Rakkasan ReviewRakkasan ReviewA monthly publication of 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault)

Volume 1, Issue 2

Rakkasan Review January 2008Page 2

Col. Dominic J. Caraccilo3rd BCT commander

Command Sgt. Maj.Gregory Patton

3rd BCT command sergeant major

Sgt. 1st Class Kerensa HardyPAO NCOIC/ editor

Staff Sgt. Tony M. LindbackJournalist

Pvt. Jack McKennaBroadcaster

The Rakkasan Review is an author-ized publication of the 3rd BrigadeCombat Team, 101st Airborne Division.It is produced monthly by the 3rd BCTPublic Affairs Office.

Contents of the Rakkasan Review arenot necessarily the official views of, orendorsed by, the U.S. Government, De-partment of Defense, Department of theArmy, or Fort Campbell, Ky.

We welcome the submission of newsitems, articles and photographs. Submis-sions should be made to the 3rd BCTPublic Affairs Office via e-mail at:rakkasanspao@yahoo.com.

Rakkasan ReviewRakkasan Review

Public Affairs StaffPublic Affairs Staff

Sgt 1st Class Kerensa HardyNew wheelsZeanib Saad Al Amary, 6, reacts to the new wheelchair he received Dec.13 at Radwaniyah Palace Complex. Zeanib is one of 15 children who re-ceived brand-new wheelchairs through Wheelchairs for Iraqi Kids. Seecomplete story on page 7.

On the cover:Santa Claus, a.k.a. Maj. Harold Riggins, made his rounds on Christmas Eveand Christmas Day in a Blackhawk instead of the traditional sleigh.

My number one concern is disci-pline. I need the noncommissioned of-ficers to enforce the standards at alltimes, in every situation - safety, pre-combat checks and pre-combat inspec-tions, operational security and keepingour Soldiers focused.

We cannot afford to lose a singleRakkasan to a preventable accident.We have had several issues with negli-gent discharges. This is a lack of lead-ership checking on Soldiers to ensurethey have properly cleared their

weapons. This failure onthe part of leaders can costus a Soldier’s life.

I want to let all ourFamily readiness groupsknow that we appreciateyour hard work and dedi-cated support. Your effortshave been a key factor inthe Rakkasans’ success sofar. The same goes for theGolden Rakkasans andeverything they do for theRakkasan team.

Finally I want to letevery Rakkasan Soldier know how

proud I am to begiven the opportunityto serve with you andto witness first-handthe incredible job youdo every day.

Your commitmentto our mission ac-complishment is thesame commitmentthat has made the187th Infantry Regi-ment one of the best-known andmost-respected in the

Army’s history. Rakkasan!

Rakkasan ReviewJanuary 2008 Page 3

Rakkasan 7 NotesRakkasan 7 Notes

Command Sgt. Maj. Gregory Patton

CSM Patton: NCOs, enforce standardsBy Command Sgt. Maj.Gregory Patton3rd BCT Command Sergeant Major

Taking control of theirbattle space has been aneasy task for the LeaderRakkasans of 1st Battalion,187th Infantry Regiment,who have had boots on theground since October, saidLt. Col. R. J. Lillibridge,battalion commander.

Part of the 3rd BrigadeCombat Team, 101st Air-borne Division (Air As-sault), 1-187th Inf. tookcontrol of the battle spacepreviously overseen by the2nd Battalion, 14th InfantryRegiment when the 2ndBrigade Combat Team, 10thMountain Division (LightInfantry) was here.

“The 2-14th conducted alot of kinetic missions in thefirst nine to 12 months theywere here,” Lillibridge said.“By the time we got here,they had started up the con-

cerned local citizens groups– security has pretty muchbeen handled by the CLCssince. That gives us the op-portunity to focus on thenon-kinetic side of thehouse.”

With the CLCs takingcontrol of the security of thearea, the Rakkasans havebeen able to focus on theother concerns of the localpopulation.

“We have been helpingto rebuild the current infra-structure – i.e. water, elec-tricity, schools, medicalclinics, and paving ofroads,” said 1st Lt. JonathanGerson of Savannah, Ga.“This has, in turn, led tomany new ideas about howto proceed in the future. Weare currently planning sev-eral projects that will impactthe economy through essen-tial services. Some of theseinclude micro-grants to fa-cilitate the rebirth of small

business in the area.” More than 2,000 micro-

grant applications have beenreceived for $2,500 or less,and approximately $6 mil-lion disbursed for CLCsalaries. Lillibridge ex-plained that putting moneyinto the populace is an in-vestment into the securityand future of the area.

“All the economicstrickles down,” Lillibridgesaid. “One of the biggest is-sues we have in this AO, aswell as the rest of Iraq, isthe unemployment issue. Ifwe can give someone a$2,500 grant to expand theirauto garage they’re going totake two apprentices on.That’s people who are nowgoing to work, vice stand onthe side of the road and notwork.”

The battalion com-mander said this processpropagates the economy.“It’s Reagan’s trickle-down

economics at its best.” Lillibridge said he sees

the improvement in the areaby the growth of businesses.All the markets in the areawere closed when he camein April for his pre-deploy-ment site survey, he said.The markets are open now,and there are one or twonew shops opening perweek.

The battalion’s AO ispredominately Sunni, withonly five percent of the pop-ulation Shia. Lillibridge saidthere have been no incidentsof sectarian violence sincethe battalion has been incountry. “The Shia herework well with the Sunni.They’re surrounded bySunni,” he said. “Other thanjust self-preservation, it’sreally in their best interest tomake things work.”

Lillibridge said he islooking forward to seeingmore growth of the area.

Leader cultivates ‘trickle-down economics’By Staff Sgt. Tony M. Lindback3rd BCT PAO

Long, 15-month deployments leavesome Soldiers in a situation of havingbetween seven and 12 months withoutbeing home.

Long periods of time between see-ing friends, family and spouses cantake its toll on those relationships.

“When walking around our battal-ion I can show you, and you can seefor yourself, marriages are being (af-fected by the long deployments),” saidChaplain (Capt.) Brian Murphy, 3rdBattalion, 320th Field Artillery. “Evenjust one deployment of over a year isgoing to have an effect on the family.That means you’re going to have to,almost, become re-married.

“I have friends who have been de-ployed several times and are goinghome with issues,” Murphy said. Hesaid that while his friends should behappy to be home, they are having is-sues and either feel like they’re notmarried or like they don’t know theperson they’re married to anymore.

“Then compound that with issuesyou had before you (deployed) that arestill there for you to return to,” thechaplain said. “You have 12 or 15months, or more, and you still have is-sues you left at home that are stillhanging out there. Yeah you can com-municate. I understand we have theinternet and everything else. We havecommunications galore at somepoints, but it’s still not being at home.It’s still not handling the issues.

“To continually expect that from

our Soldiers without giving them moretime home, without giving them theabilities to resolve issues, it’s notgoing to work,” Murphy said.

Murphy was quick to point outways married Soldiers can prevent theproblems in their marriages from longdeployments. Gestures of love such ascards, letters, flowers, e-mails, phonecalls, and small gifts can help fill whatMurphy refers to as, “the love bank.”

The Army has acknowledged thestress deployments put on marriagesand has implemented prevention andrelationship enhancement programtraining, which is communicationtraining for married couples. It’s aprogram that is meant to help all mar-ried couples, not just those experienc-ing difficulties.

“You can have a great marriageand still receive blessings from PREPbecause it teaches communication,” hesaid.

Another way Murphy said Soldierscan keep themselves from having mar-ital problems is to let expectations ofspouses and family be known.

“The most important thing is togive your expectations to your wifeand your family to make them under-stand how you feel,” Murphy said.“People are not mind readers. We’vegot to stop thinking that way, and asSoldiers, this is how we can fix things.Our spouses are not going to read ourminds. Unless we tell them how wefeel, and then hold back and let themtell us how they feel, (the relationship)is not going to get fixed.”

Murphy said people need to getpast barriers such as thinking, “Myspouse has been with me for years, ifthey love me they’ll know what Iwant.”

“Wrong,” Murphy said. “Yeah ...when you marry a person, or you’vebeen with someone a long time, youknow what their favorite ice cream is,you know what their favorite color is,you know what their dislikes and whattheir favorite movies are but you don’tknow what they’re thinking or what’sgoing through their mind at any partic-ular time. You have to communicate.

“As chaplains, we try to teach thatcommunication is going to be themajor part in deployments. Not justgetting on the phone and saying ‘Yeahthe weather’s nice here,’ and not talk-ing about the mission,” Murphy said.Soldiers should tell their spouses howthey’re doing, in general terms, andtalk to them about seemingly mundanethings, like reading a new book.

“Say any of that stuff, and youkeep that friendship going with yourspouse, that’s going to count forpoints,” he said. “The love bank isgoing to keep getting filled up. But ifyou keep taking away from the lovebank without filling it up you’ve gotnothing to go back on and it’s empty.These guys are finding out after twoand three deployments, they haven’tfilled up the love bank at all and it’sempty now. So you see adultery andall these things happening becausepeople are looking out for themselvesand not their relationships.”

Rakkasan Review January 2008Page 4

By Staff Sgt. Tony M. Lindback 3rd BCT PAO

Deployments take toll on family relationships,continue to make deposits in ‘love bank’

Chaplain’s CornerChaplain’s Corner

Got news?Send your story ideas to rakkasanspao@yahoo.com

Rakkasan ReviewJanuary 2008 Page 5

The holiday season iswinding down and Soldiersof 3rd Brigade CombatTeam, 101st Airborne Divi-sion (Air Assault), havereached a milestone butstill have a long road aheadof them.

Rakkasan Soldiers arenow entering the time ofyear there are the most sui-cides – right after the holi-days and into early spring.Chaplain (Capt.) BrianMurphy, 3rd Battalion,320th Field Artillery, isdoing what he can to pre-vent Soldiers from using avery permanent solution totemporary problems.

Murphy, from Syracuse,N.Y., gave the Army’s re-quired suicide-preventiontraining to Red Knight Sol-diers at the beginning ofthe deployment, and con-tinues to reinforce thattraining for all Soldiers atForward Operating BaseMahmudiyah before theygo on environmentalmorale leave and before re-deploying to their homestations.

“During pre-deploy-ment(Armychaplains)always givesuicide pre-ventionbriefings, andwe go prettyin-depth with

it,” Murphy said. “BeforeSoldiers go on mid-tourleave we also like to give arefresher on suicide pre-vention... Army-wide, thishas been a real issue andwe have had people tryingto take their own lives.”

There are manythoughts and misconcep-tions regarding whatcauses people to feel sohopeless that they try toharm themselves.

One of the more com-mon misconceptions is thatwinter holidays are thepeak time for suicides.

“That’s a myth,” Mur-phy said. “People tend tobelieve it’s around Christ-mas when people try tocommit suicide. It’s actu-ally January to early Springwhen it’s actually a hightime for people to attemptsuicide.

“Building up to the hol-idays a lot of people puttheir issues away. Afterthat, though, that’s whenthe bills come in. Financescause major problems inmarriages. You have issuesof depression brought onby climate changes – likehere, the colder it gets theless people want to do be-

cause it just makesyour life harder –and not staying ac-

tive can makepeople fall thatmuch deeper

into depression.”Depression and

feelings of hope-

lessness can be caused bymany things, es-pecially for de-ployed Soldierswho are facedwith beingaway fromloved onesfor long periodsof time. Fi-nances, marital is-sues, deaths offamily or friends andother compounding stres-sors are reasons Murphysaid Soldiers can slip intodepression.

“When you’re in an en-vironment like this you’refocused on your missionand you’re focused onwhat you’re doing so timegoes pretty fast,” he ex-plained. When Soldiers gohome, they slow down andrelax.

“So, when stressorscome at you while you’reat home, those stressors arecompounded,” Murphysaid. “Then, coming backhere, those stressors arecompounded even morebecause you know youwon’t be back home for an-other 12 months, possibly.

“People get to the pointwhere they start feelinglike they don’t want to dealwith things anymore andthat’s when they startthinking about hurtingthemselves,” he said.

Murphy said he hopesall leaders, battle buddiesand people at home reallypay attention to each other

during the season with thehighest suicide rates.

Keying inon changesin behavior,work per-formance,and com-ments aboutsuicide can

get help to Sol-diers before it’s

too late.“One of the things lead-

ers can do is continuallycheck the morale of theSoldiers,” he said. “We’vehad a few USO eventscome through and the guysreally like that stuff.”

Allowing Soldiers tohave down time is also agood thing. But Murphysaid it has to be given inmoderation so that Soldiersdon’t have too much timeto dwell on things likebeing away from home.

“Keep them focused onwhat they need to do,” hesaid. “If you give Soldiersdowntime to rest, but keepthem focused on whatneeds to be done, they tendnot to think about things athome.”

“We have to continuallykeep looking at morale,”Murphy said. “Soldiershave to have positive feed-back. “We do a lot of tear-ing down in the Army, butwe don’t always build backup as much as we should.Positive feedback can dowonders for Soldiers’morale.”

Be on the lookout for post-holiday bluesBy Staff Sgt. Tony M. Lindback 3rd BCT PAO

Contrary to popular belief, depression sets in after holidays pass

Rakkasan Review January 2008Page 6

The Iraqi Army has 50new Commandos to add toits rolls in the Rakkasan op-erational area.

The 50 soldiers gradu-ated Dec. 13 from the IraqiArmy’s Commando Coursein a ceremony held at theIraqi Army compound in thevicinity of Mahmudiyah,approximately 13 kilome-ters south of Baghdad.

The ceremony was at-tended by 4th Brigade, 6Iraqi Army Division Com-mander Brig. Gen. Ali,Commanding General of theIraq Assistance Group Brig.Gen. James Yarbrough, Col.Dominic Caraccilo com-mander of 3rd BrigadeCombat Team, 101st Air-borne Division (Air As-sault), and Lt. Col. WilliamZemp commander of 3rdBattalion, 320th Field Ar-tillery, 3rd BCT, 101st Abn.Div. (AASLT).

First Sgt. Edward Tusharfrom Cleveland, Ohio, saidof the graduates, “I equatethem to kind of like ourRangers. They are a littleabove the regular IraqiArmy soldier. They aretrained a little more in depthas far as actions they haveto do on the battlefield.”

The ceremony consistedof a presentation of gradua-tion certificates and theawarding of the covetedCommando tab. Followingthis indoor ceremony, thestudents conducted a skillsdemonstration similar to theRangers in Action demon-stration following the U.S.

Army Ranger School gradu-ation.

The 23-day course fo-cuses on small-unit infantryfundamentals. It includesland navigation, marksman-ship fundamentals andclose-quarters marksman-ship, close-quarters combat,fundamentals of patrolling,combat lifesaver skills, rap-pelling and fast-rope train-ing, as well as the basics ofair assault operations.

The course started with156 soldiers with mostwashing out during thephysical fitness testing andthe obstacle course.

The training is facilitatedby HHB, 3-320th FA, 3rdBCT, 101st Abn. Div.(AASLT). The Red KnightRakkasans use three non-commissioned officers to

assist the seven Iraqi ArmyNCOs. The IA instructorsprovide a majority of the in-struction with the AmericanNCOs in an overwatchmode. The plan is to transi-tion all of the instruction tothe IA with the next class.

“A lot of these guys aregoing to go back to theirunits, take the training thatthey learned here and helptheir fellow soldiers out tomake better soldiers in thebattalions,” said Sgt. 1stClass James Jorgensen,Chicago, Ill, senior instruc-tor.

Graduates areeither re-turnedtotheiroriginalunits or are

assigned to the CommandoCompany currently assistingthe Red Knights with opera-tions in the Mahmudiyaharea.

“The Commando Com-pany will be able to do a lotmore patrols on their own,enter and clear houses ontheir own and help keepAQI out of our area.” Jor-gensen said. “They are ableto support themselves.”

This was the fifth Com-mando class and the firstone facilitated by the RedKnights.

By Maj. Jason WaggonerFormer 3rd BCT PAO

50 IA soldiers graduate Commando Course

Maj. Jason WaggonerAn Iraqi army soldiers rappels during the Commando Course graduation Dec. 13 in Mah-mudiyah.

Fifteen Iraqi children can now getaround a little easier thanks to the newwheels they received at the Rad-waniyah Palace Complex Civil-Mili-tary Operations Center Dec. 13.

Rakkasan medics from 1stSquadron, 33rd Cavalry, 3rd BrigadeCombat Team, 101st Airborne Divi-sion (Air Assault) assembled the chairsthat were donated to an organizationcalled Wheelchairs for Iraqi Kids.

The wheelchairs were given to dis-abled children who 1-33rd Cav. Sol-diers encountered while conductingpatrols in their operational environ-ment. Company A, 478th Civil AffairsCompany, 3rd Civil Affairs Battalion,attached to 1-33rd Cav., coordinatedtransportation and helped fit the chil-dren with the chairs at the RPC C-MOC.

“I can’t imagine what it must belike having to carry your child aroundfrom place to place,” said Capt. JamesPhillips, 1-33rd Cav. battalion sur-geon. “I’m just glad we were able todo something to help.”

Some of the children’s conditionshave yet to be officially diagnosed, butthey all require assistance gettingaround. Without sufficient medicalcare and no means to get the necessaryhelp, the wheelchair donations were ablessing to the families of these handi-capped children.

Phillips said it was a little heart-breaking to see children who, in somecases, were teenagers and just gettingtheir first wheelchairs, but he was gladto see their quality of life improve onsome level.

“This is a great feeling that youhelp our kids,” said Ihsaa Hadi, whose13-year-old son received a wheelchair.Hadi had a hard time expressing hisgratitude and said he didn’t realize theU.S. Army could help him like this.

Noor Mustafa, 7, has limited use of

her legs. Shewas orphanedwhen her parentspassed away andis now in thecare of her aunt.“It’s a wonderfulfeeling to havethe wheelchair,”said Madoor,Noor’s aunt. “Ialways have tocarry her fromplace to placenow I have thiswheelchair.”

While givinghandicappedchildren a meansto get aroundmay seem like areward in itself,the founder ofWheelchairs forIraqi Kids BradBlauser said it’salso a means ofsupporting thetroops on theground. “I can’tprovide a wheel-chair for everychild in Iraq butI encourage theArmy to usethese for theirstrategic advan-tage … to winthe hearts and minds of the peoplewho will help (them) the most.”

In 2005, he helped get wheelchairssent to the Mosul area and said it re-sulted in less attacks on U.S. Soldiersoperating in the area.

“If you help an adult, their familyreally appreciates it,” said Blauser ofDallas-Fort Worth, Texas. “If you helpa small child it touches the heart of thewhole community.”

Two years ago Blauser had people

sending care packages and studyBibles for deployed troops, but theywanted to do more. So he went to afriend and asked what more peoplecould do. “Wheelchairs for children,we see a lot of children … who dragthemselves on the ground,” was hisfriend’s reply.

The friend, then Maj. DavidBrown, had watched an Iraqi boystruggle with a wheelchair that wastoo big and therefore useless to him.

By Sgt. 1st Class Kerensa Hardy3rd BCT PAO NCOIC

Rakkasan ReviewJanuary 2008 Page 7

Iraqi children get new wheels

Sgt. 1st Class Kerensa HardyA line of Iraqi parents stand in line Dec. 13 to get into the Rad-waniyah Palace Complex Civil-Military Operations Center to getnew wheelchairs for their children through Wheelchairs for IraqiKids.

See Wheelchairs, Page 11

Rakkasan Review January 2008Page 8

WASHINGTON - TheArmy’s assignments branchis reaching out to Soldierswho have not deployed tocombat in an effort to takesome of the strain off ofthose who have deployedmore than once.

More than half of thecurrent 522,000-plus active-duty Army force has de-ployed to combat, saidArmy Maj. Gen. Sean J.Byrne, commander of U.S.Army Human ResourcesCommand, in Alexandria,Va. Nearly a third are pend-ing deployment, are in a de-ployable unit or still goingthrough their initial training,he said.

Only 7 percent, or about37,000 Soldiers, have notdeployed and are not sched-uled to deploy, Byrne saidduring a teleconference withInternet journalists and“bloggers.” Those soldiershold “institutional” slots inthe Army at training posts,such as drill sergeants, or inrecruiting commands, hesaid.

Now, the assignmentsbranch is tracking and mon-itoring those Soldiers and,when it is practical, willswap them out with other

soldiers due for second orthird deployments.

“We are working toidentify those Soldiers whohave not deployed and de-ploy them when it makessense,” Byrne said. “As wemove these soldiers into de-ploying units, those whohave deployed can subse-quently move out. They cantake a break.”

Byrne emphasized thatmanagers will not slot Sol-diers for combat simply be-cause the Soldier has notdeployed, but that assign-ments managers will matchskills, experience and train-ing with deploying posi-tions.

“Deploying a Soldier ismuch more complex thansimply deciding that he orshe is to deploy. So we’rereaching out to those whohave not deployed, butwe’re trying to do it assmartly as possible,” Byrnesaid. “We don't place peoplein jobs they’re not trainedfor. It does the Soldier nogood, and it clearly does theArmy no good.”

Rank plays a factor inassignments, as there is agreater need for lower-rank-ing officers and enlistedSoldiers.

As soldiers are pro-moted, fewer slots are avail-

able. Soldiers’ military spe-cialty also makes a differ-ence. Some specialties areneeded stateside more thanoverseas.

Others are in higher de-mand in combat than in theUnited States.

“This is a tough issue.We’re doing everything wecan to have equity through-out the force. We’re doingeverything we can to movepeople out of formationsthat have deployed morethan once, give them achance to take and breakand move the folks into theformations,” Byrne said.“We just want to do itright.”

He said there is no spe-cific percentage that Armyofficials want to get down toas far as those who have notdeployed. It’s more an effortto make combat deploy-ments equitable across theforce.

In fact, some Soldiersmay never deploy simplybecause their job is morecritical in the United Statesrather than overseas, hesaid, citing specifically in-telligence and some medicalassignments.

He said those Soldiersstill are supporting theglobal war on terror, but are“doing it where their skills

and experiences are neededthe most.”

“Quite often the impacton the battlefield is not al-ways commensurate to theproximity of the battle-field,” Byrne said.

The HRC commandersaid he didn’t believe thosewho have not deployed areavoiding the assignments.Instead, he said many timesit is a matter of timing train-ing, assignments and de-ployments.

“I hear far many morestories about those Soldierswho want to go back a sec-ond time or a third time andbe part of the team. And Ihear very little about thosewho don't want to deploy,”he said. “There are a lot ofSoldiers who have deployedand they are fighting to getback into the fight. We tryto do the right thing for theindividual and the institu-tion.”

Infantry, aviation, engi-neer, transportation andfield artillery jobs are themost frequently deployed tocombat, Byrne said.

Soldiers wanting combattours should contact theirassignments branch, he said.They also can state theirpreference on the Army’sWeb-based assignmentsprogram.

By Fred W. Baker IIIAmerican Forces PressService

Army to tap troops not yet deployed

OPSEC: IT’S EVERYONE’S RESP

ONSIBILITY.DO YOUR PART.

Rakkasan ReviewJanuary 2008 Page 9

Company B, 626th Brigade Sup-port Battalion, 3rd Brigade CombatTeam, 101st Airborne Division (AirAssault) unveiled the Rakkasan’s firstcombat-capable fire truck during ademonstration with the Camp StrikerFire Department Dec. 28.

Company B’s service and recoverysection was asked to build a fire truckcapable of rolling out with a combatlogistical patrol in order to provide anadditional measure of survivabilityshould the need arise.

It took more than a month of plan-ning, designing, gathering and con-structing parts before Company Bofficially revealed its new rescue/ re-covery vehicle, a modified M984A1Heavy Expanded Mobility TacticalTruck wrecker.

The modification to the M984 tookless than two days to construct oncethe plans were finalized and the partswere collected. The fire suppressionsystem is welded to the top of thetruck and is about the size of an aver-

age office desk. It produces about 600gallons of foam and propels the foamnearly 75 feet under normal condi-tions.

The Assurgam Soldiers did nothave a system like this in place untilnow. Several models were reviewedbefore the final design was selectedand construction began.

Staff Sgt. James Hartleib fromMinot, N.D., the S&R noncommis-sioned officer in charge, oversaw anexpert team of welders to accomplishthe task. Using pieces that were read-ily available, the S&R section tookparts from the Defense Reutilizationand Marketing Office on Camp Lib-erty and combined them with a scrapturret to create the sophisticated top ofthe truck. “We just took what we couldget and made what you see out of it,”Hartleib said.

By using a vehicle that is alreadypart of the recovery team, Co. B isable to keep additional Soldiers off theroad while still utilizing the recoveryaspects of the wrecker vehicle.

The mission of the fire truck is to

suppress a fire on a convoy vehicle toaid in the extraction of personnel. Thisadds a whole new level of protectionto the Soldiers going outside the wireon CLPs.

“If a truck catches on fire from anIED, we can knock the flames downenough to get in there and get our guysout,” said Spc. Jacob Fountain fromWoodbury, Tenn., the driver of themodified M984 and a mechanic in Co.B.

This doesn’t make the Bushmasterwrecker crew firefighters, but it doesmake Co. B a more capable recoveryasset. The Soldiers have developed atraining plan and are currently cyclingSoldiers through training to producethe best-trained recovery team possi-ble. The unit is already planning tobuild three more fire suppression vehi-cles to make this asset available for theCLPs.

The fire truck demonstrationproved it is a tremendous asset for Sol-diers on the road and that Co. B’s S&Rteam is trained and ready for any re-covery mission.

By 2nd Lt. Johnathan Thompson626th Brigade Support Battalion

Assurgam troops build combat fire truckModified HEMMT transformed into more capable recovery asset

Capt. Allison FlanniganSoldiers from Company B, 626th Brigade Support Battalion test their recently unveiled combat-capable fire truck during a demon-stration Dec. 28 at Camp Striker.

Rakkasan Review January 2008Page 10

Staff Sgt.Tony M. LindbackThis might sting...Steelville, Penn., native Capt. David Howald, officer in charge of government projects for 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Ar-tillery, celebrates the new year with an anthrax vaccination courtesy of Pvt. Alex Craig, a combat medic with the 3-320thFA, originally from Whibdey Island, Wash. Make sure all your immunizations stay current by reviewing your immunizationrecords or talking to unit medical personnel.

Sgt. 1st Class Kerensa Hardy

VIP visitColonel Dominic J. Caraccilotalks to retired Gen. Barry R.McCaffrey during a visit toParol Base Kemple Dec. 8.The general got a tour of therecently completed patrolbase and a briefing by Lt.Col. Andrew Rohling, com-mander of 3rd Battalion,187th Infantry, and Capt.Terry Hilderbrand, com-mander of Company A, 3-187th Inf. The group alsowalked to one of the check-points manned by concernedlocal citizens in Owesat.

Rakkasan ReviewJanuary 2008 Page 11

My New Year’s resolution is...“... to do my job and relax a bit,but mostly to go home alive.”

Sgt. Jun LeeHeadquarters and Headquarters Battery,

3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery

“... to be more patient with my co-workers.”

Capt. Ronan Kennedy Headquarters and Headquarters Company,

1st Battalion, 187th Infantry

“... to work diligently at being ascool as my S1, Capt. Palmer.”

Master Sgt. A.M.JohnsonHeadquarters and Headquarters Battery,

1st Squadron 33rd Cavalry

“... to quit smoking.”Spc. Jessica A. Foreman

Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 626th Brigade Support Battalion

“He wanted to be able to help the boybut he didn’t know how,” Blauser said.“I put an e-mail out and within 30days we had 31 kids’ wheelchairs onthe ground.”

And with that, Wheelchairs forIraqi Kids was born. Wheels for theWorld, Wheels of Love and Reach Outand Care Wheels, along with individ-ual contributors, are responsible forthe success of Blauser’s brainchild.

The chairs handed out Dec. 13were sent by www.ROCwheels.org, anorganization that makes specialtyhigh-quality pediatric wheelchairs de-signed for use in developing nations.

Blauser, who is the Kellog, Brown& Root theater safety manager forLeir Seigler, Inc., has been in Iraq forthree years and says his work here isnot done. To date, he has been the im-petus for 250 wheelchairs, 4,500 studyBibles and 1,500 care packages thathave been sent to Iraq.

Realizing that he won’t be in Iraqforever, Blauser said he wants to con-tinue supporting the troops any way hecan – the wheelchairs are just one av-

enue. “There is so much good thatcould be done here, I honestly don’tknow how I can go home,” he said.

To learn more about Blauser’s ef-forts go to the following website:supportingtroops.blogspot.com.

WheelchairsFrom Page 7

Sgt. 1st Class Kerensa HardyIhsaa Hadi holds his son Du'aa, 13, who has cerebral palsy, as they wait for a newwheelchair Dec. 13 at the Radwaniyah Palace Complex Civil-Military Operations Cen-ter to get new wheelchairs for their children through Wheelchairs for Iraqi Kids.