By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2009 – As the nation prepares to enjoy its Memorial Day holiday, the military’s top officer asked that U.S. troops and families be remembered for their sacrifices.
Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, made appearances this morning on the major network morning shows broadcasting from the Pentagon.

Mullen called today’s fighting force and its families the best he’s ever been associated with.

“I've been wearing the uniform for over 41 years. This is the best military we've ever had, and they are making a big difference in these two wars that we're fighting,” he said. “And we're in our eighth year of war, our sixth year of fighting two wars simultaneously, and they've just been incredible.”

The holiday serves as the unofficial start of summer with many community pools opening for the weekend. Many enjoy the typical three-day weekend boating, cooking out and in other outdoor recreational activities.

But Mullen asked that the nation take pause to remember the sacrifices of the troops and families, and to renew its commitment to supporting those in their communities who are serving.

“Today’s a day we need to remember their sacrifice -- those who’ve paid the ultimate sacrifice as well as the families of the fallen,” Mullen said.

Nearly 5,000 troops have died in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan since they began, Mullen said. More than 36,000 troops have been injured.

“We’ve got some 240,000 young men and women of the United States deployed around the world today … and many of them in harms way who we really need to take pause and remember their sacrifice,” the chairman said.

“They represent the best of America. They’re the best young people I have ever been associated with and they really do make a difference,” Mullen said.



Biographies:
Navy Adm. Mike Mullen

Labels: Admiral Mike Mullen, heroes, Memorial Day, military families

From Multi-National Force - Iraq:


An Iraqi man holds his drowning child in Karmah, Iraq, Sept. 28, 2008. Navy Chief Roger Buck, a 34-year-old battalion medical chief from Niceville, Fla., saw the limp child cradled in his father's arms and immediately began administering CPR, saving the boy’s life. Photo by Lance Cpl. Achilles Tsantarliotis, Regimental Combat Team 1.


Sunday, 19 October 2008

KARMAH — Corpsmen are often considered the medical ray of light for Marines in a combat zone.

Sometimes their light shines bright enough to reach local Iraqis in need, whether during a routine combined medical engagement, or for one Iraqi child who almost drowned, on the spot emergency medical attention that saved his life.

Navy Chief Roger Buck, a 34-year-old battalion medical chief from Niceville, Fla., with Task Force 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 1, saw the limp child cradled in his father’s arms during an Iraqi key-leadership, joint-forces dismounted patrol.

Buck ran to the boy and immediately began administering CPR.

“[Our] interpreter explained I was like a doctor,” said Buck. “They told us they found him face first in a canal. He had a light, faint pulse. I tried to calm the parents down then immediately started applying medical treatment. I cleared his airway and started giving him CPR.”

Within a few minutes the boy regained consciousness, coughed up water and was taken to a local hospital for follow on care.

“He did everything he should have,” said Gunnery Sgt. John Schidlmeier, a platoon leader with Lava Dog Assesment Reaction Team, 1st Bn., 3rd Marines. “His actions were admirable; especially for the situation. He reacted even though he was posting security; made sure a Marine took his position and treated the kid immediately.”

Buck said he was merely in the right place at the right time and just doing his job, and the look of gratitude and appreciation on the terrified parents was all the thanks he needed.

Buck insisted that all Corpsmen carry a great load of responsibilities, starting from the first day of corpsman training, to adapt and be versatile with varying situations. To him, it was just another day of life in the operating forces.

“I was just happy I could bring the kid back,” he said.

Days later, the battalion recognized Buck’s heroic actions and awarded him a Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal for his reactive measures and successful treatment.

“There are a thousand things a day that corpsmen do that go unseen,” he said. “It's always good to save a life. You don't always get to save everyone, so when you do it's very rewarding.”

(By Lance Cpl. Achilles Tsantarliotis, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marines)

Labels: 1-3 Marines, combat medic, Good News, heroes, Regimental Combat Team 1, US Navy, USMC

From DefenseLink:

Army Sgt. Gregory S. Ruske will become the fourth Army Reservist to receive the Silver Star for heroism demonstrated after he and his fellow soldiers were ambushed in Afghanistan’s Kapisa province April 21, 2008. U.S. Army photo


By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 8, 2008 – Army Sgt. Gregory S. Ruske is quick to call himself an ordinary soldier, but later this month the Army Reserve will single him out for extraordinary heroism in Afghanistan that earned him the Silver Star medal.

The 28-year-old Colorado Springs, Colo., native will become the fourth Army reservist to receive the prestigious award for heroism in the war on terror. Army Lt. Gen. Jack C. Stultz, chief of the Army Reserve, will present Ruske the Silver Star during a ceremony in Orlando, Fla.
Ruske visited Washington yesterday to meet with Stultz and other Army Reserve officials and to attend the Association of the U.S. Army annual meeting taking place here. He said he doesn’t see the actions he took when his platoon was attacked by a much larger Taliban force as anything exceptional.

“I don’t consider myself a hero,” he said. “I was just an ordinary guy put in an extraordinary situation. I reacted based on my upbringing, training and compassion, and thankfully, it worked out in the end.”

Ruske was assigned to Combined Joint Task Force 101, operating in Afghanistan’s Kapisa province, when the incident that led to his Silver Star award took place April 21. He and his fellow soldiers from 3rd Platoon, A Company, Task Force Gladiator, were on a patrol in a remote area not accessible by vehicle when Taliban operatives attacked them with heavy grenade, machine-gun and rifle fire.

“There was no way our gun truck support could get to us, so we were kind of out here by ourselves when all Hades broke loose,” he said.

Trapped with his unit in an exposed position, Ruske returned fire so most of the platoon could move to protective cover. Ruske then moved to a rooftop and continued laying fire even after taking a bullet to the hip.

At that point, Ruske realized that two Afghan National Police officers were still pinned down in the open, taking fire from their Taliban attackers. One ran for cover, but the other officer -- one Ruske had worked with at vehicle checkpoints and chatted with through an interpreter – had been shot and was trying to crawl to safety through a hail of bullets.

“Seeing that dirt kick up no more than six inches from his head, I said, ‘Man, this is jacked up,’” Ruske recalled thinking. “They are still shooting at this guy. He is still bleeding and shot. And I said, ‘We have to go get him.’”

Labels: Afghanistan, heroes, Sgt. Gregory S. Ruske, Silver Star, Task Force Gladiator, US Army, US Army Reserves

From DefenseLink:

Army Chaplain (Maj.) Ibraheem Raheem delivers a sermon for Muslim soldiers during a service Aug. 29, 2008, at Camp Victory, Iraq. Raheem is one of only six Muslim chaplains in the Army, and is the only one currently deployed in Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. David Turner, Multinational Division Center


By Army Sgt. David Turner
Special to American Forces Press Service


BAGHDAD, Sept. 8, 2008 – The most frequent question soldiers ask Chaplain (Maj.) Ibraheem Raheem is the meaning behind the crescent moon patch on his Army combat uniform.

Sometimes, he said, he jokingly explains that he’s an astronaut; other times, he says he’s an inspector for field rations or that the moon emblem means he’s performed 3,000 night jumps.

In fact, the patch does distinguish Raheem as one of a special group of soldiers. He is one of only six Muslim chaplains serving in the U.S. Army, and is the only one deployed to Iraq.

His service as both a Muslim and an American soldier, he said, can lead to confusion for some people, both in the military and in local communities.

“After you talk to people and explain a few things to them, they get it,” Raheem said. “That is, after breaking down a whole bunch of walls that have been put up in people’s minds.”

Though Muslim soldiers sometimes struggle with the issues of service and faith, Raheem said he and the soldiers to whom he ministers have found ways to reconcile their religious beliefs with their military service.

“Most people understand that there’s a difference between serving in the military and deliberately going to fight in a particular place for a religious-based reason. Our military is not religiously based. Most people can see that there’s a difference there,” he said.

Raheem can relate easily to the problems of both his enlisted and non-Muslim soldiers. Raised in a Baptist household in Kansas City, Kan., he spent his first 12 years in the Army as an enlisted soldier in the Medical Corps. In a way it was that experience, he said, that led him to become a chaplain.

“The medical field was the first thing that jumped out at me, because you get to help people who are sick,” he said. “I dealt with a lot of death and illness. It brought me closer to my spiritual upbringing.”

Though working in an intensive care unit gave Raheem the opportunity to help people, he said, he found there were other kinds of help people needed, too.

“There was a lot of advanced equipment, but it wasn’t always saving people,” he said. “At the end of the day, God is the one who determines if a person pulls through or not.”
Seeing the work that Army chaplains performed at the hospital inspired Raheem to seek a new path. “I felt like that’s when I got my calling to be a chaplain,” he said.

The journey would not be complete, however, until Raheem accepted the Islamic faith.
"I started studying the Bible in college, and later began learning about other faiths," he recalled. "When I came across Islam, I went to visit a mosque. A member there gave me a Koran and told me, 'Go and read this, and come back if you have any questions.’ I came back the next day with questions, and every day thereafter, each time getting the answers from the Koran until I eventually accepted the faith."

In reading the Koran, Raheem said, he discovered not a rejection of his older faith, but rather a faith resonated more deeply with his beliefs.

"I came to realize that the message it contained was what I had always believed from the days I was a child,” he explained. “For instance, that there was only one God that has no images, that the same divine message was given to Noah, Moses, Abraham, David, Jesus and Muhammad. That Adam and Eve were forgiven, and their sins were not passed on to other generations, nor were women blamed only for disobeying God. So it was like a confirmation of what I always believed in my heart my whole life."

After completing seminary school, Raheem received his commission, realizing his ambition to become a chaplain. His acceptance of the Muslim faith had not only changed his career path, but also affected his entire outlook on life.

"My experience with Islam opened my mind to the world, its diversity and its many social challenges,” he said. “Before Islam, I only thought of the people in my neighborhood; after Islam, I thought of the entire world."

Raheem is on his third deployment to Iraq since 2003. Attached to the Iraqi Assistance Group, he performs services and counsels Muslim soldiers at Camp Victory, where he is based. He holds a prayer service there every Friday, but also takes his work into the field, finding other Muslim soldiers who otherwise would not have access to his services. He brings copies of the Koran with him, and as part of his mission, he also collects damaged copies to be repaired and redistributed to Iraqi citizens.

During the holy month of Ramadan that’s now under way, Raheem travels to as many parts of Iraq as possible to tend to Muslim soldiers’ spiritual needs. He estimates there are fewer than 300 Muslim soldiers currently deployed. That means he has to cover a lot of ground.

“It’s hard being the only [Muslim chaplain], and there are people spread out in many different places,” he said. “Depending on transportation availability, weather and other factors, you may or may not get to a certain place.”

While visiting bases around Iraq, Raheem performs services and provides counseling for soldiers, as he does at Camp Victory.

“I’ll be getting out and trying to support the soldiers who are out there trying to practice,” he said. “I realize that it’s hard being one of the few people on the forward operating base that has a different religion, so I try to get out there with them and give them some encouragement.”

(Army Sgt. David Turner serves in the Multinational Division Center Public Affairs Office.)


Army Chaplain (Maj.) Ibraheem Raheem leads Muslim soldiers in prayers Aug. 29, 2008, at Camp Victory, Iraq. Raheem is one of only six Muslim chaplains in the Army, and is the only one currently deployed in Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. David Turner, Mulinational Division Center


Related Sites:
Multinational Corps Iraq
Special Report: Ramadan 2008

Labels: Camp Victory, heroes, Iraq, military chaplains, Religion of Peace?, US Army

From Fox News:


Dramatic photos show a Marine's narrow escape from death Sunday while facing insurgent gunfire in Afghanistan.

The Marine, part of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), was exchanging gunfire with Taliban fighters near Garmser in Afghanistan's Helmand Province when a Reuters photographer captured the soldier's very close call.

A series of six photos show the Marine, wearing a T-shirt and fatigues but no combat helmet, ducking as insurgent gunfire tears through the top of a mud wall he's using for cover. Remarkably, the Marine escaped the gunfight without injury.

Click Here to read the rest.

View the photos here

Labels: Afghanistan, Garmsir, Helmand Province, heroes, USMC

NEW YORK — John Fernandez should not have been playing lacrosse in the Army-Navy alumni game at Madison Square Garden.

By all rights, the former U.S. Army first lieutenant should be dead. But luck intervened.

"It was just a matter of chance — pure luck," said Fernandez of Shoreham, Long Island, who was severely wounded in Iraq after a U.S. plane dropped a 500-pound bomb on his Humvee in a case of friendly fire on April 3, 2003. Shrapnel from the explosion shredded his legs.

"I crawled," Fernandez recalled. "I couldn't walk."

More than five years later, the soldier can do more than just walk. He can play lacrosse thanks to prosthetic limbs as he demonstrated during the Heroes Cup, which preceded the New York Titans professional game Saturday night.


Read the Rest, at Fox News

Labels: Good News, heroes, US Army, Wounded Heroes

An American soldier who was seriously wounded during a bomb attack in Iraq on Nov. 13 re-enlisted just hours after the ambush, telling Army officers he still had a job to do, the Army reported Monday.

Spc. Christopher Hoyt, an infantryman from California with the 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, based out of Fort Lewis, Wash., was injured after an improvised explosive device — or IED — exploded near him while he was out on a foot patrol near Zaganiyah, Iraq...

Read the Rest, at Fox News

Labels: 2nd ID, heroes, US Army, Wounded Heroes

Sgt. Richard Miller, from Floresville, Texas, a military policeman with the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Inf. Div., encourages his specialized search dog, Gabriel, before a search exercise at Forward Operating Base Hammer Oct. 24. Miller uses Gabriel in cordon and searches, cordon and knocks, raids, route sanitation and route clearance missions to sniff out explosives, munitions, weapons and ammunition. Photo by Spc. Ben Hutto, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division Public Affairs.


Tuesday, 30 October 2007
By Spc. Ben Hutto
3rd Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs

FORWARD OPERATING BASE HAMMER — The German shepherd trots from rock to rock, ears pricked upward and nose pointed towards the earth, intent on his mission.

Several feet away, his handler, Sgt. Richard Miller, from Floresville, Texas, a military policeman with the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, silently watches as the dog gets closer to the C4 explosive he has hidden under some rubble.

The specialized off-leash search dog looks back at his handler and sits down beside the hidden explosive.

"Good boy," Miller says, walking toward Gabriel. "Good job, Gabe."

The dog's tail swings back and forth as his trainer approaches. His mission accomplished, the dog eagerly awaits his reward.

Miller focuses the dog on the explosive while he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a worn-out orange cong. He tosses it in front of the dog and watches as he snatches it up and runs back to his handler.

The next few moments are filled with praise as Miller tosses the cong and Gabriel retrieves it.

"That's the whole reason the dog does what he does," explains Sgt. Timothy Kinsey, from Pueblo, Colo., a military policeman with the 3rd Brigade Combat Team. "We work to get paid. The dogs work for their reward. Gabriel is very focused on his reward. He'll do anything for those congs."

The 3rd BCT has three working dogs and they've been extremely busy since their arrival at Forward Operating Base Hammer.

"They are doing a good job," said Sgt. 1st Class Tommy Jamison, from Elmira, Ore., the provost sergeant for the 3rd BCT. "I've had to learn about them, but they have been great assets."

Jamison explained that the battalions in the 3rd BCT had to learn how to use the dogs on combat missions.

"They were skeptical at first," Jamison said. "The Soldiers had their TTPs (techniques, tactics, and procedures) and those needed to be changed to accommodate the dogs, so that caused some friction. It was hard to explain to leaders that the dogs needed air conditioned vehicles and tents to rest, but once they saw the benefits, everyone accommodated them."

Kinsey explained that there are limits to what the dogs can do.

"Some Soldiers have a hard time understanding that the dogs have the mentality of a four year old," Kinsey said. "When a dog is tired, they are tired. I can't tell them to suck it up and drive on. They love what they do, but they have limits."

The dog's sense of smell makes them perfect for detecting hidden contraband that Soldiers can overlook.

Miller explained that a dog can register and discern 10,000 - 40,000 scents at one time.

"The best way I can explain it is that if you were to walk into a fast food place you would smell the meat cooking on the grill and the mop bucket they are using to clean up a spill," Miller said. "A dog will smell the fat in the burger charring, the meat cooking, the sesame seeds on the buns, the pickle juice, the type of perfume the cashier is wearing and a thousand different other scents all at the same time."

That sense of smell allows dogs like Gabriel and Jim to smell a coil of detonation cord under a pile of rubble from 10 feet away.

"It takes a lot of luck and good information for the dogs to be effective," Miller said. "We have to be in an area where there is something. Sometimes things can be buried too deep or they have been moved, but the dogs are very accurate if something is there."

The accuracy of the dog's ability can be directly attributed to the training that the handlers give them on a daily basis.

"Every day is a training day," Miller said. "We conduct training as often as possible. It keeps the dogs sharp and helps us maintain our rapport with them."

That rapport is critical out in the field.

"The main thing between a trainer and a dog is their rapport," Kinsey said. "We have to notice the dog's behavior and make decisions based on that. A dog's normal temperature is between 101 and 103 degrees. If its body temperature gets up to 106, the dog starts shutting down and begins to die. Out here in the desert, that is a big risk we have to monitor."

Miller throws Gabriel's cong around a few more times before calling an end to the training session. The handler roughly shakes the dog and encourages him.

"Normally, specialized off-leash search dogs stay with the same handler their entire military career so we should be together a while," Miller said.

The 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, from Fort Benning, Ga., has been deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom since March.

Labels: FOB Hammer, heroes, Iraq, K9, military working dog, photos

Just goes to show you're never too old to make a difference....and why you shouldn't piss off senior citizens...



Thursday, 18 October 2007
Multi-National Corps – Iraq
Public Affairs Office, Camp Victory


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RELEASE No. 20071018-04
October 18, 2007

2nd BCT, 3rd Inf. Div.
Multi-National Division – Center PAO

FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU, Iraq – A 72-year-old man stopped a suspected suicide bomber from detonating himself at a checkpoint in Arab Jabour Oct. 14.

The man approached a checkpoint where Mudhehr Fayadh Baresh was standing guard, but did not make it very far.

Baresh, a tribal commissioner and member of the Arab Jabour Concerned Citizens program, said he ordered the man to lift his shirt - using training received from Coalition Forces - when he did not recognize him as a local villager.

The suspect refused to lift his shirt. Baresh repeated the command again, and the suspect exposed his suicide vest, running toward the checkpoint.

Baresh opened fire which caused the vest to detonate, killing the suspect.

“I did it for the honor of my family and the honor of my country,” said Baresh, when he met with Col. Terry Ferrell, commander of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division.

Lt. Col. Kenneth Adgie, commander of the 1st Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment presented Mudher with a battalion coin for his valor Oct. 16.



FOR QUERIES, CONTACT THE MULTI-NATIONAL DIVISION – CENTER PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE AT: MND-CENTER_PAO-AT-IRAQ.CENTCOM.MIL OR BY PHONE AT DSN 318-822-7482 OR COMMERCIAL 912-767-4114.

Labels: 3ID, Arab Jabour, FOB Kalsu, Good News, heroes, Iraq

...take this one, for instance:





Release Date: 8/21/2007
Release Number: 07-01-03P

Description: FORWARD OPERATING BASE HAMMER, Iraq - An Iraqi man saved the lives of four U.S. Soldiers and eight civilians when he intercepted a suicide bomber during a Concerned Citizens meeting in the town of al-Arafia Aug.
18.

The incident occurred while Soldiers from 3rd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, were talking with members of the al-Arafia Concerned Citizens, a volunteer community group, at a member's house.

"I was about 12 feet away when the bomber came around the corner," said Staff Sgt. Sean Kane, of Los Altos, Calif., acting platoon sergeant of Troop B, 3-1 Cav. "I was about to engage when he jumped in front of us and intercepted the bomber as he ran toward us. As he pushed him away, the bomb went off."

The citizen's actions saved the lives of four U.S. Soldiers and eight civilians.

Kane felt the loss personally because he had met and interacted with his rescuer many times before the incident.

"He was high-spirited and really believed what the group (Concerned Citizens) was doing," Kane said. "I have no doubt the bomber was trying to kill American Soldiers. It was very calculated the way the bomber tried to do it. If he hadn't intercepted him, there is no telling how bad it could have been."

Kane believes the citizen is a hero.

"He could have run behind us or away from us, but he made the decision to sacrifice himself to protect everyone. Having talked with his father, I was told that even if he would have known the outcome before hand, he wouldn't have acted differently."

Capt. Brian Gilbert, of Boise, Idaho, the commander of Company D, 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, currently attached to 3-1 Cavalry, echoed Kane's sentiment.

"I spoke with the father," Gilbert said. "He said he has no remorse in his son's death because he died saving American Soldiers."

Later that night, the Concerned Citizens group contacted the local National Police director, Lt. Col. Samir, with the location of the al-Qaeda cell believed to be responsible for the attack. The National Police immediately conducted a raid that resulted in four arrests.

Despite the citizen's death, Gilbert is encouraged by the cooperation between citizens and the Iraqi National Police.

"The effort of the Concerned Citizens group has made the area much safer," he said. "They are proud of who they are and their area, and want to get rid of the terrorists in their area."

Gilbert also praised the Iraqi National Police's role in eliminating insurgents in the area.

"The cooperation between them and the Concerned Citizens has been key," Gilbert said. "The NP has done a great job of responding to the tips they have been given by the group."

Gilbert said he believes the area is improving because of the efforts of local citizens. The death, while unfortunate, demonstrated how close many in the area have become with the American Soldiers operating there.

"I consider many in the town friends, and I know they feel the same," Gilbert said. "This is a tough situation, but we'll move on and try to prevent things like this from happening again. I've talked with his family and told them how brave their son was. This is a huge loss for everyone involved."

FOR QUERIES, CONTACT THE MULTI-NATIONAL DIVISION - CENTER PUBLIC AFFAIRS AT MND-CENTER_PAO-AT-IRAQ.CENTCOM.MIL OR BY PHONE AT DSN 318-822-7482 OR COMMERCIAL 912-767-4114.

Labels: heroes, Iraq

First Sgt. Paul T. Archie, 2nd Medical Battalion sergeant major, shakes the hands of the Marines and sailors of 2nd Medical Battalion after his Bronze Star ceremony here, July 30. Archie was awarded a Bronze Star Medal with the Combat Distinguishing Device for his concerned leadership, intense work ethic and personal fortitude, while deployed with Weapons Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment. Photo taken by Lance Cpl. Aaron Rooks, 2nd Marine Logistics Group

Read the story associated with this photo

Labels: 2-8 Marine Regiment, 2nd Medical Battalion, heroes, photos, USMC

Sgt. Isaiah Pesce, a water purification specialist (waterdog) with 215th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, checks the fuel level in his fuel tanker at Forward Operating Base Normandy near Muqdadiya, Iraq, June 29. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Ben Fox, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs)


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SR# 062907-01
June 29, 2007

By Pfc. Ben Fox
3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division


BAQOUBA, Iraq (June 29, 2007) – Waterdogs – the term refers to a group of Soldiers formally known as water purification specialists. On many military posts in Iraq, though, water and other needs are contracted out to civilians, leaving these masters of water purification to find other jobs.

On Forward Operating Base Warhorse, near Baqouba, Iraq, these Soldiers work with a liquid almost completely opposite of water – fuel.

“Back in the rear we started doing the fuel,” said Pvt. Michael Pungsujarit, a waterdog with the 215th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division.

“We didn’t know if we were going to have a water mission or not,” said Sgt. Isaiah Pesce, Pungsujarit’s section NCO.

With the training his platoon received back at home, little additional training was needed when they deployed, said Pungsujarit. His platoon consists of both fuel and water specialists.

“I got it down pretty quickly in around one to two weeks,” he said. “Besides that, it’s not hard at all to do cross training.
“It’s pretty easy, I guess, to me,” Pungsujarit said. “I don’t know about other people.

“We cross trained just to better ourselves,” said Pungsujarit.

“It gave us an advantage instead of having to learn all fresh out here,” said Pesce.
“I wish we could do the actual water job, but we don’t have a water mission out here,” he said.

“We aren’t doing any water anyway, so it’s good to help out and know more,” said Pungsujarit. “Since there’s no water we might as well just switch to fuel.”

One of the most difficult parts of the job is knowing how to take care of hazardous materials, he said.

“We just have to worry about the fuel spills… and how to clean that up,” said Pungsujarit.

A common saying in Pungsujarit’s platoon is that “fuel and water don’t mix,” but he said that the statement isn’t true.

“All of us get along,” said Pungsujarit. “We are like family I guess.”
“There is no rivalry or anything,” he said.

“Everyone does a good job,” said Pesce. “They all get along and stuff.”

There are three main aspects of fuel distribution: bulk fuel distribution, convoy, and the fuel and ammunition resupply point (FARP) where helicopters are refueled.
Pungsujarit started out at the bulk fuel distribution.

“After that I came directly to the FARP,” he said. “I haven’t had a chance to go on a convoy, but I think that is going to change.

“I enjoy the FARP because I have worked here a long time and I know it very well,” he said. “I know how to handle situations that if anything goes wrong I can fix it quickly.”

Pungsujarit said he also enjoys the FARP because he has never worked with helicopters before.

“Over here was when they first taught me how to fill up the birds,” said Pungsujarit.
“I was kind of excited the first time because I had never filled up helicopters before,” he said. “I had never been close to helicopters before.”

Pungsujarit also said that the waterdogs are making a significant contribution to the unit.

“Without us I think they (fuelers) would be undermanned,” said Pungsujarit. “We help out the platoon, and basically, the brigade.

“They would have to do a lot more work, but since the waterdogs are helping out, I think it’s good for them, too,” he said.

“I feel good that I am helping out, even if it is just a little,” said Pungsujarit.



Twisting a knob on a fuel tanker, Pfc. Javanti Banks, a water purification specialist (waterdog) with 215th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, allows fuel to flow from the truck to a collapsible fuel tank at Forward Operating Base Normandy near Muqdadiya, Iraq, June 29. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Ben Fox, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs)


Spc. Ismael Gonzalez, a water purification specialist (waterdog) with 215th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, turns a wheel to allow fuel to flow from a fuel tanker to collapsible fuel tank at Forward Operating Base Normandy near Muqdadiya, Iraq, June 29. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Ben Fox, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs)

Labels: 1st Cavalry Division, 215th BSB, FOB Normandy, heroes, Iraq, Muqdadiyah, photos, US Army, Waterdogs