taylor explained.“It’s an expensive place todo business, and the securi-ty part is in there.”

He said the cost of secu-rity, in some cases, clearlyhas exceeded the 5 percentmargin that was budgeted;in other cases, he added, ithas been less.

Another area that willrequire more spending willbe getting more of thecountry’s electrical powerplants up and running,especially as summerapproaches. Hess said con-struction recently finishedon a new electrical powerstation that will add 280megawatts of electricity, but he noted that maynot be enough.

He said one problem in restoring the coun-try’s electricity has been that Iraqi engineershave had to focus on getting parts to make nec-essary repairs on power stations that not oper-ational and had been neglected during SaddamHussein’s regime.

“What the Ministry ofElectricity is doing now isactually doing maintenanceon many of the plants thathave frankly never receivedthe kind of maintenance thathas been necessary to main-tain them in an operatingcapacity,” he said. “And,unfortunately, to do thatmaintenance work, you’vegot to remove those plantsfrom operation, dismantlesome of the equipment,refurbish it, and put it backinto what we would describeas fully-capable operatingstatus.”

Hess emphasized theIraqis aren’t dealing with theproblem alone. “We’ve goneout to try and identify theparts, get the parts, and helpthe ministry get those plantsback in operation so that we

can achieve some short-term gains here in theelectrical infrastructure,” he said.

Two new plants are about to come on line inBayji, Hess said, where insurgents killed oneperson and kidnapped another. He said work-ers left the site for a while, but later returnedand again are making progress.

“It is still a challenge to get this work done,”

Hess said. Terrorist attacks do not make thetask any easier. Taylor pointed out that attackson transmission lines and oil pipelines haveaffected the oil flow into electricity-generatingplants. “And when those get attacked, thatreduces the flow of oil into the electricity, andthat reduces the amount available,” he said.

Army Brig. Gen. Thomas Bostick, com-mander of the U.S. Army Corps of EngineersGulf Region Division, said Iraq has seen anincreased demand for electricity since thecountry was liberated. “There’s a good-newsstory here,” he told reporters. The general saidprewar demand for electricity, about 5,000megawatts, has increased 60 percent to about8,000 megawatts. “That’s because the Iraqipeople are able to buy televisions and comput-ers and air conditioners and heaters — thingsthat they couldn’t do until democracy and free-dom opened up in this country,” he explained.

Hess pointed out that he is encouraged by allthe reconstruction work that is being done.But, he added, he worries the insurgents will“regroup and then try and figure out otherways to get at the heart of the infrastructureand get at the heart of the democratic processthat the Iraqis are trying to institute.”

Even so, he said, the mission of rebuildingIraq will continue. “There are many challengesthat remain out there, but the Iraqi people,working with the coalition forces, the greatcivilians, are doing a wonderful job movingthis mission forward,” he said.

Reconstructionfrom Page 1

Iraq’s Acting Minister of Health and Minister ofCommunication Mohammod Ali Alhakim places mor-tar on a brick base to cement together another brickto complete the brick-laying ceremony March 3.

Photo by Master Sgt. Dave Ahlschwede

An architectural rendering of the academy in itscompleted state is displayed at the brick-laying.

Iraq’s Acting Ministerof Health and Ministerof CommunicationMohammod Ali Alhakim

What is left of this building bombed nearly two yearsago will be leveled and the Academy of HealthSciences built in its place.

An Iraqi construction workerpounds away, working on oneof about 2,000 constructionprojects rebuilding the country.As of last week 582 have beenfinished.

U.S. AmbassadorJohn D. Negroponte

Photo by Staff Sgt. Brett B. McMillan




New program offers subsidized child care toGuard, Reserve WASHINGTON — The Defense Department has joined forceswith national agencies to help Guard and Reserve families in find-ing and affording child care while Mom or Dad is deployed in sup-port of the Global War on Terrorism.

DoD, in partnership with the National Association of Child CareResource and Referral Agencies, which administers the program,designed this initiative to benefit those who do not live near mili-tary installations.

When a parent is deployed, the remaining parent may discoverthat child care is something the couple hadn’t had to think ofbefore, and the extra expense can be shocking.

OMCC doesn’t fully subsidize child care. The fees are based ona sliding scale that takes into consideration total family income andthe care provider’s actual cost, among other things.

To take part in the program, a family member would applyonline at www.naccrra.org/MilitaryPrograms or by a toll-free callto (800) 424-2246. The child care provider also must applybecause the subsidy, which comes through the Children and Youthoffice, is paid to the program, not the family.

NACCRRAalso supports the Guard and Reserve through a pro-gram called Operation Child Care. OCC is a voluntary NACCR-RA program that provides up to six hours of free child care toGuard and Reserve families whose deployed service member isreturning home for rest and recuperation.

Army Secretary Vows to Resolve Soldier PayProblemsWASHINGTON — The Army’s senior civilian vowed to pushefforts to resolve Soldiers’ pay issues during a Senate ArmedServices Committee hearing March 3.

Responding to one senator’s concern about a constituent who’dbeen wrongfully docked for travel and other expenses after he’dlost an arm during military duty in Iraq, Secretary of the ArmyFrancis J. Harvey noted, “it’s disturbing that these things happen,and they shouldn’t happen.”

The goal and intent during distribution of any Soldier’s pay,Harvey said, “is perfection,” noting he “didn’t want to see anywounded Soldier have any problems with pay.”

Harvey said the Army has expanded its telephone assistance hot-lines to help Soldiers resolve pay problems. He cited recent statis-tics that say 75 percent of Soldier pay issues are resolved in oneday.

“Our objective is 90 percent the first day,” Harvey said, notingthe end state goal is “zero” pay problems.

Harvey also said he’d support an initiative that would allowwounded Guard and Reserve members to keep their combat paywhile they’re hospitalized.

Harvey emphasized that the Army was “taking actions” to fixany Soldier pay problems. “We’re going to take care of this,” thesecretary said.

Free sports magazine subscription offerFirstSwing and The Sporting News have teamed up to provide

fully-paid, one-year subscriptions of The Sporting News to the first50,000 service members who register. To register, you need onlysend your name and full home address information [email protected]. The magazine will begin coming toyou in about six to eight weeks. Commanders may submit thename of their organization, in place of an individual’s name, sothat their unit may receive the magazine.

Army donates ambulances to Iraqi hospitalFORWARD OPERATING BASE DAGGER, Tikrit, Iraq —To help remedy one of the many problems the Iraqis face inrebuilding their nation, Coalition forces donated five ambulancesto the Tikrit hospital Feb. 23.

This donation will bring the Iraqis another step forward in theireffort to build a stable system of social services, said Capt. ChadMarley, brigade surgeon for 1st Brigade Combat Team, 3rdInfantry Division. One of the main problems health care and emer-gency care workers were facing was the lack of transportation forthe sick and wounded. This donation will give the Salah Ad Din

province a better ambulance-to-person ratio.“The people here needed ambulances to replace the older ones,”

Marley said. “We want to get them to a point where they have oneambulance for every 20,000 people.”

The province had ambulances before, but they were not up tostandard for the amount of work that was required of them, saidThamer Najim Abdulla, an ambulance driver.

“Before, we had ambulances from the old regime,” he said.“The ambulances we had were not very fast, making it difficult forus to respond quickly during an emergency. The new ambulancesare great. I hope we can get more of them in the future.”

Adnan Zidan Khalaf, Chief of the Manager Directorate Officein Tikrit said health care service workers and health ministry offi-cials are very happy to have the new vehicles, as it is the first timethey have received any new kind of transportation for emergenciessince Saddam Hussein was in power.

Now the emergency services will be more effective due to theacquisition of the ambulances and a Joint Coordination Center forthe dispatch of the services, Khalaf said.

“We receive all the calls at one location,” Khalaf said. “It ismuch easier this way, because we can react faster to provide firstaid. It was much more difficult to do that with the equipment wehad before. If there is an emergency, anyone can call for help at theprovincial Joint Coordination Center.”

Co-op program breeds successBAGHDAD, Iraq — The Iraqi Army, Ministry of Defense, andthe Multi-National Security Transition Command - Iraq are enjoy-ing the success of a co-op program for supply and logistics.

The program began in early February and is already producingresults, including the impending creation of several Iraqi Armyfacilities that will be used to coordinate equipment, procurement,maintenance, storage and accounting for Iraqi forces.

A large distribution center is set to open in north-central Iraqwithin the next two months, for example.

“MNSTC-I was initially making all the logistical decisions,”says U.S. Army Lt. Col. George Crowell, the Iraqi Ministry ofDefense liaison for logistics for MNSTC-I’s J-4 supply directorate.“Embedding Iraqi officers allowed us to find out their capabilitiesand knowledge. We are teaching each other and sharing informa-tion. We are learning things that are unique to Iraq that can’t betaught without these officers and their skills.”

There are currently eight Iraqi officers working in the co-op pro-gram — two general officers overseeing the program, and six

experienced logistics, engineering, or maintenance officersembedded at the MNSTC-I Phoenix Base with Coalition Forces.

“Before sovereignty in Iraq, we worked only as advisers [forlogistics for the Iraqi Army] — now we work as equals,” said anIraqi logistics colonel who works in the co-op at MNSTC-I. “Weshare information to make one plan.”

Another Iraqi engineering officer said, “It is a pleasure to workwith the coalition forces.”

The officers said they are pleased to find so many similarities intheir methods and processes, which they said contributes to thesuccess of the program.

Coalition and Iraqi officers are working together to solve prob-lems, manage facilities and equipment, execute procurement andpurchasing best practices, and coordinate maintenance functionsfor Iraqi Army equipment. These tasks are accomplished with mil-itary and civilian personnel working together, much like the U.S.armed services.

Phone line, e-mail help Iraqi citizens reportinsurgent activityMOSUL, Iraq — Iraqi Special Police Commandos are tappingtechnology to give citizens here an avenue for reporting suspectedinsurgent activity.

A telephone line set up nearly two months ago and a morerecently established e-mail address are generating about 35 tips aweek, a commando adviser reported. One recent tip, about a Jihadbeing issued against commandos and U.S. forces, led to the detain-ment of the person responsible for the edict.

“The process is working and the people of Mosul are gettingtired of the terrorists,” said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Chris Paschel, anadviser who works with the commandos.

While most of the tips are coming in through the telephone line,about a dozen have been delivered through e-mail. The success ofthe elections helped boost the frequency of calls, but the tips start-ed pouring in after commandos started broadcasting confessions ofanti-Iraqi forces on a local television station after the elections,Paschel said.

A Web site is also being developed. Using such technology is anew concept, Paschel said.

“At first, they thought the Internet was a hindrance because itwas always going up and down,” he said. “But once the tips start-ed pouring in, [one of the interrogators] was very happy to have away for the public to send them in. It’s their job here to rid Mosulof terrorist activity.”

Iraqi Army Soldiers conduct Military Operations in Urban Terrain training. The U.S. Army SpecialForces are providing an advanced training program to select units of the Iraqi Army.

Photo by Tech. Sgt. Mike Buytas

NEWS BRIEFS

New ISF troops arrive in northern IraqMOSUL, Iraq — The number of troops ready to provide secu-rity in northern Iraq increased with the arrival of new IraqiSecurity Force troops March 2.

About 330 new Iraqi Army troops arrived in Al Kisik trainingbase following the completion of basic training. The number ofISF troops continues to rise with the growing number of Iraqicitizens ready to help keep their country safe and secure fromterrorists.

Iraqi Security Forces continue to take the lead in security andare conducting numerous independent operations. ISF have per-formed many successful operations due to the increase in infor-mation being provided by Iraqi citizens about insurgent activity,the increase in their effectiveness , and the increase in their oper-ations.

Iraqis graduate 72 Emergency ResponseUnit PoliceBAGHDAD, Iraq — The Iraqi Police graduated 72 police offi-cers from the Emergency Response Unit course March 3. Theofficers completed an intensive four-week basic ERU programof instruction with a strong focus on weapons training and han-dling, defensive tactics and physical fitness. The course includesinstruction on human relations and police organizations.

The ERU provides a national level, high-end, rapid responselaw enforcement tactical unit responsible for high-risk arrest,hostage rescue and explosive ordnance disposal. With threecompanies currently operational, ERU has conducted a numberof successful missions on national level anti-Iraqi force targets,provided support to other Iraqi Ministry of Interior forces, par-ticipated in combat operations in Fallujah and ongoing coun-terinsurgency operations.

The graduating officers will be integrated into the ERU’soperational companies. They will join 344 prior ERU graduateswho will attend ERU Advanced training in the coming months.

Iraqi Police graduate 292 from advancedtraining coursesBAGHDAD, Iraq — The Iraqi Police Service graduated 292police officers from advanced and specialty courses at theAdnan Training Facility, March 3, as part of the Iraqi govern-ment’s ongoing effort to train its security forces.

The courses consist of Kidnapping Investigations with 27graduates, Basic Criminal Investigations with 63 graduates,Interview & Interrogations with 41 graduates, Organized CrimeInvestigations with 58 graduates, Incident Command Systemwith 32 graduates, Internal Controls with 44 graduates, andExecutive Leadership with 27 graduates.

Officers who participated in these courses previously com-pleted either an eight-week basic training course for newrecruits or a three-week ‘transitional integration program’course designed for prior-service officers.

The police officers report back for continued duty at theirrespective stations immediately.

Iraqi Police graduate 27 SWAT officersBAGHDAD, Iraq — The Iraqi Police graduated 27 officersfrom the Special Weapons and Tactics training course March 3.The officers completed a specialized four-week training cur-riculum that places a heavy emphasis on weapons training andincludes training in dynamic entries, mechanical breaching,diversionary devices, sniper training, intelligence and surveil-lance, offensive driving skills and human relations and policeconduct.

The provincial SWAT teams provide a provincial-level, highend, rapid response, tactical unit responsible for high-risk arrestand hostage rescue. They provide special weapons and tacticscapability to the provincial or city police commander. To date,156 officers have previously completed the course and are oper-ating as SWAT teams in various areas throughout Iraq.

Security Forces find two cachesMOSUL, Iraq — Iraqi Security Forces and Multi-NationalForces discovered two weapons and munitions caches duringoperations in northern Iraq March 1.

Troops from the 107th Iraqi Army discovered a large weaponscache during a cordon and search operation south of Al Had. Thecache included 170 mortar rounds, hundreds of rocket propelledgrenades, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. The weaponsand ammunition were confiscated for future destruction.

Multi-National Force Soldiers discovered a large cache thatconsisted of over 2,000 rounds of various ammunition during acordon and search operation west of Mosul. The ammunition wasconfiscated for future destruction.

ISF and MNF continue operations to protect the rights of Iraqicitizens to live free of fear and intimidation from terrorists. Thesuccess of those operations has increased due to the informationprovided by Iraqi citizens helping Security Forces capture insur-gents and seize weapons.

Task Force Baghdad Soldiers detain possibleinsurgentsBAGHDAD, Iraq — U.S. Soldiers were able to detainee fourpossible insurgents March 4. Around 10:30 a.m., a patrol in west-ern Baghdad was questioning two local nationals after finding onewith an AK-47, when an improvised explosive device detonated.One Soldier was wounded. After detaining the two individuals,local nationals living in the area confirmed they were anti-Iraqiforces. Soldiers later detained two more individuals that havebeen named in the insurgency.

Task Force Baghdad Soldiers were able to net a large weaponscache earlier in the day. The original find was only one rocket-propelled grenade, two rockets and one 82 mm mortar system.After the unit searched the area with a metal detector, they alsofound a 120 mm mortar system, two more 82 mm mortar systems,tank rounds, rockets, fuses and other weapons.


NEWS BRIEFS

Al AsadAr RamadiBaghdad

Balad Camp TajiFallujahKirkukMosulQ-WestRidgewaySinjarTalil ABTikrit Taji

93.3 FM107.3 FM

92.3 FMand 107.7 FM

107.3 FM102.5 FM105.1 FM 107.3 FM105.1 FM

93.3 FM107.1 FM107.9 FM107.3 FM

93.3 FM107.7 FM

AFN Iraq

Worship and Prayer Schedule for the International Zone

Sunday9:30 a.m. — Choir Rehearsal10 a.m. — Catholic Mass (3rd BTC)10:30 a.m. — General ChristianNoon — Episcopal/Lutheran/Anglican2 p.m. — Latter Day Saints4 p.m. — Catholic Confession4:30 p.m. — Catholic Mass6 p.m. — Contemporary Protestant

Monday-FridayNoon — Catholic Mass (Mon.-Thurs.)Noon — Catholic Communion Service (Tues.)5:30 p.m. — Catholic Mass (Fri. at Camp Steel Dragon)6 p.m. — Jewish Shabbat Services (Fri.)7:30 p.m. — Prayer Service (Tue.)8 p.m. — Bible Study (Thurs. at Senior Advisors Conf. Rm.)8:30 p.m. — Bible Study (Wed. at Ambassadors Conf. Rm.)

Saturday11:30 a.m. — Catholic Mass (Camp Headhunter)12:30 p.m. — Buddhist Worship4 p.m. — Catholic Confession4:30 p.m. — Catholic Mass

Daily Islamic Prayer

Upcoming MWR EventsLaugh Factory (LFOR) (Stand-up comedy act)March 11: 42nd ID (Tikrit) March 12: 1St COSCOM, LSA Anaconda (Balad).March 13-15: MND-W (Al Asad, TQ, Fallujah, Ramadi)

Comedian Colin QuinnMarch 11: MND-W (Fallujah, Ramadi, Al Taqaddum)March 12-13: Camp Victory Complex (Baghdad) March 14-15: 1St COSCOM, LSA Adder (Tallil)

Purrfect Angelz (Live Dance/Variety Shows with Female Performers)11 MAR: 1St COSCOM, LSA Anaconda (Balad).12-13 MAR: 42nd ID (Tikrit)14-15 MAR: TF Freedom (Mosul)

Check with your MWR office for exact times and locations.


AL ASAD, Iraq — America’s military has the reputation ofbeing the most technologically advanced fighting force inthe world. The Marine Corps’ ability to stay at the forefrontof innovations in aircraft, weaponry and fighting vehicleshas allowed it to dominate the field of battle.

Keeping with that tradition are the Marines and Sailors ofMarine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 252, who areemploying one of the Corps’ newest aircraft, the KC-130J,in support of combat operations during Operation IraqiFreedom.

Since the arrival of the main body of VMGR-252 hereFeb. 10, the squadron has been conducting air-to-air refuel-ing and assault support missions in support of coalitionobjectives in the area of operations.

“We have only been operating here for a brief amount oftime, but we are meeting our mission requirements,” said1st Lt. Ben Grant, KC-130J co-pilot and Cincinnati native.“The Marines, even though they have little experience withthe ‘J,’ are adapting to this technology and applying itextremely well.”

Although this squadron received the first KC-130J in

2002, this is the first time the “J” has operated forwarddeployed, in a combat zone.

“Other Marine Corps aircraft have been operating foryears and deployed multiple times, so there is an immenseamount of collective knowledge in those communities onevery aspect of their operations. However, the ‘J’ is rela-tively new, so the squadron is learning as we go, and doinga great job.”

Having to adapt the most to the vast technological differ-ences between the older aircraft and the new “J Model” arethe VMGR-252 maintainers and avionics technicians, whoare working day and night to keep the high-tech birds fly-ing.

According to the squadron maintenance officer the workis less physical, but very technical. With less time spentturning wrenches, and more time spent tweaking computer-systems, maintenance is down from up to 40 hours perflight hour with the “F” and “R” models, to 10 hours withthe “J.”

“The biggest issue we are facing is a lot more computerbased technology, which is susceptible to the affects ofweather and dust,” said Cpl. David W. Booth, KC-130J,communications navigation technician, and native of D’Lo,Miss. “This is a new aircraft to a lot of the Marines, and it’sall advanced technology. Instead of getting your handsaround a bolt, you have to get your hands around a databit.”

To overcome the challenge of working with a new, high-tech aircraft, the Marines of VMGR-252 are relying onreading many publications and manuals, talking with techrepresentatives, and good old-fashioned hard work.

“If it weren’t for the civilian ‘tech-reps’ we work withand the systems they provide, our job would be a lot harderthan it is,” Booth said. “Some of our Marines have onlybeen with the squadron a few months, and are already doinggreat things. They are well-trained and picking up knowl-edge very quickly.”

Serving as the only VMGR squadron in country, theVMGR-252 Marines and Sailors have taken the mission andare off to a flying start, logging in more than 200 flighthours in just two weeks.

“The last time we had this many aircraft forwarddeployed was Operation Desert Storm,” said Maj. JeffMoses, VMGR-252 operations officer, and native of

Birmingham, Ala. “With a brand new aircraft that has seenzero deployment time, the crew and maintainers are doingawesome.”

“Real world operations have allowed our junior Marinesto stand out and shine among their peers,” Booth said. “Asa noncommissioned officer, I am extremely proud to havethese Marines working with me.”

VMGR-252 soars high in Iraqi skies

Lance Cpl. Sandra P. Duque, VMGR-252 communi-cations navigations technician and native of NorthBergen, N.J., programs communications informa-tion into the computers in the cockpit of one of thesquadron’s KC-130Js.

AL ASAD, Iraq — On a daily basis, Cpl.David E. Booth, a D’Lo, Miss., native,protects the lives of the pilots and aircrewsof Marine Aerial Transport RefuelerSquadron 252 as they transport troops andcargo throughout Iraq and the area of oper-ations.

The KC-130J Hercules communicationsand navigations technician has been work-ing on defensive electronic countermea-sures equipment since his arrival here at AlAsad air base Feb. 10.

“We get out there and work as hard aswe can to make sure our gear is up andrunning,” he said. “We work hard becausewe know that this gear can and will savesomeone’s life.”

Booth joined the active duty MarineCorps Feb. 25, 2002, and went to MarineCorps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C.for basic training. After boot camp and

Marine CombatTraining, heattended a coursein basic avionicstechnology atNaval Air StationPensacola, Fla.,where he learnedthe basics of com-munications andnavigations tech-nology.

Taking what helearned in Florida,Booth went ontomore specializedtraining with the KC-130 at Marine CorpsAir Station, Cherry Point, N.C., where hewas assigned to Marine Aerial TransportRefueler Training Squadron 253.

Booth joined VMGR-252 during a timeof transition, when the Marine Corps start-ed to introduce its newest generation of theKC-130 Hercules, the “J” model. Boothquickly tackled the task of learning thenew aircraft and training the Marines under

him to work on thenew, high-tech sys-tems.

“We really bust-ed our butts tolearn the ‘J’ as bestwe could backhome,” he said.“You can sleepeasy at night know-ing that your hardwork has keptsomeone safe. Itmotivates me tokeep working sohard every day.”

Before his days of “data bits” and “cryp-to,” Booth attended Copiah-LincolnCommunity College. However, even beforethat, he had dreams of wearing the Eagle,Globe and Anchor.

During his senior year of high school,Booth had enlisted into the Marine Corps’delayed entry program, but instead ofgoing in right after high school, he choseto attend college when he was offered a

scholarship to play baseball.“College wasn’t going well, and I want-

ed to learn a good job skill,” Boothrecalled. “I had always wanted to be aMarine, and I saw what the Corps haddone for my uncle.”

During his three years of service, Boothhas established a reputation for excellencein both his job performance and militaryduties. In February 2004, he was namedMarine of the quarter for his squadron andMarine Aircraft Group 14, and also earneda meritorious promotion to the rank of cor-poral in March 2004.

His wife, Staci, and their 19-month-oldson, Kyle, await his return as he serves hiscountry in Iraq. Booth said their support,and that from family and loved ones, helphim carry on.

“If it weren’t for the support they giveme I wouldn’t be where I am today,” hesaid. “I miss them a lot, but I am proud tobe out here making a difference. Being outhere, participating in real-world operations,makes being in the Marines and callingmyself a Marine a lot more rewarding.”

Mississippi native lends shoulder to the push Story and photo by Cpl. Rocco DeFilippis2nd Marine Aircraft Wing

Cpl. David E. Booth stands in front of oneof Marine Aerial Transport RefuelerSquadron 252’s KC-130J Hercules.

Story and photos by Cpl. Rocco DeFilippis2nd Marine Aircraft Wing

Cpl. Matthew Conant, VMGR-252 corrosion controlspecialist and native of Cocoa, Fla., tapes up vents ona KC-130J Hercules to prepare the aircraft for washing.

FORWARD OPERATING BASE COBRA,Iraq — Members of a Tennessee NationalGuard Family Readiness Group and localchurches have been working closely withCoalition Soldiers to bring relief to Iraqi chil-dren through Operation Hands and Feet (OHF).

Operation Hands and Feet is a program cre-ated by Carolyn McKenzie, of Gallatin, Tenn.,mother of Spc. Matthew McKenzie, 3rdSquadron, 278th Regimental Combat Team.

“I became involved with OHF back inKuwait when I first arrived in country,” saidSgt. Jeffery L. Litton, squadron chaplain’sassistant. “Ms. McKenzie and I began corre-sponding through e-mail. She wanted to knowif there was something she could do from homethat could make a difference.”

McKenzie and Litton got together and calledthe project Operation Hands and Feet. Theoperation is designed to put school and medicalsupplies, shoes and clothing into the hands of

Iraqi children in the 278th area of operations ineastern Iraq.

The name Operation Hands and Feet cameabout from religious influence. The hands andfeet symbolize Christian missionaries helpingthe people, Litton said.

Now, the operation has evolved into a posi-tive way that Tennessee churches and FRGscan assist Soldiers to be the hands and feet ofChrist in this war-torn country, he added. The“hands” part is getting school supplies into thehands of school children and the “feet” refersto getting shoes to put on their feet.

The project began to take shape as soon asthe 278th arrived at Forward Operating BaseCobra. “We came here in winter time, duringthe rainy season and saw many of the childrenrunning around barefoot in the mud,” Littonsaid. “We discovered many of the Iraqi childreneither don’t have shoes, or had shoes that weretoo small for their feet. It really got to us.”

As the brigade’s military operations gotunderway, Soldiers began going into local vil-lages and taking tours of many of the schools.They found that many of the schools had no

electricity or running water and were short onsupplies necessary for learning, Litton said.Seeing this, they began doing anything theycould with the resources they had available.

“We inherited some school supplies from theSoldiers that were here before us,” Litton said.“It wasn’t long before we realized it wasn’tenough.”

During missions where Soldiers had thechance to interact with local kids, they wouldbring along school supplies and other items.

“Anything we can provide them is a bighelp,” said Litton. “They are very appreciativeof what we can give them.”

This benefit of the goodwill by CoalitionSoldiers shows in some of the relationshipsthat have been formed with the schools andchildren.

“Several times we have been able to playsoccer with some of the children. This is some-thing to see,” said Litton. “Soldiers runningaround in full body armor kicking a ball with abunch of kids. That is good P.T. for the soul.”

Everyone in Gallatin soon got into thegroove, Litton said.

“Wal-Mart immediately jumped onboard as adrop-off site, and the Gallatin Fire Departmentvolunteered to pick up items dropped off anddeliver them to local armories,” he said.

The local juvenile courts also got involved,he said.

A county judge in Tennessee deemed it aworthy cause and set up a community serviceprogram to have offenders serve out their com-munity service hours helping local armoriespack donations, Litton said.

Litton said everyone can help out and thatmoney is needed to get the donated items sentto Iraq.

“People can very easily go through theirhouse and come up with items to be sent overhere,” Litton said. “The problem is the cost ofshipping. It averages about $1 per pound.”

For more information on the program, log onto www.operationhandsandfeet.org, the OHFWeb site

“You can basically be in any town in theU.S. and go to the Web site and obtain infor-mation on how to replicate the project in yourarea,” Litton said.


BAGHDAD, Iraq — Operation Happy Feet brought smilesto children of Sadr City as Soldiers of Company B, 3rdBattalion, 15th Infantry distributed sneakers at Marakah al-TafElementary School Feb. 28.

Working in conjunction with Civil Affairs, Soldiers pur-chased 500 pairs of shoes from a local vendor to give out atthe northeastern Baghdad school, according to Capt. TimothyTerese, B Co. commander.

“We go around to lots of schools in the area, basically everyday, to make sure they have the proper equipment to func-tion,” said 1st Lt. Jason Rocks, B Co. fire support officer andeffects coordinator. “Blackboards, pencils, paper — we checkthat they are able to function on a day-to-day basis.”

Rocks, of Puyallup, Wash., said the missions help fostersupport for coalition forces in an area once considered firmlyunder insurgent control.

“Right now, [Operation Happy Feet is] immediate gratifica-

tion,” Rocks said. “But everything we do for them helpsthem and their families realize that the Iraqi governmentand coalition forces care about the Iraqi people.”

In addition to the company of ‘Can Do’ infantrymenpresent, a squad of Iraqi Army Soldiers helped providesecurity and translations during the visit.

The school is coeducational, meaning girls have class inthe morning and boys in the afternoon.

“We’re trying to get the kids of Sadr City some newshoes, and hand out copies of ‘Baghdad Kids’,” said Spc.Brandon Wise, 307th Psychological Operations Company,Team 1033, a Missouri Reserve unit. “It’s a fun magazinefor kids — it’s got stuff about dinosaurs, outer space, theOlympics — things kids like. It’s got some importantsafety and hygiene messages too, like ‘remember to brushyour teeth’ and ‘don’t point toy guns at Soldiers.’”

Wise, of Greenville, Ill., and Staff Sgt. Travis C. Butler,also of the 307th, handed out bags of school supplies, col-oring books and issues of “Baghdad Kids”.

“It’s really important for us to make a good impressionon these kids before they grow up,” Butler, of St. Clair,Mo., said. “The kids are the future of Iraq, and fostering

a better relationship now will make for better rela-tionships later.”

The morning’s classes of girls lined up to gettheir feet measured and receive the white tennisshoes. The girls quietly giggled as Soldiers passedthe shoes forward to Chaplain (Capt.) StevenHommel, 3/15 chaplain, who handed them out.Several Soldiers remarked at how well-behavedthe girls were.

“The American school kids back in the statesdon’t realize how lucky they are when you look atsomeplace like Iraq,” B Co. 1st Sgt. DonaldRangel said. “We passed out these shoes just so thekids here can get from home to school without hurtingthemselves.

“It makes me feel good to do this for the kids here,”the San Antonio native continued. “I’ve got six kidsof my own, three of them in elementary school.”

The Soldiers distributed about half of the 500 pairs

of shoes to the girls, and will give the rest to the school’s boyslater in the week.

“This is one of many missions we have, providing aid toSadr City residents,” Terese said. “We come out here everyday. We’re also working right now to get a functional sewagesystem installed in the neighborhood, which will make for amuch safer neighborhood for these kids to grow up in.”

‘Can Do’ infantrymen delivershoes to Sadr kids

Chaplain (Capt.) Steven Hommel, 3/15 Inf. chaplain,hands a pair of sneakers and a coloring book to a stu-dent at Marakah al-Taf elementary school in Sadr City,Iraq. Soldiers distributed about 250 pairs of shoes atthe school in northeastern Baghdad.

Story and photos by Spc. Ben Brody2nd Brigade Combat Team

Soldiers from B Co., 3/15 Inf., hand out hard candy to kids inSadr City, Iraq, Feb 28. Sadr City is in northeast Baghdad.

Operation Hands and Feet brings relief to Iraqi childrenBy Staff Sgt. Duane M. Brown22nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment


LOGISTICS SUPPORT AREA ANACONDA, BALAD,Iraq — When first responders, including fireman, para-medics and rescue personnel, arrived on the scene, they dis-covered more than a dozen casualties and a smoking buildingwere only a training exercise.

In the training scenario, which tested response time andconsequence management, a building had been hit by a mor-tar and collapsed, trapping victims inside.

“We had a report of a heavy smoke condition at building5001. I don’t know what caused it, I just arrived on scene, setup a fire control area and then started assisting with patientextraction,” said Tech. Sgt. James Harvey, a fireman with the332nd Expeditionary Civil Engineering Squadron.

Nineteen volunteers portrayed casu-alties to keep the training exercise asrealistic as possible.

“We’ve simulated a bomb hitting abuilding and the building partially col-lapsing with approximately 19 peopletrapped inside, and the fire departmentcrews have to go in and rescue those[who] are trapped,” said Master Sgt.Thomas Miter, 332nd ECES firefighterand facilitator of the exercise.

The training is necessary to stream-line reactions from responding unitsand point out mistakes that can be pre-vented.

“[This exercise] is very importantbecause this is simulated as if it got hitby a mortar and it was a building col-lapse. That could happen at any time inthis part of [Iraq],” said Master Sgt.Tom Schipper, 332nd ECES. “Thestructure is very realistic; we have a lotof confined spaces in there, we’re ableto put the simulated victims in places that, if an explosionhappened, they could actually be trapped in something likethat.”

The realism is important to point out errors that could haveoccurred if this had been an actual emergency.

“Just like any kind of drill, there will be some things thatneed to be addressed. So far, everything I’ve seen has beenvery minor and we will take care of that so the next timethere will be improvement,” Miter said. “I don’t think anyoperation will ever go perfectly; things happen, that’s just thenature of the business we’re in.”

Training exercises of this nature should occur about once amonth to keep the skills of responders sharp and prepare themfor other types of emergencies that could occur, Miter said.

At the end of the exercise, all went well. “I’m very happy with what I’ve seen. All the agencies are

working well together,” Miter said. “Since we’ve been here,we have a combined fire department – we have contractors,Air Force firefighters and Army firefighters. We’ve becomeone big family and we’re responding together to handle allthese types of emergencies. I’m very happy with the way it isgoing.”

Preparation for the event took three weeks, with atabletop exercise held during the second week to go overthe schematics and for planners to put forth what wasexpected from the event. Only the planners knew whatwas going on, keeping an element of surprise from theresponders as a method of increasing the realisticresponse to the situation.

LSA first-responders train for disastersStories and photos by Pfc. Abel Trevino28th Public Affairs Detachment

LOGISTICAL SUPPORT AREA ANA-CONDA, BALAD, Iraq — LogisticsSupport Area Anaconda stays safe thanks tothe Soldiers and Airmen who work togetherin the Joint Defense Operations Center, theLSA’s nerve hub.

The JDOC functions as an emergencyresponse center as well as the central commu-nications coordination for all internal forceprotection issues.

Force protection components include guardtowers, quick reaction forces and security ele-ments at the entry control points. Securityforces also stand ready to respond to indirectattacks against the LSA.

The Air Force supplies various technologi-cal resources, including an unmanned aerialvehicle capable of providing informationabout areas outside the LSA.

A camera system also allows the JDOC tosurvey the area outside the LSA, scanning foranything that looks suspicious or out of theordinary. Air Force operations employ a simi-lar surveillance system.

In the event of an indirect mortar attackagainst the LSA, Soldiers and Airmen in theJDOC respond immediately.

After an attack or potential threat has been

verified, JDOC Soldiers activate the “BigVoice” — LSA Anaconda’s base-wide alertsystem — to warn people across the base totake cover in bunkers or hardened buildings.

While the siren continues to scream out itswarning, Soldiers and Airmen are alreadyhard at work compiling data and grid coordi-nates of the attack’s origin and impact.

The JDOC also coordinates emergencyresponse immediately after an attack.

“It’s like the 911 center for the base, so ifthere’s an emergency, we are called and areable to dispatch the people who will respond— the provost marshal office, the ambulance,the hospital, the fire department, or[Explosive Ordnance Disposal],” said Lt. Col.Joseph Maassen, a resident of Dupont, Wash.,and the officer in charge of the JDOC.

When appropriate, counter-attacks againstthe threat are organized and executed. “Ifwe’re being attacked, we are able to quicklyget in touch with the right forces to defendthe base,” Maassen said.

In addition to maintaining security on theLSA, JDOC operations also ensure LSAAnaconda’s flow of supplies remain sufficientfor supporting the theater of operations inIraq.

According to Maassen, the JDOC is on thecutting edge of security technology in theMiddle East. “Elements from other basescome here to look at our operations so theycan emulate them throughout Iraq,” he said.

The JDOC replaced four different head-

quarter elements that used to handle defenseon the LSA, said Maassen. “When we gothere and took over from the 82nd Airborne[Division], we brought all those headquarterstogether to manage base defense out of theJoint Defense Operations Center. It’s reallystreamlined things and helped us to go afterthe bad guys.”

Thanks to its state-of-the-art technology,

the JDOC provides a sensor-to-shooter envi-ronment in which Army and Air Force coor-dinate and augment one another’s efforts,and working together has been a positiveexperience for Army and Air Force personnelalike.

“The JDOC has been good for everyoneinvolved,” said Capt. Marcos Tassone, an AirForce battle captain at the JDOC. “The Armyand Air Force have a lot to offer each other.”

Capt. Kristin Zornes, an 81st BCT battlecaptain from Tacoma, Wash., agreed.“Pooling our resources has allowed us tomake the LSA a much safer place,” shesaid. “Combining the Army and Air Forcehas greatly increased our force protectionability.”

“Working with the Air Force has beengreat – that’s what makes it a joint opera-tion,” said Maassen. “The combination of theAir Force, their security forces, their technol-ogy along with resources from the Army hasall strengthened our abilities. We worktogether to make a good team.”

The 81st Brigade Combat Team, aNational Guard unit comprised of Soldiersfrom all over Washington state, worked inconjunction with Air Force Security Forcesin the conception, construction and develop-ment of the JDOC.

When 81st BCT Soldiers redeploy to theStates, they will leave behind a base that issafer and better prepared to respond to anykind of emergency.

Army, Air Force work together to keep Anaconda safeStory and photo by Spc. Kathryn Spurrell81st Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs Office

Staff Sgt. McLain and Spc. Sado worktogether through a mortar attack bat-tle drill in the HHC, 81st BCT JDOC.

Staff Sgt. Jack Carrasco and Senior Airman DaniellHernandez, 332nd ECES, race up the side of thebuilding with rescue equipment to perform a techni-cal extraction, which involves immobilizing thecasualties and rigging a rope system to haul the twovictims down the side of the building.

A generator lights up the darkened entryway as two firefighters enter thecollapsed building prepared for fire, smoke, victims and any other may-hem the exercise could throw at them.


BAGHDAD, Iraq — In a country where everyday chaos andmayhem has become the norm, its citizens are progressivelyworking toward restoring law and order, a concept that was oncecompletely foreign to many here.

Despite being primary targets of violent attacks triggered byinsurgents, hundreds of newly-trained Iraqi police continue tograduate each month from the Dean of Police College inBaghdad. In the most recent graduation ceremony, more than1,700 proud, fresh faces accepted certificates of completionfrom the college.

The first step to get into the Dean of Police College is rathersimple, and makes it all the more surprising that so many havetaken that first step. Potential Iraqi police men and women vol-unteer by walking into a recruiting center and seeking to sign upfor the course.

“What’s amazing about the Iraqi police is that they are pri-mary targets for threats and violent actions just because they’reIraqi police and they’re working with coalition forces, yet theycontinue to volunteer in large numbers,” said Col. RichardSwengros, 42nd Military Police Brigade Commander.

Another surprising factor in the new Iraqi police force is thatwomen are stepping forward and joining. Swengros said this islargely in part to the Iraqi people recognizing a need for womento join. “[Women] played an important role in the [Iraqi] elec-tions by serving as security, searching the female voters – some-

thing that men are not permitted to do. Therewas a lot of pride in what they accomplished.”

“We’re building a better Iraq by teaching andhaving both Iraqi men and women volunteer tolearn. They want to learn. It’s definitelyprogress towards a better Iraq,” said thecourse’s officer in charge, 1st Lt. OlakunleDaramola, of Battery B, 1-258th Field Artillery,an Army National Guard unit from New York.

Using classroom and hands-on training meth-ods, a team made up of civilian instructors, lan-guage assistants, Iraqi police instructors andSoldiers from the 42nd Military Police Brigadeare assigned to the mission of training and teaching these menand women, Swengros said.

Cadets go through an intense eight-week training course, cov-ering everything from the basics of law, democracy and terror-ism to preparing them with hands-on training in firearms, defen-sive tactics and physical training. By the end of the course, grad-uates are ready to leave the academy and venture to their nextdestination: one of hundreds of police stations throughout Iraq.

“These graduates are fresh out of [training] and are confidentenough to be able to learn and get better. They’ll get even betteronce they get more experience outside. It’s definitely a confi-dence step to where they can pick up and learn the way thepolice officers work and act to build a better Iraq,” saidDaramola.

Although they are straight out of training and much moreskilled than they were prior to the course, their learning doesn’t

stop in the classroom. Many of the Iraqi police will continue towork alongside other security forces, continuing to learn andsharpen their skills with experience, while leading their countryto a safer, more promising future.

“By being involved in police academy operations, we have achance to shape how they look at police operations, in additionto some of the values [Americans] live every day and some-times take for granted,” said Swengros.

“They’ll go out and see other military and civilian police,take what they’ve learned in the academy and be able to trans-fer it into actual street police operations capabilities,” Swengrossaid.

“The police structure is growing stronger,” he added. “Tohave this many Iraqi [people] step forward every couplemonths and say ‘I want to be part of this. I want to be part ofchange,’ that’s sending a strong message.”

IP force still grows, unites in fighting terrorism

Story and photo by Pfc. Laura M. Bigenho42nd Military Police Brigade Public Affairs

A female Iraqi police graduate walks up to accept her certifi-cate as the rest of her fellow policemen and women look on.

1,700 more Iraqi Police join thousandsof others, bringing total to almost 20,000

BAGHDAD, Iraq — The plane that broughtthe Soldiers home sits empty on the runway,its long journey complete. Inside a nearbyhangar, the Soldiers stand at attention, thesmiles on their faces growing wider by thesecond. The families they haven’t seen inmonths are now only a few feet away fromthem.

“Dismissed!” shouts their commander, andthe happy anticipation in the room gives wayto joyful anarchy. Family members swarmaround the Soldiers. Wives and husbandsembrace with tears in their eyes. A father indesert camouflage holds his infant son in his

arms for the first time. These images of homecoming have become

familiar sights on the nightly news as unitscontinue to redeploy from missions in supportof the Global War on Terrorism. But theydon’t tell the full story because the process ofredeploying doesn’t end when a Soldier stepsfoot on American soil, and it begins longbefore he or she leaves theater.

Redeployment refers not just to a Soldier’smovement from a combat zone to garrison,but to the entire process of adjusting to lifeback in the rear. In its entirety, the process isknown as reintegration. To make the adjust-ment period easier, the Army requires everySoldier to undergo reintegration training whilestill in theater.

“Reintegration training is the meansby which we ease the transitionbetween combat and garrison life forour Soldiers and their families,” saidStaff Sgt. Joseph Osinski, a humanresources manager and reintegrationtraining instructor with 3rd Battalion,325th Airborne Infantry Regiment,82nd Airborne Division.

Osinski’s battalion, which wasdeployed to Iraq in December 2004,began conducting reintegration trainingin early March in preparation for itsupcoming redeployment to Fort Bragg,

N.C.The training was conducted by the bat-

talion’s Reintegration Training Team,which included representatives from thehuman resources, staff judge advocate,

chaplain, intelligence, and medical depart-ments. The team spent a week travelingbetween the different company areas, holdingseveral classes a day at each location.

Every paratrooper in the battalion wasrequired to attend the training, which includedbriefings on financial and legal issues forredeploying Soldiers, suicide and risk aware-ness, family and relationship conflicts arisingfrom deployments and operational security.Another major component of the training wasthe Post-Deployment Health Assessment, anin-depth survey of the paratroopers’ physicaland mental health.

Reintegration training is designed to antici-pate the whole spectrum of issues Soldiersface during redeployment, said Maj. JohnBride, battalion surgeon, who gave the brief-ing on suicide awareness.

“It encompasses everything from guidanceon how to fill out a travel voucher worth$3.50 a day to tips on how to prevent suicide.There are very few briefs that everyone canrelate to on an equal level. Reintegration train-ing is one of them. There’s something in therefor everyone,” Bride said.

Bride received the training during his lastdeployment. He didn’t take it very seriously,he said, until he got home and realized howmuch of it applied.

When Bride returned home, he found thathis wife had been doing the taxes, paying thebills, and running the household — and sheliked it! She resented the fact that he expectedto just come in and take over. Other thingswere different, too. When Bride had to watch

the kids alone for a few hours while his wifewent shopping, he was overwhelmed.

“I was ready to go back to Iraq,” Bride said.“That’s when I realized there are stresses andthere are issues, and these reintegration class-es are important.”

Because of that experience, Bride volun-teered to teach more classes during thisdeployment’s reintegration training. He endedup teaching the class on suicide prevention aswell as overseeing the PDHA.

Spc. Aaron Sutliff, battalion legal specialist,gave the paratroopers their legal brief. He saidreintegration training is important because itgives Soldiers the tools they need to overcomethe hidden obstacles that redeploying presents.

“When you deploy, you expect the stressand you prepare yourself to handle it. Butnobody expects redeployment to be stressful.Everyone thinks they’re going to go home andeverything will be perfect. But of course it’snot. Our number one goal is to get peopleback to their normal way of life,” Sutliff said.

It was a beautiful spring-like day on thefirst day of training, and with thoughts ofbeing home in a few weeks dancing in theirheads, some of the paratroopers had a hardtime treating the classes as anything but a pureformality. But veterans of the last deployment— and redeployment — like Sgt. RichardMouser of Headquarters Company, knew howvaluable the training was.

“There wasn’t a Soldier in there who didn’trelate to at least something that was said.Believe me, they’re getting a lot out of it,”Mouser said.

Redeployment: readjusting to life back homeStory and photo by Pfc. Mike Pryor82nd Airborne Division Public Affairs

Sgt. Ronald Young (left) answers questionsabout his health from Maj. John Bride,Battalion Surgeon, during the PostDeployment Health Assessment portion ofthe battalion’s reintegration training.


CAMP TAQADDUM, Iraq — After more than seven monthsof running supply convoys, collecting and burying enemy killedin action, and providing humanitarian aid to Fallujans, severalhundred Camp Lejeune Marines are leaving Iraq. More than200 Marines from Company B, 2nd Transportation SupportBattalion — a unit of military truck drivers, mechanics andheavy equipment operators — are returning to North Carolinathis month.

The unit arrived in Iraq last summer for duty with the CampPendleton-based 1st Force Service Support Group.

The first of B Co.’s seven platoons — Maintenance Platoon— left Feb. 26 for Kuwait, where it would spend several daysbefore flying back to the States.

These Marines have spent more than half a year serving inwar-torn Iraq. Their arrival in Kuwait will be the first time in along time many of them have been outside a combat zone.Soon, they will return to their family and friends – and regularlives – in the U.S.

“It went by fast,” admits Lance Cpl. Jeremy B. Carr, aChauncey, Ga., native who says the first person he wants to seewhen he gets home is his “mama.”

“I knew it was going to come, but not this soon,” said Cpl.Robert P. Warf, a 21-year-old Lewisburg, Tenn., native andvehicle mechanic. Warf said he’ll be home just in time to cele-brate his second anniversary with his wife, Lindsey.

Although he’s looking forward to going home and seeing hisfamily, Carr said the deployment has brought him closer to hisfellow Marines.

“You get close to the people you live with in a tent for sevenmonths,” said Carr.

After loading green sea bags, backpacks and other militaryand personal gear into the back of a seven-ton truck, Warf andthe 20-some other Marines of maintenance platoon — all wear-ing their body armor and Kevlar helmets — boarded a bus,which took them to the base air terminal, where they waited fortheir flight to Kuwait.

As B Co.’s Marines were leaving, thousands more fromCamp Lejeune were just arriving. The 1st FSSG is beingreplaced by Marines and Sailors from the 2nd Force ServiceSupport Group as part of a regularly scheduled changeover ofMarine forces.

“We’re out! We’re out of here!” screamed one Marine whilehe waited in line before boarding the bus.

The other Marines hooted and hollered in response. “I hope [the Iraqis] realize what we did. We were here to help

them, not to hurt them,” said Warf, reflecting on his unit’sachievements before boarding the bus.

In the past seven months, the Marines of B Co. were chargedwith convoying supplies across Iraq’s roadways to militarybases, repair vehicles and man a U.S. military air terminal atCamp Taqaddum, Iraq. They made more than 100 supply con-voys and traveled more than 464,000 miles on Iraq’s dangerousroadways to deliver everything from fuel, water and food toamenities to U.S. military bases and outposts in Iraq’s Al AnbarProvince. Cities like Ramadi and Fallujah are located in thisarea that has been a hotbed of insurgent activity throughout theMarines’ deployment.

Following an awards ceremony for nine 2nd TSB Marines,Col. John E. Wissler, commander for the incoming thousandsof 2nd FSSG Marines and Sailors who are replacing 1st FSSG,told B Co. Marines they had “set the standard for the people inthe battle supply distribution field.”

“How’s the motivation out here?” asked Wissler, surroundedby B Co.’s 200-plus Marines.

“Ooh-rah!” the Marines yelled in response. “You probably don’t realize the impact you’ve made here

and won’t until you get home, said Wissler. “You leave Iraq amuch better place by your contribution.”

In addition to delivering thousands of tons of supplies to U.S.military forces throughout western Iraq, B Co. was also taskedwith a variety of other jobs during their deployment.

During combat operations in Fallujah, B Co. Marines aug-mented a full-time military mortuary affairs detachment toassist with the collection and burial of more than 460 enemykilled in action.

“We’d convoy out into the city and [Iraqi] guides would takeus to the location of the bodies,” said Sgt. Saleem A. Byrd, who

drove military vehicles on convoys into Fallujah to collectenemy corpses.

After locating and loading the bodies on trucks, theMarines transported them back to the temporary mortuaryeast of Fallujah for proper processing, Byrd said.

With combat operations still ongoing inside Fallujah, BCo. Marines provided their own security while collectingremains, as infantry Marines fought insurgents often only ablock away. They also had to be wary of the last-ditchefforts insurgents displayed by rigging the dead with IEDs.

Along with learning about the health concerns involvedwith handling the cadavers, using body bags, processingand registering remains and grave sites, the Marines alsohad to deal with the mental fatigue of viewing and han-dling decomposed, charred or otherwise mutilated bodies.

Although B Co. was not involved in direct combat inFallujah, they did receive occasional enemy small arms firewhile driving in and out of the city, said Maj. James R.

Hensien, B Co.’s commander.“It was not uncommon for the Marines to receive two- to

three-round bursts of [enemy] fire,” Hensien said.Immediately after completing their mortuary duties in

December, B Co. manned two humanitarian assistance sites inthe city through January, assisting more than 39,000 returningcivilians as the local government began allowing civilians backinto the combat-devastated city.

Byrd, a 27-year-old native of Philadelphia, was part of thedetachment of Marines who spent 12 hours a day, seven days aweek handing out bottled water, boxed rations, hygiene kits andblankets to returning Fallujans.

“It felt weird going from dealing with the deceased to givingout help to the living,” said Byrd, who leaves Iraq in severalweeks. “Between the mortuary part and the humanitarian assis-tance projects, it makes me feel lucky as an American. Otherpeople have it hard.”

During Iraq’s national elections in January, Marines from BCo. coordinated the movement and transportation of morethan 800 Iraqi elections officials from Camp Taqaddum topolling sites throughout Iraq.

Driving at night, the Marines manned machine guns andother crew-served weapons mounted on Humvees to providesecurity for the election workers during the convoys to thepolling sites.

With the elections over, B Co. is back to convoying sup-plies, coordinating passengers and cargo on military flights,repairing vehicles, and providing heavy equipment support forconstruction projects — at least for a few more weeks, untilthe last of the company’s Marines set foot in Kuwait andeventually fly home.

Camp Lejeune unit nears end of tour in Iraq Story and photo by Staff Sgt. Jim Goodwin1st Force Service Support Group

Lance Cpl. Dustin S. Curran carries rations for an Iraqi manat a humanitarian assistance site in Fallujah, Iraq.

AL ASAD, Iraq — On a cool, crisp evening in lateJanuary, two pilots, a crew chief and an aerial observerboarded a gray, tandem rotor aircraft for a mission theyand the rest of the world had been looking forward tofor months.

The mission, one of historic significance, was to pickup election workers in their CH-46E Sea Knight andtransport them to the polling stations in time for theIraqi election. For the first time in 50 years Iraqiswould vote.

“I was able to fly more than 40 hours with HMM-265(Marine Medium Helicpoter Squadron) and help flyelection officials all over the country,” said Capt. CoryShackelton, pilot, HMM-264 and Annapolis, Md.native. “That has been one of my favorite missions thusfar in the deployment.”

The Black Knights have logged more than 40 flighthours per day for their first three weeks of flying.

Missions range from general support to quick reactionforce missions, delivering infantry units to their objec-tive within two hours.

“We usually do general support missions that includethe transport of cargo and passengers all over our areaof operations,” Shackelton said. “We also do tacticalrecovery of aircraft and personnel missions. Those mis-sions return personnel and aircraft to their home base.”

While the Black Knights log long hours in the air, themechanics of the helicopter have been working equallyas hard maintaining a demanding flight schedule.

“We have flown more than 276 hours since we tookover for HMM-265, Feb. 19. At this rate we will flyover 1,000 hours a month,” said Sgt. Kenneth L.Benson Jr., data analyst, HMM-264 and Columbia,Mo., native. “Our maintainers have put in more than1,000 hours working on the aircraft and keeping themfunctional.”

“To help keep up with demand, the maintainers haveto work together in every way possible to help the

‘Black Knights’ strut their stuff in Iraq

Lance Cpl. Lucas Rusch checks some hoses in the frontengine of Black Knight CH-46E during a 100-hour inspection.

Story and photo by By Cpl. C. Alex Herron2nd Marine Aircraft Wing

See KNIGHTS, Page 13

stress of the busy flight sched-ule,” said Lance Cpl. LucasRusch, flightline mechanic andGreen Bay, Wisc., native. “Wehelp out in any way we can. It isall for the good of the unit, sothat we can accomplish our mis-sion as a whole.”

Rusch and the other mechanicsunderstand they are the ones whokeep their fellow Marines safe inthe air.

“We are the last people to seethat aircraft before it takes off,”said Rusch. “It is our job to sendout the safest birds possible.”

With the start of their deploy-ment showing off the versatilityof their aircraft, the BlackKnights are primed and ready forsuccess.

“We’re prepared for this opera-tion,” Rusch said. “We have allbeen training and preparing forthis for months. Now it is time toshow our readiness.”

“Naturally, I’m worried if I do it alone /Who really cares, cause it’s your life / Younever know, it could be great / Take a chancecause you might grow,” opens “Love. Angel.Music. Baby.” Unfortunately, it’s not great.Gwen Stefani, 35, takes a break from NoDoubt with this album. Die hard No Doubtfans will not find any traces of the pop-skaformat the band is known for. Instead, this canonly be described as bubble-gum pop with ahip-hop hangnail.

Perhaps lyrics found later in the same song,What You Waiting For, better encapsulate thealbum. “You’re still a super hot female / Yougot your million dollar contract / And they’reall waiting for your hot track.”

And we’re still waiting.Following recent trends, Stefani collabo-

rates with many well-known names, includingOutkast’s Andre 3000, Dr. Dre, The Neptunesand Eve. In fact, it almost seems an effort to

throw so manydifferent thingsout, that listenerswill have to likeone of them.Somehow, itworks. Combinethese faces withconstant self-ado-ration, frequentreferences toJapanese

Harajuku girls, and quirky electric beats, andyou’ve got a success. Single, Rich Girl, hasclimbed to 7 on the Billboard chart.

How can this be? Because the album is fun.Despite an array of horrible lyrics, cheesymusic, and an overall “sell-out” theme, I amstill nodding my head to the beat. In a recentRolling Stone interview, Stefani claimed thather album would be “your guilty pleasure.”She nailed it.

“Love. Angel. Music. Baby.” is available atAAFES locations.


Art by Maj. James D. Crabtree

SScciimmiittaarr SSllaappssttiicckkSScciimmiittaarr SSllaappssttiicckk

“Love. Angel. Music” … MaybeMUSIC REVIEW

By Sgt. Derek F. Meyer214th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

from Page 12

Knights

Art by Jeffery Hall

The place to access the latest MNF-I/MNC-Inews and information is online. Check out

www.mnf-iraq.com to stay informed.

Master Sgt. Leonard Caires, qualityassurance chief, HMM-264 and Salem,Mass. native, tightens down a panelduring a pre-flight check on one of thesquadron’s CH-46E.

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Thirteen improvised explosive devices,five mortar attacks, and one vehicle-borne improvised explo-sive device; this may sound like an insurgent Christmascarol, but it is actually the scorecard of Sgt. 1st Class PatrickSandel.

A Soldier with 3rd Battalion, 156th Infantry Regiment,attached to 1st Battalion, 156th Armor Regiment, thisDeRidder, La. native has faced encounters more times thanany other Soldier in the 256th Brigade Combat Team. Hecounts his blessings every day that he is still here.

“That first IED scared the [you know what] out of me,” hesaid with a reflective grin.

Sandel said his inaugural mission outside the wire was aprophetic vision into what lay ahead for him and his Soldiers.The very first time he ventured into his area of operation hewas met with a mortar attack. A few days later, he hit the firstIED, and only now has it begun to slow down.

“November and December were busy for us,” he said.“Right now it’s been three weeks since I’ve been hit, andthat’s the longest I’ve gone without in a while.”

According to Sandel, his platoon’s reaction to an attack has

improved with each incident, and is, in fact, now secondnature to them. Whether they are conducting mounted or dis-mounted patrols, if something happens, they shut it downimmediately and begin sweeping the area for threats. He saidalong with incorporating the training that they received atFort Hood, Texas, they have a strategy that works best for

them, and within two seconds of getting hit, they are out andscanning their sector.

“It’s just like brushing your teeth now,” he said. “We havethis process down to an art.”

Recently, the platoon lost Sgt. Seth Trahan, from Crowley,La., to an IED attack. Sandel said that until this happenedgetting hit seemed normal and like it was just a part of thejob. The Soldiers were clearing an intersection, and as Trahanrounded the corner, the device went off, instantly killing himand wounding two others.

“We weren’t complacent on the patrols, by any means,”said Sandel, “but until it killed somebody, getting hit was aroutine thing.”

Command Sgt. Maj. Steven Stuckey from Shreveport, La.is the sergeant major for 1/156th AR. He feels that Sandel’sspirit and enthusiasm for his job have not diminished overtime, even in the face of such adversity.

“A lot of the guys who get hit by IEDs get scared and startto wear down, but Sandel has not,” said Stuckey.

Stuckey said the leadership that Sandel has shown is exem-plary and shines through in his own attitude for his job, andalso in the attitude of his Soldiers toward him.

“He never stops, and he’s always high-spirited,” Stuckeysaid. “His Soldiers like to go out with Sandel, and I thinkthey’d do anything for him.”

INTERNATIONAL ZONE, BAGHDAD,Iraq — Staff Sgt. William Thomas Payne ofthe 1st Cavalry Division received the UnitedStates’ third-highest award for heroism incombat Feb. 27 during a ceremony at thecrossed scimitars monument in centralBaghdad.

Although Maj. Gen. Pete Chiarelli, the divi-sion’s commander, was on hand to present theaward, Payne took the unique opportunity tohave the medal pinned on him by his father,Carl Payne, a Department of the Armyemployee working in Iraq.

“I could never be more proud,” said theelder Payne, a retired Army tanker.

“As a parent it’s like a double-edged swordthough,” he said, speaking of his son’sactions. “I’m glad he was recognized for theduty that he did, but it is tough to know that

your son risked his life in a situation likethat.”

Payne, from Benford, Okla., and aninfantryman assigned to Company A, 1stBattalion, 9th Cavalry Regiment, is creditedwith rescuing a group of Soldiers from a dis-abled Bradley fighting vehicle while underfire last September.

“Staff Sgt. Payne displayed gallantry andvalor that was truly amazing,” Chiarelli said.“He did it in one of the toughest neighbor-hoods in Baghdad — Sheik Maroof.”

The neighborhood has many areas that havebeen dubbed with nicknames like “GrenadeAlley” and “Purple Heart Lane” by theSoldiers who regularly patrol it. The infamousHaifa Street runs along the northern border.

“I’ve read a lot of citations since I’ve beenhere,” Chiarelli added, “but I have read nonethat talks of any greater act of heroism thanwhat Staff Sgt. Payne did that day.”

During the late morning hours of Sept. 12,2004, Payne’s battalion was wrapping up an

operation onHaifa Street. AsBradley fightingvehicles patrolledthe streets,Soldiers on theground set updefensive posi-tions in order topick up otherSoldiers that hadbeen manningobservation postsin high-rise build-ings throughoutthe night.

Payne and hisdismounted squadwere in positionalong the side of the street when a car ladenwith explosives sped onto the street and deto-nated into the rear of a Bradley.

“I looked back,” Payne explained, “it waslike, ‘There is no way that this was happen-ing.’”

A split second later the blast’s powerfulconcussion hit his squad, knocking oneSoldier to the ground.

“When I heard the concussion I knew it wasreal and it was time to go,” he said.

The force of the blast disabled the 33-tonBradley, bringing it to a halt. Its rear rampwas engulfed in flames and the upper cargohatch was blown off.

Small arms fire began to rain onto thestreet, so Payne had Sgt. Richard Frisbie shiftthe squad into a new position so they couldprovide cover fire while he and Spc. ChaseAsh went to help the Soldiers in the Bradley.

“Luckily I had someone there to help out,”Payne said. “I had a Soldier to keep control ofthe squad and another to help me with thewounded.”

Payne and Ash ran 50 meters to the burningvehicle while terrorists fired on them. At theBradley, Payne climbed up on top and helped

two of the crewman out of the tur-ret. He then turned his attention tothe infantrymen still inside thecrew compartment. One by one hepulled them up through the dam-aged cargo hatch.

“I lowered them down the sideof the Bradley to Spc. Ash so hecould get them to safety,” Paynesaid. “There was a lot of gunfiregoing on.”

Within seconds of retrieving thewounded Soldiers from theBradley, the vehicle’s load ofammunition began to cook offfrom the heat and fire.

According to Payne the wholeseries of events lasted nearly fiveminutes.

“All the training just kicked in,” Payne saidabout his actions “It’s hard to explain; I didn’treally have time to think about it.”

Once back in a safe position on the southside of the street, Payne’s squad teamedtogether again to further protect the rescuedSoldiers as the medic treated them.

“Some of the wounded were unable to gettheir equipment out of the Bradley,” Payneexplained. “We had one Soldier who didn’thave his helmet and another was missing hisweapon.”

Payne’s men began giving them whateverpiece of protective gear they could spare.

“They were giving up goggles and thingslike that,” Payne added. “They were givingthem anything they could to provide them bet-ter protection than what they had when theygot out of the vehicle.”

When it was safe enough, Payne and hisSoldiers put the wounded into another Bradleyfor evacuation to the combat support hospitalin the International Zone.

“I owe everything to my squad,” Paynesaid. “If my squad wasn’t there I couldn’thave completed that mission. My squad wasthere for me — that’s what it comes down to.”


Story and photos by Sgt. John Queen3rd BCT Public Affairs

Father pins Silver Star on son in Baghdad

Although Staff Sgt. William Thomas Payne was the recipient of the Silver Starmedal, he credits his squad for their teamwork in the successful rescue ofwounded Soldiers from a burning armored vehicle last September.

Sgt. 1st Class Patrick Sandel scans the area in frontof him while on patrol in his Bradley Fighting Vehicle.

Platoon sergeant takes a licking, keeps on tickingBy Spc. Erin Robicheaux256th Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs

Photo by Sgt. Maj. Steven Stuckey

While Maj. Gen. Pete Chiarelliwatches, Carl Payne pins theSilver Star medal on his son,Staff Sgt. William Thomas Payne.

INTERNATIONAL ZONE, BAGH-DAD, Iraq — Stepping in thePresidential Palace dining facilityMarch 4 was like crossing into the blue,as U.S. Airmen from around the IZattended the Combat WingmenGathering, a program promotingAirmen taking care of Airmen.

The morale meter shot up when thehost, Air Force Maj. Gen. SteveSargeant, addressed the service mem-bers. Sargeant commended everyAirman on a job well done and present-ed four with coins for going above andbeyond the call of duty. The hour-longafternoon event highlighted the accom-plishments of Airmen in Iraq.Reminiscing the good and bad times ofthis deployment, Sargeant also reiterat-ed the things Airmen are doing rightand wrong.

“My goal is for everyone to get backhome faster and safer,” Sargeant said.“Be careful. Do not get complacent.”

That information stretched furtherthan everyone staying safe, making ithome, and pats on the back. Security,suicide prevention and the importanceof having a wingman, which is a buddy,were also among the topics discussed.The information was presented in a fewshort movie clips and in-depth slideshows.

Airmen of almost every rank,brigadier general and below, gave theirundivided attention to the general andthe information he passed on to theattendees how to become a more effi-cient service. During his speech,Sargeant also discussed how proudAirmen should be about being a part ofOIF.

“We are going through that secondphase right now with the Iraqi people.We are going to help them with every-thing. Airmen are going to be a big partof that,” he said.

The Airmen were very happy to seetheir senior leaders showing apprecia-

tion for their hard work and the sacri-fices they have made as a result ofbeing deployed, said Air Force StaffSgt. Rafael Hernandez, personal securi-ty detail, Multi-National Forces - Iraq,Strategy Plans and Assessment. “Itmakes me feel very important in asense, because I work directly for[Sargeant]. He is actually communicat-ing with his lower-ranking Airmen.”

Hearing those words and seeing thepictures in the slideshow showed thework of each Airman is not in vain, saidAir Force Staff Sgt. Wayne D. Horton,PSD, MNF-I SPA. “I really am doingsomething. My little bit is contributingto the fight.”

The CW gathering serves as a moralebooster and a way to thank each Airmanin front of all IZ USAF personnel,Horton said. “This is the secondCombat Wingman gathering here. Thefirst was in December of last year. Itwas time to do another one because wehad a whole new rotation of Airmencome in.”

Each CW gathering event is alsomeant to bring the service memberstogether away from their everydayduties to mingle and meet one another,Sargeant said. “It is easy to get wrapped

up in what you are doing from day today and never realize how many hun-dreds of Airmen are actually in the IZ.It’s important to get to know the otherAirmen here to share the experienceswe’re having with others who comefrom a similar background.”

Speaking to someone of the sameservice can be comforting. CW gather-ings help Airmen provide that comfortto each other, he said. “It is very impor-tant to have someone to share the highsand the lows with while you’re in thisstressful environment.”

There will be more Combat Wingmangatherings as long as USAF personnelare deployed, Sargeant said. It is some-thing that is needed.

The general finished his speech bysaying, “Don’t forget what it is youhave learned in the Air Force, whichyou are bringing to this joint fight. Beproud of what you bring as an Airmanand share it with all those joint partners,those Sailors, Soldiers and Marines youwork with every day.

“Be proud to be here in OperationIraqi Freedom during this historic peri-od of time, as we are starting a countrydown the road to democracy, which willhave an impact on the entire region.”


Gen. commends Airmenat Wingmen GatheringStory and photo by Pfc. Ferdinand ThomasScimitar Staff

Coalition Corner... highlighting countries serving with MNF-Iraq

Denmarklocal name: DanmarkThe Kingdom of Denmark is located in northern Europe,

bordering Germany and the Baltic and North Seas. It con-sists of a main body called Jutland, and has two majorislands, Sjaelland and Fyn. Size-wise, Denmark is slightlyless than twice the size of Massachusetts.

The main language in Denmark is Danish, with Englishbeing the predominant second language. However,Faroese, Greenlandic and some German are also spokenthroughout different regions.

This beautiful country is historically rich and boastscountless castles, palaces, churches and royal buildings dat-ing back to the 17th century. Comprised of a peninsula andislands, Denmark has a plethora of gorgeous beaches, lakesand streams. Although it is part of the European Union,Denmark still uses the Danish Krone as currency. If youhave a pocket full of Euro to spend, don’t worry — mer-chants accept both Krone and Euro.

Denmark not only has beautiful beaches, it also has sev-eral famous people claiming it as home, including 6’1”bombshell actress Brigitte Nielsen, who starred in the 1986movie “Cobra” with Silvester Stallone, whom she was alsoonce married to. Viggo Mortensen, who played Argon inthe world-famous trilogy “The Lord of the Rings,” claimshis heritage through his father, who was born and raised inDenmark.

In addition to great vacation spots and attractive famousactors, Denmark also has foods and dishes unique to itsculture. One of the more popular national dishes isFrikadeller, Danish meatballs usually served with brownedbutter, potatoes and stewed cabbage.

When asked what he misses most about his country,Henrik Solgaard of the Danish Army said, “I miss the‘Easy On’ cycling team, the Danish Tour de France Team. Ialso miss my best friend Kaare.”

Denmark — yet another piece of the Multi-NationalForces - Iraq puzzle dedicated to rebuilding Iraq.

References: www.ipc.dk, www.cia.gov,www.movies.yahoo.com, www.danishexporters.dk.www.wanderplanet.com. Coalition Corner is compiled by Sgt. Misha King,assistant editor, [email protected].

Air Force Maj. Gen. Steve Sargeant interacts with an audience member atthe Combat Wingman Gathering held in the Presidential Palace dining hall.


Mongrels square off for training,stress reliefCAMP VICTORY, BAGHDAD, Iraq —Camp Victory, Iraq, may be a long way fromVegas, but that hasn’t stopped the Mongrelsfrom enjoying Friday-night fights.

Every Friday at 4 p.m., walls vibrate withthe sounds of Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger,”and a crowd of cheering spectators from 20thEngineer Brigade, XVIII Airborne Corps,Fort Bragg, N.C., converge on the “Alamo”to take part in a boxing extravaganza specifi-cally designed for the unit.

When Capt. Richard Ojeda, HeadquartersHeadquarters Company, 20th EngineerBrigade. commander, ordered boxing equip-ment for combatives training, he had no ideait would lead to the fast-paced high-energy,morale-boosting stress reliever that his troopscreated.

“We got the equipment to build on theconvoy security team’s training,” Ojeda said.“It wasn’t intended to be used for boxing …but the Soldiers wanted to box.”

Ojeda said the boxing matches started withabout seven Soldiers who wanted to test theirskills, and it quickly grew into a weeklyaffair.

Seeing an opportunity to boost Soldiers’morale, Ojeda filled out a risk assessmentand put safety precautions in place so theSoldiers could enjoy the fights without anymajor injuries.

The event started drawing more and more

people and now has a follow-ing of about 50 Soldiers. Theunit is working to build a regu-lation-size boxing ring withturnbuckles and ropes.

Ojeda said the event showshim a lot about his Soldiersand teaches them valuable les-sons.

“Just for them to be willingto step in the ring shows theyhave heart,” he said. “I havemore respect for a Soldier whois not a very good fighter butis willing to step up than onewho is in the ring just to showoff his skills.”

“I’ll take heart over skill anyday of the week,” Ojeda said.“Heart doesn’t stop but skillscan deteriorate.”

“It doesn’t matter if they winor lose, it’s about being willingto step up,” he said. “When we go out thegate, I like knowing I have Soldiers who arewilling to step up and get things done.”

Despite the violent nature of boxing, therehave been no serious injuries and theSoldiers insist it is all fun and games.

“It teaches you a lot, but mostly, it’s justfun,” said Pfc. Bethany Howell, HHC 20thEngineer Bde., who was one of four femalesto fight Feb. 25. “There are never anygrudges. If you get beat, you just lose brag-ging rights.”

Spc. Christopher Mauro, HHC, 20th

Engineer Bde., has fought several times andsaid he has other reasons for participating inthe matches.

Mauro said most of his comrades are com-bat engineers who are working in jobs out oftheir field, and the boxing matches are a wayfor them to relieve the stress that causes.

“I can see this going for the whole timewe are here,” he said. “We keep gettingmore and more people, and it’s a good wayto relieve stress with no hard feelings.”

As with everything his unit does, Ojedasaid safety is his primary concern, and theboxing bouts are no exception.

“We always have at least one [emergencymedical technician] with dispatched vehicle,numerous combat lifesavers and an EMT bagon hand,” he said. “We also have a [specialforces medic] and a referee at each event.”

“Nobody is trying to kill anybody here,”said 1st Sgt. Anthony Archer, HHC, 20thEngineer Bde. first sergeant. “Any time wesee that someone is overmatched, we pullthem apart. We do not put Soldiers withboxing experience in with a novice. If some-one goes down, the other boxer will stepaway.”

Ojeda said boxing could also give theSoldiers confidence to resolve situations thatmay arise during their convoys withoutusing deadly force.

“If someone comes at you without aweapon, you don’t want to kill him if youdon’t have to,” he said. “So you always wantto use other ways of getting them off of youwithout using your weapon. If you can settlethe situation without having to squeeze thetrigger, that’s good.”

Story and photos by Sgt. David FoleyMNC-I Public Affairs Office

Sgt. Wayne Meyers, HHC, 20th Engineer Bde, lands a high jab on fellow HHCSoldier Spc. Donald Mack, who almost lands a jab right back.

Pfc. Michael Carr, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 20th Engineer Brigade,XVIII Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, N.C., follows through with a right hook on Pvt. JamalJoseph, 175th Engineer Company, 20th Engineer Brigade, during Friday Fight Fights atthe 20th Engineer Brigade's motorpool at Camp Victory, Iraq.

Capt. Richard Ojeda, commander, 20th Engineer Bde, lands a low body blowon Spc. Donald Mack of the same company.

Vol. 3, No. 10 Baghdad, Iraq March 11, 2005 Iraqis...

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