“We screen claimants based upon their incident type, their claimant status—if they’re from Afghanistan or not, and what docu-ments or proof they’ve brought with them,” Bennett said. “We determine who is a proper claimant and start an investigation for them.”

“It’s a process,” Willie said.“We have to make sure the incident really

happened,” said Spc. Eunice Yi, a paralegal with 2nd Special Troops Battalion, 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div. “It involves research, a lot of phone calls, e-mails and planning.”

“It is a paralegal heavy pursuit,” Reitor said. “The bulk of the work is done by (enlisted Soldiers).”

Not all claims are deemed payable. “There is quite a substantial amount of

fraud attempted,” Reitor said.“We have to make sure the claimant brings

in all the required paperwork,” Yi said. “They have to bring in proof of residency, proof of ownership, damage estimates and photos of the damage.”

If they can’t provide all of the necessary paperwork or if the claimant is deemed at fault for the damage then the claim is denied, Bennett said.

Another reason a claim may be denied is that the damage or injury

was caused during battle. “It is cut and dry,” Reitor said. “Whatever

is from a kinetic action involving combat is battle damage; everything else is foreign claims.”

“Foreign claims are paid by us,” Yi said. “Battle damaged claims are paid from a differ-ent pot of money controlled by Civil Affairs.”

A claim can take anywhere from a month and half or more to be approved and paid.

“A lot of times we are waiting for the claimant to bring back paperwork like proof of ownership or photos of damage,” Bennett said.

Once all the proper paper work is turned in and approved, the claimant will receive an amount based on the damage.

“Pay day is my favorite part of the whole claims process,” Yi said. “Seeing the claim-ant’s face brighten up and knowing I’m doing something good for them makes the long process very worthwhile.”

“We honestly want to help and make a good impression for the Afghan people,” Ben-nett said. “It’s a goodwill mission.”

Sgt. 1st Class Buford Willie, the pay agent for 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div., signs paperwork to close out a foreign claims packet Jan. 25.

Spc. Angela Felder, a paralegal with 385th MP Bn. attached to 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div., and Sgt. Rocky Bennett, a paralegal with 1st Sqdn., 10th Cav. Reg., 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div., escort Kandahar residents through security screening Jan. 25. The men all have foreign claims and must see brigade lawyers to process their paperwork.

Spc. Angela Felder, a paralegal with 385th MP Bn., attached to 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div., hands a claimant Afghani money Jan. 25. Under the Foreign Claims Act residents receive compensation for injury or damages incurred by noncombat actions of U.S. military personnel.

Serving the Soldiers, Civilians and Families of 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div.

A goodwill mission: ‘Warhorse’ paralegals pay foreign claimsStory and photos by Sgt. Ruth Pagan2nd Brigade Combat Team PAO

Soldiers with 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, are working on

an on-going mission at Camp Nathan Smith to pay out foreign claims to the residents of Kandahar.

“The purpose of the Foreign Claims Act allows us to engage the locals who, for one reason or another, have incurred some sort of loss or damage at the hands of coalition forces,” said Capt. Scott Reitor, the foreign claims commissioner with 385th Military Police Battalion attached to 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div. “Congress understood when we’re in a foreign country, at war with some belligerent force, there’s going to be a lot of people who aren’t necessarily enemies to us who have incidental damages because of some of the activities we’re undertaking.”

When damage or injury occurs the injured person will receive a claims card.

“If an incident happens a unit is expected to give out a claims card which has the unit’s point of contact, date and time of the incident and if there was any damage,” said Sgt. Rocky Bennett, a paralegal noncommissioned officer for 1st Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div.

“On the back of the claims card it states the times and location of where to file their claim in English, Pashtu and Dari,” said Sgt. 1st Class Buford Willie, the foreign claims pay agent for 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div. “We require them to have claims card to receive pay.”

Issue 91 Feb. 18, 2012

Warhorse PridePage 2 Issue 91 Feb. 18, 2012

The Warhorse Pride is produced in the interest of the Soldiers of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division. The Warhorse Pide is an Army-funded news-letter authorized under provision of AR 360-1. Contents of the Warhorse Pride are not necessarily the view of, nor endorsed by the U.S. government, Department of Defense, Department of the Army or the 4th Infantry Division. All editorial content of The Warhorse Pride is prepared, edited, provided and approved by the 2nd Brigade Combat Team Public

Affairs Office. The Warhorse Pride welcomes articles, commentary and photos from readers. The Warhorse Pride reserves the right to edit submissions selected for the publication. All issues of The Warhorse Pride can be viewed online from your home computer at www.facebook.com/2bct4id Submissions should be e-mailed to the editor:seth.barham@afghan.swa.army.mil

Col. John S. Kolasheski...................2nd BCT CommanderCommand Sgt. Maj. Ralph Delosa..............2nd BCT CSMMaj. Kevin Toner................................................2nd BCT PAOSgt. Seth Barham..................................................PAO NCOICSgt. Ruth Pagan......................................Layout and DesignSpc. April York.........................................Layout and Design

Warhorse Pride

Reaching out to Soldiers with a touch of imagination

Pfc. Randy Smiley, a cook with Troop A, 1st Sqdn, 10th Cav. Reg., 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div., scoops up a tuna melt off the grill for a Soldier’s order.

During deployment the key to a happy Soldier is a well fed Soldier. The

Soldiers of Area Control Station 4 are very happy due to the efforts of their cooks Sgt. Wesley Holder and Pfc. Randy Smiley, both with Troop A, 1st Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division. “Being a part of food service, people will say it’s the food you prepare that puts a smile on the Soldiers’ faces,” Holder said. “For me and my Soldier, the Soldiers are a big part of our morale and well being.” Holder and Smiley serve about 100 Soldiers daily. When Holder and the Soldiers from Troop A arrived at ACS4 they decided to change the dining ambiance. “I like a home-type atmosphere,” said Holder. “So 1st Sgt. (Alex) Garcia and I walked around the area and we found two trailers sitting on-top of one another. It turns out that one of those trailers was a kitchen that ran off of 220 (watt) power. We set

the trailers side-by-side, turned one into a sanitation trailer and turned the other one into a kitchen.” “We started this process the day before Thanksgiving,” Holder said. “We gutted everything out of the trailer and we took all the equipment out of the (mobile kitchen trailer) and put it inside the kitchen trailer.” The kitchen runs efficiently and most Soldiers enjoy the set up. “We set it up like a drive-thru,” Holder said. “We put up a menu and the Soldiers come up to order breakfast, lunch and dinner. They tell us what they want and we prepare it right there, hot off the grill.” “The best part of my job is when the Soldiers come back to tell you how much they enjoyed the meal you made them,” Smiley said. Being a cook in a location like ACS4 can be challenging because supplies and variety of food choices can be limited. “Out here we just go with what we got,” Smiley said. “We just put a lot of different stuff together. This makes it more fun because you get to do what you want to do.”

Being in charge also gives them the opportunity to be customer friendly. “When the Soldiers come off of guard and there is hot soup and coffee waiting for them and they come out the next morning and say ‘Sgt. Holder that hot soup and coffee really did it for me’ that boosts my spirit,” Holder said. Sometimes being a cook can be a thankless job with long hours. “I wake up at (4 a.m.) and begin preparing breakfast, which is served between (7 a.m. and 9 a.m.), Smiley said. “Then I clean up and prepare for lunch which is served from (11:30

a.m. to 1 p.m.) After I clean up lunch then I prepare and serve dinner from (5 p.m. to 7 p.m.)” Even though the hours are long and most of the time is spent standing, Smiley loves his job. “There isn’t anything I don’t like about my job,” he said. Getting a chance to know the Soldiers on an individual level makes cooking in the field a more personable experience. “In the field environment you are with the Soldiers 365 days and you get to know these Soldiers and find out what they like and what they don’t like,” Holder said. “You become a family.” On Friday nights Holder and Smiley try to make sure their Soldiers get a big meal. “If you ask the Soldiers they would say some of their favorite meals are the chicken and cheeseburger spaghetti, cheeseburger bacon macaroni and my tamale pie,” Holder said. “The greatest part of cooking is using your imagination. If you have a good imagination you can cook anything.”

Story and photos by Sgt. April York2nd Brigade Combat Team PAO

Sgt. Wesley Holder, a cook with Troop A, 1st Sqdn., 10th Cav. Reg., 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div., flips enchiladas on the grill inside the kitchen trailer at Area Control Station 4.