Soldiers On Patrol Find, Save Infant’s Life
By Army Pfc. Paul J. Harris, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team,
4th Infantry Division
BALAD, Iraq – Soldiers from Logistical Support Area Anaconda in Balad saved the life of an abandoned, near-death baby June 9.
Staff Sgt. Donald White, patrol leader 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers, and his team came across a box on the side of the road while on patrol.
Initially, he thought it was an improvised explosive device until he heard crying coming from the box. White made sure there were no wires protruding from the box and made sure it was not booby trapped. Then he picked it up.
“I ran as fast as I could, snatched the box off the ground and kept on running, thankfully nothing blew up,” White said.
White then asked Spc. John Sullivan, healthcare specialist, 3rd Battalion, 29th Field Artillery, to evaluate the child and assess its medical needs.
“The skin was literally hanging off the child and we could see it was massively dehydrated and malnourished. Sullivan told me we needed to get the child to a hospital right away and we jumped into the trucks and drove to the hospital as fast as we could,” Smith said.
379th AEW Anti-Terrorism Program, Manager Named Named Best in CENTCOM, CENTAF
By Air Force Capt. Kelly Murray Howard,
379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
The anti-terrorism program and program manager at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing has claimed top honors in the Central Air Forces competition for 2006, and won the same awards at the CENTCOM level.
Maj. Scott Foley, 379th AEW chief of Force Protection, was selected as the 2006 CENTCOM Anti-Terrorism Program Manager and the wing received the Best Anti-Terrorism Program – Installation award.
Major Foley spearheaded many of the projects during the year that improved the security of the base and its assets. The installation award is the result of several units on base working together to ensure terrorists do not interrupt the wartime mission.
376th ESFS Builds, Dedicates New Children’s Playground
By Air Force Staff Sgt. Candy Knight, 376th AEW Public Affairs
MANAS AIR BASE, Kyrgyzstan– With the whack of a hammer and the cut from scissors, the 376th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron formally completed and dedicated the new Oktobersky Village School #1 children’s playground June 22.
The ceremony was attended by Col. Joel “Scott” Reese, 376th Air Expeditionary Wing commander, village leaders and members from the 376th AEW.
The ceremony began with Ms. Galina Tereshyuk, Oktobersky Village mayor, and Colonel Reese, thanking the service members for using their rare days off to plan and construct the playground.
“We thank you and hope we can continue our friendship in the future,” Mayor Tereshyuk said.
“To Major (Mark) Anarumo and your crew, great job. Way to stay safe while working hard to make this a better place for the children to learn and develop their physical abilities, and have fun while they’re at it,” Colonel Reese said.
U.S. Army MPs Mentor Afghan National Police
By Army Staff Sgt. Robert R. Ramón, 345th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, June 16, 2006 —U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Gordon Key and his fellow military police officers have provided security for several Afghan National Police checkpoints along the outskirts of Bagram since their arrival in Afghanistan last March.
“The mentoring is very good for all of our guys. The techniques they show us, we will use when we are actually running checkpoints,” said Abdul Kator, Afghan National Police
With their vast knowledge and experience, the MPs noted the instances where the Afghan National Police would benefit from that knowledge. This prompted Key and two other MPs in his unit to take action.
In early May, the MPs began mentoring the Afghan National Police at an Afghan National Army outpost in the Kohi Sofi District about 40 kilometers south of Bagram. They plan to mentor a total of approximately 40 Afghan National Police.
Airmen Train Soldiers for Protection Mission
By Air Force Master Sgt. Andrew Gates, 407th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs
ALI BASE, Iraq — Airmen from the 407th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron have found themselves performing a unique mission in the last month – providing training to 164 Army Soldiers.
“It wasn’t so much training as refreshing their skills, and letting them know specifics about protecting Ali Base and the people on it,” said Tech. Sgt. Scott Morris, 407th ESFS and lead trainer.
The 164 Soldiers from the 528 Quartermaster Company are assuming the Ali protection mission currently held by the 407th ESFS – in July, the Soldiers will begin patrolling the base perimeter as well as outside the base to look for possible attacks and protect the surrounding area. This training gave the Soldiers the tools, and techniques, they need to do this mission safely, said Sergeant Morris.
The Soldiers started with 12 days of classroom training, developed by a team of four Security Forces experts. The classroom – more accurately various structures and open fields – connected 20 Soldiers with experts in a number of force protection areas.
Filed under: Afghanistan, Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, Military, News
Sneaks Wide World of Blogging 51…
Welcome to this edition of Sneaks Wide World of Blogging. This series is dedicated to the proposition that Blogging is a prime example of the saying Variety is the Spice of Life. Let’s get to the good stuff! ;-D This…